Transcription
Can you hear me in the back? Okay, so we will increase. It is 7:30, better than 7. That's what I thought too. Okay, traffic. Better, and you can go home and a little bit breathe and then come. Okay, Alhamdulillah. So, inshallah, if Allah gives us life, exactly in a month, actually month, maybe month and a day, we will be, inshallah, welcoming Ramadan. So I was thinking, what should I do? Which Surah? And if I wanted to do Surah Baqarah, we will not get to the verses of by the time of Ramadan. So Allah opened this, um, the main aim of Ramadan. Many of us don't know it. Maybe you know it, but we don't know it, and we don't make it as a goal that we work for it. So what is the goal of Ramadan? I, I put it in the flyer. I shouldn't, but it's happened. What is the goal? Taqwa. Right. What is taqwa? That's the first thing. How do I know I am a? You may be, I may be, but what is the sign? I am a third. Why do I want to be a m? So this is what we're going to be covering. We're going to be covering today, generally, what is taqwa? Why Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala connected it with Ramadan? The goal of Ramadan is taqwa. If you go to the Quran and look into the verse, it's in the second part of the Quran. I can't remember the number of the verse, but if you go back and you see the verse where Allah says, "Believers, fasting has been prescribed upon you," meaning obligation, like it is the obligation of the people before you. And then he said, "Why? So you may, you may attain taqwa." And then if you go, everything related to it is taqwa. And those of you who memorize the Quran, in case you want to make it easy, if it is related to there is taqwa there. So why is taqwa? Before I say any word, why is related to taqwa? Raise your hand if you know. And if you don't know, Alhamdulillah, we are learning. Why didn't He say Zakat? He didn't say even Salah. He didn't say, but with yes. So say it in a way that everyone understands. You're absolutely right. Because it's an act that you do it in secrecy. No one knows you are fasting. You can claim it in front of anybody. Only Allah knows. I'm talking about real fasting and not the inner meaning of fasting. You are not eating, you are not drinking. There is no marital relationship from this time to this time. Nobody knows. No one knows except Allah. That's taqwa. Because what is taqwa? Now we're going to come to the meaning of it. So I want you to know that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala did not intend for me and you fasting for a whole month. And by the way, it is not easy, but Allah makes it easy. Subhan Allah. It is not, I mean, if you're now fasting Monday and Thursdays, right? And this is easy because it is 12 hours. It is still, you feel it. You feel the struggle. Right now, imagine daily life doesn't stop for us. Same thing. Nothing changes. The youth still go to school. There's exam. There is exam, right? And then you're still in the traffic. Then you come home and it's, let's say, six o'clock. And then you're running, getting the food ready. You don't have people to help. You don't have helpers. Life continues. And then everyone is running to do what? To dawah. Come here, find a parking, and then get to the shuttle, go. And then you still do it. And then two hours you're on your, you're standing on your feet. Majority of people don't know what the Imam is reading. They're still standing. Finish. You go home. Barely you sleep before 11:30. I mean, if you slept 11:30, Alhamdulillah, then you are up by 4 because you have to do. And life starts again. 30 days. If you think of it, outside Ramadan is very difficult. Subhan Allah. And every Muslim, they do it. Why? Why this strength comes in you? You really have to reflect on this. Why Allah gives me this? Because when I ask people, they say, "Oh, it's Ramadan." Well, it's Ramadan is a name, right? Well, this is now tomorrow, Shaban, okay? So, but why in Ramadan I have this internal energy and focus on Allah way more than outside Ramadan? Anyone? Yes. You made in, you made the intention. Well, I made the intention to fast yesterday on Monday, and it was a struggle, right? Alhamdulillah, Allah made it happen. But it's not the same as Ramadan, right? Huh? I can't hear you. There is no Shaitan. But there is, no. People disobey Allah in Ramadan. People, please forgive me. Not you. A majority of, not majority, but a good number of people, they break their fast and start smoking. Now, that's an order from Allah. It's an order. That's why it's an obligation because it's in this verse. Allah says, "If you are Shah, meaning you saw the, the month, you need to fast." It's an obligation. Internally, spiritually, you