[0:00]If you fix these eight, your qalb will be salim, your qalb will be clean. And when you meet Allah, You have come with a cup which is clean. And that is what matters. And these are the sicknesses that the heart goes through. The first illness is associating partners with Allah. And Allah, a lot of us, if we don't come with the greater Shirk, which we don't, then the small Shirk.
[0:50]The Prophet told us that it is the hidden Shirk, that somebody does an action only so that other people can see it. And because of now social media and mobile phones and camera, it's very easy to share everything that you do. You share. I want to show the people me reading, I want to show the people me studying, I want to show the people everything. Your whole entire actions and your deeds, you're displaying it for all the people. And the reality of Shirk in its essence, my brothers and sisters, is when the heart is connected to other than Allah. That's where it comes from. And the reason why some of these people, may Allah protect us, where we fall short in this issue of showing off is that the heart has found connection in the created rather than the Creator. You're connected to who? The people. You want the people's words, you want the approvals of the people and the recognition of the people, rather than who? Allah. I just recited an Ayah. Allah is going to see your actions. Why do you want anyone else? Why do you need anyone else? And Allah has angels that are writing it. There are angels writing what you're doing. It's documented. Why does somebody else have to see it? If you don't fix this issue, this sickness, it will affect you. Number two, it's another illness in the heart, is animosity towards your Muslim brothers and sisters, over worldly matters. You have hatred and animosity. Hatred will come to you, animosity, which is that you hate a Muslim. Whenever you see him, you hate him. If anything is mentioned about him, you don't like him. You need to fix it. It's an illness that you need to work on. Shaykh al-Islam ibn Taymiyyah said something very powerful. He said jealousy is a trait that every single body has it. But the righteous people, they extinguish it. It's a trait that everybody has it. But the righteous people, they bury it, they kill it, they don't let it grow. And one of the ways to do that is make dua for the person who you have something towards. When you hear his name, say, "May Allah protect him, may Allah forgive him, may Allah guide him." Somebody you're making dua for, what's going to happen is going to affect your heart in a positive way. My brothers, I told you guys a story and this happened at the time of the Prophet where the two best men, after the prophets, had a disagreement between themselves, Abu Bakar and Umar. They had a conflict and I mentioned the story a lot of times. But the way they solved their problem, shows you that they had great noble qualities. When Abu Bakar saw the Prophet's face change when Umar was walking because the Prophet became angry with Umar. And Abu Bakar came to the Prophet so that the Prophet could talk to Umar to fix the issue. Abu Bakar, when he saw the Prophet's face change towards Umar, he didn't say, "Thank Allah, Umar's going to get it today." He didn't say that. Do you know what he did? He fell on his knees on the ground and he said, "Oh Messenger of Allah, I am the one who started the issue. I'm the one who did the mistake."
[5:06]I came to you, O Messenger of Allah, so that you can speak to Umar, that you can bring a harmony and good between us. The Prophet didn't want to listen to Abu Bakar has to say. As soon as Umar came, the Prophet he said, Abu Bakar stood by me, he helped me, he aided me. At a time when all of you companions disbelieved in me. He spent his life and his belongings and his wealth.
[5:41]The migration was the family of Abu Bakar who did it. It was Abu Bakar who accompanied the Prophet. It was Abdullah ibn Abi Bakar who was spying and bringing the news back to the Prophet and Abu Bakar. It was Asma who was feeding them the food. It was the companion of Abu Bakar who was the one cleaning the footprints so that nobody traces the Prophet and Abu Bakar to their direction. It was the family and the household of Abu Bakar who helped the Prophet migrate from Mecca to Medina. Then you know what the Prophet is teaching the companions here as well, another lesson, which is, "If somebody does good for you, repay them back the good that they did for you." If you can't find a way to repay that person for the good that they did for you now, make dua for him. There you go. But the predecessors used to say, "Anyone who wrongs you and does something bad to you, his good that he did for you, the thousand good he did, intercedes for that mistake." He did a mistake to you, two mistakes, three? What about the thousand good that he did for you? That intercedes, that speaks for him. Number three is jealousy. Jealousy is worse than animosity. Animosity is just hate. When you don't cure it, it now becomes jealousy. And jealousy is what? You want the blessings to be taken, the blessings, you want the blessings to be taken from another Muslim.
[7:22]You see Allah has given him the world, Allah has given him wealth, Allah has given him children, Allah has given him a good marriage. And guess what? Jealousy. Sometimes you can see from some people, they see a wife and a husband very close to each other, have a good relationship. Instead of saying, "Oh Allah bless them." That's what we should be working towards. He says, "No, there's no marriage that's perfect." That's a statement of jealousy. He just wants everyone's marriage, everyone's situation, everyone's household to be down. Number four is stinginess. Stinginess is when a person strives towards something. And when you strive to this thing, it's out of stinginess. You want it for yourself. You just want to be the one to have it. And a person who is stingy. A stingy person, a person who has this quality of stinginess, it's me first, I'm going to have it first, give it to me first. This is a bad in the heart.
[8:50]It affects your giving in acts of worship. A stingy person said, in his book, the stingy one is not only stingy to the creation. It affects his stinginess towards his Creator. He's very stingy. Even waking up, give Allah more worship. I haven't done enough. What does he think? I worshipped Allah until he became pleased with me, one said. I worshipped Allah until he became pleased with me. How do you know that Allah became pleased with you worshipping him?
