What is our level of certainty in Islam 

Transcript of the Khatira delivered by Dr. Munawar Haque on Oct 24, 2015

الحمد لله رب العالمين والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين

Brothers and sisters! Alhamdulillah, we are all Muslims. We claim to be Muslims. As Muslims, we believe in every word of the Qur’an. The Qur’an states,

إِنَّ الدِّينَ عِندَ اللَّهِ الْإِسْلَامُ

“The deen in the sight of Allah is Islam.” (Aal ‘Imran, 3:19).

And it also says,   

وَمَن يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ الْإِسْلَامِ دِينًا فَلَن يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ وَهُوَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ

“If anyone desires anything other than Islam as a deen, it will not be accepted from him, and in the hereafter, he will be among the losers.” (Aal ‘Imran, 3:85)

What is our level of certainty (yaqeen) in Islam? Do we ever care to assess our yaqeen in the truthfulness of Islam? Are our hearts full of love for Allah (SWT) and the Prophet Muhammad (SWT)? Do we experience Allah in our daily lives, influencing everything around us? Are we conscious of Him with all the consciousness that is due to Him? When we hold His book in our hands, do we think of it as the speech of the One Whose Mercy is beyond our comprehension; the one that created us and therefore knows us better than we know our own selves? When we look at the nature around us, and our own bodies, do our hearts testify to the existence of the Creator of the heavens and the earth?

In this age of doubt, when atheism and agnosticism have become commonplace and when media outlets have become saturated with attacks on Islam and Muslims, many of us can find it hard to achieve the highest levels of certainty. It is crucial that an unshakable yaqeen in Allah, in His Messenger, in the Qur’an, and in the Hereafter must be the basis of our Islam. If we have it, we will always want to act in a manner pleasing to Allah. What exactly then is yaqeen, its nature, its benefits, and its methods of cultivation?

In the short time allotted to each one of us on this earth, we must strive to become conscious of Allah, even though He remains unseen. It is not that to believe in something, you have to see it with your physical eyes. Here, in this world, the gravitational force, the x-rays, the electric current, the sound waves are all non-material in nature. They cannot be seen, but every scientist believes in their existence, for the simple reason that, although we cannot see these things directly, we can see their effect. In Surat Ibrahim, Allah provides a beautiful debate between the prophets and the unbelievers. The prophets ask the disbelievers,  

أَفِي اللَّهِ شَكٌّ فَاطِرِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ

 “Is there a doubt about Allah, the Creator of the heavens and earth?” (Ibrahim, 14:10).

This ayah urges people to examine creation itself and to regard it as proof of Allah’s existence. By contemplating creation, we can get to know Him and increase our certainty in Him. We can see the human body’s remarkable design, from its DNA to its veins. We can observe the beauty of nature, and the interconnectedness of the living environment. The DNA contains the biological instructions that make each species unique. Eventually, we come to the conclusion that nothing in the universe moves without His knowledge, and that He is the Ultimate Controller and Knower of all things.

As for developing yaqeen in His Book, Allah tells us,

ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لا رَيْبَ فِيهِ

“This is the Book in which there is no doubt” (al-Baqarah, 2:2)

Only Allah can claim to have been the author of such a Book, for He challenged the entire humanity to produce a Book like this when the disbelievers said that Muhammad (SAW) had forged the message and presented it as Allah’s words.

فَلْيَأْتُوا بِحَدِيثٍ مِّثْلِهِ إِن كَانُوا صَادِقِينَ.

“Let them produce a discourse like it if they are telling the truth” (at-Tur, 52:34).

We must strive to expand this certainty to its utmost reaches; the knowledge and conviction that every word in His Book was deliberately chosen by Him, and is positioned in the best of all possible ways, and carries wisdom. When we do so, our lives are transformed. We know that everything we read in it is true. Our reading will be filled with sweetness, softness, and enthusiasm. We begin to benefit directly from His message.

As for developing yaqeen in the Hereafter, this is an essential theme of the Qur’an. When we realize that the Day of Judgment is near, we restore a missing dimension to our lives, one that makes us want to obey. Consider the example of a speeding motorist: Many people speed while driving because they doubt that the police will catch them. If they knew that the police would catch them, they would obey the speed limit. But Allah is not so limited; He is al-‘Aleem, the All Knowing.

مَّا يَلْفِظُ مِن قَوْلٍ إِلَّا لَدَيْهِ رَقِيبٌ عَتِيدٌ

“Not a single word is uttered by one but there is a watcher near him, ready (to record)” (Qaf, 50:18).

The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) was the one who taught us to say “la ilaha illa Allah” and to live by it. A quick survey of the hadith literature reveals that the Prophet’s prayers were filled with dhikr and du’a. We must strive to incorporate these into our lives. When we do so, we will initiate a chain reaction: achieving discipline over our tongues so that it will utter only praises of Allah. Our devotion to Allah will increase.

The Prophet (SAW) also surrounded himself with people who had strong faith in Allah. There is a deep wisdom in this, for we all are social beings who are unconsciously influenced by those around us. Consider the people around us. Do they remember Allah often? Do they have a wholesome effect on our 'ibadah? In these difficult times, when so much doubt prevails and when people actively misrepresent Islam, we must strive to achieve the highest levels of yaqeen, for we carry the honorable and noble message sent by Allah for humanity—a message of peace and tolerance that contains the seeds for a just society, one in which all live in respect for one another.

وَلَا تَهِنُوا وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا وَأَنتُمُ الْأَعْلَوْنَ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

“Do not weaken or grieve: you shall have the upper hand, if you are true believers.” (Aal ‘Imran, 3:139)

May Allah guide us and help us increase our level of yaqeen.

أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِسَائِرِ المُسْلِمينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتْ فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهْ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ 

وصل الله عَلَى خيرِ خَلقه مُحمَّدٍ وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين- بِرَحْمَتِكَ يا أرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِين

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