Mawlana Sheikh Mehmed Adil. Translations.

وَقُلِ ٱعۡمَلُواْ فَسَيَرَى ٱللَّهُ عَمَلَكُمۡ وَرَسُولُهُۥ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَۖ وَسَتُرَدُّونَ إِلَىٰ عَٰلِمِ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ وَٱلشَّهَٰدَةِ فَيُنَبِّئُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمۡ تَعۡمَلُونَ (Surah At-Tawbah, 9:105) Allah, Azza wa Jalla, says: "Do good deeds and righteous works." Allah, Azza wa Jalla, our Prophet, sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam, and the believers will see your good deeds. After that, you will return to the world of the unseen and the manifest. There, everything you have done will come to light. The "world of the unseen" refers to the time after death. During their lifetime, a person cannot see this world. Since all this only becomes visible after death, believing in the unseen means exactly that: believing in the invisible. Then it applies to all your deeds: If they were good, you will receive the reward for them. If they were bad, you will bear the punishment for them. Therefore, it is essential to believe in the unseen already during one's lifetime and to internalize true faith (Iman). Faith is of enormous importance. Many people are indeed Muslims, but they do not become true believers (Mumin) – yet that is exactly what constitutes true faith. It means completely submitting oneself to Allah, Azza wa Jalla, and being perfectly content with everything that comes from Him. That is true faith. In today's times, most Muslims lack this true faith. Why? Because they do not have a spiritual master (Murshid), no one to show them the way. Everyone acts according to their own mind and says: "I am a Muslim, I understand it this way, I read it like this, or I was taught it like this." That has nothing to do with true faith. True faith arises from the path of the Tariqa. The Tariqa is the path of faith. It is the path of our Prophet, sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam – that blessed and highly beneficial path for mankind which he has shown us. This is of crucial importance. Nowadays, there are many Muslims who claim: "There is no Tariqa, you don't need it, it is completely superfluous." What harm could the Tariqa possibly cause? Well, the Tariqa actually does cause great harm: Namely, to Satan. It harms all those who follow the path of Satan. For their goal is disbelief; but the Tariqa, with Allah's permission, strengthens faith. May Allah help us. May we, inshaAllah, always remain on the right path. May Allah never let us stray from His path.

Allah, Azza wa Jalla, created all kinds of things within man during his creation. Allah, Azza wa Jalla, created the good and the evil within him. Afterwards, He sent prophets to mankind so that they might distinguish good from evil. He sent prophets so that they would do good, perform righteous deeds, and stay away from bad deeds. But what man's ego likes more is evil. Righteous deeds are difficult for him. Useless things bring him joy. He does them and makes an effort to do them. It comes much easier to him. But afterwards, there is also a reckoning for that. There is a reckoning that must be faced in this world, and there is also a reckoning in the hereafter. A person who does not perform righteous deeds in this world, does evil, and commits sins, receives his punishment for it. Everyone sees it, but they simply draw no lessons from it; they do not do so. Because their ego oppresses them even more. "Let's do it now..." or they have already gotten used to it. It becomes a habit; they place sin and good deed on the same level. They commit the sin, but are too lazy for good deeds and do not perform them. Therefore, the commands of Allah, Azza wa Jalla – they are the most beneficial thing for man. They are beneficial both in this world and in the hereafter. Sin, such as gambling, for example. That is a sin. Whoever does it finds his punishment for it already in this world, even before the hereafter. A gambler... You will not find a rich gambler in life. His possessions, his wealth are lost. And on top of that, there is this punishment in the hereafter. Because he has sinned, and it is among the major sins. This gambling is not a normal sin, it counts among the major sins. Therefore, one must be careful. Everything that is a sin, we should stay away from it as much as possible, inshaAllah. If you do not perform righteous deeds, at least stay away from sins. May Allah help us overcome our ego, inshaAllah. May Allah bless you all, may our Friday be blessed.

"Idhalu's-surur fi kalbi'l-mu'min", inshaAllah a noble Hadith of our Prophet (sallAllahu aleyhi wa sallam); it states: "To bring joy to the heart of a believer is among the deeds that Allah loves." Thanks be to Allah, this journey was a relief, something beautiful, and a joy both for us and for our brothers and sisters (Ihvan). What kind of joy? For the pleasure of Allah. They strive for the pleasure of Allah. That is why Allah also grants joy and beauty to their hearts. This is not to be found in anything else. No other worldly joy penetrates the heart like this. What penetrates the heart is the love for Allah Azza wa Jalla and the love for our Prophet (sallAllahu aleyhi wa sallam). Other love, joy, or happiness are things that only appeal to the ego. These are also unacceptable; they are not genuine. The true joy, that which gives the heart expansion and relief, is the love for Allah, for our Prophet (sallAllahu aleyhi wa sallam), and for the righteous servants. That is what gives true happiness to the human heart. Mashallah, this was a journey undertaken for the pleasure of Allah. It was a joy for our hearts and inshaAllah also a joy for their hearts. May Allah be pleased with all our brothers and sisters; they showed us hospitality and were with us as best as they could. May Allah give them their reward and grant us all, inshaAllah, happiness in this world and in the hereafter.

