The Book Pertaining to Repentance and Exhortation to Repentance (Kitab Al-Tauba) Muslim :: Book 37 : Hadith 6624
Hanzala reported: We were in the company of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and he delivered to us a sermon and made a mention of Hell-Fire. Then I came to my house and began to laugh with my children and sport with my wife. (Hanzala) further reported: I went out and met Abu Bakr and made a mention of that to him. Thereupon he said: I have done the same as you have mentioned. So we went to see Allah's Messenger (way peace be upon him) and said to him: Allah's Messenger, Hanzala has turned to he a hypocrite. And he (the Holy Prophet) said Show respite. And then I narrated to him the story, and Abu Bakr said: I have done the same as he has done. Thereupon he (the Holy Prophet) said: Hanzala, there is a time for worldly affairs and a time for (worship and devotion), and if your state of mind is always the same as it is at the time of remembrance of Allah, the Angels would shake hands with you and would greet you on the path by saying: As-Salamu-Alaikum.
The Book Pertaining to Repentance and Exhortation to Repentance (Kitab Al-Tauba) Muslim :: Book 37 : Hadith 6623 Hanzala Usayyidi, who was amongst the scribes of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him). reported: I met Abu Bakr. He said: Who are you? He (Hanzala) said: Hanzala has turned to be a hypocrite. He (Abu Bakr) said: Hallowed be Allah, what are you saying? Thereupon he said: I say that when we are in the company of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) we ponder over Hell-Fire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our very eyes and when we are away from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) we attend to our wives, our children, our business; most of these things (pertaining to After-life) slip out of our minds. Abu Bakr said: By Allah, I also experience the same. So I and Abu Bakr went to Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) and said to him: Allah's Messenger, Hanzala has turned to be a hypocrite. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: What has happened to you? I said: Allah's Messenger, when we are in your company, we are reminded of Hell-Fire and Paradise as if we are seeing them with our own eyes, but whenever we go away from you and attend to our wives, children and business, much of these things go out of our minds. Thereupon Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: By Him in Whose Hand is my life, if your state of mind remains the same as it is in my presence and you are always busy in remembrance (of Allah), the Angels will shake hands with you in your beds and in your paths but, Hanzala, time should be devoted (to the worldly affairs) and time (should be devoted to prayer and meditation). He (the Holy Prophet) said this thrice.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
It doesn't matter
It is reported from Al-Fudayl b. ‘Ayyâd that he said:
If you can be unknown, do so; it doesn’t matter if you are not known and it doesn’t matter if you are not praised. It doesn’t matter if you are blameworthy according to people if you are praiseworthy with Allâh the Mighty and
Majestic.Al-Bayhaqî, Al-Zuhd Al-Kabîr p100.
If you can be unknown, do so; it doesn’t matter if you are not known and it doesn’t matter if you are not praised. It doesn’t matter if you are blameworthy according to people if you are praiseworthy with Allâh the Mighty and
Majestic.Al-Bayhaqî, Al-Zuhd Al-Kabîr p100.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
I love Allah and his Apostle
Bukhari :: Book 5 :: Volume 57 :: Hadith 37 Narrated Anas:
A man asked the Prophet about the Hour (i.e. Day of Judgment) saying, "When will the Hour be?" The Prophet said, "What have you prepared for it?" The man said, "Nothing, except that I love Allah and His Apostle." The Prophet said, "You will be with those whom you love." We had never been so glad as we were on hearing that saying of the Prophet (i.e., "You will be with those whom you love.") Therefore, I love the Prophet, Abu Bakr and 'Umar, Uthman and Ali and I hope that I will be with them because of my love for them though my deeds are not similar to theirs.
A man asked the Prophet about the Hour (i.e. Day of Judgment) saying, "When will the Hour be?" The Prophet said, "What have you prepared for it?" The man said, "Nothing, except that I love Allah and His Apostle." The Prophet said, "You will be with those whom you love." We had never been so glad as we were on hearing that saying of the Prophet (i.e., "You will be with those whom you love.") Therefore, I love the Prophet, Abu Bakr and 'Umar, Uthman and Ali and I hope that I will be with them because of my love for them though my deeds are not similar to theirs.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
"Ibaadur Rahman"
[Servants of the Most Compassionate]
"And among people there is one who would give away his life to seek the pleasure of Allah.Allah is affectionate to His devotees." [ al-Quran 2:207]
"Declare: Surely my Salah (prayer), my devotion, my life, and my death are all for Allah the Lord of the Worlds." [ 6:162]
Praise be to Allah, who has made us among this Ummah of Muhammad (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aalihi wa sallam). This is the mature Ummah, but unfortunately we are also affected by the trials. We are performing Salah (prayer) and observing Sawm (fasting) but our supplications (Du'a) have no effect on our situation. In the Quran, Allah says: "O Prophet! Allah is all-sufficient for you and for the believers who follow you." [Anfaal - 8:64] and "Successful indeed are the believers.." [Mu'minuun - 23:1]. But are we not the believers, and are we not following His Prophet? Our situation is like those hypocrites about whom Allah said "..They have forgotten Allah; so He has forgotten them.. (Taubah - 9:67)". We have forgotten our promises with Allah that we will only worship Him Obey Him. We may have names such as 'Abdullah or 'Abdur-Rahman but are we really the true servants of Allah? Do a few prostrations (Sujjud) are enough to show that we are submitting to Him? A true Servant of Allah is the one who surrenders his Will (wishes, desires) to the Will of Allah. When our hearts & bodies will submit to the commandments of Allah, (insha'Allah) He will respond to our Supplications (Du'a) immediately. Allah says: "When my servants question you about Me, tell them that I am very close to them. I answer the prayer of every suppliant when he calls Me; therefore, they should respond to Me and put their trust in Me, so that they may be rightly guided." [al-Baqarah - 2:186]. Today we learn some of the characteristics of the true servants of Allah and try to imitate them because our Du'a is not enough until we change our selves. Allah says: "... Allah never changes the condition of a people until they intend to change it themselves. If Allah wants to afflict a people with misfortune, none can ward it off, nor they can find any protector besides Him." Al-Quran [ar-Ra'd - 13:11].
-=[ Ikhlas - Sincerity ]=-
A'maal (Deeds) without Ikhlas (sincerity) are like bodies without the soul, or dead bodies. At the times of the Prophet ('alaihi salam), the hypocrites (Munafiqeen) were performing the similar 'Ibadah (worship) as the true believers (Sahaba). Their physical (bodily) actions were similar to the believers, but the hypocrites had no sincerity in their actions (ie: hearts were empty). The story of Habil and Qabil also points to the importance of sincerity. Allah says: "And tell them the story of the two sons of Adam (Abel and Cain). Each one of them offered a sacrifice. God accepted the sacrifice of one of them (Abel) but not that of the other (Cain) who then said to his brother, "I shall certainly kill you." (Abel) replied, "God only accepts the offerings of the pious ones (almuttaqeen) ." [Maa'idah - 5:27]. Allah did not accept the offering from the one who was insincere. So do we reckon that Allah will accept our fasting, our Ibadah? Don't we worship Allah as we are doing a favor on Him, rather than asking for His favors? Our motive is to get the paradise, but don't we know that no one will enter paradise without the Grace and Mercy of Allah? Rasul- Allah ('alaihi salam) said: "None amongst you can get into Paradise by virtue of his deeds alone. They said: O Allah's Messenger, not even you? Thereupon he said: Not even I, but that Allah should wrap me in His Grace and Mercy." [Sahih Muslim (6764), Abu Hurayrah(r) narrated]. Shouldn't our motives also be to achive Allah's pleasure and mercy? After all, the pleasure of Allah (Ridwan Allah) is much better than just the paradise, as Allah says:
æÚÏ Çááå ÇáãÄãäíä æÇáãÄãäÇÊ ÌäÇÊ ÊÌÑí ãä ÊÍÊåÇ ÇáÇäåÇÑ ÎÇáÏíä ÝíåÇ æãÓÇßä ØíÈÉ Ýí ÌäÇÊ ÚÏä æÑÖæÇä ãä Çááå ÇßÈÑ Ðáß åæ ÇáÝæÒ ÇáÚÙíã"Allah has promised to the believers, both men and women, gardens beneath which rivers flow, to live therein forever, and they will have beautiful mansions in these gardens of everlasting bliss. Best of all, they will have the good pleasure of Allah. Now that is the highest achievement." al-Quran [Taubah - 9:72]
-=[ Ihsaan - Perfection ]=-
Our Prophet ('alaihi salam) told about the level Ihsan (perfection) as "you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, and in case you fail to see Him, then observe prayer (with this idea in your mind) that (at least) He is seeing you."
