In the Name of Almighty Allah
Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
As-Salaamualaykum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuhu.
Alhumdoelillahi Rabbil Ala'meen. Was Salaatu was
Salaamu 'alaa Ashrafil Anbiyaa'e wal Mursaleen.
Wa Bad:
O Ummatul Muslimeen! Unless we wake up to the fact that we are Musaffirs on
this Doonya with an inescapable journey lying ahead and a destination
towards which we must move, we will not muster the resolution necessary to
reach our goal. It is enough to say that our biggest obstacle in the way of
awakening from our slumber leads us to forget our ultimate destination and
we neglect to prepare for that ultimate journey. We deaden our will and
resolution with our ego and with the attitude that we are going to live
forever. We have the tendency of assuring ourselves that there is still
plenty of time for preparing for the trip, that if we do not prepare for it
today we may do so tomorrow, if not this month then the next and so on. To
adopt such an attitude means that we would be building castles in the air
and living in a fool's paradise. Such a state of extended and outstretched
hope, together with a false assurance of unlimited life and unbounded
availability of time, makes us oblivious of our ultimate goal, the Aghirah.
May Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala save us from such thinking. We have
such a long and perilous journey awaiting us and we have been given a
limited time in which to procure and prepare the provisions and dire
necessities for the trip, but do not possess anything because we do not pay
heed to the inevitable journey. It is obvious that if such a state of
neglect befalls us, we will fail to procure the necessary provisions for the
long trip, being totally helpless and at a loss at the time of departure.
Such a person will perish on the journey and will not reach the desired
destination. We must not loose sight of the fact that our journey is a
perilous one, for which the provisions of sound knowledge and fruitful
action are needed.
O you who believe!The time of our departure from this Doonya is known only
to Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala. None of us know for certain whether we
will be here next week. In short, we have no guarantee whatsoever that we
will be alive tomorrow. The dawning of each new day draws us another day
closer to our Qabir. If what I say makes any sense then may I humbly suggest
that we should all declare very sincerely that today is the first day of the
beginning of the rest of our lives. This prolonging of hope by you and me
arises from our inflated egos and self-love and is the most masterly of the
vile and evil tricks of Shaythaan Lanatullahi Alay. Through it he distracts
our attention from the Aghirah and diverts us from attending to its affairs.
With the perils of the long journey and the obstacles in the way of
preparing for it, if we fail to repent or to return to Almighty Allah
Subhanahu Wata'ala.
The appointed call shall come unexpectedly and send us totally unprepared on
our way without any provisions for the very long journey lying in wait. Even
if we have performed good deeds, what guarantees do we have that those deeds
are pure and untainted? If we acquired any knowledge, we should ask
ourselves whether such knowledge was futile and fruitless or whether our
learning was nonsensical and absurd or whether it was an impediment on the
long journey to our meeting with Almighty Allah. Had the deeds that we have
done and the knowledge that we have acquired been beneficial to us, to our
community and to humanity, they should have left some mark on us who have
been in their pursuit for years and should have transformed our habits and
morals. What went wrong that our past few years labour has produced an
opposite result and has hardened our hearts?
What have we achieved from performing regular Salaat, which is the Me'raj of
a Muhmin? Where is that love of Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala which is
the outcome of true knowledge? Allah forbid, if we are called to depart from
this world right now in our present state, are we sufficiently secured by
assuming that we will not encounter any lasting disappointments and that
there will be no remorse in store for us? If obliviousness of the Aghirah
caused by endless hope is something on account of which the greatest man who
ever walked on the face of this earth was concerned about, he was justified;
for he knew about the perilous journey awaiting all of us. He taught us not
to be complacent and to remember that:
"The Qabir is the first stage of the many stages of the Aghirah."
At all times, we should be busy in gathering all our provisions for that
ultimate trip because this is the only opportunity we have. As Muslims, we
must never ever separate our lives from Almighty Allah's Din nor from our
beliefs, our social, our political and our commercial activities and
responsibilities because they all form an integral part of the Muslim way of
life. A wonderful example of what this means is given to us in verse 201 of
Surah Al-Baqara which we recite every day after every prayer:
"O Allah! Give us good in this world and good in the
Aghirah, and save us from the torments of Jahannum."
The earthly life of a true Muhmin is built on the premise that we were
created and then brought into this Doonya for the Pleasure (Radha) of
Almighty Allah. This means that we live and we die for the Pleasure of our
Glorious Creator and we yearn for our Liqa Allah - meeting with Him.
Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala out of His Great Muhabbat for humanity
declares in verse 208 of Surah Al-Baqara:
"O you who believe! Enter whole-heartedly into Islam, and follow
not the footsteps of Shaythaan for he is to you an avowed enemy."
It is only through Imaan and Taqwa that will enable us to abide by the
principles and codes of the Holy Sharia'h and the Sunnah of Almighty Allah's
Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam. Only then will we be able to
retain our purity of mind and body in order to keep ourselves free of
Shaythaan's contamination in preparing for our journey to the Aghirah.
Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala has made this crystal clear to us in verse
6 of Surah Al-Inshiqaq:
"O man! Thou must strive a hard striving
(to attain) to Thy Lord, until thou meet Him.?
The fact that we may think that we keep ourselves pure in mind and body in
our preparations for the Aghirah does not mean that we have attained Jannah
or that we have a path leading directly to Almighty Allah. To assume such a
thing would be like building sand castles in the air and following a pipe
dream. We will all have to make the journey to our meeting with Almighty
Allah stage by stage just as did all the Ambiya Alayhim Salaam as confirmed
to us in verse 19 of Surah Al-Inshiqaq:
"That you shall certainly ascend to one stage after another."
