Category Archives: C. Blame worthy Morals

The bad moral characteristics that have to be removed from within ourselves

The use of nur of good deeds!

Arif-billah Dr. Abdul Hayy ‘Arifi (Allah have mercy on him) said,

It is not sufficient enough a goal to become a zakir (one who does excessive remembrance of Allah) and shagil (one who does spiritual exercises) only.

You acquired the nur by praying pre-dawn prayers (tahajjud) and doing remembrance of Allah. This is very good.

However, dear brother, is there a potential use of this nur?

The (nur of) remembrance of Allah makes the darkness go away, the obscurities fade, the rights and obligations become clear in front of you, the filthy and pure things become evident clearly in their appropriate places.

Now, why do you pick up the filth?

If by mistake you did this then remember Allah, throw it away and wash your hands.

(As a example:) Being a human you got angry. Now why do keep a grudge and intention of revenge? Throw away this filth and repent. The use of remembrance of Allah is to be shown here.

Sawanih wa ta’limat e Hazrat ‘Arifi, page 530

The most important nasiha!

Giving instructions to a newly appointed mujaz sayyidi wa sanadi Shaykh Mufti Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him) said,

The first and most essential thing is,

1. Never to be negligent of one’s own islah.’

Hidayet baraay e mujazeen

This reality has to be realized that islah never ends.

It is an ongoing process.

Concern about criticism: Arrogance

A murid complained that when people talk negatively about you it hurts me and my heart aches.

Hakim al Umma Mawlana Shah Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) replied;

‘There are a multitude of people who talk badly about Allah, His messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and the  scholars (mujtahideen). Have you done any thing to stop that?

If not, then why does it hurt you when poor Ashraf Ali is censured.  And you feel concerned about stopping this?

There is nothing in this attitude except kibir (arrogance).

It annoys you when your seniors are censured. You feel humiliated at this. This is a hidden deception of nafs (ego/lower self).

Suppose, even if it is not kibir (arrogance). Then I ask, why did you feel concerned about anyone  saying any thing good or bad (regarding my seniors).

What harm did it cause to you?

If you had focused on the goal (of tareeq, i.e. seeking perpetual pleasure of Allah SWT) you could not have time to waste on these petty issues.

Hakeemul Ummat ra kay hayret-angez waqiyat, page 81

I’m asleep!

Hakim al-Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) used to repeatedly tell the salikeen that if a person gets the idea that he has acquired a praiseworthy trait or state and gotten rid of a blame-worthy one then he should be extremely suspicious of this.

He gave this example to make it easy to understand.

That is, if a person is aware that he is sleeping then his sleep is defective. It is not a  genuine sleep. A sleeping person is completely unaware of his sleep.

Similar is the case of a salik.

He should always rely completely on his Shaykh’s instructions and be suspicious of all his activities considering himself to a novice just initiated.

Min ifadat sayyidi wa sanadi Hazrat murshidi db

Not proper for a Believer to disgrace himself

The honorable Companion Huzaifah (Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:

“It is not proper for a Believer to disgrace himself.”

It was asked: “O  Prophet of Allah !  What is meant by this?”

The Prophet of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “To undertake something which you cannot bear.” (Tirmizi)

Hakim al-Umma Mawlana Asharf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) explains,

To assume a task beyond one’s capability is not proper for a believer . The consequence will be failure, disgrace, worry, and shame. Frustration will then overtake one.

This saying of the Prophet (hadith) covers all such acts and tasks which are beyond one’s power. In all such cases of difficulties adopt patience (sabr) and supplicate to Allah  for aid.

Hayat al-Muslimeen, chapter 10, Rights of oneself

Rights of kuffar

In his weekly islahi lecture sayyidi wa sanadi Shaykh Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him) reminded us,

‘There are no circumstance under which it is permissible for individuals to take law in their own hand to punish those who commit major sins or turn apostate. It is the task of the government administration to apprehend them.

Killing non-Muslims (dhimmis) living in a Islamic country is as haram (impermissible) as murdering a fellow Muslim.

