The Real Obstacle
In the Name of Allâh, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful
by Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips
This discussion focuses on what might be called "the
obstacle". Meaning, the obstacle which is in the way of
Islaam developing here and elsewhere as it should
develop. The intent behind this topic is to elaborate on
some of the fundamental conditions that are necessary
for the Muslim Ummah to achieve what Allaah has made
them responsible to achieve in this life.
Among these fundamental principles is the principle of
taqwaa. This is a term with which many people are
familiar. Taqwaa is usually translated as the fear of Allaah,
of having this quality. It comes from an Arabic verb,
waqa’a yaqee, which means to protect oneself. A shield
is a wiqaayah coming from the same verb, something to
protect yourself with.
Taqwaa also becomes the basis by which people are
considered superior to others in Islaam. Allaah
subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa in the Qur’aan has informed us
that he has favored some people over others.
Sustenance is an example. In 16:81, Allaah says, "Allaah
has favored some of you over others in sustenance."
This is reality. That is, in this life people are not all equal.
Allaah has favored some over others in a variety of
different capacities. However these favors are part of the
tests of this life.
They are not favors on the basis of which we should feel
proud or we should feel superior because feelings of
pride and superiority are cursed. They are something
hated in Islaam. As the Prophet has said, "Whoever has
a mustard seed worth of pride in his heart will never
enter paradise." Pride is something which is particularly
despised in Islaam. This is so to such an extent that if we
were to identify, within the lslamic context, an original sin,
that original sin would be pride.
Pride, of course, was the sin of Satan when he was
commanded by Allaah to bow before Adam, along with
the other angels, he refused to bow, and when Allaah
asked him, not because Allaah did not know, but When
Allaah asked him why he refused to bow to bring what
was inside of him, Satan replied that "You made me from
fire and made him from clay. I am better than him,
because you made me from fire and you made him from
clay."
Of course, when we look at issues of racism and
nationalism, we see similar feelings. People feel they are
better than others because they belong to a particular
race, or because they belong to a particular nationality.
These feelings obviously have no place in Islaam at all,
feelings which are fundamentally opposed to the
teachings of Islaam with regards to Allaah creating
mankind from a single soul, dividing them into various
tribes and nations, as Allaah explained, in order that
human beings may know each other.
In that verse, Allaah goes on to identify what in fact is the
basis under which certain people are considered
superior to others, objectively, in the sight of Allaah . He
said that the most noble of persons in the sight of Allaah
are those who have greater taqwaa. Allaah has therefore
defined that as being the factor which elevates people
over others. As such, Allaah advises us that we should
not wish for those things in which He has favored some
over others.
Taqwaa is not something which Allaah favors some over
others in the sense that he gives so and so taqwaa and
He does not give so and so taqwa. Taqwaa is earned.
He gives so and so much money and he gives so and
so less money, but taqwaa is something which we earn
by an act of faith. In the material world what Allaah has
favours us with is grants which He gives, trusts which He
puts in our hands and as such he has said, "Do not wish
for what Allaah has favored some of you over others."
[4:32]
That is, we should not wish for those things in which
Allaah has favored some of us over others, because
Allaah, knowing the capacities of people, has given them
certain tests which are suitable for them. We may desire
these things but if we had them they may be beyond our
capacity so Allaah advises us not to wish for them. Of
course, they may look as though they would be nice and
good, however we can not predict what the end result
will be for us. Allaah has destined for us to have what we
have because that is what is suitable. The Prophet
sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam has reinforced this in the
hadeeth found in Bukhari and Muslim, in which he said
"look at those below you and not those above you. It is
better for you so that you do not deny Allaah’s blessings
upon you."
Look at those below you. This means, in the material
world, Allaah favors some over others materially. Don’t
look at those who have been favored over you, because
it will only create in your heart discontent and jealousy,
which can destroy your own deeds. Good deeds that
you intend to do can be destroyed by these feelings, so
we are advised not to look to those above us who have
been favored over us.
Instead we look to those below us, because no matter
what circumstance we find ourselves in, there are always
some people who are below us economically, in greater
difficulty and hardship. By doing so, we will realize that,
yes, we are not so badly off after all. Allaah has favored
us in this way and that way and the other way, and in
thinking so we will protect ourselves from Allaah’s
displeasure.
The Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam
had said on the final pilgrimage, as well as on other
occasions when he spoke about the halal being clear
and the haram being clear, pointing to his heart, that
taqwaa is in the heart, fundamentally. Meaning that it is
not something which one can measure. I cannot
measure your level of taqwaa, you cannot measure my
level of taqwaa. We may judge in general by the outer
actions of people saying that well so and so does not
seem to have very much taqwaa because they are doing
a lot of things which are displeasing to Allaah and so and
so seems to have more taqwaa because he or she
seems to be doing a lot of things which are pleasing to
Allaah.
However these are superficial judgments, we really don’t
know what is going on inside of a person. There was a
particular incident which is recorded in Saheeh Muslim,
during the battle of Khaibar, `Umar was quoting the
people as saying so and so is a martyr. People who had
been killed were lying on the battlefield. `Umar was
walking with the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam
and saying as people were saying that this one is a
martyr, that one is a martyr. He came across a person
and said so and so is a martyr. The Prophet sallallaahu
`alayhi wa sallam said "By no means, I have seen him in
hell in a cloak which he took from the spoils dishonestly."
He then told `Umar ibn al Khattab, "Go `Umar announce
to the people three times that only the true believers will
enter paradise."
This hadeeth serves to clarify the point of who truly
believes and who doesn’t. Normally we would assume
that the person who gives his life for the sake of Allaah,
that this is an ultimate act of taqwaa, giving one’s own life
for the sake of Allaah in jihaad. However this individual
was fighting not for the sake of Allaah, in fact he was
fighting for the spoils of war and as such, when he had
an opportunity to steal, to take more than his share from
the spoils, he stole.
His act, though on the outside, led everyone, including
`Umar ibn al Khattab, to judge the man to be a martyr
possessing among the highest of levels of taqwaa, the
Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam said that he saw
him in hell. This is to let us know that taqwaa is not
something that we can ultimately judge from outside, it is
something which is an internal factor.
When we look at the various practices and teachings of
Islaam with regards to acts of worship, we find most of
them, if not all, guiding people towards this state of
taqwaa. For example, with regards to fasting, Allaah
subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa is saying, "O you who believe,
fasting has been prescribed for you as it was for those
before you in order that you may be of those who have
taqwa."
This concept of taqwaa, wherein one seeks to protect
oneself from the wrath of Allaah by doing the things
which are pleasing to Him, one can only do so if one is
conscious of Allaah. This is why the term taqwaa is also
expressed in English as God-consciousness. And when
we look with regards to salaah, we find Allaah saying,
"Establish the prayer for my remembrance." So salaah,
and virtually all aspects of `ibadaah, serve to keep us in a
state of consciousness of Allaah in that when a person is
conscious of Him, aware that He is watching, then that
person would not seek to do the things which would not
be pleasing to Allaah. It is when we forget Allaah that
Satan finds the opening, he is able to approach us,
suggest evil and we fall into evil.
In the end, we are in that state of constant struggle
between the remembrance of Allaah and the
forgetfulness of Allaah. Remembrance of Allaah ensures
righteousness, forgetfulness of Allaah opens the door for
sin. Taqwa is therefore a concept having to do with the
remembrance of Allaah, fearing Allaah, protecting
ourselves form the wrath of Allaah. All of this is related to
taqwaa and all of it represents the goal or the basic
principle, which Islaam seeks to develop in us and
which, ultimately, is the foundation of righteousness.
When a person develops these principles, or works
towards them, their achievement earns one the status of
being a friend of Allaah. Those are the friends of Allaah.
In common belief a friend of Allaah is walee, or
waliyullah, this is the term used by Allaah in the Qur’aan
and the Prophet in his Sunnah. This term is, however,
also translated in common parlance as saint. But in fact
from the Islaamic point of view, we have no saints. And
the qualities or the things which distinguish the so-called
saint in the common people’s eyes is that such an
individual performs miracles.
However from the Islaamic perspective the friend of
Allaah is one who has developed taqwaa. As Allaah said
in Soorah Yunus, 10:63, "Behold certainly no fear and no
grief shall overcome the awliyaa’ of Allaah, the friends of
Allaah, those who believe and have taqwaa." These are
the friends of Allaah.
The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam has explained
this in more detail. As is always the case when we go to
the Qur’aan, we have to look to see what the Sunnah
has to say on the various issues that are addressed in
the Qur’aan. For it is really in the Sunnah that we find the
details identified for us. And there we find a particular
hadeeth reported in both al-Bukhari and Muslim, in
which the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam quotes
something to us from Allaah. This hadeeth is reported
from Abu Hurairah and he quotes the Prophet
Muhammad as saying, "Verily Allaah Almighty said,
‘Whoever seeks to harm a friend of mine, I have
declared a war upon him.’" This is the status of the walee
of Allaah, the friend of Allaah, that whoever seeks to
harm that individual, Allaah has declared war against that
person. This is obviously a state which we all should
seek, this is ultimate protection.
