Prayer in Islam - Part 2: Cosmic Service, Worship and Prayer

Reflections from The Risale-Nur  a Qur'an commentary by Bediüzzaman Said Nursi

The Words - Third Word

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:51

I continue with the third word. I already uh offered some introductory reflections on how worship and prayer and service are the DNA of the cosmos. So the cosmic reality of everything that exists is that every being is engaged in sacred service, in some sacred activity, was created by Allah with purpose and for a certain holy function, for a number of important duties and responsibilities, to fulfill important duties, and that prayer, worship, and service are the factory settings of this cosmos. That we will find nothing in the universe that is not engaged in sacred service, ibada or obudiya as you call it. So the human being is only by choosing to engage also in abada, in sacred worship, in sacred service, in prayer, and the human being who decides to live purposely purposefully and intentionally and consciously is someone who understands that prayer, connection to Allah, service to Allah in all our different roles and responsibilities is basically the most intrinsic response. And I will elaborate on that more. But the third word begins with the verse in the Quran from chapter two, verse 21. And Allah says in the Quran, all humankind, worship your Lord. Worship your Lord. So addressing and talking to all humanity, saying, Engage in Ayada. It's a call to engage, a very universal, very general address to engage and be active in our uh in our lives with regards to worship and prayer and service. So these are uh general definitions of ibada and obudia, but we want to understand that ibadah is a very expansive, very comprehensive description, and that it includes everything. It is not simply praying your five times a day, which are hugely important for a believer's um life of worship, because those are, as we will see, is the center pole of the religion, as the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, tells us the five ritual prayers are the center pole of the religion, of the deen. They need to sit, they need to be stable. Uh, but also understanding it, everything else flows out of these rituals that they have to translate into all our areas of life, into all our different uh sacred duties and sacred responsibilities and our sacred service. That means that as I start my day and I take the intention, Ya Allah, in your name, with your name, I want to start and begin this day, and I want to serve you every second and every minute in all the different places and positions and moments that you will place me in. And that's the attitude of a prayerful person, to be ready to respond with a sense of worship as a human being, as a wife, as a mother, as a daughter, as a sister, as an aunt, as a co-worker, as a citizen, as a neighbor, as a relative, as a friend, in all these different roles that then I will inhabit during the day, that I'm mindful that I'm first and foremost serving Allah, that Allah creates the path for me, uh, lays out the day, and my response is one of abodiya, of worship, of glorifying Allah, remembering Allah. That those are the definitions of worship, that every little action is a means to connect to Allah, to remember Allah, to reflect on His greatness, to contemplate and meditate. Those are the definitions of a believer, of an Abdullah, of a servant of Allah. We are all Abdullah. Our bodies are already functioning in a certain way, designed. Since they want to serve us in a certain way, but they serve us in a wonderful and awesome way, in an extraordinary way, because Allah has programmed it. Allah has designed our bodies, the intricate design, the intricate systems, all these well-arranged, amazing mechanisms within our body and in our cosmos, around us in the macro world, are all established and governed by Allah's laws, by divine laws. So keeping that always in mind, and uh we know that in the sacred narrations, the Prophet tells us that Allah actually told him that a servant draws nearer to Allah, a servant draws nearer to Allah through acts of obligatory worship. And those are the things that Allah loves most. And when we draw nearer to Allah, He becomes the eyes with which we see, uh the ears with which we hear, and our ability to speak is also then guided by Him. He He speaks for us. So we come closer to Allah through acts of worship, especially through the obligatory ones, and then the extras are to the voluntary ones that we make an effort constantly to pause and say, How does Allah want me to respond? Or how does Allah want me to reply or conduct myself in this situation? What is the most pleasing way to fulfill this task, the most pleasing way to Allah? And this leads us to the Sunnah. The Sunnah is the example and the life of the Prophet Muhammad, his his uh teachings, his