Spiritual Equality of Men and Women - Synthesis of Iman

Spiritual Equality of Men and Women

Ayah quoted above states the view of Islam in relation to the equality of men and women. The Ayah refers to the fact that men and women enjoy an equal status in the domains of spirituality, morality and seeking of  religious stature. The apparent differences in disposition and bodily makeup of the two genders is only for sociological reasons. Whereas, in reality, when it comes to virtuous deeds, charitable works, and working for the cause of Islam, there is absolutely no difference in the status of two genders. The field is wide open for both genders to outdo each other in these arenas. No efforts of anyone shall be lost, whether male or female. This is evident from the fact that due to their spirituality, morality and purity, many great and exalted women – for example, Maryam (RAA), Khadijah (RAA), `Aisha (RAA) and Fatimah (RAA) – will outdo, surpass and be elevated much higher above the ranks of a great number of men in the Hereafter.

A Glimpse of Siddiqeen’s Character

The remaining Ayahs of the passage portray the personality traits of the siddiqeen:

“…those who have left their homes or been driven out or suffered harm in My cause and killed and were killed. Surely I will blot out from them their iniquities and admit them into gardens with rivers flowing beneath; a reward from the presence of Allah and with Him is the best of rewards.”

[al-Qur’an 3:195]

The above Ayah mentions hijrah which is usually understood in a limited sense of migration. However, it may be taken here in its widest sense. The literal meaning of hijrah is: “to part”, “to leave”, and “to abandon”. This abandoning admits of various stages and levels during the course of a person’s life. The Prophet (SAW) was questioned: “Which hijrah is the greatest?” To this he (SAW) replied,

“That you abandon all that is disliked by your Lord”. This defines the first stage of hijrah; that of abandoning all haram (unlawful) practices.

The final stage is the one mentioned in the passage under discussion: to leave one’s homeland where it becomes impossible to adhere to one’s religion and migrate elsewhere for the sake of Islam. Hence, siddiqeen are people who give up all actions disliked by their Lord (SWT); they even part from their families if they insist on disobeying Allah (SWT) and, in the final analysis, if it is so required, they leave their homelands and migrate to another place to uphold their faith and to act on Islamic injunctions in their totality.

The next portion of the Ayah refers to those who were “driven out.” One may object to this assertion and instead say that the Makkans did not ask the Muslims to leave Makkah. In fact they wanted to keep them there. However, the fact of matter was that the persecution meted out to the Muslims had become so severe that it became impossible for them to stay in Makkah. Hence, the Muslims were forced to leave their houses in Makkah and migrate elsewhere to freely practice their faith in peace and security. The severity and extent of the persecution dished out to Muslims is mentioned in the next portion as “suffered harm in My cause”. The physical torture of Bilal (RAA) and Khabbaab (RAA) and the murders of Sumiyyah (RAA) and Yasir (RAA) are only few examples of oppression and tyranny suffered by the Muslims at the hands of the pagan Makkans. One may ask: what was the crime of these individuals? It was nothing more than that they renounced the pagan ideology and practices of their godless society and proclaimed their belief in the Unity of God (SWT) and divine messenger-ship of Muhammad (SAW).

Thus far the conditions mentioned were those of Makkan life. Now the Ayah mentions the struggle experienced in the life of Madinah as: “killed and were killed.” In Makkah, the Muslims were commanded to refrain from retaliation, however, this restriction was lifted in Madinah and they took to the battle field. In this endeavor they fought, killed, and were killed themselves. The martyrdom on the battle field for the sake of Truth, justice and peace is the highest good, the epitome of virtuous conduct in Islam. Hence, the siddiqeen are not just the people of spiritual pursuits alone; rather, they fully partake of the struggles and hardships of life, without seeking escape to jungles and mountains. They are so dynamic and full of religious conviction that they do not hesitate to move forward in the battlefield and lay down their lives for the cause of their faith. 

For this service and loyalty, they are promised by their Lord (SWT): “Surely I will blot out from them their iniquities”; that is, all mistakes and sins (major and minor) committed by them will be washed away in return for their struggle for Islam and hardships suffered in this cause. More than this, they will be admitted “into gardens with rivers flowing beneath; a special reward from Allah”. The mention of “special reward from Allah” is of particular importance. These rewards shall be bestowed upon them from special treasures of Allah (SWT) possessed only by Him. The final words of the passage, “with Him is the best of rewards”, should be heeded. Our whole life is defined by struggles and hardships. We struggle, toil and labor for the sake of our children, our careers, for other worldly benefits, but none of these objects of fancy provide us any certainty of due payback. Often all such worldly efforts fail and in the end we are left with nothing but sorrow and loss. However, every deed, every investment and every moment spent for the sake of Allah (SWT), for His cause, for His deen is saved and earns blissful eternal life for the rewards of such endeavors are everlasting.  Consequently, only Allah (SWT) has the Power and the Authority to fully recompense all our deeds in due proportion.

