O Parents! You Cannot Build Without a Model - II

Dr. ‘Ali Hassoon spoke about the upbringing of Sultan Muhammad Al-Faatih saying,Since his succession to the throne of the Ottoman Empire in 855 A.H. (1451 CE), he was looking forward to the conquest of Constantinople and thinking about it. He was raised by scholars who instilled love for Islam in him and taught him how to adhere to the Quran and the Sunnah (tradition). So, he grew up with a strong love for Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation), adherence to piety, reverence for scholars and affection for spreading knowledge. His sublime religiousness was due to the religious upbringing that he received since his early childhood in accordance with the directions of his father and with the help of a number of senior scholars who supervised his education and upbringing.Muhammad Al-Faatih was influenced by the righteous scholars since his early childhood, particularly the senior righteous scholar, Ahmad ibn Ismaa‘eel Al-Kooraani  who was known for his virtue. This righteous man was the greatest teacher of Muhammad Al-Faatih during his father’s reign.At that time, Muhammad Al-Faatih was the ruler of Magnesia, and his father sent him a number of educators and teachers. However, he disobeyed them and refused to let them teach him anything. He did not even memorize the whole Quran. So, his father asked for a man with gravity and seriousness and they told him about Al-Kooraani . Hence, he appointed him as the teacher of his son and gave him a stick to beat Muhammad if he disobeyed him. Al-Kooraani  went to Muhammad with the stick in his hand, and said, “Your father sent me to teach you and beat you if you disobey me.” Muhammad Al-Faatih laughed much when he heard this, but Al-Koorani  beat him severely until he showed due respect for him and started memorizing the Quran until he completed it within a short period.This great leader was educated and brought up by scholars who provided him with a true Islamic upbringing. Those revered educators used to tear up the decrees of the Sultan if it contained anything that contradicted the rulings of Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation). They used to address the rulers with their names. They never bowed before the rulers or kissed their hands; on the contrary, the rulers used to kiss their hands. Hence, it is not strange for such educators to graduate a great leader like Muhammad Al-Faatih, who was a religious Muslim who complied with the rulings of Sharee‘ah and glorified it. He was a righteous and pious ruler who consulted the scholars and asked them to supplicate for him. Dear educator, consider this extraordinary example Muhammad Al-Faatih, who conquered Constantinople, and how his father brought him up in accordance with this influential theory. He attached him to the righteous scholar, who taught him the Quran. Interestingly, Al-Kooraani  was not the only influential scholar in the life of Muhammad Al-Faatih, but there was another scholar (Aaq Shams Ad-Deen ) who drew the attention of Muhammad Al-Faatih to conquer Constantinople.Sahl ibn ‘Abdullaah At-Tustari learns from his uncle: Al-Ghazaali reported that Sahl, May Allaah Have mercy upon them both, said,I did that and informed my uncle.“Say the words seven times each night,” he said to me.I did that and informed him.“Say them eleven times.” I did that and found sweetness in my heart therefrom. A year passed. Then my uncle said, “Remember what I taught you and continue that practice until you go to the grave. The fruits thereof will be yours in this world and the Hereafter.”Years passed, and I used the same words until their sweetness penetrated the depths of my heart.“Sahl,” said my uncle, “As long as Allaah is with you and Sees you, how can you disobey Him? Beware of disobeying Him.”Through this good instruction, guidance, and continuous training as well as this religious upbringing, Sahl  became one of the senior righteous worshippers in the history of Islam.Finally, dear educator, you must be sure that the child who sees his father lying can never learn truthfulness, and the child who sees his mother cheating his father or his brother, will never be honest. The child, who sees that his mother is heedless, will not learn cooperation or adhere to discipline.The family is the incubator that sows the early seeds of morals and behavior in the child and shapes his emotions and feelings through the behavior of its members.I was three years old when I used to wake up at night to watch the prayer of my uncle Muhammad ibn Siwaar. One day, he said to me, “Should not you remember Allaah The Almighty who created you?” I said, “How should I remember Him?” He replied, “Say in your heart, whenever you are alone at night in your bed rolling from side to side, three times without moving your tongue: Allaah is with me, Allaah is ‎ Looking at me, Allaah is ‎ Watching me.”

