Is Your Role Model Dj Khaled

My goal is to be patient upon hardship, and grateful upon blessings, and that I'd be in one state or the other until my story is true because the pen has been lifted. And the ink has dried

suamico Peace be with you. Welcome to the deen Show. I'm your host and, brother. I'm on a sugar. So Michael.

How you doing, man? I'm doing great. How are you? How are you, man? Good to see you again. Good to see you. Awesome. How are you feeling? Good.

Tell us.

Tell us are you you've been involved in the spoken word for some time, right? Yeah, spoken word poetry, the arts, something that I enjoy. So I kind of started dabbling in it. In my college years, I didn't even know that I could really write until college was really late for writers but or for some writers. And I kind of By that time, I had already developed an Islamic personality I had, you know, interests in, in learning and studying Islam by then. And so when I started writing poetry, it kind of just meshed into being you know, an Islamic art form. You know, what kind of you know, we know when we think about music nowadays people are assuming about Bling, bling, cars, women, all

those Yeah. Is that the kind of poetry that you do? Mine is kind of like Bling, bling, bling, bling. Okay, women often have bling, or a woman of outfit and cars have I felt attacked with it. That's the difference. What's the difference? Either I just posted someone is everlasting. I just posted something on Twitter, I said, Don't get caught up with chasing the, the the after party of this life is just temporary is gonna end right, you're gonna have a hangover, but the real party's agenda for that party don't stop, doesn't stop, that party doesn't stop.

And it's not even till six in the morning. Because there's no day and night and gentlemen, that's not what you know, a lot of times is not for a lot of people. But What had you realize when what At what age at what time in your life? Did you make the conscious decision that indeed, Islam was a way of life that that you wanted to live in? Why? Probably the last year of high school. So I used to go to Sunday school just like everybody else. And you know, the last two years of high school, I never used to go to Sunday school growing up and my parents, they decided, like the last two years of high school, they're like, No, we have to give this you know, we have to take our kids to Sunday school.

And so I went, and I had to be dragged every week to go. And then just one day, I remember the, the, you know, the brother who was teaching us is on the head. He, Laurie Ward him, he just started speaking about a topic that I found fascinating, which was the judge. And literally, I just from that day on, I just consumed all of the material that I could about the job and I became a 16 year old expert on the job at that particular time in my life. And that just transcended from from there on to study and other things. What do you think is the you engage with a lot of the youth? Yeah, what what do you think is one of the major challenges that will do you see them have nowadays, I

think it's just one of them is no just issue of identity, like Who am I? What's my role, trying to navigate being it's not easy, you're talking about people who are growing up, post 911, they've never really experienced the time when Islam was not public enemy number one, or being Muslim was in public enemy number one. And so you know, trying to navigate through that. And, you know, when you're a teenager, when you're young, you live and die off of acceptance from your peers, it's the most important group that you're trying to please as your peer group and your friends. And so really just figuring out your place, I think, is something that's very challenging, and have lots of

conversations with them with regards to just you know, where do your pillars, what are your Where does your identity come from, whether I'm talking to youth, or whether I'm talking to parents, because parents also give their children a sense of identity, or they don't give them a sense of identity, and they allow them to try to figure out where they can get that from. And

we talked about the different ways or different sources of a person having a strong Islamic identity, what it is and what it isn't, because a lot of times what parents end up doing when they're trying to give their children identity is they're trying to give them and the identity of being from a different country. And that doesn't work. So I'm trying to give my child a Sudanese identity or I'm trying to give my child a Pakistani identity or Egyptian identity or whatever it is, and you can't recreate that in a different country. It's not going to work and it's not going to work in the US, but you can't give them an Islamic identity because Islam transcends all borders in

it. It's it's a way of life that you live. It's not it's not restricted to injury got geographic place. What are your comments on many people who they end up following the likes of because we're creatures

limitation. Yeah. That's why the creator sent the best of people for us to mimic the prophets and messengers, and Muhammad peace be upon being the last Jesus, Moses, Abraham and all the preceding messengers. They were the best role models, but nowadays is somebody who's taking DJ was that Khalid? Yep. Another one got a Muslim name. Yeah, right. Maybe they're taking 50 cents. Yeah. as role models. Yeah. deriving their identity from this. Yeah. What do you think? So I was I was.

I was in Jamaica, Queens when 50 cent came out. And he was like, everybody, everybody who's listening to 50 cent when he came out, you're talking about 2003, basically.

