The Fifth Lesson by Sheikh Sulayman ar-Ruhaily
In this fifth lesson, Sheikh Sulayman ar-Ruhaily begins with praise of Allah and words about His most complete and perfect attributes.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
And the most complete and perfect blessings and peace.
Upon the one sent as mercy to the worlds.
And upon his family and all his Companions.
Now then, welcome, seekers of knowledge.
Welcome, those commended by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
in this fifth session.
of this scholarly course, for which I ask Allah ﷻ.
that it be blessed and beneficial to all.
We continue the reflective pauses with Surat al-Kahf.
And we are still with partial reflection.
on the verses of Surat al-Kahf, reflecting on its guidance.
The nineteenth pause.
The perfection of Allah's ﷻ knowledge.
And the all-encompassing nature of His hearing and sight.
Allah's ﷻ knowledge.
is ancient, preexistent, and perfect; nothing escapes it.
Allah knows what was and what will be.
And what was not—if it were— how it would be.
Allah’s ﷻ hearing and sight encompass all.
When a servant is certain of Allah’s ﷻ perfect knowledge.
He submits to His law in complete submission.
And feels no discomfort within himself over anything Allah ﷻ has legislated.
And when he is certain of Allah’s ﷻ all-encompassing hearing and sight.
He is truly shy before Allah.
For he knows that Allah ﷻ hears every word he says.
And He sees his place wherever he may be.
Allah ﷻ said in verse twenty-six.
“Say, Allah knows best how long they remained.
His is the unseen of the heavens and earth. How clearly He sees and hears!
They have no protector besides Him. He shares not His rule with anyone.”
Twentieth reflection: All judgment belongs to Allah.
And Allah’s judgment is of two types.
A decretive ruling, and no one can share in it with Allah.
As the Prophet ﷺ said.
"Know that if the whole nation gathered.
to benefit you with anything, they'd benefit you only by Allah's decree.
And if they all gathered to harm you with anything.
They could not harm you except by what Allah decreed for you.
The pens have been lifted, and the pages have dried."
as narrated by al-Tirmidhi, and authenticated by al-Albani.
So Allah's decretive ruling, none can share in it or oppose it.
The second is a legal ruling.
And the believer must submit to it.
And he must not make anyone a partner in Allah's ruling.
Therefore, this is among the definitive legal principles.
There is no obedience to a creature in disobedience to the Creator.
A created being is obeyed only because Allah ordained obeying him.
Do not place obedience to creation against obedience to Allah.
As for the Muslim ruler, he must be heard and obeyed.
so long as he does not command sin.
But if he commands disobedience, there is no hearing or obedience in it.
while hearing and obedience remain in all other matters.
A father too: the son must obey him.
so long as he does not command sin.
But if he commands disobedience, there is no hearing or obedience in it.
Scholars also include a father ordering his son to harmful things.
For the Sharia has forbidden harm. For the Sharia has forbidden harm.
And thus Allah ﷻ said.
"and He shares His rule with no one."
This is an indefinite noun in a negative context, so it is general.
The twenty-first reflection.
Among the benefits of the story of the People of the Cave.
Al-Sa'di RH said.
Here is a useful note.
Many brothers ask: Do we say al-Sa'di or al-Si'di?
If you ascribe him to his grandfather: Ibn Si'di.
That is the common form in Najd.
If you say al-Sa'di, both pronunciations are valid.
al-Sa'di, with fathah on the sin, is allowed, sounder, and truer to Arabic.
Al-Si'di is also allowed.
This pronunciation was reported from the Shaykh with fathah on sin.
His students discussed this. Both are valid; the fathah is sounder.
So if you say Ibn, you say Ibn Si'di.
If you ascribe him to the tribe, you may say al-Sa'di.
And you may say al-Si'di. The fathah is better.
This is an extra note, though.
I mean, it answers a question many seekers of knowledge have.
Shaykh al-Sa'di RH said. In this story is proof.
that whoever flees trials for his faith Allah saves him from them.
And whoever seeks safety, Allah grants him safety.
How beautiful this is: Whoever seeks safety, Allah grants it.
Only the one who is not sincere in seeking safety is forsaken.
But whoever is sincere and seeks safety, Allah grants him safety.
He said: whoever seeks refuge in Allah Allah shelters him, a guide to others.
And whoever bears humiliation for His sake, seeking His pleasure.
his end and outcome will be great honor.
from where he does not expect. What Allah has is better for the pious.
The twenty-second point: the one obeyed and followed.
