🌈 7 Layers of Hidayah: The Greatest Du’aa

Ibn Taymiyyah said: 

أنفع الدّعاء وأعظمه وأحكمه دعاء الفاتحة: "ٱهْدِنَا ٱلصِّرَٰطَ ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمَ ٦صِرَٰطَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ ٱلْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا ٱلضَّآلِّينَ ٧

the most beneficial, greatest and most comprehensive of all du'aa is this du'aa of Al-Fatihah: 

“Guide us to the straight path - The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have earned [Your] anger or of those who are astray.”

The greatest du’aa is one that we make 17 times a day, every day: in our obligatory 5-daily prayers.

One might wonder: Why ask for guidance? So much and so frequently? 

Sometimes we may know the truth but we are not able to act upon it - either because we lack ability, or simply that we are lazy and lack in motivation. 

Or we may act upon it, but we may lack sincerity in our actions. 

Or maybe we act upon, but it isn’t done correctly in accordance to the sunnah.

And more importantly, today we might be upon ‘guidance’, but what about tomorrow?

Every time we ask Allah to grant us Hidayah to the Straight Path, it’s a deep, comprehensive du’aa with many layers underneath. Here are at least seven of those layers of guidance:

1. Islam - we ask Allah to guide us to the Path of Islam, the religion chosen by the One True Creator: “Veril, religion with Allah is Islam.” (3:19)

2. Knowledge - teach me beneficial knowledge. What are the ways - the quickest, shortest, most optimal path - in which we can best attain Allah’s Mercy and forgiveness to attain success in this world and the next

3. Ability - to act upon that guidance and put that knowledge into action and practice. 

4. Motivation - to open up our hearts, and grant us the tawfiq (inspiration) to act upon the knowledge and walk the talk.

5. Sincerity - to act with pure intentions, only for His Sake, and not for praise and validation from others, neither to be recompensed in any material, wordly way. 

6. Ittiba (conformity & correctness) - to act in accordance to the sunnah of His Messenger ﷺ, conforming to the standards which He Revealed his Guidance: the Qur’an and Sunnah. 

7. Steadfastness -  to keep our hearts firm, to remain consistent on that Path, and to die in the state of submission, and to meet Him while He is Pleased with us.

By default, every single human being - including you and I - are in a state of misguidance: whether it’s in one or several of these different aspects. In a Hadith Qudsi, Allah says:

يَا عِبَادِي! كُلُّكُمْ ضَالٌّ إلَّا مَنْ هَدَيْته، فَاسْتَهْدُونِي أَهْدِكُم

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

Because we are always in a state of need for all these seven aspects of hidayah (guidance), that is why this recitation from Al-Fatihah makes it the most beneficial and comprehensive du’aa - and the only compulsory supplication that a Muslim must make every day, as the mandatory rukun (pillar) in our 5-daily prayers.

So let’s make it a point to remember: Every time we recite ٱهْدِنَا ٱلصِّرَٰطَ ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمَ in our prayers, try to plant in our hearts that we are asking for these seven things all at once - Islam, Knowledge, Ability, Motivation, Sincerity, Correctness, and Steadfastness.

May Allah guide us all to the Straight Path 

🤝🏼 Kenapa para sahabat & salafus-soleh mengucapkan “تَقَبَّلَ اللهُ مِنَّا وَ مِنْكُمْ” sebagai ucapan Eid / Hari Raya? 🤝🏼

 

Jubayr ibn Nufayr meriwayatkan: “apabila sahabat2 Nabi ﷺ saling berjumpa padi Hari Raya (Eid), mereka berdoa sesama sendiri: “تَقَبَّلَ اللهُ مِنَّا وَ مِنْكُمْ” - semoga Allah menerima daripada kami dan juga daripada kamu

(Diriwayatkan dalam Al-Fath, 2/466 - Ibn Hajar berkata sanad ini hasan)

Mengapa para sahabat berdoa sedemikian? Apa significance doa ini, terutama sekali pada Hari Raya?

Di dalam surah Al-Mu’minun ayat 61, Allah menceritakan tentang sekumpulan orang soleh yang bersegera dan berlumba-lumba mengerjakan kebaikan:

أُولَٰئِكَ يُسَارِعُونَ فِي الْخَيْرَاتِ وَهُمْ لَهَا سَابِقُونَ

“Mereka itu bersegera untuk kebaikan dan merekalah yang segera memperolehnya”

Apakah ciri-ciri golongan ini? Apa yang mendorong mereka begitu tekun dan bersungguh-sungguh?

Pada ayat2 sebelumnya, menjelaskan golongan ini, Allah menggambarkan sifat mereka:

Hati mereka berasa karena takut akan (azab) Tuhan mereka, beriman dengan ayat-ayat Tuhan mereka, tidak berlaku syirik (mempersekutukan sesuatu dengan Allah).

Sehinggalah sampai ayat ke 60, Allah menggambarkan, 

وَالَّذِينَ يُؤْتُونَ مَا آتَوْا وَقُلُوبُهُمْ وَجِلَةٌ أَنَّهُمْ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ رَاجِعُونَ

“membelanjakan apa yang telah mereka berikan dengan hati yang takut, (mengetahui) sesungguhnya mereka akan kembali kepada Tuhan mereka.” (23:57-61)

Mendengar ayat-ayat ini, A’isya bertanya kepada Rasulullah ﷺ tentang ungkapan ringkas ini: وَقُلُوبُهُمْ وَجِلَةٌ, “hati mereka takut”. A’isya hairan:

“Mengapa mereka takut? Adakah mereka berdosa seperti minum arak, berzina atau mencuri dan takut akan diazab?”

Rasulullah menjawab, “Tidak, wahai anak As-Siddiq! Bahkan, sebaliknya, mereka inilah orang yang (mengerjakan amal soleh, seperti) puasa, menunaikan solat, dan bersedekah.

Mereka lakukan semua ini, sedangkan mereka berasa takut: yang amalan-amalan mereka tidak akan diterima oleh Allah: merekalah yang bersegera dalam kebaikan”

(HR At-Tirmidzi, Ibnu Majah)

Perhatikan: Mereka bukan takut sebab dosa mereka. Bahkan, mereka beramal soleh.. Cuma, mereka takut amalan mereka tidak diterima.

Okei.. so, apa di sebalik mindset & pemikiran mereka ni?

Bayangkan, kalau syarikat kita, boss kita, dah declare awal tahun, pada bulan April: “Ok, tahun ni prestasi kau dah confirm cemerlang.” Kalau guru atau lecturer kita, awal2 sem sebelum peperiksaan dah declare kita dapat gred A+..

Bagaimana agaknya sikap kita?

Holiday la. Tak payah la usaha! Result dah setel, bah!

Naluri manusia ni, kalau kita tahu semua amalan kita diterima kita akan MALAS.

Sebaliknya, tatkala kita tak pasti dah confirm atau tidak, kita akan usaha lebih sikit. Mana la tahu, tak cukup, kualiti kurang bagus.. kena topup lebih. Kasi ngam.

Mereka sentiasa ada perasaan takut yang PRODUKTIF: Sebab mereka takut mamalan mereka tidak diterima, mereka lagi berssungguh-sungguh. Jadi, tatkala habis Ramadan, mereka bukan tinggal semua. Mereka tetap akan follow up dan istiqamah, sebab tak pasti: terima ke tidak amalan aku ni?

Inilah mindset orang-orang soleh terdahulu: Sifat tawadhu & merendah diri.

Pada satu sudut, mereka berbaik sangka dengan Allah: mengetahui Allah Maha Kaya, Maha Dermawan, Maha Penyayang, Maha Pemberi.

Manakala pada sudut yang lain pula, mereka berburuk sangka dengan diri sendiri. Mereka tidak sangkakan amalan mereka hebat. Sebaliknya, mereka rasa diri mereka banyak kekurangan - mungkin ada kecacatan pada niat, keikhlasan, atau tatacara amalan soleh mereka. 

Atas dasar itulah, seorang sahabat Nabi ﷺ, Abu Darda (radhiAllahu anhu) pernah berkata,

“Andailah aku tahu Allah menerima SATU solat yang aku kerjakan, maka itu lebih baik untukku daripada kesluruhan hidupku dan segala apa yang ada di dalamnya! Ini adalah kerana Allah berfirman:

  إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ ٱللَّهُ مِنَ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ
“Sesungguhnya, Allah hanya menerima daripada orang-orang yang bertaqwa” (Surah Al-Maidah 5:27)

Dan, apakah matlamat di sebalik ibadah puasa, dan Ramadan secara keseluruhannya? 

Tidak lain, tidak bukan, untuk membina TAQWA.

Perhatikan: Abu Darda sendiri tidak yakin yang dia adalah seorang yang bertakwa, apatah lagi sama ada segala amalan-amalannya diterima atau tidak.

Diriwayatkan juga ada sebahagian salaf mengatakan: Andai aku tahu Allah terima satu SUJUD daripadaku, nescaya aku akan mohon untuk dimatikan segera.

Kerana mereka tahu, Allah Maha Pengampun, Maha Mengurniakan - dan pada masa yang sama, mereka khuatir kelemahan diri mereka sendiri.

Kita perhatikan pula contoh taqwa yang lagi hebat: KhaleelUllah, Nabi Ibrahim (alayhissalam).

وَإِذْ يَرْفَعُ إِبْرَٰهِـۧمُ ٱلْقَوَاعِدَ مِنَ ٱلْبَيْتِ وَإِسْمَـٰعِيلُ رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّآ ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ١٢٧
Dan, tatkala Ibrahim membangunkan asas bangunan Baitullah (Ka’bah) bersama (anaknya, Nabi) Ismail, (Mereka berdoa):

"Wahai Tuhan kami, terimalah (amal) dari kami. Sungguh, Engkaulah Yang Maha Mendengar, Maha Mengetahui".

(Surah Al-Baqarah, 127)

Inilah manusia yang paling dicintai oleh Allah, sedang membangun masjid. Bukan sebarang masjid. Andailah kita dapat peluang menyumbang pembinaan masjid, nescaya kita akan rasai itu satu pelaburan yang besar. Tapi yang ibrahim dan ismail bina ini bukan sebarang masjid. Bukan calang-calang. Mereka membina Ka’bah: Masjidil Haram. Masjid yang diziarahi oleh berjuta-juta umat Islam setiap tahun, sehingga hari ini. Mereka bina, di tengah-tengah padang pasir tanpa pembangunan sekeliling.

Amalan yang mereka lakukan ini cukup HEBAT.

Kalaulah ada amalan yang kita boleh kata, “confirm Allah terima”, maka inilah dia.

TAPI.. mereka tetap memohon Allah, berdoa: رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّآ - Wahai Tuhan kami, TERIMALAH daripada kami.

SubhanAllah.

Kalau amalan hebat, daripada manusia2 hebat seperti Nabi Ibrahim dan Nabi Ismail, mereka tidak pernah over-confident yang amalan mereka dah diterima, maka apatah lagi saya dan anda? Kita yang iman cukup lemah ni, amal soleh berapa kerat je, dengan usaha kerdil ni.

Sebab itu lah, para sahabat mendoakan doa ini setelah selesai Ramadan:

Pada satu sudut, mereka mengucapkan tahniah. Setelah berakhirnya musim ibadah yang terbesar dalam setahun, setelah meletakkan usaha yang gigih, dan bersangka baik dengan sahabat lain, pasti kamu ada yang berusaha dengan lebih baik.

Juga penuh dengan perasaan tawadhu - “aku tak tahu kalau Allah terima amalan aku atau tidak”.

Bagi mereka - seperti diri saya - yang merasa usaha sangatlah lemah, maka kita berharap, yang Allah terima serba sedikit, usaha yang tidak seberapa ini, dan kurniakan keberkatan ke atasnya.

Kerana pada masa yang sama, yang lebih utama, doa ini menggambarkan mereka bersangka baik - husnu dzon - dengan ALLAH, yang akan mengurniakan sebaik-baik balasan, di dunia dan akhirat.

Hebat, doa ni, kawan2. Jom kita biasakan diri kita menyebut-nyebut doa ini kepada ahli keluarga dan sahabat2 kita. Mungkin awal2 kita akan rasa janggal sikit, sebab tak biasa sebut. Tapi kalau kita practice sikit demi sedikit, insha Allah jadi mudah.

Alhamdulillah, selesai sudah Ramadan tahun ini. Dengan itu, saya doakan, untuk diri saya, keluarga saya, dan anda semua:

تَقَبَّلَ اللهُ مِنَّا وَ مِنْكُمْ

“Semoga Allah menerima daripada kami, dan juga daripadamu”   

-Faisal أبو معاوية sekeluarga

How Allah Grooms Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to be the Greatest Leader of all time: Reflections from Surah Ad-Duha

 

During yesterday’s live discussion on The Barakah Effect we had a really insightful deep-dive on the topic, “Your Lord Has Not Forsaken You: Inspirations from Surah Ad-Duha”

On of the amazing takeaways of of Surah Ad-Duha is that it teaches us how Allah prepares the life of Muhammad ﷺ, and Sets him up - both internally and externally - to be the greatest leader of all time. 

Here are some of those aspects:

1. Self-Confidence & Assurance - Comforting words

2. Optimism - Better days ahead

3. Gratitude & Humility

4. Empathy & kindness

5. You, too, can achieve Success

Let’s break it down:

1. Self-Confidence & Assurance

In ayah #3, Allah says: 

مَا وَدَّعَكَ رَبُّكَ وَمَا قَلَىٰ ٣

“Your Lord (O Muhammad ﷺ) has neither forsaken you, nor does he Hate you.”

