1) Encouraging What is Right.2) Believe in your Dreams!

The Reason for Creation

All?h created both the jinns and humans to worship Him, He sent the messengers and revealed the Books for this grand objective, He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

So this is the reason that All?h created all peoples, the jinn and human among them, the male and female among them, the 'Arab and non 'Arab among them, the rich and poor among them. All of them were created to worship All?h. They were not created out of jest or without purpose. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

Here All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) rebukes all who think that. He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) also said (which means);

The meaning here is unrestricted, without command or prohibition. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

Rather All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) created the creatures to worship Him, He did not create them in futility, in jest, or without purpose. He created them for a tremendous reason; that they worship Him by obeying His orders, and avoiding his prohibitions, and that they should perform all of their worship sincerely for Him, abiding by regulations. This is the worship that He created them for, as He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

The Meaning of Worship

This worship consists of singling him out with tawh?d, obeying Him by performing what He holds obligatory and staying away from what He forbade, it is the Isl?m about which He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

It is faith and guidance as He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

This worship is faith, it is that which the Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) spoke of when he said;

Therefore faith is to worship All?h, it is Isl?m, it is guidance, it is righteousness and piety, it is obedience to All?h and His Messenger, it is tawh?d of All?h and sincerity for Him, it is establishing His orders, and avoiding His prohibitions, and abiding by His regulations. This is worship, and this is Isl?m and faith, and this is taqw?, and this is righteousness and guidance. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And;

And;

This is the meaning of worship, that which All?h ordered all peoples with, and that which He created them for. He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

Here He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) ordered them to fulfill this worship, to fulfill that for which He sent to them the messengers, upon the be peace. He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

How Correct Worship is Achieved

Here the meaning of " Worship All?h " is singling out All?h and obeying His orders, and the meaning of "And shun the tagh?t" is stay away from shirk and disobedience. From the first of the messengers, N?h (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m), to the last of them Muhammad (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m), All?h sent them all to call people to worship All?h, to single out All?h, and make only Him the object of worship, and that they obey His orders, and that they stay away from His prohibitions, and that they abide by his regulations, that they hope in His reward, and fear His (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) punishment. It was with this that All?h dispatched the messengers and it was this that they delievered. Ibn 'Abb?s (RadiyAllahu ‘Anhu) was reported to have said;

All?h narrated their story to us in many places, and that they were commanded with tawh?d of All?h and obedience to Him;

When they arrogantly rejected him and remained in falsehood, All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) punished them with the flood as He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

He remained among them for nine hundred and fifty years calling them to All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la). So when they arrogantly rejected him All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) vanquished them with the floods, with the rains that showered down from the heavens, and the waters of the Earth overflowing, until even the very last of them drowned, except for those with N?h on the boat. Similarly All?h punished others. Anyone who does not answer the call of the messenger, then he is ruined in this life and the Hereafter. The last and most worthy of the messnegers, the seal of the prophets was Muhammad (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m), as All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

The Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) said, “There is no prophet after me. And; I was sent for all peoples.” All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And;

So it is obligatory for everyone, jinns and humans, that they follow him and obey him, and that they adhere to his methodology (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m), as All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) says (which means);

Here the meaning is, "O Muhammad, tell the people, the jinn and human among them, 'If you indeed love All?h'" That is if you love Him truthfully, "'Then follow me, All?h will love you.'" So whoever loves All?h, then let him follow Muhammad (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) by obeying his orders, and avoiding what he prohibited. This is accomplished by tawh?d of All?h and sincerity for Him, by fulfilling His rights, by not disobeying Him. Among these elements is preserving the prayer, giving the zak?h, fasting Ramadh?n, hajj to the sacred House, being kind to the parents and keeping the ties of the womb, commanding good and forbidding evil, staying away from all types of disobedience, staying away from associating anyone with All?h, which is the worst of sins, staying away from all types of disobedience including lewdness or fornication, theft, homosexual acts, dealing with usury, drinking intoxicants, backbiting, slander, disobedience to one's parents, cutting the ties of the womb, etc. It is obligatory for everyone, the men and the women that they worship All?h, that they obey His orders, that avoid His prohibitions, and that they abide by His regulations hoping in His reward, fearing His (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) punishment. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And;

So it is obligatory for all jinns and humans, whether male or female, that they worship All?h and have taqw? of Him, and that they revere His orders and prohibitions. And this can only occur by encouraging each other, giving sincere advice, and helping one another to righteousness and taqw? be they males, females, 'Arabs, non-'Arabs, all peoples. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