customs, his statements, and also his emotional sunnah. How did he respond? How did he feel in certain situations? Those are all acts of worship. And prayer, the salat is simply training us or training ground to learn how to connect in all the stages of our lives. And this is a very beautiful, universal and general uh invitation to worship Allah. Why? Because the words continues. Um, like I said in uh chapter 2, verse 21, it states, Worship your Lord who has created you and who has created those before you so that you become Muttakin, meaning so that you become God conscious, that we become mindful of Allah, aware of Allah, that we are hyper alert, that we are always in His case, that He looks upon us, that He spends time with us, that we are always observed by Him. And not to be in a fearful state, because sometimes taqwa can be translated as fear of God. It's a positive fear, a fear of losing Allah's love. When you love someone so much, you want to please them in every way. And the best way to please Allah is always to respond and reflect and glorify Him in a way that He loves. And so that brings us back to the Prophet's uh way to follow the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in all aspects of our human life. And when we do so, we attain happiness, benefit, and contentment and peace in our hearts, and we always uh become more aware and more mindful. So as we engage in worship, like I said, all our body parts and all our feelings and emotions and thoughts are directed towards Allah. That's worship. It's not compartmentalized or fragmented way of worshipping Allah, that I remember Allah in my ritual prayer, and then when I go about my business during the day, my daily affairs that I'm disconnected from Him. No, quite the opposite. It's a wholesome, holistic way of remembering Allah throughout your life, in harm and benefit, in sadness and in joy, in pleasure and pain, in uh distress and relaxation. And that's why the Quran puts it so beautifully for us. They are the ones who remember Allah sitting, standing, lying on their sides. I'm paraphrasing here, but I'm sure you remember that verse which is so beautifully capturing the spirit of a life of worship that there's no moment, even right now as I'm sitting, that I ask myself, what's the most beautiful way to sit in front of Allah? What's the most beautiful way to speak in front of Allah? What's the most beautiful way to smile? What's the most beautiful way to walk? All of these aspects of our human existence are informed by a sense of worship, serving Allah because we look around us, there's nothing in the universe, nothing that does not glorify Him. In every state, in every position, in every moment, the universe, the heavens and the earth glorify him. Over and over, the Quran tells us that the universe is glorifying Allah, remembering Allah. And we want to be part of that glorification, we want to be part of that cosmic worship. We desire and we aim and we aspire to be part of this cosmic worship. And when we are part of that symphony and harmony, we also attain peace. And I'd like to read on a little bit and then hopefully reflect uh a little bit more. If you want to understand what great profit and happiness lie in worship, and what great loss and ruin lie in vice anticipation, listen to and take heed of the following story, which is in the form of a comparison. So, like I said, when we are engaged in worship and sacred service, and that's the beauty of our tradition, it's we can serve Allah in so many ways. Even if we are bad-ridden, paralyzed, even if we are not able to stand, we can still be engaged in sacred worship. For example, we can engage in a dhikr al-Hafi, in silent remembrance of Allah. You are alone in your room, like I said, bedridden doesn't mean that you don't have quality of life anymore. When that heart is connected to Allah, when you engage in remembrance, contemplation, when you think of Allah the whole time, He sees it, He values it, He appreciates it, He loves it, He wants to be remembered, He wants to be loved and acknowledged. And that even just the thought process is an act of ibadah so we should never underestimate. Even when the Quran says, I know your secret thoughts, I know your hidden thoughts in your chest, that basically means Allah cares about our inner thought processes, what we think and how we feel, and sometimes uh negative or uh harmful ideas or thoughts might enter into our mind. But when we are engaged in sacred worship, we realize we want to get rid of these thoughts and we try hard not to invite them into our mind, so we establish some gates and mechanisms to prevent that, to say my mind and my heart. I only want to engage in holy thoughts, sacred thoughts. I want to invite Allah into my heart and space because that's his throne, and I don't want to have any destructive, any negative, any uh harmful ideas