Sound Creed #26: Attributing the favours of Allah to others

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Read by our brother Abu Muadh Taqweem

Summary

Being grateful to Allah

Being grateful to Allah for his blessings and grace upon us is from the core of our religion
What about people who deny the blessings of Allah or attribute them to others?
What did Allah say in the Qur’an?
What have the scholars said?

Those who reject the blessings of Allah

E.g. they may attribute these blessings of Allah to their forefathers, deities or other people
They reject the true source of their blessings (Allah)
For example, if a group of travellers journey accords a harsh or dangerous sea, some of them may attribute their safe travel to favourable winds or the skill of the sailor
These days many people associate the occurrence of blessings or aversion of disaster to modern technology, scientists, the government or certain individuals
For example, someone might say “the advancement of the medical field has overcome disease!” However this is incorrect
Or someone might say “such and such activists or environmentalists have accomplished such and such because of their effort, protest or campaign” this is again incorrect

Effort from people, how should this be understood?

When human beings obtain something positive or attain something beneficial after some effort or work, then we do not say that the beneficial matter is as a consequence of our work or striving
For example, if an area has widespread illiteracy or disease, and then some people campaign or do some work and the situation is resolve afterwards, then we DO NOT say that the good outcome was because of the effort of those people
The results or consequences are attributed to Allah only
Those people are however thanked in accordance with their effort as they were the means to this

Why do we think this way?

So that we recognise that the true source of our blessings is Allah only and that we
we do not attribute blessings onto ourselves, otherwise one will become prideful, haughty and arrogant saying “I earned this” or “I did all this”. We should not think that we deserve to be attributed as the source of our blessings
However some people have become deceived by technological progress or development in various societies, how do they behave?
What happened to the nations of the past who did this?

The man with leprosy, the bald man and the blind man

Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates a famous hadith to us from the The Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ). He heard the Messenger of Allāh (ﷺ) say that there were 3 individuals from Bani Israel, one who had leprosy, another one who was bald and a third one who was blind. An angel came to them to ask what is the most beloved thing they wished for
What did the leper wish for?
What did the bald man wish for?
What did the blind man wish for?
What happened in the end?

Statement of Ibn Qayyim: The signs of being grateful to Allah

The basis gratitude is to acknowledge the blessings upon #
And whomsoever#
The one who recognises the blessing and recognises the one from whom it came, but he rejects it, then
The one who recognises the blessing and recognises the one from whom it came, but he rejects it, then he is the ungrateful one
The one who recognises the blessing and recognises the one from whom it came, but he rejects it, then
And finally, the one who recognises the blessing and recognises the one from whom it came, but he rejects it, then
Actions follow on from knowledge

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