1a. Blessing and Dissipation

1a.

--
as weread in Surat al-A'raf, 32:
Say: "Who has forbidden the fine clothing that Allah has produced for
Hisservants and the good kinds of provision?" Say:"On the Day of
Rising, such things will be exclusively for those who had faith during
their life in the hereafter�"
The Qur'an gives the example of Prophet Sulayman (as), to whom Allah
gave great wealth. In fact, it describes these possessions, as well as
his opulent palace and works of art, in Surah Saba', 12-13 and Surat
an-Naml, 44.
The important thing here is that Sulayman (as) gavethanks to Allah
amid all ofthese magnificent possessions, for he knew that they were a
mercy from our Lord. By relating his words: "Truly do I lovethe love
of good with a view to the glory of my Lord" (Surah Sad, 32), the
Qur'an draws our attention to his deep understanding.
This example shows us that the love of possessions, defined here as
"the love of good," is legitimate as long as it is a means to praise
Allah. No doubt, believers who have this kind of love will not
hesitate to use their possessions as Allah directs. Possessions are a
blessing belonging to Allah, and so those who have them will use them
as Allah commands.
But if possessions are not seen as a blessing, dissolution sets in.
The Qur'an gives many examples of how deviators understand the meaning
of riches. One of the clearest examples is that of Qarun, a rich man
who "gloated" (Surat al-Qasas, 76) and said: "I have only been given
it because of the knowledgeI have" (Surat al-Qasas, 78). Such a love
of possessions cannot bring people close to Allah; rather, it diverts
them from His way and alienates them from faith.The Qur'an describes
this type of love as:
Truly man is ungrateful tohis Lord, and indeed he bears witness to
that. Truly he is fierce in his love of wealth. (Surat al-'Adiyat,
6-8)
So, for this reason Muslimsmust view wealth according to the Qur'an's
criteria and pursue it only to please Allah and serve Islam. They must
desire all of Allah's blessings, because all blessings of this earthly
life have beencreated for those faithful and sincere servants who
exert every effort to please and serve Allah. We have to be
continuallythankful for these blessings and follow Sulayman's (as)
example:"What an excellent servant! He truly turned to his Lord"
(Surah Sad, 30).
Those who live according to the real spirit of the Qur'an's moral
teachings and adopt the point of view described above willbe deemed
"worthy and qualified" to enter Paradise, which possesses,as one of
its most salient characteristics, eternal splendor and dazzling wealth
and beauty. People who think and feellike Sulayman (as), who said:
"Truly do I love the love of good with a view to the glory of my Lord"
(Surah Sad, 32) amid all ofthis beauty, are believers.
Since this is how believerswill think in Paradise, their true home,
they must establish this point of view in this world, which is no more
than a preparation for the world to come. Far from regarding wealth,
beauty, and splendor as dissolution, believers must know that every
blessing is a mercy from our Lord, recognize its value, learn to enjoy
it, and be thankful.
The blessings of Paradise that we will look at in thefollowing pages
must be examined from this point of view.
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1. Blessing and Dissipation

1]

