Reclaim Your Heart

T
ODAY’S
 O
PENING OF THE
 R
ED
 S
EA
:
R
EFLECTIONS ON
 E
GYPT
When Prophet Musa (as) stood in front of the Red Sea, a
tyrant and his army approached from behind. Some of
those in Musa’s midst began to divide. Looking ahead,
those people saw only defeat:
“And when the two bodies saw each other, the people of
Moses said: ‘We are sure to be overtaken.’”(Qur’an,
26:61
)
But Musa (as) had different eyes. His eyes were spiritual
eyes that saw through the illusions of worldly hardship
and defeat. He saw through. With a heart connected to the
Most High, looking at the same seemingly impossible
situation, Musa saw only God:
“(Moses) said: ‘By no means! My Lord is with me! He
will guide me through!’” (Qur’an, 
26:62
)
And indeed Allah did just that:
“Then We told Moses by inspiration: ‘Strike the sea with
thy rod.’ So it divided, and each separate part became like
the huge, firm mass of a mountain. And We made the other
party approach thither. We delivered Moses and all who
were with him; But We drowned the others.” (Qur’an, 
26:

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63-66
)
Today in Egypt, we are standing in front of a Red Sea.
Today in Egypt, a tyrant and his army are at our back.
Today, there are some who see only defeat. However,
there are others whose eyes are looking through the
blockade to the path and the hope beyond it. Today in
Egypt, there are some who—even with a tyrant at their
back—are saying:
“Indeed my Lord is with me, He will guide me through.”
One might wonder why, at such a critical time in history,
we would retell an ancient story. Why would something
that happened thousands of years ago be relevant today?
The reason is that it is not just a story. Nor is it ancient. It
is an everlasting sign and a lesson for all time. In the very
next ayah, Allah says:
“Verily in this is a Sign: but most of them do not believe.”
(Qur’an, 
26:67
)
It is a sign of the Reality of God and the secrets of this
world. It is a sign that tyranny never wins and that
obstacles are only illusions, created to test us, train us,

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and purify us. But most of all it is a sign of where success
comes from. And it is a vision of what that success,
against all odds—at a time we think we’re trapped,
defeated, and powerless—really looks like.
Some might ask why, if we are indeed on the side of God,
does victory not come easily. Some might wonder why
God doesn’t just give the righteous victory without
immense struggle and sacrifice. The answer to this
question is also given by God. He tells us:
“And We did not send a prophet in a town but We
overtook its people with distress and affliction in order
that they might humble themselves (reach a state of
tadaru’).” (Qur’an, 
7:94
)
Here, Allah says that the purpose of the affliction is to
reach a state of tadaru. Tadaru is humility before God—
but it is not just humility. To understand the concept of
tadaru, imagine yourself in the middle of an ocean.
Imagine that you are all alone on a boat. Imagine that a
huge storm comes and the waves become mountains
surrounding you. Now imagine turning to God at that point
and asking for His help. In what state of need, awe,
dependency and utter humility would you be in? That is
tadaru. Allah says that He creates conditions of hardship
in order to grant us that gift. God does not need to make

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things hard for us. He creates those situations in order to
allow us to reach a state of closeness to Him, which
otherwise we’d be unlikely to reach.
That priceless state of humility, nearness and utter
dependence on God is what the Egyptian people have been
blessed with today. Allahu akbar—God is great. But
Allah mentions another purpose for these hardships and
struggles. He says:
“And We divided them throughout the earth into different
groups. Of them some were righteous, and of them some
were otherwise. And We tested them with good [times]
and bad that perhaps they would return [to obedience].”
(Qur’an, 
7:168
)
In Surat ali-Imran, Allah tells us:
“If a wound hath touched you, be sure a similar wound
hath touched the others. Such days (of varying fortunes)
We give to men and men by turns: that Allah may know
those that believe, and that He may take to Himself from
your ranks Martyr-witnesses (to Truth). And Allah loveth
not those that do wrong. Allah’s object also is to purify