{فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬اۖ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ }
To what do we assign the term ‘disease’ or ‘sickness’? To something which spreads uncontrollably in the body – that is sickness. In other words, there is a normal state, and if the equilibrium of that normality is upset, whether positively or negatively, then sickness is present in the body. This is the normal understanding, that when the sickness goes beyond the normal state, then it is called a sickness, or a disease, or being unwell. So the definition of sickness is that something occurs, a condition or a state, which gets out of control, or which cannot be stopped or cured; and then the terminology of sickness or disease is applicable. And if you ignore that sickness or disease, then it will continue to spread, to the extent that it may have the consequence of total loss and destruction.
So this is for the bodily, physical sicknesses, and the Qur’an says the same thing. {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬} – this is the Qur’an saying this. It is not me saying it, nor the Hakeem or the physician or the doctor or the surgeon, whose opinion can be rejected; but nobody can reject Allah’s statement. Allah says {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬ا}. Allah says that there is a disease in the heart, in the Baatin, in the inner self, in the soul; there is a sickness in the heart which Allah ta’ala has said is severe. Just like there is a bodily sickness, the inner disease is related to the heart. So you may say that the condition or the definition is the same, but this is an internal disease. So in the same way, the disease of the heart, the spiritual disease, if we look at it closely, in detail, in order to understand, if we don’t look after this properly or control it, then that is also a disease that will increase and spread and get worse. As it gets worse and worse, just like the physical bodily sickness gets worse, in the same way, the consequences of the internal diseases, the sickness of the heart, also get worse – they are actually worse than the physical sicknesses. So if we don’t look after the body, if we say that someone has tuberculosis, or that there is a heart attack, or that the kidneys have failed etc – physical sicknesses - like Coronavirus, which is a fresh sickness, the nature of which Allah knows best, but we know that it is a sickness, a reality. It is a bodily sickness, and we see it spreading; in the same way, the sickness of the heart, the disease of the heart, the inner sickness, the spiritual sickness, which has a link with the heart, that is also spreading in the same way.
If we look at conditions like Shirk and Nifaq and other sins that lead to loss, the same reason is present. When sickness comes to a person’s physical body, if he doesn’t look after it, take care of it, that sickness spreads, increases, and gets worse. Similarly, the heart needs to be looked after and protected. And as it increases and gets worse, this sickness of Nifaq, which is a spiritual disease, an inner disease, a Baatini disease - this will give loss to a person.
There are many physical sicknesses and deficiencies, and when an illness starts, then the doctor analyses and looks into that person’s state. He says ‘What are your symptoms?’ ‘Well, I’ve got this symptom at this time – I get thirsty, I have a pain in my stomach, I have pain elsewhere.’ ‘Ok, it looks like you have this sickness – these are the effects, the symptoms, the outward signs of this sickness.’ They diagnose in this way. Similarly, with the sickness of Nifaq, Allah ta’ala explains the signs and symptoms of Nifaq, of hypocrisy, in the Qur’an. And that’s what the Qur’an is explaining in detail here.
We have been discussing the three groups: the Mu’mins – the believers; those who don’t have faith; and the Munafiqs. Allah ta’ala explains how the disease or sickness of Nifaq arises, and what is its effect. Alhamdulillah, we have the knowledge, and there are people who are listening today, people who are following, who have good understanding, people of wisdom, and they will appreciate that Allah ta’ala has rewarded us with this knowledge. So we should understand it, and analyze ourselves internally and do Muhasabah. We should ask ‘Is this symptom present inside me? Is this deficiency present inside me?’ just like we do for Coronavirus. What are the symptoms for Coronavirus? If a person gets a persistent cough and a high fever, people say ‘Ah, he’s got Coronavirus,’ and then the treatment starts, because the persistent cough, together with high fever, are the symptoms unique to Coronavirus, along with other symptoms that have been shared, like loss of taste etc.
Allah ta’ala says that Nifaq is a disease related to the Hereafter, to loss in the Hereafter. So what are the symptoms that you can see or feel, so that a person can find out if there is Nifaq present? Sicknesses, when they start, brew and spread and get worse. Regarding Nifaq, Allah ta’ala says that the illumination and the quality of the heart - that heart into which Allah ta’ala has put a lot of status, potential and power – that Noor, if the heart is protected, if it is strong and protected, then the function of that Noor, and the status of such a heart, is that it happily absorbs Allah ta’ala’s words, orders and commands, and those of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and accepts them. This is the sign of the heart of the Mu’min. Now if Nifaq comes into a person, the first sign is that individual will reject the commands, the Ahkam, the orders of Allah. He will show dislike for the Commands of Allah. He will say ‘I don’t like it, I don’t agree with it’, and then he will start to find hardship in practice, and gradually, na-oodhu bi’llah wa nastaghfiru’llah, he will hate and dislike Allah’s orders. And then a worse phase of the disease comes, which ingrains that dislike into the heart, and thus he becomes a Munafiq.
So the quality and capacity of the heart - which is where Nifaq starts - the qualities of the heart, its light and beauty, starts to diminish and change. My brothers, when a person starts to feel these negativities and this darkness in the heart, thinking ‘Allah’s orders are in front of me, and Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah and Sunnah, but my heart is rejecting Allah’s order.’ The Sunnah and Shari’ah of Nabi al-Kareem sallallahu alayhi wasallam confirms Alla’s orders – this is how they have to be implemented, confirming and giving detail to the orders. So if in our hearts there is dislike for the orders of Allah and for the commentary and practice of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam on the orders of Allah, and if there is distaste and stubbornness and opposition to that, then Nifaq does another action. It puts a veil over the reality. Nifaq hides and buries the reality of the Deen inside the heart, it buries the reality of the practice of life. Nifaq, hypocrisy, buries this. So then a game is played out: externally, I seem fine to everyone, but I bury my enemy within my heart!
This is the reality of Nifaq that then becomes visible and apparent. When a person goes into deep Nifaq, proper hypocrisy, the worst form of Nifaq, then you will see that externally, he will have the physical practice of Deen, like a Mu’min. In external A’maal, he will be ahead of everybody, at the front of the pack; but whenever the Shari’ah or Sunnah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam is discussed, especially and specifically his Sunnah, then opposition comes out straightaway. Now he has protected his Nifaq with his external deeds, hiding his Nifaq in all his external deeds, so that there is no doubt about his reputation as being good; he takes refuge and protection in this practice. But he opposes with all his might, by not accepting, by rejecting the Deen of Allah. So verbally he accepts, but practically, he says ‘No, no, this is not the case, this is not necessary; we don’t need to go into these details. What we are doing is enough – we don’t need to go into these (so-called) minor matters.’
In regards to such a person, Allah subhana wa ta’ala says {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬}. Allah ta’ala says that when Nifaq comes into the heart, {فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬ا}. Allah says that in their hearts is a disease, and that person’s disease is multiplying by his continued opposition to Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. As he continues to reject, oppose and disregard Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah, then that disease takes a grip on that person’s heart, and multiplies and grows, and hatred develops in his heart for Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Deen, for Sunnah and Shari’ah, for his beautiful Sunnah. {فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬ا} Allahu Akbar – Allah ta’ala says that the disease will multiply, and the individual becomes more staunch and arrogant and against the Deen. And then Allah ta’ala says {وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ} – a painful doom is theirs, { عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ}. When a person gets to this state, his condition becomes such that he does external deeds, worship, prayers, he gets status and recognition in the world, he does everything, and is recognized as being a pious and righteous worshipper, spending in the way of Allah, doing this and that – but Allah ta’ala says ‘This is not the reality.’ The reality is that so much disease and sickness has spread in his heart that he merits not just punishment, but { عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ}, a painful punishment, as Allah ta’ala says. Nobody can plumb the depths of how painful it will be, but Allah ta’ala has defined it a such. May Allah ta’ala forgive! May Allah ta’ala protect! This is an Ajeeb, unique condition, Allah ta’ala says.
