Thirteenth Ramadan Lecture Presented by Al-Sayyid Abdul Malik Badruddin Al-Houthi, 1443 A.H.
I seek refuge in Allah from Shaytan, the outcast.
In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.
Praise is to Allah, the Lord of Worlds. I believe that there is no god but Allah, He is the Sovereign and the Manifest Truth; and that Muhammad, our master, is His servant, messenger, and last prophet.
O Allah, confer Your Salat (prayers) and blessings upon Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad just as You conferred Your Salat (prayers) and blessings upon Ibrahim and the Family of Ibrahim. You are Owner of Praise, Owner of Glory! And be pleased with Muhammad good companions and all Your righteous servants and mujahedeen.
Brothers and sisters, peace be upon you, as well as the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
O Allah, guide us and grant us acceptance, for You are the All-Hearing and the All-knowing; accept our repentance, for You are the Most Relenting and the Most Merciful.
Allah (Glory be to Him) says in the Holy Quran, {' Surely, those who said, “Our Lord is Allah" and then remained steadfast, the angels descend upon them, [saying,] “Do not fear, nor grieve, and be happy with the good news of the Jannah that you had been promised. We are your Auliya in this worldly life and the Hereafter. There you will have whatever your souls desire, and there you will have whatever you ask for. An accommodation from the All-Forgiving, Most Merciful Lord "'}[Fussilat 41:30-32].
Allah (Glory be to Him) also says, {' Surely, those who said, “Our Lord is Allah" and then remained steadfast, there will be no fear for them, nor will they grieve. It is they who will be the residents of Jannah, staying there forever, as a reward for what they used to do’}[Al-Ahqaf 46:13-14]
Istiqama [remaining on the right course] is a main title and one of the most important titles that all people are commanded to keep to in the Holy Quran: the prophets, messengers, and believers, as well as human society as a whole. It is also essential for obtaining what Allah has promised His believing servants in this life and the Hereafter. That is why Allah (Glory be to Him) in the Holy Quran commanded His last prophet Muhammad (PBUH&F) to keep to Istiqama:
{'So remain on a right course as you have been commanded, along with whoever has repented with you, and do not transgress. Indeed, He is Seeing of what you do. And do not rely on those who have done injustices or the Fire will touch you, and you will have no Auliya [guardians] apart from Allah, and you will not be supported'}[ Hud 11:112-113].
The Holy Quran also tells about Allah's command to Prophet Musa and his brother Prophet Harun (Peace be upon them) when they called upon Allah against Firaawn and his people: {'Allah said, "The prayer of you both has been granted, so stand firm and never follow the way of those who do not know"}[Yunus 10:89].
Allah also commands human society and all people to keep to the right path, as He teaches His Prophet [Muhammad] (PBUH&F) what to say and teach to people: {'Say, “I am only a man like you, it has been revealed to me that your God is only One God. So take the Straight Way towards Him, and seek His forgiveness. And woe to the polytheists '}[Fussilat 41:6].
However, Istiqama needs to be built on the great foundation provided in Allah's saying, {'Surely, those who said, “Our Lord is Allah”'}, and also His saying, {' Say, “I am only a man like you, it has been revealed to me that your God is only One God. So take the Straight Way towards Him'}—this is its foundation.
In the blessed verses we began our lecture with, {'Surely, those who said, “Our Lord is Allah”'}—{'Surely, those who said, “Our Lord is Allah”'}, [they say it] while they are mindful of what that means!
{'Those who say, "Our Lord is Allah"}—Our Lord is Allah, Whom we worship, take as Maula, and worship by moving in the march of this life according to His instructions, teachings, and guidance.
Our Lord is Allah, Whom we worship and act according to His commands: obey Him in what He commands and in what He forbids.
Our Lord is Allah, Whom we trust, rely on, depend on, and fear alone; Whose punishment is what we fear; and Whose bounty is what we look for.
Our Lord is Allah (Glory be to Him), according to whose guidance and command, we move in this life. So, this is its meaning and what it indicates. Its meaning is not only limited to acknowledging that we are His servants without having to apply that to our reality or take it into consideration in our deeds, attitudes, and behaivours, as well as in taking others as friends or enemies.
