THE NEED FOR CERTAINTY OF BELIEF

It is not possible for one to have patience if he has nothing from which to derive inner peace, something from which he attains joy and which gives him sustenance: certainty of faith. The Prophet said in hadith:

“Ask Allah for forgiveness and good health for , verily, after certainty of faith, no one has been given anything better than good health.” Read the rest of this entry »

PATIENCE IS NECESSARY IN THE DOING OF GOOD

A Muslim must have patience in doing what he has been ordered, and in avoiding what he has been forbidden and prohibited. Also included in this is patience in the face of persecution, and upon being spoken ill of, and patience in the face of the various calamities. Also, patience is required in times of ease and plenty so that one does not become proud, boastful, and haughty, and other types of patience.

THE SEVERITY OF THE TEST CAUSES ELEVATION OF RANK

When the test becomes severe, that is for the righteous believer a cause for the elevation of his rank, and the greatness of his reward, as can be seen in the following hadith: Read the rest of this entry »

EVIL MUST BE MET WITH GOOD

For this reason, the believers have been ordered to face evil deeds with their opposites, just as the doctor meets illness with its opposite. So, the believer is ordered to reform himself, and that is by means of two things: doing of good deeds, and avoiding bad deeds. This in spite of the forces and motivators which oppose the doing of good, and encourage the doing of evil, and these are both of four types, as we have said. Read the rest of this entry »

GOOD MUST SUPPORT GOOD AS BAD SUPPORTS BAD

This is also the condition of the Ummah in those issues over which it has become divided and has differed over statements and acts of worship. These issues are among the things which bring about great trials upon the believers. They are in desparate need of two things: They need to repel the evil with which their peers have been afflicted, both in affairs of religion and worldly affairs, away from themselves, in spite of the drive within themselves calling to the same things. Read the rest of this entry »

CATEGORIES OF PEOPLE IN THIS ISSUE

People, with respect to this issue, can be divided into three categories:

One group does not become aroused except by the hawaa of their own selves. They are not contented except with those things which they have been given, and do not anger except because of something which they have been denied. If such a person is given all that he desires from the halal and the haram, his anger disappears, and he is contented. When he is given his desires, those things which he called evil, which he actively forbid others and punished them for indulging in them, became angry with them, and openly criticized them, when he obtains these things, he suddenly becomes an indulger in them, and a partner and helper of their users, and a staunch enemy of those who order the people to stay away from these things, and point out to them their evil. Read the rest of this entry »

HUMAN NATURE: TYRANNY, ENVY AND OPPRESSION

Within the human self is a drive to oppress others by tyrannizing them, and by envying them, and by violating their rights. Within it, also, are drives to oppress itself by indulging in despicable acts, such as adultery and consuming unclean things. Thus, a person may oppress others without first being oppressed, and may lust after those indulgences, even though no one around him is doing them. However, when he sees his peers oppressing, or indulging in these desires, a drive appears in him to do these things which is much stronger than previously. Read the rest of this entry »

SUCCESS IN WORLDLY AFFAIRS IS BY JUSTICE

The affairs of the people will go straight with the presence of justice which may be mixed with some types of sin more than they will go straight in the presence of oppression and injustice in the rights of the people, even if it is not mixed with other sins. Thus, it has been said: “Allah establishes the just state even if it is disbelieving, and does not establish the oppressing state, even if it is Muslim.”

It has been said: “The affairs of this world last with justice and kufr, but they do not last with oppression and Islam.” Read the rest of this entry »

TYPES OF SINS

For this reason, sins are of three type:

1) Sins which entail oppression of others, such as taking of peoples property, or denying them their rights, or envy or others (of the greater type), etc.

2) Sins which entail only oppression of one’s self, such as drinking intoxicants, and fornication when its harm does not affect others. Read the rest of this entry »

GREED IS THE CAUSE OF SLIPPING INTO DEVIATION

The origin of all of these problems is greedy desire (shuhh). The Prophet explains this in the following sahih hadith:

“Beware of shuhh (greedy desire), for verily it destroyed those who came before you. It ordered them to be miserly and they were miserly, it ordered them to commit oppression and they oppressed, and it ordered them to cut family ties and they cut family ties.” Read the rest of this entry »