What have you given Islam?
What have you given to Islam?
إِنَّا كَفَيْنَـٰكَ ٱلْمُسْتَهْزِءِينَ
Surely, We are sufficient for you against those who mock, [15:95]
At the end of Surat al-Hijr, Allah reminds us of the tests which Prophet Muhammad ﷺ went through when facing the Quraysh. Scholars of tafsir talk about five people who were the main enemies of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ: Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, Walid ibn Mughira, Umayyah ibn Khalaf, and Uqba ibn Abu Mu’ayt.
Imagine what Prophet Muhammad ﷺ faced
Remember that he was the absolute best of Allah’s creations, and he was being insulted, mocked, spat at, stoned, and more. It’s hard for us to imagine what this felt like without having experienced it.
There is an example of a professor of seerah, someone very knowledgeable and respected who has been teaching for over 20 years. He was invited by the group Tablighi Jamat to go out with them to visit the community and give dawah.
As they were going door to door, one of the people they knocked on spat in his face, and he started to cry. The people who had invited him were horrified and upset that they had caused this venerable man to such an experience, but he said he wasn’t crying because of being spat at.
He said that despite his decades of teaching seerah, it was only now he truly understood how Prophet Muhammad ﷺ must have felt when trying so hard to deliver the message, and being faced with nothing but abuse.
Even though the light poured from his face, the disbelievers hearts were locked and they couldn’t see it. Our Prophet ﷺ faced this abuse because he wanted to deliver the message to us, today. Are we repaying that with heedlessness and distraction, and scrolling on social media?
Allah’s reassurance
وَلَقَدْ نَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ يَضِيقُ صَدْرُكَ بِمَا يَقُولُونَ فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَكُن مِّنَ ٱلسَّـٰجِدِينَ
We certainly know that your heart is truly distressed by what they say. So glorify the praises of your Lord and be among those who prostrate themselves (before Allah) [15:97-98]
Prophet Muhammad ﷺ never complained about the accusations that were thrown at him. But sometimes even people who don’t complain still need someone to give them a pat on the shoulder and an acknowledgement of everything they have gone through.
In this ayah Allah is telling him that He recognises his distress, and prescribing him the remedy to lighten the burden: to do more tasbih and more sujud, to draw closer to Allah.
What have we given to Islam?
Compare yourself to what Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, his family and companions went through. By comparison we are sitting in luxury. They suffered so much to carry the light we now enjoy, and if we don’t understand the gravity of the message and live by it, we won’t be able to pass it on properly to the next generations.
Today we see anti-Muslim hatred rising, especially against hijabi women, but what we face is still nothing compared to the abuse that Prophet Muhammad faced ﷺ. We can put up this, and inshallah Allah will give us victory just as He gave him.
Delivered by Shaykh Haytham Tamim on 22nd Feb 2026. Transcribed by Hana Khan.
Carrying the Weight with Sujood – a reflection on the reminder
by Samia Ahmed
Tonight Shaykh Haytham’s reminder did not feel loud.
It felt weighty.
He took us to the closing verses of Surah Hijr and reminded us of the hostility faced by the Prophet ﷺ. Five men were particularly severe in their opposition. Among them was Walid ibn al-Mughirah, a man of stature, eloquence and influence, who chose mockery over humility.
The best of Allah’s creation ﷺ stood before the harshest of rejection.
Mocked.
Belittled.
Publicly accused.
The Prophet ﷺ was not rejected due to weakness. He was opposed because of strength.
When practising Islam feels isolating, when modesty feels misunderstood, when holding onto principles quietly costs you friendships, when faith feels countercultural and heavy in a world that moves in the opposite direction, it is easy to feel as though you are walking a strange and lonely path. But you are not. You are walking a prophetic path. The road may feel unfamiliar in your surroundings, yet it is deeply familiar in the Seerah. What stands out most is not the hostility that surrounded the Prophet ﷺ, but his response to it. He ﷺ did not become bitter. He did not retreat from the message. He did not allow mockery to harden his heart. Instead, he remained anchored, dignified, and steadfast, carrying revelation with mercy even when it was met with resistance.
“Sujood takes the burden off your shoulders and your heart.’
The ﷺ returned to sujood.
Shaykh Haytham said something that lingered.
There is something transformative about placing your forehead on the ground. It reorders you internally. Performing Sujood is submission at its best that we are the slaves of Allah. He is control of everything and we are in dire need of Him with every breath.
In sujood, you are surrendering. And surrender to Allah is not weakness. It is courage. It is strength. It is conviction. It is the quiet bravery of choosing Allah over ego, over approval, over comfort. It is the continual rinsing away of everything in your life that prevents true submission. Cultural barriers that confuse tradition with revelation. Slavery to people’s expectations. Systems that lure you into a disillusioned life where success is measured by status and not sincerity. In sujood, you step out of those illusions. You detach from what competes with your Lord. You realign your heart. And in that lowering of your body, your soul rises.
The world teaches us that dignity is found in standing tall. Islam teaches us that the deepest dignity is found when you prostrate low before your Lord.
Sujood is where heaviness melts, where anger softens where perspective returns as the weight of what we are carrying becomes lighter.
It is where the weight becomes bearable because you remember who truly carries you.
Then Shaykh’s reminder gently shifted.
The gravity of this message is not history.
It is inheritance.
The Prophet ﷺ endured ridicule so that tawhid would reach us intact. He carried revelation through insult and opposition so that we could utter La ilaha illa Allah with ease.
And so, the question becomes uncomfortable.
What are we offering this deen?
Are we only benefiting from the sacrifices of those before us?
Our children will inherit what we prioritise.
They will absorb what we model.
They will carry what we honour.
And then came the anchor that tied it all together: “Be with Allah and He will be with you.” Simple words, yet deeply weighty words from Shaykh. Being with Allah is not something emotional alone, it is practical and lived. It is choosing obedience when it is inconvenient, choosing patience when the ego demands reaction, choosing sujood before complaint. When you are with Allah in private, He is with you in public. When you are with Allah in hardship, He is with you in strength. When you are with Allah in sincerity, He is with you in support. The Prophet ﷺ faced the hardest tests, yet he remained anchored, not in people’s approval, not in worldly validation, but in his Lord. So, when the weight feels heavy, pause. Return to sujood. Look at the Prophet ﷺ through your struggle and ask yourself quietly what you are carrying for this deen, what you are modelling for the next generation, and how quickly you return to Allah when the burden increases.
May Allah make us people of weight and humility.
May He make sujood our relief before it becomes our regret.
May He allow us to carry this message with sincerity and pass it forward stronger than we received it.
Ameen.