وَتِلْكَ الْأَيَّامُ نُدَاوِلُهَا بَيْنَ النَّاسِ (3:140) Allah Azza wa Jalla is saying: The days are passing. Everybody is coming and going. When everyone finishes, another takes their place. This is the reality of our existence: nobody will be in this world forever. Days come and go quickly. Weeks, months, and years pass by, and suddenly you look behind and find ten or fifteen years have passed. Alhamdulillah, we are happy to be here as our days end, Insha'Allah, tomorrow. With this visit to our beloved people and our beloved murids in this country—we visited many countries and many cities—but it all passed quickly. For this, we thank Allah that He made it possible for us to visit, to serve people, and to help people. We are happy with this. Because these days and these years are not passing without benefit. Insha'Allah, may Allah accept it and help us to continue this. And this is a good thing for our next life. Prophets came to some people and told them about the next life, but many of them did not believe. Some of them might have heard, like the Egyptian pharaohs; they built pyramids and put money, clothes, and even food inside. They even put canoes for traveling in the next life. They did not believe completely. They thought this material world was everything. You cannot take anything from this material world to the other world, nothing at all. And even if we could take it, there would be no benefit in it. Everything will rot. First, your body will rot. After that, whatever you have—a coffin or otherwise—will all turn to dust. When you close your eyes, nothing from this world is for you anymore. It is all left for your family. Even your wife or your husband will no longer be your wife and husband. Your money, your house, everything will no longer be yours; it will be for inheritance. The only things you can send ahead to the other world are the good deeds and charity you have done in this life. So there is no need to exhaust yourself building something to put food, gold, or money inside for the next life; in the next life, there is plenty of this. Because in Paradise, there will be houses and palaces made of gold, silver, and jewels. Paradise will be like this, so there is no benefit in hoarding and not doing good things in this life. The jewels will shine like stars. The clothes, gardens, rivers—everything is beyond your imagination. And whatever food or fruit you eat, each time you eat it, the next bite will taste even better. And of course, there is no more death, no more illness, and no more sadness—only happiness in Paradise. Of course, there will be rivers of milk and rivers of wine, but not like the ones here; they cannot be compared to anything in this world, this dunya. No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no one can even imagine Paradise. What we said is just a very small glimpse, maybe not even one in a million, but it is endless. You cannot imagine how beautiful it is. And this is what Allah Azza wa Jalla gives to the people who believe in Him. Thanking Him and worshipping Him. Not worshipping anything else. Not worshipping what their ego desires. Nor what Shaitan orders and commands. Of course, Shaitan and his followers cheat people. They present something as holy or as a command from Allah, when it is not a command from Allah at all. And they say many things that are unacceptable to anyone with even a little bit of good sense. Through this, they lead people away from Paradise. Allah Azza wa Jalla says that Shaitan is your worst enemy. And Shaitan spends his whole existence trying to divert people from the way of Allah. He calls people to misery, to a bad ending, and to every bad thing. Telling people: "Don't believe; only believe in yourself. Do what you like to do, enjoy yourself, live your life, and don't listen to the advice of anyone who wants to stop you from enjoying yourself." He is happy when he gets anyone to follow him. This brings him the most happiness. And his greatest sadness is when anyone comes back to the way of Allah Azza wa Jalla. Who is the worst enemy of Shaitan? Our Prophet, sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam, Sayyidina Muhammad, sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam. Because of this, we see that the people who follow Shaitan are enemies of the Prophet, sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam. Because he is the most beloved to Allah Azza wa Jalla, and Shaitan is the most jealous one. Therefore, he puts his greatest effort into destroying this among the people—the love for and the following of the way of the Prophet, sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam. And at this time, he controls most of the world. We see everywhere that his followers are growing more and more. And his followers are the army of the Antichrist. When I was a small child, I heard about Mahdi Alaihissalam and the Antichrist. At that time, my mother used to tell me about him. She would say that his army consists of people who lack proper human relationships, acting against the normal nature of human beings. The entire army will be like this. At that time, this was unheard of; everyone had normal relationships, so it sounded amazing. But now, you find hundreds of millions like this.

Being in this place reminds me of an ayah from the Quran in Surah Al-Kahf. "Innahum fityatun amanu bi-rabbihim wa-zidnahum huda." (18:13) "They were youths who believed in their Lord, and We increased them in guidance." These young men were just like any others—they liked to be out playing and enjoying themselves. They enjoyed their youth, but when Allah guides someone to His path, He makes them find true happiness upon it. There was a king who enjoyed their company. He favored them because of their youth and loved having them around. They didn't have much on their minds. They were free of responsibilities and had nothing to worry about. The king just enjoyed himself with them, completely carefree. Their presence brought joy to everyone around them. So, the king was very fond of these young men. Wherever young people go, they bring happiness. They radiate good energy, and people naturally enjoy being around them. But the problem was the corrupt environment surrounding them. This king was forcing the people to worship him and bow to idols. However, these young men were clever. They saw what was happening and thought, "What is this man claiming about himself and these idols? How can we participate in this?" Allah granted guidance—hidaya—to their hearts. Being wise, they realized, "If we tell this king to stop, he won't listen." "And if we refuse to follow him, he will likely torture or kill us." So, they made the decision to escape. They decided to slip away during the night, fleeing from the king's rule. Allah, Azza wa Jalla, blessed them. He wanted to show them a profound miracle. Through these ordinary young men, Allah manifested a miracle. They said, "Our people refuse to listen, so we can no longer stay with them. They will not accept us, and we cannot accept their ways. Let us flee this city to save our faith." They realized, "Our own parents and relatives do not believe. Instead of accepting us, they will become our enemies." This reminds me of the very first time I came to Germany, back in 1985. During that first visit, I met many new Muslims. I remember these new believers who had just embraced Islam. I drew a comparison—a tashbih. An analogy. I compared them to these youths from the cave, or to the early Sahaba, because their entire families and society were against them. Despite this, they refused to succumb to Shaytan or yield to their non-believing relatives. They will surely be rewarded for this. They are truly among the chosen ones. Up until around 1977, there wasn't much Islamophobia. But then fitna was stirred up, starting with the Iranian Revolution—the so-called Islamic Revolution. That revolution was orchestrated. People began committing terrible acts against one another. And the world began to say, "This is Islam." That is how the prejudice started. Slowly, people began turning against Islam. By 1985, it wasn't terrible yet, but society was already becoming less accepting. At that time, you could claim to be anything. You could say, "I am God," "I am a prophet," or even "I am Shaytan," and people would tolerate it. But you couldn't proudly say the word "Islam." To them, that was the most terrible thing you could be. The same societal rejection happened to these young men. They fled their city and sought refuge in a cave. They said, "We are exhausted. Perhaps we have run far enough up this mountain." When the time appointed by Allah finally arrived, they awoke. They felt fine, but confused. They asked one another, "Perhaps we slept too long? Maybe for one, two, or three days?" Then they realized how hungry they were. So they told one of their group, "Take this silver coin and go to the city, but be very careful. We cannot go together. If we do, they will recognize us, alert the king, and capture us." "He will force us back into his religion. So be stealthy, buy some food, and return quickly." So he went down to the city and offered the coin to buy some bread. The merchant examined the coin—it was from 300 years ago. It bore the name of the ancient king, Decianus. But over those centuries, the people of the city had become believers. The tyrannical king had long since died, and the entire country had embraced faith. The townspeople questioned him, eventually explaining, "We are believers now." Stunned, he took the food and returned to the mountain. The people excitedly told one another, "We have found the lost youths! We must go and meet them." They followed the young man's footsteps all the way to the cave. But by the wisdom of Allah, He concealed the young men from them. The people then declared, "We must build a place of worship over them." So, they built a mosque at the site. Thinking of those new believers in Germany reminds me of this story, Masha'Allah. And Insha'Allah, through the blessings of such youth, this entire country will embrace faith. This specific cave is located in Tarsus. Maulana has visited it. It is in the city of Tarsus, in southern Turkey. Many places claim to be the site of the cave, but Maulana and Hajjah Anne confirmed that the authentic one is in Tarsus.

First of all, we must say again, we are happy to be here. Old and new Murids alike, everybody is coming, mashaAllah, alhamdulillah. Allah says in the Quran, "We created you from the Earth and made the ground flat to grow everything: vegetables, trees, and wheat." Some people think—I heard about a new trend—that the Earth is flat. It is by Allah's Power, Qudrah, that He makes it like that. They cannot imagine that it is round like a ball. So, they just say it is flat. Allah said, "We created you from the Earth, and to the Earth you will return." And afterwards, "Thumma Yuidukum Fiha Wa Yukhrijukum Ikhrajaan" (Quran 71:18). "We will bring you out of the Earth again." And creation continues from Allah Azza wa-Jalla. Sayyidina Ahmad Al-Rifai, the Pir of the Rifai Tariqah, has great karamat (miracles). He was performing Hajj once. People heard a voice coming from the grave of the Prophet, salla Llahu alayhi wa-sallam, saying, "My grandson has come. Come kiss my hand." The holy white hand of our Prophet, salla Llahu alayhi wa-sallam, came out, and Sayyidina Ahmad Al-Rifai kissed it. Many people saw this; maybe more than a hundred, five hundred, or even a thousand people saw it. Another karamah of his is that he said, "I died and ascended to the first, second, third, and reached the fourth sky. I saw an ocean. This ocean was made of sand." A voice called out to him, "Come closer and look." When he looked, each grain was a planet. Each grain of sand was a planet, but from afar, it looked like sand. Of course, when he told people about it at that time, they didn't know about planets. They might have thought they looked like the moon or something similar. But these grains looked like the Earth. This is to show the Majesty and Might of Allah. He is "Al-Khallaq," which means He is continuously creating. For this reason, we are saying, alhamdulillah, we are here; we came into this world. And inshaAllah, with the barakah of our mashayikh, you will receive real knowledge from the Prophet, salla Llahu alayhi wa-sallam, from the mashayikh, and from the Awliyau Llah. By the promise of Allah Azza wa-Jalla, whoever follows him will be in Jannah forever when we are resurrected again on the Day of Resurrection. Because of this, Mawlana Shaykh was constantly calling people to Paradise. Many people, alhamdulillah, have come, and as I said, new, good generations are emerging, following Mawlana Shaykh. The holy book, the Quran Azimu sh-Shan, explains everything about this world and the hereafter. And of course, as we said in the beginning, Allah created the world and everything human beings need: animals, and plants. There is enough of everything for all of mankind on this Earth. However, since ancient times, many people have gone around pretending to do something while trying to deceive others. They tried many times to say to Allah Azza wa-Jalla, "I am stronger than You." Nimrod built a tower and was throwing arrows at the sky. Pharaoh was also like this. He told his companion to build a tower to reach Allah. And now, people of our time are