Oaths

In this s?rah, All?h made an oath by time [al-'asr]. The meaning of 'asr is the time span of the day and the night. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) has stated such oaths in connection with His creatures as He willed, just as He did about the mountain, the scattering winds, the star when it sets, the night when it conceals, the sun and its illumination, the fig and the olive, and others. All?h states such oaths by these creatures because they are evidence of His magnificence and that He is the Lord of the Worlds. That He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) is the one who deserves to be worshipped, so He can state such oaths as He wills. As for the creatures, it is not allowed for them to swear by other than All?h, it is not allowed for them to swear by the Prophet, nor by their reputation of trust, nor by their fathers, nor any creature at all. This is because the Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) said;

And;

And;

Those who Believe...

All?h explained in this great s?rah (al-'Asr) that all people are lost, the male and the female among them, the jinn and the human among them, all are lost, "Except those who believe and perform righteous deeds, enjoin one another with the truth, and enjoin one another with patience."These are the profiteers of happiness, those who believe in All?h and His Messenger, they believe that All?h is their Lord and the only one worthy of their worship, and that He is above the Heavens, over His throne, over all of His (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) creation. They believe in All?h's exaltedness, and that He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) is over His throne, separate from His creation. Just as He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

This is our Lord (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) His is the creation and the command, and He is above His throne, and His knowledge reaches every place, the hands are raised up to Him (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) in supplication, He is the high, the magnificent, as He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

And;

He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) is above His throne "istaw?' 'alayhi" that is an istaw?' befitting His magesty and greatness, He does not resemble His creatures in any of His attributes. As He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

No one other than Him knows how His attributes are. So our Lord (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) is the highly exalted above His creation, and He is the Merciful , the Beneficent, and He is the Mighty, the Wise, and He is Kind and Merciful, and He is the one in control over everything, and He is the only one deserving to be worshipped. So it is obligatory for us all, the male and female, that we worship Him. But how? By obeying His orders, and staying away from His prohibitions, and being sincere in worshipping Him alone, so we call upon Him alone, we hope from Him alone, we seek help from Him alone, we swear by Him alone, we pray to Him alone, we prostrate to Him alone, we fast for Him alone, we render all of our worship for Him alone. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And;

And;

And;

The Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) said;

And he (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) said;

So it is required from all to testify to L? il?ha illa All?h and that they know that there is none who deserves to be worshiped other than Him (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) and that they believe that He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) is above His throne, and that to Him (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) belong the most beautiful names and the most exalted attributes, and that there are no partners for Him nor equals to Him nor rivals;

It is also required for all to believe that He is the creator and the provider, just as He is the only one worthy of worship, so He is the creator and provider, there is none who creates other than Him, nor any Lord besides Him, and His are the most beautiful names and most exalted attributes. As He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

So His are the most beautiful names to be called upon like al-Hak?m, al-'Al?m, ar-Rahm?n, ar-Rah?m, al-'Az?z, ar-Ra'?f, al-Q?dir, having power over everything, and as-Sam?' and al-Bas?r and all of the other examples of His most beautiful names mentioned in His magnificent book and in the Sunnah of His trusted Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m). So it is necessary for everyone to give advice in this regard, and to encourage this, as All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

So people are lost and left for ruin, except for those who believe in All?h, meaning, that they believe that All?h is truly the one worthy of worship, and that He is their Lord, their provider, and that they believe and trust that. So they are the believers believing that All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) is their creator, their provider, and that He is over His throne, over all creation, and they are believing all that He informed them about in His Book regarding the events of the Hereafter, about Paradise and the Fire, about the bridge, the scale, etc. And they trust in what All?h informed about in His magnificent Book the Qur'?n, and in what what His Messenger (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) informed of, they trust in all of this. And they are believing in All?h, and trusting in what He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) says, and they are believing in His Messenger Muhammad (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) and in what he came with. So they are believing in All?h and His Messenger, and they are trusting all of what All?h and His Messenger informed about what was and what will be, and they are believing that we will all see the Day of Judgement and we will all see our resurrection, and that we will all be compensated for our deeds, with good if they were good and with bad if they were bad. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

And;

That is the Day of Resurrection, so they will be gathered for the day of Judgement and compensated for their deeds. So it is required that the worshiper believe in that and trust in it all, and that he pass the time until that day, that is the Day of Judgment with tawh?d of All?h and obeying Him, staying away from disobedience to Him, and fulfilling His rights; it is for this reason that All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

