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Can Good Bring Forth Evil? (Hadith No. 1243)
Bismillah.
Volume 2, Book 24, Number 544:
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri (radiallaahu `anhu):
Once the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) sat on a pulpit and we sat around him. Then he said, “The things I am afraid of most for your sake (concerning what will befall you after me) is the pleasures and splendors of the world and its beauties which will be disclosed to you.” Somebody said, “O Allah’s Apostle (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam)! Can the good bring forth evil?” The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) remained silent for a while. It was said to that person, “What is wrong with you? You are talking to the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) while he is not talking to you.” Then we noticed that he was being inspired divinely. Then the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) wiped off his sweat and said, “Where is the questioner?” It seemed as if the Prophet liked his question. Then he said, “Good never brings forth evil. Indeed it is like what grows on the banks of a water-stream which either kill or make the animals sick, except if an animal eats its fill the Khadira (a kind of vegetable) and then faces the sun, and then defecates and urinates and grazes again. No doubt this wealth is sweet and green. Blessed is the wealth of a Muslim from which he gives to the poor, the orphans and to needy travelers. (Or the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) said something similar to it) No doubt, whoever takes it illegally will be like the one who eats but is never satisfied, and his wealth will be a witness against him on the Day of Resurrection.”
Why was the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) afraid about pleasures, splendors and beauties of this world being disclosed to us believers? Simple. These things are trials. Temptations, very hard to resist. One goes through a major test of Imaan while dealing with them. You falter, you lose. So Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam), being our well-wisher, was worried about us being afflicted with trials. One more reason to love him (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam)!
Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) gives an example of an animal who eats a lot, and from everywhere. It eats so much that it either dies because of overeating or becomes really sick – harms itself.
Then there’s another animal who eats according to need, utilizes it, digests and gets rid of it. Remains healthy and fit.
Contentedness is the word. We need to learn to lead a balanced lifestyle. To not go blindly after wealth – the beauties and temptations of this world. To not forget the difference between haraam and halaal – harmful and beneficial – while fulfilling the desire to acquire and accumulate wealth. Because the person who acquires it from everywhere and anywhere harms himself. Whereas the person who takes from this world as per need, utilizes it, and then takes again according to need, is the one who actually benefits. He does not harm himself by taking the haraam route. He gives of his wealth in charity that purifies it. He’s contented with what he has. So he does not take others’ share by force, lest that wealth becomes witness against him on the Day of Judgement. He’s fit and healthy. He’s the one we should strive to become like. He’s the one Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wasallam) praised.
The Change of Qiblah (Hadith No. 392)
Salam,
Bismillah.
Narrated Bara’ bin ‘Azib:
Allah’s Apostle prayed facing Baitul-Maqdis for sixteen or seventeen months but he loved to face the Ka’ba (at Mecca) so Allah revealed: “Verily, We have seen the turning of your face to the heaven!” (2:144) So the Prophet faced the Ka’ba and the fools amongst the people namely “the Jews” said, “What has turned them from their Qibla (Bait-ul-Maqdis) which they formerly observed”” (Allah revealed): “Say: ‘To Allah belongs the East and the West. He guides whom he will to a straight path’.” (2:142) A man prayed with the Prophet (facing the Ka’ba) and went out. He saw some of the Ansar praying the ‘Asr prayer with their faces towards Bait-ul-Maqdis, he said, “I bear witness that I prayed with Allah’s Apostle facing the Ka’ba.” So all the people turned their faces towards the Ka’ba.
Can you imagine being there when the whole congregation took a 180 degree turn to face the Ka’bah? What a test of Imaan! That moment decided whether you were a believer or not. Because a true believer would turn ANYwhere as long as it’s Allah’s command. But the hypocrite would be like ‘whaaat?’..
Wassalam.
Being Sincere (Hadith No. 55)
Salam,
Bismillah.
