Surah Nahl 16:125-128
بِسمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحمَـنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
ٱدعُ إِلَى سَبِيلِ رَبِّكَ بِٱلحِكمَةِ وَٱمَوعِظَةِ ٱلحَسَنَةِ وَجَـدِلهُم بِٱلَّتِى هِىَ أَحسَنُ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعلَمُ بِمَن ضَلَّ عَن سَبِيلِهِ وَهُوَ أَعلَمُ بِٱلمُهتَدِينَ (١٢٥) وَإِن عَاقَبتُم فَعَاقِبُواْ بِمِثلِ مَا عُوقِبتُم بِهِ وَلَن صَبَرتُمۡ لَهُوَ خَيرٌ لِّلصَّـبِرِينَ (١٢٦) وَٱصبِر وَمَا صَبرُكَ إِلَّا بِٱللَّهِ وَلَا تَحۡزَن عَلَيهِم وَلَا تَكُ فِى ضَيقٍ مِّمَّا يَمۡرُونَ (١٢٧) إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ مَعَ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱتَّقَواْ وَّٱلَّذِينَ هُم مُّحسِنُونَ (١٢٨)
Call unto the way of thy Lord with wisdom and fair exhortation, and reason with them in the better way. Lo! thy Lord is Best Aware of him who strayeth from His way, and He is best aware of those who go aright. (125) If ye punish, then punish with the like of that wherewith ye were afflicted. But if ye endure patiently, verily it is better for the patient. (126) Endure thou patiently (O Muhammad). Thine endurance is only by (the help of) Allah. Grieve not for them, and be not in distress because of that which they devise. (127) Lo! Allah is with those who keep their duty unto Him and those who are doers of good. (128)
Background: Surah Nahl is the Surah that describes the Naimah (blessings) that Allah Subhanawataala has given us. He (Subhanawtaala then wants us to show gratitude to His naimah and he describes how that gratitude can be expressed by sharing the blessing of Islam with others and the tafseer outlines the etiquette of doing so:
TAFSEER BY DR, FARHAT HASHMI (translated)
How do you demonstrate gratitude for the naimah of Islam?
By sharing the message with others. There are several methods of sharing:
To share the naimah one must do it by:
- By daleels (proofs)
- By appealing by those things that appeal to the heart of that particular individual.
- Engaging emotions
- Engaging the heart
- With wisdom
- Give proofs, use debates, which are ehsan, beautified
- What is Ehsaan?
* When an act is done only for the sake of Allah
* When we have sincere reasons and method
* It is done according to the Sunnah
* It is carried out with the excellence of the Ikhlaaq (As per Etiquette) of the Prophet pbuh
Exceptions are those who did Dhulm (OPRESSION)
E.g. When Prophet Muhammad addressed the letter to the Emperor of Rome. He (pbuh) addressed him with the respectful title used by the Emperor’s people.
In other places also in the Quran and by Prophet Muhammad different groups are addressed respectfully by their titles:
Ahle Kitaab: title of the people of the book
Ma balo aqwaam: O people
He (PBUH) addressed people with the respect and title that is accorded to them he did not downgrade them in any way.
We have a model to emulate.
End tafseer
letter from Prophet Muhammad to the king with seal: courtesy flickr:http://www.flickr.com/photos/omair/89675792/in/photostream/
Working and learning:courtesy flickr: Quran
The first element in the cycle of Tazkiya is ‘ILM – KNOWLEDGE
WHY SHOULD WE SEEK ‘ILM?
To fulfill ‘uboodiyyah – Obedience, Worship, Slavehood to Allah swt alone – which is the Grandest of all aims for which Allah, swt created us
Allah, swt says in Surat ad Dhaariyaat:
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلإِنسَ إِلاَّ لِيَعْبُدُونِ
51 : 56 : I created the jinn and humankind only that they might worship Me.
We cannot fulfill ‘Uboodiyyah to Him, swt in a state of ignorance. Therefore, seeking ‘ilm so we may learn to worship, serve and obey Allah swt becomes an obligation on every sane man /woman of faith.
