Bismihi Ta`ala
*DO THE IMAAN FILL IN.*
Imaan is the capital requisite to save us from the musibat/difficulty of hell fire. Without imaan, we are proned to eternal fire. Allah Ta`ala says that He won`t even bother to see what good actions have the non believers done. ‘’They are those who have denied the signs of their Lord and His meeting. So their actions are made null and void. Hence on the day judgement, We will not weigh any of their actions.’’(18:105)
أُولَئِكَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِآيَاتِ رَبِّهِمْ وَلِقَائِهِ فَحَبِطَتْ أَعْمَالُهُمْ فَلَا نُقِيمُ لَهُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَزْنًا [الكهف : 105]
This is the ill fate of non believers. No weighing, no rewards, no blessed eye sight of God and no forgiving. That is why Qur-aan says that ‘’And let not death comes to you but that you are believers.’’(2:132)
فَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ [البقرة : 132]
Imaan is the only passport to Paradise. And also it is an asset that helps us to understand nature/the signs of Allah, to find our way out in this world and also a force to help us get through difficulties throughout the life and an answer to the angels in qabr. Above all, it is a fill in of the heart that keeps us hopeful and looking forward for help of Allah.
وَلَا تَهِنُوا فِي ابْتِغَاءِ الْقَوْمِ إِنْ تَكُونُوا تَأْلَمُونَ فَإِنَّهُمْ يَأْلَمُونَ كَمَا تَأْلَمُونَ وَتَرْجُونَ مِنَ اللَّهِ مَا لَا يَرْجُونَ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا [النساء : 104]
The glimpse of hope that shine in every corner of life. This is imaan.There is a masnoon du`as of Rasouloullah Swalallahou Alaihi Wasallam used to read and make at the end of his talks before standing:
سنن الترمذي – (عَنْ خَالِدِ بْنِ أَبِي عِمْرَانَ أَنَّ ابْنَ عُمَرَ قَالَقَلَّمَا كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُومُ مِنْ مَجْلِسٍ حَتَّى يَدْعُوَ بِهَؤُلَاءِ الدَّعَوَاتِ لِأَصْحَابِهِ اللَّهُمَّ اقْسِمْ لَنَا مِنْ خَشْيَتِكَ مَا يَحُولُ بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَ مَعَاصِيكَ وَمِنْ طَاعَتِكَ مَا تُبَلِّغُنَا بِهِ جَنَّتَكَ وَمِنْ الْيَقِينِ مَا تُهَوِّنُ بِهِ عَلَيْنَا مُصِيبَاتِ الدُّنْيَا وَمَتِّعْنَا بِأَسْمَاعِنَا وَأَبْصَارِنَا وَقُوَّتِنَا مَا أَحْيَيْتَنَا وَاجْعَلْهُ الْوَارِثَ مِنَّا وَاجْعَلْ ثَأْرَنَا عَلَى مَنْ ظَلَمَنَا وَانْصُرْنَا عَلَى مَنْ عَادَانَا وَلَا تَجْعَلْ مُصِيبَتَنَا فِي دِينِنَا وَلَا تَجْعَلْ الدُّنْيَا أَكْبَرَ هَمِّنَا وَلَا مَبْلَغَ عِلْمِنَا وَلَا تُسَلِّطْ عَلَيْنَا مَنْ لَا يَرْحَمُنَا
Allahoumma iqsim lanaa min khashyatika maa yaHoolou bainanaa wa baina ma’aasweeka wa min twa ‘atika maa toubal lighounaa bihi jannataka wa minal yaqeeni maa touhawwinou bihi ‘alainaa mouswibaatid dounya wa mat t’inaa bi asmaa ‘inaa wa abswaarinaa wa qouwwatina maa aHyaytanaa waj’alhoul waaritha minnaa waj’al tha’ranaa ‘alaa man zwalamanaa wan swournaa ‘alaa man ‘aadaanaa wa laa taj’al mouswibatanaa fee deeninaa wa laa taj’alid dounya akbara hamminaa wa laa mablagha ‘ilminaa wa laa tousallitw ‘alainaa man laa yarHamounaa. (Tirmizi) ‘’O Allah! Grant us that amount of your fear that will constitute a barrier between us and your disobedience, and grant us that quantity of your obedience that will bring us to To jannat, and (grant us) that quantity of faith/conviction that will facilitate us during difficulties. And keep sound and safe our ears, eyes and our bodily force until our last breath. And inherit us with our bodily faculties(on the day of qiyamah). And take revenge for us against the one who oppresses us and help us against those who cultivate enmity against us. And do not make difficulties/loss in our deen and let not this world become our main concern and let not this dunya be the product taken in exchange of our knowledge and do not impose upon us those who do not pity us.’’(Tirmizi)Hazrat Mowlana Ibrahim Devla d.b. used to say the above du`as and say that Yaqeen, Imaan and Conviction is an asset to facilitate us during difficulties. That is we need to fill in the heart with Yaqeen and conviction against all odds of life. If we do not fill our hearts with imaan, then in difficult times, there will be no patience, no breath of hope, no salaah, no continuous du`as and hence our hearts will be filled with grief, hopelessness and that is the cause of depression, mental tiredness and suicide, etc. I take the example of the mother of Moossa a.s. Allah Ta`ala ordered her to put her son in a basket/box in the river. Allah Ta`ala inspired her that He will return him to her.When done, she later became restless and felt the motherly feeling of the whereabout of her son. She felt a vacuum in the heart that caused restlessness that she was about to unveil the secret that it was her son was in the basket/box. Vacuum=Depression. Imaan Fill In=Forceful high spirit.
وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَى أُمِّ مُوسَى أَنْ أَرْضِعِيهِ فَإِذَا خِفْتِ عَلَيْهِ فَأَلْقِيهِ فِي الْيَمِّ وَلَا تَخَافِي وَلَا تَحْزَنِي إِنَّا رَادُّوهُ إِلَيْكِ وَجَاعِلُوهُ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ) فَالْتَقَطَهُ آلُ فِرْعَوْنَ لِيَكُونَ لَهُمْ عَدُوًّا وَحَزَنًا إِنَّ فِرْعَوْنَ وَهَامَانَ وَجُنُودَهُمَا كَانُوا خَاطِئِينَ ( وَقَالَتِ امْرَأَتُ فِرْعَوْنَ قُرَّتُ عَيْنٍ لِي وَلَكَ لَا تَقْتُلُوهُ عَسَى أَنْ يَنْفَعَنَا أَوْ نَتَّخِذَهُ وَلَدًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ ) وَأَصْبَحَ فُؤَادُ أُمِّ مُوسَى فَارِغًا إِنْ كَادَتْ لَتُبْدِي بِهِ لَوْلَا أَنْ رَبَطْنَا عَلَى قَلْبِهَا لِتَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ [القصص : 7 – 10]
In the Surah The Histories, Allah Ta`ala mentions that He inspired to the mother of Moses a.s. to suckle him and then when she fear about his security (the coming of murderous police of Pharaoh) then cast him in the river. She did it and waited for the promise of Allah that baby Moossa a.s. will return in her arms. But after a day or so, she became worried: ‘’And the heart of mother Moossa a.s. became vacuum restless. Indeed she was about to disclose this(the real facts about her son is Moossa a.s.), had We not strengthened her heart to remain amongst those who have firm belief(in Allah`s promise).’’(28:10)So when the heart is empty, then all types of thoughts, depression, etc will haunt you. But if you fill the heart with imaan, then you will be able to tackle everyday life and its difficulties.So the effort of da`wat is to strengthen imaan to enable us to be more equipped in difficult times. That is why we need to refill and renew our imaan. Because it becomes used and torn throughout its use through life span.
المستدرك على الصحيحين – الحاكم – ()عن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص ، قال : قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : « إن الإيمان ليخلق في جوف أحدكم كما يخلق الثوب الخلق ، فاسألوا الله أن يجدد الإيمان في قلوبكم »
Rasouloullah Swalallahou `Alaihi Wasallam said: ‘’Imaan becomes used through wear and tear in your hearts, just like cloths become old and used through wear and tear. So Ask Allah Ta`ala to renew your imaan.’’(Mustadrak Hakim)In another occasion, Rasouloullah Swalallahou `Alaihi Wasallam said to renew imaan through lots of reading laa ilaaha illAllah or lots of da`wat talking about the greatness of Allah.(Ahmad)
مسند أحمد ط الرسالة -)وَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: ” جَدِّدُوا إِيمَانَكُمْ “، قِيلَ: يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ، وَكَيْفَ نُجَدِّدُ إِيمَانَنَا ؟ قَالَ: ” أَكْثِرُوا مِنْ قَوْلِ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ
So we need to fill in daily for imaani boost. That is why our elders used to read audibly the zikr of laa ilaaha illAllah before Fajr.Finally, the great difficulty of death needs a full fill in of imaan:
إِنْ أَنْتُمْ ضَرَبْتُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَأَصَابَتْكُمْ مُصِيبَةُ الْمَوْتِ [المائدة : 106]
That is why we should not die without imaan. So daily, a little moment in the morning and in the afternoon, talk about the greatness of Allah, that Allah Ta`ala does and no one can do, that Allah Ta`ala that gives us food and we cannot do anything, etc so that we keep fill in the depressive vacuum of the heart. And at least 2 rakaats of tahajjud, and we will reach the destination of contentment of Allah Ta`ala
:صحيح البخاري – )عن سعيد بن أبي سعيد المقبري عن أبي هريرةعن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال إن الدين يسر ولن يشاد الدين أحد إلا غلبه فسددوا وقاربوا وأبشروا واستعينوا بالغدوة والروحة وشيء من الدلجة
Du`as. MinAllahi Ta`ala. WalillAhil Hamd.
Mufti Mackoojee