SOME BEAUTIES OF ISLAAM
The beauties of Islaam are beyond what pens can fully write and enough expressions cannot be found to describe the virtues of this religion; because it is the religion of Allaah. Just as the eye cannot encompass the perception of Allaah and man cannot encompass His Reality on Knowledge, so can the pen not encompass His Law in description. Ibn Al-Qayyim said, “If you reflect on the dazzling wisdom in this Upright Religion, this pure faith and the Law enacted for mankind, which no expression can perfectly describe, whose description cannot be perfected, the likeness of which the wisdom of the wise cannot propose – even if all wise men are to be as perfectly wise as the wisest one among them, whose beauty and virtues are perceived and attested to by the perfect and honourable intelligence, that the world had not known a law better and greater than it even if the Messenger of Allaah had not brought any proof in support of it, all that would have been enough an evidence that it is from Allaah. Every aspect of this religion shows perfect knowledge, perfect wisdom, expansiveness of mercy, righteousness and kindness, absolute inclusion of all that is hidden and manifest and the knowledge about the beginnings and ends. It also shows that it is one of the greatest favours that Allaah has bestowed on His slaves, for He bestows not on them a favour greater than the fact that He guided them to this religion, made them its adherents and chosen it for them. Hence, He reminds His slaves of the fact that He guided them to it. He says,
“Indeed, Allaah conferred a great favour on the believers when He sent among them a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves reciting unto them His Verses (the Qur’aan), purifying them and instructing them in the Book and the wisdom ( the Sunnah) while before that they had been in manifest error.”
He also says, making Himself known to His slaves and reminding them of His great favour on them, calling them to thank Him for making them among its adherents,
“This day, I have perfected your religion for you.” ”
It is therefore part of showing gratitude to Allaah on this religion, to mention some of its beauties:
1. That it is the religion of Allaah which He has chosen for Himself, sent with His Messengers and by which He allowed His slaves to worship Him. His religion is not comparable to human statutes and man-made religions. As Allaah possesses the quality of absolute perfection, so does His religion has an absolute perfection in providing ordainments that reform the worldly and eternal life of mankind; encompasses the rights of the Creator and obligations of His slaves towards Him; obligations of one towards another and the rights of each one of them upon another.
2. Comprehensiveness: One of the most prominent beauties of this religion is its comprehensiveness for everything. Allaah says,
“We have neglected nothing in the Book.”
This religion encompasses all that has to do with the Creator like His Names, Attributes and rights; and all that has to do with the creatures like laws, obligations, manners and relationship. This religion also encompasses the stories of former and latter generation, stories of angels, Prophets and Messengers. It tells about the heaven, the earth, the orbits, the planets, seas, trees and the universe. It mentions the goal and aim of creation and its end; talks about Paradise and the final abode of the believers and Fire and the final abode of disbelievers.
3. It establishes a connection between the Creator and the creation: Every false religion and creed has the character of linking man with another man that is prone to death, weakness, incapacity and diseases. Some even link man to a person who has died since hundreds of years ago and had become mere bones and dust. Islaam, on the other hand, has the quality of linking man to his Creator directly; with no priest nor reverend and no holy secret. If this direct connection between the Creator and the created; a connection that links the heart with its Lord and it thereby gets light, guidance and loftiness; seeks for perfection; and deems itself high above insignificant and debased things. For every heart that has no link with its Lord is more erroneous than animals.
It is a communication between the Creator and the creature by which he knows the wish of his Creator and then worship Him with the knowledge, and gets to know things that please Him and seek for that, and things that annoys Him and shun them. It is a communication between the All-Mighty Creator and the weak and destitute creature, that enables him seek for aid, assistance and success from Him, and ask Him for protection against evil planners and evil deeds of devils.
4. It caters for benefits of this world and the Hereafter. The Islaamic Law is based on protection of the benefits of this world and the Hereafter and on perfection of good morals. As for the explanation of the benefits of the Hereafter, the religion of Islaam has explained all that and left nothing of it untaken care of. It explains it in detail so that nothing of it may be unknown. Islaam promises the bliss in the Hereafter and warns against its torment.
Concerning the benefits of this world, Allaah ordained in this religion what can protect for man his religion, life, property, posterity, dignity and intelligence.