Narrated Ziyad bin’Ilaqa:
I heard Jarir bin ‘Abdullah (Praising Allah). On the day when Al-Mughira bin Shu’ba died, he (Jarir) got up (on the pulpit) and thanked and praised Allah and said, “Be afraid of Allah alone Who has none along with Him to be worshipped.(You should) be calm and quiet till the (new) chief comes to you and he will come to you soon. Ask Allah’s forgiveness for your (late) chief because he himself loved to forgive others.” Jarir added, “Amma badu (now then), I went to the Prophet and said, ‘I give my pledge of allegiance to you for Islam.” The Prophet conditioned (my pledge) for me to be sincere and true to every Muslim so I gave my pledge to him for this. By the Lord of this mosque! I am sincere and true to you (Muslims). Then Jarir asked for Allah’s forgiveness and came down (from the pulpit).
Read more on it here. :)
P.S. this is the last Hadith from Kitab-ul-Imaan. I will upload a summary post today, inshaAllah. Keep checking back!
Wassalam.
Even If It Were a Morsel (Hadith No. 53)
Salam,
Bismillah.
Narrated Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas:
Allah’s Apostle said, “You will be rewarded for whatever you spend for Allah’s sake even if it were a morsel which you put in your wife’s mouth.”
My personal experience: men don’t think spending on their families will bring them any reward. Isn’t that weird. To me, it is!
Like we discussed in yesterday’s post, spending on your own family is also rewarded as charity. It only needs to be for Allah’s sake though. Sincerity is a condition.
Another important thing today’s Hadith tells us is: the quantity doesn’t matter. Even if it were a morsel! Meaning, you don’t need to be rich to do charity. If you have on date, and you eat half of it and share the other half with someone, that’s also sadaqah/charity! Quality will be in your intention and that will determine your reward. :)
Thinking of doing some extra sadaqah/charity in these golden days (Dhil-Hajj)? Spend on your family!
Wassalam.
Hadith No. 49 – Sahih al-Bukhari
Salam,
Bismillah.
Hadith no. 48 is a repeat. Read here.
Narrated An-Nu’man bin Bashir:
I heard Allah’s Apostle saying, ‘Both legal and illegal things are evident but in between them there are doubtful (suspicious) things and most of the people have no knowledge about them. So whoever saves himself from these suspicious things saves his religion and his honor. And whoever indulges in these suspicious things is like a shepherd who grazes (his animals) near the Hima (private pasture) of someone else and at any moment he is liable to get in it. (O people!) Beware! Every king has a Hima and the Hima of Allah on the earth is His illegal (forbidden) things. Beware! There is a piece of flesh in the body if it becomes good (reformed) the whole body becomes good but if it gets spoilt the whole body gets spoilt and that is the heart.
What I take from this Hadith is: Islam has its teaching described clearly in black and white. But some lie in the grey area in between. This is the suspicious territory. It may be legal or it may not be. We don’t know for sure. A person going into that territory can assure himself that he isn’t necessarily doing wrong. But! Look at what the Prophet (SAW) said:
Whoever saves himself from these suspicious things saves his religion and honor.
One might still argue that it’s not possible to save yourself from these things, especially in ‘this time and age’. Well, here’s the answer to that: if you knowingly enter the grey area, you can save yourself. Because you knew! And if you did it unknowingly and unwillingly, then there shall be no blame on you, inshaAllah.
Coming back to my point, we should try to stay away from suspicious things, things that we don’t know are legal or not. Because stepping into the grey area will be like opening a window to illegal stuff. It might become the stepping stone to something you can’t imagine yourself doing.
So I take my lesson. There are a lot of things, I feel, that clear guidance hasn’t been given in Islam about. For example, to exactly which extent can we indulge with our male cousins. We know they’re non-mahrams, but they’re family as well. Hence, I never get to know where the boundary is. Avoiding suspicion would mean I should avoid spending a lot of time with them. Talk only when necessary. It’s doable!
May Allah make us realize our boundaries and keep us from going even near them. Ameen.
Wassalam.
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