A spiritual Jum'aah

What is your spirituality?

Do you have spiritual oriented life?

This Jumuah, I want to especially post on this subject. Every Jumu'aah is our 'eid. We should be praising Allah, making dua for the Prophet Muhammad sallalahualayhi wasalam. Recently,I’ve been really looking into this aspect of a connection with the inner person. Knowing your spirit makes you make your salah (prayers) with deep concentration, so deep you don’t notice your surroundings. I went for a talk on salah a few days ago and have been trying to follow the pointers. When I used to pray when I was much much younger it was not regular, when I did, I wasn’t very into it…and would be tarik-us salah (someone who starts and stops starts and stops…very irregular) . I guess I never believed with my soul about the truth of Islam and I never feared Allah Ta’allah at all. Asthagfirullah, May Allah forgive me.

However, I’m much better Alhamdulillah and there is a big big BIG difference now. I’m trying to develop Ihsaan(praying to Allah as if you’re seeing him even if you’re not because surely He sees you.) Inshallah, I pray for more and more Ihsaan. Concentration is a must, you’re standing before your Lord and the way we stand is the way we’ll be standing in the Day of Judgement. The prayer for me has become so much more intense now because I try to think of nothing else but serving my Lord. It’s almost like meditation, very cathartic. I would love to know any new pointers on how you concentrate in salah or enhance your ihsaan.

Ok, about spirituality,
Does your spirit’s needs control your body or does your body’s desires control your spirit?
Do we know what our spirit needs?

Only Allah who created us out of a drop of sperm knows the manifestation we will be in in the next life. Right now we are the soul covered by the body. Do we serve the body, the ever ageing body? Or do we serve the soul, the essence of us that will never perish?

In this life, we see the richest most powerful person unhappy. Serving the body’s desires tirelessly attempting to fill the void. And yet the poor living under a thatched roof, with only the praise of their Lord on their tongues may be as content as can be.

Tuning our lives to feed the spirit may answer the personal unhappiness we may face.
We have three ways we perceive reality;

the five senses, the intellect and internal illumination. We have to acknowledge these three. The scientists and the logical society that only sees with the physical may argue but it would be detrimental to ourselves living our lives and neglecting this part.

The Quran says we have internal senses. For example in the Chapter named Hajj, Allah Taa’ah addressed a people who are internally dead and He says: “Will they not travel through the earth so that perchance the dead heart may come alive”. By seeing the signs of Allah, the seas, the deserts, the delicate ecosystems, the intricate creations of Allah, the dead heart may come alive. And this is my personal opinion that people today are enslaved in the metal cages of the proudly cosmopolitan cities toiling for paper that someone said was worth something and that has a big part to play in a detachment from religion or spirituality in comparison to living from the sustenance, seeing where the pre-packaged food comes from, growing your sustenance and thanking the Almighty for His Mercy. Allah continues, “ and when the dead heart comes alive, then the heart can understand what the intellect and reason could never understand. When the heart comes alive, the heart can hear what otherwise could not be heard. Truly it is not these eyes that are blind, what is blind is the heart.”
What is the price that we pay if we are internally blind?
Allah declares that huge numbers of people are condemned for the Hell-fire. He says: “ They have eyes but they cannot see, they have ears but they cannot hear, they have hearts but they cannot understand." People who are internally blind are people who in the age of Dajjal (the AntiChrist) are destined for the Hell-fire.
How does Allah describe such a people?
He says, “they are just like cattle, rather they are more misguided than cattle. These are the ones who are truly heedless” They are heedless of the Signs of Allah.

Spirituality is the path that the heart comes alive. It can see, hear and understand what rationality can never penetrate. Allah Taalah sent down the Chapter of the Cave (18)(Suratul Kahf) and the Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings on him identified this chapter out of the whole Quran which protects from Dajjal. Recite the first 10 verses over Dajjal and he will not be able to harm you. He also said that our heart cannot see unless there is noor(light). Our light originates from Allah. He encompasses the totality of the Light of the heaven and of the earth.When we recite the Chapter of the Cave on a Friday, we receive Noor to stay with us until the next Friday. So this Friday, let's do this to recieve more guidance from Allah. It's not just to read but we must also understand it, the meaning.

