In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum
Dear Friends
I pray that you are well.
The life of this world is a great blessing, and certainly an asset of unmatched value. So, this life is an opportunity which must be taken seriously.
Working for the pleasure of Allah Ta'ala, earning its fruits in the form of the promised state of everlasting bliss, hoping to be blessed with Paradise in the Hereafter, and having a good life of peace and tranquility right here are things which can be achieved only through the life of this present world, neither before, nor after - for it is not possible to achieve these in the universe of spirits (arwah) before it, nor is it possible to achieve it in the domain of the Hereafter, after the world of our experience is no more there.
Allah Almighty says,
وَمَا ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلَّا لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ ۖ وَلَلدَّارُ ٱلْءَاخِرَةُ خَيْرٌۭ لِّلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ ۗ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ ﴿٣٢[Qur'an, An-Aam 6:32]
And the worldly life is not but amusement and diversion; but the home of the Hereafter is best for those who fear Allah, so will you not reason? (32)
ٱلْمَالُ وَٱلْبَنُونَ زِينَةُ ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَٱلْبَـٰقِيَـٰتُ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتُ خَيْرٌ عِندَ رَبِّكَ ثَوَابًا وَخَيْرٌ أَمَلًا ﴿٤٦[Qur'an, Al-Kahf 18:46]
Wealth and children are [but] adornment of the worldly life. But the enduring good deeds are better to your Lord for reward and better for [one's] hope. (46)
This worldly life amounts to three things -- play/entertainment, showing off and savings.
When you were a small child, all you want to do is play and your mother was your center of attraction. Then, when you got a little older, play is not enough. You want entertainment too -- games, movies, recreation, friends, etc. Then when you get older, you started to care about how you look (your appearance, school, degree, status, job, car, house, circles, etc). After you got married, two things that took over your life and never go away -- money and kids. And you hardly have time to call your mother. Now you are watching your kids starting the same journey you had right before your eyes.
We are created to worship Allah and part of worshiping Allah is taking care of our children and teaching them His religion. But if we allow our children and our work to distract our remembrance of Allah, then this Ayah should put us in place.
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تُلْهِكُمْ أَمْوَٰلُكُمْ وَلَآ أَوْلَـٰدُكُمْ عَن ذِكْرِ ٱللَّـهِ ۚ وَمَن يَفْعَلْ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْخَـٰسِرُونَ ﴿٩[Qur'an, Al-Munafiqun 63:5]
O you who have believed, let not your wealth and your children divert you from remembrance of Allah. And whoever does that - then those are the losers. (9)
In a hadith, the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) said, "Dunya is cursed and cursed is what is in it, except the Dhikr of Allah, or 'alim (a knowledgeable person) or a student."
The worldly life that is censured is the time of life which is spent being heedless to the thought and concern of Allah Ta'ala. Otherwise, no wealth of the world is equal in worth to the time one spends in remembering Allah and doing what He has commanded us to do.
Everything done in this world which is done in conformity with obedience to Allah, that is, in accordance with the injunctions of the Shari'ah, is all included under the Dhikr of Allah.
There is nothing in this world more worthy of Allah's favor than 'ibadah (obedience to Him) and Dhikr (remembrance of Him). Then, the dearest and the worthiest possession a person has is his time of life in this world. And we know that this time is limited. And no one knows exactly how long his or her life is, seventy years or seventy hours, or no more than the span of a breath. On the other hand, we know that the pleasure of Allah which is the only guarantee of a good life, here and there, can be acquired only within the limits of our life in this world.
Now, every human being, whom Allah has blessed with sense and vision, can decide it for himself how he is going to spend these limited moments and hours of his life, and in what. No doubt, common sense would demand that this precious time should mostly be spent in what would meet the pleasure of Allah. As for chores which are necessary to hold this life together, they should be taken to as needed.
The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) has said, "Wise is he who controls his self, and stays pleased with minimal resources, and devotes his deeds for what is after death."
May Allah increase us in His remembrance and worship and enable us to do those deeds that are most pleasing to Him this Ramadhan. Ameen.
Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wasallam.
And Allah knows best and He alone grants success.
Wassalaam
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