1 00:00:00,850 --> 00:00:04,799 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 2 00:00:04,799 --> 00:00:11,880 The life of the salaf between speech and action. 3 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:15,480 Preserving time. 4 00:00:15,480 --> 00:00:19,480 It is narrated that al-Awza'i, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 5 00:00:19,480 --> 00:00:22,480 There is not a single hour of the hours of this world 6 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:26,980 but that it will be presented to the servant on the Day of Resurrection, 7 00:00:26,980 --> 00:00:28,980 day by day, 8 00:00:28,980 --> 00:00:31,570 and hour by hour. 9 00:00:31,570 --> 00:00:36,070 So, no hour passes him in which he did not remember Allah 10 00:00:36,070 --> 00:00:40,299 but that his soul will be torn apart by regrets over it. 11 00:00:40,299 --> 00:00:44,299 How then, if hour upon hour passes him by, 12 00:00:44,299 --> 00:00:46,299 and day upon day? 13 00:00:46,299 --> 00:00:50,810 Fudayl ibn al-Raqqashi, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 14 00:00:50,810 --> 00:00:54,310 Do not let the multitude of people distract you from your own self, 15 00:00:54,310 --> 00:00:57,810 for the matter will be settled with you, not them. 16 00:00:58,310 --> 00:01:03,310 And beware of spending your day wandering here and there, 17 00:01:03,310 --> 00:01:06,719 for it is being recorded against you. 18 00:01:06,719 --> 00:01:10,760 Abu Sulayman al-Darani, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 19 00:01:10,760 --> 00:01:16,760 Everything that distracts you from Allah, the Almighty and Majestic—whether family, wealth, or children— 20 00:01:16,760 --> 00:01:19,609 is a calamity for you. 21 00:01:19,609 --> 00:01:23,109 It was said to al-Mu'afa ibn 'Imran, may Allah have mercy on him: 22 00:01:23,109 --> 00:01:27,109 What is your opinion of a man who composes and recites poetry? 23 00:01:27,640 --> 00:01:33,090 He replied: It is your life, so spend it on whatever you wish. 24 00:01:33,090 --> 00:01:36,090 Yahya ibn Mu'adh, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 25 00:01:36,090 --> 00:01:39,590 The greatest misfortune for a wise person in a day 26 00:01:39,590 --> 00:01:45,090 is that it passes him by without a gift from his Lord coming to him in it, 27 00:01:45,090 --> 00:01:50,459 meaning a new piece of wisdom. 28 00:01:50,459 --> 00:01:54,090 Condemning envy. 29 00:01:54,090 --> 00:01:57,090 Mu'awiyah, may Allah be pleased with him, said: 30 00:01:57,090 --> 00:02:00,090 I can please all people, 31 00:02:00,090 --> 00:02:02,090 except the one who envies the blessings I have, 32 00:02:02,090 --> 00:02:06,150 for nothing will satisfy him but their disappearance. 33 00:02:06,150 --> 00:02:09,650 It was said to al-Hasan al-Basri, may Allah have mercy on him: 34 00:02:09,650 --> 00:02:11,650 Does a believer envy? 35 00:02:11,650 --> 00:02:15,650 He replied: Have you forgotten the brothers of Yusuf? 36 00:02:15,650 --> 00:02:18,650 But keep it hidden in your chest, 37 00:02:18,650 --> 00:02:24,469 for it will not harm you as long as you do not act upon it with your hand or tongue. 38 00:02:24,469 --> 00:02:26,469 Some have said: 39 00:02:26,469 --> 00:02:30,969 Envy is the first sin by which Allah was disobeyed in the heavens, 40 00:02:30,969 --> 00:02:34,469 meaning Iblis’s envy of Adam. 41 00:02:34,469 --> 00:02:38,469 And it is the first sin by which Allah was disobeyed on earth, 42 00:02:38,469 --> 00:02:43,759 meaning the son of Adam’s envy of his brother until he killed him. 43 00:02:43,759 --> 00:02:47,259 Fudayl ibn 'Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 44 00:02:47,259 --> 00:02:49,759 Emulation (ghibta) is from faith, 45 00:02:49,759 --> 00:02:52,259 while envy is from hypocrisy. 46 00:02:52,259 --> 00:02:55,259 The believer emulates but does not envy, 47 00:02:55,259 --> 00:02:58,259 and the hypocrite envies but does not emulate. 48 00:02:58,259 --> 00:03:05,039 Justice and condemning injustice. 49 00:03:05,039 --> 00:03:09,039 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, bought a horse from a man, 50 00:03:09,039 --> 00:03:11,039 on the condition that he would inspect it. 51 00:03:11,039 --> 00:03:15,039 He took the horse and rode it, but it became injured. 