09/28/1991
IWDM Study Library
An Indirect Approach to Family Problems

By Imam W. Deen Mohammed
Recorded: Imam W. Deen Mohammed, the Muslim American spokesman for human salvation, Imam W. Deen Mohammed, speaks. The following is Part One of a lecture entitled An Indirect Approach to Family Problems for Getting A Better Situation at Home recorded Saturday, September 28th, 1991, in Dayton, Ohio.
Imam W. Deen Mohammed: As-salamu alaykum.
Audience: Wa alaykumu as-salam.
IWDM: Peace be onto you. Al-?amdu li-llahi rabbil-alamin. Praise be to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds. Ashhadu anla ilaha illallahu wahdahu laa sharikalah wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan 'abduhu wa Rasuluhu. We witness that there is but one G-d, the Lord Creator and we witness that Muhammad to whom the Quran was revealed is the last prophet of G-d. Peace and the blessings be upon him.
Salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam wa 'ala alihi wa sahbihi ajmaeen. Amma ba’id. We pray the prayers and the peace be upon the Prophet, the last prophet of Almighty G-d to whom the Quran was revealed. We are certainly happy to be here in Dayton, Ohio for this occasion. I do know that many important persons are here from cities around the area and distant places, as far as Los Angeles, California. Because Iman Abdul Karim Hasan, the imam of Los Angeles mosque or masjid, is here and many others.
We hope that you have benefited by being here with each other, taken advantage of that time to meet with each other, to make some contacts, some important contacts with each other, and some progress for the Muslim community, Inshallah. Also, I'm aware of other important persons outside of our association who are here. I'm not going to name any of them but I see many of them. Some of them I know from the naturalized citizens of the Muslim community or immigrant Muslims. We don't like to call them immigrant Muslims. We are very happy to be a part of this.
We thank the masjid and brother Imam Al-Amin and also the other Imams that have assisted him from the area here, from Dayton, Ohio and Springfield, Ohio. We appreciate what they have done to make it possible for us to be here today with you. We appreciate all of those who sponsored this occasion, made this occasion possible, and made our visit and presence here possible.
We trust Allah for the rewards, we ask Allah's blessings, His forgiveness for our sins and our shortcomings, our mistakes. We ask His blessings and His favor on all our efforts, because we know without Allah's favor, nothing can come about of good for us. We trust Allah. Allah's favor is on us always when we are striving as Muslims to do what pleases G-d, or Allah, Almighty 
G-d, as Muslims.
I saw the time out there on the marquee and I know I don't have much time. The time is running out. So, bear with me, and I will begin this discussion, or this topic, of An Indirect Approach to Family Problems for Getting A Better Situation at Home, at home in our family life. By indirect, I mean exactly what I'm saying, indirect. I won't go directly to the problems of home life because they are many and I don't think that this is the best way for us to solve these problems.
Not only do I think this to be true for the situation of Muslims but also for the situation of non-Muslims. I think that by going directly to the problems, we can only do so much.
The problems that we have in our homes, the problem of getting cooperation from the family members, the problem of having the life that we would love to have in that home, appreciated by all family members. And whatever problems we have, even to criminal behavior maybe in some of our youth, whatever problems we have, we can only do so much addressing those problems directly.
Those problems are the results of a problem of the society itself. The society itself is at fault. And if we try to fight these influences with our little, small resources as parents and family members, we can only do but a little. The big help must come from influences equal to the powerful influences of the society. And I know of no influences equal to the powerful influences of the society but the influences of truth as revealed by G-d.
I feel it necessary to talk about some misconceptions because I think these misconceptions have a real bearing, a direct bearing, on the behavior of people in their homes. One misconception for Muslims, and you'd be surprised, because, why should Muslims have these misconceptions? The Quran is so clear. One of its attributes is clarity. It is a book of clarity. That's one of its names, title name for the book.
Why is all the confusion? Matter itself, the concept of matter, is a big confusion. I'm going to be going directly to what I have to say and be very brief. We Muslims must understand that matter, to make it clear of what I'm talking about when I say matter, all material things. All material things. The physical things that we see all about us in the sky, on earth. The earth itself is a physical entity, a physical ball that we live on, globe that we live on, and it grows physical things from it.
And the material things that we have to have in our life in order to sustain the physical body, all material things. I'm talking about all material things. Our flesh, material. The human flesh, material. All material things belong to one material system. One material system. This is Al-Islam. This is fact also. Belong to one material system. Now, for us to think that material is evil, are there is evil in material is wrong.
Not necessarily. Allah created everything excellent, good. This is Al-Islam. Allah made everything excellent, good, very good. That means that heavenly bodies, the physical upstairs, the physical earth down here, everything good, excellent. There's no evil in the material. My flesh, human flesh, we don't believe in any concept of original sin. This is material. There's no concept of original sin. The sin comes later when you go astray from the path. It's not original.
Sin is not original. We go astray from the original way that G-d intended, then we commit sin. So, sin comes later. This concept of original sin is condemned in Al-Islam. The material world is good. If we can believe that, that will help us in our homes. Your attitudes hurt your homes. When you're thinking that the world is bad, that this flesh is sin, your flesh is not sin. Your misunderstanding is sin. Sin comes in the misunderstanding, not in your flesh. It comes in your misunderstanding.
If Adam committed a sin, G-d didn't say Adam was originally a sinner. In Al-Islam, G-d says that he slipped. He didn't do it intentionally. He slipped from the way because he was deceived by the Satan. The Satan deceived him and caused him to slip from the way. He didn't follow this Satan, the devil, willingly. He didn't follow the devil knowingly, with his eyes open. He followed the devil unintentionally. Unintentionally, he was influenced to go astray. He didn't do it intentionally.
So, our first father had no original sin in him. He slipped from the way and getting from the way, he committed sin. He got out of the original. Slipped out of it and there he committed sin. Not original sin. Now, I'm going to be very plain with you. Wealth is not evil, wealth is good. The ignorance of it is evil. If you misuse it, that's evil. You abuse it, that's evil. You use it for the wrong things, that's evil. Wealth is good. Poverty is bad. I know you've heard that said by others, but I'm saying it too. Wealth is good, poverty is bad.
Allah does not want us poor. Allah want us to have the means, Allah want us to have plenty. “Oh yes, but the poor in the religion. You know how great the poor are in the eyes of G-d”. Certainly, if you can be poor and still be good, you're so great in my eyes too. But that's not the condition Allah wants for us. Allah invites us to a good prosperous life. He wants us to have money. He wants us to have economic dignity. Allah wants that for us, so much on the material concept.
Now, don't say the earth weighs six sextillion tons. Again, that's wrong. Let me come now to race. Big problem on us that makes life a problem at home is the way we see race. Muslims are not racist. I'm not going to waste words. I'm being very direct. Muslims are not racist, cannot be racist. Anyone who harbors racial hatred, or racial dislike for another people, he is stepping out of the line of Al-Islam.
He's following some other influence, not Muslim influence, not Al-Islam. Allah identified us all as one people, that He created us from one single soul, Adam. And made from that soul, its mate, and spread from those two, all the men and women on this earth. That's what Allah says. Therefore, we are one family, in one origin, in one human origin. We are one family. Your African brother, maybe closer to you, because of the continent.
All of us share the one continent, but you must accept that your brother on the farthest continent from Africa, is also a member of that family. Because Allah says that you must accept that if you want to be a Muslim, you must accept that. Allah says He started all people from one single soul, made from it its mate, and spread from the two, many men and women to populate the whole world.
Not only that, we must understand that we identify with each other not only skin-wise or flesh-wise, but we have to identify with each other also in terms of the spirit of man, that we share one spirit with all people, one human spirit, with all people. We share one human flesh with all people. We share one human disposition that is natural for the human being with all people.
We don't all stay it, we don't all respect it, we don't all stay in it, we fall out of it, the world pulls us out of it, but originally, we had one human life, one flesh, one spirit, one intellect. That's what is meant by one soul. It means that the human personality was the same for everybody. In the beginning, G-d created one human personality for everybody in the beginning. Because of migrating and getting in different circumstances, we take on different personalities, we become different by description. Our religion says that it's because of location where you are, that's because of the circumstances you're put in, that you make these changes, but still you have that essential nature. And you should have an environment for retaining that essential nature. Al-Islam provides that environment that nourishes that essential nature, that original life, that original soul, that original intellect, that original spirituality, that original morality. Everything was original, and it was good and excellent.
Al-Islam provides an environment for us so that we can retain that, grow, benefit, and prosper by that. Our religion gives us environment to enrich that. It becomes richer and greater and greater and greater all the time. That is not enough said about race. When G-d says that He made us from one single soul, that is Adam, that does not allow for racism. And it says also that our dignity is to be traced back to our originality.
Your dignity, your real dignity, shouldn't be traced back to a land that you come from. That's a mistake on the part of Muslims. You looking for your dignity in ancient Africa? Or you’re looking for your dignity in some black ancient civilization? That's wrong for Muslims. We're not to look for our dignity in that. We're to look for our dignity in our original essence. We are noble by creation. By the act of creation, we are noble, esteemed creatures. So says G-d.
He says that He made all the children of Adam honorable, noble, honorable. Qad Karumna quli Bani Adam. He made all the children of Adam honorable, noble, with great esteem, with great value. And at the same time, we have to accept our simple beginning. See, this is what gives the sober-mindedness to the Muslim, when he can accept that G-d made him a creature of nobility, great honor, et cetera, but also G-d says, and He made Adam from dust. Made Adam from dust.
So, that counters the ego tendency to go off and trip, and become too tall to live in this earth. It counters that. When we accept too, that though G-d gave us the creation that makes us honorable and noble, of great honor, great esteem. He created us from simple dust. So, we give praise to 
G-d, always respect G-d, honor G-d, praise G-d. Don't let it go to your head. Remember that you were nothing but dust, and G-d made you noble, G-d made you honorable. This is the sober way to look at the origin of man, his identity, and not to look at it through the eyes of race-minded people.
Misconceptions, that's what we're talking on now here. Let us come now into the home and look at some of the problems that we have for race consciousness. When I was a young man in the ministry of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. One of his ministers, may G-d forgive him his shortcomings, his sins, and grant him paradise. I used to see our people back then, you don't see it that much now, I thank Allah times are changing, times have changed, and times are still changing for the better. I would see our women, mothers with their little children, and they would be my color sometimes.
And sometimes, the family would be as black as any black can be, nappy hair sometimes. They would have a doll, typical Caucasian, little child carrying the doll, typical Caucasian. Hair looking like the white people's hair, skin, pale, eyes blue, typical Caucasian. That hurt me so bad. You can understand it hurting me like that back then, but it still hurts me. I hope you understand that. It still hurts me. Thank Allah we don't see it as much now.
People, you want a better situation in your home, let me give you a little story from an Arabic tremor book. This little child was in the house, a little girl, and the parents were about to go out. The child asked the mother say, "Mama, will you buy me a doll?" She said, "Like me? Will you buy me a doll like me?" The mother was so thrilled that the daughter asked the little babies now, the little child, little toddler. She was so thrilled that the little toddler asked for a doll like her.
She promised to get that little girl a doll like her. The mother agreed. When she returns from shopping, she brought the little doll back looking like her daughter. Now, you know I play with my children sometime. I know you say, "Well, you still got little children?" You ask, "The head is getting balder and the hair is graying," but thank Allah, I have a young daughter. She is three years old. No, she's four now, just made four.
She asked me to buy her a doll. I told her yes. I went out and found her a doll. I found one. Looked pretty much like she does. Thank Allah for changing times. Yes. She asked me for a Barbie doll. I knew Barbie. Right away, I had problems instantly. I was lucky to find one. Looks just like Barbie, it's made by a company called Flair, and had hair like her, dark like her. It looked like her.
One day we were there, and I say, "Where is your doll?" She had another doll and thank Allah; it was also looking like her sister. I say, "Where is your doll?" She says, "It's downstairs." She had another in her hand. I told her, I say, " You're my doll." I said, "You're a real doll." That goes a long way. Brothers, tell your children that. When they are playing with their doll, see, they know, they identify, with the doll. They know the doll. They have an attachment to the doll.
They love that doll because there's an instinct in them, natural mother instinct in them, to want to be a mother even at the baby age. I told her, I say, "You're my doll." I said, "You're a real doll." It's thrilled her so much. I didn't know it was going to thrill her that much. I thought it was going to be taken well, but not as much as it would say. Try it, brother. Just try it. It worked so well. I got to find one for the wife now. I don't know. I've got to find something to work with the wife. Don't want to leave her out.
So much for matter. I was talking about physical matter. So much for matter. Now, there's much to be said about what's happening in the home. But don't forget, I said we are addressing the problems indirectly. I don't want to talk too much about the things that we experience inside the home like the doll, the wrong doll. I'm going now to faith. We see faith in our religion. We have to understand that whatever Allah has invited us to, is not something superficial. It's not something shallow.
It's something very profound. Something very deep and meaningful. Whatever Allah invites us to. Allah invites us to faith. The prophet invites us to faith. Most of all, Allah says in the Holy Quran Subhana Wata ala, highly glorified is He. He says of the Prophet, in the words of Quran, that he is a caller to faith. He is a caller to faith. Now, we know he calls to many things but it says we have heard a caller to faith. “We have heard a caller calling to faith, and we have responded and have believed we have accepted faith”.
Most important for us to know that Muslims are people of faith. We are believers. I take it that most of us, maybe 98% of us, are Muslim here. I doubt if there are any, but a few non-Muslim here, because I'm looking at you, and I know you're a Muslim. For those who are not Muslim, I don't think that I'm wasting words or ignoring you, because if you're a Christian, what I'm saying to the Muslim is important for you too.
If you've missed it, it's important for you to know that religious people are first, people of faith. 
And G-d has not given us that concept of the religious people, of the body of the religious people that they are people of faith, without it having real meaning in our total life. Faith in Islamic language also means trust. The same word that we get faith from, we also get trust from. Not a different word, the same word. I say I trust you. I use the same word, faith.
For our religion, the faith and trust are the same depending on how you use it in the context. Depending on how you use it in a group of words or in a context, to say a certain thing. We cannot fare well at home without trust in that house, without faith in that house. G-d want us to have faith in Him. It's natural for us. G-d has created us. We are His creation. It's natural for His creation to trust Him.
Just as it's natural for a mother's child, infant, to trust her. That infant comes in the world from his mother, trusting his mother. Right away, it clings to his mother. It learns right away that this is my mother. This is my security. I don't think it says this is mama. Even in his mind, I don't think it says this is mama. It has to learn that language from us. But it knows that mama is its security. Right away, it clings to mama. It knows that I would be fed by mama. I will be protected by mama. I will be cleaned when I need it by mama.
So, G-d has put it in the child to trust the mama. By nature, trust mama. But after we get up, we stop trusting each other. Child stop trusting mama. Brothers and sisters stop trusting each other. You have to have trust between the members of the house in order to have a healthy family. Trust each other. You have to forgive each other. Forgive each other. Don't be hard on each other. Tolerate each other. Share burdens with each other.
When I say tolerate each other, let me give you an example. Some people are more fit for certain things than others. If someone doesn't like to wash dishes, you got more than one, if it’s just two people in house, okay, you got a bigger problem. But if you got several, there's brothers and sisters, several, mama, daddy we hope too, and brothers and sisters. Okay, one of them or two of them, they don't like to wash dishes, maybe all of them don't like to wash dishes, maybe one of them like to wash dishes.
Let that one wash dishes. Another one, he doesn't like to mop the floor but there's one that doesn't mind, let him mop the floor. Don't insist brothers and sisters, that a child does everything you want it to do. Some things the child won't want to do. Find out what that child likes to do and give the child what it likes to do. Maybe, he doesn't like to do anything but read. Well, hell, let him read. That'll help him in the future. It'll help you too.
You have to have trust between the members of the house in order to have a healthy family. Trust each other. You have to forgive each other. Forgive each other. Don't be hard on each other. Tolerate each other. Share burdens with each other.
When I say tolerating each other, let me give you an example. Some people are more fit for certain things than others. If someone doesn't like to wash dishes, you've got more than one-- If there's two people in the house, okay, you got a bigger problem. But if you got several, that's, brothers and sisters, several. Mama, daddy we hope too, and brothers and sisters. Okay, one of them or two of them, they don't like to wash dishes, maybe all of them don't like to wash dishes. Maybe one of them like to wash dishes. Let that one wash dishes.
Another one, he doesn't like to mop the floor, but there's one that doesn't mind. Let them mop the floor. Don't insist, brothers and sisters, that a child does everything you want it to do. Some things a child doesn’t want to do. Find out what the child likes to do and give the child what it likes to do. Maybe it doesn't like to do anything but read. Well, let him read. That'll help him in the future and help you too.
Now, I'm not saying that you don't have to put a little fire up under them every now then. You got to have when something has to be done. But I'm saying, be a little more lenient. Be a little more tolerant. Be a little more understanding of the nature of people, persons, the nature of children and people. Some tend to like certain things more than others. Let those who like those things, encourage them do those things.
Believe me, there's something for everybody to do. One who can't find nothing to do, tell them "You got to find something to do. You got to find something you like. And you don't have but one day to do it, and then tomorrow you have to tell me what you like to do." Insist that all them do something. Don't make all them wash dishes. Don't make all of them wash the floor.
Our way was to say, "That floor need to be mopped. Go mop that floor." We don't think about the organization of the family. See, G-d made a family to be an organization. It's an organization. You have to organize your labor. You have to organize your people in your family and designate to them certain things to do, then the family works better.
Treat the family as an organization, and organize what you have to do. Organize the members of the family to do what has to be done in the house. Be just like a business corporation. Be just like the business concern. Don't assign this duty to one who will not do a good job at it or doesn't care for it. If there's one that likes it more, let them do that.
Now, that boy just like to iron. Watch out. Watch out. Give him something else to do besides ironing, because I saw one become too sweet. Just ironing at the ironing board.
Trust. G-d has created us and He put a prior condition in us. Trust is a prior condition. Everything is supported by faith and trust. By faith and trust. No matter how much we learn in this religion, no matter how smart we get in this religion, we have to remain Muslim because of faith, not because of knowledge or some revelation that we got. No. We remain Muslim because of faith.
The greatest scholar in this religion, he has remained Muslim because of faith, not because of his knowledge. Faith is the prior condition and it must stay with us. Faith. If the society encourages trust between the members of society.
One president of United States, he went over in Russia when Russia had not got this fever for freedom. It wasn't long ago, though. This just happened suddenly. I'm talking about President Reagan. He made a visit to Russia. What did he tell the Russians? He said, "Trust your people." He must have had an indication that the people were wanting more freedom. He told Russia to trust. He said, "Trust your people."
Now, I'm not knocking United States at all. I don't want you to think that, or knocking Reagan. I said to myself, "He should trust his people." Yes, I didn't like it. I didn't take it too well, that the President Reagan was over there telling Russia to trust its people and over here they weren't trusting me.
I'm one of the most trustworthy guys in this country. I didn't like it. Trust your people too, mister. That's what I wanted to say to him. “You trust your people”. You won't find so many of them in jail, out here tearing down the city and burning up and killing. People want to be trusted.
If you don't trust your children, your children won't trust you, in your house. If the establishment won't trust their subjects, the subjects won't trust them. The police force, they won't trust the citizens, the citizen won't trust them. Trust is very, very important.
But so much for that, we can't spend too much time on it. I hope you've understood something of what I've said. When I said faith or trust is a prior condition that G-d has created in us and we have to promote trust between each other. In the house and in the society. Don't promote distrust that poisons the society, weakens the society and makes it self-destructive. It destroys itself.
Now, let's quickly I’m going directly. Most of this is indirect, but I'm going directly to something now in the home. We make a big mistake in the home. One other concept for us as Muslim is that absolute ownership is only with G-d. None of us have absolute ownership of anything. That's important. Get out of the habit of saying, "This is mine," all the time. "This is mine. Don't touch that. That's mine." Don't be overly possessive. Dislike claiming everything for yourself.
Instead of saying, "This is mine," say, "This is ours." Sister, don't say, "Get out of my refrigerator." Say, "Get out of our refrigerator." Don't say, "Don't sit on my couch with those dirty pants." Say, "Don't sit on our couch with those dirty pants." So much for that. Let's keep moving.
Now, property is personal and property is shared, right? Now, when he goes into your jewelry, sister, and look for one of those shiny earrings to put in his ear. Say, "Funny boy, get out of my jewelry."
Getting back to faith now. When we accept G-d and accept His Prophet and accept what He has revealed, mainly because we believe. It is our nature to believe in our Creator, to trust our Creator. If we have that condition in us, then we can accept what G-d says, Sami’ na wa Atana, "We hear and we obey." Muslims have to get out of the habit of hesitating when you know clearly what Allah wants. Stop hesitating. Allah say, pray at Fajr time. If that hits your conscience or you hear the athan in your house, you don't think about that. If you think about it, that means you're questioning what G-d orders.
"Oh, let me see now. Should I pray today?" If I had talked like that to my mama when I was a boy. She said, "Wallace, get up and do such and such thing," and I'd hesitated. I'd say, "Well, should I do that today?" Before I got finished with the sentence, I'd have knot on my head, or a whip on my buttocks. Yes, she would put something to me right away. Okay. So, think about that. You going to hesitate now?
That's why the word hayya ala salat. It means come lively. The call to prayer. Hayya ala Salat. That mean, "Don't you come to slow”. Mama would put some fire behind you. Right? Yes, the southern mothers, they'll make you straighten up and get to moving like you like it. You start smiling right away. Yes, ma'am.

Sami’ na wa Atana. And also, it is connected with faith. I make the connection with faith. I believe I'm right in connecting with faith. That is this obedience. This, T-H-I-S, this obedience that G-d wants in us, it is connected with faith. You can't have that kind of obedience unless you have strong faith. You have to have strong faith. The faith has to be strong. Sami ’na munaadiyen. Same word. We have heard a caller. Unadillan iman, calling to faith, and we have responded.
Again, G-d says, in the second chapter of Qur'an in the form of a prayer, Sami’ na wa Atana. We have heard and we are obeying, and we have obeyed. We have heard and we have obeyed. Or we hear and we obey. That means if you have the faith, you are not to hesitate when you know clearly that G-d orders thus, or order this act, or order such and such thing.
Don't hesitate. Because hesitating, let me tell you what hesitating does. Hesitating, when you know it's right to do it, hesitating weakens the muscle to act rightly. Please listen to what I'm saying. Hesitating weakens the muscle to act rightly. You hesitated this time, the next time you're going to be weaker for disobedience. You do it again, after a few days, you're even weaker. Over a period of time in your life, you become so weak until you become like most Muslims, they are not obedient Muslims, they're just Muslim by name. They're not obeying anything.
We need a better appreciation for our women, for women, period. Not to mention for mother. Mothers are more special than just a woman. Wife is more special than just woman. But we need a better appreciation for just woman, period. We must understand, brothers, as Muslims that woman is highly regarded, highly respected in this religion, highly respected.
She's respected for having the same, she has equal intellect. Equal intellectual potential, equal brains. In this religion, she has equal spirit, equal soul. She has equal morality, she has everything equal, that G-d gave a human being, equal. That doesn't mean it always turn out that way. Why? Because G-d has assigned to us different roles in society.
So, the man because of the different role he's assigned to, he will become superior to her in certain respects. She will become superior to him in other respects, in other respects. But that inequality that we see in the order of society or in the society, does not mean that they are not equal. They are equal and the proof of it is, the exception we find in the society. We find women that outdo men brain-wise, intellectually. We find women that will outdo the man morally. Women that are outdo the man in any task, any task that she's assigned to. Give her an opportunity and she want to challenge him, eventually she will show that she's a match for the man.
Sex seems to disappear as a factor there, for the inequality or anything else, or superiority. It disappears. How do I know I'm a welder? Believe me, they let women come into the companies, and I was welding for this company in heliarc. And I thought I was tough. Doing some heliarc welding. That woman that came in there and she made me ashamed to even let her know that I was welding.
You don't like a woman to come in and she was terrific, terrific. That so happened that she had also, I guess, in her traits, she had some basic skills, some basic talents, for mastering that art, the heliarc process in welding. Because she sure was doing it, she was mastering in it. Believe me, she was mastering it.
Don't go back and say, "Well, the Imam said there was no difference between males and females." No, I didn't say that. I said that, inherently, there's no difference. Originally, pardon me, there's no difference. Originally there's no difference. In terms of human essence, and human qualities and potential, no different.
But the fact that we have different roles in the world in society, makes the distinction. That makes the distinction. Distinguish us for having superiority in certain respects, but believe me, given the same circumstances, over enough time, the woman will prove to be your equal. I hope that'll never happen, because I don't like the shape of these women that's driving these mail truck. Buttocks spreading out so much it looks like an upside-down sand clock or something. I hope we stay like the Lord made it, femininity for the women and masculinity for the men. I like it that way you turn me on sister when you get feminine.
Quickly, let me come to something now, a little more touching. Before- pardon me, before, let me give you what is reported in the tradition by one of the excellent reporters of Hadith. He reports that the Prophet said the prayers and the peace be on him, of the woman. This is Abdullah Ibn Amr Ibn Al 'As. He reported that the Prophet said, that the world-- the dunya means the world. The world is a benefit. Benefit, gain, profit, gain, benefit, usefulness, whatever. And the best of its benefit, or its rewards or however you want to translate that, the material benefits material reward. The best of this reward, the best that we have of all this world, he's talking about the world. What did he say? A virtuous woman, a virtuous woman.
All that we can see as benefits in this world. The Prophet is saying to us, the best, more better than the cars, brother, more better than the business, to have the business, more better than to be rich and powerful, more better than everything in the world eating that good dinner. Some of you love to eat too. I guess it's because we've been poor for a long time. Some of us we just love to eat, the whole thrill is in eating.
Better than that dinner, that good meal, whatever you have of the world is the virtuous woman. The virtuous woman. That tells us that we should value a believing sister who wants to be decent, over everything else that we have in the world of the worldly things.
We're talking about the sister as a worldly thing now. We're talking about enjoying her as a companion, as my sexual companion. We're talking about intimacy, we're talking about a wife, we're talking about the woman. Right? Isn't that a fact of nature? Whatever this religion says, nature will support it too. Reality of nature will support it. Don't tell me, brother, if you're a real natural, normal person, man, your best enjoyment is not eating that meal; not riding that car; not going to entertainment; seeing a nice movie or seeing a nice show or hearing a nice band or whatever; or smoking that joint that you do sinfully. No. If you will tell the truth, your best enjoyment is being comfortable with that sister.
The Prophet didn't say something wrong; our nature testifies to it. Peace and blessings be upon the Prophet. Also, the Prophet says, the prayers and peace be on him, paradise lies at the feet of the mother. Paradise lies at the feet of the mother. Here, the Prophet has made paradise, something that we can get through the mother. Through the mother. He says, paradise lies at her feet. If he said, paradise lies at the Route 65 there, won't we start looking for it? He said, paradise lies at the foot of the mother. So, we should go looking for her. Go to her. Support that mother, respect and love her. Value her. Invest in her. Yes, because paradise lies at her feet.
This is not me; this is the religion. Don't charge me with saying it. Everybody wants to accuse me of bid'ah. "Oh, he's just an innovation. The Imam is guilty of always bringing an innovation into religion. He gets that from his father." No, that's no bid'ah. That's the bit, put in your mouth and you'll be guided right.
Now, so much for the woman, for the respect that is due woman. But we are just touching upon it. There's an excellent book out too, and I'm going to mention this book, is by Dr. Ahmad Sakr who I've known since 1967, I believe. Long time. It's called Matrimonial Education in Islam By Dr. Ahmad Sakr.
Now, let me come to something that may be a little more touching to you. And that is this new influence that were having an African American family of people, especially in America, called Afrocentricity. Afrocentricity.
Now, I may surprise you, I am not against Afrocentricity if it is honest and straight. I wasn't against and I'm not against black studies in our schools and on our campuses. But I'm not comfortable with it because I know it hasn't been honest and straight.
Likewise, for this belief that's being spread now under the influence of the name Afrocentricity. I'm not pleased with it at all. Why? It says that we should make Africa the center. That's what it says. We should make Africa, the center, and all of us of the African family should look to Africa as the center. But it ignores Al-Islam that has become the center and has been the center for the continent of Africa for many centuries. For many centuries. Our religion has been the center for that continent. But they want to ignore that and go to idolatry, anything but true religion.
They don't even respect real Christianity on the continent. They want to go to idolatry. That tells me that someone wants to sell me an Afrocentric belief that is a cheat. It's cheating me. It's cheating me. It's cheating me out of my rich past and identity with the continent of Africa.
Africa before Al-Islam, we know it had ancient civilizations. But why should I ignore traces, small remnants of an ancient civilization, when I have it nearer to me in time, great evidence of mighty people, mighty civilizations influenced by Islamic civilization?
Now, they will mention, Songhai. They will mention Askia the Great. They will mention these figures, but they mention them passing over, passing by, playing down any importance for Al-Islam in their life. You have to search to find the connection with Al-Islam. When you should have to search to find the connection with the ancient bones, with the ancient superstitions, with the ancient idolatries. Really, you should have to search to find that. Because Al-Islam came and overshadowed that, and pushed Idolatry and primitive behavior out of the continent of Africa almost totally.
And also, Christianity has had a great role on that continent. So, if they’re going to bring us to an Afrocentricity, they should respect the fact that religion revealed by G-d has done more for that continent than any so-called idolatry or primitive ideas about religion. Established religion, Christianity, and Al-Islam- particularly Al-Islam has done more for the civilizing of that continent, for the enrichment of the intellect and the human nature and soul of that continent than anything else. This is a fact of history.
So, why cheat me if you want me to make Africa my center, center of my life, the center of my focus, for my reality, then don't cheat me. Don't have me looking at bones and superstition, and faked up, cosmetic ideas. When there's real, real truth of the excellence and civilization of these people that I can go right to in history and touch it.
What does that tell me? If you study who are involved in spreading this belief called Afrocentricity or whatever, this connection with that idea. You will find that the enemies of Al-Islam are among them. The enemies of our religion are among them. I want to say to you that this affects the family to. This is going to spread. Pretty soon your family members are going to be influenced by this wave of Afrocentricity. Your boys are going to be influenced by it. Already some of our children are influenced by it.
The prophets of that idea, the false prophets, the cheaters, the false cheating prophets of that idea, they're getting on the Television, they're on the media. They're reaching our home. They're fascinating us. Why? Because our souls have a great void. We have a great need to connect with our ancient land, our ancient people, with ancient history. America has kept all that from us and now it gives it to us in a very deceitful way, by letting the enemies of Al-Islam tell us about our past. When our past has been mostly Al-Islam and it should be the Muslims telling us about that past and not the enemies of Al-Islam.
They're cheating us, even right here pretending to be sincere and straight, they're cheating us out of the truth of our past, cheating us out of it, the richness of our path. They're cheating us. I repeat, the false prophets are going about preaching that idea. And they're reaching our homes. They're reaching your children. More and more, they're going to be reaching us. Muslims, we have to be aware of that. You have to remember, sisters and brothers, to tell your children that don't you be taken by this. The best past we have as people of Africa is Islamic.
Quickly let me come to something now a little more touching. Before, let me give you what is reported in the tradition by one of the excellent reporters of hadith. He reports that the prophet said the prayers and the peace be on him of the woman. Now this is Abd Allah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As. He reported that the prophet said, "That the world, the dunya means the world. The world is a benefit, benefit, gain, profit, gain, benefit, usefulness, whatever. And the best of its benefit, or its reward, or its-- however you want to translate that. The material benefits, material rewards.
The best of this reward, the best that we have of all this world, it's over the whole world, what did he say? A virtuous woman. A virtuous woman. All that we can see as benefits in this world, the prophet is saying to us, the best, more better than the cars, brother, more better than the business to have the business, more better than to be rich and powerful, more better than everything in the world, eating that good dinner. Some of you love to eat too. I guess it's because we've been poor for a long time. Some of us we just love to eat, their whole feel is in eating. Better than that dinner, that good meal, whatever, you have of the world is the virtuous woman. The virtuous woman.
That tells us that we should value a believing sister who wants to be decent over everything else that we have in the world of the worldly things. Now we're talking about the sister as a worldly thing now. We're talking about enjoying her as a companion, as my sexual companion. We're talking about intimacy, we're talking about a wife, we're talking about the woman. Isn't that a fact of nature? Whatever this religion says, nature will support it too. Reality of nature will support it.
Don't tell me brother, if you're a real natural, normal person man, your best enjoyment is not eating that meal, not riding in that car, not going to an entertainment, seeing a nice movie, or seeing a nice show, or hearing a nice sound or band or whatever, or smoking that joint that you do sinfully. No, if you will tell the truth, your best enjoyment is being comfortable with that sister. The prophet didn't say something wrong; our nature testifies to it. Peace and blessings be upon the prophet.
Also, the prophet says the prayers and the peace be on him, paradise lies at the feet of the mother. Huh? Paradise lies at the feet of the mother. Here, the prophet has made paradise something that we can get through the mother. Through the mother. He says paradise lies at her feet. If he said paradise lies at the Route 65 out there, won't we start looking for it? He said paradise lies at the foot of a mother, so we should go look at her. Go looking for her, go to her, support that mother, respect her, love her, value her, invest in her.
Yes, because paradise lies at her feet. Not me, this is religion. Don't charge me with saying it. Everybody wants to accuse me of bid’ah. "He's just an innovation. The Imam is guilty of always bringing in innovation in the religion. He gets that from his father." No, that's no bid’ah. That's the bit, put it in your mouth and you'll be guided right.
I may surprise you; I am not against Afrocentricity if it is honest and straight. I wasn't against and I'm not against black studies in our schools, on our campuses. But I'm not comfortable with it because I know it hasn't been honest and straight. Likewise, for this belief that's being spread now under an influence of the name Afrocentricity. I'm not pleased with it at all. Why? It says that we should make Africa the center. That's what it says. We should make Africa the center and all of us of the African family, should look to Africa as the center. But it ignores Al-Islam that has become the center and has been the center for the continent of Africa for many centuries. For many centuries.
Our religion has been the center for that continent. But they want to ignore that and go to idolatry. Anything but true religion. They don't even respect real Christianity on the continent. They want to go to idolatry. That tells me that someone wants to sell me an Afrocentric belief that is a cheat. It's cheating me. It's cheating me. It's cheating me out of my rich path and identity with the continent of Africa.
Africa before Al-Islam, we know it had ancient civilization. But why should I ignore traces, small remnants of an ancient civilization when I have in near to me in time, great evidence of mighty people, mighty civilization influenced by Al-Islam, Islamic civilization? Now they will mention Songhai, they will mention Askia the Great, they will mention these figures but they mention them passing over, passing by, playing down any importance for Al-Islam in their life.
You have to search to find the connection with the al-Islam, when you should have the search to find the connection with the ancient bones, with the ancient superstitions, with the ancient idolatries. Really, you should have to search to find that, because al-Islam came and overshadowed that and pushed idolatry and primitive behavior out of the continent of Africa almost totally. And also, Christianity had had a great role on that continent.
If they're going to bring us to an Afrocentricity, they should respect the fact that religion revealed by G-d, has done more for that continent than any so-called idolatry or primitive ideas about religion, established religion. Christianity and Al-Islam, particularly Al-Islam, has done more for the civilizing of that continent for the enrichment of the intellect and the human nature and soul of that continent than anything else. This is the fact of history, so why cheat me? If you want me to make Africa my center, center of my life, the center of my focus for my reality, then don't cheat me.
Don't have me looking at bones, and superstitions, and faked up cosmetic ideas when there's real truth of the excellence and the civilization of these people that I can go right to in history and search it. What does that tell me? If you study who's involved in spreading this belief called Afrocentricity or whatever, this connection with that idea, you will find that the enemies of 
Al-Islam are among them. The enemies of our religion are among them. I want to say to you that this affects the family too. This is going to spread. Pretty soon your family members are going to be influenced by this wave of Afrocentricity. Your boys are going to be influenced. Already some of our children are influenced by it.
The prophets of that idea, the false prophets, the cheaters, the false cheating prophets of that idea, they're getting on the television. They're on the media. They're reaching our homes. They're fascinating us. Why? Because our souls have a great void. We have a great need to connect with our ancient land, our ancient people, with ancient history. America has kept all that from us and now, it gives it to us in a very deceitful way by letting the enemies of Al-Islam tell us about our past. When our past has been mostly Al-Islam and it should be the Muslims telling us about that past and not the enemies of Al-Islam.
They're cheating us. Even while they're pretending to be sincere straight, they're cheating us out of the truth of our past. Cheating us out of it. The richness of our past. They're cheating us. And I repeat, the false prophets are going about preaching that idea. They are reaching our homes. They are reaching your children. More and more, they're going to be reaching us. Muslims, we have to be aware that. You have to remember sisters and brothers to tell your children that don't you be taken by this. The best past we have as people of Africa is Islamic. The greatest page of glory, the greatest page for our achievement is Islamic, and nothing else but Islamic.
We appreciate the Christians what they have done on the continent of good, but what they have done has been nothing. It hasn't left nothing when we compare the influence of this religion, this "Islam or Al-Islam" on the life of that people we call the African people. They have done nothing. Now, that doesn't mean that we're in the best shape. The Muslim of the world are not in the best shape. Why? Because as our G-d says, “He rotates the rule”. He rotates the rule.
That means that though we are His people, though Muslims are His people, we are G-d's people, that means that we are not always going to be rulers on this Earth. G-d rotates the rule to try people, to test, see how these people behave. How do we know how other people will treat Muslims if they never get a chance to be in the superior position? How do we know how we will treat other people if G-d never give us a chance to be in the superior position? There's a lot of wisdom in this, that G-d rotates the rule as He pleases.
So, G-d rotated the rule and the Christian west got into power, and they colonized Africa, and they dominated most of the Muslim world, practically all of it. They left their influences there, they strained the life of the Muslim, they tried to alter the life of a Muslim so the Muslim will never find his true Islamic life. They dominated those places for century. So, don't wonder why Muslims are not great, we have just come out from oppression. We have been oppressed by the west whether in Africa, or in the Middle East, or in India, or wherever we have been, we have been oppressed by the west.
So, don't blame us for the state we are in now, blame yourself for not trying to finding the truth. For not searching your Quran and searching the history of our prophet, the peace and the blessing be on him, to learn the truth straight from the sources, straight from the genuine sources. Let us blame ourselves. Don't blame the state of the Muslims in the world. We need a climate for healthy Muslim homes. I hope I'm contributing something to bringing that about.
My last note for this talk is on this, you'll be hearing now freedom, big word, democracy. Democracy is catching on wildfire in Europe. All over Europe. Russian now glasnost, openness, democracy. We expect it is going to sweep in the world. Democracy is sweeping the world. You, as Muslim, you must understand that the west was oppressing itself. The west, Christian west was oppressing itself, denying women respect that they are due by nature and from G-d. Refusing to give them opportunity to be educated.
Some Christian sects were saying that the women did not have a soul. Only the men, male has soul. Women have no soul. Christians were doing this. They were oppressing not only us, but they oppressed even their own, they enslaved their own people. Their workers were treated like a slave market. Workers were treated like a slave market. You should study some of you, scholars. Not all of you, all of us can't do this, but some of you scholars. If you haven't done it, you should make it your business to study the history of the progress of labor. The progress of labor in the history of the west.
Labor used to be treated like beast. Not only us, don't think that they brought Africans over here from Africa and that began their mistreatment of human being. No, they treated themselves like that. You should read some of the treatment of the English towards the Irish that they dominate. The English over the Irish. You should read how they treated the Irish, how they disrespect the Irish male because they thought the English was superior. A superior breed to their Irish brother of the same color. You should know these things.
So, we’re heaingr all this talk about freedom now, about democracy. As Muslims, we have to stay separate from this thing. We don't want the democracy that the west is all excited about. We want a better democracy than that. Well, where is a better democracy than that? It's in Quran. It's in the life of Muhammad, the prophet. The prayers and the peace be upon him.
While we are excited about this thing, let us go to the Quran and let us get the insight. Let us get the knowledge and the insight from the Quran to come up with the right idea for freedom and democracy. Because it was the Quran and the life of the prophet that lit the torch of freedom for the west and brought them to accept civilization and democracy. What they have is their brand of it. Not conforming exactly to what Allah wants in the Quran. They are not conforming to that.
In connection with that, I want to say this in my conclusion, be aware of the hypocrisy too. I love this country, I love this freedom, I love all of it, but be aware of the hypocrisy too in the west. What hypocrisy am I talking about? The west, especially America, America is the model for this special kind of freedom. You won't find the same hardly anywhere in the western world. America is the place for this. It's what they call "experimental freedom. Experimental democracy". This is an experimental democracy, an experimental freedom.
All right, so what does that say? That says this, that America has a very unique and strange form of freedom and democracy. On the one side, it's beautiful, and great, and very attractive. On the other side, it's frightening. Because this idea of freedom that we have in America allows freedom to everything. There's freedom to the person who wants to indulge in an experience of immorality, perversion. If he wants to explore the possibilities for perverted sex, he has the freedom to explore the possibilities for perverted sex, and come up with something so strange or so way out, make all of us feel like jumping off. If somebody said, "Stop the world, let me jump off." [
Have all of us saying, "Stop the world, let us jump off." That's the kind of freedom we have here. Now, also we have to understand that though our religion promotes freedom, insists upon freedom. La iqraha fid deen, no compulsory in religion, no forcing people to be Muslims, no forcing people to pray. Though our religion insists upon that, we must understand too that our religion respects what is due respect.
Now, it respects the privacy of the home. It respects the privacy of a society. Do you think the prophet would send his disciples or his followers to Rome to convert the Pope? He didn't do it. He never sent his disciples to go to Rome to convert the Pope. What does that tell us? That he accepted what G-d says. That G-d sent prophets to all of these people, and that if He had wanted you all to be one community, He would have made you one community.
So, he accepts that is the will of G-d, that some people be Christian, some people be Jew, some people be something else. And as long as they are sincere in their religion, the prophet didn't disturb them. You must understand that right next door to Arabia, you can stand on Arabian soil and throw a stone into Africa, into Ethiopia. That's how close they are at certain points. Ethiopia, only separated by what, that water strip? A little water strip separate. Yes, you can almost throw a stone over there and hit it. Ethiopia was so close that his followers during persecution, they went to Ethiopia to seek political protection or asylum. That country is still Christian.
The prophet's army was mighty enough to go and dominate Ethiopia, he didn't do it. There are Coptic Christians still in Egypt. They were there, they have traditionally been there. They were there before the prophet, they were there during the prophet, and they are still there. Not only in these places, I'm just naming a few places. Coptic Christians still there. Why didn't he force those people to become Muslim? Because he respected those people, they were sincere in their religion. And Christianity is a recognized religion.
Though we don't recognize the deviations in Christianity, we recognize the purity of origin. The purity of origin for Christianity and for Judaism. The purity of origin. The prophet wasn't about going in there, stamping out or dominating those people and stopping them from practicing their religion. Instead of doing that, he did something that makes him stand out above all conquerors. What did he do? He established, he mandated in Medina that the freedom of religion will be granted to the Jews and they will be able to practice their religion just as they had done before the ruler Muslim came. That's what he mandated.
I can go on talking about that, but that's too much. I'm getting to my point. I want to get to my point. Now, and that's the hypocrisy that I mentioned. Where is the hypocrisy in the west? They are asking now, here I have right before me, the Pope. This is not new; this is something that maybe a month old or more than that. Pope urges a convert drive, even where Muslims band it.
Now this might sound good, to us that are sentimental about freedom. Sentimentally involved with the concept of freedom, with democracy, and the beauty of it, and everything. We might be over romantic, overly romantic and we might be, "Yes, if they would allow us to propagate in America in a Christian country. Yes, they should be allowed to propagate in Muslim countries”.
This is a special kind of democracy. This is an experimental democracy. Certainly, they can afford to let Muslims come in here and preach Al-Islam freely. Certainly, they can afford that because the devil is free too here in America. He has the same freedom. The devil has equal freedom with us, so certainly they can do that. This country is not established to preserved any particular idea, any particular religion, any particular moral persuasion. It is established to give freedom to everybody to compete with each other in a wilderness called civilization.
Maybe somebody don't like this language but it's the fact, it's the truth. And you have to cut out your civilization in the wilderness. And you have to battle Satan and battle the influences of the wilds to preserve and keep your life in this experimental democracy. Why should we invite that in Mecca? For anybody to have such an idea as a Muslim, he's crazy. Yes, they should be allowed to come here in America and preach religion. They should be allowed to have churches in Mecca. No, they should not. They should not.
Why they should not? Muslims are there. Ain't nothing but Muslims there. You invite everybody here. Atheists are here and you invite them here. We don't invite atheists to Mecca. We don't invite disbelievers to Mecca? What do you want to go there and preach to believers for? Have the respect that prophet had. He didn't go to Rome and preach to the Pope. He didn't go to the Vatican and preached to the Vatican. He realized that there was a solid place, no idolaters or solid religious people under a religious authority, qualified religious authority. They were entitled to have their own freedom of religion, to have their own choice of religion. He left them alone.
Now there's a solid Muslim nation over there, solid Muslim nation, Saudi Arabia. What do you look like asking, the Pope of Rome? What do you look like asking that they open up Saudi Arabia, open up Mecca, for them to go and preach over there? I'm telling you; he needs to go back to bed and wake up again.

I hope to visit him one day. I have great respect for him. I hope that he gives me an audience one day. Yes, I've asked a long time ago and I asked again recently for an audience with the Pope of Rome. Because I think I can help him understand Muslim sensitivities, if nothing else. Let us be aware of these things, don't be caught off guard. This wave of freedom is strong. Yes, it's strong and the west is thinking now that America is a model for democracy for the whole world, even for Muslims. No nation, no people will be a model for us. Allah says, "You are the best people, raised up, evolved for the good of all mankind." We pray Allah's guidance, always His forgiveness. Ameen. As-Salaam-Alaikum.


