Sunday 25 Feb 2018
✏️ Remedying the Heavy and Tight Chest
Lesson 6: This world is not a Yardstick, Who is the Shrewd person? and the Example of the 3 Brothers
- Brief recap of previous Lesson (Lesson 5):
- What does the Noor (Light) of Eemaan (Belief) do when it enters the chest of a person?
- The story of Shaikh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) and the difficulties he faced, yet he had a happy outlook to his life
- What were some of the statements of Shaikh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah which showed his attitude to facing difficulties of life
- To listen to Lesson 5 or read its’ Summary go to: AlhudaBolton.com/2018/02/18/Remedying-Heavy-Tight-Chest-Lesson-5/
- Ibnul-Qayyim continues regarding the Noor of Eemaan, that it expands the chest and causes the heart to be delighted
- If this light is lost from the heart of the Slave, then the heart becomes the most constrained and hard prison
- The luxuries of life are not a yardstick for measuring how close someone is to Allah or what the state of their heart is
- Some people (e.g. a disbeliever/sinner who has some of the luxuries of life) may seem to be in a state of ease/relaxation outwardly, yet they are in a state of being constrained in their heart due to their bad relationship between themselves and Allah
- Shaikh Muhammad Amaan Al-Jaami says that a sign that Allah has placed the noor of Eemaan in one’s heart is that such a person shuns this world, and so this person does not have an attitude of seeking the luxuries of this world nor does he/she fear its difficulties and instead recognises that this world is one of delusion.
- NOTE: It should be mentioned that this should not be a complete shunning (e.g. not eating/not drinking/not marrying deliberately) as the world does have uses, i.e. in aiding a person to get to their desired destination (Paradise) through nourishment, work, having a family etc and these are things that the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) did not shun. The main point is that the world is insignificant, and should never be our goal, our goal should be greater (The Hereafter and Paradise) and this world should be a stepping stone.
- NOTE 2: Some people say “I should work towards my Akhira (Hereafter), but also my worldly life, so I will take out a mortgage/interest loan and make the most out of it”, this is foolishness. A person should neither shun the world completely nor should he/she disobey Allah in seeking it, one should live in a balanced way.
- The Shrewd person is one who sees the TRUE value in something, thereby seeing the low and insignificant value of this world compared to the greatness of Paradise
- Imam An-Nawaawi in his introduction to Riyaadh-us-Saaliheen makes a mention of some lines of poetry regarding who the Shrewd slaves of Allah are. They are those who:
- They have detached/divorced the Worldly Life while fearing its temptations
- They glimpsed into it (the world), however they came to know that it is not for the living person a homeland
- they considered chasing after it is nothing except an ocean and they took their righteous deeds in this World as Ships
- Note: The above are paraphrased from the poem and discussed in the Lesson
- Imam An-Nawaawi in his introduction to Riyaadh-us-Saaliheen makes a mention of some lines of poetry regarding who the Shrewd slaves of Allah are. They are those who:
- Ibnul-Qayyim gives us a clear example of the reality of this worldly life. He mentions 17 examples, one of them is the example of the three Brothers.
- The likeness of man in this worldly life and his wealth, family and deeds (whether good or evil), is like the likeness of a man with three brothers. The man must embark on a long and far journey which he cannot avoid (he has no choice about it), and so he approaches his three brothers and mentions to them this journey and that he needs their help. The first one of the brothers says to him “I was your brother until this moment, however now I am no longer your brother nor am I your friend and I cannot help you with this” and so the man says to him “You have not been any avail to me whatsoever”. He then turns to his second brother with the same request, and the second brother says, “I was your brother and companion until now, and I will help you and prepare you for your journey up until you mount your riding animal, however after that I am not a friend nor companion for you” and so the man mentions to him that he is in need of his companionship, and the second brother says “There is no way for you to get that”, and so the man says, “You have been of no use to me”. The man approaches the third brother with the same request, the third brother says “I was your companion in your health and in your sickness, and I am your companion now, and your companion when you embark, so if you go on a journey I will go with you, if you disembark I will disembark with you, when you reach your destination I will accompany you there; I will never leave you” and so the man says “Indeed you used to be the most insignificant out of all my companions, and I used to give more precedence to your companions (i.e. the first two brothers) over you, so Woe on to me! would that I had recognised your right and preferred you over them”.
- The inescapable Journey is death since it is sudden, and inevitable and unavoidable
- The first brother is your wealth which becomes completely useless instantly at death. It is also the boasting people make to compete.
- The second brother is your family who will prepare you for the journey after death by washing, shrouding, and burying you. After this they too cannot be of any use to you
- The third brother is a representation of your deeds, they go with you wherever you go; to the grave, Paradise or Hell.
- The likeness of man in this worldly life and his wealth, family and deeds (whether good or evil), is like the likeness of a man with three brothers. The man must embark on a long and far journey which he cannot avoid (he has no choice about it), and so he approaches his three brothers and mentions to them this journey and that he needs their help. The first one of the brothers says to him “I was your brother until this moment, however now I am no longer your brother nor am I your friend and I cannot help you with this” and so the man says to him “You have not been any avail to me whatsoever”. He then turns to his second brother with the same request, and the second brother says, “I was your brother and companion until now, and I will help you and prepare you for your journey up until you mount your riding animal, however after that I am not a friend nor companion for you” and so the man mentions to him that he is in need of his companionship, and the second brother says “There is no way for you to get that”, and so the man says, “You have been of no use to me”. The man approaches the third brother with the same request, the third brother says “I was your companion in your health and in your sickness, and I am your companion now, and your companion when you embark, so if you go on a journey I will go with you, if you disembark I will disembark with you, when you reach your destination I will accompany you there; I will never leave you” and so the man says “Indeed you used to be the most insignificant out of all my companions, and I used to give more precedence to your companions (i.e. the first two brothers) over you, so Woe on to me! would that I had recognised your right and preferred you over them”.