A summary of the life of the Salaf between words and deeds | Episode (30)

0:00 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:04 The life of authority lies between speech and action.

0:11 Sincerity with Allah.

0:13 Bakr Ibn 'Abdullah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

0:17 Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him,

0:20 did not surpass the people by having more prayer or fasting than them;

0:25 rather, he surpassed them because of something that was in his heart.

0:30 'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

0:34 "You pray more and strive harder than the Companions of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,

0:41 yet they were better than you."

0:44 It was said to him, "In what way?"

0:46 He replied:

0:48 "They were more ascetic regarding this world and more desirous of the Hereafter than you."

0:53 Malik Ibn Dinar, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

0:56 "Sincerity appears in the heart as something weak,

1:00 just as a palm shoot appears.

1:03 It starts as a single twig;

1:05 if a child plucks it,

1:07 its root is destroyed.

1:09 If a goat eats it, its root is destroyed.

1:12 But it is watered and it spreads,

1:14 it is watered and it spreads,

1:16 until it has a firm root that is trodden upon,

1:20 a shade under which one finds shelter,

1:22 and fruit from which one eats.

1:25 Sincerity is the same:

1:27 it appears in the heart as something weak,

1:29 so its possessor tends to it,

1:31 and Allah, the Exalted, increases it.

1:33 Its possessor tends to it,

1:35 and Allah increases it,

1:37 until Allah makes it a blessing for his own soul,

1:41 and his speech becomes a remedy for the erring."

1:45 Then he says:

1:47 "Have you not seen them?"

1:49 Then he returns to himself and says:

1:52 "Yes,

1:54 by Allah, we have seen them:

1:56 al-Hasan,

1:58 and Sa'id Ibn Jubayr.

2:01 A man among them would have Allah revive

2:03 vast multitudes of people through his speech."

2:06 He, may Allah have mercy on him, also said:

2:08 "Tell those who are not sincere:

2:11 do not trouble yourselves."

2:13 Abu Zur'ah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

2:17 I said to Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him:

2:20 "How did you escape the sword of al-Mu'tasim

2:23 and the trial of al-Wathiq?"

2:25 He said to me:

2:27 "O Abu Zur'ah,

2:29 if sincerity were applied to a wound, it would heal."

2:32 It was said to Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him:

2:37 "By what did he attain what he attained,

2:40 to the point that he is remembered for it?"

2:42 He replied, "By sincerity."

2:44 Someone mentioned sincerity and devotion to him,

2:47 and he said:

2:49 "It is by this that the people were elevated."

2:52 Abu Sulayman al-Darani, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

2:56 "Whoever is sincere in abandoning a desire,

2:58 Allah removes it from his heart."

3:01 The Friends of Allah (Awliya').

3:05 'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

3:10 "There are people who are keys to the remembrance of Allah;

3:14 when they are seen, Allah is remembered."

3:16 'Abdullah Ibn Abi Awfa, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

3:21 "The best of the servants of Allah

3:24 are those who love Allah,

3:26 and those who make Allah beloved to His servants."

3:30 One of the salaf, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

3:33 "A friend of Allah:

3:35 when his status increases, his humility increases;

3:38 when his wealth increases, his generosity increases;

3:42 and when his age increases, his striving increases."

3:45 Sincerity.

3:50 Condemning hypocrisy and ostentation,

3:52 and fearing them.

3:54 'Umar wrote to Abu Musa, may Allah be pleased with them both:

4:00 "Whoever purifies his intention between himself and Allah,

4:04 Allah will suffice him in what is between him and the people.

4:08 But whoever adorns himself for the people with what Allah knows is otherwise,

4:14 Allah will disgrace him."

4:16 Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, said:

4:20 The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:

4:23 "Some of my Companions will see me, and I will never see them after I die."

4:29 This reached 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him,

4:32 and he came to her rushing,

4:34 and said to her:

4:36 "I adjure you by Allah,

4:38 am I among them?"

4:40 She said, "No,

4:41 and I will never absolve anyone after you."

4:44 Hudhayfah, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

4:49 'Umar Ibn al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, passed by me

4:53 while I was sitting in the mosque,

4:55 and he said to me:

4:57 "O Hudhayfah,

4:59 so-and-so has died, so bear witness [to his funeral]."

5:02 He said:

5:03 Then he walked on,

5:05 until, when he was about to leave the mosque,

5:08 he turned to me and saw me still sitting.

5:12 He realized,

5:13 so he returned to me and said:

5:15 "O Hudhayfah,

5:17 I adjure you by Allah,

5:19 am I among those people [the hypocrites]?"

5:21 He said:

5:22 I replied:

5:23 "By Allah, no.

5:25 And I will never absolve anyone after you."

5:28 He said:

5:29 Then I saw 'Umar's eyes overflowing,

5:32 meaning they shed tears of joy.

5:36 Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

5:39 "Whoever shows off in this world, Allah will show him off on the Day of Resurrection;

5:44 and whoever seeks fame in this world, Allah will expose him on the Day of Resurrection."

5:50 Hudhayfah Ibn al-Yaman, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

5:55 "The hypocrites today are worse than they were during the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him;

6:02 back then they used to hide it,

6:05 but today they proclaim it."

6:07 A man said to him:

6:09 "I fear that I am a hypocrite."

6:12 He replied:

6:14 "If you were a hypocrite, you would not fear it."

