POST #15 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

How to Deal With Allah:

"...many times, I would ask my students: "Who is more powerful: Allah, or America?" Confused, they would answer: "Allah, of course." I would then say to them: "You believe that Allah is more powerful than America?" They'd reply: "Yes," to which I would say: "By Allah, had the Arab governments believed that Allah is more powerful than Israel - which is weaker than America - they would not have abandoned their religion in such a manner, and they would not have had such fear of Israel."

The reason for people's exhaustion and loss is the fact that they do not deal with Allah as if He is a deity. They deal with Allah simply as if He Created this existence, but has no involvement in it. Therefore, they are not affected by any encouragements and admonishments. Had it been the case that we dealt with Allah, feared Allah in our gatherings just as we would fear an intelligence agent, we would pay close attention to every word that came out of our mouths. So, we fear some soldier - this intelligence agent - more than we fear Allah, as the Angels record every single word that we speak. We do not consider this, and we are not afraid when we speak. However, if it were said to us that in this gathering, there is an intelligence agent present, we would pay close attention to every single word that comes out of our mouths. So, fear of a single intelligence agent has become more than it is of Allah.

If we were to deal with Allah as having the same power that the dean of the college has - with his ability to pass, fail, accept, reject as he pleased - our behavior with Him would be quite different, indeed. If we were to deal with Allah as if He were like the ruler of a country who gives visas, money, jobs, provision, etc. - if we were to deal with Allah in such a manner, human beings would look so insignificant in our eyes. If we were to deal with Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - as being the One besides Whom none is worthy of worship, we would be very relieved, as the Salaf would deal with Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - as being the Mighty, the Self-Sufficient, the Concealer, the Able, the Avenger, the Compeller, the Subduer, etc.

A single verse or hadith in their lives would work wonders...

{"And if Allah touches you with harm, none can remove it but He, and if He touches you with good, He is Able to do all things."} [al-An'am; 17]

So, Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - is the One who removes harm, and He is the one who bestows good. Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - is the Provider, as the Prophet said: "No soul dies except that it has obtained all of the provision it was meant to obtain. So, fear Allah, and increase in your requests." When we are sick, for example, the Messenger of Allah said: "No sickness befalls a servant, and he places his hand on the area of pain, saying: 'I ask Allah, the Mighty, the Lord of the Throne, to cure me,' except that Allah removes his pain, unless it is that of death." If he supplicates seven times: 'I ask Allah, the Mighty, the Lord of the Throne, to cure me,' he must be cured! So, when we get sick, we traverse the entire land looking for hospitals, doctors, pharmacists, etc., and it never crosses our minds to place our hand on the affected area, and say: 'I ask Allah, the Mighty, the Lord of the Throne, to cure me.'

Upon leaving our home, it does not cross our minds for a single minute to say: 'In the Name of Allah, I depend on Allah, and there is no might nor power except with Allah,' to which an Angel would answer us, saying: "You are guided, protected, and sufficed." So, the devils would stand, saying to each other: "What will you do with a man who has been guided, protected, and sufficed?" And you remain in this protection until you return home!

Once, they came to Abu ad-Darda' while he was in the mosque, saying to him: "O Abu ad-Darda'! Your house has been burned down!" He replied: "By Allah, it has not been burned down." They said: "It has been burned down!" He replied: "By Allah, it has not been burned down." They went to see that the fire had consumed everything in the area, and had stopped right at Abu ad-Darda''s house, and he did not even get up to go see for himself. They came back and asked him: "What drove you to insist that it had not been burned down?" He replied: "The Messenger of Allah had taught me some words that, if I say them, I will not be stricken with any harm," - he is secure! - "'O Allah, I seek refuge with You from sadness and grief, and I seek refuge with You from inability and laziness, and I seek refuge with You from cowardliness and stinginess, and I seek refuge with You from being overpowered by debts and men,' so, I made this supplication."

In regards to this same supplication, Abu Umamah narrated: "I was sitting in the mosque, when the Messenger of Allah asked me: "What is wrong, Abu Umamah?" I replied: "I am in distress because of a debt that I owe." The Prophet then told me: "Supplicate with these words ('O Allah, I seek refuge with You from sadness and grief...')." So, I supplicated with these words, and Allah removed my distress, and paid off my debt." That's it! He taught him a few words!