Allaah subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa goes on to explain
through the words of the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa
sallam, in this hadeeth qudsi, meaning that it is not from
the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam himself, he is
actually conveying to us the words of Allaah. Allaah goes
on to say that "My servant does not come closer to Me
by anything more beloved to Me than the things which I
have made compulsory for him." That is, to come closer
to Allaah, to achieve the state of friendship, of being a
friend of Allaah, the route to it is through the basic
compulsory things which Allaah has set. Anyone who
has not established this can never be a friend of Allaah.
In other words, there are no shortcuts to taqwaa.
There are people who offer shortcuts. You do this, if you
say that, and you will be there. But Allaah explains that
the only route is through the compulsory things. He goes
on to say that the slave, after doing the compulsory
things, continues to come closer to Allaah by doing
voluntary acts of worship until Allaah loves him.
Each and every one of the compulsory acts of worship
has a voluntary aspect to it. The compulsory is supposed
to engender in us, should develop in us a desire to do
the voluntary, because the voluntary, when a person is
completing voluntary aspects of worship, then their acts
of worship are transformed from mere ritual into a way of
life. They become part and parcel of a person’s lifestyle.
Salaah is compulsory five times daily, but then we have
what we call sunnah prayers before and after and also a
variety of others. For example, the Prophet sallallaahu
`alayhi wa sallam had said concerning salaatul
istikhaarah that whenever we have an issue to deal with
and have to make a decision, we should make two
rak`aat and make this du`aa. Voluntary salaah for us to
do include witr and tahajjud at night. All of these different
voluntary acts, when made a part of our life, built out of
the compulsory, allow salaah to take on a living quality. It
is shifted from the level of ritual to the level of lifestyle.
Similarly with fasting, one fasts the month of Ramadaan
because it is compulsory. The goal is not just that we fast
Ramadaan every year, but that fasting becomes a way of
life for us. The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam
encouraged us to fast six days in Shawwal. Combine that
with Ramadaan and you get the reward of fasting the
whole year. This still leaves us with the middle three
days of every lunar month, the 13th, 14th, 15th; then he
used to fast on Mondays and Thursdays, as he said,
"Mondays and Thursdays the gates of paradise are
open." These are some of the voluntary fasts that we are
encouraged to complete. What we are trying to develop
therefore, is a consistent attitude towards fasting, where
fasting is something that we are doing on a regular
basis. Fasting is developing self-restraint, personal
control over desires, whether for food, or for sexual
relations, or control over our tongues. All of this, this
control is not something that we need only one month in
a year, it is something that we need throughout the year.
This does not become a reality until fasting becomes a
way of life for us.
Similarly zakaah is compulsory on a yearly basis, once a
year. However, again, zakaah is there to develop in us
an attitude towards sadaqa, develop in us generosity,
where it is something which is automatic. Whenever we
have an opportunity to share with others, to help others,
we reach out. This is a way of life, these are the aspects
of taqwaa. We develop this through the implementation
of the fundamental principles of Islaam and then build on
top of them the voluntary acts of worship. Allaah then
went on in the hadeeth quoted by the Prophet
sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam to say that when a person
acts this way then Allaah will answer any prayer that he
asks, and if such a person seeks Allaah’s protection,
Allaah will protect him.
If we seek the love of Allaah - and Allaah loves those
who are His friends, as well as those who in general do
good, but there is a special love for those who are His
friends - then we have to attain and achieve that love
through establishing the things which are compulsory for
us. That’s the bottom line.
And Allaah had said in the Qur’aan, clarifying this point,
saying, "If you love Allaah, then follow me (the Prophet
sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam), and Allaah will love you."
Following him is by doing the things which are
compulsory, then building on top of it the recommended
acts so that they become a way of life. Now once that
becomes a reality, then in fact we will achieve happiness
in this life. This is the bottom line to happiness,
something that everybody struggles for.
Materialist society offers a variety of different paths to
achieve happiness. However, in reality, we should be
aware that the happiness achieved by material pastimes
is limited - holidays, for instance, begin and end. The car
runs for so many years and it breaks down. A house may
be nice at one time, then it may become less attractive or
inadequate.
The things which are associated with happiness in this
life, material things, are passing things. Once you have
them then you seek other material things because in fact
this happiness is only a fulfillment of a physical desire.