52 00:03:15,039 --> 00:03:19,039 He said to the owner of the horse: Take your horse back. 53 00:03:19,039 --> 00:03:21,069 The man replied: No. 54 00:03:21,069 --> 00:03:25,099 'Umar said: Then appoint a judge between you and me. 55 00:03:25,099 --> 00:03:28,099 The man said: Shurayh. 56 00:03:28,099 --> 00:03:30,099 'Umar asked: And who is Shurayh? 57 00:03:30,099 --> 00:03:34,199 He replied: Shurayh al-'Iraqi. 58 00:03:34,199 --> 00:03:39,199 'Umar said: Then go to him, and he recounted the story to him. 59 00:03:39,199 --> 00:03:43,199 Shurayh said: O Commander of the Faithful, 60 00:03:43,199 --> 00:03:48,259 return it as you took it, or keep it as you bought it. 61 00:03:48,259 --> 00:03:52,259 'Umar said: Is there any judgment other than this? 62 00:03:52,259 --> 00:03:55,360 Go to Kufa. 63 00:03:55,360 --> 00:04:00,030 It was the first day he had ever known him. 64 00:04:00,030 --> 00:04:04,030 He said to Muhammad ibn Maslamah, may Allah be pleased with them both: 65 00:04:04,030 --> 00:04:07,030 How do you see me, O Muhammad? 66 00:04:07,030 --> 00:04:11,030 He replied: By Allah, I see you as I love, 67 00:04:11,030 --> 00:04:15,030 and as anyone who wishes you well would love. 68 00:04:15,030 --> 00:04:19,029 I see you strong in collecting wealth, yet chaste regarding it, 69 00:04:19,029 --> 00:04:22,029 and just in distributing it. 70 00:04:22,029 --> 00:04:24,029 If you were to deviate, we would straighten you, 71 00:04:24,029 --> 00:04:27,060 just as an arrow is straightened in the tool for straightening arrows. 72 00:04:27,060 --> 00:04:32,060 'Umar said: Praise be to Allah who has placed me among a people 73 00:04:32,060 --> 00:04:35,379 who, if I deviate, straighten me. 74 00:04:35,379 --> 00:04:38,379 'Uthman ibn 'Affan, may Allah be pleased with him, entered 75 00:04:38,379 --> 00:04:41,379 upon a servant of his who was feeding his camel, 76 00:04:41,379 --> 00:04:45,379 and he saw something in the fodder that he disliked. 77 00:04:45,379 --> 00:04:48,379 He took his servant by the ear and twisted it. 78 00:04:48,379 --> 00:04:51,379 Then he felt remorse and said to him: 79 00:04:51,379 --> 00:04:53,379 Take my ear and twist it. 80 00:04:53,379 --> 00:04:55,379 The servant refused. 81 00:04:55,379 --> 00:04:58,379 But he did not let him be until he took his ear. 82 00:04:58,379 --> 00:05:01,379 'Uthman began saying to him: 83 00:05:01,379 --> 00:05:03,379 Pull, pull! 84 00:05:03,379 --> 00:05:08,410 Until he thought he had exacted from him as much as he had exacted from him. 85 00:05:08,410 --> 00:05:10,410 'Uthman said: 86 00:05:10,410 --> 00:05:14,410 Woe to me for the retribution of this world before the retribution of the Hereafter. 87 00:05:14,410 --> 00:05:18,829 Abu al-Darda', may Allah be pleased with him, said: 88 00:05:18,829 --> 00:05:22,829 The person I most hate to treat unjustly 89 00:05:22,829 --> 00:05:27,829 is the one who has no helper against me except Allah, the Almighty and Majestic. 90 00:05:27,829 --> 00:05:32,019 Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: 91 00:05:32,019 --> 00:05:35,019 If a mountain were to act unjustly toward another mountain, 92 00:05:35,019 --> 00:05:37,019 the aggressor would be crushed. 93 00:05:37,019 --> 00:05:43,470 Ibn Sirin, may Allah have mercy on him, heard a man invoking against someone who had wronged him, 94 00:05:43,470 --> 00:05:46,470 and he said: Stop, O man. 95 00:05:46,470 --> 00:05:49,980 Do not let your oppressor profit at your expense. 96 00:05:49,980 --> 00:05:54,980 'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, may Allah have mercy on him, wrote to one of his governors: 97 00:05:54,980 --> 00:05:56,980 To proceed: 98 00:05:56,980 --> 00:06:00,980 If your power over people invites you to treat them unjustly, 99 00:06:00,980 --> 00:06:03,980 then remember Allah’s power over you, 100 00:06:03,980 --> 00:06:06,980 and the passing of what you do to them, 101 00:06:06,980 --> 00:06:09,980 and the remaining of what they do to you. 102 00:06:09,980 --> 00:06:15,360 Whenever he, may Allah have mercy on him, wanted to punish a man, 103 00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:17,360 he would imprison him for three days, 104 00:06:17,360 --> 00:06:19,360 then punish him, 105 00:06:19,360 --> 00:06:22,360 fearing that he might act in haste while still angry. 