or thoughts or feelings in my meditation. And every action is always premeditated, it always starts with ideas and thoughts and feelings. That's why we need to be very careful and cautious and vigilant. What kind of ideas and thoughts and plans and imagination we invite into our place of thinking and our place of feeling. We need to guard our heart. And guarding our heart happens with controlling the channels of our heart, what we look at, what we listen to, what we speak, what we touch, and what kind of company and fellowship we are, how we spend our time, and that nurtures and strengthens the heart. So when we are engaged in sacred worship in Ayybada, we will always, always have benefit. We will always see benefit and profit as it's uh described here, and happiness. Happiness means it's it's not something that is dependent on outer circumstances, on a career or money, or wealth and status and uh beauty, and no, it's it's quite different. Happiness is this inner contentment of the heart, no matter what happens to you, no matter what tragedies and and um trials you face, that once you are connected with Allah, your heart is healthy and content and at peace and liberated. And that's that's basically also what will come through in this text is that once the person is engaged, the believer is in a constant state of worship, they have nothing to fear because they feel safe and secure, and uh they feel embraced by the care and compassion of their all-wise creator. One time two soldiers received orders to proceed to a distant city. They set off and travelled together until the road forked. At the fork was a man who said to them, The road on the right causes no loss at all, and nine out of ten of those who take it receive a high profit and experience great ease. While the road on the left provides no advantages, and nine out of ten of its travellers make a loss. But they are the same as regards distance. Only there is one difference. Those who take the left hand road, which has no rules and no one in authority, travel without baggage and arms. They feel an apparent lightness and deceptive ease, whereas those travelling on the right hand, which is under military order, are compelled to carry a kit bag full of nutritious rations, four ocas or so in weight, and a superb army rifle of about two kies, which will overpower and drought every enemy. So these are measuring um terms. But I think the the analogy or the description here is clear. We are all uh tasked with a mission. We are all sent into this world with a mission. We are placed here. It was not our own asking, it was not our own choice, our own decision. Someone placed us here, like soldiers who are placed and tasked with a mission. We too are placed in this world, and we always ask ourselves, what is our task? What is our purpose? Why are we here? So there is an intrinsic knowing that we have a purpose, we are seeking it, the quest for meaning and purpose that is at the core of so many traditions. Uh why am I here? Uh where did I come from and where am I headed? Uh, these are the most existential questions. And we are placed here by a higher power, by Allah, and according to the Islamic tradition, we have duties to carry out. When we look around us in the universe, as I noted earlier, everything is engaged in some type of service, and many, many, even numerous ones. They know their purpose, they know their function. A cow produces milk, has been doing that for centuries, for as long as humanity can think of. The chicken produces eggs as long as you can think of, since the existence of the chicken. So those things are stable, constant, and when we look around us, every star, every little cell, every part in our body, everything around us, every animal, every insect, every plant is purposefully placed by divine wisdom into this world and functions accordingly, serves Allah accordingly, uh as it was tasked with a certain mission. That is undeniable, and every being is governed by these divine laws that Allah calls every human being to serve in a certain capacity, and they take joy in that, they take pride in that. So, how come then as the human being looks around the universe, thinks that I don't have a purpose or I my life is without meaning and purpose? In fact, this is the very task to identify what is our purpose and our meaning. In Islam, it is to be connected to Allah, to say I've been sent into this world, to serve Him, to remember Him, to glorify Him, to reflect Him, to declare His greatness in all of my human ways of existence. And that is a very expansive, very high and noble goal. You are the one, I am the one who is called to serve Allah and all these various roles, and we have sacred responsibilities, we have sacred obligations towards Allah, towards ourselves, and towards our communities, which includes the creation. And if we forget that, if we neglect that, if we