Surah az Zumar...........ayat 6 to ayat 18

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olnGE9uN

[ commentary by shaykh tawfique chowdhury  ]



friends , dato and tansri,

we mere mortals should live in fear and hope.
this is the right formulla for life.

He created you from one being, then from that (being) He made its mate; and He hath provided for you of cattle eight kinds. He created you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation, in a threefold gloom. Such is Allah, your Lord. His is the Sovereignty. There is no God save Him. How then are ye turned away? (6) If ye are thankless, yet Allah is Independent of you, though He is not pleased with thanklessness for His bondmen; and if ye are thankful He is pleased therewith for you. No laden soul will bear another's load. Then unto your Lord is your return; and He will tell you what ye used to do. Lo! He knoweth what is in the breasts (of men). (7) And when some hurt toucheth man, he crieth unto his Lord, turning unto Him (repentant). Then, when He granteth him a boon from Him he forgetteth that for which he cried unto Him before, and setteth up rivals to Allah that he may beguile (men) from His way. Say (O Muhammad, unto such an one): Take pleasure in thy disbelief a while. Lo! thou art of the owners of the Fire. (8) Is he who payeth adoration in the watches of the night, prostrate and standing, bewaring of the Hereafter and hoping for the mercy of his Lord, (to be accounted equal with a disbeliever)? Say (unto them, O Muhammad): Are those who know equal with those who know not? But only men of understanding will pay heed. (9) Say: O My bondmen who believe! Observe your duty to your Lord. For those who do good in this world there is good, and Allah's earth is spacious. Verily the steadfast will be paid their wages without stint. (10) Say (O Muhammad): Lo! I am commanded to worship Allah, making religion pure for Him (only). (11) And I am commanded to be the first of those who surrender (unto Him). (12) Say: Lo! if I should disobey my Lord, I fear the doom of a tremendous Day. (13) Say: Allah I worship, making my religion pure for Him (only). (14) then worship what ye will beside Him. Say: The losers will be those who lose themselves and their housefolk on the Day of Resurrection. Ah, that will be the manifest loss! (15) They have an awning of fire above them and beneath them a dais (of fire). With this doth Allah appalled His bondmen. O My bondmen, therefor fear Me! (16) And those who put away false gods lest they should worship them and turn to Allah in repentance, for them there are glad tidings. Therefor give good tidings (O Muhammad) to My bondmen (17) 

[ translation by pickthal ]

yes dato and tansri, "take pleasure in thy disbelief a while. Lo! thou art of the owners of the Fire. " ,
your science  and rationalization are just skin deep.
at the end of time, darwin, hawkings, newton and einstein, and even your favourite richard dawkings , will not be able to help you!


"And those who put away false gods lest they should worship them and turn to Allah in repentance, for them there are glad tidings....."

yes,your excellency, datuk sri!,
in 2017, no one sincerely belief and worship deities  anymore.
deities and idols are just symbolism.
false gods; materialism; all forms of ism,'science'......yes

your mrs' hermes, birkins and pradas; 
that 200  million rm penthouse in new york and your brother's 160 million rm bungalow in holland park; 
that multi million ringgit account in may bank, whatever banks and swiss bank;
your executive excesses.
....these are your false dieties.

how are you going to meet your lord with all these nonsense ?
how are you going to answer him ?

 Lo! thou wilt die, and lo! they will die; (30) Then lo! on the Day of Resurrection, before your Lord ye will dispute. (31)


dr nik isahak

Surah az Zumar...... Prologue

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hT1vliGui8

[ commentary by shaykh tawfique chowdhury  ]




friends, dato and tansri,

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

The revelation of the Scripture is from Allah, the Mighty, the Wise. (1) Lo! We have revealed the Scripture unto thee (Muhammad) with truth; so worship Allah, making religion pure for Him (only). (2) Surely pure religion is for Allah only. And those who choose protecting friends beside Him (say): We worship them only that they may bring us near unto Allah. Lo! Allah will judge between them concerning that wherein they differ. Lo! Allah guideth not him who is a liar, an ingrate. (3) If Allah had willed to choose a son, He could have chosen what He would of that which He hath created. Be He glorified! He is Allah, the One, the Absolute. (4) He hath created the heavens and the earth with truth. He maketh night to succeed day, and He maketh day to succeed night, and He constraineth the sun and the moon to give service, each running on for an appointed term. Is not He the Mighty, the Forgiver? (5) 

