How Many Lives Do You Really Have? | Barzakh | Other Side Ep.7 | Dr. Omar Suleiman | Ramadan Series

Summary

In this episode of Barzakh, Dr. Omar Suleiman discusses the profound concept of spiritual life and death, questioning whether one's physical existence reflects true spiritual vitality. Using teachings from Islamic tradition, he delves into the idea that physical death is merely a transition; what matters most is the state of one's heart and soul. With anecdotes from historical Islamic figures and insights into practices like Hajj and prayer, Dr. Suleiman encourages listeners to continually seek spiritual rebirth and enlightenment.

Highlights

• Are you living in the flesh or the spirit? The state of your soul defines your true life. 🧐
• Disobedience to God is the real death. Obedience revives the spiritual heart. 💪
• Your soul can experience countless rebirths even as your body ages. Eternally renew yourself! 🔄
• Prayer and pilgrimage are spiritual rebirths - each a chance to return to purity. 🙌
• Death is just the start of another life - prepare your soul to navigate this journey. 🌈

Key Takeaways

• Spiritual rebirth is the key to true life. Engage in practices that revive your soul! 🌟
• Physical death is just a transition to another existence. Focus on the life of your heart. 💖
• Rituals like wudu and Hajj can refresh the soul, symbolizing spiritual rebirth. ✨
• Imam ibn al-Qayyim emphasized that true death is disobedience to God, not physical cessation. 🙏
• Life after physical death is a continuation; make sure you're alive spiritually here and now. 🔄

Overview

In his captivating discussion, Dr. Omar Suleiman explores the enigma of life and death from a spiritual angle. Encompassed by deep Islamic philosophical insights, he invites listeners to reflect on their spiritual status against their physical existence. The ultimate question posed is whether one's soul is truly alive while living in a material body.

Using stories from Islamic history, including figures like Umar RadiAllahu Anhu, Dr. Suleiman illustrates how transformative spiritual rebirth can be. He offers hope by emphasizing that no matter how barren one's spiritual state might seem, rejuvenation is always possible through sincere engagement with faith practices such as prayer and Hajj.

The episode reveals the multifaceted nature of life, presenting death as another phase of existence rather than an end. Dr. Suleiman encourages a focus on one's heart and soul to ensure life after death is greeted with light and spiritual vitality, drawing parallels between worldly rituals and their spiritual significance.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 01:00: Introduction and Spiritual Life The chapter introduces the concept of a spiritual life by posing profound questions about the essence of living. It invites the reader to reflect on whether they are truly alive or just going through the motions, implying that neglecting one's soul can lead to a state of spiritual death. Through metaphorical language, it challenges the reader to consider the vitality of their spiritual heart and the importance of nurturing their soul.
• 01:00 - 02:30: Imam ibn al-Qayyim and Spiritual Death In this chapter, the author explores the concept of spiritual death as viewed by Imam ibn al-Qayyim. The discussion references a narrative involving Musa 'Alayhi Salaam and a revelation from Allah, highlighting the importance of understanding spiritual mortality.
• 02:30 - 04:00: Concept of Spiritual Rebirth The chapter titled 'Concept of Spiritual Rebirth' discusses the theme of spiritual transformation using Islamic allegories. It uses the examples of Iblis and Umar RadiAllahu Anhu to illustrate the difference between spiritual death through disobedience to God and spiritual rebirth through obedience and enlightenment. Iblis is characterized as spiritually dead due to his disobedience to God. In contrast, Umar RadiAllahu Anhu is portrayed as a man who was spiritually dead but brought back to life by God, providing him with light and guidance to walk among people. This transformation underscores the Islamic belief in spiritual awakening and rebirth through faith and divine favor.
• 04:00 - 05:30: Stages of Life and Spiritual Revival This chapter highlights the transformative power of faith through the example of Umar, who went from a life of sin, including drinking and getting involved in plots against the Prophet, to becoming a respected leader and Khalifa. The chapter references a verse from Surah Al-Hadid, emphasizing the importance of developing a humble heart open to God's remembrance and truth. Furthermore, it reminds the faithful that just as Allah brings life to dead earth, He can revive the spiritual lives of individuals.
• 05:30 - 09:00: Prophetic Dream and Spiritual Cleansing This chapter delves into the concept of spiritual revival and the importance of one's spiritual state. It begins with the analogy that just as Allah revives barren land, He can also revive a dead heart or soul, emphasizing the possibility of spiritual rebirth. The discussion questions whether one is spiritually alive or dead, indicating that it hinges on one's spiritual condition. The teachings of the Salaf highlight the gravity of a heart's death over the physical death. The chapter concludes with a quote from the Prophet emphasizing the truthfulness of the expression that everything excluding Allah is futile.
• 09:00 - 11:00: Hajj as a Spiritual Rebirth The chapter titled 'Hajj as a Spiritual Rebirth' explores the idea that everything besides Allah is temporary, including the human body when it lacks a connection with Allah. It describes the different stages of life: Ālam al-Dharr (the realm of pre-existence) where one exists as a soul, Hayat ad-dunya (the life of this world) where the soul and body combine to form the nafs (self), and Barzakh, a phase where the soul continues but remains connected to the body. These concepts emphasize the spiritual journey and transformation within Islamic belief.
• 11:00 - 14:30: Other Journeys of Rebirth The chapter explores the concept of rebirth in spiritual and physical forms. It discusses the belief in Akhirah (hereafter), where rain from the sky causes the rebirth of the body, connecting it with the soul for eternal consequences. Unlike the body that decays once buried, the soul can be regenerated and revived multiple times.
• 14:30 - 18:30: The Nature of Rebirth and Death The chapter highlights the concept of spiritual rebirth in the faith, emphasizing that one's true age in the eyes of the soul might be different from their physical age. It illustrates that each effort to return to Allah and peel away a layer of the former self contributes to rebirth. This idea is illustrated by an anecdote of a 75-year-old man who considered himself only four years old, marking the day of his Shahadah as his new birth, acknowledging the challenges of spiritual rebirth.
• 18:30 - 21:00: Conclusion and Spiritual Persistence The chapter discusses the transformation one undergoes upon embracing Islam, akin to being reborn. It emphasizes shedding past comforts, associations, and identities, highlighting the concept of rebirth that entails sacrifice and discomfort followed by a new beginning. There's an emphasis on prophetic teachings, particularly ahadith, that espouse returning to a pure state akin to the day one was born, underscoring the spiritual renewal and persistence inherent in Islamic faith.