...So, they would deal with Allah from the standpoint of His actually being a deity, and that He is the Self-Sufficient, and that He is the Powerful, and that He is the Generous, and that He is the Mighty, and that He is the Wise, and that He is the Knowing. So, if they wanted knowledge, they would request it from Allah, and if they wanted success, they would request it from Allah, and if they wanted victory, they would request it from Allah. This is how they were always with Allah, and this does not come about except by constantly being connected with Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - the upward connection to Allah, the connection of those who are travelling towards Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

Because of this, if you desire happiness, there is no choice but for you to search for Allah, the Mighty and Majestic: "If you ask, ask of Allah. If you seek help, seek help from Allah, and know that if the whole world were to gather together to benefit you with anything, it would not benefit you except with something that Allah had already prescribed for you, and that if it had gathered together to harm you with anything, it would not harm you except with something Allah had already prescribed against you. The pens have been lifted, and the pages have dried."

Case closed, and the hadith is authentic. As long as the hadith is authentic, that's it..."

['at-Tarbiyah al-Jihadiyyah wal-Bina''; 5/28-31]

POST #14 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

Your Heart is the Pillar of Your Worship

"...the heart is the machine that drives all acts of worship. It is what moves the entire body! As long as the heart is alive, then the limbs will be alive, and the soul will open itself up to worship. However, if the heart becomes diseased, then worship will become too heavy on the soul, leading to it eventually disliking and hating - and we seek refuge with Allah from this - worship. Because of this, Allah - the Glorified and Exalted - said, regarding the prayer:

{"...and truly, it is extremely heavy and hard except on those who are submissive..."} [al-Baqarah; 45]

The prayer is heavy, because one's legs and hands are not what get up for the prayer. What gets up for the prayer are the heart and the soul.

{"Verily, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but it is He Who deceives them. And when they stand up for the prayer, they stand with laziness and to be seen of men, and they do not remember Allah but little."} [an-Nisa'; 142]

Because of this, it is the heart that stands up for worship. The limbs are simply slaves of this heart, carrying out what it commands them. If the heart is alive, then the soul will be alive, and worship will become beloved and sweetened to the hearts and the souls, and they will open up for it.

However, if the heart becomes diseased, then worship becomes too heavy on it. The heart is like the digestive system: right now, the most beloved thing to you is meat. However, if you develop an ulcer somewhere in your digestive system, then the meat - along with its fat and oil - becomes the most hated thing to it, since it is diseased. Sweets are also something that are beloved to the soul. For example, if you were fasting right now and were to break your fast on some desserts, then your soul would become satisfied with that, right? However, if one were to be stricken with diabetes, then he would not be able to handle these sugary foods, even if they were beloved to him.

The heart is like this: it must be strong so that it can handle worship that is strong. The stronger your heart becomes, then throw as much worship upon it as you wish. You would get up to pray at night, and you would cherish this prayer and consider sleep to be your enemy:

{"Their sides forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and hope..."} [as-Sajdah; 16]

He begins to forsake it because an enmity develops between him and his bed. He prays behind the imam, and he says to himself: "If only he would make the prayer longer," so that he would increase in his opening up to this worship, and his tasting of its sweetness.

At times, I would pray a normal prayer with the people behind me, so I would elongate the prayer. The youth would then come to me and say (the hadith): "Whoever leads the people in prayer should go easy on them," - the youth! And there was an old man behind me who was between 90 and 100 years of age - his face filled with light - and he would say to me: "Keep making the prayer long and do not answer them." A man of 90 years getting pleasure out of a long prayer, and a youth of 20, who probably practices karate and judo, cannot handle the same prayer.

Why?

If he went to the soccer field and spent two hours playing there without becoming bored, then why would he become bored from hearing the Qur'an for five minutes? The difference between a short prayer and a long prayer is simply five minutes, so why does he become bored from these five minutes of Qur'an, yet he does not become bored from two hours of soccer? Why does he not get bored from standing for two hours staring at an inflated piece of leather, his heart attached to it?

Because, what stands up to pray is the heart, and what stands up for sports are simply the body and muscles."

['at-Tarbiyah al-Jihadiyyah wal-Bina''; 1/220]

POST #13 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

The Fiqh of Da'wah:

"...and from here, we see that the method of the various callers in seeing to the upbringing of the youth is very successful. This method consists of giving a given youth a small bit of knowledge every week, then asking him: 'Did you act according to what you have learned this week?' and repeating this the week after, and the week after that, etc. You build him up in a gradual manner. Every time he rises a level, you give him a greater task, and greater responsibility. You do this to the point that his soul becomes ripe enough that you can finally say to him: 'Now is the time for Jihad. Would you like to perform Jihad?'

