The Second Lesson by Sheikh Sulayman ar-Ruhaily

Peace be upon you, and Allah's mercy and blessings.

Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

And the fullest, most perfect blessings and peace.

Upon the one sent as a mercy to the worlds.

And upon his family and all his Companions. As for what follows:

This is the second session of this scholarly course.

We have titled it Reflections on Surat al-Kahf.

We have already spoken about some of Surat al-Kahf's virtues and objectives.

Among the virtues of Surat al-Kahf.

And among its overarching aims is protection from trials.

And the overarching principle is that

The greatest protection from trials is reading the Quran with reflection.

And understanding the Quran as the Companions of Allah's Messenger ﷺ did.

Rather, only those who turn away from the Quran plunge into trials.

Or turn away from reflecting on the Quran.

or turns away from the Companions' (RA) understanding of the Qur'an.

Therefore, in describing the Khawarij

As mentioned before, it was said of them.

"They recite the Qur'an; it goes no farther than their throats."

Another trait of theirs was that none were among or with them.

not even one from the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.

And Surah al-Kahf has a special feature in this regard.

It is narrated from Abu al-Darda' (RA).

The Prophet ﷺ said.

"Whoever memorizes ten verses from al-Kahf's start is safe from Dajjal."

Narrated by Muslim.

"Whoever memorizes ten verses from al-Kahf's start is safe from Dajjal."

Here, some scholars explained hifz as ordinary memorization.

And some scholars explained it as reading it and reading it often.

And the Prophet ﷺ said about the Dajjal:

"Whoever among you meets him, read the first verses of al-Kahf to him."

It was narrated from al-Nawwas ibn Sam'an that he said.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ mentioned the Dajjal and said.

"If he emerges while I am with you, I will oppose him for you."

"If he emerges when I am not with you, each man must fend for himself."

And Allah will take care of every Muslim after me.

"He is a young man with tight curls; his eye protrudes."

"I liken him to 'Abd al-'Uzza ibn Qatan."

"So whoever among you meets him, read the first verses of al-Kahf to him."

And in another narration.

"Read the opening of al-Kahf over him."

"For they are your protection from his trial."

So reading the opening of al-Kahf protects from the Dajjal's trial.

Muslim also narrates that they are the last ten verses of al-Kahf.

And we already saw in the hadith of Abu Sa'id RA.

Whoever reads ten verses from its end.

If the Dajjal appears, he will not overpower him.

And in another narration: whoever reads ten verses from its end.

Then if the Dajjal emerges, he will not harm him.

So this surah contains protection.

from one of the greatest trials: the trial of al-Masih al-Dajjal.

Al-Shafi'i RH said.

It has reached us that whoever reads al-Kahf escapes Dajjal's trial.

And I prefer sending many prayers upon the Prophet ﷺ in every state.

And on Friday and its eve, this is even more recommended.

So I also prefer reading al-Kahf.

on Friday eve and day, due to what was reported about it.

Ishaq ibn Ibrahim said: I went out with Abu Abdullah, meaning Imam Ahmad RH.

to the mosque—that is, on Friday.

He said: I heard him recite Surat al-Kahf twice.

Ibn Taymiyyah RH said: Reciting Surat al-Kahf on Friday.

There are reports on this mentioned by the scholars of hadith and fiqh.

Hence, from all that preceded.

The believer sees the importance of reciting Surat al-Kahf on Friday.

How beautiful, perfect, and sweet.

For every believer to memorize this surah for its goodness and blessings.

So one can recite it even in places where reading is hard.

Such as when one is in the car or the like.

It also shows the importance of reading it constantly.

reflecting on it and drawing out its lessons.

and discovering its lights.

And we will stop at reflective points.

with this noble surah.

And we will follow the two earlier methods.

mentioned in the first session on reflecting on the Quran.

the method of overall reflection.

and the method of partial reflection.

As I said before, we will try to make this an exercise.

for reflecting on the Quran in a sound manner.