How Many Lives Do You Really Have? | Barzakh | Other Side Ep.7 | Dr. Omar Suleiman | Ramadan Series Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 (percussive sound) - When you look in the mirror, you might see a living human being, but on the other side, are you actually just a corpse? (gentle sound) Are you truly living, or are you just waiting for your body to catch up to your dead soul? You may have fed your body to keep it alive, but have you been starving your soul to death? How many times have you killed your own spiritual heart?
• 00:30 - 01:00 And how many times can you bring it back to life? (dramatic sound) Imam ibn al-Qayyim Rahimahullah narrates that Allah revealed to Musa 'Alayhi Salaam Ya Musa, inna awuallah mun maata min khalki iblis "O Musa, the first one to actually die from My creation
• 01:00 - 01:30 was Iblis, because he disobeyed Me, and I count the one who disobeys Me amongst the dead." Umar RadiAllahu ta'ala anhu on the other hand, is described as a dead man brought back to life. Kaana maytun fa-ahyaynahu wa ja-alna lahuo noor-un yumshi bihie fin-nas Allah says that he was dead, and then we gave him life and a light by which he walks amongst the people. I want you to imagine seeing Umar RadiAllahu Anhu in his previous life.
• 01:30 - 02:00 If you saw him drinking heavily, and hurting those people around him. Even getting to the point of plotting to kill the Prophet SallAllahu 'Alaihi Wasallam. And then you saw Umar RadiAllahu Anhu as the Khalifa. That's not the same human being. And in Surah Al-Hadid, when Allah says, Alam ya'ni lil lazeena aamanooo an takhsha'a quloobuhum lizikril laahi (Quran 57:16) Isn't it time for those who believe to humble their hearts to the remembrance of Allah, and to the truth that he has revealed? He immediately follows it up by saying, Ii'lamooo annal laaha yuhyil arda ba'da mawtihaa
• 02:00 - 02:30 Know that Allah gives life even to dead barren land. And that's a sign that no matter how dead your heart or soul is, it still has a chance to be brought back to life multiple times. But are you alive right now, or are you already dead? That depends fully on your spiritual state. And the Salaf used to say that what's more frightening than the death of one's body, is the death of one's heart. And the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasalaam said that the most truthful of poetry is a'laa kulo shai'in ma khalallaha batilu.
• 02:30 - 03:00 Verily, everything but Allah is disposable. And that includes your body when it's not connected to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala. Now, physically, your life goes through many stages. You have the life of Ālam al-Dharr, which is the realm of pre-existence, where you were just a soul. And then you have Hayat ad-dunya, the life of this world, where your body mixed with your soul and you became a nafs, which is a self. And then you move on to Barzakh, where your soul goes on, but it still stays connected to your body
• 03:00 - 03:30 in some fashion while the body decays. And then finally you have the Akhirah, where Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala in the hereafter allows for rain to come down from the sky. And then from ejb-al-dhanab, the Prophet SallAllahu 'Alaihi Wasallam said, this small portion of your spine, the rain hits, and a new body springs forward, and it is connected with a soul. And that soul and body will live with eternal consequences. That's physical. But your soul, unlike your body, can be reborn and brought back to life multiple times.
• 03:30 - 04:00 And why that's so significant is that a person could die at 80 years old, but only really be eight days old as far as the soul is concerned. Because every struggle, every return back to Allah, peels away a layer of the old you. And what remains is this fresh, renewed believer. SubhanAllah I remember in my own community, there was a 75-year-old man who would tell people he was only four years old, because he was counting the day of his Shahadah as his birthday. But that doesn't mean his rebirth was easy.
• 04:00 - 04:30 When you become Muslim, you shed the comfort of your womb, being your old life, including so much of what you used to consume, and who you used to be with, and more importantly, who you used to be. Every rebirth has some sort of sacrifice or discomfort to it, but it's then followed by a new life. And I want you to pay attention to all of the ahadith where the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam mentions, how we can return to the state in which we were the day our mother gave birth to us. So first, the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam says
• 04:30 - 05:00 in the hadith of Uqba bin Amir He said Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, There is no Muslim that performs wudu properly, and then stands up in his prayer while he knows what he is saying, except that he will emerge from that salah just like the day his mother gave birth to him. So, just as the baby came out into this world covered in amniotic fluid, you emerge covered in the spiritual fluid of wudu. And the first thing that you heard as a baby when you came out was the Adhaan. So, a person is basically replaying the cycle of their birth
• 05:00 - 05:30 with every single wudu and every single prayer. If you think about how the soul is born into this world without sin, the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasalaam said that wudu and salah wash away our sins just like the river of life. And whatever remains on our bodies falls off in our rukoo' and sujood, just like sand would fall off from our backs and our shoulders if we were to move. Then you have this more intense version of wudu and salah,
• 05:30 - 06:00 which is walking to the masjid, waiting for one prayer until the next, and making wudu in difficult circumstances. And here you have one of the most incredible narrations from the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam about a dream of his. Muad RadhiAllahu ta'ala Anhu says that one time, the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, was late to Salat al Fajr, and it was almost sunrise. And so we were waiting in the masjid, and then he came out quickly Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam. The Iqamah was made, and the Prophet SallaAllahu Alaihi Wasallam prayed,
• 06:00 - 06:30 and he shortened the prayer. And then once the Prophet SallaAllahu Alaihi Wasallam finished the salah, he turns around to us, and he says, in a loud voice, kama an tum "Remain in your rows as you are." Then he said, "I'm going to tell you why I was late this morning." He said, "Last night I was praying Qiyam, and I performed wudu, and I prayed as much as Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala wrote for me. Then I got drowsy and I went to sleep." And he says, "Then I saw Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala in the best of forms. And he said to me, 'Ya Muhammad, O Muhammad.'
• 06:30 - 07:00 So I said, 'Rabbi labaik, here I am, oh, my Lord.' He said, 'Do you know what the highest assembly, al Mala'ul'ala, meaning the angels, are arguing about right now?' I said, 'la 'adri ya Rab. I don't know, oh, my Lord.' So he said it to me again, and I answered the same way, and this happened three times." And then he says, "He placed his hand between my shoulders until I felt the coolness on my chest, and everything became clear to me and I knew the answer. So he said, 'Ya, Muhammad'. I replied, 'Here I am, oh, my Lord.'
• 07:00 - 07:30 He asked, 'What are they disputing about?' I said, 'They're disputing about what the deeds are that completely expiate one's sins.'" This is the conversation of the angels in the heavens. "So Allah asked me, 'So what are they?' And I said, 'Walking to the congregational prayers, sitting in the masjid after the salah and waiting for the next one, and then performing wudu in difficult circumstances. Whoever does these things, eaysh bikhayr wamawt bikhayr. Will live well and die well.
• 07:30 - 08:00 Wa kana min dhunubih He will be purified from his sins like the day his mother gave birth to him." You see, in physical birth there's struggle, there is pain, and there is waiting. A mother carries a baby to term until nine months. And a soul, likewise, is carrying its sins until it delivers them to the forgiveness of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala. Then that soul is born again. And what's the greatest masjid and greatest place to do salah in?
• 08:00 - 08:30 Mecca. And that's why the Prophet SallaAllahu Alaihi Wasallam said, 'Whoever performs Hajj to this Ka'bah, and avoids intimacy, and avoids sinfulness, and avoids arguing, will come out from that Hajj just like the day that their mother gave birth to them. And SubhanAllah what I want you to think about is how everything about Hajj mirrors your birth. You stand on Arafah, which is the same place your soul was before you got here, and you renew your covenant with Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala.
• 08:30 - 09:00 Then you go to Muzdalifah, which is the holding place of the souls. Then you come out to the world, and you stone the Shaitan. Remember when you were born, the Shaitan poked you. Now, this time, in the spiritual rebirth, you're stoning the Shaitan instead. And then you offer your Udhiyah, your sacrifice. Remember when you were born, it was the Aqeeqah, it was the sacrifice. But this time you're offering the sacrifice. Then you place Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala, at the center of your life in tawaaf
• 09:00 - 09:30 and you proceed in Sa'i, depending on Allah for all of your affairs. And at some point you exit your Ihram, which happens to resemble your kafan. And then you celebrate with the believers, which mirrors the celebration of the believers in Jannah. SubhanAllah it's a complete simulation of life and death in just a matter of a few days. And if done right, it's a rebirth of your soul altogether. Pilgrimage in this world is a rebirth of the soul, because it symbolizes the journey of the hereafter.