also trying to do the same. They are saying, "We will reach the moon. We will reach Mars." But they are only deceiving themselves first, and then deceiving others. Some of them stay in the sky, not too far away—maybe a hundred or two hundred miles. And when they come back, they become like empty snail shells; there is nothing left inside them, they are finished. In every era, we have someone who claims to be the savior of humanity. Claiming that they are providing a great service by serving humanity. But whenever they do something, it is only for their own benefit—to make more money and become richer. That is their main purpose. Now, they are also putting on a theatrical act with wars and such. And everyone becomes very afraid, worrying about what will happen, what the future holds, and what we should do. All of this is not as it appears or as people see it. There are many hidden agendas beneath it all. They are deceiving people. Because of this, believers and those following the way of Allah and the Prophet, salla Llahu alayhi wa-sallam, do not worry about anything. If you are like this, Allah grants satisfaction to your heart, and you will not worry about anything. Then, you will always be safe, inshaAllah. Mawlana was giving good tidings about this. Alhamdulillah, there is no need to worry. inshaAllah, Allah will send our savior, Sayyidina Al-Mahdi, alayhi s-salam. What is happening now is a result of what people have been doing. They are simply harvesting what they have planted. If you plant wheat, barley, or potatoes, that is exactly what you will harvest. But if you plant bad seeds, bad things will grow; they will not be useful for anything. Yesterday we were in a garden. There was a plant. They plant it everywhere, but it doesn't look nice, and it even smells very bad. If you grow this plant, you won't get the scent of a rose, jasmine, or anything similar. Therefore, in these times, do not worry. It is better to keep silent so as not to turn people against you. Just be silent and watch. Alhamdulillah, everything Mawlana predicted is slowly coming to pass. Previously, Mawlana used to tell us to move outside the cities and find a place in the countryside. But alhamdulillah, in his final years, he advised us to stay in our homes and not worry about anything. And don't say anything. Don't be with the crowd. Because following the crowd is dangerous. May Allah keep us safe and allow us to reach those good days. inshaAllah, they are near; but "Allahu A'lam"—Allah knows best. It truly looks like things couldn't possibly get any worse than this. inshaAllah, may Allah keep us safe, happy, and together. May we reach those days and be with Sayyidina Al-Mahdi. Those will be very beautiful days. Some people are also deceiving others regarding this matter. They say, "We must stockpile supplies with us. How else will we survive in those days?" Those days will be completely different from now, after Sayyidina Al-Mahdi arrives. There will be no need for this modern technology. A hundred years ago, a brilliant man stated that there is no need for all of this to generate electricity; you can extract energy directly from the Earth. This is one of Allah Azza wa-Jalla's miracles. Mawlana Shaykh said that all of this technology will come to an end. Today's technology will seem like the Stone Age compared to the technology of that time. When Allah Azza wa-Jalla wills something, nothing can stop it. So, in the end of times, when Mahdi, alayhi s-salam, arrives, it will be a very beautiful era. May Allah bless you. May Allah keep you safe, inshaAllah.

Alhamdulillah, people are thirsty for spirituality. We have been traveling for nearly 9 or 10 days. This is the last station, or nearly the last station. Alhamdulillah, people are thirsty for spirituality; they are coming more and more. This morning I was in Kassel, and we visited his place, his garden. And as we were going through Kassel to another place, we met two people. One of our murids showed us these two people. He said, "These people want to greet you, because they are thirsty for spirituality." He said, "Muslims and Christians, we come together here." I told him that believers must be together. Of course, there is no difference between Christians and Muslims. All true religion is Islam. All who believe in God and the heavenly books are the same. From Adam (alayhis salam) all the way to the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam). Teaching humanity to live as real human beings. To live as humans and to serve. How can one be a true human being? By being a servant to your Lord, Allah 'Azza wa Jalla, who created you. This is the greatest honor for a human being. Being a servant to other people is not something to be proud of. You can only be proud of being a servant of Allah; this is true pride. This is what the highest of humanity, Muhammad (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam), said. He is called: "Abduhu wa rasuluhu"—His servant and His messenger. All the prophets are "abduhu"—servants of Allah. Zakariyya, Sayyidina Yahya, and Sayyidina Ibrahim—they are all mentioned as His servants. It is mentioned in the holy book, the Quran al-Azimush-Shan. It mentions how every prophet says: "I am a servant of Allah, He gave me a message to be a messenger, and He sent me with holy books and holy revelations." And even non-believers accept that the prophets are the most holy, people of the highest character. Nobody rejects this. This is the most valuable jewel among human beings. They say in the Qasida: "Muhammadun basharun wa laysa kal-bashari, bal huwa yaqutatun wa-n-nasu kal-hajari." The Prophet Muhammad (alayhis salam) is a human being, but he is not like other humans. A jewel like a ruby is also a stone, but you cannot compare other stones to it. This is just an example for us, for those who want to be good and attain a high rank in the divine presence of Allah 'Azza wa Jalla and the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam). One must try to be like them, to imitate them. They gave their whole lives to serving Allah 'Azza wa Jalla, bringing guidance to humanity. Of course, some people might ask later: "Where are the prophets now?" There are no prophets after the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam). Because, as the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam) said in his last sermon, during his final Hajj, the Hajj al-Akbar: "Al-yawma akmaltu lakum dinakum"—Today I have perfected your religion for you. (5:3) Of course, religion began with Sayyidina Adam (alayhis salam). 