As-salamu `alaykum wa rahmatullah
.: Ramadan Reflections :.
Day 11/Juz 11:-
“And if Allah should touch you with adversity, there is no remover of it except Him; and if He intends good for you, then there is none who can repel His Favour. He causes it to reach whom He wills of His servants. And He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.” [Yunus: 107]
There are 2 states that every single living thing goes through in life: times of hardship and times of bounty. There’ll be days where you struggle, and there’ll be days when you rejoice and are happy. They exist so there’s no point in denying them, neither for yourself nor for others. But in the verse above, Allah makes it clear that these states run according to His Mashee’ah (Will), and the verbs He uses for them really help us understand the way He works:
When it comes to adversity and trials, He uses the verb ‘yamsaska‘ (from the root massa) which means ‘to touch‘. This gives you the idea that trials on this earth merely just ‘touch’ a person. They will come but they will also quickly go, because a touch never stays. Also, when you touch a person on the shoulder for example, you are usually alerting them or trying to get their attention, and it’s always done out of concern or love. This is how we should view the tests of Allah, when they come to a person (and to Allah is the Highest example).
In the next part, Allah says ‘and if He intends good for you‘… He doesn’t use the term ‘touch’ here, but rather one of intention. Whoever knows His Lord will be so happy at reading this part because there is none who fulfills His Promise as much as Allah does. His intention and iradah *is* His Decree and His Promise, and once He intends good for you, there is nobody, absolutely nobody that can take it away from you, try as they may, strive as they wish.
Both these states of hardship and goodness are directed to every slave of Allah and this is why He says afterwards: ‘Yuseebu bihi‘ (causes it to reach) – i.e. it’s like a spear or targeted arrow which never misses the spot. We usually associate this example with bad things, but we never think about how it also relates to good things. When the khayr (good) is directed at you, it will never miss you, so don’t think that your life is bereft of good stuff when all it takes is one intent from Allah and before you know it, His bounties are poured over you. But if you must struggle in your life, then realise it will merely be like a touch before it is lifted from you, so in both cases, rejoice and take delight in the beautiful way that Allah works in our lives.
Allahu Akbar.
Day 12/Juz 12:-
“She said, “Woe to me! Shall I give birth while I am an old woman and this, my husband, is an old man? Indeed, this is a strange and wondrous thing! They said, “Do you wonder at the Decree of Allah? May the mercy of Allah and His blessings be upon you, O people of the house. Indeed, He is Praiseworthy and Honorable.” [Hud: 72-73]
When angels came to visit Ibrahim (as), they gave their greetings of peace, but then they turned to Ibrahim’s wife and gave her some good news. After being barren and unable to bear children for so long, they told her that she will give birth to Ishaq, and after him will come Ya’qub. When she heard this, she became ecstatic and responded with an opposing argument, as you naturally do when you’re in sheer delight and disbelief at such news. How can she give birth in her old age, married to an old man, she cried! This is ‘ajeeb, she said. And here, Allah `azza wa jall teaches us something through the message of those angels.
When good and wonderful things come to the slave – and they will come often insha’Allah – do not be so caught up in amazement and stunned thought. Your Lord is able to do anything. The Command and Decree of Allah is not a surprise for the slave who knows the Power and Capability of Allah. This is why the angels exclaimed back, ‘Do you wonder at the Decree of Allah? May the mercy of Allah be upon you…’ See, at the point when you recognise a great ni’mah (blessing) of Allah, there is a blessed moment in which your initial reaction is recorded with heaviness on the scale. What is required of you at that point is immediate gratitude, and for you to praise Allah, and exalt Him without delay. This is just one of the reasons why the verse ends with ‘Indeed, He is Praiseworthy and Honorable’ – Allah is reminding us (through the words of his angels) about our actions at such a moment. He is effectively teaching us how to deal with Him and His Blessings.
It’s easy for us to get caught up in the excitement of good news, but just as our immediate reaction to calamities should be patience and words of forbearance, likewise our immediate reaction to good news should be words of praise and gratitude. Don’t stand there in wonder when the gates of khayr open up, but hasten to words of praise and remembrance because that is what Allah wants to hear from us at that point.
O Allah, grant us all news which delights us and causes us to praise You more and helps us remain in gratitude to You, ameen.
