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Thu 19 Shaban 1445AH 29-2-2024AD at 6:58 pm #91090
We live in a society where from a young age we have been told that we should do what makes us happy, live life the way we want to and make the most of life. These are the values that liberal societies like this are based on. These values are clearly different to those of the Muslim.
We, as Muslims, believe that life is about worshipping Allah ﷻ and pleasing Him. If that brings hardship and testing, then so be it, if it brings happiness then Alhamdulillah, our view is that our desires come second to the commands of Allah ﷻ. The eternal bliss is after this short life.
Today, we see that many Muslims want to practice Islam, alhamdulillah! Be it in our prayers, morals or duties towards parents or children. But, at the same time we want to embody the liberal values of prioritizing their personal happiness. We still want to dress as we like or perhaps free-mix with the opposite gender or compromise on our values when we see profit and benefit. What this has led to is Muslims who will end up picking and choosing from the Deen.
-So we might pray Jummah if it is easy, otherwise we might miss it, if we have work.
-We may take out haram mortgages and student loans.
-We might be very dedicated when it comes to doing dhikr, but not in accounting the tyrant rulers.So practicing aspects of the Deen that gives a spiritual buzz and parts that do not infringe on our interests – is all good, yet if it would, we will leave those obligations altogether. The question is How do we, as Muslims, make decision on what matters are priorities in life? How do we decide which actions to do? Or which actions are better than others? Or how to pick between two actions which you may think could be equally important? Is Islam just the five pillars, where we only; believe in Allah ﷻ, pray, fast, give our wealth and go Hajj? And that’s it?
Or is it what we think is good and better for us? e.g. Praying two Salah’s is better than praying zero! Why carry the Dawah, when staying silent, stops rocking the boat? Yes, its a colourful dress and not an abaya, but at least its not tight fitting. Its a loan on riba, but its going to put me in a stronger position, so I can not let that pass by. Because this is convenience!
Allah ﷻ says,
﴿الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ الْإِسْلَامَ دِیْناً ﴾
“Today, I have perfected your Deen for you, completed my favour upon you and have chosen for you Islam as your Deen.” [TMQ Surah Al-Maida 3]And He ﷻ revealed:
﴿ وَنَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكَ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ تِبْيَٰنًا لِّكُلِّ شَىْءٍ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةً وَبُشْرَىٰ لِلْمُسْلِمِين ﴾
“And We have sent down to you the Book explaining everything.” [TMQ Surah Nahl 89]Therefore, there is not any action left without a Shariah rule and evidences that establish it from the Noble Quran and the Prophetic Sunnah. So, how can anyone, having perceived these two verses, to think that there is room for ‘What we believe is better, right or good.’ ? How?!
Islam is perfect! Complete! Holistic! If a Muslim wanted to perform any action, Allah ﷻ guide has already addressed it! So it is actually incumbent upon us to abide by the rule of Allah ﷻ pertaining that action; thus, we must search for that rule until we reach it and then abide by it.
Therefore, it is forbidden for a Muslim to undertake any action or to act towards anything in contradiction to the laws of Allah; we have to obey these rules in every action that we undertake and in every matter!
Every action has a hukm (legal ruling) and this is the method of categorizing actions. They are either:
-Fard or Haram,
-Mandub, or
-Makruh or MubahFive categories! So what do these mean?
Firstly: Fard, which means: Compulsory.
These are actions which have been made very clear that you have to do! Allah ﷻ has been very obvious and clear in this. A person who complies with a Fard will be rewarded, while one who disobeys will be punished. For example, the five pillars of Islam and Muslim women wearing the Hijab.Secondly, we have Haram, which means: Prohibited.
Again. These are actions that have also been made very clear, that we must refrain from. If the Haram is committed, then the person will be punished, but if the Haram action is avoided, the person will be rewarded. For example, dealing with Riba, interest, gambling and promoting nationalism or democracy.Thirdly, we have Mandub, also known as Sunnah or Nafilah, which means: Recommended.
These actions are those which are not fard, i.e. not compulsory, but if you do them, so much reward is attached to them! The one who performs it is praised and rewarded; however, the one who abstains from it is neither blamed nor punished. For example: Attending to the sick, giving alms to the poor and fasting Mondays and Thursdays.Fourth : Next is Makruh, this means: Disliked.
These actions are those which are not Haram, i.e. not forbidden, but if you stay away from them, reward is attached to them! The one who abstains is praised and rewarded while the one who does it is neither punished nor blamed. For example: speaking while making Wudu and eating garlic before going to the masjid for salah.Fifth : Lastly, we have Mubah, which means: Permissible.
These actions are those where Allah ﷻ has allowed us to decide to do the action or not. It is left upon the person to choose. For this, one will neither be rewarded nor punished for an action falling under this category. For example: Eating lamb or chicken or marrying an Arab, African or an Asian Muslim.Every action that one could possibly think of would always fit into one of these five categories! We should be very clear that there is no distinction between Deen and Dunya!
We sometimes may be guilty of separating actions into Deen and Dunya. So thinking that there are worldly issues like work, studies and having fun. We can think that these are things that we concentrate on for this life!
And then there are Deen actions, so they could be actions that we do for the hereafter like prayer and dhikr. But in Islam there isn’t this differentiation. The Deen encompasses all actions and we must refer to Allah ﷻ for all actions. We don’t have this conflict between Deen and Dunya instead we try to link all our actions to Allah, even ones that may seem dunya orientated. The duty is upon us to realize which action fits which category. This would allow us to prioritize which actions are most important.
May Allah ﷻ grant us the understanding and tawfeeq to carry out all our actions in the most pleasing of ways to Him. Ameen.
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