Concerning honourable conducts, Islaam enjoins that overtly and covertly and forbids debasing manners. Among the apparent noble conducts that Islaam enjoins are cleanliness and purification from all kinds of impurities and dirt. Islaam recommends using of perfume and outward adornment; it forbids filthy behaviours like adultery and fornication, consuming alcohol; eating dead animals, blood and pork flesh, and enjoins eating of lawful good things. It also prohibits wastefulness and extravagance.
As for inner purification, Islaam prohibits undesirable conducts and encourages commendable ones. Among the forbidden manners are: lies, obscenity, anger, jealousy, stinginess, debasing oneself, love of prestige and this world, arrogance, haughtiness and hypocrisy. Among the commended behaviours are: good conduct, good companionship to all people and being kind to them, justice and fairness, humility, truthfulness, magnanimity, generosity, dependence on Allaah, sincerity in acts of worship, fear of Allaah, patience and showing gratitude.
5. Easiness: Easiness is one of the unique qualities of this religion. In every ritual is easiness and in every act of worship is easiness. Allaah says,
"He has not laid upon you in religion any hardship"
The first easiness in Islaam is that; anyone who wants to become a Muslim does not need a human intermediary or a confession of past sins. He only needs to cleanse himself and utter the statement: I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allaah and I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah; and to believe in the meanings of this statement and act by its implications.
Further, every worship in Islaam is characterised by easiness and alleviation. If a man travels or is sick, the reward of the deed that he used to do when he was at home or healthy will continue to be recorded to his credit. The whole life of the Muslim is easy and filled with tranquillity, while the life of a disbeliever is conversely filled with hardship and toil. Also, the death of a Muslim is easy where his soul comes out of his body as a drop of water comes out of a vessel. Allaah says,
"Those whose lives the angels take while they are pious saying (to them): peace be on you, enter Paradise because of that (the good) which you used to do (in the world)."
As for the disbeliever, the stern and harsh angels will be present at his death beating him with lashes. Allaah says about the disbeliever,
"And if you could but see when the wrong-doers are in the agonies of death, while the angels are stretching forth their hands (saying): Deliver your soul, this day, you shall be recompensed with the torment of degradation because of what you used to utter against Allaah other than the truth. And you used to reject His revelations with disrespect."
He also says,
"And if you could see when the angels take away the souls of those who disbelieve (at death); they smite their faces and their backs (saying): Taste the punishment of the blazing Fire."
6. Justice: The one who ordains the Islaamic injunctions is Allah alone. He is the Creator of all people: black and white, male and female. Men are equal before His judgement, justice and mercy. He ordains rules that suits each of the male and female. It then becomes impossible that the Law of Islaam favours male at the expense of female or gives female preference and do injustice to male. Islaam also does not endow white man with qualities and deny that to the black man. All are equal before the Laws of Allaah and no difference between them except by piety.
7. Enjoining all that is good and forbidding all that is evil: The religion of Islaam has noble characteristics, which is enjoining all that is good and forbidding all that is evil. This duty is incumbent on every male or female Muslim who is an adult, sane and able to enjoin and forbid according to his or her ability and according to the degrees of the enjoining and prohibition. He or she should command or forbid with hand, if not able to do so then with the tongue and if not able then with the heart. By this all members of the Muslim community will be supervisors in the community.
Every individual should command whoever is negligent to do good deed, and forbid whoever does wrong to desist, be he either a ruler or ruled; each according to his ability and in accordance with Islamic regulations that control this matter.
This matter – as you can see – is compulsory upon individual according to his ability. Compare this to what the contemporary political orders proudly claim that they give opportunity to opposition parties to monitor the government activities and carry out official functions.
These are some of the beauties of Islaam. Had I wanted to go into details, I would have stopped at every rite, every obligation, every commandment and every prohibition in order to explain the extensive wisdom, decisive ordainment, impressive, unique and matchless perfection that lie therein. Whoever ponders over the ordainments of this religion, he will know with certainty that it is from Allaah and that it is the truth that is free of any doubt and a guidance from error. If you therefore want to go back to Allaah, to follow His Law and to follow the path of His Prophets and Messengers, the door of repentance is open before you and your Lord is Oft-Forgiving, Most –Merciful. He calls you in order to forgive you.
REPENTANCE
The Messenger of Allaah said, "All children of Adam do commit sins and the best of the sinners are those who repent."
