Following the Sunnah!

Hazrat Isa (Jesus son of Mary) (peace be upon him) has said: “This world is a bridge: cross it, but do not build on it.”

In other words, it is the existence in the Hereafter which is the actual REALITY and objective for which this world acts as the bridge or means to transport one from the cradle to the inevitable grave where one is bound to spend some time. Since this world is a temporary station, it doesn’t make sense to live in extravagance. Therefore it becomes imperative to study and gain enough knowledge about the conditions prevailing in the grave so that adequate preparations could be made and when one reaches the moment of truth one will not feel lonely, deserted or confused.

On the authority of Abu Dharr al-Ghifaree (RA) from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) from his Lord, that He said:

O My servants! I have forbidden dhulm (oppression) for Myself, and I have made it forbidden amongst you, so do not oppress one another.

 O My servants, all of you are astray except those whom I have guided, so seek guidance from Me and I shall guide you.

O My servants, all of of you are hungry except those whom I have fed, so seek food from Me and I shall feed you.

O My servants, all of you are naked except those whom I have clothed, so seek clothing from Me and I shall clothe you.

O My servants, you commit sins by day and by night, and I forgive all sins, so seek forgiveness from Me and I shall forgive you.

O My servants, you will not attain harming Me so as to harm me, and you will not attain benefitting Me so as to benefit Me.

O My servants, if the first of you and the last of you, and the humans of you and the jinn of you, were all as pious as the most pious heart of any individual amongst you, then this would not increase My Kingdom an iota.

O My servants, if the first of you and the last of you, and the humans of you and the jinn of you, were all as wicked as the most wicked heart of any individual amongst you, then this would not decrease My Kingdom an iota.

O My servants, if the first of you and the last of you, and the humans of you and the jinn of you, were all to stand together in one place and ask of Me, and I were to give everyone what he requested, then that would not decrease what I Possess, except what is decreased of the ocean when a needle is dipped into it.

 O My servants, it is but your deeds that I account for you, and then recompense you for. So he who finds good, let him praise Allah, and he who finds other than that, let him blame no one but himself.

(Muslim)

On the authority of Abu Abbas Abdullah bin Abbas (RA) who said: One day I was behind the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) [riding on the same mount] and he said, “O young man, I shall teach you some words [of advice]: Be mindful of Allah and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, then ask Allah [alone]; and if you seek help, then seek help from Allah [alone]. And know that if the nation were to gather together to benefit you with anything, they would not benefit you except with what Allah had already prescribed for you. And if they were to gather together to harm you with anything, they would not harm you except with what Allah had already prescribed against you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried.” (Tirmidhi)

Another narration, other than that of Tirmidhi, reads: Be mindful of Allah, and you will find Him in front of you. Recognise and acknowledge Allah in times of ease and prosperity, and He will remember you in times of adversity. And know that what has passed you by [and you have failed to attain] was not going to befall you, and what has befallen you was not going to pass you by. And know that victory comes with patience, relief with affliction, and hardship with ease.

On the authority of Abdullah ibn Masood (RA), who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and he is the truthful, the believed, narrated to us, “Verily the creation of each one of you is brought together in his mother’s womb for forty days in the form of a nutfah (a drop), then he becomes an alaqah (clot of blood) for a like period, then a mudghah (lump of flesh) for a like period, then there is sent to him the angel who blows his soul into him and who is commanded with four matters: to write down his rizq (sustenance), his life span, his actions, and whether he will be happy or unhappy (i.e., whether or not he will enter Paradise).

By the One, other than Whom there is no deity, verily one of you performs the actions of the people of Paradise until there is but an arms length between him and it, and that which has been written overtakes him, and so he acts with the actions of the people of the Hellfire and thus enters it; and verily one of you performs the actions of the people of the Hellfire, until there is but an arms length between him and it, and that which has been written overtakes him and so he acts with the actions of the people of Paradise and thus he enters it.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

On the authority of Umar ibn al-Khattab (RA), who said:

One day while we were sitting with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) there appeared before us a man whose clothes were exceedingly white and whose hair was exceedingly black; no signs of journey were to be seen on him and none of us knew him. He walked up and sat down in front of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), with his knees touching against the Prophet’s (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and placing the palms of his hands on his thighs he said, “O Muhammad, tell me about Islam.”

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “Islam is to testify that there is no deity worthy of worship but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to perform prayers, to give zakat, to fast in Ramadhan, and to make the pilgrimage to the House if you are able to do so.”

He said, “You have spoken rightly”; and we were amazed at him asking him and saying that he had spoken rightly. He [the man] then said, “Tell me about iman.”

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “It is to believe in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, and to believe in divine destiny (qadr), both the good and the evil of it.”

He said, “You have spoken rightly.” He [the man] said, “Then tell me about ihsan.”

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “It is to worship Allah as though you see Him, and if you do not see Him, then (knowing that) truly He sees you.”

He said, “Then tell me about the Hour.”

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “The one questioned about it knows no better than the questioner.”

He said, “Then tell me about its signs.”

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, “That the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress, and that you will see barefooted, naked destitute shepherds competing in constructing lofty buildings.”