And it's very powerful. It's a very powerful current people are attracted to strength, and they're attracted to success. That's something that I think we have to remember people aren't attracted to losers, no one wants to be no one's attracted to cowardice. And so the, when they have when young people have strong role models to look up to, when they have leaders in their community that are courageous, like, why is Malcolm X still so attractive 50 years later, is because he exemplifies the personality of strength, whether or not you take the the belief that he had and noi or what have you, he still was somebody who spoke truth to power. He was somebody who was unapologetically black.

He was absolutely

he was absolutely someone who is determined to follow the truth. And he was absolutely courageous. He was a hero. And so people until now, they're so attracted to his personality. And so I think part of it is just being strong. You know, if we're, if we're people who are Muslim, we believe in Islam, that we communicate that with strength with courage with Islam,

and inshallah Tada, that will be something that will inspire other people around us. Now, why you mentioned Islam, why why Islam? Why not? There's so many different religions, what makes Islam the one that you feel that people you're following and, and differentiates it from the rest? Well, Islam, I believe Islam is the truth. And,

you know, anyone who reads the Hold on, I believe, you know, sincerely open heart open mind that they will come to that conclusion. I've, you know, had conversations with lots of people. And one of my favorite ones that I've heard is a person he opened up the Koran. He read the first chapter, which is the opening, sort of the fact that he read the next chapter. And within three or four verses, he's like, this is absolutely unique. Why? Because the first chapter, the second of this, the first verses of the second chapter,

is called an account. It begins with a different I mean, radical Kitab. Without a Murphy, this is the Book about which there's no doubt. And so he said, I've never read a book in which the author says, there's nothing wrong with my book. At the beginning of every book, what do you find you find the author saying, you know, if there's any shortcomings, I do apologize. And you know, I tried my best and all of that, he said, I never ever, he's like this is either the most audacious author ever, or this is beyond human.

And so reading the Quran, I've come to the conclusion that this is the word of God

that's it man with no doubt no doubt about it that it is what Islam other than all of the other religions that I've come across Islam comes with a with a principle of falsification. ism says, Hey, if you don't think that Islam is the truth, this is the way for you to prove me wrong. Allah says when could don't feel AB man has not identified to be selective in Islam. If you are in doubt, with regards to what we've revealed to our slave, you don't believe this is from God. If you don't believe that this is the truth. Then you do something like it. You create a book that's like it, you create a book that has the effects that the foreigner has, you create a book that matches the law.

And no one's been able to do it. It's been 1400 years so far. No sticker on the part of the Quran, look into the car. We're gonna take a break and we'll be right back here on the dean show. Please subscribe to the show. Follow us on our official Facebook and Twitter pages in the links below. Please also help support the show by making a donation in the link below.

Subscribe right now.

Back here on the D show. Fellas, what have been some of the challenges now with all the the rise of Islamophobia. People have great

insulation about Islam and Muslims have you come across anybody I'm not witnessing out there that you encounter that they've had a change of heart or you've had some experience and tough questions thrown at you. Yeah, I mean, I've I've, I've met people, whether it's in hotels or neighbors or what have you, and when they find out that I'm Muslim, and they're comfortable with me when they get comfortable with me then they'll be like, Hey, listen, man. I have a question for you.

What's going on with ISIS? what's what's going on with with Muslims? And the number one lesson almost

So basically what's going on with ISIS? Like?

Because it's so prevalent? That's what they see. And so

I even had,

yeah, I had a family recently who, who basically asked me that question, and then you discuss with them. But even beyond that is just the realization that you know what, as a Muslim, I have an obligation to communicate to people and not just assume, you know, their said, you know, the majority of Americans have never met a Muslim yet, right? They haven't met a Muslim, or they've met a Muslim, and they don't know that they've met a Muslim. And so we as Muslims, we have this, you know, it's very easy for us to kind of fade in with with many of the sisters, may God bless them, they're, they're wearing the hijab, they're wearing the uniform, right? But a lot of guys, they're,

you know, they're they fade in, through through the cracks, people don't know that they're Muslim. And so I even remember, recently, I was on a plane. And the woman that was sitting next to me, she was, she was a professor, she was a much older lady. And she was just asking me, what do you do? Like?

What are you involved in and things like that, and I was going to an Islamic event, and I'm thinking to myself, in that moment, I'm on the airplane, I'm thinking to myself, is this something that I really need to share? Do I really need to divulge? Like all the details of what I'm doing? Or can I just say, I'm going to a conference and just leave it at that? I kind of thought to myself, well, why would I do that? And I told her exactly where I was going, what I was doing. And she said to me, she was like, Oh, I just came back from Iran.