Imam Ahmad recorded from Abu Ad-Darda' that the Prophet said:

«مَنْ حَفِظَ عَشْرَ آيَاتٍ مِنْ أَوَّلِ سُورَةِ الْكَهْفِ عُصِمَ مِنَ الدَّجَّال»

(Whoever memorizes ten Ayat from the beginning of Surat Al-Kahf will be protected from the Dajjal.) This was also recorded by Muslim, Abu Dawud, An-Nasa'i and At-Tirmidhi.
So the following are the first ten verses:

Bismillahi Rahmani Rahim

﴿الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِى أَنْزَلَ عَلَى عَبْدِهِ الْكِتَـبَ وَلَمْ يَجْعَل لَّهُ عِوَجَا –1

قَيِّماً لِّيُنْذِرَ بَأْسًا شَدِيدًا مِّن لَّدُنْهُ وَيُبَشِّرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ الَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ الصَّـلِحَاتِ أَنَّ لَهُمْ أَجْرًا حَسَنًا2

مَّاكِثِينَ فِيهِ أَبَدًا –3

وَيُنْذِرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُواْ اتَّخَذَ اللَّهُ وَلَدًا –4

مَّا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ وَلاَ لاَبَآئِهِمْ كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ إِن يَقُولُونَ إِلاَّ كَذِبًا ﴾5

(1. All praise is due to Allah, Who has sent down to His servant the Book, and has not placed therein any crookedness.)
(2. (He has made it) straight to give warning of a severe punishment from Him, and to give good news to the believers, who do righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward.)
(3. They shall abide therein forever.)
(4. And to warn those who say, "Allah has begotten a child.'')
(5. No knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. Mighty is the word that comes out of their mouths. They utter nothing but a lie.)

﴿فَلَعَلَّكَ بَـخِعٌ نَّفْسَكَ عَلَى ءَاثَـرِهِمْ إِن لَّمْ يُؤْمِنُواْ بِهَـذَا الْحَدِيثِ أَسَفاً –6

إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا مَا عَلَى الاٌّرْضِ زِينَةً لَّهَا لِنَبْلُوَهُمْ أَيُّهُم أَحْسَنُ عَمَلاً -7

وَإِنَّا لَجَاعِلُونَ مَا عَلَيْهَا صَعِيداً جُرُزاً ﴾-8

6. Perhaps, you would kill yourself in grief, over their footsteps, because they believe not in this narration.)
(7. Verily, we have made that which is on earth an adornment for it, in order that We may test which of them are best in deeds.)
(8. And verily, We shall make all that is on it bare, dry soil.)

أَمْ حَسِبْتَ أَنَّ أَصْحَـبَ الْكَهْفِ وَالرَّقِيمِ كَانُواْ مِنْ ءَايَـتِنَا عَجَبًا –9

إِذْ أَوَى الْفِتْيَةُ إِلَى الْكَهْفِ فَقَالُواْ رَبَّنَآ ءَاتِنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً وَهَيِّىءْ لَنَا مِنْ أَمْرِنَا رَشَدًا –10

(9. Do you think that the people of Al-Kahf and Ar-Raqim were a wonder among Our signs)

10. When the young men fled for refuge to Al-Kahf. They said: "Our Lord! Bestow on us mercy from Yourself, and facilitate for us our affair in the right way!'')