106 00:06:22,360 --> 00:06:25,750 Some of the wise said: 107 00:06:25,750 --> 00:06:27,750 Security is the most pleasant life, 108 00:06:27,750 --> 00:06:30,879 and justice is the strongest army. 109 00:06:30,879 --> 00:06:34,879 Fudayl ibn 'Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 110 00:06:34,879 --> 00:06:40,879 By Allah, it is not lawful for you to harm even a dog or a pig without right, 111 00:06:40,879 --> 00:06:44,319 so how can you harm a Muslim? 112 00:06:44,319 --> 00:06:49,319 Muslim ibn Yasar, may Allah have mercy on him, heard a man invoking against another man, 113 00:06:49,319 --> 00:06:51,319 and he said: 114 00:06:51,319 --> 00:06:53,319 Leave the oppressor to his oppression, 115 00:06:53,319 --> 00:06:57,319 for it will reach him faster than your invocation against him, 116 00:06:57,319 --> 00:07:00,319 unless he repents through a good deed, 117 00:07:00,319 --> 00:07:03,550 though it is unlikely he will do so. 118 00:07:03,550 --> 00:07:08,550 A man came to Ahmad ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him, and said to him: 119 00:07:08,550 --> 00:07:12,579 Should we write hadiths from Muhammad ibn Mansur al-Tusi? 120 00:07:12,579 --> 00:07:14,579 He replied: 121 00:07:14,579 --> 00:07:17,579 If you do not write from Muhammad ibn Mansur, 122 00:07:17,579 --> 00:07:19,579 then who would you write from? 123 00:07:19,579 --> 00:07:21,579 He repeated this several times. 124 00:07:21,579 --> 00:07:23,579 The man said to him: 125 00:07:23,579 --> 00:07:25,579 But he speaks ill of you. 126 00:07:25,579 --> 00:07:27,579 Ahmad replied: 127 00:07:27,579 --> 00:07:30,579 A righteous man who has been tested regarding us; 128 00:07:30,579 --> 00:07:32,839 what are we to do? 129 00:07:32,839 --> 00:07:34,870 A poet said: 130 00:07:34,870 --> 00:07:37,870 By Allah, injustice is a calamity, 131 00:07:37,870 --> 00:07:41,870 and the wrongdoer is always the one who is truly oppressed. 132 00:07:41,870 --> 00:07:44,870 To the Judge of the Day of Judgment we shall go, 133 00:07:44,870 --> 00:07:47,870 and before Allah, the adversaries will gather. 134 00:07:47,870 --> 00:07:51,870 You will know in the Hereafter when we meet, 135 00:07:51,870 --> 00:07:56,160 tomorrow before the King, who is the true oppressor. 136 00:07:56,160 --> 00:08:01,160 Imam Malik, may Allah have mercy on him, used to practice fairness and say: 137 00:08:01,160 --> 00:08:04,160 There is nothing less common among people than this, 138 00:08:04,160 --> 00:08:07,350 so I wanted to persist in it. 139 00:08:07,350 --> 00:08:10,350 Al-Shafi'i, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 140 00:08:10,350 --> 00:08:12,350 How wretched is the provision for the Hereafter: 141 00:08:12,350 --> 00:08:17,300 aggression against the servants of Allah. 142 00:08:17,300 --> 00:08:20,300 The snares of Satan and his whispers, 143 00:08:20,300 --> 00:08:23,639 and being cautious of him. 144 00:08:23,639 --> 00:08:27,639 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said: 145 00:08:27,639 --> 00:08:30,769 The believer’s devil is emaciated. 146 00:08:30,769 --> 00:08:32,769 And he, may Allah be pleased with him, said: 147 00:08:32,769 --> 00:08:35,769 The example of minor sins 148 00:08:35,769 --> 00:08:39,769 is like a group of people who stopped at a place where there was no firewood, 149 00:08:39,769 --> 00:08:41,769 and they had meat with them. 150 00:08:41,769 --> 00:08:47,769 They kept picking up sticks until they gathered enough to cook their meat. 151 00:08:47,769 --> 00:08:53,090 Salman al-Farisi, may Allah be pleased with him, said about the marketplace: 152 00:08:53,090 --> 00:08:56,090 Do not be the first of its people to enter, 153 00:08:56,090 --> 00:08:59,090 nor the last of them to leave, 154 00:08:59,090 --> 00:09:03,090 for it is where Satan lays his eggs and hatches his brood. 