6:17 Some people said to Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him:

6:22 "We enter upon our rulers

6:25 and say to them the opposite of what we say when we leave them."

6:30 He said:

6:31 "We used to consider that hypocrisy."

6:34 Mujahid, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

6:38 "We sought this knowledge while having no great intention,

6:43 then Allah later granted us the intention."

6:47 Hisham al-Dastawa'i, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

6:50 "By Allah, I cannot say

6:53 that I ever went out to seek hadith

6:56 desiring only the Face of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic."

7:00 Al-Dhahabi, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

7:02 "By Allah, neither can I."

7:05 The salaf used to seek knowledge for the sake of Allah,

7:08 so they became noble and became imams to be followed.

7:12 A group among them sought it initially not for the sake of Allah,

7:16 and they attained it,

7:18 then they awakened and held themselves to account,

7:21 and the knowledge led them to sincerity along the way.

7:25 Al-Rabi' Ibn Khuthaym, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

7:30 "Everything not sought for the sake of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will perish."

7:36 Abu al-'Aliyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

7:40 The Companions of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said to me:

7:45 "Do not work for other than Allah,

7:47 lest Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, entrust you to the one for whom you worked."

7:51 One of the salaf, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

7:54 "The people closest to ostentation

7:57 are those most confident that they are free of it."

7:59 Mutarrif Ibn 'Abdullah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

8:04 "The righteousness of the heart is through the righteousness of deeds,

8:07 and the righteousness of deeds is through the soundness of the intention."

8:10 Abu al-'Aliyah, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

8:14 The Companions of Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, gathered around me

8:19 and said, "O Abu al-'Aliyah,

8:22 do not perform a deed for which you desire other than Allah,

8:27 lest Allah assign your reward to the one you desired."

8:31 Al-Hasan al-Basri, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

8:34 "By Allah, no believer wakes up or goes to sleep

8:37 without fearing hypocrisy for himself."

8:41 There was a young man who used to recite in the presence of al-Hasan, may Allah have mercy on him,

8:45 and he liked his voice.

8:48 He said, "O Abu Sa'id,

8:51 I have been blessed with this voice,

8:54 and I stand [in prayer] at night,

8:56 then the devil comes and says,

8:59 'You only want to be heard.'"

9:02 Al-Hasan said:

9:04 "Your intention is [judged] when you rise from your bed."

9:07 It was said to Imam Malik Ibn Anas, may Allah have mercy on him:

9:12 "You have occupied yourself with this book [al-Muwatta'],

9:15 and people have joined you in it,

9:18 and they have produced the like of it."

9:20 He said:

9:21 "You will surely know what was intended for the Face of Allah, the Exalted."

9:26 Ibn al-Mubarak, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

9:29 I saw Malik Ibn Anas, may Allah have mercy on him,

9:32 and I saw him to be among the humble.

9:35 Allah only elevated him because of a secret between him and Allah.

9:40 This is because I often heard him say:

9:44 "Whoever loves for an opening to be made in his heart,

9:48 and to be saved from the agonies of death and the terrors of the Day of Resurrection,

9:53 let his deeds in secret be more than his deeds in public."

9:58 Ibn Wahb, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

10:01 Malik's worship was mostly in secret, by night and by day,

10:06 where no one could see him.

10:10 Al-Fudayl Ibn 'Iyad, may Allah have mercy on him, said regarding the saying of the Exalted:

10:14 ﴾That He may test you, which of you is best in deed﴿

10:18 "The most sincere and the most correct."

10:20 For if it is sincere but not correct, it is not accepted;

10:26 and if it is correct but not sincere, it is not accepted until it is sincere.

10:33 Sincerity is when it is for Allah,

10:36 The correct view is that which aligns with the Sunnah.

10:39 He, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

10:42 Abandoning an action for the sake of people is showing off (riya').

10:45 And performing an action for the sake of people is associating partners with Allah (shirk).

10:48 Sincerity (ikhlas) is for Allah to grant you well-being from both.

10:53 'Abdullah Ibn al-Mubarak, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

10:57 If two men were traveling together,

11:00 and one of them wished to pray two rak'ahs,

11:04 but he abandoned them for the sake of his companion,

11:07 that would be showing off.

11:10 And if he prayed them for the sake of his companion,

11:13 that would be associating partners with Allah.

11:16 Some of the salaf, may Allah have mercy on them, said:

11:18 Whoever seeks the Countenance of Allah through his knowledge,

11:21 Allah will turn His Countenance toward him,

11:24 and will turn the hearts of the servants toward him.

11:27 And whoever acts for other than Allah the Exalted,

11:30 He will turn His Countenance away from him,

11:32 and will turn the hearts of the servants away from him.

11:35 Yahya Ibn Abi Kathir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

11:39 Learn the intention,

11:41 for it is more profound than the action itself.

11:45 It is narrated from Abu Sulayman al-Darani, may Allah have mercy on him, that he said:

11:50 The best way a servant can draw near to Allah

11:53 is for Allah to look into your heart

11:56 and find that you desire nothing from this world or the Hereafter except Him.

12:01 Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked:

12:04 If a man enters the mosque

12:06 and sees people, so he improves his prayer,

12:09 does this mean it is showing off?

12:12 He said: No.

12:13 That is the blessing of one Muslim upon another.

12:18 The life of peace

12:20 between speech and action.

A summary of the life of the Salaf between words and deeds | Episode (30) | Honesty with God, saints

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