fall into some type of uh unhealthy egotism or aggressive individualism, we only harm ourselves, and that's that's the story here. The person on the left refuses to serve, refuses to take on their rifle and their carry kit back and their equipment and were their protective gear because uh you can you are facing so many different circumstances in life, and what keeps you uh safe and secure and connected to your Lord is uh your worship, following certain rules and regulations, serving Allah in a way that He is pleased with gives us a sense of security, gives us a sense of safety, and ultimately we attain liberation because we are freed from confusion, from chaos. We know why we are here, we know our qibla, our direction, we know our goal, we know our purpose, and that might look differently for everyone. Doesn't mean that I can only serve Allah in the capacity of being a professor. No, it's in all our functions. Like I said, we have so many different roles and duties as human beings, as fellow human beings, as citizens, as daughters, as spouses, as neighbors, as uh supervisors, as teachers, as nurses. We are all placed uh and tasked uh with important duties, and we all have to feel that sacred responsibility. We can't just step out and live in denial, saying uh I my duty is only or I'm only called to enjoy life and uh lose myself in trivial things. Enjoyment and happiness comes when we are doing living life in a way that is uh guaranteeing us Allah's love. Then only are we also satisfied and happy with ourselves. That's the point. So the person on the left he refuses to serve Allah, he rejects to take on the rifle, he says, I don't need to serve and worship or follow certain rules and laws and commands and regulations, and so totally forgets that he's a soldier in the first place, that uh his king or the state has placed him into this um or placed them with this mission, and so also it's a type of treason, it's a type of betrayal. Uh the one who has uh given you that status and given you all the abilities, but then you refuse and you disconnect yourself, and then so the other one on the right side, on the other hand, uh agrees to serve and is not in denial of who he is. I'm a soldier, I was sent with uh with an important duty to serve my Lord, to serve the state in all my capacity, and not to fall into uh forgetfulness. So uh that is the case. We might think if you refuse to worship Allah, that there is there might be an apparent lightness and the deceptive ease, but like it's described here, it's deceptive, it's not an ease, it's actually increasing our fear when we refuse to uh serve Allah in in various ways. And the distance these soldiers are tasked to uh travel to a distant city, so in a similar way, we will not stay here forever. As humans, we know we are immigrants in this world. All of us might always think that politically only a certain group is immigrant, but uh from a Quranic perspective, we are all migrants, we are all migrating to this world. Our journey starts from the gathering of the souls, Alamular Wah. Then Allah sends us into the wombs of our mothers, and then we become infants. We are children, and then we grow up to be youth, and then we change into mature age or old age, and finally we arrive in the grave, but then our journey doesn't end, and there is um the Alamul Barzah, the intermediate realm, and uh ultimately uh the resurrection of the soul and the body again. Allah tells us in the Quran over and over that He it is easy for him to create us a second time. It's no big deal, it will be hard to do it the first time, and the one who has created us the first time has no difficulty creating us a second time. That's why the Quran responds to those who reject the resurrection with uh the question of how were you created in the first place, and kind of ridiculing uh that that question and and um and mocking those people. Because why would you why why why would I question uh the great day of resurrection or a judgment day if I've already known that I witnessed that I was created out of nothing, that I had no clue about my own existence and creation, how I was formed and shaped. And the verse started with He has created you. The one who has created me deserves to be known, the one who has given me existence, the one who has given Me life, the one who has given me and blessed me with consciousness, awareness, intelligence and feelings and emotions, the one who has equipped me with a heart and a soul and humanity and compassion and imagination. The one who has given me, blessed me with innumerable blessings, deserves to be known, deserves to be worshipped and glorified, deserves to be remembered, deserves to be acknowledged, deserves to be served, deserves to be worshipped. Whom else am I going to worship? My own self, my own marginal, unstable ego, my own ignorant self. And that's the greatest shirk in