Friday Nasiha

Living The Quran

Al-Rum (The Romans)
Chapter 30: Verse 8 (Partial)

Proofs Within
"Do they not reflect on themselves?"

Man's own being and the position he enjoys has been presented as a proof of the imminence of the Hereafter. Man is, after all, distinguished from all other creatures by the following three features:

i. Innumerable objects on earth and its environs have been yoked to man's service and man has been vested with a wide range of abilities so that he can make use of these.

ii. Man has been granted freedom to choose his course in life. But once he makes the choice, he is enabled, by the nature of things, to pursue his choice and, in so doing, can use the resources which God has created.

iii. Man has been inherently endowed with moral consciousness. Thanks to this, he can instinctively differentiate between good acts and evil acts.

These innate traits indicate that at some point in time man should be called to account; that he should be asked how he used the abilities, power and authority that were granted to him in the world and how he exercised his free-will to choose between good and evil. It is also evident that the appraisal of man's performance is possible only after the term granted to him to act comes to an end. Furthermore, this can only happen when the actions of not just one individual or nation, but of all human beings, come to a final end. This, because an individual's death or even the disappearance of a whole nation does not bring about an end to the total effects of a person's actions.

Thus, there will be an Afterlife in which everyone will be judged in the light of his life's record and be recompensed in accordance with his performance.

Source:
"Towards Understanding the Quran" - Sayyid Abul Ala Mawdudi, Vol. 8, pp. 75, 76

Understanding The Prophet's Life

Voluntary Prayers

"Whoever prays twelve rak'ahs of prayer voluntarily in a day and night, Allah will build him a house in Paradise."

[Sahih Muslim 1/503]

"The first thing which the people will be called to account for of their actions on the Day of Judgment is their prayer. If it is in a good state, he is successful and has passed. If it is in a bad state, he has failed and has lost. Allah will then Say: 'See if there are some optional prayers that can compensate for the deficiency in his obligatory prayer!' Then, all the actions will be dealt with similarly."

[Sahih at-Tirmidhi 1/130]

"Allah Says: "My servant approaches Me with nothing more beloved to Me than what I have made obligatory upon him, and My servant keeps drawing nearer to Me with voluntary deeds until I Love him. And when I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he seizes, and his foot with which he walks. If he asks Me, I will surely give to him, and if he seeks refuge in Me, I will surely protect him.""

[Fath al-Bari 6502]

Blindspot!

Keeping Commitment

Keeping commitments is the 'Big Kahuna' of all behaviours. It's the quickest way to build trust in any relationship - be it with an employee, a boss, a team member, a customer, a supplier, a spouse, a child, or the public in general. Its opposite - to break commitments or violate promises - is, without question, the quickest way to destroy trust.

Obviously this behaviour involves making commitments as well as keeping them. To paraphrase my friend Roger Merill, when you make a commitment, you build hope; when you keep it, you build trust. Given the impact of violating commitments, it's vital to be careful with the commitments you make.

However, the counterfeit of this behaviour is to make commitments that are so vague or elusive that nobody can pin you down, or, even worse, to be so afraid of breaking commitments that you don't even make any the first place.

Keeping commitments is based on the principles of integrity, performance, courage, and humility. It's the perfect balance of character and competence. Particularly, it involves integrity (character) and your ability to do what you say you're going to do (competence).

When it comes to dealing with a commitment to a client, people tend to be more rigid. But when it comes to a family commitment, they tend to be more flexible - sometimes simply because they're trying to provide for their families and they tend to justify breaking those commitments more easily. Because keeping commitments has such an impact on trust - and because trust is so vital to a thriving family culture - it's wise to keep in mind that commitments to family members are often the most important commitments of all.

Also, making and keeping commitments to yourself is the key to success in making and keeping commitments to others. That's where it all starts, and that's what gives you the power and confidence - the Self Trust - that enables you to build trust with others.

Source:
"The Speed of Trust" - Stephen M. R. Covey, pp. 215-220