Personal, - 'Our Hearts are Still Adhering to the Truth'

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In his book,Siyar A‘laam An-Nubalaa’)11/238(, Ath-Thahabi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said that during the ordeal of Imaam Ahmad, may Allaah have mercy upon him, it was said to him,“O Abu ‘Abdullaah! Do you not see that falsehood is being victorious over the truth?”He replied,“No. The victory of falsehood over truth is when the hearts change from guidance to error but our hearts are still adhering to the truth.”
How badly are we in need for this accurate criterion that shows the reality of the victory of falsehood over truth, especially in this age when many hearts have been affected by trials of doubtful issues and desires, we seek refuge with Allaah The Almighty from them.
One of the most serious trials is confusion about the reality of the victory of the truth in one’s heart which may be induced by any cause, since confusion about the criteria of judgment necessarily leads to an unstable methodology. At this point, the person on his way of Allaah The Almighty becomes confused because of the confusion of criteria, as he sometimes links the truth to the greater number of followers; some other times, he links it to power; and sometimes to victory of the people of falsehood or any other thing. None of this brings any benefit to man.
Indeed, the conviction of Imam Ahmad, may Allaah have mercy upon him, in refuting this allegation, that some of his companions mentioned, was not an instant reaction, but it was the result of his profound understanding of the Book of Allaah and theSeerah)biography( of His Messenger,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, along with his scrutiny of the history of the people of the truth in their struggle against falsehood and the people who follow it.
Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:
·}That He should establish the truth and abolish falsehood, even if the criminals disliked it.{]Quran 8:8[
·}And say, "Truth has come, and falsehood has departed. Indeed is falsehood, ]by nature[, ever bound to depart."{]Quran 17:81[
·}Rather, We dash the truth upon falsehood, and it destroys it, and thereupon it departs. And for you is destruction from that which you describe.{]Quran 21:18[
Anyone who contemplates the previous verses and those that are similar can never be shaken regarding the fact that the truth must be victorious and must triumph over falsehood and those who follow it.
Since this is addressed to our dear Muslim sisters, they should bear this fact in mind especially at this time when many women are awed by the glamour of falsehood and have weakened belief in the truth.
This entails that women should recognize the truth by means of its evidence so that it would remain an established belief in the heart and cannot be shaken by temporary changes or temptations.
The concealedFitnah)trial( in this regard is represented in two matters:
The first one is the confusion between truth and falsehood because of the great number of those who call to falsehood and the powerful means that they use to propagate it.
The second one is that many Muslim women have become negligent in seeking the truth and knowing its supporting proof which gives strength to their‘Aqeedah)creed( and faith. Supporting proof is like a weapon that is necessary for the one who is engaged in fighting. If someone goes to war without a weapon, what would happen to him?
Because of this, the evidence that a woman holds to support the correctness of what she is doing will be vulnerable and she will be in a state of emotional defence without being able to show the proofs and make her true argument victorious. She will be criticized by others and will soon receive a fatal blow because of attacks of criticism. When this happens, she will become weak enough to be a recipient which is a disaster as she surrenders and her faith deteriorates )we seek refuge with Allaah The Almighty from this(.
In conclusion, Muslim women nowadays, are badly in need to be armed with knowledge that is coupled with proof, not only to be enlightened and certain regarding religious matters, but also to transfer this knowledge to others before they are swept away by the flood, and before they become confused about the criteria of judging the victory of the truth. To Allaah The Almighty belongs the command before and after. Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:}He whom Allaah guides is the ]rightly[ guided, but he whom He leaves astray -- never will you find for him a protecting guide.{]Quran 18:17[

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Personal, - Understanding the Value of Time - II