This surah was revealed at a time when revelation has briefly stopped. Angel Jibril had not come to the Prophet for a certain duration, and the people of Quraysh were attacking him with sarcastic gaslighting remarks, telling him, “I hope your devil has abandoned you” - supposedly masking her cynicism with “good intentions” of “hope”. As a human being with emotions, words like these hurt the feelings of the Prophet ﷺ. 

In life, you will undoubtedly face difficult times where feel incredibly lonely, facing self-doubt, begin questioning yourself, in times where seemingly nobody understands what you’re going through. As the final Prophet and Messenger, no one truly knows how it feels like to bear the burden of this responsibility, nor the hurtful words and difficult situations he has to go through. 

With this ayah, Allah reaffirms the heart of the Prophet - that his Lord hasn’t forsaken him, and certainly doesn’t hate him. 

Generally speaking, as we recite these verses, they are also a reassurance for the believers: Stick to your principles, even if - or rather, ESPECIALLY when - things get tough. 

If you are living by your principles as a believer, fulfilling your purpose in life by obeying the commandments of Allah, then know, that despite what might be apparent on the surface - the loneliness, the haters, and the self-doubt - continue to do the right thing, and stick to your values. 

Rest assured: your Lord will not forsake you, nor does He Hate you. 

In other words:

وَلَا تَهِنُوا۟ وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا۟ وَأَنتُمُ ٱلْأَعْلَوْنَ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ ١٣٩

“So do not become weak, nor be sad, and you will be superior if you are indeed (true) believers.” (3:139)

2. Optimism: Better days ahead

in Ayah #4, Allah says: 

وَلَلْـَٔاخِرَةُ خَيْرٌۭ لَّكَ مِنَ ٱلْأُولَىٰ ٤

There are two ways we can translate and understand these ayah. Firstly, if we understand it literally, from a worldly perspective, it means “what comes later (in life), will be better than what comes before it (whether the present, or in the past).”

Secondly, it means “The Hereafter is better than the present life (in dunya)”. 

Both meanings are correct, and they ultimately culminate in one meaning to instil optimism in the Prophet ﷺ, and ultimately for us: Your best days are yet to come. 

It’s an affirmation of the Growth Mindset: Whatever challenges you go through today, is to prepare you, to shape you, to nurture you to becoming a stronger, more resilient person. Whatever difficulties you face today that are outside of your comfort zone, be patient: this too shall pass. And it’s only a matter of time until you adapt, you get better, and if you face this situation again in the future, it’s easy for you.

From the other perspective, this ayah talks about a very important life Principle, as Steven Covey labels as #2 out of the famous 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People: Begin with the End in Mind. 

Ultimately, even if things don’t necessarily improve, in the grand scheme of things, the life in this world is only a temporary existence. The true reward - the true success, true eternal happiness and settling down - lies beyond this life: in the Hereafter. 

And as long as you keep on this Straight Path, none of your efforts will go to waste. As He says in the following ayah,

وَلَسَوْفَ يُعْطِيكَ رَبُّكَ فَتَرْضَىٰٓ ٥

“And your Lord is going to give you, and you will be satisfied.”

3. Gratitude & Humility

Allah then continues in ayah #6 - #8: 

أَلَمْ يَجِدْكَ يَتِيمًۭا فَـَٔاوَىٰ ٦ وَوَجَدَكَ ضَآلًّۭا فَهَدَىٰ ٧وَوَجَدَكَ عَآئِلًۭا فَأَغْنَىٰ ٨

“Did He not find you (O Muhammad ﷺ) an orphan and gave you a refuge?

And He found you lost and provided Guidance?

And He found you poor and made you rich (self-sufficient with self-contentment)?”

Here Allah reminds the Prophet of the favors He granted him - from his weak state of being an orphan, living without guidance, and living in poverty - and how Allah elevated him from all these adversities. 

It’s also worth noting, a little factual detail in sirah. On one hand, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was born of the noble family of Banu Hashim - being raised in an environment of leadership and nobility. Yet Banu Hashim wasn't wealthy, and was in difficult economic circumstances.: as a result, the Prophet ﷺ always had to pour in extra effort, even to help out the housechores of the family of his uncle and guardian, Abu Talib. So, he was conditioned to leadership and taking responsibility through those hard times.

And reciting this ayah, we can reflect this for ourselves, too:

Wasn’t there a time when we, too were weak and helpless? And how people around us had taken care of us, sheltered us, provided us guidance - Our parents, our teachers, our friends, our mentors? 

Wasn’t there a time when we knew nothing? Yet Allah had placed in our midst, guardians, teachers, friends, who paved the way for knowledge, showed us the path, enlightened us, elevated us from the life of ignorance?

For many of us, trying to lead righteous lives - wasn’t there a time when we lived a path of sins and disobedience? Didn’t we, too, have a past that we are ashamed of? How did Allah help us and bring us from that darkness into Light?

For many of us who are earning sustenance for ourselves and raising our family - wasn’t there a time when we were struggling to finish our studies, find a job, and struggle to earn a good livelihood? Haven't we all been struck and touched by those miracle moments? 

Here, Allah teaches His Prophet - and by extension, you and me - a lesson in Gratitude and Humility, to be a better person, a better leader, for the people around us. 

He reminds us,

وَأَحْسِن كَمَآ أَحْسَنَ ٱللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ 

“And do good (to others), just as how Allāh has done good to you.” (28:77)

Just as He was Generous and Kind with you, shouldn’t you, too, spread kindness and generosity with others? Shouldn’t you, too, play a role to help & elevate others, as others played a role in your life?

He also reminds us: None of this is done out of your own efforts. ALL of this was granted to you by Allah - even if you didn’t ask for it. There are many who don’t have half of the blessings that you have. And just has He granted it, He can also take it away. So don’t get arrogant, and never forget to attribute those Blessings to the One who granted it to you. 

Yes, Allah had elevated your situation and circumstance, but remember, there are many others who are still living in that state - perhaps even worse. Remember your humble origins.

And this ayah also reinforce the message of Optimism: If you're going through hard times, remember, there was a time when Allah elevated you in the past. And if He could do that back then, He could do it again in the future. Hang in there, buddy!

4. Empathy and Kindness

فَأَمَّا ٱلْيَتِيمَ فَلَا تَقْهَرْ ٩ وَأَمَّا ٱلسَّآئِلَ فَلَا تَنْهَرْ ١٠

“And as for the orphan, do not oppress. And for the beggar, do not repulse him.”

The Prophet ﷺ was raised in an environment of hardship: having lived, firsthand, his entire life as an orphan who couldn’t read or write. And until he was married to Khadijah, he was always living a life of difficulty and poverty. 

Knowing what it’s like to live in tough times, his upbringing conditioned him to have empathy for the underprivileged in society. Treat them with kindness. 

Sure, we might not necessarily have lived through the hardship that others, as the Prophet ﷺ himself went through. At least, acknowledge that we are ignorant and lack knowledge of their suffering, and have the humility to learn and empathize - to listen to them, put ourselves in their shoes.

By instilling these values to treat the “lower class” of society, by extension, Allah also trains us to have kindness and gentleness to the rest of society. 

In a materialistic community, people tend to be “nice” only to the upper class, yet they are mean and nasty to the weak of society such as the poor and the orphans. On a superficial level, it can difficult to be kind and gentle to people who seemingly can’t offer you anything “in return”, and therefore it can annoy people and make them uncomfortable confronting these underprivileged “nobodys”. 

Allah therefore Reminds us: Don’t stoop to that level. Be better than that. You’re not doing this for them: You’re doing this for Allah!

If you don’t want to give, you don’t have to be nasty while doing it. If you don’t want to give extra, then at least fulfill their rights. 

If you can condition yourself to practice kindness, gentleness and generosity, to the weak of society, then it’s a whole lot easier to be kind and gentle to others. 

 

5. You, too, can achieve Success

Ultimately, these verses remind us that the life of the Prophet should also instil hope that ANY of us can be successful in life. He was an orphan, poor, and illiterate. In those days, any one of these three elements would have been a major handicap against success. Yet, by the Mercy of Allah, He elevated the Prophet to becoming the greatest leader in the history of mankind. 

Even if we lack knowledge, are poor, or are underprivileged society, we have what it takes to achieve extraordinary success - if we put in the effort!

PISC2024 Forum, Day 2: “Islam & Iconoclasm” with Sheikh Wasim Kempson + Dr. Muhammad Salah (full video on PROmediaTAJDID)

 

Definition of Iconoclasm: A belief that people should reject religious images (like icons or monuments) by destroying or avoiding them.

QUESTIONS FOR THE FORUM:

1. Historically, iconoclasm - destroying idols - is often spoken about in derogatory terms - as a heretical or deviant movement. Why is this the case? Isn’t this something to uphold tauhid?

2. What is the significance of imagery in religion - what is the connection between images and ibadah?

3. Common practice among Muslims: hanging pictures of righteous people such as “wali” on the wall. They don’t really have any intention of worshipping this righteous people, and they say it is to remind us to come closer to Allah. What’s the problem?

4. Seems there is a repeated tendency of human beings to return to shirik (idolatry, associating partners with Allah). We learnt from the history of shirik - in the case of the people of Nuh, in Amr bin Luhay. Even Prophet Musa, when he left, they immediately set up idol to worship. Is this totally the role of shaitan, or our human tendency to be inclined to imagery, drawn to idol worship?

5. A common symbol we have here is the “capal” - a drawing that allegedly represents the sandals/slippers of the Prophet ﷺ. They put this symbol as the brands, they wear this on their headgear, their clothing. What is the ruling of this? 

6. Some Muslim businesses have these symbols they hang up with the intention of attracting “better business” - from numbers such as 786, to putting up little mini-Qurans up the ceiling - what’s the ruling here? Is this a form of shirik?

7. In Malaysia, we live in a multicutural society - Malay, Chinese, Indians, and ethnic groups with diverse cultural practices. Some of these cultural symbols look relatively harmless, they have an exotic value, but when you dive deep into the origins, turns out that much of it is actually grounded in shirk. How do we navigate these problems while trying to integrate with other cultures?

8. Youth today are very much exposed to items like Oulja boards, divination, fortune telling, amulets as jewellery, and many similar things that deal with black magic and sorcery are becoming mainstream in modern day media, something that is seen as "fun & games". How do we protect our youth from such issues?

9. Islam seems to place strict restrictions on hanging pictures, for reasons that this can lead to eventually being led to idol worship. But what about family photos - we hang them up, without any intention of spirituality, worship or ibadah. A person just wants to hang up pictures of his daughter, his wife, on the wall, because he loves to be reminded of them. Is this still an issue?

🏙️ Dunya is a Prison for the Believer

 

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said,

الدُّنْيَا سِجْنُ الْمُؤْمِنِ وَجَنَّةُ الْكَافِرِ
“This worldly life is a prison for the believer and Paradise for a disbeliever.”
(Muslim #2956)

When I first heard of this hadith, it kind of confused me. Why is this world a prison? As Muslims, are we expected to live a life of suffering?

It turns out the meaning is much deeper, and in fact, a lot more inspiring and motivating than that when we see it from the right perspective.

Once, the scholar al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani was walking through a market. At the time, as the Qadi, he was with his entourage riding a great, beautiful and magnificent animal mount. Suddenly a Jewish man, who is a flaxseed oil seller (i.e. one who lived in very poor and harsh conditions) came running towards him. The Jew was wearing an old worn out and dirty shirt.

He grabbed and stops the mule Ibn Hajar was riding and said: “Oh Shaykh al-Islam! You claimed that your prophet said: “The world is prison for a believer and paradise for a disbeliever,”

Then, in what way are you imprisoned and how am I in paradise right now?”

Ibn Hajar responded:

“If I was to compare the blessings Allah has promised for me in paradise in hereafter, then it is as if I am in prison right now!

While for you, if you want to compare your situation right now with what has been promised for you in hereafter, it is as if you are in paradise right now.”

Then, the Jewish man embraced Islam.

(Narrated in Faid al-Qadir (3/546))

What an amazing, honorable response. When we understand this hadith through the lens of iman - especially belief in the Last Day - it becomes a powerful motivational reminder of the nature of life in this world.

Here are six major life lessons we can learn from the Hadith, of the perspective on the life of this world:

1. Delayed gratification - be patient. The BEST is yet to come, in the Hereafter.

Imam al-Nawawi said the hadith means that by virtue of following the shari'ah, every believer is imprisoned and prevented in this world from prohibited and makruh (undesirable) desires. Every mukallaf Muslim (i.e. those who have reached maturity and therefore is accountable for his deeds) is commanded to be in complete obedience. However, when he dies - once he is released from this prison - he will no longer have to bear this responsibility. This will entirely change, where Allah SWT promised eternal and true blessings, leisure and comfort where it will forever increase without decreasing even a little. As for disbelievers, they are able to attain some sort of worldly comfort in this life. However, when he dies, he will be forever punished and be in eternal suffering. (Al-Minhaj, 93/18).

Yes, in this life as Muslims, Allah has placed on us restrictions, limitations and must practice restraint to obey His Commandments. And in that sense, it is as if we are in a prison. But the hadith reminds us that the true reward - Paradise - awaits after we depart from this world. Death is actually a form of release, a freedom from these restrictions.
   
The Prophet ﷺ described that a brief moment in paradise is  enough for us to forget ALL the suffering we faced in this worldly existence.
   
Rejoice and be optimistic for what's waiting for you on the other side, in the Hereafter, after you break free from this prison!
   
