Beware Whom You Befriend

As-Salāmu ‘Alaykum wa RaḥmatuLlāhi wa Barakātuh. A‘ūdhu BiLlāhi Minash-shayṭāni r-rajīm. BismiLlāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm. Wa ṣ-Salātu wa s-Salāmu ‘alá Rasūlinā Muḥammadin Sayyidi l-Awwalīna wa l-Akhirīn. Madad yā RasūlAllāh, Madad yā Sādāti Aṣḥābi RasūliLlāh, Madad yā Mashāyikhinā, Dastūr Mawlana Sheikh Abdullāh al-Fā’iz ad-Dāghistāni, Sheikh Muḥammad Nāẓim al- Ḥaqqānī. Madad. Ṭarīqatunā aṣ-Suḥbah wa l-Khayru fi l-Jam‘iyyah.

Bismi Llāhi r-Raḥmāni r-Raḥīm:

(Qur’ān 25:28-29). ‘Yā Waylatī Laytanī Lam 'Attakhidh Fulānāan Khalīlāan (28) Laqad ‘Ađallanī `Ani Adh-Dhikri’, ‘Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken that one as a friend (28) He indeed led me astray from the remembrance.’ Ṣadaqa Llāhu l-‘Aẓīm. Qur’an Azimu sh-Shan is telling about the regret people have in Akhirah. And what they say the most is: “If only I wasn’t friends with this man. This friend did evil to me. He did badness to me. If only I was not with him. He took me out of the way.”

Bad friends, bad people are the ones who lead people out of the way the most, more than shaytan in the present time. People make friends with them and think something of them. And by doing what they do, they go out of the way while they were going on the right way. Where does this happen the most? At schools and universities. As if they are better people and know the way more, as if our way is not the way but their lives are beautiful, they cheat people and lead them out of the right way. And people are going on their way. Unless Allah ﷻ rescues them, they are going to hell in Akhirah. And then they say “If only” in hell.

There is no “If only” then. It comes once. When you close your eyes, there is no return. So while your eyes are still open, open them widely. Know what is good and what is bad. He is human just like you are human. He doesn’t have four legs, or five ears. However you are, he is a human too. Allah ﷻ has given mind to you and to him as well. Do not go after him!

There is an example for it. A camel said, “The hardest thing for me is when the caravan is going.” In old times, when caravans were going, a group of camels would go in line one after the other. And a donkey went in the beginning. The camel said, “I am offended by going after the donkey.” Even he is cleverer than some people. They are going after donkeys, after idiots and fools. And they don’t get offended by that. But they regret it afterwards.

You must look whom you are following. Is he good or bad? What is he teaching? What is he telling us? How is this man superior than us? You must look at this. If he is saying the truth, go after him. Otherwise, if he is saying strange unthinkable things, stay away from him.

It is the same everywhere. Sometimes some people don’t lead you to hell, but they make you strive for nothing. Some lead you straight to hell. And some raise you, they show you better ways. Follow them insha’Allah. May Allah ﷻ protect us from bad friends and bad people insha’Allah. May Allah ﷻ open our Baseerah (internal vision/prudence) so that we stay away from such people insha’Allah. There are many of them in this time. We must be very careful in the end of times. May Allah ﷻ protect us.

Wa min Allah at-Tawfiq. Al-Fatiha.

Mawlana Sheikh Muhammad Adil ar-Rabbani 21 March 2024/ 11 Ramadan 1445 Fajr Prayer, Akbaba Dergah