March 29, 2024

Earlier today, I sat in a class with Ustadha Mardhiyah (may Allah preserve her) and bless all of our teachers. The prophet ﷺ said that

The best among you (Muslims) are those who learn the Qur'an and teach it. [Sahih al-Bukhari 5027]

In the spirit of wanting to be among the best, I pray may Allah make me sincere and count me among the best, I wanted to share with you some of my notes and reflections from the class. I pray may it be beneficial. Allahumma Amin. In the class Ustadha Mardhiyah spoke about ayah 45 in Surah Al-Baqarah.

And seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, it is a burden except for the humble [Qur’an 2:45]

In another translation, she shares -

And seek help through fortitude and prayer. Verily it is a weighty burden, except for those meek in humble devotion. [Qur’an 2:45]

Ustadha breaks down the ayah by starting off with Allah instructing us to seek help, to seek help for our akhirah (hereafter). But then how do we seek help? With patience and fortitude. And Ustadha shares that there are many ways that one could show patience. Patience is stopping yourself from following your desires, there’s patience during trials, there is patience in doing what Allah tells us to do and there’s patience in staying away from what Allah forbids us. Ustadha also share that some scholars define sabr (patience) here to also mean fasting.

Then Allah continues to tell us another way we can seek help is through salah (prayer). Salah being our connection with Him ﷻ. Ustadha reminded us that Allah designated different times for us to meet Him through salah, through His Mercy He allowed us access to Him, to call on Him but we’re the ones who sever that connection. May Allah forgive us and keep us steadfast in fulfilling our prayers. Because at the end of the day we are the ones who benefit from it.

But the ayah doesn’t stop there, Allah in the next part of the ayah acknowledges that this is not an easy task. This is a weighty burden but for the khashi’un (those who are meek in humble devotion), it is an easy task. Ustadha went on to tell us what it means to have khushu and to be among the khashi’un. Allah tells who the kahsi’un are in the next ayah that follows:

those who are certain that they will meet their Lord and to Him they will return. [Qur’an 2:46]

The khashi’un are certain, they believe and are certain about their meeting with and return to Allah. And in this khushu (certainty and humble devotion), Allah blesses them with ease in their affairs, with ease in seeking help through their patience and their prayer. In their khushu, salah becomes light fort hem and they find sweetness in it and as a result their connection with Allah is increased SubhanAllah.

And so Ustadha shares with us the ways in which we can becom khashi’un. The kashi’un ustadha says is someone who knows that they are nobody in the sight of Allah; that Allah sw is everything while they are nothing. And Allah is the greatest. She reminded us that khushu isn’t something that comes naturally. Khushu is something we have to constantly strive for. Someone with khushu puts everything else aside, their desires, their thoughts etc. in preparation to meet Allah. They humble themselves, begging Allah, asking Allah and bring their thoughts and themselves to Him ﷻ. khushu is something we have to frequently ask Allah for. Allah tells us that patience and prayer is a heavy burden except for those who have khushu, so ask Allah for it. And In sha Allah, through Allah granting it to us, the burden of prayer becomes easier.

As I sat in the class with ustadha and listened to her speak on this ayah. I thought about my own worry with regards to going into the last ten days/nights, feeling liek i have fallen behind. And the way in which I could seek Allah’s help through being patient and establishing my prayers regularly. That I needed to seek Allah’s help to be able to worship Him in the best of ways. I pray may Allah make us people who seek His Help through patience and prayer. Ya Allah Ya Rahman, increase me in khushu, make me among those who are khash’iun. Ya Rabb ease the burden of sabr and salah for me and make me among those who are certain about meeting You and returning to You. Ya Rahman, do not return me to You except that You are pleased with me and pleased with my deeds. Ya Rauf make me among those who strive for Your Pleasure and for Your Companionship. Allahumma Amin.

With Love, Ibtisam