The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 7)

Below is the seventh part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs

We were talking about having a far-sighted goal without having microgoals, and he said that anyone who does that will usually not achieve his goal. So he said, for example, you’ll hear stories about people who repeated all of their prayers. They prayed 40 years in the masjid, and every day he was in the front line, and one day, the first day in 40 years he was late for the prayer and he was ashamed to go in because of what the people would think, and then he realized that he had the riyaa’ about his prayers so he repeated all 40 years of prayer. And that’s called salaat al-`umar, and there’s no daleel for that. So he said that some of the scholars told us that it’s mentioned in the kheerah of one of the great `usooli scholars of the Maliki madhhab that that’s actually not permissible to do that.

So then the third one, he’s talking about rights that you’ve trangressed – rights of Allah and rights of the creation of Allah. He was talking more about the huqooq al-badaniyya like prayer and `ibaadaat, hajj. Then he says the rights relating to those things that involve money are similar to the rights relating to those things that are rights of your body. Indeed they are even greater.

So the obligation of zakaat and also expiating that is not only an obligation, but to fervently seek that out is more important than being vigilant about those things that relate to your badaniyyaat, like prayer, etc. Why? Because zakaat not only affects you but it affects others. So not only have you deprived yourself but you’ve also deprived others. There’s mathaloomeen. So that’s why you should be more concerned with your zakaat because if you neglect it, there’s poor people that are entitled to it that you’ve oppressed. So that’s what he means.

The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 6)

Below is the sixth part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs.

After we look at what wrong actions do, which are three things, now he wants to stress something. This is that the vast majority of wrong actions that occur between a servant and his Master Allah swt, they result from appetites that prevent someone from being near to his Lord (shahawaat mani`a), and when these appetites are firmly rooted in the soul, this necessitates one’s inclinations toward them without any doubt.

So if these come, occur to the mind, one should reject them, turn away from them, without meeting them face to face. In other words, you don’t concern yourself with them because by meeting these thoughts, by attempting to refute them, by preoccupying yourself with them, this will actually make them more firmly rooted without you succeeding in you actually stopping them.

A famous qawaa`idah of a Mauritanian scholar is that which Shaytan whispers in the heart and the heart rejects it, that is iman. When you have thoughts that come to your heart that really trouble you, that’s iman. And one of the people came to the Prophet saws and said there are things that occur to my mind that disgust me, and the Prophet saws said that’s clear iman, the fact that you’re disgusted by thoughts that come to your heart that are foul, that is iman. If you didn’t have iman, you would actually enjoy them.

The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 5)

Below is the fifth part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs.

3 types of hearts
3 types of sick hearts
3 reasons we can come to understand why a heart is sick
3 ways of treating a sick heart – regime, good company, using the treatment (which involves 3 reminders = the alienation of the world, the moment of death, the fact that you will one day face your Lord)

When he spoke about the `azeema (self-discipline), he was talking about the fact that it’s necessary to have resolution, to be resolute in this endeavor. The way to realize resolution in your actions and also to utilize the means by which you realize your goal is done through 3 mawaaqif, the first of which is the rank of taqwa and the last of which is the carpetspread of the revealings of knowledge.

The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 4)

Below is the fourth part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs.

We should do this every day, or every month, or every year. Beyond that there’s no hope.

Jumu`ah is a good day because on that day we are encouraged to remind ourselves on that day, speak less, incur our salawat on the Prophet saws, and we are also encouraged to fast one or two days of the week. And we are encouraged to desire to do these things, even if we are not doing them. So that’s also part of this deen too, desiring for improvement.

One should also not make the day they fast like the day they don’t fast, so therefore the things that draw you near to Allah, you should be in a better state than the days you’re not doing that. If the only change that occurs during Ramadan is that you’re not eating and drinking, then something is wrong. Also the Prophet saws encourages us to fast 3 days a month (particularly the ayaam al-beedh but any 3 days will work). If you fast 3 days per month, it’s as if you fast a whole year. And if you fast the 6 days in Shawwal, you also get the reward of fasting for a whole year.

The sunnah of making iti’khaf is that you should be fasting when doing it.

The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 3)

Below is the third part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs.

There are 3 types of heart:

1. saheehun (sound)
2. mayyitun (dead)
3. mareedun (diseased)

From the diseased heart, there are 3 types:

1. soundness greater than the disease
2. disease greater than the soundness
3. soundness and disease are about equal

(the latter two are in dangerous conditions)

How to know whether the heart is healthy or diseased:

1. by knowing the signs and symptoms
2. by knowing the ideology
3. by knowing the desires and the aversions

(outward medicine looks at the very same things)

The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 2)

Below is the second part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs.

Sidi Ahmad Zarruq says that the heart is the foundation of every good and evil, and its life and its death are the keys to either benefit or harm, so that which has no life has no way of protecting itself from evil and facilitating for itself good, and every heart that life enters into, by necessity, will call itself to good when reminded.