This method is the divine method to see to the upbringing of the human soul.

So, a youth can live in a state of jahiliyyah, and then return to Allah - the Exalted and Majestic - as the result of some traumatic event in his life: he survives a terrible car accident, his mother dies, Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - shows him a dream...in any case, he returns to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic. He reads about Abu Bakr, and how he used to do this and that, and suddenly, he looks to the people around him, thinking: 'this person is a liar; this person tried stealing from me,' - he wishes to put down all the people around him! All of the Muslims around him! Why? Because they are not like Abu Bakr. He finds nobody besides Abu Bakr - from all of the Companions of the Prophet - to compare the people to. Do you expect everybody to be like Abu Bakr? They will never be like Abu Bakr. The best person after the Messenger of Allah is Abu Bakr. The Companions, themselves, said: "We did not hold anyone to be like Abu Bakr, then 'Umar, then 'Uthman, then 'Ali. After them, we would look at the rest of the Companions without preferring one over another."

As for you, you expect all of humanity to be at the same level of zuhd as 'Umar. There is no zuhd like the zuhd of 'Umar. Maybe one, five, ten people in this Ummah can acheive this level of zuhd. But, to expect everyone to be at this level? This is not realistic. Do you expect all of them to be at the level of generosity of 'Uthman? There is only a very small number of people...but, everyone having the bravery of 'Ali? The firmness of Abu Bakr? No. Only a very small group can have this.

{"Likewise, were you yourselves, before Allah conferred on you His favors (i.e. guided you). Therefore, be cautious in discrimination."} [an-Nisa'; 94]

Yesterday, you were driving around the streets in your car, chasing after girls. Is this not so? This is how you were. So, you, as Allah has conferred on you, and allowed you to return to Him, He can also confer on this person, and allow this disobedient one to repent.

This youth who wishes to hit this person, discipline that person, reveal the faults of another person, insult another person...why? He does this out of the burning he feels in his heart for Islam. He has returned to Allah - the Mighty and Majestic - while his blood is boiling. However, if he had the least bit of knowledge, he wouldn't have done any of this. If he had some Shar'i knowledge, he wouldn't have come in front of the people, revealing his faults. Instead, he would have come to him privately, saying: 'By Allah, my brother, I used to be a disobedient, fasiq sinner. But, Allah bestowed His favors upon me, and I saw some deviance from you, a small mistake, a big mistake, in such-and-such a matter, and I just wanted to draw your attention to it, because I love you, and I don't want you to be punished for it on the Day of Resurrection.' This is better than that you come in front of the people, saying: 'Fulan is a fasiq! This person is such-and-such! That person is this, and this person is that!' This is the method of the ignorant, and if the Messenger of Allah had done this, 'Umar would never have entered into Islam, nor would many others. He would've just said: 'Kill 'Umar, and relieve us,' back when 'Umar was fighting against him. However, despite the fact that they were enemies to him, and were harming and torturing him, whenever the hardship became more unbearable, he would simple say: "O Allah! Forgive my people, for they do not know."

Therefore, it is a must for the da'i to learn this Religion, and how to work for this Religion. Just as he acts, he must know, and if he doesn't know, he must ask those who know. However, nobody is good enough for him in this world, at all. You say to him: 'Ask Shaykh such-and-such!' He replies: 'This Shaykh is a sinner!' 'This Shaykh is a fasiq!' 'This Shaykh is from the slaves of the tawaghit!' 'And this one...!'

OK, so, who is left in the world, then?"

['at-Tarbiyah al-Jihadiyyah wal-Bina''; 3/186-187]

POST #12 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

The Issue Isn't As Simple As You Think:

"Pay attention to this issue. I never paid it much attention until after I'd studied it this year in the books of Fiqh, while I was studying the issues of Jihad, pacts, and promises of security. If you are given a visa to any country in the world, it is not allowed for you to partake in any action that breaks its laws. This is not allowed, unless this would contradict something from Islam, such as the prayer, fasting, etc. It is not allowed for you to cheat them or take from their wealth. It is not allowed, for example, for you to take one of their daughters, and marry her without the permission of her father. It is not allowed for you to rip up a telephone bill. It is not allowed for you to harm the state, and it is not allowed for you to place a magnet on the electric meter of your home. It is not allowed for you to tear up your phone bill, because there, in America, and in the Western nations, despite their disbelief and enmity towards Islam and the Muslims, they place trust in the individual. They generally treat the human being with a strange level of respect (compared to the treatment in the Muslim lands)...

