Quran Study 17 Dec 1982 By Dr Rashad Khalifa
Transcript
0:05 We have something really important.
0:09 O you who believe, fasting is decreed for you, as it was decreed for those before you, that
0:23 that you may attain righteousness.
0:26 The fasting was decreed before.
0:29 It was originally written in the book of...
0:33 It says, like all religious practices in Submission,
0:37 fasting was decreed through Abraham.
0:41 The injunction prohibiting intercourse
0:44 throughout the month of fasting
0:45 is revised here to allow intercourse
0:48 during the nights of fasting.
0:51 So, what fasting was,
0:53 The rite first given through Abraham, you know, was a continuous fast throughout the whole month of Ramadan.
1:05 It was continuous, day and night, throughout the whole month.
1:11 As we will see here, actually, in verse 187, this is modified to allow intercourse
1:25 during the nights of Ramadan.
1:30 Verse 184, you shall fast during the specified days.
1:36 Specified days means the ninth month of the lunar calendar.
1:42 This is the month of Ramadan, the month of Ramadan is the month wherein the Quran was revealed.
1:50 You shall fast during the specified days.
1:53 The specified days are identified by the appearance of the moon, the new moon of the ninth month,
2:01 and end by the appearance of the new moon of the tenth month.
2:07 Those who are ill or traveling, shall fast an equal number of other days.
2:14 And those who find it too difficult may substitute the feeding of a poor person for each day of
2:21 fasting.
2:22 You see, God gives us all kinds of outs.
2:27 Whatever the reasons, if you cannot fast, there is an out.
2:31 If you have, for example, a chronic illness, or a heart condition,
2:37 then you can postpone the fasting. All these are dispensations, allowances from God.
2:48 Those who find it too difficult may substitute the feeding of a poor person for each day of fasting.
2:54 Whoever volunteers to feed more people, it will be better for them.
2:59 And then, notice the end of the verse.
3:02 But fasting is the best for you, if you only knew.
3:06 So, after all these allowances,
3:10 whatever the excuses, the reasons, even though God gives you permission
3:14 to break your fasting, it is
3:18 fasting is best for you. So, if you can
3:22 by any way, fast, then
3:26 then go ahead, it is best for you to do it.
3:32 Nobody dies from abstention from water and food for one day, 24 hours.
3:39 Well, it was not 24 hours, it was only an average of 15 hours.
3:44 Nobody would die from lack of food and water.
3:51 So, it is best for us to do, carry out this commandment, in fact.
3:58 185. Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed.
4:03 And this is a very important statement.
4:07 Because the legends, hadith, and so-called stories that the Quran was revealed over a period of 23 years.
4:16 Obviously, it was not true, because this verse, it says,
4:20 The month of Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed.
4:25 The fact is, throughout the Quran, we're told that the Prophet Muhammad was taken
4:31 on the Night of Power, the 27th night of Ramadan of that year.
4:36 That first day, he was taken up to the highest horizon.
4:42 And the Quran was put in his heart, the whole Quran, in that one night.
4:49 Just like you and I have in our heart the knowledge that God is the Lord of the universe.
4:56 That we bore witness that God is our Lord.
5:02 But we don't know about that because it's inside our heart.
5:07 We don't perceive it. It's in our subconscious.
5:09 In the same way, the Quran was put in Muhammad's heart.
5:16 Sura 53 gives the details.
5:18 How he was taken to the highest horizon, and the whole Quran was put in his heart.
5:27 Subsequent to this, Gabriel would go and bring out a portion of the Quran.
5:36 A portion that is small enough for the Prophet and his companions to memorize.
5:42 We find this in Sura 17, it says, we released the Quran portion by portion in order that
5:50 we may memorize.
5:52 Now all these references are shown at the very beginning of the book.
5:55 Go look at the beginning of the first two pages.
6:01 There is one big chart on one page, which says on the 27th night of Ramadan, you see that page?
6:10 On the 27th night of Ramadan of the year 13 before Hijra, 610 A.D., the Prophet Muhammad
6:19 was summoned to the highest possible point, Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa.
