BismillahirRahmanirRahim

The ego gets its support from sheytan. When there is no sheytan, the ego is already powerless, crippled. Then for you to just knock your ego a little bit it becomes even more controllable in the month of Ramazan. The ego may have been trained by sheytan but the trainer has left. Now it’s you, and not only you, it’s a holy month. It’s a month of Rahmat, it’s a month of barakat. The angels are descending, Evliyaullah are always there, you are in the company of believers. Everything is just knocking, knocking, knocking, knocking, knocking your ego down. Because the ego’s life support is not there. What is the ego’s life support? Sheytan. But now the life support is there. Which is why, to fast six days in the month of Shawwal, you get very very very high reward. Because the Prophet (asws) knows how difficult it is to fast just six days as opposed to fasting thirty days in the month of Ramazan. You understand?

To fast six days is more difficult. Because the sheytan is there, especially the sunnat is so difficult for us to do these days. Sunnat is to fast directly the day after Eid, continuously for six days. It is good, but if you are visiting or you have a visitor coming in da..da..da, it’s a little bit difficult also, but fast during this month of Shawwal. That to fast in the month of Shawwal for six days, just six days, it is as if you have fasted for the whole year. You get the same reward as if you have fasted for the whole year. So yes, it is a little bit more difficult. Because sheytan and sheytanic people they are getting more energy. But more that you are fighting against it, more that you are awake, the higher station you get. More blessings you are going to get, more understanding, more opening. In some ways you may even have more openings than you did in the month of Ramazan. Because you are understanding a little bit more about what? About sheytan.

In the month of Ramazan, you are understanding more about ego. Now you are saying, ‘oh, this is sheytan.’ Then more and more you understand a little bit, ‘oh, this is dunya.’ It’s different. ‘oh, this is my desire.’ They are different. We don’t want to give lessons on different categories, what are the subtle differences, specific differences. No. Not really necessary. But you will know. As you go along, as you experience, you are going to understand a little bit more. Which is why, in this month, sheytan is going to be working harder to derail us. Why is that? Because in less than seventy days, we are going to have the Eid ul-Adha, the Kurban Bayram, the Eid of the Sacrifice. And Eid of Sacrifice is in reality much bigger than Ramazan. It’s much Holier. It is to mark the completion of the Hajj, completion of our fifth pillar, the completion of our purpose in this world, which is for what? Inna salati wa nusuki wa mahyaya wa mamati lillahi rabbil-alamin – Everything, our prayers, our Ibadat, our life and our death is only for Allah swt. Because the Hajj, when you wear the Ihram, it is a practice for you to say, ‘I’m dead from this world.’ Not only your nafs, in the month of Ramazan, not only the sheytan, but from dunya and from your Hawa, ‘I’m dead, I’m wearing the ihram. I’m wearing the funeral shroud. This is my funeral, this is what I’m going to wear in the field of Mahsyar, on Judgement Day to meet Allah swt, I have nothing on me and nothing with me.’

So now if we start to think a little bit more about Hajj, start to think a little bit more about what is a sacrifice, again don’t take that day, of course people are taking the Hajj to be completely just a celebration without any meaning. Whether it is in the Haramain or here, just an occasion to eat meat, which people are eating meat everyday anyway. That there is no connection even to see the animal being sacrificed and losing its life for you, that we are making that promise just as that animal is being obedient and giving its life for us, we are being obedient and giving our life for Allah swt, that nothing is dearer in the sight of Allah on that day than to see that animal blood, sacrificial blood, to be spilled, not for Allah, Allah does not need it, it is for us. There is so many secrets why that is necessary. Because sheytan, because the ego, because the dunya will always say we need more blood and more blood and more blood and more blood. When that is not done properly they will find other sacrificial people to cut. You understand?

So if you start to get a bit more busy with that, you will understand. Then sheytan will find it more difficult to come close to us. Then we take the lessons from Ramazan and we are going to move forward, not just to stay, not just to say, ‘oh, I wish it was Ramazan. I wish I can fast. I wish…’ No, move on.

What is after Ramazan? Like I said yesterday, what is after Ramazan? It is Kurban Bayram. Be ready for that. You don’t have three months. You have less than two months. Be ready for that. After Kurban, what do you have? You have Muharram, the New Year and Ashura, the holiest time now. to be ready for that, the New Year is coming. After Ashura what do you have? Mawlid, the Prophet (asws) birthday. Be prepared for that now. Then after that, Rajab, Shaban, Ramazan, it continues.

Muslims are busy with what? Christmas. After Christmas, New year. After New year, valentine’s day. After valentine’s day is what? Easter. After Easter is what? Huh? Leprechaun day? Ha, they even know specifically, ‘no leprechaun day before Easter, after Easter,’ da..da..da.. I don’t know all these things. But, President’s day, metra sales day, then it goes on, fourth of July, after that Halloween, you understand. There is a calendar to disbelief. There is a calendar to consumerism. There is a calendar to Capitalism. There is a calendar of your desires. There’s a calendar of this dunya. There is a Divine calendar also. Be busy with the Divine calendar. Then that time you can really make progress.

People say, ‘oh, remember last leprechaun day, I did this, did this…’ Instead of putting that as a marker, you are going to put a Holy day as a marker. Then that’s the time you are going to move on. You are going to say, ‘okay, Ramazan is done. Now, Kurban. Now I have to get ready. I have to clean myself a little bit. I have to prepare myself for Hajj.’ That is the meaning. Whether we are going to be there physically or not, you are going to make the intention now. ‘Right after Eid, I’m making the intention to go to Hajj. And from now on, it’s as if I’m going to get a ticket to go to Hajj. I’m going to prepare. I’m going to watch myself, I’m going to clean myself up,’ Why? Because Muslims today, they think preparation to go to the Hajj it’s just to get a ticket, to get the best package deal, to make sure you get your biryani and your koftes in the Arafat, to make sure you have your air condition thing, that is their preparation for Hajj. That is not preparation for Hajj. That is just for your nafs.

You are going to the House of Allah, Allah is not going to look (at physical appearance), He is going to look here (Sheykh points to the heart). You are going to the presence of the Holy Prophet (asws). Have you prepared yourself for that? Whether we are going there physically or not, the believer makes intention every year that he is there. That time you are not going to miss from the blessings of that. Then Muharram. Then Ashura. Then it continues. You understand?

So, you think we know this and sheytan does not know this? Of course sheytan knows this. And sheytan now, it says, ‘okay Hajj is coming. Now I have to trick them with something that is against to the Hajj. I have to give them something else to make them to be busy with.’ We must fight against that, insya’Allah.

We are trying to be believers. This is what we are trying to do. This is the way that the Prophet (asws) has shown us. If you want to connect yourself to any other lifestyle, everyone is free to do as they like. But no one is free, not you, not me, no one is free from the consequences of those actions. May Allah forgive me and bless you, insya’Allah ar-Rahman. Al-Fatiha.

Sheykh Lokman Efendi Hz,
Khalifah of SahibulSaif Shaykh Abdulkerim el Kibrisi (qs),
OSMANLI DERGAHI- New York
4 Shawwal 1437
July 8, 2016.