Day 13/Juz 13:-
“He sends rain down from the sky, and valleys flow according to their capacity, and the torrent carries a rising foam. And from that [ore] which they heat in the fire, desiring adornments and utensils, is a foam like it. Thus Allah presents truth and falsehood. As for the foam, it vanishes, [being] cast off; but as for that which benefits the people, it remains on the earth. Thus does Allah present examples.” [al-Ra’d: 17]
Subhan’Allah, this verse tells us so much about the nature of Man. There are 2 natural processes mentioned here: the fall of rain, and the formation of metal from hot ore. In both of these process, Allah tells us that foam rises to the surface. In other words, during the rigorous formation of beautiful valleys and the extraction of beneficial metal, there will be some impurities that rise to the surface – impurities that were otherwise unseen.
Reflection: During testing times when a nation is shaken, beaten, and persecuted, when situations become heated and holding onto truth & principles becomes like holding onto hot coal, two things will happen:
1 – That tested nation blossoms into valleys and becomes as strong as iron, and:
2 – The impurities, the hypocrites, and the undeserving begin to rise to the surface unwillingly. Their heads become exposed, and their names become known. Before the purification, they were not noticed as they walked and talked their way through the crowds, but as the nation underwent purification, they were spat them out as impurities; ready to be cast off. And this is all to uphold a Principle and a Sunnah of Allah: that which benefits Mankind will stay, and everything else will be swiped away to the side like the unwanted foam that rises to the surface of valleys and during metal formation. For truth and falsehood will continue to be separated, and people will continue to be sifted through intense life processes.
May Allah make us firm on His path and keep us among the pure, protecting us from corruption and tainted faith, ameen.
Day 14/Juz 14:-
“Do they not see the birds held in suspension in the midst of the sky? No-one holds them but Allah. Verily, in this are clear proofs and signs for people who believe.” [al-Nahl: 79]
I love the image portrayed in this verse; an image of birds floating and soaring through the sky, and then Allah gives us His Lesson: that none holds them up except Him. He is the One Who gives all of us our abilities in life, and He is the Sole Being who ‘holds us up’. Have you ever had those moments when you think a situation will no doubt crush you, only for you to make it through? Have you ever doubted your abilities only to find that somehow you triumph? Have you ever been so low and down, but in the end, Allah held you up?
The birds are an interesting example in the verse above. They are from the Signs of Allah which He has put in place for us to take lessons from. Just as He keeps them soaring above the ground, likewise He will keep you afloat of the troubles of this world. So let Him take care of you, and let go of those worldly things if they are anchoring you down. These are indeed Signs for those whose faith helps them see with basirah (insight).
Day 15/Juz 15:-
“Exalted is He who took His Slave by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” [al-Isra: 1]
The Messenger (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) was taken on a miraculous night journey which saw him go from one great mosque (Makkah) to another great mosque (Jerusalem). He led a beautiful prayer in al-Aqsa, one of its kind because he led a congregation of Prophets, and from there, he was lifted through the seven heavens to Allah `azza wa jall.
The whole purpose of the journey was to deliver the command for prayer, and this is why Allah says the purpose of the journey was ‘to show him of Our signs’ – because prayer is a great sign of God. All of the ahkam/rulings and commands in Islam were revealed from the heavens down to the earth except for the prayer; the Prophet (s) was summoned from the earth up to the heavens in order to receive this grand command and hold a conversation with His Lord.
To prepare him, he was taken from one masjid to another (and masjids are places of prayer), and to further give weight to this command, he was made to lead a special prayer beforehand with a special congregation. Subhan’Allah, look at the sequence of events! So many signs surround this act of worship – its very deliverance is filled with symbols and beauty. So how can we neglect it so much?
When you enter into prayer, you are entering into a sanctuary and you are holding a conversation with the Lord of the Worlds, so let your mind be attentive and let your heart be present. Hideous is the soul who engages in prayer, but its eyes flutter here and there, and its heart is in some lower world, and so it misses the signs of its Lord.
Allah has blessed masjid al-Aqsa and blessed its surroundings, and so we ask Him to keep it pure from the filth of zionists and oppressors. O Allah help the people of Palestine, and let the Ummah regain its blessed lands. You are the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. Ameen.