And we will involve the brothers and sisters in this as well.

Therefore I ask the brothers and sisters.

both those attending and those following remotely.

I ask them to write one reflective insight.

from Surah al-Kahf.

and phrase it well.

in no more than three lines.

along with writing the name and type of course attendance.

whether it is in person or remote.

Then send it via the posted link for questions.

And I will review them if Allah ﷻ wills.

And if this course material is printed.

I will add it in an appendix to the book.

under the sender's name.

so I may have the honor of seeing my brothers' names there.

in a book that bears my name if Allah ﷻ wills.

And if time becomes available at the end of this course.

if we complete the intended material before the post-Isha session tomorrow.

we will read some of these reflections if they reach us.

The point of this is that we share.

and that you train in the intended form of reflection.

And we begin with an overall reflection on Surat al-Kahf.

Overall reflection means engaging the mind.

to know the surah's main themes.

and its overall objectives.

and relating that to the surah's verses.

And we have some points on this.

The first point concerns one objective of Surat al-Kahf.

To show that Allah ﷻ created mankind in order to test them.

So man must face trials.

And man will not be left untested.

As Allah ﷻ said: "Alif, Lam, Meem."

"Do people think they will be left to say, 'We believe,' and not be tried?"

"And We surely tested those before them."

"So Allah will surely make known the truthful and the liars."

And He said: "We will surely test you until We know who strives among you."

"and the patient. And We will test your affairs."

Allah ﷻ pointed to this great purpose in Surah al-Kahf.

in His ﷻ statement in the seventh verse.

"Indeed, We made whatever is on earth an adornment for it."

"that We may test them as to which of them is best in deed."

The whole worldly life.

With all it contains, it is a test.

So Allah ﷻ tests people through other people.

As our Lord, Allah ﷻ, said: "And thus We test some through others."

Allah ﷻ said: "We made some of you" a trial for others. Will you endure?"

"And your Lord is Ever-Seeing."

Allah ﷻ tests people with wealth, by giving and by withholding.

Allah ﷻ said: "Know that your" wealth and children are a trial."

"And that with Allah is great reward."

Allah ﷻ tests people with good and evil.

Allah ﷻ said: "We test you" with evil and good; to Us you return."

Allah ﷻ tests His servants with the claims of human and jinn devils.

Allah ﷻ said: "To make what Satan casts a trial for diseased hearts."

"and those whose hearts are hard. Indeed, wrongdoers are in deep discord."

Allah ﷻ tests His servants with blessings and hardship. Allah ﷻ said.

“When adversity touches man, he calls upon Us.”

"Then when We grant him Our gift, he says, 'I got it by knowledge.'"

“Rather, it is a trial, but most of them do not know.”

And when the believer realizes that Allah is testing him.

through what is in this world and what is upon the earth.

He focuses on doing good well.

And he realizes with certainty the pleasantness of worldly life.

As worldly life, it is only a complement, not a foundation.

So he is patient in obeying Allah and in shunning disobedience to Him.

And he is patient with Allah's decrees.

This surah contains various kinds of trials.

In the story of the Cave, people are tested by people.

There is testing in religion, and by many opponents to guidance.

So it becomes clear who clings to the truth because it is the truth.

And who obeys most people and goes along with most people.

So the People of the Cave were but youths.

This is a plural form for few, showing they were no more than nine.

They knew the truth and monotheism and opposed their people.

In this, since their people were polytheists.

And they realized that majority is not a sign of truth.

Rather, what counts is clear authority and manifest proof.

And this is a very important issue.

People, in and of themselves.

Whether many or few, they are not a sign of truth.

Rather, the sign of truth is clear authority and manifest evidence.

So whoever possesses authority, proof, and manifest evidence.

He is the ummah, even if alone.

Many people today say that a certain creed is held by most Muslims.

This shows that it is correct. No, by Allah, this is no proof.

Some people, when you mention the partisans, say most Muslims love them.

Most Muslims are with them, and most Muslims dislike what you say.