Islam. Associating yourself with Allah, saying you have some greatness. Whereas everything has been given to you, everything has been given to me. I was I was blessed with so much. Surah Tur Rahman reminds us that if we were to count Allah's blessings, we wouldn't be able to do so. Just a simple act of creation and sustaining our lives through clean air, pure air, pure water, pure sunlight, amazing landscapes, amazing scenes and uh amazing fruits and vegetables and provisions. How much of it are we even aware? That's why the Prophet always expresses himself in saying, E fala Abdan Shakura, shall I not be a grateful servant? After his wife Sayyidina Aisha. May Allah be pleased with her seism. The whole night in prayer he says, Why should I not be a grateful servant? I need to be expressing gratitude for the one who has seen me, acknowledged me, honored me, dignified me. The foods I eat and the foods that animals eat. The bed that I sleep and the bed that a cow sleeps, there is such a universe of difference. How Allah has honored the human being. My clothes, such beautiful clothes and dressing and dresses, the things we wear compared, the things we are wearing compared to other beings. They have one fur or maybe two in the winter season when it changes. But look at us how Allah has honored us with adornments of clothing, of dresses. It's endless, it's endless. But then also provide everything, create everything that ensures that this human being continues to thrive and flourish. The love they need, the protection, the shelter, the blessings. Like I said, just the collective blessing of air. The other day I passed a place, it it was horrible. Disgusting smell. How much of that I'm aware? And acknowledge it as a blessing. That's why the only ethical moral response I always say when people ask, why should I worship Allah? Why should I pray? Because prayer and and worship is gratitude, expression of thankfulness. The only natural response to everything that you've been given as gifts and blessings is thank you. There is one relationship expert who says the number one killer of any relationship in a marriage or friendship is what? Indifference. Indifference. That is so true, and this holds also true for Allah. You've been given and given, somebody is always on your side, somebody is doing for you, and somebody is helping you, supporting you, loving you. But then your response is indifference. You don't even see them, you don't acknowledge them. You don't appreciate them. You neglect them. The relationship collapsed. But what what destroyed it in the first place? Indifference. Not caring about the other person, not caring, not complimenting the person, not saying such a beautiful dress. What an amazing smile. Thank you. Thank you. I love you. I appreciate you. I acknowledge you. I see you. I hear you. And and that is a huge issue in human relationships, but also in the relationship with Allah. Because Allah sees us, Allah thinks of us, Allah helps us, supports us, nourishes us. But how much do we see him? And then we turn around and say, why should I even care saying thank you? It's a very, very immoral, immoral and unethical way to respond to Allah, the one who has created us, who loves us. Creation only happens through will, through power and desire. That means Allah wanted us to be here. Allah desired us to be here. I am his thought. I am his desire. I am his will. I am an act of his love. Allah loves the creation, that's why he created the creation. You wouldn't want to create a piece of art if you don't desire it. If you don't want it to exist. And that should be enough to give me a sense of self-worth and self-esteem. It's enough to seek self-validation because my validation rests in Allah. My esteem rests in Allah. Being a servant of Allah is the greatest honor and the greatest pride and the greatest dignity that can be bestowed on a human being. What else do I seek in this world? If he is pleased with me, if he loves me, if he sees me and nurtures me, if I have him on my side, nothing can defeat me, nothing can crush me, my heart is saved from all kinds of fears and anxiety and concern. I am in his caring hand and protection. Even if harm afflicts me, it only happens with his permission. And if his permission is in uh is present, that means that's always happening for a greater wisdom and a greater purpose. After those two soldiers had listened to what this instructive man had to say, the unf the fortunate one took the road to the right. He loaded the weight of one batman onto his back, but his heart and spirit were saved from thousands of bhatmans of fear and feeling obliged to others. As for the other luckless soldier, he left the army. He did not want to conform to the order, and he went off to the left. He was released from bearing a load of one Batman, but his heart was constricted by thousands of Batmans of indebtedness and