Back in my student days, I remember watching a movie that started with an interesting monologue:
"I don't want to be a product of my environment; I want my environment to be a product of me."
No man is an island. Whether we realize it or not, we have an impact on the people around us – in the same way they have an impact on us!
So, how are YOU impacting your environment around you?
Now in 2021, we live in challenging times amidst the COVID-19 pandemic: dragging on for more than a year, as we in Malaysia once again enter a new episode of MCO. Thousands of jobs – and now thousands of lives – lost. On top of all that, we are witnessing ongoing inhuman oppression against our brothers and sisters in Palestine.
Consequently, there is no shortage of negativity and pessimism ever-present in social and mainstream media. Waves of netizens and keyboard warrior vigilantes taking up arms, complaining, arguing, with endless conjectures, theorizing and speculation, blaming and pointing fingers; ironically fighting negativity with even MORE negativity. When has THAT resolved anything?
So now, let’s take a step back and assess ourselves: How are WE reacting? When we observe our own attitudes at home, and our own social media pages, what impact is our behavior – our Akhlaq – having on those around us?
Our true character is revealed in times of stress.
We can be a part of the problem, or perhaps these times of crisis could be our "hero" moment when we choose to rise and elevate those around us.
It’s easy to join the mob and add in fuel to the fire. But instead, I challenge all of us – you and me – to break the cycle: Let’s awaken that believer within to break that cycle of negativity!
Where the world around us chooses to be sour and magnify the pain, let's become a beacon of positivity, hope and optimism to the people around us.
I am reminded by the beautiful example of our beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. This here is a man who was responsible to manage an entire nation, carry the final message of Revelation of God on the Earth with the accountability to teach his companions to carry out this task after his death, to act as the primary judge (qadhi) AND lawmaker (mufti) of the land.
He ﷺ had to manage the internal strife existing within the communities of the hypocrites and the Jews, in addition to the external threat of the Quraysh and the threat of hostile nations around him.
As a man, he ﷺ lived through tragic death after tragic death, from the loss of his beloved wife Khadijah, his dearest uncle Hamzah, and in fact, having to bury all of his children except for Fatimah. All of these, on top of managing a large family, whilst praying every night in Qiamullail to the extent that his blessed feet would crack!
He ﷺ was a man who, by all accounts, had all the right to be frowning and stressed out all day, every day.
Yet interestingly, the companion Abdullah bin al-Harith said: "I have never seen anyone who smiled more than the Messenger of Allah ﷺ!” (At-Tirmidzi)
Jarir bin Abdillah said, “Rasulullah ﷺ has never refused to admit me since I embraced Islam, and every time he saw me, he would smile.” (Al-Bukhari, Muslim)
Amazing!
Everyone is stressed out. It’s HOW you respond to it that defines your true character. Which is why the Prophet also said, “the strong person is not one who overcomes others with his physical strength; but rather, the truly strong one is the one who controls himself when he is in a state of anger.” (Al-Bukhari)
The akhlaq of Rasulullah ﷺ teaches us a very important life lesson: Being positive isn’t to ignore the dire situation around the world; but a CHOICE to elevate those around us.
After all, he ﷺ also said, “a good word is (a form of) sadaqah.” (Al-Bukhari)
He ﷺ also said, that “The most beloved deeds to Allah the Exalted are making a Muslim happy, elevating his sorrow, paying his debt, or relieving his hunger.” (At-Tabarani)
This, my friend, is who we need to be!
Let’s step up and be the shining light your community needs: your family, virtual workplace, and your friends. Use this lockdown as an opportunity to spend quality time with your loved ones, especially in praying in congregation (jama’ah) and seeking knowledge together at home.
Utilize our social media reach to spread beneficial knowledge, reminders and advice and be a part of that positive driving force to prepare our meeting with Allah – because remember, COVID or not, the angel of death is going to come anyway!
For those of us who are separated from our loved ones, make du’a for them – and be optimistic that if we die upon iman, our Prophet ﷺ promised that “you will be with those whom you love!” (Al-Bukhari)
Also, take this opportunity to reach out to your loved ones, your friends, your colleagues, even your bosses. Take the proactive effort to check in on them, ask them how they are, and wish them well.
It’s so ironic that we live in an age where, if we receive people who randomly contact us, we immediately think they're going to sell us something or borrow money from us! Again, let's go against the grain, challenge the paradigm and surprise them!
One person at a time. You can make a difference. The Prophet ﷺ said, “do not consider insignificant any one of our good deeds, even if it is to meet your brother with a cheerful face” (Muslim)
Let us play our part.
“Allah will not change the state of a people, until they first begin with changing the state of their own selves” (Surah Ar-Ra’d 13:11)
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