And this proves they are right, and that you are wrong.

No, by Allah, this is no proof.

The proof is clear authority and manifest evidence.

Allah ﷻ said of the People of the Cave.

"We narrate to you their story in truth."

"They were youths who believed in their Lord, and We guided them more."

"And We made their hearts firm when they stood."

"They said: Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth."

"We will never call upon any god besides Him. We'd say grave error."

"These, our people, have taken gods besides Him."

"Why do they not bring clear authority for them?"

"Who is more unjust than one who invents a lie about Allah?"

So then: the trial by people.

And the trial of many opponents.

In the trial of religion, safety lies only in clinging to proof.

and to the manifest authority and the clear evidence.

And in Surah al-Kahf.

There is a trial in the story of the People of the Cave.

It is the trial of superfluous knowledge.

that adds no faith and brings no worldly good.

Knowledge with these two qualities.

It neither increases faith nor brings worldly good.

is superfluous knowledge, and a person may be tested by it.

People may admire it and be distracted from useful knowledge.

The remedy and success in this trial lie in not being occupied by it.

at the expense of the key matters of useful Sharia and worldly knowledge.

Allah ﷻ says in verse twenty-two.

"They will say: Three; their dog was the fourth."

"And they will say there were five, the sixth of them was their dog."

"Guessing at the unseen."

"And they will say there were seven, and the eighth of them was their dog."

"Say: My Lord knows best their number. None knows them but few."

"So do not argue about them except outwardly."

"And do not ask any of them about them."

So even though Allah ﷻ informed us of their number.

He did so by saying, "They say: seven, and the eighth is their dog."

And He did not say, "guessing at the unseen," as before.

So we knew that this was the number.

Yet Allah said, "Do not argue about them except outwardly."

"And do not ask any of them about them."

Preoccupation with the number of the People of the Cave has no benefit.

Rather, it is superfluous, remote knowledge.

And the method followed in matters like this is this.

"Do not argue about them except outwardly."

So one should only engage in proven, beneficial knowledge.

It is knowledge based on proof and on what is beneficial.

Rather, dear ones, the matter goes beyond the issue of knowledge.

It is broader than that; it is a way of life.

A person should not occupy himself, mind, and heart.

with what is neither established nor beneficial.

It is a way of life: what harms people most.

and distracts them from their interests: meddling in others' affairs.

Or with what does not benefit them.

Or with what cannot be proven by demonstrable evidence.

So the way of life is to keep yourself away from this.

and not occupy yourself with such things.

And in Surah al-Kahf there is man's trial by worldly adornment.

through wealth or status versus being with the righteous.

So a person stands between two paths.

Either he chooses the adornment of this world, its people, and all in it.

or else he is with the people of righteousness and guidance.

His soul

will long for worldly life and be tested by it.

Success in this trial comes by being with the righteous.

Whoever is with them, his heart finds rest.

His condition is set right, and his path to Allah improves.

The righteous: if you sit with them, you benefit; if heedless, they remind you.

And if you resolve to do good, they help you.

So being with them is better than the bloom of this world.

And better than what is in this world.

Allah ﷻ said in verse twenty-eight.

"Be patient with those who call on their Lord morn and eve."

"Seeking His Face."

"Do not let your eyes pass beyond them, desiring worldly adornment."

"And do not obey one whose heart We made heedless of Our remembrance."

"Who follows his desire, and whose affair was in neglect."

In this world, a person must have a companion.

A companion pulls you along, and a close friend conforms.

And these verses contain

The criteria for choosing a friend.

How do I choose my friend? These are the criteria.

That he be upright in his religion.

Affirming his Lord's oneness, and sincerely obedient to Him.

And not one who follows his desires.

And chasing after his cravings.

And not one who is lost, devoid of the good of both worlds.

These are the criteria for choosing a friend indicated by this verse.

In the story of the two men, note we're still on the general theme: trial.

In the story of the two men, there is the trial of worldly life.

