Starting Ramadan, we enter wholeheartedly excited to enter in the Mercy of Allah and seeking forgiveness for all shortcomings and coming out of Ramadan cleansed from the sins and feelings of ill will, etc.
As we leave Ramadan with a heavy heart, we are also leaving it with a clean slate and a renewed sense of energy and taqwa.
Awareness and mindful actions based on the Islamic concepts that even though our Nafs may desire the Dunya and its temptations …we remain adherent to the Straight Path, bi’thinallah.
So how can we protect our Nafs and prevent ourselves from idleness (inaction/laziness), so that we meet the coming months with a strong resolve?
Let us start with the example of the first martyr in Islam Sumaya (ra), the mother of Yassir bin Ammar, in her deep conviction of belief and firmness in front of the heads of Kufr in Makkah, who spat on Abu Jahl when she refused to denounce Islam. Her strength serves as a lesson in upright deeply rooted conviction in La illaha illa Allah Muhammad Rasool Allah. From here we focus on our priorities where we worship Allah (swt) as if we see Him before our eyes in our every movement.
Islam as an ideology is welcoming to the heart and addresses the mind answering all the fundamental questions and this evident in the high numbers of people reverting to Islam throughout the world. Therefore we as Muslims need to realize that time is of the essence and to “profit” from making the best of this in the best way possible to make the circle larger. Therefore the first step is how to realise this aim is to step away from deliberate distractions.
What are the distractions? And how do we know we are affected by them?
Distractions may come in the form of love for the Dunya; running after the material leisure only to pant after more and more as it becomes an unquenchable thirst. Another distraction may be when one becomes unable to perceive or sense the reward of the Jannah or the Punishment of the Hellfire; the distance from the spiritual believing atmosphere. Another distraction is the despair from the Mercy of Allah.
Since everyone is held accountable to Allah and that we as Muslims are up against the Kufr where the Kuffar spend immeasurable amounts of time, energy, and money to minimize or remove the threat of Islam therefore this should give more motive to the Muslim taking lessons from the past prophets (as) and the Sahabah (ra) on how to resist and persevere on the spread of Islam and the reestablishment of the Islamic State. Driving us to be braver and more confident than ever before in the thoughts of Hizb ut Tahrir that are taken from the Aqeedah propelling us to the frontlines.
Sometimes it is necessary to change one’s environment especially for our children, this may include selecting the best of companions in order to be able to resist negative peer pressures and to prevent them from shying from their Muslim identities and non-normal activities like the carrying out the dawah and enriching their minds and personalities instead of wasting time on mindless things like screen addiction, following celebrity culture, or thoughtless un-Islamic activities that may harm the mind or body. Culturing the mind and feeding the Nafsiya requires time, self-motivation and constant follow up on behalf of the parents. This is not an easy task especially when the reward is Eternal Jannah.
Despair is something to be rejected. We are not to despair if one doesn’t sense the results immediately or what is sometimes called the “delay of the Nasr (victory)”. To dispel this saying, we need to reject this wholeheartedly …because we do not know the “expiration date” or the appointment for it be considered delayed. However this arose from the criticism of others of the Hizb ut Tahrir methodology and those who judge the Hizb dawah carriers. The Messenger ﷺ gave us the amanah (trust). The Messenger ﷺ said, «أَلا فَلْيُبَلِّغِ الشَّاهِدُ مِنْكُمُ الْغَائِبَ ، فَرُبَّ مُبَلَّغٍ أَوْعَى مِنْ سَامِعٍ» “So it is incumbent upon those who are present to convey it (this information) to those who are absent because the informed one might comprehend it (what I have said) better than the present audience, who will convey it to him.” Thus due to the numerous concrete evidences of the promise of Allah’s victory and the glad tidings of the Prophet ﷺ, we must fully reject this notion of “delayed nusrah” and instead point out the evidences that call for responsibility in carrying out the obligation of establishing Islam as a system.
On the authority of Anas, a man asked the Prophet ﷺ about the Hour (i.e. Day of Judgment) saying, “When will the Hour be?” The Prophet ﷺ said, «وَمَاذَا أَعْدَدْتَ لَهَا» “What have you prepared for it?” So here lies the wisdom, what are we doing in preparation for the Khilafah and the Day of Judgment and not the issue of the time as this is solely in the hands of Allah, the Most Wise and the Manager of All Affairs.
It is important that we don’t fall into the trap of the broken spirit or into procrastination, sadness, or depression. We need only to look at the example of the Prophet ﷺ when he felt exhausted and afraid in Taif yet he ﷺ was confident in Allah (swt) that victory is imminent and did not question his mission. He ﷺ strengthened his nafsiya with the dua and prayer. Allah (swt) says, فَإِمَّا يَأْتِيَنَّكُم مِّنِّي هُدًى فَمَنِ اتَّبَعَ هُدَايَ فَلَا يَضِلُّ وَلَا يَشْقَىٰ “When My guidance comes to you, those who follow it will not go astray nor will they endure any misery” [Ta-Ha: 123].
We as Muslims especially as dawah carriers must treat time as a fragile fleeting matter because we will be held accountable for our time and how we spent it and what did we to prepare for our Afterlife. Our Ajl is not in our hands with the knowledge of its expiration, as death knows no boundaries from time or health or age. It is a gift from Allah (swt) that we are blessed with another day and night to try to achieve the pleasure of the Creator and the aim of establishing the system of Islam through the establishment of the Khilafah Rashidah (rightly guided Caliphate) on the method of the Prophethood.
In summary, it is vital that we carry the renewed sense of energy with us after Ramadan for the following months with a clear purpose for our lives in establishing the crown of all obligations to remove the severe hardships and hellish oppressions from our Ummah and ourselves as if we lose our identity and purpose indeed we are lost in the Dunya and the Akhira. Holding onto the Quran as our source of strength and guidance and taking the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and the other prophets (as) as our motivation, we are able to go out into our communities calling for the restoration of Islam with an unwavering resolve spreading the awareness that there is an alternative to the corruption around us and it is written that Islam will prevail as Allah promise is the Truth. Let us stamp out the idleness and hopelessness that has only sunk the Ummah deeper in regression and procrastination and take the responsibility head on and taking our rightful place…at the frontlines. Here lies the success.
وَكُلًّا نَّقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنبَاءِ الرُّسُلِ مَا نُثَبِّتُ بِهِ فُؤَادَكَ وَجَاءَكَ فِي هَـٰذِهِ الْحَقُّ وَمَوْعِظَةٌ وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
“(Muhammad), We tell you all the stories of the Messengers which will strengthen your heart. In the Quran We have revealed the Truth to you with good advice and reminders for the faithful ones.” [Hud: 120]
Manal Bader