And now the last 10:

﴿وَعَرَضْنَا جَهَنَّمَ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلْكَـفِرِينَ عَرْضاً – 100

الَّذِينَ كَانَتْ أَعْيُنُهُمْ فِى غِطَآءٍ عَن ذِكْرِى وَكَانُواْ لاَ يَسْتَطِيعُونَ سَمْعاً –101

أَفَحَسِبَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ أَن يَتَّخِذُواْ عِبَادِى مِن دُونِى أَوْلِيَآءَ إِنَّآ أَعْتَدْنَا جَهَنَّمَ لِلْكَـفِرِينَ نُزُلاً ﴾102

(100. And on that Day We shall present Hell to the disbelievers, plain to view.)
(101. (To) those whose eyes had been under a covering from My Reminder, and they could not bear to hear (it).)

(102. Do then those who disbelieved think that they can take My servants as Awliya' ﴿protectors﴾ besides Me Verily, We have prepared Hell as an entertainment for the disbelievers.)

قُلْ هَلْ نُنَبِّئُكُم بِالاٌّخْسَرِينَ أَعْمَـلاً –103

الَّذِينَ ضَلَّ سَعْيُهُمْ فِى الْحَيَوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَهُمْ يَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّهُمْ يُحْسِنُونَ صُنْعًا -104

أُوْلَـئِكَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ بِـَايَـتِ رَبِّهِمْ وَلِقَائِهِ فَحَبِطَتْ أَعْمَالُهُمْ فَلاَ نُقِيمُ لَهُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ وَزْناً –105

ذَلِكَ جَزَآؤُهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ بِمَا كَفَرُواْ وَاتَّخَذُواْ ءَايَـتِى وَرُسُلِى هُزُواً ﴾106

(103. Say: "Shall We tell you the greatest losers in respect of (their) deeds'')
(104. "Those whose efforts have been wasted in this life while they thought that they were acquiring good by their deeds.'')
(105. "They are those who deny the Ayat of their Lord and the meeting with Him. So their works are in vain, and on the Day of Resurrection, We shall assign no weight for them.'')
(106. "That shall be their recompense, Hell; because they disbelieved and took My Ayat and My Messengers for jest.'')

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَاتِ كَانَتْ لَهُمْ جَنَّـتُ الْفِرْدَوْسِ نُزُلاً –107

خَـلِدِينَ فِيهَا لاَ يَبْغُونَ عَنْهَا حِوَلاً ﴾108

(107. "Verily, those who believe and do righteous deeds, shall have the Gardens of Al-Firdaws for their entertainment.'')
(108. "Wherein they shall dwell (forever). No desire will they have for removal therefrom.'')

قُل لَّوْ كَانَ الْبَحْرُ مِدَاداً لِّكَلِمَـتِ رَبِّى لَنَفِدَ الْبَحْرُ قَبْلَ أَن تَنفَدَ كَلِمَـتُ رَبِّى وَلَوْ جِئْنَا بِمِثْلِهِ مَدَداً

(109. Say: "If the sea were ink for the Words of my Lord, surely, the sea would be exhausted before the Words of my Lord would be finished, even if We brought like it for its aid.'')

قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَنَاْ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَى إِلَىَّ أَنَّمَآ إِلَـهُكُمْ إِلَـهٌ وَاحِدٌ فَمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو لِقَآءَ رَبِّهِ فَلْيَعْمَلْ عَمَلاً

صَـلِحاً وَلاَ يُشْرِكْ بِعِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِ أَحَدَا

110. Say: "I am only a man like you. It has been revealed to me that your God is One God. So whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.'')

Inshallah, may Allah accept our efforts on striving for His pleasure. May Allah make us better muslims, make me a better muslim and shower on us His Noor and Love and Mercy. May we be guided and remember suratul Kahf as a weapon against Dajjal. We need to do more tafseer of these ayats so as to understand the deeper meaning, the subliminal message, Subhannallah. Rabbanati-fidunya hasanata, wa filakhirati hassanata, wa audho billahi manal fitnatul Dajjal.

AMIN

There is tafseer on this surah on the website of one of the few Islamic scholars that sees with his internal eyes. May Allah give him a long life, Amin. http://www.imranhosein.org/