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The sole reason behind the punishments that afflict the Muslim Ummah )nation( is our decline in supporting our religion and negligence of our duties. Inadvertently, the Muslim woman has contributed to the defeatism which has afflicted us by restricting the scope of her responsibility to a bare minimum and neglecting her duty in raising and educating her children.
This painful truth calls upon us to utilize our time in fulfilling our duties, for which we will be questioned on the Day of Judgment. In a Hadeeth )narration(, the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"A woman is a guardian in her husband's home and is responsible for those under her guardianship."]Al-Bukhaari and Muslim[
Let us fulfill our duty in raising the men and women of the future and then look for entertainment. The Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, guided us how to drive worry and grief away from our souls, through strengthening our relationship with Allaah The Almighty, rushing wholeheartedly to do acts of obedience and making the Hereafter one's primary concern. Worries and grief are nothing but the result of hankering for the pleasures of this perishable abode.
It was narrated on the authority of Anas ibn Maalik, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"If a man’s sole concern is the Hereafter, Allaah will make his richness within his heart, grant his reunification and the worldly life will be forced to come to him. If a man’s sole concern is this worldly life, Allaah will make his poverty between his eyes, inflict him with disunity and will not have from this world but what was predetermined for him."
Indicating the extent of distress and the depressed life that the negligent one who turns away from the remembrance of Allaah The Almighty experiences in this worldly life, in addition to what is prepared for him in the Hereafter, Allaah The Exalted Says )what means(:}And whoever turns away from My remembrance -- indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind." He will say, "My Lord, why have You raised me blind while I was ]once[ seeing?" ]Allaah[ will say, "Thus did Our signs come to you, and you forgot them; and thus will you this Day be forgotten."{]Quran 20: 124-126[
So, let our goal be the satisfaction of Allaah The Almighty and our way to attain this be following His Sharee'ah )Islamic legislation(. When we do that, we will not feel that our spare time is an unbearable void which brings forth worries and sadness. Rather, our time will be filled with the remembrance of Allaah The Almighty, obedience to Him and our whole life will be filled with worship through words and deeds which bring one closer to Allaah The Almighty. This conforms to the Hadeeth )narration( where the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"Take benefit of five before five: your life before your death, your health before your sickness, your free-time before your preoccupation, your youth before your old age and your wealth before your poverty."]Muslim[
Ibn Al-Jawzi, may Allaah have mercy on him, wondered at the manner in which people of his time used to waste their time and said,
I see most people trying to push time ]to make it move faster, i.e., waste time[. When they remain awake during the night, they waste it in insignificant conversations or reading a book for entertainment; during the daytime, they sleep; and at the end of the day they are either on the coast of the Tigris or in markets. We liken them to those who are talking aboard a ship which is sailing fast with them while they are unaware. I see a few people who realize the meaning of existence and they prepare the provisions for departure. Nevertheless, they are different in this aspect ]only[ due to the extent of knowledge that is available at their place of residence.
When Ibn Al-Jawzi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said this about the people of his time, then what should we say about the people of our time? Mindless entertainment has become the essence of many people's lives, and boredom is a major cause of psychological ailments, while worry and fear of the future have become specters that chase people with weak characters and faith.
Today, most people spend most of the night watching various TV programs, then sleep until noon and spend the rest of the day pursuing the pleasures of this worldly life. Excessive sleep is the habit of idle and imprudent people. Serious and diligent people are careful with their time just as a niggardly person is with his money, or even more than that. It was narrated that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"There are two favors )of Allaah(, and in them most people are deceived: good health and spare time."

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Personal, - Understanding the Value of Time - II

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The sole reason behind the punishments that afflict the Muslim Ummah )nation( is our decline in supporting our religion and negligence of our duties. Inadvertently, the Muslim woman has contributed to the defeatism which has afflicted us by restricting the scope of her responsibility to a bare minimum and neglecting her duty in raising and educating her children.
This painful truth calls upon us to utilize our time in fulfilling our duties, for which we will be questioned on the Day of Judgment. In a Hadeeth )narration(, the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"A woman is a guardian in her husband's home and is responsible for those under her guardianship."]Al-Bukhaari and Muslim[
Let us fulfill our duty in raising the men and women of the future and then look for entertainment. The Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, guided us how to drive worry and grief away from our souls, through strengthening our relationship with Allaah The Almighty, rushing wholeheartedly to do acts of obedience and making the Hereafter one's primary concern. Worries and grief are nothing but the result of hankering for the pleasures of this perishable abode.
It was narrated on the authority of Anas ibn Maalik, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"If a man’s sole concern is the Hereafter, Allaah will make his richness within his heart, grant his reunification and the worldly life will be forced to come to him. If a man’s sole concern is this worldly life, Allaah will make his poverty between his eyes, inflict him with disunity and will not have from this world but what was predetermined for him."
Indicating the extent of distress and the depressed life that the negligent one who turns away from the remembrance of Allaah The Almighty experiences in this worldly life, in addition to what is prepared for him in the Hereafter, Allaah The Exalted Says )what means(:}And whoever turns away from My remembrance -- indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind." He will say, "My Lord, why have You raised me blind while I was ]once[ seeing?" ]Allaah[ will say, "Thus did Our signs come to you, and you forgot them; and thus will you this Day be forgotten."{]Quran 20: 124-126[
So, let our goal be the satisfaction of Allaah The Almighty and our way to attain this be following His Sharee'ah )Islamic legislation(. When we do that, we will not feel that our spare time is an unbearable void which brings forth worries and sadness. Rather, our time will be filled with the remembrance of Allaah The Almighty, obedience to Him and our whole life will be filled with worship through words and deeds which bring one closer to Allaah The Almighty. This conforms to the Hadeeth )narration( where the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"Take benefit of five before five: your life before your death, your health before your sickness, your free-time before your preoccupation, your youth before your old age and your wealth before your poverty."]Muslim[
Ibn Al-Jawzi, may Allaah have mercy on him, wondered at the manner in which people of his time used to waste their time and said,
I see most people trying to push time ]to make it move faster, i.e., waste time[. When they remain awake during the night, they waste it in insignificant conversations or reading a book for entertainment; during the daytime, they sleep; and at the end of the day they are either on the coast of the Tigris or in markets. We liken them to those who are talking aboard a ship which is sailing fast with them while they are unaware. I see a few people who realize the meaning of existence and they prepare the provisions for departure. Nevertheless, they are different in this aspect ]only[ due to the extent of knowledge that is available at their place of residence.
When Ibn Al-Jawzi, may Allaah have mercy on him, said this about the people of his time, then what should we say about the people of our time? Mindless entertainment has become the essence of many people's lives, and boredom is a major cause of psychological ailments, while worry and fear of the future have become specters that chase people with weak characters and faith.
Today, most people spend most of the night watching various TV programs, then sleep until noon and spend the rest of the day pursuing the pleasures of this worldly life. Excessive sleep is the habit of idle and imprudent people. Serious and diligent people are careful with their time just as a niggardly person is with his money, or even more than that. It was narrated that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"There are two favors )of Allaah(, and in them most people are deceived: good health and spare time."

