Filling the spiritual void

By Dr Shariffa Carlo

I want us all to look deep inside today. I want us to think about the activities and preoccupations that fill our lives. I want us all to think about the major preoccupation. Is it our family? Our school? Our social-life? What is taking up the largest chunk of our lives? I firmly believe that all of us have some vacuum inside us that, like all other vacuums, calls for air. But this vacuum is not like a natural vacuum, it is a spiritual one. It needs to breathe the air of commitment. Look to your life and that of those around you. You will find that we have all adopted some "religion" which we believe in and work for in order to accomplish some final aim -- a form of paradise.

In this pursuit, we are easy-going, relaxed or even fanatical. But all of us have one aspect of our lives that we are "fanatical" about. There is one major area that takes our time, our energy and our emotions.

Look to the hard-core sports fan. He spends his life supporting specific teams, financially, physically and emotionally. He attends every game, either in person or vicariously over the TV. He buys the memorabilia. He is devastated when they lose, and he reaches Paradise when they win... Sounds strange. We need to just change the way we look at it. This person is completely preoccupied with sports because his life lacks something else. This is how he has chosen to fill that spiritual vacuum.

We can do this with our families, our friends even our studies. How many of us believe that if we spend years studying every night, get accepted to the best college, work hard to please our professors, get the best grades and graduate, we will be practically guaranteed an easy life. Money, status and respect will all be ours for the price of a few well-invested years? We can make this into a religion in itself with study rituals and sincere belief in the Paradise that follows which fuels us on those long nights awake, studying.

Now, I am not saying that we can't enjoy sports or our families or our studies. I am saying that when we go to fill that spiritual void inside, we need to be careful about how we fill it. That void is the natural fitrah -- that desire to find our Creator and worship Him. It is the desire to know why we are here, and what we are supposed to do with our lives.

The only way to fill that void is by finding and worshipping Allah. The other day, I heard a brother say, "No matter what; we must always remember: Islam does not need us. We need Islam." How true. Islam does not need us. Allah does not need us. Allah is the self-sufficient.

Allah says: Kind speech and forgiveness is better than charity followed by injury; and Allah is Self-sufficient, Forbearing. (2:263)

And: O you who believe! Spend (benevolently) of the good things that you earn and or what We have brought forth for you out of the earth, and do not aim at what is bad that you may spend (in alms) of it, while you would not take it yourselves unless you have its price lowered, and know that Allah is Self-sufficient, Praiseworthy. (2:267)

And: Allah is He besides Whom there is no God, the Ever-living, the Self-subsisting by Whom all subsist; slumber does not overtake Him nor sleep; whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth is His; who is he that can intercede with Him but by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them, and they cannot comprehend anything out of His knowledge except what He pleases, His knowledge extends over the heavens and the earth, and the preservation of them both tires Him not, and He is the Most High, the Great. (2:255)

Notice how in these verses, Allah is telling us that what we do will have no effect on Him. These are acts for our benefit, He does not need them. This is accomplished by the fact that He calls Himself by this great name, Self-sufficient, after telling us of doing good deeds. In the last verse, Ayat al-Kursi, Allah lets us Know without doubt, that He has no needs.

Allah does not need us. We need Him. Keeping this in mind will help us in filling that great void.

We have been told in a Hadith-e-Qudsi: ...O My servants, even if the first amongst you, the last amongst you, even if the whole of the human race, and that of the Jinns, become (equally) God-conscious like the heart of a single person amongst you, nothing will add to My Power. O My servants, even if the first amongst you, the last amongst you, the whole human race, and that of the Jinns too become in unison the most wicked (all beating) like the heart of a single person, it will cause no loss of My Power. O My servants, even if the first amongst you, the last amongst you, the whole human race, and that of Jinns also, all stand in one place and you ask Me and I confer upon every person what he asks for, it will not in any way cause any loss to Me (even less) than that which is caused to the ocean by dipping a needle in it.... (Sahih Muslim: Book 31, Number 6246)

We can neither add to Allah nor take from Him, no matter how much we call upon Him nor how much he confers upon us. We must simply use what we know of Him and rely upon Him to gain our objective. He will provide us with what we need to reach paradise, but we can never lose sight of the fact that it is us who need Him. We are the ones with a spiritual vacuum that can only be filled by worshipping the great Master, Allah.