have to go deeper. This is how you know this beauty, the beauty of this Deen. And once you know why Allah is saying this, and why I can do it, now I can do it later on, then you know the meaning. Simply because the only reason you are fasting, everyone, I'm not going to say somebody else is. No, because that's, we have no right to say this about people. Because you're doing it for Him and Him only. The only one who knows really your fasting is Him. You go to Hajj, people see you. How much in secrecy you want to do Hajj, they will see you there, right? You're going to pray? No way. All your life, nobody will see you praying? No way, right? No. Even Zakat. Even Zakat. Somebody knows that you gave them Zakat. If you didn't say it to anybody, the person who received Zakat has to be somebody knew you paid Zakat. Either you gave it to the people directly, or you gave it to the agency, or you get someone knew you paid Zakat, right? And we don't say, "Don't tell me where I give it." But I did. Okay. The only one that truly knows you are fasting is Allah. Because again, you can claim it with everybody, but only Allah knows you are doing something for Allah in secrecy. And it's hard. It's not easy. He will give you the energy. He will make it easy. You know the famous Hadith, inshallah, all of you know the meaning. When Allah, when you come to Allah walking, Allah comes running. Yeah. How is that going to happen? Allah doesn't run. Subhan. But that's the meaning. You put 10% energy, Allah gives you 50. You do something very challenging for you, Allah makes it easy. So you are starting Ramadan with taqwa because you're doing it for Him and no one else is seeing. But the goal that we all need to put it at the end, and it really hurts me sometimes. I drag myself for Salah, but I had to go because it's a Sunnah, highly recommended. Is when you see people for 30 days, I'm not talking about women only, I'm talking about in general. People have done all this for 30 days, not a day, not a two, not a three, not four. Yet the day of Eid, what happened to the taqwa? Where is it? And I'm not referring to anybody. I see people who are very religious, or people who are not. All Muslims in our conduct, the day of Eid, especially when we are going for Salah, tells me we need to work on our taqwa. This is one of the reasons I wanted to cover this subject before Ramadan because I want you all, every day in Ramadan, when you made the niyyah for fasting, when you are breaking the fast, when you are in taraweeh, just remember this word: "So you may attain taqwa." "So you may attain taqwa." And I'm going to take you through what is taqwa. So anything you learn in the Arabic language, as I have said many times, you need to know the meaning in, in the Arabic language, and then the meaning in Islamic, in, in the Islamic tradition. What is taqwa in the Arabic language? Basically, is me, the, the, the origin, the root is "waqaa." "Waqaa" is to protect. Is to protect. Like, majority of you wearing today, wearing a coat. This is taqwa, but taqwa from from cold. So anything you do to protect yourself from harm, from harm. And harm is relative. Between people, you are a, in general. Is it clear now? Pay attention. So what is taqwa in Islam? I am going to put a barrier. I am going to wear a coat between me and the punishment of Allah, the wrath of Allah, the displeasure of Allah. It is not only the punishment, it is the punishment, the wrath. Allah will become not happy with me. Allah will be angry with me. The displeasure of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So the goal of me fasting for 30 days is that at the end, the last day, I already have the coat, and the coat is ready for me to go for the next 11 months. Are you all with me? Once you learn this, inshallah, your, the way you look at Ramadan is going to be completely different. Taqwa. One of the most frequent words in the Quran. Subhan Allah. It's 200. I wrote it. 200. I think 50 something. Let me just double. Yeah, 258 times. Two, two. I'm sorry, not 2,000. Please forgive me. 200. Yes, 258 times Allah used either this word or what is related to it. Now, pay attention to this. From the 258, 182 is an order. Meaning, be Allah conscious. Don't translate taqwa to fear. It is not fear of Allah. Absolutely. Has it is part of it internally, is fear, but it is not fear. Fear is in the Arabic language. Fear is "khawf." Taqwa is Allah conscious. Meaning, you go out, you open the door, as you were coming to the class, and you felt it's cold. You felt it's cold. You're not afraid from cold, but you protect yourself with a coat. You're conscious. The temperature is low, so I'm wearing the coat. So taqwa, I'm conscious