We continue our new Ramadan series by our Tarbiyah Editor Sh Ali Hammuda, called ‘Sacred Truths’.
This article and video series will take you on a journey of universal principles from the Qur’an relating to the the trials and circumstances we face in our everyday lives.
Stay tuned for the release of episodes throughout the month—sign up here to get them sent straight to your inbox!
The fourth principle
This is a principle that fills the heart of a Muslim with reassurance and certainty, particularly those who are experiencing hardship at any level, for none is truer to His promise than Allah. This principle is not exclusive to the particular circumstance of the verse’s revelation, but extends to all Allah’s promises; they shall come to pass. So, our concern must not be on the fulfilment of the promise, instead it should focus on the effort required to meet such promises, for when the conditions are met – hard work, certainty, patience – then the fulfilment of the promise is a given. Allah said:
Allah said:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُخْلِفُ الْمِيعَادَ
“Allah does not fail in His promise”[2]
Allah said:
إِنَّمَا تُوعَدُونَ لَصَادِقٌ
“What you are promised is true”[3]
Allah said:
إِنَّمَا تُوعَدُونَ لَوَاقِعٌ
“Surely, what you are promised must come to pass.”[4]
In fact, why is it that people break their promises? It is usually because either the promise itself was a lie to begin with or because of an inability to fulfil that promise. With that, we understand why Allah never fails in His promises, for Allah is exalted above lying, being the most truthful in speech, and, at the same time, He is not affected by weakness in any way. He is able to do all things. As a result, we can confidently ask, as Allah did:[5]
وَمَنْ أَوْفَى بِعَهْدِهِ مِنَ اللَّهِ
“And who is truer to his covenant than Allah?”
Now, let us take a look at some of the promises of Allah, all of which must and will come to pass if the prerequisites are met.
1) Allah has promised that Islam will remain till the day of judgement
The Prophet ﷺ said:
إن الله زوى لي الأرض . فرأيت مشارقها ومغاربها . وإن أمتي سيبلغ ملكها ما زوى لي منها . وأعطيت الكنزين الأحمر والأبيض . وإني سألت ربي لأمتي أن لا يهلكها بسنة عامة . وأن لا يسلط عليهم عدوا من سوى أنفسهم . فيستبيح بيضتهم . وإن ربي قال : يا محمد ! إني إذا قضيت قضاء فإنه لا يرد . وإني أعطيتك لأمتك أن لا أهلكهم بسنة عامة . وأن لا أسلط عليهم عدوا من سوى أنفسهم . يستبيح بيضتهم . ولو اجتمع عليهم من بأقطارها حتى يكون بعضهم يهلك بعضا ، ويسبي بعضهم بعضا
“Allah drew the ends of the world together for me and I so have seen its eastern and western ends. And I saw that the kingdom of my Ummah will reach those ends which I saw. I have been granted the red and the white treasure, and I begged my Lord for my Ummah that (1) it should not be destroyed because of famine, (2) and that it is not to be dominated by an enemy who is not from amongst them who would eradicate them. My Lord said, ‘O Muhammad, whenever I make a decision, it cannot be changed, and so I grant you for your Ummah that it would not be destroyed by famine and that it will not be dominated by an enemy who is not amongst them who would eradicate them, even if the entire world joined hands to do so. However, it is them who will kill and imprison each other.”[6]
This is a promise that could not have been remembered at a better time for our bruised Ummah. One of the ways in which Allah fulfils this promise is by safeguarding a select group of Muslims who will remain adherent upon the truth till the end of time. In each and every era, they exist, even if few in number. The Prophet ﷺ said, [7]
لاَ تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِى ظَاهِرِينَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ لاَ يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ خَذَلَهُمْ حَتَّى يَأْتِىَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ وَهُمْ كَذَلِكَ
“There will always be a group from my Ummah who are prevalent with the truth, who will not be harmed by those who let them down till the command of Allah comes to pass.”
Therefore, the Muslim who believes these promises will not despair regardless of the magnitude of the hostility that Islam and the Muslims face, for Allah’s promises are far more truthful than those of men.
2) Allah has promised those who practice Islam inwardly and outwardly a pleasant life
In no era in history has the means of comfort and welfare ever been so within reach like they are today. Never has the knowledge of the world’s complex mysteries and the ability of subduing nature’s unfriendly elements ever been attained like it has today. Despite these remarkable achievements and in spite of possessing all the means for a better life, the goal of a pleasant life and feeling of mental peace has never drifted further away like it has today.
When one thinks of New Zealand, what’s likely to come to mind is beautiful nature -mountains and magnificent landscapes, vast, empty and endless. But for years it has been struggling with high rates of depression and suicide. A new report by UNICEF contains a shocking statistic – New Zealand has by far the highest youth suicide rate in the developed world.
The 21st century has taught us how to fly in the air like birds and how to swim in the oceans like fish, but how to walk as happy and content individuals, they still do not know. Yet when this person sits down to work it out, where is the problem, he can’t pinpoint the problem. Today, we will pinpoint the problem with utmost honesty.
Allah says:
وَالَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَآَمَنُوا بِمَا نُزِّلَ عَلَى مُحَمَّدٍ وَهُوَ الْحَقُّ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ كَفَّرَ عَنْهُمْ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ وَأَصْلَحَ بَالَهُمْ
“And those who believe and do righteous good deeds, and believe in that which is sent down to Muhammad – for it is the truth from their Lord – He will erase from them their sins, and He will improve their state” [8]
Allah says
مَنْ عَمِلَ صَالِحًا مِنْ ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنْثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُ حَيَاةً طَيِّبَةً وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْرَهُمْ بِأَحْسَنِ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ
“Whoever does good whether male or female and he is a believer, We will most certainly make him live a happy life”[9]
An exorcist (rāqī), who is deeply involved the helping people touched by possession spoke, of his experience, when the devil (shayṭān) within a person whom he is trying to exorcise shows stubbornness, he tells the patient to repent from sins. He said that if the patient does so, then the next session is a totally different one in which the resistance of that shaytān is far weaker and his control is noticeably weaker.
You can read all the theories you want, you can take every medicine on the shelf, you can try knocking on every door and visit every avenue in search of the gem called happiness and peace of mind, but you will not find it anywhere except where Allah has taught you to find it; the doorstep of Islam and His obedience.
3) Allah has promised to answer du’ā
If we lack any conviction in this we are in immediate need of returning to the basics of our faith to reacquaint ourselves with this core aspect of creed. That is because Allah has promised to answer du’ā:
وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ
“And your Lord says, “Call upon Me; I will respond to you…”[10]
Should you succeed in implanting the truth of this promise in your heart, then du’ā will immediately become one of the dearest acts of worship to you. So, do not direct your focus on the fulfilment of the du’ā, but on meeting the conditions for its fulfilment. These include:
- Not asking Allah for something prohibited
- Not being hasty in the supplication
- Not having any doubt in the fulfilment of the supplication
- Not earning from impermissible sources of income.
- Not giving up
‘Umar said,[11]
إني لا أحمل هم الإجابة، وإنما أحمل هم الدعاء، فإذا ألهمت الدعاء فإن الإجابة معه
“I do not worry about the answering of a du’ā, but I worry about the du’ā itself, and so if I am inspired to make the correct du’ā, then the answer will come with it.”
4) Allah has promised those who leave a sinful practice with that which is better
This is a promise that provides much needed strength, particularly to the young Muslim who may be struggling with specific sinful attachments that he knows will distance him from Allah and success in the Hereafter.
Abu Qatādah and Abu Duhmā said:
أتينا على رجلٌ من أهلِ الباديةِ فقلنا هل سمعتَ من رسولِ اللهِ صلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّم شيئًا قال نعم سمعته يقولُ إنك لن تدعَ شيئًا للهِ عزَّ وجلَّ إلا أبدلك اللهُ به ما هو خيرٌ لك منه
“We approached a Bedouin man and asked him, ‘Have you heard any knowledge from the Prophet ﷺ said?’ He said, ‘Yes, I heard him say, ‘There isn’t anything which you leave for the Allah’s sake, except that He will replace it with something better.’’”[12]
You may find the replacement given to you in an obvious fashion. An illicit relationship may be replaced by a wonderful and licit one, or an prohibited business transaction may be replaced by a better and purer one, and so on. However, the reward may arrive in a different fashion: health for your children, a cure from an illness, a beautiful and righteous spouse, the ability to pray at night, and so on. This is because Allah knows what is best for you and, thus, the reward for your courageous rejection of the impermissible is tailored to what you need most, even if you do not realise it.
5) The outcome of patience will be Paradise
Allah said, speaking about the hellfire and then paradise:
إِذَا رَأَتْهُمْ مِنْ مَكَانٍ بَعِيدٍ سَمِعُوا لَهَا تَغَيُّظًا وَزَفِيرًا (12) وَإِذَا أُلْقُوا مِنْهَا مَكَانًا ضَيِّقًا مُقَرَّنِينَ دَعَوْا هُنَالِكَ ثُبُورًا (13) لَا تَدْعُوا الْيَوْمَ ثُبُورًا وَاحِدًا وَادْعُوا ثُبُورًا كَثِيرًا (14) قُلْ أَذَلِكَ خَيْرٌ أَمْ جَنَّةُ الْخُلْدِ الَّتِي وُعِدَ الْمُتَّقُونَ كَانَتْ لَهُمْ جَزَاءً وَمَصِيرًا (15) لَهُمْ فِيهَا مَا يَشَاءُونَ خَالِدِينَ كَانَ عَلَى رَبِّكَ وَعْدًا مَسْئُولًا (16)
“When the Hellfire sees them from a distant place, they will hear its fury and roaring. And when they are thrown into a narrow place therein bound in chains, there they will cry out for destruction. They will be told, “Do not cry this Day for one destruction but cry for many destructions.” Say, “Is that better or the Garden of Eternity which is promised to the righteous? It will be for them a reward and a final destination. In it will be everything that they may wish, living their eternally, it is a promise binding upon your Lord that must be fulfilled.”
It is possible you may know some people who have built for themselves such a reputation for of honesty that they would prefer death over failing to deliver on a promise that they have made. If such is the value of a promise in the eyes of some humans, what then do you think is its value of a promise in the eyes of Allah, who has given Himself the names of Al-Haqq (The Truth), Al-Barr (The Ever-doer of good), and Al-Karīm (The Most Generous)? What then can be more reassuring than the principle that: “Allah does not fail in His promise”
Source: Islam21c
Notes:
[1] Al-Qur’an, Surah 22, Ayah 47
[2] al-Qur’ān, 3:9
[3] al-Qur’ān, 51:5
[4] al-Qur’ān, 77:7
[5] al-Qur’ān, 9:111
[6] Muslim, on the authority of Thawbān
[7] Muslim, on the authority of Thawbaan
[8] Al-Qur’an, 47:2
[9] Al-Qur’an, 16:97
[10] Al-Qur’an, 40:60
[11] Iqtidaa AsSiraatal Mustaqeem
[12] al-Haythamī