This objective is our aim from before our birth. We are born with an innate knowledge of Allah; we are simply unable to process that without the missing factors. By this, I am referring to the time when Allah gathered us all, and we promised that we would worship Him. When we are born, we feel this, but we cannot identify its source. We naturally incline towards the good things and become other than worshippers of Allah by our environmental surroundings acting upon us.

"Every child is born with a true faith (ie to worship none but Allah Alone) but his parents convert him to Judaism or to Christianity or to Magainism, as an animal delivers a perfect baby animal. Do you find it mutilated?" Then Abu Huraira recited the holy verses: 'The pure Allah's Islamic nature (true faith ie to worship none but Allah Alone), with which He has created human beings.'" (Sahih Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 23, Number 440)

We have this need to fill our lives. Allah gave it to us. This need keeps us searching until we find the true source of satisfaction, Islam. We have to make our worship of Allah the filler. We have to take our time to worship Allah with our eye on the true prize, paradise. Allah tells us why we are here. Allah says:

And I have not created the jinn and the men except that they should worship Me. (51:56)

We need to fill this spiritual void by worshipping Allah. We need to have not as much, but more faith in the outcome of our work on this earth as we do in the outcomes of our work for this life. We devote years to learning and studying to accomplish the objective of a degree. We spend a lifetime preparing our children to succeed in this life. We spend time and energy cultivating our personal relationships. We need to take from this precious commodity Allah has given us, time, and prepare for the ultimate graduation day, the graduation from this life to the next. We have to spend a lifetime preparing our children to meet Allah. We have to take our time and energy and devote it towards cultivating our relationship with Allah. In this way, and this way only, we will achieve the true success.

Allah says: Lo! Allah has bought from the believers their lives and their wealth because the Garden will be theirs: they shall fight in the way of Allah and shall slay and be slain. It is a promise, which is binding on Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur'aan. Who fulfils His covenant better than Allah? Rejoice then in your bargain that you have made, for that is the supreme triumph. (9:111)

Please look around you. What is filling your life? Is your major devotion, devotion to Allah? Is your major occupation, worship of Allah? Is your consuming passion, love for Allah? Is your primary goal, return to Allah? If not, then think seriously about redirecting your energies. We do not have to get rid of those things that we enjoy or which will give us a measure of success in this life, we simply have to accomplish them without sacrificing the true final goal, paradise. Our life should be filled more with that which will gain us paradise, and the rest should be padding, not the opposite.

Allah says: O you who believe! Let not your wealth, or your children, divert you from the remembrance of Allah; and whoever does that, these are the losers. (63:9)

The majority of our time needs to be spent in that which pleases Allah and gets us closer to the final goal. We need to take advantage of what Allah has given us in time, energy, and health.

Narrated Mujahid: Hadhrat Abdullah bin Umar (Radhi Allaho anho) said, "Allah's Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) took hold of my shoulder and said, 'Be in this world as if you were a stranger or a traveler." The sub-narrator added: Ibn-e-Umar used to say, "If you survive till the evening, do not expect to be alive in the morning, and if you survive till the morning, do not expect to be alive in the evening, and take from your health for your sickness, and (take) from your life for your death." (Sahih Bukhari: Volume 8, Book 76, Number 425)

Brothers and sisters: Let's keep our eye on the true goal. Let's devote ourselves to filling the vacuum with what Allah meant for us to fill it with, love and devotion for Him. When the final trumpet blows, when the end arrives, let us be among those who receive the good news.

Narrated Hadhrat Abu Saeed al-Khudri and Hadhrat Abu Hurairah (Radhi Allaho anhuma): Allah's Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said: There would be an announcer (in Paradise) who would make this announcement: Verily! There is in store for you (everlasting) health and that you should never fall ill and that you live (forever) and do not die at all. And that you would remain young and never grow old. And that you would always live in affluent circumstances and never become destitute, as words of Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, are: "And it would be announced to them: This is the Paradise. You have been made to inherit it for what you used to do." (Sahih Muslim, Book 39, Number 6803)

O Allah! Place us on the straight path leading directly towards Your great pleasure! O Allah! Prevent us from wasting our time, our energy and/or our deeds on this earth! O Allah! Make of us those who earn Paradise through Your great mercy! O Allah! Make worship of You our filler for our spiritual vacuum! Ameen.