of Allah. I am conscious He's seeing me, He's listening, He's hearing me, and I don't want Him to be upset. Literally, in the current language, I don't want Allah to be upset with me. Do you want Allah to be upset with you? Nobody. Absolutely not. We do it, but we're not very unlikely. We're doing it, and we are intentionally know that Allah will be upset, and I don't care. Very unlikely. But we do it out of weakness. So taqwa, Islamically, you're putting a shield, a barrier between you, me, and Allah's displeasure. That Allah is not happy with me. Even they say, even the love of Allah, and of course, the punishment of Allah. Clear. So when you are praying and not, not missing it, and inside you saying, "Well, I need to go and pray." You're not explaining the whole detail, but that's taqwa. So I want you all. Yes, Allah is a higher level. And again, in the next four weeks, I'm going to take you. Who's and what will I get when I am a m? The fruits of taqwa. There's a book written about fruits of taqwa. All of it from the Quran. And this will be at the end, inshallah. So he, you are, each one of you, with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, for sure. You had time. You are a. When you say to yourself, you said something, and that something is not pleasing to Allah, it came out. And immediately you say, "Why did I say it?" You're, yeah, you have disobeyed Allah, or you have said something, or I have said something not pleasing to Him. But my taqwa in me acted. Are you, are you all clear? What is the definition? And there is one definition I learned it literally 14 years ago, and I love it. And everywhere you go, they will tell you this definition. There are many. I'll share with you, but this one, this one is right. And he said, and I'll translate in a second. That's what taqwa is. It's an action you do. And "do," by the way, is "do" and "don't." When you don't say something, and you really want, but it's not pleasing to Allah, that's an action. So everything you do, your actions based on obedience of Allah. All my actions are act of obedience. How do I know it's an act of obedience? Allah based on the Quran and the Sunnah. It's not I'm inventing the wheel, or someone is telling me this. It's clear. Why you are doing it? Because I want Allah to reward me. Opposite is also part of the definition. You stay away from the disobedience of Allah. Why? Who said it's disobedience? Based on they call it light. So you, you leave the disobedience of Allah. Stay away from the disobedience of Allah based on the light from Allah because you are afraid of His punishment. This is taqwa. So it's two sides. It's two sides. I do. I wake up for Fajr because it's, it's, I know Allah said it's an obligation, and I want my reward. And I do not. I turn off that thing on the TV or on, on the computer that came out to me because it is obviously haram, and I don't want Allah to be upset with me. There are some chairs here. There is some chairs here. Yes, come from the back, right here. Yeah. If I can ask people, if you have next to you, move so somebody can see it. Consciousness. Yes, absolutely. Taqwa is Allah conscious. That's how I always use the word. Allah conscious. I feel Him. I feel Him. Meaning, like, you know, when you are, when you are somewhere and someone is looking at you, right? That's Allah conscious. Like, I know she's looking at me, or he's looking at me, right? And that you're conscious of that person. Allah conscious. You don't see Him, Subhan. But you feel Him. And the only reason you're not doing or doing because it is not going to be pleasing to Him, or it is pleasing to Him. So that's one of the first definition of taqwa. The other one is, which is repeatedly, some says it's Hadith, but I didn't find the Hadith. It's referred to as a, but I couldn't find it as a. The first one, it's beautiful. He will not should not miss you. Taqwa. He should not miss you where He wants you to be, right? And does not find you where He doesn't want you to be. I love the missing. And Allah missed me. Allah missed you. Like, you know, in the classes, in Jannah institutes, especially the morning one, because the on-site is small class, so I missed. I was like, "Where is she?" I missed you. When you miss someone, that means that somebody has a place in your heart, right? You don't, you don't miss people you don't know, or people who just come by in your life. So imagine Allah missed me, missed me, missed us, where He, where He wants me to be. And He should never, never, is not occasional, should be always. He finds me where He doesn't want me to be. Give me an example. For example, time, right? And I'm not saying on time. Time. In time, He needs, He is