The one who stands against the truth is the most miserable person:

 Dear brother, we are still tackling the topic of estrangement which is related to the series of lectures "Ways of Attainment and Signs of Acceptance.

 Umar Ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, headed once to the Masjid of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, and he found Mu'adh bin Jabal sitting by the Prophet's grave and crying. Umar asked him "Why are you crying?" To which Mu'adh answered: "Because it came to my mind a Hadith in which I heard from the Messenger of Allah, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, saying:

((The least (degree) of hypocrisy is shirk.))

[Al-Hakem, by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 Hypocrisy is leaving a deed which pleases Allah in order to please people:

((Shirk is more hidden than a black ant creeping on a black stone in the middle of a moonless night, and the least of it is to like someone although he is unjust and to hate someone because of his justice.))

[Al-Hakem, by Aishah, the Mother of Believers]

 Hating a righteous person for giving you a piece of advice, and you buttering up someone who does something against Allah because flattering him is for you favor, is considered polytheism (Shirk).
 The Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

((The least (degree) of hypocrisy is shirk and whosoever shows hostility to the Awliya (ones close to Allah) of Allah will vie with Allah in belligerency.))

[AlHakem by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

  Let me tell you the following: whoever stands against the truth is the most miserable man on earth, and he is the one who wage war against Allah and His Messenger:

((Surely, Allah loves the Abrar (the dutiful).))

[Al-Hakem by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 Abrar is the plural of Bar; the Bar is the person who is dutiful and obedient to Allah the Almighty. The child who is Bar is the dutiful one to towards his parents; who offers them support, and he is the opposite of the undutiful child. Hence, the believer who is Bar is the obedient one.

((Surely, Allah loves the pious hidden Abrar (the dutiful).))

[Al-Hakem by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 They are pious and they keep low profile. Some people are well-known and sh3er are not, and Allah loves those who are obscure if they are pious. Verify, whoever knows himself will not be harmed by what people say about him:

((Seek exaltedness in Allah's Sight.))

[Ibn Udai in Al-Kamel by Ibn Umar]

((Surely Allah loves the pious hidden Abrar (the dutiful) who are not missed when they are absent))

[Al-Hakem by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 If the pious obedient slave of Allah is absent, his absence will not be noticed by people, b because they don't know him in the first place (he never shows off).

((… and when they show up they are not be recognized. Their hearts are light of guidance and they come out of every dark land.))

[Al-Hakem by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 The dark land is a reference to a society which is dark, heedless, and deviated from Allah. It is a society where oppression, lusts and sins prevail, and the man who is mentioned in the previous Hadith comes out of this bad deviated and heedless social environment.

 I was told that a man who owned a night club had a daughter. He would give his daughter a million after another if she needed money without even being asked why she wanted the money, but she believed that the money of her father is Haram, so she worked as a teacher in the suburb, lived in a house by her own and earned her living..

Being with the minority of believers or being with the majority of disbelievers:

 Esteemed brother:

((Surely Allah loves the pious hidden Abrar (the dutiful) who are not missed when they are absent, and when they show up they are not be recognized. Their hearts are light of guidance and they come out of every dark land.))

[Al-Hakem by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 A young believer may come out of the society which is degraded, hypocrite, oppressing, heedless, materialistic and a slave of its own lusts instead of being a slave to Allah. Thus, be a stranger in such a society, be with the obedient believing minority, not with the sinning infidel majority and be with the minority who know Allah, not with the majority who deviate from Allah.

 In this lecture we will go on talking about estrangement.

 Narrated by Abi Umayyah Al-Sha'bani, he said: ''I came to Aba Th'alabah AlKhashni and said to him: 'What will you say about this Ayah?' He asked: "Which Ayah?' 'I said: Allah says:

(O you who believe! Take care of your ownselves, [do righteous deeds, 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)]. If you follow the right guidance and enjoin what is right (Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do) and forbid what is wrong (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden) no hurt can come to you from those who are in error)

[Al-Ma'idah', 105].'