And then, Allah ta’ala goes on to say {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}. The painful doom is theirs, why? {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ} They weren’t just deceivers and tricksters, they have yet another title – they were Kaadhiboon, liars. Allah says that a painful doom is theirs because they lie. How do they lie? They used to do Takdheeb {يَكۡذِبُونَ}. And what did they lie about? Who did they lie against? Why did they get this title {يَكۡذِبُونَ}? When you see their external practice, their Salah, their physical worship, their recitation of Qur’an, their lifestyle and condition – you see these practices in people of all ranks and statuses. Ignorant people, ‘Alims, Qaris, this and that – Nifaq can be found in all grades and statuses of people. Why? Because Allah ta’ala has given us the tool by which to measure Nifaq. Allah ta’ala says {يَكۡذِبُونَ} – they are liars.
And how are they liars? If a person, for example, says ‘You are lying!’ to someone who has ‘Ilm, knowledge, and looks like a worshipper, what makes them dishonest in their ‘Ilm or in their Tasawwuf? How have they lied? In reality, their worship and practice is not what it seems – they are from the {يَكۡذِبُونَ}. We can’t say that they have lied to Allah, because they are reading Qur’an, they are praying Salah – we can’t say that he is lying to Allah. He is praying, he is worshipping, he’s doing ‘Ibadah. So how can we say he is lying? But he is! How is he lying? They lie against the way of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam - they lie against him and about him! Allah ta’ala hasn’t taken the responsibility onto Himself. Alla ta’ala says ‘They think they are worshipping Me, but they have no connection with Me, with their ‘Ibadah, with their ‘Uloom, with their knowledge and their technical points.’ The value of their ‘Uloom, their ‘Ilm, their practice, and their worship will be there if they loved and accepted and embraced the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Their ‘Ibaadat and worship will become Noor and light, but everything that they are doing is Takdheeb, it is a lie. Who are they lying against? The Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, because they are not practicing in accordance to the Shari’ah and Sunnah. So their Thaahiri, external, ‘Ibadah is not accepted. Allah ta’ala rejects it and says that they are liars. Their Salah is a lie, their worship is a lie.
So what we realise is that Insaan, the human being, is deceiving himself. Allah ta’ala says that they deceive themselves. They argues that ‘I pray Salah, but I don’t accept the Shari’ah and the Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. I don’t embrace that, because it is too hard and difficult for me, and it is not necessary in this day and age. I disagree that I have to practice, because it is an obstacle in the path of my progression and advancement. It is too difficult for me - it is an obstacle and a barrier.’ We have to see that those people have been defined as Kaadhiboon, liars, because all external ‘Ibaadaat must be implemented in accordance with the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah and Sunnah. And if they are not, then they are doing Takdheeb on the Shari’ah and Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and due to this, their worship is a lie, their practice is a lie, everything that they are doing is a lie – whoever is doing this or saying this, it is a lie.
Allah ta’ala has made one standard, one standard practice, which is the Shari’ah and Sunnah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And I explained the Hadith yesterday where Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam said ‘Everybody will go to Paradise except for those who refuse. And who are those who refuse? Those who reject the path, those who do not adopt my path, those who don’t obey me, who don’t follow me. These people have refused.’ The Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam has defined this. So the truth is that the success criteria for all ‘Ibaadaat is that they must be in accordance to the Sunnah and Shari’ah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and not rejecting that, or opposing it. So Allah ta’ala said that those who do not do this are liars; the Munafiqs are liars if they don’t do this, SubhanAllah.
And another point that arises here is that it is one thing to be a Munafiq, Kaadhib, or liar, and another thing to be sinful. There is a difference, remember this. So hypocrisy or lying is different from sinning – remember this point, because people mix up these two issues. So who is a person who has Nifaq, who rejects, and who is a sinner? If we take one person, alhamdulillah, he accepts the Shari’ah and does Amal on the Shari’ah, and he accepts the Sunnah, and he practices on the Sunnah, and he doesn’t say ‘This is hard for me, difficult for me’, or that ‘It is too hard to practice the Sunnah and Shari’ah in this day and age’; and he doesn’t say ‘Where is it written?’ or ‘It’s impossible’, or ‘These people have made these things up’, or ‘These Hadith are just minor matters and we don’t have to practice upon them.’ The sinful person doesn’t say these things. He accepts Shari’ah and Sunnah, and he practices upon these things, and accepts and embraces wholeheartedly. Therefore he becomes a Mu’min – anyone who does that is a Mu’min.
Now if such a person, who accepts and practices, stumbles and commits a sin – and a person can commit a sin, sins do occur – then he won’t become a Munafiq, because he accepts Shari’ah and is happy with it, and embraces the Sunnah and is happy with it. But, as happens with human beings, Nafs and shaytan are with us, and of course it can happen that a person commits a deed which is against Shar’iah and Sunnah. Why could this not happen? If a person does commit a sin which is against Shari’ah, does he become a Munafiq, a hypocrite? No! That’s not the definition of a hypocrite. No – he’s sinful, but he is not a hypocrite. So if a person who is happy with the Sunnah, who embraces the Sunnah – a Mu’min - commits a sin, then this is possible. Maybe he has done an action that is against the Shari’ah, maybe he fell into the trap of shaytan, into the lure of shaytan, or Nafs, and he broke the Sunnah or Shari’ah at that time. But after that, he accepts and realises that he made a mistake, that he did or said something against the Shari’ah and the Sunnah, and he accepts this and has remorse and does Tawbah. Then, SubhanAllah, that person is not a Munafiq. He says ‘I have done something against the Shari’ah, or against the Sunnah; I have erred, and have made an error. I accept this error, and I was wrong.’ He has regret. So he hasn’t done Takdheeb. He is not from the {يَكۡذِبُونَ}, he doesn’t have hypocrisy in his heart. He has committed a mistake and has accepted the mistake – it happens, we are humans. After that, though, he has done Tawbah, repentance, and his reward is that the repentance elevates the rank of a person, alhamdulillah. If a person commits a sin, which can obviously happen, then if Allah ta’ala has put the quality inside that immediately he does Tawbah, then afterwards, that sin can be a means of progression. He has done an action against the Shari’ah, or against the Sunnah, and he has regret and recognizes that he has done wrong. He says to Allah ‘I recognize that I have made a mistake’ - for example he cuts the beard in error, by following the Nafs and his desires. And then he realizes, and says ‘Oh Allah, what have I done? Oh, what a mistake – why did I do this?’ And if he immediately accepts and has regret and shame and does Tawbah, if he repents, then that person progresses; he advances.