Man by nature is weak; he is weak in his aim and resolution and is unable to bear the consequences of his sins and misdeeds. So Allaah out of kindness, makes matters easy for man and He prescribed for him repentance.
The essence of repentance is to abandon the sin because of its ugliness – out of fear for Allaah– and out of desire for His Mercy; to regret over what one has done, to determine not to go back to the sin again and to spend whatever is left of one's life in good deeds. As you can see, repentance is a deed of the heart that is pure between the slave and his Lord. It is neither a hard nor difficult job for him; it is just a deed of the heart, to abandon the sin, and not to go back to it. There are, in abstention from all that Allaah forbid, well-being and peace of mind.
You do not need to repent at the hand of a man who will reveal your secret and manipulate your weakness. It is only a communication between you and your Lord; you seek His forgiveness and guidance and He forgives you. There is nothing like inherited sin in Islaam, nor is there anything like an expected mankind saviour. Islaam, is as discovered by the Austrian Jewish revert to Islaam, Muhammad Asad who said, "I could not find it anywhere in the Qur'aan any mention of man's need for salvation. In Islaam, there is no concept of the first inherited sin that stand between man and his fate, because 'Man can have nothing but what he does (good or bad).' Islaam does not require from man to present a sacrifice or kill himself in order to have the door of repentance opened for him and to be saved from sins." Allaah says,
"No burdened person (with sins) shall bear the burden (sins) of another."
Repentance has great benefits and impacts, some of which are:
1. It makes man know expansiveness of Allaah's forbearance, and magnanimity in concealing his misdeeds. Had He willed, He would have hastened to punish him and disgraced him in front of people so that he would not be able to live comfortably with them. But Allaah honoured him by concealing for him his sins, covered him by His forbearance and endowed him with energy, provision and sustenance.
2. It lets him know his real self, that it is inclined to evil and that whatever comes from it of sins, misdeeds or negligence is an indication from forbidden desires, and that, it cannot dispense of Allaah – for even a twinkle of an eye – for its purification and guidance.
3. Allaah prescribes repentance in order to seek with it the greatest causes of happiness for man, which is creating refuge with Allaah and seeking His assistance; and also to bring about different kinds of supplication; showing one's submission, helplessness to Allaah, showing one's love to Allaah, one's fear of and hope in Him; then the soul moves closer to its Creator in a special way which will not occur to it without repentance and escaping to Allaah.
4. It makes Allaah forgive him his past sins. Allaah says,
"Say (O Muhammad) to those who have disbelieved, if they cease (from disbelief) their past will be forgiven."
5. It makes one's evil deeds turned to good ones. Allaah says,
"Except those who repent and believe and do righteous deeds; for those, Allaah will change their sins into good deeds, and Allaah is Oft-forgiving, Most-Merciful."
6. It enables him treat his fellow human beings when they do evil to him as he will love Allaah to treat him as regards his own misdeeds and sins; for recompense is in accordance with the type of deed. So, if he treats people in this good manner, he will also be treated by Allaah in the like manner and Allaah will be kind to him regardless of his evil deeds and sins, just as he does with his fellow human beings.
7. It enables him to know that he is full of faults and defects; this will make him refrain from speaking about the faults of other people and will be preoccupied with reforming his own self instead of thinking about the faults of others.
I would like to conclude this section with the story of a man who came to the Prophet and said, "O Messenger of Allaah! I have not left any small or big sin but I had committed it."
The Messenger of Allaah said, "Don't you testify that there is no other deity worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah?"
He asked him this question three times and the man answered each time, "Yes."
He then said, "your testimony has erased all that (you have committed of sins)"
In another narration, the man came to the Prophet and said, "Tell me! If a man committed all sins but has not associated anything in worship with Allaah, and yet did not leave any small or big sin uncommitted, can his repentance be accepted?"
The Prophet asked the man, "have you embraced Islaam?"
The man answered, "As for me, I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allaah, that He is One and has no partner and that you are the Messenger of Allaah."
The Prophet said, "Yes! Do good deeds and refrain from evil ones, so that Allaah may turn all those evil deeds to good ones for you."
The man said, "Even my acts of treachery and my sins?!"
The Prophet said, "Yes."
The man said, "Allaahu Akbar (Allaah is the Most-Great) and he kept on saying that until he disappeared."