[ translation by pickthal  ]

dr nik

ya rahman , ya rahim, ya aziz, ya hakim, ya wahid, ya qahhar, ya tawwab, ya ghafar, ya afuw

[ the nine names mentioned within the 1st 5 ayat ]

Surah az Zumar.......recitation, full surah

friends , dato and tansri,

today if one care to go around with open eyes and open hearts, beyond the rather superficial facade of political correctness and  facile secular niceties, one tend to get the impression that the world is at war with islam , despite official denials from trump,bush or obama.

in america and  europe people want to  'burn the qur'an' both openly and in private.
yes, accepted that this is just symbolic.
but it is emblematic of the problem at hand.

but it cannot be hidden that all pious muslims are being looked upon, in the west, as latent terrorists.
only political correctness and their own rules and law in the land are preventing them from enacting laws banning islam. 
their versions of 'acceptable islam' are nonsensical.
if you dont profess to pray like the muslims, consume alcohol  like the locals, your ladies stop covering up, and or please dont keep that beard!...that is acceptable islam!

even in muslim hinterlands, the moment one mentioned ,'syariah', there will g25 clones and 'those sisters' start 'saying this and saying that'.

globally, there will be boardroom meetings elsewhere in london, paris,brussel or washington...where plans are etched to circumvent this.
1st they start the warfare with 'labelling'; then find issues of discontent.
worse come to worse , 'arm the rebels or opposition'.
if this does not work,  try carpet bombing.
or impose 'no fly zones'.
example are too many, all littered across the globe.

'syariah', even in muslim majority countries, is bad for the world!
it could be 'infectious....
this is the prevailing world view, even now accepted by half past six muslims as well.

put yourselves 1 to 2 years prior to hijrah during nabi's time , things were no different.
that was the stage when surah az zumar was revealed.

...and where do you think all these 'half past six' muslims will be heading to....
just listen to az zumar, without commentary.
you will get the answer. 


dr nik



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jU0spyQ1x6s

[ full surah , recitation by qari, shaykh saud al bujaligh, with english and french translation  ]






https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFEKmatuNl0

[ full recitation by qari, shaykh abdul rahman as sudais with english translation  ]





https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZTHwfx2R9M

[ recitation by shaykh idris abkar from ayat 53 onwards, with english translation  ]







.....and if you think seeking knowledge is nothing great , listen to shaykh moutasem here.
zikr is great .
but seeking ilm, ilm ,ilm and ilm is even greater!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SL5NehGHcVQ

[ shaykh moutasem, ' a short discourse on seeking knowledge' ]

...."to do zikr is great for you, but seeking knowledge is greater.." , narrated from a well known tradition.

Before We Move On to Surah az Zumar......'Journey of the Soul'

friends, dato and tansri,

surah az zumar deals almost 100 % with the afterlife.
it is appropriate that before we move on to surah az zumar let us listen to an excellent khutbah given by shaykh ninowy on ' journey of the soul'.

shaykh muhammad ninowy, from aleppo, syria, currently domiciled in atlanta, usa.
was an associate prof in biochemistry and anatomy for sometime before serving full time with madinah institute for which he was the founding director.

a spiritual guide, he heads a worldwide Shadhili Sufi order under the Alawi-Husayni-Ninowi Zawiyah. i count the shaykh as one of my tok gurus, having taken bayah with him in ipoh some 3 years ago, while he was then running a short post doctoral hadith course in a theology university in ipoh.

'journey of the soul' is an appropriate preamble before we move on to the heavy stuff of surah az zumar.
it encompasses  'the time' between your soul leaving your body, to the time, when 'your family members and friends leave you', after the 'talkin', to go back to their respective homes.