Then he [the man] left, and I stayed for a time. Then he [the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)] said, “O Umar, do you know who the questioner was?” I said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “It was Jibril, who came to teach you your religion.” (Muslim)

Abu-Darda (RA) reported: Allah’s Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said. “He who follows a path in quest of knowledge, Allah will make the path of Jannah easy for him. The angels lower their wings over the seeker of knowledge, being pleased with what he does. The inhabitants of the heavens and the earth and even the fish in the oceans seek forgiveness for him. The superiority of the learned man over the devout worshipper is like the full moon to the rest of the stars (in brightness). The learned are the heirs of the Prophets who bequeath neither dinar nor dirham (wealth) but only that of knowledge; and he who acquires it, has in fact acquired an abundant portion.” (Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi)

Allah, the Exalted, says:

“Everyone shall taste death. And only on the Day of Resurrection shall you be paid your wages in full. And whoever is removed away from the Fire (Hell) and admitted to Jannah (Paradise), he indeed is successful. The life of this world is only the enjoyment of deception (a deceiving thing).” (3:185)

“No person knows what he will earn tomorrow, and no person knows in what land he will die…” (31:34)

“…when their term (death) comes, neither can they delay nor can they advance it an hour (or a moment).” (16:61)

“Until, when death comes to one of them (polytheists), he says: ‘My Rabb! Send me back. So that I may do good in that which I left behind!’ No! It is but a word that he speaks; and behind them is Barzakh (a barrier) until the Day when they will be resurrected. Then, when the Trumpet is blown, there will be no kinship among them that Day, nor will they ask of one another. Then, those whose Scales (of good deeds) are heavy, they are the successful. And those whose Scales (of good deeds) are light, they are those who lose their own selves, in Hell will they abide. The Fire will burn their faces, and therein they will grin, with displaced (disfigured) lips. ‘Were not My Verses (the Qur’an) recited to you, and then you used to deny them?’ They will say: ‘Our Rabb! Our wretchedness overcame us, and we were an erring people. Our Rabb! Bring us out of this; if ever we return (to evil), then indeed we shall be Zalimun (polythiests, oppressors, unjust, wrongdoers, etc).’ He (Allah) will say: ‘Remain you in it with ignominy! And speak you not to Me!’ Verily! There was a party of My slaves, who used to say: ’Our Rabb! We believe, so forgive us, and have mercy on us, for you are the Best of all who show mercy!’ ‘But you took them for a laughing stock, so much so that they made you forget My remembrance while you used to laugh at them! Verily! I have rewarded them this day for their patience, they are inded the ones that are successful.’ He (Allah) will say: ‘What number of years did you stay on the earth?’ They will say: ‘We stayed a day or part of a day. Ask of those who keep account.’ He (Allah) will say: ‘You stayed not but a little, if you had only known! Did you think that We had created you in play (without any purpose), and that you would not be brought back to Us?’” (23:99-115)

Abu Mas’ud Uqbah bin Amr Al-Badri (RA) reported: A man came to the Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and said; “I join the morning Salaat late because of so-and-so who leads it and prolongs it.” (Abu Mas’ud said); I have never seen the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) so angry while giving a speech as he was on that day. He (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said,”Some of you create hatred among the people against faith. Whoever leads Salaat, should make it brief (while still following the etiquette’s and requisites of Salaat) because the congregation includes old men and youngsters and those who have some urgent work to do.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

Note: First, there is allowance for a genuine complaint regarding some public inconvenience. Second, a believer is supposed to be passionately uncompromising on religious precepts. Third, the Imam (leader) should refrain from prolonging Salaat and be considerate of the congregation standing behind him. But a brief recitation of the Quran or prayer does not imply a disregard of the example of the Prophet and the adjustment of different postures in Salaat. In no way should it be a haste and heedless Salaat as unfortunately offered by majority of men. They have little regard for the example of the Prophet in offering Salaat. What a pity! Fourth, one may be exempted from offering congregational Salaat for a valid religious excuse. Fifth, the Imam should eschew an attitude which may foment people’s aversion to worship.

Abu Hurairah (RA) reported: Allah’s Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, ” The most perfect man in his faith among the believers is the one whose behaviour is most excellent; and the best of you are those who are the best to their wives.” (Tirmidhi – Hasan Sahih)

Note: This hadith brings into light the corollary of faith and complaisant manners. We may put it in this way that the degree of a man’s excellent behaviour determines the degree of faith. Or the sublimity of faith calls for the sublimity of morals. Similarly, a man who is polite and courteous to his wife will be considered as the best.

Hadhrat Ibn Mas’ood (RA) narrates that he heard the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying: “At the approach of the hour of a salaat, an angel is deputed to proclaim, ‘Arise, O Children of Adam! and extinguish the fire that you have kindled (by committing sins) to burn yourselves.’ So, the people rise up, perform wudhu (ablution) and offer their Zuhr prayer. This causes forgiveness for their sins committed since daybreak. The same is repeated at Asr, Maghrib, and Ishaa. After Ishaa people go to bed, but there are some who busy themselves in good, while some in evil deeds.”

Hadhrat Salmaan (RA) says, “After Ishaa the people get divided into three groups. There are some for whom the night is a source of blessing and gain. They are those who spend it in the worship of Allah, while other people are asleep. For them the night brings great reward from their Lord. There are others who turn their night into a burden and curse for themselves, for they indulge in various dark deeds in the dead of night. To them the night brings woe and misery. There is the third group of people who go to bed immediately after Ishaa; they neither gain nor lose.”