If we come to categorize human society, we will find that people fit into different categories:
There are those who say 'Our Lord is Allah', but they in this life act in a way that runs counter to that [acknowledgment] and do not keep to the path that goes in line with what we they say. He is our Lord, so we obey Him, take Him as Maula, join His side, and be of His soldiers. He is our Lord, to Whose guidance and to whom we respond in obedience. Therefore, those do not keep to the right path in a way that proves their saying, 'He is our Lord'. They don’t move in their life based on that acknowledgment.
They say, 'Our Lord is Allah', but they turn away from His guidance, commands, and teachings in their attitudes, deeds, loyalties, and enmities. They don’t pay attention to what is hallal [allowed by Allah] and what is haram [forbidden by Allah] or what is right and what is false. It is their inclinations and whims what shape their priorities, attitudes, deeds, and loyalties. They might also follow the whims of others, as they follow others without obtaining due insight or Allah's guidance. This is truly the case for many people. They don’t act according to what they bear witness to by saying, 'Allah is our Lord.' Indeed, many do say, 'Allah is our Lord', but they don't remain on the right course. This issue can be seen clearly in the reality of many people. Such cases do often exist in reality.
Some people may also say, 'Allah is our Lord', and they move based on that saying at the practical level. However, their response to Allah might be affected with many impurities: Such response is not in total harmony with Allah's guidance, command, teachings, and Holy Book. Indeed, their response is affected with many impurities of negative effect that may get bigger and bigger at a particular stage when they face a test, causing them to deviate. So, they may keep to the right path but only for some time, and they may pass some tests; however, due to the fact that their Istiqama was not as perfect as it should be as a result of some negative effects that had not been properly handled, such impurities did affect them at a particular stage [of their march] when they were tested by Allah (Glory be to Him), Who tests people to distinguish them [good or bad] and show which response to Allah is a perfect one, which helps the person to get rid of all serious and negative impurities that reflect badly on him/her and cause him/her to go astray before reaching the end of the right path.
Many people of those who show response and interaction for a certain period of time and then deviate and go astray from the path of Istiqama, turn upside down, and walk in a different path—this has occurred throughout history and there are many examples of this throughout history and in all times. In the right path, some may deviate and go astray in the end: they deviate from the path of Istiqama. We will talk about this in in a somewhat detailed way (Allah willing).
And some say, ‘Our Lord is Allah’, and they comprehend what this important saying means, so they say it with great awareness and firm faith. Then they go based on it in their march of life. Therefore, they keep to the right path: They respond to Allah (Glory be to Him) and move with conscience, honesty, care, and complete response according to the guidance of Allah (Glory be to Him). They take the reasons of success from Allah (Glory be to Him), and they keep moving no matter what fears, challenges, or dangers they might face on their path. All of that does not stop them, because their saying ‘Our Lord is Allah’ has what makes them stand firm:
What makes them stand firm in the face of fears, dangers, and challenges.
Also, in the face of desires and whims (when facing desires and whims) whether at the moral level or the material level—what a person faces of ambitions, desires, whims related to the moral aspect or to the material aspect.
Even at times of enjoining authority (when Allah give them power on the earth) and at times of victory and divine support, their mentality does not change, nor do their concerns or orientations. There is no change between who they are today and who they were [yesterday] before obtaining power in terms of their devotion to Allah (Glory be to Him), in their firm, correct position, their right, correct concerns. They never change!
They do not change if they face problems or complications when in this path; they know no rest. Many are the complications, problems, and obstacles that a person faces, but that does not affect them.
Their honest, conscious response [to Allah] that is based on their saying, ‘Our Lord is Allah’ made them completely sense their servitude to Allah (Glory be to Him). Therefore, they are in total submission to Allah’s command, and they completely respond to His instructions and teachings. That is why they continue their walk, do not change or deviate from the right path, do not change with regard to the method of Istiqama, no matter what effects they face or how diverse the negative effects that distract many other people are.
Fears, challenges, dangers, and hardships distract some [people]; temptations, ambitions, and whims distract others. Some people might pass the stage of difficulties, fears, challenges, and dangers, but they fail in the tests of whims, power, and desires, when such an issue becomes of great interest to those who keep pursuing the whims of the soul due to what they see of authority, positions, and material capabilities. Indeed, some people fail and cannot bear that, so authority to them becomes more important than everything. It becomes the main and primary matter that attracts their attention and based on which they build their decision whether they continue or stop!
