In the Name of Allah, Most Kind, Most Merciful
Professor Shaykh Yusuf da Costa Talks 6 of 15 – Recorded 14/08/08, Radio 786 Studio
Allah knows what is in our hearts
Assalamu alaykum warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu
In my last talk I dealt with the unbelievable invitation that Allah Almighty has extended to us
when He said that we must ask Him to be on the Siratal Mustaqim, Siratal lazina 'an 'amta
'alay him… Allah Almighty tells us in
Suratul-Fatihah that we must ask Him for that. Unfortunately, we play games. Here Allah
Almighty has opened for us a door to spiritual greatness, to spiritual heights, but we want to
mess around in the dust. It doesn't make any sense. Allah Almighty says: "I will give to you
the greatest grant of all! Nobody else can give you a grant like this. I am prepared to give
this to you." Why is it that we are so reluctant to accept this invitation from Allah Almighty?
Why is it that we are so reluctant to strive for piety, because surely this is the bottom line of
everything? If one examines the groups granted this, we see that they are groups of intense
piety. Now, let us see what Allah provides for us in possibly the rest of our religion. When
Nabi Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), for example, went on the Mi'raj, when Jibril (a.s.) brought him to
the presence of Allah Almighty, or when Jibril (a.s.) came near there and Nabi Muhammad
(s.a.w.s.) had to go the last distance to Allah Almighty’s Presence, Nabi Muhammad
(s.a.w.s.) greeted. He said: At tahiyatul mubarakatus salawatut tayibatu lilla. He greeted Allah
Almighty with the most honoured, the best greeting. And Allah Almighty replied to him:
Assalamu alayka ayuhan nabiyu wa rahmatulahi wa barakatu: Peace upon you, O My
Prophet, and My Blessings and My Mercy upon you. Now the answer to this that Nabi
Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) gives is extremely interesting. Nabi Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) in response
to the greeting of Allah Almighty says: Assalamu alayna wa ala ibadilahis salihin. My word!
He says there: “Thy peace on us, that is, and I think here, he is refers to all the Anbiyah, wa
ala ibadilahi salihin and on the intensely pious servants, on Thy intensely pious servants.” At
this moment, a critical moment in the spiritual growth and station of Nabi Muhammad
(s.a.w.s.), when he is given this present of being in the presence of his Lord, the one group
of people that he speaks about, other than the Ambiyah, are the salih people. He doesn't
mention other groups, he says: “Wa ala ibadilahi salihin: Thy pious worshippers, Thy pious
servants.” He asks Allah Almighty at that stage in his greeting that Allah Almighty must
place His Peace and His Blessings and His Mercy upon pious servants. And Jibril (a.s.) hears
this, and he says: "Ash hadu alla ilaha illallah wa ash hadu anna Muhammadan 'abduhu wa
rasuluh." This is Jibril (a.s.)'s response to what Nabi Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) had said. Here we
have an example of where Nabi Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) was in the Divine Presence and he
speaks about the group of pious servants of Allah Almighty. We ask this every day. Most
amazing! Through Nabi Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), of course, Allah Almighty has granted us
certain du’as in which we ask for piety. After taking wudu, we say, “Allahummaj
'alna mina 'ibadikas salihin, O Allah, make us of your pious servants.” We are about to go
put our heads on the floor, in front of our Lord and make ruku', and recite and go into a state
of worship. Before we do that, before we go into a state of worship, we say: “O my Lord, I
ask Thee, grant to me that I should be of your pious servants.” After we have that dua, we go
into salah. After Salatud-Duha, we say: “Allahumma atina ma atayta 'ibadikas salihin: O
Allah, grant to me what Thou hast granted Thy pious servants". If we look at what had
happened in the Mi'raj if we look at what we ask after the wudu, and if we look at what we
ask after Salatud-Duha, then surely there must be the realization of what we are busy with.
Surely when we are asking that, there must be an awareness of what we are asking? Possibly
many of our problems flow from the fact that there is not that awareness; that we are saying
these things without being fully aware of the full implication of what we are asking. When
you are saying: “Allahummaj 'alni min 'ibadikas salihin: O Allah, make me of Thy pious
servants,” what are we in fact saying? We are saying: “O my Lord, there is within my heart
an intense desire to be of those people to whom Thou hast granted piety."
Surely it must be that. It can't be otherwise. Now when we say: “O my Lord, grant to me
what Thou hast granted Thy pious servants,” what you are in fact saying is: “O my Lord, I
have deep down in my soul a desire that what Thou hast granted Thy pious servants of all of
humanity, from the beginning of time; I'm asking Thee to grant that to me also.” This is
serious religion. This is not playing around. These are not games that we are playing because
we are seriously making dua to Allah Almighty with regard to this. And I think I want to
stress this, I want to stress that during this month of Ramadan, and afterwards and before,
there must develop in each one of us, and I am asking Allah Almighty that that must also
develop in me, that there must develop in each one of us, deep down in our very essence, in
the depths of our hearts, or the depths of our souls, there must be this desire that Allah
Almighty must grant us piety. Now surely, if that is so, if what we are asking we are asking
with an open heart, without any hidden agendas, coming to Allah Almighty totally without
any other intentions, only for piety and we knock on Allah's Door and we ask Him, every day
we ask Him, knocking on His Door: “O my Lord, grant this to me, grant this to me,” asking,
pleading, reciting the Fatiha, reciting Quran, making dua, pleading for this; I believe, really
believe, Allah Almighty will grant that to us. I believe that if we ask with sincerity, and with
total commitment and with our hearts open, and just coming like that with all our fences
down, as I always say; if we ask like that, Allah Almighty will grant, I believe that. Allah
Almighty is the one that grants, He is muqallibul qulub, the One Who changes hearts. We are
also asking Him: “O my Lord, change my heart, make my heart one of those pure hearts. One
of those people who when they come Yawmul-Qiyamah, their hearts will be pure. We are
asking all that. And in all this that we are asking, we know that in all the duas that we are
making, in all our pleas, when we plead to Him, when we do this, there must be intense
sincerity in us, and there must be a desire for these things. Allah Almighty knows what is in
our hearts. He looks at our actions and He looks at our hearts. He knows what is in our
hearts. And He knows when the hearts of the servant is for Him, and He knows when the
heart of the servant is not for Him, or there are two hearts, He knows that, He knows when
His servant has two hearts, one heart for Him and one heart for other things. He also knows
when the servants' heart is only for
Him. And when the heart of the servant is for Allah, then Allah is for that servant. I truly
believe this. I truly believe if one is for Allah, then Allah is for one.
Subhana rabika rabbil izzati amma yassifun wassalamun alal mursalin wal hamdu lillahi rabil
'alamin. Wallahu a'lam.
Yours in Islam
Shaykh Yusuf da Costa