One of the brothers - a Muslim youth - told me about his trip to attain a doctorate in America. He said: "They sent me both my electric and phone bills. So, I said to them: "I wish to pay what I have due." They replied: "No problem. Return to your home country, and we will give you an address to which you can send your payment from your country."" Can you imagine? He said to them: "I wish to leave this land," and they reply: "No problem. Go back to Jordan, and send your payment from there."

Trust! Security!...The Arab, in America, if his business is about to fail, he would burn down his factory, go to the insurance company, tell them that his factory was burned down, and he would rake in the million dollars that he had insured his factory with."

(A brother in the audience debates): "But, Shaykh, this was even there before, when Islam had strength and reputation, and Abu Hanifah said that if a Muslim breaks something of a Christian's, the Muslim must insure him."

Shaykh: "Even now, he must insure him."

Brother: "However, now, they come to our lands mostly to spread their ideology."

Shaykh: "My brother, who has brought them into our lands?"

Brother: "A disbeliever, like them."

Shaykh: "OK, excellent. You say to them that the one who has brought you into this land is a disbeliever. Therefore, you cannot be here...You must warn them, is this not so? Either Islam, or the jizyah, or the sword. Is this not so? So, you must warn them, my brother. Send them a message: 'You are spreading this evil, so, leave this land. Otherwise, you will die.' That's it. After this, kill him. As for coming to kill him while he is secure and under a pact of security, this is not allowed.

As for those People of the Book who live with us in our lands, it is not allowed to kill them in our times, unless they initiate fighting with us. It is not allowed, as this will cause great fitnah that will never end, and the rulers will stand on their side, and they will attack the Muslims, and put pressure on the Islamic movement - all for what? Because of you poking out the eye of a Christian in your land, or you killed a Christian, resulting in tens of Muslims being killed in prison as the result of torture..."

(The brother continues debating)

Shaykh: "It is not allowed for you to take the wealth of a Christian, at all. It is not allowed to kill the Western Christian in the lands of the Muslims, unless you first issue him a warning, and unless it first becomes clear to you that he is engaging in an act that deems his blood lawful. Understood?"

Another questioner asks: "Who is the one that determines what the actions are that deem his blood lawful? Do I determine this? Or do the scholars?"

Shaykh: "The scholars. The scholars are the ones who determine this. Where do fatawa come from? From the scholars - do you kill, or do you not kill? Is it permissible to kill and fight them? Or, do you go on your way? As for - by Allah - a youth who studied one or two words in 'Kifayat al-Akhyar,' or 'Hashiyat Ibn 'Abidin,' or the book of Ibn al-Qayyim (he's referring to 'Ahkam Ahl adh-Dhimmah'), and he suddenly becomes the Great Mufti of Islam, issuing fatawa to {"Kill them wherever you find them, and expel them from whence they expelled you..."} or {"When the Sacred Months have passed, slay the polytheists wherever you find them..."}, this is not allowed. The issue isn't as simple as you think, and this is what Jama'at at-Takfir wal-Hijrah was afflicted with. This shaykh - their leader, Shukri Mustafa, rahimahullah - began issuing fatawa, and every single one began reading and issuing fatawa declaring the blood of the Muslims lawful..."

(The brother continues debating, mentioning that the Christians of our times are all muharibin)

Shaykh: "Who are the Christians that are muharibin?"

Brother: "All of the Christians are muharibin."

Shaykh: "How are they all muharibin?"

Brother: "Those who put the covering on their head, and wear the cross."

Shaykh: "The one who wears the cross is a muharib? The one who wears the cross, this is his belief."

(The brother continues arguing)

Shaykh: "My brother, do you still consider them muharibin? The muharib is the one who brandishes weapons against the Muslims!"

(after some more arguement): "I will not give a fatwa for this. Look for some other mufti besides myself."