2. Lowering expectations - It's not supposed to be comfortable!

Prison, like the life of this world, is only a temporary transit phase, so expect it to be uncomfortable and difficult.

Allah also says   
لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ فِي كَبَدٍ
”Verily, We have created man in difficulty and hardship”.(Surah Al-Balad, 4)
  
   
3. Don't get attached - The Prophet ﷺ said, “be in this world like a traveler, or a wayfarer” (Al-Bukhari).
Just like the guarantee of death, you (and everyone else) will definitely get out of this prison of dunya! The allure of this world, with its riches and its enjoyment, is indeed very tempting, and it’s easy for us to get lost in the pursuit of attaining these, at the expense of the big picture of our success Hereafter. Whatever limited resources you have in this prison, practice generosity and share those limited blessings to others (i.e. your fellow inmates!), because you will leave your possessions behind anyway. It’s just a matter of time.

4. Defects of worldly pleasures - To a disbeliever, this entire worldly life IS the life. YOLO. Because they don't believe in the concept of accountability of the Last Day, the idea is to enjoy this life to the fullest: hence why the Prophet ﷺ describes it as a "Paradise for the disbeliever".

The believer, on the other hand, recognizes that the life of this world is only a testing ground, the pleasures of this world are designed to be fundamentally defective. No matter how beautiful or enjoyable the pleasures may be, they will always be imperfect. Food, wealth, possessions, fame, entertainment - there’s always a “catch”. Either it’s flawed, gives some unwanted side effects, or will simply deteriorate over time. But the reward in the Hereafter is perfect and everlasting - so keep your eyes on the Prize!

5. A place of reform - As we’ve witnessed in real-life scenarios, many people change for the better, when they are in prison. Thousands of prisoners have reformed themselves, turned to Allah and reverted to Islam while they are incarcerated. Why? Prison allows a unique opportunity: isolation and quiet, which can be difficult amidst the hustle-and-bustle and rat race of society. When we have more time in isolation by ourselves, it gives us moments of opportunity to reflect. To reconnect with our purpose, prioritize our lives.

What can we learn from this?
Firstly, make time for quiet reflection in your own life: whether it is for self-accounting (muhasabah) and repentance, opening up your hearts to Allah in du’aa, or contemplation (tadabbur) of the ayaat (verses) of the Qur’an. Don’t wait until you get to prison to change! Secondly, it’s not prison itself that changes them, because the reality is, there are also many other prisoners who become worse in prison. We need to make the conscious CHOICE and take action to change!

6. Gratitude - If this “prison” of yours is comfortable, then be grateful and content! We should realize that for many of us, QaddarAllah, out of Allah’s Mercy and Kindness, He has granted us very comfortable lives above millions of others across the world. The Prophet ﷺ reminded us that “Whoever among you wakes up secure in his property, healthy in his body, and he has his food for the day, it is as if he were given the entire world!” (at-Tirmidhī #2346), Just watch the news and the state of the world that we are in today in the 21st century: Even basic pleasures is a privilege that many other fellow human beings weren’t granted. Even though prison is supposed to be difficult and uncomfortable, we get it much easier than so many others. Don’t waste this beautiful privilege!

Finally, one might ask - does this mean that when you embrace Islam, you are choosing to be imprisoned?

Here's the perspective we should see it: Having belief & embracing Islam isn't a matter of "choosing" to be be imprisoned; rather, it's to realize that we already ARE living in one.

🛡️ Family: The Fortified Shield - Weekend Seminar by The Straight Path (TSP) #thestraightpathconvention 25-26 November 2023, The Club, Bukit Utama

💎INSPIRING GEMS & HIGHLIGHTS

Course Goals : to ignite communities that benefit humanity

🔭 Building the Righteous Family the Ideal Way. Where do we begin? What’s the first step to building a house? 

Most people would say the first thing is to lay the foundations. Some might talk about raising the pillars. But the first step starts before that: we need a blueprint. What kind of house do you want to build? 

Likewise: You need a VISION that inspires you!

Starting a family begins with having a picture in your head of the world you wish to see, on the day you are on your deathbed.

💖 Marriage is barakah - but it needs a society that raises mature boys and girls

🎯 5 Core Objectives of Raising a Righteous Family 

1. Follow Allah’s command (an ibadah)

2. Following the sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ

3. Having Children - as a sadaqatul jariah (continuous charity) to benefit the ummah and humanity in the long term

4. To help us stay away from Haram: Marriage is the means to protect our honor and chastity

5. Assisting One Another: work together and one another upon goodness and righteousness. 

🛠️ It all boils down to one simple objective: Building Jannah, TOGETHER. Always keep this Goal in mind!

🏫 The first educational institution a human being will go through is their PARENTS. Listen up, young people: your parents aren’t old school, they are ORIGINAL school 

👂🏼Practice more LISTENING in the household: Acknowledge each other’s feelings, and provide that psychological safety.

A tightly knit family is one that enjoys emotional security inside, to one another. 

🎁 Appreciation and Gratitude - put in the effort to express gestures of genuine gratitude to one another. You may not recognize this but it has a HUGE impact.

🔥 Resolving conflicts - Some pointers:

1. YOU need to take the first step. Put ego aside! Remember your purpose in life: You are reconciling for the Sake of Pleasing Allah - not for the sake of that person. 

2. Conflict demands patience, wisdom and emotional maturity - Be methodical, be systematic. Use that prefrontal cortex, don’t allow your emotions to compromise your good judgment

3. Focus on the core of the problem, not just attacking the symptoms

4. Don’t forget the role that SHAITAN plays, behind the scenes: planting seeds of hatred and enmity, and induces waswas - overthinking, exaggeration, to paralyze you from taking action

🪜 Raising a righteous family might seem like a steep hill to climb. Focus on PROGRESS, not perfection. Allah wants to see you taking those baby steps. When you put in a little bit of effort, Allah will open doors of barakah (blessings) for you!

"Worst leaders" vs. "Best Leaders" - A personal reflection

In politics, this hadith is often quoted as a bullet to weaponize against leaders and to provoke other people into hating certain leadership figures. But if all we do is use this hadith expose others’ faults without taking any real responsibility to reflect and implement this in our own lives, we have lost the plot, and miss the point of the teachings of sunnah altogether. 

The point of the hadith - in fact, any teaching of the Prophet ﷺ is for us to implement and put into action in our own lives. Not as a tool to blame others or expose their faults. If we have a healthy heart, then reading this hadith from the paradigm of a mu’min (believer) should trigger us to ask the question: “How can I be the best of leaders? How can I ensure that I prevent myself from becoming the worst of leaders?”

Therefore, the REAL questions we should be asking ourselves should first revolve around what is WITHIN our control: Do I love those under my responsibilities? Do I make du’aa for them? Or am I behaving like an entitled leader who’s just sitting around playing victim because THEY don’t love me or supplicate for me? 

On the other hand, am I just complaining and cursing them for their incompetence, lack of respect? Then I have fulfilled “my side” of the “worst leaders” character. And perhaps only a matter of time that they will reciprocate

This hadith talks about a leadership quality which is rarely ever talked about, especially in the world of corporate leadership: Love. People often talk about “loving their leader”, but few ever emphasize the importance of the leader first leading through example by loving their subjects first. 

In practice, what does it mean for leaders to love their subjects? For one, leaders don’t merely view their subordinates or subjects as tools or lifeless pawns to be used to advance their goals, whether corporate or personal agendas. 

Love implies that leaders genuinely respect and care about the well-being, development, welfare, and growth. And they demonstrates that care through their actions. 

Love implies that they behave with empathy and compassion, and in their ambition to advance their organizational cause, they consciously make careful, deliberate decisions with those considerations at heart, with a commitment to endure hardship and inconveniences, including making the occasional unpopular decision that would benefit their people in the long run. 

“Oh, but this sounds so fluffy duffy stuff. How are we supposed to get stuff DONE, if all we’re concerned about being lovey dovey? As leaders, once in a while we need to be tough also”.

Consider the perspective of of the love that we parents have for our children. There are moments where we need to be firm and strict - sometimes against their wishes, convenience and comfort. But for the sincere parent, the foundational intention remains: we don’t act out of revenge or personal glory. We do so out of love. A desire for what’s ultimately best for them and the family. Beyond the convenience that they see right now.  

In an Article published by Forbes, writer Tamiko Cuellar lists down eight ways to show Love to your Staff: 

1. Show Appreciation

2. Offer encouragement

3. Be understanding and flexible when possible, but have firm boundaries

4. Have a listening ear

5. Keep the lines of communication open.

6. Train rather than criticize.

7. Offer support in times of overwhelm.

8. Ask how they are doing, and really mean it

(End quote)

How would you feel about your leader if he or she behaved in this manner? Wouldn’t this, too, inspire love towards their leader? 

On top of love, a true righteous leader goes one step further as a demonstration of that Love: supplicating and making du’aa for their well-being. Wow. How about that.

In reality, of course, it’s not as easy in practice. Just because a leader shows love, doesn’t necessarily mean the love will be reciprocated or appreciated, especially in a capitalistic, self-centred environment or work culture. You might be ignored or criticized, even by others. Perhaps by your own subordinates.

And it’s within these moments that test the sincerity of our leadership: What is MY response if I am tested with their stubbornness or refusal to listen to me? What if my children fail to appreciate my love and care for them?

How would we feel if our subordinates or family members accuse us of being “a terrible father”? Or a “lousy boss”? 

Will we STILL love them and supplicate for them? Or will we slip into victim mode and curse them, and therefore strip ourselves away from the characteristics of the “best of leaders” - and inch closer towards being the worst? Will we put aside our personal emotions, endure the pain, and stick to our values?

It is in these moments that your leadership sincerity is tested, my friend. 

To Love in leadership is easier said than done. But that is the standard we must aspire to achieve. 

“The best of your rulers are those whom you love, and those who love you; they pray for Allah’s blessings upon you and you pray for His blessings for them.

And the worst of your rulers are those whom you hate, and those who hate you, those whom you curse and who curse you.” (Muslim)

May Allah grant us the strength and patience to make us among the best of leaders, and grant us leaders who love us, whom we love too.

Optimism, Play and Happiness: Our “Default” Conduct

#frominfanttolittleman  #raisingMuawiyah
#parentingreflections #sunnah

The companion `Abdullah b. al-Harith (radhiAllahu anhu) said:

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ الْحَارِثِ بْنِ جَزْءٍ، قَالَ مَا رَأَيْتُ أَحَدًا أَكْثَرَ تَبَسُّمًا مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم
"I have never seen anyone more in the habit of smiling than Allah's Messenger (Prophet Muhammad ﷺ)"
(Narrated by at-Tirmidhi who graded it hasan)

Coming into parenting with raising our Muawiyah, I made a conscious decision to make “positive and happy” our default interaction approach. Aside from the obvious benefits of a cheerful environment, we also wanted to make it another form of indirect disciplining: when he does something we are unhappy with, we would just show our unhappiness and not smile, to subconsciously create an atmosphere of unfamiliarity and outside of their comfort zone. When children observe their usually-happy parents suddenly become upset with them, let them learn to put in the effort to restore the positive status quo – what is familiar and “comfortable”. Contrast that to a parent who’s always yelling and shouting, when the child does something wrong – you can scold them into submission, but this will be leading out of fear, not out of seeking affection.

And we adopt this approach from our understanding of the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, especially in his constant cheerfulness dealing with little ones.  We could see this in the various authentic narrations on how he treated his grandchildren (Hasan/Husain), his daughter Fatimah, and even other children in public.

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ كُنْتُ مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فِي سُوقٍ مِنْ أَسْوَاقِ الْمَدِينَةِ فَانْصَرَفَ فَانْصَرَفْتُ فَقَالَ ‏"‏ أَيْنَ لُكَعُ ـ ثَلاَثًا ـ ادْعُ الْحَسَنَ بْنَ عَلِيٍّ ‏"‏‏.‏ فَقَامَ الْحَسَنُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ يَمْشِي وَفِي عُنُقِهِ السِّخَابُ، فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِيَدِهِ هَكَذَا، فَقَالَ الْحَسَنُ بِيَدِهِ، هَكَذَا فَالْتَزَمَهُ
Abu Hurairah narrated: I was with Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) in one of the Markets of Medina. He left (the market) and so did I. Then he asked thrice, "Where is the little one?"
Then he said, "Call Al-Hasan bin `Ali."
So Al-Hasan bin `Ali got up and started walking with a necklace (of beads) around his neck.
The Prophet (ﷺ) stretched his hand out like this, and Al-Hasan did the same. 

The Prophet (ﷺ) embraced him and then said,

فَقَالَ ‏"‏ اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أُحِبُّهُ، فَأَحِبَّهُ، وَأَحِبَّ مَنْ يُحِبُّهُ ‏"‏‏.‏ قَالَ أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ فَمَا كَانَ أَحَدٌ أَحَبَّ إِلَىَّ مِنَ الْحَسَنِ بْنِ عَلِيٍّ بَعْدَ مَا قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم مَا قَالَ
"Oh Allah! l love him, so please love him and love those who love him."
Since Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said that, nothing has been more beloved to me (Abu Hurairah) than Al-Hasan.
(Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

He would jokingly blow out water at a child's face:

عَنْ مَحْمُودِ بْنِ الرَّبِيعِ، قَالَ عَقَلْتُ مِنَ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم مَجَّةً مَجَّهَا فِي وَجْهِي وَأَنَا ابْنُ خَمْسِ سِنِينَ مِنْ دَلْوٍ
Narrated Mahmud bin Rabi`a: When I was a boy of five years of age, I remember, the Prophet (ﷺ) took water from a bucket (used for getting water out of a well) with his mouth and blew it towards my face.
(Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

Learning from some effective Western methods, one of the more practical and interesting parenting strategies is integrating fun into getting them to perform mundane tasks - such as taking a bath. I remember an article suggesting that we turn it into a "race" to see who reaches the bathroom first. We have adopted this method and improvised to get him excited to go to the toilet: by bobbing up and down singing fun stuff like "Muawiyah bath tub Muawiyah bath tub" - he then follows our actions and eventually to the toilet. It's silly, fun, downright hilarious at times, but most of all: it is surprisingly effective!

