Juz 1 Part 1 Page 1 A Deeper Look

Surah Al Baqarah

Introduction

• It is a Madinah Surah
• It was revealed in Madinah
• The majority of Quran already came down
• The ayat are longer and the subject is different
• Makkan Quran is when people were oppressed
• Makkan Quran Allah addresses all people
• In Madinah a community is formed and they are in a state of peace
• Allah addresses O you who believe
• Allah addresses the Jews and Christians as well
• The one of the earlier surahs revealed was Surah Al Baqarah
• Some of the last Ayat are in Surah Al Baqarah
• This surah came little by little in several years
• In these 10 years
• Last two Ayah The Prophet went up and received from Allah
• There is a difference of the audience
• The audience of Madinah are the People of the Book
• This audience are a learned people
• The people of ink who read and write so much
• A very scholarly people
• Prophet is an unlettered Prophet as he came from his mother
• Unlettered is a noble word and used as insult by People of book

1. A. L. M.

• When the Prophet first entered Madinah He recited these letters
• The Rabbis were shocked how he knows names of letters
• Prophet was supposed to be unlettered
• Then the questions arises who is teaching him
• Because only those who know how to read and write know names of letters
• When you know letters you worry about spelling
• You worry about spelling when you read and write
• Allah taught the Prophet a divine learning from the heart
• Allah to Jibril to Prophet to Sahaba to early generations to us
• The Arabs felt proud of their language
• The Quran said things that was never heard before
• No one speaks with just three letters
• No one has learned from this teacher
• No one knows these letters meanings except Allah
• Everything Allah taught us is for our benefit
• Allah taught us the Quran
• When someone is teaching they have the student in mind
• These letters teach us intellectual humility
• We do not know anything except for that which Allah teaches us
• This is our student orientation
• When the teacher mentions certain criteria we must prepare
• The right attitude we need before we read this book
• Our first orientation is that we don’t know only Allah knows
• We come to this book with humility and not curiosity
• We come to this book as a beggar
• We come as someone desperate for guidance
• Allah knows what we need to know and don’t need to know
• We can study the Quran but if we do not have the right attitude
• We will be misguided
• We need to be ok with stopping our curiosity
• Some people are still stuck on ALM
• Some people get lost in silly details
• A teacher teaches you some things and does not teach you certain things
• There are useful and useless questions
• Ask only useful questions
• When ever Allah mentions letters He follows it up with something about the Quran
• Allah further triggers our curiosity by changing up the letters

2. That book! There is absolutely no room for any doubt in it. Guidance! for the cautious.

Kitab

• To carve into stone
• There is no room for any change
• You cannot erase it
• The Quran is what it is
• There is no room to edit or modify
• The order is set and will not be changed
• This book is already set in stone in the highest heavens
• It is something that is written
• The highest heavens are far
• Allah says that book
• QuranTo recite aloud
• It is something that is recited
• The recitation of the Quran happens here
• This world is close
• Allah says this Quran

Rayb

• A word used for doubt
• When someone is shaken up inside
• A doubt that bothers you
• It eats away at you
• You lose sleep over
• A doubt that causes disturbance
• There is no room for any doubt in this book
• This book has heavenly origins
• This book is a miracle for the ears to listen
• Unlike previous books that were a miracle for the eyes to see
• The miracle for the eyes to see dies in next generation
• The miracle for the ears is for those ears who want to listen
• The only way to see the miracle of this book if you reflect over it
• When you decide to dive in deep

Guidance

• This book is a guidance for those who are lost
• It is a gift for us that came from the highest heavens
• The best gift you can receive is guidance
• Guidance is something you cannot keep
• You need it over and over again
• The Quran is compared to water
• This is a book is guidance for certain people the Mutaqeen
• This book is actively guiding you
• It is a living experience for the believer
• Quran is a personal gift of guidance for you

Mutaqeen

• It means over and excessive protection
• A certain type of protective horse
• Being extra cautious where you place your feet
• Every step you take being extra careful
• It is a verb
• This characteristic is temporary
• This opens the door for all people to be Mutaqi
• ALM, That is the book
• ALM is that book
• ALM is one of the names of the Quran
• That is in fact the book that humanity was waiting for
• An incredible guidance for those who take every step carefully

