30 November 2013
26 November 2013
The Excellence of Gathering in which Allah is Remembered
Allah the Exalted says:
"And keep yourself (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) patiently with those who call on their Lord (i.e. your companions who remember their Lord with glorification, praising in prayers, etc., and other righteous deeds, etc.) morning and afternoon, seeking His Face, and let not your eyes overlook them, desiring the pomp and glitter of the life of the world; and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless of Our Remembrance, one who follows his own lusts and whose affair (deeds) has been lost."
- Qur'an (Surah Al Kahf 28)
Abu Hurayrah رضي الله عنه reported: The Messenger of Allah, the Exalted, has teams of angels who go about on the roads seeking those who remember Allah. When they find some people remembering Allah they call to one another and say, 'Come to what you are looking for,' and they surround them with their wings until the space between them and the lowest sky is fully covered. Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them (although He is best informed about every thing): 'What are my slaves saying?' They say: 'They are glorifying Your Tasbih, Tahmid, Takbir, Tamjid, (i.e., they were declaring the Perfectness, praising, remembering the Greatness and Majesty of Allah).' He asks: 'Have they seen Me?' Thereupon they reply: 'If they were to see You, they would engage more earnestly in worshipping and glorifying You and would extol You more.' He would say: 'What do they beg of Me?' They say: 'They beg You for Your Jannah.' Allah says, 'Have they seen my Jannah?' They say, 'No our Rubb.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see my Jannah?' They reply, 'Were they to see it, they would more intensely eager for it.' They (the angels) say, 'They seek Your Protection.' He asks, 'Against what do they seek My Protection?' They (the angels) say, Our Rubb, from the fire of Hell.' (He, the Rubb) says, 'Have they seen the fire of Hell?' They say, 'No. By Your Honour, they have not seen it.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see My Fire?' They would say: 'If they were to see it, they would more earnest in being away from it and fearing it. They beg of Your forgiveness.' He says: 'I call you to witness that I hereby grant pardon to them and confer upon them what they ask for; and grant them protection against what they seek protection from.' One of the angels says: 'Our Rubb, there is amongst them and such slave who does not belong to the assembly of those who are participating in in Your remembrance. He passed by them and sat down with them.' He says: 'I also grant him pardon because they are the people of virtue of whom their associates will not be unfortunate.'"
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
(The narration in Muslim is also the same with minor changes in wordings).
[Source: Riyad Us-Saliheen (Gardens of the Righteous) Volume 2 by Al-Imam Abu Zakariya Yahya bin Sharaf An-Nawawi Ad-Dimashqi]
"And keep yourself (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) patiently with those who call on their Lord (i.e. your companions who remember their Lord with glorification, praising in prayers, etc., and other righteous deeds, etc.) morning and afternoon, seeking His Face, and let not your eyes overlook them, desiring the pomp and glitter of the life of the world; and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless of Our Remembrance, one who follows his own lusts and whose affair (deeds) has been lost."
- Qur'an (Surah Al Kahf 28)
Abu Hurayrah رضي الله عنه reported: The Messenger of Allah, the Exalted, has teams of angels who go about on the roads seeking those who remember Allah. When they find some people remembering Allah they call to one another and say, 'Come to what you are looking for,' and they surround them with their wings until the space between them and the lowest sky is fully covered. Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them (although He is best informed about every thing): 'What are my slaves saying?' They say: 'They are glorifying Your Tasbih, Tahmid, Takbir, Tamjid, (i.e., they were declaring the Perfectness, praising, remembering the Greatness and Majesty of Allah).' He asks: 'Have they seen Me?' Thereupon they reply: 'If they were to see You, they would engage more earnestly in worshipping and glorifying You and would extol You more.' He would say: 'What do they beg of Me?' They say: 'They beg You for Your Jannah.' Allah says, 'Have they seen my Jannah?' They say, 'No our Rubb.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see my Jannah?' They reply, 'Were they to see it, they would more intensely eager for it.' They (the angels) say, 'They seek Your Protection.' He asks, 'Against what do they seek My Protection?' They (the angels) say, Our Rubb, from the fire of Hell.' (He, the Rubb) says, 'Have they seen the fire of Hell?' They say, 'No. By Your Honour, they have not seen it.' He says: 'How would they act if they were to see My Fire?' They would say: 'If they were to see it, they would more earnest in being away from it and fearing it. They beg of Your forgiveness.' He says: 'I call you to witness that I hereby grant pardon to them and confer upon them what they ask for; and grant them protection against what they seek protection from.' One of the angels says: 'Our Rubb, there is amongst them and such slave who does not belong to the assembly of those who are participating in in Your remembrance. He passed by them and sat down with them.' He says: 'I also grant him pardon because they are the people of virtue of whom their associates will not be unfortunate.'"
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
(The narration in Muslim is also the same with minor changes in wordings).
[Source: Riyad Us-Saliheen (Gardens of the Righteous) Volume 2 by Al-Imam Abu Zakariya Yahya bin Sharaf An-Nawawi Ad-Dimashqi]
06 November 2013
Prayer
O Lord, the Tribulations that You give to me, are Honors that I gladly accept. For through them, I gain strength and wisdom, I become closer to You, My beloved Creator.I do not seek anything but Your Forgiveness, Your Pleasure, Your Mercy, Your Face. I will praise and glorify You for the rest of my life, in ease and hardship. You alone Whom I seek.
05 November 2013
Two Persons Worthy of Being Envied
The Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم gave glad tidings to anyone who undertakes the task of seeking knowledge. Abu Hurayrah رضي الله عنه relates that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said,
"For him who embarks on the path of seeking knowledge, Allah will ease for him the way to paradise."
and he also said,
"Only two persons are worthy of being envied; a person upon whom Allah bestows riches and gives him the power to spend it in a righteous cause; and a person upon whom Allah bestows wisdom by which he judges and which he teaches."
04 November 2013
The Highest Form of Love
A heart is inherently in need of God in two respects: One is worship, which is the "purposive reason," and the other is asking for God's aid and putting trust in Him, which is the "working reason." The heart, therefore, will never be useful, successful, blessed, pleased or satisfied except by worshipping God.
Supposing the heart obtained all the pleasures that creatures enjoy, it will never feel at rest or contented because there is in it "inherent need" to God. For in God alone the heart delights, and God alone is its adored beloved, and here the heart gets rest and satisfaction.
In fact, this will not happen but by the Providence and Help of God, for none but God can provide these things to the heart which is always in need of the fact that: "It is Thee we worship, and for Thy aid we ask" (Qur'an 1:5). If the heart was helped to obtain what it would like and want without worshipping God, it would obtain only pain, pity, and agony in this life, and it will never get rid of these unless God is its true love, and all other sorts of love are for His sake i.e. none will be loved for its own sake except God.
If this was not realized, the other fact cannot be realized, namely, "There is no God but Allah" (La ilaha illa Allah) neither can the other facts of Tawheed (Monotheism) - Slavery and Love of God, and he wlll have defective belief.
He who worked for this question while not asking for God's aid or putting trust in Him, or feeling poor and in need of Him, would not reach it. Whatever God willed, so it will be, and whatever He willed not, it won't. Man therefore is always in need of God Who is his aim and destination, and the worshipped Lord, whose help is sought, and in whom trust we put.
- Ibn Taymiyyah