In contrast, there is another person who says ‘Oh, it is not necessary – where is it written that I have to do this? These things are made up – leave this path. There is no need to do this practice. Everything goes – do what you like.’ This person is doing Takdheeb. Yes? He is changing Halal, lawful, into Haram, and he has certainty on Haram, and is arrogant and stuck in his Haram ways. Whoever does not just break the Shari’ah and Sunnah, but is staunch and arrogant, and adamant that what he is doing is fine, and is stubborn and doesn’t listen to advice, then he is a Munafiq.
So that is the difference between a sinful person and a Munafiq. The sinful person, after sinning, has regret and does repentance, saying ‘Oh I have broken the Shari’ah, or I have left a Sunnah.’ But the Munafiq says ‘Oh it doesn’t make any difference – so what? It is not necessary to do this; we don’t need to practice this’, and he is arrogant and stubborn and doesn’t accept Shari’ah and Sunnah, and says ‘Oh it’s fine, I don’t have to do this.’ These people are adamant like this and are staunchly stuck in their ways. And this is evident in their words, in their physical practice, in their gatherings, and in their homes.
Today, we have this scenario in front of us. They say ‘We are Ashiqs of Allah, and we are Ashiqs of the Rasool sallallahu alayhi wasallam’, but in their lives, you don’t see practice of Shari’ah and Sunnah. They don’t accept it. If you go to their homes, they have those things that the Shari’ah and Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam say is Haram. Their houses are adorned with that. In the evening, there is show and glamour in those homes, and Tasbeehs are hanging up while the children are walking around joking against Sunnah and Shari’ah. Their lifestyle is openly in opposition to Nabi al-Kareem sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Aside from Amal, their style and their mannerisms make fun of the Deen, and they laugh at righteous people. Their lives are in opposition to the Deen. They purchase tickets to go on Hajj and Umrah, but if you go to their homes, you see that their families, their décor, adornments and items are have all been forbidden by Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And if you go to their weddings,, their standing, their sitting, their relationships, their nights – all are in a style that Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah has said is Haram, forbidden. And this is a central element of their lives.
You will see Salah in their lives, and when there’s an issue, they will recite Surah YaSeen, and place a veil on their heads for a while, or on top of a box – Allah ta’ala says {يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ}, that this is to deceive Allah. ‘Oh, when we open the Qur’an and recite Surah YaSeen, Allah ta’ala will take our difficulties away.’ These are the people of whom Allah says {يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَمَا يَخۡدَعُونَ إِلَّآ أَنفُسَهُمۡ}. They make a little bit of food, for example, and distribute it to people, and proclaim a Khatam of Surah YaSeen, or some other Khatum, and they invite somebody to come to the gathering to do the Dua. Is this not happening today in our society? Is this not visible? Allah ta’ala says {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬اۖ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ }. They laugh at Allah ta’ala’s Shari’ah, they laugh at the Sunnah, they are in opposition to Allah’s Habeeb sallallahu alayhi wasallam in their families, their lives, their children, standing, sitting, eating – in everything, they say that they are Ashiqs, lovers of Allah and Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And they want to purchase the Deen with money. If they get a bit of money, they say ‘Yes, I am going on Umrah, and I am taking the children.’ They arrange it as if they were booking a holiday trip for the children. ‘Oh, we will go there, and the children will play!’ They stay in big hotels, booking holidays, hotels, saying ‘We are going here and there, we will go to Umrah and the holidays will pass.’ This is openly joking and making mockery of the Deen of Allah subhana wa ta’ala - imagine!
At least read the Qur’an, and understand what the Qur’an is saying, and consider - day and night, how do our mornings and nights pass, how is our Salah, our fasting, our Hajj, and our Ramadhan? How does our Deen measure up? In Ramadhan, they are sat there chatting, and it’s like a holiday, like a package holiday, astaghfiru’llah. I remember, once I heard someone boasting, just to show the Dunya, ‘Oh, my son is an ‘Alim, oh my son is a Hafidh, a scholar.’ Externally, they place themselves on a high pedestal, but their Baatin, their wretched Baatin, dislikes and hates the Sunnah and Shari’ah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and they reject and oppose that – and Allah ta’ala knows the reality. Allah ta’ala knows what is going on.
So I remember an event which shows how people are: one brother was sat, and he started talking to me – this happened long ago in Masjid Nabawi, subhanAllah – and he introduced himself, as people would do, and he gave me his card. He had a rank in the air force, was a vice air-marshal or such like, and was an educated person, happy in his outward state, a senior person who presented himself as religious, but it was a complete drama. By chance, his son came, and he introduced his son, who I saw sitting there. His son was a young man, and the father said to me ‘You know, he has memorized the Qur’an!’, so I was very happy mashaAllah, and said so. But Allah ta’ala says {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}, ‘This is a lie, this ‘Ilm he has, the Hifdh he has done, this is the Hifdh of a liar!’ For though he may pray - and his father said ‘Oh he is an ‘Alim and he has just graduated from the institute’ - Allah ta’ala says {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}. ‘Have you seen his Salah? Has he prayed his Salah properly, five times a day in the Masjid? Does he follow Shari’ah?’ ‘No, no, leave that! We can compromise – he is an ‘Alim, a scholar, he is Faarig, he’s graduated.’ He has graduated from life, he has been made Faarig from life!
So I said to him, out of love, ‘Now that you have done Hifdh, do Dua, here, at the Rawdah Mubarak, that Allah ta’ala gives you courage and determination. You father is saying good things about you, that you have graduated and have attained, and are a Hafidh, mashaAllah. He is very happy that you have reached your destination and have come here.’ Then I said to him, knowing how dangerous hypocrisy is, ‘You should go, father and son, alhamdulillah, now that it is quiet, and give Salam to the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and request that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam does Dua that you can do Amal on his blessed Sunnah, and correct your faces and your appearances.’
Uff! That was all I said - and their faces went red in fury, and they jumped up and said ‘What are you saying? Is this what you think? You have come from London? We didn’t think your mindset would be like this! What lesson are you giving to my son? You are a fundamentalist, you are backward!’ Suddenly, I was amazed and taken aback! {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}. They have Thaahiri words – don’t follow them! Don’t look at Thaahiri, external, knowledge, at outward words, or outward worship. If you want to test anyone, our Maula, Allah ta’ala, has explained that there is a way to be saved, so look at how much Shari’ah and Sunnah is in their lives, how much love do they have for Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. To test if someone is a lover of Allah and His Rasool sallallahu alayhi wasallam, see how many orders of Rasool sallallahu alayhi wasallam they practice.
The basis of the Deen is Nabi al-Kareem sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Sunnah, this is the basis of success that the Sahaba followed. For example, the pumpkin was called Kaddoo Sharif, because Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam liked it. They would eat it eagerly, and they liked it. They would set aside their preferences and would adopt the preferences of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. These were the noble Companions, the Sahaba-e-karaam. How did they become like this? Was it due to the Qur’an, or due to looking at the Ka’abah? No, SubhanAllah, it was love of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam that took them to this level. Allah ta’ala says in the Qur’an ‘I am happy with them and they are happy with Me.’ - { رَّضِىَ ٱللَّهُ عَنۡہُمۡ وَرَضُواْ عَنۡهُ}. SubhanAllah. The love of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam got to this point, and it was open love. Hadhrat Bilal radhiAllahu anh took the intense heat of the sun and of burning coals rather than turn away from the love of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. He never shunned or disregarded the Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Hadhrat Abdullah bin Umar radhiAllahu anh, was a very great Sahabi, a great Ashiq and lover of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. When he would pass by a rock where Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam used to pass during his life, where once the blessed body of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam touched the rock at that place, Hadhrat Abdullah bin Umar would purposely rub his body on the same spot. People would say ‘Why are you doing this?’, and he would reply ‘Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam once passed by here, and his blessed body touched this portion of the rock, so how can I pass by this place and not implement this Sunnah?’
