DawudTalut
Peace be upon you.
Peace be on you.
[Holy Quran, chapter 2 : verse 184] O ye who believe, the fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may exercise Taqwa [righteousness].
Allah the Exalted has again enabled us to go through another Ramadhan --- the one month which comes with unlimited blessings. Allah the Exalted says that, Fasting in this month has been prescribed for you.
Why is it prescribed? To remain hungry from dawn to dusk?...No, this Fasting is prescribed so that you may exercise Taqwa [righteousness]. The real thing is this Taqwa which enables one to obtain unlimited blessings.
Hazrat Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) says:
“A Fasting person should always keep in mind that its purpose is not that the one should remain hungry, but he should remain engage in remembrance of God the Exalted so that Tabattal and Inqita is obtained.”
[Tabattal and Inqita means that one should be devoted to God and get rid of earthly desires. That is to say that, in these days, one’s state should be such that one should break away from worldly desires and every action and attempt is done for the sake of pleasure of God]
“Thus the purpose of Fasting is that human should leave one (kind of) food, which nourishes body, and get other food, which brings satisfaction and fullness for soul.”
“The people who Fast for God only, and not just customarily, they should keep indulge in Hamd [praising Allah], Tasbih [glorfying Him] and Tehlil [declaring His Unity], so that they get the other food.”
Thus it is essential for a believer that, in these days, he should pay attention, more than before, to say Hamd of Allah, to say His Tasbih and not only mention there is none worthy of worship but Allah, but he should raise standards of his worships. Then benefit of Fastings is achieved. And only then human can achieve the purpose of Ramadhan, mentioned by Allah the Exalted i.e. you should seek nearness of Allah by exercising Taqwa.
Holy Prophet (peace and blessing of Allah be on him) said at an occasion that Fasting is a shield and a strong fortress which saves from Fire.
It becomes saving-from-Fire strong fortress, when person perform his each action for the sake of God the Exalted, aim to have His pleasure, try to spend day and night in prayers and His remembrance and exercise Taqwa. God the Exalted has pointed out about Taqwa in Holy Quran at many places.
If one keeps Fast with the thoughts that one has to exercise Taqwa, spend days and nights with prayers and remembrance of God, give attention to pay rights of worship, pay rights of people, then Allah the Exalted declares that such a Fast is kept for Me and Myself is its reward.
Such Fast keepers achieve nearness of God the Exalted. Their virtues are not temporary and limited to the month of Ramadhan but they understand the real Taqwa and these virtues continue after the Ramadhan too. Such people connect (the spirit of) one Ramadhan with the next one. We should pass through this Ramadhan with such thought and effort so that our Taqwa should not be temporary and our Fastings should not be superficial and for mere being hungry.
Our Ramadhan should not be just saying ‘Ramadhan Mubarak’ to each other without understanding the spirit of Ramadhan. To get Taqwa should be our aim at every Sahr and Iftar. Day long remembrance of God and Nightly Nawafil should show us the path of Taqwa. We should not immediately answer back excess /unjust done by others. Instead, we should be silent due to fear of God the Exalted in heart. By exercising Taqwa, one’s answer should be, ‘inni saa-emun’ i.e. ‘ I am Fasting’. We should always remember that our honours, our greatness is not in putting someone down or in tit for tat answers or in taking revenge but our honour and greatness is in seeking pleasure of Allah the Exalted and in finding whom Allah the Exalted grants prestige.
He says:
“….inna akramakum indallahey atqaakum…” (ch 49 : v 14) i.e. ‘…Verily, the most honourable among you, in the sight of Allah, is he who is the most righteous among you…’.
Thus, this is the standard of honour near Allah the Exalted.
Hazrat Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) says in this regard which shakes a Allah-fearing person:
“According to Allah the Exalted, that person is honoured and noble who is righteous. The one which is Jama'at of Righteous, God will keep it only and destroy the other. This is a sensitive stage, at this place two cannot stand; righteous and mischievous impure cannot stand there together. It is must that righteous should stand and wicked should be destroyed. Because God has the knowledge about, who is righteous near Him, thus it is state of great fear. Fortunate is the one who is righteous and ill-fated is the one who came under curse.”
It is frightening warning. These Fastings and Ramadhan, as Allah the Exalted says, is granted so that you exercise Taqwa. It is the conduct of extreme mercy by Allah the Exalted to His servants that He says that He has shackled the Satan in these days as the means so that you may exercise Taqwa easily, follow / try to follow those directives, get my nearness. But still if you are apparently paying attention to worships along with keeping Fast and yet you are caught in the net of egos and false honours, such Fasting is useless.
