Who can be Awliya' Allah or Friend of Allah (azza wa jal)

[10:61] In whatever matter you [Prophet] may be engaged and whatever part of the Qur'an you are reciting, whatever work you [people] are doing, We witness you when you are engaged in it. Not even the weight of a speck of dust in the earth or sky escapes your Lord, nor anything lesser or greater: it is all written in a clear record. [10:62] But for those who are on God’s side there is no fear, nor shall they grieve. [10:63] For those who believe and are conscious of God,...

Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan, explains in Surah Yunus, who are the friends of Allah عزّ وجلّ. Explaining verse 61-63, he says:

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Ayah 61
You won’t find yourself in any situation and you won’t recite any portion of the Qur’aan, from any part of the recitation (there is a switch, Allaah عزّ وجلّ is talking to His messenger), you will not find yourself in any situation, you will not recite a single ayah anywhere from the Qur’aan. As for all of the Muslims there isn’t a single deed that any will be doing except that We will be upon you especially your witnesses. Allaah عزّ وجلّ is witness over all things but He is saying “I will be a special witness upon you” - Allaah عزّ وجلّ says, whatever action that one does He is a witness over us even whilst we are engulfed in it. Ibn Al faaris reports: they lose track of everything else they are so busy in that. Allaah عزّ وجلّ is watching this and is appreciating it. ‘Azaba = when you watch somebody walk away they go so far you can’t see them anymore. So you slowly see them disappear. Or if you take a pebble and throw it into a lake it slowly becomes smaller until it disappears. Allaah عزّ وجلّ says nothing disappears from the Vision of your Master no matter how far you think it goes. Mimmithqaali zarratin = from the weight of a speck, Fil ardi wa la fissamaa = in the earth and whatever is above. Wa laa asghar min zaalik = and whatever that can be smaller than that too or bigger, Allaah عزّ وجلّ is telling us the smallest deed that you do for this deen will not go unappreciated. I will be a special witness of that deed for you.

Ayah 62
You had better know, the protective friends, the deep, trustworthy friends of Allaah, there is no fear on them and they’re not the ones who will be grieving. In other words, in doing so and keeping the work up we have the opportunity to become the awliyaa of Allaah. The next ayah defines the walee of Allaah عزّ وجلّ

Ayah 63
Those who have emaan and they maintain the quality of taqwa in their life. The reason why Allaah عزّ وجلّ made the friendship of Allaah between the slave and the Master realistic is because when it is made unrealistic that is when help is sought from somebody else and say that he is much better than us, he should be Allaah’s عزّ وجلّ wali. The shafa’ happened because people were distant from Allaah عزّ وجلّ.
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It is possible for all of us to be friends of Allah عزّ وجلّ as long as we have Iman and maintain the quality of Taqwa in our life.

Below is another lecture on this topic by Ustadh Nouman.

Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan: The meaning of SubhanAllah

Beautiful explanation by recent lecture by Br. Nouman Ali Khan, worth a watch.

Wali vs Mawlaa.

Allah عزّ وجلّ says in suratul Baqarah ayah [2:257]:

اللّهُ وَلِيّ الّذِينَ آمَنُوا يُخْرِجُهُمْ مِنَ الظّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النّورِ
‘Allah is the Wali of those who believe, He brings take them from the darknesses into the light.’

وَالّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَوْلِيَاؤُهُمُ الطّاغُوتُ يُخْرِجُونَهُمْ مِنَ النّورِ إِلَى الظّلُمَاتِ
‘and those who disblieve their Awliyaa’ are taghoot, they bring them out of the light to darknesses.’

Wali is a special type of friend, who expresses the will to help to you and support you. A wali is a friend that you turn to for help, protection and support. The wali is the primary in the relationship, they are the dominant party.

Take for example, if a father is the wali to his son, then the father is the primary in the relationship.

Allah عزّ وجلّ says in the beginning of the ayah that He is the Wali for the believers. Those who disbelieve have Taghoot (anything and everything that is worshipped besides Allah) as their Awliyaa (plural of wali).