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In the following sections, we will analyze how the Qur'an looks at
Paradise and, based upon these descriptions,"try to imagine this
perfect place.But before we do this, let's look at a few important
points. In today's societies, many people have erroneous ideas and
impressions in their conscious and subconscious minds. As such
obstacles cause themto formulate a mistaken view, we must describe
some basic Islamic concepts whose meaningshave departed from their
original understanding.
With this in mind, we firsthave to distinguish between "blessing"
and"dissipation."
In the following pages, we will see that the Qur'an describes Paradise
as an extremely luxurious and magnificent place, and that life therein
is as comfortable and attractive as it can be.
However, to many people today, such a life is not so much "Islamic" as
it is a natural outcome of being alienated from Allah and religious
moral teaching.
So, because of this erroneous understanding that dominates society,
very many people think that a comfortable, luxurious, and ostentatious
life, and all that goes along with it, are "un-Islamic." They see such
things as expensive clothes, rich food, entertainment, dinner parties,
magnificently appointed houses, d�cor, and valuable art works as
belonging to ignorant people cut off from their religion. They usually
call a life filled with these things "dissolute," and criticize those
who give this society its name as"living undisciplined lives of
dissolution." The word"dissolution" (safahat) comes from the Arabic
safih, and can be translated as "a lack of discipline,
overindulgence,a weakness of mind that comes from living an
irresponsible life of wealth and comfort."
Here, we encounter a falseunderstanding that must be corrected. The
life of Paradise that Allah has been pleased to choose for His
servants, as well asa life that contains every kind of luxury,
comfort, and ostentation, is also the most beautiful and noble way of
life, one thatconforms as closely as possible to religious moral
teaching.
A false definition of dissolution opens the wayto misunderstanding.
Dissolution, or rebellion against Allah through a lack of discipline
and overindulgence, is a condition of the human mind. People are not
dissolute because of their clothes, ostentatious houses, aesthetic
environments, or materialwealth. Rather, the problem is in their
minds.
The natural result of this situation is this: If people have a
Qur'anic morality and a strong faith, they can live among the
richestopulence imaginable without ever becoming dissolute. On the
contrary,because they view everything they encounter according to the
Qur'anic criteria and moral teaching, they see all of the beauty
surrounding them as a blessing. In other words, they realize that all
of these things are gifts fromAllah. So, if Muslims know that Allah
has given all of the surrounding riches, beauty, opulence, and
magnificence, naturally they thank our Lord for what He has provided.
This is, after all, why all blessings have been created.
If we applied this general way of thinking to our present society, we
wouldhave to say that those who live a dissolute life and turn away
from Allah's commands have gone astray, because theydo not see that
all of theirpossibilities are blessings from Him. If they saw these
things as blessings, this understanding would lead them to give thanks
to Allah. And then, they would use these blessingsas Allah intended
them to be used: avoiding waste and using them in a way pleasing to
Him.
So, wealth can be defined in two ways. Some rich people are believers
who consider all of their possessions to be blessings from Allah,
while other rich people goastray by considering all of their
possessions as their own, forget Allah, and fall into dissolution.
However, the model that Allah has proposed for all of His servants is
wealth, as mentioned in the first model above. Wealth and poverty are
tests for believers. Although some believers may be tested by poverty,
Allah commands: "We desired to show kindness to thosewho were
oppressed in the land, and to make them leaders and inheritors" (Surat
al-Qasas,5). This might happen in the world, but it certainly will
happen in the afterlife.
Therefore, it would be very wrong for Muslims tofind fault with grand,
luxurious, and opulent lives. Muslims must not shun such people and
regard them with disdain,because, after all, all material things in
this life (e.g., fine clothes, deliciousfood, magnificent homes and
works of art) were created for Muslims, as weread in Surat al-A'raf,
32:
Say: "Who has forbidden the fine clothing that Allah has produced for
Hisservants and the good kinds of provision? :->
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Paradise: Introduction

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What do you want most out of life? A nice house, expensive clothes,
money,wealth, opulence? What ifyou were told about a place where you
could geteverything you wanted and keep it forever? Whatwould you say?
Of course you would be very excited and want to see this perfect place
right away. Surely no one would ever object to living in such a
wonderful place.
Now just think. Has anyone ever talked to youabout a place filled with
acountless array of blessings, where beauty isspread out at your feet?
Surely someone must have done so, telling you and all other people
about the existence of a life - the life of Paradise - where
everything that you want will be prepared for you. Everyone knows that
afterdeath there is an endless Paradise. Everyone judgedworthy to
enter it will find everything they desire there; they will receive
their rewards and blessings, and live in a perfect place surrounded by
beauty forever. To those faithful servants who pass the test of this
earthly life, Allah has promised an unprecedented land. The limited
time one spends in this world, on the otherhand, is an opportunity
toattain these beauties.
So what keeps people from being overcome with joy at the good newsof
Paradise? What stops them from longing for it, from expending every
effort to attain it? Why dopeople, knowing that they will receive
these blessings as a divine reward, not prepare for Paradise? Surely
the most important reason is that some people do not have an assured
faith that it exists; others are not convinced. There may be other
reasons why peopledo not believe in or have doubts about it. But the
basic thing that we must consider is that this doubtsometimes arises
from a lack of knowledge.
The only remedy for this lack of knowledge is the Qur'an.
In the Qur'an, Allah describes a wonderful life of perfect and endless
beauty in Paradise. Someone who does not know this beauty's extentor
how the Qur'an describes it may have difficulty envisioning Paradise
and the kind of life there.
This book tells people about Paradise, which Allah offers to them,
describes its great blessings, and proclaims its beauties to everyone.
It informs people that Paradise is one of two ways of life prepared
for them in the afterworld, and that every good thingwill be theirs in
Paradise to a degree that surpassesour present ability to imagine. It
also shows that Paradise, is a place where all blessings have been
created perfectly and where people will be offered everything their
souls and hearts will desire; that people will befar removed from want
and need, anxiety or sadness, sorrow and regret. Every kind of beauty
and blessing existsin Paradise and will be revealed with a
perfectionnever seen or known before. Allah has preparedsuch blessings
there as a gift, and these will be offered only to people with whom He
is pleased.
This book describes everything about Paradisein the light of the
Qur'an'sverses. So, as you read this information and try to envision
that blessed place, remember that the Qur'an is the truth. Based on
this information, consider the perfection of the real land that is
waiting for you, and makeevery effort to be worthy of it. Be aware
that Allah will give you all of these things by His grace, and that
they can be yours forever. Given all of this, ifyou still cannot
decide in favor of eternal beauty, remember that the only choice left
is Hell, a place full of anguish from where you will observe the
comfort of those in Paradise and experience eternal anxiety, sadness,
misery, and sorrow.
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Abdullah ibn Abbas