155 00:09:03,090 --> 00:09:07,350 Mutarrif ibn al-Shikhkhir, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 156 00:09:07,350 --> 00:09:10,350 If a man saw prey, 157 00:09:10,350 --> 00:09:12,350 and the prey did not see him stalking it, 158 00:09:12,350 --> 00:09:15,350 is it not likely that he will catch it? 159 00:09:15,350 --> 00:09:17,350 They said: Yes. 160 00:09:17,350 --> 00:09:20,350 He said: Well, Satan sees us, 161 00:09:20,350 --> 00:09:22,350 while we do not see him, 162 00:09:22,350 --> 00:09:24,350 so he strikes at us. 163 00:09:24,350 --> 00:09:27,379 He also said, may Allah have mercy on him: 164 00:09:27,379 --> 00:09:32,379 I found the servant caught between his Lord, the Almighty, and Satan; 165 00:09:32,379 --> 00:09:35,379 if He saves him, he is successful, 166 00:09:35,379 --> 00:09:38,379 and if He leaves him to Satan, he will take him away. 167 00:09:38,379 --> 00:09:41,700 Some of the salaf said: 168 00:09:41,700 --> 00:09:45,700 I found procrastination to be one of the armies of Iblis, 169 00:09:45,700 --> 00:09:49,700 which has destroyed many of Allah’s creation. 170 00:09:49,700 --> 00:09:53,860 Al-Hasan ibn Salih, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 171 00:09:53,860 --> 00:09:59,860 Satan opens ninety-nine doors of good for the servant, 172 00:09:59,860 --> 00:10:02,860 desiring by them one door of evil. 173 00:10:02,860 --> 00:10:07,179 Abu Hazim, may Allah have mercy on him, entered the mosque, 174 00:10:07,179 --> 00:10:10,179 and Satan whispered to him: 175 00:10:10,179 --> 00:10:13,179 You have broken your ablution. 176 00:10:13,179 --> 00:10:15,240 He replied: 177 00:10:15,240 --> 00:10:18,529 Has your advice reached such a point? 178 00:10:18,529 --> 00:10:20,529 Some of the salaf said: 179 00:10:20,529 --> 00:10:25,529 If Satan looks at you and sees you constant in the obedience of Allah, 180 00:10:25,529 --> 00:10:27,529 he will despair and abandon you. 181 00:10:27,529 --> 00:10:33,529 But if you are sometimes like this and sometimes like that, he will covet you. 182 00:10:33,529 --> 00:10:38,080 Abu Sulayman al-Darani, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 183 00:10:38,080 --> 00:10:43,080 Whispers only come to a heart that is inhabited. 184 00:10:43,080 --> 00:10:47,080 Have you seen a thief come to a ruin to dig into it? 185 00:10:47,080 --> 00:10:51,080 He enters through whichever door he wishes. 186 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:55,490 A man complained to him about whispers, and he said: 187 00:10:55,490 --> 00:10:58,490 If you want them to stop, 188 00:10:58,490 --> 00:11:01,490 then whenever you feel them, rejoice. 189 00:11:01,490 --> 00:11:03,490 For if you rejoice at them, 190 00:11:03,490 --> 00:11:05,490 they will stop, 191 00:11:05,490 --> 00:11:10,490 because there is nothing more hateful to Satan than the joy of a believer. 192 00:11:10,490 --> 00:11:13,490 But if you become distressed by them, he will increase them. 193 00:11:13,490 --> 00:11:17,840 Ishaq ibn Rahwayh, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 194 00:11:17,840 --> 00:11:21,879 I saw Ahmad ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him, praying, 195 00:11:21,879 --> 00:11:24,879 and he gestured with his hand like this, 196 00:11:24,879 --> 00:11:26,879 pointing with his fingers. 197 00:11:26,879 --> 00:11:28,879 When he finished the prayer, I said: 198 00:11:28,879 --> 00:11:30,879 O Abu 'Abdullah, 199 00:11:30,879 --> 00:11:32,879 What did you say in your prayer? 200 00:11:32,879 --> 00:11:34,970 He replied, 201 00:11:34,970 --> 00:11:36,970 I was in a state of ritual purity, 202 00:11:36,970 --> 00:11:38,970 then Iblis came and said, 203 00:11:38,970 --> 00:11:41,970 "You are not in a state of ritual purity." 204 00:11:41,970 --> 00:11:46,450 So I said, "I have two just witnesses [to the contrary]." 205 00:11:46,450 --> 00:11:48,450 Some have said, 206 00:11:48,450 --> 00:11:51,450 "Indeed, Satan is satisfied with a person 207 00:11:51,450 --> 00:11:54,450 if he can move him from one act of obedience to another, 208 00:11:54,450 --> 00:11:57,450 in order to undermine his resolve through that." 209 00:11:57,450 --> 00:12:01,019 The life of the pious, 210 00:12:01,019 --> 00:12:04,340 between speech and action.