The heaven of this world

I heard the Sheikh of IslamIbn Taymiyah say, Truly, there is a Heaven
in this world, [and] whoever doesnot enter
it, will not enter the Heaven of the next world.
And once he said to me,
What can my enemies do to me?
I have in my breast both my Heaven and my Garden.
If I travel they are with me, and they never leave me.
Imprisonment for me is a religious retreat.
To be slain for me is martyrdom.
And to be exiled from my land is a spiritual journey.
During his imprisonment in the fortress, he would say, "I could not
be more grateful for this blessing were I to have this entire fortress
in gold"or "I could never repay them for the good that has come to me
[in this prison]."
And in prostration he would say, while in a stateof imprisonment, "O
Allah, help me in my remembrance of You, gratitude to You, and the
most comely worship of You."
Once he said to me, "The real prisoner is someone whose heart is
imprisoned from his Lord; the true captive is someone captured by his
passions." And when he entered the fortress (where he was imprisoned)
and was inside its walls, he gazed upon them and quoted the verse
[Then a fence will separate them, havinga gate, in the inward whereof
is mercy, and facing the outward thereofthe torment] (Al- Hadid
57:13).
Allah knows, I have never seen anyone who had a better life than
his.Despite the difficulties and all that expunges comfort and luxury;
despite intimidation and oppression, Ibn Taymiyah had a happier life
than anyone could. He was the most generous, the strongest of heart
and the most joyful of soul, with the radiance of bliss on hisface.
When we were seized with fear and our thoughts (about Allah's decree)
turned negative, and the earth grew narrow for us, we would go to him.
No sooner did we look at him and hear his words than all these
feelings would leave us, tobe replaced by relief, strength, certainty,
and tranquility.
So glory be to the One Who lets His servants witness His Heaven well
before they meet Him, Who opens its doors to them in this world, and
Who gives them something of its refreshment, its breeze, and its
perfume — that they might seek it and hasten towards it with all their
strength.
** Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah was born in AH 691 (1292 CE) near
Damascus. A student of IbnTaymiyyah, Ibn Al-Qayyim wrote more than 60
booksin various areas of Islam. He died in 751 AH (1350 CE)