In the Name of Allāh the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful
May Peace, Allāh’s Mercy and blessings be upon you.
You requested from me, Allāh bless you, a plan for you to follow throughout the course of your life. I ask Allāh that he guides us to what is right and proper; I ask Him that He makes us rightly guided people who also guide others, and righteous ones who rectify others.
First: with reference to Allāh the Mighty and Majestic:
I. Strive to be close to Allāh, the Mighty and Majestic, at all times. Stay mindful of His greatness and contemplate over His natural signs such as the creation of the heavens and the earth. Reflect over everything He placed in them indicating His great wisdom, power, mercy and generosity. Ponder over the religious signs that He sent with His Messengers, particularly those He sent with the last of them, Muḥammad (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam).
II. Fill your heart with love for Allāh the Most High. He has blessed you with favours and protected you from afflictions. The greatest of these favours is the blessing of Islām and to remain steadfast upon it such that it is most beloved to you.
Fill your heart with veneration of Allāh such that He is the greatest thing to you. It is with the combination of love for Allāh and veneration of Him that you will be steadfast upon His obedience. You will obey Allāh’s commands out of love for Him; you shall leave what He has prohibited out of deference to Him.
Be sincere to Allāh in all of your worship. Rely on Him in all of your affairs. Through this you shall achieve the station (maqām) of “You alone we worship and from you alone we seek assistance”.[1] You will remain conscious with your heart that you only obey Allāh’s commands and prohibitions out of His reverence. You will also experience a joy in Allāh’s worship that you will not find through inattentive worship, and you will receive a help from Allāh in all your affairs that you cannot obtain when you depend on yourself.
Secondly: with reference to Allāh’s Messenger (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam):
Give precedence to love for him over love for all of the creation. Give priority to his guidance and Sunnah over all other guidance. Take him as your leader and example in your worship and character. Imagine he is in front of you, that you are following him. Pursue his footsteps and traverse his path. Follow him in your dealings with other people; emulate his character about which Allāh said,
“and you are of a character most noble.”[2]
If you do this you shall find yourself striving to learn about his religion and character.
Call to his Sunnah, and be one who aids its preservation and defends it. Allāh will help you as much as you help His religion.
Thirdly: regarding your daily routine outside of obligatory worship:
When you awake during the night, remember Allāh, and supplicate to Him for whatever you like, for prayers at this time are more likely to be answered. Recite the verses in the Qur’ān beginning with “Indeed in the heavens and the earth” until the end of Surah Al-Imrān.[3] This comprises ten verses. Perform your prayers (salāt) as much as Allāh has written for you at the end of the night and finish your prayers with the ‘witr’ prayer.
Every day do whatever is easy for you from the morning invocations. Say one hundred times, “There is no true God but Allāh. He is alone; He has no partner; He alone has control of all things; All praise is due to Him alone and He is All-Powerful over everything.”
Perform the mid-morning (ḍuḥa) prayer.
Every day do whatever you can of the evening invocations.
Fourthly: regarding the way to seek knowledge:
Strive to memorise the Book of Allāh the Most High. Set yourself a specific portion for regular recitation. Make sure you recite with contemplation and understanding. Make note of any point that draws your attention.
Strive to memorise whatever you can of the Sunnah of the Messenger (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) such as the book “Umdat Al aḥkām”.
Strive to be focused in your learning by refraining from taking knowledge from scattered sources as this will waste your time, confuse you and leave you scattered in thought.
Begin by studying smaller books. Master them and then progress to more advanced books. You shall gain knowledge step-by-step, allowing it to be established firmly in your heart. Once you have gained confidence with the knowledge in these smaller books, progress.
Strive to learn the fundamentals and principles behind issues. Take note of anything that you come across in this area. It has been said that whoever is deprived of the fundamentals shall be held back from accomplishment.
Discuss what you learn with your teacher or any of your peers whose knowledge and piety you trust. If you are unable to engage in discussion with any of the aforementioned, simply imagine that someone is in discussion with you.
I ask Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿālā) to teach you what benefits you, to benefit others with what He has taught you and to increase you in knowledge. I ask Him to make you of His righteous servants and His successful allies.
Peace be upon you with Allāh’s mercy and blessing.
Written by Muhammad b. Sālih al-ʿUthaymīn on the 3rd of Rajab 1412H
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Source: www.islam21c.com
Notes:
This letter was translated by Islam21c’s editorial team. An original image of the letter is below.
[1] Al-Qur’ān, 1:5
[2] Al-Qur’ān, 68:4
[3] Al-Qur’ān, 3:190-200