The End

Source: Synthesis of Iman

Condition of the Faith of True Believers - Synthesis of Iman

Condition of the Faith of True Believers

Within the Qur'anic discourse, the people whose faith in Islam is the result of intellectual and audition based faiths are termed siddiqeen (singular siddeeq). The major characteristic of siddiqeen, which distinguishes them from other believers, is that they leap forward to accept a prophet’s call without a moment’s hesitation. They are likened to the believer who, after performing wudu` (ritual purity), impatiently waits for the prayer-call and the moment the call is sounded scurries to the masjid. Among the siddiqeen, the personality  of Abu Bakr (RAA) is prominent about whom the Prophet (SAW) said: whosoever I invited to Islam took some time to accept it except Abu Bakr (RAA), who did not hesitate even for a moment. It is for this reason that Abu Bakr (RAA) is called “al-siddeeq al-akbar” (The Greatest siddeeq i.e. testifier).

We must ponder why this was so? It was because Abu Bakr (RAA) had no difficulty in accepting the Prophet’s (SAW) call, for the call was nothing more than a reverberation of Abu Bakr’s (RAA) own thoughts and beliefs that he had come to accept having traversed the process of iman-e-`aqli. Abu Bakr (RAA) was not the lone case however. In that land of vulgar paganism and polytheism, a land sunk deep in the darkness of ignorance and backwardness, there were individuals whose hearts were illumined with the light of tauheed (Unity of God) and whose inner nature was pure and pristine. Among them, as stated above, was Abu Bakr (RAA) who had never associated gods with Allah (SWT); just as the Prophet (SAW), Abu Bakr (RAA) was also a follower of tauheed from day one. 

Same was the case with Uthman bin `Affan (RAA) and Sa`eed bin Zaid (RAA), both of whom were among the ten companions given the glad-tidings of Paradise in their lifetime. In this very land lived the father of Sa`eed bin Zaid (RAA), named Zaid bin ‘Amr bin Nufail – who died before the revelation descended upon Prophet Muhammad (SAW) – about whom it is known that he used to supplicate while clinging to the drapes of Ka’bah: “My Lord! I want to worship You alone. I proclaim my disassociation with all these false-gods that the people of Makkah worship. I want to worship none except You, but do not know how!” 

In this very land once roamed a man by the name of Waraqah bin Naufil who renounced paganism and sought to discover the True Reality of life. His search took him to Syria where he learned the Hebrew language and converted to Christianity. At the time when the first revelation descended upon the Prophet (SAW), his (SAW) wife Khadijah (RAA) took the Prophet (SAW) to Waraqah. Waraqah confirmed that the man who appeared to the Prophet (SAW) was the same angel who had descended upon Musa (AS) and Isa (AS). He further informed the Prophet (SAW) that he wished to live to see the day when the people of Makkah would force him (SAW) out of the city so that he can help him (SAW). However, he died soon thereafter. 

In summation, the siddiqeen are characterized by sound intellect and pristine pure nature; people whose iman is the result of both iman-e-a`qli and iman-e-sam`ee. The Qur’an mentions them in another place:

“And when they listen to the revelation received by the prophet you will see their eyes overflowing with tears for they recognize the truth: they pray: ‘Our Lord! We believe! Write us down among the witnesses.’”

[al-Qur’an 5:83]

The especial regard for the siddiqeen by All ah (SWT) is evident from the fact that their supplication (ayahs 192-194) mentioned above is promptly responded to by their Lord (SWT):

“And their Lord has accepted of them and answered them (their prayers): ‘Never will I suffer to be lost the work of any of you be he male or female: You are members one of another (equal to one another).”

[al-Qur’an 3:195]

Source: Synthesis of Iman

To be continued....

SELF-CONSCIOUS FAITH AND ITS REQUIREMENTS - Synthesis of Iman

SELF-CONSCIOUS FAITH AND ITS REQUIREMENTS

According to Shaikh al-Hind, Mahmood Hassan (RA), ayahs 190-192 of surah Al-e-`Imran are concerned with “iman-e-`aqli” (intellectual faith) – the process of attaining faith in Allah (SWT) and an awareness of the Hereafter via the intellectual reasoning as outlined in the previous section. The subject of next three ayahs (193-195) is labeled as “iman-e-sam`ee” (audition based faith) by Shaikh al-Hind. That is, when the ulul albaab, having successfully traversed the process of iman-e-`aqli, hear the call of a prophet, they instantly answer his call. This is so because the call of the prophet is based on truths and realities that ulul albaab have already grasped intuitively by their intellects. Hence, the call of the prophet seems to them as nothing more than the echoes of truths reverberating in their own hearts. Upon accepting the call of a prophet, their emotions and feelings are spontaneously articulated in the form of a supplication:

“Our Lord! We have heard the call of one calling (us) to faith `Believe in the Lord' and we have believed.

Our Lord! Forgive us our sins, blot out from us our iniquities and take to Yourself our souls in the company of the righteous.

Our Lord! Grant us what You promised unto us through Your prophets and save us from shame on the Day of Judgment: for You never break Your promise.”

[al-Qur’an 3:193-194]

We should pause at this juncture to reflect upon the significance of du’a (supplication) in Islam. According to two sayings of the Prophet (SAW): du’a is the essence of `ibadah (worship); and du’a is itself (a form of) `ibadah. This is due to the fact that du’a is the link between the Lord (SWT) and His slaves by which the slaves communicate to their Lord (SWT), call upon Him and converse with Him (SWT). In addition, du’a is a manifestation of faith for it proves that the believer recognizes the Lord (SWT) as All-Hearing and All-Seeing, that He (SWT) alone can answer his call for He (SWT) is All-Powerful and has Absolute Authority over all matters.

Source: Synthesis of Iman

To be continued....