And the one to emulate is he who obeys his Master.
free from the pull of his desire, keen on the common good.
The Most High said in verse 28.
"And do not obey one whose heart We made heedless of Our remembrance.
and follows his desire, and whose affair is ever neglected.
Al-Sa'di RH said: the verse shows.
that the one who should be obeyed and be an imam for the people.
is one whose heart is filled with love for Allah ﷻ.
That overflowed onto his tongue, so he constantly remembered Allah ﷻ.
He followed what pleases his Lord and preferred it over his desire.
Thus he preserved, by that, what he could of his time.
His circumstances were set right, and his actions became upright.
And he called people to what Allah ﷻ had granted him: knowledge.
So he truly deserves to be followed and made an imam.
How much we need, brothers, to repeat these words to people.
For many people today no longer know how to choose a leader.
Thus they have taken ignorant leaders.
They are astray themselves.
And those who took them as leaders went astray.
The twenty-third reflection: The evil state of the people of Hell.
And a warning against following its path in this world.
And the great bliss of the people of Paradise.
And urging people to follow its path.
Allah ﷻ says in verses twenty-nine to thirty-one.
"And say: The truth is from your Lord. So whoever wills may believe."
"And whoever wills may disbelieve."
"Indeed, We have prepared for the unjust a Fire whose walls surround them."
If they cry for relief, they get molten-metal water that scalds faces.
"How dreadful the drink, and evil the resting place."
"Those who believe and do good deeds— no doer's reward is lost."
"Those will have Gardens of Eden; rivers flow beneath them."
Therein they will be adorned with gold bracelets and wear garments.
"of green silk and brocade, reclining there on couches."
"Excellent is the reward, and good is the resting place."
The twenty-fourth reflection.
Man has choice and will.
That does not go beyond Allah's universal, decreed will.
The Exalted said: Say, The truth is from your Lord.
"Whoever wills—let him believe; and whoever wills—let him disbelieve."
So man has will and choice.
The verse is not giving a choice.
Rather, it shows that man has a will.
"Whoever wills—let him believe."
Whoever believes has been guided. "And whoever wills—let him disbelieve."
Whoever disbelieves has gone astray. This is a threat, not a choice.
The twenty-fifth reflection.
Allah giving the world is no proof of His love and His pleasure.
For Allah gives the world to whom He loves and whom He does not.
Nor is Allah testing a servant proof that He is angry with him.
For the prophets are tested most. Then the next best, then the next.
And when Allah ﷻ loves a servant, He afflicts him. The Exalted said.
"And keep yourself patient with those who call upon their Lord."
"Morning and evening, seeking His Face."
"Do not let your eyes look away from them, seeking worldly adornment."
"And do not obey one whose heart We made heedless of Our remembrance."
"Who follows his desire and whose affair is in neglect."
So giving a servant worldly adornment is no proof that he is upon good.
This is also evident in the story of the two men.
For Allah gave the ungrateful disbeliever more than the grateful believer.
And Allah has wisdom in this, and in that.
The twenty-sixth reflection.
Thanking Allah for blessings and humility on receiving them keep them.
Ingratitude for blessings and arrogance when granted strip them.
Allah ﷻ said in verses 32 to 44.
"Cite for them the example of two men. We gave one of them two vineyards."
"Of grapevines, with palm trees around them, and crops between them."
"Both gardens yielded their fruit without failing in the least."
"We made a river gush through them. And he had fruit."
"So he said to his companion while conversing with him."
"I am greater than you in wealth and mightier in men."
And he entered his garden while wronging himself. He said,
I do not think this will ever perish.
“And I do not think the Hour will come.’”
“If I am returned to my Lord, I’ll find a better place than this.’”
“And I do not think the Hour will come.” Thus he says.
And if I am returned to my Lord, as you say.
that there is an Hour and a resurrection.
“I will surely find better than it as a return.’”
So delusion reached its furthest limit in him.
“His companion said to him while conversing with him.”
“Did you disbelieve in Him who made you from dust, then a drop, then a man?”
“But as for me, He is Allah, my Lord.”
“And I associate no one with my Lord.”
“But as for me” means: “But I...“.
I say and believe: ‘He is Allah, my Lord; I associate none with Him.’
“Why did you, when you entered your garden, not say?”
“What Allah willed; there is no power except in Allah.’”
"If you see me less than you in wealth and children."
"Perhaps my Lord will give me something better than your garden."
"and send upon it a calamity from the sky—turning it bare and slick."