We try to integrate this method into other mundane tasks and instructions, and we found it to work really well. Simple things like when we want him to getting ready to go out, i.e. to the Masjid – “Muawiyah, show abah how fast you can go!”, “Muawiyah, jom play with the kittens at masjid!”

When we brush his teeth, my wife devised a genius method to convince him by putting the phone camera on selfie mode while brushing, so he can see his teeth, and have a good laugh

At least for the formative early years of infancy, as much as we try to establish the principles and values, we try our very best to inculcate fun and joy in our child. We want him to feel that his parents are a "go to" source of happiness and positive feels.

Reflecting upon the upbringing of myself and others around me, what tends to happen quite often in this modern age, is when the children develop dependencies OUTSIDE of the home environment as references of "fun" and "joy", especially as they grow older. It's the kind of situation that subconsciously develops itself when mom and dad are so busy, only seemingly able to make time about us to become strict about our school work and the "dos and donts". As time goes by, the child starts finding references outside of the home to bring them joy, whether in the form of people or objects - friends, cartoons, games, food, activities, movies.

Simply put: Children need attention, respect, fun and love. If the parents aren't going to give it to them, they will look elsewhere. And the danger for us parents – especially as children grow older and well into their teenage years - in this undying thirst and pursuit of happiness, "right" or "wrong" can sometimes mean very little to the child who seeks self-validation.

And Allah Knows best. Allahumma barik 

Mark of Muslims: Bravery and Generosity - Transcript & Outline

Fear holds you back from giving graciously, from standing up for the truth, from doing what’s right. Fear is the whisper of shaytan that weakens the ummah. Returning the honor of Muslims begins with us taking the first steps to flee from cowardice and miserliness

Watch the Video lecture on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/7_F39lJ0rK0

Talk Outline / "Road Map"

1. Introduction

1.1 Reminder #1 – Normal to Have Them. Focus is fixing / rectifying them.

1.2 Reminder #2 – The “End Goal”

1.3 Reminder #3 – Develop a Growth Mindset à Believe in Yourself that you CAN get rid of any negative internal characteristics

2. Cowardice الجبن

2.1 Definition

2.2 The Opposite: Shaja’ah (Bravery / Courage)

2.3 The reality of “Fear”: Fear is Natural. Your REACTION determines your courage

2.4 “Fear” vs Cowardice

Case Study #1: Even Prophet Musa felt fear !

Case Study #2 : Battle of Al-Khandaq (Al-Ahzab)

2.5 True Definition of Courage

2.6 Overcoming Fear: Developing Courage

#1 Make Du’aa

#2 Have Confidence in the Help of Allah

#3 Develop a Sense of Urgency

#4 Community Support

2.7 Example: Fear of Public Speaking?

2.8 Conclusion on Bravery

3 Miserliness / Stinginess – االبخل

3.1 Our Current State: The Scarcity Mindset

3.2 Abundance Mindset: Knowing Your Blessings are From Allah

#1 You will remain humble

#2 Gratitude to the source of your favors

#3 You will have compassion towards other slaves to Allah

#4 You have THAT much HOPE for Better Things to Come

#5 OPTIMISM: Tawakkul in the Wisdom of Allah 

#6. Taking Accountability: as an "Amanah" (A trust)

3.3 True Generosity

3.4 Developing Generosity

#1 Investment mindset

#2 Develop a sense of urgency

#3 Prioritize your resources

#4 Start with consistent, small acts of kindness

4. Mark of the Muslims– the Big Picture

5. Closing: Remember Who You Are

1. Introduction

بِسْمِ اللَّـهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

This series of talks are based on the du’aa seeking refuge in Allah. One of the more famous and well-known narrations goes:

اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْهَمِّ وَالْحَزَنِ، وَالْعَجْزِ وَالْكَسَلِ، وَالْجُبْنِ وَالْبُخْلِ، وَضَلَعِ الدَّيْنِ، وَغَلَبَةِ الرِّجَالِ

Narrated Anas bin Malik: The Prophet (ﷺ) used to say, "O Allah! I seek refuge with You from worry and grief, from incapacity and laziness, from cowardice and miserliness, from being heavily in debt and from being overpowered by (other) men." 

(Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

This du’aa emphasizes seeking refuge from negative characteristics, which prevent us or hold us back from progress or fully actualizing our potential and bringing out the best in ourselves, especially with respect to worshipping Allah.

1.1  Reminder #1 – Normal to Have Them. Focus is fixing / rectifying them.

These negative characteristics we are seeking refuge in Allah : many of which are internal characteristics within ourselves.

Question to you: out of these negative characteristics, how many of you genuinely feel that you are inflicted or affected by any – or perhaps a few – of these characteristics?

First step to rectify any problem is to recognize that you have them in the first place!

Others are also facing same difficulties and challenges you are. Extent of struggles may be different – some may be more difficult than others –  Point is : You are not alone or unique in your struggles.

And sometimes that journey of self discovery alone – to have the courage and integrity to admit our own faults – is half the battle. Now that we genuinely feel we have these challenges, we can take the ownership and hold ourselves accountable to fix them – not to blame others, not to be in denial or defensive about it, but to have the resolve to rectify them.

1.2  Reminder #2 – The “End Goal”

The most important point: What is the “End Goal”? Why would you want to be brave, generous, productive, humble and all the other themes talked about throughout this conference in “Flee to Allah”?

What is the driver, enabler, motivation to overcome these internal issues that we face?

It’s important for all of us to have this End Goal – so that we can always have our unified direction where we are heading, provide the motivation we need to sustain ourselves through the journey, trials and tribulations.

This is why organizations today – even masjids – have Vision and Mission Statement. In the organization I work, they call it a “Purpose Statement”

So with that in mind, what is our Purpose Statement – our End Goal – as Muslims?

Our purpose statement is the pillars of iman – and one can phrase it many ways, but we will go with a very simple wording is re-emphasized and repeats itself time and time again in the Qur’an and Sunnah: Believe in Allah and the Last Day.

This is basically our personal identity.

This phrase sums up :

1. Iman in Allah: Related to tawheed: Your objective and goals in life. Who you belong to, Who is the One you have your ultimate obligations to. Who are you. Who is the One who granted you with all those blessings and tests. Who is the One you turn your heart to in worship – to Whom do you put your trust (tawakkul), calling out and asking Him (du’aa), to Whom do you fear in His punishment and hope in His reward (khawf and raja).
2. Iman in The Last Day: Your true purpose and destination – that this life is only finite, only temporary. We live short lives: And after that, is life in eternity. The true judgment, true happiness, true suffering which will last forever and ever lies herein: the Last Day, the hereafter.

And this is among the wisdoms why surah al-Fatihah – we begin by reciting

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّـهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ ﴿٢﴾ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ ﴿٣﴾ مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ 

"[All] praise is [due] to Allah, Lord of the worlds - (2) The Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful, (3) The Owner/The King of the Day of Recompense (the Day of Judgment)."

Just in these opening verses of surah Al-Fatihah, every day – seventeen times a day at minimum – we reinforce our belief in Allah and the Last Day, we constantly reinforce our identity on ourselves: our purpose, and destination.

This identity reinforces:

• Why you are here.
• Who – you are doing this for: to seek the pleasure of Allah, to save YOURSELF on the Last Day
• Where is your destination
• When – sense of urgency of the end goal
• How you overcome these: the solutions towards your true success

1.3 Reminder #3 – Develop a Growth Mindset à Believe in Yourself that you CAN get rid of any negative internal characteristics

Never despair or have a defeatist mindset, and make declarations such as:

1)     “I am born like this”

2)     “What to do, I’m simply not the type who..”

3)     “I’m a failure when it comes to..”

Stop it! 
If you think like this, you have been defeated even before you step into the battlefield.

When we have a fatalistic defeatist mindset and make sweeping conclusions about ourselves, this will wash away any sense accountability to change. We might even start blaming other external factors: other people, our environment, na’udzubillah we begin to question Qadr of Allah. And once shaytan has fooled you into that, you’ve lost: we will not take the ownership to develop.

The key to this is to Develop a Growth Mindset. Believe in Yourself that you CAN get rid of any negative internal characteristics. The Prophet ﷺ said:

وَمَنْ يَتَصَبَّرْ يُصَبِّرْهُ اللَّهُ،

“Whomever tries to be patient, Allah will MAKE him patient” (Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

Ibn Al-Qayyim commented on this hadith, stating: 
“If a person does not naturally possess characteristics of patience, it is possible to attain this by acting as if he possesses it, until it eventually becomes second nature. Controlling your gaze until it becomes second nature. Same applies to all other desirable characteristics such as steadiness, generosity and courage”

The basis of all positive characteristics, and of course the opposite which is to remove negative characteristics – begins its foundations in sabr

This hadith should instill us with the optimistic hopes that we all have the capacity to change : if we TRY

So, always relate it back to what we said: Iman in Allah and the Last Day: Allah is the source of strength to overcome these challenges, and the purpose you want to overcome them is to reach the end goal of success on the Last Day

2. Cowardice الجبن

With that being said, let us move to the very first negative characteristic : “Al-Jubn” – which is typically translated into English as “Cowardice”.

Ask yourself: when was the last time we prevented ourselves from doing the right thing – but you held yourself because of fear?

Perhaps it could be :

• Speaking up to your boss or persons of authority when you see a clear violation, oppression, or breach of integrity?
• Having an appearance that is prescribed in the shari’ah and is pleasing to Allah – wearing a hijab, or keeping a beard – but you didn’t. You feared that you wouldn’t get a job offer, that you will not “look good” and “no one will want to marry you”, you fear that people will start mocking you and “judge” you now that you are going full on sheikh or ustadzah
• Instructing our children to perform solah or in covering their awrah – fear of them being “rebellious” or disliking us?
• Fear of sharing knowledge on social media or any other platforms – even though it’s as simple as clicking “forward” or “share” – simply because we didn’t want people to make fun of us as if we are some “holier-than-thou” kind of character? 

2.1 Definition

This is al-jubn : cowardice. 

Fears which are so intense, that it prevents us and holds us back from doing the right thing – paralyzed by fear

This is a direct opposite of “taqwa” when you refrain from doing a sin. Taqwa: Because you fear the punishment of Allah, you prevent yourself from doing something which displeases or disobeys him. Conversely, cowardice “Al-Jubn” is when you fear these factors of the dunya, and you prevent yourself from doing acts of obedience.

So in a sense, the characteristic of cowardice is in fact fundamentally opposed to your purpose and characteristic as a believer in Allah and the Last Day. And in that regard, taqwa and al-jubn are opposing forces that continue to wrestle each other. The higher your iman, the higher your tawakkal to fight al-jubn.

How can this impact the Ummah? This is an issue that impacts every single one of us. Sometimes when it comes to do the “Right” thing, it’s nothing to do with a lack of knowledge – it’s a lack of courage.

2.2       The Opposite: Shaja’ah (Bravery / Courage)

The opposite of al-jubn is shaja’ah – and this is translated as courage. And we have been blessed with some of the greatest examples of courageous and brave people in the history of our ummah. The best of which is the Prophet ﷺ himself.

Anas bin Malik said:

عَنْ أَنَسٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَحْسَنَ النَّاسِ، وَأَجْوَدَ النَّاسِ، وَأَشْجَعَ النَّاسِ

The 'Prophet was the best, and most generous, and the bravest of people. 

(Narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

Battle of Hunayn : a field demonstration of the Prophet’s bravery

قَالَ الْبَرَاءُ كُنَّا وَاللَّهِ إِذَا احْمَرَّ الْبَأْسُ نَتَّقِي بِهِ وَإِنَّ الشُّجَاعَ مِنَّا لَلَّذِي يُحَاذِي بِهِ ‏.‏ يَعْنِي النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏

Al-Bara' narrated: When the battle grew fierce. we, by Allah, would seek protection by his side, and the bravest among us was he who confronted the onslaught head-on (in the front lines), and it was the Prophet (ﷺ).

(Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

The Prophet was not raised as a warrior; he in fact, by profession he was a Shepard and business man. He wasn’t trained in arts of warfare, but when the time came to rise to the occasion, to inspire courage amongst his followers – he was in the front lines and the heat of battle.

But courage on the battlefield, that is something we can imagine theoretically. But practically speaking, you and I, we are not on the battlefield. There is a need to relate “courage” with more relatable, everyday examples in our lives as Muslims. Because you CAN be courageous in your workplace, at home and at public places and transportation.

To put it simply, Shaja’ah – courage – is to 

• Be firm and steadfast in the face of trials and tribulations, and does not back down when facing resistance, confident in the help of Allah
• Take responsibility of our actions, to take ownership of our situations, and think maturely before acting

That’s why the Prophet ﷺ stated what is the GREATEST Jihad is simply a manifestation of bravery:

أَفْضَلُ الْجِهَادِ كَلِمَةُ عَدْلٍ عِنْدَ سُلْطَانٍ جَائِرٍ

“The Greatest Jihad – is a word of Justice against an oppressive ruler/tyrant” 
(Narrated by Abu Daud, Ibnu Majah and At-Tirmidzi)

The greatest jihad has nothing to do with weaponry or any physical fighting on the battlefield at all: Rather, the greatest jihad in the sight of Allah is the courage to stand up against a tyrant whom you know is capable of terrible things.