RasulAllah, s.a, says: طلب العلم فريضة علي كل مسلم
“Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim” – Ibn Majah and Tirmidhi
POWERFUL AFFIRMATION Of SUPERIORITY OF THE LEARNED
Allah, swt says in Surah Zumar:
قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ إِنَّمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ أُوْلُوا الْأَلْبَابِ
39:9.Say: “Are those equal, those who know and those who do not know? It is those who are endued with understanding that receive admonition.
The answer to this question is so obvious, that He, swt, does not bother to answer!!!
BUT DO ALL BRANCHES OF ‘ILM FALL UNDER THIS CATEGORY – DO ALL SCHOLARS QUALIFY FOR THIS ELEVATED STATE? – NO!
Only ‘ilm whose fruit is Khashya of Allah swt – Reverent Awe of Allah swt that results from Loving only Him, swt and fearing to displease only Him, swt. As He explains in Surah Fatir:
إِنَّمَا يَخْشَى اللَّهَ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ الْعُلَمَاء
35:28 Those truly fear Allah, among His Servants, who have knowledge
In Arabic – إِنَّمَا is a tool for indicating emphatically, no exceptions
The ‘ilm that does not lead to Khashya is in reality not ’ilm.
WHAT IS THIS ‘ILM? According to the ‘ulamaa’:
Knowledge of Halaal and Haraam in ‘ibaadah and day to day living
Knowledge of the Qur’an and Sunnah
Knowledge that increases my awareness of Allah swt and IKHLAAS (Purity in deeds)
HOW DO I KNOW I AM LEARNING?
My actions (Heart and limbs) change for the better – slowly and consistently.
WHAT KEEPS ME GOING IN THIS UPHILL STRUGGLE TO SEEK ILM? These inspiring words from RasulAllah, s.a:
“The one that Allah, swt wills goodness for, He, swt gives him deep understanding (FIQH) of the Deen” – Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim
من يرد الله به خيرا يفقه في الدين
“The elevated state of a learned one (who practices the ‘ilm) in comparison to a worshipper of God (but not learned) is like the exalted status of me (RasulAllah, s.a) over the lowest of you ” – Tirmidhi
فضل العالم على العابد كفضلي على أدناكم
“The one who traverses the path to knowledge, Allah, swt facilitates for him by it, his way to Paradise”- Narrated by Muslim
من سلك طريقا يلتمس فيه علما سهل الله له به طريقا إلى الجنة
SUBHAANALLAH!!! What are we waiting for??? Every step to a class of beneficial ‘ilm, to a conference, to a halaqa, to a retreat is a step towards Jannah. Not renunciation of Dunya and day-to-day living, BUT through organization and prioritization, Biiznillah to give some time everyday to learn to live ‘uboodiyyah.
PARABLE OF THREE KINDS OF HUMAN BEINGS:
Rasul Allah, s.a categorizes humans into three based on their response to Beneficial ‘Ilm in a Hadeeth narrated in Sahih al Bukhari and Muslim–
The ‘ilm that Allah swt sent in the message of RasulAllah, s.a is like rain. A Pure and good land accepts the water and produces fruit and herbage; another dry land does not absorb the water but holds it so people/animals drink from it; another dry land neither absorbs it nor holds it for others to benefit.
Therefore humans, like the lands are:
1.The learned who lives what he learns and teaches others too.
2. Those that themselves do not benefit much from the knowledge they carry, but others benefit from them.
3.Those that neither benefit themselves nor benefit others by increasing their own ‘ilm.
Self Assessment: WHICH ONE ARE WE?
ELOQUENT SUMMARY OF FRUITS OF BENEFICIAL ‘ILM –
Muadh bin Jabal, r.a: “Learn ‘ILM – For learning increases Khashya of Allah swt; Seeking it is ‘ibaadah; Discussing it is Tasbeeh; striving in searching for it is Jihaad; Teaching it to those who do not know is Sadaqah; Serving the scholars brings closeness to Allah, swt; It is a solace in solitude and a companion in seclusion”
TAKE HOME MESSAGE –
Knowledge without Tazkiya (Purity of the heart) leads to ARROGANCE (KIBR)
Tazkiya (striving to purify oneself) without sound knowledge based on the Qur’an and Sunnah leads to INNOVATION (BID’AA).
