Explanation of the author's statement: "And your Lord has decreed that you not worship except Him, and to parents, good treatment."

The Shaykh : And "His saying:

And your Lord has decreed that you not worship except Him, and to parents, good treatment

وقضى ربك ألا تعبدوا إلا إياه وبالوالدين إحساناً

[Al-Isra 17:23]

"
Is the word "an" (that) explanatory or nominal? Here?
The student: Nominal.

The Shaykh : Nominal?
The student: Yes.

The Shaykh : The evidence? The evidence is the deletion of the nun. The evidence is the deletion of the nun in "that you not worship." And his saying: This is a dependent exception because the verb has not taken its object, so its object is what comes after "except." And his saying: "Iyya" (Him) is a separate object pronoun that is obligatory to be separated, and not attached? Obligatory to be separated?
The student: Yes.

The Shaykh : Why? Because the attached form does not come after "except," as Ibn Malik said: "And of the attached, some does not begin, nor follow 'except' by choice, ever"
... The author [cited] the verse also, but the rest of the verse has no bearing on tawhid (the oneness of Allah). Okay.
Decree, I mean the decree of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, is divided into two types: legislative decree and cosmic decree. The cosmic decree must occur, and it happens in what Allah loves and in what He does not love, and in what He does not love. The legislative decree is the opposite; it is permissible for it to occur or not occur, and it does not happen except in what Allah loves. Do you understand now? So the decree of Allah is divided into two types: cosmic and legislative. The cosmic, here, does not happen except in...
The student: ...

The Shaykh : [It is a] mistake [to say otherwise]. The cosmic happens in what Allah loves and what He does not love, and it must occur. The legislative does not happen except in what Allah loves, and it may occur or may not occur. An example of the cosmic is the saying of the Exalted: And "decreed" here cannot mean legislation, because Allah does not legislate for people to cause corruption on earth, nor does He love corruption. So the decree here is cosmic.
And an example of the legislative is this verse: And on this basis, "decreed" means legislated, meaning He legislated, or He commanded, or similar to that. Okay, if someone says: You affirm that Allah decreed cosmically what He does not love. How does Allah decree what He does not love? Does anyone force Allah to do something?
The student: No.

The Shaykh : Okay, so how does it occur when He does not love it? We say the loved is of two types: loved for its own sake and loved for the sake of something else. Loved for its own sake and loved for the sake of something else. So what is loved for the sake of something else may be disliked in its essence, but He loves it for the wisdom and benefit it contains... So Allah, Mighty and Majestic, may decree evil while He dislikes it, but He loves it for the sake of something else, meaning for the wisdom it contains, the wisdom. So in that case, it is loved by Allah from one aspect and disliked by Him from another aspect. If we look at the mere decree, we say it is loved by Allah. If we look at the essence of the decreed thing, we say it is disliked by Allah if it is of what He dislikes. Use your minds, my brothers. So corruption on earth by the Children of Israel is in itself disliked by Allah. Allah does not love corruption, nor does He love the corrupters. But for the wisdoms it contains, it becomes loved by Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Drought, barrenness, disease, and rain are written by Allah, Mighty and Majestic. And Allah, the Exalted, does not love to harm His servants with this thing, nor does He will for His servants anything but ease. But He decrees it for a wisdom, so it becomes loved by Allah from one aspect and disliked from another aspect. So in that case, we know that Allah, Mighty and Majestic, may decree a thing while He dislikes it, but for a wisdom contained in this decree or this judgment, and in that case, it becomes loved by Allah from one aspect.
If someone says: How can it be imagined that a thing is loved from one aspect and disliked from another? Show me a tangible example I can be reassured by? We say: This sick person, this sick person is given a dose of medicine that is bitter, foul-smelling, foul-colored. Does he drink it out of love for drinking it, or not?
The student: No.