Islaam therefore erases whatever sin one might have committed and sincere repentance also erases whatever sin one might have committed as authentically reported from the Prophet.
THE END OF ONE WHO DOES NOT ADHERE TO ISLAAM
As it has been made clear to you in this book that Islaam is the religion of Allaah, that it is the true religion, that it was the one preached by all Prophets and Messengers; Allaah has prepared great reward in this world and the Hereafter for whoever believes in it and threatened whoever disbelieves in it with severe torment.
Since Allaah is the Creator, the Possessor and Disposer of all this universe, and you, man, are just one of His creatures; He created you, and subjected to you all that is the universe, ordained His Law for you and commands you to obey Him. If you therefore believe, obeys His Commandment and abstain from all that He forbids you, you will attain what He promises you of the everlasting bliss in the Hereafter and you will be happy in this world with all that He will endow on you of all kinds of favours; you will then be like the wisest men and the purest of them in soul; the Prophets, Messengers, righteous people and the favoured angels.
But if you disbelieve, and disobey your Lord; you will lose your worldly life and your Hereafter and expose yourself to His wrath and punishment in this world and the Hereafter. You will then be like the most wicked of all creatures, the most defective in intelligence and the most debased in mind: the devils, corrupt people and false deities and transgressors, just to mention a few.
Let me now tell you something of the consequences of disbelief in detail:
1. Fear and lack of security: Allaah promises complete security in this world and the Hereafter for those who believe in Him and follow His Messengers. He says,
"Those who believe and confuse not their belief with wrong, for them there is security and they are the guided."
Allaah is the Giver of security, the Watcher over His creatures, the Possessor of all that is in the universe. If He loves a slave of His because of his belief, He gives him security, tranquillity and peace, but if a slave of His disbelieves in Him, He withdraws tranquillity and security from him and you will not see such a person but afraid of his fate in the Hereafter, afraid for his own self from calamities and diseases and afraid for his future in this world. That is why the insurance market insures lives and properties for lack of security and lack of having trust in Allaah.
2. Difficult life: Allaah created man, subjected to him all that is in the universe and portion out for every creature his share of sustenance and lifespan. Hence you see the bird going out of its nest to look for its provision and then picks it. It moves from a branch of the tree to another and sings in most melodious tone. Man is also one of these creatures for whom Allaah has portioned out his provision and lifespan. If he therefore believes in his Lord and stands firm on His Law, Allaah will give him happiness and stability and He will make his matters easy for him, even if he does not possess more than the least means of livelihood.
If he however disbelieves in his Lord and feels too big to worship Him, He will make his life straitened and make him suffer from sorrow and distress even if he has all means of comfort and enjoyment at his disposal. Don't you see the great numbers of suicide victims in countries in which all means of affluence are guaranteed for their citizens? Don’t you see all kinds of furniture and mats used for the enjoyment of this life? The cause of all this extravagance is the vacuity of the heart from faith, feeling of constraint and hardship and an attempt to dismiss all these worries with all different means. Allaah says the truth in His Word,
"But whoever turns away from My Reminder, verily, for him is a life of hardship and We shall raise him up blind on the Day of Resurrection."
3. He will live in continuous war with his own soul and with the world around him.
This is because, his soul is created upon Islaamic Monotheism. Allaah says,
"Such is the way of Allaah upon which He created mankind."
His body surrenders to its Lord and moves according to His order, but the disbeliever insists on going against his own nature, and lives his voluntary life in rebellion against his Lord. Although his body surrenders to the will of the Creator, his own voluntary will is in opposition.
He will be in constant war with the world around him in the sense that, all this universe right from its greatest galaxy to its smallest insect, moves according to the way which Allaah has ordained for it. Allaah says,
"Then He (Allaah) rose over towards the heaven when it was smoke and said to it and to the earth: 'Come both of you willingly or unwillingly,' They both said: 'We come willingly.' "
The universe loves him who agrees with it in submission to Allaah and hates him who opposes it. The disbeliever is the recalcitrant in this universe for he makes himself an opponent to his Lord and contender with Him, that is why it is appropriate for the heavens and the earth and all other creatures to hate him and his disbelief and atheism. Allaah says,
"And they say: 'The Most Gracious (Allaah) has begotten a son.' Indeed, you have brought forth (said) the terrible thing, whereby the heavens are almost torn, and the earth is split asunder, and the mountains fall in ruins, that they ascribe a son to the Most-Gracious. But it is not suitable for (the majesty) of the Most-Gracious that He should beget a son. There is none in the heavens and the earth but comes unto Most Gracious as a slave."