looking for me, or you. They need to be in Salah, right? And then He doesn't find me because I'm sleeping, or because I am busy, or I'm watching something, or I'm on my phone the whole three, four hours. But then He turns, Subhan, and finds me doing something He doesn't want me to be. Apply it to everything else. You're in a gathering, right? What does He want? He sees me in the gathering. What does He want me to be doing? Dressed properly, speaking properly, acting properly, the way pleases Him. He doesn't want to see me backbiting, or hearing me backbiting, or boasting about things, or looking down at people. People. So taqwa, when I say it's a subconscious, I was like, "I shouldn't do that. He's looking at me." Who? If we can remember that always, Allah is looking at us, we're done. We're perfect. But Subhan Allah, that's what Shaitan said. "I'm going to come to them from the front, from the back, on the right, on the left." And you will find the majority of them ungrateful. Meaning they don't remember you, Ya Allah. So that's the second definition. Third definition. It's referred to. He said it rhymes. Of course. Let me translate. Number one, the fear from The Honorable one of the names of, right? Second, and you act according to the Quran, what was sent. And you are pleased with whatever little Allah gave you or gave me. Get ready for the day of departure. These four. It's a fear. It's a pleasure. It's act. And get ready. Again, if I am getting ready for the, the day I'm leaving, a lot of things we do on a regular basis, we will not be doing. I don't have time. If someone comes to me right now and says, "Tomorrow you're dead." What I'm going to be doing? Anyone of us? What we will be doing? We're going to be asking Allah for forgiveness. I'm going to ask everybody, "Please forgive me." I am going to keep my mouth closed, right? And then I'm going to look at in my closet and everything I don't want, I'm going to donate. I'm going to go to my bank account. How much I'm going to give it. I'm going to do whatever I can do. Now, you're getting ready. It surprised me. And one of the times I reflect, when people spend days because they are traveling, preparing, packing, right? I know people pack three, four days. But what am I packing for my eternal trip? That's all reflections, right? You start packing, you start going, you start buying gifts. All this is fine. It's actually, we, we need to do that. But this is packing for a, a momentary trip. Allah knows how long it will take. I'm coming back. But what am I packing for the eternal trip? That there is no doubt, there's no flight that will be canceled. None. Absolutely. Even if I want to, it's not going to happen. So, so take these three definitions. Think of them. See which one touches your heart more. And I want you, I would love for you to memorize it. And every day in Ramadan, every day in Ramadan, look at that and say, "Am I applying it? Am I applying it?" Because if you remind yourself day one, I'll forget day two, but then it becomes natural. And He will, of course, will help you and will help me. So taqwa, Allah conscious, and being cognizant of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. He is with me. I feel Him. Like when you are in need, and you go and make dua. Why are you going to making dua? Because you know He's there. Because you know He is listening to you. You know He's hearing you. But when I don't need something, and may Allah forgive me before everybody, I'm, I'm too busy. I have so many other things to do. So that's taqwa. Taqwa in the Quran, as I said, 258 times. Uh, 182 is order. And there is 70 plus in, in the word taqwa. Many times in the Hadith. A lot of, literally, I just did before I came. I just looked at Sunnah.com and just put "at." I like, "Let me see." I can't tell you. I couldn't finish the page. So it is repeatedly. For example, the one I'm, because many of you maybe don't know this. It's, He said it in, in the last or the farewell pilgrimage. He said this. He said, "He gives you the roadmap for Jannah." Subhan Allah. And it's all rhymes. Of course. Number one, He started by saying, "First thing." Now, why is it called the farewell pilgrimage? Because that's it. That was the last time He met. And He said it to them, "I may not see you next year." Subhan Allah. He knew He was passing, right? And then three months later, He passed away. So, first thing He said to everybody, and I want to stress on a point here. Sometimes when people say to you, you get upset. Why do you get upset? This is the, this is the advice of not only in this. When when Omar was going to Makkah, and he told him, "What advice me?" He says, "Take your provision as taqwa." Don't get