Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| Naseeha |
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| Anonymous |
| 10/06/00 at 11:18:19 |
| Assalam wa alaikum wa rahmatullah he wa barakatuhu On the authority of Tamim Al-Dari that the prophet said: "Ad deen an naseeha ..." The deen is sincere advice. We said "To whom?" He (SAW) said: "To Allah and His book, and His Messenger, and to the leaders of the Muslims and their common folk" {Related by Imam Muslim} An essential part of the deen of Islam is the recognising of man as being limited in his nature and therefore liable to fault. It is this understanding that instills in the mu'min the humility required of him in times of ease and hardship. Those with this humility, though seemingly the lowest in the eyes of man are the highest in the sight of Allah(SWT). Indeed Allah(SWT) described the believers as such in surah Al-A'raf : "Surely those who are with your Lord are not too proud to serve Him, and they declare His glory and throw themselves down in humility before Him." {Al-A'raf: 206} and ^Å "And they fall down on their faces weeping, and it adds to their humility." {Al-Isra:109} Without this surely there would be no obedience to Allah(SWT) as the individual would be too haughty to listen to any other than himself. But even once embracing this most graceful deen remnants of this kufr trait may still remain and takabbur(arrogance) may rear its ugly head. This arrogance will blind man to the views of others, responding to his own desires and causing him to forget that he is no more than an abd (slave), abdallah (the slave of Allah). This would lead to the decline of man individually and congregations collectively. Indeed it was this pride that lead to the downfall of Iblees whom Allah(SWT) addressed : "And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves before Adam." And they prostrated except Iblîs (Satan), he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allâh)." {2:34} Allah(SWT) labeled him(Shaytan) as being of the kaafireen (disbeliever's) because he saw himself as knowing better than Allah(SWT) and hence not responding to His(SWT) command. This trait causes the heart to become closed and the mind sealed and was the root behind the adamance of the enemies of Islam , whether this was Firawn at the time of Musa(AS) or Abu Lahab, Utbah and Shaybah at the time of Rasoolullah(SAW). It is narrated on the authority of Abdullah b. Mas'ud that the Apostle of Allah (SAW), observed: He who has in his heart the weight of a mustard seed of pride shall not enter Paradise. A person (amongst his hearers) said: Verily a person loves that his dress should be fine, and his shoes should be fine. He (the Prophet(SAW)) remarked:"Verily, Allah is Graceful and He loves Grace. Pride is disdaining the truth (out of self-conceit) and contempt for the people" The Sahaba were surely of those who earnestly worked to rid themselves of this rotten disease, and the most effective example we see from amongst them was the giving of dawa to their families and people. It was this advice that reminded them of their lowly beginnings and that their judgement lay not in the hands of the people but rather in front of Allah(SWT). Indeed it was through this sincere advice that they bettered themselves and maintained an atmosphere of iman. The most apparent of examples relating to this is the time when Rasoolullah(SAW) was engaged in a discussion with the influentials from the tribe of Quraysh, including Al-Walid ibn al Mughira, when a poor, blind man 'Abdullâh bin Umm-Maktûm interrupted the discussion. Allah(SWT) describes the response of Rasoolullah(SAW) in surah Abasa as follows: "He frowned and turned away. Because there came to him the blind man while he was preaching to one or some of the Quraish chiefs). But what could tell you that per chance he might become pure (from sins)? Or that he might receive admonition, and that the admonition might profit him? As for him who thinks himself self-sufficient, to him you attend; What does it matter to you if he will not become pure? But as to him who came to you running and is afraid (of Allâh and His Punishment). Of him you are neglectful and divert your attention to another. Nay, indeed it (these Verses of this Qur'ân) are an admonition" {Abasa: 1-11} Ibn Kathir relates in his Tafsir-al Quran that after this ayah was revealed whenever Rasoolullah (SAW) saw 'Abdullâh bin Umm-Maktûm again, he would embrace him and say "Welcome to the one by whose hands I was admonished". The lesson to be taken from this is when Rasoolullah(SAW) was admonished he did not get puffed up with pride or feel humiliated, rather he(SAW) saw this a step forward and a source of blessing and strength. The Messenger of Allah (SAW) on one occasion said "Admonition is a blessing" and he lived this saying to the utmost. This mentality was further translated to the Sahaba to whom Rasoolullah(SAW) once said "No-one enters Jannah except through the Rehma(mercy) of Allah(SWT). The Sahaba then asked "What about your yourself, O Messenger of Allah" to which Rasoolullah(SAW) replied "Even me." Rasoolullah(SAW) replied to this question in a manner befitting his character not getting angry or ignoring the question but rather answering frankly in the humblest of manners. Indeed the maintaining of the Islamic personality requires the acceptance of advice such that a ruler can be admonished by a layman. This quality is a most precious one and is reflected in the example of Ahmad ibn Hanbal (May Allah have mercy upon him) who opposed the erroneous view of the people at his time that the Quran had been created, as a result of which he faced much hardship and persecution. On one occasion while he lay bound with iron chains in a cell there came to him a man at his time saying to him " O Ahmad bin Hanbal, you are not like me, when you speak many listen, however when I speak few listen. Know one thing, that even if this man does not kill you then you will surely still die, so remain on the truth and do not deviate from it in the slightest." To this Ahmad bin Hanbal wept such that his beard was soaked with tears. However, even in this position of truth when he (Ahmad) was released from the prison he did not once revile the ruler, or break off from the congregation, whilst still holding fast to his opinion. The ensuring of the pure environment will be through sincere advice established on sound reasoning keeping open minds and remaining in the company of those who fear Allah(SWT). Abu Darda(RA) said "No one achieves complete understanding of Islam until he condemns people for the sake of Allah and then returns home and condemns himself even more" Many times we have heard the famous hadith "the master of martyrs is Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib and the one who stands in the court of the tyrant ruler and gives him naseeha and is killed as a result of it" His status is befitting for the master of martyrs because it is the declaration of truth in the face of falsehood. And it is upon this note that we should remind ourselves that our source of salvation may lie in advice given by anyone regardless of whether they embody their own advice, for surely it is us who will be accounted for our own deeds. Umar bin al Khattab (RA) beautifully summed this up when he said "Weigh yourselves before you weighed. Place yourselves on the balance of scales before you are placed on the balance of scales." May Allah(SWT) remove from our hearts even an atoms weight of pride or arrogance. May Allah(SWT) allow us to enact the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah in our lives. May Allah(SWT) give us the strength to speak the word of truth whenever the baatil or weak opinion is presented. May Allah(SWT) give us the strength to accept naseeha even though we may be humiliated. May Allah(SWT) give us the company of the righteous. May Allah(SWT) bless us with the sweetness of faith. May Allah(SWT) makes us of those who hold the standard of Islam high and give us the most honourable of deaths in his sight, the death of the Shaheed (martyr). May Allah(SWT) bless us with the khilafah. May Allah(SWT) save us from the fire of Jahannum. May Allah(SWT) make us a source of goodness for this Ummah. "Alif Laam Raa. A book which we have revealed to you (Muhammad) so that you may lead the people from out of the darknesses into the light by their Lord's leave to the path of the All-Mighty, the Praiseworthy." {Ibrahim :1} Your brother, Abdul Ghafoor (Slave of the oft-Forgiving) Wassalam. |
| NS |
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