Lessons from the Stories of the Prophets in the Quraan by Mufti Menk -Creation of Aadam Part 2

This Ramadan 2011 Tafseer series is originally posted by Du’aa a Day on Facebook. – A transcript of Mufti Ismail Menk’s post Taraweeh Series in Cape Town, South Africa

Shared on 3 August 2011 – See Original

Creation of Aadam Part ii : Lessons from the Stories of the Prophets in the Noble Qur’aan

الحمد لله و كفى و صلى الله و سلّم و بارك على عباده الذين اصطفى و بعد

All praise is due to Allah Subhana Wa ta’aala, Blessings and salutations upon Muhammad SAW

Thereafter,

Being the month of Ramadhaan we should not only be conscious of what is going into our mouths but we should also be conscious of what is coming out! We should abstain from swearing, backbiting, slandering etc. A hadeeth says that whoever is not going to refrain from bad speech, false oaths etc then Allah is not in need of their fasting.

Carrying on with the story of Aadam AS there are a few questions raised from yesterdays discussion. Firstly, how did the angels know that man was going to be corrupt?

1. Due to their previous experience with the jin kind.

2. Because man had a short lifespan, it will definitely make them fight for power and authority

We, at all times, need to defy Iblees. We are following Allah, not Iblees! The mercy of Allah is so great that if a person follows Iblees for seventy years and then if for one second he turns to Allah with sincerity, every single thing is wiped out! But, like how when you are reading a book, you cannot read what is on the next page unless you turn the page, similarly we need to make an effort to turn to Allah and seek His forgiveness.

Aadam AS was about 60 feet aprox: 80 meters tall. This was the original height of man and as time passed man is getting shorter. Unlike the claims of the theory of evolution which says man was short and got taller! And the average lifespan in those days was one thousand years.

The Prophet PBUH said that ( أعمار أمتي ما بين ستين و سبعين ) The average age of my ummah is between 60 or seventy years. That is why I sometimes say that those who have passed the age of seventy are fortunate enough to be in ‘extra time’ lol But no matter what, whether you live a sixty years or a hundred years one day you will have to leave this world. So your best bet is to just prepare yourself. Because, if you wait to enjoy and you go whilst you are enjoying without any preparation then you won’t enjoy thereafter!

So, on the day of Qiyaamah we will all be 80 meters tall. The hadeeth says that when the trumpet is blown everything will perish and die, then a thick white rain will fall and human kind will grow on the plains of mahshar (plain of resurrection). We will grow like trees. Did you know that every time Allah makes mention of the rain of mercy on earth in the Qur’aan, whereby te dead earth gains life once again, Allah makes mention of the resurrection. (كذلك النشور ) In the same way we will be resurrected. So when it rains we should think and remind ourselves of that day when we shall be raised again.

On the day of Qiyaamah we will all raise at the age of 33 years on condition we died after the age of puberty. Those who passed away before the age of puberty, in infancy, still born or passed away during the latter stage of pregnancy will remain young and they will be waiting for their parents and intercede on their behalf. Pleading to Allah to grant their parents entry into paradise if they are destined to hell fire, saying O Allah my parents were deprived the good fortune of having me, spending time playing with me etc through your mercy grant them entrance into paradise with me Allahu Akbar Parents who tried their best to please Allah and bore patience on their lost.

Allah makes mention of the day Aadam AS was created. The hadeeth says Friday is the best day, it was the day Aadam was created, granted entry into paradise, expelled from paradise and put on the earth and the Hour will not take place except on a Friday.

Also, there is an hour on a Friday during which any supplication made is accepted. Some say it is between Asr and maghrib, others say it is when the Imaam ascends the pulpit, I think your best bet is to just keep making your supplication al throughout the day at every hour lol

Yesterday we mentioned that Hawa wa created from Aadam AS rib. When he turned and seen her he asked, “Who are you?”

She replied, “I am a woman.”

He then asked her, “Why were you created?”

She said,” As a comfort and solace to you.”

So that is what spouses need to be to each other. Be companions to each other, spend our lives in harmony and peace with each other. When we get married we say, “but this is not the same guy I knew when we were dating!” That is because when you were dating Shaytaan was pleased so he beautified it for you, now that you are married and in a pure relationship his aim will be to separate the two of you! We should try to adopt the correct method of choosing a spouse. We say we go to campus to study, but we go to study and come back married! And then we don’t fit into our new environments, why? Because we could only get along with each other in the environment on campus! Had we stayed on campus forever our marriage would have worked and our children might have also been professors lol

The sin of Iblees was the first sin commited against Allah, that is why he became the accursed. Allah warned Aadam that Shaytaan is an enemy of yours. Allah kicked him out of paradise so Shaytaan (Iblees) vowed that he would deviate Aadam and his progeny from all sides. And he always comes in disguise. Except those who seek Allah’s protection he can not harm them. So Iblees blamed Aadam for his expulsion, when in actually fact it was due to his own disobedience that he was expelled. We also sometimes have a tendency to blame others when things in or lives are going wrong but we are the root cause of the problem, not others.

A Question: When Allah expelled Iblees from Janah then how did he still manage to con Aadam AS? In todays day and age it is easy to understand, via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi connection lol Allah says in the Qur’aan that surely Iblees and his followers see you from where you do not see them. So he whispered in this way to Aadam or another narration says there was a serpant in paradise who was part ofhis army and he came through him in disguise and spoke to Aadam. Allah knows best!

