Only Allah Knows What You Went Through

About this lecture

In this deeply moving lecture delivered to the community of Masjid Al-Nur in Poway, San Diego, Sheikh Omar Suleiman reflects on the grief, trauma, and unspoken pain that follows tragedy — drawing on the experiences of the Prophet's companions at Khandaq and Uhud to show how some feelings can never be fully conveyed to others. He centers the lecture around the profound du'a taught by the Prophet ﷺ — "Allahumma astur 'awratina wa amin raw'atina" (O Allah, cover our vulnerabilities and settle our fears) — and the Islamic belief that Allah, as Ash-Shaheed, the All-Witnessing, knows and honors every layer of our pain in ways no human being ever can. The lecture concludes with a meditation on the concept of witnessing — the shuhada who witness Allah's mercy, the community who witnesses their sacrifice, and the ultimate testimony of Allah on the Day of Judgment.