Those who remain fast based on the meaning of this important belief and great principle—Our Lord is Allah—and move without changing whatever the temptations are, they are the ones who will in the end obtain and win what Allah (Glory be to Him) has promised in this life and in the Hereafter. In the Hereafter, they gain the great success, {‘The angels descend upon them, [saying,] “Do not fear, nor grieve”’}.
The right path with regards to Allah’s guidance, His instructions, and His teachings is a great, attractive path, and it is the right choice, based on which a person should move in the march of his/her life. It has all what a person instinctively gets attracted to: a good life, a decent life, a life of pride and honour, a life through which you indulge your real human dignity, and a life in which you invest all your efforts, energy, and abilities in what contains the real good for you and in what helps you secure your eternal future with Allah (Glory be to Him) in the Hereafter.
Furthermore, it [the right path] contains what helps a person to continue, to stay firm, to keep to the right course, and not to deviate. It does contain a lot of what helps in that.
The first of what is in this path is close connection to Allah (Glory be to Him). When you believe and comprehend the meaning of Allah’s saying, {‘those who say, “Our Lord is Allah”’}, then you will say ‘Our Lord is Allah’ while believing in it, comprehending what it means, and firming up what it means in your conscience and soul as a belief, principle, and steady, faith-based feeling. In addition, you move based on this with regards to the guidance of Allah (Glory be to Him), with His directions, and with His instructions.
Your saying 'Our Lord is Allah' is what makes you turn to Allah (Almighty), depend on Him, fear Him, seek Him, want what He has, and put all your trust in Him. Then you move based on your consciousness, belief, and feeling your full servitude to Him (Glory be to Him): This connection (faith-based connection) to Allah (Glory be to Him) has its great effect on you when confronting all the negative effects, fears, desires, problems, and complications. Nothing of that can prevent you from keeping to this path, the right path that leads you to your great destiny.
Its principles are great, and so are its gains. Its gains are the great winning, and its educational path cleanses the soul, so it cleanses your soul of impurities that affect some people. That is why some people keep some negative impurities that affect the soul, such us arrogance, pride, ambitions, pursuit of whims, or any other negative factors that keep a state of deviation in the soul. This deviation gets bigger in a specific stage, so it gets him/her deviated from the right path and affects him/her.
The path of Istiqama [remaining on the right course] has what helps the person remain steadfast and continuously proceed. One of the most important factors that help the person achieve that is his/her realization, awareness, and belief that Allah has bestowed a great blessing on him/her when He guided him/her to enjoy Istiqama, to walk in the upright path, and lead a life that is in accordance with Allah’s teachings and guidance. It is a magnificent blessing, and it is the greatest blessing Allah bestowed upon people and mentioned in the Holy Quran. It is so great that it has become the main title of Allah’s grace bestowed upon the elite of His servants: the prophets, messengers, and righteous people: {‘The path of those You have blessed, those who incur no anger and who have not gone astray’}[Al-Fatihah 1:7]; {‘Those will be with the ones upon whom Allah has bestowed favour: the prophets, the steadfast affirmers of truth, the martyrs, and the righteous’}[An-Nisa 4:69].
To be, in your life span, on the path of the truth—taking the right position, being free from servitude to Taghout, being a good servant to Allah, going through on the basis of Allah’s guidance, teachings, and commandments—is a tremendous blessing.
That you always take the right position—while others take the wrong positions that are vicious, lead to shame in this world and the other, and whose consequences for them are serious in life and in the Hereafter where it will be much worse as they will be thrown to the Hell (May Allah forbid)—is a very great favour. Allah has mentioned His prophet Musa and his deep awareness of this blessing and its significance: {‘He [Musa] said, “My Lord, for the favour You bestowed upon me, I will never be an assistant to the criminals”’}[Al-Qasas 28: 17].
The person's awareness that when he/she walks in the path of Istiqama, move in the journey of his/her life on the basis of his/her servitude to Allah (Glory be to Him), and accepts His guidance upon which s/he bases his/her deeds and takes positions is a great favour that s/he has to thank Allah for. S/he should always look at that as a great blessing from Allah and feel [that it is a blessing] at the bottom of his/her heart all the way. Indeed, s/he should not look at it as if it were so heavy a burden on his/her shoulders that s/he seeks to get rid of. Otherwise, s/he will easily deviate from the right path.