If after coming in the Bai'at of Hazrat Promised Messiah (on whom be peace), we do not come out, by breaking these nets and shells and are not attentive to seek the pleasure of God the Exalted and Taqwa only, then according to Hazrat Promised Messiah (a.s.), it is duplicity. Announcement of apparent Taqwa and impurities in hearts can not be together. Hazrat Promised Messiah (a.s.) said, it is state of fear….This state of fear increases since one’s Taqwa is not to be decided by any human. Allah the Exalted has kept this decision with Him therefore there is no other option except Tauba[repentance], Istighfar [seeking divine cover and help], Tasbih [glorifying Allah], Tahmid [praising Allah], repeatedly reciting Unity of Allah the Exalted, fearfully spending day, passing night with His fear.
But our God is the God who loves very much, may we be devoted to Him, He says that I have come very near to my servant in Ramadhan thus acquire benefit as much as possible; and to achieve Taqwa, try to follow the method which I have taught you, so that you become successful in this world and in the Hereafter. Take full benefit from this ‘one month long Camp’.
In this month, the virtues done purely for the sake of Allah the Exalted will be rewarded many fold as compared to common days. Thus get up and reform your worships according to my directives with the pledge that now we will keep this reformation forever. Get up and beautify your deeds, and make them according to pleasure of Allah the Exalted with determination to make these reforms as the part of your lives. Get up and in this month, try to get the real understanding of the Pledge, you have made, that you will give precedence to faith over worldly matters; Do this with thought that now it is the purpose of our lives. Always keep in view these words of Allah the Exalted: “…wa la tashtaru be-aayati samanan qalilan fa iyyaya fattaqoon.” (ch2:v42) i.e. ‘….and barter not My signs with paltry price, and fear Me alone.’
It means that, Allah the Exalted says, do not desire [give precedence to] earthly life over My directives which is deen / religion. Remember, earthly life is trivial as compared to deen / religion. Holy Khalifah (a.t.) says: Each of us should develop this thought. Only then we can draw true benefit of Ramadhan.
More.......
Reference: Friday Sermon (4 July 2014), by Hazrat Khalifa tul Messiah V (may Allah help him with His Mighty Help), UK, alislam.org and mta.tv
[Holy Quran, chapter 2 : verse 184] O ye who believe, the fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that you may exercise Taqwa [righteousness].
Allah the Exalted has again enabled us to go through another Ramadhan --- the one month which comes with unlimited blessings. Allah the Exalted says that, Fasting in this month has been prescribed for you.
Why is it prescribed? To remain hungry from dawn to dusk?...No, this Fasting is prescribed so that you may exercise Taqwa [righteousness]. The real thing is this Taqwa which enables one to obtain unlimited blessings.
Hazrat Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) says:
“A Fasting person should always keep in mind that its purpose is not that the one should remain hungry, but he should remain engage in remembrance of God the Exalted so that Tabattal and Inqita is obtained.”
[Tabattal and Inqita means that one should be devoted to God and get rid of earthly desires. That is to say that, in these days, one’s state should be such that one should break away from worldly desires and every action and attempt is done for the sake of pleasure of God]
“Thus the purpose of Fasting is that human should leave one (kind of) food, which nourishes body, and get other food, which brings satisfaction and fullness for soul.”
“The people who Fast for God only, and not just customarily, they should keep indulge in Hamd [praising Allah], Tasbih [glorfying Him] and Tehlil [declaring His Unity], so that they get the other food.”
Thus it is essential for a believer that, in these days, he should pay attention, more than before, to say Hamd of Allah, to say His Tasbih and not only mention there is none worthy of worship but Allah, but he should raise standards of his worships. Then benefit of Fastings is achieved. And only then human can achieve the purpose of Ramadhan, mentioned by Allah the Exalted i.e. you should seek nearness of Allah by exercising Taqwa.
Holy Prophet (peace and blessing of Allah be on him) said at an occasion that Fasting is a shield and a strong fortress which saves from Fire.
It becomes saving-from-Fire strong fortress, when person perform his each action for the sake of God the Exalted, aim to have His pleasure, try to spend day and night in prayers and His remembrance and exercise Taqwa. God the Exalted has pointed out about Taqwa in Holy Quran at many places.
If one keeps Fast with the thoughts that one has to exercise Taqwa, spend days and nights with prayers and remembrance of God, give attention to pay rights of worship, pay rights of people, then Allah the Exalted declares that such a Fast is kept for Me and Myself is its reward.