6:23 Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa is the highest possible point.
6:27 And this Quran was placed into his heart, as we see in 2:97, 17:1, 2:143, 53, 2:122, 97, and 2:125.
6:39 And subsequently, the Quran was released through Muhammad's mouth over a period of 23 years, namely between 610 and 632 AD.
6:54 At the moment of release, it was immediately written down and divinely guarded and preserved.
7:01 Now this is not what the majority of Muslims around the world believe, or accept.
7:06 We have stories, narrated from the Bible, and from other sorts of storytellers.
7:15 The Prophet was sitting in a cave, and Gabriel came to him and said,
7:18 "Read." And he said, "I don't know how to read."
7:22 And it goes on. So, it's like a storyteller's tale.
7:25 The Quran says nothing like that.
7:28 The Quran says he was taken to the Masjid al-Aqsa.
7:31 Going up to the seventh heaven.
7:33 But at the time, of course, there was no such thing as Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem.
7:38 But most people don't think about that.
7:41 Masjid al-Aqsa in Jerusalem was built after the fact, 70 years after the Prophet.
7:47 That story is a fabrication; the story of the journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and then up to heaven.
7:53 He was journeying from Mecca to heaven, straight.
7:57 And this is the wording of the verse.
8:03 You might think it's the same thing, but it is not.
8:08 That was the first day of Revelation; that was the 27th night of Ramadan.
8:15 It hadn't happened yet.
8:16 How can that be correct?
8:22 So, when we look at the Quran and put all these facts together,
8:28 we will reach the truth.
8:29 I wanted to look at Sura 44, verse 3, because
8:32 for example, 44:3.
8:45 Therefore, the subject is very clear, but it's amazing how the average Muslim's view on it is so different.
8:53 Let me show you an example.
8:55 Look at this graph.
8:58 Look at the average in the room.
9:00 You can see that it's alarming.
9:01 Let me read you the numbers.
9:03 Sura 44, Ad-Dukhan.
9:06 Great.
9:09 Sura 44.
9:20 Verse 3, verse 3, it says what?
9:26 Ameen.
9:27 Ameen.
9:31 We sent it down on a blessed night.
9:42 We have revealed the Quran in a blessed month.
9:46 The Quran was revealed in one night.
10:01 The first time that was revealed was Sura Al-Alaq, The Clot, the first five verses.
10:08 This was the order of the revelation.
10:14 The first text that was revealed was Sura 96, the first five verses, 19 words, you know.
10:23 The second revelation was 38 words, Sura 68. The third revelation was 57 words, Sura 74.
10:34 The third revelation brought up the number 19, in Sura Al-Muddaththir, Sura 74.
10:41 The first complete Sura revealed was Al-Fatihah.
10:45 Which means the 19 letters of Bismillah Al-Rahman Al-Rahim came immediately after the mention of the number 19 in Sura Al-Muddaththir.
11:04 He received the Quran. He didn't know anything about it.
11:08 He received the Quran in his heart. He was taken up to the seventh heaven.
11:13 He didn't know anything about it.
11:35 He was definitely aware that something had happened, you know, and he was completely aware.
11:47 But because God says, "We will show him Our signs." So he was absolutely, he was completely aware.
11:59 Sura 53 says he was definitely aware. He was not imagining things. He was seeing the reality.
12:07 So he was aware that he was being appointed as the final prophet. He was given a message.
12:17 It's like some other verses tell, it tells the prophet not to hurry the revelation.
12:24 What I'm saying, was he aware, you know, that it was there in him, even if it wasn't quite clear what he was thinking?
12:33 Yes, yes, essentially, the indications were that he was aware.
12:39 Because Gabriel was telling him everything.
12:41 When Gabriel came, not just to reveal the Quran, he came with a whole bunch of instructions along with the Quran.
12:48 Like, for example, these verses belong to Sura 19, or Sura 16, in the specific position.
12:56 Or, this is now a new Sura, and it shall be entitled Jonah.
13:01 So, the instructions for, as of now, you will face towards Jerusalem, or as of now you will turn back from Jerusalem.
