What is the first step in seeking nearness to Allah SWT?

You love Allah, Allah will love you.

What’s the protocol? Follow me, the Holy Prophet.

Follow me. Okay, the Holy Prophet had actions, ethics, states. Let’s start from the very beginning. His words, do this, do that. Follow me.

Look, don’t lose the plot here. It says, let go of the soul. Okay, how? Through the love of Allah. How do we love Allah? If you love Allah, because Allah will love you, then everything will be relieved for you. It’s a very important state that will arise. What do we have to do? Follow the Prophet.

Which aspect? All aspects start from the beginning. His words, the wajibat and the muharramat.

Let go of the soul.

The soul wants to eat haram things. The nafs wants to say haram things. The ego wants to hear haram things. At least, letting go of the soul, letting go of the nafs.

Step one is abiding by the sharia, to the dot. Because when you abide to the dot, when you abide to the dot, it means you’re obeying Allah’s commands. It means that you are letting go of the nafs al-ammarah, which wants many things, but you are abiding by Allah’s commands. This is step one, the sharia, and it’s important.