Such Fast keepers achieve nearness of God the Exalted. Their virtues are not temporary and limited to the month of Ramadhan but they understand the real Taqwa and these virtues continue after the Ramadhan too. Such people connect (the spirit of) one Ramadhan with the next one. We should pass through this Ramadhan with such thought and effort so that our Taqwa should not be temporary and our Fastings should not be superficial and for mere being hungry.
Our Ramadhan should not be just saying ‘Ramadhan Mubarak’ to each other without understanding the spirit of Ramadhan. To get Taqwa should be our aim at every Sahr and Iftar. Day long remembrance of God and Nightly Nawafil should show us the path of Taqwa. We should not immediately answer back excess /unjust done by others. Instead, we should be silent due to fear of God the Exalted in heart. By exercising Taqwa, one’s answer should be, ‘inni saa-emun’ i.e. ‘ I am Fasting’. We should always remember that our honours, our greatness is not in putting someone down or in tit for tat answers or in taking revenge but our honour and greatness is in seeking pleasure of Allah the Exalted and in finding whom Allah the Exalted grants prestige.
He says:
“….inna akramakum indallahey atqaakum…” (ch 49 : v 14) i.e. ‘…Verily, the most honourable among you, in the sight of Allah, is he who is the most righteous among you…’.
Thus, this is the standard of honour near Allah the Exalted.
Hazrat Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) says in this regard which shakes a Allah-fearing person:
“According to Allah the Exalted, that person is honoured and noble who is righteous. The one which is Jama'at of Righteous, God will keep it only and destroy the other. This is a sensitive stage, at this place two cannot stand; righteous and mischievous impure cannot stand there together. It is must that righteous should stand and wicked should be destroyed. Because God has the knowledge about, who is righteous near Him, thus it is state of great fear. Fortunate is the one who is righteous and ill-fated is the one who came under curse.”
It is frightening warning. These Fastings and Ramadhan, as Allah the Exalted says, is granted so that you exercise Taqwa. It is the conduct of extreme mercy by Allah the Exalted to His servants that He says that He has shackled the Satan in these days as the means so that you may exercise Taqwa easily, follow / try to follow those directives, get my nearness. But still if you are apparently paying attention to worships along with keeping Fast and yet you are caught in the net of egos and false honours, such Fasting is useless.
If after coming in the Bai'at of Hazrat Promised Messiah (on whom be peace), we do not come out, by breaking these nets and shells and are not attentive to seek the pleasure of God the Exalted and Taqwa only, then according to Hazrat Promised Messiah (a.s.), it is duplicity. Announcement of apparent Taqwa and impurities in hearts can not be together. Hazrat Promised Messiah (a.s.) said, it is state of fear….This state of fear increases since one’s Taqwa is not to be decided by any human. Allah the Exalted has kept this decision with Him therefore there is no other option except Tauba[repentance], Istighfar [seeking divine cover and help], Tasbih [glorifying Allah], Tahmid [praising Allah], repeatedly reciting Unity of Allah the Exalted, fearfully spending day, passing night with His fear.
But our God is the God who loves very much, may we be devoted to Him, He says that I have come very near to my servant in Ramadhan thus acquire benefit as much as possible; and to achieve Taqwa, try to follow the method which I have taught you, so that you become successful in this world and in the Hereafter. Take full benefit from this ‘one month long Camp’.
In this month, the virtues done purely for the sake of Allah the Exalted will be rewarded many fold as compared to common days. Thus get up and reform your worships according to my directives with the pledge that now we will keep this reformation forever. Get up and beautify your deeds, and make them according to pleasure of Allah the Exalted with determination to make these reforms as the part of your lives. Get up and in this month, try to get the real understanding of the Pledge, you have made, that you will give precedence to faith over worldly matters; Do this with thought that now it is the purpose of our lives. Always keep in view these words of Allah the Exalted: “…wa la tashtaru be-aayati samanan qalilan fa iyyaya fattaqoon.” (ch2:v42) i.e. ‘….and barter not My signs with paltry price, and fear Me alone.’
It means that, Allah the Exalted says, do not desire [give precedence to] earthly life over My directives which is deen / religion. Remember, earthly life is trivial as compared to deen / religion. Holy Khalifah (a.t.) says: Each of us should develop this thought. Only then we can draw true benefit of Ramadhan.
More.......
Reference: Friday Sermon (4 July 2014), by Hazrat Khalifa tul Messiah V (may Allah help him with His Mighty Help), UK, alislam.org and mta.tv
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