Therefore it is not strange.....

By Sheikh Abdullah Azzam

My brothers, I will mention here the blessings and ease that Allah has surrounded us with in the midst of this constant storm of problems that afflict this small group that seeks nothing but to serve the Afghan Jihad. I mention these examples, and I feel the blessings descending due to their presence among us, their supplication for us, their truthfulness and sincerity, and their use of the scales of the Lord of the worlds. 

I think of Aba ‘Asim  and I think of Sa’ud al-Bahri, and I think of ‘Abd al-Wahhab al-Ghamidi, and I think of Yahya Sinyur, and I feel mercy descending upon us, and blessings filling our actions, and ease and success towards our destination – all due to the presence of these salihin who were chosen and taken by Allah, and we hope from Allah that they are martyrs with Him just as we testify for them in this world that they are martyrs.

I remember Sa’ud the day I was sitting with him – he was much, much younger than me and I felt like nothing in front of this lofty mountain of sincerity, dedication, firmness, and forgetfulness of the entire dunya. He would seek death wherever he could find it: “…taking hold of the reins of his horse whenever he hears the sound of alarm and commotion, seeking death wherever he can find it.”

Because of this, it is not strange that you see the light that had filled his heart begin to emanate from his grave towards the sky and returning, as witnessed by someone who is with you, and to which an Afghan testified to as well…

It is not strange that we see the corpse of Sa’d ar-Rashud eighteen hours after his martyrdom trembling at the sound of the Qur’an…

It is not strange that we smell the scent of Yahya from a distance of over five hundred meters, and that the hospital that handled his pure corpse smelled of musk for an entire week afterwards…

It is not strange that we still hear the sound of takbir coming from the grave of ‘Abdullah al- Ghamidi, as witnessed by Nadhar Muhammad – the commander of his region – and others who were fighting in the same region as he. I asked for further details, and they said to me: “If you wish to hear this takbir, come stay with us in our region…”

It is not strange that you smell the clothes of ‘Abd ar-Rahman al-Banna – Hamdi al-Banna –and they are still with us in this library four months after his martyrdom, and his hat and personal items emanate a sweet scent that the Afghans smell, saying: “This is the scent of a martyr…”

These miracles are not just empty claims or chatter. Rather, they were seen by the eye and smelled by the nose of many of those present. There is a youth who is sitting and listening amongst us right now who had Kalashnikov bullets shot at him. The bullets pierced his shoes, but he was uninjured. These shoes are here somewhere in the pile of your shoes, and their owner sits among you.

It is not strange that five mortar rounds are shot over a single trench containing three brothers: the Arab survives, the Afghan falls as a martyr into the arms of the Arab, and Allah is a witness that after his martyrdom, his corpse would emanate a smoke that smelled like the musk of ‘ud. It spread musk into the air, and this brother who held him is sitting with us now! He hears my words that I am speaking right now! Smoke!!

It is not strange that you know exactly when the soul leaves one’s body due to the emergence of a sweet smell of musk filling the car in which the wounded are transported, as occurred with ‘Abd as-Samad (may Allah have Mercy upon him). They said: “We did not know that his soul had left his body except after a sweet smell began emanating from his body…his pure body, which we ask Allah to make the Angels greet it by saying: ‘Come out, O sweet soul in a sweet body which you used to beautify it in the worldly life. Come out to sweet gardens and a Lord Who is not angry with you…’

The examples that are raised in such conditions are what Allah uses to protect societies from destruction. Societies feel safe because of them; victory comes down like rain because of them, people are provided for because of them, and punishments that descend from the sky are repelled because of them.

My brothers, do not think that an abundance of weapons is what brings about swift victory, and do not think that an abundance of wealth is what brings about swift victory. Rather, what brings about victory is the supplication of the righteous. During the conquest of the lands of the Turks and beyond – part of the land which is now considered part of the Soviet Union – Qutaybah bin Muslim al-Bahili saw a hand and a finger pointed towards the sky, and he said: “What is this hand that whispers to the sky?” They said to him: “It is the hand of Muhammad bin Wasi’.” They said: “Indeed, I love this more than 300,000 swords descending upon the disbelieving Turks. This hand that whispers to the sky in the course of battle is more beloved to me than 300,000 swords in the Path of Allah.”

Examples! But, they were examples that were nurtured upon truthfulness, by pure hands. They were turned away from this world by way of the souls who were free of the filth and blemishes of the Earth. So, they began walking on the Earth with their bodies, yet their souls were living in the heavens, participating with the Angels in making istighfar for those on Earth.

“Those who bear the Throne and those around it glorify the praises of their Lord and believe in Him, and ask Forgiveness for those who believe: “Our Lord! You comprehend all things in mercy and knowledge. So, Forgive those who repent and follow Your Way, and save them from the torment of the blazing Fire!” (Surah Ghafir: 7)

And in the authentic divine hadith, Allah Said: “I never hesitate in anything like I hesitate in grabbing the soul of My believing servant. He hates death, and I hate to make him displeased or to harm him.” al-Bukhari (6502). So, the Lord of Glory hesitates in taking his soul since Hehates to harm His Muslim servant.

This is the cream of the people. Search for it. Live with it. Travel with it as your guide and under its leadership. Worship Allah by way of the light that you see and hear from them.

Source: The Scales of Allah