13:15 However, we did tell you to face Jerusalem.
13:19 But some of them are going to turn back on their heels.
13:21 No, I mean, the bad side is that they have to go back to Jerusalem.
13:25 Yes.
13:31 Right, but that's not what it means. It's still a divine command.
13:37 The change of the Qibla, it was a divine order.
13:42 Well, you set it up, you know, if you have a ball, you know,
13:46 and you throw this ball.
13:47 It's not that easy to set it back up.
13:49 The Prophet may have, maybe Gabriel had a ball with him.
13:54 The first house appointed for mankind.
13:57 Hey, are you sure it is Bakkah? We have it here and it's Bakkah.
14:02 So he would make it very clear that this should be written with a B.
14:07 And as I was showing brother Muhammad today, if it was written with an M,
14:11 the whole system would collapse. The whole mathematical system would collapse.
14:16 Because it is really
14:21 overwhelming, but God picked out the word that is most familiar to the Arabs at that time.
14:26 Regarding Muhammad, who was born there, it is his town, it is known as Mecca, the people go north and south,
14:32 they hear it, they know it is Mecca. So why Bakkah? This also shows the absolute obedience to the scripture.
14:40 They had an instance where God has said this is to be written in the Bible. It's fine.
14:45 But if someone said to you, "I want you to write down the true story in the Bible,"
14:54 you have to know something. It's ridiculous. You know it's true.
15:04 But then, when the divine authors came to write it in the Bible, that's it.
15:10 No way around it.
15:11 It only means there was no such thing.
15:13 No.
15:14 And they couldn't corrupt the word.
15:16 And it stayed like this, and then the generations that came after, that didn't dare to forge it, eh?
15:22 See?
15:24 They knew that it is sacred ground.
15:27 So they didn't dare. Of course, you must remember, God guaranteed the preservation of the Quran, so
15:34 So, even if they tried, they'd perish.
15:38 Absolutely, some people tried.
15:41 It's very interesting because this not only shows that
15:46 a spelling, which was not the normal one, has been preserved.
15:51 But later on, people began to notice that there's a difference.
15:56 Then they began to say, "Oh, this is another name." Oh.
16:00 But then there is no proof of that. They speculate that this is another, another thing.
16:08 When the most plausible explanation is that it was there from the beginning and nobody wanted to touch it. They were afraid.
16:19 It's interesting how when people make up an interpretation, they back it up with all sorts of stories.
16:26 For example, the letters before the surahs were put at the beginning of the surahs to get the attention of the people, to say, "Qaf. Wal-Quran il-Majeed."
16:47 So people will say, "What? What is this?" and so get their attention. And he said that this was a common thing in the Arabic literature.
16:55 This is to back up his assertion.
17:00 Now, it's very simple. All you need to do is show us some literature where they have these letters.
17:04 It's not true.
17:08 And, you know, it used to get me all upset because they always say things like that.
17:12 Why do you make a statement like that?
17:14 "It was very common in ancient Arabic literature."
17:17 I studied ancient Arabic literature.
17:19 And we have this recorded literature.
17:20 There wasn't a verse written on these stones. And there is no such thing.
17:25 This is not a common affair.
17:27 Because you will never find any such expressions.
17:31 Well, this Maududi follows his own thinking.
17:34 He should put A.M. before his books.
17:37 You'll say, "What's A.M.?" He'll say, "Abul Maududi."
17:39 Get the picture?
17:40 Yeah.
17:41 But it was a sign.
17:43 No, that is guesswork.
17:46 Why can't you explain then why only some of them needed attention and not all of them?
17:51 Exactly. That's another point.
17:53 Why do we have the letters attached only to twenty-nine chapters?
17:57 God doesn't want us to pay attention to the other chapters as well?
18:02 But the people, the interpreters, would back up their interpretations
18:06 with stories that are absolutely baseless.
18:11 Well, I mean, "I don't know what you're talking about."
18:18 Whenever a new revelation comes down, in fact, there's always somebody that has to write about it.
18:24 Right.
18:24 Yeah.