[9:30]It's a statement of stinginess. The stingy person thinks he's done more than what he actually really has done for you. Number five is arrogance. Arrogance, my brothers and sisters, will get in the way of everything. Arrogance means, in simple terms, is when you reject the truth when it's brought to you. Anyone who tells you the truth, he doesn't like it. Also, belittling the people. He belittles the people.
[10:15]How does he know? What does he think he is? Somebody came to tell you something, you're arrogant. When you say, "Fear Allah, brother, this is wrong. Allah said this," arrogance enters his heart. He's full of himself.
[10:51]He says, "Brother, do you know me? Do you know who I am? You don't even know me? And you have the audacity to talk to me like this?" Arrogance enters him. Humility, humbling yourself is a characteristic of the people who have a clean heart. They don't see themselves to be anything.
[11:20]Brothers, listen to this. We're going to come to this in the Biography, we're going to take it in great details. When the Prophet came to the city of Medina, and he was building his mosque, was he sitting back and watching them do it? The companions, what did they say? "If we sit down, whilst the Prophet is working, then it is a misguided action from us." Humility. He is the Prophet of Allah. He's the best man to have ever walked on this earth. He's building the mosque with them. And they're chanting, "Oh Allah, forgive the Ansar and the Muhajireen."
[12:02]They're saying, "Oh Allah, there is no life except the life of the hereafter. So forgive the Ansar and the Muhajireen."
[12:13]That's what they're saying, the companions, while they're carrying the bricks, and the Prophet is saying it with them. Are we all together, brothers? Humility. Even we mentioned it, when the Prophet migrated to the city of Medina, the humility of the Prophet, that he sat with the companions on the floor. And he was with them. He was talking with them. He was a member of his community. Number six, my brothers and sisters, is loving the world, loving the world, having the world in your heart, it affects your worship. Loving this world. You're working towards this world to the extent, my brothers and sisters, for us, when we pray the prayer, we do acts of worship, we do it to quickly get rid of it so we can go back to our worldly affairs. Because the world is so big in our hearts. So when we pray, it's like, "Allahu Akbar," and quickly go through it so then we can go back to work, make money. Loving this world. Number seven is loving leadership and authority. Loving leadership, whenever it's five of you guys, six of you guys, you want to be in charge. You put your finger up. Every situation, you want to be the one to control everything. Let the people choose you, but don't choose yourself all the time. Loving leadership and to be in charge, it's a sickness of the heart. Go at the end, say, "I'll be with the people. I'll do anything." My brothers, this brings tears. In one of the battles, Khalid ibn al-Walid was the commander. He was in charge. In the middle of the battle, Umar had sent a letter to change the person in charge and to make who in charge? Abu Ubayd ibn al-Jarrah. The fight was going strong. Are we all together? The letter reached Abu Ubayd ibn al-Jarrah in the battlefield whilst the believers were fighting. The letter reached him. The messenger came and gave him the letter. Abu Ubayd read the letter. What does the letter say? You become in charge. Khalid ibn al-Walid has to step down. He took the letter and he put it in his pocket. And he let the fight go on. He did not interrupt it. He did not say, "I received a letter in which I am told to go back." None of that.
[15:01]They didn't like leadership. Umar, may Allah be pleased with him. When Abu Bakar appointed him as the leader, he was saying, "Why me? Abu Ubayd is alive." He's got these traits, he's got these qualities, choose him. Abu Bakar when he was appointed as the leader of the Muslims, he didn't come there for that reason. And then Umar was fighting you and then they gave allegiance to Abu Bakar. Loving leadership, it's a sickness. Some things, my brothers and sisters, in the world, should you work towards something and leadership and everything? Maybe this. But if this enters into the religion and everything in your life is a problem. Are we all together, brothers? It's an issue. Number eight, the final issue, it's the final point, and that is loving fame. Everyone wants to be famous. There are two books. I was just talking to one of my close friends, Saif, about two authors who've written two books, who a lot of people don't even know their biography. But if I asked you those two books, I believe not majority, I think every single person in this room knows it. But if I asked you the authors, a bit about them more, you most likely might not know. Number one is the book, "The Sealed Nectar." It's a very famous book. I, maybe some Indians would know it here because they know Safiur Rahman. But is his book more famous than him? Which was more famous? The book or him? The book. What about the Fortress of the Muslim? The author's name is Said ibn Wahf al-Qahtani. Put your hand up if you knew that. Put your hand up if you didn't know the author's name. There you go. His book is more famous than him.
[17:17]And we believe, if your name is known, if it's not known, if something is attributed to you, if it's not attributed to you, never make it about yourself.
[18:07]Don't give yourself value. In the world, what are we learning in our personal development books? Personal branding. Personal branding. You have to work towards your name, your credibility. The only thing that should matter to us, brothers, is how we are in the eyes of Allah. How does Allah see us? True or false? That's what should matter. And this is the problem with fame. People want other people to give it to them. I hope those words which I have said is of great benefit to all of you guys. Anything I've said that was wrong or incorrect is from me and Satan and Allah and his Messenger are both free from it. Glory be to you, O Allah, and praise be to You. I bear witness that there is no god but You. I seek Your forgiveness and repent to You.