But it’s not easy at all! Tyrants are capable of all manner of unspeakable horrors. But in recognition of the tyrant’s oppressive capability, you still step forward.

Easier said than done.. How many of us today, when it comes to our own managers at the workplace, guilty of crimes, violations and oppression and we are too weak to step up and speak up?

2.3 The reality of “Fear”: Fear is Natural. Your REACTION determines your courage

But let’s dial it back and take a good honest assessment of ourselves. By now perhaps some of us are a bit worried – because perhaps we may have fear of what we explained above : loss of wealth, isolation, deprivation, and so on. But does this make us “cowards”?

Fact – Fear is NATURAL: everyone feels fear. In fact, for the most part, fear is simply a psychological defense mechanism our minds develop to protect us from harm. It can come from knowledge, or experience developed over time.

Observe children: they do not feel fear out of common things we perceive as dangerous such as snakes, scorpions, knives and Electrical appliances. Because they cannot perceive the potential hazard and harms that it can bring, and it’s only upon learning, experiencing – sometimes through tough times or traumatic incidents – they develop a fear to protect themselves from the recurring harm.

So the problem – that leads to cowardice – happens when this fear of harm is over-exaggerated to the point that it cripples and prevents us from taking action to do the right thing.  

This is the purpose and function of the was-was (yakni the whispers) of shaytan. Shaytan cannot physically prevent you from doing or saying the right thing, but what he can do is keeps on reinforcing that fear until you freeze and don’t act. This is what Allah refers to in surah Ali-Imran verse 175:

 إِنَّمَا ذَٰلِكُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ يُخَوِّفُ أَوْلِيَاءَهُ فَلَا تَخَافُوهُمْ وَخَافُونِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ 

"That is only Satan who frightens [you] of his supporters. So fear them not, but fear Me, if you are [indeed] believers."

2.4 “Fear” vs Cowardice

So where does one draw the line between an acceptable fear and a fear that drives one into “al-jubn”?

To understand where we draw the line between “fear”, “cowardice” and “courage”, we will take a quick look into three case studies from the Qur’an and Sunnah:

1. Prophet Musa (alayhissalam) and his confrontation with Firaun
2. The Battle of Al-Ahzab in surah Al-Ahzab: the reaction of believers (companions) vs reaction of hypocrites (munafiqun)

Case Study #1: Even Prophet Musa felt fear !

When Musa and Harun were told to confront Firaun for the transgressions he has committed,

 قَالَا رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا نَخَافُ أَنْ يَفْرُطَ عَلَيْنَا أَوْ أَنْ يَطْغَىٰ 

They said, "Our Lord, indeed we are afraid that he will hasten [punishment] against us or that he will transgress!"

قَالَ لَا تَخَافَا ۖ إِنَّنِي مَعَكُمَا أَسْمَعُ وَأَرَىٰ
Allah says, “Don’t be afraid, both of you! Verily I am with you, listening and watching” (Ta-Ha, verses 45-46)

Allah had to calm down Musa and tell him not to be afraid. And even that very point of confrontation – when witnessing the work of Fir’aun’s magicians, Allah tells us that Musa was terrified and felt fear in his heart:

فَإِذَا حِبَالُهُمْ وَعِصِيُّهُمْ يُخَيَّلُ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ سِحْرِهِمْ أَنَّهَا تَسْعَىٰ ﴿٦٦﴾فَأَوْجَسَ فِي نَفْسِهِ خِيفَةً مُوسَىٰ ﴿٦٧﴾ قُلْنَا لَا تَخَفْ إِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْأَعْلَىٰ

“And suddenly their ropes and staffs seemed to him from their magic that they were moving [like snakes].

Then Musa conceived a fear in himself.

And We said (to him), “Do not be afraid – you have the upper hand”” (Surah Ta-Ha, 66-68)

Allah once again had to provide reassurance Musa not to be afraid!

But in spite of his fear, Musa still went ahead anyway, proceeded and carried out his instructions anyway, confident in the help of Allah.

Case Study #2 : Battle of Al-Khandaq (Al-Ahzab)

In another example, in surah Al-Ahzab, throughout the Battle of Al-Khandaq, Allah describes the inner feelings of what the believers – the companions fighting alongside the Prophet ﷺ to defend Madinah:

إِذْ جَاءُوكُمْ مِنْ فَوْقِكُمْ وَمِنْ أَسْفَلَ مِنْكُمْ وَإِذْ زَاغَتِ الْأَبْصَارُ وَبَلَغَتِ الْقُلُوبُ الْحَنَاجِرَ وَتَظُنُّونَ بِاللَّـهِ الظُّنُونَا
[Remember] when they came at you from above you and from below you, and when eyes shifted [in fear], and hearts reached the throats and you assumed about Allah [various] assumptions.

هُنَالِكَ ابْتُلِيَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَزُلْزِلُوا زِلْزَالًا شَدِيدًا
There the believers were tested and shaken with a severe shaking. (Surah Al-Ahzab, verse 10-11)

Taking these 2 case studies, we can see a common pattern amongst the heroic, courageous believers:

They genuinely felt fear. Terrified, in fact. 

Yet in spite of their fear, they pressed forward anyway, they emerged as triumphant examples of courage in the history of mankind.

2.5 True Definition of Courage

So these outcomes should paint a new perspective as to what we mean by “courage” or “bravery”. To Quote in simple modern terms, allow me to quote Nelson Mandela:

“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear – but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear”

Let’s look at the examples of the case studies which we mentioned earlier. Musa was well aware of what Fir’aun was capable of – he grew up in this monster’s home! Yet he knew it was necessary so what did he do?

1)     He made du’aa

 قَالَ رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي ﴿٢٥﴾وَيَسِّرْ لِي أَمْرِي ﴿٢٦﴾ وَاحْلُلْ عُقْدَةً مِنْ لِسَانِي ﴿٢٧﴾ يَفْقَهُوا قَوْلِي﴿٢٨﴾ وَاجْعَلْ لِي وَزِيرًا مِنْ أَهْلِي ﴿٢٩﴾ هَارُونَ أَخِي ﴿٣٠﴾ اشْدُدْ بِهِ أَزْرِي ﴿٣١﴾ وَأَشْرِكْهُ فِي أَمْرِي 

[Musa] said, "My Lord, expand for me my breast, and ease for me my task and untie the knot from my tongue so that they may understand my speech. And appoint for me a minister from my family - Harun, my brother.  Increase my strength through him and let him share my task (Surah Ta-Ha, verse 25-32)

2)     Put his trust in Allah, Bismillah – he went to confront firaun

Second Case Study of Surah Al-Ahzab: Consider the case of the believers (the companions of Rasulullah ﷺ, radhiAllahu anhum): whom Allah describes had an intense fear to the extent that their hearts were up to their throats. 

Yet, in spite of this fear, this was their response:

 وَلَمَّا رَأَى الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الْأَحْزَابَ قَالُوا هَٰذَا مَا وَعَدَنَا اللَّـهُ وَرَسُولُهُ وَصَدَقَ اللَّـهُ وَرَسُولُهُ ۚ وَمَا زَادَهُمْ إِلَّا إِيمَانًا وَتَسْلِيمًا 

And when the believers saw the companies, they said, "This is what Allah and His Messenger had promised us, and Allah and His Messenger spoke the truth."

And it (this confrontation) increased them only in faith and acceptance. (Surah Al-Ahzab, verse 22)

In spite of their fear – they faced it with complete tawakkal in Allah. 
KNOWING that they are collectively supporting the Cause of Allah. 
KNOWING that He will surely help them. 
KNOWING that they will be granted a death of a syahid if they were to die in this cause – and this is the greatest blessing a person can ever aspire to achieve.

Now, contrast that to the reaction of the hypocrites:

 وَإِذْ يَقُولُ الْمُنَافِقُونَ وَالَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ مَا وَعَدَنَا اللَّـهُ وَرَسُولُهُ إِلَّا غُرُورًا ﴿١٢﴾ وَإِذْ قَالَتْ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْهُمْ يَا أَهْلَ يَثْرِبَ لَا مُقَامَ لَكُمْ فَارْجِعُوا ۚ وَيَسْتَأْذِنُ فَرِيقٌ مِنْهُمُ النَّبِيَّ يَقُولُونَ إِنَّ بُيُوتَنَا عَوْرَةٌ وَمَا هِيَ بِعَوْرَةٍ ۖ إِنْ يُرِيدُونَ إِلَّا فِرَارًا 

And [remember] when the hypocrites and those in whose hearts is disease said, "Allah and His Messenger did not promise us nothing but lies!"

And when a faction of them said, "O people of Yathrib, there is no stability for you [here], so return [home]." 
And a party of them asked permission of the Prophet, saying, "Indeed, our houses are unprotected," while they were not exposed. They did not intend except to flee (from the Battlefield)

(Al-Ahzab, verses 12-13)

This is the case of the hypocrites: Defeated. Overcome by fear. Cowardice.

Notice how both sides did indeed have fear – but it’s how they dealt with it that defined who they are.

Cus D’Amato (personal trainer for Mike Tyson) said: 

“The Hero and the coward both feel the same thing : fear.

 It’s what you do with (your fear) – that’s what matters”

In spite of the fearful situation they were confronted with, the believers took ownership of the situation, made du’aa, put their trust in Allah, bismillah.

Mastery over fear. This is true courage. True courage is not to be “fearless” – rather, true courage is, in spite of the fear, going in scared with tawakkul in Allah.

Or in simple terms, “go in scared – with the trust in Allah”.

2.6 Overcoming Fear : Developing Courage

So let’s look into some simple, practical steps on how we can overcome cowardice and develop courage and bravery in ourselves.

And again, the emphasis here is the courage for the sake of Allah : in doing acts of worship and pleasing Allah. Whether it be the courage to

• Turn to Allah, to become a better Muslim
• Dress in a way that Allah has ordained in the shari’ah
• Give da’wah or in calling towards good and warning others against sins

First of all, none of us should be discouraged if we are not inherently ‘courageous’ per se. That we are not “born” courageous. Like any other skill in life, it can be trained, developed.

Sure, some people may have more “talent” – they have better risk appetite, tolerance for pain, resistance against fears, a higher risk appetite and so on – but a lot of that also has to do with their surroundings and environment that shaped their characteristic.

Now let’s one principle very clear: courage does not mean “reckless”. People often associate the word courage with that of a daredevil – having no fear of the dangers or outcome. Surprisingly, quite the opposite is true: courage is to be completely mindful of the situation, and diving anyway.

The key is in developing tawakkul. Taking the example of the two case studies:

#1 Make Du’aa

Just as Musa taught us when instructed to confront Fir’aun – the worst tyrant in the history of mankind – the first step is to ASK the Source of all strength. Though this may seem like an obvious point, the emphasis here is our attitude towards du’aa. When we ask Allah for something, it’s not “oh just make du’aa”.

No, we need to be empowered that we are asking One who is All-Hearing, All-Merciful, All-Powerful and the Source of All Strength.

In that same way that he can grant strength to the Prophet ﷺ to remove shirik and polytheism in the Arabian Peninsular, the same way he gave the strength to defeat the Quraisy at Badar, He can give you the strength to overcome your fears

#2 Have Confidence in the Help of Allah

إِنْ يَنْصُرْكُمُ اللَّـهُ فَلَا غَالِبَ لَكُمْ ۖ وَإِنْ يَخْذُلْكُمْ فَمَنْ ذَا الَّذِي يَنْصُرُكُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ ۗ وَعَلَى اللَّـهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ

If Allah should Help you, no one can overcome you; but if He should forsake you, who is there that can aid you after Him? And upon Allah let the believers rely.

(Surah Ali Imran, verse 160)

Understand that no Harm or Benefit can come except if Allah wills it.

The Prophet ﷺ said,

وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ الأُمَّةَ لَوِ اجْتَمَعَتْ عَلَى أَنْ يَنْفَعُوكَ بِشَيْءٍ لَمْ يَنْفَعُوكَ إِلاَّ بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ لَكَ وَلَوِ اجْتَمَعُوا عَلَى أَنْ يَضُرُّوكَ بِشَيْءٍ لَمْ يَضُرُّوكَ إِلاَّ بِشَيْءٍ

“Know that if the entire nation were to gather together to do something to benefit you- you would never get any benefit except that Allah had written for you.

And if they (the entire nation) were to gather to do something to harm you - you would never be harmed except that Allah had written for you.” 

(Narrated by At-Tirmidzi who graded the hadith hasan sahih)

#3 Develop a Sense of Urgency

To push ourselves out of our own comfort zones into unfamiliar, fearful territory, we need to constantly create a sense of urgency in ourselves.

Now, interestingly, whether we realize it or not, actually we have been through many terrifying and fearful circumstances and situations in our lives some of them include:

o   Getting circumcised

o   University

o   Job interview

o   Dentist

o   Going to the dentist

o   Marriage

o   Parenthood

Many of these circumstances are absolutely terrifying – yet we go through them. And as a result, we become a better person.

