Wama Yandiqu canil Hawa(Nor does he speak of desire)

[Fabregas]

The prophet (saw) would sometimes say a few sentences, or only a few words, but the weight of these words would have a heavy and poignant impact on the heart of the Muslim. For example, when the Bedouin(?) asked concerning his personal like for zina, the prophet(saw) simply asked him if would want it for his close female family members. So, the matter was settled right there and then, there was no need for a detailed lecture. Who would want Zina for his mother or sister? No sane man would answer in the affirmative.

 

Sometimes the hadiths and words of the prophet (saw) were like boarding upon a flight to the future, landing upon another strange land. Imagine travelling to a land of Muslims, only to find the strange people in that country have taken the culture of their neighbouring states, whereby they enter into a the hole of lizard after them. I am referring to hadith where the Prophet (saw) gave the imagery of the extent to which some of his future nation would follow the Jews and Christians: "You will imitate the nations before you very closely to the extent that if they went into a lizard's hole, you would enter it as well”. The prophet used certain phrases of imagery to highlight the dangers of following a particular or to the extent that some practices would become common.

 

 

On the other occasions, the words of the prophet (saw) would take you back to the lands of previous historical nations. Here you are left to journey through the ruins of the ancients, the deeds of the pious, the struggles of war and the cries of the oppressed. In the hadith about the companions of the ditch, you zoom in to the lives of a previous people, and then you are left imagining the horrors that the tyrant king subjected those muminin too; the perseverance and iman of those people, especially the young boy; and lastly, the struggle between kufr and iman.

 

 

The prophet (SAw) also spoke with certainty regarding the future victory of his followers and of his deen, when many would have doubted and become downhearted. Predictions of Islam spreading fast across the land, Muslims seating in the palace of Caesar, or the Persian being defeated by the Romans( a quranic surah), must have all seemed strange( even to the Muslims at that time) at that time.

 

 

It was hard for a Bedouin in the desert to imagine the Islam would spread across the entire world. However, as Allah(swt) said: the Prophet(sw) did not speak of his own hawa, rather he spoke from a higher revelation, which, no doubt, gave him the ability to make predictions and prophecies with such great accuracy.

 

In those days, it was hard to imagine that Muslims would come on every lean camel, from all corners, shave their heads, in order to proclaim the rights of the hajj pilgrimage, as was revealed to the Prophet in the Quran (saw). It was also hard to imagine that Muslims would take Persia and wear fine garments, as the Prophet (sw) described to his companions. So, the miracle of the prophet (saw) was the Quran, his ability to make accurate prophecies and his ability to describe future events with vivid and poignant imagery.

 

A recent hadith which made me think quiet a lot, particularly during these times, was the hadith of Khabab:

 

"We complained to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace while he was using his cloak as a cushion in the shade of the Kabaa. We said to him, 'Will you not ask for help for us? Will you not pray to Allah for us?

He said, 'There was a man among those before you for whom a ditch was dug in the earth and he was placed in it. Then a saw was brought and places on his head and he would be cut in two. He would be raked with iron combs which would remove his flesh from his bones or sinews, and that would not deter him from his deen. By Allah, this business will be complete so that a traveller can go from San'a to Hadramawt fearing only Allah, or the wolf for his sheep, but you are trying to hasten things. (Bukhari)

 

 

What I got from this hadith was that:

 

1. The virtues of being patient and not being hasty. Victory doesn't come in day. When it didn't come to the believing nations before us, they were firm upon patience and steadfastness.

 

2. No amount of punishment or persecution would deter those people from their deen or tawheed.

 

3. The prophet (saw) had a firm believe that his deen would triumph, thus, why he gave the example of a person who was travelling safely from hadramut to Sanca (something unimaginable at that time.)

 

And what I asked myself from this hadith was that:

 

1. How much patient would I show in such circumstances? And how easy would some of us compromise on our deen?

 

2. How strong is our tawakal calalah (putting ones trust only Allah)? How easy is it for us to become downhearted and hasty?

 

What are some of the words of the Prophet (SAW) which made you ponder and reflect?

 

Abu Diaby

[Nur]

Baarakallahu feek akhi Zaylaci

 

So true, wallahi! actually victory against oppressors, as sweet as it is, is not the end game in Islam. Staying the course and being patient in face of difficulties to honor Allah's call for salvation of humans is the true victory.

 

That is why Sabr ( patience) is one of the highest virtues in Islam, the higher the iman, the stronger the ( Sabr) the will to persevere adversity for Allah's sake.

 

 

Nur