10/02/2003
IWDM Study Library
Radio Broadcast

By Imam W. Deen Mohammed
Speaker 1:
This is the World broadcast of Imam WD Mohammed Speaks. The program that's dedicated to unity, dignity and justice. And now Imam WD Mohammed,
Imam WD Mohammed:
I hope G-d bless us with guidance and understanding. I hope He bless me to be able to express my thoughts clearly to you. And I hope He bless you to receive my thoughts in the proper way. I don't intend any mockery. I don't intend any destructive criticism. So, if you might hear that or feel that, please know that I don't intend that. Everything that I do say is for the sake of improving upon us and not merely criticizing love. Praise Be to Allah, Guardian, Evolver, Sustainer of all the worlds. We seek assistance from Him. We asked forgiveness of Him.
We put our complete trust in Him. And I witness that nothing is worthy of worship except the one G-d who created everything, the one Allah alone. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His Messenger. The Most High says, "Then turn your face toward the Sacred Mosque." And again, the Most High says "Whichever direction you turn to, there you'll find the face of Allah." And turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque. Masjid Al Haram, the Sacred Mosque. And also, whichever way, or in whatever direction you turn, there you'll find the face of Allah. When we gather in Jumu'ah prayer and any congregational prayer, or our prayer said alone and we turn toward the Haram, toward the Sacred Mosque in Mecca, we are obeying instructions of Allah to Prophet Muhammad when He directed him in the Qur'an to turn his face toward the Sacred Mosque in Mecca. The first place of worship built for the worship of the Creator, the one and only G-d. We turn in that direction following a discipline, a worship recognizing the central point, a center for all believers, for all Muslims.
And actually, a center for all the people, for all humanity. In sajdah, when we are sitting, we point the finger following tradition, the index finger of the right hand toward the holy house, the Sacred Mosque. One finger we point. And many in their hearts indicating that you understand it to mean one Allah. One Allah. But we must also understand that it is also one house. It's not two houses, it's one house. The Kaaba is one house built by Abraham and his son Ishmael. So, we should understand also that it's one house, and that house and all the things in that vicinity are the Sacred monuments that have been preserved for their value in the history of the religion. They're symbols, symbols that represent great values, knowledge, great meaning, great value to the people and the religion.
People all over the world directing themselves toward that house form a universal brotherhood, a religious membership, all accepting one Allah who created everything. And one Prophet who is the fulfillment of prophecy and the last of the Prophets, Peace and Blessings be on him, Peace and Blessings be on them. Recognizing also that humanity is one. Though we differ in our language, in our nationality, we are one, the humanity is one. This oneness is more than just one Allah. We wouldn't have to point towards the Qibla, the Kaaba, the holy shrine for Muslims, the Qibla of the Muslims, direction for the Muslims. We wouldn't have to point there to indicate one Allah. For whichever way we turn there we will find Allah. But we point in that direction because there is a center, there is an orientation there, there is a center and an orientation that speaks to more than the oneness of Allah, the oneness of G-d. It speaks for the oneness of humanity. It speaks for the oneness of human nature as well as for the oneness of Allah. And it symbolizes what man's full social life or community life should be, that it has developed a grown fulfillment. It should be a society where no one will be slighted or treated differently because of sex or cause of nationality or any of these superficial reasons that sometimes cloud our vision.
Dear beloved Muslims. It is good that we remember that the shrines or the holy house in Mecca is one house. And the Prophet Muhammad was looking in two directions, in fact three. He looked in Mecca, he looked in Jerusalem at the center there and his attention was called to the center and the Kaaba, the holy house in Mecca. And lastly, he was looking to the sky, looking to the sky in confusion, wondering in which direction should he turn the Muslims in worship. And Allah revealed to him that he should not be burdened anymore. That G-d had blessed him and was going to turn him to a shrine to a Qiblah, a sacred house. A Qibla, a direction that will certainly please him. And He said, "Now turn your face toward the first house, toward the house in Mecca, Masjid Al Haram, towards the Sacred Mosque in Mecca." So we should understand that the pointing of the finger has also reference to that, that Prophet Muhammad, being born in a world where people were directing themselves towards two different shrines. One in Jerusalem and one in Mecca. The Jews directing themselves toward the temple in Jerusalem and the people of Arabia before Al Islam, was still recognizing the house in Mecca, the first house in Mecca. But they had lost their religious purity, and their religion had been curated into idol worship and vulgarity. Many kinds of bad behavior. And it was Allah, the Most High who directed Prophet Muhammad to turn his face toward the Masjid Al Haram, the holy, sacred Mosque in Mecca, the shrine built by Abraham and his son Ishmael.
There is no more confusion. The Prophet himself was in a state of bewilderment, when Allah revealed to him to turn his face toward the holy house. There is no more confusion. So, we know exactly where we are going. We know exactly what we are about. Oneness. One house. And a house that doesn't represent a political destiny, a house that represent a human destiny. And the human destiny is fulfilled in all those needs that man has come to know. Economic needs, cultural needs, political needs and all of those needs that man has come to know. The academic needs, the human fulfillment manifest in all those needs that man has come to know. Needs that have evolved naturally, naturally with man's potential and with the fulfilling or the exercising or the blossoming of that potential, man has come into political life and into academic life. He's come into all defined areas of life that make for a comfortable, healthy, well organized, progressive people or society. This religion is the most comprehensive religion, it does not fix our mind on political objectives, and set that in our mind as our object or our destiny.
The religious orientations have been described by scholars and philosophers and they have said of the Christian people that they are person oriented, that is Christ oriented. And they have said that the Jews, that they are destiny oriented. And they have said of the Muslims that we are book oriented. But there's more to be said for us. We are oriented toward the Kaaba, and the book is the knowledge that keeps us on the right path. Praise Be to Allah Most High, who has revealed His religion down through the ages and blessed Messengers and Prophets to bring people what they needed for their time and their situation. And has fulfilled His promise and completed His favor on us and perfected for us the religion in that He revealed the Qur'an, the last of the books to the last of the Prophets Muhammad, on him and on them be peace. We thank Allah for the guidance. We pray that He strengthen our faith and purify our faith. Keep our hearts firm and strong.
All Praise is due to Allah. Guardian Evolver, the Sustainer, Cherisher of all the worlds. We praise Him on the blessing to us and the world of Prophet Muhammad, most generous Messenger of Almighty G-d. We ask blessing, peace upon his descendants upon his companions, upon the righteous, all of them and upon us here in America and throughout the world. The Messenger of G-d said, Sa Ala Alahi Wa Salaam, Peace and the blessings be on him. Buni Al Islamu Alakasim. Al Islam is built on five pillars or principles. The first of them is to give open testimony, open witness that there is nothing worthy or worship except the one Allah, one Lord and Creator. Wa Ana Muhammadan Rasool Allah. And that Muhammad is not a G-d, not a deity, not a supernatural being, but a Messenger of that Lord. And standing for prayer or performing the prayer, salat.
That is the Islamic prayer. We know many people that pray in different ways and even Muslims we make du'a. And people call that praying too. Qai Qama Tu Salat means following the Islamic Congregational Prayer Group order of prayer in which Muslims all over the world participate in the same matter, same fashion following the designated times of prayer, which are five. In the morning before sunrise, the fajr prayer. And immediately after the sun passes the zenith point, the highest point in the heavens going westward. That's the dhur prayer or the zuhr prayer we pronounce it. And the asr prayer which comes at the time when the sun is midway between its descending point and the western horizon. And the Maghrib prayer, which comes when the sun has just set and the glow of the sun is still on the western horizon.
And lastly, the night prayer, known as Isha prayer, which is said when the sun has gone and there is no sign of it on the western horizon. It has to come down nighttime up until the time you go and are retired for the night. But it must come before you see twilight or light in the sky from the horizon on the east. Those are the five stated times of prayer. And Allah Most High says "And prayer is prescribed for believers, for the people at stated times, at stated times." And we'll find that most of these basic pillars that make up the foundation or the essentials of our religion, they were also prescribed for people before.
For Christians, for Jews, for those people who received guidance from Allah through their Prophets and their Messengers before the advent of Prophet Muhammad. Peace be on them. We know that in religion of the people of the book they're told also worship only one Lord, no partners to Him. Bow down to no idols and make no graven images. The Lord G-d is one. For our Muslim community it's La Ilaha Il Allah. Nothing worthy of prayers or devotion of a worshipper except one. Allah, the Creator of everything who was never born, never dies, needs no companion, needs nothing of His creation because of the need in Him.
