Diverse Striving, Psychological Independence, Helping the Oppressed
Issue 302 » November 26, 2004 - Shawwal 13, 1425
General
| Living the Quran |
Al-Layl (The
Night)
Men have diverse temperaments, environments, concepts and concerns, so much so that every man seems to be a distinct world by himself living in his own, special planet. The striving of human beings is diverse; the roads they follow lead to different ends. Their striving varies in essence, motives, directions and results. Hence, their reward is also diverse. Good is not the same as evil, following the right guidance is unlike wrong-doing, and righteousness is different from corruption. Generosity and god-fearing are unlike hoarding and conceit. The faithful are unlike those devoid of faith. Variance of ways necessitates variance of destinations. The reward is also appropriately different. This is a fact, but along with it there is another general fact which applies to all beings and their different worlds. It groups them in two distinct classes and two contrasting positions. It assigns to each its distinctive label: "who gives and is god-fearing and believes in that which is the Best;" and, "who is a miser and deems himself self-sufficient and calls the Best a lie." These are the two positions at which the disparate souls line up where all the diverse striving and the divergent ways of life end. Each group has its way in this life smoothed, all obstructions removed. He who is charitable and god-fearing and believes in the ideology which has the Best as its title has indeed done his best to purify himself seeking right guidance. Hence, he deserves the help and grace which Allah has, by His own will, committed Himself to provide. For without this grace man finds himself absolutely helpless. He whose path to perfect ease and comfort is made smooth by Allah achieves something certainly great, and achieves it with ease in this life. He lives in ease. Ease flows from him to all around him. Ease becomes characteristic of his movement, action and handling of all things and situations. Success coupled with quiet contentedness becomes the distinctive mark of his life, all its details and its general aspects. He attains the highest grade of all, in the sense that he joins the Prophet as recipients of Allah's promise to His messenger: "We will indeed facilitate for you the way to perfect ease." [Al-Quran 87:8]. He who sacrifices nothing of himself or his wealth, professes that he is in no need of His Lord or His guidance and disbelieves in His message and religion, makes himself most vulnerable to evil. He deserves for so doing that everything should be made hard for him. Hence, Allah makes easy his path to affliction, and withholds from him all kinds of help. Allah makes every stride he takes really hard, drives him away from the path of the right guidance, and leaves him to traverse the valleys of misery, although he may imagine himself to be taking the road to success. How greatly mistaken he is! He loses balance so he tries to avoid falling only to go down heavily, and finds himself further away from the path set by Allah, deprived of His pleasure. When he falls headlong eventually he can make no use of the wealth he has hoarded and which has caused him to imagine himself in no need of Allah or His guidance. Facilitating evil and sin is the same as facilitating the way to affliction, even though the sinful person may be successful and prosperous in this life. For is there any affliction worse than Hell? Indeed, Hell is affliction itself. Source: |
| Understanding the Prophet's Life |
| Psychological Independence There has been much discussion about the - feeling of isolation - that Syed Qutb called for when he said, "There should be a group that takes the lead and proceeds alone in the middle of the ignorance found everywhere on this earth. This group should be in this environment but isolated from it, and should not be of this environment, though it should communicate with it." The concept of isolation referred to here by Syed Qutb is distinct from the nihilist or rejectionist isolation of many non-Muslim groups. Muslims are isolationist in the sense of psychological independence, based on the manner and behavior, and of their feelings. This is what the Prophet (peace be upon him) called when he warned:
Effective work, movement, and dawa are not possible if one is physically isolated and out of contact with people, because one must be sensitive to their differences and tailor one’s approach accordingly. Those who are committed to Islam as individuals but reject the duties of work in a movement must be approached in one way. Some people are open enemies of Allah and His Messenger, both as individuals and as members and leaders of non-believing groups. Other people are proud of being Muslims but do not live in accordance with its rules. These people, who represent the majority of Muslims today, cannot be equated with those who deny: non-believers. Each group must be addressed distinctly and with the personal knowledge that comes from communication. Source: |
| Blindspot |
Helping the Oppressed We are all Muslims as
you all see, A Muslim who wants to back his fellow Muslims who are oppressed everywhere should firstly try their best to reform their own selves and stand firm on the Straight Path. Their first concern should be drawing near to Almighty Allah and observing the very rulings of His religion and avoid the traps of Satan. Never allow Satan to overcome or mislead you. This is, indeed, the first step towards giving support to your Muslim brothers. Secondly, let all Muslims try to make Dawa in their surroundings and call others to have a better and true understanding of Islam. In doing so, a Muslim should offer the best example for abiding by the teachings of Islam, for example is better than a precept. Try to guide others using the good word and the kind deed without any offence. After this comes the role of making Dua for all Muslim brothers and sisters who are suffering everywhere and implore Allah to grant them a way-out and overwhelming victory. This is another way of alleviating the sufferings of those Muslims. If one is able of supporting financially and physically, then do not hesitate to offer them a helping hand. If not, then Dua will be sufficient. Right after this comes offering Vigil Night prayer and imploring Allah to help removing the cries of the oppressed, the sufferings of the wronged and the estrangement of the homeless. Sources: |