And then she had all of this to share with me about her experience there. And, you know, the conversation, just we talked the entire way there. And, you know, this is, you know, I was happy at the end of the day that she just knew that she had met a Muslim. And that I was I had the talents that I had, and I had the challenges that I told her I was facing. And you know, at the end of the day, you don't know.

You know, how that will affect her. I know how it affected me. But I think if more people just communicate their Islam, not not necessarily even in a preaching fan manner, but just in every day, I live amongst you manner, that inshallah Tada, it'll do something to counteract the current of what they hear about Islam on a day to day basis. What did you tell the individual who was asking me about ISIS? I told them that it's not representative of Islam at all.

You know, that it's not representative of Islam at all the Islam that we learned, and the Islam that we experienced, and Islam that we all over the Muslim world that we grew up in,

is one that reflects the, the virtues of being good to your neighbor, taking care of people, the province of the lightest, and then he says in a, in a very authentic, very clear Hadith, he says that whoever kills a person who is more I had a person who you have a, an agreement with.

That person will not smell the fragrance of paradise. And so when you hear about people committing these atrocities in the United States, or in France, or where have you where they're killing their fellow citizens that they have an agreement with the bond of citizenship, right, that's beyond

what Islam allows. It reminds me of a lady. She was at the airport, and she saw a Muslim frame. And then she thought, let me go ask him some questions. And then they started talking as

a Somali brother, and I think he said something along the lines of she also asked him about ISIS. And she said, he said, there is ISIS. And then there's people like Donald Trump, you know, and then there's us in between. Yeah. The millions in between. Yeah. And there was a human connection that was made. Yeah. And we scratch our heads. You know, when we're hearing about ISIS, just like I'm sure many Americans are scratching their heads right now. When they watched the the GOP debates, and they're like, What just happened? What's going on in this country of ours? Yeah. Right. So

it's, these are political issues, as opposed to issues of theology. Tell us how important is it for the human being? who's out there, day to day working, raising a family, some even just waiting to make enough money, so they can let loose on Fridays? But then they forget about the most important question that people forget to ask themselves. What's the purpose of life? how important it is? Is this for a person to really reflect Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?

I mean, there's a happiness, or there's a space in the heart that is not filled except with the remembrance of God. And so no matter how much wealth a person acquires, or no matter how much success they attain worldly success, no matter how much how many relationships that they have, there's one relationship that the soul longs for, and that's the relationship that they have with their Creator. And so, this question is a question that you do get distracted from you get distracted. Maybe a day. How

a day, a week, a month, what have you. But it's one that anyone can afford to be distracted for from, for an entire lifetime. You have to make sure that this question I mean, we spend a couple of years at best on earth. And then we spend 1000s and 1000s of years in the grave. And then beyond that as a day of judgment. And so we have to prepare for that we have to ask, you know, what is the purpose, we have to seek out that purpose, even beyond? There are so many people who don't even think of these questions anymore. They're just numbers, whether it's numbed by alcohol or not by the pursuit of happiness or not by whatever it is. And so you have to make sure that you ask yourself

the question, why am I here? What's going to happen after I die? And then begin that journey searching for what that answer is? Do you think that before we uncover more questions, there was a there's a lot of examples of this people who are just so famous Robin Williams was someone I think it was a year ago. Yeah.

No, there was a woman who just did a program about this. Ronda Rousey. Have you heard of her? Yeah. She's like, probably the most famous was was there's always someone knock you out, get get on that top level. She was probably the most famous most talked about woman because she was an MMA fighter. Yeah. And she suffered a loss. And then she was contemplating suicide. I know that. Yeah, she was contemplating. So she's like, on top of the world, even if she suffered a loss, she's still you know, fame, fortune, and all of that type of stuff.

And

I mean, that's, that's disheartening. And it comes from a person is balanced by knowing God, right, and knowing their place and, and recognizing that, when you have something bigger, that you're playing for this world, and everything that's in it becomes much more bearable, bearable, and much more insignificant.

