Difference between living and tasting the sweetness of faith: 

 Dear brother, we are in the lesson no. 29 of the series “Truths of faith and miraculousness”, and today we will talk about few noble As7adeth about (Iman)faith:

((Whoever possesses the following three qualities will taste the sweetness of faith))

[Agreed upon, by Anas]

 Faith comprises facts and sweetness:

((The one to whom Allah and His Apostle become dearer than anything else. The one who loves a person and he loves him only for Allah's sake. And the one who hates to revert to disbelief (Atheism) after Allah has brought (saved) him out from it, as he hates to be thrown in fire.))

[Agreed upon, by Anas]

 Namely, upon gaining the sweetness of faith, you will be living a unique status, through which you will be drawn to a different personality, as you will enjoy being nearer to Allah. You will acquire stability, you will gain strength, you will have loftiness, and you will have a solid ground through which you won’t compromise, take sides, or please anyone (against your principles).
Tasting the sweetness of faith leads to knowledge, and this is why the noble companions sacrificed the souls and the worthy, and the precious and the cheap for the sake of tasting this sweetness.
 Tasting the sweetness of faith will give you a strong hint of how Islam reached far lands in the east and west.
 Tasting the sweetness of faith will make you pretty sure that no elapsed lust can renounce this sweetness.
 Hence, man will be honored because of this sweetness which fills his heart with ecstasy.
 On the other hand, the facts about faith contains accurate pieces of information, which are supported by ayat and authenticated As7adeth, however, you don’t live them in your daily lives. You should know that there is a big difference between living the sweetness of faith and tasting it, and between comprehending faith and tasting its sweetness.

The sweetness of faith is the greatest concept in Islam:

 This is why the prophet PBUH informed us about the costly price of this sweetness, he said:

((Verify, Allah’s commodity is priceless, Allah’s commodity is Paradise))

[Al Hakem, by Abu Hurairah]

 The price is:

((The one to whom Allah and His Apostle become dearer than anything else))

 It means that Allah is dearer to us through His Quran with all the prohibited and permissible matters it contains, and the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, through His Sunnah with all the prohibited and permissible matters it contains.
 When you prefer obeying Allah and pleasing him to your interests that require your disobedience, you will taste the sweetness of this faith. Though the price might be high, you will be pleased and happy by the results. This is life; everything has a price.
 Let me give an example; a doctor who occupies a high position at the university, teaches there for few hours and get high salary for his job, is someone who has been working for thirty three years to get the position he has. He has been paying the price of such high salary for thirty three years.. Therefore, everything in this life has a price.
The sweetness of faith is the essence of Islam.
 Such sweetness makes you solid, self-confident, courageous, strong, happy and satisfied with Allah. 

Indications of drawing close to Allah:

1- To love Allah and the prophet PBUH more than anyone else:

((Whoever possesses the following three qualities will taste the sweetness of faith. The one to whom Allah and His Apostle become dearer than anything else))

 When you choose Allah in the occurrence of contradiction between your short-run tangible interests and the religious text, the Divine order, and the Divine prohibition, you will taste the sweetness of faith. Hence, going against your interest for Allah's sake might be the first price for the sweetness of faith which leads to knowledge.
 I am not asking you to try it, but all I am saying is to start, to conciliate with Allah, and to control your desires, your sight, your hearing, your tongue, your income and your affairs. Furthermore, be keen on making all the above accords go hand in hand with the Divine method. Will you tell me about your feeling when you do all these things" Faith is when you have a kind of a transcendental feeling, through which you draw nearer to Allah.

2- Loyalty and renouncement:

 The second price is:

((The one who loves a person and he loves him only for Allah's sake))

 The price is to love sh3er, to hate sh3er, to keep in touch with sh3er, to break up with sh3er, to be pleased with sh3er and to be angry of sh3er for the sake of Allah.
 Having done all these things, you will be a true believer, as all your affairs will be based on pleasing Allah the Almighty:

((Whoever possesses the following three qualities will taste the sweetness of faith. The one to whom Allah and His Apostle become dearer than anything else))

 When your priorities are pleasing Allah and the Prophet and working according the Qur’an and Sunnah, you will prefer working according to them to your worldly interests. Only then you will be a true believer who does not care about the worldly life..
 It was reported that our Master Abu Bakr Assiddeeq never regrets missing anything in this life.

((The one who loves a person and he loves him only for Allah's sake))

 The contemporary term f is “Loyalty and renouncement” i.e. to be loyal to believers despite their poverty and weakness, and to renounce Kuffar and Mushrikeen (Atheists and polytheists) despite their wealth and power.

3- To hate to revert to disbelief as he hates to be thrown in fire:

  The third price is: 

((And the one who hates to revert to disbelief (Atheism) after Allah has brought (saved) him out from it, as he hates to be thrown in fire.))

 When your faith is very strong, you will never revert to your status before believing. You will realize the meaning of worshipping Allah and being close to Him.
 We pledged the prophet PBUH to obey him in our prosperity and adversity, and in hardship and relief.
 The believer always sticks to his strong faith in wealth and poverty, in marriage and celibacy, in success and failure, in health and sickness. The prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

((Whoever possesses the following three qualities will taste the sweetness of faith The one to whom Allah and His Apostle become dearer than anything else. The one who loves a person and he loves him only for Allah's sake. And the one who hates to revert to disbelief (Atheism) after Allah has brought (saved) him out from it, as he hates to be thrown in fire.))

[Agreed upon, narrated by Anas]

Loving each other for the sake of Allah is the core of Tawheed:

 Dear brother, here is another Hadith which supports the aforementioned ideas. The prophet PBUH said:

((If anyone loves for Allah's sake, hates for Allah's sake, gives for Allah's sake and withholds for Allah's sake, he will have the perfect faith.))

[Abu Dawood, narrated by Abi Umamah]

 Our Master Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "Shirk is more hidden than a black ant creeping on a black stone in the middle of a moonless night. The least of al-Shirk is to love oppression and to hate justice." Listen to this example; when you have a friend who does not pray and he is tyrant, oppressor and is not committed to Islam, yet you love him because you benefit from him, you are Mushrik. Your behavior is a kind of Shirk.
 You are Mushrik if you hate someone who dares to give you a piece of advice. Notice that although the price you pay to taste the sweetness of faith is costly, its results are fruitful, and the proof is in the above mentioned Hadith:

((If anyone loves for Allah's sake, hates for Allah's sake))

 These ideas support the argument about the difference between the love for the sake of Allah, and the one that is associated with Allah’s love. The former is the Tawheed, whereas the latter is the Shirk.
 Loving for the sake of Allah is when you love Allah and His messenger. Consequently, you will love all the companions, the followers of them, the followers of the followers, the active knowledgeable people, the devoted scholars, the houses of Allah (Masjeds), the Book of Allah (Qur’an) and all the believers. However, associating someone with Allah means you share your love for Allah with people who went astray. You love them those people for business. Therefore, love for the sake of Allah is the Tawheed,, and the love that is shared with Allah’s love is the

The believer is controlled by his faith:

 Dear brother, the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said in one of the As7adeth that revolve around faith,

((Faith leashes killing, and he, who believes, would never kill))

[Ahmad, by Ibn Al Zubair]

 Do you think that a believer would kill people" Would ruin sh3er" Would destroy them" Would harm them" These things contradict the believer’s faith; your faith prevents you from killing anyone:

((Faith leashes killing, and he, who believes, would never kill))

 The Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings, said in one of his instructions,

((Do not befriend but a believer, nor should other than a Taqi (pious person) eat your food))

[Abu Dawood, Tirmizi, Ibn Habban, Al Hakem, as narrated by Abi Saeed]

 A believer might wrong you, but will never destroy you, defame you,, or smash you. He will never harm anyone, because his faith is very strong, and he fears Allah. You can trust the person who fears Allah:

((Faith leashes killing, and he, who believes, would never kill))

 A man said to Umar, "O prince of believers, do you like me"" Umar said, "No by Allah. ", tThe man said, "Would your hatred prevent you from giving me my rights" Umar said, "No by Allah, (your rights will be served to you)". Then the man said, "Then only women are harmed by hatred. I t does not matter for me whether you love me or not as long as you are just. "

The gist of faith is to love for sh3er what you love for yourself:

 Dear brother, these As7adeth show the truth of faith, which is our topic in this lecture, but on the other hand, they also set up very accurate standards for you to work according to. One of those As7adeth is the following:

"The servant does not reach the reality of [or true] faith until he loves for the people what he loves for himself of goodness."

