The Muslim lives in this life between its huge tidal waves which toss him during tides: between health and disease, hardship and ease, wealth and poverty, preoccupation and emptiness, pleasure and displeasure.
In all these situations and fluctuations, he must be fully aware of his purpose in this life and the duties that are on his neck so that he can take his ship to safety, to the forgiveness and satisfaction of Allah when he meets the Almighty.
The Muslim who the Islamic Aqeedah captures the cores of his mind and heart is well aware that all the salvation is in his realization that he is not like any other human beings and that he has to live accordingly, for he is the one who Allah has chosen for the guidance and the great light, a trust that he embraces and lives to take care of it, and to deliver it to its people and be witness to it.
The realization of the Muslim that his religion is the Deen of the Truth and justice and compassion for the whole world pushes him to live by it as an ideology from which he draws his thoughts and upon which he builds his actions, so he strives to bring them in the arena of life, for ideologies do not ever tolerate being confined in the self and inside the individual, يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُونُوا قَوَّامِينَ بِالْقِسْطِ شُهَدَاءَ للهِ “O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm in justice, witnesses for Allah.” [An-Nisa: 135]
Sayyid Qutb said in his interpretation of this verse: “It is a call to those who believe; a call to them in their new capacity, their unique characteristic; their characteristic that made them another creation, and were born a new birth. Their souls were born, their perceptions were born, their principles and goals were born, and were born with them their new mission that they were charged with and the great Amanah (Trust) that has been entrusted to them… the trust of guardianship over the humanity, and the ruling among people in justice … Hence the appeal in this capacity had its value and it meant: O you who believe, because of their virtue in this capacity, was the commissioning of this great trust, and because of this capacity were the preparation and readiness for uplifting this great trust. And it is a touch of the wise educational methodology ahead of the heavy and hard task to be persistently standing firm in justice, witnesses for Allah, even on yourselves or your parents and relatives… It is the trust to stand firm in justice … an absolute justice, in any case and in every area. Justice that prevents oppression and injustice – on earth- which guarantees justice among the people – which gives to everyone, Muslims and non-Muslims, their due rights…”
It a great matter and a sublime goal, and the Muslim’s fortitude must be proportionate with the greatness of the Trust and the hardship of the course.
As we have said before, a Muslim may become sick, be preoccupied, be restricted in his provision and his situation may change, and Allah may extend his provision and the preoccupations may increase etc. But the carrier of the pure Islam may stumble on walking but cannot stop walking. He cannot accept that his life is like that of other human beings, a regular and monotonous life immersed in the world and its pleasures, for he is aware of the fact that the Hereafter is the lasting home and that his work is the work of the prophets. The Muslim cannot accept to walk in this life without a plan that leads him to the purpose that he seeks, namely, Allah’s approval (ridha), and without realizing and performing the actions that will achieve for him that purpose; otherwise, his life will be absurd, and does not warrant him success in the test.
Carrying the concern of the entire world and striving to get it out of the ignorance of this century are an inevitable commitment for the Muslim; otherwise, he will be trapped in the corner of the abhorrent ego that locks him between the walls of selfishness and self-love and this does not satisfy Allah.
The way in which a Muslim is able to take sufficient provisions to secure his safe journey from this short and mortal life is to:
1- Acquire the correct concepts of life and the Hereafter and remind himself of them when his situation and the situations in which he passes through change.
2- Make Allah’s approval his highest goal, so there should be no other purpose to compete with it in the rank and in spending, so the Muslim shapes his life and dedicates it to achieve it, and makes all things geared towards that end. Thus, he measures his actions with the criterion of the halal and haram at all times; and lives with vigilant sense that alerts him when he is remiss and reminds him of the criterion and the meter that works in counting what he has gained from the good and bad.
3- To make the Hereafter his goal and living an austere life; however, austerity (zuhd) here does not mean self-denial and refraining from what Allah has allowed, but it means not to run behind the worldly things and indulge in running behind them so they occupy us and discourage us from our primary task, as the Prophet ﷺ said: «مَنْ كَانَتِ الآخِرَةُ هَمَّهُ جَعَلَ اللَّهُ غِنَاهُ فِي قَلْبِهِ، وَجَمَعَ لَهُ شَمْلَهُ، وَأَتَتْهُ الدُّنْيَا وَهِيَ رَاغِمَةٌ، وَمَنْ كَانَتِ الدُّنْيَا هَمَّهُ جَعَلَ اللَّهُ فَقْرَهُ بَيْنَ عَيْنَيْهِ، وَفَرَّقَ عَلَيْهِ شَمْلَهُ، وَلَمْ يَأْتِهِ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا إِلا مَا قُدِّرَ لَهُ». “Whoever makes the Hereafter his goal, Allah makes his heart rich, and organizes his affairs, and the world comes to him whether it want to or not. And whoever makes the world his goal, Allah puts his poverty right before his eyes, and disorganizes his affairs, and the world does not come to him, except what has been decreed for him”.