his spirit crushed by innumerable fears. He proceeded on his way, both begging from everyone and trembling before every object and every event, until he reached his destination. And there he was, punished as a mutineer and a deserter. The ultimate betrayal. Saying when you are engaged in constant worship, and if your connection with Allah is stable throughout your day and your life, your spirit cannot be crushed. You don't need to be afraid of anything. You don't need to beg for appreciation and praise. You don't need to chase attention with hundred social media likes or millions of followers. You don't need to seek self esteem and worth in others. Because people come and go, all these things are in flux, they're changeable. But if that connection of the heart and the mind and the body anchors itself in a relationship with Allah, then we are uh we are free. We are saved from thousands of uh pounds of fear, as it says, and we don't feel obliged to others. We know who we are, and we know whom we are accountable to. We then become people of principles, people of integrity, and we are free, we are liberated. We don't need to beg for attention, we don't need to tremble in front of reactions or in certain backlash. If I know, if I am certain and have conviction that Allah is pleased with me in what I'm saying, what I'm feeling, what I'm doing, what I'm thinking, why should I care? That's where we should not care. And so the person on the right who knows and immersed himself in this paradigm of worship, like infused his life with this healthy order structure, followed the divine guidance, find his way, reach the destination in peace and happiness. And as long as Allah is pleased with him, there's nothing to fear. But the other person is charged with treason, is charged of being a deserter, betrayal, and complete denial disconnect from the one who gave him uh uh charged him with his mission, gave him everything took care of him, financed him, uh provided everything for the journey, placed him on a mission, but the problem was egocentricism. I don't want to serve. I'm good. Why should I care? I am great, I don't need to acknowledge another being. Now, those are the problems. These are these are the diseases of selfishness, self-centeredness. I know better. Why should I follow any guidance? That's what we hear sometimes. Why should I follow Allah's guidance? Because it's a mercy from Him. He could have also left us to our own devices. But the Quran and the Prophet Sunnah are a rahma from Allah, a compassion. Otherwise, we would be lost in confusion and chaos. We wouldn't know our way, how to deal with life and death, sickness and health, relationship struggles. But if Allah has provided us guidance, it is a blessing for him. That's what the Quran is, Al-Huda. Guidance. It doesn't force you, it's our choice to follow and live Allah, live our lives in a way that is infused by worship and service and prayer. Or we can disconnect ourselves. But then we are only ending up in self-harm. Allah didn't harm us. We harmed ourselves. Allah doesn't need our prayer and worship. We need Him. We need Him. We need His His strength and presence in our lives. As for the soldier who loved the order of the army, had guarded his kickbag and rifle and taken the right hand road, he had gone on his way, being obliged to no one, fearing no one, and with an easy heart and conscience until he reached the city he was seeking. There he received a reward worthy of an honorable soldier who had carried out his duty faithfully. Alhamdulillah, all thanks be to Allah for this religion, for this beautiful path, for the teachings and living examples of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who shows us a way, who shows us how to live with grace and dignity and die with grace and dignity and beauty. The sunnah is about living life beautifully. The Quran is about living life gracefully. How to bring in healthy structures, patterns, habits into our life, how to cultivate healthy modes of thinking and feeling and conduct. Then I have nothing to fear because this comes from the source of perfection and goodness and wisdom. Why would I not follow that? Why would I refuse? It doesn't make sense. Nothing in Islam that has been prescribed or has given us uh shiven being offered to us as guidance has ever harmed us. Nothing. Nothing. In fact, if there was a little bit of burden involved, tiny bit of burden, 99% of it is always beneficial. Right? When the Prophet says, don't eat too much, don't fill your belly too much. Islam is about prevention. How is that harmful? So if I cultivate this type of healthy eating habit, how is that in any way uh harmful? Quite the opposite. If I eat in a way that is prophetic, I I become uh dignified, beautified, I become a healthier person, I become a respected person, and I attain acquire Allah's love and his satisfaction. Why