"Or its water may sink away, and you will never retrieve it."
"His produce was ruined, and he began wringing his hands."
"over what he had spent on it, while it lay fallen on its trellises."
"And he said, 'I wish I had not associated anyone with my Lord.'"
"He had no company to help him besides Allah, nor could he prevail."
"There, sovereignty belongs to Allah, the Truth."
"He is best in reward and best in outcome."
The twenty-seventh reflection.
Worldly life is fleeting enjoyment, quick to fade, soon to depart.
The one who succeeds in it is he who uses it to obey Allah ﷻ.
Allah ﷻ said in verses forty-five to forty-nine.
“And present to them the example of worldly life.”
“like water We send down from the sky.”
Then earth's plants mingle with it.
“Then it becomes dry stubble, scattered by the winds.”
“And Allah is over all things Perfect in Ability.”
“Wealth and children are the adornment of worldly life.”
“And lasting good deeds are better with your Lord in reward and hope.”
“And on the Day We will move the mountains, you will see earth bare.”
“And We will gather them and leave none of them behind.”
“And they will be set before your Lord in rows.”
“You have come to Us just as We created you the first time.”
But you claimed We would never appoint a time for you.
The record will be set down, and you'll see criminals fear its contents.
“And they will say: Woe to us!”
"What is this book that leaves nothing small or great uncounted?
And they found what they did before them, and your Lord wrongs none."
The twenty-eighth reflection.
Justice, happiness, and success lie in the servant heeding Allah's signs.
And in taking himself to account in this world.
For what he has sent ahead for his Hereafter.
Allah ﷻ said in verses fifty-seven and fifty-eight.
"And who is more unjust than one reminded of his Lord's signs?
Yet he turns away from them and forgets what his hands sent forth.
We have placed coverings over their hearts, lest they understand it.
And in their ears is deafness.
And if you call them to guidance they will never be guided.
Your Lord is the Forgiving, full of mercy.
If He called them to account for their deeds, He'd punish at once.
Rather, they have an appointed time with no refuge from it.
The twenty-ninth reflection.
It is good for believing men and women to learn from scholars.
And to be patient with what they may encounter on that path.
Scholars have established that knowledge comes from trusted scholars.
And books are only a means.
They do not make one dispense with learning from scholars.
So it is good for believing men and women to be keen.
on the gatherings of trusted scholars known for the Sunnah.
And to be patient with whatever they may face in doing so.
There is no doubt obstacles are many.
Worldly life is distracting. Family has many needs.
Laziness is common. Helpers are few.
And there are many deterrents.
Were it not for that, everyone would seek knowledge.
For knowledge is noble to every rational person.
It is enough honor for knowledge that the unqualified claim it.
And the ignorant get angry.
If he is described as ignorant.
If you said to any person, 'You are ignorant.'
he would get upset, even though he knows he is ignorant.
That is why few seek knowledge.
So do not be surprised, my brother, if scholars' gatherings have few people.
And gatherings of amusement have very large crowds.
Those who are patient in seeking knowledge are few.
Seekers begin the session
in large numbers. Then the number keeps decreasing.
until only the patient remain.
those granted patience on the path.
How beautiful it is to be among those few.
And the outcome is good. Allah ﷻ said.
in verse sixty through verse sixty-four.
"When Moses said to his servant, I will not stop till I reach."
"the meeting point of the two seas, or go on for ages."
"When they reached the meeting point, they forgot their fish."
"And it made its way into the sea, like a tunnel."
"When they had passed on, he said to his servant."
“Bring us our meal. This journey has worn us out.”
“He said, Do you remember when we took shelter at the rock?”
"I forgot the fish, and only Satan made me forget to mention it."
"And it took its way into the sea amazingly."
"He said, That is what we sought. So they retraced their steps."
Reflection Thirty: Patience is among a seeker's chief needs.
The scholars say.
A seeker of knowledge needs determination and patience.
And among a seeker's chief needs is patience.
Patience on the path, and patience when receiving knowledge from the teacher.
to abandon haste, and to avoid disputing with the shaykh.
And this requires intense striving.
The Exalted said in verses 65 to 69.
“Then they found one of Our servants to whom We had given mercy from Us.”
“And We had taught him knowledge from Us.”
“Moses said to him, ‘May I follow you to learn some right guidance from you?’”
This is proper etiquette in seeking knowledge.
even though Moses AS was a prophet receiving revelation.
And al-Khidr, by the stronger view, was a righteous man given knowledge.