upset when someone says, "What are you seeing?" "I'm not seeing." Really? Ask them, "What did you see in me that I am not aware of, that you're telling me?" Because most of the time, we don't see our shortcomings. We see only others' shortcomings. Am I right? So when you come to me and say, "If I get upset, I have a big ego, I'm arrogant." I'm going to look and say, "What did you see?" If what you tell me is not true, Alhamdulillah. But if what you told me is true, that's how I change. But if everybody thinks they are right, and no one is wrong, that's what is happening. So, first thing He said to the 100,000 people was with Him: "Be Allah conscious, your Lord." Number one. "And pray your fives, and fast your month," meaning Ramadan, "and pay your Zakat." And quickly, I'm going to say about this. Every woman in this room, and everybody who's listening to me, if you are a person who works, have money, you have inheritance, you have savings, you need to pay Zakat. It's an obligation. It's not like you're doing a favor to anyone. You will be asked about it. It's not about charity. Had the obligation, 2.5%. You need to learn how to calculate. You don't know how to calculate? Ask someone. "Obey the one who Allah put as your ruler." Simple. "You will enter to the Jannah of your Lord." How do I get to Jannah? Apply it. This is actually one of the simplest. Except the first one. He, the key is in the first one. It includes everything plus the other five. Allah put it in the Quran in a verse. Amazing. This is the heights. See what Allah said. He said, "O son of Adam, we, Allah, have sent down to you garments, clothes, to cover your private parts." Meaning, cover. "And then He said, the same word, the garment of taqwa is better." What is the, where do I go and buy this garment? Where I go and buy this dress? Where? He said, "Li'bas." What is li'bas? Li'bas is a garment, something that covers your body. Where is that? And what does garment of taqwa mean? Anyone that you are wearing, not physically, metaphorically. You are a, your word is taqwa. Your eyes is taqwa. Your hand is taqwa. Your body is, where are you going? Is taqwa. That's the garment. Did you get it? "And the garment of taqwa is better for you." It's a very good exercise. Everyone. And don't say it to other people, by the way. Taqwa is between you and Allah. Nobody knows you are Allah conscious. Again, He knows. And it's beautiful to have things that Allah knows only. Ask yourself, very honestly, alone. You may even want to write it. Am I, am I'll tell you right away. Yes, you are. Don't smile yet. Sometimes, sometimes not all the time. I'll be a liar. I'm talking about myself. But I'm not going to say I'm not a. You're not a? That's not true. If you're not a mumin, you will not be here today. So yes, but I don't have it as a garment 24/7. Maybe I'll wear it in the morning. Maybe I'll wear it when I go to the Masjid. Maybe I'll wear it when I am home. But it's not 24/7. You know what's even when you are in the bathroom, please forgive me. You're, you're, you're still waiting by making the dua when you enter to the bathroom and when you leave the bathroom. Even when you're taking a shower, you're not wasting the water. Why? Because that's not pleasing to Him. That's now you're doing something obedient to Allah. He said it in the Quran, and you want Allah's reward. Are you with me? Li'bas. So ask yourself. This is all where we're going to be covering, inshallah. Is something to take with you for Ramadan, different than every year. I'm going to Quran, I'm gonna finish the Quran for five times. And then day of Eid. We need, we need to change. We are good, Alhamdulillah, but there is always, as we say, room for improvement. So let's start the room of improvement. Why not? So here you go. As an exercise for you. Where are you? As a 100% is or 10 out of 10. Where am I? I'm talking about li'bas. I'm talking about all day, including when I go to sleep. How I'm going to put, I'm going to sleep the way all the rituals of, of sleeping. All the rituals of sleeping. I do my wudu. I'm on my right side. I clean the bed. And I do the dua. And then I am on my right side. I make the dua. And I have the, that I am sleeping so I can wake up and I am rested so I can serve Allah. So where are you? Would be very nice to have a one day. I wish there is an app to measure. One will be very nice. A good idea. I wish I can do it, right? And this will measure your taqwa. You know what? You know that all these, all these things, right? I'm sure you all use that, right? Oh, how many steps you did today, right? And they show you the graph. I wish I have a graph of taqwa. And like this morning, it was little, but then you get to