Supplication: May Allah swt help us in the process of Tazkiya by facilitating for us the learning of His, swt Deen.
References – Mukhtasar Minhaaj al Qaasideen – By Ibn Qudamah al Maqdisi
- Sheikh Mokhtar Maghraoui – Retreat on Tazkiyat un Nafs
EXCERPTED from the halaqa onTazkiya Nafs by Dr. H. Younis transcribed by anon author (name withheld by her to promote tazkiya)
For part one CLICK HERE
Exerpted from the lectures on Tazkiya tun Nafs by Dr. H. Younis, transcribed by an anon sister.
WHY PURIFICATION OF THE Heart?
THE NOBLE MISSION OF THE BELOVED PROPHET, peace and blessing be upon him, IS TO PURIFY OUR HEARTS –
Allah, Subhanawataala defines the role of RasulAllah, peace and blessings be upo him, as a Model of Tazkiya in the following four Ayaat.
2 : 129 : “O our Sustainer! Raise up from the midst of our offspring a messenger from among themselves, who shall convey unto them Thy messages, and impart unto them revelation as well as wisdom, and cause them to grow in purity: for, verily, Thou alone art almighty, truly wise!”
2: 151: Even as We have sent unto you a messenger from among yourselves to convey unto you Our messages, and to cause you to grow in purity, and to impart unto you revelation and wisdom, and to teach you that which you knew not:
3: 164: Indeed, Allah bestowed a favor upon the believers when he raised up in their midst a messenger from among themselves, to convey His messages unto them, and to cause them to grow in purity, and to impart unto them the divine Book as well as wisdom – whereas before that they were indeed, most obviously, lost in error.
62: 2: He it is who has sent unto the unlettered people a messenger from among themselves, to convey unto them His messages, and to cause them to grow in purity, and to impart unto them the divine Book as well as wisdom – whereas before that they were indeed, most obviously, lost in error –
HOW TO ATTAIN TRUE FELICITY IN DUNYAA AND AAKHIRAH
Allah, Subhanawataala tells us that the one who has cleansed / purified his Nafs, has gained felicity, attained happiness and success. On the other hand, the one who overwhelmed / suffocated his Nafs with sins and indulging in his/her desires / appetites and inclinations has truly lost.
91: 7: Consider the human self, and how it is formed in accordance with what it is meant to be,
فَأَلْهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقْوَاهَا
91: 8: and how it is imbued with moral failings as well as with consciousness of God -
قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن زَكَّاهَا
91: 9: To a happy state shall indeed attain he who causes this [self] to grow in purity,
وَقَدْ خَابَ مَن دَسَّاهَا
91: 10: and truly lost is he who buries it [in darkness].
HOW TO ATTAIN A QALB SALEEM –
We learn and understand that all of the Qur’an and Sunnah i.e. The Shari’ah is about Tazkiya, so that we arrive at Allah, Subhanawataala’s Divine presence with cleansed hearts worthy of standing in His presence and company – Ibraheem (AS) asks Allah, Subhanawataala in surat al Shu’ara:
وَلاَ تُخْزِنِي يَوْمَ يُبْعَثُونَ
26: 87: and do not put me to shame on the Day when all shall be raised from the dead:
يَوْمَ لاَ يَنفَعُ مَالٌ وَلاَ بَنُونَ
26: 88: the Day on which neither wealth will be of any use, nor children,
إِلاَّ مَنْ أَتَى ٱللَّهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ
26: 89: Except the one who comes before Allah with a sound heart!
(Qalb e Saleem: Is a heart that is sound, healthy, and free of any spiritual ailment)
To be continued in part tw.
To access PART TWO :CLICK HERE
Provided by OC from Muslim inventions:
In 859 a young princess named Fatima al-Firhi founded the first degree-granting university in Fez, Morocco. Her sister Miriam founded an adjacent mosque and together the complex became the al-Qarawiyyin Mosque and University. Still operating almost 1,200 years later, Hassani says he hopes the center will remind people that learning is at the core of the Islamic tradition and that the story of the al-Firhi sisters will inspire young Muslim women around the world today.
It is the oldest continuously working University in the world.