He says about Pharaoh and his hosts,
"And the heavens and the earth wept not for them, nor were they given a respite."
4. Living a life of ignorance:
For disbelief is ignorance, rather the greatest ignorance; because the disbeliever is ignorant of his Lord. He sees this universe that was created by his Lord in the most wonderful way , he sees in himself the greatness of Allaah's deed and yet he is ignorant of the Creator of this universe and the Constructor of his own self; is this not the greatest ignorance?
5. Living a life of one who wrongs himself and all that is around him:
This is because, he subjected his own self for purposes other than that for which he was created. He does not worship his Lord but worship others. Injustice is to put a thing in a place to which it does not belong; and which type of injustice is greater than directing acts of worship to those who do not deserve them. Luqmaan has told his son while explaining the awfulness of polytheism,
"O my son! Join not in worship others with Allaah. Verily, joining others in worship with Allaah is a great wrong indeed."
It is also injustice for the people and other creatures around him; because he does not acknowledge the right of Him to Whom right is due. On the Day of Resurrection, every man or animal he has wronged will stand before him asking Allaah to avenge for him.
6. He exposes himself to the wrath of Allaah:
He exposes himself to the calamities and afflictions as immediate punishment for his disbelief. Allaah says,
"Do then those who devise evil plots feel secure that Allah will not sink them into the earth, or that the torment will not seize them from directions they perceive not? Or that He may catch them in the midst of their going to and from (in their jobs) so that there be no escape for them (from Allaah's punishment)? Or that He may catch them through gradual diminishing (of the wealth and health). Truly, your Lord is indeed Full of Kindness, Most-Merciful."
He also says,
"And a disaster will not cease to strike those who disbelieved because of their (evil)deeds or it settles close their homes, until the Promise of Allaah comes to pass. Certainly, Allaah breaks not His Promise."
He says in another verse,
"Or did the people of the towns then feel secure against the coming of Our punishment in the forenoon while they were playing?"
This is the fate of every man who turns away from Remembrance of Allaah. Allaah tells us of the punishments of past nations who were disbelievers,
"So We punished each (of them) for his sins; of them are some of whom We sent a violent wind, and of them were those who were overtaken by torment – awful cry, and of them were some of whom We caused the earth to swallow and of them were some whom We drowned. It was not Allaah Who wronged them, but they wronged themselves."
7. Failure and loss will be his lot: Because of his wrong, he looses the greatest thing with which the hearts and souls enjoy, which is knowing Allaah, meditating in Him and feeling tranquillity with Him. He also looses the world, for he lives there a wretched and confused life and he looses his own soul for which he amasses the wealth of this world; for he subjects it for a purpose different from that which it was created for. He thereby does not attain with it happiness in this world, for he makes it lived in misery and caused it to die in misery and it shall be raised up among the miserable. Allaah says,
"As for those whose scale will be light, they are those who will loose their own selves."
He will also loose his family, for he lived with them on disbelief in Allaah and they will also be like him in misery and hardship and their fate will be Fire. Allaah says,
"The losers are those will loose themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection."
On the Day of Resurrection, they will be led to Fire, and evil is it as a resting place. Allaah says,
"(It will be said to the angels): 'Assemble those who did wrong, together with their spouses and what they used to worship instead of Allaah and lead them on to the way of Flaming Fire.' "
8. He will live as a disbeliever in his Lord and a denier of His blessings: For Allaah created him from nothing and showered on him favours, how can he then worship, befriend and thank others besides Him? Which ingratitude is greater and more heinous than this?
9. He will be denied real and purposeful life: This is because the man who deserves life is the one who believes in his Lord, knows his goal, recognizes his fate and is certain of his resurrection. He thereby gives right to whom it is due. He does not suppress truth nor harm a creature. He then lives the life of happy people and attains good life in this world and the Hereafter. Allaah says,
"Whoever works righteousness – whether male or female while he (or she) is a true believer, verily, to him (or her) We will give a good life."
And in the Hereafter, his reward will be,
"Pleasant dwellings in Eden Paradise; that is indeed, the great success."
