Quran for Young Adults

Day 9

Summary

Surah An-Nur 35-40 : Light Upon Light (continued)

[Such niches are] in mosques which Allah has ordered to be raised and that His name be

mentioned therein; exalting Him within them in the morning and the evenings (Sahih

International)

vs. : both are words for home, but comes from the verb (to spend the

night, because wherever you sleep at night is your home) vs. (to go around, because

you run errands all day, but you always come back home). This shows that Allah is

highlighting the night aspect of these homes. In the next ayah we will see why many

translations say mosques as opposed to homes.

[Are] men whom neither commerce nor sale distracts from the remembrance of Allah and

performance of prayer and giving of zakah. They fear a Day in which the hearts and eyes will

[fearfully] turn about -. (Sahih International)

: men The fact that men in these homes are specifically mentioning Allah in the

night suggests that these homes are Masjids

Productivity is part of manhood. If you arent working, you are remembering

Allah. To reach manhood, all young people should get jobs, even if you are from a

wealthy family! It teaches good work ethic!

: purification Zakat is only purifying for pure wealth. If we make our money in

haram ways, the wealth wont be purified even if we give Zakat. If you have light on the

inside, you will be mindful of how you make your money.

How we make our money has a huge impact on our spiritualityeven Mushriks

refused to use money from evil sources in the rebuilding of the Kabah!

We shouldnt take student loans! We willingly go into debt, and accrue interest on

our debts!

That Allah may reward them [according to] the best of what they did and increase them from

His bounty. And Allah gives provision to whom He wills without account. (Sahih International)

: the best of what they did THIS IS INCREDIBLE!!! Its like a teacher who

gives you 5 tests, then takes your highest grade, and makes that your cumulative grade!

: he will increase them THIS IS EVEN MORE INCREDIBLE!!! Allah will take our

best effort, and grade it on a higher curve! For example, I got a 80%, but my teacher

rounded it up to a 95%... because he knew I tried my best!

: Allah will reward you, without any limits!

Our relationship with Allah is determined by our relationship with Him, and with other

people. If our hearts are truly soft towards Allah, they will be soft towards all the

creation of Allah.

But those who disbelieved - their deeds are like a mirage in a lowland which a thirsty one

thinks is water until, when he comes to it, he finds it is nothing but finds Allah before Him,

and He will pay him in full his due; and Allah is swift in account. (Sahih International)

vs. : Sharab means drink, so Sarab means not really drink

Deeds must be sincere inside, just like our light emanates from the inside

: so thirsty you are near death this is the imagery of the nonbeliever on

Judgment Day

Imagery of a death in the desert: mixture of daylight, endless expanse of sand, and

confused reality

These people think they are doing good deeds

Daylight this person was surrounded by good company

These peple defined goodness for themselves, rather than obeying what Allah

wanted from them

Or [they are] like darknesses within an unfathomable sea which is covered by waves, upon

which are waves, over which are clouds - darknesses, some of them upon others. When one

puts out his hand [therein], he can hardly see it. And he to whom Allah has not granted light -

for him there is no light. (Sahih International)

: ocean, referring to the ocean of bad company this person kept. As they spend

more time with this bad company, the sink deeper into the ocean.

If you remain in the dark for a long time and you are suddenly exposed to light,

you get really uncomfortable it takes some time for your eyes to adjust to the

light again

: stormy, shares roots with the word which means to be stubborn, turbulent,

and persistent

The ayah gives the imagery of a person in the middle of the stormy ocean, with one

wave crashing down on him, and as he is submerged there is another wave about to

crash down on him, and on top of that there is another wave about to crash down on

him, and on top of that there are dark storm cloudsso this person is enveloped in

layers of darkness

: when they stick their hands out they ALMOST cant see it

Hands = Deeds, these people dont even know why they do what they do!

ALMOST = If you were submerged in the ocean with waves on waves crashing

down on you, with the sky completely dark, how would it be possible to see your

hand? But this person can STILL see their hand, because of the light Allah put in

them. Even in the dark picture, Allahs light still gives this person hope.

: incorrectly translated in most translations Even

according to the Sahih International translation, it seems that Allah withholds light from

certain people, which doesnt seem fair. The in the ayah is , or the beginning

of a conditional statement. So this ayah is better translated as And whoever Allah

wouldnt provide light to; then he wouldnt have any light. This is beautiful, because

this shows Allah gave light to everyone!

Surah At-Taghabun 1-18 : The Sweetness of Faith

Whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth is exalting Allah. To Him belongs

dominion, and to Him belongs [all] praise, and He is over all things competent." (Sahih

International)

The purpose of Surah At-Taghabun was to refresh the faith of believers in Medina

It is He who created you, and among you is the disbeliever, and among you is the believer.

And Allah, of what you do, is Seeing. (Sahih International)

He created the heavens and earth in truth and formed you and perfected your forms; and to

Him is the [final] destination. (Sahih International)

: with purpose appreciate how youve been formed!