Asceticism is the Way to be Loved - I

Asceticism, or Zuhd, is to abandon the desire for something for the sake of something which is better, and to abandon the comfort of this world for the sake of that of the Hereafter. It also means that the heart should not desire anything that one does not possess. Knowing that this worldly life is temporary and will eventually come to an end helps the slave of Allaah to be this way.Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Know that the life of this world is but amusement and diversion and adornment and boasting to one another and competition in increase of wealth and children - like the example of rain whose [resulting] plant growth pleases the tillers; then it dries and you see it turned yellow; then it becomes [scattered] debris. And in the Hereafter is severe punishment and forgiveness from Allaah and approval. And what is the worldly life except the enjoyment of delusion.}[Quran 57:20] Allaah The Almighty has called this life the “enjoyment of delusion” and has forbidden us from being deceived by it. He has also informed us of the evil end of those who are deceived by this worldly life, He warns us of being considered with the same recompense that they deserved for what they committed and has dispraised whoever is satisfied or feels secure therein. He has dispraised such people because He knows that after this worldly life is an abode which is greater and more honored: the home of final settlement.In addition, the slave of Allaah the Almighty knows that his asceticism in this worldly life will not prevent him from receiving what was decreed for him and his keenness on it does not bring him what was not decreed for him. When the slave of Allaah The Almighty is certain of this fact, he will abandon the inclination to things that do not bring benefit in the Hereafter. However, being ascetic towards things that bring benefit in the Hereafter is not a religious act and its doer is addressed in the verse in which Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {O you who have believed, do not prohibit the good things which Allaah has made lawful to you and do not transgress. Indeed, Allaah does not like transgressors.} [Quran 5:87]The Essence of AsceticismAsceticism in this worldly life does not mean that one should reject it, as Sulaymaan (Solomon) and Daawood (David), may Allaah exalt their mention, were the most ascetic men of their time while they had considerable wealth, kingship and a number of wives. The Prophet  was the most ascetic person ever, yet he had nine wives. ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib, ‘Abdur-Rahmaan ibn ‘Awf, Az-Zubayr and ‘Uthmaan  and many others were ascetic people while they were wealthy. Imaam Ahmad was asked, “Can a rich person be ascetic?” He answered, “Yes, if he does not rejoice with the increase of his wealth or grieve over its decrease.”Al-Hasan  said, “Asceticism does not mean wasting wealth or making what is lawful unlawful; rather, it is to have confidence in what is in the Hand of Allaah more than what is in one’s own hand, and [it is also] that one’s condition at the time of a calamity and that under normal circumstances is alike; and to have the same attitude towards the one who praises you and the one who dispraises you for the sake of the truth.” This is true asceticism, therefore, a slave of Allaah The Almighty might be the richest person, yet he is of the most ascetic because his heart is not attached to this worldly life. On the other hand, another slave of Allaah The Almighty may be the poorest of people, but he is not an ascetic at all because his heart clings to this worldly life.Kinds of AsceticismAsceticism with regards to abstaining from what is unlawful is an individual obligation, and abandoning suspicious matters is obligatory if it is a strong suspicion; however, if it is weak, abandoning the suspicious matter is merely recommended. There is asceticism with regards to abandoning speech, looking, inquiring, meeting and other things that are not required or called for. Also, there is asceticism regarding people and asceticism regarding one's own self when one sacrifices himself in the cause of Allaah The Almighty. The comprehensive asceticism is being ascetic in everything except in things that are with Allaah The Almighty and being ascetic in everything that keeps him away from Him. The best kind of asceticism is one that is concealed, and the most difficult kind is in things that are lawful.Virtues of AsceticismIn many verses, Allaah The Almighty praises asceticism and dispraises any inclination to worldly life, as He the Almighty Says (what means):• {And they rejoice in the worldly life, while the worldly life is not, compared to the Hereafter, except [brief] enjoyment.