Praise be to Allah, the Lord (The One and Only) of the Worlds, and blessings and peace be upon our Master Muhammad, the Faithful and the Honest.
Believers' top characteristic is believing in Ghaib (the Unseen)
Dear noble brothers, we start with the first Qudsi Hadith that is reported in Sahih Bukhari:
(( Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "Allah, the Exalted, has teams of angels who go about on the roads seeking those who remember Allah. When they find some people remembering Allah they call to one another and say, 'Come to what you are looking for'; and they surround them with their wings till the space between them and the lowest sky is fully covered. Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them (although He is best informed about every thing): 'What are my slave saying?' They say: 'They are glorifying Your Tasbih, Tahmid, Takbir, Tamjid, (i.e., they were declaring Your Perfectness, praising, remembering the Greatness and Majesty of Allah).' He asks: 'Have they seen Me?' They reply, 'No, indeed, they have not seen You.' He asks: 'How would they act if they were to see Me?' Thereupon they reply: 'If they were to see You, they would engage more earnestly in worshipping and glorifying You and would extol You more.' He would say: 'What do they beg of Me?' They say, 'They beg You for Your Jannah.' Allah says, 'Have they seen My Jannah?' They say, 'No, our Rubb.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see My Jannah?' They reply, 'Were they to see it, they would more intensely eager for it.' They (the angels) say, 'They seek Your Protection.' He asks, 'Against what do they seek My Protection?' They (the angels) say, 'Our Rubb, from the fire of Hell.' (He, the Rubb) says, 'Have they seen the fire of Hell?' They say, 'No. By Your Honour, they have not seen it.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see My Fire?' They say: 'If they were to see it, they would more earnest in being away from it and fearing it. They beg of Your forgiveness.' He says: 'I call you to witness that I hereby grant pardon to them and confer upon them what they ask for; and grant them protection against what they seek protection from.' One of the angels says: 'Our Rubb, there is amongst them such and such slave who does not belong to the assembly of those who are participating in Your remembrance. He passed by them and sat down with them.' He says: 'I also grant him pardon because they are the people by virtue of whom their associates will not be unfortunate'." ))
[ Agreed upon, on the authority of Abi Huairah ]
Dear noble brothers, what is the top characteristic of the believers? It is their belief in Ghaib (the Unseen). They have never seen Allah, Exalted and Sublime be He, but they know Him through the universe, and so they believe in Him without seeing Him. Also, they have never seen Jannah (Paradise), but because Allah the Almighty has told them about it, they believe in it. Furthermore, they have never seen Hell-fire, but Allah the Almighty has told them about it, so they believe in it. The more immoral the thinking of man is, the more he deals with things using his senses, and the more transcendental his thinking is, the more rational with things he becomes.
Dealing with things rationally lets man know about them before he could even reach them. Unlike the believer, the Kafir (disbeliever) lives in the present moment, surrounded with his present environment and reality.
The Kafir lives in the present moment whereas the believe seek what comes after death:
Allah, Exalted and Sublime be He, has created weaknesses in man for his own advantage. For instance, He the Almighty has created man to be ever hasty, in the sense that he likes things to be done at once, he likes to enjoy himself at the moment, he likes to take money and collect it even if it is earned illegally only to live in the present moment pleasantly. However, the believer works for the Hereafter, and he believes in Ghaib. Furthermore, he turns away from the worldly life although it is charming and fascinating. He seeks the Hereafter which requires striving and working hard. Allah the Almighty says regarding this point:
﴾ Who believe in the Ghaib… ﴿
Imagine that a cyclist drives his bike on a flat road, and then he encounters two roads; the first is an ascending road, and the second is a descending one. The cyclist prefers the descending road and he is comfortable with it, since it is paved and surrounded with trees and colorful flowers. In contrast, the ascending road is exhausting, it has humps, potholes and dirt. According to the human nature of the cyclist, he is expected to take the descending road, which is easier and smoother, and to get away from the ascending road. However if a sign at the intersection of the two roads says, "This descending road ends with a terrifying hole where there are monsters that devour whoever falls into the hole, while the ascending road ends with a great palace for whoever enters it", you should make your decision according to the sign.
