August 2025 – AbdurRahman.Org

Lowering the Gaze & the Sweetness of Iman – Shaykh Abdussalam al Shuwayir حفظه الله [Video|Ar-En subtitles]

by AbdurRahman.orgAugust 22, 2025November 1, 2025

Lowering the Gaze & the Sweetness of Iman
Shaykh Abdussalam al Shuwayir حفظه الله [Video|Ar-En subtitles]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzyStw-uOMg [4 min]

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “O youth, whoever amongst you is able to get married, then get married”. And this shows us the emphasis of performing this action and it is from the affairs that are pleasing to Allah. Indeed, it helps lower the gaze and protects the private parts.

Lowering the gaze, O noble brothers, is from the affairs that Allah commanded us with in His Book. Allah says addressing the men: “Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts.” (Al-Nur: 30) Then He addresses the women and says: “Tell the believing women to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts.” (Al-Nur:31)

This lowering of the gaze is from the affairs that has a place in the heart. Due to this Allah (ﷻ) coupled the lowering of the gaze with the action of the heart. Allah said: “Allah knows the fraud of the eyes, and all that the breasts conceal.” (Al-Ghafir:19) Therefore, you might be walking with your friend and you might look at something while he doesn’t know what you are looking at. And perhaps you might sneak a glance at something that is prohibited and he doesn’t know what it is you are looking at.

Therefore, it is stated in the Hadith that is with Ahmad and al-Hakim, the Hadith of Ibn Mas’ud, that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Whoever lowers his gaze from what Allah prohibits, while he is able to look at it, wanting what is with Allah (ﷻ), He will place in his heart the sweetness of Iman”.

And the people of knowledge say that the reason for the sweetness of Iman, after the Tawhid of Allah (ﷻ) and making one’s worship sincerely for Him, by freeing the heart from being attached to other than Him, is giving concern to those acts of worship done in secret. Therefore, an individual will not find an act of worship whereby he tastes the sweetness of Iman like the night prayer and spending in secret because only Allah (ﷻ) knows when one spends his wealth in secret. And wealth possesses sweetness and love in the heart. And from them is lowering the gaze and restraint.

During these times, lowering the gaze has become from the difficult affairs. An individual can be in his home with the doors closed and curtains drawn. And no one knows anything about him except Allah (ﷻ). Then he looks at his phone or at the screen in front of him. So he is looking at matters that are prohibited that no one else can see. However, if he remembers what is with Allah (ﷻ), and then he lowers his gaze hoping for what is with Allah (ﷻ), then let him rejoice because he will taste the sweetness of Iman. This is what the Prophet (ﷺ) said.

Many people say: I heard that Sufyan said that ‘there is a tremendous sweetness in seeking knowledge’, but I don’t experience it. And I heard that Ibrahim Ibn Adh’ham said that ‘there is a pleasure in the night prayer, if the children of the kings knew, they would fight us for it with their swords’, but I don’t experience it. And I heard that Abdullah Ibn Zubayr said that when he would stand for his prayer, he would be so preoccupied with his worship that he wouldn’t know who was beside him, to the extent that a hornet would come to him and sting him several times and he still wouldn’t move. Then he would say: I was preoccupied from it.

And in the Sunan of Abi Dawud, one of the companions would be shot by an arrow and he didn’t break his prayer saying: I was reading a Surah that is more beloved to me than the worldly life and all that is in it.

These affairs benefitted these people, but we don’t experience in our hearts what they experienced, due to two reasons that I mentioned to you earlier which is the issue of the actions of the heart, being attached to Allah (ﷻ), from negating partners and making one’s worship sincere. And from the types of making one’s worship sincerely for Allah is the sincerity of the actions of the heart. So you don’t rely upon, nor seek aid from, nor hope from, nor fear except Allah (ﷻ). And the second affair is giving concern to the acts of worship that are done in secret. And the Shaykh Taqi al-Din has a priceless statement regarding the acts of worship done in secret that he included in his book al-Istiqamah. And how it is that everyone has a door regarding acts of worship done in secret opened for him that are not opened for others. Therefore, giving concern to the acts of worship done in secret is important, in agreement to the statement of the Prophet (ﷺ): Indeed, it helps lower the gaze… Along with striving against the soul, the individual takes the means and from them is marriage.

The happy one is the one who steers clear from the Fitan – Shaykh Abdurrazzaq al Badr حفظه الله [Video|Ar-En subtitles]

by AbdurRahman.orgAugust 16, 2025August 16, 2025

The happy one is the one who steers clear from the Fitan
Shaykh Abdurrazzaq al Badr حفظه الله [Video|Ar-En subtitles]
https://youtu.be/eeUkm3DnY-w [ 4 min]

It has been authenticated from our noble Prophet ﷺ in the Sunan and in the Musnad from the Hadith of al-Miqdad ibn al-Aswad رضي الله عنه who said that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Verily the happy one is the one who steers clear from the Fitan”

Our noble Prophet ﷺ repeated it like this. Contemplate upon this firm connection and tremendous relation between happiness and steering clear from the Fitan. And that an individual steering clear, being distant from, and not delving into the Fitan is one of the doors and tremendous paths to happiness. And an individual’s portion of this happiness that is alluded to in this Hadith is in accordance of his distance from the Fitan. The more distant he is from the Fitan, the greater the portion of this happiness he will have. And the closer he is towards the Fitan, the greater the portion of misery and destruction he will have.

Contemplate over this matter in the statement of the Prophet ﷺ : “After me there will be Fitnah. The state of the one who is sitting will be better than the one who is standing. And the state of the one standing will be better than the one who is walking. And the state of the one who is walking will be better than the one who is running.”

Look at the one who is further away from the Fitan. His portion of happiness is greater and he is safer from destruction. Look at how the one who is closer to the Fitan… The one standing is closer to the Fitnah than the one who is sitting. The one walking towards the Fitnah is closer to the one who is standing. The one running towards the Fitnah is closer to the one who is walking towards it. So the slave’s portion of this tremendous happiness that is alluded to in this Hadith is in accordance to his distance and his steering clear from the Fitan.

Therefore, as we mentioned, the Hadith regarding steering clear from the Fitan is a Hadith regarding happiness. Delving and getting involved into Fitan is entering into misery which is the opposite of happiness because the opposite of happiness is misery.So whoever steers clear of Fitan will be happy. As it comes in the text of the Hadith. Verily the happy one is the one who steers clear from the Fitan.

The implicit understanding is that the one who delves and gets involved in the Fitan will be miserable. So happiness is in steering clear from the Fitan and misery is in getting involved in the Fitan. So everytime an individual gets involved in the Fitan, he enters into what will necessitate his own destruction.

Fitan (Trials) & Istiqamah (Steadfastness) – Main Page
https://abdurrahman.org/fitan-trials-istiqamah-steadfastness/

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If Satan whispers to you, burn him with these ten protections — he will never come near you again [Video|Ar-En subtitles]

by AbdurRahman.orgAugust 7, 2025August 8, 2025

If Satan whispers to you, burn him with these ten protections — he will never come near you again | [Video | En subtitles] – https://youtu.be/gAA4Pj9Joys?si [3:26 min]

One of the most important things a Muslim should pay attention to in this context is taking care of the protective measures against Satan — and the most important and greatest of these are ten protections.

[1] Seeking refuge in Allah from him. Seeking refuge means taking shelter with Allah and turning to Him, Exalted be He. The greatest evil from which one seeks refuge in Allah is the evil of Satan. Allah the Almighty said: ‘And if there comes to you from Satan an evil suggestion, then seek refuge in Allah. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Knowing.’

[2] Reciting the Mu’awwidhatayn. These are the two chapters of refuge: “Say, I seek refuge in the Lord of daybreak” (Surah Al-Falaq) and “Say, I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind” (Surah An-Nas). It is authentically reported from our Prophet that he said: ‘No one seeks refuge with anything better than them.’ He used to seek refuge with them every night when he went to bed. It is also authentically reported that whoever recites them along with Surah Al-Ikhlas three times in the morning and three times in the evening will be protected from all evil.

[3] Reciting Ayat al-Kursi when one goes to bed to sleep. It holds great significance in protecting against Satan, driving him away, and keeping him out of the place. It is authentically reported in Sahih sources from our Prophet that whoever recites it when going to bed will have a guardian from Allah over him, and no devil will come near him until morning.

[4] Reciting Surah Al-Baqarah in its entirety. It has an incredibly powerful and amazing effect in expelling devils from homes. In Sahih Muslim, it is reported from our Prophet that he said: ‘Do not turn your houses into graves. Indeed, Satan flees from a house in which Surah Al-Baqarah is recited.’

[5] Reciting the Last Two Verses of Surah Al-Baqarah. It is authentically reported that the Prophet said: ‘Whoever recites the last two verses of Surah Al-Baqarah at night, they will suffice him’ — meaning, they will protect him from all harm and evil, and from the evil and traps of Satan.

[6] Saying “لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ، وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ” (There is no god worthy of worship but Allah, alone without partner. His is the dominion and His is the praise, and He is over all things capable.’) This great phrase — the statement of Tawheed — is among the most powerful means of protection from Satan and safeguarding against his evil. In Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, the Prophet said: ‘Whoever says: “There is no god worthy of worship but Allah, alone without partner. His is the dominion and His is the praise, and He is over all things capable” — one hundred times in a day — it will be equivalent to freeing ten slaves, one hundred good deeds will be written for him, one hundred sins erased from him, and it will serve as a protection from Satan for that day until evening.’

[7] When Satan overpowers a person in their sleep (nightmares), they should say:

“أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللهِ التَّامَّاتِ مِنْ غَضَبِهِ وَعِقَابِهِ وَشَرِّ عِبَادِهِ، وَمِنْ هَمَزَاتِ الشَّيَاطِينِ وَأَنْ يَحْضُرُونِ”
(I seek refuge in the perfect words of Allah from His anger and His punishment, from the evil of His servants, and from the incitements of the devils and from their presence)

[8] Saying ‘Bismillah’ — In the name of Allah when entering one’s home, when eating, and in various other situations throughout daily life.

[9] A person should beware of excess — excessive looking, excessive eating, excessive talking, and excessive socializing — for these four are major gateways through which Satan enters upon a person.

[10] Frequent remembrance of Allah, the Exalted, at all times.