18:26 Now, how do we know what, how to differentiate them, too?
18:29 Whether it was just something that he was saying, or whether it was an actual revelation, you know, out of all these revelations.
18:35 I don't know.
18:37 Because Muhammad could not miss the visit of Gabriel.
18:40 If Gabriel visits you, he's not going to miss that.
18:43 No, his question I think is this.
18:47 The question is this, that how did the people around him, when the Prophet was reciting,
18:53 when the Prophet was reciting, how would the people around him know that now he is reciting Quran,
19:01 but at other times he is just talking from his own, how did the people know?
19:06 I understand the question. My answer was, he can't miss Gabriel's visit.
19:11 So when Gabriel comes and says,
19:14 قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ﴿١﴾ اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ ﴿٢﴾ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ ﴿٣﴾ وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ ﴿٤﴾
19:21 He was telling him the Quran.
19:22 He was telling Muhammad at the time, and Muhammad was memorizing it.
19:27 And then he would say to the revelation scribes,
19:30 I have some more Quran now.
19:33 So he was telling them, قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ
19:36 And they write it down, but that's not the end of it;
19:39 they memorize it just like we're doing now.
19:40 Now, that's what was going on.
19:44 But that actually is,
19:46 this itself is really one of the wonderful things.
19:52 In the Sirat an-Nabi,
19:53 the history, the biographical process,
19:56 the people around him knew.
20:00 They knew very well when he was under inspiration.
20:05 And then they themselves would
20:07 hear what he's saying and they would memorize it.
20:10 The people around him, they knew, the people knew the difference.
20:16 It is a very, very beautiful thing. They also knew when he would just speak, you know, ordinary things.
20:22 Although I don't know how true it is that he changes.
20:26 Because in some ways it's a form of, he becomes an instrument.
20:31 They know from his face and his utterance. It's not his, it's not his language.
20:40 It's just like, for example, all of us now. We know the way you talk to us.
20:44 But imagine if you were talking like Shakespeare. We all know that it's not you.
20:49 So it's a very wonderful phenomenon how the people with him would know that it's a revelation,
20:54 and they would themselves memorize it when he has ended.
20:57 As far as the physical changes are concerned, I really don't buy that, that he used to faint and sweat and all these things, that some doctors diagnosed him with epilepsy.
21:15 Yeah, I really don't buy that.
21:17 I don't go that far. I only say that there are some changes.
21:20 Yeah.
21:20 Yeah, but it's not exactly fair to be called that.
21:22 But it is something that exists in the books,
21:25 they show that he would not respond,
21:27 or anything unconscious, or anything.
21:29 But according to a doctor,
21:31 a Jesuit doctor
21:32 in the Philippines, an American doctor,
21:35 he's saying,
21:36 and he does not believe in the Quran,
21:38 he's even an enemy of Islam,
21:40 but this man told us very clearly
21:42 from the medical point of view,
21:44 these recitations would not have come
21:46 from an epileptic, he says.
21:49 Yes, well, that epileptic story. I don't blame them because they make up these stories.
21:56 But if you look at 17:106.
21:59 Kathryn?
22:03 17:106, this is page 196 at the top.
22:06 It says, this is a Quran that we portioned for you to read to the people over a long period, though we sent it down all at once.
22:18 There is another one, there's a verse that is 'to fix it'... but it's not fixed...
22:45 in my memory.
22:51 I'm going to find it, it is important.
22:53 It says that we released it over
22:55 a long period in order to fix it in
22:57 your memory. So, this
22:59 will indicate to me that
23:00 Gabriel would release
23:03 a few verses
23:05 and then would wait
23:07 until he memorizes it.
23:10 Now, I want
23:11 to remind you also of the angels
23:12 that went to Abraham, visited him, in the form of human beings. Then Abraham went and
23:19 slaughtered a calf for them. He roasted the calf and brought it to them. The angels
23:24 don't eat like this. They don't have the same digestive system as Abraham, or the needs
23:29 that we have. Even with you, in the eternal life, you will not need to eat. Or maybe you
23:36 will. Let's not go into this. But anyway, the angels wouldn't eat the roasted calf that
23:42 Abraham brought. So this tells us that the angels come to the people in the form of human beings.
