A Gleam on the Way

How effective was the first generation of the Ummah (nation) of Islam?
What is the importance of positivity in the life of a Muslim?
How has the Quran recorded this effectiveness?
These are important and serious questions about the value of
positivity and effectiveness and what they represented inthe life of
the youth who established the civilization of this Ummah, and how they
could be revived once again in the life of the youth of this
generation, given that a great deal ofgood lies in them. Let us start
with the Prophetic point of view on the pathof effectiveness and
warding off failure and negativity .
A Prophetic perspective on the path of effectiveness
" O Allaah! I seek refuge with You from (being given to) failure,
indolence, cowardice, (and from being sent back to) old geriatric
ageand niggardliness, and I seek refuge with You from the punishment
of the grave, and from the affliction of both life and death."
[Muslim]
These are luminous Prophetic words, filled with positivity and
carrying within their folds seeking refuge from negativity. This was
the Prophetic perspective. In fact, the life of Muhammad wasbut a
living example of that. The life of the Prophet Muhammad was the best
ideal of a human being, in whom all the attributes of positivity were
manifested and from whom all traces of negativity had been removed.
The Companions gathered around the pure spring of the noble attributes
of Al-Mustafa and at the beginning of the Da'wah (call to Islam. The
majority of whom were young men, imbibing positivity, power and
effectiveness, translating them into words and deeds in the world, and
spreading them among those surrounding them, until they were able to
establish an edifice of civilization of strong foundations and great
power .
Armed with positivity, the youth of the Ummah set out in the different
parts of the land of their Lord, building and constructing. They gave
life to the land with strong arms of endeavor, and promulgated
effectiveness in the hearts, which had long been possessed by
negativity, thus, illuminating the universe with pleasure and delight
.
Thus, the Islamic Ummah (nation), at the hands of its youth, presented
to humanity the most beautiful gifts in all fields. The scientists of
Islam presented to humankind the principlesof the experimental
scientific method based on practical experiment and scientific proof
in order to reach a scientificfact, unlike the Greek philosophical
method that is based on philosophy and theoretical postulates. Thus,
it is the Muslims who presented to the entire world the basis of the
modern renaissance, on which the European renaissance depended later
on. [Hayaat An-Noor: Fareed Mannaa' p28]
This took place due to the fact that the youth of this Ummah were
brought up on positivity, according to which each of them sought areas
of work where he was mosteffective without waitingfor it to come to
him; making events happen, and not waiting for events to take place on
their own. None of them would let a day pass untilhe had done an act
pertaining to the religionor the world, which he liked to see on the
Day ofJudgment. This is reported by one of the positive youths of this
Ummah, 'Abdullaah ibn Mas'ood who said, "I hate to see a man without
work; neither working for this world nor for the Hereafter." [Hilyat
Al-Awliyaa': Abu Nu'aym]
However, when we moved away, step by step, from that concept of
positivity, the youths of our Ummah deviated, owing to a violent wind
of negativity, which lulled most of them into asense of complacence
and subsequently, ruinedthem. It caused the disease of failure and
indolence to spread among them, and consequently, we started hearing
oft-repeated words that imply the aforesaid mental state such as: "I
cannot", "I am a failure", "It is impossible [to achieve], this is the
reality", and so on .
A concrete reality
In order to come closer tothe issue of positivity, wehave to consider
the reality. A man might be intelligent and possess high
qualifications in the field of science, but, at the same time, he
might not be effective. This is because he has been brought up in a
culture which hinders him from any great achievement unless he gets
rid of any traces of negativity .
There are communities characterized by individualism, selfishness and
envy, and there are diseases which decay the soul, like haughtiness
and arrogance. There arealso communities whose people have ideas which
encourage idleness, like those who read the Hadeeths (narrations) of
the Messenger of Allaah about the future afflictions and battles and
misunderstand them,and thus sit at home, anddo nothing to support
Islam, under the pretext that things are deteriorating, and it is
useless to work, and so on .
No doubt, such examples and others, are found in reality. However, we
should not continue to curse the darkness and loathe reality – in
particular the reality of today's Muslim youth thatis typically
characterized by negativity -- and then satisfy ourselves with phrases
of sorrow and regret. On the contrary, we should talk about
positivity, its concept andimportance, perchance we may light up the
candles of effectiveness in the hearts of the youth .
The concept of positivity
First of all, we could define positivity as a Muslim's personal
movement, resulting from the sentient believing heart to change and
reform the reality in conformity withthe ordinances of Allaah The
Almighty .
We may get more acquainted with effectiveness if we say that it is the
best form of productivity that is basedon perseverance and regularity
of actions, as confirmed by the description given by Umm Salamah of
the deeds of the Messenger of Allaah : "The dearestof deeds to the
Messenger of Allaah is that which a servant doesregularly, no matter
how little it might be." [Al-Albaani: Saheeh [
The same description is given by 'Aa'ishah of the deeds of the
Messenger of Allaah when she said, "He used to do any deed regularly
."
Positivity in the Quran
In order to clearly perceive the concept of positivity in the Quran,
it is sufficient to recite the following short Soorah (in which Allaah
The Almighty Says what means): {By time, indeed, mankind is in loss,
Except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and
advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience.}
[Quran 103:1-3 [
It shows that man is doomed to loss unless he has four
characteristics, which in fact are the characteristics of the positive
Muslim personality. According to As-Sa'di
" Allaah The Almighty enjoined loss upon everyone unless he has four
characteristics:
1 . To have faith in all things which Allaah The Almighty commanded to
believe in. Faith is not complete without knowledge, which is an
integral branch of faith .
2 . The righteous deed includes all good works, hidden or apparent,
pertinent to the right of Allaah The Almighty or the right of His
servants, obligatory or recommended .
3 . To advise each other toadhere to the truth -- which is faith and
righteous deeds. In otherwords, they should advise and encourage each
other to do good .
4 . To advise each other topatience in the obedience of Allaah The
Almighty, and abstention from the sins forbidden by Allaah The
Almighty, and accept the decrees ofAllaah The Almighty even if one
finds them painful .
With the first two, man perfects himself, and with the other two, he
perfects others. By having these four characteristics, man becomes
safe from loss, and obtains great profit."[Tayseer Al-Kareem:
'Abd-Ar-Rahmaan ibn Naasir As-Sa'di: 1:934]
At this point, after talkingabout the importance of positivity, we
have to pause so that each of us asks himself: Am I really positive?
Do I have a positive attitude in my life? Do I feel that I am really
effective in life, or do I live among negative people? Also ask
yourself:Positivity is to seek areas of work and not to sit waiting
for them: Am I really like this?
Positive people exert an influence on events, unlike the negative ones
who wait to see what events occur. Am I then from those who make
events happen or those who wait for them to happen?
This is a pause, not only for blame, but also for assessment and
introspection, after which each of us should wake up to seek his roles
in life, and see how he can efficiently interact with them, and how he
can best utilize this life. No doubt, we, as Muslim youth, have
several missions to carry out in this world. Doing this would be
impossible unless each of us becomes truly positive and effective in
our sphere of activity . - - ▓███▓ Translator:->
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