He knows what is within the heavens and earth and knows what you conceal and what you

declare. And Allah is Knowing of that within the breasts. (Sahih International)

: what the chests possess Allah knows us better than we know

ourselves

Has there not come to you the news of those who disbelieved before? So they tasted the bad

consequence of their affair, and they will have a painful punishment. (Sahih International)

That is because their messengers used to come to them with clear evidences, but they said,

"Shall human beings guide us?" and disbelieved and turned away. And Allah dispensed [with

them]; and Allah is Free of need and Praiseworthy. (Sahih International)

: the most clear and obvious proofs

: a person???

Before the Prophet Muhammad (S) was a messenger, he was a neighbor, a

business partner, a friend, a nephew, a husbandfor 40 years! The early

Sahaba had to retrain themselves so that when they saw the Prophet

Muhammad (S), they thought Rasulullah (S), rather than the common

person that they knew before.

Shows our hate for authority. We love our parents, until they tell us to do

something. We love our cool teacher, until they give us an assignment.

Similarly, everyone loves the messenger (S) for his kindness, but people

dont like taking orders from him.

: Allah decided that he didnt need them, that they needed to be replaced

(This is an idiomAllah doesnt NEED anyone He is inherently praiseworthy even

if we werent praising Him. Allah actually honors us with the opportunity to

praise Him. We only elevate ourselves in rank, not Him, with His remembrance).

Those who disbelieve have claimed that they will never be resurrected. Say, "Yes, by my Lord,

you will surely be resurrected; then you will surely be informed of what you did. And that, for

Allah, is easy." (Sahih International)

: doing something intentionally

: I swear by my Master - every oath prepares you for an answer to the

oath

Ex. If you have a boss, then that necessitates that the boss will ask you

about the work you did for him. Similarly, since Allah is our master it

necessitates that Allah will raise us

So believe in Allah and His Messenger and the Qur'an which We have sent down. And Allah is

Acquainted with what you do. (Sahih International)

: light can refer to both the Quran and the Ruh (because there is no on

) *advanced Arabic grammar gem

: winning and losing collectively

: their sins, comes from the word which is a stinking, rotting corpse.

Its something disgusting that you wish you could bury underground and

completely forget about.

The Day He will assemble you for the Day of Assembly - that is the Day of Deprivation. And

whoever believes in Allah and does righteousness - He will remove from him his misdeeds and

admit him to gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide forever. That is the

great attainment. (Sahih International)

But the ones who disbelieved and denied Our verses - those are the companions of the Fire,

abiding eternally therein; and wretched is the destination. (Sahih International)

No disaster strikes except by permission of Allah. And whoever believes in Allah - He will

guide his heart. And Allah is Knowing of all things. (Sahih International)

: whatever strikes comes from which is an arrow that is shot at the

bullseye of a target. This means that not a single calamity happens except with

the permission of Allaheverything that happens to us is supposed to happen.

: If you really have Iman and you have faith in this time of hardship, Allah

will guide your heart. He will make it possible for you to move on.

And obey Allah and obey the Messenger; but if you turn away - then upon Our Messenger is

only [the duty of] clear notification. (Sahih International)

: The Rasuls (S) only job was to share the message, it wasnt his job to

make you accept it. This ayah is sent to console the Prophet (S) because he would

feel sad when people rejected the message.

Allah there is no deity except Him. And upon Allah let the believers rely. (Sahih

International)

O you who have believed, indeed, among your wives and your children are enemies to you,

so beware of them. But if you pardon and overlook and forgive - then indeed, Allah is Forgiving

and Merciful. (Sahih International)

: your spouses and children can be enemies to your

spirituality

Ex. you dont have enough money to buy a house, but your wife pressures

you into taking a loan and going into debt to buy the house. Since you took

the bad advice, she is an enemy for you because on the Day of Judgment

you will be blaming each other for the sin

This can be meaning a part of them is an enemy to you the

part of your wife encouraging you to buy the house on interest is an

enemy to you.

But if you dont take their bad advice, theyll be really mad at you, theyll have an

attitude with you, but if you (forgive lovingly) and (turn the page) and

(cover) the attitude and pushback from them, Allah is Extremely Forgiving

and Constantly Merciful

Your wealth and your children are but a trial, and Allah has with Him a great reward. (Sahih

International)

: a hard test wealth and kids both are things you have hope in for the

future. They are both your retirement options. Allah says if you were smart,

you would invest in your afterlife, not your elderly life!

So fear Allah as much as you are able and listen and obey and spend [in the way of Allah]; it is

better for your selves. And whoever is protected from the stinginess of his soul - it is those

who will be the successful. (Sahih International)

: Whatever your best is We wont be compared to anyone but

ourselves!

: the wanting for yourself right now/greed/urges

If you loan Allah a goodly loan, He will multiply it for you and forgive you. And Allah is Most

Appreciative and Forbearing. (Sahih International)

: Someone who feels what youre going through

Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, the Exalted in Might, the Wise. (Sahih

International)