What Allah grants a person in it— what effect does that have on him?

Does he then humble himself?

And know with certainty that all bounty is from Allah.

Without Allah, he would not be provided.

No matter how intelligent or noble he is?

Or, Allah forbid, is he deluded by it?

Does he admire worldly glitter and become arrogant?

and attributes attaining it to his knowledge, wit, or skill.

It also shows the outcome of both. Allah ﷻ said:

"Present to them the example of two men."

"We gave one of them two vineyards of grapes."

"And We bordered them with palm trees and placed crops between them."

"Each of the two gardens yielded its fruit and failed in nothing."

"And We caused a river to gush forth between them, and he had fruit."

"So he said to his companion while arguing with him."

"I have more wealth than you and am mightier in men."

So he grew deluded and arrogant, overbearing, not humble.

"And he entered his garden while wronging himself."

"He said, 'I do not think this will ever perish.'"

"Nor do I think the Hour will come."

"And if I am returned to my Lord, I will find a better return than this."

Meaning: if I am returned to my Lord, as you claim.

Then I will surely find something better than this here on earth, in his delusion.

His companion said to him as he argued with him.

Do you disbelieve in the One who made you from dust, then from a drop.

Then fashioned you into a man?”

“But as for me, He is Allah, my Lord. I associate none with Him.”

“Why, when you entered your garden, did you not say?

As Allah willed. There is no power except with Allah.

He guided him to the path of what is right.

And to disavow his own power and strength except by Allah ﷻ.

“If you see me less than you in wealth and children.

“It may be that my Lord will give me better than your garden.”

“And send on it a calamity from the sky, leaving slick bare soil.”

He reminded him that Allah was the One who provided for him.

And that the One who gave is able to take back, Allah ﷻ.

“Or its water may sink away, and you will never be able to find it.”

And his fruits were ruined, so he wrung his hands over what he spent on it.

It had collapsed on its trellises.

And he said, “I wish I had not associated anyone with my Lord.”

And he had no supporters to help him other than Allah, nor save himself.

There, true authority belongs to Allah. He is best in reward and outcome.

And in the story of Moses AS with Khidr AS is the test of knowledge.

Yes, a servant may be tested by knowledge, even by its scarcity.

And he may be tested by its abundance.

So it becomes clear how a servant acts when knowledge is scarce.

And what he does when knowledge is abundant.

Does he keep to what he knows, or does he go beyond it?

So what he knows leads him to say what he does not know.

And this is an affliction for many students of knowledge.

When he gains a little knowledge and speaks to people.

Then when people ask him, he is shy to say, 'I do not know.'

So he starts issuing fatwas by his opinion, not his knowledge.

This is the path to ruin. We seek refuge in Allah ﷻ from it.

Likewise, if the seeker of knowledge acquires much knowledge.

then he is tested by the abundance of knowledge.

Will he admire himself for that or not?

The path to be taken in this.

And success in it is for a person to be keen to seek knowledge.

And know for certain: above every knower is one more learned.

And however much knowledge he gains someone is more learned than him.

So let him not admire his knowledge. Nor stop seeking knowledge.

Rather, he must keep to the inkwell until he reaches the grave.

Among the flaws of some seekers of knowledge.

When he gains some knowledge he becomes too proud to learn.

He says: I am a scholar. I am a preacher.

How can I go and sit with the students? How can I seek knowledge?

Perhaps he tells himself: I am like this scholar.

He knows, and I know. So how can I go seek knowledge?

A seeker of knowledge is alive as long as he seeks knowledge.

If he thinks he has finished, then he is finished.

If he thinks he is done seeking, then he truly is finished.

A seeker of knowledge stays well as long as he knows he needs to learn.

And if a person realizes that for every knower, someone knows more.

That will move him to seek knowledge.

and keep seeking knowledge until he dies as a seeker of knowledge.

That calls him to humility.

For no matter how much he knows what he does not know is more.

And others know more than he does.