} [Quran 13:26]• {The example of [this] worldly life is but like rain which We have sent down from the sky that the plants of the earth absorb - [those] from which men and livestock eat - until, when the earth has taken on its adornment and is beautified and its people suppose that they have capability over it, there comes to it Our command by night or by day, and We make it as a harvest, as if it had not flourished yesterday. Thus do We explain in detail the signs for a people who give thought.} [Quran 10:24]• {In order that you not despair over what has eluded you and not exult [in pride] over what He has given you. And Allaah does not like everyone self-deluded and boastful -}[Quran 57:23]Also, Allaah The Almighty relates the story of the believing man of the family of Fir‘awn (Pharaoh), where He Says (what means): {O my people, this worldly life is only [temporary] enjoyment, and indeed, the Hereafter - that is the home of [permanent] settlement.} [Quran 40:39]Ibn Mas‘ood  narrated that the Messenger of Allaah  said: “I forbade you to visit graves, but you may now visit them as this would make you ascetic towards this worldly life and remind you of the Hereafter.” Sahl ibn Sa‘d As-Saa‘idi  said, “A man came to the Prophet  and said, ‘O Messenger of Allaah, guide me to an action which, if I do it, Allaah will love me and the people will also love me.’ The Prophet said: ‘Be ascetic in this worldly life and Allaah would love you. Be ascetic towards what is in the hands of others [meaning, do not desire what is in their possession] and they would love you.’” Sahl ibn Sa‘d As-Saa‘idi  also said, “The Prophet  said:‘Were this worldly life worth even the wing of a mosquito in the sight of Allaah, He would not have given even a drink of water to a disbeliever in this worldly life.’ ”The Prophets Were the most Ascetic of PeopleThe Prophets and Messengers are examples for people in their asceticism in this worldly life and inclination to the Hereafter, as Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {They are the ones whom Allaah has guided, so from their guidance take an example.} [Quran 6:90] Anyone who reads the biography of the Prophet  would know how he would patch up his own garment, mend his shoes and milk his sheep. Also, he never quenched his hunger, even with barley bread, for two consecutive days until he died, and would even pass whole days without eating, not even finding degraded dates to eat. Also, in the Battle of Al-Ahzaab, he became so hungry that he tied a rock on his stomach, and three months would pass and he and his family would not light a fire in their house in order to cook; their only sustenance would be dates and water. He  would say: “O Allaah, there is no true life except that of the Hereafter, so forgive the Ansaar and the Muhaajiroon.” ‘Aa’ishah  said, “The bedding of the Messenger of Allaah  was a piece of tanned skin stuffed with palm fibers.” She once bought out a patched-up upper garment and a thick lower garment and said, “The Messenger of Allaah  died wearing these two.”

Asceticism is the Way to be Loved - II

The Righteous Follow the Way of the ProphetsThe righteous follow the way of the Prophet  as he was the model example. ‘Ali  said, “All goodness is for those who are ascetic in this worldly life and those who incline to the Hereafter. They are those who took the land as their rug, its dust as their mattress, its water as their perfume, the Quran as their slogan, and supplication as their garment. They completely renounced the worldly life.”Abu Ad-Dardaa’  wrote a letter to some of his friends, saying, “I advise you to fear Allaah, to be ascetic in this worldly life, and to desire what is with Allaah. If you do so, Allaah will love you for your desire for what is with Him, and people will love you for leaving their worldly lives for them. As-Salaamu Alaykum.”‘Urwah ibn Az-Zubayr  reported that the Mother of the Believers, ‘Aa’ishah once received eighty thousand Dirhams from Mu‘aawiyah  and by that evening she did not have even a single Dirham left. Her maid said to her, “Should you not have bought a Dirham’s worth of meat for us?” She replied, “If you had reminded me, I would have done.”Ibn Mas‘ood  said, “The worldly life is the home of those who have no home and the wealth of those who have no wealth. The one who has no knowledge accumulates in it.”When ‘Umar  reached Ash-Shaam (greater Syria), his soldiers met him while he was wearing a lower garment, a pair of leather socks and a turban. He was pulling along his riding animal and walking in puddles. The soldiers said to him, “O commander of the believers, Will the soldiers and patriarchs of Ash-Shaam meet you while you are in this state?” He replied, “We are people whom Allaah has honored by Islam, so we will not seek honor in anything else.”A man visited Abu Tharr  and looked around at his house and said, “O Abu Tharr, I do not see any belongings or furniture in your house!” He replied, “We have another house [i.e., his house in Paradise] to which we send our good belongings.” He added, “The owner of the house [i.e., Allaah] will not leave us in this house.”‘Amr ibn Al-‘Aas  said in a sermon that he delivered in Egypt, “What a huge difference there is between your way and the guidance of your Prophet ! He was the most ascetic of people in this worldly life while you are the most inclining of people towards it.”‘Ali  said, “I married Faatimah while we had no bedding but the skin of a ram that we would sleep on at night and place the fodder for the camel on it during the day. I had no one to serve me but her, and she would get so exhausted that her forelock would fall on the edge of the bowl when she kneaded.”When Mu‘aath ibn Jabal  was about to die, he said, “O Allaah, You know that I did not love this worldly life and longevity in it for the sake of digging rivers or planting trees [i.e., the sustenance in this worldly life]. Rather, [I wanted it] for the sake of fasting during the day, performing voluntary prayers at night, and attending the assemblies of remembering Allaah, despite them being crowded.”Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal  mentioned that the best person from the generation that succeeded that of the Companions of the Prophet  in terms of knowledge was Sa‘eed ibn Al-Musayyib  but the finest in general was ’Uways Al-Qarni . ’Uways  would say, “Take death as a pillow when you go to sleep and put it before your eyes when you are awake.”Maalik ibn Dinaar  said, “A person intends to marry the most beautiful woman in the district, so she says to him. ‘I want garments made of wool’, then she takes away his religion.”Many of the righteous predecessors would refuse to take lawful money that was offered to them and would say, “We will not take it lest it ruins our religion.”Hammaad ibn Salamah  would open his shop, and if he earned just two Dirhams, he would close it.Sa‘eed ibn Al-Musayyib  would trade in oil, and after his death he left four hundred Dinaars, saying, “I left them to protect my honor and religion.”Sufyaan Ath-Thawri  said, “Asceticism in this worldly life is to not have the hope of a long life, rather it is to eat rough food or wear rough clothes.”Ash-Shaafi‘i  also dispraised this worldly life and being attached to it.Abu Sulaymaan Ad-Daaraani  would say, “All that distracts you from Allaah The Almighty, whether family, wealth or children, is a misfortune.”People Far Better than Us were Deprived of the Pleasures of this Worldly LifeIt is enough to know that being ascetic is a part of taking the Prophet  and his companions as examples. This act is perfect reliance upon Allaah The Almighty and instills contentment in the heart, which in turn leads to the comfort of this worldly life and the happiness of the Hereafter. The ascetic person is loved by Allaah The Almighty and by other people. Therefore, if you have possessions, praise Allaah The Almighty and do not let your heart be attached to the worldly life. Likewise, if you are poor, be patient, for people who were better than you were deprived of the pleasures of this worldly life. Our Prophet  would sleep on a mat such that its marks appeared on his body, and he died while there was no provision on the shelf of ‘Aa’ishah except a handful of barley that she would eat from. If one were to enter the rooms of his wives, his head would touch the ceiling. ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab  the caliph of the Muslims, once delivered a sermon wearing a garment that had twelve patches.These people were not deprived of the pleasures of this worldly life because of their abasement in the sight of Allaah The Almighty, rather because of the abasement of the worldly life in His sight, which does not even equal the weight of a wing of a mosquito; and the two voluntary units of prayer before Fajr prayer are better than this worldly life and what it contains. In order for one not to despair over what has eluded him, he should not exult in pride over what Allaah The Almighty has given him. The believer does not become disappointed over being disgraced in it nor compete with others over its glory, as he has his own concern and they have other concerns.
Be the slave of Allaah The Almighty at times of hardship and ease, and at times of activity and suffering. Whether the worldly life approaches you or turns away from you, its approaching is refraining and its turning away is approaching. The basic rule is that it approaches you with what you dislike, and when it approaches you with what you like, this is an exception.