You will definitely choose the ascending road with all the difficulties it has. This is exactly the difference between the choice of the Kafir and the choice of the believer. The Kafir chooses to enjoy himself in the present moment and to fulfill his pleasures in the worldly life. Unlike him, the believer seeks the Hereafter. It is said, "The wisest among you is the one who remembers death the most, and the firmest among you is the most prepared one for death. Verily, prudence lies in turning away from the adornments of the worldly life, seeking the endless abode (the Hereafter), performing good deeds for dwelling in the grave, and getting well-prepared for the Day of Resurrection."
The believer seeks the Hereafter:
Dear noble brothers, pay attention to the following Hadith, please:
(( Shaddad bin Aws (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "A wise man is the one who calls himself to account (and refrains from doing evil deeds) and does noble deeds to benefit him after death; and the foolish person is the one who subdues himself to his temptations and desires and seeks from Allah the fulfillment of his vain desires". ))
[ At-Tirmithi, on the authority of Shaddad bin Aws ]
There is an example that I mentioned in many previous lectures, and I would like to repeat it because it fits the subject of our lecture today. The bus that goes to some neighborhoods of Damascus is used to start its journey from the city center to its direction towards the east, and then it will turn to the west in order to reach its destination. Accordingly, the seats in the right side of the bus are hot due to the sunlight facing them, whereas the ones in the left side have shade, but afterwards, things will be reversed, because the bus will turn around and keep heading towards its final destination. The wise are those who will choose to have their seats in the right side, because they know that after few minutes they will have shade, while the unwise will choose their seats in the left side, because they think of the present moment, forgetting that the bus will turn around, and the sunlight will face their seats till they get to their destination. Moreover, they will laugh at those who will choose the right side, but they will be shocked when things are reversed, and this is actually the whole story of life (it is about making the right choice).
This is the core issue of life; it is about choosing either to enjoy the worldly life or to enjoy the Hereafter. The believer believes in the Hereafter, so he fears to disobey Allah the Almighty in the worldly life, and he restricts his desires to be within the limits set by Shari'ah rulings, because he believes deeply in the following Ayah:
﴾ "That which is left by Allah for you (after giving the rights of the people) is better for you… ﴿
The Kafir, on the other hand, unleashes his lusts, lives in the present moment, and fulfills both the permissible and the impermissible pleasures.
The believer's belief in Ghaib:
What comes when man's life is over is mentioned in the following Ayaat:
﴾ And the stupor of death will come in truth: "This is what you have been avoiding!" ﴿
﴾ (It will be said to the sinners): "Indeed you were heedless of this, now We have removed your covering, and sharp is your sight this Day!" ﴿
The Qudsi Hadith, I have mentioned earlier can be summarized in one Ayah in Allah's Book:
﴾ Alif-Lam-Mim. [These letters are one of the miracles of the Qur'an and none but Allah (Alone) knows their meanings]* This is the Book (the Qur’an), whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are Al-Muttaqun [the pious and righteous persons who fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden) and love Allah much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained)]* Who believe in the Ghaib… ﴿
The believers believe in Allah the Almighty although they do not see Him. In fact, the universe, the Quran and the Prophets, peace be upon them, have guided the believers to believe in Allah, Exalted and Sublime be He.
The believers believe in Jannah although they have not seen it yet, and they seek refuge in Allah from Hell-fire although they have not seen it either. In brief, the believer believes in Ghaib.
