NO, it’s Not ON!
NO, it’s Not ON! by Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (rahmatullah ‘alayh) Once, whilst walking on the pavement, I saw the word “ON” engraved on the cement. A pedestrian would read “ON” walking in one direction and would read “NO” walking in the opposite direction. This made me think of the never-ending efforts of Shaytan and Nafs in enticing and persuading us to engage in sins. When it comes to sins, Shaytan and Nafs are quick in glorifying disobedience, saying to us, “It’s ON!” This is a common catchphrase, often used to confirm some get-together or meeting, whether at the rave club, cinema, casino, or an illicit affair —meaning, ‘It’s the thing to do, It will bring enjoyment and gratification. You will be ‘with it.’ However, when a true Muslim is faced with such an invitation to sin or is tempted to disobey Allah Ta’ala and Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), then he boldly and assertively responds: “NO, it’s not On!” He addresses his nafs: “Agreed, there is a little stolen pleasure in sin, But what great rebellion is this against the Sustainer (Allah Ta’ala (That you use His bounties to disobey Him) A little while of pleasure and everlasting regret; What stupidity it is to bury the Janaza of respect and honour.” Click here to download and listen to the above couplet recited by Hazrat Maulana: “Yeh Mana Ma’siyat me…”
Giving up Sins: An Easy Prescription
Giving up Sins: An Easy Prescription by Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (rahmatullah ‘alayh) There are many Muslim brothers and sisters throughout the world who, due to various negative influences and bad elements, find themselves ‘de-railed’ from Deen. Many others sit on the fence, wanting to enjoy or benefit from both sides of the fence – engaging in sins as well as being practical on specific teachings of Deen. However, deep in their hearts is the desire to get back on track and once again become good, practical Muslims, to jump off the fence and enjoy the green pastures of Islam. So they write, e-mail, phone, and fax, seeking guidance and direction. The main weakness is indulgence in sins; sometimes, excessive indulgence in those sins. A standard prescription that I give as a reply is as follows. Alhamdulillah, many who followed through with the prescription have found a new life – of peace, happiness, blessings and mercy. On tasting the sweetness that comes with obedience, there is no desire to return to any form of disobedience. The bes is to abstain from sins out of Love for Allah Ta’ala. He has granted us so much – He has given us everything, and it is the nature of human beings that we love the person that is kind and generous to us. Then what of Allah Ta’ala, who has provided us with plentiful – with everything? Our sight, hearing, speech, organs that are functioning in such an amazing manner, the limbs – all in our service – for eating, drinking, walking, sitting, etc. The gifts of wealth: clothing, shelter, transport, food, drink, and so many other comforts. We use them all, but do we keep in mind the Generous Benefactor? Do we give thanks for these bounties or show any appreciation to the Giver? Developing the conscious awareness that Allah Ta’ala is with us: He is watching us, He is hearing us, He knows all and everything about us; We cannot hide from Him; We cannot conceal our actions from Him. Then should we not feel ashamed that we are disobeying Him in His Presence? Are we not showing ingratitude to the Benefactor when engaging in sins in His Presence? Keep in mind that the angels, too, are witnesses to all our actions; the earth is recording our behaviour, and all of it is also noted in our books of deeds – and we are accountable to Allah Ta’ala on the Day of Judgement. Added to this, our actions are also presented to Rasulullah (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), so we should consider whether our actions are a source of joy or grief to him. In this manner, we will develop that shame and modesty, which will make it easy to restrain from Haram. Muraqabah is meditating on our actions during the day: We should reflect on our deeds for the day, seek forgiveness for shortcomings, and resolve not to return to those bad deeds. We should also express gratitude for good deeds and make Dua for an increase in them. Ponder over the fact that the Angel of Death does not give respite. It must not be that whilst obeying the Nafs in sinful pleasure, the Angel of death visits, and our departure is in disgrace, and our return to Allah Ta’ala is at a time when He is angry. Our death will be an embarrassment to us, our family and the community who will find out that death came in sin. May Allah Ta’ala protect us from death in a state of transgression, but this is very much a reality. Death visits – more often, very unexpectedly, and no true Muslim would want to be seized by the Angel of death when Allah Ta’ala is displeased. I often say: We now have instant tea, instant coffee, instant cereal and instant pudding and so many other things on the market are instant – we are also living in times when death is just as instant. So any sin is too much of a risk in the face of the reality of death. The Hadith is explicit: We will be resurrected on the day of Judgement as we have died[1]. Would any Muslim want to rise on the Day of Judgement in sin for all of humanity to witness what kind of life he led? Ponder over the fact that