The positive results of this path are what Allah has promised His believing and pious servants who remain steadfast with: victory, honor, power, and generous well-being in this life and the Hereafter. [Allah says,] {'If they had taken to the right way, We would have given them abundant water to drink'}[Al-jin 72:16]. This even includes the issue of increasing sustenance and relief from the drought people are suffering: {'If they had taken to the right way, We would have given them abundant water to drink'}.
The complementary Istiqama in the person's deeds, behaviours, and attitudes is the required one through which s/he gains what Allah has promised: {'The angels descend upon them, [saying,] “Do not fear, nor grieve'}. The angles descend upon him/her at the most serious times where s/he needs anyone who reassures and gives him/her good news in the event of the Resurrection Day, which is one of the most important events. They come to him/her there. So, in that situation, some people feel extremely terrified, horrified, and frightened: {'When the hearts will jump into the throats'}—out of fear and panic, their hearts jump into the throats.
On the other hand, the situation of those who remained steadfast on the right course is totally different where the angels descend upon them, reassure them, give them good news, stand by them, and calm them: {'Surely, those who said, “Our Lord is Allah" and then remained steadfast, the angels descend upon them, [saying,] “Do not fear, nor grieve"' }—calm down, you do not need to be afraid of the horrors of this day, for Allah is going to rescue you from this terror.
{'Do not fear, nor grieve, and be happy with the good news of the Jannah' }[Fussilat 41:30]. The good news is that the divine promise is about to come true: 'Now you will go to Jannah, which Allah promised you in life, and this is the Day of Resurrection when you go to Jannah.'
{‘And be happy with the good news of the Jannah that you had been promised. We are your Auliya in this worldly life’}[Fussilat 41:30-31]: 'In the worldly life, we [angels] were always by your side, and we used to help you whenever Allah commanded so and according to His instructions. We were all the time by your side in difficult situations and in significant challenges to make you stand firm whenever Allah ordered us to do so, with all we could give of mental feelings and tranquility, as well as other things.' That is within the limits that Allah had permitted them to help, guide, inspire, and grant success to humans. Indeed, it is a wide circle that we [humans] know little about.
{‘We are your Auliya in this worldly life and in the Hereafter’}[Fussilat 41:31]. There (in the Hereafter), they will be beside them. This is among the good tidings: this reassurance, this attendance, this companionship in the events of the Day of Resurrection, and the constant reassurance to them until they reach to the Jannah of Allah (Glory be to Him).
[Allah says,] {'We are your Auliya in this worldly life and in the Hereafter. There you will have whatever your souls desire, and there you will have whatever you ask for. An accommodation from the All-Forgiving, Most Merciful Lord'}[Fussilat 41:31-32]. So, they present these titles that have great tidings for them that they will reach Jannah—Jannah with all its great, extensive grace. {'Whatever your souls desire'} means everything a person desires or wants of what represents a need or a desire. {'And there you will have whatever you ask for'} means that whatever you want will come to you, whatever you ask for will be provided to you, everything! It is the most elegant grace, the highest grace, and the finest and best life ever. Therefore, you will lack nothing of what you desire.
Also, good tidings come in Allah’s undoubtable promise, as Allah (Glory be to Him) also says, {‘There will be no fear for them, nor will they grieve. It is they who will be the residents of Jannah, staying there forever, as a reward for what they used to do’}[Al-Ahqaf 46:13-14]. So, Allah (Glory be to Him) presents what reassures them and what gives them good tidings of the great victory. Furthermore, {'There is no fear for them’}: No need for feeling fear for them out of the horrors or the dangers of the Day of Resurrection. Even in the worldly life, the positions they stick to grant them victory, what is in their best interest in this life, and what ensures them the great, good destiny in the Hereafter. In all cases they are the winners.
There are some factors that help people to keep to the right path. However, we are going to talk about them in the coming lecture. On the other hand, we are also going to talk about the reasons that may lead the person to deviation from and not to keep to the right path in the coming lecture.
We ask Allah (Glory be to Him) to grant us success and lead us to what satisfies Him. O Allah (Glory be to You), have mercy on our martyrs, heal the wounded among us, set free our captives, and grant us victory. You are All-Hearing! O Allah, accept our fast, night prayers, and good deeds.
Peace be upon you, as well as the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
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