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Personal, - Understanding the Value of Time - I

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It is a common practice in most Muslim countries that women allocate the afternoon for receiving or visiting friends, with some differences in the manner of the visits – they may be organized on a regular basis or spontaneous. Whatever the case may be, during the visit a veritable state of emergency is declared at home where extraordinary preparations are made which exhaust one's efforts and wealth and waste time. The day of the visit turns into a virtual competition between families, each trying to offer the most lavish hospitality and appear the most immaculate.
If you ask the majority of women about the goal behind the visit, the most likely answer would be:We meet for entertainment, to kill some time and get rid of boredom.
This answer is surprising, because time is nothing but a person's allocated age, for which he will be questioned. And when will that questioning be? It will be on the Day of the Great Terror. It is the Day when a soul will not possess the power to do anything to benefit itself or anyone else; and the command, that Day, is entirely with Allaah The Almighty.
It was narrated on the authority of Abu Burdah, may Allaah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:"A slave's two feet will not move on the Day of Judgment until he is questioned about four )things(: His youth, how he spent it, his knowledge, how he acted upon it, his wealth, how he earned it and how he spent it and his body, how he used/wasted it."]At-Tirmithi[
And who will the questioner be? He is the Lord of the Worlds who created the Jinn and mankind in order to worship Him, not for diversion and entertainment. Allaah The Exalted Says )what means(:}Had We intended to take a diversion, We could have taken it from ]what is[ with Us -- if ]indeed[ We were to do so.{]Quran 21: 17[
What will we say to the Lord of the Worlds when He asks us about wasted time? Even if such time is used in deeds that do not include impermissible words and deeds, it inevitably includes vain talk and idle chatter which was dispraised by the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, who said:"The most hateful to me and farthest from Me on the Day of Judgment will be the ostentatious chatterers, transgressing ranters and arrogant loudmouths."
A person who wastes his time has wasted an irretrievable part of his life. The person who does this will have great regret. Does the woman have a free hand and a right to waste her time as she wants? Where are the rights of the husband and the children? When will she fulfill the rights of her community and the Muslim Ummah )nation(?
To whom will she entrust her responsibility if her only concern is going out of her home and partaking in insignificant diversions? One of them could answer claiming that she has fulfilled her rights, believing that her task is restricted to cleaning her house, satisfying her husband, and giving birth to children, and her interest in bringing up her children does not go beyond feeding them, clothing them and helping them to be successful in their studies.
No, O Sister!
You are the one who nurtures future Muslim generations and the one who provides the Muslim community with its pillars: righteous women and men. Your duty )and the duty of every Muslim woman( is to provide our children with a guided upbringing and prepare them through Islamic teachings which will enable them to bear the trust, serve the Ummah and build the long-sought noble Muslim community.
If we neglect our children and interest ourselves only in entertainment, our children will truly become orphans while their parents are still alive.
Even the orphan who loses his parents may find those who treat him with affection and take care of him. However, a child whose parents are preoccupied with means of entertainment can never find those who treat him mercifully treat or feel his suffering. A woman who is always busy with herself will not find enough time to supervise her children, direct them towards goodness, follow them up and enjoy their company, while these duties undoubtedly help her fulfill her mission and satisfy her Lord.
It is true that this world, the venue of tests, is full of troubles and hardships and such meetings are intended for entertainment and amiability. Nevertheless, is entertainment the goal of the woman who feels that she guards one of Islam's forts and is keen that Islam is not attacked through this fort? Or is it the goal of vain women? While entertainment is necessary from time to time, this should not be at the expense of other women and their time.
We often complain about the intellectual invasion perpetrated by our enemies and the fact that we are subject to destruction and infighting. Have we made preparations to face them? At the very least, have we sufficiently protected ourselves against them spiritually and intellectually, that we have the free time to seek entertainment?
Our current suffering entails that we deal with our reality according to the fundamental teachings of Islam in order to rise from our dormancy. Otherwise, our hopes will remain a mirage and our wishes will remain mere dreams that we hope will be materialized one day. How strange it is that we expect our dreams to materialize without putting in work, efforts or striving continuously towards realizing them! Allaah The Exalted Says )what means(:}And those who strive for Us - We will surely guide them to Our ways. And indeed, Allaah is with the doers of good.{]Quran 29: 69[

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