There are two comparisons taking place in this verse:

1. The believers and those who disbelieve, and
2. Allah عزّ وجلّ and taghoot [those worshipped besides Him].

Looking at the verse again, we see that there is a different arrangement for each comparison:

• When Allah عزّ وجلّ says He is the Wali of the believers, He comes first.
• But for those who disbelieve, their wali [those who are worshipped along with Allah] is mentioned last (as a sign of humiliation to them).

Why is the arrangment different?

Allah عزّ وجلّ is being ‘compared’ to taghoot [i.e. the disbelievers attempt to take their taghoot as equals to Allah], yet: there is NOTHING like Him, NOTHING can be compared to Him. These taghoot do not deserve to be mentioned in the same place as Allah عزّ وجلّ was mentioned. They do not deserve to be mentioned in even the same sentence. So the Taghoot are placed the furthest away from Allah's Name.

Allah عزّ وجلّ says in Surat Muhammad ayah 11,
ذَ*ٰلِكَ بِأَنّ اللّهَ مَوْلَى الّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَأَنّ الْكَافِرِينَ لَ مَوْلَىٰ لَهُمْ

‘That is because certainly Allah is the Mawlaa of those who believe, and indeed the disbelievers have no Mawlaa.’

Mawlaa is more than a Wali; a Mawlaa is someone who can protect you and actually does so; they are protecting you, while a Wali is someone who is willing to protect you. When it came to Wali, both the believers and disbelievers had one, but when it comes to Mawlaa – someone who CAN protect you – only the believers have One, and the disbelievers have no Mawlaa [Protector].

From a lecture by Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan on An-Nasr. Watch the lecture here: https://www.islamawareness.net/Quran/VideoLectures/surah110.html

Allahu Akbar - What does it mean?

Nice short video

All About Love with Yaser Birjas - Allah is the Most Affectionate

Eid ul Adha 2014 Khutbah: Give in this World, Gain the Pleasure of your Lord- Khalid Latif

Can Muslims be friends with Jews and Christians?

O YOU who have attained to faith! Do not take the Jews and the Christians for your allies: they are but allies of one another and whoever of you allies himself 

 with them becomes, verily, one of them; behold, God does not guide people who are unjust. (Quran 5:51)

This verse is often quoted to show that Islam is intolerant.

Quran is a complete book of guidance and while studying various issues it should be kept in mind that a particular issue may be discussed over several chapters or several verses in the same chapter. A complete understanding can only be achieved by understanding the whole issue as presented over all the verses and chapters and not by looking at only part of the Quran. God specifically warns us against doing just that, upholding part of the Quran while disregarding the rest.

.. Then is it only a part of the Book that ye believe in, and do you reject the rest? but what is the reward for those among you who behave like this but disgrace in this life? - and on the Day of Judgment they shall be consigned to the most grievous penalty. For God is not unmindful of what ye do. (Quran 2:85)
To understand the issue of befriending the Jews, Christians or people of any other faith, we have to study all the concerned verses from the Quran collectively.

Let us look at some other verses about this issue. The following two verses regulate relations with any people, regardless of faith:

As for such [of the unbelievers] as do not fight against you on account of [your] faith, and neither drive you forth from your homelands, God does not forbid you to show them kindness and to behave towards them with full equity: for, verily, God loves those who act equitably. (Quran 60:8)
God only forbids you to turn in friendship towards such as fight against you because of [your] faith, and drive you forth from your homelands, or aid [others] in driving you forth: and as for those [from among you] who turn towards them in friendship; it is they, they who are truly wrongdoers! (Quran 60:9)
From the above verses, we learn that we are only discouraged from befriending those who fight Muslims because of their religion. Now let's go back to the verse immediately after 5:51, to see if it sheds some further light on the issue.

And yet you can not see how those in whose hearts there is disease vie with one another for their good will (the hostile Jews and Christians), saying [to themselves], "We do fear lest a change of fortune bring us disaster." But God may well bring about good fortune [for the believers] or any [other] event of His own devising, whereupon those [waverers] will be smitten with remorse for the thoughts which they had secretly harboured within themselves-  (Quran 5:52)
During the time of the Prophet when the Jews and Christians were in open conflict with the Muslims, there were some Muslims who were more concerned about maintaining there alliances with the Jews and Christians at the expense of the Muslim community. The above verse is referring to such situations where Muslims with doubts in their hearts will ally themselves with the enemy.