Earthquake: an admonition to mankind

By Sheikh Salih al-Hamrani

Have fear and consciousness of Allah and ponder over events that happen around you. Learn lessons from them and remember, for the intelligent one is he who remembers and takes admonition. The topic of this article is the destructive earthquakes. The earthquake which cause thousands of people to die, cause loss of wealth and properties, and force people to seek refuge outside of their dwellings, being without their home and their wealth, and without food and drink. The earthquake, which turns security into fear, richness into poverty, cause joined families to depart, and turn life into death. Without doubt, in it is a lesson for those who take lessons and a reminder for those who remember, so that they may return to their Lord and their Creator. The Truthful, the Chosen one (as-Sadiq al-Mustafa) (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) has informed us that a multitude of earthquakes is a sign of the proximity of the Hour. He informed us that they would be many at the end of the time.

Ahmad relates in a Hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah (Radhi Allaho anho) that the Holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) said, "The Hour will not happen until knowledge is taken out, time passes quickly, earthquakes increase in number, tribulations (fitan) appear, and al-Harj increases in number." It was said, "What is al-Harj, O the Holy Prophet?" He said, "Al-Qatl, al-Qatl (Killing)". A lot of what is mentioned in this Hadith has already materialised.

Happenings of earthquakes and the like from other destructive and disastrous events are the greatest evidence of the astonishing power of Allah. Earthquakes are from among the soldiers of Allah subjected to His order. Allah causes fear in the hearts of those whom He wills, teaches lessons whom He wills and punishes whom He wills.

"And none can know the forces of your Lord, except He." (74:31)

"For to Allah belong the forces of the heavens and the earth." (48:7)

If the Ummah leaves Allah's Shariah, ignores the religion of Allah and follows its enemies, Allah will subjugate it to His armies, which no one knows except He. From among these armies are the earthquakes.

"Such is the seizure of your Lord when He seizes the towns while they are doing wrong. Verily, His seizure is painful and severe." (11:102)

"When We decide to destroy a town, We (first) send a definite order (to obey Allah and be righteous) to those among them who are given the good things of this life. Then, they transgress therein, and thus the word (of torment) is justified against (them). Then we destroy it with complete destruction." (17:16)

Allah with this earthquake makes clear to His servants a plain reality, that the kingdom of the heavens and the earth is in His Hands and that He is the Irresistible and Dominant over His servants.

Some people may be astonished by what the West has from the materialistic power, from various weapons, aircraft carriers, bombs, satellites, etc, and they forget that Allah allowed that piece of land to move and shake, being able to shake the force of the West and the East. Everything is in His Hands, He has power over all things, and no one in the Heavens and the Earth can weaken Him.

Appearance of the earthquakes, therefore, points us to a different reality that may be absent in the minds of some people, those who are busy with this world and who are servants of materialism. This earthquake also reminds us of the Day of Judgment. The Day when all of the earth will shake, and not only one part of it. Allah says:

"O mankind! Fear your Lord and be dutiful to Him! Verily, the earthquake of the Hour is a terrible thing. The Day you shall see it, every nursing mother will forget her nursling, and every pregnant one shall drop her load, and you shall see mankind as in a drunken state. Yet they will not be drunken, but the torment of Allah will be severe." (22:1-2)

Look what is left after the earthquake from destroyed buildings and houses, deaths of thousands, and families seeking refuge outside of their homes. What state is that in which everyone is running away, caring about nothing? So, what do you think of the Day of Judgment? "That Day shall a man flee from his own brother, and from his mother and his father, and from his wife and his children." (80:34-36)

"On the day (when the first blowing of the Trumpet is blown), the earth and the mountains will shake violently." (79:6)

Allah warns His servants with this earthquake to learn a lesson and be admonished, and to be ready and prepare themselves for the Day of sorting out, the day of the great earthquake, that will shake all of the earth.

Allah has placed in this universe Sunan, fixed and manifest laws, neither do they change nor are they replaceable. He does not have any kinship with anyone, He is the sole Creator and Ruler, and He will question and hold accountable everyone, including prophets and messengers.

"Then surely, We shall question those to whom it (the Book) was sent and We shall question the Messengers." (7:6)

From among the established Sunan of Allah is that He does not send punishment except due to sin and He does not remove it except after repentance. Allah says, "Whatever misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned." (42:30)

Allah the Mighty and Majestic says: "Evil and mischief have appeared on land and sea because of what the hands of men have earned, that Allah may make them taste a part of that which they have done, in order that they may return (by repenting to Allah)." [30:41]

Every disaster and every calamity that befalls the servants is due to their sins and wrongdoing. So know, servants of Allah, what wrongdoing does to its doers.