would I refuse that? But the nafs, as it says here, wants to refuse. O rebellious nafs, O rebellious soul, know that one of those two travelers represents those who submit to the divine law, while the other represents the rebellious and those who follow their own desires. The Quran tells us, this Ta'izabilla, have you seen the one who follows his desires? Have you seen the one who takes his own desires as gods? That's how it's it's it's stressed in the Quran that our greatest challenge in this time and moment, the greatest struggle is fighting or and struggling against our own lower ego-centric desires, our selfish interests, and putting aside Allah's lost, divine law, his wisdom and mercy for us, his guidance, and thinking I know better, I don't need to follow this arrogance, this denial, this rejection, which which comes out of kufur, of covering up the truth. Look around you, look at the galaxy, look at the cosmos, look at the universe. Is there anything that does not submit to divine law? Is there any being that is not governed by divine laws? And because they are doing so, because they serve Allah, they are all in harmony with each other. When we all sincerely seek Allah's love and satisfaction, if He is pleased with us, then we will also too live in harmony, have better relationships, have better families, have healthier communities. And so the goal is that each one of us starts to be on that path of better worship, of cultivating a healthy prayer life, remembering Allah, glorifying Allah in every state, in every position, in every moment, and not marginalizing Allah and compartmentalizing our faith, saying I'm good Muslim on Fridays, but then the rest I'll just follow my own interests and desires. And that can be in any location, at work, in our family, outside, that we are mindful of that all the time. Not to follow our own inner gods, our own inner desires, but always put Allah first. He is my desire, he's my goal. That's the ultimate uh goal of worship. The road is the road of life which comes from the spirit world, passes through the grave, and carries on to the after. As for the kitbag and rifle, they are worship and fear of God. What is it? What is our equipment? Is ibadah and taqwa, awareness of Allah, being constantly mindful that I am in the presence of His gaze. And that cultivates a dignity of hayah, of shame. Oh, I'm I'm ashamed to do this. Oh, I'm ashamed to think like that or feel like that. I'm always surprised when I'm in front of a house and there's a camera. Then all of a sudden, my whole conduct, my behavior changes. Just because I see that camera, I'm being recorded, I'm being looked at, I'm in the gaze of someone's eye. And all of a sudden I'm hyper alert, hyper aware, hyper conscious of my behavior, of my actions. I and then I think why don't I display the same reaction to being in the gaze of Allah? That type of hayah, that sense of shame and and and manner and etiquette, saying, Yeah, Allah witnesses me, he's a shaheed, he is al-Khabir, he's the all-aware, he is al-Basir, he is all seeing, he knows my secret thoughts. That should keep me more conscious, and then directs me in how I uh act in the world. I don't want to do something, he sees me that is displeasing to him. He wouldn't approve of that. How can I do it? He sees me, he observes me, he's with me, he's my friend, he's my companion, he's my most intimate. I don't want to disappoint him. I want to live into the trust that Allah has placed on me. I was charged with a very sacred duty. I want to honor that and honor Allah and want to show that I'm worthy of existence, of being called uh custodian of the earth, uh khalifa to laz. That I'm mindful and responsible, that anybody, as the Prophet, peace and blessings upon him, says, a mu'min a believer is someone uh from whom everyone is saved from uh from whom everyone is saved from his tongue and his actions. Like I will not say anything or do anything that is harmful to other fellow creatures. That's such a high state of awareness and mindfulness and consciousness of Allah, always being afraid to lose his love and avoiding things that he has disapproved. There is an apparent burden in worship, but there's an ease and lightness in its meaning that defies description. For in the prescribed prayers, the worshiper declares, I bear witness that there is no God but God. So that's our task. In everything that we are doing during the day and during our salat, our our um prayers, we are simply bearing witness that Allah exists. I declare that there is no God but Allah. And I'll show that, I bear witness to that in my behavior, in my conduct, in my actions. Constantly, that's a constant, aspiring to everything. That is to say, he finds a door of a treasury of mercy in everything because he is believing and saying, There is no creator and provider other than him. Harm and benefit are in his hand. He is