Justice (Inṣāf)
Allāh, Exalted is He, says, “You of faith! Be upholders of justice, bearing witness for Allāh Alone, even against yourselves or your parents and relatives. Whether they are rich or poor, Allāh is more worthy of both. Do not follow your own desires and deviate from the truth; if you distort or turn away, Allāh is aware of what you do.” “You of faith! Show integrity for the sake of Allāh, bearing witness with justice. Do not let hatred for a people incite you into not being just. Be just – that is closer to Taqwā. Have Taqwā of Allāh,…
The Reality of the Straight Path
We will expound upon the Straight Path in a succinct manner for the people have explained it in various ways all of them revolving around one essential fact. The Straight Path is the path of Allāh which He has put in place to lead mankind to Him; there is no path to Him other than this one which He appointed upon the tongues of His Messengers. It is to single Him out alone for worship and to single out His Messengers alone for obedience. Therefore none should commit shirk in His worship just as none should commit shirk in the…
The Heart’s and Body’s Relief Lies in Obeying Allah
This is a great secret from the secrets of Tawḥīd. The heart cannot become firm, it cannot find satisfaction and it cannot find tranquillity except by reaching out to Him. Everything that is loved and desired besides Him, it must be desired for no other than His sake. The One who is desired, the One who is beloved in and of Himself and with Whom all matters find their final goal is only one. It is impossible that the final goal be to two destinations just as it is impossible that the beginning of the creation be from two sources. The…
Hypocritical Khushu’
The difference between (true) khushu`, engendered by faith, and hypocritical khushu` is that the former takes place in the heart for the sake of Allāh and is conduced by veneration, magnification, sobriety, dignity, and shyness. The heart breaks for Allāh, combining dread, bashfulness, love, and shyness with the perception of Allāh’s blessings and one’s own transgressions. This necessarily engenders khushu` in the heart which is then followed by khushu` on the limbs. Hypocritical khushu`, on the other hand, appears on the limbs; it is a mere pretence, the person affecting something that is not there since the heart is void of khushu`. One of the Companions would say, ‘I take…
Protection Against Envy
Ibn al-Qayyim mentions ten ways in which a person can save himself from the harm of envy: 1) Taking refuge with Allāh 2) Taqwa of Allāh, fulfilling what He has ordered and avoiding what He has proscribed. 3) Bearing what he is afflicted with steadfastly, being patient and not fighting or killing the envier. 4) Placing one’s reliance, tawakkul, in Allāh because He suffices anyone who places his trust in Him. 5) Avoid thinking about it and trying to concentrate on other things. This is one of the best ways of removing the evil. 6) Turning to Allāh, being sincere to Him, loving…
Paradise Attained
Abū Hurairah reports that a bedouin came to the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) and asked, “Guide me to an action which I can perform and enter Paradise.” He (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) replied, “Worship Allāh without associating anything with Him, establish the prescribed prayers, give the obligatory zakāt, and fast the month of Ramaḍān.” He said, “By the One in whose hand is my soul, I will add nothing more to this nor will I detract from it.” When he had left, the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever wants to look at a person…
The Final Goal
Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿālā) says, “There is not a single thing except that its depositories and treasures are with Us.” This verse contains one of the treasures , this being that nothing is sought except from the One who possesses its depositories and treasures, the One in whose hands lie the keys to these treasures. Seeking something from anyone else is to seek something from someone who neither possesses it nor has any authority over it. The saying of Allāh, Most High, “...and that to your Lord is the final goal,” contains an invaluable treasure, this being that every objective…
He Came with Something Strange: Pt 1
Allah, Glorious is He, sent His Messenger (SAW) at a time when the whole world was steeped in the depths of ignorance; knowledge of the truth had been lost and nowhere was it being established and lived by as was deserving. People would unduly adopt the practices they found their forefathers upon, practices that their predecessors had themselves invented and regarded to be commendable: matters that were no more than superstition, concocted belief and innovation. When he (SAW) stood amongst them, “...a bringer of good tidings and a warner, and a caller to Allah by His permission and a light…
The Straight Path
Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿālā) says, “This is My Path and it is straight, so follow it. Do not follow other ways or you will become cut off from His Way. That is what He instructs you to do, so that hopefully you will have taqwa.” The Straight Path is the path which Allāh has summoned us to, and that is the Sunnah. The other paths are the paths of the dissenters who deviate from the Straight Path, and they are the People of Innovation. What is not meant by other ways is the paths of disobedience because no one makes disobedience a…
Three Types of Hearts
Because the heart is described as possessing life or death, it is classified into three types: The First: The Correct and Sound Heart. This is the truthful and secure (salīm) heart; the only type of heart that its owner can bring to Allāh which will rescue him on the Day of Judgement . Allāh, the Exalted says, The Day when neither wealth nor sons will avail, except he who brings to Allāh a truthful and secure heart. The meaning of salīm (secure) is sālim (the one who is secure), it has come in this form because it depicts an innate…