The Shaykh : In this state, he dislikes it and does not love drinking it, but he loves drinking it for the healing that results from it, for the healing that results from it. So this dose of water or medicine is loved by the person from one aspect, yes, and disliked by him from another aspect. Did you see? If a man among people held your child and heated an iron and cauterized him with it, would you be pleased?
The student: No.

The Shaykh : You are not pleased, you are not pleased... But if he was sick and the doctor came and decided to cauterize him with the iron heated over fire, would you be pleased or not pleased?
The student: Yes.

The Shaykh : So this pain would be disliked by you from one aspect and loved by you from another aspect.
Okay. If you said: Is it not possible to make it from the category of the cosmic decree? It is not possible. If it were a cosmic decree, here, people would worship their Lord, all of them. But it is a legislative decree that may occur or may not occur. Yes. Look at the verse; the address in it is to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, but he said: and did not say "that you not worship" (singular). And this has a parallel in the Qur'an: So the address in the first is to whom? To the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. And in the second, it is to the general public. This "Your Lord has decreed" is addressed to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, and "that you not worship" is to the general public. What is the benefit of changing the style? And we know that the Qur'an is the highest in eloquence and rhetoric?
The benefit, first: that a person should be alert, that a person should be alert, because when the style changes and comes contrary to the customary, it must be... what? A person should be alert. And alerting the addressee is required for the listener.
Second, because the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, is the leader of his nation, and the address directed to him is directed to everyone. And this is clear.
And third, and Allah knows best, the indication that what the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, was addressed with is for him and for the nation, except what the evidence indicates is specific to him. Clear?
And in this specific verse, there is a fourth benefit: directing the address first to the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, from which it is derived that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, is like others, a created being, a worshipper, and not a Lord, worshipped, or not? Because he is included in the verse. Included in the priority: "that you not worship." So here, the indication is that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, is a created being, what? Not a Lord, a worshipper, not worshipped. And that is sufficient for him as an honor to be a servant of Allah, Mighty and Majestic. For this reason, Allah, the Exalted, describes him with servitude in his highest station. So He said in the station of challenge and defense of him: "To Our servant whom We sent to you." And He said, Mighty and Majestic:
The student: Al-Furqan, to His servant.

The Shaykh : Yes. In the station of affirming his prophethood and his messengership to creation. Yes. So this is an honor for the Messenger, may Allah's prayers and blessings be upon him, that Allah, the Exalted, singles him out with specific servitude. For this reason, we say that servitude is of three types: general, specific, and specific of the specific. Is that right? The general is the servitude of lordship, and it is for all creation. Its evidence is the saying of the Exalted: "Until the servants of Allah disbelieved." Servant of Allah, servant of Allah, first, or not?
The student: Yes.