23:49 They came to Abraham and there is no reason why Gabriel wouldn't come to Muhammad in the form of a human being
23:57 and help him release the Quran and take it to a memorizer.
24:03 Oh, here it is, I'm going to... this is a very important verse we're talking about the revelation
24:11 of the Quran, 25:32. Surah 25, verse 32, that you guys are the most informed people
24:31 in the world.
24:34 And to more serious things.
24:40 Verse 32 says, "The disbelievers said, 'How come the Quran was not
24:44 revealed to him all at once?'" We thus
24:48 released it gradually in order to fix it in your memory.
24:53 That's the reason why it was released over a period of 23 years.
24:57 Gabriel would read it. He fixed it in the prophet's memory and the companions of course who were around
25:03 him, they were also memorizing it along with him. They didn't know how to read or write
25:13 but that gave them a sharp memory and gave them a lot of time, nothing else to do. Because
25:20 because really it takes a lot of time to memorize it and to keep it alive in memory.
25:28 So this, "to fix it in memory," indicates
25:35 that Gabriel would release it in a few verses, then leave Muhammad,
25:42 to allow him to memorize it. So whether the revelation writers were there or not,
25:47 when the prophet met them
25:49 he would send somebody to bring them
25:52 and he would tell them,
25:53 I have some Quran for you
25:56 and you write it down.
25:59 Would it also,
26:01 would it not be
26:03 reasonable to say
26:06 that it makes sense
26:08 why the Quran has to be,
26:10 among other reasons,
26:13 revealed in portions?
26:14 It makes sense why the Quran
26:16 has to be revealed
26:18 on different occasions, because
26:20 some of them are really guides
26:22 for a specific occasion.
26:24 For example,
26:26 after the Battle of
26:28 Badr, after the Battle of Badr.
26:30 How can a revelation talk
26:32 about the results of
26:33 the Battle of Badr if
26:36 it has not taken
26:38 place? So that's
26:40 why we may have to use
26:42 this kind of philosophical language, that the Quran, as you say, is given as a whole,
26:51 put in the heart of the Prophet, and released at different times.
26:59 The revealing is there, actually in the heart, but potentially for certain occasions.
27:09 When the occasion comes, it becomes actualized, relative to the occasion.
27:16 But there is the occasion of Zayd and the divorce of his wife.
27:20 Now, the Quran was written before the earth was created.
27:23 And it was put in Muhammad's heart before these things took place.
27:27 It's one of the miraculous aspects of the Quran.
27:30 So, when Zayd divorced his wife and the Prophet was to marry Zayd's wife,
27:34 that's when these verses were released. That was the time for it. So this is a very good point that Douglas just raised.
27:46 Okay, back to you.
27:47 In that particular verse, you know, the prophet Muhammad, he didn't want to hear it.
27:53 Yes.
27:54 God just scolded him for doing it.
27:56 Yeah, because it was against the tradition. It was against the false religion.
27:59 But he was worried about what the people would say.
28:03 But how did he know? Was it because he was aware, at least somewhat, of the revelation?
28:12 When we go to that verse, it's very interesting.
28:17 But it's very interesting because, you know, where is his prophethood here?
28:21 Because actually it was there, but he was keeping it. Did he want it? Do you remember?
28:27 Yes, it was there. It was supposed to come out in the revelation, but he is scolded by the Quran. Didn't you point that out?
28:36 Oh, yes. He is scolded.
28:40 But there are many different kinds of inspiration and revelation. There is a kind where you are put in a situation where you either submit to God or you object.
28:53 He was put in that kind of situation, a situation where he was afraid of what the people were thinking.
29:01 thinking.
29:03 But when a certain inspiration comes to you from God, it just takes over, and you just
29:09 can't think of anything else.
29:11 Like Moses' mother, for example, throwing her baby in the river.
29:15 Have you ever heard of Linda throwing her baby in the river?
29:22 Or any mother?