up. But then, and then I was like, "Okay, I have an idea." So put this. Let's do it. We don't have an app. You never know. Allah will make one. But for now, where are you? And don't worry what people think of you. People think you are an angel, Alhamdulillah. But does Allah think of me as an angel? Or people think you're not the best person. Is it true? Is that what Allah thinks of me? So put this. So number one, where are you? In your second, why you are not? Because that's what I want to cover also. Why I am not? Why don't I have it? Or why don't I have it all the time? And then what I need to do? What is my goal? So taqwa is better than food and drink. Yes. You don't know. Of course, you don't. But you should know. How many of you went to Hajj? What is the ayah in the Quran, right? It's, and then He said, "It became an obligation." So certain months, well-known months, right? And then what do you do? "Whatever good you do, Allah knows it." And "take provision." Take provision. Go and get, go and apply for N, go and get the program. This is all you're getting ready. But then He said, "Right away, the best provision you take with you." And you go. And I say this all the time to people in Hajj. They're so worried about which program, what I am going to do, which ticket, which hotel. Don't worry about that. You're not going to come back different unless you have packed taqwa and you wore the garment of taqwa. In okay. And Allah says, "The best advice." Again, when someone tells you, "Don't get upset," because that's the advice. Allah said it. "To Allah belongs everything in the heavens and everything in the earth." And "We have ordered and joined, asked the people before you and you: Be Allah conscious. Be Allah conscious." How do I get there? What, how do I know? Or how do I start learning this? Or let me say this. How many of you? I really need to see hands here. How many of you have this internal, I call it internal discussion, internal argument between you and you, right? Between you and you. Don't do that now. It's okay. Don't dress this way. No, it's okay. It's only today. Um, don't watch this. Just tonight, right? I didn't say who won. But who has this two forces in any decision? Everybody. Why are you not raising your hand? Everybody. Absolutely. Right. When, when the alarm goes on in the morning for Fajr, what is the usual dialogue? "Just five more minutes." "Just a little bit tired." And then you keep looking at the watch, and then you look at the window, and then I was like, "Still dark." And then you're going to take a little bit more time. But then something in you says, "Get up. You don't want to miss Fajr, right?" That's the dialogue. Then you have a taqwa in you. You have it. But you also have the voice of Shaitan and your nafs. Who's going to win? It tells me how good and strong is my taqwa. Because that's very common. Allah said in a verse in the Quran, you know the story of the two sons of Adam, right? One killed the other, right? In that verse, in the table, Allah said, "Let me translate. Tell them, recite to them," meaning to us, "the story of the two sons of Adam, right? They, they gave to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala sacrifice. Both Allah accepted from one." We don't know the details of this, but I want you just to think of the story. And then I'm going to come to the dialogue. Because the dialogue in this, in this verse, and the other one, Allah did not accept it. So the person, the one, the son who Allah accepted his sacrifice, Allah accepts from those who have taqwa. That son who Allah didn't accept got upset. "I'm going to kill you." Right? The, the other son, the dialogue, he was telling him, "Imagine that someone looks at you and tells you, 'I'm going to kill you.'" That's exactly what happened. That person, that son who was threatened to be killed, said to the killer, "To the intended killer, if you're going to put your hand up to me to kill me, I am not going to put my hand to kill you." Meaning, I'm not going to reciprocate. Then Allah used the word "innii." I attended a whole lecture about this word when I was studying there. It's meaning, it made it easy. Good. Submit to the thought of killing. Which means there was a dialogue in there. "Don't do it. It's your brother. It's not good." But then the next one, and he killed him. So whenever you have this dialogue, don't get upset. Don't say this to your child. Don't say this to your husband. Don't do this to the student. That means you are, you know the right from the wrong. That means you are, you have a taqwa. Why? Why you are debating? Now, who wins is the issue. If the good one, you are a mumin, because now you did what Allah, the