But whoever lives in this world like animals, such does not know his Lord or his goal and fate. His only aim is to eat, drink and sleep. What then is the difference between him and other animals? He is even in greater error than animals. Allaah says,
"And surely, We have created many of the jinn and mankind for Hell. They have hearts wherewith they understand not, and they have eyes wherewith they see not, and they have ears wherewith they hear not (the truth). They are like cattle, nay even more astray; Those! They are the heedless ones."
He also says,
"Or do you think that most of them hear or understand? They are only like cattle – nay, they are even further astray from the path."
10. He abides forever in the torment: This is because the disbeliever moves from a torment to another. He goes out of this world – after he has tasted all its agonies and afflictions – to the Hereafter. In the first stage of the Hereafter, the angels of death come upon him and before them come the angels of torment who will give him his deserved punishment. Allaah says,
"And if you could see when the angels take away the souls of those who disbelieve (at death); they smite their faces and their backs."
Then his soul departs and when he is put in the grave , he meets a greater torment. Allaah says about the People of Pharaoh,
"They are exposed to Fire, morning and afternoon and on the Day when the Hour will be established, (it will be said to the angels): 'Make Pharaoh people enter the severest torment' "
On the Day of Resurrection, when the creatures are raised up and the deeds are exposed and the disbeliever sees that Allaah has accurately enumerated all his deeds in that book about which He says,
"And the book of record will be placed and you will see the sinners (disbelievers) fearful of that which is (recorded) therein. They will say: 'Woe to us! What sort of book is this that leaves neither small thing nor a big thing but has recorded it with numbers!' "
Here, the disbeliever will wish to be dust. Allaah says,
"The Day when man will see that (the deeds) which his hands have sent forth, and the disbeliever will say: 'Woe to me! Would that I were dust.' "
Because of the horror of that Day, man will wish that he owns all that is in the earth, so that he can ransom himself with it from the torment of that Day.
"And those who did wrong; if they had all that is in the earth and therewith as much again, they verily would offer it to ransom themselves therewith on the Day of Resurrection from the evil torment."
Allaah also says,
"The sinner would desire to ransom himself from the punishment of that Day by his children; and his wife and his brother and his kindred who sheltered him, and all that are in the earth, so that it might save him."
For, that abode is that of recompense and not of wishful thinking. Man must therefore, get a reward for his deed; if it is good he gets good reward and if it is evil, he gets rewarded with punishment. And the worst punishment that a disbeliever may meet on the Day of Resurrection is that of Fire in which Allaah has provided different kinds of retribution for its dwellers so that they can taste the torment of their deeds. Allaah says,
"This is the Hell which the sinners (disbelievers) denied. They will go between it and the fierce boiling water."
He also informs us of the garments of the dwellers of Hell,
"As for those who disbelieved, garments of fire will be cut out for them, boiling water will be poured down over their heads. With it will melt (or vanish away) what is within their bellies as well as their skins; and for them are hooked rods of iron."
THE END
O man! You were before a non-existent. Allaah says,
"Does not man remember that We created him before while he was nothing?"
Then He created you from a mixture of male and female discharge and made you hearing, seeing. Allaah says,
"Has there not been over man a period of time, when he was not a thing worth mentioning? Verily, We have created man from drop of mixed sexual discharge of man and woman in order to try him; so We made him hearer and seer."
Then you moved gradually from a state of weakness to strength and you shall be returned to a state of weakness again. Allaah says,
"Allaah is He Who created you, in (a state of) weakness, then gave you strength after weakness, then after strength gave (you) weakness and grey hair. He created what He will and it is He Who is the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful"
Then the end is death and you, through these stages, move from weakness to weakness; you cannot avert evil from yourself nor can you bring about benefit for yourself except by using that strength and provision that Allaah gave you. You are by nature poor and needy. Many are the things that you need to remain alive which you do not possess or which you sometimes have and sometime are deprived of. Many are also those things that are useful to you and you would like to have and which you achieve sometimes and do not achieve other times. Many are things that harm you, ditch your hope, waste your efforts and bring on you tribulations and calamity which you would like to avert; and which you sometimes succeed in averting and which you fail sometimes to avert. In view of this, do you not feel your helplessness and your need to Allaah? Allaah says,
"O you people! It is you who stand in need of Allaah. But Allaah is Rich (free of all needs) Worthy of all praise."