Chapter 5 Verse 57 of the Quran makes it clear again, who are not to be taken as friends; O you who believe! take not for friends and protectors those who take your religion for a mockery or sport,- whether among those who received the Scripture before you, or among those who reject Faith; but remain conscious of God, if you are (truly) believers. (Quran 5:57)

God teaches us throughout the Quran that there are righteous Jews and Christians. As such there is no prohibition for Muslims to be friends with Jews, Christians or people of any other faith who are of good character.

Quranic verses referring to the righteous Jews and Christians:
Of the people of Moses there is a section who guide and do justice in the light of truth. (Quran 7:159)
And We caused Jesus, the son of Mary, to follow in the footsteps of those (earlier prophets), confirming the truth of whatever there still remained of the Torah; and We sent him the Gospel, wherein there was guidance and light, confirming the truth of whatever there still remained of the Torah, and as a guidance and admonition unto the God-conscious. (Quran 5:46)

Verily, those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], as well as those who follow the Jewish faith, and the Christians, and the Sabians - all who believe in God and the Last Day and do righteous deeds-shall have their reward with their Sustainer; and no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve. (Quran 2:62)
Not all of them are alike: Of the People of the Book are a portion that stand (For the right): They rehearse the Signs of God all night long, and they prostrate themselves in adoration. They believe in God and the Last Day; they enjoin what is right, and forbid what is wrong; and they hasten (in emulation) in (all) good works: They are in the ranks of the righteous. (Quran 3:113-114)
And there are, certainly, among the People of the Book, those who believe in God, in the revelation to you, and in the revelation to them, bowing in humility to God. They will not sell the Signs of God for a miserable gain! For them is a reward with their Lord, and God is swift in account. (Quran 3:199)

The following verse from the Quran capsulates this issue:

O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other (not that you may despise (each other). Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And God has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things). (Quran 49:13)

Source

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf - "Remembering the Days of Allah"

Justice ...

"O you who believe! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against

 yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor." (4:135)

Allah is Near - Nouman Ali Khan

HADITH: 99 names of ALLAH

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Allah has ninety-nine names, one hundred less one. He who memorizes them all by heart will enter Paradise." [Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 93, Number 489]

Hadith of the day

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Our Lord descends each night to the earth's sky when there remains the final third of the night, and He says: Who is saying a prayer to Me that I may answer it? Who is asking something of Me that I may give it him? Who is asking forgiveness of Me that I may forgive him?" [Hadith Qudsi 35]

Why do Muslims use the word Allah? (Whats the Deal with Islam?)

Love One Another-Alhamdulilah!

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "You cannot enter heaven until you believe, and you will not truly believe until you (truly) love one another." - Muslim, Al-Iman (Faith) 93

Entering Paradise

Allah paints a picture in the Qur’an of the most successful person: “So as for he who is given his record in his right hand, he will say, ‘Here, read my record! Indeed, I was certain that I would be meeting my account.’ So he will be in a pleasant life – In an elevated garden.” (Qur’an, 69:19-22)

This is the description of the Believer on the Day of Judgment – receiving his book in his right hand and sharing the good news to those around him out of pure joy and happiness. Allah (swt) says that this believer will be in Jannah (paradise).

While the disbelievers will be seized, chained, and then dragged, thrown, or pushed into the Fire, the Believers will be treated like royalty. Allah (swt) says, “On the Day We will gather the righteous to the Most Merciful like a band presented before a king for honor.” (Qur’an, 19:85)

They will not be humiliated like those in the Fire. Rather Allah (swt) says, “they will not be grieved by the greatest terror, and the angels will meet them, [saying], “This is your Day which you have been promised.” (Qur’an, 21:103) The Angels remind the believers that they should not worry and that they are safe – today is the Day they will receive the ultimate reward.

