By Sarah Maryam Kants

We began the session with a profound reminder from the Holy Qur’an. We are not doing Allah ﷻ a favour by praying, fasting or going to Umrah. It is actually Allah’s ﷻ favour upon us. But do we truly believe and act like it is His favour upon us? There are many people who cannot pray or fast with ease, there are people who cannot openly tell their family and/or relatives that they have converted, there are people who face religious persecution every day, whether it is in their homes or society in general. If you are not one of them, say Alhamdulillah and make du’a for your brothers and sisters. Be grateful, every single day, every single moment, every breath you take.

Never take your ability to perform ibadah (with ease) for granted, because you don’t know when this ability may be taken away. May Allah ﷻ protect us. Ameen.

رَضيـتُ بِاللهِ رَبَّـا
Raḍītu billāhi Rabba
I am pleased with Allah as my Lord

وَبِالإسْلامِ ديـناً
wa bil-Islāmi dīna,
with Islam as my religion,

وَبِمُحَـمَّدٍ نَبِيّـاً
wa bi-Muḥammadin (ṣallallāhu `alayhi wa sallam) nabiyya.
and with Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) as my Prophet.

When I heard this du’a for the very first time, it hit home. The du’a starts with “I am pleased with Allah ﷻ as my Lord”.

I ASKED MYSELF, AM I CONTENT WITH ALLAH ﷻ OR AM I JUST DOING LIP SERVICE EVERY TIME I SAY ALHAMDULILLAH AND EVERY TIME I CLAIM TO LOVE HIM?

Do I truly know the meaning of all the verses and du’as that I recite or have I memorised them for the sake of fulfilling the obligation? Do I show Him gratitude that He has even granted me the ability to worship Him? I felt remorse…He had provided me so much, but I have not shown Him the gratitude He deserves.

Continuing the du’a, “with Islam as my religion”. Okay, I knew that I am forever grateful to Allah ﷻ for guiding me to Islam, but I also acknowledged that once again, I haven’t really demonstrated the shukr (gratitude) He deserves. I should not take it for granted because as He ﷻ granted me Hidayah, He can also take it away. Allah ﷻ says:

إِنَّكَ لَا تَهْدِى مَنْ أَحْبَبْتَ وَلَـٰكِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَهْدِى مَن يَشَآءُ ۚ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِٱلْمُهْتَدِينَ

“You surely cannot guide whoever you like ˹O Prophet˺, but it is Allah Who guides whoever He wills, and He knows best who are ˹fit to be˺ guided.”

Quran 28:56

And thirdly, “and with Muhammad ﷺ as my Prophet.” SubhanAllah, we were given a role model, somebody to look up to. Our Rasulullah ﷺ is a mercy and compassion to humankind. We should strive to learn more about Him and follow his Sunnah.

It’s an uphill task, but we have to start now. We do not have time to waste, we do not know when we are going to return back to our Him.

ONCE IN THE GRAVE, ONLY OUR KNOWLEDGE (THAT WE PRACTISED), QURAN THAT WE RECITED (AND LIVED BY), GOOD DEEDS (DONE WITH SINCERE HEART) WILL BE OUR COMPANIONS. WE HAVE TO ACT NOW BECAUSE TOMORROW IS NOT PROMISED.

The two types of envy that are permissible:

1. Be envious of the one who has wealth but uses is it for good causes, for the sake of Allah ﷻ and is not stingy.

For example, donations, seeking knowledge, helping others. 

2. Be envious of a scholar or a seeker of knowledge for the sake of Allah ﷻ.

But don’t just stay at the level of envy. Strive in the pursuit of learning, practicing & spreading the knowledge as well.

Any other type of envy is prohibited and we must cleanse our hearts by turning back to “La ilaha illAllah”.

Envy is something that probably every human being has experienced, for different reasons and different levels. But, as Muslims, we have to remember that envy is impermissible if you don’t want them to have that favour bestowed upon them for no other reason but envy. This is because favours came from Allah ﷻ and being envious of others is akin to questioning Allah ﷻ and who He can and should bestow favours upon. Don’t forget:

ثُمَّ جَعَلَ نَسْلَهُۥ مِن سُلَـٰلَةٍۢ مِّن مَّآءٍۢ مَّهِينٍۢ 

ثُمَّ سَوَّىٰهُ وَنَفَخَ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِهِۦ ۖ وَجَعَلَ لَكُمُ ٱلسَّمْعَ وَٱلْأَبْصَـٰرَ وَٱلْأَفْـِٔدَةَ ۚ قَلِيلًۭا مَّا تَشْكُرُونَ 

“Then He made his descendants from an extract of a humble fluid, then He fashioned them and had a spirit of His Own ˹creation˺ breathed into them. And He gave you hearing, sight, and intellect. ˹Yet˺ you hardly give any thanks.”

Quran 32:8-9

The Prophet ﷺ said:

“None of you will have faith till he wishes for his (Muslim) brother what he likes for himself.”

Bukhari, Muslim

This is a very beautiful, yet scary hadith. How far are we from being ‘true’ believers? We have to consistently cleanse our heart, return back to Allah ﷻ. We need to practise being content with what He has provided. We must have trust in Allah ﷻ—whatever He has provided us with—is best for us and whatever we wish for ourselves, might be bad for us and for our Hereafter.

Do You Believe in One God
& Ready to [Re]start your Journey of Faith & Gratitude as a Muslim?