You are exposed to a weak virus which you cannot see with your naked eyes, and that causes you painful disease which you cannot prevent and you then go to a weak human being like yourself to treat you. Sometimes, the medicine works and sometimes the doctor fails to cure you and both you and your doctor then become confused.
O man! What a weak creature you are when the fly snatches something from you and you cannot take back from it! Allaah says the truth when He says,
"O mankind! A similitude has been coined, so listen to it: Verily, those on whom you call besides Allaah cannot create (even) a fly, even though they combine together for the purpose. And if the fly snatches away a thin from them, they will have no power to release it from the fly. So weak are (both) the seeker and the sought."
If you cannot take back what the fly snatches away from you, which then of your affairs do you have control over? Your forelock is in the hand of Allaah, so is your soul. Our heart is between two of His fingers which He turns round as He wills. Your life, death, happiness and misery are all in His Hand.
Your undertakings and sayings are by the permission of Allaah and His Will. You do not move except with His permission and you do not perform any act except by His Will. If He leaves you to yourself, He leaves you to weakness, negligence, sin and misdeed; and if He leaves you for others, He leaves you with the one who cannot avail you of any benefit, harm, death, life or resurrection. You cannot dispense of Allaah for a twinkle of an eye. You rather need Him in every aspect as long as you live. You invite His wrath with sins and disbelief though you seriously need Him in all aspects. You forgot Him though, your return is to Him and it is in front of Him that you shall stand.
O man! As a result of your weakness and your inability to shoulder the consequences of your sins that "Allaah wishes to lighten (the burden) for you and man was created weak." He sent Messengers, revealed Books, ordained Laws, established the Straight Path before you and established signs, proofs and evidences and made in everything a sign that shows His Oneness, Lordship and His sole right to be worshipped. But inspite of all this, you block the truth with falsehood, take Satan as a friend besides Allaah and argue with falsehood. "Man is ever more quarrelsome than anything"
Allaah's favours in which you move and enjoy have made you forget your beginning and end! Don't you remember that you were created from a mixed sexual discharge, that your return will be to a grave and that final destination after Resurrection will either be Paradise or Fire? Allaah says,
"Does not man see that We have created him from a mixed drop of sexual discharge, yet behold, he (stands forth) as an open opponent, and he puts for Us forth a parable and forgets his own creation. He says: 'Who will give life to the bones after they are rotten and have become dust?' Say (O Muhammad): He will give life to them Who Created them for the first time! And He is the All-Knower of every creation!"
He also says,
"O man what has made you careless about your Lord, the Most-Generous? Who created you, fashioned you perfectly and gave you due proportion. In whatever form he willed, He put you together. "
O man! Why are you denying yourself the joy of standing before your Lord, meditating with Him, so that He can enrich you out of poverty, heal you from your ailment, relieve you of your sorrow, forgive your sins, remove your harm, help you when you are wronged, guide you when you are confused or go astray, give you knowledge when you are ignorant, give you security when you are frightened, show mercy to you when you are weak, drive away your enemies and provide for you your livelihood.
O man! The greatest blessing that Allaah endowed man with after that of the religion is the blessing of intelligence, so that he can distinguish with it between what benefits him and what harms him, to understand the commandments and prohibitions of Allaah and in order to know by it, the greatest goal which is to worship Allaah alone Who has no partner. Allaah says,
"And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allaah, and when harm touches you unto Him you cry aloud for help. Then when He has removed the harm from you, behold, some of you associate others in worship with their Lord."
O you man! The wise person loves lofty matters and abhors debased ones. He loves to emulate every righteous and magnanimous among the Prophets and pious people and yearns to join them even if he cannot reach their status. The only way to that is what Allaah directs us to when He says,
"If you (really) love Allaah, then follow me (Muhammad) Allaah will love you and forgive you your sins."
If man can do this, Allaah will make him join the rank of the Prophets, the Messengers, the Martyrs and righteous people. Allaah says,
"And whosoever obeys Allaah and the Messenger (Muhammad), then they will be in the company of those on whom Allaah has bestowed His Grace of the Prophets, the Siddiqqeen, the Martyrs and the righteous. And how excellent these companions are!"