obedience of Allah, based on the Quran and Sunnah. You want His reward. And you didn't do it because you want, again, based on Allah's light, and you don't want to be punished. If you failed, that means the taqwa is weak. Are you all with me? The taqwa is weak. There is a statement to the effect. If you think of it as much as you can, you will train yourself to be a. Are you already? He said the following. He said, "I have never looked looked with my eyes, and I never listened with my ears, and I never walked with my legs, and I've never used my hand, but meaning I'm thinking." Remember the dialogue, the dialogue all the time. By the way, but I'm thinking, "Is this obedience to Allah, or this is not obedience to Allah?" That's the dialogue. Are you with me? Now, he's a, no question about it. Why is that? Because that's what he said. "This is pleasing to Allah." I'm going to go and do it. And if this is not pleasing to Allah, I'm not going to do it. So what do we need? Start with the simple things. We're not going to apply it on in every minute yet. I said, "Yet." I'm optimistic. Allah can make it happen. But start with the big ones. Invited for a gathering, invited for a wedding. Your husband said something. Your son said something, right? Take a minute. Think of it. Is this pleasing to Allah? Very simple question. You don't need a lot of knowledge. You will know if it is for, if it is obedient. Who doesn't know that backbiting is haram? Who doesn't know that hurting a believer is not pleasing to Allah? But what do we do? We justify it. Huh? Exactly. Now you got it. Because she said the word. My nafs start convincing me. Convincing me. She deserves it. It's not a big deal. You know what Allah said? "If they do this, you do that." So you start with the basics. Literally, I want every day, get two things. Two things. And apply the statement of, "Think for a second." Don't say, "I don't like it," because that's usually what you, what we think. "I don't think." And you say, "Why? I'm not interested." Then that's the dialogue. It's about like and love, love and hate. It's not about Allah. Because the dialogue has to be about pleasing to Allah or not pleasing to Allah. It is not difficult, ladies. Even when you cook, even when you make a meal, when you bake a cake, is that pleasing to Allah? Can you tell me what is wrong with baking? Can baking be not pleasing to Allah? Absolutely. And how is that? Don't worry about alcohol. Nobody use alcohol for us. No, no, no, no. Let's do, let's do the reality. Don't, don't go to things like it's not me, right? While you are doing it, also people will praise you. "Oh, so they say, 'Oh, she's the best one to bake a cake.'" That's not pleasing to Allah. That's bragging, right? Or I'm going to bake a cake and I'm going to waste everything in that kitchen. That's not pleasing to Allah, right? Honestly. Or I already have a cake. Why I'm baking another one? That's waste. So, yeah, don't you think? And this is what I'm trying to. Allah will make it easy for me. Don't you think taqwa is only that level when I go to the, you know? And when I go to, no, taqwa is in every level. You are here, here, and you are a, and you could be not. It depends what Allah throws in my lap. And sometimes Allah tests me. Throws it in my lap. So think of this. Never looked at my eyes, right? Never, never looked at my eyes. Never heard. Never used my hand. Never walked, but I think. "How is this? Is what I want?" And I ask Allah to give it to me. I need to think. And our issue is very unlikely. We think. We're reactionary. We do it right away. And then again, justify. And also, even harder, because we have people who help us to justify, right? And you come to, how many times you come to say to somebody, "Subhan Allah, I don't know why I did that." And then everybody becomes a mufti. And everybody will say, "No, no, no, no. What is wrong with that? Absolutely fine. It's okay. Everybody does it." Allah, right? And I tell this to people, "Don't say this to me." My nafs has already said it already. I've heard it. I want someone to look at me and says, "Really? You? After all this time?" My expectation is higher. You know when you say this to your, you say this to the people you love, right? Say, "My expectation is higher." That's Allah's expectation. I want to end up with two verses. One of the verses, when it was revealed, the Sahabah said, "We're done." They said, "We have no way out." Does anybody know this is the chapter? Allah said, "All of us, be Allah conscious." Ah, but the next one, "The level that befits Him." The level that Allah deserves. What's the level? What's the level? So, huh? So high. Exactly. Wow. They said, "We're done." Literally, that's