29:24 No mother in the world would do that without a divine inspiration.
29:31 But it was some kind of an inspiration.
29:36 See, we all know what a loving mother you are, Linda.
29:39 I'll use you as an example for that.
29:46 We're going to see what kind of mother Donna is. She'll probably dote on him.
29:54 Very soon, very soon.
29:59 But this is the kind of inspiration that just takes over. There's nothing else you can do.
30:05 You do it.
30:09 Now what should we do?
30:12 What would be the inspiration?
30:14 A direct command from God.
30:21 A command from God.
30:22 God wants the prophet to marry
30:24 Zayd's wife to establish a law, a precedent.
30:27 That was the idea.
30:30 I mean, there could be many more.
30:34 So, and the Quran is not...
30:39 Okay, back to 185.
30:40 Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed,
30:43 and I think we already stated this point earlier.
30:48 a beacon of guidance, clear proofs of guidance, and the Statute Book.
30:53 The Statute Book is the book of laws.
30:56 Regulations.
30:57 The final, final law.
31:03 Initially, the commandment, "You shall not kill," for example, that's it.
31:08 But here the Quran gives details, for example, the laws of murder:
31:18 murder for murder: a man for a man, a woman for a woman.
31:34 God wishes convenience for you rather than hardship for you.
31:39 He wishes to enable you to complete the count, and to glorify God for guiding you, and to show
31:48 your appreciation.
31:50 When you say, "I believe in God," you have to do something about it.
31:53 You can't just say, "I believe in God," and then you don't do the contact prayers, or you don't...
32:00 I don't know.
32:00 (Questioner): I have a question on that.
32:02 (Rashad): Yeah?
32:03 (Questioner): I'm just curious, earlier you were talking about travelers.
32:08 What is the problem with traveling, for example?
32:11 (Rashad): The idea is, it is hard. If you took a plane,
32:16 it could be a long journey.
32:17 If you take a plane from here to the north, you wouldn't be able to do it.
32:20 This is an example of the difficulty.
32:25 But if you are confined in a cabin, it is really hard.
32:29 It was really hard.
32:30 You know, in the desert, storms and...
32:41 That's why the Quran says if you can't do it, you shall feed one poor person.
32:46 And at the end of the day, you break the fast.
32:51 Even in these modern days, nobody would die from abstaining from food and water.
32:56 You know, it's hard, you know, to do it if you don't believe in it.
33:01 And this will show your appreciation of God, that you really believe in God.
33:05 And when it says to fast in the month of Ramadan, you fast no matter what.
33:10 And as for pregnancy, yes, it is hard.
33:17 It's hard, you can do it some other time.
33:22 You can fast some other time.
33:25 If you can do it, it's better for you than it is to not do it.
33:28 I'm not saying it's bad for you.
33:30 What can I do?
33:32 Because it's painful.
33:35 Oh, they can help you.
33:37 Yeah.
33:37 Did you pray?
33:39 When he was crying, they told me to ask him.
33:43 Oh, I see.
33:43 So I came here.
33:46 He put you down.
33:47 But you were coming for him.
33:49 Come on.
33:51 That's why he's so big.
33:53 That's so great!
33:56 Is that good? Let me pick up the booklet and give you one.
34:01 My servant.
34:09 Oh, I want to say that, you know, how
34:13 God designed Ramadan for the test.
34:17 When he was saying that Ramadan comes in the short days in the winter,
34:22 for the day, only 8 hours, and fasting is really nothing, it's just skipping your breakfast and lunch,
34:29 and then you eat, so there's nothing to it.
34:34 And if you take 100 people who will fast when the day is short,
34:39 and then Ramadan moves, and the day becomes longer,
34:45 and 15 people will drop out when the day is 10 hours.
34:48 Then we'll have 85 people fasting. And then the day becomes 14 hours, the fasting day.
34:57 And 20 more people drop out, so we have 65 people left.
35:01 And then the day goes on to 15 hours, and 20 more people drop out.
35:07 Because it's getting too long. You have 45 people left. And then the day is 16 hours,
35:15 long and hot, 16 hours long, then you have 20 more people drop out.