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Abdullah was the son of Abbas, an uncle of the noble Prophet. He was
born just three years before the Hijrah. When the Prophet died,
Abdullah was thus only thirteen years old.
When he was born, his mother took him to the blessed Prophet who put
some of his saliva on the babe's tongue even before he began to
suckle. This was thebeginning of the close and intimate tie between
Abbas and the Prophet that was to be part of a life-long love and
devotion.
When Abdullah reached the age of discretion, he attached himself to
the service of the Prophet. He would run to fetch water for him when
he wanted to make wudu. During Salat, he would stand behind the
Prophetin prayer and when the Prophet went on journeys or expeditions,
he would follow next in line to him. Abdullah thusbecame like the
shadow of the Prophet, constantly in his company.
In all these situations he was attentive and alert to whatever the
Prophet did and said. His heart was enthusiastic and his young mind
was pure and uncluttered, committing the Prophet's words to memory
with the capacity and accuracy of a recording instrument. In this way
and through his constant researches later, as we shall see, Abdullah
became one of the most learned companionsof the Prophet, preserving on
behalf of later generations of Muslims, the priceless words of the
Messenger of God. It is said that he committed to memory about one
thousand, six hundred and sixty sayings of theProphet which are
recorded andauthenticated in the collections of al-Bukhari and Muslim.
The Prophet would often draw Abdullah as a child close to him, pat him
on the shoulder and pray: "O Lord, make him acquire a deep
understanding of the religion of Islam and instruct him in the meaning
and interpretation of things."
There were many occasions thereafter when the blessed Prophet would
repeat this dua or prayer for his cousin and before long Abdullah ibn
Abbas realized that his life was to be devoted to the pursuit of
learning and knowledge.
The Prophet moreover prayed that he be granted not just knowledge and
understanding but wisdom. Abdullah related the following incident
about himself: "Once the Prophet, peace be upon him, was on the point
of performing wudu. I hurried to get water ready for him. He was
pleased with what Iwas doing. As he was about to begin Salat, he
indicated that I should stand at his side. However, I stood behind
him. When the Salat was finished, he turned to me and said: 'What
prevented you from being at my side, O Abdullah?' 'You are too
illustrious and too great in my eyes for me to stand side by sidewith
you,' I replied.
Raising his hands to the heavens, the Prophet then prayed: 'O Lord,
grant him wisdom." The Prophet's prayer undoubtedly was granted for
the young Abdullah was to prove time and again that he possessed a
wisdom beyond hisyears. But it was a wisdom that came only with
devotion and thedogged pursuit of knowledge both during the Prophet's
lifetime and after his death.
During the lifetime of the Prophet, Abdullah would not miss any of his
assemblies and he would commit to memory whatever he said. After the
Prophet passed away, he would take care to go to as many companions as
possible especially those who knew the Prophet longer and learn from
them what the Prophet had taught them. Whenever he heardthat someone
knew a hadith of the Prophet which he did not know he would go quickly
to him and record it. He would subject whatever he heard to close
scrutiny and check it against other reports. He would go to as many as
thirty companions to verify a single matter.
Abdullah described what he once did on hearing that a companion of the
Prophet knewa hadith unknown to him: "I went to him during the time of
the afternoon siesta and spread my cloak in front of his door. The
wind blew dust on me (as I sat waiting for him). If I wished Icould
have sought his permission to enter and he would certainly have given
me permission. But I preferred to wait on him so that he could be
completely refreshed. Coming out of his house and seeing me in that
condition he said: 'O cousin of the Prophet! What's the matter with
you? If you had sent for me I would have come to you.' 'I am the one
who should come to you, for knowledge is sought, it does notjust
come,' I said. I asked him about the hadith and learnt fromhim."
In this way, the dedicated Abdullah would ask, and ask, and go on
asking. And he wouldsift and scrutinize the information he had
collected with his keen and meticulous mind.:->
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