My brothers, this is the Deen, this is life, this should be commonplace! Allah ta’ala says ‘These are the orders - take what the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam has given to you!’ If we reject that, we do Takhdheeb. Allah ta’ala says { يَكۡذِبُونَ} – we are lying about this! Allah says ‘All your actions are a lie – your Salah, your Hajj, your knowledge, your Qira’at – all of this is a lie.’ The Holy Prophet said “إِلاَّ مَنْ أَبَ” – ‘Except those who refuse!’ Only those people will go to Paradise - whether a Sufi, a pious person or a Wali or whoever - whose knowledge, Dhikr, ‘Ilm and all his actions are in accordance with the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Otherwise, what does the Qur’an say? Allahu Akbar – who are these people? Allah says {يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ} – they are those who try to deceive Allah, {وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ} – and those who believe, but in reality, they are not deceiving Allah and the believers, but rather {وَمَا يَخۡدَعُونَ إِلَّآ أَنفُسَهُمۡ} they are deceiving themselves, their own Nafs. They are deceivers, trying to decive Allah and the people of Iman, they are lying, and all their actions are a lie.
So let us analyze. Most definitely, the recitation of the Qur’an is a great action, and Hifdh of the Qur’an is a great action, acquiring ‘Ilm is a great action, but we need to see - is all of this for fame, for Dunya, and for show? What is the basis, the measuring rod, for establishing whether our Deen is correct? What law have we adopted in our lives, mannerisms, and lifestyle? When we make a decision, every footstep and breath should be in accordance to the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah and Sunnah. Is it like this? Yes or no? We have to ask ourselves this question.
So I have explained two things to you: one is sinning, and the other is Nifaq. A Munafiq is a person who becomes stubborn on this and becomes arrogant. ‘No. no. no, this is the way. How can I leave this practice of the world? I have to live my life - I have to advance. How can I follow this way?’ A sinful person is different, for they ask Allah for forgiveness. ‘Oh Allah, I have made a mistake - I have done something against the Shari’ah and Sunnah. I should not have consumed Riba, interest. I have consumed this - it was a mistake, so, Allah, forgive me!’ If he lies, he says ‘Oh Allah, I lied. I have made a mistake. I seek forgiveness for I have broken the Shari’ah.’ Or ‘I have done Zina, adultery – my Nafs forced me to do this! I have erred, Allah, I accept this!’ But the Munafiq doesn’t consider these things as sins. He never says ‘I have broken Shari’ah.’ He will stay firm on his hypocrisy and will give Daleel and proofs to show that he is right. He says ‘I pray Salah, I go to the Ka’abah. I have just come back from Hajj!’ And he will have backers from amongst the people, saying ‘Yes, he is a Hajji, we saw him stuck to Multazam!’ But the Qur’an says {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ} - in their hearts there is this disease of hypocrisy, of Nifaq. Why? Because Allah says ‘These people are those who rejected the Shari’ah and Sunnah of My Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam. It isn’t about Me! They will never accept this.’
May Allah ta’ala give us all the Tawfeeq, the ability, to bring into our lives the Shari’ah and Sunnah of Allah’s Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam. We are discussing these words just for this purpose- so that we can analyze ourselves and look at ourselves in the mirror. We need to look at ourselves and see the reality of our practice. We are learning about the symptoms of Nifaq, the signs of Nifaq. Now we can measure – I have given you a measuring gauge, a thermometer. As soon as you put that thermometer against you, will find out whether there is Nifaq inside you or not.
If these words that we have discussed, all of this subject matter, pinch somebody and they dislike it, and he says ‘Oh, this is too strict - Hadhrat Sahib is too strict. They shouldn’t be so extreme’ – whoever feels the pinch of this and dislikes it, I swear by Allah, that is Nifaq, hypocrisy! I swear by Allah – that is a Munafiq sitting there. These are the symptoms of Nifaq, because the heart is not accepting. I am reading the Qur’an – this is not my personal opinion or preference. How could I speak from my personal preference or opinion? I am telling you Hadith and Qur’an, the Hadith that back up the Qur’an, alhamdulillah. And the Hadith explain clearly - Hadith are reality! So if this pinches a person’s heart, if someone is listening and it pinches their heart and they say ‘No, Hadhrat Sahib is too strict, too extreme, too fundamentalist. We have to live in the world – shall we leave interest and take these things out of the house? My daughter can’t do this - how will we survive? How can this be?’ - whoever is pinched like this, whoever feels pain, not at my words, at the Qur’an’s words, then the measurement gauge, the ruler, tells them that they have Nifaq! This is Nifaq, I swear by Allah – the Qur’an says this: {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ} – they are liars, and all their Salah is a lie, and their practice is a lie.
But the sinful people, those whose hearts are absorbing these words and feeling shame, are thinking ‘Oh Allah, I have made a mistake, I didn’t know about this. I am so grateful!’ They are grateful to Allah; they are happy. ‘Oh Allah, it is so good; I came to this gathering and I have heard so many good things and have realized so many good things that were not in my knowledge. I am so grateful, and I do Tawbah, and will try from today not to commit these sins again. Not having a beard is against the Shari’ah, and I have been staunchly against it, arrogantly saying it is ok to cut it. We used to cut it and do this sin.’ We used to say ‘Oh why is Purdah and segregation necessary in this country? Our children have to live – this is too strict.’ But now, that person says ‘No, I do Tawbah, I repent – I am committing a major sin, and Allah has given a severe punishment, a painful punishment for this’ - that punishment is so painful that the Mufasireen have questioned how a person can even accept this Adhab, it is such an extreme, massive, colossal punishment, this {عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ} - ‘but now I realise that we were stubborn, we were stuck in our ways, and it is not right for these wrong and evil things to be present in my home.’ They don’t say ‘Oh how will I watch cricket? How will I watch this?’ The matter is straightforward - if you know this is Haram and unlawful, then leave it! Congratulations to those people! They are not Munafiqs, rather, they were sinful. If you do Tawbah today, you become a Wali of Allah today!
So what a big difference there is between sinful people and Munafiqs – I have drawn the distinction for you today. Today, the Qur’an has made us realise this, straightaway. Those who criticize, whose hearts are pinched, feeling anger, saying ‘What’s this? What you are telling us is too hard. You want me to leave this? How can we do this? You say this is unlawful?’ – those people are Munafiqs. But those who do sins but say ‘I made a mistake! Alah ta’ala has explained to us, and we are ashamed. From today, we will start to make effort to leave this sin, and we will try our hardest and will see what tomorrow may bring. We need to do something about this! We didn’t know.’ Those people who feel like that in their hearts are sinful people - Mu’mins who have committed sins.
May Allah ta’ala give us all the Tawfeeq.
وَءَاخِرُ دَعۡوَٮٰهُمۡ أَنِ ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ
23rd Jun, 2020
SubhanAllah, the truth is given in these blessed Majalis. All out of sincere concern and love, Alhamdulillah Alhamdulillah.
{فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬اۖ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ }
To what do we assign the term ‘disease’ or ‘sickness’? To something which spreads uncontrollably in the body – that is sickness. In other words, there is a normal state, and if the equilibrium of that normality is upset, whether positively or negatively, then sickness is present in the body. This is the normal understanding, that when the sickness goes beyond the normal state, then it is called a sickness, or a disease, or being unwell. So the definition of sickness is that something occurs, a condition or a state, which gets out of control, or which cannot be stopped or cured; and then the terminology of sickness or disease is applicable. And if you ignore that sickness or disease, then it will continue to spread, to the extent that it may have the consequence of total loss and destruction.
So this is for the bodily, physical sicknesses, and the Qur’an says the same thing. {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬} – this is the Qur’an saying this. It is not me saying it, nor the Hakeem or the physician or the doctor or the surgeon, whose opinion can be rejected; but nobody can reject Allah’s statement. Allah says {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬ا}. Allah says that there is a disease in the heart, in the Baatin, in the inner self, in the soul; there is a sickness in the heart which Allah ta’ala has said is severe. Just like there is a bodily sickness, the inner disease is related to the heart. So you may say that the condition or the definition is the same, but this is an internal disease. So in the same way, the disease of the heart, the spiritual disease, if we look at it closely, in detail, in order to understand, if we don’t look after this properly or control it, then that is also a disease that will increase and spread and get worse. As it gets worse and worse, just like the physical bodily sickness gets worse, in the same way, the consequences of the internal diseases, the sickness of the heart, also get worse – they are actually worse than the physical sicknesses. So if we don’t look after the body, if we say that someone has tuberculosis, or that there is a heart attack, or that the kidneys have failed etc – physical sicknesses - like Coronavirus, which is a fresh sickness, the nature of which Allah knows best, but we know that it is a sickness, a reality. It is a bodily sickness, and we see it spreading; in the same way, the sickness of the heart, the disease of the heart, the inner sickness, the spiritual sickness, which has a link with the heart, that is also spreading in the same way.
If we look at conditions like Shirk and Nifaq and other sins that lead to loss, the same reason is present. When sickness comes to a person’s physical body, if he doesn’t look after it, take care of it, that sickness spreads, increases, and gets worse. Similarly, the heart needs to be looked after and protected. And as it increases and gets worse, this sickness of Nifaq, which is a spiritual disease, an inner disease, a Baatini disease - this will give loss to a person.
There are many physical sicknesses and deficiencies, and when an illness starts, then the doctor analyses and looks into that person’s state. He says ‘What are your symptoms?’ ‘Well, I’ve got this symptom at this time – I get thirsty, I have a pain in my stomach, I have pain elsewhere.’ ‘Ok, it looks like you have this sickness – these are the effects, the symptoms, the outward signs of this sickness.’ They diagnose in this way. Similarly, with the sickness of Nifaq, Allah ta’ala explains the signs and symptoms of Nifaq, of hypocrisy, in the Qur’an. And that’s what the Qur’an is explaining in detail here.
We have been discussing the three groups: the Mu’mins – the believers; those who don’t have faith; and the Munafiqs. Allah ta’ala explains how the disease or sickness of Nifaq arises, and what is its effect. Alhamdulillah, we have the knowledge, and there are people who are listening today, people who are following, who have good understanding, people of wisdom, and they will appreciate that Allah ta’ala has rewarded us with this knowledge. So we should understand it, and analyze ourselves internally and do Muhasabah. We should ask ‘Is this symptom present inside me? Is this deficiency present inside me?’ just like we do for Coronavirus. What are the symptoms for Coronavirus? If a person gets a persistent cough and a high fever, people say ‘Ah, he’s got Coronavirus,’ and then the treatment starts, because the persistent cough, together with high fever, are the symptoms unique to Coronavirus, along with other symptoms that have been shared, like loss of taste etc.
Allah ta’ala says that Nifaq is a disease related to the Hereafter, to loss in the Hereafter. So what are the symptoms that you can see or feel, so that a person can find out if there is Nifaq present? Sicknesses, when they start, brew and spread and get worse. Regarding Nifaq, Allah ta’ala says that the illumination and the quality of the heart - that heart into which Allah ta’ala has put a lot of status, potential and power – that Noor, if the heart is protected, if it is strong and protected, then the function of that Noor, and the status of such a heart, is that it happily absorbs Allah ta’ala’s words, orders and commands, and those of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and accepts them. This is the sign of the heart of the Mu’min. Now if Nifaq comes into a person, the first sign is that individual will reject the commands, the Ahkam, the orders of Allah. He will show dislike for the Commands of Allah. He will say ‘I don’t like it, I don’t agree with it’, and then he will start to find hardship in practice, and gradually, na-oodhu bi’llah wa nastaghfiru’llah, he will hate and dislike Allah’s orders. And then a worse phase of the disease comes, which ingrains that dislike into the heart, and thus he becomes a Munafiq.
So the quality and capacity of the heart - which is where Nifaq starts - the qualities of the heart, its light and beauty, starts to diminish and change. My brothers, when a person starts to feel these negativities and this darkness in the heart, thinking ‘Allah’s orders are in front of me, and Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah and Sunnah, but my heart is rejecting Allah’s order.’ The Sunnah and Shari’ah of Nabi al-Kareem sallallahu alayhi wasallam confirms Alla’s orders – this is how they have to be implemented, confirming and giving detail to the orders. So if in our hearts there is dislike for the orders of Allah and for the commentary and practice of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam on the orders of Allah, and if there is distaste and stubbornness and opposition to that, then Nifaq does another action. It puts a veil over the reality. Nifaq hides and buries the reality of the Deen inside the heart, it buries the reality of the practice of life. Nifaq, hypocrisy, buries this. So then a game is played out: externally, I seem fine to everyone, but I bury my enemy within my heart!
This is the reality of Nifaq that then becomes visible and apparent. When a person goes into deep Nifaq, proper hypocrisy, the worst form of Nifaq, then you will see that externally, he will have the physical practice of Deen, like a Mu’min. In external A’maal, he will be ahead of everybody, at the front of the pack; but whenever the Shari’ah or Sunnah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam is discussed, especially and specifically his Sunnah, then opposition comes out straightaway. Now he has protected his Nifaq with his external deeds, hiding his Nifaq in all his external deeds, so that there is no doubt about his reputation as being good; he takes refuge and protection in this practice. But he opposes with all his might, by not accepting, by rejecting the Deen of Allah. So verbally he accepts, but practically, he says ‘No, no, this is not the case, this is not necessary; we don’t need to go into these details. What we are doing is enough – we don’t need to go into these (so-called) minor matters.’
In regards to such a person, Allah subhana wa ta’ala says {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬}. Allah ta’ala says that when Nifaq comes into the heart, {فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬ا}. Allah says that in their hearts is a disease, and that person’s disease is multiplying by his continued opposition to Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. As he continues to reject, oppose and disregard Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah, then that disease takes a grip on that person’s heart, and multiplies and grows, and hatred develops in his heart for Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Deen, for Sunnah and Shari’ah, for his beautiful Sunnah. {فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬ا} Allahu Akbar – Allah ta’ala says that the disease will multiply, and the individual becomes more staunch and arrogant and against the Deen. And then Allah ta’ala says {وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ} – a painful doom is theirs, { عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ}. When a person gets to this state, his condition becomes such that he does external deeds, worship, prayers, he gets status and recognition in the world, he does everything, and is recognized as being a pious and righteous worshipper, spending in the way of Allah, doing this and that – but Allah ta’ala says ‘This is not the reality.’ The reality is that so much disease and sickness has spread in his heart that he merits not just punishment, but { عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ}, a painful punishment, as Allah ta’ala says. Nobody can plumb the depths of how painful it will be, but Allah ta’ala has defined it a such. May Allah ta’ala forgive! May Allah ta’ala protect! This is an Ajeeb, unique condition, Allah ta’ala says.
