'Duah' and 'Zikr' in the Night

 

True faith in the heart leads to sincerity in devotional worship, marking out true believers from the rest. That is why, along with regular prayers in the day, Islam prescribes supplementary prayers in the stillness of the night for the truly devout who seek nearness to God. Indeed, according to the Holy Qur'an, a clear sign of the true believers is their fervent seeking of Divine forgiveness and mercy, leaving aside the comforts of rest in the night: ‘Those who spend the night in devotion to their Lord, in prostration and standing.’ (25:65) 'Their sides shun their beds in order to pray to their Lord in fear and hope' (32: 17). 

Divine commands exhort the believers: ‘Celebrate the praise of your Lord before the rising and setting of the sun; proclaim His praise in the night, and at the end of every prayer.’ (50:40-41) In other words, true believers are ‘[T]hose who spend the night in devotion to their Lord, in prostration and standing.’ (25:65)  

‘Stand up in Prayer at night except a small part of it–half, or a little less, or a little more– and recite the Quran slowly and distinctly. Verily, We shall charge you with a weighty Word. Verily, getting up at night for prayer is the most potent means of subduing the self and most effective in speech.’ (73:3-7)

‘And wake up for it (the Qur'an) in the latter part of the night as a supererogatory service for you. It may be that Your Lord will raise you to an exalted station.’  (17:80)

Faith: 'Muslims under Trial'

 

In his Friday Sermon of 04 November 2022 ~09 Rabi’ul Aakhir 1444 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius calls attention to a very sobering lesson for all true believers in every era: the future and good fortune of a people is linked to their piety and righteousness in life. Likewise, according to sacred spiritual wisdom preserved in the Holy Qur'an, when a people become lawbreakers and deviates from Divine teachings, the quagmire of misguidance, misfortune and enslavement would engulf them in a cycle of never-ending despair and disaster. 

According to the profound wisdom and prescient assessment of the Holy Prophet (sa), fatal flaws can encircle a people under trial when they let go of the true spirit of Faith, embrace materialism and splinter into different sects and political groupings. When they drown in immorality and injustice; worship money and ease; neglect the poor, and oppress the defenceless; become enamoured of other cultures even at the price of one's Faith and corrode the strength of its values through frequent disputes, schism and factional feuds; they themselves will be complicit in external intervention in internal affairs, perpetuating the vicious cycle of degradation of faith and moral fibre and consequent national decadence. Pointing to a sacred tradition of the Holy Prophet (sa) on the aforesaid theme, Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) observes in this discourse that each one of the signs of decadence is discernible in the dire state of our world today, especially in the predicament of the Arab nation.        

 

Reflecting on the continuing Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories- including East Jerusalem [the land of the holiest Masjid Al Aqsa]- without any fair deal for the people under subjugation for over half a century, and the recent events involving Arab leaders facilitating Israel's integration into the regional rivalry against Iran, in the backdrop of US- scheming in the region; Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) notes the searing reality that despite their public statements, the Arab leaders in the ring show no real commitment to the cause of the Oppressed, as they are more concerned about their own narrow interests of power and pelf. The agony and misfortune of foreign occupation and the humiliation of subjugation today is a grim reminder of the ways in which Divine vengeance engulfs a people under trial, observes Hazrat Saheb (aba) in the discourse.

Quran’s Truth in Science

 

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, in the light of the last Friday’s sermon, let us see today the truth revealed more than a thousand years ago about the creation of this world and man, and what Islam and Science have said on the subject.

 

Compared to the other divinely-revealed scriptures, the Holy Quran is the only Divinely-sent Scripture which has survived the passage of time without interpolations. It is only the Quran which can be interpreted, without altering even a vowel sign of its sacred text, in a manner that completely satisfies the present generation’s sense of inquiry, and approaches its level of intellect, as it did of the preceding one’s in the past.

 

Today, like yesterday, the Quran is speaking to the seekers of truth. Their every question, formulated in the mind is being responded to by Allah through their contact with the Holy Quran. The Holy Quran has therefore become the oracle of truth, the mirror of purity and progress. Opening the Quran has become one’s way to communicate with Allah and vice-versa.

 

The knowledge contained therein, whether spiritual or scientific is amazing. Allah has revealed such details about His creations that an unlettered man from Arabia or any other would not have known until our times today when advanced technologies, by the grace of Allah, have helped to discern the truth found in this amazing Holy Book.

Islam & Women's Rights

 

In his Friday Sermon of 21 October 2022 ~24 Rabi’ul Awwal 1444 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (aba) of Mauritius continues his exposition on the rights of women in society- aspects of a theme that was eloquently explained in the previous Friday Sermon in the light of specific Divine revelations he originally received  as early as two decades ago. Against the backdrop of contemporary issues in various nations involving Muslim women's status and social rights, Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) underscores the truly progressive spirit of original Islamic teachings concerning appropriate social conduct among men and women, and the related regulations it introduced to enable people to safeguard against evil and indecency. Despite the rise of Islamophobia in the West, the growing number of women from non-Muslim cultures and  social backgrounds discovering Islam, including its modes of dressing, in recent years testify to the essential wisdom underlying the enduring teachings of Islam. 

At the same time, Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) calls attention to the gross excesses being committed by those in authority in the name of implementing religious norms. The ongoing protests in Iran, in the aftermath of the killing of a young Mahsa Amini in the name of Hijab violations by the national "moral police" may also mark the beginning of the end of an oppressive regime of Mullahs playing God on earth.    

   

Elucidating on the Islamic concept of a non-exploitative social order where men and women have an equal responsibility in recognizing the dignity, rights and interests of one another, Hazrat Saheb (aba) underscores the need for the community of believers- both men and women- to gain a proper appreciation of the ethical roots and subtle wisdom that underlies the Islamic regulations of social life.