Encouraging Each Other

Meaning those who believe in All?h and His Messenger, those who trust All?h and His Messenger, then they do righteous deeds, that is, they perform the five prayers, preserving them as All?h has ordered, performing them with tranquility of mind and attentive submission, fulfilling the zak?h, fasting the month of Ramadh?n, and performing hajj to the House, being kind to the parents, keeping the ties of the womb, commanding good, forbidding evil, struggling in All?h's cause, and singling Him out alone with worship, not associating any one with Him in that, not doing anything that He prohibited from the acts of disobedience which He has forbidden. It is required from every believer to be cautious of everything that All?h has made unlawful for him, similarly the believing woman must beware of every kind of disobedience. So the worship of All?h and faith in Him means; sincerity for All?h in deeds, obeying His orders, avoiding His prohibitions according to the methodology which the Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) came with. So the believer prays as All?h ordered him, he fasts as Allah ordered him, he gives zak?h as All?h ordered him, and he performs Hajj as All?h ordered him, he makes jih?d as All?h ordered him, he commands good and forbids evil as All?h ordered Him and he calls to All?h, he advises, encourages his brothers to what is good. This is the believer in All?h and the Hereafter.

The He (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

Meaning with the deed, they encourage each other to perform and fulfill the obligations of All?h, and they prohibit from what He forbade, and they hope in His reward, and they fear His punishment out of trust and sincerity. Then they encourage each other with patience. So every one gives advice to his brother when he sees him failing, he advises him explaining the good, and calling him back to All?h saying, "O brother have taqw? of All?h", "O brother, do this", "O my brother, stay away from that", in this way he encourages him to do good. When he sees him becoming lazy with the prayer he advises him saying, "O my brother have taqw? of All?h, the prayer is a pillar of the religion, and it is obligatory for you to preserve it during fajr, thuhr, 'asr, maghrib and 'ish?', in all of its times it is obligatory that you hasten to it when the caller calls the ath?n. For the man it is better to perform it in congregation, for the woman in her home, with sincerity, faith, aubmisive attentiveness, tranquility of mind, and presence of heart." And it is the same with giving zak?h as All?h ordered, and fasting as All?h ordered, hajj as All?h ordered, selling as All?h ordered, buying as All?h ordered, and commanding good and forbidding evil etc. In all of his circumstances he is being watched by All?h, while at home, while at work, during his prayer, while he is fasting, when he is with his wives, in every place he must be mindful of All?h, have taqw? of Him, obey His orders and take heed to His prohibitions, hoping in His reward, and fearing His punishment. This is the meaning of His (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) saying;

Then with this, he will be encouraging his brothers and the people of his household and giving advice to his wife and his children, advising them to obey All?h, encouraging them to do what good He has provided for them, encouraging his comrades and acquaintances, advising them and warning them from disobeying All?h, and being patient as well. He must encourage with patience, since no good will result without it, because these are deeds that require patience, faith requires patience, and good works require patience, so encouraging with the truth and with patience also requires patience, as does calling to All?h and commanding good and forbidding evil. Haven't you heard about the wasiyah of Luqm?n to his son? All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

Then All?h mentioned encouraging the parents, and the child encouraging his parents even if they are disbelievers, that you treat them kindly and behave well as companions to them since perhaps All?h will guide them by such means. Then Luqm?n said to his son;

Meaning beware of becoming arrogant proud and enamored with yourself, you must be humble not proud, for the believer has taqw? of All?h and is mindful of All?h in all situations. So he fulfills what All?h has obligated and stays away from what He has prohibited, and he advises his brothers, encouraging them to obey All?h, commanding them with good, and forbidding them from evil and not doing it himself.

These four characteristics are the characteristics of those who have profited the salvation of happiness. The first is faith, the trust in All?h and His Messenger and in what All?h and His Messenger informed about regarding that which was and that which will be, then, acting, by fulfilling the things that All?h has made obligatory, and staying away from what He has prohibited. It is not enough to say and that's all. It must include the action of the heart and the limbs. The heart's actions are fearing All?h, hoping in Him, loving Him, and feeling submissive to Him (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la). This must then include the actions of the limbs, fulfilling the obligations instituted by All?h, and staying away from His prohibitions, and staying within the limits that He has regulated, advising one's brothers, and encouraging his brothers wherever they may be, whether they are at sea, or on land, whether in a car or on a ship, whether in a private or social gathering, whenever they see an evil they object to it, whenever they see an infringement they admonish and remind, they encourage to do good, they give good advice, and they warn against evil. This is how the believer is with his brothers, this is how the believing woman is with her sisters in All?h, as well as with her husband, her children and her relatives, she gives them advice as to what is best for them, so the man advises, and the woman advises. All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And the Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) said,