The Shaykh : The specific is the servitude of obedience. The general, like the saying of the Exalted: This encompasses whom? Everyone who worships Allah by His legislation, not by His decree... by His decree... everyone who worships Allah by His legislation. The specific of the specific is the servitude of the Messengers, peace and blessings be upon them, like the saying of the Exalted about Noah: And his saying about Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him: Look, the first of the Messengers and the last of the Messengers. And his saying to the other Messengers: "Our servants, Abraham." So this servitude that is attributed to the Messengers, by which the Messengers were described, we call it what? Specific of the specific, because no one rivals them in this servitude, ever. No one rivals them. Look at Noah, peace and blessings be upon him; he remained in his nation for a thousand years except fifty years, calling them to Allah in secret and openly, and in public, and he was patient with their harm and their mockery of him, yes, and their challenging him. And look at Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, also, why he was patient. And look at the others among the Messengers. And despite that, they remained in their worship of Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. And the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, would stand in night prayer until his feet swelled, until the young men were unable to stand as he stood. And he is the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. Is there any one of us, or any one of the people, who stands this standing? And despite that, Allah has forgiven him what has passed of his sin and what has remained. If this were with us, we would say: Praise be to Allah, as long as He has forgiven us what has passed and what has remained, it is done. The guarantee is now with us, the document is done, there is no work. But the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, said: And by this, we know this servitude by which the Messengers, peace and blessings be upon them, were described.
Yes, I think the time for questions has arrived. Yes.
He, the Mighty and Majestic, said: This means, and be kind to your parents with kindness. It means your Lord has decreed, meaning He has commanded, that you be kind to your parents with kindness. And His saying "the parents" includes the mother and the father, and those above them, but it is most emphatic regarding the mother and the father. The closer a person is to you, the more deserving they are of kindness. And His saying: In His saying "with kindness," it means bestowing what is right. And in His saying "do not say to them 'uff,'" it means withholding harm, because if you say "uff" to them and they become annoyed, they may be hurt by it. And in His saying: This is a reference to the fact that if they reach this state where they become a burden on their children, meaning if they reach old age and become a burden on their son, tiring him, do not say "uff" to them, do not be annoyed. If they do wrong in their actions, do not be annoyed by the situation, and do not rebuke them in speech. This means softness and kindness with calmness and tranquility, such as saying, "May Allah magnify your reward," "Be happy, my father," "Be happy, my mother," and the like. Rather, let your speech be soft in its formulation, and so in its delivery... let it not be disturbing speech, such as raising the voice, and let it be speech that includes supplication for them and endearing yourself to them.
This means humbling yourself before them. The reason he said "the wing of humility" is that by nature, a person has pride and arrogance, so lower that wing by which you fly high with your own self, and humble yourself before them. This "min" (from) is for the purpose of causation, meaning because of their kindness, for they have reached old age and become a burden on you and tire you, so have mercy on them. This also means turning to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, with supplication for them that He may have mercy on them. The "kaf" here is for the purpose of causation, meaning because they raised me when I was small. It has passed us that the "kaf" comes for the purpose of causation in several places. And His saying: He mentioned the state of childhood because a person in the state of childhood does not have the power to benefit or harm himself, but his mother toils for him night and day, and the father toils to earn for him, likewise night and day. So they raised him with physical upbringing and raised him with religious and moral guidance, so they have this great right over him.
And in His saying: after His saying: is evidence that the right of the parents is after the right of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic. Perhaps you will ask, where is the right of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)? The answer is that the right of the Messenger is part of the right of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, so the right of Allah includes the right of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). Then he said, and His saying
The point of this verse is His saying This is the oneness of Allah.
Then he said " And His saying

Worship Allah and associate nothing with Him

واعبدوا الله ولا تشركوا به شيئا

[An-Nisa 4:36]

" the verse. This is in Surat al-Nisa. This is in the scale of "except Allah." In the scale of "no god," because it is for negation. And His saying "thing," this is an indefinite noun in the context of a condition.
The student: The prohibition.

The Shaykh : In the context of the prohibition, it encompasses everything, not a prophet, not an angel, not a close friend of Allah, and not any person. Do not associate with Him anything, not even a matter from the matters of this world, even the matters of this world... Yes, even the matters of this world, do not make them partners with Allah. And when a person's concern is this world, he worships it, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: And His saying: is like the previous verse. This also means with kindness. "Orphans" is the plural of "orphan," which is the one whose father has died and who has not reached puberty. And "the poor" are those who have been impoverished, so poverty has settled them. And "the traveler" is the one whose provisions have been cut off. "The neighbor with kinship" means the close relative, and "the neighbor without kinship" means the distant one. Yes, "the companion by your side" has been said to be the wife, and it has been said to be your companion in travel, meaning the one who is by your side. This includes being kind to animals, because they are from what your right hands possess, and being kind to slaves, because they are from what your right hands possess, and being kind to houses, because they are from what your right hands possess. Here, you are kind to your house, do you clean the glass, the floor, or not? Are they not from what your right hands possess? ... No, are they not? So that does not include the one who is arrogant in his appearance and boastful in his speech, for Allah does not love this.