BY ABID ISHAQ
5 August 2005
THE righteous before us understood the religion of Allah as well as the essence of this life and its inescapable leading to the Hereafter, so they felt aversion for the distractions and the tribulations of the world. They found no sleep and their heart kept away from desires. They kept above the insignificant concerns of life. Their biographies abound with stories that show their striving in righteousness, repentance and their strong will in worship and humbleness.
The following lines will fill us with respect, admiration and love for our righteous predecessors. Al-Hasan al-Basri, may Allah have mercy on him, said, "Whoever competes with you in the religion (Deen) then try to surpass him, and whoever competes with you in the matters of this life then throw it back at him." Whenever he missed a prayer in congregation, Ibn Umar, may Allah have mercy on him, used to fast one day, pray for one whole night and free a slave. Abu Musa al-Ashari, may Allah have mercy on him, used to apply himself so much in worship at the end of his life that he was told, "Why dont you slow down and be gentle with yourself?" He replied, "When the horses are released for a race and are close to the finish line, they exert all the strength they have. What is left of my life is less than that." He maintained the same level of devotion and worship until he died. Mawriq al-Ajli, may Allah have mercy on him, said, "I did not find an example, for the believer in this life, better than a man on a plank in the sea, imploring, O Lord, O Lord, hoping that Allah would save him." Usamah, may Allah have mercy on him, said, "Whenever you see Sufyan ath-Thawri, may Allah have mercy on him, it is as if you see someone in a ship fearing to drown. One would often hear him say, O Lord save me, save me!" Fatima bint Abdil Malik, the wife of the Khalifah Umar ibn Abdil-Aziz, may Allah have mercy on them, said, "I have never seen a person offering a prayer or fasting more than he did, or a person fearing the Lord more than him. After offering the Isha prayers, he would sit down and cry until he became sleepy, then he would wake up again and continue crying until sleep overtook him." Amir ibn Abdullah, may Allah have mercy on him, was once asked, "How can you tolerate being awake all night, and thirsty in the intense heat of the day?" He replied, "Is it anything more than postponing the food of the day to nighttime, and the sleep of the night to daytime? This is not a big matter." When the night came, he would say, "Fear of the heat of hellfire has taken sleep from me." And he would not sleep until dawn. Ahmad ibn Harb, may Allah have Mercy on him, said, "I wonder how the one who knows that above him, paradise is being embellished, and below him, the hell-fire is being kindled, and yet sleeps between them!" Waqi said, "Al Amash was almost seventy years old and he never missed the first takbirah for salah in the mosque. I used to visit him frequently for more than two years and never saw him make up for even one rakah." Abu Hayan, may Allah have mercy on him, related that his father said, "Ar-Rabi ibn Khuthaym was crippled and used to be carried to the congregational prayer. So people told him, "You have an excuse (for not coming)." He said, "I hear the call to prayer; so if you can come to it even by crawling, do so", paraphrasing a hadith. Abull-Mawahib ibn Sarsari said concerning Imam Abul-Qasim ibn Asakir, may Allah have mercy on him, "I have never seen the like of him, and none had encompassed as many good characteristics as he did concerning his adherence to one way for forty years, making prayers in the first row unless he had an excuse, itikaf during Ramadan and the ten days of Zhul-Hijjah, and the lack of desire to accumulate properties and build houses, as he forbade himself these. He turned away any position of imam or speaker, though they were offered to him, and he devoted himself to enjoin good and forbid evil, and he would not fear anyone in that."
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{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.}
(Holy Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
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