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 132-134]

POST #11 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

The Issue Isn't As Simple As You Think:

"Pay attention to this issue. I never paid it much attention until after I'd studied it this year in the books of Fiqh, while I was studying the issues of Jihad, pacts, and promises of security. If you are given a visa to any country in the world, it is not allowed for you to partake in any action that breaks its laws. This is not allowed, unless this would contradict something from Islam, such as the prayer, fasting, etc. It is not allowed for you to cheat them or take from their wealth. It is not allowed, for example, for you to take one of their daughters, and marry her without the permission of her father. It is not allowed for you to rip up a telephone bill. It is not allowed for you to harm the state, and it is not allowed for you to place a magnet on the electric meter of your home. It is not allowed for you to tear up your phone bill, because there, in America, and in the Western nations, despite their disbelief and enmity towards Islam and the Muslims, they place trust in the individual. They generally treat the human being with a strange level of respect (compared to the treatment in the Muslim lands)...

One of the brothers - a Muslim youth - told me about his trip to attain a doctorate in America. He said: "They sent me both my electric and phone bills. So, I said to them: "I wish to pay what I have due." They replied: "No problem. Return to your home country, and we will give you an address to which you can send your payment from your country."" Can you imagine? He said to them: "I wish to leave this land," and they reply: "No problem. Go back to Jordan, and send your payment from there."

Trust! Security!...The Arab, in America, if his business is about to fail, he would burn down his factory, go to the insurance company, tell them that his factory was burned down, and he would rake in the million dollars that he had insured his factory with."

(A brother in the audience debates): "But, Shaykh, this was even there before, when Islam had strength and reputation, and Abu Hanifah said that if a Muslim breaks something of a Christian's, the Muslim must insure him."

Shaykh: "Even now, he must insure him."

Brother: "However, now, they come to our lands mostly to spread their ideology."

Shaykh: "My brother, who has brought them into our lands?"

Brother: "A disbeliever, like them."

Shaykh: "OK, excellent. You say to them that the one who has brought you into this land is a disbeliever. Therefore, you cannot be here...You must warn them, is this not so? Either Islam, or the jizyah, or the sword. Is this not so? So, you must warn them, my brother. Send them a message: 'You are spreading this evil, so, leave this land. Otherwise, you will die.' That's it. After this, kill him. As for coming to kill him while he is secure and under a pact of security, this is not allowed.

As for those People of the Book who live with us in our lands, it is not allowed to kill them in our times, unless they initiate fighting with us. It is not allowed, as this will cause great fitnah that will never end, and the rulers will stand on their side, and they will attack the Muslims, and put pressure on the Islamic movement - all for what? Because of you poking out the eye of a Christian in your land, or you killed a Christian, resulting in tens of Muslims being killed in prison as the result of torture..."

(The brother continues debating)

Shaykh: "It is not allowed for you to take the wealth of a Christian, at all. It is not allowed to kill the Western Christian in the lands of the Muslims, unless you first issue him a warning, and unless it first becomes clear to you that he is engaging in an act that deems his blood lawful. Understood?"

Another questioner asks: "Who is the one that determines what the actions are that deem his blood lawful? Do I determine this? Or do the scholars?"

Shaykh: "The scholars. The scholars are the ones who determine this. Where do fatawa come from? From the scholars - do you kill, or do you not kill? Is it permissible to kill and fight them? Or, do you go on your way? As for - by Allah - a youth who studied one or two words in 'Kifayat al-Akhyar,' or 'Hashiyat Ibn 'Abidin,' or the book of Ibn al-Qayyim (he's referring to 'Ahkam Ahl adh-Dhimmah'), and he suddenly becomes the Great Mufti of Islam, issuing fatawa to {"Kill them wherever you find them, and expel them from whence they expelled you..."} or {"When the Sacred Months have passed, slay the polytheists wherever you find them..."}, this is not allowed. The issue isn't as simple as you think, and this is what Jama'at at-Takfir wal-Hijrah was afflicted with. This shaykh - their leader, Shukri Mustafa, rahimahullah - began issuing fatawa, and every single one began reading and issuing fatawa declaring the blood of the Muslims lawful..."

(The brother continues debating, mentioning that the Christians of our times are all muharibin)

Shaykh: "Who are the Christians that are muharibin?"

Brother: "All of the Christians are muharibin."

Shaykh: "How are they all muharibin?"

Brother: "Those who put the covering on their head, and wear the cross."

Shaykh: "The one who wears the cross is a muharib? The one who wears the cross, this is his belief."