Slumber nor time affects Him at all. He does not feed, He's not dead. But He feeds all. This is the Qur'an that I'm quoting. One Allah and one alone that is not helpless or not needing anything of His creation because of a need in Him. The obligation is also on Muslims to be charitable. And charity begins at home and spreads abroad. This is Islamic teaching as well as Christian teaching. Charity begins at home and spreads abroad. The Muslim is obligated to take care of himself if he's a grown up, abled grown up in charge of his wits. He's responsible for taking care of himself and if it be a man, if he's married, he's responsible for taking care of his wife to give her those things such as food, place to stay, shelter, and also whatever other financial or material needs she might have.
And also, to be her protector, being the stronger physically as G-d has said in the Qur'an, that He has given the man a degree of superiority in his stronger physique and in the fact that he has amassed wealth. Wealth. So, these are developments owing to man's physique, physiology, biology, physiology, and to the woman's distinct biology or physiology that has confined her for months and years at home with her young children and has enabled the man to get out from his home and to explore possibility far away from his habitat. And in so doing, he has naturally come into greater material power than the woman. That obligation is accepted by men throughout the world except for rare instances that people want to be different. That obligation is accepted by men throughout the world that he be the one to fight off the bad wolf, to meet the drunkard who wants to hassle his family or whatever that the challenge may be.
That calls for more muscle, more experience with the rough worldly life, rough worldly matters. So, the man has been prepared for that and be recognized that superiority in the man but that shouldn't make the man stand over his woman as a master, for the man and the woman before Allah are His servant. Allah has said of the man that you are My servant and Allah has said of the woman, you are My servant. Allah has servants from among the women and from among the men. And Allah has also said that we do not differ in terms of our essential nature in terms of spirituality, morality, intellectual potential, the ability to make moral and rational choices, the ability to grow mentally and intellectually. We do not differ, but we accept that we don't have any male sharpness over here. Not to think of pigs. We don't touch the stuff.
And the Prophet went on to say, to complete these pillars that is making Pilgrimage, visiting the Sacred House in Mecca, the first house of worship. Ramadan and the fasting in the month of Ramadan. If we quickly look at these five pillars, we can see that man needs devotion in his life. For no man in his good sense is healthy without having some occupation, something to devote himself to. And that's true also for women. Human beings need some devotional activity. If man would only understand scientifically his spirituality, he would understand that the thing he gives himself to most as a devotion is the thing that's going to dominate his life. So what better concept could we have as worship than the worship of the one who created everything, is Lord over everything, and to whom we all must eventually commit and return. What is better as a devotion to rule in our lives?
Man has had the trouble of confusing his own reality with divine reality. So, we are protected from this, from that for all times. Along with that declaration that there is but one Allah there is also that declaration that Muhammad is not Allah but His Messenger. Man needs an order, man needs order. If you leave men alone, you'll find them grouping together. You'll find them doing certain things in a regimented fashion. They'll do this automatically. Men have worked together like the pack animals, talk together or work together and develop a rhythm and an order to their formation naturally. It's a natural need in man. And I'm sure that every man who comes here as a Muslim with a Muslim heart and stand in the rank and face the Kaaba and follow the Imam in salat.
When we see him in Qur'an, we see him in the beautiful highlight of his excellence. When we see him as they reported what he was, his friends, his relatives, the report that they gave him doesn't conflict with what the Qur'an says. They support what the Qur'an says about him. They support each other. The Hadith, the Sunnah support the Qur'an, the Qur'an support the Sunnah. In his dealing with people, in his dealing with strangers, in his dealings with relatives, in his dealings with his enemy. No matter what the situation was he always conducted himself in the most excellent way regarding moral behavior and also rational behavior. He conducted himself in the most excellent way. And we have reports that have come to us from learned people now of the West, who say that Prophet Muhammad, that he was indeed the most influential leader in the history of man.
Yes, the writer, his name is Michael Hart. He has written a book that has been published and a book that has been received as a worthy, worthy publication. And in that book, he says, Prophet Muhammad, the most influential leader, most influential man that the world or history has ever seen. This recent book, it's available now we also have those of the notable Western men who have said that Prophet Muhammad presented the Qur'an as his miracle. And they said it is a miracle indeed. We're not talking about Muslims, we're talking about non-Muslims. And we are not talking about shrimp heads, we're talking about intelligentsia that have said of Prophet Muhammad, they have bore witness. They attest to the fact that the Qur'an is indeed a miracle. Prophet Muhammad called the Qur'an his standing miracle.