And then, Allah ta’ala goes on to say {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}. The painful doom is theirs, why? {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ} They weren’t just deceivers and tricksters, they have yet another title – they were Kaadhiboon, liars. Allah says that a painful doom is theirs because they lie. How do they lie? They used to do Takdheeb {يَكۡذِبُونَ}. And what did they lie about? Who did they lie against? Why did they get this title {يَكۡذِبُونَ}? When you see their external practice, their Salah, their physical worship, their recitation of Qur’an, their lifestyle and condition – you see these practices in people of all ranks and statuses. Ignorant people, ‘Alims, Qaris, this and that – Nifaq can be found in all grades and statuses of people. Why? Because Allah ta’ala has given us the tool by which to measure Nifaq. Allah ta’ala says {يَكۡذِبُونَ} – they are liars.
And how are they liars? If a person, for example, says ‘You are lying!’ to someone who has ‘Ilm, knowledge, and looks like a worshipper, what makes them dishonest in their ‘Ilm or in their Tasawwuf? How have they lied? In reality, their worship and practice is not what it seems – they are from the {يَكۡذِبُونَ}. We can’t say that they have lied to Allah, because they are reading Qur’an, they are praying Salah – we can’t say that he is lying to Allah. He is praying, he is worshipping, he’s doing ‘Ibadah. So how can we say he is lying? But he is! How is he lying? They lie against the way of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam - they lie against him and about him! Allah ta’ala hasn’t taken the responsibility onto Himself. Alla ta’ala says ‘They think they are worshipping Me, but they have no connection with Me, with their ‘Ibadah, with their ‘Uloom, with their knowledge and their technical points.’ The value of their ‘Uloom, their ‘Ilm, their practice, and their worship will be there if they loved and accepted and embraced the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Their ‘Ibaadat and worship will become Noor and light, but everything that they are doing is Takdheeb, it is a lie. Who are they lying against? The Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, because they are not practicing in accordance to the Shari’ah and Sunnah. So their Thaahiri, external, ‘Ibadah is not accepted. Allah ta’ala rejects it and says that they are liars. Their Salah is a lie, their worship is a lie.
So what we realise is that Insaan, the human being, is deceiving himself. Allah ta’ala says that they deceive themselves. They argues that ‘I pray Salah, but I don’t accept the Shari’ah and the Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. I don’t embrace that, because it is too hard and difficult for me, and it is not necessary in this day and age. I disagree that I have to practice, because it is an obstacle in the path of my progression and advancement. It is too difficult for me - it is an obstacle and a barrier.’ We have to see that those people have been defined as Kaadhiboon, liars, because all external ‘Ibaadaat must be implemented in accordance with the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah and Sunnah. And if they are not, then they are doing Takdheeb on the Shari’ah and Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and due to this, their worship is a lie, their practice is a lie, everything that they are doing is a lie – whoever is doing this or saying this, it is a lie.
Allah ta’ala has made one standard, one standard practice, which is the Shari’ah and Sunnah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And I explained the Hadith yesterday where Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam said ‘Everybody will go to Paradise except for those who refuse. And who are those who refuse? Those who reject the path, those who do not adopt my path, those who don’t obey me, who don’t follow me. These people have refused.’ The Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam has defined this. So the truth is that the success criteria for all ‘Ibaadaat is that they must be in accordance to the Sunnah and Shari’ah of the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and not rejecting that, or opposing it. So Allah ta’ala said that those who do not do this are liars; the Munafiqs are liars if they don’t do this, SubhanAllah.
And another point that arises here is that it is one thing to be a Munafiq, Kaadhib, or liar, and another thing to be sinful. There is a difference, remember this. So hypocrisy or lying is different from sinning – remember this point, because people mix up these two issues. So who is a person who has Nifaq, who rejects, and who is a sinner? If we take one person, alhamdulillah, he accepts the Shari’ah and does Amal on the Shari’ah, and he accepts the Sunnah, and he practices on the Sunnah, and he doesn’t say ‘This is hard for me, difficult for me’, or that ‘It is too hard to practice the Sunnah and Shari’ah in this day and age’; and he doesn’t say ‘Where is it written?’ or ‘It’s impossible’, or ‘These people have made these things up’, or ‘These Hadith are just minor matters and we don’t have to practice upon them.’ The sinful person doesn’t say these things. He accepts Shari’ah and Sunnah, and he practices upon these things, and accepts and embraces wholeheartedly. Therefore he becomes a Mu’min – anyone who does that is a Mu’min.
Now if such a person, who accepts and practices, stumbles and commits a sin – and a person can commit a sin, sins do occur – then he won’t become a Munafiq, because he accepts Shari’ah and is happy with it, and embraces the Sunnah and is happy with it. But, as happens with human beings, Nafs and shaytan are with us, and of course it can happen that a person commits a deed which is against Shar’iah and Sunnah. Why could this not happen? If a person does commit a sin which is against Shari’ah, does he become a Munafiq, a hypocrite? No! That’s not the definition of a hypocrite. No – he’s sinful, but he is not a hypocrite. So if a person who is happy with the Sunnah, who embraces the Sunnah – a Mu’min - commits a sin, then this is possible. Maybe he has done an action that is against the Shari’ah, maybe he fell into the trap of shaytan, into the lure of shaytan, or Nafs, and he broke the Sunnah or Shari’ah at that time. But after that, he accepts and realises that he made a mistake, that he did or said something against the Shari’ah and the Sunnah, and he accepts this and has remorse and does Tawbah. Then, SubhanAllah, that person is not a Munafiq. He says ‘I have done something against the Shari’ah, or against the Sunnah; I have erred, and have made an error. I accept this error, and I was wrong.’ He has regret. So he hasn’t done Takdheeb. He is not from the {يَكۡذِبُونَ}, he doesn’t have hypocrisy in his heart. He has committed a mistake and has accepted the mistake – it happens, we are humans. After that, though, he has done Tawbah, repentance, and his reward is that the repentance elevates the rank of a person, alhamdulillah. If a person commits a sin, which can obviously happen, then if Allah ta’ala has put the quality inside that immediately he does Tawbah, then afterwards, that sin can be a means of progression. He has done an action against the Shari’ah, or against the Sunnah, and he has regret and recognizes that he has done wrong. He says to Allah ‘I recognize that I have made a mistake’ - for example he cuts the beard in error, by following the Nafs and his desires. And then he realizes, and says ‘Oh Allah, what have I done? Oh, what a mistake – why did I do this?’ And if he immediately accepts and has regret and shame and does Tawbah, if he repents, then that person progresses; he advances.