(The brother continues arguing)

Shaykh: "My brother, do you still consider them muharibin? The muharib is the one who brandishes weapons against the Muslims!"

(after some more arguement): "I will not give a fatwa for this. Look for some other mufti besides myself."

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 132-134]

POST #10 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

Whoever Obeys Allah, Everything Obeys Him:

"Ibn al-Qayyim said: "Using one's bodily organs in the obedience of Allah strengthens them, while using them to disobey Allah weakens them."

He dedicated an entire chapter to this, in his amazing book, 'al-Fawa'id,' and I had touched upon this in previous recorded lectures of mine. Even the jinn and humans assist the believer if he obeys Allah. To make a long story short, whoever obeys Allah, everything will obey him. And we informed you that, on the day that 'Uqbah bin Nafi' wanted to establish the city of Qayrawan in the middle of a thick jungle, he prayed two rak'ahs, and said: "O you vicous beasts! O you wild animals! O you poisonous snakes! We are the army of Muhammad! We want to establish ourselves here, so, leave!" Minutes later, all of the animals in the area carried their offspring, and left them the jungle.

Whoever obeys Allah, everything obeys him! Everything!

On the day that they were in Persia (Iraq), one of the Companions - and the Companions had never learned the Persian, Roman, or Assyrian languages - said something in Persian, so, the Persian troops evacuated. He does not know Persian, nor does he know Pashtu! So, when they ran away, the Companions caught up with them, imprisoned them, and asked them: "Why did you run away?"

They replied: "We heard, from the tongue of your companion, that you had come to eat us up, so, we ran away!"

The Companions asked the Companion who'd said this: "What did you say?"

He replied: "I have no idea."

The Angels had spoken on his tongue! We had mentioned before that the Angels would speak through the tongue of 'Umar. An Angel, speaking in his name. Because of this, sometimes, a devil will speak on the tongue of the human! If he is angry, for example, Satan will speak on his tongue. Therefore, it is advised that he perform ablution, in order to expell the Devil, because "nothing puts out the Devil other than the water of ablution."

So, the obedience of Allah...ya Salam! I am amazed at how humanity lives, my brothers!"


There Is No Escape from Allah, Except to Him:

"Today, the average American, if he experiences some problem, what does he do? He goes to the church! He has been avoiding church for such a long time, and now, he turns to Allah! The Jews said: 'We will remove the concept of God from the minds of the Christians, and put in its place financial figures.' Does the average American get up at night to pray to Allah - the Mighty and Exalted? Does he show his need to Allah during the morning hours? What does he do? That is why, if he is faced with a huge problem, he has no option in front of him, except to commit suicide. This is what he does in this life. However, in the Hereafter, {"...neither will it have a complete killing effect on them, so that they die, nor shall its torment be lightened for them..."} [Fatir; 36]

...By Allah, the crisis of the disbeliever and the rebellious sinner in this life and the next truly is a crisis! For us, when we are stricken with some problem, one of us gets up during the night, humiliating himself before Allah - the Mighty and Exalted - saying: 'O Lord! Relieve me of this! O Lord! Make this easy! O Allah! Make for us a way out of every grief and sadness, and make for us a way out of every tight situation!" You supplicate! As for the American, and the Brit - where does he go? That is why their problems pile on top of each other, until this results in psychological complications: {"Verily, those who oppose Allah and His Messenger will be disgraced, just as those before them were disgraced."} [al-Mujadilah; 5]

Complications and disgrace. That is why you see that they cannot arrive at anything. They walk around, eating, enjoying themselves, not knowing how to rid themselves of these pains that they are living in. So, they do not find anything but the path of alcohol, the path of drugs. These drugs, such as marijuana, that these Americans use, and heroin, etc. - this heroin costs $1,000 for a gram! A kilogram costs a million dollars! You constantly see them with a needle - a syringe, for their drug use...They cannot sleep! Constant anxiety, sadness! 54 million Americans - one quarter of the American population - suffers from mental and psychological problems. You see one of them, a millionaire, in the newspapers: 'Such-and-such killed themself...threw himself in front of a train...put himself underneath a train...threw himself off of a rooftop...' - all in order to rid himself of this anxiety and sadness. He can find no escape! Where will he go? There is no escape from Allah, except to Him!

