I posted a hadeeth yesterday which some of you may have read. I wanted to add a few words just in case anyone who read it felt the way I did many years a go when I wasn’t practising as much and had very very little knowledge (not that I have much knowledge now).
The hadeeth, if you missed it, was: Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said: “None of you becomes a believer until I am dearer to him than his children, his parents and all mankind.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
When I came across this hadeeth back then, I was taken back and seriously asked myself: how do I love him (pbuh) more than my parents, my siblings, my grandparents and so on? I questioned myself and found that my heart loved my family way more than the Prophet (pbuh). As you can imagine, I was hurt and worried. Little did I know that soon Allah would show me why I should love the greatest man ever to step foot on this earth more than anyone else and also how. A few years later, somebody gifted me a book titled: “When the Moon Split”, this was basically a condensed version of “The Sealed Nectar”. An amazing book and a book that I would until today recommend to all who may be in a similar position as I was back then, that to say: moderately practicing or newly practicing. Via this book, Allah(swt) taught me so much about this man who was sent as a mercy to mankind. I learnt about his life, his mission, his struggles, his vision, his battles, his moments of joy, his moments of loss & sadness, his legacy and most of all, how much he (pbuh) loved ME! Yes, ME! Somebody who lived 1400 years a go, somebody I’d never met, loved me! This should bring tears to our eyes wallahi. One of the most amazing aspects of his life, out of many many many others, was what happened to him (pbuh) in Taif. I remember reading the story of Taif with tears in my eyes. The incident of Taif shook me. It made me realise this was a man truly sent as a mercy to mankind. It taught me that this man had genuine love for people. He was not somebody who was after revenge. He was somebody who cared little about this dunya and more about aakhira. Mankind’s aakhirah. Be they friend or foe. He cared about MY aakhirah. He cared about YOUR aakhirah. Billahi, if you haven’t read up on the incident of Taif, I urge you today to search for it. If your eyes don’t swell up then question your understanding of this man.
Learn about him. Read. Understand. Implement his teachings. Let me give you a few examples of how much he (pbuh) loved me and you: What if I told you that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) made dua for us? Wouldn’t your heart be filled with joy? Wouldn’t you feel special? Well that’s exactly what he did: ‘A’ishah radi Allahu ‘anha narrated: “Once, when I saw the Prophet in a good mood, I said to him: “O Messenger of Allah! Supplicate to Allah for me!” So, he said: “O Allah! Forgive ‘A’ishah her past and future sins, what she has hidden, as well as what she has made apparent.” So, I began smiling, to the point that my head fell into the lap of the Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam out of joy. The Messenger of Allah said to me: “Does my supplication make you happy?” I replied: “And how can your supplication not make me happy?” He then said:“By Allah, it is the supplication that I make for my Ummah in every prayer.” Did you know that the Prophet (pbuh) missed you and me and he longed to see us? The Prophet (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “I wish I could see my brothers, (the Companions said) aren’t we your brothers O Prophet of Allah? He replied: No, you are my Companions. My brothers are those who come after me and believe in me without seeing me.” (Ahmed, sahih)
Ya ikhwan the Prophet (pbuh) loved us and longed to meet us without having seen us because we love him and believe in him without ever having seen him! So you might now be asking about the practical steps you can take to increase the love you have for our Habeeb (pbuh). My dearest brother or sister, think of a thing or a person you fell in love with or started to follow/admire. Maybe it was a certain car, a celebrity, a sports person or any other object that attained your love and admiration. Didn’t you strive to learn everything about this object or person? Maybe you read 100’s of articles, read books, watched YouTube videos, followed them on facebook, found out their date of birth, to an extent that you knew more about this object or person than you did about a friend. Now ask yourself, if this worldly object deserves this much from you, doesn’t somebody who cried for you, longed to meet you, somebody who Allah sent as a mercy to mankind, somebody who Allah sent to take you out from darkness and bring you in to the light, not deserve a million time more from you? Understand my dear brother or sister that had Allah not guided mankind through this man maybe you would today be worshipping stones and objects. I urge you to make a promise that you will study the seerah from tomorrow. That you will learn more about Muhammad (pbuh), his mission, his vision and his message. That you will not only learn about his teachings, but, you will implement them. Know that your love will only increase for him if you get to know. If you understand the sacrifices he made. If you understand the difficulties he faced. If you understand the tears he cried. And if you revive his teachings and live by them. If all of the above is not enough for you then I want you to imagine the scene on the most intense day we will all face. A day where no parent will be able to help their children nor children their parents. A day when everyone will cry: “Nafsi, nafsi”, except Muhammad Al-Mustafa (pbuh) who will say: “Ummati! Ummati!”
So does he not then deserve a few moments from your day?
Will you not then send peace and blessings upon him?
Will you not now make a promise to learn more about him?
اللّهُمّ صَلّ عَلَى مُحَمّدٍ
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