What has taken Adam and Eve from the paradise except wrongdoing, and what Has drowned all of the people on the earth at the time of Nooh, to the point that water reached the peak of mountains, except wrongdoing? Who is it who sent the furious violent wind upon the people of Aad, so that they were seen lying overthrown and destroyed, as if they were hollow trunks of palm-trees? Who is it who sent the awful cry upon the people of Thamud until it cut their hearts inside their bodies, and they all fell dead without exception? Who lifted the villages of the people of Loot till the angels heard barking of their dogs, then turned them upside down, and then rained upon them a rain of stones?

That is the immediate punishment for wrongdoing: drowning, fire, earthquakes, destruction, famine, raging wind... "And the torment of the hereafter is far more severe and more lasting." (20:127)

Do we not take admonition and lesson? Allah says, "Did We not destroy the ancients? So shall We make the later generations to follow them. Thus do We deal with the Mujrimoon (criminals, disbelievers, sinners.). Woe that Day to the deniers (of the Day of Resurrection)!" [77:16-19]

The earthquake is just a warning from Allah -- not only to the people of that country alone in which it happen, but rather to the Muslims in general, in all lands -- that they may return to their Lord and their religion. Otherwise, a punishment will come upon them. Allah says, "So We seized each of them for his sins." (29:40)

Many of the Muslims today have gathered many sins. We see those who delay and neglect prayers, eat Haram, deal with Riba, do not fulfill their trusts, order the evil and forbid the good. Those who indulge in mixing, display of their parts of body compulsory to cover, listening to music and songs, and those who have abandoned the Holy Qur'aan. All these exist in our society. Let us fear Allah and preserve what we have from the blessings, for wrongdoing removes blessings, rather it changes it to a curse. And let us be warned of an evil end, for Allah gives us a chance but is not neglectful. What has happened to the previous nations and some of the current ones will happen to us if we obey the Satan and go far from the path of Allah. These are the Sunan of Allah that will never change.

"Or do you feel secure that He, Who is over the Heaven, will not cause the earth to sink with you, then behold it shakes (as in an earthquake)? Or do you feel secure that He, Who is over the heaven, will not send against you a violent whirlwind? Then you shall know how (terrible) was My Warning." (67:16-17)

Let us pause and ask ourselves what has been the tangible impact on us since we have heard and seen the earthquake, and what it has left from the mighty and scary destruction that makes the hearts bleed. The happy one is the one who learns from the calamity of others, and the sad one is by whom these calamities pass while he takes no lesson from them.

The sun eclipses, followed by the floods, then the strong wind, and then the earthquake happens. The people are still as they were before, you see no change. You do not see people going back to the path of Allah and you do not see any crowds in mosques. It is unfortunate that the explanation offered for these events is that they are normal natural disasters, and that they do not link it to what happens to people due to their wrongdoing. Theirs is clearly an incorrect interpretation.

"And We sent not the signs except to warn, and to make them afraid (of destruction)." (17:59)

Be thankful and have faith

By Harun Yahya

"Why should Allah punish you if you are thankful and have faith? Allah is All-Thankful, All-Knowing." (An-Nisaa' 4:147)

People are created with many weaknesses and imperfections. Throughout our lives, we forget many things and make countless mistakes. However through repentance, which Allah grants us as a great favour, it is always possible in this world to correct our mistakes. Indeed, the world is created just for this purpose: We are trained, put to test, and purified of our mistakes in this world. It is likely that we may deeply regret our mistakes or the way we have led our lives. However, it is always possible to make up for this regret. After having lived through this regret, we can ask for repentance and hope for Allah's forgiveness.

In the Holy Qur'aan, Allah gives the glad tidings that He will forgive any sin provided one repents sincerely. Allah knows our inner thoughts and every word we keep to ourselves. He knows whether we are true to Him or not. Allah, in the Holy Qur'aan, describes His closeness to His servants:

"Your Lord knows best what is in your selves. If you are righteous, He is Ever-Forgiving to the remorseful." (Al-Israa' 17:25)

Yet, another important fact surfaces here: After death, it is not possible to make up for the mistakes and sins committed in this world unless Allah wills otherwise. So not a single moment do we have to lose. Minutes pass by in a blink of the eye and with every moment passing, we draw even closer to death. Furthermore, we can never foresee when death will confront us. Its date, hour, and minute can never be known. We all will certainly die one day and will give an account of our deeds in the presence of Allah.

