By | Danish Hameed
Sketch as featured image By | Quratulain
“Islam” means “surrender”.I think it is beautiful an entire religion is named after “surrender”.Surrender to what? That’s already thinking too much. I am a small tiny being with a gigantic star 96 million miles away keeping me alive. And a billion years of DNA carving me into a biological tool that could survive for 100 years, give or take, on this planet. We are surrounded only by stories, then skin, then cells and blood and air. And 97% of the matter in the universe is a total mystery to scientists and philosophers. Surrender allows the unknown to happen as humbly as possible. Success is when we are ok with the unknown we invite in. Islam provides guidance about surrender in its “five pillars”: faith, prayer, fasting, charity and pilgrimage. Islam, in Arabic, means “submission” – submission to the will of God. Faithful Muslims, therefore, submit unreservedly to God’s will and obey His precepts as set forth in the Quran and transmitted to mankind by Muhammad, His Messenger. To practice their faith, Muslims must accept five primary obligations which Islam imposes. Called the Five Pillars of Islam, they are the profession of faith (shahadah), devotional worship or prayer (salah), the religious tax (zakah), fasting (sawm), and the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj). Have faith” and “keep the faith,” along with other adages, are phrases we use daily. We reference faith to help keep us confident and send out some positive energy – either by having faith in a higher deity, having faith in ourselves, or having faith in others. Faith in the context of religion is very defining for a person. It places the person in a belief system that develops into a way of life and provides its own unique system of logic to explain the phenomena of life around us. Faith in God enables humans to be thankful for the blessings they enjoy and to be patient in times of difficulty, for they believe that nothing can happen without His will. Faith in the Divine Being also prompts people to be more in tune with their souls and to maintain a constant connection through prayer, supplication, and reflection. Ultimately, faith enables them to develop a deeper vision, one which goes beyond the sight of their eyes and the signals of their minds.
Tryst with Prayer, actually it is a devotional prayer, requires Muslims to pray five times a day – the dawn prayer, the noon prayer, the afternoon prayer, the sunset prayer, and the evening prayer – while facing toward the Ka’bah, the House of God, in Mecca. Like all Islamic ceremonies, prayer is simple and personal, yet also communal, and the wording of the prayers, the ablutions which are required before prayers, the number of bows, and other parts of the ritual are set out in detail.Prayer will only be acceptable to Allah if it is done with sincerity, reverence, awareness, and repentance. Our prayers should cleanse the heart of every spiritual disease such as envy, malice, and arrogance.Having performed prayer with this understanding and spiritual purpose, the natural result is that our prayers should prevent us from committing further sins and instil us with good character. Prophet Mohammad saw said: The example of the five prayers is that of a river running at the door of one of you in which he cleanses himself five times a day.When we are preparing for prayer, we should keep this image in mind so that our awareness is focused on the goal of attaining a pure heart. Related to this inward purification is the purification from sin, as prayer is among the greatest good deeds for which we expiate our sins.Our prayers should cleanse the heart of every spiritual disease such as envy, malice, and arrogance. our prayers should prevent us from committing further sins and instil us with good character. Purification of the heart is the ultimate religious objective of prayer.Now the third Pillar of Islam, “Fasting” The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Quran is a period that Muslims welcome with ecstasy across the globe. While the significance of this time cannot be overemphasized, the rewards that come with it are just too enormous. Ramadan is synonymous with fasting followed up with good deeds. Allah prescribed the holy month to the believers in order to rectify their actions and purify their soul with a goal of attaining piety. The reason for this authorization by The Most-High Lord is far beyond the rewards. It entails physical, spiritual and mental benefits which many of us often take for granted.May Allah count us among those who will witness Ramadan from the beginning till the end, and grant us the ability to do acceptable deeds. May we be among the people who would be totally forgiven, emancipated and earn His love. Ameen!and we know all about that is, with modern science we now know the benefits of fasting to clean out the system, keep weight in control, avoid diseases like diabetes, and avoid inflammation in various organs, including the brain.One of the most important gains from Ramadan is the ability to evolve. To transform from a previous you to the new you. The one whom hopefully has gone through a spiritual rebirth that will propel for the rest of the year. Ramadan comes to teach piety so we are expected to keep up with good deeds and abstain from evil as much as we can. If you can achieve this, then count yourself among the lucky ones who gained immensely from the blessed month.PS: Success comes only from Allah! If you find this piece beneficial, it’s by His Grace. It’s no scholarly work and we accept our mistakes. You are free to share by any means for enlightenment purpose.The Fourth Pillar of Islam is “Charity”.To love wealth is in the nature of man, there’s no doubt about that. This is because he will always have bills to pay and needs to fulfil. Therefore, man strives hard to gather wealth in order to meet his needs. This makes him think that his wealth acquisition is by his own ability, forgetting that it’s only an endowment from his Lord. Man will often get what he strives for so there’s nothing wrong with having a halaal hustle.There are several ways to attain more blessings from your wealth but that isn’t the focus of this piece. In sha Allah, this short read intends to briefly clarify some misconceptions about wealth and how to deal with it in your possession.Wealth is a noble thing to have, there’s nothing wrong with it.Remember the blessings of Allah on you, there was a time when you didn’t have; hence be humble with your wealth.Wealth can be distracting so purify your intentions and spend in the cause of Allah.Make sure your wealth is coming from a lawful source.Use your wealth as a means to get closer to Allah and earn His pleasure.Wealth is a pleasure of this world, enjoy it moderately and don’t be extravagant nor oppress others with it.Do not be governed by greed. When you die, you can’t take it away with you.Charity does not decrease wealth, it rather increases your sustenance.Never be scared of poverty, your Lord is a Benevolent One.Always remember you will be accountable for your wealth.Let’s strive to be wealthy Muslims who will aid the cause of Allah and help humanity through our hands. Poverty is not an option, begging isn’t a solution. May Allah bless us with lawful sustenance. Ameen!Now the last pillar is “Pilgrimage” Hajj is known to be the largest pilgrimage in the world. Millions of individuals travel to Saudi Arabia for six days every year, during the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah. This is followed by Eid al-Adha, the holiest day in Islam. The celebration of Eid al- Adha signifies the day Prophet Ibrahim (P.B.U.H.) was willing to sacrifice his son Ishmael (P.B.U.H.) in obedience to Allah and Allah’s compassion for his obedience. As boxing legend, Muhammad Ali stated, “I have had many nice moments in my life. But the feelings I had while standing on Mount Arafat (just outside Mecca, Saudi Arabia) on the day of the Hajj, was the most unique. I felt exalted by the indescribable spiritual atmosphere there as over one and a half million pilgrims invoked God to forgive them for their sins and bestow on them His choicest blessings. It was an exhilarating experience to see people belonging to different colours, races and nationalities, kings, heads of state and ordinary men from very poor countries all clad in two simple white sheets praying to God without any sense of either pride or inferiority. It was a practical manifestation of the concept of equality in Islam.”