35:20 And the 25 that are left, these are the 25 die-hard believers who will fast no matter what.
35:29 And you can see how the test is designed. The whole universe is designed for that test.
35:36 And it's the same when you pray. Now you are praying
35:39 before sunrise. Whether you like it or not, or because you have to be at work at eight o'clock, or whatever.
35:50 So, you're praying, now, are you praying Fajr before sunrise because God says you pray before sunrise, or because you have to go to work at eight o'clock?
36:01 Now, now, the truth of you, this question will be answered when the sunrise is at 4 o'clock.
36:10 You're going to pray Fajr before sunrise, or you're going to pray at 7 o'clock? at noon?
36:17 That will show you whether you are praying Fajr because God said so, or because your
36:25 boss said, come to work at 11 o'clock.
36:28 The whole universe is designed for the test.
36:32 The axis of the earth is tilted 23 degrees just so the days would be longer, and the sunrise
36:40 would be different.
36:42 Just to test you.
36:48 Do you get the point?
36:52 When God tells you to pray morning before sunrise, this means that you are going to
36:57 as a die-hard believer, as one who really believes in God, who knows that God is the one running your life, and provides for you,
37:04 and promises to make you a king or a queen on earth,
37:07 you believe the Quran, you know all these things, then you will get up for the prayer, period.
37:11 even if for some reason you fall into the middle of hell, it doesn't matter.
37:17 And this is what this verse means by due appreciation of God.
37:28 He doesn't want to bother you, and disturb you, and get you up—of course not—in the morning.
37:35 He doesn't need our prayers. That's what's good for you, and good for me.
37:43 That's what prepares you to join the kingdom, for God's sake.
37:51 So, the day will come when you are resurrected to enter the eternal life, the real life.
37:58 You can close your eyes a few minutes and then open them, the next time you open
38:01 your eyes on the day of resurrection.
38:04 Now what would your position be?
38:06 Are you qualified to join the kingdom of God?
38:11 Or were you lazy?
38:14 You couldn't get up before sunrise to save your life.
38:19 But when your boss says, "Come in, we have an emergency and you have to come at 3 o'clock every morning for the next two weeks,"
38:28 you can go at 3 o'clock every morning for two weeks.
38:32 If you don't, you'll get fired.
38:40 But that's what distinguishes the believers from the idle person.
38:48 So don't be discouraged.
38:50 If you understand you're praying one prayer a day,
38:56 hopefully you will make progress.
38:59 That will count.
39:03 This is the motto here: progress is our most important thing.
39:10 Progress is our most important thing.
39:12 The important thing is that you do not regress into not praying.
39:17 You must progress into doing two prayers a day, and from that you progress to doing three
39:24 prayers a day, and so forth.
39:27 You make a point of never regressing.
39:31 Maybe you will never pray morning before sunrise.
39:34 That is a known, major struggle.
39:37 Because your body is a wild horse that you are trying to train.
39:43 It's a real wild horse. Your body is real wild.
39:47 It doesn't want to get up in the morning.
39:49 It's very difficult to get up in the morning.
39:52 And this is the wrong idea.
39:53 Because if you are strong, you will make your body get up.
39:58 Now, if your body is stronger than your soul, then you, you are in deep trouble.
40:03 But try to exercise your soul until you are stronger than your body.
40:07 Because your body is going to die.
40:09 And you are going to stay on.
40:11 You are going to stay on as a strong person.
40:14 And we must gain it.
40:19 So it's very important not to be discouraged.
40:21 And that progress is the most important progress.
40:25 You progress from one prayer a day to two prayers a day,
40:28 until you do the five prayers a day,
40:29 and then you progress to praying with passion every day.
40:35 So, that's just that.
40:39 So, God wishes that you fulfill your duties.
40:43 He wants you to fulfill your duties.
40:44 But the test requires that God does not interfere.
40:47 So, Satan and the angels will not cry out.
40:51 The idea is that God does not interfere, but God wants you to be saved, God wants you to join the kingdom,
40:59 He wants you to be a king or queen on earth.