Every time we venture out of our comfort zone, out of that fearful territory of the unknown, every time we adapt, we redefine ourselves. Courage is the aptitude to continuously venture out of these comfort zones – not just for the heck of it like a reckless daredevil – rather, with that clear vision in mind: to become better people. Thus with respect to ourselves as Muslims, to become better believers, who please and obey Allah better.

But those day-to-day examples we through which I mentioned earlier – school, university, dentist, job interviews, parenthood – many a times, we were kind of ‘forced’ into these situations where we literally have to sink or swim: there is an inherent urgency; we HAVE to adapt. Or else, we would see the immediate negative impact! E.g.

o   If I fail university, I might not get a job.

o   If I don’t see the doctor, my health might deteriorate

o   If I fail in parenthood, I might be responsible for unleashing

..And because we know the consequences of failure are too severe for us to risk, we force ourselves to survive through them.

So this is our challenge as Muslims – when it comes to the acts of righteousness and obligations of our deen, most of the time, there is nothing that “forces” us out of our comfort zones to be brave and courageous and venture outside of these comfort zones: except with iman.

As believers therefore, we have create this sense of urgency on the basis of iman and our responsibility with Allah. Hold yourself accountable with respect to yourself and the Last Day : what will be the consequence if you meet Allah in this state of inaction and cowardice?

o   If I don’t push myself to tackle this fear, could this lead to a severe punishment in hell? Could I live with the conscience knowing “I could have done something but I didn’t?”

o   If I know my friend/family is on the path to Jahannam, and I fail to take action now, what will be the consequences on the Last Day? Will I be able to live with the conscience that I “did nothing” and just let things pass?

o   Is there a great benefit or reword that I will be deprived off if I don’t take this step? Will I miss this opportunity forever?

وَاتَّقُوا يَوْمًا تُرْجَعُونَ فِيهِ إِلَى اللَّـهِ ۖ ثُمَّ تُوَفَّىٰ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَا كَسَبَتْ وَهُمْ لَا يُظْلَمُونَ 

"And fear a Day when you will be returned to Allah. Then every soul will be compensated for what it earned, and they will not be treated unjustly." (Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 281)

#4 Community Support

There is a very subtle lesson behind the du’aa of Prophet Musa when Allah first Instructs him to go to Fir’aun : the importance of community support.

Notice how, the Prophet specifically requested for a person to share the responsibility to help him in the task: Prophet Harun, his brother. And Allah granted it to him. Observe the Qur’an and take note: what was Harun’s role in confronting Fir’aun?

Did he help the debate, was he given miracles to confront the magicians? Actually, no.

His mere presence alone at the side of his brother indirectly provides a morale boost of confidence to proceed with this mighty undertaking.

No man is an island – we are affected by the influences around us, and in turn we too have an effect to our surroundings, whether we are conscious of it or not.

That is why the Qur’an and Sunnah constantly emphasizes the importance of friends.

The key to developing courage is to find friends who will help you or are at least on that same path and ambition as you are. 

Peer pressure is real: so find peers who will help influence you towards changing you towards that better you

وَتَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْبِرِّ وَالتَّقْوَىٰ 

"And help you (each other) towards righteousness and piety" (Surah Al Maidah, 2)

Look for groups that are doing what you aspire to do that: Join niche groups that help you gradually face those fears

A personal example: Joining the Street Da’wah team. Here’s a personal confession: I am absolutely terririfed at giving da’wah. I fear being rejected, being judged negatively, unintentionally saying something stupid and misrepresenting islam, having a bad emotional reaction if people say something, losing a friend – the list goes on.

So what did I do? A few years ago, I signed up for my very first Street Da’wah. I was still scared to the bone, yes but I saw this as an opportunity to face these fears as a jamaah. So I called up a friend to join – and his first response was “I’m not used to giving da’wah”.  And my response to that was, “fantastic – me too! Let’s do this!”. So bismillah, we went.

And subhanAllah, coming to that environment – seeing so many other brothers, wearing that same t-shirt, being comforted by the “seniors” on communication technique, just gave that extra edge of confidence to do what I’ve never done before: speak to strangers about Islam.

Now in hindsight, perhaps I didn’t do very well – for the whole day I probably managed to talk to like 4 people. I would imagine some people managed to get more than 4 syahadahs. But as far as I am concerned: that is one super achievement I never thought I could ever do. That’s four more than the average day. Great!

Am I still terrified? Yes. But it’s a bit more familiar now. Next session, let’s target five to six people!

2.7        Example: Fear of Public Speaking?

How many of you out there have a fear of public speaking?

Me too. Yes, up till this day I actually still get very nervous and very anxious everytime I am in front of the microphone.

“But you don’t look nervous!”

Exactly: I don’t LOOK nervous. But I’m terrified deep inside – I just train myself to suppress that fear and nervousness: out of understanding the necessity to clearly deliver a message. In other words, pretend I’m confident long enough to convince others that I’m actually somewhat confident.

So you can imagine, when someone nominate me for becoming a speaker for the Straight Path, I was terrified. I had fear that:

·       I am not qualified

·       People will reject me, and question "who is this unknown guy?! Who does he think he is to give us advice?!"

·       What if I do a lousy job, if I mess up, what if I give a bad impression to the organizers, of the Malaysian public

·       What if I forget my script, fumble on stage, look like a fool, and stutter?

I could have turned it down with all due respect, I could give a very valid excuse of not being qualified, and give a fake façade of “humility”.

But at the same time I convinced myself: that these people are entrusting you to deliver something. If you had a chance to inspire others, move their hearts to become a better believer, would you take it?

How can I aspire the ummah to be brave, if at this juncture of great opportunity, I chicken out and give excuses?

And the topic they assigned to me this year – “Bravery and Generosity” – was terrifying!

I mean, I myself am in desperate need to listen about this! Again I was tempted to give it a pass

But I gave it much deep thought and after much researched, I asked myself: if I believe that I need to be brave – and ironically, chicken out from talking about bravery?

What’s a matter McFly, chicken?

No, mate. Pull yourself together. Step out of your comfort zone. Take the challenge, travel the road less taken… do what many others aren’t willing to do. Turn this opportunity as a means for your success on the Day of Judgment.

Yes, you’re afraid, but make du’aa, make the preparations, put your tawakkal in Allah, bismillah let’s go.

2.8 Conclusion on Bravery

Public speaking and speaking up for the truth just a case study example; all of us have different challenges and areas in our lives where we need to apply courage.

All of us have different challenges, capacities, and capabilities. Seek where you fit in, and where you can develop this commendable trait with your lives.

I want you all to ask yourselves: Look for specific areas in your life. Ask yourself: what are the aspects of your life that are holding you back because of fear?

Remember : Courage isn’t the absence of fear. It’s the mastery over it.

Abu Huraira reported that there came a person to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said:

“O Messenger of Allah, which charity is the best?”

Upon this he said:

أَنْ تَصَدَّقَ وَأَنْتَ صَحِيحٌ شَحِيحٌ تَخْشَى الْفَقْرَ وَتَأْمُلُ الْغِنَى

That you should give charity (in a state when you are) healthy and close-fisted, one haunted by the fear of poverty, hoping to become rich (charity in such a state of health and mind is the best).
(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

This hadith tells us that despite your fear of poverty, you fight against your nafs and your desires and spend anyway, and this is the greatest form of charity.

In fact quite interestingly, the BEST charity is coming from one who is stingy and FEARS poverty.. the reward can actually be more virtuous

·       Compare a person who is more ‘risk averse’ versus someone who is relatively brave at taking risks (an aggressive entrepeneur comes to mind) – for the less courages, more “risk averse” person to still take the plunge, is actually more virtuous than the one who is naturally brave

·       Compare a person who is miserly as compared to a person who is naturally generous. For the generous person to give 10 dollars in charity might be easy for him compared to the miser – but if the miser does it anyway, struggles with hisinner self in spite of his fear of poverty: this reward is “the greatest sadaqah” with a higher reward in the Sight of Allah, even though the physical intrinsic value is exactly the same on the surface.

Main lesson of hadith: We should be optimistic! If we feel we are afflicted with miserliness or cowardice, we shouldn’t give up or feel bad ourselves. In fact we should actually rejoice – that at this juncture as we speak, we are now given a chance to give the BEST form of charity or bravery, if we push ourselves against our nafs!

3       Miserliness / Stinginess – االبخل

This hadith brings slides us comfortably into the next topic : generosity. And this is primarily about overcoming al-bukhl : miserliness/stinginess.

The link between cowardice and miserliness is as stated in the hadith above: fear of poverty, holding us back from spending in the Cause of Allah.

So to put things into perspective and context, “al-Jubn” is a more general form of “cowardice”, which stems from any form of fear, where as “al Bukhl” is more specific form of cowardice which comes from the fear of poverty or less of wealth.

And this is one of the easiest ways for shaytan to get to us: through our pockets; money. Shaytan knows this and this is also his weapon

الشَّيْطَانُ يَعِدُكُمُ الْفَقْرَ

“Shaitan threatens you with poverty” (Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 268)

You see, Shaytan doesn’t hold us from spending by physically withholding our hands from giving: rather, his only tools come in the form of whispers: he feeds into this fear of poverty.

And the more give in to these whispers, the fear of poverty incites us into all sorts of haram because of money: deception, lies, backstabbing and betrayal, backbiting, compromising religious obligations or falling into haram for money, and in this context, prevents us from spending in ways which can earn the Pleasure of Allah.

3.1        Our Current State: The Scarcity Mindset

This fear of deprivation is born out of what is defined in modern terms as a “scarcity mindset”: The thinking that resources in this world are finite and limited: we need to grab our piece of the pie quickly, so that we won’t lose our share.

Our problem today is that we live in a modern world living through the side-product of today’s capitalistic society with a prevalent scarcity mindset: we feel resources are finite, need to rush, take it quickly before we run out - drives us to be miserly and stingy.

This is also an inadvertent byproduct of how we spend our time in this modern world in the 21^st century; from media advertising – both mainstream and social media. Look at your social media feeds – people are always showing their “highlight reel” – you are always comparing.

The end effect: Because of this, you always feel you don’t have enough.

Whether poor or rich, we always want more. The rich will always want: Bigger paycheck, a better car, latest and better gear and technology, higher rank in the corporate ladder, this brand of clothing, that brand of handbag, shoes, this limited edition hijab, etc.

And this is exactly what was said by the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ regarding our desires, when we have this scarcity mindset:

لَوْ أَنَّ لاِبْنِ آدَمَ وَادِيًا مِنْ ذَهَبٍ أَحَبَّ أَنْ يَكُونَ لَهُ وَادِيَانِ، وَلَنْ يَمْلأَ فَاهُ إِلاَّ التُّرَابُ، وَيَتُوبُ اللَّهُ عَلَى مَنْ تَابَ

"If a son of Adam were to own a valley full of gold, he would desire to have two. Nothing can fill his mouth except the earth (of the grave). Allah turns with mercy to him who turns to Him in repentance".

(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

As long as you keep “yearning for more”, you feel you don’t have enough: therefore you feel you have nothing to give.

Now, to be clear, the topic of Miserliness and Generosity: we are not just talking with respect to monetary and material wealth - although this is DEFINITELY included, and arguably the most significant. But it also applies to  

• Knowledge, Talents and capabilities
•  Free time
• Energy
• Good health
• Influence

3.2 Abundance Mindset: Knowing Your Blessings are From Allah

Developing generosity really boils down to creating what is known as the ABUNDANCE MINDSET.

The Prophet ﷺ said,

لَيْسَ الْغِنَى عَنْ كَثْرَةِ الْعَرَضِ وَلَكِنَّ الْغِنَى غِنَى النَّفْسِ

Richness does not lie in the abundance of (worldly) goods but richness is the richness of the soul (heart, self).
(Al-Bukhari, Muslim)

True wealth isn’t necessarily about having a lot of wealth – but rather, the mindset to convince ourselves that we are wealthy and have excess. We have more than enough to spare.

Abundance is not how much you have. Rather, it is in how you see the world and what you are. It’s really a state of being, consciousness coming from gratitude and gratefulness, recognizing these blessings are from Allah.

This is Steven Covey writes about in his famous book “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” when he talks about the 5^th principle, “Think Win-Win”, he highlights that one of the keys to developing a “Win-Win” mindset is to develop an Abundance Mindset.

He writes, and I quote:

“The Abundance Mentality, flows out of a deep inner sense of personal worth and security. It is the paradigm that there is plenty out there, and enough to spare for everybody. It results in sharing of presitge, of recognition, of profits, of decision making. It opens possibilities, options, alternatives, creativity – it recognizes the unlimited possibilities for positive interactive growth and development.”  
(The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People)

The problem, however, is that in his book, while brilliant in its concept, Mr. Covey doesn’t quite close the loop about “HOW” we can develop that abundance mindset.

When he talks about developing abundance mindset, he focuses: getting mentors and seniors who practice abundance.

While yes, this may work on a practical level – this really is more of a superficial encouragement. The true driver and inspiration from deeper than that: you need to close the loop and get to the root: what – or rather, WHO – is the Ultimate Source of this Abundance?

Take it back to the principle: Iman in Allah.

وَمَا بِكُم مِّن نِّعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ

And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allah.

(Surah An-Nahl, Verse 53)

So this is the key: the one fundamental principle to develop an abundance mindset is simply an extension from tawheed ar-Rububiyyah: “To KNOW and RECOGNIZE that the Blessings that were given to you by Allah”

It’s a very simple principle, but the implications are enourmous if we ponder about it..

If you know that your blessings (whether it be your money, job, good health, your time, energy, talents, family) are from Allah :

#1.  You will remain humble: Not get arrogant, become stingy/miserly and over confident , or lose yourself and get overly happy when you are granted with something – nor will you despair if you have been withheld from something

مَا أَصَابَ مِنْ مُصِيبَةٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِي أَنْفُسِكُمْ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ نَبْرَأَهَا ۚ إِنَّ ذَٰلِكَ عَلَى اللَّـهِ يَسِيرٌ ﴿٢٢﴾ لِكَيْلَا تَأْسَوْا عَلَىٰ مَا فَاتَكُمْ وَلَا تَفْرَحُوا بِمَا آتَاكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ لَا يُحِبُّ كُلَّ مُخْتَالٍ فَخُورٍ ﴿٢٣﴾

No disaster strikes upon the earth or among yourselves except that it is in a register before We bring it into being - indeed that, for Allah, is easy.

In order that you not despair over what has eluded you and not exult [in pride] over what He has given you. And Allah does not like everyone self-deluded and boastful (Surah Al-Hadid, 22-23)

#2. Gratitude to the source of your favors

The One who granted it to YOU but not necessarily to anyone else, not because you’re better than them, it’s not because you DESERVE it – but it is out of the Wisdom and Mercy of Allah. We look to other people’s social media feeds and think “wow wouldn’t be nice if I had that?” But we forget – or perhaps, fail to realize – that as we speak, there are other people are looking at our social media feed and thinking “wouldn’t be nice if I had this…?”

وَإِذْ تَأَذَّنَ رَبُّكُمْ لَئِنْ شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ

And [remember] when your Lord proclaimed, 'If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor] (Surah Ibrahim, verse 7)

Gratitude is not just about lip service – it must be made known and manifest from the action of your limbs.

And of gratitude is to ensure you use the blessings in ways that do not earn the wrath and displeasure of the One who granted it to you in the first place.

 انْظُرْ كَيْفَ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۚ وَلَلْآخِرَةُ أَكْبَرُ دَرَجَاتٍ وَأَكْبَرُ تَفْضِيلًا

"Look how We have favored [in provision] some of them over others. But the Hereafter is greater in degrees [of difference] and greater in distinction." (Surah Al-Isra, verse 21)

What Allah grants us is not an indicator that He loves us – He also gave to Fir’aun, and He also granted hardship to the best of mankind. 
The true blessing lies in the hereafter.

#3.   You will have compassion towards other slaves to Allah 

knowing that Allah has blessed you over His other slaves, you will feel the obligation to share. What Allah Gave to you, it is not because you’re inherently special, neither did others be deprived of it because they are sinners or disbelievers.

#4.    You have THAT much HOPE for Better Things to Come

This is a point we sometimes forget.

When you KNOW and RECOGNIZE that the Blessings that were given to you by Allah – the One who is Rabb Al-Alamin, Al-Ghani, Al-Wahha – then you have THAT much HOPE to aspire for something greater ahead, because the source of your blessings are an infinite, never-ending source!

Consider for a second:

• That same Lord who gave you your first paycheck, is the same Lord that granted the great wealth of Dzul-Qarnain, Prophet Sulaiman and Bill Gates
• That same Lord who inspired you and granted you with the ability to give those two or three ringgits in charity, is the same Lord who granted the strength to Umar to give away half of his wealth, the same Lord who turned Warren Buffet
• That same Lord who gave you the knowledge and ability to memorize surah al-Fatihah and surah Al-Ikhlas, is the same Lord who granted imam Ahmad to memorize one million hadiths, is the same Lord who granted the understanding and Fiqh to Imam Asy-Syafi’ee, the same Lord who granted Albert Einstein’s knowledge
•  That same Lord who inspired you to MAKE TIME to pray ASR in your busy daily work schedule is the same lord who granted the barakah of time to Imam An-Nawawi to write those HUGE number of books despite passing away at such a young age

·       Imagine the infinite possibilities if you are grateful..

#5.   OPTIMISM: Tawakkul in the Wisdom of Allah 

Even if you don’t get more, it’s out of the Perfect Divine Wisdom that Allah wants to TEACH you

وَعَسَىٰ أَنْ تَكْرَهُوا شَيْئًا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ ۖ وَعَسَىٰ أَنْ تُحِبُّوا شَيْئًا وَهُوَ شَرٌّ لَكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allah Knows, while you know not. (Surah Al-Baqarah verse 216)

#6.    Taking Accountability: as an "Amanah" (A trust)

Know for a fact that you will be questioned : These posessions, time, health, capabilities – all those blessings – do not belong to you. The ownership of what you have now is only a temporary trust – an amanah.

You have no right to cling on to it with your dear life. It is what you do with it within this temporary time frame : this short life in this world, that will prove your worth.

Remember: you will be questioned for your wealth and the blessings Allah gave you –

ثُمَّ لَتُسْأَلُنَّ يَوْمَئِذٍ عَنِ النَّعِيمِ ﴿٨﴾

Then you will surely be asked that Day about pleasure. (Surah At-Takathur, verse 8)

These are all the implications extracted from just this one fundamental principle: knowing that your blessings are from Allah.

And now that we know that, we have an obligation to demonstrate how thankful you are to Allah – not just through your words, but by your deeds.

You have your posessions, your blessings - what are you going to do with it?

3.3 True Generosity

So how can we attain true generosity in our lives?

I can give you examples of great philanthropists – people who have donated millions and billions in charity, in our times people like Sulaiman Ar-Rajhi. Or perhaps the companions of Rasulullah ﷺ and the salaf who gave out hundreds of thousands of deenars and dirhams. And Masha Allah these are indeed amazing examples – we need more people like this: it’s people like these who become the foundations to facilitate a great deal of benefit for the ummah as a whole.

But I want to dial things back a notch.. and relate it back to you and I.

Where can we start? Where do you and I belong on this scale of generosity in the ummah?  

How can we ever hope to be amongst the “generous” in the sight of Allah?

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ سَبَقَ دِرْهَمٌ مِائَةَ أَلْفٍ ‏"‏ ‏.‏ قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَكَيْفَ قَالَ ‏"‏ رَجُلٌ لَهُ دِرْهَمَانِ فَأَخَذَ أَحَدَهُمَا فَتَصَدَّقَ بِهِ وَرَجُلٌ لَهُ مَالٌ كَثِيرٌ فَأَخَذَ مِنْ عُرْضِ مَالِهِ مِائَةَ أَلْفٍ فَتَصَدَّقَ بِهَا ‏"‏ ‏.‏

It was narrated that Abu Hurairah said:
"The Messenger of Allah said: 'A Dirham was better than a hundred thousand Dirhams.' They said: 'O Messenger of Allah, how?' He said: 'A man had two Dirhams and gave one in charity, and another man went to part of his wealth and took out a hundred thousand Dirhams and gave them in charity."'
(Narrated by An-Nasa'i)

What can we learn from this hadith?

Allah multiplies the reward of what you give according to your means, even if the absolute monetary value might not seem like much. Consider for a second : the value of a charity worth a hundred dollars. For a multi-millionaire, a hundred dollars is virtually nothing – a drop in the ocean, a needle in a haystack. But for a poorer individual who has less than a thousand dollars in his account, and still give away a hundred dollars in charity – a significant chunk of his entire savings – that is genuinely difficult.

The true measure of generosity is to give to the extent of what you currently have – even if it’s not much. You don’t have to be rich – but that willingness to give out from what you love the most : even if that is little.

Now, this is Great news for us! In the sight of Allah, we don’t have to be a millionaire or billionaire to be considered generous! we have just as much possibility of becoming “generous” as the millionaire – we just give more from what we have!

Start with the spirit of giving now. You can be super generous in the sight of Allah, from whatever starting point you are right here, right now.

Don’t wait until you become millionaire before you become a philantropist: if you don’t start now, don’t be so sure that you can do it “later” when you are wealthy

3.4 Developing Generosity

The key to developing generosity is to internally train ourselves to inculcate that abundance mindset.

#1 Investment mindset

Change the paradigm of what you spend and give for the sake of Allah:

What you spend for the sake of Allah is your investment, not sacrifice.

Consider the following hadith:

قَالَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ أَيُّكُمْ مَالُ وَارِثِهِ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ مَالِهِ ‏"‏‏.‏ قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا مِنَّا أَحَدٌ إِلاَّ مَالُهُ أَحَبُّ إِلَيْهِ‏.‏ قَالَ ‏"‏ فَإِنَّ مَالَهُ مَا قَدَّمَ، وَمَالُ وَارِثِهِ مَا أَخَّرَ ‏"‏‏.‏

Narrated `Abdullah ibnu Mas’ud
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Who among you loves the wealth of his heirs more than his own wealth?"

They replied, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! There is none among us but loves his own wealth more." The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "So, his wealth is whatever he spends (in Allah's Cause) during his life (on good deeds) while the wealth of his heirs is whatever he (keeps, and therefore) leaves behind after his death."

(Narrated by Al-Bukhari)

This hadith introduces to us a major Paradigm shift on the true nature of the wealth that we own: what you spend, is actually what you own. What you keep, is in fact what will be inherited and lost.

Have the complete reliance that every single cent that you spend will be repaid in full : not only that but will be multiplied.

The enouragement from Qur'an and Hadith about sadaqah are amazing – just take one simple hadith into perspective wherein the Prophet (ﷺ) said:

قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ إِذَا هَمَّ عَبْدِي بِحَسَنَةٍ وَلَمْ يَعْمَلْهَا كَتَبْتُهَا لَهُ حَسَنَةً فَإِنْ عَمِلَهَا كَتَبْتُهَا عَشْرَ حَسَنَاتٍ إِلَى سَبْعِمِائَةِ ضِعْفٍ وَإِذَا هَمَّ بِسَيِّئَةٍ وَلَمْ يَعْمَلْهَا لَمْ أَكْتُبْهَا عَلَيْهِ فَإِنْ عَمِلَهَا كَتَبْتُهَا سَيِّئَةً وَاحِدَةً

Allah, the Great and Glorious, said: Whenever my slave intends to do good, but does not do it, I write one good act for him, but if he puts it into practice I wrote from ten to seven hundred good deeds in favour of him. When he intends to commit an evil, but does not actually do it, do not record it. But if he does it, I write only one evil.

(Muslim)

Reflect also on the promise of Allah:

مَنْ جَاءَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ فَلَهُ عَشْرُ أَمْثَالِهَا

“Whosoever brings forth a good deed – shall have ten times (the reward) thereof to his credit..” (Surah Al-An’am, 160)

Now, we’ve all heard of this before – but how many of us are geuninely empowered by the mere promise that Allah promised us a minimum reward of ten-fold investment?!

Imagine for a second: your trustworthy stockbroker or wealth adviser told you about a very profitable investment. Based on his experience and knowledge, he tells you that based on market conditions, there is a very good chance of turning in a huge profit this year. He tells you, the return on investment (ROI) is 30% - meaning, if you invest 100 dollars today, by the end of the investment period, you will get 130 dollars

Whoa. Great deal!

What are you waiting for?! Invest!

So, you put 100 dollars. Your trustworthy stockbroker who is passionate about building your wealth, he gets excited – but also kind of disappointed, as he asks, “That’s it?” I suggest you put more. This is a great opportunity man – don’t waste it! You might not have that wealth available tomorrow to make that decision

Don’t delay, right! Don’t waste any more time!

But guess what?

Based on this hadith, when you do any good deeds, when you spend for the sake of Allah the minimum reward is 10 times. Not 30% ROI. Not even 400%. We’re talking 1,000% minimum. 

And rest assured, this isn’t a “good chance” – this isn’t just any trustworthy stockbroker or expert market analyst. This is a guarantee from your Creator, Al-Haqq. 

Yet how many of us are propelled into action at this premise?

#2 Develop a sense of urgency

Think and ask yourselves: How much have you invested in preparing to meet your Lord? What have you invested in for your meeting with Allah?

Allah says in the Qur’an:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ وَلْتَنْظُرْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ لِغَدٍ

O you who have believed, fear Allah. And let every soul look to what it has put forth for tomorrow - and fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Acquainted with what you do. 

(Surah Al-Hasyr, verse 18)

Brothers and sisters,

Have you ever given this some thought: what would be your biggest regret when you depart from this world? If you were to die tomorrow, and you would BEG Allah for a chance to do good deeds, what would that good deed be?

We did this exercise once in our local Youth Camp: If you knew that the angel of death will come and claim your life tomorrow, and that you only have 24 hours to live: what deeds will you do?

Most of the responses are either “tahajjud” or “recite Qur’an”.

But do you know what Allah tells us the FIRST regret people will express when they procrastinate their deeds until their time of death has arrived?

وَأَنْفِقُوا مِنْ مَا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ أَحَدَكُمُ الْمَوْتُ فَيَقُولَ رَبِّ لَوْلَا أَخَّرْتَنِي إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ قَرِيبٍ فَأَصَّدَّقَ وَأَكُنْ مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ 

And spend [in the way of Allah] from what We have provided you before death approaches one of you and he says, "My Lord, if only You would delay me for a brief term: so I would give charity and be among the righteous."

(Surah Al-Munafiqun, 10)

This ayah tells us that the first regret is sadaqah - THEN the other righteous deeds such as tahajjud and Qur'an.

The Umayyad caliph, Sulayman ibn Abdul Malik once asked Abu Hazim:

يا أبا حازم، ما لنا نكره الموت‏؟‏ قال ‏:‏ لأنكم عمرتم دنياكم وخربتم آخرتكم، فأنتم تكرهون أن تنتقلوا من العمران إلى الخراب‏

قال‏:‏ صدقت يا أبا حازم،

“O Abu Hazim, why do we hate death?”.

Abu Hazim said,

“Because you have built up your Dunya, and you have neglected and ruined your hereafter, therefore you hate to leave that for which you built up to go to that which you have ruined”

Sulayman said: “You have spoken the truth”.

So let’s put our act together and practice our generosity now. Invest in our Akhirah. Build our dream house in paradise: before these moments of regret.

#3 Prioritize your resources

With all that in mind, we need to actively (and continuously) seek investment opportunities to build our akhirah!

Search for doors which your wealth can add value to the ummah, and vary your options and reach to different layers and aspects in society:

o   Charity organizations, initiatives and projects – orphanages, shelters, feeding homeless, locals in need, relief aid

o   Da’wah organizations – funding their media campaigns, sponsoring their du’aat, sponsoring knowledge-building crowd funding projects

But beyond that, generosity isn’t just applicable for wealth and money, it also applies to

o   Free time

o   Knowledge, Talents and capabilities

o   Energy

o   Good health

o   Influence

Knowledge is an important capital to be of benefit to the ummah, and one which you need to share and benefit others

o   If you have professional skill or talent, think of how you can use that to benefit others by way of pro-bono services or waiving your consultancy fees

o   Are there any skills you can benefit the organizations with? I know many brothers and sisters who took the time to LEARN specific skill sets to aid da’wah initiatives – from learning to edit videos, make posters, create publications.

o   We claim we don’t have enough knowledge for da’wah, enjoining others towards the good or forbidding them from evil. In truth, we do have enough knowledge. We have enough to convey the little that we do know

o   Start simple: If we know how to recite Qur’an, how many of us take the time and effort to coach our family members on basic Tajwid of Qur’an? Are we even aware of their level of competency in Tajwid?

o   Coach others and share knowledge. Look out for the new guy, the intern, inquire his well-being.

On a personal note, I always remind mindself to hold myself accountable for the knowledge that Allah has granted me. I always tell myself, that you were once ignorant and had no knoweldge, yet:

o   Allah blessed you with parents who emphasized the importance of knowledge, and they drove you to get a good university education

o   Allah blessed you with colleagues, co-workers, seniors who were willing to teach you, spend time with you and coach you

o   Allah blessed you with friends who starting learning the Deen, began the Right Path and brought you along to seek knowledge, listen to lectures, attend classes, and conferences

o   You have no right to horde and cling on to that knowledge – it’s not yours to keep. So what have you done with it to benefit others?!

How many of us have professional talents or capabilities that you can lend off “pro-bono” for the benefit of the ummah?

We need to seek opportunities towards these aspirations – leverage existing connections, networks, organizations, identify the gaps and ask yourself: where can I add value?

The value of being present

Okay, so perhaps there may be some of us who have taken a good, honest assessment ourselves – and we still consider ourselves not having enough to give away. We “don’t have much money”, we “don’t have knowledge”, and so on. So here’s one for you: just simply being present.

Put into perspective that the doors of charity are huge and the Prophet ﷺ widened the definitions and opportunities of ‘sadaqah’ . Some of them include, though not limited to

o   Smiling

o   Kind words

o   Enjoining the good and forbidding the evil

o   Removing something harmful from the road

o   Helping others with their luggage/vehicles

What pattern can we see from the above? The conclusion: your opportunity in sadaqah is simply anything that adds value for others. Simply landing a hand in circumstances to alleviate the burden of others. The act of smiling adds positivity to the people around you and elevates their mood. Steps towards the masjid indirectly encourage people to go to the masjid And as explained in the hadith explaining that even halal intercourse with your spouse is sadaqah: we learn that doing any good deeds in general prevents us from sins, which is also a form of charity.

The power of showing up & being present.

Observe the value of Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq accompanying Rasulullah on the hijrah. Consider the case of Prophet Harun with Prophet Musa. Their mere presence was a source of reassurance.

Where can you play your role to spend time and be present? With your spouse, your parents, your children, your family members, your friends in need?

It looks simple, but the impact is profound.

Let us ponder upon the hadith regarding the rights of a Muslim upon other Muslims:

حَقُّ الْمُسْلِمِ عَلَى الْمُسْلِمِ خَمْسٌ رَدُّ السَّلاَمِ، وَعِيَادَةُ الْمَرِيضِ، وَاتِّبَاعُ الْجَنَائِزِ، وَإِجَابَةُ الدَّعْوَةِ، وَتَشْمِيتُ الْعَاطِسِ

"The rights of a Muslim on the Muslims are five: 

1. To respond to the salaam, 
2. visiting the sick, 
3. to follow the funeral processions, 
4. to accept an invitation, and 
5. to reply (i.e. make the prescribed du'aa) for those who sneeze."

(Al-Bukhari)

We may not realize it, but these “little deeds” have a deep, profound and life-long lasting impact to the one receiving it! Let me relate to you some personal examples which I know firsthand:

• Accepting invitation - Friends attend walimah - My own friend testified, he will never forget the moment that his school friend whom has never met since primary school – about 15 years – suddenly just appear at his wedding. Although they only met for like 1-2 minutes, he was so touched just to see him there come all the way from outstation just to be present – and he will never forget it until he dies
• Visiting sick - When my father was hospitalized in the ICU about 11-12 years ago, he had friends visited him constantly. A few weeks later as he recovered – Alhamdulillah – and slowly regained consciousness, he slowly recognized the friends and family around him, visiting. But fast forward to today: if you were tp mention several names of his friends, the first thing that my father will describe him/her is that “he is the one who came and visit me when I was sick”. Even though they’ve been friends for 30-40 years, the one significant characteristic about this friend is, he was present in my time of need at the hospital. Even if it was just a few short minutes.
• Attend janazah – my own relatives I will always remember those who attend the funeral of my grandfather and uncle. Those touching moments of loss, yet profound warmth comforted by a large family gathering that is in practice so difficult to gather were it not for Eid or a funeral. Even if one considersthe recent tragedy in New Zealand – Prime Minster herself went and shared her condolences. Although she did many other really good things, but just this genuine one act alone, of showing up, being present on the ground to console the family of those killed – that act alone solicited the love, respect, and admiration from the entire world, including the non-Muslims.

Consider the other possibilities, especially in volunteering and assisting in charity initiatives, da’wah organizations, helping others fulfill their needs, your hospitality with neighbours, family and friends: these are all forms of sadaqah and your proof of developing generosity for the sake of Allah.

In short, prioritize your resources to what fits Allah has blessed YOU with.

Sometimes our tendency is that we don’t have “time”. So how does one find time?

Fact: You cannot “find time”, you make time.

In the same way that you can’t “find spare change” to invest. If you genuinely consider this your priority, you SET aside your money to give in charity and to invest in your akhirah.

#4 Start with consistent, small acts of kindness

Alright, fine. Not let’s just say - in the highly unlikely hypothetical situation - that a person doesn't have much wealth, knowledge OR time. 

You can still practice generosity - simply by small acts of kindnesses with other fellow human beings.

When Anas described the Prophet ﷺ was a prime example of Generosity (yakni - وَأَجْوَدَ النَّاسِ - the most generous of people), it wasn’t just with respect to his wealth (which he was indeed absolutely generous with) – but if you observe his daily life in his sirah, you will see that he was supremely generous with respect to his warm dealings with people.

The Prophet would spend time playing with children, visit some of his companions who are not even his relatives, an old woman would ask his help and he wouldn't refuse, narrations from A'isya indicated how much he would spend time with his family, bond with them, have conversations and even play with them.

He would never fail to greet his companions in warm, friendly manner.

Jareer ibn `Abdullah said:

قَالَ جَرِيرُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ـ رضى الله عنه مَا حَجَبَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم مُنْذُ أَسْلَمْتُ، وَلاَ رَآنِي إِلاَّ ضَحِكَ‏.

"Since the time I accepted Islam, the Prophet (peace be upon him) never once failed to notice me. Every time he saw me, he would smile at me."

(Al-Bukhari, Muslim)

That’s what makes the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ such an amazing character – and we should learn from his example! In spite the stress of his life as a Prophet, Leader, parent, mufti, teacher, imam and others, juggling the multitudes of heavy responsibilities and challenges – yet he never fails to carry himself with complete composure, and find the strength in him to smile at others.

Yet consider this for a second: Can anyone claim that the Prophet wasn't really a busy person? That he has a lot of free time in his hands?

No way, he was the most busy person ever!

Yet he still committed every moment of interaction with others as opportunities to uplift others. And sometimes that's all we need to do: just add that extra bit of "nice" in our little interactions: beginning with our cheerful faces. The Prophet said,

لاَ تَحْقِرَنَّ مِنَ الْمَعْرُوفِ شَيْئًا وَلَوْ أَنْ تَلْقَى أَخَاكَ بِوَجْهٍ طَلْقٍ

"Don't consider insignificant (your) good deeds,

even if it is that you meet your brother with a cheerful face"

(Muslim)

Identify what “little things” and “small acts of kindness” in practicing generosity, actions that you can do on a consistent basis, and gradually work your way up.

What are you good at, what can I contribute today? Give!

Simple things you can do in your day to day lives:

•  Greetings salams to those you don’t know – the Prophet said this is amongst the best characteristics of Islam. How do you greet the people around you? How do you treat the cleaners, security guards, receptionists at the office? Do we bother greeting them? It doesn’t require any additional working time!
• Give your smile, acknowledgement, random acts kindness
• Caring, give opportunity. Be Generous in Wisdom, support and time
• Smile and bring a positive environment around you – spread words of encouragement
• Be a good host, look out for people who need help and directions
• On the way to the musolla during prayer time – invite others to pray

Great acts of generosity do not necessarily require a lot of money. It simply requires passion – a compassion towards other slaves of Allah – driven by your belief in Allah and the Last Day.

4. Mark of the Muslims– the Big Picture

Brothers and sisters… the title of Our Ummah was once known on a global scale as a great nation of honorable, generous, and brave Muslims. People would simply look at the companions, be amazed at their great character, they would think “man, I want to be like him”, and immediately embrace Islam, no questions asked. They want a piece of what makes this guy so amazing.

Wouldn’t we like to see this glorious identity restored to us?

The ingredients are all here: The Qur'an, sunnah, the sirah, the historical icons amongst the salaf still preserved for us to follow in the footsteps. It's just now upon us to SEEK and ACT upon it. 

For the Muslim ummah to be identified with characteristics of greatness once again, necessitates that it is done on a larger scale. And that means we – you and I, ALL OF US – need to play our role to develop courage and generosity in our lives.

If one person alone does it, perhaps it will be associated with him as an individual. It won’t be a “mark of Muslims”, people will just assume that “he is just like that”. “different breed”, “upbringing not like many of us”.

No sir, we all have to play our role. Every single one of us – do not exempt yourself and expect the ummah to change if you don’t change. Do not assume that “somebody else will do it”: because if you think like this, perhaps others will too. And if others continuously think like this, where will the change ever begin?

This is why Allah says:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ

Verily! Allah will not change the good condition of a people as long as they do not change their state of goodness themselves (Surah Ar-Rad, Verse 11)

As Gandhi said, “Be the change you want to see in People”

People always complain about the environment and external influence. 

Well, guess what? You are also part of the environment. You also have an effect to the people around you. Perhaps you might be the one who triggers your community to be the change that we need.

And don’t worry if it doesn’t “seem to have an effect”. History has proven us one thing: If it's worth knowing, Allah is the one who will add the barakah and will make it known to others as an example to follow.

Open up the books of history: How many stories of the salaf - they always try to keep it a secret, so that it's a private deed between them and Allah, to preserve the value of ikhlas: yet somehow Allah finds ways to “expose” and reveal it to us as an inspiration.  

I relate to you the story of Ali bin Husayn – who was the grandson of Ali bin Abi Talib, he was also known as Zainul Abidin (the adornment of worshippers)

When he passed away and they washed his janazah, they suddenly discovered that he had these visible black marks on his back – it was said that “this is the back of a person who carries huge loads – but as far as we are aware, he never worked as someone who did that”.

But after his death, people realized that suddenly a hundred homes in Madinah – homes of widows and orphans – these hundred houses suddenly were deprived from food supply. It turns out that all this time, (every night) Ali bin Husayn has been delivering food supply to these houses, and these hundred homes do not know who delivered it to them.

(Enjoy Your Life, chapter “To worship in secret”)

He struggled his utmost level best to keep his deed a secret – and only after his death Allah makes his deed known to people, the inspiring selfless act of charity and demonstration of generosity, and Allah grants so much barakah to it that we are speaking about this contribution 1300 years later.

What can we learn from this?

Don’t worry about the results of your righteous deeds. Worry about how sincere you are. Leave the results to Allah.

5. Closing: Remember Who You Are

If there is only ONE key takeaway message from this talk in our steps towards developing bravery and generosity :

Always take it back to your identity : you are a Mukmin. A believer.

Link it back to Belief in Allah and Last Day. Worry about pleasing Allah, to attain success in the Hereafter. The more you adhere to your identity, the more good deeds you do, the stronger your iman, the more steadfast you are to keep your eyes on the prize: the stronger your will your adherence to re-enforce these behaviors.

To become brave and generous and other traits of awesomeness – that is OUR mark we aspire to achieve.

Remember the words of Mufasa to Simba:

"Remember who you are"

Brothers and sisters,

Our time is now – to seize the day, rise and make our mark. So let’s go out there, and be brave. Be generous. Be legendary. Be believers.

سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ وَبِحَمْدِكَ أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ أَنْتَ أَسْتَغْفِرُكَ وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْكَ

- END -