3. Who believe in the unseen, establish a connection with Allah, and only in what We have provided them they spend

Faith in the Unseen

• Purchasing decisions
• Things and people you love and hate
• You must accept this reality
• Beyond what your eyes can see
• Believing in Allah, angels, Judgement day
• Seeing a reality around you that other people don’t see
• Seeing with your heart and looking deeper into it
• Someone who backbites realizes the consequence of this action
• You feel ashamed to commit sins
• You are conscience of an unseen reality
• It is in the present tense
• It is continuous
• Your actions are incomplete
• Your faith is incomplete
• You are constantly working on building your imaan
• Your imaan comes and goes
• It is up and down
• Angels protect you in the unseen
• It changes our attitude and perspective on life
• There is hope from Allah that He will give us victory when we have faith
• We are always optimistic
• A believer living in difficult times is opportunity to be grateful
• Allah sees us fit for each time we are in

Establish a connection with Allah

• The believe in the unseen is strengthened
• Through our 5 daily salah
• To remaining standing and upright
• Offering salah altogether
• Attending the masjid strengthens your imaan
• Distancing away from masjid weakens your heart
• Angels surround a group of believers in masjid
• Those in circles of zikr
• Salah is your connection to Allah
• And from whatever we provided they spendIt is more vast and open ended
• Allah provides different people different things

Whatever Allah provides you, You spend

• Like a person who becomes bankrupt
• A person who keeps spending and keeps spending
• Having two openings
• You spend in this world and gain in the next
• You are investing for the next life
• Transferring funds from duniya account to akhira account
• When you give money does not decrease
• You get double you gave back
• You are actually giving to Allah
• Ayesha would perfume her zakah
• Children can be very selfish
• You give a child a candy then ask for it back
• They say no its mine
• Greed is embedded inside our heart
• Spending purifies your greed
• We belong to Allah and unto Him is the return
• Provision is the only past tense
• You don’t have to wait for Allah to provide you to spend
• Allah has already provided you
• Allah looks at the quality of spending you do for His sake
• Don’t underestimate the value of your spending

4. And those who believe in whatever was revealed to you and whatever revealed much before you and expsecially in the hereafter they have absolute conviction

• Allah does not mention who it was sent to
• The carriers of revelation before were forgotten
• We know this revelation came directly to our Messenger
• The previous scriptures of the past can’t be traced back to Prophets
• But the truth that is left is enough to accept guidance of the Quran
• Torah and Injeel are the two major past scriptures
• Torah is revealed to Musa
• Allah says to Musa the hour is coming and it is almost hidden
• So every person can be given for every effort they make
• In Jewish Tradition there were the Satisees and Pharisees
• Satisees were custodians of their Qibla Jerusalem
• Satisees did not believe in the afterlife
• Pharisees were the Rabbis and they believed in afterlife
• Pharisees believed nations will be judged not each person
• A central concept of Quran is Afterlife
• For Jews it is almost completely gone
• Allah highlighted believe in the afterlife because it had been forgotten
• Humans beings will experience death and there is afterlife
• Humanity will be resurrected and judged
• This was erased from the minds of previous nations
• Allah sent this book to revive the belief in the afterlife
• When you forgot the afterlife then the value of your deeds are gone
• Salah is not a concern anymore
• No more motivation to spend
• These beliefs are the fundamentals of our faith
• This life is getting close to Allah
• The next life you are close to Allah
• Every salah is a rehearsal of judgment
• Allah mentions beliefs in this order
• Quran is the primary source of guidance
• Then secondarily previous scriptures
• They have absolute, complete, and whole conviction of afterlife
• The belief of the afterlife has been completed
• The missing holes from previous scriptures have been filled
• Believers have no disagreements on afterlife
• It was unclear for previous nations
• There is no room for any other Prophet
• Allah mentions belief in what was sent to Prophet Muhammad
• And was sent before and nothing after Prophet Muhammad
• The Prophet and the Hour are like two fingers very close
  

5. Those people are committed to guidance from their Master and those are the repeapers of success

• They are truly committed to guidance like no other
• Looking at the previous scriptures in light of Quran
• They achieved success like a farmer that works all year
• They will allow themselves to remain forever in bliss
• People who are successful who will always remain successful
• A farmer works all year and then finally the crop grows
• The farmer gets paid once a year
• We will have to do a lot of work then eventually we will reap our rewards
• Allah mentioned two groups in previous ayat
• Those who believe in Allah and do good
• Those who have knowledge of book
• All these groups are given a certificate of guidance and success
• The first second and fifth ayat are about guidance
• The third and fourth ayat are about iman
• A perfect symmetry of the Quran
• In second ayat Allah says it is guidance for Mutaqeen
• In 5^thayah Allah calls it guidance for all people
• Quran is benficial for all people
• But the Mutaqeen are the ones who will truly benefit
• It is an open invitation for everyone if you choose to extract the benefit
• All humanity has the opportunity to become from Mutaqeen