 He said: 'Let me tell you that you have asked an expert of the interpretation of this Ayah' [This Ayah is very famous and it might be misinterpreted], for I asked the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, about it, and he said:

((Enjoin one another to do what is Ma'roof and forbid one another form doing what is Munkar. If you find compliance with stinginess, following whim, worldly life most preferred, and self-complacency, be responsible only for yourself…))

[Tirmizi and Abu Dawood by Abi Tha'labah Al-Khushani].'

 It is a detestable materialism that makes someone sell his religion for a false oath and few worldly goods:

((If you find compliance with stinginess, following whim,))

 Illicit affairs:

((worldly life most preferred, and self-complacency,))

  Every person acts as if he is the center of the world:

They said: 'This is unacceptable to us'.
Well, who are you to say "to us"?
***

 Someone thinks that he is a legislator, so he says: 'I am not convinced with this Divine command'. Well, who are you? A Divine man? The Creator of heavens and earth sent a book (the Noble Quran), and sent a Messenger who is the Master of mankind and the beloved to Al-Haq (Allah) in order to interpret this book, yet you say you are not convinced:

They said: "This is unacceptable to us."
Well, who are you to say "to us"?
***

((self-complacency))

 Are not these the characteristics of our societies?

When corruption prevails mind your own business:

((Enjoin one another to do what is Ma'roof and forbid one another form doing what is Munkar. If you find compliance with stinginess, following whim, worldly life most preferred, and self-complacency, be responsible only for yourself…))

[Tirmizi and Abu Dawood by Abi Tha'labah Al-Khushani]

 Care for yourself means to take care of your family, neighbors, friends, brother in faith, relatives and colleagues at work, and turn away from the common people, for in the coming time, there will be days of patience in which the patient believer will be as the one who holds the live coal. [On a day when the believer's heart will melt because of what he witnesses and being incapable of changing anything. If he speaks out, he will be killed, and if he keeps silent, he will be seized.] In these days, the good-doers will have the reward of fifty men of you". They said: "The reward of fifty men of them?" He, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

"The reward of fifty men of you, because you find who helps you do the good, while they will not."

[Tirmizi and Abu Dawood by Abi Tha'labah Al-Khushani]

 What are supposed to be Islamic households, are the very ones in which parents raise hell with their young son if he lowers his gaze or refuses to attend gatherings where men and women are mingled. Where are the young women, who expose their body, come from? They come from these Islamic households. Does not a father see his daughter dressing up indecently? Does not a mother see her daughter dressing up indecently? The Prophet, may  Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

((Seek exaltedness in Allah's Sight))

[Ibn Udai in Al-Kamel by Ibn Umar]

Success lies in being accepted by Allah:

 Pay attention to the following Ayah:

(Verily, The Muttaqun (pious), will be in the midst of Gardens and Rivers (Paradise)* In a seat of truth (i.e. Paradise), near the Omnipotent King (Allah, the All-Blessed, the Most High, the Owner of Majesty and Honour).)

[Al-Qamar, 54-55]

 Success lies in having a seat of truth near Allah, in being accepted by Allah and in being pleased with by Allah:

(Is then he who is a believer like him who is Fasiq (disbeliever and disobedient to Allah)? Not equal are they?)

[As-Sajdah, 51]

(Or do those who earn evil deeds think that We shall hold them equal with those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) and do righteous good deeds?)

[Al-Jathiyah, 21]

(Shall We then treat the (submitting) Muslims like the Mujrimun (criminals, polytheists and disbelievers, etc.)?* What is the matter with you? How judge you?)

[Al-Qalam, 35-36]

(Is he whom We have promised an excellent promise (Paradise), which he will find true, like him whom We have made to enjoy the luxuries of the life of (this) world, then on the Day of Resurrection, he will be among those brought up (to be punished in the Hell-fire)?)

[Al-Qasas, 61]

Muslims are strangers in this world:

 Dear brother, we have different levels concerning the estrangement of Muslims. The first level is that Muslims in general are strangers amongst people on earth How? There are 450 million people worship cows instead of Allah in India. If a cow wants to cross a street all people and cars should stop for it, because it is considered a god. Also, if it enters a grocery, it can eat fruits as much as it wants, and the grocer will be very happy for that. Sometimes the dung of the cows is put in guestrooms. 350 million people in north India don't believe that Allah exists. The majority of the European countries are atheist. They kill peoples, destroy their countries and kill the children and women. They are atheist, and they worship their own power. Do not you think that Muslims are strangers among those people? There is a country where rats are worshiped. They have temples for their own; in each temple there are about ten thousand rats, and people invoke them. Moreover, some people worship stones and other people worship the moon or the sun. Do not you feel that Muslims are estranged in this world? I admit that we Muslims have committed many mistakes, but do we dare to commit a genocide against an entire people in cold blood? Do you know that the civilian death toll in Iraq may top 1 million? Do you know that five million people became homeless and one million became disabled in order for freedom and democracy to be established? Is that acceptable? All these things make Muslims strangers in this world.

((…On a day when the believer's heart will melt because of what he witnesses and being incapable of changing anything))

[Tirmizi and Abu Dawood by Abi Tha'labah Al-Khushani]

 About 33% of the illicit affairs in Europe are incestuous. Can you imagine a father having an illicit affair with his daughter or a brother with his sister? I seek refuge with Allah against such a sin. Does not this make us strangers?

 An Italian minister stated that he was gay in an official statement,, and the Secretary of State for Health in the UK, said that he was gay, Furthermore, when a farewell party was held in the capital (Washington DC) of one of the most powerful country in the world for one of her ambassadors, he attended it with his same-sex spouse. The same-sex marriage is legalized in the west, so are not we, as Muslims, strangers in this world?

 A Muslim young girl in France put a scarf on her head, but all the west raised hell with her, so do not we look like strangers? Yes, we, Muslims, are strangers in this world.
 The believing pious and the knowledgeable are strangers among believers:

 The second level is that the honest pious believer is a stranger amongst Muslims. You may know a Muslim who was raised up by Muslim parents, prays the five prayers, performs Hajj and Umrah and pays Zakat, yet his household, his job, his spending and his social relations with people are not Islamic. Hence, the pious righteous believer is a stranger amongst Muslims.

 The third level is that Ahl Al-Elm (people of knowledge) are strangers amongst believers, Allah says:

(and taught you that which you knew not. And Ever Great is the Grace of Allah unto you (O Muhammad PBUH).)

[An-Nisa', 113]

 People of knowledge know the purpose of their existence. They know their Lord, they are devoted to Him, they obey Him, they approach Him, they serve his creations and they have message in life to convey to sh3er. I have noticed that people in the west have no message in life, and all they care about is food and sex. A westerner lives an animal-like life; he goes to sleep like an animal at the end of the day which he spends having no idea about the right the wrong, the good and the evil. Unlike him, the Muslim -in the developing countries strives to guide people to the right path, offers night prayers, goes to the Masjid, does his best to call people to Allah and attends religious sessions. The Muslim has a message in life which he should convey to people. Hence, Ahl Al Elm are strangers amongst believers. The difference between the believer and the Muslim is that the believer is upright, while the Muslim is the one who belongs to Islam:

(The bedouins say: "We believe." Say: "You believe not but you only say, 'We have surrendered (in Islam),' for Faith has not yet entered your hearts.)

[Al-Hujuraat, 14]

 The Muslim is whoever belongs to Islam, and he was raised up by Muslim parents, whereas the believer is whoever acts upon Allah's Order. As for the knowledge seeker, he was granted the greatest blessing (knowledge): (and taught you that which you knew not. And Ever Great is the Grace of Allah unto you (O Muhammad PBUH).)

 Thus, people of knowledge are strangers amongst believers.

The more you exalt the fewer the likes of you are:

 We move to another level. Sunni people who follow the Sunnah and are aware of all its details and all the innovations and inclinations are considered strangers amongst Ahl AlElm. The Prophet,, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, is a stranger amongst believers:

((I am not like you. I spend the night while my Lord provides me with food and drink)).

[Muslim and Ibn Khuzaimah, by Abi Hurairah]

((If you knew what I know you would laugh little and weep much))

[AlHakem by Abi Aa-Dard'aa]

 When the believer, who is lofty and is a knowledge seeker, and his surroundings are fine, he says: Al Hamdulillah (praise be to Allah). He cares about those who are around him, while the Prophet,, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, used to care about all mankind.

 I would like to pay your attention to the fact that the more you exalt, the fewer the likes of you are. Concerning this point, life looks like a prism which is wide in its base, but it becomes narrow when you go up to the top. I hope that every believer is on top:

(While he [Jibrael (Gabriel)] was in the highest part of the horizon,)

[An-Najm, 7]

((Almighty Allah loves the lofty and noble deeds and hates the shameful ones.))

[At-Tabarani by Sahl bin Sa'd]

((Whoever is worrying about the hereafter, Allah will put prosperity and satisfaction into his heart, and pull himself together, and the worldly things will come easily to him. And whoever is worrying about this (donia), Allah will make his poverty in front of his eyes, tear him apart, and he will not get anything more than what was destined for him.))

[Tirmizi by Anas]

((O My slave, I created the heavens and earth for you, and I did not get tired while creating them, how could I get tired by sending you a loaf of bread from time to time? My right upon you is to perform the obligation I ordained, and your right upon Me is to get provision. If you abstain from performing My obligation, I will not abstain from sending you provision. By My Exaltation and Highness, if you are not satisfied with what I decreed for you, I will make the worldly life against you. Thus, you will pursue it like a beast in the wild, and at the end you will get but what I decreed for you, and you will be disgraced in My sight. O My slave, You want, and I want, but be certain, nothing will happen, unless I want. If you obey Me in what I want, I will give you what you want.. If you don't obey Me in what I want, I will make you struggle in what you want… At the end, nothing will happen, except what I want.))

[Narrated as a tradition]

There is no estrangement between believers:

 Dear brother, believers have a way to vent since there is no estrangement between one another. Regarding this point Allah says:

(And keep yourself (O Muhammad PBUH) patiently with those who call on their Lord (i.e. your companions who remember their Lord with glorification, praising in prayers, etc., and other righteous deeds, etc.) morning and afternoon, seeking His Face, and let not your eyes overlook them, desiring the pomp and glitter of the life of the world)

[Al-Kahf, 28]

(and let not your eyes overlook them)

 Some people attend parties where men and women are mingled, songs are sung and jokes are told, and they are pleased with that saying, 'We had fun':

(and let not your eyes overlook them desiring the pomp and glitter of the life of the world, and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless of Our Remembrance)

[Al-Kahf, 28]

 The meaning of "We have made heedless" in (Arabic language) is: We have found them that way. For example, when someone says: 'I dealt with those people and I did not make them cowards', he means that he did not find them cowards. Another example, when someone says: I dealt with those people and I did not make them misers, he means that he did not found them misers:

(and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless)

 The precise meaning is "he who is heedless":

(and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless, one who follows his own lusts and whose affair (deeds) has been lost.)

[Al-Kahf, 28]

 Hence:

((Verily, there may be a disheveled, dusty person who, if he swears an oath by Allah, Allah will fulfill it.))

[Al-Hakem by Abi Hurairah]

((Verily, there may be a disheveled, dusty person...))

[Al-Hakem by Abi Hurairah]

 Dusty here means that this man is not white but dark or colored:

((Verily, there may be a disheveled, dusty person wearing two shabby clothes and is neglected, but if he adjures Allah, Allah will certainly give him what he desires.))

[Al-Hakem by Abi Hurairah]

 It was narrated in the tradition that the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, over-welcomed a Companion and he said to him in the following Hadith:

((A person came to the Prophet,, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, so the Prophet said to him: ''let me welcome the one whom Jibrael told me about his coming.'' The man asked: "Did Jibreal told you told about me? Jibrael?" The Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said to him: "Yes, brother he did. You are one low profile person on earth but a beacon in Allah's Sight".))

[Narrated in tradition]

 Estrangement is a grace if you are with the minority of honest believers:
 Hence:

((Seek exaltedness in Allah's Sight.))

[Ibn Udai in Al-Kamel by Ibn Umar]

 You may know a Kafer about whom the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said:

((Beware of the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between it and Allah))

[Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawood, Tirmizi and Nasa'i by Abdullah bin Abbas]

 Allah might answer the supplication of the oppressed Kafer (atheist):

((Beware of injustice, for injustice will turn into darkness on the Day of Resurrection))

[Tirmizi, Ibn Habban and AlHakem by Abudullah bin Amr bin Al-A's]

 As for the case of the believer, the Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, said in the following Hadith:

((''Shall I not inform you about the people of Jannah?'' I said, "Yes." He, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him said, "It is every person who is, modest and humble (before Allah), a person who is accounted weak and is looked down upon, and he wears two shabby clothes and is neglected, but if he adjures Allah, Allah will certainly give him what he desires."))

[Ibn Majah, by Mu'adh bin Jabal]

 Even if you are not well-known, nor the centre of attention, and you keep a low profile:

((A person might be with shaggy and dusty hair, wearing two shabby clothes and is neglected, but if he adjures Allah, Allah will certainly give him what he desires.))

[Tirmizi by Anas bin Malik]

 Estrangement nowadays is a blessing as long as you are with the honest minority of believers. In other words, as long as you do not help sh3er in their evil conspiracy aiming at impoverishing, misguiding, corrupting, humiliating and annihilating Muslims, you will be one of the kings of the Hereafter. In such a case, estrangement is considered a grace, not an affliction.

In worldly measures compare yourself with those who are below you:

 There are instructions which you should follow: Compare your status with those who live in a lower social class than yours in order to treasure Allah's blessings upon you. Also, comparing your health condition with those who are afflicted with intractable diseases in hospitals helps you appreciate Allah's blessings upon you. Some people said: "Whoever visit the rich, goes out of their property displeased with Allah." Someone may visit a house which costs 180 million liras, and its furniture costs about 50 million liras, whereas he lives in a -sixty meter square- basement. This is the worldly life.

 Some people visited our Master Abu Ubaidah bin Al-Jarrah to find out that he lived in a room where there was only a water pot with a loaf of bread on it. He was sitting on a buckskin and his sword was hanged on the wall, so they were surprised, and they asked him: 'What is this?' To which he said: 'These are worldly goods to help us maintain our life, and they are more than enough for what the worldly life worth." Thus, the heedless one who pays a visit to rich people, who lack faith, who turn away from Allah's right path, who boast about what they have and who break the hearts of the poor by their arrogance, will come out from their property displeased with Allah. The Prophet, may Allah have peace and blessings upon him, addressed Aishah saying:

((O Aishah, If you want to hasten in following me, be content with little provision of the worldly life; take of it only as much as a traveler need, don't befriend rich people, and don't give away an old dress before you mend it.))

[Tirmizi by Aishah the Mother of Believers]

 Compare yourself with those who belong a lower social class than yours in order not to scorn Allah's graces upon you:

((Whosoever begins the day feeling family security and good health; and possessing provision for his day is as though he possessed the whole world.))

[Bukhari, Tirmizi and Ibn Majah by Abdullah bin Mohsen]

 A king asked his minister: "Who is the king?" He answered: "You, your majesty! There is no king but you." Then, the king said: "The real king is someone we don't know, and he doesn't know us. He owns a house where he dwells, a sustenance which suffices him and an obedient wife. If he knows us he will make every effort to please us, but if we know him we will make every effort to humiliate him."

 In terms of worldly life, the king is the man who owns a house where he dwells, a wife who pleases him and enough income. In terms of the Hereafter, on the other hand, befriend the whoever is more pious and knowledgeable than you. Some scholars said: "Don't befriend the person whose religious status doesn't help you draw closer to Allah, and whose words don't guide you to Allah. Concerning worldly matters, compare yourself with those who belong to a lower social class than yours, but as for the matters of the Hereafter, compare yourself with those who are more pious than you.