In contrast, there is another person who says ‘Oh, it is not necessary – where is it written that I have to do this? These things are made up – leave this path. There is no need to do this practice. Everything goes – do what you like.’ This person is doing Takdheeb. Yes? He is changing Halal, lawful, into Haram, and he has certainty on Haram, and is arrogant and stuck in his Haram ways. Whoever does not just break the Shari’ah and Sunnah, but is staunch and arrogant, and adamant that what he is doing is fine, and is stubborn and doesn’t listen to advice, then he is a Munafiq.
So that is the difference between a sinful person and a Munafiq. The sinful person, after sinning, has regret and does repentance, saying ‘Oh I have broken the Shari’ah, or I have left a Sunnah.’ But the Munafiq says ‘Oh it doesn’t make any difference – so what? It is not necessary to do this; we don’t need to practice this’, and he is arrogant and stubborn and doesn’t accept Shari’ah and Sunnah, and says ‘Oh it’s fine, I don’t have to do this.’ These people are adamant like this and are staunchly stuck in their ways. And this is evident in their words, in their physical practice, in their gatherings, and in their homes.
Today, we have this scenario in front of us. They say ‘We are Ashiqs of Allah, and we are Ashiqs of the Rasool sallallahu alayhi wasallam’, but in their lives, you don’t see practice of Shari’ah and Sunnah. They don’t accept it. If you go to their homes, they have those things that the Shari’ah and Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam say is Haram. Their houses are adorned with that. In the evening, there is show and glamour in those homes, and Tasbeehs are hanging up while the children are walking around joking against Sunnah and Shari’ah. Their lifestyle is openly in opposition to Nabi al-Kareem sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Aside from Amal, their style and their mannerisms make fun of the Deen, and they laugh at righteous people. Their lives are in opposition to the Deen. They purchase tickets to go on Hajj and Umrah, but if you go to their homes, you see that their families, their décor, adornments and items are have all been forbidden by Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And if you go to their weddings,, their standing, their sitting, their relationships, their nights – all are in a style that Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah has said is Haram, forbidden. And this is a central element of their lives.
You will see Salah in their lives, and when there’s an issue, they will recite Surah YaSeen, and place a veil on their heads for a while, or on top of a box – Allah ta’ala says {يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ}, that this is to deceive Allah. ‘Oh, when we open the Qur’an and recite Surah YaSeen, Allah ta’ala will take our difficulties away.’ These are the people of whom Allah says {يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَمَا يَخۡدَعُونَ إِلَّآ أَنفُسَهُمۡ}. They make a little bit of food, for example, and distribute it to people, and proclaim a Khatam of Surah YaSeen, or some other Khatum, and they invite somebody to come to the gathering to do the Dua. Is this not happening today in our society? Is this not visible? Allah ta’ala says {فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ۬ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضً۬اۖ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ }. They laugh at Allah ta’ala’s Shari’ah, they laugh at the Sunnah, they are in opposition to Allah’s Habeeb sallallahu alayhi wasallam in their families, their lives, their children, standing, sitting, eating – in everything, they say that they are Ashiqs, lovers of Allah and Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. And they want to purchase the Deen with money. If they get a bit of money, they say ‘Yes, I am going on Umrah, and I am taking the children.’ They arrange it as if they were booking a holiday trip for the children. ‘Oh, we will go there, and the children will play!’ They stay in big hotels, booking holidays, hotels, saying ‘We are going here and there, we will go to Umrah and the holidays will pass.’ This is openly joking and making mockery of the Deen of Allah subhana wa ta’ala - imagine!
At least read the Qur’an, and understand what the Qur’an is saying, and consider - day and night, how do our mornings and nights pass, how is our Salah, our fasting, our Hajj, and our Ramadhan? How does our Deen measure up? In Ramadhan, they are sat there chatting, and it’s like a holiday, like a package holiday, astaghfiru’llah. I remember, once I heard someone boasting, just to show the Dunya, ‘Oh, my son is an ‘Alim, oh my son is a Hafidh, a scholar.’ Externally, they place themselves on a high pedestal, but their Baatin, their wretched Baatin, dislikes and hates the Sunnah and Shari’ah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and they reject and oppose that – and Allah ta’ala knows the reality. Allah ta’ala knows what is going on.
So I remember an event which shows how people are: one brother was sat, and he started talking to me – this happened long ago in Masjid Nabawi, subhanAllah – and he introduced himself, as people would do, and he gave me his card. He had a rank in the air force, was a vice air-marshal or such like, and was an educated person, happy in his outward state, a senior person who presented himself as religious, but it was a complete drama. By chance, his son came, and he introduced his son, who I saw sitting there. His son was a young man, and the father said to me ‘You know, he has memorized the Qur’an!’, so I was very happy mashaAllah, and said so. But Allah ta’ala says {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}, ‘This is a lie, this ‘Ilm he has, the Hifdh he has done, this is the Hifdh of a liar!’ For though he may pray - and his father said ‘Oh he is an ‘Alim and he has just graduated from the institute’ - Allah ta’ala says {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}. ‘Have you seen his Salah? Has he prayed his Salah properly, five times a day in the Masjid? Does he follow Shari’ah?’ ‘No, no, leave that! We can compromise – he is an ‘Alim, a scholar, he is Faarig, he’s graduated.’ He has graduated from life, he has been made Faarig from life!
So I said to him, out of love, ‘Now that you have done Hifdh, do Dua, here, at the Rawdah Mubarak, that Allah ta’ala gives you courage and determination. You father is saying good things about you, that you have graduated and have attained, and are a Hafidh, mashaAllah. He is very happy that you have reached your destination and have come here.’ Then I said to him, knowing how dangerous hypocrisy is, ‘You should go, father and son, alhamdulillah, now that it is quiet, and give Salam to the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and request that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam does Dua that you can do Amal on his blessed Sunnah, and correct your faces and your appearances.’
Uff! That was all I said - and their faces went red in fury, and they jumped up and said ‘What are you saying? Is this what you think? You have come from London? We didn’t think your mindset would be like this! What lesson are you giving to my son? You are a fundamentalist, you are backward!’ Suddenly, I was amazed and taken aback! {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ}. They have Thaahiri words – don’t follow them! Don’t look at Thaahiri, external, knowledge, at outward words, or outward worship. If you want to test anyone, our Maula, Allah ta’ala, has explained that there is a way to be saved, so look at how much Shari’ah and Sunnah is in their lives, how much love do they have for Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. To test if someone is a lover of Allah and His Rasool sallallahu alayhi wasallam, see how many orders of Rasool sallallahu alayhi wasallam they practice.
The basis of the Deen is Nabi al-Kareem sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Sunnah, this is the basis of success that the Sahaba followed. For example, the pumpkin was called Kaddoo Sharif, because Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam liked it. They would eat it eagerly, and they liked it. They would set aside their preferences and would adopt the preferences of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. These were the noble Companions, the Sahaba-e-karaam. How did they become like this? Was it due to the Qur’an, or due to looking at the Ka’abah? No, SubhanAllah, it was love of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam that took them to this level. Allah ta’ala says in the Qur’an ‘I am happy with them and they are happy with Me.’ - { رَّضِىَ ٱللَّهُ عَنۡہُمۡ وَرَضُواْ عَنۡهُ}. SubhanAllah. The love of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam got to this point, and it was open love. Hadhrat Bilal radhiAllahu anh took the intense heat of the sun and of burning coals rather than turn away from the love of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. He never shunned or disregarded the Sunnah of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Hadhrat Abdullah bin Umar radhiAllahu anh, was a very great Sahabi, a great Ashiq and lover of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. When he would pass by a rock where Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam used to pass during his life, where once the blessed body of Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam touched the rock at that place, Hadhrat Abdullah bin Umar would purposely rub his body on the same spot. People would say ‘Why are you doing this?’, and he would reply ‘Rasoolullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam once passed by here, and his blessed body touched this portion of the rock, so how can I pass by this place and not implement this Sunnah?’