Ibaadur Rahman are those Servants of Allah, who worship Him with the certainty (Yaqeen) that they are standing in front of the Lord Of The Universes. They don't worhip Him to demand paradise but to thank Him, praise Him for His unlimited favours on them. Allah says: "If you want to count the favors of Allah, you will never be able to number them; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful," (Nahl - 16:18). They humbly worship him and 'hope' for his Mercy and Forgiveness. [And your Lord says: "Call on Me, I will answer your prayers. Surely those who are too arrogant to worship Me shall soon enter hell in humiliation.", al-Quran (40:60)].
"To Him belongs whosoever is in the heavens and on earth. And those who are near Him (i.e. the angels) are not too proud to worship Him, nor are they weary (of His worship)." al-Quran [Anbiyaa - 21:19]
"If you disbelieve, then you should know that Allah does not need you. He does not like ingratitude from His servants. Therefore, if you are grateful He is pleased with you..." [Zumar - 39:7]
Ibaadur Rahman will be prepared to sacrifice anything that they can, only for a smile from Allah. The one who has experienced this, will surely have no interest in these worldly (fake) entertainments. People might consider them tasteless, but they taste the sweetness of Faith; which is far sweeter than these worldly entertainment. Such are the ones, when they judge they judge with justice & wisdom, and don't even care about their own or their friends' interest.
æãä ÇáäÇÓ ãä íÔÑí äÝÓå ÇÈÊÛÇÁ ãÑÖÇÉ Çááå æÇááå ÑÄæÝ ÈÇáÚÈÇÏ"And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah ; and Allah is affectionate to His devotees." [al-Baqarah - 2:207]
-=[ Ibrahim and Islam (Submission) ]=-
Sayyidina wa Khalilullah (Allah's friend), Ibrahim (Abraham, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) has been given a high esteem in many religions in the world. However, only Islam teaches us his true way. Allah says: "Who has a better Deen (way of life or religion) than the one who is a Muslim (submits himself entirely) to Allah, does good to others and follows the faith of Abraham the upright one, whom Allah chose to be His friend?" [an-Nisaa - 4:125].
Sayyidina Ibrahim ('alaihi salam) lived his life submitting to Allah alone. He surrendered his Will to the Commands of Allah. When Allah commanded him to sacrifice his only-son (at that time) Isma'el ('alaihi salam), he fulfilled Allah's command without finding any excuse (ie: without saying "Oh Allah! this is my only son.."). Unfortunately, we call ourselves Muslim but we are not prepared to sacrifice our time, our temporary possession and our way-of-life for Allah. Actually, we don't have trust on Him. When Ibrahim ('alaihi salam) was about to be thrown into the fire, his trust was on no one but Allah. Did not Allah always save him? He was never proud of his deeds and he will say "O Lord, please accept this..". "And when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the House and dedicated it by saying: "Accept this from us, O Lord, You are the one who hears all and knows all..." [2:127]. Such is the example of 'Ibaadur Rahman. We can obviously not reach to their level, because of our weaknesses, but we can try to get as close as we can.
Whenever Allah said "O Ibrahim!", his reply would be "Labbayka ya Rabbi Labbayk!" (Here I am at your service, O my Lord, here I am). So do we Muslims think we only have to say 'Labbayk' in the Hajj and then forget it? Allah says: "No one turns away from Abraham's Tradition except one who makes a fool of himself. To Abraham We have granted distinction in this world and in the life hereafter he will be among the righteous ones. When God commanded Abraham to submit, he replied, "I have submitted myself to the Will of the Lord of the universe." [2:130-131].
Þá Çä ÕáÇÊí æäÓßí æãÍíÇí æããÇÊí ááå ÑÈ ÇáÚÇáãíä"Declare: Surely my Salah (prayer), my devotion, my life, and my death are all for Allah the Lord of the Worlds." [ al-An'aam - 6:162]
-=[ 'Ibadur Rahman ]=-
WE have already seen some distinct characteristics of 'Ibadur Rahman. We will now look at what the Qur'an has clearly said about them.
Al-Quran [Furqaan - 25:63-76]
['Ibadur Rahman] True servants of the Compassionate (Allah) are those who walk on the earth in humility and when the ignorant people address them, they say: "Peace;" ¤ who pass the night prostrating before their Lord and standing in prayers; ¤ who say: "Our Lord! Ward off the punishment of hell from us, for its punishment is atrocious ¤ - certainly it is an evil abode and an evil resting place;" ¤ who, when they spend, are neither extravagant nor stingy, but keep the balance between those two extremes; ¤ who do not invoke any other god besides Allah, nor kill any soul which Allah has made sacred, except for a just cause, nor commit fornication - he that does this shall be punished for his sin, ¤ and his punishment shall be doubled on the Day of Resurrection and in disgrace he shall abide forever, ¤ except the one who repents, becomes a true believer, and starts doing good deeds, for then Allah will change his evil deeds into good, and Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful. ¤ He that repents and does good deeds, has truly turned to Allah with good turning. ¤ Those are the ones who do not bear witness to falsehood and, if they ever pass by futility, pass with dignity. ¤ Who, when reminded about the revelations of their Lord, do not turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to them. ¤ Who pray: "Our Lord! Make our wives and our children to be the comfort of our eyes, and make us leaders of the righteous." ¤ Such are the ones who will be rewarded with the lofty places in paradise for their patience, wherein they shall be welcomed with greetings and salutations. ¤ They shall live forever in that excellent dwelling and excellent resting place! ¤
O Allah, forgive our sins, our laziness, our ignorance, our arrogance; and accept our 'Ibadaat and teach us the ways to get closer to you. O Lord of Ibrahim ('alaihi salam) and Muhammad ('alaihi salam), purify our hearts from the lures of this world and help us surrender our way-of-life to what you have taught through our Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aalihi wa sallam). Allahumma, 'a'inna 'ala dhikrika wa-shukrika wa-husni 'ibadatik. Wa-la taj'alna, rabbana, min al-ghafilin. (O Lord, assist us in remembering You, thanking You, and in the beauty of worshipping You. And do not put us, O Lord, among the neglectful). Ameen.
"Strive in the Way of Allah as you ought to strive with sincerity and discipline; He has chosen you and has not laid upon you any hardship in the observance of your faith - the faith of your father Abraham. He named you Muslims before in prior scriptures and in this (The Qur'an), so that His Messenger may testify against you and you yourselves may testify against rest of the mankind. Therefore, establish Salah, pay Zakah and hold fast to Allah, Who is your Protector - so what an excellent Protector and what a splendid Supporter!" al-Quran [al-Hajj - 22:78]
"We wrote this in The Zaboor (Psalms xxxvii, 29) after the reminder (Torah given to Moses): that as for the land, My righteous servants shall inherit it." ¤ Surely in this is great news for those people who worship Us. ¤ O Muhammad, We have not sent you but as a blessing for all the worlds. ¤ Tell them: "It has been revealed to me that your God is One God - will you then become Muslims?"" al-Quran [al-Anbiyaa - 21:105-108]
"To the righteous soul it will be said: 'O fully satisfied soul!Return to your Lord, well pleased with Him and well-pleasing to Him.Join My servants, and enter My paradise.'" al-Quran [al-Fajr - 89:27-30]
[Servants of the Most Compassionate]
"And among people there is one who would give away his life to seek the pleasure of Allah.Allah is affectionate to His devotees." [ al-Quran 2:207]
"Declare: Surely my Salah (prayer), my devotion, my life, and my death are all for Allah the Lord of the Worlds." [ 6:162]
Praise be to Allah, who has made us among this Ummah of Muhammad (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aalihi wa sallam). This is the mature Ummah, but unfortunately we are also affected by the trials. We are performing Salah (prayer) and observing Sawm (fasting) but our supplications (Du'a) have no effect on our situation. In the Quran, Allah says: "O Prophet! Allah is all-sufficient for you and for the believers who follow you." [Anfaal - 8:64] and "Successful indeed are the believers.." [Mu'minuun - 23:1]. But are we not the believers, and are we not following His Prophet? Our situation is like those hypocrites about whom Allah said "..They have forgotten Allah; so He has forgotten them.. (Taubah - 9:67)". We have forgotten our promises with Allah that we will only worship Him Obey Him. We may have names such as 'Abdullah or 'Abdur-Rahman but are we really the true servants of Allah? Do a few prostrations (Sujjud) are enough to show that we are submitting to Him? A true Servant of Allah is the one who surrenders his Will (wishes, desires) to the Will of Allah. When our hearts & bodies will submit to the commandments of Allah, (insha'Allah) He will respond to our Supplications (Du'a) immediately. Allah says: "When my servants question you about Me, tell them that I am very close to them. I answer the prayer of every suppliant when he calls Me; therefore, they should respond to Me and put their trust in Me, so that they may be rightly guided." [al-Baqarah - 2:186]. Today we learn some of the characteristics of the true servants of Allah and try to imitate them because our Du'a is not enough until we change our selves. Allah says: "... Allah never changes the condition of a people until they intend to change it themselves. If Allah wants to afflict a people with misfortune, none can ward it off, nor they can find any protector besides Him." Al-Quran [ar-Ra'd - 13:11].
-=[ Ikhlas - Sincerity ]=-
A'maal (Deeds) without Ikhlas (sincerity) are like bodies without the soul, or dead bodies. At the times of the Prophet ('alaihi salam), the hypocrites (Munafiqeen) were performing the similar 'Ibadah (worship) as the true believers (Sahaba). Their physical (bodily) actions were similar to the believers, but the hypocrites had no sincerity in their actions (ie: hearts were empty). The story of Habil and Qabil also points to the importance of sincerity. Allah says: "And tell them the story of the two sons of Adam (Abel and Cain). Each one of them offered a sacrifice. God accepted the sacrifice of one of them (Abel) but not that of the other (Cain) who then said to his brother, "I shall certainly kill you." (Abel) replied, "God only accepts the offerings of the pious ones (almuttaqeen) ." [Maa'idah - 5:27]. Allah did not accept the offering from the one who was insincere. So do we reckon that Allah will accept our fasting, our Ibadah? Don't we worship Allah as we are doing a favor on Him, rather than asking for His favors? Our motive is to get the paradise, but don't we know that no one will enter paradise without the Grace and Mercy of Allah? Rasul- Allah ('alaihi salam) said: "None amongst you can get into Paradise by virtue of his deeds alone. They said: O Allah's Messenger, not even you? Thereupon he said: Not even I, but that Allah should wrap me in His Grace and Mercy." [Sahih Muslim (6764), Abu Hurayrah(r) narrated]. Shouldn't our motives also be to achive Allah's pleasure and mercy? After all, the pleasure of Allah (Ridwan Allah) is much better than just the paradise, as Allah says:
æÚÏ Çááå ÇáãÄãäíä æÇáãÄãäÇÊ ÌäÇÊ ÊÌÑí ãä ÊÍÊåÇ ÇáÇäåÇÑ ÎÇáÏíä ÝíåÇ æãÓÇßä ØíÈÉ Ýí ÌäÇÊ ÚÏä æÑÖæÇä ãä Çááå ÇßÈÑ Ðáß åæ ÇáÝæÒ ÇáÚÙíã"Allah has promised to the believers, both men and women, gardens beneath which rivers flow, to live therein forever, and they will have beautiful mansions in these gardens of everlasting bliss. Best of all, they will have the good pleasure of Allah. Now that is the highest achievement." al-Quran [Taubah - 9:72]
-=[ Ihsaan - Perfection ]=-
Our Prophet ('alaihi salam) told about the level Ihsan (perfection) as "you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, and in case you fail to see Him, then observe prayer (with this idea in your mind) that (at least) He is seeing you."
Ibaadur Rahman are those Servants of Allah, who worship Him with the certainty (Yaqeen) that they are standing in front of the Lord Of The Universes. They don't worhip Him to demand paradise but to thank Him, praise Him for His unlimited favours on them. Allah says: "If you want to count the favors of Allah, you will never be able to number them; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful," (Nahl - 16:18). They humbly worship him and 'hope' for his Mercy and Forgiveness. [And your Lord says: "Call on Me, I will answer your prayers. Surely those who are too arrogant to worship Me shall soon enter hell in humiliation.", al-Quran (40:60)].
"To Him belongs whosoever is in the heavens and on earth. And those who are near Him (i.e. the angels) are not too proud to worship Him, nor are they weary (of His worship)." al-Quran [Anbiyaa - 21:19]
"If you disbelieve, then you should know that Allah does not need you. He does not like ingratitude from His servants. Therefore, if you are grateful He is pleased with you..." [Zumar - 39:7]
Ibaadur Rahman will be prepared to sacrifice anything that they can, only for a smile from Allah. The one who has experienced this, will surely have no interest in these worldly (fake) entertainments. People might consider them tasteless, but they taste the sweetness of Faith; which is far sweeter than these worldly entertainment. Such are the ones, when they judge they judge with justice & wisdom, and don't even care about their own or their friends' interest.
æãä ÇáäÇÓ ãä íÔÑí äÝÓå ÇÈÊÛÇÁ ãÑÖÇÉ Çááå æÇááå ÑÄæÝ ÈÇáÚÈÇÏ"And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah ; and Allah is affectionate to His devotees." [al-Baqarah - 2:207]
-=[ Ibrahim and Islam (Submission) ]=-
Sayyidina wa Khalilullah (Allah's friend), Ibrahim (Abraham, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam) has been given a high esteem in many religions in the world. However, only Islam teaches us his true way. Allah says: "Who has a better Deen (way of life or religion) than the one who is a Muslim (submits himself entirely) to Allah, does good to others and follows the faith of Abraham the upright one, whom Allah chose to be His friend?" [an-Nisaa - 4:125].
Sayyidina Ibrahim ('alaihi salam) lived his life submitting to Allah alone. He surrendered his Will to the Commands of Allah. When Allah commanded him to sacrifice his only-son (at that time) Isma'el ('alaihi salam), he fulfilled Allah's command without finding any excuse (ie: without saying "Oh Allah! this is my only son.."). Unfortunately, we call ourselves Muslim but we are not prepared to sacrifice our time, our temporary possession and our way-of-life for Allah. Actually, we don't have trust on Him. When Ibrahim ('alaihi salam) was about to be thrown into the fire, his trust was on no one but Allah. Did not Allah always save him? He was never proud of his deeds and he will say "O Lord, please accept this..". "And when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the House and dedicated it by saying: "Accept this from us, O Lord, You are the one who hears all and knows all..." [2:127]. Such is the example of 'Ibaadur Rahman. We can obviously not reach to their level, because of our weaknesses, but we can try to get as close as we can.
Whenever Allah said "O Ibrahim!", his reply would be "Labbayka ya Rabbi Labbayk!" (Here I am at your service, O my Lord, here I am). So do we Muslims think we only have to say 'Labbayk' in the Hajj and then forget it? Allah says: "No one turns away from Abraham's Tradition except one who makes a fool of himself. To Abraham We have granted distinction in this world and in the life hereafter he will be among the righteous ones. When God commanded Abraham to submit, he replied, "I have submitted myself to the Will of the Lord of the universe." [2:130-131].
Þá Çä ÕáÇÊí æäÓßí æãÍíÇí æããÇÊí ááå ÑÈ ÇáÚÇáãíä"Declare: Surely my Salah (prayer), my devotion, my life, and my death are all for Allah the Lord of the Worlds." [ al-An'aam - 6:162]
-=[ 'Ibadur Rahman ]=-
WE have already seen some distinct characteristics of 'Ibadur Rahman. We will now look at what the Qur'an has clearly said about them.
Al-Quran [Furqaan - 25:63-76]
['Ibadur Rahman] True servants of the Compassionate (Allah) are those who walk on the earth in humility and when the ignorant people address them, they say: "Peace;" ¤ who pass the night prostrating before their Lord and standing in prayers; ¤ who say: "Our Lord! Ward off the punishment of hell from us, for its punishment is atrocious ¤ - certainly it is an evil abode and an evil resting place;" ¤ who, when they spend, are neither extravagant nor stingy, but keep the balance between those two extremes; ¤ who do not invoke any other god besides Allah, nor kill any soul which Allah has made sacred, except for a just cause, nor commit fornication - he that does this shall be punished for his sin, ¤ and his punishment shall be doubled on the Day of Resurrection and in disgrace he shall abide forever, ¤ except the one who repents, becomes a true believer, and starts doing good deeds, for then Allah will change his evil deeds into good, and Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful. ¤ He that repents and does good deeds, has truly turned to Allah with good turning. ¤ Those are the ones who do not bear witness to falsehood and, if they ever pass by futility, pass with dignity. ¤ Who, when reminded about the revelations of their Lord, do not turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to them. ¤ Who pray: "Our Lord! Make our wives and our children to be the comfort of our eyes, and make us leaders of the righteous." ¤ Such are the ones who will be rewarded with the lofty places in paradise for their patience, wherein they shall be welcomed with greetings and salutations. ¤ They shall live forever in that excellent dwelling and excellent resting place! ¤
O Allah, forgive our sins, our laziness, our ignorance, our arrogance; and accept our 'Ibadaat and teach us the ways to get closer to you. O Lord of Ibrahim ('alaihi salam) and Muhammad ('alaihi salam), purify our hearts from the lures of this world and help us surrender our way-of-life to what you have taught through our Prophet (sallallahu 'alaihi wa aalihi wa sallam). Allahumma, 'a'inna 'ala dhikrika wa-shukrika wa-husni 'ibadatik. Wa-la taj'alna, rabbana, min al-ghafilin. (O Lord, assist us in remembering You, thanking You, and in the beauty of worshipping You. And do not put us, O Lord, among the neglectful). Ameen.
"Strive in the Way of Allah as you ought to strive with sincerity and discipline; He has chosen you and has not laid upon you any hardship in the observance of your faith - the faith of your father Abraham. He named you Muslims before in prior scriptures and in this (The Qur'an), so that His Messenger may testify against you and you yourselves may testify against rest of the mankind. Therefore, establish Salah, pay Zakah and hold fast to Allah, Who is your Protector - so what an excellent Protector and what a splendid Supporter!" al-Quran [al-Hajj - 22:78]
"We wrote this in The Zaboor (Psalms xxxvii, 29) after the reminder (Torah given to Moses): that as for the land, My righteous servants shall inherit it." ¤ Surely in this is great news for those people who worship Us. ¤ O Muhammad, We have not sent you but as a blessing for all the worlds. ¤ Tell them: "It has been revealed to me that your God is One God - will you then become Muslims?"" al-Quran [al-Anbiyaa - 21:105-108]
"To the righteous soul it will be said: 'O fully satisfied soul!Return to your Lord, well pleased with Him and well-pleasing to Him.Join My servants, and enter My paradise.'" al-Quran [al-Fajr - 89:27-30]
Monday, August 20, 2007
Allah
I tried to find Him on the Christian cross, but He was not there; I went to the Temple of the Hindus and to the old pagodas, but I could not find a trace of Him anywhere.
I searched on the mountains and in the valleys but neither in the heights nor in the depths was I able to find Him. I went to the Ka'bah in Mecca, but He was not there either.
I questioned the scholars and philosophers but He was beyond their understanding.
I then looked into my heart and it was there where He dwelled that I saw Him; He was nowhere else to be found.
Jalaluddin Rumi
I searched on the mountains and in the valleys but neither in the heights nor in the depths was I able to find Him. I went to the Ka'bah in Mecca, but He was not there either.
I questioned the scholars and philosophers but He was beyond their understanding.
I then looked into my heart and it was there where He dwelled that I saw Him; He was nowhere else to be found.
Jalaluddin Rumi
Sunday, July 22, 2007
The Healthy Heart
"... Allah never changes the condition of a people until they intend to change it themselves..." [Al-Quran 13:11]
"Only he whom Allah guides is rightly guided; and whom He confounds will become the losers. Certainly, We have destined many Jinns and human beings for hell; those are the ones who have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, they have ears with which they do not hear. They are like animals - or even worse than them, because they are those who are heedless." al-Quran [7:178-179]
æÇáÐíä ÇÌÊäÈæÇ ÇáØÇÛæÊ Çä íÚÈÏæåÇ æÇäÇÈæÇ Çáì Çááå áåã ÇáÈÔÑì ÝÈÔÑ ÚÈÇÏ ¤ ÇáÐíä íÓÊãÚæä ÇáÞæá ÝíÊÈÚæä ÇÍÓäå ÇæáÆß ÇáÐíä åÏÇåã Çááå æÇæáÆß åã ÇæáæÇ ÇáÇáÈÇÈAs for those who refrain from worshipping Taghut (Satanic forces) and turn to Allah in repentance, there is good news. So, give good news to My servants ¤ who listen to the Word and follow the best meaning of it. Such are the ones whom Allah has guided and such are the ones who are endowed with understanding. Al-Quran [ Zumar - 39:17-18]
Çæ ãä ßÇä ãíÊÇ ÝÇÍííäÇå æÌÚáäÇ áå äæÑÇ íãÔí Èå Ýí ÇáäÇÓ ßãä ãËáå Ýí ÇáÙáãÇÊ áíÓ ÈÎÇÑÌ ãäåÇ ßÐáß Òíä ááßÇÝÑíä ãÇ ßÇäæÇ íÚãáæä ¤ æßÐáß ÌÚáäÇ Ýí ßá ÞÑíÉ ÇßÇÈÑ ãÌÑãíåÇ áíãßÑæÇ ÝíåÇ æãÇ íãßÑæä ÇáÇ ÈÇäÝÓåã æãÇíÔÚÑæäIs he who was dead then We raised him to life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people, like him whose likeness is that of one in utter darkness whence he cannot come forth? Thus what they did was made fair seeming to the unbelievers. ¤ And thus have We made in every town the great ones to be its guilty ones, that they may plan therein; and they do not plan but against their own souls, and they do not perceive. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃäÚÇã (An'aam) - 6:122-123]
ãÇÇÕÇÈ ãä ãÕíÈÉ ÇáÇ ÈÇÐä Çááå æãä íÄãä ÈÇááå íåÏ ÞáÈå æÇááå Èßá ÔíÁ ÚáíãNo affliction can ever befall except by the leave of Allah. He that believes in Allah, his heart is guided to the Right Way. Allah has knowledge of all things. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÊÛÇÈä (Taghaabun) - 64:11]
ÜÜÜÜ æÇáÚÕÑ ¤ Çä ÇáÇäÓÇä áÝí ÎÓÑ ¤ ÇáÇ ÇáÐíä ÇãäæÇ æÚãáæÇ ÇáÕÇáÍÇÊ æÊæÇÕæÇ ÈÇáÍÞ æÊæÇÕæÇ ÈÇáÕÈÑBy the time through the ages! ¤ Surely mankind is in loss, ¤ except those who believe and do good deeds; exhort one another to the truth and exhort one another to patience. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÚÕÑ (Asr) - 103:1-3]
Abu Dharr (RA) reported that Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said, "He has been successful whose heart Allah has made sincere towards faith, whose heart He has made free from unbelief, his tongue truthful, his soul calm, his nature straight, whose ear He has made attentive and his eye observant. The ear is a funnel and the eye is a repository for what the heart learns. He is successful whose heart is made retentive." [al Tirmidhi - 5200]
Assalamu 'alalikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
The topic that has come to our attention today, as much as I understand, is the heart of Spiritualism and therefore the heart of Islam. It is not possible, at least for the writer, to comprehensively go through this topic and (perhaps) neither would be the readers interested in reading a large part of the Quran and Ahadith now. Instead, the most important parts shall be (briefly) discussed today, insha Allah. Another thing to mention is that this student is only trying to pass those things that he has learned from his teachers and this does not mean that those things are at the utmost level, instead the writer is trying to forward some pieces in hope that you will build a complete and better picture yourself; as Rasulullah (sallallahu 'alaihi wasallam) has said below:
Zayd Ibn Thabit (ra) reported: I heard the Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) say: May Allah brighten a man who hears a tradition from us, gets it by heart and passes it on to others. Many a bearer of knowledge conveys it to one who is more versed than he is; and many a bearer of knowledge is not versed in it. [Abu Dawud - 025_3652]
First of all, let us be clear about what the heart itself is. The heart is the center, the core of a body, ie: a capital city is the heart of the government (body) in a Country. The heart of a person is where the Soul is stationed. When the soul departures from one's body, we call that person 'dead'. Similarly, when that same soul does not get enough nutritions (light), that person becomes (spiritually) dead. We will take an example from the plants. Plants normally take nutritions from the two main sources:
Externally from the sunlight, air etc
Internally from its roots (heart) - soil and water
If we suppose that the roots of a plant is its heart (which is the house of the soul), then it will be very easy for us to realize the commonalities between us (humans) and the plants. That is, a human being also takes nutritions physically as well as spiritually. Now if we remove a plant from the soil, the plant would die quickly; similarly, if we block the sunlight and air from a plant, that plant would not grow up healthy. Therefore, both internal and external sources of nuritions are vital for the plants to grow healthy and so is it the same for human beings. When a person's heart is corrupt, that person is loosing a major source of nurishment for himself and this is where we understand the very important sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaho alaihi wasallam):
An Numan Ibn Bashir (radhi Allahu 'anhu) reported: I heard Allah's Apostle saying, ..... Beware! There is a piece of flesh in the body if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good but if it gets spoilt the whole body gets spoilt and that is the heart . [Sahih Bukhari & Muslim - 001_002_049, 010_3882]
Abu Hurayrah (radhi Allahu 'anhu) reported: Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) had said: Richness does not lie in the abundance of (worldly) goods but richness is the richness of the soul (heart, self). [Sahih Muslim - 005_2287]
This is the point where we need to note that Allah sent Prophets to the mankind to tell them how be healthy, both physically and spiritually and this indeed is the heart of Islam. A supplication of the Prophet Abraham ('alaihi salato was-salam) clearly informs us about the importance of the purity of heart even on the day of Judgment.
æáÇÊÎÒäí íæã íÈÚËæä ¤ íæã áÇíäÝÚ ãÇá æáÇÈäæä ¤ ÇáÇ ãä ÇÊì Çááå ÈÞáÈ Óáíã....And disgrace me not on the day when they are raised ¤ - the Day when neither wealth nor sons will avail anyone, ¤ and when none shall be saved except him who will come before Allah with a pure/healthy heart (biqalbin saleem), Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÔÚÑÇÁ (Shuaraa) - 26:87-89]
æÇÒáÝÊ ÇáÌäÉ ááãÊÞíä ÛíÑ ÈÚíÏ ¤ åÐÇ ãÇÊæÚÏæä áßá ÇæÇÈ ÍÝíÙ ¤ ãä ÎÔí ÇáÑÍãä ÈÇáÛíÈ æÌÇÁ ÈÞáÈ ãäíÈParadise shall be brought close to the righteous, which will no more be a distant thing, ¤ and it will be said: "Here is what you were promised. It is for every penitent faithful person, ¤ who feared the Compassionate (Allah) without seeing Him and will come before Him with a devoted heart." Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Þ (Qaaf) - 50:31-33]
æäÝÓ æãÇÓæÇåÇ ¤ ÝÇáåãåÇ ÝÌæÑåÇ æÊÞæÇåÇ ¤ ÞÏ ÇÝáÍ ãä ÒßÇåÇ ¤ æÞÏ ÎÇÈ ãä ÏÓÇåÇ ¤ ßÐÈÊ ËãæÏ ÈØÛæÇåÇAnd by the soul and Him Who perfected it ¤ and inspired it with knowledge of what is wrong for it and what is right for it: ¤ indeed successful will be the one who keeps it pure, ¤ and indeed failure will be the one who corrupts it! ¤ The people of Thamud denied the truth because of their arrogant transgression... Al-Quran [ Shams - 91:7-11 ]
ÞÏ ÇÝáÍ ãä ÊÒßì ¤ æÐßÑ ÇÓã ÑÈå ÝÕáì ¤ Èá ÊÄËÑæä ÇáÍíÇÉ ÇáÏäíÇ ¤ æÇáÇÎÑÉ ÎíÑ æÇÈÞì ¤ Çä åÐÇ áÝí ÇáÕÍÝ ÇáÇæáì ¤ ÕÍÝ ÇÈÑÇåíã æãæÓìHe indeed shall be successful who purifies himself, ¤ And magnifies the name of his Lord and prays. ¤ Nay! you prefer the life of this world, ¤ While the hereafter is better and more lasting. ¤ Most surely this is in the earlier scriptures, ¤ The scriptures of Ibrahim and Musa. Al-Quran [ A'laa - 87:14-19]
The facts that we saw recently from the following two Ayaat (verses) indicate that every society is a collection of people, and every person is resembled by what is in his/her heart. Therefore, the hearts of the people (as a whole) in a society closely affect the condition of that society.
Ðáß ÈÇä Çááå áã íß ãÛíÑÇ äÚãÉ ÇäÚãåÇ Úáì Þæã ÍÊì íÛíÑæÇ ãÇÈÇäÝÓåã æÇä Çááå ÓãíÚ Úáíã... Allah has never changed the blessings which He has bestowed on a people (Qawm) until they themselves changed the condition of their souls; verily Allah hears all and knows all. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃäÝÇá (Anfaal) - 8:53]
áå ãÚÞÈÇÊ ãä Èíä íÏíå æãä ÎáÝå íÍÝÙæäå ãä ÇãÑ Çááå Çä Çááå áÇíÛíÑ ãÇÈÞæã ÍÊì íÛíÑæÇ ãÇÈÇäÝÓåã æÇÐÇ ÇÑÇÏ Çááå ÈÞæã ÓæÁÇ ÝáÇ ãÑÏ áå æãÇáåã ãä Ïæäå ãä æÇá... Allah never changes the condition of a people until they intend to change it themselves. If Allah wants to afflict a people with misfortune, none can ward it off, nor they can find any protector besides Him. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÑÚÏ (Ra'd) - 13:11]
Shayyateen (Devils among Jinn) don't enforce us to comit evil, infact we don't even see them. They only try to control our hearts by whispering into them. However, Satan himself has admitted that he shall have no control over those who are sincere devotees of Allah (al-Mukhlaseen).
ÞÇá ÑÈ ÈãÇ ÇÛæíÊäí áÇÒíää áåã Ýí ÇáÇÑÖ æáÇÛæíäåã ÇÌãÚíä ¤ ÇáÇ ÚÈÇÏß ãäåã ÇáãÎáÕíä ¤ ÞÇá åÐÇ ÕÑÇØ Úáí ãÓÊÞíã ¤ Çä ÚÈÇÏí áíÓ áß Úáíåã ÓáØÇä ÇáÇ ãä ÇÊÈÚß ãä ÇáÛÇæíäIblis (Satan) said: "Lord! Since You let me go astray, I will make evil fair-seeming to them on earth and I will seduce them all ¤ except those of them who are Your sincere devotees." ¤ Allah said: "This course of action is all right with Me ¤ - you will not have any authority over My devotees except those misguided ones who follow you. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÍÌÑ (Hijr) - 15:39-42]
Now, here at this point, it is important to note that neither Devils enforce anyone to commit evil and NOR does Allah enforce anyone to accept the truth. Allah Calls to the abode of peace, bliss and real life whereas, Devils call to the abode of fire and distress. It is left up to the individual whether he/she responds to the Call of Allah or the Call of shayyateen (devils).
áÇÇßÑÇå Ýí ÇáÏíä ÞÏ ÊÈíä ÇáÑÔÏ ãä ÇáÛí Ýãä íßÝÑ ÈÇáØÇÛæÊ æíÄãä ÈÇááå ÝÞÏ ÇÓÊãÓß ÈÇáÚÑæÉ ÇáæËÞì áÇÇäÝÕÇã áåÇ æÇááå ÓãíÚ ÚáíãThere is no compulsion in religion. True guidance has been made clearly distinct from error. Therefore, whoever renounces 'Taghut' (forces of Satan) and believes in Allah has grasped the firm hand-hold that will never break. Allah, Whose hand-hold you have grasped, hears all and knows all. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÈÞÑÉ (Baqarah) - 2:256]
íÇÇíåÇ ÇáäÇÓ Çä æÚÏ Çááå ÍÞ ÝáÇ ÊÛÑäßã ÇáÍíÇÉ ÇáÏäíÇ æáÇíÛÑäßã ÈÇááå ÇáÛÑæÑ ¤ Çä ÇáÔíØÇä áßã ÚÏæ ÝÇÊÎÐæå ÚÏæÇ ÇäãÇ íÏÚæ ÍÒÈå áíßæäæÇ ãä ÇÕÍÇÈ ÇáÓÚíÑO mankind! Certainly the promise of Allah is true, therefore let not the life of this world deceive you nor let the chief deceiver (Satan) deceive you about Allah.[5] ¤ Surely Satan (Satan) is your enemy: so take him as an enemy. He is inviting his adherents towards his way so that they may become companions of the blazing fire. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÝÇØÑ (Faatir) - 35:5-6]
íÇÇíåÇ ÇáÐíä ÇãäæÇ ÇÓÊÌíÈæÇ ááå æááÑÓæá ÇÐÇ ÏÚÇßã áãÇ íÍííßã æÇÚáãæÇ Çä Çááå íÍæá Èíä ÇáãÑÁ æÞáÈå æÇäå Çáíå ÊÍÔÑæäO believers! Respond to the call of Allah and His Messenger, when He calls you to that which gives you life; and know that Allah stands between man and his heart, and that it is He in Whose presence you shall all be assembled. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃäÝÇá (Anfaal) - 8:24]
Çæ ãä ßÇä ãíÊÇ ÝÇÍííäÇå æÌÚáäÇ áå äæÑÇ íãÔí Èå Ýí ÇáäÇÓ ßãä ãËáå Ýí ÇáÙáãÇÊ áíÓ ÈÎÇÑÌ ãäåÇ ßÐáß Òíä ááßÇÝÑíä ãÇ ßÇäæÇ íÚãáæä ¤ æßÐáß ÌÚáäÇ Ýí ßá ÞÑíÉ ÇßÇÈÑ ãÌÑãíåÇ áíãßÑæÇ ÝíåÇ æãÇ íãßÑæä ÇáÇ ÈÇäÝÓåã æãÇíÔÚÑæäIs he who was dead then We raised him to life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people, like him whose likeness is that of one in utter darkness whence he cannot come forth? Thus what they did was made fair seeming to the unbelievers. ¤ And thus have We made in every town the great ones to be its guilty ones, that they may plan therein; and they do not plan but against their own souls, and they do not perceive. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃäÚÇã (An'aam) - 6:122-123]
So far, we have seen the importance of a healthy heart, how the (collective) hearts of the people affect the society and that devil is our open enemy. The reset of this text stresses on some of the characteristics of a healthy heart.
Let's first look at some of the characteristics of a Dead Body. A dead body is:
Hard - Stiff
Senseless
without a Soul
Similar to a dead body, a dead heart is hard, senseless but with a soul that is made inattentive. In contrast to a dead heart, an alive heart is quite like the heart of new born baby: Pure, Satisfied, soft, attentive.
[ Pure Heart ]
æÇÒáÝÊ ÇáÌäÉ ááãÊÞíä ÛíÑ ÈÚíÏ ¤ åÐÇ ãÇÊæÚÏæä áßá ÇæÇÈ ÍÝíÙ ¤ ãä ÎÔí ÇáÑÍãä ÈÇáÛíÈ æÌÇÁ ÈÞáÈ ãäíÈParadise shall be brought close to the righteous, which will no more be a distant thing, ¤ and it will be said: "Here is what you were promised. It is for every penitent faithful person, ¤ who feared the Compassionate (Allah) without seeing Him and will come before Him with a devoted heart." Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Þ (Qaaf) - 50:31-33]
æäÝÓ æãÇÓæÇåÇ ¤ ÝÇáåãåÇ ÝÌæÑåÇ æÊÞæÇåÇ ¤ ÞÏ ÇÝáÍ ãä ÒßÇåÇ ¤ æÞÏ ÎÇÈ ãä ÏÓÇåÇ ¤ ßÐÈÊ ËãæÏ ÈØÛæÇåÇAnd by the soul and Him Who perfected it ¤ and inspired it with knowledge of what is wrong for it and what is right for it: ¤ indeed successful will be the one who keeps it pure, ¤ and indeed failure will be the one who corrupts it! ¤ The people of Thamud denied the truth because of their arrogant transgression... Al-Quran [ Shams - 91:7-11 ]
ÞÏ ÇÝáÍ ãä ÊÒßì ¤ æÐßÑ ÇÓã ÑÈå ÝÕáì ¤ Èá ÊÄËÑæä ÇáÍíÇÉ ÇáÏäíÇ ¤ æÇáÇÎÑÉ ÎíÑ æÇÈÞì ¤ Çä åÐÇ áÝí ÇáÕÍÝ ÇáÇæáì ¤ ÕÍÝ ÇÈÑÇåíã æãæÓìHe indeed shall be successful who purifies himself, ¤ And magnifies the name of his Lord and prays. ¤ Nay! you prefer the life of this world, ¤ While the hereafter is better and more lasting. ¤ Most surely this is in the earlier scriptures, ¤ The scriptures of Ibrahim and Musa. Al-Quran [ A'laa - 87:14-19]
[ Satisfied (filled with the Love & Remembrance of Allah) ]
ÝÇäÐÑÊßã äÇÑÇ ÊáÙì ¤ áÇíÕáÇåÇ ÇáÇ ÇáÇÔÞì ¤ ÇáÐí ßÐÈ æÊæáì ¤ æÓíÌäÈåÇ ÇáÇÊÞì ¤ ÇáÐí íÄÊì ãÇáå íÊÒßì ¤ æãÇáÇÍÏ ÚäÏå ãä äÚãÉ ÊÌÒì ¤ ÇáÇ ÇÈÊÛÇÁ æÌå ÑÈå ÇáÇÚáì ¤ æáÓæÝ íÑÖìTherefore, I warn you of the blazing fire, ¤ in which none shall burn except the wretched ¤ who deny the truth and give no heed. ¤ But the pious shall be kept away from it, ¤ the one who spends in charity for self-purification, ¤ not seeking any favor from anyone for which a reward is expected in return, ¤ except seeking the good pleasure of his Lord, the Most High. ¤ Such persons shall soon be well-pleased with Allah. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Çááíá (Lail) - 92:14-21]
ÇáÐíä ÇãäæÇ æÊØãÆä ÞáæÈåã ÈÐßÑ Çááå ÇáÇ ÈÐßÑ Çááå ÊØãÆä ÇáÞáæÈ- such are the ones who have believed and whose hearts find satisfaction in the remembrance of Allah. Beware! It is the remembrance of Allah which provides tranquility to the hearts. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÑÚÏ (Ra'd) - 13:28]
Þá Çä ßäÊã ÊÍÈæä Çááå ÝÇÊÈÚæäí íÍÈÈßã Çááå æíÛÝÑ áßã ÐäæÈßã æÇááå ÛÝæÑ ÑÍíãTell the people O Muhammad: "If you sincerely love Allah, then follow me; Allah will also love you and forgive you your sins. Allah is Forgiving, Merciful." Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Âá ÚãÑÇä (Aal-e-Imran) - 3:31]
[ Soft, Humble (with the fear of Allah) ]
æÇÒáÝÊ ÇáÌäÉ ááãÊÞíä ÛíÑ ÈÚíÏ ¤ åÐÇ ãÇÊæÚÏæä áßá ÇæÇÈ ÍÝíÙ ¤ ãä ÎÔí ÇáÑÍãä ÈÇáÛíÈ æÌÇÁ ÈÞáÈ ãäíÈParadise shall be brought close to the righteous, which will no more be a distant thing, ¤ and it will be said: "Here is what you were promised. It is for every penitent faithful person, ¤ who feared the Compassionate (Allah) without seeing Him and will come before Him with a devoted heart." Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Þ (Qaaf) - 50:31-33]
ÇäãÇ ÇáãÄãäæä ÇáÐíä ÇÐÇ ÐßÑ Çááå æÌáÊ ÞáæÈåã æÇÐÇ ÊáíÊ Úáíåã ÇíÇÊå ÒÇÏÊåã ÇíãÇäÇ æÚáì ÑÈåã íÊæßáæäThe true believers are those whose hearts tremble with fear, when the name of Allah is mentioned, and whose faith grows stronger as they listen to His revelations and they put their trust in their Lord, Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃäÝÇá (Anfaal) - 8:2]
æÈÑÒÊ ÇáÌÍíã áãä íÑì ¤ ÝÇãÇ ãä ØÛì ¤ æÇËÑ ÇáÍíÇÉ ÇáÏäíÇ ¤ ÝÇä ÇáÌÍíã åí ÇáãÇæì ¤ æÇãÇ ãä ÎÇÝ ãÞÇã ÑÈå æäåì ÇáäÝÓ Úä Çáåæì ¤ ÝÇä ÇáÌäÉ åí ÇáãÇæìWhen hell shall be placed in full view of all, ¤ then he who had rebelled ¤ and preferred the life of this world ¤ shall have his abode in hell. ¤ But he who had feared standing before his Lord and curbed his evil desires ¤ shall have his home in paradise. ¤ Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáäÇÒÚÇÊ (Naazi'aat) - 79:36-41]
ÇÝãä ÔÑÍ Çááå ÕÏÑå ááÇÓáÇã Ýåæ Úáì äæÑ ãä ÑÈå Ýæíá ááÞÇÓíÉ ÞáæÈåã ãä ÐßÑ Çááå ÇæáÆß Ýí ÖáÇá ãÈíä ¤ Çááå äÒá ÇÍÓä ÇáÍÏíË ßÊÇÈÇ ãÊÔÇÈåÇ ãËÇäí ÊÞÔÚÑ ãäå ÌáæÏ ÇáÐíä íÎÔæä ÑÈåã Ëã Êáíä ÌáæÏåã æÞáæÈåã Çáì ÐßÑ Çááå Ðáß åÏì Çááå íåÏí Èå ãä íÔÇÁ æãä íÖáá Çááå ÝãÇáå ãä åÇÏIs the one whose heart Allah has opened to Islam and is walking in the light from his Lord like the one who has learned no lesson and is still a non-Muslim. So woe to those whose hearts are hardened against the remembrance of Allah! They are clearly in error. ¤ Allah has revealed the most beautiful message, a Book consistent in its verses yet repeating its teachings in different ways. Those who fear their Lord are filled with awe when they hear it, their skins and their hearts become pliant to the remembrance of Allah. Such is the guidance of Allah: He guides with it whom He pleases. But he to whom He confounds shall have none to guide him. ¤ Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÒãÑ (Zumar) - 39:22-23]
[ Attentive, Conscious ]
æáÇÊÒÑ æÇÒÑÉ æÒÑ ÇÎÑì æÇä ÊÏÚ ãËÞáÉ Çáì ÍãáåÇ áÇíÍãá ãäå ÔÆ æáæ ßÇä ÐÇ ÞÑÈì ÇäãÇ ÊäÐÑ ÇáÐíä íÎÔæä ÑÈåã ÈÇáÛíÈ æÇÞÇãæÇ ÇáÕáÇÉ æãä ÊÒßì ÝÇäãÇ íÊÒßì áäÝÓå æÇáì Çááå ÇáãÕíÑ ¤ æãÇíÓÊæí ÇáÇÚãì æÇáÈÕíÑ ¤ æáÇÇáÙáãÇÊ æáÇÇáäæÑ ¤ æáÇÇáÙá æáÇÇáÍÑæÑ ¤ æãÇíÓÊæí ÇáÇÍíÇÁ æáÇÇáÇãæÇÊ Çä Çááå íÓãÚ ãä íÔÇÁ æãÇÇäÊ ÈãÓãÚ ãä Ýí ÇáÞÈæÑNo bearer of a burden will bear another's burden, and if a heavy laden person cries out for help, none will come forward to share the least of his burden, even though he be a close relative. You can only admonish those who fear their Lord - though they cannot see Him - and establish Salah. He that purifies himself does so for his own good. To Allah is the destination of all.¤ The blind and the seeing are not alike; ¤ nor the darkness and the Light; ¤ nor the shade and the heat; ¤ nor the living and the dead. Certainly Allah can make anyone hear if He so wills; but, you cannot make those who are in the graves hear you. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÝÇØÑ (Faatir) - 35:18-22]
Çæ ãä ßÇä ãíÊÇ ÝÇÍííäÇå æÌÚáäÇ áå äæÑÇ íãÔí Èå Ýí ÇáäÇÓ ßãä ãËáå Ýí ÇáÙáãÇÊ áíÓ ÈÎÇÑÌ ãäåÇ ßÐáß Òíä ááßÇÝÑíä ãÇ ßÇäæÇ íÚãáæä ¤ æßÐáß ÌÚáäÇ Ýí ßá ÞÑíÉ ÇßÇÈÑ ãÌÑãíåÇ áíãßÑæÇ ÝíåÇ æãÇ íãßÑæä ÇáÇ ÈÇäÝÓåã æãÇíÔÚÑæäIs he who was dead then We raised him to life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people, like him whose likeness is that of one in utter darkness whence he cannot come forth? Thus what they did was made fair seeming to the unbelievers. ¤ And thus have We made in every town the great ones to be its guilty ones, that they may plan therein; and they do not plan but against their own souls, and they do not perceive. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃäÚÇã (An'aam) - 6:122-123]
ÇÝáã íÓíÑæÇ Ýí ÇáÇÑÖ ÝÊßæä áåã ÞáæÈ íÚÞáæä ÈåÇ Çæ ÇÐÇä íÓãÚæä ÈåÇ ÝÇäåÇ áÇÊÚãì ÇáÇÈÕÇÑ æáßä ÊÚãì ÇáÞáæÈ ÇáÊí Ýí ÇáÕÏæÑHave they not traveled through the land? Have they no hearts to learn wisdom, or ears to hear the Truth? Certainly it is not their eyes which are blind, but it is the hearts in their breasts which are blind. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÍÌ (Hajj) - 22:46]
"Certainly, We have destined many Jinns and human beings for hell; those are the ones who have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, they have ears with which they do not hear. They are like animals - or even worse than them, because they are those who are heedless." al-Quran [7:179]
The fact is that a heart that is not filled with the LOVE OF ALLAH, will get the LOVE OF WORLD in it. And a heart that is not filled with the FEAR OF ALLAH, will get the FEAR OF PEOPLE, FEAR of loose of wealth etc.
áä ÊäÇáæÇ ÇáÈÑ ÍÊì ÊäÝÞæÇ ããÇ ÊÍÈæä æãÇÊäÝÞæÇ ãä ÔÆ ÝÇä Çááå Èå ÚáíãYou can never attain righteousness unless you spend in the cause of Allah that which you dearly cherish; and whatever you spend surely it is known to Allah. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Âá ÚãÑÇä (Aal-e-Imran) - 3:92]
ßáÇ Èá ÊÍÈæä ÇáÚÇÌáÉ ¤ æÊÐÑæä ÇáÇÎÑÉNay, the fact is that you people love this fleeting life ¤ and are heedless to the Hereafter. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÞíÇãÉ (Qiyaamah) - 75:20-21]
Èá ÊÄËÑæä ÇáÍíÇÉ ÇáÏäíÇ ¤ æÇáÇÎÑÉ ÎíÑ æÇÈÞì But O men! You prefer the life of this world; ¤ while the Hereafter is better and everlasting. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ ÇáÃÚáì (A'laa) - 87:16-17]
These are some words that helped me and insha Allah, you will find them beneficial. The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wasallam) gave his Sahabah the light which was given to him by Allah, those Sahabah illuminated the rest of the world with the help of Allah and thus are we Muslims now, alhamdulillah. Only one candle is sufficient to light a thousand candles, interestingly, without loosing any light! However, the overall light of a thousand candles does brighten the surrounding! If Allah wishes to keep the candles bright, then even the storms cannot stop candles from illuminating. Allahu noorus-Samawati wal-ard. Let us hope to be among those sincere devotees of Allah (al-Mukhlaseen), over whom the Satan has no control.
ÑÈäÇ áÇÊÒÛ ÞáæÈäÇ ÈÚÏ ÇÐ åÏíÊäÇ æåÈ áäÇ ãä áÏäß ÑÍãÉ Çäß ÇäÊ ÇáæåÇÈOur Lord, do not let our hearts deviate from the truth after you have guided us, and grant us Your own mercy; You are the Grantor of bounties without measure. Al-Quran [ ÓæÑÉ Âá ÚãÑÇä (Aal-e-Imran) - 3:8]
Abu Hurayrah narrated: The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) used to say: "O Allah, I seek refuge in Thee from four things: Knowledge which does not profit, a heart which is not submissive, a soul which has an insatiable appetite, and a supplication which is not heard." [Abu Dawud - 008_1543]
"Glory be to your Lord, the Lord of Honor, He is free from what they ascribe to Him!Peace be on the Messengers, and praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds." Al-Quran [37:180-182]
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Stations and Race
I have used the expression “shortening the distances” metaphorically. In fact, there are no inches and yards between God (Almighty and Glorious is He) and His servants. It is simply a way of teaching the True Believers, men and women, that there is a journey and progress to be made. The intention is also to suggest that the matter is a race between the diligent and the lazy, and a competition between someone who takes the journey seriously and someone who dawdles along. Indeed, competition is urged by God (Exalted is He):
So vie one with another in good works. (Q. 5:48)
So in that let the competitors compete. (Q. 83:26)
The Muslim who is sluggish, isolated or ignorant does not conceive of the religion as stations: islam, then imân and then ihsân. Lacking incentive, he is not prepared for serious commitment to improve his soul and compete in good works, so that he may attain a station closer to God.
God (Glory be to Him) extols those among His servants who experience a need for God that is pressing, genuine, active, and eager to draw near and to compete. A servant like that will appeal, implore and seek the means of access to his Lord. His whole aspiration has been concentrated and the focus of his heart has been unified. God (Glory be to Him) said:
Those whom they call upon seek the way of approach to their Lord. Which of them shall be the nearest? They hope for His mercy and they fear His wrath. (Q. 17:57)
The mind and the whole self of that servant are on their way to wellbeing and release from trial and tribulation.
Such are unequaled virtues of mutual assistance within the community of the True Believers.
Imam Abdessalam Yassine
So vie one with another in good works. (Q. 5:48)
So in that let the competitors compete. (Q. 83:26)
The Muslim who is sluggish, isolated or ignorant does not conceive of the religion as stations: islam, then imân and then ihsân. Lacking incentive, he is not prepared for serious commitment to improve his soul and compete in good works, so that he may attain a station closer to God.
God (Glory be to Him) extols those among His servants who experience a need for God that is pressing, genuine, active, and eager to draw near and to compete. A servant like that will appeal, implore and seek the means of access to his Lord. His whole aspiration has been concentrated and the focus of his heart has been unified. God (Glory be to Him) said:
Those whom they call upon seek the way of approach to their Lord. Which of them shall be the nearest? They hope for His mercy and they fear His wrath. (Q. 17:57)
The mind and the whole self of that servant are on their way to wellbeing and release from trial and tribulation.
Such are unequaled virtues of mutual assistance within the community of the True Believers.
Imam Abdessalam Yassine
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