The Requirements of Leadership in Religion.

The Shaykh : As for the third phrase, which is: This requires certain things: First: knowledge. It requires that a person asks Allah to make him a scholar. Why? He says: When does one become a leader in piety? When he is knowledgeable about what he fears. So this phrase implies that you are asking Allah to make you a student of knowledge, because a necessary consequence of piety is being knowledgeable about what one fears. It also implies that a person must act upon what he knows. A person is not a leader unless he is a good role model. That is why you find scholars following the example of their predecessors, following the leaders of the Muslims, such as Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy on him) and his brothers among the imams, because they knew and they acted. If a man comes who is knowledgeable, eloquent, and fluent, and he speaks, but people do not see any action from him, then their acceptance of him will be weak. So, by saying: you are asking Allah to grant you action upon what you have learned. The third matter included in this phrase is: asking Allah to give you a strong argument. A strong argument, because if a person does not have a strong argument, he may be able to reform himself, but he cannot reform others. Because anyone who debates him may overpower him and he will be defeated before them. And in that case, he will not be a leader for the pious. So by this, you are asking Allah to give you eloquence, fluency, and the ability to persuade. People differ; how many people have vast knowledge but cannot persuade, and how many have less knowledge but can persuade others. Also, this phrase includes good character. How great is good character, and how little of it is found in many people. A person cannot be loved or accepted unless he is granted the ability to love Allah, so Allah (Mighty and Majestic) loves him, and he follows the path of the believers. One of the most important things in that is having good character: bearing and being patient with the harm of people, and knowing that the world has not been spread out for him with roses, and knowing that whenever he succeeds in his affair, his enemy who is not on his methodology will try to obstruct his effort. And whenever his influence increases, opposites will appear to him, and it is inevitable. If you wish, follow the biography of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Did opposites appear to him? Yes, opposites appeared to him and they wanted to kill him: How many are these? Three: imprisonment, execution, expulsion. They wanted all of this, but they The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was harmed. He was prostrating to Allah under the House of Allah, safe as he could be on the earth of Allah, and the placenta of a camel was placed on his back while he was prostrating. He was patient and seeking reward. He went to the people of Ta'if, and what did they do to him? They lined up two rows of their foolish men, their servants, and their slaves, and each one had a stone, and they threw stones at the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) until they bled his heels. He did not regain consciousness, he fled on his face, and he did not regain consciousness until at Qarn al-Tha'labayn (peace and blessings be upon him). Who can bear this? And greater than that, the angel of the mountains came to him and asked his permission to crush the two mountains over them, but he said: No (peace and blessings be upon him). He said: I will delay their punishment. Look, after reflection, a people who fought him, expelled him from Makkah, and drove him out of Ta'if, and yet he says: Was the matter expected or not? The matter was expected. Allah the Exalted brought forth from their loins one who served Allah, and he was a leader in the religion of Allah, and he was among the knights in the religion of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So good character makes a person a leader for the pious; it is one of the causes of that, one of the causes for a person to be a leader is to have good character. So you must, my brother, have good character, and be patient and seek reward, and make this noble verse your leader before you. I will read it to you. It is: What a verse it is! By Allah, if we walked upon it, we would be saved from much anxiety: What is the meaning of pardon? It means pardoning the character of people, and how they treat you, and leaving what is beyond that. You do not want people to treat you as you wish, ever, unless Allah wills. Second: Do not be silent, enjoin what is right, and if something befalls you, be patient and seek reward. You will find an ignorant person who insults you, backbites you, perhaps hits you. Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says: And be as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said when his finger was bled: And know, my brother, that what befalls you in the religion of Allah is an elevation for you, and good, and reward. And remember that when you are stretched out on your bier, nothing will benefit you except this and its like. Nothing will benefit you when you are alone in your grave except this and its like. Nothing will benefit you when you stand before the Lord of the Worlds barefoot, naked, and uncircumcised except this. This is what truly benefits you, and everything else of the enjoyments of the world is transient: So, my brother, when you stand to pray, you find a struggle with yourself, a wrestling. Your soul says: Hurry, hurry, hurry. But do not obey it. Say: I know that I do not benefit from my world except in this moment and with this deed. And if you feel this feeling, and that you will not benefit from your life except with this and its like, do you flee from it as you would flee from a lion, or do you feel at ease? Answer, people? You feel at ease. My brother, think about this. When you say: Allah is the Greatest, you find something in yourself saying: Oh Allah - walk, walk - . Say: My brother, slowly, slowly, slowly. I have nothing from my life except this. Nothing benefits me in my grave, or at my death, or on the Day of Resurrection except this. Be at ease, my brother. Then remember while you are in your prayer whom you are conversing with. Whom are you conversing with, my brother? You are conversing with the most beloved thing to you, which is Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Did you not know that if you say: Allah the Exalted said from above the seven heavens: My servant praised Me. Did you not know that if you say: Allah said: My servant praised Me. Did you not know that if you say: He said: My servant glorified Me. All of this is true. Did you not know that if you say: Allah said: This is between Me and My servant, and it is divided in two. Did you not know that if you say: Allah said: This is for My servant, and for My servant is what he asked. Do you find anything better than this? How do you flee from standing before the One who is conversing with you, while He is Able over all things? My brother, know yourself, know yourself, and why you were created. By Allah, if we felt this feeling, worship would be easy for us, and the whole world would be cheap for us.
"If the world were equal to the wing of a gnat, *** The Lord would not give it to one who is ungrateful.
But it is, by Allah, lower in His sight *** Than that short wing." of flight. This is what Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said, and he spoke the truth.
I ask Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) to make us and you among the callers to good and the supporters of the truth, and to grant us from Him mercy. Indeed, He is the Bestower. And to what is facilitated of questions, we answer them, and we ask Allah to protect us from error and to guide us to the truth. Indeed, He is Able over all things.