My brothers, this is the Deen, this is life, this should be commonplace! Allah ta’ala says ‘These are the orders - take what the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam has given to you!’ If we reject that, we do Takhdheeb. Allah ta’ala says { يَكۡذِبُونَ} – we are lying about this! Allah says ‘All your actions are a lie – your Salah, your Hajj, your knowledge, your Qira’at – all of this is a lie.’ The Holy Prophet said “إِلاَّ مَنْ أَبَ” – ‘Except those who refuse!’ Only those people will go to Paradise - whether a Sufi, a pious person or a Wali or whoever - whose knowledge, Dhikr, ‘Ilm and all his actions are in accordance with the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Otherwise, what does the Qur’an say? Allahu Akbar – who are these people? Allah says {يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ} – they are those who try to deceive Allah, {وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ} – and those who believe, but in reality, they are not deceiving Allah and the believers, but rather {وَمَا يَخۡدَعُونَ إِلَّآ أَنفُسَهُمۡ} they are deceiving themselves, their own Nafs. They are deceivers, trying to decive Allah and the people of Iman, they are lying, and all their actions are a lie.
So let us analyze. Most definitely, the recitation of the Qur’an is a great action, and Hifdh of the Qur’an is a great action, acquiring ‘Ilm is a great action, but we need to see - is all of this for fame, for Dunya, and for show? What is the basis, the measuring rod, for establishing whether our Deen is correct? What law have we adopted in our lives, mannerisms, and lifestyle? When we make a decision, every footstep and breath should be in accordance to the Holy Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam’s Shari’ah and Sunnah. Is it like this? Yes or no? We have to ask ourselves this question.
So I have explained two things to you: one is sinning, and the other is Nifaq. A Munafiq is a person who becomes stubborn on this and becomes arrogant. ‘No. no. no, this is the way. How can I leave this practice of the world? I have to live my life - I have to advance. How can I follow this way?’ A sinful person is different, for they ask Allah for forgiveness. ‘Oh Allah, I have made a mistake - I have done something against the Shari’ah and Sunnah. I should not have consumed Riba, interest. I have consumed this - it was a mistake, so, Allah, forgive me!’ If he lies, he says ‘Oh Allah, I lied. I have made a mistake. I seek forgiveness for I have broken the Shari’ah.’ Or ‘I have done Zina, adultery – my Nafs forced me to do this! I have erred, Allah, I accept this!’ But the Munafiq doesn’t consider these things as sins. He never says ‘I have broken Shari’ah.’ He will stay firm on his hypocrisy and will give Daleel and proofs to show that he is right. He says ‘I pray Salah, I go to the Ka’abah. I have just come back from Hajj!’ And he will have backers from amongst the people, saying ‘Yes, he is a Hajji, we saw him stuck to Multazam!’ But the Qur’an says {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ} - in their hearts there is this disease of hypocrisy, of Nifaq. Why? Because Allah says ‘These people are those who rejected the Shari’ah and Sunnah of My Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam. It isn’t about Me! They will never accept this.’
May Allah ta’ala give us all the Tawfeeq, the ability, to bring into our lives the Shari’ah and Sunnah of Allah’s Nabi sallallahu alayhi wasallam. We are discussing these words just for this purpose- so that we can analyze ourselves and look at ourselves in the mirror. We need to look at ourselves and see the reality of our practice. We are learning about the symptoms of Nifaq, the signs of Nifaq. Now we can measure – I have given you a measuring gauge, a thermometer. As soon as you put that thermometer against you, will find out whether there is Nifaq inside you or not.
If these words that we have discussed, all of this subject matter, pinch somebody and they dislike it, and he says ‘Oh, this is too strict - Hadhrat Sahib is too strict. They shouldn’t be so extreme’ – whoever feels the pinch of this and dislikes it, I swear by Allah, that is Nifaq, hypocrisy! I swear by Allah – that is a Munafiq sitting there. These are the symptoms of Nifaq, because the heart is not accepting. I am reading the Qur’an – this is not my personal opinion or preference. How could I speak from my personal preference or opinion? I am telling you Hadith and Qur’an, the Hadith that back up the Qur’an, alhamdulillah. And the Hadith explain clearly - Hadith are reality! So if this pinches a person’s heart, if someone is listening and it pinches their heart and they say ‘No, Hadhrat Sahib is too strict, too extreme, too fundamentalist. We have to live in the world – shall we leave interest and take these things out of the house? My daughter can’t do this - how will we survive? How can this be?’ - whoever is pinched like this, whoever feels pain, not at my words, at the Qur’an’s words, then the measurement gauge, the ruler, tells them that they have Nifaq! This is Nifaq, I swear by Allah – the Qur’an says this: {بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡذِبُونَ} – they are liars, and all their Salah is a lie, and their practice is a lie.
But the sinful people, those whose hearts are absorbing these words and feeling shame, are thinking ‘Oh Allah, I have made a mistake, I didn’t know about this. I am so grateful!’ They are grateful to Allah; they are happy. ‘Oh Allah, it is so good; I came to this gathering and I have heard so many good things and have realized so many good things that were not in my knowledge. I am so grateful, and I do Tawbah, and will try from today not to commit these sins again. Not having a beard is against the Shari’ah, and I have been staunchly against it, arrogantly saying it is ok to cut it. We used to cut it and do this sin.’ We used to say ‘Oh why is Purdah and segregation necessary in this country? Our children have to live – this is too strict.’ But now, that person says ‘No, I do Tawbah, I repent – I am committing a major sin, and Allah has given a severe punishment, a painful punishment for this’ - that punishment is so painful that the Mufasireen have questioned how a person can even accept this Adhab, it is such an extreme, massive, colossal punishment, this {عَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ} - ‘but now I realise that we were stubborn, we were stuck in our ways, and it is not right for these wrong and evil things to be present in my home.’ They don’t say ‘Oh how will I watch cricket? How will I watch this?’ The matter is straightforward - if you know this is Haram and unlawful, then leave it! Congratulations to those people! They are not Munafiqs, rather, they were sinful. If you do Tawbah today, you become a Wali of Allah today!
So what a big difference there is between sinful people and Munafiqs – I have drawn the distinction for you today. Today, the Qur’an has made us realise this, straightaway. Those who criticize, whose hearts are pinched, feeling anger, saying ‘What’s this? What you are telling us is too hard. You want me to leave this? How can we do this? You say this is unlawful?’ – those people are Munafiqs. But those who do sins but say ‘I made a mistake! Alah ta’ala has explained to us, and we are ashamed. From today, we will start to make effort to leave this sin, and we will try our hardest and will see what tomorrow may bring. We need to do something about this! We didn’t know.’ Those people who feel like that in their hearts are sinful people - Mu’mins who have committed sins.
May Allah ta’ala give us all the Tawfeeq.
وَءَاخِرُ دَعۡوَٮٰهُمۡ أَنِ ٱلۡحَمۡدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلۡعَـٰلَمِينَ