Bismillah
Linguistic Meaning
Al-Lateef comes from the root ل - ط- ف, which can have three linguistic meanings:
1) to be kind, gentle, mild, affectionate, and to bestow with kindness. It also means to be so kind to someone so much so that they do not notice. In the hadeeth of al-Ifk, A’ishah (radi Allahu anha) describes that she was sick and when the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) came to visit her, he only said salaam and asked how she was doing. She then said: “I did not see the lutf from the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) that I used to, so that made me doubtful.” Meaning, when she did not see the kindness that the Prophet alayhi salaatu wa salaam usually had with her, especially while she was sick, she knew something was wrong.
It is also said in Arabic: لطف الله بك (lattafa Allahu bika) meaning: May Allah graciously give you what is good for you.
2) something that is so small and hidden that it cannot be seen. To be imperceptible to the senses.
3) to cover or to hide, and to not perceive something. The Companions of the Cave (Ashaabul Kahf) say after they wake up to the one who is going to get food, “wal-yatalattaf”, meaning don’t be apparent, or draw attention to yourself while you are in the market.
So the meaning of Al-Lateef: the One who is knowledgeable (علم) of the most subtle and minuscule matters that will lead to a slaves well-being. He know how to guide him to this well-being, and He does so (فعل) with kindness and gentleness.
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Bismillah
The Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “Indeed Shaytan said, ‘My Lord, by Your Honor and Might! I will not stop misleading Your slaves as long as their souls remain in their bodies. So Allah responded, ‘By My Honor, Might and Majesty, I will not stop forgiving them as long as they seek My forgiveness.’” (Ahmad, authentic according to shaykh Albani)
We find in the Qur’an:
قَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِكَ لَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ قَالَ فَالْحَقُّ وَالْحَقَّ أَقُولُ لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنكَ وَمِمَّن تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
[Iblis (Satan)] said: “By Your Might, then I will surely mislead them all, “Except Your chosen slaves amongst them. (Allah) said: “The Truth is - and the Truth I say - That I will fill Hell with you [Iblis (Satan)] and those of them (mankind) that follow you, together.” (38:82-85)
So how do we reconcile this hadith with these ayat?
Al-Taybi (rahimahullah) says, “This ayah is a proof that those whom Allah has made sincere will attain success. Likewise the hadith is a proof that those who are not among this group are also successful. Allah said, ‘and those of them that follow you’, which does not include the sinners who seek forgiveness because this statement refers to those who continuing following Shaytan and they do not repent and return to Allah, and they do not seek forgiveness.”
-Sharh Meshkat al-Masabih
Bismillah
It is reported that Yahya ibn Mu’adh (rahimahullah) said, “How Perfect and far from imperfection is the One whose servant sins, while He is the one who has hayaa’.”
It is also reported that he said, “Whoever has hayaa’ with Allah when he is obedient, Allah will have hayaa’ with him when he is a sinner.”
Ibnul Qayyim (rahimahullah) explains:
The heart of the one who is overcome with hayaa’ of Allah is wrought in front of His Rabb, truly ashamed and shy. Even when he is about to sin, he has hayaa’ of Allah seeing him in that state because of the great generosity He bestowed upon him. So he becomes shy that the One who protected him, befriended him, and honored him while he dishonors himself sees him.
Of the greatest examples of this is a man who meets the most special, beloved and closest person to him, be it a friend or child or anyone he loves, while he is cheating and deceiving them. He will be overtaken with hayaa’ that is confounding, even if he is a criminal. And this is mostly due to the high esteem, admiration and respect he has for his beloved. [Madarij as-Salikeen]
-Fiqh al-Hayaa’, Shaykh al-Muqaddim (hafidhahullah)
Bismillah
On the authority of Sahl ibn Sa’ad (radi Allahu anhu) who said, The Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “With Allah are the treasures of good and evil and their keys are men. So glad tidings for the one who Allah makes a key for good and a lock for evil. And destruction for the one who Allah makes a key for evil and a lock for good.” (at-Tabarani, Hasan according to al-Albani)
In another narration, the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “Surely from mankind there are people who are keys to goodness and locks to evil. and surely from mankind there are people who are keys to evil and locks to goodness. So glad tidings to the one who Allah puts the key to goodness in his hands, and destruction to the one who Allah puts the key to evil in his hands.” (ibn Maajah, Hasan according to al-Albani)
Bismillah
Anas (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that he passed by some children and greeted them. Then he said: “Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) used to do the same.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
The sunnah is to give the salaam to everyone you meet, even if they are younger than you. The Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) would begin with the salaam whenever he met someone while he was the most important person among the people.
So when you initiate the salaam to those you meet, you are gaining a lot of good from it, such as:
1- following the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam.
2- this will be a way for you to spread a sunnah that has diminished greatly among Muslims. It is known that the reviving of a sunnah that has been forgotten receives two rewards - one for doing the deed, and one for reviving the sunnah.
3- You will be the reason for the response of the person to your greeting, and this response to the salaam is fardh (kifayah), so you will be the cause of this person completing an obligatory act.
So for these reasons the initiating of the salaam is greater than its response, even if the response is a fardh, because the fardh is dependent on the sunnah, so doing the sunnah is better than the fardh.
This is a topic that may cause some confusion as it has among some scholars because it is agreed upon than the fardh(obligatory) is better than the sunnah - for example, the two raka’ahs of salatul fajr are better than the two sunnah ra’akahs before it because it is fardh while the other two are sunnah. In this case however, initiating the salaam is a sunnah and is better than responding to it because its response is dependent on its initiation.
-Shaykh ibn Uthaymeen (rahimahullah) Sharh Riyad as-Saliheen.
Bismillah
One of the greatest aspects of Islam is that Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala has not only sent us guidance in the form of a text, but also guidance in the form of people. It is from the sunnah(way) of Allah that He sends men that He has chosen to mankind to guide them and teach them, and to become role models and examples for them.
The Prophet ﷺ is our best role model, but he taught us to also love the previous Messengers and to learn from their lives (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon them all). Contained in the Qur’an are riveting stories and beautiful characteristics of the Prophets and Messengers that we rarely learn about. Unlike other religious texts, the Qur’an praises, honors and gives us a real glimpse into the lives of these great men from Nuh (Noah), to Zakariyah (Zakariah), and Ibrahim (Abraham) to Dawud (David).
Shukr: Gratitude
Allah swt describes many of the Prophets and Messengers as being grateful and thankful to Him. Shukr (gratitude) is not only to recognize Allah’s Favors, but it also means to use His Favors for good and to thank them, through worship or other means, for blessing you with them. Shukr necessitates action, and it is not just lip service. We learn this from the famous narration of A’isha radi Allahu anha (may Allah be pleased with her) when she asked the Prophet ﷺ why he was still praying the night prayer when Allah has forgiven his past and future sins. He replied, “Shall I not be a thankful servant?”
Allah azza wa jal says about Nuh (peace be upon him):
إِنَّهُ كَانَ عَبْدًا شَكُورًا
“Indeed, he was a grateful servant.” (17:3)
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Bismillah
Three benefits of giving salaam when entering a house:
1- Jannah and 2- Rizq : The Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “There are three who are under the protection of Allah and if he lives, he will be provided for and it will be sufficient for him, and if he dies, Allah will enter him into Jannah: whoever enters his house and gives the salaam, whoever goes out to the masjid, and whoever leaves in the way of Allah.” [Sunnan abi Dawud, Authentic according to Shaykh al-Albani]
3- Barakah - Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala says,
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Bismillah
When we hear the word “Jinn” nowadays, spooky stories of possessions and ‘haunted’ masajid immediately come to our minds. Jinn have become a source of entertainment for many of us and we do not see this creation as anything beyond a scary story.
However, when we look in the Qur’an, we see a beautiful example in the Jinn who accepted Islam. We can derive many lessons and points of benefit from their story.
Before discussing these lessons, a few background points need to be mentioned regarding the revelation of these verses. The story of the Muslim Jinn is mentioned twice in the Qur’an; once is in Surah Jinn with nearly half the Surah dedicated to their experience, and secondly in verses 29-32 in Surah Ahqaf. The verses from Surah Ahqaf are said to have taken place after the ordeal in Ta’if when the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) was praying outside of Makkah, while Surah Jinn is said to have been revealed after the Jinn heard the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) reading Qur’an during Fajr prayer in Makkah. In both of these instances, the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) was not aware that the Jinn were listening to him, but Allah the All-Knowing revealed their story to him afterwards.
Lesson 1 – The Jinn’s Eagerness and Manner of Listening to the Qur’an
Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala begins Surah Jinn, “Say: It has been revealed to me that a group of the jinn listened and said, ‘Indeed, we have heard an amazing Qur’an’.” (72:1) He (The Most High) describes their listening as “istama’a” which is more than just listening. Istima’a is to listen with eagerness and full concentration, so that you do not miss anything.
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Bismillah
Allah (azza wa jal) says:
تَكَادُ السَّمَاوَاتُ يَتَفَطَّرْنَ مِن فَوْقِهِنَّ ۚ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ يُسَبِّحُونَ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّهِمْ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُونَ لِمَن فِي الْأَرْضِ ۗ أَلَا إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
The heavens nearly rent asunder from above them: and the angels glorify the praises of their Lord, and ask for forgiveness for those on the earth. Verily, Allah is the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful. (42:5)
The verb “takaad” is used to signify nearness and actions that are very close to happening.
This ayah has two different meanings among the scholars:
- The heavens nearly split out of fear from Allah and in awe and exaltation of Him ta’ala. This meaning can be taken from the ayah before وَهُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْعَظِيمُ “and He is the Most High, the Most Great.” (42:4). His Greatness and His Grandeur is the cause of their fear, awe and exaltation until they nearly collapse and split. According to this same meaning, “the angels glorify the praises of their Lord” because of the greatness of their fear and awe of Allah azza wa jal - those who inhabit the heavens (the angels) glorify Him and exalt Him from all all faults as well as confirming His Perfect Attributes. ”and ask for forgiveness for those on the earth”, they fear for the inhabitants of the earth so they seek forgiveness for them fearing the anger of Allah upon them and His punishment. They seek forgiveness specifically for those who believe and those who return to Allah and follow His Path.
- The second meaning is that the heavens nearly split apart from the greatness of the falsehood that the disbelievers attribute to the One who Created the heavens and the earth, that He has taken a child - may He be glorified and exalted above all they attribute to Him.”and the angels glorify the praises of their Lord” so if these disbelievers attribute falsehood to Allah, then on the opposite end, the Angels glorify and exalt their Rabb above all they attribute to Him.
-Summarized from Adhwaa’ul Bayaan - Imam ash-Shanqiti (rahimahullah)
Bismillah
I thought this was a beautiful answer that put a smile on my face! :) We ask Allah for the highest gardens of Jannah, Ameen.
Q: Is it transgression in duaa to ask for a car in Jannah?
A: Miskeen, the one who seeks a car in Jannah.
In Jannah there are modes of transportation that are so much more better than a car. In Jannah there is what no eye has ever seen, and what no ear has ever heard and is beyond the imagination of any person. It has whatever the soul desires and delight for the eyes - so it is not proper to long for a car in Jannah, because what Jannah holds is far better!
-Shaykh ibn Uthaymeen rahimahullah in his explanation of Saheeh Bukhari