O you man! I advise you that you go into a seclusion with yourself and think deeply of the truth that has come to you reflect over the proofs and evidences; if you find it to be truth hasten to follow it and do not be a slave of customs and traditions. Know that your own soul is dearer to you than your friends, companions and heritage of your fore-fathers. Allaah has admonished the disbelievers with this and called them to it. He says,
"I exhort you to one (thing) only; that you stand up for Allaah's sake in pairs and singly and reflect. There is no madness in you companion (Muhammad). He is only a warner to you in face of a severe torment."
O man! When you accept Islaam, you stand to lose nothing. Allaah says,
"And what loss have they if they had believed in Allaah and the Last Day and they spend out of what Allaah has given them for sustenance? And Allaah is Ever All-Knower of them."
Ibn Katheer said, "What would have harmed them had they believed in Allaah, followed the praiseworthy way, believed in Allaah hoping for His promise in the Hereafter for him who did good deeds and spent out of what He has given them in ways which He loves and is pleased with? He knows their good and evil intentions; he knows who deserved success among them so that He might give him success and show him guidance and appoint him for good deeds with which he is pleased. He also knows who deserves disgrace and expulsion from His Divine Affection which whoever is expelled from the door of Allaah has failed and lost in this world and the Hereafter."
Your Islaam does not stand between you and anything that you want to do or to have among the things that Allaah has made lawful for you. Rather, you will be rewarded for any good deed you do in which you seek the pleasure of Allaah even if that is in the interest of your worldly life or increases your wealth or portion or fame. Even the lawful things that you use, when you make do with only the lawful and abstain from unlawful, you will be rewarded for that. The Messenger of Allaah said, "There is an act of charity in satiating your sexual desire." The companions said, "O Messenger of Allaah! Will anyone of us satiate his desire and still get reward for that?" He answered, "Tell me, if he satiates it in an unlawful way, will he be committing a sin by that? Likewise, if he satiates it in the lawful way, he will have reward for that."
O man! The Messengers have brought the truth and conveyed the will of Allaah, and man needs to know the Law of Allaah so as to live his life with sure knowledge and to be among the successful in the Hereafter. Allaah says,
"O Mankind! Verily, there has come to you the Messenger (Muhammad) with the truth from your Lord. So believe in him, it is better for you. But if you disbelieve, then certainly to Allaah belongs all that is in heavens and in the earth. And Allaah is Ever All-Knowing, All-Wise."
He also says,
"Say (O Muhammad): O Mankind! Now truth has come to you from your Lord. So whoever receives guidance, he does so for the good of his own self; and whosoever goes astray, he does so to his own loss; and I am not (set) over you as a disposer of affairs."
O man! If you embrace Islaam, you benefit none but yourself, and if you disbelieve you harm none but your own self. Allaah is in no need of His slaves. Sin of the sinners does not harm Him nor does acts of obedience of the obedient ones benefit Him. He is not disobeyed unless by His knowledge and He is not obeyed except with His permission. Allaah says in what was reported from Him by His Prophet, "O My Slaves! I have made injustice forbidden for myself and I have also made it forbidden amongst you, so do not wrong one another. O My slaves! You are all in error except him whom I guide so seek guidance from Me, I will guide you. O May slaves! All of you are hungry except whom I feed so seek food from Me, I will feed you. O My slaves! All of you are naked except him who I clothe; so seek clothing from Me, I will clothe you! O My slaves! You commit sins by day and night, but I forgive all sins. So seek forgiveness from Me, I will forgive you. O My slaves! You can never be able to harm Me; and you can never be able to benefit yourselves, let alone benefiting Me. O My slaves! If the first and the last of you, and all the jinn and mankind among you were to be as pious as the most pious one among you, that adds nothing to My Kingdom. O My slaves! If the first and the last among you, and all the jinn and mankind of you are to be as sinful as the most sinful one amongst you, that decreases nothing from My Kingdom. O My slaves! If the first of you and the last among you were to stand at one place and ask Me and I grant to each and everyone his request, that decreases nothing from My Kingdom except like what a thread reduces from the ocean when it is dipped inside it and then withdrawn. O My slaves! These are only your deeds that I enumerate accurately for you, and upon which I give you reward. So whoever finds good reward, let him thank Allaah, but whoever finds anything else, let him not blame but himself."
All praise is due to Allaah, Lord of the worlds. May peace and blessings be upon the noblest of all Prophets and Messengers. Our Prophet Muhammad, as well as his household and companios together
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