I mean, every calamity that affects a person in this life is a seed that you plant that you hope to, to, to harvest in the Hereafter, if you're patient, and if you recognize the reward with a God, and so this life is not one dimensional. If a person doesn't believe in the afterlife, then then this life becomes very difficult to bear

to summon it becomes impossible to bear. But if you recognize that you know what, God is just, and so there will be a day of judgment. And if I've been harmed by anyone, there will be ramifications, there will be payment, there will be justice. And my goal in this life is to worship God as best as I can. And until I meet him, and be rewarded for what I've done, and our words of encouragement for those who might have tuned in, and, you know, they're struggling with a lot of the different things that people are struggling, but now that the soul obviously that the heart is not content with all the material things. And we've got the intention, what what advice would you give for someone out

there, I think that one of the greatest things that a person can do is to call upon God frequently, to call upon him in the mornings call upon him in the evenings I call upon him whenever, in whatever language a person speaks, there's never meant for there to be any intermediary between you and God. There is no one who can stand between you and God, and so that you reach out to him, that you call upon him, and that you ask him for guidance, that you asked him for success. You know, as Muslims, we pray for guidance, over 17 times a day, every single one of us, the best of us, the most righteous, the most knowledgeable, the greatest Muslim, they call upon God 17 times a day. And the

purpose of that is to realize that we're not in control, not only are we not in control, but all of our goodness is really comes to us from God. And he's the one who creates us, and he's the one who takes care of us. For every minute and every second of our day, we are in need of his blessings constantly, and of His blessings as the blessings of guidance, and of His blessings as the blessings of happiness, and of the blessings of the blessings of serenity and tranquility, and all of these beautiful meanings that we look for, and we seek in our day to day lives. And so calling upon God and speaking to him, but not just asking him, but in your heart making the commitment and saying, I

am willing to submit to whatever it is that you decide.

And whatever you deem to be good for me, I'm going to be willing to submit to that. Because when you recognize that God is the one who wants the best for you. And God is the one who loves you. And God is the one who will not guide you to anything that is bad ever. When you submit to that, and then you live according to that you will live the most beautiful life and you will live the most happy life that any human being can live. And that is a life that is spent in the service of God. And thank you very much for being with us. You heard it here on the deen show purpose of life. Why are you here? The one who loves you Who created you that's the one who's sick and got some great advice

from the brother here. Make sure you tune in every week to the D shows for more inspiring episodes until then Salaam Alaikum. Peace be with you. Subscribe right now if you haven't already peace. We got a special

retreat for you. He's gonna, our guests of this week is going to perform some nice spoken word. Are you ready, the pen was commanded to write everything until the day of judgment. It wrote and wrote, it wrote that it would be created a fashion by the hand of God, that He wouldn't have it paradise and be expelled. It wrote that note would build a ship that would deliver him and a few of those who believed in him from a flood that would drown the height of mountains, it will have a mother in fear. Yeah, with unbelievable courage, placing her baby in a basket in a river and that baby growing under the watchful eye of his maker to save his people from unspeakable horrors, it wrote that David

would be a king have a son named Solomon that he would be carried by the wind make minions of the jinn and that he would have a kingdom, the likes that the pen would not write for anyone after his dominion.

It wrote of a miraculous birth under a date palm tree, a baby speaking to his mother's accusers, his first words were and I am the slave of God. He gave me the book and made me a prophet. His name was written Jesus, the son of Mary and that he would be marked for death. And it was written everything that they would say after him. It wrote of an orphan boy, who became a shepherd who became a merchant who became a prophet. His name was Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, he wrote the names of his enemies, they wrote the names of his friends, how Blessed are they that their names be written by his a role of the oma that would come after him, thought at the bins yard, entering a

land that would capture its imagination for 1000 years. Salahuddin a stone's throw away from Jerusalem, a man emerging from prison, the most famous man in the world. He wrote of kings and criminals, the roads of tyrants and poets and roads of sages, it wrote a wise man, it wrote of heroes. It wrote incredible loads, the killing of Oman, the accusation of the sacking of Baghdad 12 million dreams that would be shackled in ships traversing the Atlantic where they would be decreed to die. But some dreams don't die. They transform it as melodies that are carried on the slaves of they transform into melodies that carry on the lips of slaves who sing songs of Kings from one

generation to the next, until freedom rings, a road of colonization in the world that would come to be it wrote of the lightest love, and the heaviest sadness, a lot of greed, a lot of generosity, and everything in between

a rock the names of my parents, who they would be and what they would be, and all of their seeds and it did the same for me. So I neither fear Days of Future loss, nor cry for the glorious past, because all that is written shall come to pass. Instead, my goal is to be patient upon hardship, and grateful upon blessings, and that I'd be in one state or the other until my story is true because the pen has been lifted and the ink has dried