And likewise in the story of Musa AS with al-Khidr AS.

There is a trial in accompanying scholars.

and the need for patience in learning.

and not rush in seeking knowledge until the teacher explains to him.

The seeker of knowledge greatly needs patience.

He must be patient on the path for obstacles are many.

and be patient in attendance.

and be patient in keeping his heart present.

and be patient with his teacher and not rush matters.

when the teacher is teaching him.

Rather, be patient till the teacher explains.

Without patience, one is denied.

Whoever is not patient is deprived.

Allah save us from deprivation.

In the story of Dhul-Qarnayn, who was a righteous king.

Allah gave him many kinds of knowledge.

By which he knew the lands of the earth.

And Allah gave him authority over the east and west of the earth.

And in his story is the test.

A test of authority, responsibility, and care:

Does he strive in it and seek what benefits those in his care?

And what makes those in his care happy?

So he is among the successful, and that strengthens his authority?

Or is it the opposite?

And all of us, O brothers, have responsibilities.

And we have those in our care, and we are tested by it.

It is not only the ruler, but the father and the mother.

The worker, the employee, and the manager.

We are tested by this responsibility. Do we strive in it?

And do we try to do what is best and make those in our care happy?

Or—Allah protect us— do we deceive those in our care?

And not strive for them?

Nor do we advise them.

This is the first point in overall reflection.

It concerns trials.

The second overall objective of Surah al-Kahf.

It explains the means of safety from trials.

Among them are indeed means of safety from the evils of all trials.

By Allah's leave, they protect a person from all trials.

And he is spared the evils of all trials. The chief ones are these.

The first is reading the Quran with reflection.

That removes doubts from hearts.

The more a person does this, the more darkness leaves his heart.

We already mentioned that

Reading Surah al-Kahf protects from misleading trials.

The second means is avoiding people of fitan.

And blocking the ways by which their doubts reach the heart.

So do not keep their company, read their material or listen to them.

Just as the believing youths did.

Conversely, keeping company with the righteous, learning from them.

In that is safety from misguiding trials.

And protecting lands from the evils of trials.

Allah ﷻ said about the People of the Cave, that they said:

When you withdraw from them and what they worship besides Allah, go to the cave

Your Lord will spread His mercy for you.

And make your affair easy for you.

The third reason for safety from all the evils of trials.

It is turning to Allah with much du'a and pleading.

For du'a brings every good and repels every evil.

Allah ﷻ said: When the youths took refuge in the cave

They said: Our Lord, grant us mercy from Yourself

And set our affair aright for us.

These reasons, as I said, are causes of safety from trials.

Surah al-Kahf points to all of them.

And among the causes are some that protect from certain trials.

Among the causes of safety from worldly delusion and arrogance.

Humility, and training oneself.

And training oneself to be humble.

And striving against oneself to be humble.

Likewise, realizing that power belongs to Allah and is through Him.

That power belongs to Allah and is through Him, for Allah is the Strong.

And no creature has any power except through Allah ﷻ.

And the third matter is this realization.

That what is with Allah is better than the world and all it holds.

Realizing that what is with Allah is better than the world and all it holds.

As we saw in the story of the two men.

His companion said to him while conversing with him.

“Do you disbelieve in the One who made you from dust, a drop, then a man?”

"But as for me, He is Allah, my Lord. I associate no one with my Lord."

"Why, when you entered your garden, did you not say, 'What Allah willed?'"

No power except through Allah. You may see me less than you in wealth and children.

And Allah ﷻ says, "He had no band to help him besides Allah."

"Nor could he defend himself. There the authority is Allah's, the True."

"He is best in reward and best in outcome."

Perhaps I'll stop at this point, and we'll pray 'Isha, Allah willing.

Then we'll return to complete the third session.

I ask Allah ﷻ to reward you well for attending and for your patience.

And make what we say beneficial for us, and make our Lord pleased with us.

And Allah Most High knows best. May Allah bless our Prophet ﷺ.