ISocs BlogTo Be Patient
(A message to all Muslims and Non-muslims who believe in something greater) Brothers and sisters I say this to myself first before anyone else. The true meaning of patience is to observe obedience to Allah and to refrain from all things that displease Him as well as from feeling desperation or dissatisfaction with His decree. Nothing is comparable to being patient. If one persists patiently with regard to the decrees of Allah, patience will eventually become part of his/her nature. Equipped with patience, one always feels deep satisfaction and contentment with life, and in its absence, one always feels dissatisfaction and discontentment. Those who train themselves to stay away from evil find that this caution soon becomes inculcated into their character and becomes their second nature. It makes them feel immense happiness when avoiding what Allah dislikes, and experience deep sorrow when they commit sins. They cannot rest until they sincerely repent to Allah. One who is content with the decree of Allah becomes satisfied with everything that Allah has destined for him: If evil afflicts him, he observes patience which is good for him; and when he is granted a bounty, he observes gratitude to Allah, which is also good for him. Naturally, a human being is susceptible to afflictions and trials which may affect him; his family, his wealth, his friends and others around him. But if he manages to remain patient through these, awaiting ease and release from Allah, then all afflictions will be reasons for the forgiveness of his sins and the elevation of his rank with Allah. There are numerous verses and hadeeth that attest to this:“O you who believe! Seek help in patience and As-Salât (the prayer). Truly! Allah is with As-Sâbirun (the patient) (153) And say not of those who are killed in the Way of Allah, "They are dead." Nay, they are living, but you perceive (it) not(154) And we will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give glad tidings to the (Sâbirun) patient(155) Who, when disaster strikes them, say, ‘Indeed we belong to Allah and indeed to Him we will return (156) They are those on whom are the Salawât (i.e. who are blessed and will be forgiven) from their Lord, and (they are those who) receive His Mercy, and it is they who are the guided-ones.’”
(2: 153-157)
The Prophet (p.b.u.h.) said: “The believing man or woman will continue to be afflicted by hardships in themselves and their families until they meet Allah with absolutely having no sins,” and, “If a Muslim is afflicted by (hardship) a headache, a prick of a thorn or any other harm, Allah will elevate him on the Day of Judgement one rank as well as expiate his sins (because of being patient while afflicted with such hardships).”
This bears news for all who can be patient and insya-Allah, Allah make us from those who are successful. Ameen.
By,
Moosa Patel
UCD ISOC president 09/10.
The Steering Wheel to Paradise
“Say (O Muhammad [Peace be upon him]): Verily, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. He has no partner.” [Al-An’am 6:162-163]
Its all easy and simple to do things whilst claiming that it was from good intent but it all depends on what really lies in the organ beneath ones rib cage. One of the things that remains between an individual and their Creator is the real motives behind the action. As Muslims our ultimate aim is to seek the pleasure of Allah SWT. Hence our driving motives need to be crystal clear just as a drop of pure water clearly reflects its surroundings. An individual’s intention (niyah) in performing an action is his or her specific purpose in doing so, the end or goal that is aimed at, or intended to accomplish. Whether an action is successful or unsuccessful depends at least on whether the intended result was brought about. Umar Ibn Al-Khattab narrates that the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said “Actions are based upon intentions, and every man will have what he intended. Thus whose hijrah is for Allah and his messenger, His hijrah was for Allah and his messenger. Whose hijrah was to achieve some worldly benefit or to take some woman in marriage, his hijrah was for that which he made hijrah”. Sahih Bukhari & Sahih Muslim. Imam Ash-Shaf’i comments “This Hadith is 1/3 of all knowledge”. The words, “actions are only by intention”, mean that deeds which are performed in accordance with the Sunnah are only acceptable and rewarded if the intentions behind them were sincere. It is like the saying of the Prophet (Peace be upon him), “Actions depend upon their outcome.” [Mentioned in Bukhari]. Likewise, the words, “every man shall only have what he intended”, mean that the reward for an action depends upon the intention behind it. So deeds which are apparently identical may differ, because the intentions behind them are different in degrees of goodness and badness, from one person to another. Hence why its critical for us Muslims to really ask ourselves “Are my intentions alright? Am I doing this for Allah? Do I have the right niyah?” Allah SWT says in the Qur’an: ”Say: I am commanded to worship Allah (alone) by obeying him and doing deeds sincerely for Allah’s sake only and not to set up rivals with Him in worship” Az- Zumar 39:11. Some of the righteous generations commented that “Many small actions, are made great by the intentions behind them. Many great actions, on the other hand, are made small because the intentions behind them are lacking!”. E.g. Say if I have a million bucks and i give 100,000 away in charity and someone else has 4 euro and gives 2 of it to charity. If my intention was corrupted with desires or passions other than to please Allah SWT and if the other person had his/her intention purely for sake of Allah SWT, then that individual will Insh’Allah be rewarded abundantly and I might get very little reward and might even be punished for my impure motives. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said “…Allah only accepts actions that are intended for his pleasure”. We know that the best deeds in Islam include giving charity, seeking & spreading beneficial knowledge and striving in the path of Allah SWT. But why is it that the 1st three people who will be judged i.e. the martyr, the scholar and the wealthy one will dragged on their faces in hell-fire? All three had corrupted intentions which were to show off to people their bravery, their knowledge and their generosity respectively. Yahya ibn Abu Kathir once said “Learn about intentions, for their importance is greater than the importance of actions”.
The most God-fearing man of his time (During the time of Imam Abu Hanifah, Abdullah ibn Al-Mubarak & Sufyan At-Tawri) Al-Fudayl ibn Ayyad said “Forsaking action for the sake of other people is to seek adimiration. To act for the sake of their admiration is to associate others with Allah. Devotion is when Allah frees you from both of these states”.
If we were to immerse ourselves in continuous righteous actions than the intention will flow through our hearts like a stream flows down a valley. But if we don’t busy ourselves in doing righteous deeds then it will be really difficult & tiresome for us to engage in obligatory acts of obedience such as prayer and fasting. Umar Ibn Khattab said, “The best of acts are doing what Allah swt has commanded staying far away from what Allah has forbidden and having sincere intentions towards what ever Allah has required of us”. Sincerity is the freeing of one’s intentions from all impurities and solely to come nearer to Allah SWT. It is a condition for the acceptance of good deeds to be performed in accordance with the Qur’an and Sunnah.
The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said as part of his final khutbah “..There are 3 things concerning the hearts of the believers should feel no enmity or malice: Devoting one’s actions to Allah, giving council to the Imams of the Muslims and being loyal to the majority”. Brothers and sisters I say this to myself first before anyone else that we all need to purify our intentions before doing the faithful acts of obedience will draw us closer to Allah SWT. Below is a hadith that really made me think during my teenage days. Everyone loves the attention and praise, How about getting it in the best of gatherings directly from The King of Kings Allah SWT! “Allah SWT says: I am as my servant expects Me to be. I am with him when he makes mention of Me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, Then I will make mention of him to Myself. If he makes mention of me in a gathering, Then I will make mention of him in a better gathering. And if he draws near to Me a hand’s span, I draw near to him an arm’s length; and if he draws near to Me an arm’s length, I draw near to him a fathom’s length. And if he come to Me walking then I will go to him at speed.” [Hadith mentioned in Ibn Majah, Bukhari, Muslim, At-Tirmidhi] May Allah SWT purify our hearts from any diseases and bless us with guidance, righteous actions & paradise. Ameen
By, Omar Abdul Shakoor Bhutta RCSI ISOC president 09/10 "Students today, Leaders tomorrow" |
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