Abu Musa al-Ashaari (ra) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: «مَنْ أَحَبَّ دُنْيَاهُ أَضَرَّ بِآخِرَتِهِ وَمَنْ أَحَبَّ آخِرَتَهُ أَضَرَّ بِدُنْيَاهُ فَآثِرُوا مَا يَبْقَى عَلَى مَا يَفْنَى» “Whoever loves his worldly life will suffer in his Hereafter, and whoever loves his Hereafter will suffer in his worldly life. Thus, prefer that which endures over that which is fleeting”. (Narrated by Ahmad and it is Sahih (authentic) according to al-Mundhiri, al-Haythami and al-Albani).
4- Pledge the disposition (nafsiya) to reading the Quran and everything that would make the link to Allah lively and strong, as the breaking of that rope results in unforeseen dire consequences.
The success and all the success to the one who lives his life grasping the most trustworthy handhold, adhering tight to the orders and prohibitions of Allah, has a defined purpose and is aware of the method and the means: And the shining examples of the companions (Sahabah) and the followers (At-Tabieen), may Allah be pleased with them, who have settled in al-Madinah and adopted the faith, due to their success in solving the equation correctly; we remember them to be a beacon and a reminder.
So, here is the great companion, Al-Baraa bin Malik, who lived for the purpose “Allah and Paradise”, he did not lag behind any of the conquests as he was seeking martyrdom. He was wounded in more than eighty places in the Battle of al-Yamamah and Khalid ibn al-Walid, the commander of al-Yamamah himself, spent a month looking after him and tending his wounds. His hands were burnt in the Battle of Iraq, and their bare bones were seen, and yet nothing deterred him from continuing the path until Allah answered him, and his supplication materialized. so he was martyred in the war against the alliance of Ahwaz and Persians under the reign of Omar bin al-Khattab (r.a) after he was alone at the beginning of the battle that started with the dueling; and he alone killed a hundred swordsmen of the Persians !! Greetings to him for attaining his goal.
Al-Hasan al-Basri (r a) said describing the righteous believers at his time: “I have met people who the Dunya would offer its Halal to one of them, and he would leave it, and he says: “By Allah, I do not know what I will be like with these things if they become in my hands.” 1/178). And he said: “I met some people who would not rejoice at the splendor of life when it came to them, nor dedicate their attention to any part of it that went away from them. This life was as worthless in their eyes as dust. One of them lived for fifty years during which he only owned the clothes that he wore, did not have a barrier between his body and the floor when he slept, and did not ask his family to cook a dish of food for him. When night came, they would be standing and then laying their foreheads on the floor (in Sujud [prostration]), with tears running down their cheeks. They begged their Lord to free their necks (from the Fire). Whenever they performed a good deed, they appreciated Allah for it and asked Him in supplication to accept it. Whenever they committed an error, they felt remorse and begged Allah to forgive it for them and they continued to be on so.”
We have to follow the example of the like of those people and learn to put the Hereafter before the Dunya and leave a lot of the permissible things for fear of falling in what is not pleasing to Allah from us. There are many seditions (fitna) in this world, and neither of us knows the entrances of the devil (Satan); money may seduce some, children may occupy others and so on, so we must keep in mind that nothing is set ahead the satisfaction of Allah and the fulfilment of the message of Islam that we have been entrusted with, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: «لَا تَتَّخِذُوا الضَّيْعَةَ فَتَرْغَبُوا فِي الدُّنْيَا» “Do not acquire Dhai’aa (land for farming) lest you become too attached to worldly matters” (Narrated and classified as hasan by al-Tirmidhi (2328).
Al-Mubarakfuri (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “Dhai’aa” is the orchard, the village and the farm.“lest you become too attached to worldly matters” What is meant is a prohibition on becoming preoccupied with this and similar things which then prevent one from worshipping Allah and focusing as one should on matters of the Hereafter.
Al-Teebi said: what is meant is that you should not be preoccupied with farming and let that distract you from remembrance of Allah. Allah Almighty said: رِجَالٌ لَا تُلْهِيهِمْ تِجَارَةٌ وَلَا بَيْعٌ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللهِ “[Are] men whom neither commerce nor sale distracts from the remembrance of Allah” [An-Nur: 37]. (“Tuhfat al-Ahwadhi” (6/511)).
The Prophet ﷺ also said:«إِنَّ الْوَلَدَ مَبْخَلَةُ مَجْبَنَةٌ» “Children make a man a miser and a coward.” Thus, children may be one of the reasons for stinginess and non-spending for the sake of Allah. Allah (swt) says: وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلَادُكُمْ فِتْنَةٌ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ عِندَهُ أَجْرٌ عَظِيمٌ “And know that your properties and your children are but a trial and that Allah has with Him a great reward.” [Al-Anfal: 28]
The Muslim must therefore place at the top of his priorities the paradise and the words and deeds that bring him close to it, and which actions and says are greater than carrying Islam, working for it and calling for it, and he should take his share of the of this world from the Halal things without indulging and without incursion. That is the approach of salvation and the success.
O Allah grant us steadfastness until we die, O Allah grant us steadfastness until we die, O Allah grant us steadfastness until we die, O Allah do not make the world our main preoccupation and the extent of our knowledge and help us to be obedient to you. O Allah make us at your service and do not replace us and make us from your righteous servants, O Allah strengthen our determination and our resolve, O Allah, give us righteousness and cause us to die with you being satisfied with us. Ameen. And our last prayer is Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds
Hajar Al-Yaqubi