And when you fulfill a physical desire, there are other
desires to replace it soon afterwards.
And even that physical desire, when you fulfill it, it is likely
to increase itself in the same area. As the Prophet
sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam has said, "If a man were
given a valley of gold, he will desire another one." In the
West we say, the grass is always greener on the other
side, this is our desire. There is no end.
The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam has said, our
desire does not end until we are in the grave. We can
never achieve happiness through fulfillment of material
desires. Happiness only comes with taqwaa. As Allaah
subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa says, "It is only with the
remembrance of Allaah that the hearts find rest."
When a person achieves taqwaa, then his or her heart
comes to rest, meaning that they are not driven
constantly to want more. Whenever problems arise they
are not in a state of confusion and fear and doubt
because their hearts are at rest. They understand the
vicissitudes of life, the ups and the downs, they
understand that it is part of the test, that ultimately the
whole of their life is reward, blessings. As the Prophet
sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam has said, the whole of a
believer’s life is good, and this is only the case of a true
believer, if a good comes to him, he thanks Allaah and
Allaah rewards him for that good, he doesn’t forget
Allaah with it. And if harm comes to him, a calamity
strikes, he is patient and Allaah again rewards him for it.
The Prophet mentions the whole of life, because life is
between these two, isn’t it? Calamity and success.
Difficulty and ease. As Allaah says in the Qur’aan, "With
every difficulty comes ease". What happens is that both
sides of the coin are tests, in the good times, when ease
is there, it’s a test. Do we become so happy with our
success that we forget Allaah and our responsibility, or
do we thank Allaah remembering that it is really from
Allaah, even though yes, we strove, we tried, but
ultimately achieving that was from Allaah, because we
cannot guarantee the results of any of our acts. We can
strive, we can decide, make decisions, we can move,
but whether we are successful in our efforts or not this is
according to the destiny of Allaah, what Allaah grants us.
If we get something, this is a blessing of Allaah so
remember that it is a blessing, thank Allaah and whatever
good is in there we try to share with others.
In a time of difficulty, we realize yes, it is a result of some
evil that we have done and whatever harm befalls us,
whatever pain we feel, it is a purification for our sins, so it
is about being patient. We patiently bear it knowing that it
is not going to last forever, calamity, difficulty does not
come to a person and just remains, but it is raised after
some time, so if we are patient then Allaah rewards us
even in the time of calamity. But as the Prophet
sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam said, patience is exercised
at the time of calamity, not afterwards.
On one occasion when he said that statement, he had
passed by a woman who was crying, tears, screaming,
wailing. He asked the woman what the problem was and
advised her to control herself. She didn’t know who he
was so she turned to him and said what do you know
what has befallen me, it has not befallen you, you don’t
know. Maybe, in other words, if this happened to you,
maybe you would be screaming just like me, maybe
even worse. So the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa
sallam went on. This obviously was someone he could
not communicate with at that moment. Then other
people told her, that was the Prophet of Allaah. So she
ran to him and said, "sorry, sorry…I shouldn’t do this, I
shouldn’t have said this..." Patience is at the time of
calamity. That is when patience is required.
Keeping this in mind, we need to approach our worship
with renewed vigor. After we have been Muslims for a
while or after we have returned to Islaam, sometimes it is
very easy to fall back into a routine. When obligations
are done routinely, again though we might be fulfilling
the ritual, the real reward is lost because it is only when
we do that ritual with full fervor, really from our heart,
sincerely, that we are getting reward. Otherwise, just the
physical movements of salaah, fajr, dhuhr and `asr, these
remove the obligation of prayer but do not earn for us
reward.
Without sincerity in our worship we don’t grow, and we
should constantly be seeking growth, because none of
us has prayed the perfect prayer. This means that there
is room for improvement, constantly. We know that there
is so much more we can do, so we should strive to look
back in our prayer and ask ourselves to what degree are
we in fact praying as we should. The Prophet
Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam said, "Pray as
you saw me praying," but he is not only talking about the
physical movement, which is a part of it, he is also talking
about the spiritual aspect of that prayer.
He is encouraging us to try to seek fundamentally that
complete prayer. This is what we have to work for. And
whenever we lose that desire to work for it, then we
know that we are in trouble, we have slipped backwards,
we have to constantly check ourselves and step up
again.
