بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum
Dear Friends
I pray that you are well.
How things have changed? Back then Muslim Spain was the super power. The non-Muslims wanted to be like the Arabs (Muslims)--they rushed to imitate the Muslims in everything. They wore Muslim dress. Today everybody want to wear jeans. Then people wanted to wear the turban. The language of Muslim Spain was Arabic. The Jews and the Christians wanted their children to learn Arabic--forget Hebrew and Spanish, teach them Arabic. They spoke Arabic. Some were masters in Arabic and Arabic literature and attained high positions during the Islamic rule. They were known as Musta'rabin مستعربين (Arabized).
Today we don't have Musta'rabin but we change the "ain ع" in Musta'rabin مستعربين to "ghain غ" in Mustaghrabin مستغربين Mustaghrabin is a pun, which means "Westernized." But it also means something else, which is "the one who is astonished at." In those times we have Musta'rabin but in our times we have Mustaghrabin. We should learn this. We have a defeated mentality and we don't even know it. We have no sense of pride in our religion. We want to speak like other people, wear like other people (no hijab, wear shorts), eat like other people, have music like other people. It is just disgusting -- no sense of dignity.
For Musta'rabin, they are not losing their dignity because they were imitating something that is good but when the Muslims start imitating the non-Muslims and leave their religion and language, we should be aof ourselves. How well do we know English versus Arabic? We should be really ashamed of ourselves if we know so much English and not Arabic. When we don't want to learn Arabic and let our children learn other languages and not Arabic, we should be astonished at. In those days, the Christians and the Jews traveled far to Muslim states to learn Arabic and Islam, but we are willing to send our children everywhere, spend lots of money, to gain knowledge of everything except Arabic and Qur'an. Many simply ignore what their own communities have to offer in terms of Islamic learning. They are not even willing to sacrifice their time to take their children to their local masajid for their children to receive this education, let alone sending them or taking them to the far away Arab lands to learn Arabic and Qur'an. Always, other things are more important. We have other priorities! Indeed, we should be astonished at.
If we are not willing to sacrifice now, if our children don't leave Islam, their children or their children's children will. Throughout history, there are many examples of this, and the consequence will be a great disaster. Don't be the one who is astonished at and plan this summer for your children well so that they can learn Arabic and this religion. Life is short.
"O man! Verily, you are returning towards your Lord with your deeds and actions (good or bad), a sure returning, and you will meet (i.e. the results of your deeds which you did). Then, as for him who will be given his Record in his right hand,he surely will receive an easy reckoning, and will return to his family in joy! But whosoever is given his Record behind his back, he will invoke (for his) destruction, and he shall enter a blazing Fire, and be made to taste its burning. Verily, he was among his people in joy! Verily, he thought that he would never come back (to Us)!" Qur'an Inshiqaq 84:6-14
May Allah guide us and keep our Imam. Ameen. Please keep us in your night prayers. Jazakallahu khairan.
And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam
