هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ عَـٰلِمُ ٱلْغَيْبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ ۖ هُوَ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ٢٢هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْمَلِكُ ٱلْقُدُّوسُ ٱلسَّلَـٰمُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُ ٱلْمُهَيْمِنُ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْجَبَّارُ ٱلْمُتَكَبِّرُ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ ٢٣هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْخَـٰلِقُ ٱلْبَارِئُ ٱلْمُصَوِّرُ ۖ لَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ ٢٤

“He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed. He is the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. He is Allah , other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Pure, the Perfection, the Bestower of Faith, the Overseer, the Exalted in Might, the Compeller, the Superior. Exalted is Allah above whatever they associate with Him. He is Allah , the Creator, the Inventor, the Fashioner; to Him belong the best names. Whatever is in the heavens and earth is exalting Him. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.” [Quran 59:22-24]

SCENE:

King Hasan: <panting> I’m getting in some morning exercise. The doctors told me it’s good for my heart. I’m also supposed to eat heart healthy superfoods and try to keep my stress levels low.

Aunty Hiba: King Hasan’s plan of action sounds great. It’s important to take care of our hearts. After all, our hearts do really, really essential work. 

What is the work of hearts anyways?

SCENE:

Dr. Fatima: The main work of the heart is to pump blood to every part of the body. The blood carries oxygen and all the food, vitamins and minerals that your body needs to move, think, grow and repair itself. At the same time, the blood picks up stuff that your body doesn't need and takes it to those parts of your body that get rid of waste. Your blood is pumped all around your body and gets back to your heart in about a minute. If your heart is healthy, or sound, which is another way of saying healthy, your body will work well!

Aunty Hiba: Hmm…a healthy heart. A sound heart. Where have I heard that before? 

Ah yes, qalbun saleem! Qalb means heart. A sound and healthy spiritual heart. An essential organ for every Muslim! 

SCENE:

Professor Hums: According to my research, Muslim scholars since the beginning of time have been fascinated by the heart. Did you know Al Ghazali said: ‘The honor and excellence of humans is their ability to know Allah. Getting to know Allah is what makes human beings beautiful in this world and ready for the next world. Getting to know Allah can only happen through our hearts! For it is the heart that knows Allah, works for Allah, loves Allah and finds peace in Allah.

Aunty Hiba: One of Allah’s beautiful names is As Salam. Salaam comes from the root seen-laam-meem, which points to three main meanings. The first main meaning is to be peaceful. The second is to be flawless, free from mistakes, and the third main meaning is to be safe and secure. We understand this to mean that Allah is the flawless source of peace and safety. Seen-laam-meem forms the word saleem too, from qalbun saleem. A sound and peaceful and healthy heart.

SCENE:

King Hasan: Sometimes when I am feeling very stressed out, I feel like a feather blowing about this way and that way. Do you ever feel like that?

Jester: Like, a little out of control and totally cuh-razyyyy?

King Hasan: Well not really..

Jester: And then I start feeling all weird and yucky inside. And my heart gives me crazy mixed-up messages. It says maybe I should eat to feel better. No, I should do exercise! Or maybe I should connect with friends on social media. No, I should do less social media! Or maybe go shopping to buy something new. Retail therapy! No, say no to consumerism. Argh. Nothing makes me feel totally at peace. Why is that? Why do I feel so un-peaceful? Could it be that I am looking for peace in the wrong place? Hey you! Are you even listening? What are you doing?

King Hasan: Oh, I was feeling a little stressed so I’m just reducing my stress and making my heart healthy at the same time.

Jester: By reading…the Quran?

King Hasan: Absolutely

Jester: How can your heart be healthy by reading the Quran?

King Hasan: I am talking about a *spiritually* healthy heart! And the only way to have peace and a spiritually healthy qalb is through Allah As Salam. Recognizing that Allah is asSalam, the Perfect Source and Giver of Peace, reminds us where to seek ultimate peace and safety: in He who will always remain. Reading the Quran, doing dhikr (which means remembering Allah) and praying our salah is a wonderful way of bringing As Salam into our lives and into our hearts!

Aunty Hiba: Let’s look at this name some more together and see how it is all around us!

The root sa-la-ma makes the word Islam. Islam means to enter into peace and to be at peace with the decrees and commands of Allah; the Muslim surrenders or submits to Allah.

Another word for Jannah is Daar us Salaam: because it is free from all pain, death, worries, and ill-speech, and it is a place of safety.

“And Allah invites to the Home of Peace and guides whom He wills to a straight path.”

[Quran 10:25]

SCENE:

Professor Hums: Interestingly enough, the greeting of Islam Assalaamu Alaikum means: you are safe from me; you will not receive any evil from me. The salaam is a pure blessing to us from Allah As-Salaam. The Prophet (s) said saying salaam to those you know and those you don’t know is one of the best actions.

Aunty Hiba: Our five daily prayers are a major way to have peace in our lives. Did you know the salah was a gift given to the Prophet (s) at a time when he was very very sad and stressed out in his life? Yes! Allah (s) gave it to him as a gift. Because salah is a direct opportunity to converse with As Salam.

When it was time for the call to prayer to be given, the Prophet (s) used to say, “O Bilal, give the call to establish the prayer and comfort us with it.” It was something that the Prophet looked forward to, and something he took comfort and found peace in. So salah is a source of salam and it is totally filled with salam. We send salam on the Prophet (s), we send salam to our angels on the right and left and what do we recite after we end salah?

“Allahumma antas salaam wa minkas salaam, tabaarakta yaa Dhal Jalaali wal Ikraam.”

“I seek Allah’s Forgiveness. O Allah, You are As-Salaam and from You is all peace. Blessed are You, O Possessor of majesty and honour.”

Aunty Hiba: Spreading salam or peace amongst our friends and family by being kind, light hearted, loyal and respectful is a wonderful way to live this name of Allah!

SCENE:

Jester: Knock knock

Professor Hums: Who’s there?
Jester: Olive
Professor Hums: Olive who?
Jester: Olive you brother, for the sake of Allah!

SCENE:

Dr. Fatima: Did you know? Olives are an excellent heart healthy snack! They are full of monounsaturated fatty acids which helps maintain good cholesterol levels. They are also anti-inflammatory, important for circulating the blood well. Eating a handful of olives or just one tablespoon a day of olive oil can make your heart strong and healthy!

Aunty Hiba: And olives are mentioned in the Quran too! Watteeni wazzaytoon! Surah Teen is in the last juzz of the Quran and it starts off with a solid mention of olives. Look guys, of course we can and should utilize the methods of a healthy peaceful heart that work for us, such as being with friends and family, doing fun stuff, even buying ourselves something nice or watching something good and beneficial on tv. These things are a happy and important part of being a human being. And we should definitely take care of our physical hearts through eating healthy, sleeping on time and exercising. 

Aunty Hiba: Allah, As Salam has placed on Earth and in His creation lots of ways to attain health and peace and we should feel super grateful He has given us these ways. But it also means that we recognize that these are not replacements for the actual source of peace: Allah Almighty Himself. Nothing and nobody else will make us feel completely at peace except Allah. True salam comes from Him only!

The Prophet (s) said: “Verily, Allah does not look to your faces and your wealth but He looks to your hearts and to your deeds.”

And just like we should stay alert for physical diseases of the heart and take care of our physical heart, it is super super, super important to constantly assess your spiritual heart for diseases like lying, backbiti jealousy, showing off, etcetera, and seek cure for them through Allah As Salam. So that when we arrive in Jannah, the Dar us Salam, we arrive, happy and peaceful with a beautiful ‘qalbun saleem’— a sound heart.

Aunty Hiba: Let’s all say the dua again together:

Allahumma antas salaam wa minkas salaam, tabaarakta yaa Dhal Jalaali wal Ikraam. I seek Allah’s Forgiveness. O Allah, You are As-Salaam and from You is all peace. Blessed are You, O Possessor of majesty and honour.

I am so glad to learn Al Salam today. Allah is the ultimate source of Peace and thinking of this name we remember that true and lasting peace will only and only come from remembering Him, worshipping Him and loving Him. Alhumdulillah!

And let’s read our Surah Hashr ayahs again. This time see if you can find the beautiful name of Allah As Salam!

هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ عَـٰلِمُ ٱلْغَيْبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ ۖ هُوَ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ٢٢هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْمَلِكُ ٱلْقُدُّوسُ ٱلسَّلَـٰمُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُ ٱلْمُهَيْمِنُ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْجَبَّارُ ٱلْمُتَكَبِّرُ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ ٢٣هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْخَـٰلِقُ ٱلْبَارِئُ ٱلْمُصَوِّرُ ۖ لَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ ٢٤

“He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed. He is the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. He is Allah , other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Pure, the Perfection, the Bestower of Faith, the Overseer, the Exalted in Might, the Compeller, the Superior. Exalted is Allah above whatever they associate with Him. He is Allah , the Creator, the Inventor, the Fashioner; to Him belong the best names. Whatever is in the heavens and earth is exalting Him. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.” [Quran 59:22-24]