He didn't say the Red Sea opened up for me, that's my miracle. He said, the Qur'an is my miracle. Now look how Prophet Muhammad has put things in their proper perspective. Some of us think because G-d opened up a Red Sea. "Oh, that's a great miracle. The Red Sea opened up; that's a great miracle." The greatest thing that G-d has ever done for human beings is give him light, guidance. He didn't open up the Red Sea to take care of human needs. And if someone was really actually raised up from a physical grave, what good is that doing us now? Let's ask ourselves what good is that doing us now?
But if knowledge has been revealed from G-d that can challenge all the wisdom of the world, that can raise up a people and raise up a nation and can build society and build civilization, and can bring sciences to humanity. And they say the Qur'an did that. I'm not talking Prophet Muhammad and the Muslims. It's the intelligentsia of the West. They admit that that Qur'an brought sciences, it made possible the spread of sciences again in the western world. So how can we compare that with a dead that was raised up 2000 years ago. And he's not around here today to tell us about the events.
I'm not making jokes; I'm just talking about the truth. He raised a dead man in Jerusalem 2000 years ago. Where is he now? What good is he now? Is he doing us any good now? Say, well the belief in that will save you from hellfire. Has it saved you from hellfire? No. The living word is better than the dead man. The greatest miracle is the Qur'an, not the opening up of the Red Sea or the raising up of a man from the dead. In fact, if you want really see the dead rise, bring this book to the dead. Praise be to Allah, Guardian, Evolver Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds. We are happy with our Muslim situation and we never hope for anything other than this religion as a discipline for our lives. We cherish it. We leave it to our children. We're happy when we see our wives who are not Muslim, our husbands who are not Muslim, our friends who are not Muslim. We are happy when we see them being attracted to the Qur'an being attracted to Prophet Muhammed the rational human leader for all times. We are happy when we see them wanting to become a part of the Islamic society. Want to become Muslim. We are happy because we know this is life. Indeed, this is dignity. It's honor, its respect, it's the future. It's a sound life.
It's a better life. It's an open door to greater, better, better and more things. Yes. So should we want this for our relatives? We want it for our relatives. We want to see our families being Muslim. We want to see our friends and loved ones being Muslim. We want to see our whole race. We want to see all the African Americans, all the Bilalians become Muslims because we know that the white man who said the blacks are lazy was addressing a sickness that he put in them. The Qur'an and Al Islam can take it out. We know the white man who said the black man does not respect providence. He has no foresight. He doesn't put up anything for tomorrow. We know that white men that said that was correct in deciding the future of those who called them self black. But we know he was also addressing a condition that he himself or his race is responsible for. And we know that this Qur'an can take that out.
So we want this religion for our race. We are not going to crusade with a sword or with a gun and say be a Muslim or die. But we are going to crusade, we are going to carry this message until every Bilalian, every African American hears it and has a chance to see it as it is. Not as the Honorable Elijah Muhammad gave it to him, not as Fard gave it to him, not as Malcolm gave it to him, not as Farrakhan gives it to him or as Silas or John Muhammad gives it to him. As Allah revealed it to Prophet Muhammad. That's how we want them to see it. And we know that if they get that chance then the judgment will be on them. The judgment will be on them. But we have to give our people a chance. We are part of the common lot. We've all been in that situation or that particular mess. If we come out it shouldn't we want to bring the brother and sister out of it with the same thing that brought us up.
So let nobody tell you, oh don't be a fanatic man. Don't be out here trying to make everybody Muslim. Son, I'm not trying to make anybody Muslim, but I want everybody to have a chance and a decent chance. Yes. So don't worry about the Silases and the Farrakhans and those other people. They're playing in the dark. Take up the Qur'an, follow the human example in Prophet Muhammad, and know that you have human potential of excellence and great power to get the slave effect off of our people and to bring the message also to those that are not our people because they are equally in bad shape. And I'm speaking now the Hispanic, the Spanish people, the Hispanics, they're in bad shape too.
And the masses of the whites they in bad shape too. I hope one day I'll come to this community and I'll see Caucasians here from the north side, different parts of Chicago. I'll see them here. Not here as spectators, not here to look at us from the outside. But I hope to find them here sitting with us, sharing with us because they're humanity has been experimented with too. Their humanity has been an experimentation. Their good senses have been warped by experimentation on the mind and on human nature. They have become artificial just as we became artificial.