Allah Ta’ala has blessed us with the gift of sight, hearing, health, wealth, and so much else – and has also granted us the gift of respect. However, what He gives, He can also take away. He explicitly stated that ingratitude for His Gifts would draw severe punishment. So is sinning not abuse and ingratitude for the gifts of sight, heart, mind, and limbs? A little contemplation on the consequences of such behaviour and a little Mujahada (effort) – which entails ‘not doing’ and Alhamdulillah, the sicknesses are cured. Together with this: Attend the talks of the learned Scholars of Islam whenever possible or listen to recordings of their lectures and read their books to gain the benefit of the pious, righteous company. Join and participate in the Deeni activities with those who follow the Qur’an and Sunnah. Insha Allah, there will be a great improvement in one’s condition by keeping the right company. Make an effort to read Salah punctually. Men should make every effort to read their Salah in Jamat (congregation). Read good Islamic literature. Abstain from magazines or books that have filthy and indecent contents and pictures. Give up television viewing. 0% of the content is Haram. If a person offers a full glass of clean and pure water and mentions that there is just one drop of urine, would any sensible person drink it? When the major content of television is Haram, what would we then say? When the gaze, heart and mind are consuming and digesting so much of Haram viewing, what else would be the result
The Green Leaf and The Juicy Grape
The Green Leaf and The Juicy Grape by Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (rahmatullah ‘alayh) Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi (rahmatullah’ alayh)[1] has mentioned a story in his Mathnavi Sharif of a worm that was told: “You will find a delicious, juicy grape on the grapevine.” Hearing this, the worm began its journey up the grapevine. It soon came across a green leaf and thinking it to be the delicious grape; it whiled away its entire life eating off that leaf until it made its ‘Qabr’ (grave) on that same green leaf. Had the worm gone just a little further, it would have come across the delicious grape and enjoyed its sweetness. It would not have spent all its life on a green leaf. The anecdote illustrates our similarity with that worm. Like that worm which landed on the green leaf, many have landed in front of some filthy television programmes, or landed in Interest transactions -enriching themselves with Haram; or landed in fraud and theft, illicit relationships, or in some casinos and rave clubs. Some are even engaged in homosexuality, indecent and obscene novels and magazines, some porn websites on the Internet, or Haram video games, and a multitude of other sins and illusions – and they ignorantly think that this is the sweet grape. These were the leaves before the juicy grape or the thorns before the petals of the fragrant rose flower. They had set out for the juicy grape of Iman but have been trapped by Shatyan[2] and Nafs[3] in Haram[4] pleasures, which they whiled away and wasted the very precious time of life. There are just two steps to take to taste this delicious grape. The first step is on the Nafs, and the second step is on Shaytan. With these two steps, we will enjoy such sweetness of Iman, that we would never want to return to the temporary and sinful pleasures of this world. Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi (rahmatullah ‘alayh) had said that, in reality, the step is just one, and that step is the suppression of the evil desires of the Nafs. Shaytan became Shaytan because of his nafs. It will not be denied that there is some temporary enjoyment in consenting to the evil demands of the nafs. However, ‘pleasure’, which is so short-lived, should be weighed against the anguish and punishment that awaits one in the Hereafter for having earned the displeasure and wrath of Allah Ta’ala. This punishment is not reserved for only the Hereafter. It descends and pursues a person, even in this world, in the form of restlessness, anxiety, fear, humiliation, disgrace, etc. and sometimes, everlasting regret. Hazrat Maulana Hakim Muhammad Akhtar Saheb (Damat Barakatuhu) states in his poetry: “Agreed, there is a little stolen pleasure in sin, But what great rebellion is this against the Sustainer (Allah Ta’ala, and that you use His bounties to disobey Him) A little while of pleasure and everlasting regret; What stupidity it is to bury the Janazah of respect and honour.” Even though opposing the dictates of our evil Nafs may incur some difficulty in this life, the consequence in the Hereafter is an eternal pleasure. In this world as well, the person enjoys tranquillity and satisfaction. And when there are so many forms of Halal (lawful) pleasures that one could enjoy, why foolishly go toward Haram? __________________________________________________________________ [1] Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi (rahmatullah’ alayh) was a great ‘Aalim, Shaykh and Sufi who compiled a masterpiece on Tasawwuf entitled ‘The Mathnavi’. [2] Shaytan: Satan / the Devil [3] Nafs: The Soul [4] Haram: Unlawful/forbidden according to Shariah
No Dogs Allowed Except On A Leash
No Dogs Allowed Except On A Leash by Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb (rahmatullah ‘alayh) Whilst taking a walk through a park one morning accompanied by some friends, we passed by a sign generally found in many parks. It read: ‘NO DOGS ALLOWED EXCEPT ON A LEASH’ Considering a deeper meaning to the sign, I mentioned to my companions: Our nafs (ego) is akin to a dog. The nature of an undisciplined unleashed dog is that it barks, relieves itself anywhere, devastates and lays waste on the delicate flower beds as it tramples them, attacks or spoils people’s picnics, and runs after that which it should not. Without its leash and training, it can scare, harm, bite others, and cause damage. Therefore the Parks Board insists that dogs be on a leash. A well-trained dog will obediently remain on a leash, under the control of its master and will not cause inconvenience or damage. It will walk along its master and do as he commands. The temperament of the nafs (carnal self/ego) is like that of the dog. It also needs to be disciplined and trained, and it requires a leash tied tightly and securely around its neck. This leash is the leash of Shariah, love and fear of Allah Ta’ala, and fear of accountability on the Day of Judgment. Without this leash, the person will break the commands of Allah Ta’ala and violate the rights of creation. The person will steal, gamble, fornicate, suppress, oppress, abuse his wife, children or parents, and perpetrate various other crimes. Malice, greed, jealousy, pride, and other filthy, vile qualities will also be found in the person’s heart. People will distance themselves from such a person for fear of being harmed or troubled. The person who has disciplined his nafs and controls it with the leash of Shariah will find that it becomes submissive and compliant to the instructions of its master. The person then finds it easy to fulfil the rights of Allah Ta’ala as well as creation since the nafs is compliant with its master’s commands. The person will want to do good deeds, assist, and invite others to Deen. He will not cause harm to people; rather, he will benefit them. People will then love such a person. When there is a need to go to the shops, factories, airports, hospitals, etc., the person will first leash the nafs with the Khauf (fear) and love of Allah Ta’ala and then go about the fulfilment of duties. Nabi (sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said: “ The intelligent person is the one who subjugates his soul/takes account of himself, and works for what is after death and the incapable is the one who follows his desires and thereafter entertains hopes in [the mercy] of Allah”[1] [1] Tirmidhi
Tug of War
Once, I had the opportunity to spend time at a park with some young boys. They were students of a Hifz class and were having a picnic —we all require rest, exercise, and some entertainment, but of the Halal kind. One of the games that these youngsters were playing was “Tug of War”. After their game, I mentioned that two parties pull a rope in tug of war. Winning is based on the side that pulls stronger. And I said that we should take a lesson from this: In life, there is always a tug of war. There is the pull of temptation and sins, and there is the pull of Deen and Shari’ah; there is the pull of the Nafs and Shaytan, and the pull of the Ruh (soul). From our side, we have to suppress and overcome the pull of temptation towards Haraam. We have to resist the Nafs when it demands and commands anything Haraam. To come out as the victorious party – as the champions – we will have to strengthen our Imaan, Istiqaamah and Yaqeen in Allah Ta’ala. In this way, we will be the dominant and stronger side. If we do not give any attention to building our spiritual stamina, strength, and prowess, the other side will easily defeat us. Nafs and Shaytan will not have to pull very hard because we will be weak spiritually. So, to always maintain the upper hand, we draw our strength – and great spiritual strength will be drawn – establishing Salaah, five times a day. For us men, this must be performed in the Masjid, in Jamaat (congregation). Together with this, we need to maintain our identity as Muslims and work towards fulfilling the Commands of Allah Ta’ala – especially, staying away from all those actions which are displeasing to Him. We should also be selective of the company we keep and seek out friends who are concerned about their Deen and are also trying to be obedient to Allah Ta’ala. If not, then a bad ‘friend’ is no friend. He belongs to the opposite party, with Nafs and Shaytan – and will pull hard to draw us into sin. Then we will be defeated. If the friend is a good friend, he will assist us and be on our side, overcoming the opposition. In the game of “Tug of war”, there are occasions and times when there is a balance —or the other side is even stronger. The weaker side gets the upper hand when there is a slight lapse. In our day-to-day lives, this is what we term ‘accidental’ sins: There is a lapse in our hold of the rope of Taqwa. We lose our grip, and Nafs and Shaytan gain the upper hand. To regain control, there is a need for plenty of remorse and Taubah. In this way, we redeem our position of being the stronger side. Of course, we should allow the Nafs Halaal pleasure and entertainment. Having a picnic and playing for a little while is important to keep us refreshed, re-energised and happy. However, we should always be on guard that Nafs and Shaytan don’t get any leeway and pull us away from Allah Ta’ala and Deen. May Allah Ta’ala grant us the Taufiq of becoming tough and strong against Nafs and Shaytan, Aameen.