Moses AS addressed him with this gentle speech.
“May I follow you so you teach me some of the guidance you were taught?”
So I would follow you, and you would be my teacher.
“He said, ‘You will never be able to be patient with me.’”
“And how can you be patient with what you have not grasped?’”
This is the basic principle. A student seeks what he does not know.
Whoever seeks what he does not know needs patience.
Because questions arise within him, and problems arise within him.
So he needs patience until the teacher finishes.
If the teacher does not quench his thirst.
and does not explain to him what dispels the questions.
He needs to ask the teacher politely and gently.
He said, "You will find me, if Allah ﷻ wills, patient."
And I will not disobey any command of yours.
Then Allah ﷻ said in verse 78.
He said, "This is the parting between me and you."
"I will inform you of the meaning of what you could not bear patiently."
So the greatest need of a seeker of knowledge is patience.
The thirty-first reflection. The story of Moses AS and al-Khidr AS.
It is a treasure of benefits and evidence for many principles.
Al-Sa'di RH said.
In this wondrous, noble story.
There are many benefits, rulings, and principles.
We will point out some of them with Allah's help.
Among them is the virtue of knowledge and journeying for it.
It is among the most important matters.
For Musa AS traveled a long distance.
He also endured hardship in seeking it.
He left staying with the Children of Israel to teach and guide them.
He chose travel instead to gain more knowledge.
Start with the most important, then the next most important.
For growth in knowledge and learning it matter more than abandoning it.
Combining matters is more complete.
A person should strive to combine greater and lesser matters.
This is the principle in the Sharia: combine benefits when possible.
If they conflict, the more important is given precedence. The shaykh says.
It also permits taking a servant at home and while traveling.
To take care of one's needs and seek comfort.
Just as Moses AS did.
It also shows that one traveling for knowledge, jihad, or the like
If the benefit requires it, one may state his aim and destination.
That is better than concealing it.
Meaning, if you were traveling to Madinah to seek knowledge.
If beneficial, you could say you were going to Madinah to study.
That was better than hiding it.
Declaring it has benefits.
Moses AS said, I will not stop until I reach where the two seas meet.
or continue for a long time.
It also permits a person to mention what is natural, such as fatigue.
or hunger or thirst.
And this is not complaining if true.
As Moses said, We have surely suffered fatigue on this journey.
The shaykh said: It is recommended one's servant be sharp, clever, astute.
so that what he wants may be achieved.
It is recommended to feed one's servant.
from one's own food, and that both eat together.
Because the apparent meaning of "Bring us our meal" includes both.
And that both of them ate together.
Another point is that help comes to the servant.
as he fulfills what he is commanded.
And whoever complies with Allah's command is helped.
in ways others are not, as shown by his words:
We have surely suffered fatigue on this journey.
Another point is that the servant they met was not a prophet.
Rather, he was a righteous servant.
Because He described him as a servant.
And mentioned Allah's favor upon him with mercy and knowledge.
His messengership was not mentioned, nor his prophethood.
Had he been a prophet, it would have been mentioned like others.
I also say here that a person is honored by knowledge.
And that knowledge holds a noble rank.
Through it, a person is elevated.
Another lesson is proper etiquette with the teacher.
And a learner's address to him should be the gentlest.
Unlike people of harshness or arrogance.
They do not show the teacher their need for his knowledge.
Some of them even claim to collaborate with him in knowledge.
He may even think he teaches his teacher.
This afflicts some students of knowledge today.
They do not benefit from the scholars.
Because they think they teach the scholars.
So when he sits with the scholar, he does not sit like a learner.
Rather, he readies himself like a teacher.
So his concern is not
To hear from the shaykh what benefits him.
Rather, his concern is what he thinks the shaykh got wrong.
So the shaykh knows, whether before him or behind his back.
This is one of the pitfalls of seeking knowledge.
The shaykh says: Humility before the teacher.
And showing your need for his teaching.
These are among the most beneficial things for the learner.
He also said: Attributing knowledge and other virtues to Allah ﷻ.
Acknowledging that and thanking Allah ﷻ for them.
Because of his words. "Teach me some of what you were taught."
Meaning, what Allah ﷻ taught you.
Beneficial knowledge is knowledge that guides to good.
Not all knowledge is truly knowledge. And not all knowledge is beneficial.
Not everything people call knowledge is in fact true knowledge.
Rather, some of what is called knowledge is ignorance and wrongdoing.
For example, they call magic a science.