124,000 prophets were sent by Allah for mankind. They came at different times—sometimes more, sometimes fewer—throughout thousands of years and centuries, until the last prophet came to complete it and present it to humanity. For all of mankind—not only for one nation, but for everyone. Everything he taught is 100 percent for the benefit of humanity. If humans followed even half of it, or even just 10 percent of these teachings, the world would be like paradise. But people are not following them, and so they are suffering. We see this today, and we have seen it in the past. People approach things and act according to their own minds. Not thinking of others. Even when they offer a good idea to make things better, they only do it to show off, to prove that they are clever and doing something. But things are not going well for these people. Only when sincere people serve for the sake of Allah does everything become better. But these days, everything is getting worse. Every day, people are running further and further away from religion. In the last century, they tried to abolish religion. In the 20th century, there was a massive revolution against religion. But they could not destroy it. Because without it, people do not have anything else to restrain their egos. Of course, communism and socialism were all attempts to eliminate religion. Stalin said that religion is the opium of the masses. But he died, and the people who came after him dismantled that entire system and threw it in the garbage. Stalin thought he was doing something great, but he was actually serving Shaitan; he was part of Shaitan's army. People left him behind, but Shaitan has many others in his army of various different kinds. Then the 21st century arrived. Now, people have everything. There is no poverty like in the communist countries; they have become rich and have it all. But at the same time, they no longer care about religion. This time, Shaitan used a different trick. People have everything, and they see both good and bad, but the worst part is that they only seek more enjoyment for themselves. He makes people chase their desires and their egos more and more, and he gives them alcohol. When alcohol is not enough, they are given drugs as well. They pay no attention to religion. They do not look at what is forbidden or permitted at all. First, they say they are free and can do whatever they want. Then, after that, they deny religion and deny the Creator. This is something the other systems couldn't achieve: he managed to leave more than half the world without religion. And because these people do not want to be servants of Allah, they become servants of Shaitan. Most of these people are proud of it, and they even say outright, "We are servants of Shaitan." This is true ignorance—the second period of ignorance that the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam) spoke about. But after this, Allah will help His servants. He will send the saviors: Sayyidina Mahdi (alayhis salam) and Sayyidina 'Isa (alayhis salam). Of course, during the time of the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam), before he came as a prophet, it was the darkest time for humanity. At that time, the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam) appeared with his light, and he enlightened the whole world. That was the first time of ignorance. Now, he prophesied that a second time of ignorance would come. Allah will send someone from the descendants of the Prophet (sallAllahu alaihi wasallam) to bring light to the whole world, removing the darkness and spreading light, insha'Allah. We might see wars or other events happen, but that is not as important as the spiritual state of the people. It looks like a nice world. They have everything: cars, planes, and all sorts of inventions. Many people think this is fine, that there is no problem. Today, a brother — may Allah bless him — invited us. Ayberk Efendi asked him, "Why don't you plant an apple tree so that we ca eat from it?" We planted one in Damascus as well; we have a big apple tree there. But a worm went inside and ate everything. It looked round and perfect, but suddenly it fell down. The world today is exactly like this. It is being eaten by a bad worm. You look at it and think it is beautiful, but suddenly, it will fall down, with no power left at all. Insha'Allah, relief will come very soon. May Allah save us from this bad situation, insha'Allah. And we hope to see the whole world in peace, insha'Allah.

Insha'Allah, we gather for the sake of Allah. May Allah accept it and be pleased with us, insha'Allah. The teaching of Islam, alhamdulillah, is the true teaching; it is the best, as there is no comparison to the teaching of Islam. Even when they build a mosque, the first thing they look for, before building the mosque itself, is to build a place for wudu, a place for showering, and ghusl. This is because the most important thing in Islam is cleanliness—to be clean. And Islam is meant to refine the insan, the human being, and guide them. And for human beings, cleanliness is also the most important thing. When one is clean, everything is pure, and nothing can harm them. There are two kinds of cleanliness: one is spiritual cleanliness, and the other is material cleanliness. To achieve spiritual cleanliness, you must first be physically clean in material things. As everyone knows—Muslim or non-Muslim—urine and feces are impure; everybody knows they are dirty. However, they might not know that blood or alcohol are also considered impure; these are dirty in Islam. You cannot drink alcohol, nor can you eat something containing blood. I have heard that in some places they put blood into the food they eat instead of throwing it out, but this is impure. And the most impure of all is the meat of the pig. Because it is exceptionally dirty, just as consuming the flesh of a human being is forbidden. And subhanAllah, they say that this dirty animal's anatomy is very similar to that of a human being. Everything Allah has ordained in Islam holds thousands, even millions, of hidden wisdoms. Nothing is forbidden without a reason. It is not allowed to eat it at all, unless one is dying of hunger; then they may eat just a little bit to save their life. However, to eat the dead body of a human being is never allowed, even if one were to die of hunger. But among non-Muslims, we hear many stories; even last century during the Chinese Revolution, there was famine and they ate dead bodies. And the Crusaders were also famously known for eating people; it is written in their own books that around Aleppo and other places, they were killing and eating people. And the Spanish who were in South America also resorted to eating people. For this reason, Islam is the true religion of humanity. These hypocritical humanitarians