41:04 He wants you to have absolutely no masters.
41:08 He wants you to be a king.
41:11 So, that's what this verse is saying. He wishes to enable you to fulfill your duty.
41:16 He wants you to pass the test.
41:20 But people that thrust and climb the fence need to be held.
41:24 God puts fences in front of them to prevent them from going to hell, but they don't care.
41:35 God wishes to enable you to fulfill your duty, and to glorify God for guiding you,
41:42 and to show your appreciation.
41:45 by fasting the month of Ramadan, by praying the five prayers in their time, by giving charity, being charitable, kind.
41:58 This country is under a terrible test right now with all the tragedies and the poor people.
42:03 And you should hear all the mean, average Americans. Take them all and throw them in hell, you know.
42:11 They were thinking in Phoenix of building a park for their vans, to give them some fuel.
42:18 And you should hear all the people speaking against it.
42:21 They dirty up this city, you know.
42:23 It's like, it's like their choice to be poor or hungry or whatever.
42:29 But this is the test. The test for this country.
42:32 And a Muslim must be of good character, must be kind, must be thankful that he's not
42:40 put in that position. They are human beings. They're having their own test in their own world.
42:52 So, these are the duties that God wants us to fulfill.
43:00 It's Salat prayers, Zakat (charity), the fasting of Ramadan,
43:04 and Hajj pilgrimage when we can.
43:11 Look at 186.
43:14 And when My servants ask you about Me,
43:17 I am always near.
43:20 I respond to the call of any caller who calls on Me.
43:26 Therefore, they shall respond to Me and believe in Me, that they may be guided.
43:36 So these are the requirements that your prayer be answered.
43:41 Are your prayers answered?
43:44 You shall be always, the day you fulfill the requirements, respond to Me, respond to God,
43:52 And believe in God. People who believe in God and respond to him, respond meaning they obey His commands.
44:02 Then He hears your call. That's not all. God says He's closer to you than the jugular vein.
44:09 Look at this thing. Closer to you than this. How could He be closer?
44:13 Because God controls the count of blood cells in your vein. He controls that, the flow of blood in your vein.
44:27 I think it's Sura 86, but I don't know if you look at that.
44:31 I don't know if you look at that.
44:33 I've been looking a lot at that.
44:46 Fifty. Sixteen.
44:52 Fifty. Sixteen.
44:54 Fifty, verse sixteen.
45:10 We created the human being and are fully aware of his innermost thoughts, and are closer
45:15 to him than his jugular vein.
45:22 Is it cold for people?
45:25 I'm going to turn the heat on now.
45:28 Is it off?
45:30 Okay.
45:30 Okay.
45:34 So when My servants ask you about Me, I am always near.
45:42 Now, you may pray for something, and because you're a good believer, your prayer is answered,
45:50 but not exactly at the time you want it, because God does not ...
46:01 Sometimes we say, don't say, I don't know how to put this, but
46:07 as a king or queen on earth, the angels are all around you and they're eager to
46:12 complete whatever you want. So sometimes you may make statements
46:16 and they rush into completing those statements on the oral
46:21 because they don't know your qalb.
46:24 I'm going to give an example of it this way: God is, when you
46:28 pray to God, He knows what is best for you, what is the best time, so you may pray for
46:33 something that is not good for you at this particular time, and your prayer will
46:37 come to pass at the exact, the best time for you, at the right time. And if you recall,
46:43 I gave an example of where I thought that the prayer takes three to six months to get
46:48 fulfilled. Remember that story? I was thinking of the seven universes and how
46:56 how far it is. And, well, I noticed, that was my conclusion, that when I pray for
47:04 something, it is fulfilled, but it takes three or six months. So I came to the final conclusion
47:09 that it takes three to six months for God to answer the prayer. And the day I came to
47:17 that conclusion, I hit that, I was driving down the street in Tripoli, in Libya, and I
47:24 I hit that kid in the head, in the head, and it was going so fast it took me a half a block to stop.
47:32 That kid was lying down on the side of the street and was supposed to be dead.