He said that there are 3 types of hearts:

1. qalbun fi hayatihi saheehun, a heart whose life is sound and its expression is clear, eloquent, and its companion when he speaks, speaks with wisdom, and he rises to every necessary occasion, and when difficulty arrives, he responds appropriately. “A man’s heart lies hidden under his toungue”-saying of Ali RA, when someone loves something you’ll hear him mentioning it a lot, so if he has Allah in his heart, that’s what he’s going to talk about. If his heart is filled with wealth, anger, rage, that’s what he’s going to talk about. So a person whose heart is sound, you’ll find that his expression is sound too. = QALBUN SALEEM
2. qalbun la hayata fihi, a heart in which there is no life, it neither accepts admonition or a reminder nor does it accept anyone caling it to attention and far from it to follow the truth, or that it should have any courtesy or consideration for Allah’s creation
3. a heart that is afflicted with sicknesses, and in its various states and circumstances, its accompanied with objections and symptoms, so the symptoms that follow follow. And this type of heart is the type of heart that actually experiences pain when it hears of its sicknesses. So when you hear of someone speaking of kibr, hasad, `ujb, riyaa, etc., you actually feel pain, which is a sign of life. And this is a heart, when we speak about treating or process of getting better with a struggle or a cure, this is the heart we’re talking about, hoping that it will come back to life and its life will be renewed or at least the disease will cease so that it doesn’t lead to its death. If the heart remains untreated, it’ll lead to its death.

The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance (CD 1)

Below is the first part of notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s lecture series entitled “The Poor Man’s Book of Assistance.” The lecture series is named after a book written by  ninth century Moroccan scholar Sidi Ahmed Zarruq. Shaykh Hamza translates and gives commentary on this book in this series of 16 CDs. 

Tasawwuf is not tareeqah. Tasawwuf is a science; it’s been taught within tareeqah and without it. This has always been taught and has chains of transmission. This is just one of the sciences of Islam; you don’t have to be in a tareeqah to benefit.

Don’t let the knowledge that you’re not practicing something you know stop you from teaching it because hopefully the shame of teaching it without practicing it will cause you to start practicing it.

“If you claim something you don’t have, Allah will expose you to people.” -saying of Sidi Ahmad Zarruq

This book is about the human heart – English word comes from a Sanskrit word that means something which leaps, also core (similar to the Arabic lub). Heart is also used as a metaphor for courage amongst the Arabs – when they say ma `induhi qalb, they mean to say he has no courage.

Prerequisites to Changing Our Condition by Imam Mustafa Umar

Below are notes from a khutba by Imam Mustafa Umar given at IIOC in Anaheim, CA. You can view the lecture here.

Our situation as Muslims is getting worse. Now there’s an advisory that Muslims should be prepared for the possibility of forced exile. Also around the globe we find Muslims being slaughtered, as well as non-Muslims. Most people’s reaction is anger.

What should we be doing about this situation, what should we do about what our Muslim brothers and sisters are facing?

The Prophet (saws) said, “The strong person is not the one who is a wrestler; the truly strong person is the one who can control his anger at the time when he is angry.” What does control mean? That doesn’t mean you don’t get angry because that means you’re not feeling anything, and if you’re not feeling anything, then what’s left? “Whoever is aroused to anger and they don’t feel anything, they’re like a donkey.” -Imam Shafi`i

But the control of that anger is what’s important. Feel it, but when you manifest that anger, it should be in accordance with Islamic principles, and it should be a productive manifestation rather than destructive. So if we look at the situation, there are a number of things to keep in mind.

Self Esteem by Shaykh Yassir Fazaga

Below are notes from a lecture by Shaykh Yassir Fazaga on the concept of self esteem in Islam. You can view the lecture here.

We are not looking for numbers amongst our faithful – we are looking for faith amongst our numbers.

Change always took place because there was a committed minority. What is important is the commitment with whoever is present.

Katheer means the most, majority… Allah always criticizes that in the Qur’an. He says that the majority of people don’t know, aren’t appreciative. Allah speaks of the majority in negative terms in the Qur’an because of either their complacency and not wanting to change or because the majority didn’t have the courage to make a difference.

`Omar (ra) once heard a man praying to be amongst “the few,” and he had never heard someone pray in this fashion before, so he asked him who are these few? And so the man asked him, haven’t you read the book of Allah? In it, He says indeed a very small minority of my servants are those who are grateful and appreciative.

Updates

I haven’t publicly used this blog in a long time, but I would like to make some sort of positive use of it. Sooo…

I intend to use this blog to post notes from any lectures I listen to, particularly Islamic ones. Specifically when I listen to lectures online or via mp3, my notes tend to be almost word-for-word what the speaker said. I will, insha’Allah, include my sources to the best of my ability. Please forgive me if anything I write is incorrect  or wrong. All good is from Allah, and any errors are my own.

Jazakum Allahu khayran