Slide towards decline, Neighbours, Moral Consistency
Issue 301 » November 19, 2004 - Shawwal 6, 1425
General
| Living the Quran |
Maryam (Mary)
Negligence and abandoning Prayer are the very first step in a people's slide towards their decline. For Prayer is the primary link between man and God. Prayer keeps a person constantly in touch with God, during all hours of the day and night. Prayer prevents a person from moving away from a life of devotion, worship and obedience of Him. As soon as this bond is broken, man increasingly begins to draw away from God. This may even happen to such an extent that not only is man's relationship with God reduced to naught on a practical level but also on an intellectual level. It is for this reason that the Quran expounds here a general rule: that the corruption in a nation which originally followed a Prophet began the moment that nation abandoned Prayer. Following one's lust and desires rather than truth and justice naturally results from the weakening of one's God-consciousness. When a person becomes heedless of God and abandons Prayer, he comes increasingly into the grip of his own carnal desires. Eventually, he becomes impervious to all God's commands despite the fact that these had earlier shaped his morality and conduct. Instead, bit by bit, he begins to follow, all those ways which conform to his own likes and dislikes. Source: |
| Understanding the Prophet's Life |
| Prophetic Wisdom on Neighbours A slight nod of the head, a brief hello in the hallway or perhaps helping with a car stuck in the snow during winter. That's usually the most communication many of us have with those who are physically closer to us than most of our relatives, our neighbours. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) once said, "Jibril kept recommending treating neighbours with kindness until I thought he would assign a share of inheritance" (Bukhari and Muslim). Wow, our inheritance. But let's think of something smaller. How about food? It's been said that food unites. While we all have our own tastes, "American" food (i.e. fruits, veggies, chips, cookies, chocolate cake, frozen pizza, etc.) can be found in virtually all of our homes, even those who staunchly cling to their ethnic identities. When was the last time we offered a bag of chips or cookies to the kids downstairs? When was the last time we cut up some watermelon on a hot day and offered it to our neighbours? "O Abu Dharr! Whenever you prepare a broth, put plenty of water in it, and give some of it to your neighbours," the Prophet advised his Companion in a Hadith in Muslim. It's not just about hunger. In America, the land of plenty, Alhamdu lillah, we won't find the shortage of food we would in many Muslim countries. Here, food really is about uniting people, sharing what's common to our humanity. It's also about building neighbourly relations through small acts of kindness. "By Allah, he is not a believer! By Allah, he is not a believer! By Allah, he is not a believer,'' the Prophet said. It was asked, "Who is that, O Messenger of Allah?'' He said, "One whose neighbour does not feel safe from his evil" (Bukhari and Muslim). Maybe we're not so bad. At least we don't yell and scream at our neighbours, threaten them, cheat them or lie to them. But we're reminded of our negligence towards our neighbours when we realize that how we treat them relates to our relationship with God, which is the very core of who we are as Muslims. The Prophet said, "the best of companions with Allah is the one who is best to his companions, and the best of neighbours to Allah is the one who is the best of them to his neighbour" (Tirmidhi). After 9/11, Muslim leaders in America have emphasized the need to share Islam with our neighbours to encourage better understanding and to build bridges. The future of Islam in this country doesn't only depend on this exchange of values and information. Our very faith and connection to Allah is reflected in how we treat our neighbours. Perhaps this is the push we need to start connecting with them so we can better our relationship with God. Source: |
| Blindspot |
Moral ConsistencyFor a Muslim the end never justifies the means, no matter what the aggravation. Unlike most un-Islamic movements, who are Machiavellian even in excess of their own teachings, the Islamic movement must be principled in action. How many people or parties actually practice what they preach in either the executive or legislative branch of government? These people and parties do not subscribe to a spiritual and moral creed designed to protect them from the hypocrisy endemic in the arena of politics. The interests of secular people change and are translated into party programs, and these are often directed toward the self-serving advantage of party leaders, who sell out the interests of their supporters for personal gain. They gain power easily and manipulate it even more easily, because they are not constrained by religious and moral obligations. Instead they have objectives, strategies, and tactics that need to he accomplished regardless of the cost. In contrast, the labourers in the Islamic field do not work for themselves. They are bound by religious and moral obligations, which they cannot discard or change. This characteristic of moral consistency is based on five principles:
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