overlook this, claiming instead that Islam killed people and forced them by the sword to change their religion. In Islam, regarding what you must do and what you must not do, everything is clearly shown and taught with great sensitivity. When you are physically clean and mindful of what enters your body, only then will your spirituality become pure. You cannot achieve this when your stomach is full of impure things; if you are consuming filth, your spirituality will never reach a high level. Not through yoga, nor through meditation. You might think you have reached a high state by using drugs or other harmful things, believing you have attained high spirituality. But that is a high level only in the sewage. Mawlana Sheikh used to say every time: the rat who lives there is very happy. Jumping up, swimming around, coming up and saying, "Oh, I am the king here." Whoever does not accept the way of Allah will never be able to get out of this sewage canal. Because these practices only feed the ego, not the spirituality. He is very happy, saying, "I do yoga, I do meditation. Nobody can stand on their feet or fingers for three hours like I do." We see them, and people might think they are humble and content, but it is never truly like that. Allah described this in the Quran: "Wa zayyana lahumu sh-shaytanu a'malahum fasaddahum 'ani s-sabil" (27:24) Shaytan beautifies their deeds for them, diverting them from the true path. Because Shaytan and his followers make these people—who might wear strange things—appear highly respectable when they come to Europe or elsewhere; people visit them, respect them, and help them. As a result, these people become more and more egotistical. People follow what they say, their philosophy, what they eat, what they do not eat, and what they do. And when this happens, these individuals become increasingly proud. This leads people further and further away from the true reality, from the way of Allah, and the way of the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. For this reason, we are warning people not to be deceived by the outward appearances of some individuals—whether Muslim or non-Muslim—who are leading people away from the truth. As we said, the most important thing is cleanliness, both material and spiritual. This is very important nowadays, as the material food is often very bad; even without people knowing, they are fed things that make them physically and mentally ill. Spiritually, they constantly promote things that are harmful, slowly forcing people to accept them, and punishing those who refuse. Therefore, first look at what you eat and what you feed your children. Of course, even here, I see many people who are not concerned about whether something is halal or haram; they must be much more careful about this. It is very important. If you cannot find halal food in one place, you must look for it in another. Do not give in to your ego just because you are a little hungry, thinking, "I will just eat it; maybe it's not haram." Do not do this. Another point is to surround yourself with good people. If bad people approach you, advise them to come to the way of Allah. If they accept, good; if they do not, do not spend too much time with them. Because these people possess the attribute of Shaytan, which is jealousy. If they see that you are better than them, they will try very hard to drag you down to their level. Consider water; it is very soft, while a knife is sharp and cuts. But if that soft water drops repeatedly onto a solid rock—drop by drop—it will eventually wear a hole right through it. However, if a knife hits the rock, it will do nothing to it. You might think your belief is as hard as a rock. But when bad friends constantly come around and you think, "I have strong faith, I won't be affected," their daily influence over a year or two will eventually make you start listening to them, and they might turn you into someone like themselves. Alhamdulillah, they are promoting this everywhere now. They are listening to this not only in Europe, but almost everywhere globally. Shaytan and his followers are attempting to control the whole world. Therefore, this suhbah, or what we are saying, is not just for the people here, but for everyone, insha'Allah. In the past, of course, things were very different. Everything was regulated: who was coming and who was going. At night, the city gates would be closed until the morning. Anyone wanting to settle in the city would be checked to see if they were a good person before being given permission to live there; it used to be like this. Because of this, most countries and cities were under control, and nobody could behave as they do these days. But over the last century, especially after the First World War, they destroyed this entire system, slowly but surely. Slowly, with every passing decade, it has become worse and worse. Everyone used to be settled in their own places, but to gain their votes, people were brought from the countryside into the cities. They left the countryside empty as everyone moved to the cities. In these overcrowded cities, people no longer know each other, so nobody feels ashamed in front of their neighbors or relatives, making it easier to commit misdeeds. They are now interfering in everything, dictating, "Do this, don't do that, come here, go there, do what we want, don't do what you want." They have set themselves up as gods. Because they lack true faith, they might think they are doing good, but in reality, their intentions are evil; it is Shaytan's intention to destroy humanity. Allah is showing us the way to survive this, but most people do not care; they are not pleased with His guidance and instead only follow their egos, refusing to listen to Allah. And this is exactly what is happening now. May Allah send us Sayyidina Mahdi, alayhi as-salam, to restore everything to the right way. But until he comes, we must strive to stay on the path of Allah to keep our children and relatives safe, keeping them away from bad people so this illness does not reach them. This spiritual disease is worse than Corona. During Corona, people were confined to their houses for over a year, but the situation we are in now is far worse than the Corona pandemic. To remain safe from this, as we said, you must look after your family, feed them halal food, show them the way of Allah, and keep them away from bad influences. And pray to Allah to keep you and your Muslim family safe for the sake of the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. With his barakah, and the barakah of the Sahaba, Ahlul Bayt, and Awliyaullah, Allah will keep us safe; even if we are thrown into the fire, nothing will happen to us.