...One time, one of the brothers from the Mujahidin in Palestine said to me: "A Communist from the PDFLP (People's Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine) and I were surrounded for three days by the Jews. Finally, when we felt impending doom upon us, as a result of our scarce food and water supply, he said: "Supplicate to your Lord." I said: "No. You supplicate to Stalin, so that he could save us"" - the Muslim is sarcastically telling this Communist to pray to Stalin or Marx. The Communist replied: "Where is Marx? Where is Stalin?" So, the brother called out: "O Allah," and Allah saved them.

And I have said to you that even these Russian Communists who descended upon the town of Jatral (a Pakistani border town, near Afghanistan) in their aircraft, it was said to them, by the locals: "What is it that frightens you most?" The Russians replied: "The Stinger missiles. However, we have memorized some texts from your holy book (the Qur'an) that were taught to us by the Afghans. We recite these texts, and we are saved from these Stingers."

They recite the Qur'an in order to save themselves! Do Marx or Gorbachev save them?

{"...They invoke Allah, making their faith pure for Him, saying: 'If You deliver us from this, we shall truly be of the grateful.'"} [Yunus; 22]"

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 502-505]

POST #9 on various words of advice and stories of remembrance from sheik Abdullah Azzam.

Let Nobody Have Any Favor Over You:

"al-Imam Ahmad - may Allah have Mercy upon him - would not accept any gifts from the people, so that they would not have any favor over him. He would reject the gifts of the rulers. One time - and the people loved to present him with gifts - he sent one of his sons to buy a loaf of bread. So, when the baker asked the boy who he was, he replied: "I am the son of Ahmad bin Hambal." So, instead of filling the bag with bread, the baker filled it with gold and silver, and gave it to him. When Ahmad bin Hambal opened the bag and found gold and silver, he told his son: "Go back to him." When he gave the bag back, the baker called out to him: "Come, at least take the bread that you paid a dirham for!" Imam Ahmad's son said: "My father commanded me to return everything."

They would wish that they could give him some gift, but, he was honorable in the face of such a reality, as the Prophet said: "Abstain from the dunya, and Allah will Love you. Abstain from what is with the people, and the people will love you."

Then came the tribulation of the creation of the Qur'an. al-Ma'mun adopted this belief, and came to torture Ahmad bin Hambal, so that he would do the same. al-Ma'mun died, al-Mu'tasim continued in torturing him, and he took a stand for Allah - the Mighty and Exalted - in which he honored this religion. Eighteen years, and three rulers who tortured him so that he would accept and endorse the belief of the Qur'an being created, but, he refused. Then came al-Wathiq, who reversed all that had happened in terms of the affair of the creation of the Qur'an. He wanted to honor Ahmad bin Hambal publicly, but, Imam Ahmad refused. So, he sent for his sons and showered them with gifts, which they accepted. When Ahmad bin Hambal learned that his sons had accepted the gifts of al-Wathiq, he built a wall between his home and theirs, boycotting them.

One day, Ahmad bin Hambal became sick. So, his doctor instructed him to roast a ear of corn in the oven and eat it. So, he bought the corn, and asked that it be roasted. So, it was taken to the oven of his uncle, Salih. When it was brought back to Ahmad, he asked: "Where did you roast it?" They said: "In the oven of your uncle, Salih." He said: "I will not even taste it, as his wealth has been mixed with the gifts of the ruler."

As a result, it got to the point that even the jinn would fear him!

A crazed girl was brought to al-Wathiq, so, he said: "Send her to Ahmad bin Hambal." When she was brought to Ahmad, they asked him: "Please cure this crazed girl for us!" So, he began to speak to the jinni that had possessed this girl, saying: "Get out of this girl! Get out of this girl!" But, it didn't come out. He continued, saying: "Get out, or I'll - and Ahmad began to threaten the jinni - " and the jinni came out, saying: "O Ahmad! You feared Allah, so, everything is afraid of you! You feared Allah, so, everything is afraid of you!"

The jinni waited until Ahmad bin Hambal eventually died, and it returned to possess the girl once again. So, they brought the girl to a shaykh - who, as it was said, is more like us than Ahmad bin Hambal - and he began to speak to the jinni, saying: "Get out, or I'll..." Suddenly, the jinni began to laugh, saying: "Ahmad bin Hambal has died; Ahmad bin Hambal has died...""

"Abstain from the dunya, and Allah will Love you. Abstain from what is with the people, and the people will love you."

['Fi Dhilal Surat at-Tawbah'; p. 195-196]