The same is true with fasting, the first time we fasted in
Ramadaan. Whether it is for those of us who have
converted to Islaam or those of us who reverted by
becoming aware of their Islaam again, we know that the
first fast, based on a conscious choice, had a certain
greatness and power that each subsequent fast seems
to have lost. In fact we should be going from strength to
strength. We should be striving to maintain that level. It is
maintainable, not as a constant, there will always be ups
and downs, that is how our faith is, our taqwaa. Taqwaa
is not such that you reach a certain level and you are
there 100% all the time. Taqwaa is going up and going
down, it increases and decreases. We have to work for
that increase, to keep it increasing. Fundamentally, what
increases taqwaa are righteous deeds, and what
decreases it are evil deeds.
That is the bottom line, there are no secrets in Islaam on
how to increase taqwaa. There is no secret formula. It is
very clear and well-known that righteous deeds increase
taqwaa. To do a righteous deed is to consciously seek
that which is pleasing to Allaah. We should constantly be
seeking the pleasure of Allaah. Naturally that means
increasing our awareness of Allaah. When we fall into
evil, when we are weakening our faith, the wrongful act
itself weakens our faith, because what is connected with
it is forgetfulness of Allaah and what comes with that
forgetfulness ultimately is misery, a state of misery.
As we have said, with the remembrance of Allaah comes
true happiness, the happiness that can remain with us,
happiness in the sense of contentedness which can
remain with us through times of ease as well as times of
difficulty.
What comes with forgetfulness of Allaah is a state of
misery, it is a state where we are mostly concerned with
material things, trying to fulfill our endless quest for them,
trying to achieve happiness through them and being
incapable of doing so.
This is why Allaah says in the Qur’aan, "Whoever turns
away from my remembrance will find himself, or herself,
in a miserable life". And the Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi
wa sallam emphasized that by saying, "The slave or
worshipper of the Dirham and Deenaar (in our context,
the Dollar; the worshipper of money), will always be
miserable." One who makes money the entire purpose
of life will never be satisfied, he said the more they have
they more they want. Also, when they attain so much
they cannot use it because they are worried about
people trying to steal it. Therefore, there is just a constant
state of turmoil that a person gets caught up in. That’s the
state of those who have forgotten Allaah.
We must always therefore strive to establish the
fundamentals. We cannot build closeness to Allaah
without the fundamentals. If the fundamentals are not in
order, then no matter what additional things we do, they
will not bring us closer to Allaah. We cannot give
precedence to secondary acts over the fundamental acts
as in the case, for example, of salaat al fajr.
We have the practice among some people that if they
come to the masjid and the jam`aah has begun, they will
still seek to do the two rakah sunnah before joining the
jama’ah, believing that this sunnah is a sunnah
mu’akkadah - an emphasized sunnah that the prophet
Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam never left. It is
true, he never left these sunnah, even when he was
traveling, when he would drop all of the sunnah, he
would always pray the two rakkah before fajr,
emphasizing that it is very strongly recommended.
However if the compulsory prayer has begun then this is
not the time to do those sunnah. The Prophet sallallaahu
`alayhi wa sallam had said whenever the compulsory
prayer has been called for no other prayer is acceptable
except that prescribed prayer. There is a principle drawn
from that in Islaamic law, that you do not give
precedence to sunnah over fard, voluntary over the
compulsory.
We always have to build our base first and foremost, by
concentrating on the compulsory. This is where our
greatest emphasis should be. And the sunnah is in
addition, to help us. If we look at sunnah practices they
are there to help us with the compulsory. They help to fill
the void created by laxity or deficiencies in our
compulsory and at the same time give us more fervor
and prepare us in the best manner for the compulsory.
When we do sunnah before the fard, what are we doing
is preparing ourselves to deal with the fard. This is why it
is important to keep that sunnah there to help us,
because if you jump straight into the fard coming out of a
work situation, usually you are carrying all of your
environment, all of your experiences there with you.
Whereas if you do sunnah first, you have to start bringing
yourself into a correct frame of mind. This is worship.
This is why we are instructed whenever we go to the
masjid we should pray two rak`ahs before sitting down.
When you sit down, your friend next to you, you start
talking about this and that and the other - you forget you
are in the masjid. By praying before sitting down, you put
yourself in that proper frame of mind, help prepare
yourself for the compulsory.
The two are there, side by side, but our primary
emphasis should be on the compulsory. With all the
various acts which we are trying to build on top of that, by
engaging in the voluntary, inshaa’ Allaah we will achieve
that status, that high status that Allaah has identified as
being a "friend of Allaah". This is something worthy for
each and everyone of us to seek.
Courtesy Of: Islaam.com