The Garment of Piety

As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh.

Aʿūdhu billāhi min ash-shayṭāni r-rajīm. Bismillāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm. Aṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlinā Muḥammadin Sayyidi l-awwalīna wa l-ākhirīn. Madad yā RasūlAllāh, madad yā Sādāti Aṣḥābi Rasūlillāh, madad yā Mashāyikhinā, dastūr yā Shaykh ʿAbdullāh al-Fā’iz ad-Dāghistānī, Shaykh Muḥammad Nāẓim al-Ḥaqqānī. Madad. Ṭarīqatunā aṣ-ṣuḥbah wa l-khayru fi l-jamʿiyyah.

وَلِبَاسُ ٱلتَّقْوَىٰ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌۭ
“Wa-libāsu t-taqwā dhālika khayr.”
“And the garment of piety, that is better.” (Qurʼān 7:26). ṢadaqAllāhu l-ʿAẓīm, says Allah ʿAzza wa-Jalla.

Now people look at appearances. What are you wearing, what are you not wearing? It was like this in the old days too, but now clothing and fashion are like that even more. “Which one suits me? Which one doesn’t? I don’t want a cheap thing. Let it be expensive, so people see it on me.” These things – this is the thinking and interest of people of this time. “Let the dress be nice. From my shoes to my hat, from my shirt to everything else – everything must be a brand.” In the past, they used to say, “Let it be nice and good.” Not anymore. Now it must be both good and a brand.

What is this? Why are you doing this? Are you doing it for the pleasure of Allah? If it is for the pleasure of Allah, He does not want any of this. What Allah ʿAzza wa-Jalla wants is the garment of taqwā on you. And the garment of taqwā is to fear Allah. A person who fears Allah – that is the best garment. That conceals the person and makes him appear beautiful in the presence of Allah. Your station will not rise in the sight of Allah with those worthless rags they have deceived you with. You will not be beautiful.

What you should do is carry out what Allah ʿAzza wa-Jalla has commanded, and fear His prohibitions. That is what taqwā means. Taqwā means to fear Allah, to be ashamed before Allah, to have modesty before Allah. That is, when you are seen by Him, if you are in a bad state, doing things that are not good – even if you wear the most expensive clothes you like – none of that has any benefit.

The benefit, as we said, is taqwā. Even if you wear torn clothes, if you have taqwā, you are the most beautiful person in the presence of Allah. But without taqwā… Now they say a dress costs a thousand dollars, a thousand euros. Allah Allah. A thousand dollars? Can there be such a dress? They say, “A thousand dollars – what are you talking about? There are dresses for ten thousand, even a hundred thousand dollars.” What is it – does it have an engine? Does the person fly in it? They say, “You wouldn’t understand. It’s a beautiful dress. Everyone wants to wear it.”

You may want it, but Allah is not pleased with it. Especially those who do not know Allah – even if they wear a dress worth not a hundred thousand, but a hundred million – it has no value in the presence of Allah. Its value lies in what’s inside. True worth is what’s within.

Naṣrū d-Dīn Hodja – may Allah elevate his station – his neighbours once said, “O Naṣrū d-Dīn Hodja, there was a loud crash in your house last night. What happened, was there something wrong?” He said, “My jubbah fell.” A jubbah falling doesn’t make that much noise. “I was inside it,” he said. So, what matters is what is inside – the outside doesn’t matter. Whether the outside falls or not, it makes no difference. What’s important is what is inside. So you must look at what is within. The outside does not matter. That is rubbish – useless.

May we be among those with taqwā, inshāAllah. May Allah help us, inshāAllah.

Allah ʿAzza wa-Jalla, describing the best clothes for human being, which it is, we cannot count now here the trademark of this, what you wear. Because people, special for nowadays…

Before, old time people, they was okay. They looking for good thing. But also, not too much thing, to wear or to look. Just they buying, and there is tailor, they can make for them. Now this is very old fashion, this, to have to go and to buy material, and to go to tailor to make, measure for you and… No. Now there is more people looking for something to wear, but not everything. From the poorest one to richest one, nowadays, they are looking for some trademark, special.

It must be like this from shoes, from hat, from jacket, from trousers, from skirt, every, handbag. All this must be some kind of… They must… Before, they was putting small [logo] here. Now they are, this shayṭān people, they put big one [logo]. This is not… Meaning, you are, your ego is not enough, small one. You must put big one, to show everybody, to see this what you wear it is very expensive. And you wear it, so you are lucky and respected between people.

It is not respected in Divine Presence of Allah; nobody respect you. The most important wear, which Allah describe in Qurʾān: libāsu t-taqwā. Taqwā, meaning to fear from Allah, to know yourself, to know what is going on around you. That people cheating you with names and which it is, if you wear, you will be not more long life, not more happy, no more respected.

Only because, and they make million of this. Millions of people cheated by them. So everybody, they wear this. So, it is no meaning for, to be happy with this. You must be happy with what Allah ʿAzza wa-Jalla saying the best, most beautiful wear for everybody, for small, big, old, young, women, men, child, everyone. For this what Allah describe: taqwā. Meaning, to be ashamed from Allah, to be aware from Allah, to be afraid from Allah, not to make your ego on you. When you do this, everybody can benefit from your, this proudness. This what, following ego, they use this to get benefit from you. And you are happy to give them everything. And you thought it is become more happiness for you, more valuable you will be in society or around people. It is not like this.

Old time people they was wearing good. What they are, they can, for summer, for winter, for every occasion, they have something to wear. Now, no anymore like this. They wear anything, what they, clever people – what they said for clever, kurnaz – sly. This people, they are cheating people. And they are benefit from this weakness of following the ego. So to make your ego bigger, you must follow them.

Important not outside, inside. Your clothes not giving you any big value. You must be, have this value by yourself. Like Naṣrū d-Dīn, Shaykh Mullā Naṣrū d-Dīn Hodja, raḥmatullāhi ʿalayh aʿlā Llāh darajātuh. Once, his neighbours, they hear some voice from his, something hitting there, big voice. And they asking morning, “O Mullā Naṣrū d-Dīn Efendi, what happen? Yesterday we hear some voice.” He said, “My jubbah fall down.” “How? From your jubbah, not coming like this.” He said, “I was inside.”

So it’s important. When it’s only jubbah, it’s ok, but… This people, they not knowing this. Just thinking it is important, outside. So, Allah give good thinking for people, inshāAllah.

Wa min Allahi t-Tawfīq.

Al-Fātiḥa.