" your excellency...., tansri, dato sri....if you do not have him[  nabi ] in your heart, i dont care how many palaces you have , you are lost! "



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-0uMWVk5dc

[ part 1 of 9 parts ]


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLF0G_GUvTg#t=3.275719

[ part 2 ]


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAhBQtnhCs0

[ part 3  ]


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGg2dnNrZ-E

[  part 4  ]



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fD29hkyobIA

[  part 5 ]



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Cn4BUEXszU

[ part 6  ]



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeLCfkZ3rcI

[  part 7  ]


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpVjRZ4q4aQ

[  part 8 ]



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6A7IxZudAA

[ part 9  ]




dr nik 

ya mukallibal qulub, thabit qalbi ala di nik....
ya mukallibal qulub thabit qalbi ala ta'a tik....

Surah Saad........Epilogue

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5CGkO72DvU


friends, dato and tansri,

the closing ayats of surah saad are about the story of ibless and adam.
the present day progenies of adam, 'anak adam and cucu and cicik adam' have not only to contend with the progenies of iblees, but also the progenies of ibless amongst men , who come in different shapes, sizes and names....all under the banner of islam!

made difficult and compounded by their confusing colouring, ....: 
liberal islam, islamists, islamologists [ eg fareed zakaria and farouk peru types ], secular islamists of which they come in many different hues and colours; lgbt islamists [ prominent example, irshad manji types ], g25 clones type of islamists; puan siti apakahnamadiadah, the lady lawyer with green and purple hairs etc etc and etc.[ i would not mention our more famous 'local sisters' here....]

all making 'animal noise' here and there.
pride is the main issue...i am from harvard, oxford and cambridge, you are just azhar etc etc and etc.
i run big corporations, big schools,what are you, simple ustad wearing a kopiah!
i am lawyer, ambassador, big corporate gun, chairmen of this and that , who are you?

Say (unto them, O Muhammad): I am only a warner, and there is no God save Allah, the One, the Absolute, (65) Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, the Mighty, the Pardoning. (66) Say: It is tremendous tidings (67) Whence ye turn away! (68) I had no knowledge of the Highest Chiefs when they disputed; (69) It is revealed unto me only that I may be a plain warner. (70) When thy Lord said unto the angels: Lo! I am about to create a mortal out of mire, (71) And when I have fashioned him and breathed into him of My Spirit, then fall down before him prostrate, (72) The angels fell down prostrate, every one, (73) Saving Iblis; he was scornful and became one of the disbelievers. (74) He said: O Iblis! What hindereth thee from falling prostrate before that which I have created with both My hands? Art thou too proud or art thou of the high exalted? (75) He said: I am better than him. Thou createdst me of fire, whilst him Thou didst create of clay. (76) He said: Go forth from hence, for lo! thou art outcast, (77) And lo! My curse is on thee till the Day of Judgment. (78) He said: My Lord! Reprieve me till the Day when they are raised. (79) He said: Lo! thou art of those reprieved (80) Until the Day of the time appointed. (81) He said: Then, by Thy might, I surely will beguile them every one, (82) Save Thy single-minded slaves among them. (83) He said: The Truth is, and the Truth I speak, (84) That I shall fill hell with thee and with such of them as follow thee, together. (85) Say (O Muhammad, unto mankind): I ask of you no fee for this, and I am no impostor. (86) Lo! it is naught else than a reminder for all peoples (87) And ye will come in time to know the truth thereof. (88)
[ translation by pickthal ]

let us listen to shaykh taqfique's closing commentary for surah saad.
it is important we comprehend the qur'anic message in its entirety with humility and honesty.
leave your cambridge, harvard, london and the hague background, your law, your corporate finance, your etc and etc, leave them  at your doorsteps......then
you read the qur'an.

...yes, and for the very selected few, leave your palaces, your daimlers and your benzes, your trophy wives; your postfixes and pre-fixes.
then read your qur'an.


dr nik

Surah Saad......ayat 41 to ayat 55

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d91Ip3o0IXA

[...on nabi ayub and his many mega trials ]


friends, dato and tansri,

are we, malaysians, on trials, or is this adab/punishment from allah?

we have a pm and a cabinet full of self-serving individuals, the meekest word one can use for them is : 'incompetent 
there are certainly more stronger words than 'incompetent', but that would push me towards using the unmentionables and 'carut mencarut'. 
this is still hari raya, i will just be polite here.

we have a system of monarchy, or rather nine monarchs that certainly could have done better, given the situation, to make themselves more relevant to the time.
given this present national crisis, a more proactive posturing from them would have ensured 
their 'pre-eminence' up till as long as  'the sun still rises in the east and sets in the west'.

the younger generations from amongst the raayats, our children's generation that is, are still looking very hard for their relevance.
this  represent a crisis.
a crisis of confidence
a crisis of gross executive excesses and avarice
to still warm their seats and consider this as 'business as usual' showed gross lack of wisdom and care.
they have just lost an opportunity to be just great.
they collectively chose to be mediocre.

the list goes on....
a judiciary that is totally impotent.
a press that is better not mentioned or present. they don't make any difference
an academia that is totally at best,'kang kong'.
an ulama class that is non existent.
its head, now not only proven to be  'soft in the head ' but also got blocked plumbings in the heart recently!

and a people that is totally 'cowed'

is this a trial or a punishment?
you decide.

let us listen to shaykh tawfique's commentary of ayat 40 to ayat 44.
about nabi ayub, a paragon of iman and sabr.
life is indeed a trial for all of us mere mortals.
and nothing beats the trials set upon on nabi ayub.

and from ayat 45 to 55, about trials and punishments; and about the family of ibrahim; about the multi gateways to heaven; about allah's special dispensation to 'abiding' and god fearing women....


dr nik

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oJ6JoLOeDs


[.....on trials or punishments ; gates to jannah, special dispensation for women etc and etc ]

Surah Saad.....ayat 30 to ayat 40

friends, dato and tansri,

islam is about excellence!

excellence in situations of ease and in suffering.......

we are all tested and expected to perform to our level of potentials, eq's and iq's, and status in society.

allah expect more from presidents, sultans, pm and cabinet ministers, movers and shakers of society; than from pak mat nyadap of kuala ketil, kedah or from padang pa' amat, pasir putih, kelantan; or the chap who sweep the streets for mppj, subang jaya!

i like young nouman ali khan's perspective of these following ayat in surah  saad on the issue of potentials.

i also can agree with him that most mufasirun of the past and qur'an translators  must have got their perspective of ayat 33 wrong. at least as a horse lover i cannot comprehend  sulaiman alaihisalam [ pbuh] taking a sword and going around slashing the legs and necks of his beautiful arabian steads!

this cannot be the work of a prophet, even if he missed his asar prayers, on account of reviewing his excellent war horses!

do listen to ustaz nouman's excellent perspective of this important portion of surah  saad.

sulaiman alaihisalam's doa for 'more from allah for him to be more excellent at his work for humanity' should be our rallying doa  in this years and age when we malaysians have to face the ignominy and depressing prospect of a totally incoherent, shameless and corrupt administration going on for yet another 'painful' term of office.

extremely painful for us the raayat and for our future progenies!

if you guys have the passion and time, do listen to shaykh tawfique chowdhury's perspective.
his, is a contrarion view of the ayat, and i am afraid, the majority view of past mufassirun and present.

And We bestowed on David, Solomon. How excellent a slave! Lo! he was ever turning in repentance (toward Allah). (30) When there were shown to him at eventide lightfooted coursers (31) And he said: Lo! I have preferred the good things (of the world) to the remembrance of my Lord; till they were taken out of sight behind the curtain. (32)   (Then he said): Bring them back to me, and fell to slashing their legs and necks. (33) And verily We tried Solomon, and set upon his throne a (mere) body. Then did he repent. (34) He said: My Lord! Forgive me and bestow on me sovereignty such as shall not belong to any after me. Lo! Thou art the Bestower. (35) So We made the wind subservient unto him, setting fair by his command whithersoever he intended. (36) And the unruly, every builder and diver (made We subservient), (37) And others linked together in chains, (38) (Saying): This is Our gift, so bestow thou, or withhold, without reckoning. (39) And lo! he hath favour with Us, and a happy journey's end. (40) .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1k4wkggPjCQ

[  commentary by ustaz nouman ali khan, ]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCik0_Kq4eE
[ a contrarion view from shaykh tawfique chowdhury ]

dr nik