By Ahmer Ali
Whenever
a person lacks motivation or the desire to do any amount of productive work and
laziness overcomes that person, usually it is a weakness in their practice of
the basic principles of Islam. So essentially, it is upon us to find out what
these principles are and what they should mean to us and how they should define
our lives. What is to follow are some basics in Islam
that we all should be aware of and it is a perfect opportunity to review or
correct any practices which may be missing in our lives, insha
Allah.
Often we
long for the spiritual power and strength that the Sahabas
and the early generation Muslims were known to have but without us having to do
much work to achieve that level. We want to just wake up one day and have this
drive instilled in us magically somehow. What we fail to realize is that their
success did not come from their numbers but from their intellectual
comprehension of Allah.
The key
is Tauhid, understanding Allah and being conscious of
Allah?s supreme presence. It
may be a simple concept, yet it is a very powerful and profound statement. But Tauhid has increasingly been ignored, even though there has
been a huge influx of lectures, high-level conferences and workshops.
Let us
look back to the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and we realize
that 13 years out of the 23 years of his Prophetic mission were spent
developing this very concept of Tauhid among the
people of the Arabian subcontinent. This is an exasperating number, the percentage
spent on dealing with this aspect yet we totally ignore this most important
concept. After all, Tauhid is the first pillar of
Islam and therefore one of the most important aspects of Islam by far,
initially. For it was known that, one who did not truly and correctly
understand Allah, could not, truly and correctly serve Allah.
There is
much to understand but it is essential to know whether we understand this
concept of Tauhid or we just say we do. To believe in
Allah and know that Allah is our creator is not enough! Even the pagan Arabs in
Pre-Islamic times knew this fact. What Tauhid entails
is that we obey Allah, and acknowledge that He is the only one worthy of
worship. That we obey Allah out of fear and love and hence work hard to avoid
displeasing Allah. And we fear only Allah and seek all help from Him.
So we
must first educate ourselves about Tauhid, this most
important first step in changing our lives, and begin understanding the
attached implications of the kalima. By knowing whom
we obey and serve, we can definitely increase the productivity in our lives insha Allah.
Once we
know and understand whom we worship, then there is the actual process of
worshipping our Creator and the Creator of the heavens and the Earth and
everything that exists today. This is where Salah
comes into play. If we are no longer motivated in our lives and we are
stagnating then we must question ourselves, what may by causing this? Are we
praying the 5 daily Salah? Are we praying in the
proper and prescribed way? Is our prayer even benefiting us?
Without
this connection to our lord our lives will remain dull and stagnant. By
establishing Salah, this worship helps to open up our
hearts and drives off Satan and all that accompanies such as laziness. Salah gets us on a schedule, as there are certain times for
specific prayers. Praying Salah requires dedication
that we get up out of our warm beds to make Wudhu and
perform Salah in the early hours. This same
dedication will then further pass into our lives and make any and all work for
Allah productive. We must establish Salah to be
successful. Further readings are available at http://www.youngmuslims.ca/publications/salat.pdf
which gives a few tips on improving our Salah.
Quran is
also of great benefit and of Importance. There must be regular recitation and
understanding of Quran with Tafsir. We must make use
of this great book, which deals with all aspects of our lives.
The
reader must have the right attitude and mindset before even approaching the
Quran. The Quran must be approached with a sincere intention of seeking
guidance from it. Not to to win an argument, not just
to seek blessings nor even to appear religious in front of others. The
intention must be correct and sincere! Information may be found by
anyone, but Guidance is only given to those who are actively seeking guidance.
Other
steps towards approaching the Quran are to free the mind from clutter before
even opening it. The Quran must be approached with an open mind and the sincere
and proper intention. Make sure that you have a proper translation and
well-known Tafseer, which you are able to follow. And
make Dua (Supplication) and pray to Allah for his
Guidance. It is a book of reflection and hence it should be studied
with the presence of mind and heart.
A small
point concerning the friends that we keep is also of utmost importance in
keeping ourselves motivated. Be careful of who you keep as your friends! This
does not mean that you stop associating with everybody who is not up to a
certain standard. Have acquaintances among coworkers and classmates but select
close friends only from those who will have a good impact on you. Friends will
have an effect on you, so choose them wisely. You must question whether you are
around the right type of people all the time. The wrong type will undo all the
learning and training that you have undertaken. You can be pressured into
joining a group of friends who may be committing sinful actions. And hence
having such type of friends is definitely a cause of stagnation. So we should
try to stick close to those who have a good effect on us and those that we know
to be close to Islam and those that stay away from and prohibit evil.
The final
area to stress involves everyday life and living in our current society.
It is
more specifically the Evils of Society, which we must avoid, in order to be
successful in every aspect of our lives. We all know the effects of alcohol and
drugs on the human body physically and psychologically. Intoxicants put users
in a state, where they don?t
know right from wrong. You may end up doing something that which you may regret
later. Most importantly consuming intoxicants is haraam
in any way shape or form, no matter how little. ?The
bad effects in it is much greater than the good in it.?
Mixing
with the opposite sex for no proper reason is also disallowed in Islam. When we
don?t need to be talking to
the opposite gender for any genuine reason then we shouldn?t.
Looking at and talking to a person of opposite gender who is not a mahram, without due cause is not allowed. When there is a
need for it then it is allowed, when the proper rules of Islam are followed of
course. If there are no rules followed such as lowering the gaze then there is
a chance of desire arising between the two people. ?Tell
the believers to lower their gaze? ? Quran 24:30.
?You should guard your sight and
protect your dignity or Allah will cover your face with humiliation" ? hadith Tabrani
?It is better for you to be
struck in the head with a pick than to touch the hand of an unauthorized
woman.? ? hadith
Pornography
is another evil that causes much chaos within a person. It weakens the heart as
well as the mind. It causes hidden desires to arise. This goes hand in hand
with the paragraph directly above. You are not allowed to look at opposite
genders whether in the flesh or in pictures etc. The same goes with people of
the same gender who are inappropriately dressed. For more information and tips,
check out the articles on Soundvision.com.
Remember, a Weak heart cannot do the work of Islam and will not be constant in
the remembrance of Allah.