Allah (swt) will also give the Believers a light on the Day of Judgment that will brighten their faces and surroundings. Allah (swt) says, “On the Day you see the believing men and believing women, their light proceeding before them and on their right, [it will be said], “‘Your good tidings today are [of] gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein you will abide eternally.’ That is what the great attainment.” (Qur’an, 57:12) While the disbelievers were dragged on their faces, the faces of the Believers “will be bright.” (Qur’an, 80:38) And “You will recognize in their faces the radiance of pleasure.” (Qur’an, 83:24)

We see in these verses that the Believers are told again and again that they are heading to Paradise, which heightens their excitement and also calms their worries of entering Hell-Fire.

Driven

Allah (swt) illustrates how the Believers will enter Paradise, “But those who feared their Lord will be driven to Paradise in groups.” (Qur’an, 39:73) Ibn Kathir says in his tafseer (exegesis) that this driving is one of “honor and esteem.” We can compare this to how royals, presidents, and celebrities are driven around comfortably in expensive cars. In the hereafter, this special driving will only be for the Believers. They will be riding first class to Paradise.

While they are being driven to Paradise, Paradise itself will come to them. Allah (swt) says, ““And Paradise will be brought near to the righteous, not far” (Qur’an, 50:31). Jannah comes closer to the Believers while they also come close to it – showing how the love to meet the other is mutual.

Reception

The believers will not have to open the doors of Paradise themselves; rather they will be opened for them before they even reach it, showing how they will receive a noble reception. Allah (swt) says, “Gardens of perpetual residence, whose doors will be opened to them.” (Qur’an, 38:50) It is a sign of courtesy today to open doors for others, and the Believers will experience this on behalf of Allah (swt)! The word (mufattahah) in this ayah is significant because it shows how the companions of Jannah are honored in a way we may not even think about: the doors are wide open for their arrival.

Greetings

Allah (swt) says about the Believers, “Their greeting the Day they meet Him will be, “Peace.” And He has prepared for them a noble reward.” (Qur’an, 33:44) Salaam Alaikum (May peace be on you) is not only the greeting of this world, but it is also the greeting of the hereafter.

As the Believers enter the wide open doors of Paradise, the Angels will start to greet them by saying, “Peace be upon you; you have become pure; so enter it to abide eternally therein! [they will enter].” (Qur’an, 39:73)

The Angels will welcome the Believers – congratulating them on their hard work and perseverance, “Peace be upon you for what you patiently endured! And excellent is the final home.” (Qur’an, 13:24)

The Believers will also have the honor of receiving the greeting of “Peace,” a word from a Merciful Lord.” (Qur’an, 36:57) We see why the attribute of Mercy is mentioned in this ayah: Allah (swt) out of His Love and Gratitude for the Righteous will greet them in Paradise. You may win a chance to visit the White House, but the chance of having a special welcome from the President is very slim. Allah (swt), The King of Kings, The Most Majestic and Powerful, will greet and welcome His beloved slaves in their new home.

Put yourself in Jannah now: imagine your Lord – the One who you called upon privately, the One who you bowed your head to, the One who you kept away from sins for, the One who you thanked for your blessings – greeting you with Salam as you enter Paradise. Imagine what you would be feeling.

Allah (swt) recorded the reaction of the Believers in the Qur’an – and it’s probably exactly what you were thinking: “Praise to Allah, who has fulfilled for us His promise and made us inherit the earth [so] we may settle in Paradise wherever we will. And excellent is the reward of [righteous] workers!” (Qur’an, 39:74)

source

The Creator....

Duty to parents

God has commanded man to be dutiful to his parents.His mother bore him in

hardship upon hardship,and his weaning lasted two years.(God therefore,commands:)


"Give thanks to Me and to your parents.To Me is your

ultimate return."


Sura Luqman 31:14

Top 5 reasons Jesus is not the begotten son of God -TheDeenShow

HADITH OF THE DAY: REMEMBER GOD'S GLORY

A person once said to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him): "The laws of Islam are too much for me, so tell me something that I can follow easily." The Prophet told him: "Let your tongue be always busy remembering (dhikr) God's beauty, majesty and glory."