To emphasize the significance of this it is reported in a saying of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) that the peron who kills a non-Muslim (dhimmi) living in a Islamic country will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise (which is so strong that it can be smelt at a distance of 500 years).

More explicitly he (Allah bless him and give him peace) admonished the Muslims at his last Hajj, to not to become like non-Muslims killing one another.’

Teen gunah e kabirah,

Ruining the Heart via Tongue & Eyes

Hakim al-Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him)  said,

“Two things completely ruin the heart and destroy its luminosity. One is backbiting (ghiba). And the other is seeing the unlawful (bad-nigahi). Both of them have become widespread these days.”

Sawanih wa ta’lemat e Hazrat Arifi ra pg 382

The four worst sins in Shariah

 


Hujjat al-Islam Imam Ghazali (Allah have mercy on him)  has mentioned following to be the worst sins in Shariah:

1. Associating partners with Allah SWT. Either in His being or His attributes.
2. Considering a sinful act to be within the acceptable limits in Shariah. That is, to consider it halal.
3. Because of failure in one’s efforts, give up performance of  good actions (yaas).
4. Because of being unafraid of Allah SWT, commit the prohibited actions without any reservation (nedar).

We all must ponder over the second crime (in bold).
How many sins prevail in our daily life and how lightly do we take them?

Sayyidi wa sanadi Moulana Mohammad Taqi Usmani sahib (Allah preserve him) tells us to leave all the sins immediately. However, due to our weak determination, non-Islamic surroundings or secular social pressures if we are not able to do so, we should make a habit of repenting for these sins every night, each single day. This will at least keep our balance sheet of deeds clear. And if God forbid, we were to die, there won’t be the huge amount of sins in arrears for punishment waiting.

توبہ میری جام شکن، جام میرا توبہ شکن
سامنے ڈھیر ہے – ٹوٹے ہوۓ پیمانوں کا

Become a Human first!

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Hakim al-Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) repeatedly told people who approached him for reformation (islah):

“If you want to become a saint, a qutub or an abdal go elsewhere. Stay here only if you want to become a human being.”

Lacking the basic qualities of a human being an individual can never even be a true Muslim.

Love, sympathy, wishing well, being honest, sincere, polite and well mannered when dealing with others (even non-Muslims) are the basic rights of all human beings.

How can one gain Allah SWT’s pleasure, (that is being a devout sufi) when he/she is destroying these rights?

Hujjatul Islam Imam Ghazali ra has categorized living creatures in three types:
1. Those, which are always harmful. For example snakes, scorpion, lizards, etc.
2. Those, which are always beneficial. Like sheep, cows, horse, poultry etc.
3. And finally those, that are neither harmful nor beneficial. Like parrots, peacocks, zebra, etc.

Then he poses a question to us: in which category do we fit?

Cynical, acrid, humiliating and arrogant comments that hurt another’s feeling surely without any doubt make us similar to scorpions and snakes!

ع– درد دل کے واسطے پیدا کیا انسان کو

What is Tasawwuf?

Following is a summary of a talk by ‘Arif-billah Dr Abdul Hayy ‘Arifi (Allah have mercy on him) ,

Keep your understanding of Tasawwuf clear.

Do not be misled by those who consider it to be limited to the recitation of litanies and excessive remembrance (dhikr).

Practical application of Tasawwuf in everyday life boils down to paying close attention to the rights of the others. Make sure that you do not become a source of any discomfort for them, however, minute it may be.

And remember, the most immediate, important and best evaluation of your  success in this endeavor will be your dealings, attitude and behavior with your spouse .

(Audio waaz)

Sincerity: Abandon ostentation & shirk

Abandoning a good action in middle thinking that people will consider me to be pious is riya (ostentation).

Whereas, doing an action to impress others is shirk (associating partners with Allah).

Hence, sincerity is to be saved from both of these by Allah.

Ahzab tahzib un nafus,  Munajat e maqbool, (zamimajat, Saeedi) page 303