For this reason, man must always bear in mind that he may die soon. If he is not to regret in the Hereafter, he must reconsider his life.

If it were the time to meet the angels of death right now, would you be able to give an account of all the years you have spent in this world? What have you done so far to earn the consent of Allah? Have you been meticulous enough in fulfilling Allah's commands?

A person might not have an affirmative answer to any of these questions. But if he repents and sincerely makes an absolute commitment to live to earn the good pleasure of Allah, then he can hope for Allah's forgiveness. The Messenger of Allah (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) frequently sought forgiveness from Allah:

"By Allah, I seek the pardon of Allah and return penitently to Him everyday more than seventy times." (Bukhari)

We must take refuge in Allah, Who is Al-Ghaffar (The Forgiver, He Who is All-Forgiving), Al-Halim (Forbearing One, He Who is clement), and At-Tawwab (The Acceptor of repentance). Allah will absolutely give the rewards of those who persevere and often turn to Him.

He will certainly forgive His servants who have faith and reward their good deeds according to the best of what they did. In one verse, Allah states this great glad tiding as follows:

"What is with you runs out but what is with Allah goes on forever. Those who were steadfast will be recompensed according to the best of what they did. Anyone who acts rightly, male or female, being a believer, We will give them a good life and We will recompense them according to the best of what they did." (An-Nahl 16:96-97)

Never forget that at any time anyone of us might be caught by death and, though being full of regret, might not have again the opportunity to correct the wrongs we committed in the worldly life.

For this reason, we should lose no time in asking for repentance from Allah and living by His commands and the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam). This is the only way to be a servant upon whom Allah bestows His mercy and love.

This is, again, the only way to attain Paradise, the eternal abode Allah prepares for His true believers.

The author is a Turkish scholar and has written many books about Islamic issues.

Some examples of great people

 By Abdullah bin

Muhammad al-Mutaz

There are many great men and women in history. They were rare examples of piety, morals and the best qualities a human being can ever have. Allah the Exalted has told us in the Holy Qur'aan a lot about such men and women; on the top being the infallible Messenger Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) and the other messengers (Alaihimus salaam) who were great examples of patience, faith and Jihad in the way of Allah.

They also fought the people of heresies and they were really the ideal people to be followed. Allah the Exalted described the morals and manners of Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) as: "And verily, you (O Muhammad) are on an exalted (standard of) character." (68:4)

Narrated Hadhrat Anas (Radhi Allaho anho): "I have never touched a velvet or silk that was more tender than the hand of Allah's Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) and I have never smelt any perfume more nice than the smell of the Messenger's body. I served the Messenger ten years, he never said "Uff" (a puff of uneasiness) to me and he never asked me about something I had not done (why not?) and he never asked me about something I had ever done (why?)." (Bukhari and Muslim)

The caliph of the Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam), Hadhrat Abu Bakr (Radhi Allaho anho), supported the Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) by money and Jihad by himself and was the first to believe the Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam). When some people apostated from Islam after the Prophet had died, Abu Bakr bravely stood up against them and said: (By Allah, if they refuse to pay -- in zakat for Allah's sake a goat (in another narration, a goat rope) they used to give to the Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) I will fight them.

Hadhrat Umar bin al-Khattab (Radhi Allaho anho), though he was the Amir of the believers, used to carry flour on his back for Muslims and also used to cook for the orphans at night. Satan used to run away from his way, as reported (in Hadith), because of his piety and closeness to Allah.

Hadhrat Usman bin Affan (Radhi Allaho anho), the third Caliph, financed a Muslim expedition that was called "The Expedition of a Hard Time", as Muslims were very poor at that time.

Hadhrat Ali bin Abi Talib (Radhi Allaho anho), the fourth Caliph, was appointed by the Messenger (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam) as a leader of Muslims in a war and the Holy Prophet (Sall Allaho alaihe wasallam), said: "I will give the leadership to someone whom Allah and His Messenger love." That was Ali bin Abi Talib (Radhi Allaho anho), the great brave fighter.

Rabee bin Amir (Radhi Allaho anho), when he went as an ambassador to the leader of the Persians, refused to bow to Rustom, the Persian Monarch. And he said (meaning), "We have come to take you out from the worship of creation to the worship of the Creator."