And not everything called knowledge is beneficial.
Some things called knowledge really are knowledge, yet are not beneficial.
or something else is more beneficial.
That is why Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah and others advised.
the seeker of knowledge to make seeking beneficial knowledge his concern.
to seek beneficial knowledge.
The shaykh says: among them is this: Beneficial knowledge guides to good.
So any knowledge that contains right guidance to the paths of good.
and warning against paths of evil or helping one do so.
then it is beneficial knowledge.
As for what is beyond that, it is either harmful.
or else it has no benefit, based on His saying.
“that you teach me from what you have been taught of sound judgment?”
He said: among them is the command to be deliberate and verify.
And not rushing to judge a thing.
Until one knows what is meant by it.
And what is intended.
Among the greatest traits a person can adopt or be granted.
Is deliberation in matters, except in matters of the Hereafter.
That a person should be deliberate, leaving haste.
This is among the greatest things a person can be given.
Except in matters of the Hereafter, for deliberation is good in all things.
Except in matters of the Hereafter, as the Prophet ﷺ said.
The shaykh mentioned very many benefits.
I refer you to the shaykh's Tafsir.
But among the story's great benefits are the rules of benefits and harms.
The rules of benefits and harms.
And benefits should be combined as much as possible.
If they conflict, the higher one is given precedence.
And harms should all be avoided as much as possible.
And if harms conflict, the greater harm is averted by the lesser.
And if benefits and harms are equal in the mujtahid's view.
then warding off harms takes precedence over bringing benefits.
As for the rest of the benefits mentioned by the shaykh.
I refer you to the shaykh's commentary, as they are lengthy.
The thirty-second point.
The soundness of deeds is not based on what one deems good
and what he merely supposes without evidence.
Rather, the criterion is to follow the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Allah the Exalted said in verses 103 and 104.
Say, “Shall We inform you of the greatest losers in deeds?”
“Those whose efforts are lost in worldly life, thinking they do well.”
One of the gravest forms of misguidance is to be astray.
while thinking he is guided.
One of the greatest forms of ignorance is to think one knows.
while one is ignorant. That is compound ignorance.
Therefore, brothers.
Religious innovation was dearer to Iblis than sin.
because the innovator thinks he is doing good and following religion.
As for the sinner, he knows that he is astray.
The thirty-third point.
A good teaching method is to make meanings tangible.
A good teaching method is to make meanings easy to grasp.
One way to bring meanings closer to minds is to give examples.
And to make the meaning clear through tangible things.
Some scholars also mentioned ways to clarify knowledge and meanings.
One is to mention unusual, truthful examples.
Because an unusual example sticks in the mind and stays.
And so, among the statements of some jurists.
What amazes one who does not know the depth of their words.
For example, they say: Who carries a waterskin filled with gas
Then prays, is his prayer valid?
Or who carries a waterskin filled with gas
And makes tawaf, is his tawaf valid?
This is a strange, far-fetched example: to trap gas in a waterskin and carry it.
This is a strange and striking example. But whoever heard it would not forget it.
What is meant is: if a person carried impurity with a barrier and prayed.
The impurity is not directly touching him. Or he made tawaf.
A modern example is this: if a woman carried her diapered child.
Is her prayer valid? I mean, a woman is praying.
Then her diapered child cried.
And it is known the diaper contains impurity, so she picked him up.
Is her prayer valid?
If she carried him and made tawaf with him?
Is her tawaf valid? Major issues were brought home by a strange example.
It stays fixed in the mind.
And so, one benefit we learned from our shaykhs is this.
Do not reject a scholar's statement until you know its depth.
Do not reject a scholar's statement until you know its depth.
A scholar may say something remote, yet its deeper meaning is near.
A scholar may speak of something not present in the town.
because he sees signs that it will happen.
And here he may not be able to mention it.
Sometimes shaykhs mention something; you look around: it's not there.
It does not exist here.
But the scholar, with knowledge, acumen, and insight, sees it coming here.
And perhaps, when it happens, he will not be there or able to speak.
This is insight and wisdom. How beautiful this is.
Do not reject the scholar's words.
And we speak of the scholar so you know his depth.
Allah ﷻ says in verse 109.
“Say, if the sea were ink for my Lord's words, it would run out.
Before my Lord's words were exhausted, even if We brought the like of it more.”
Thus the meaning was brought near through something tangible.
It is the sea, which people see and know.
Perhaps we will stop at this point and return after Isha, if Allah wills.
And Allah ﷻ knows best.