what they said. "We're not going to be able to do it." That Allah revealed in later in the Quran says, "They put a smile on their face." He said, "Practice taqwa as much as you can. Practice taqwa as much as you can." That's what we need. And then Sayyiduna Anas was asked, "What is, what is, what does it mean? What do I need to do?" And then I'm going to say, "Alhamdulillah, Allah made it happen." Three things. One, you obey Him, and you do not disobey Him. One. And you remember Him, and you do not forget Him. And you are grateful, and not ungrateful. Three things. Remember them. One, your to the highest level of taqwa, where you are always obedient to Allah. That's the highest level. You're always in remembrance of Allah. Highest level. Always. And you are grateful all the time. But if I am a good amount of time, I am obeying Allah, I have taqwa. If I remember Allah a good amount of time, not all the time, but good amount of time, I have it. And if I'm grateful to Allah, and this is something very important. Very few connect with Shukr, being grateful to Allah. And what is being grateful to Allah? Number one, don't complain. Did you see the millions who walked yesterday, 8 kilometers, they walked from the south to the north after a year and four months? Allah knows what they saw. What did they say? I want to hear a word of complaint. A year and four months. I saw the tents. I saw what they were living. I saw the fear. I saw the, the drones. I heard all this huge bombing. I saw them coming dead or, please forgive me, cut in pieces, bringing them to the ER. And I saw it for 10 days. They have seen for a year and four months. And those who lost, died, are there. Could be the closest people to them. They were starving. You name it. Not a single word. Nothing. What kind of a human being these people are? What is this? We get a flu. "Oh, you don't know what happened to me." Right? May Allah forgive me before anybody. That's you're always grateful to Allah. Always grateful to Allah. If you are always like those taqwa, you want to see the taqwa. See what yesterday scenes we saw. But for me, I'm in the, I'm taking that road. I have four weeks. I have four weeks to train myself to start my Ramadan where higher level of during Ramadan. At the end, the goal, remember Him. Remember Him. Make sure, make sure, especially the youth in here, that always put Allah's words in your, not w, w, right? Everyone say it. Which the only we shouldn't because don't use the words of Allah as an oath. He said, "Don't do it." But Allah is my. Inshallah. Alhamdulillah. Masallah. May Allah make it easy. May Allah reward you. You're, you're, you're remembering Him. And of course, all other forms. So is the utmost goal. If I get to that level, I'm going to ask Allah to take me right away before it changes. Because that's the highest level. But it's not impossible. The, the road of a thousand steps starts with. So I'm going to give you an example of. Please practice it. I'm not with you in Ramadan. Please practice it in the. What I hear when I come back, I can't believe it. I can't believe it. Fasting in Ramadan, from the women, from the men, from the youth. It is His house. What do, what pleases Him? Based upon what He taught me. I want Him to reward me. Stay away. The Masjid is not for food and drink. The Masjid is not for tick and talk. The Masjid, meaning the place of Salah. I'm talking about. You want to go outside and socialize, Alhamdulillah. But not where people are praying. People came to pray. Many people can do it. But in Ramadan, many people, maybe that's the only day in Ramadan she can come. Don't you think everybody is like you live two minutes from the Masjid? Or live right here? Or they can. I would love for each one of you when I come back, the people of the Masjid will say, "You should see the women this year." Not, "You don't know what the women did." Well, don't you hear it all the time? All the time, right? Those of you who have been here for a long time. Please. And ask Allah. I'm not making fun of anyone. May Allah teach me this before anybody. But do your best. Because if you can practice it in the Masjid, which should be easier, then you can. Because the Masjid is easier, but also a lot of temptations, as you see people, you know, people. But do that taqwa in the Masjid. In your, which we're going to talk about it later, probably in the Ramadan workshop. I'm going to cover on that part. How do you fast like the righteous people? Not like the ordinary people. The righteous people. That's, there's a book. So may Allah make us take the path of taqwa. May Allah never let us out of that path. And may Allah make this trip, or this road, easy. Subhan.