both all wise, he does nothing in vain, and he is all compassionate. His bounty and mercy are abundant, and he knocks on the door with his supplication. Moreover, he sees that everything is subjugated to the command of his own sustainer. So he takes refuge in him. He places his trust in him and relies on him and is fortified against every disaster. His belief gives him complete confidence. His belief, his iman gives him complete confidence. Alhamdulillah, may Allah allow us to reach that stage where we feel so confident, so strong in our heart that nothing can shake us, nothing can overcome us, nothing can destroy us, nothing can allow us to fall into despair because we have Him on our side. Indeed, like with every two virtue, the source of courage is belief in Allah and worship. And as with every iniquity, the source of cowardice is misguidance. In fact, for a worshipper with a truly illuminated heart, it is possible that even if the globe of the earth became a bomb and exploded, it would not frighten him. He would watch it with pleasurable wonder as a marvel of the eternally besought one's power. But when a famous degenerate philosopher with a so-called enlightened mind, but no heart saw a comet in the sky, he trembled on the ground and exclaimed anxiously, Isn't that comet or star going to hit the earth? On one occasion America was quaking with fear at such a comet, and many people left their homes in the middle of the night. Yes, although man is in need of numberless things, his capital is as nothing. And although he is subject to endless calamities, his power too is as nothing. Simply his capital and power extend only as far as his hand can reach. However, his hopes, desires, pains and tribulations reach as far as the eye and the imagination can stretch. Anyone who is not totally blind can see and understand then what a great profit, happiness and bounty for the human spirit, which is thus impotent and weak and needy and wanting, our worship affirmation of Allah's unity and reliance on Allah and submission to Him. It is obvious that a safe way is preferable to a harmful way, even if the possibility of its safety is only one in ten. But on the way of worship, which our matter here, there is a nine out of ten possibility of it leading to the treasury of eternal happiness, as well as its being safe, while it is established by the testimony which is at the degree of consensus of innumerable experts and witnesses that besides being without benefit and the dissolute even confess to this, the way of wise anticipation ends in eternal misery. According to the reports of those who have uncovered the mysteries of creation, this is absolutely certain. So there were 124,000 messengers of God, according to the Prophet's narration, who all testified that this way of worship is true and safe and secure and beneficial. How would we not follow them? Why would we question that? If there would be one person coming up and saying there's an accident on the highway, take the detour, take this road instead, why would I not believe them? So it's the same in this case. All revelations, all messengers, all experts, scholars, pious people all testify that this way of worship is solid, is stable, is safe, that healthy rules, regulations, order, structure, rhythm, habits need to be in place for a human being to thrive and flourish and be happy, so that their mind and heart is stable. I mean, people are going to the gym at 6 a.m. Why? Just to that physical exercise, that healthy physical habit strengthens the heart and spirit. Even that. So worship is the same. It's a discipline, it's a spiritual discipline to build that muscle of resilience, to know I'm in the hands of my creator in every moment. I'm taken care of, I'm I'm watched, I'm seen, I'm acknowledged, I'm provided for, I'm protected, and I do not have anything to fear. I can't solve the world's problems, I can't heal people's hearts, but I can turn to Allah who is in charge of everyone's heart, who can reach and speak to everyone's heart, who is in charge and control of the law, who is in charge and in control of the universe, who can prevent disasters, who uh who shows us the wisdom in them, who is in charge of harm and benefit. And if I understand his wisdom, if I'm seeking refuge in him all the time, constantly, in every act, this is what we are doing in all these acts of worship. is to bear witness to his existence and that then gives us strength and confidence. Confidence. We are independent in that regard. Because we when we are dependent on him we are fully independent of fears and concerns and worries and when we find him we have found everything. In short, like that of the hereafter happiness in this world lies in worship and being a soldier of Allah in which case we should constantly say praise be to God for obedience to him and success and we should thank him that he honored also.