Fiqh-us-Sunnah, Volume 4, Number 99

Islam, God and the Shining Light of Love

"God is love," the New Testament teaches, and Muslim theologians would respond, "But of course." The problem is that we are not God. As Jesus said, "Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God " (Mark 10:18). There is no authentic love but one, that is, God. This is tawhid, the assertion of divine unity that is the foundation of Islamic thought.

Religious discussions of love sometimes address how it descends from its divine status and intermingles with human affairs. In any case, everyone recognizes its attractive power, even if they disagree as to what it is and where it comes from. Rumi mentions the two extremes of disagreement in the verse,

For the elect, love is a tremendous eternal light,
for the common people, love is form and appetite. (Divan 18197)

"The elect and the common people" is an expression used in all branches of Islamic learning to distinguish between the experts and the uninformed. For Rumi, the experts are the prophets and saints.

To think that love is "form and appetite" is to imagine that it derives from the realm of sense perception and biological processes. Rumi has nothing against form and appetite, but he sees the distinctiveness of human nature to lie in its openness to the tremendous eternal light.

"Eternal" (qadim) means unchanging. The word is contrasted with "newly arrived" (muhdath), which means dwelling under the sway of time and alteration. God is eternal, and everything other than God -- the universe and all it contains -- fades away. We change, the eternal light stays the same. We have the appearance of reality, but every appearance disappears.

The Quran says that God is "the light of the heavens and the earth" (24:35). The heavens are the high realms of spiritual beings (such as angels and souls), and the earth is the low realm of bodily things. Nothing appears without light. The more intense the light, however, the more difficult it is to see, which explains why the spiritual realm is invisible. No one can imagine the upper limit of physical light, much less that of nonphysical light, which is the consciousness that animates the heavens and the earth.

Spiritual traditions speak of ascending levels of nonphysical illumination, beginning with the obscure sparkles that typify everyday awareness and culminating in the infinite light of the eternal Self. In the Quran's retelling of the story of Moses and the Burning Bush, the light said, "I indeed am God; there is no god but I" (20:14): There is no god but God's very Self, the light of the heavens and the earth.

Rumi's verse, in short, refers to the axiom of tawhid, the fact that there is no true light but the divine light and no true love but the divine love. Everything in heaven and earth is the reverberation of the loving light. Each thing arrives newly and departs just as quickly. In relation to the universe, God is like the moon in relation to flowing water. As Rumi puts it,

The creatures are like water, limpid and pure,
shining therein the attributes of the majestic God...

Ages have passed, and this is a new age.
The moon is the same, but the water is not.
(Mathnawi 6: 3172, 3175)

Our scientific worldview is rooted in the measurable, but love and God are immeasurable. Scientific theories that speak of love naturally tend to agree with Rumi's common people: Love is form and appetite, feeling and emotion, impulses in the brain -- all these can be measured. The Quranic and Biblical worldviews see love as none other than the only reality that truly is. The word "reality," of course, fails to stir the heart, and "love" calls for commitment. Those who answer the call can transform themselves and the world.

Among the many mentions of love in the Quran, the favorite verse of love-theorists is this: "He loves them, and they love Him" (5:54). This verse puts the Islamic worldview in a nutshell: God brought the universe into existence because of his love for human beings. Human beings fulfill their calling by loving God.

The radiance of love's eternal light gives rise to the universe. The goal of love is to overcome separation, to bridge gaps, to bring the two lovers together as one. If love is to do its work, people must recognize the light and love it in return.

"He loves them" brought them into existence. Their recognition of the light feeds "They love Him." Once love intervenes, form and appetite lose their luster.

The final goal of lovers is to join the shining light at its source. The power that works this transformation is love. One of the many Quranic names of God is "friend" (wali), an Arabic word that combines the senses of "lover" and "helper." Both meanings can be seen in the verse, "God is the friend of those who have faith. He brings them out of the darkness into the light" (2:257).

Source: William C. Chittick Ph.D for The Huffington Post. Dr Chittick is Professor of Religious Studies, State University of New York, Stony Brook.