The Clear Delivery of the Message

Occasion: Transcription of an Isha khatira delivered on 3 December 2025 Source: A transcription of a video khatira by Dr. Ahmed Abouseif — Watch the original video on YouTube

The Doctor opened his khatira with a supplication that Allah bless us in what He has provided us, protect us from the punishment of the Fire, and turn away from us the causes of punishment in this world and the Hereafter, by His mercy, good pleasure, kindness and generosity. Then he made his talk about "the clear delivery of the message" (al-balāgh al-mubīn).

Prayer as a Training Program

He moved to the Isha prayer as one of the very simple scenes, and called on us to take our time and reflect on it. This training program in prayer is training in order, in cognitive and physical integration, and in the mental formation of this human being in his life of prayer through these five or ten minutes, or however long they are; in it there is soldiery and in it there is leadership.

The Imam Presents the Model

Then he mentioned that the clear delivery of the message is manifested in his saying ﷺ: «صلّوا كما رأيتموني أُصلّي» (Pray as you have seen me pray). The imam presents the ideal and most complete model, and the follower must follow and has no choice, and the imam must respect the mentality and psychology of those behind him so that he is committed to their content and their level of performance, so that integration is achieved between imam and followers.

Among the etiquette of leading prayer is that the imam looks at the faces of those behind him; if he sees a face that is not as usual and knows that the person has a need, he shortens his prayer, and if he knows that one of them needs a reminder, he chooses from his recitation what suits the situation of the listener. And he said: this is a system operating at the highest levels of human performance, because its maker is the God of the worlds and their Lord, glory be to Him, the Exalted.

Callers and the Varying Levels of Reception

Then he linked that to callers to Islam: when we speak, for example, about taqwā and say: «يا أيها الناس اتقوا ربكم» (O people, have taqwā of your Lord), the listener may ask for more detail. And he said: people's understandings are a different matter from what the speaker intends, and what I say may not arrive at the same level because of the differing levels of reception, even among intelligent, specialized people.

And he gave the example of leaving the mosque after the Friday prayer and someone saying to you: "Shaykh, how did you say that this act is permissible when others say it is prohibited?" and you review your words and find that he is telling you something completely different from what you were speaking about. So what comes out of the tongue must match the comprehension of the mind.

Why Is the Story of Mūsā Repeated?

That is why you can now understand why a story such as the story of Mūsā, peace be upon him, appears in the Noble Qur'an in all these places: because every mentality needs what is specific to it; this one needs such-and-such a picture, another needs the story of Pharaoh, and so on, and so we understand this distribution and spread in the Noble Qur'an, and likewise the story of Yūsuf, peace be upon him. For every occasion there is a fitting word, and every recipient has his level of comprehension, and that is why the variety comes.

Delivery in Word and in Deed

So the clear delivery of the message is by word and by deed. If you want to be a conveyor on behalf of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, then be one who makes things clear and plain.

Then he supplicated: We ask Allah, Blessed and Exalted, to accept from us and from you righteous deeds, to take us by our forelocks to what pleases Him, to keep us firm on His straight path in this world, and to mend our hearts in the Hereafter on the Day we meet Him, Mighty and Majestic; we ask that we meet Him with sound hearts, upright consciences, and minds that believe and are certain of what is with Him.