• 09:30 - 10:00 But rebirth doesn't just happen through pilgrimage to Mecca, but through other journeys as well, including another special place that's especially near to our hearts right now, Masjid al-Aqsa. The Prophet SallaAllahu Alaihi Wasallam said that when Suleiman Alayhi Salaam finished building Bayt al-Maqdis, he asked Allah for three things. He asked Allah for judgment that would be in harmony with His judgment. And then he asked Allah for a kingdom that no one after him would have.
• 10:00 - 10:30 And then he asked Allah that no one would come to this masjid intending only to pray here, except that he would emerge free of sin just like the day his mother gave birth to him. And the Prophet SallaAllahu Alaihi Wasallam said his first two duas were answered, and I hope that his third was granted as well. Then you have the hijrah, which is to migrate somewhere for the sake of Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala. And in this situation, you are literally starting over in a new land
• 10:30 - 11:00 with a new life for the sake of Allah. So Allah leaves your sins behind in the place that you left. And then finally, there's something that happens on a regular basis, which is gratitude in times of trial. And this is from the Hadith of Shaddad bin Aus radiAllahu ta'ala Anhu He said, I heard the Prophet SallaAllahu Alaihi Wasallam say that, verily, Allah says, when I test a believing servant of mine, and he praises Me, Hamadni, for what I have tested him with, then he will rise up that day, just like the day
• 11:00 - 11:30 his mother gave birth to him, from his sins. And this is because sins fall off of you with test and trial, especially when you praise Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala in the midst of it. And the greater the trial, the more sins that fall off of you, and the more rewards that are added to your scale. Now to summarize all of these ahadith, I just want you to think about something that Imam al-Ghazali Rahimahullah said. He said, what is rebirth and death anyway, except for annuqila min hal 'iilaa hal. a transfer from one state to another.
• 11:30 - 12:00 So you're becoming Muslim, you're going to Hajj, you're doing hijrah. So it's just a transfer from one state to another. Yaaa aiyuhal lazeena aamanus tajeeboo lillaahi wa lir Rasooli izaa da'aakum limaa yuhyeekum Oh, you who believe, respond to Allah and the Messenger when they call you to that which gives you life. Every day you're alive is a chance to reinvent yourself, to revive the heart inside of you, and yes, to even be reborn. But when your moment of physical death comes,
• 12:00 - 12:30 and you are literally reborn, your chance for spiritual rebirth is officially over, because this time, you'll be shutting the casing of your body and this world altogether. And your death is your new life at the next station based on the lives you're living in at this station. Death is a new birth, almawtu milad fani, annuqila min hal 'iilaa hal a transfer from one state to another. wal'iinsan la yuhibu hadhih al inteqaal and man does not like this transfer.
• 12:30 - 13:00 It's traumatic to transfer from dimension to dimension, which is the wisdom of the dua of Yahya and Esa. Wassalaamu 'alaiya yawma wulidtu wa yawma amootu wa yawma ub'asu haiyaa Peace be onto me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am brought back to life. Because it's in those transitions that you feel the greatest squeeze. Now think about a baby who has gestational diabetes, or is exceptionally large, and how it comes into this world.
• 13:00 - 13:30 And think of a soul that is inflated with ego and sin. You want to transfer into that realm, not weighing too much in terms of sin. And as Imam Al-Ghazali Rahimahullah says, in the beginning, you hate to transfer, just like the baby hates coming into this world, because it feels like it's been taken away from the comfort of the womb, and the sustenance that it was receiving. But then if comfortable, the baby grows up to love this world, and would never want to return to the womb or go to the grave. Likewise, the believer after initial birth
• 13:30 - 14:00 into the Barzakh, would grow to love that world more than anything else after the initial labor. But just like when you came into this world, there's a squeeze, there is labor, there's an entrance through a narrow path. And the few hours of birth, in this case, death, can feel like an eternity. So, will you wait for that one day to arrive where your soul will leave this world, to discover whether you are actually truly alive
• 14:00 - 14:30 in the first place, or will you make sure to revive your soul here, so that your rebirth after your exit into the Barzakh, would be into a world of light and life? And what if after all your attempts to be reborn, your faith still feels like it's slipping away? The path to the mouth of the Barzakh is difficult, and the only way to make it through is to hold on tight. La'alleee a'malu saalihan
• 14:30 - 15:00 feemaa taraktu kallaa innahaa kalimatun huwa qaaa'iluhaa wa minw waraaa'ihim barzakhun ilaa Yawmi yub'asoon Closed captioning provided by MUHSEN (www.muhsen.org)