[Abu Ya’la, Ibn Habban, as narrated by Anas]

 I once visited someone who owns a soft drink factory. He served us fresh fruit juice, and said,“I never drink my own product (the soft drink).”How do you dare to sell your products to people then" These soft drinks are merely chemicals, Saccharine, and they lack natural substances in them.
 Such behavior is really a big problem; one of us should wish to people what he wishes for himself by all means.

"The servant does not reach the reality of [or true] faith until he loves for the people what he loves for himself of goodness."

 You shouldn’t sell sh3er what you despise to eat, and you shouldn’t give it to sh3er either. If we had loved to give sh3er what we like for ourselves, life would have been better for all of us.:

"The servant does not reach the reality of [or true] faith until he loves for the people what he loves for himself of goodness."

 It is fine to sell cheap goods (but not bad goods) to people who have limited income. Those people prefer cheap goods, for they suit their income. They will be very careful with these goods, so they last for a long time. You cause no harm to middle class people, when you sell them cheap goods. These goods are not bad and they are perfect to their income. However, it is unacceptable in Islam to cheat on someone and sell him low quality goods for a very high price:

"The servant does not reach the reality of [or true] faith until he loves for the people what he loves for himself of goodness."

 All of these As7adeth are standards for you:

((A man asked the prophet PBUH, he said: what is faith" The prophet PBUH said: “If you are upset with your shortcoming, and you are pleased with your good deed, you will be a believer”))

[Ahmad, as narrated by Zaid Bin Salam]

 When you feel happy by performing r your acts of worship in the proper way, helping other people,, understanding Allah’s Book (Quran), reciting it, and when you feel guilty by turning away from all of these good deeds, then definitely you are a true believer:

(( “If you are upset with your shortcoming, and you are pleased with your good deed, you will be a believer”))

((What is sin" He said: “It is that which creates doubts, so leave it))

[Ahmad, as narrated by Zaid Bin Salam]

 It is a sin, and anything that you can’t share sh3er with is a kind of sin. The Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said in another hadith:

((Whoever longs to taste the sweetness of faith, should (in case of loving a person) love him only for Allah's sake))

[Ahmad, as narrated by Abu Hurairah]

 Let all your relations and affairs be for the sake of Allah; when you love, when you hate, when you bond with someone, when you break up with someone, when you are satisfied and when you get angry.

What should we do to rejuvenate our faith"

 Dear brother, pay attention to this following fact: “Faith wears out inside one of you”, therefore, you need to rejuvenate your faith, and charge it periodically. Some people are heedless of taking care of their faith, as they are touched only on occasions,; they may be touched in a wedding ceremony when a scholar gives an impressive speech (i.e. accidentally touched). The believer, on the other hand, charges his faith periodically, so he will be carrying out the words of the prophet PBUH when he said: Faith wears out in side one of you (It becomes weaker by time), and in another Hadith:

((Rejuvenate your faith))

[Ahmad, by Abu Hurairah]

 One can rejuvenate his faith by reflecting on the creation of heavens and earth, by reciting Qur’an, by reading Sunnah, by pondering over the prophetic biography, by doing good deeds and by performing supererogatory acts of worship (Nawafel).

 I repeat once again:

((Faith wears out inside one of you like an old dress, so ask Allah to rejuvenate faith in your hearts))

 And in another Hadith:

((Rejuvenate your faith))

[Ahmad, as narrated by Abu Hurairah]

 I repeat; rejuvenating your faith can be accomplished by performing your acts of worship properly, doing good deeds, performing supererogatory acts of worship and reciting Qur’an. Having done all this things, you will revive your faith.

Al Tawheed (monotheism) is one of the requirements of faith:

 Tawheed is one of the requirements of faith which is indicated by the prophet PBUH when he said:

((For everything there is a truth, and you will never taste true faith until you know that whatever afflicts you would not have missed you, and whatever has missed you would have never come to you.))

[Ahmad and Tabarani, as narrated by Abu Al Darda’a]

 The Arabic word “Lao” (If only) has no place in the daily life of the believer, so he will never utter it:

((…do not say: 'If I had taken this or that step, it would have resulted into such and such,' but say only: 'Allah so determined and did as He willed.' The word 'if' opens the gates of satanic thoughts))

[Muslim, as narrated by Abu Huraira]

 A believer should never say “Lao” (if only), however, some scholars said that this word can be used in certain cases. They indicated that the word “Lao” is used in a positive sense. For example, a man earned his money illegally and one day this money was perished by Allah. He would feel sorry for what he did, saying, 'If only (Lao) I had not taken money, Allah would have never perished it. ' The use of 'if only' is acceptable in such cases:

((…Do not say: 'If I had taken this or that step, it would have resulted into such and such,' but say only: 'Allah so determined and did as He willed.' The word 'if' opens the gates of satanic thoughts))

 But you can say: Lao (if only) I had not committed that sin, Allah would have never afflicted me with this hardship, therefore:

((For everything there is a truth, and you will never taste true faith until you know that whatever afflicts you would not have missed you, and whatever has missed you would have never come to you.))

[Ahmad and Tabarani, as narrated by Abu Al Darda’a]

 This is the true Tawheed:

((For everything there is a truth, and you will never taste true faith until you know that whatever afflicts you would not have missed you, and whatever has missed you would have never come to you.))

 When you believe that everything happened because of Allah’s will, everything will happen because of Allah’s will, and that Allah’s will is based on a profound absolute wisdom that is related to the absolute goodness, you will be able to realize the true faith

The greatest faith is to be pretty sure that Allah is watching you:

 I would like to tell you one more thing: The highest level of faith is gained when you believe deeply that Allah is always with you, and that He is watching you the prophet PBUH said defining faith:

((It is to worship Allah as if you are seeing Him; and although you do not see Him, He sees you))

[Muslim, Abu Dawood, Tirmizi, and Al Nasa’ee, as narrated by Abudullah Ibn Umar]

"So invoke not with Allah another ilah (god) lest you be among those who receive punishment. And warn your tribe (O Muhammad) of near kindred. And be kind and humble to the believers who follow you. Then if they disobey you, say: "I am innocent of what you do." And put your trust in the All-Mighty, the Most Merciful, Who sees you (O Muhammad) when you stand up (alone at night for Tahajjud prayers). And your movements among those who fall prostrate (along with you to Allah in the five compulsory congregational prayers). Verily! He, only He, is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower."

[Ash-Shu’ara, 213-220]

 Dear brotherس, let me repeat what I have said earlier. These Ahadeth have indications; one of it gives you a clear definition of faith, and the other one indicates the standards which we should work according to in our daily lives. Are you working according to these standards" Do you give for Allah’s sake" Do you keep away from what is prohibited" Do you please Him by applying Islamic teachings" Do you keep in touch with sh3er for Allah’s sake" Do you break up with sh3er for His sake" I hope that you consider these As7adeth the motives, standards and the facts which you work according to.

 Each one of you should have Sahih Sunnah’s book (a book of authenticated As7adeth) in order to study them. You may also categorize them to make a method for his religious call.

 Dear brothers, this is the lecture before the last one of the series “The truth about faith and miraculousness”.

Scientific topic:

Embryology:

 Let us move to the second part of this lecture, which is about miracles.

 Dear brothers, there is a new science called “Embryology” which revolves around studying the embryo in the mother’s womb. Science has been progressing lately, so doctors and scientists can film the evolution and growing of embryo in the womb in all its stages.. There are x-rays of it in its third week, after 21st days, in its fourth week, in its fifth week and in its sixth week. A sixth week embryo is what I am going to focus on.

 Do you know what it looks like" Its nose is connected to the mouth and the eyes, the hand is like a little oar and the head is adhered to the torso. All these things can be seen in the very beginning of the sixth week. Once this week is over, the head will be separated from the torso. The eyes, the nose, the mouth, the hands and the legs will be featured. These things will be seen clearly at the end of the sixth week. The week is seven days, so when we multiplying six by seven, the result will be forty-two:

((When forty-two nights have passed over the drop (Nutfah), Allah sends an angel to it, who shapes it and makes its ears, eyes, skin, flesh and bones. Then he says: ‘O Lord, is it male or female"” And your Lord decides what he wishes and then the angel records it. Then he says: “O Lord, how long will it live" And your Lord decides what he wishes and then the angel records it. Then he says: O Lord, How about its sustenance" And your Lord decides what He wishes and then the angel records it, finally the angel ascends to heaven with what was written in his hand without adding or omitting any of it))

[Agreed upon, as narrated by Abdullah Ibn Mas’ood]

 How on earth could the prophet PBUH, who lived 1400 years ago, know that, given there were no universities, laboratories, anatomy, experiments or medical schools. Listen to what he said:

((When forty-two nights have passed over the drop (Nutfah), Allah sends an angel to it, who shapes it and makes its ears, eyes, skin, flesh and bones))

[Agreed upon, as narrated by Abdullah Ibn Mas’ood]

 We can categorize that under the accordance between embryology and the prophetic Hadith. This Hadith gives us a strong proof of the prophecy of the prophet PBUH.

Allah’s Might in creating the human being:

 Allah said:

"Nor does he speak of (his own) desire. It is only an Inspiration that is inspired."

[An-Najm, 3-4]

 In another topic, the prophet PBUH said:

((Not out of all the semen a child is formed, and if Allah willed to create something nothing would stop him from doing it))

[Agreed upon, as narrated by Abu Sa’eed Al Khidri]

 What is indicated in science It is indicated that the number of the sperms in the semen is about 300 million sperms that are ejaculated in one intercourse. Other studies have indicated that the number varies between 300 and 500 million sperms, hence the minimum number is 300 million. Every sperm has a head, neck and a tail. It swims in a nutrient liquid which facilitates its movement. All these sperms are headed to the egg to be fertilized by only one of these sperms, because the prophet PBUH said:

((Not out of all the semen a child is formed))

 How on earth the prophet PBUH knew that fact" Studies referred to the fact that only one sperm out of the 300 million sperms fertilizes the egg. This is exactly what the prophet PBUH meant when he said:

((Not out of all the semen – i.e. man’s semen- a child is formed))

 How did the prophet know this fact" From which laboratory he got his information" From which research he knew that fact"
 When the sperms approach the egg cell, the latter chooses only one of them (the strongest and the fastest). How does this sperm enter the egg cell" It is a miracle how this happens; as the sperm collides with the membrane of the egg cell, the sperm’s membrane will rupture. Beneath the membrane there is a sticky substance that is similar to the substance in the cornea. It resembles it in the way it gets its nutrition (through osmosis). This substance is located at the head of the sperm and is covered with a membrane that is similar to the cover of the cornea. When it collides with the membrane of the egg cell and the sperms membrane is ruptured, the sticky substance dissolves the egg cell membrane, making a path for the sperm in the process, then it closes up. Thus, among the 300 million sperms, only one manages to enter the egg.

Our body contains programmed genetics that are activated at certain stages:

 The egg cell can barely be seen; it is as small as a speck of salt. If you want to know how small the speck of salt is, you can lick the top of your finger and let it touch the salt to see how much salt will cover the top of your finger. You can see the size of the salt speck and the egg cell by a magnifier.. However, it is impossible to see the sperm by the naked eye, so you need a Microscope to see it. The sperm consists of a head (in which there is a membrane and a sticky substance), a neck and a tail. The neck has a device that is similar to an engine. It helps the tail move and consequently the sperm moves as well:

"This is the creation of Allah. So show Me that which those (whom you worship), besides Him have created"

[Luqman, 11]

  This sperm is merely a cell which contains a nucleus, plasma, and membrane. The nucleus of both the sperm and the egg cell has genes, or genetic chromosomes which are referred to by scientists, and which are more than millions pieces of information in one sperm.
 These chromosomes are programmed to do functions in the human body. For example, when a young boy turn eighteen, his voice gets croaky; this means that there is a piece of information in the body which can be activated at the age of 18. Hence all the genes are pieces of information that are activated and act at certain stages and under certain circumstances. 

Allah’s miracles in creating the human being:

 This unseen fertilized egg cell begins dividing rapidly into many cells on its way to the womb, and it is divided 10 thousand times without getting bigger. O Allah what an incredible fact it is;

"So let man see from what he is created! He is created from a water gushing forthProceeding from between the back-bone and the ribs, Verily, (Allah) is Able to bring him back (to life)!"

[At-Tariq, 5-8]

"Verily, We have created man from Nutfah drops of mixed semen (discharge of man and woman), in order to try him, so We made him hearer, seer."

[Al-Insan, 2]