They said, "To what Messenger of All?h?" He said,

Jar?r Bin 'Abdull?h al-Bajli, the noble companion (RadiyAllahu ‘Anhu) said;

The Believer's Character

So the believer advises his brothers when he sees something wrong, not neglecting to do so with his friends or others, All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said;

These are the characteristics of the believer and these are their manners as mentioned in this great ?yah; the believing men and women are friends of each other, the opposite of All?h's enemies, so the believers are friends loving each other in All?h, and advising each other under Him. The believer does not cheat his brother, he does not deceive him, or lie about him, the believer is the believer's brother, he does not cheat or deceive, they are friends of each other. So the one who cheats his brother or lies about him, or wrongs him has wronged the brotherhood of faith, he has violated and transgressed it, and he has disobeyed his Lord by it. So he must preserve this faith by performing the obligations and avoiding the prohibitions while commanding good and forbidding evil, fulfilling what All?h has said;

In this way, the believers have mercy with one another, they advise one another, they admonish one another, and they command good and forbid evil, so that they guide the people in their homes, their brothers, and their friends and others, to what is good, as All?h (Subh?nahu wa Ta’?la) said (which means);

And;

And;

So the knowledgeable people of clarity invite to All?h and to following the Messenger (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m). They are the people of insight and the people of knowledge, inviting to All?h and guiding the people to good with clarity and with knowledge, hoping in All?h's reward, fearing his punishment. So it is required that believing man and every believing woman invite to Allah in accordance with the degree of knowledge and their capability. It is not allowed for anyone to say anything about All?h without knowledge, rather he is to invite to All?h according to his knowledge and as much as he understands. So when he sees a believing man or woman who is infringing on what is due of the prayer, neglecting it or becoming lazy with it then he advises him and commands him with the good and warns him from being negligent with the prayer and becoming lazy with it. The same if he sees someone disobeying his parents, or cutting off the ties of the womb, of if he sees someone lying or cheating in his dealings, then it is required from him to advise him saying, "Have taqw? of All?h, the Muslim is the Muslim's brother, he does not wrong or become harsh with him" Whenever he sees some disgraceful behavior from him he advises and guides to what is good. Advising and encouraging the truth includes students examinations, encouraging truthfulness without cheating, as well as in business dealings, buying and selling in a trustworthy manner without cheating, even for the produce dealers, that they advice each other to not cheat. Every Muslim must behave this way whatever his occupation, advising his co-workers with the truth according to his ability. So it is obligatory to do all of your deeds with trust as All?h has ordered it, and it is obligatory to advise that as All?h has ordered it. The same is the case of the husband with his wife, it is obligatory for him to advise her and to teach her, that he be good and gentle with her, having good relations with her and a smiling face. It is not allowed for him to always be frowning and scowling at his family members. Rather he must have good relations, good speech, with his wife and his family, with his children and his parents. So he is to command good and forbid evil through good character and nice speech. The same is the case of the wife with her husband, she must have good manners, advising him, being patient and dealing in a good manner with him. The same is the case of the father with his children; he must have taqw? of All?h regarding them, and advise them. The same for the mother with her children, having taqw? of All?h regarding them and advising them, commanding good and forbidding evil. The same for one's friends, he must advise them, loving what is good for them, commanding them with what is good and forbidding them from what is evil. So when he sees them becoming lazy with fajr prayer or otherwise, he gives him advice to the contrary. Saying, "This is one of the obligations that All?h has prescribed, and prayer is one of the pillars of the religion, avoiding it is disbelief." For the Prophet (Sala Allahu ‘alihi was-Sal?m) said;

And;

And;

So in this way the important position of the prayer is known. So it is obligatory to warn against being careless with it. And the same is the case with all matters, it is obligatory to advise and encourage each other with the truth, helping each other towards righteousness and taqw? and to avoid what is harmful.

I ask All?h to cause us and all of the Muslims to act according to what He loves and is pleased with, that He keep us all firm on His religion, and we seek refuge in Him from our bad deeds and the bad deeds of all of the Muslims, from the darkness of wrong, and that He grant us fiqh in the religion, granting us all a good ending...

 BY: Shaykh 'Abdul-'Az?z Ibn B?z

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Translated by Ab? Khaliyl Jadd Sylvester