وَٱعۡتَصِمُواْ بِحَبۡلِ ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعٗا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُواْۚ (3:103) Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, says: "Hold fast to the rope of Allah and do not divide." This rope will save you. The rope of Allah will save you. Hold fast to His rope. Hold fast to the rope of Allah. What is the path of Allah? It is the path that our Prophet has shown. This very path is the Tariqa; Tariqa means path. The path of Allah is held more firmly through the Tariqa. Do not be enemies on this path. If everyone walks the same path, this path leads to Allah. Then there is no division. Why does division arise? It can arise from the fitna (discord) of Satan. Such fitna can be sown through statements like "You are not right, I am right." Yet, people on the path of Allah, when others are also on the same path, should look at themselves, purify their egos, and not pay attention to the mistakes of others. Man is sinful. Only the Prophets are sinless. Except for them, everyone has sins. There is a beautiful Qasida by Sayyidina Abu Bakr... "Anta ya Siddiq asi, tub ilal Mawlal Jalil." Sayyidina Abu Bakr says: "O Siddiq, you are disobedient and sinful, repent to Allah, the Exalted." Our master Sayyidina Abu Bakr... As we just said, man was created as a sinner. Except for the Prophets, everyone is sinful. Yet, the Sahaba were the ones who had the strongest faith in our Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam). And the most excellent among the Sahaba is Sayyidina Abu Bakr. He is also mentioned in the majestic Quran. He is mentioned as the companion of our Prophet, his companion in the cave. He has his own Qasida. In the Qasida he speaks to himself and says: "Anta ya Siddiq asi, tub ilal Mawlal Jalil", which means: "You are a disobedient person, repent to Allah, the Exalted." "Repent to Allah, the Almighty and Exalted." Yet, Sayyidina Abu Bakr was a person who avoided sins. He belonged to the ten people (Ashara al-Mubashshara) who were promised Paradise. At the same time, he was one of the Sahaba who participated in the Battle of Badr. All their sins were forgiven. Their past and future sins were forgiven. He was not a sinful person, but still asked Allah for forgiveness. We should not look at the mistakes of others, but pay attention to our own flaws and mistakes and ask Allah for forgiveness. What is the benefit of this? There will be no malice in the believer; evil finds no place in him. Our religion, Islam, is the religion for everyone. The path of our Prophet, who showed this path, is taught much better through this Adab (manners), meaning through the Tariqa. We must pay attention to our own state; the state of others only concerns themselves. So that no darkness falls into our hearts, we must be well-disposed towards everyone. Of course, those who are on other paths do not want this. They say: "No, this one did this, that one did that." One sees that they insult the Sahaba from childhood; there is nothing they do not say about them. When they are raised like this from childhood, their inside naturally becomes pitch-black. Their hearts become deeply black. This is the state of some people who are not on the true path. They are taught the following: "One must curse them; if you do not do it, you are also a disbeliever, you are like them. It is everyone's duty to curse them." Not only do they themselves not give peace, they also do not leave others in peace. In this way, they try to darken their hearts as well. Awliya (saints), such as Sheikh Nazim, hardly ever liked to use the word "curse"; in such matters, they are very sensitive. Even about Satan he said, "alayhi ma yastahiqq". That means he said: "May what he deserves come upon him." In order not to utter this word, he would say: "May what he deserves come upon him." They say, "These people did this, those people did that," and urge: "One must curse them." People fall for this, and instead of saying Tasbih, Tawba, or Salawat, evil words come out of their mouths. Cursing is never recorded as a good deed. So they strive to make this word of cursing constantly come out of people's mouths, and force everyone to do so. This is not recorded in the person's account of good deeds. It is recorded either as a sin or not at all. So it is not a good thing to speak these bad words. One should always speak good words; even if the counterpart is bad, that is a matter between him and Allah. To keep the heart pure, one must always do good, speak beautiful words, and be with good people. What is the Tariqa? The Tariqa is the heart of the Sharia. It is the heart of Islam. People nowadays consider the Tariqa to be something else; they disparagingly call out "Tariqa followers" and avoid it. Yet, the Tariqa is the essence of Islam. The Tariqa is not another religion, it commands nothing other than the Sharia. It only practices what our Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) did. The path of our Prophet is a path of mercy, of beauty; it is the path of all goodness. Apart from the Tariqa, one gets nowhere with structures that were later founded under the name "community". These are things that only emerged later; their lineage does not reach back to our Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam), their chain of transmission is broken. The Tariqa does not make you carry stones on your back; you simply connect with your heart, that is all. Whether you fulfill the tasks assigned to you or not is up to you. After all, you have joined the Tariqa, you have connected yourself. To connect oneself means: you are bound to the Murshid, he to the previous one, and this chain reaches all the way to our Prophet. In this way, the path of our Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) reaches you without interruption of this connection. The tasks given in the Tariqa are voluntary acts of worship. The obligations are known anyway. The five daily prayers are obligatory; everything else is Sunnah, is voluntary. If you fulfill your task, you earn additional reward. If you do not fulfill it, it is not a sin. Some people hesitate to join the Tariqa because they think they would suffer or would not be able to fulfill the assigned tasks. The pillars of Islam are five. The declaration of faith, the prayer, the fasting, the Zakat, and the Hajj. These are the obligations. The rest is either Wajib or Sunnah. There is confirmed Sunnah, normal Sunnah, and voluntary acts of worship. That is our path. No one should think anything else; the Tariqa has no secrets. Everything is obvious and public. Sometimes they say: "There are agents among you." Let them come, they are very welcome. We have nothing to hide from anyone. Agents are not needed at all, because everything with us is out in the open. We have nothing to do with politics, nor with politicians. Our business is only with Allah. May Allah be pleased with us, that is completely enough for us. May Allah be pleased with you all.