They all need the message of Al Islam. So let us have faith in it and do our best to show this religion as it was revealed to Prophet Muhammad. And be courageous. Don't be weak hearted in it. Don't be afraid of this world. This world should be afraid of us. Anytime we pick up the Qur'an, the world should be afraid of us. Don't be afraid of the world. They should shake when you bring out the Qur'an, you shouldn't shake. Allah ask for a people to rise up, a community to rise up that will do what He asks and will not fear the criticism of the criticizer.
You know African-American people, they have been demeaned, they have been mocked, they have been shamed out of their self-respect by history, by white supremacy, by the history of that we have lived in this world. It has shamed us out of self-respect. It has intimidated us. So it's almost just like nature for us to be shy, stand back, stand in the dark shadow, afraid to come out and present what we have. You have to overcome that. You have to know that that is not you. That's not you, that's something that somebody has done to you. That's not you. Come out of that. Be a Muslim. Say Asalaam Alaikum to your brother. And say it just as you say it here. When I see my brother here, I say Asalaam Alaikum to my brother. If I see him among Christians, I don't say meekly say, "hi brother."
They should be ashamed of themselves. I say Asalaam Alaikum brother. And Allah will bless us. What I'm addressing is not something in you that is you. It's something in you that is foreign to you that the other person's man put in you. Yes, generations of being ridiculed, demeaned has bought about that. And we have to come out of it. There is nothing more worthy of human respect than the Qur'an and the life of the Muslims. There is nothing more dignified than the Qur'an and the real Muslim life. There's nothing more precious or more academically noteworthy than the Qur'an and the real Muslim life.
So you students in the school, you have to stop laughing at excellence and start laughing at inferiority. You should laugh at inferiority, not at excellence. You see your sister carrying herself in a very decent way. That's not occasion to laugh. That's an occasion for you to be on your best. She should bring you to your best behavior. Just her presence should bring you to your best behavior. And when the sister come in with the tight pants or the short dress, or some of her breast showing, that's when you should get up and show your indignation.
You shouldn't laugh then because she should be pitied. But you should show your indignation saying she has her nerves knowing how we dress and how we live and calling herself a Muslim and coming in among us in that filthy, vulgar dress because she's bringing down the dignity of your community. She's hurting the image of all of you. And we've had enough of that from the world. We shouldn't have to suffer it from each other in this community. We should do nothing but that that make a contribution to the excellence of our image as Muslims. And when anyone disrespects that, we shouldn't feel that we have to be an officer or a staff person to speak out t against that. One person violating the good Muslim principles, presenting themselves as a vulgar individual, have offended all of us and any of us can speak out against that.
It is best for the older persons among us to speak out. Cause their word carries more weight, their criticism carries more weight if the elderly people among us would speak out. But we have made them so afraid of us, we've presented ourselves as a bunch of wild animals and they're afraid to even speak to us to share their intelligent concerns with us. So, we have to turn to the children. We have to ask the children to stand up yourself and protect this community against vulgar people who will disgrace it. Or this ignorant people that will laugh at the values, the excellent values and praise the inferiority or the inferior thing. No, call your people from that. Call your peers from that. Call your associates from that. Say girl, say, look, you my friend and I like you. Or boy, look, you my buddy man. And we get along well man. But look man, we got to do something about our history. I'm tired of people writing inferior things about me and my race and you ain't helping it a bit. Now the race has a chance with Al Islam. Man, straighten up.
Yeah, I remember we used to punch people in the mouth for certain offenses. Yes we did. We used to punch them in the mouth for certain offenses. I'm not telling you children now to start punching people in the mouth, but just tell 'em you used to get punched in the mouth for what you doing. May Allah bless us with good hearts. Because without good hearts, the brain ain't never gonna be good. May Allah bless us with good hearts. Bless us with the guidance. Keep our feet firm in the faith. Increase our appetite for Islamic knowledge and grow us in ambition that will result and more growth for this Islamic community. More institutions, more schools, more institutions of learning and culture. Bless us to build in faith a reputation for ourselves that will get rid of the old, ugly, degrading image of our community and our people that will dignify us on a plane with all the respected people of the world. We pray our Allah that we grow to be like those shining knights, the shining excellent followers of Prophet Muhammad who served Islam with their whole lives and many died, suffered miserably, but their names now shine on the pages of history. We pray Allah that He bless us to have faith in those things that last, to make investments for the future and for our future generation. Knowing that no better investment exists on earth, anywhere or will ever exist than an investment in this life, the life of the Muslim,
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