The Hadith, I have mentioned at the beginning of this lecture, has another narration in Sahih Muslim. Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, said:
(( Allah has angels who travel around to a great extent looking for meetings where remembrance is being made of Allah… ))
[ Ahmad, on the authority of Abi Hurairah ]
This is an assembly, insha' Allah, in which Allah is remembered. Pay attention to this Hadith, please:
(( Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "People will not sit in an assembly in which they remember Allah without the angels surrounding them, mercy covering them, and Allah mentioning them among those who are with Him." ))
[ Muslim, on the authority of Abi Hurairah ]
These angels seek the assemblies in which Allah the Almighty is remembered:
(( …And when they find a meeting where this is being done they sit with them and surround one another, with their wings so as to fill the space between them and the lowest heaven. When the people separate they ascend up to heaven, and Allah who knows best asks them where they have come from. They reply, "We have come from Thy servants on the earth who are extolling and magnifying Thee, declaring Thy unity, praising Thee and making request of Thee." He says, "For what are they asking me?" and they reply, "They are asking Thee for Thy paradise." He asks whether they have seen His paradise, and when they reply, "No my Lord." He asks how they would act if they had seen His paradise. They say, "They are also seeking Thy protection." He asks, "From what are they seeking my protection?" and they reply, "From Thy fire." He asks whether they have seen His fire, and when they reply that they have not, He asks how they would act if they had seen His fire. They say, "They are also asking Thy forgiveness," to which He replies, "I have forgiven them, given them what they have asked for, and protected them from what they sought protection." They say, "My Lord, so and so, a sinner, is among them, who just happening to pass by sat down with them." He replies, "Him also I have forgiven. They are the people by reason of whom their associate will not be miserable." ))
[ Muslim, on the authority of Abi Hurairah ]
Believing in Ghaib is the price for Jannah:
The first Hadith I have mentioned in the lecture was reported by al-Bukhari, and the second one was reported by Muslim, but the main point of both narrations is that believing in Ghaib is the price for Jannah. If man were able to see Jannah and Hell-fire in the worldly life, he would definitely choose Jannah, but he will not be in an exalted rank as he will when he believes in it without seeing it. Choosing tangible things is what animals do, while the true believer chooses the things Allah the Almighty tells him about even if he cannot see them, because he believes in Allah and this is what makes him exalted in Allah's Sight. Hence, the price for Jannah is to believe in Ghaib. Allah the Almighty says:
﴾ Who believe in the Ghaib and perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat), and spend out of what we have provided for them [i.e. give Zakat , spend on themselves, their parents, their children, their wives, etc., and also give charity to the poor and also in Allah's Cause – Jihad, etc.]. ﴿
Well, he who laughs in the worldly life (who enjoys the worldly pleasures, forgetting about death and the Hereafter) laughs temporality, but he will be miserable permanently (in the Hereafter), whereas he who laughs in the Hereafter laughs permanently, and he will never be miserable. Your success lies in laughing last (in the Hereafter). Allah the Almighty says:
﴾ Verily! There was a party of My slaves, who used to say: "Our Lord! We believe, so forgive us, and have mercy on us, for You are the Best of all who show mercy!"* But you took them for a laughingstock, so much so that they made you forget My Remembrance while you used to laugh at them!* Verily! I have rewarded them this Day for their patience, they are indeed the ones that are successful. ﴿
[ Al-Mu'minun, 109-111
]
In another Ayah, Allah the Almighty says:
﴾ But this Day (the Day of Resurrection) those who believe will laugh at the disbelievers. ﴿
The blessed end is what matters:
Dear noble brothers, the blessed end is what matters. Allah the Almighty says:
﴾ …And the (blessed) end is for the Muttaqun (pious)." ﴿
[ Al-A'araf, 128
]
What matters is what happens after death, and this is referred to by Imam Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, who said, "Richness and poverty are (determined) after standing before Allah (for judgment and accountability)." Accordingly, what makes some one rich or poor is his good deeds in the worldly life, not his wealth. In other words, his richness and poverty are evaluated by the good deeds he has performed in the worldly life.