Jumu'ah mubarak, insha'Allah. We gather here for the sake of Allah, 'Azza wa Jalla. May Allah bless us all, insha'Allah. On Jumu'ah, Allah grants all that is good to His Beloved, the most beloved, Sayyidina Muhammad, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, and his Ummah, his community. Of course, every Prophet – and there are seven 'Ulul 'Azm Prophets (Arch-Prophets) – has a blessed day dedicated to him. Allah has given a day to each of them. However, He gave the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, the best day: Jumu'ah. He created the first human, the forefather of all mankind, Sayyidina Adam, 'alayhis-salam, on a Jumu'ah (Friday), and he also passed away on a Jumu'ah. Yawm al-Qiyamah (the Day of Resurrection) will also take place on a Jumu'ah. The opening of the earth and the resurrection of all mankind will also happen on a Jumu'ah. The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, also said that Allah grants us many gifts on this day. One of these gifts is a very specific time: if one makes a Du'a (supplication) during this time, Allah will accept it. Alhamdulillah, we thank Allah that He created us in this time – a time with far greater rewards for the Ummah that follows the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam. Certainly, this is the most difficult time for a believer, for a Muslim. To hold onto one's faith and religion is, as the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said, like holding burning coals in one's hand. It was, of course, not in our hands to be born in this time; Allah created us and placed us in this difficult era. He does what He wills; we cannot object to that. That is the difference between the believing Muslims and the followers of other Prophets. As believing Muslims, we are glad that Allah created us this way and placed us in this time. We raise no objections whatsoever to this. It is forbidden for a believer to speak like that. The companions of the previous Prophets – even the companions of the 'Ulul 'Azm Prophets like Sayyidina 'Isa and Sayyidina Musa – caused them problems. They asked questions that someone with proper Adab (manners) towards Allah and His Prophet would never ask. Take, for example, the followers of Sayyidina Musa, 'alayhis-salam. He saved them from the oppression of Fir'aun. He was granted all these miracles and brought them to a safe place. Fir'aun had killed their babies and abducted their women to exploit them. They suffered under the most severe oppression. And yet: hardly had they reached a safe place in the Sinai and Sayyidina Musa left them for a few days to speak with Allah 'Azza wa Jalla, they immediately built a statue of a calf and began to worship it. There are thousands of such examples showing how incredibly weak their faith was. Look at Sayyidina 'Isa, 'alayhis-salam. Those who claim to follow him today do not, in reality, even do so by one percent. The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said that the Prophets are the most patient and the most oppressed people. And Sayyidina Muhammad, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, was the most patient of them all. We also see this with Sayyidina 'Isa, 'alayhis-salam. He was of incredible patience. Every day he performed miracles; hundreds, indeed thousands of people waited for his blessing and hoped for Shifa (healing) from him. He healed all sorts of ailments: he restored sight to the blind and healed skin diseases. Even with incurable diseases, thousands of people came to him daily. All those who claim that Islam is not a religion and reject the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, should look at the closest companions of Sayyidina 'Isa – his disciples. They were his highest-ranking followers. And what did they ask him? They asked: "Can your Lord, your Allah, Allah 'Azza wa Jalla, send down to us a richly set table so that we may eat and be satisfied?" The Qur'an is the miracle of Allah. The Qur'an al-Azimush-shan is the only remaining, true, heavenly book from Allah 'Azza wa Jalla. When one reads its words, one understands how these people truly were, how they thought, what character they had, and in what situation they found themselves. They said: "If your Lord can do this..." If someone were to say such a thing in our faith, it would be the end of their faith. Inna Allaha 'ala kulli shay'in qadir (Verily, Allah has power over all things). Allah has done everything, does everything, and can do everything. He only has to say "Be", and it is (Kun fa yakun). Nevertheless, Sayyidina 'Isa remained incredibly patient; he did not yell at them. Instead, he even prayed to Allah, and Allah sent the table down for them. Because of this mentality, today we see many non-Muslims – and sometimes even Muslims who emulate them – who ask: "Why did this happen? Why is this happening to me of all people?" Many of them rebel against it. Christians and other non-Muslims alike. Hindus or followers of other religions might be patient because they fear being reborn as a chicken or a mouse. They keep quiet and avoid problems in the hope of a better next life. But other groups – whether they call themselves believers or not, and especially those who do not believe in Allah at all nowadays – rebel continuously against Allah. Sometimes you hear people say: "I have stopped praying to Allah." That is like when we were children: when we were angry at someone, we stopped talking to them or avoided them. This is exactly how these people behave towards Allah 'Azza wa Jalla. They do not understand that Allah is not dependent on their 'Ibadah (worship). Their behavior does not affect Allah in the slightest. Yet the Shaytan whispers to them: "Look, Allah gives to the others, while you suffer so much. So you should not listen to Him. Let it be." In doing so, you are only doing yourself a favor with worship, not Allah. If you are sick, living in poverty, or going through difficulties, and remain patient through it, Allah will reward you for it. People invent all sorts of philosophies about this. In our religion, we do not need such philosophies. Just follow the path. Once you have found the right path, stay on it and do not deviate from it. Therefore, in this Khutbah, we remember the Hadith of the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, which says: To taste the sweetness of Iman (faith), you must love Allah and His Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, more than anything else. If you want to find this sweetness of faith – and it is the most valuable thing for a believer – you must love for the sake of Allah and hate for the sake of Allah. The third point is: you must detest falling back into disbelief just as much as you would detest being thrown into the fire. This is extremely important so that one does not slip into a wrong mindset and think that, although one has done everything right, one is dissatisfied with what has happened. Only Allah determines what happens. In many situations, you must keep in mind that there are people who are a thousand or a million times worse off than you. Today, I read messages on my phone. One of our Murids in Dagestan has two sons fighting in Ukraine. One of them became a Shaheed (martyr). He simply sent me a message asking me to make a Du'a for him. His faith is truly very strong. May Allah reward him and be pleased with him. "Innama yuwaffas-sabiruna ajrahum bighayri hisab" – Verily, the patient will be given their reward without measure. As we said at the beginning of the Suhbah: Alhamdulillah, we are thankful for what Allah has given us – to be able to live in this time and in this good place. It is a great favor from Him. We also ask Allah not to burden us with trials that we cannot bear, insha'Allah. This is equally important: the Prophet, the Sahaba, and the Awliya advise people against taking on burdens that they cannot carry. May Allah protect us, insha'Allah. Until, insha'Allah, Sayyidina Mahdi, 'alayhis-salam, appears and saves all of humanity. May Allah protect you, your children, the children of all Muslims, and all of humanity from the Shaytan and his followers, insha'Allah.