We need to take a lesson from this and remember that Shaytaan will always come to us in a guise so that we do not even realise that we are being misguided. Allah tells us when we are sick, ask Allah for cure, then go to the doctor, take the necessary medication and place your trust in Allah. When some time is passing and we see no results Shaytaan comes and tells us go toa witch doctor he can cure you. He can make your business flourish etc These witch doctors deal with the jinn and ‘spirits’ as they are called and they ask you to do all sorts of weird and silly things like cut 80 lemons each of a certain size then squeeze so many drops from each etc. And all the while Shaytaan is laughing, saying, that look Allah, You command them to do something they wont do it but i will ask them to do stupid things and they will do it! All these type of things which people involve themselves in is impermissible, it is shirk and kufr and we need to be aware of this and stay away. No big molana can have access to “pure and pious” Jinn because Jinn are not allowed to come near to mankind, if they do, they are evil and disobedient.

So if Iblees could con Aadam then we are much easier to con! But Allah told him that my chosen worshippers you will have no authority over them. Remember Aadam sinned out of forgetfulness, he made a mistake. People ask, “Sheikh, but WHYYYY did he commit this sin?!” yet, he wont look at himself! What about all the sin he is involved in intentionally and knowingly!!! This is shaytaans plot! He makes us engrossed in the faults and weaknesses of others and we forget about our ownselves. The hadeeth says,

(طوبى لمن شغله عيوبه من عيوب الناس )

“Glad-tidings to the one who’s faults occupy him from picking at the faults of others.”

Once someone asked me what is the ruling of an imam who enters the masjid with his left foot. So after enquiring from another scholar he told me, “ tell them he is a very good imam, keep him and increase his salary!” I said, “how can this be?”. He told me, “I know what it is, they are looking for an excuse to get rid of him and could not find any excuse but this one weakness, that he enters the masjid with the left foot, thinking you will say he is bad and ask him to leave, tell them the direct opposite because, if this is his only fault then he must be a top Imam! Lol

When Allah created Aadam he shook his progeny from his back and Aadam seen all the souls and he was shocked that all these will be his progeny. At that time Allah took a covenant with each one of us he said,’ Alastu birabbikum?’ Am I not your Creator? And we all replied, “Balaa!!” Ofcourse! Yes You are! Do we remember this? No, we don’t. That is why Allah sends us reminders so that when we meet Him we can present no excuses. Each person will be responsible for themselves. Each one will go alone and speak to Allah without a translator between him and Allah.

Coming back, when Aadam seen all the souls he noticed one which was brighter than the others so he enquired who was this. It was said it is Dawud, a man from later times near the day of resurrection. He asked how much life has he been given? Allah said 60 years. So just as parents feel for their kids, live for kids and would die for their children, similarly Aadam AS wished a longer life forthis ‘child’ of his. He asked Allah to increase Dawud AS’s lifespan by 40 years. Allah said we can decrease from your thousand years. He agreed and so Dawud AS was granted a life of 100 years. But when the angel came to take Aadam AS’s life at the age of 960 he said, “But wait I still have another 40 years!” The angel said, “No, don’t you remember you gave it to Dawud?” He said, “No I don’t remember.” So the Prophet PBUH said after narrating this incident to his companions, “Aadam forgot so his offspring forgets!”

Infact some scholars say the word ‘insaan’ is derived fro m the Arabic verb ‘nasiya yansaa’ which means ‘to forget’!

Once Aadam AS asked Allah, “Didint you honor me as the first Human”

Allah said, “Yes”

“Didint You grant me entrance into paradise?” Allah said “Yes”

He then asks, “O Allah if I pray to You and turn to You in repentance will You not forgive me?”

Allah said, “Yes” Allahu Akbar…

After his expulsion Allah said to both Aadam and Iblees “Go to the earth”. And He told Aadam that I will continue sending guidance to You whoever follows the guidance they will not be lead astray nor will they be unfortunate.

So the Qur’aan is there for our guidance. The Qur’aan is powerful. Those who are discontent in their lives, it is because they have no spirituality and they are faaaar from Allah. You need to believe. People who are atheist and don’t have belief in God they are void of peace and contentment in their lives. Without spirituality man can not enjoy his life. Allah says they will have “Ma’eeshatan dhankaa” A straightened and narrow life full of difficulty. There will be no joy in their lives no matter how much material wealth they may have.

As for Aadam As, where did he land? He didn’t just fall on the earth but he was placed on the earth. The hadeeth says, “nazala fil hind” He landed in the indo-pak subcontinent area, precisely, what is known today as Sri Lanka. Infact in a very green beautiful area there, there is a mountain known as Adams Peak. Whether it was exactly there we don’t know but that is what historians have suggested.

Hawa AS was placed in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Jeddah having been named after her, it means ‘grandmother’ in Arabic.

After coming on the earth Aadam wondered where is Hawa so he began looking for her. This teaches us that we should not give up on our spouses. We must try our best to make things work out. Aadam AS didn’t just forget about her and waited for another woman to come along! No! He started walking searching for her.Imagine he walked almost half the globe in search of her! Hawa also walked looking for Aadam, but being a woman she didn’t walk so much. This does not mean women are not interested lol but she just stayed within her surroundings. Historians say they were finally reunited at ‘Arafah in Saudi Arabia on the Mount of Mercy which is there. Allah knows best. Theres no authentic narration to support this.

One can only just imagine the emotions at that moment when they saw each other 🙂 Subhaanallah! 🙂

InshaAllah we will continue tomorrow and conclude this story inshaAllah…

و صلّى الله و سلّم و بارك على نبيّنا محمّد و آله و أصحابه أجمعين ، سبحان الله و بحمده سبحانك اللهم و بحمدك أشهد أن لا إله إلا أنت أستغفرك و أتوب إليك! والسلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته!