Today we continue with our look into the inner meanings of Surah Ya Sin, the heart of the Quran. And after the three prophets had come to the city and the people they met at first rejected them and threatened them with stones there came another voice as Allah (SWT) says in the Quran

36.20 وَجَاءَ مِنْ أَقْصَى الْمَدِينَةِ رَجُلٌ يَسْعَى قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اتَّبِعُوا الْمُرْسَلِينَ

wa- jaa’a min aqs.aa al- madenah rajul yas’aa qaala yaa qawm -e ittabi’o al- mursalen

And there came a man from the uttermost part of the city. He said: O my people! Follow these messengers.

Two ways to look at this. The Quraish were at the center of the city, Makkah. Those from the outskirts were in Madinah and welcomed him. But also if the city is within us, is this a story of each of us personally in our lives then we cannot ignore what we usually think of as our own “outskirts”.

36.21 اتَّبِعُوا مَنْ لا يَسْأَلُكُمْ أَجْرًا وَهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ

ittabi’o man laa yas’al -kum ‘ajr(an) wa- hum muhtadon

Follow the ones who ask no reward of you for themselves and are rightly guided.

These messengers seek no reward for themselves but rather they seek that you should reap the great rewards of heeding the message.

36.22 وَمَا لِيَ لا أَعْبُدُ الَّذِي فَطَرَنِي وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ

wa-maa li- -y laa a’bud ‘alladhe fat.ara-ne wa-‘ilay-hi turja’on

For what cause should I not serve Him Who created me, and to Whom you will be brought back?

This is the individual’s wisdom. The most basic of the message.

36.23 أَأَتَّخِذُ مِنْ دُونِهِ آلِهَةً إِنْ يُرِدْنِ الرَّحْمَنُ بِضُرٍّ لا تُغْنِ عَنِّي شَفَاعَتُهُمْ شَيْئًا وَلا يُنْقِذُونِ

‘a- attakhidh min donihi ‘aalihah’in yuridni ar-rah.maan bi-d.urr laa tughni ‘an-ne shafaaah-hum shay’an wa-laa yun-qidhon

Shall I take (other) gods in place of Him when, if the Beneficent should wish me any harm, their intercession will avail me naught, nor can they save?

Knowing that Allah (SWT) is our maker and the most merciful why should we worship any other? When we know that there really is not other, so it is to no avail. It is a waste of our time and it is wandering from the path of guidance.

36.24 إِنِّي إِذًا لَفِي ضَلالٍ مُبِينٍ

‘inni-y ‘idhan la-fe d.alaal muben

Then truly I should be in clear error.

36.25 إِنِّي آمَنْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ فَاسْمَعُونِ

‘inni-y ‘aamantu bi-rabb-kum fa-isma’o-ni

I have believed in your Lord, so listen to me!

This man, this part of ourselves, has found true peace, true forgiveness, mercy, kindness and true worship in Allah (SWT) and wants to be heard. This is for our benefit and for the benefit of all those around us. When we believe, worship and act as Muslims our lives are better.

Part 2.

We must remember the dividing line between what we can do for ourselves and what we can do for others. Remember that an important part of this section in Ya Sin is the identification of the messengers. One of the characteristics is that they sought no reward for themselves. What they did they did purely for the sake of Allah and for the betterment of those to whom they were to deliver the message.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “Help your brother, whether he is an oppressor or he is oppressed.” The people asked: “…It is right to help him if he is oppressed, but how should we help him if he is an oppressor?” The Prophet replied: “By preventing him from oppressing others.”

Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 3, Hadith 624

A person once asked the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to offer some advice. The Prophet said: “Do not abuse anyone…And if someone abuses and shames you for something that he finds in you, then do not shame him for something that you find in him.”

Sunan of Abu-Dawood, Hadith 1889

So let us go from here today willing to help our brothers and sisters and willing to listen to the “man” from the far corners of the city when we are in doubt. For surely it is in times of doubt that we need even more than ever to hear the clear message that will guide us on the straight path.

Wa allahu alim