Judging Maltreators

Fountain Gardens, City Centre – I believe that as the slaves of God, we are not given the right to proclaim a person’s state in the eyes of God nor determine whether he/she goes to heaven or shall be thrown into hellfire for their demeanours.

In the frame of our limited minds, we may think that such and such a person may have done something wrong and assume Allah will punish the being in this life or the other with the thought of what goes around comes around. The truth is that it is up to God to Decide, for Allah is He Who Heareth and Knoweth (all things).

Just because that anyone who does not conform to our interests, expectations or norms, one may be inclined to wish them unwell and of calamity as they are deemed to deserve. Some may even take law into their own hands by inflicting pain or humiliation to their antagonists for the sake of redemption. Little do they know that such actions would only further aggravate the breaking points of ukhuwwah.

When the mind loses ground due to anger and the self-ego rejects injustice outright, one may resort to the means mentioned above. It is an inevitable human weakness for a person to overstep the red lines of humility in such situations.

However, always remember to recite Istighfar and seek forgiveness from Allah. Better still if one chooses to perform ablution to temporarily soothe the fiery heart and soul but what happens when resentment overpowers one’s sanity?

Before adopting the its-all-about-me role & passing judgements upon receiving maltreatments and injustice from others, we should bear a few things in mind;

1. When we say a prayer (du’a) for others indirectly it blesses the self. However, what does it mean actually when one hopes for pain, suffering and humiliation or punishment from Allah upon those who mistreated him/her?

2. Inflicting pain and humiliation in vengeance only further aggravates our relationship with others. It is worse when in the end of the day it humiliates the self instead.

3. Before we seek for justice from others, let us ask ourselves whether have we been just to God himself and the rest of His creations (Hablum minallah wa hablum minannaas) all these while?

4. There is always a hikmah (wisdom) behind every misfortune that befalls upon us.

5. The tougher the test that is given by God, the higher our position is in the eyes of God (maqaam) included that it is passed through with Sabr (Patience), Tawaadhu’ (Humility) and in remembrance of the Almighty.

How to handle misdemeanours

Be forgiving

The most significant step is to cease our angers by forgiving others and letting go of the past. A person who is unable to let go of the past would find it difficult to move on and progress. Some may rise from their fall but if they build themselves with intent of revenge such as to ensure the fall of their enemies, definitely their ‘amal (actions) have strayed from their objectives as the Vicegerents of God. Their niyyah (intentions) is not lillahi Ta’ala but for materiality. Such route of progress and success due to vengeance can never be sustained for long.

Redhaa is the key to forgiveness.

Rationalising Hikmah

As toddlers, we would have our parents to teach us the basic things in life. We would then have our teachers and lecturers to educate us on the academic and practical domains of survival.

Rarely one realises that there is the unseen murabbi (teacher) that has been by our side teaching and guiding us all the way till this moment. Allah has Blessed us with lessons through tests of hardships, suffering, joy and success.

If one ponders deeply, he/she will find the benefits of each tragedy or occurrences which has been destined for them. Reality identified, they may avoid repetition, promise to change themselves for the better and choose to be closer to God. Subsequently, one may fortify a stronger heart, mind and soul.

Du’a

When we say a prayer (du’a) for others indirectly it blesses the self. A du’a complements our state of forgiveness to others. It dilutes enmity. It shall breed the feeling of love and ehsaan towards others.

Even though it is difficult for one achieve this majestic phase of empathy, it may commensurate with the belief in Allah. Then try to consider the condition of the alleged maltreators. Despite of the appalling perception that we have towards them, we do not know the souls beneath nor what have they gone through. Probably there is a hidden cause to their actions. Remember the story of Prophet Khidhir A.S & Prophet Musa A.S ?

So pray and keep on praying that may Allah Forgive, Bless and Give them the guidance in this world. Including ourselves. May this Ramadhaan al-Kareem be a Blessed month of forgiveness for all of us. Amin ya rabbal ‘aalamiin.

Prescriptions for The Human Boredom Or Melancholy

Burger King, Property Mas – In this fast-paced world of materialism, our surroundings tend to keep us occupied mentally and physically with its paraphernalia. We realise by then that the weekend is already around the corner and then you start asking yourself, “What have I been doing this week that adds up to my self worth?”.

Of course your time was spent without dissipation at work, studies or with your family members. However, what was the outcome that truly granted yourself satisfaction? It is like having your monthly wage and you splurge it on all your wants and needs but in the end of the day you don’t really see any of those things you’ve bought or invested in. As if money, disappeared into thin air.

A Muslim may lead a decent life and perform his obligations to God unfailingly and yet be enslaved by the mundane routines of the daily life. This occurs when he is not aware of the purpose of his existence which actually transcends mere fulfilment of moralistic behaviours and requirements.

Being human, I too have faced some stagnancies in life at times. Sometimes you’re on top of the world the next day it may seem vague or dark. Whatever it is, I am grateful because I believe that Allah by any means has saved me from nothingness in such situations.

So, what can one do when he/she feels life seems to be on a slope?

Laying Out Factors of Boredom or Sadness In Writing

Once in a while one has to stop and look into himself the progress that he has made mentally, spiritually and physically. If we are besieged by boredom or melancholy, it is best that we start identifying and jotting down all of those factors and finding means of alleviating them to break-free and emancipate the self from these obstructions of self growth. I suggest that a blueprint of our daily schedule is tailor-made to overcome our physical, spiritual and mental drawbacks.

Al-‘aqlus Saleem Fi Jismis Saleem

In order to have a stable mind is to ensure that the physical engine works well. Without a supplementary diet, the body slows down and our mental clarity fades which shall lead to depression. So no matter how bad the world seems to be, the body needs to be forced to have its fill. Another thing is to keep that heart pumping with extra-curricular activities like sports or arts/dancing.

Spiritual Bearing Spot-check

One needs to reset and recheck their spiritual bearing from time to time. No matter what objectives or aims that we seek to achieve, we must allot the core of these intentions that whatever we do it is for the sake of earning the Pleasure of Allah. A person who manages to reach this pivotal point of Spiritual Divinity, he shall not be disheartened nor angered by any state of divest. Some keys to contentment in life : Shukr for what you have, Redha for what you don’t have and Du’a for what Allah Deems best for you. On practical terms, is to increase or at least remain istiqaamah daily with some particular extra nawaafil prayers, Quranic recitations (with efforts of understanding) or simple zhikr as our soul food.

Mental Manoeuvre

The best part of being human is being able to forget, hence our Arabic moniker an-Naas which is rooted from na si ya (To forget). The mind is like the river flowing along the streams which can be disrupted or blocked. Try altering the way we do things, our daily schedule or our surroundings. We will realise that our life shall follow a different stream but still leads to the same ocean. A new ambiance disassociates the mind with the usual boring or sad things that might have kept us restless and pointless. Actually, whatever that seems significant to us is just a matter of something that WE have built in our minds. Try pondering Maslow’s Self-Actualization phase and this hadith for example[ Forgive me if I’m quoting this wrongly ];

On the authority of Abu Harayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said: Allah the Almighty said:

I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he makes mention of Me.
If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself; and
if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an
assembly better than it. And if he draws near to Me an arm’s length, I draw
near to him a fathom’s length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at
speed.

Related by al-Buhkari (also by Muslim, at-Tirmidhi and Ibn-Majah)

If one truly understands how their own mental, physical and spiritual mechanism works, they will be able to manoeuvre their emotions and wants. Of course I’d have to agree that it is not easy to reach this level of spiritual mastery but remember, better trying than not at all. I hope that this article could help a little bit in that sense. God Bless!

Even a computer gets bored of its owner!