O people of Imaan! To fully understand what is meant by "That you shall
certainly ascend to one stage after another." we must refer to the Meraj of
our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam and his experiences on that
most holy and auspicious journey. On his return from the Meraj our Nabee
Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam relates that he met our father Nabee Adam
Alayhis Salaam on the third heaven, Nabee Esa Alayhis Salaam on the fourth
heaven, Nabee Moosa Alayhis Salaam on the fifth heaven and Nabee Ebrahim
Alayhis Salaam on the sixth heaven. The stage by stage progress referred to
by our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam also shows us that Nabee
Adam Alayis Salaam who had passed away many thousands of years before the
Meraj had reached only the third stage. Nabee Esa Alayhis Salaam who
ascended without any physical death some six hundred years before the birth
of our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam had reached only the fourth
stage.
Nabee Moosa Alayhis Salaam who had died one thousand five hundred years
before the birth of our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam had
reached the fifth stage. Nabee Ebrahim Alayhis Salaam the Patriach had
passed away some two thousand five hundred years before the birth of our
Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam and had reached the sixth stage.
We should ponder upon this fact and remember that if it took this long for
these great Prophets Alayhim Salaam to reach their various stages, then how
much longer will our journey take?
Alhumdoelillah! The most auspicious Meraj of our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo
Alayhi Wasallam however took him through all these stages to his direct
meeting with Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala. One may ask why our Beloved
Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam should have had this wonderful experience
while still alive and living on the Doonya. The answer is simple. Almighty
Allah had decreed that Nabee Muhammad Ibn Abdullah Sallallahoo Alayhi
Wasallam was His Beloved "Ghataman Nabee'een" the last, the final and the
seal of the Ambiya Alayhim Salaam. Almighty Rabbul Ala'meen had chosen him
and gave him the task of setting an example and to preach the Final Divine
Message. His duty was to lead humanity out of darkness and onto the Path of
Seerathal Mustaqeem. We must awaken our hearts and inform it of the truth as
narrated by our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam who said:
"This world is the farmland of the Aghirah."
That is, if we do not sow the seeds of righteous deeds in the minute speck
of time during our life here on this Doonya, the opportunity will be lost
forever. When we reach the threshold of the other world and death seizes us,
deeds come to an end and all hopes are extinguished. If, Allah forbid, we
continue to remain in the slavery of lusts and the captivity of various
carnal desires until the Angel of Death arrives, it is possible that
Shaythaan may achieve his ultimate objective of wresting away our faith.
Yes, Shaytaan may treat us in such a fashion and metamorphose our hearts to
such an extent that we may depart from this world as enemies of Almighty
Allah and His Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam. If that happens,
only Allah knows what calamities, what darkness and what terrors await us.
This Doonya is a Muhmin's prison and is not the abode of Divine reward nor
the place of the manifestation of Almighty Allah's Kingdom. Let us clear our
hearts of the dust from the mirror of our spirit and turn our hearts
attention to the focal point of Absolute Perfection. Only then will we
witness its effects in this world itself and our hearts will attain such an
expanse that it will become the realm of the manifestation of Almighty
Allah's total sovereignty, thus becoming greater than all the worlds.
Commenting on verse 17 of Surah As-Sajda, our Beloved Nabee Sallallahoo
Alayhi Wasallam said: (and I quote from Sahih Bukhari):
"Allah says: I have prepared a reward for my righteous servants what no eye
has
seen, what no ear has heard, and what the mind of man has not conceived."
Dear brothers and sisters in Islam! Could we really ask for and achieve any
greater reward than to enjoy the Pleasure and the Company of our Glorious
Creator and Sustainer Who created us to be enveloped in the Light of His
Majestic Glory, and dwelling in the warmth and security of His Muhabbat, His
Rahma'h and His Eternal Abode? Can we deny ourselves what Almighty Allah
Subhanahu Wata'ala offers us? Our eyes for the brilliance of His Glory, our
ears for the words of His Welcome, and our hearts for the contentment of His
Divine Company? If Almighty Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala gave us free and easy
access to Janna'h we would not appreciate it as we had not fully earned it
or done very little to deserve it. But if through all our trials and
tribulations we can Insha'Allah earn the Pleasure and the Company of our
Glorious Creator and become worthy and fit for our final and ultimate
journey for our reunion with Him, then Alhumdoelillah, our lives have not
been in vain because Almighty Allah Most Exalted reminds us in verse 156 of
Surah Al-Baqara:
"Surely we are Allah's, and to Him shall we return."
And Almighty Allah knows best.
And all Praise is Allah's at every beginning and end.
And the end of all goals is the Love of the Exalted Creator.
Baarak -Allaahu Feekum wa sal-Allaahu wa-Salam 'alaa
Nabiyyinaa Muhammad, Sallallahoo Alayhi Wasallam.
Was Salaamu 'alaykum wa-Rahmatullahi wa-Barakaatuhu
Abdul Hamid
Concluded.......................Walhamdoelillah hi Rabbil Ala'meen!
May Almighty Allah in His Infinite Mercy and
Bounty accept this humble effort. Ameen!
Abdul Hamid Lachporia
PoEtEsS
"Prayer is the 'HEART'
of my Faith!"
