How to bring on self to account - here are two ways of bringing the self to account: one precedes action, the other follows it. The first way is the decision that is made when a believer hesitates before acting. This is the moment of evaluation before intention is formed. He does not proceed until he is sure that it is good and sound. If it is not, then he abandons it. This has been explained as meaning that when the self first feels like doing something or other, and the servant begins by considering its worth, he first stops and thinks to himself, “Can I do this? If the answer is no, he will not undertake the action. If it is yes, he will again stop and ask himself, “Is it better for me to do it than not to do it? If the answer is no, he will abandon it and not attempt it and not attempt to do it, but if the answer is yes, he will then pause for a third time, and ask himself, “Is this action motivated by the desire to seek Allâh’s pleasure and reward, or is it in order to acquire power, admiration, or money?” If it is the latter that has prompted the idea of action, he will not undertake it, even if it would result in his acquiring those worldly gains which prompted the idea of the action in the first place – for otherwise this would result in his self becoming accustomed to associating others with Allâh, and it would make acting for the sake of something or someone other than Allâh easier for it, and the easier it is to do things for other than Him, the harder it becomes to do things that are intended for His pleasure. If it is the former that has prompted the idea of the action, he stops yet again and asks himself, “Will I receive help in doing this? Do I have any companions who will help me and come to my assistance if I need their help in undertaking this action?” If he finds that he has no allies to help him, he will hold back from going through with this action, just as the Prophet held back from waging the jihâd against the Makkans until he had enough allies and sufficient forces to ensure success. If he finds that there is assistance on which he can rely in undertaking the proposed action, the at last he should start doing it, and he will succeed, by the will of Allâh. Failure can only occur if one of these safeguards is lacking, for when they are all combined together they guarantee success. These are the four steps that a servant needs to take in bringing his self to account before he does anything. The second way is that of bringing the self to account after an action. There are three categories of this: First, bringing the self to account for an act of obedience in which what is due to Allâh has not been completely fulfilled or done in the best possible way. There are six things that are due to Allâh in acts of obedience: Sincerity in doing it, devoting it to Allâh only, following the example of the Prophet , paying attention to doing it well, recognising Allâh’s blessings in it, and, after all this, being aware of your own shortcomings in how you do it. A person brings his self to account, but has he given all these prerequisites their due attention and effort? Did he fulfill them in his act of obedience? Second, bringing the self to account for any action which would have been better left undone than done. Third, bringing the self to account as to whether or not the intention in undertaking a permitted action was to seek the pleasure of Allâh, Exalted is He, and success in the âkhira, thereby guaranteeing success – or was it in fact to seek the fleeting gains of this life, thereby losing what could have otherwise been gained? The last thing a person could do is to be inattentive and neglectful in bringing his self to account, by starting out without any preparation, and by treating matters lightly and just muddling along. This will only bring about his ruin. This is the destiny of the people who are arrogant. Such a one turns a blind eye to the consequences of acting like this and relies on Allâh’s forgiveness. He neglects bringing his self to account and does not contemplate the outcome of his behaviour. If he does not do this, then he easily falls into wrong actions, until he becomes accustomed to them, and then finds it difficult to pull himself away from them. All in all, the believer should first bring his self to account as regards the obligatory acts of worship. If he finds himself lacking is these, then he should hasten to rectify his situation, either by catching situation, either by catching up with the worship he has neglected, or by correcting whatever he may have been Next, he should bring his self to account with regards acts which are forbidden. If he finds that he has done any of them, he must quickly turn in repentance, seek Allâh’s forgiveness, and do good deeds in order to eradicate the bad deeds which have been recorded in his record. Next, he should bring his self to account as regards those matters in which he has been negligent. If he finds that he has been negligent in doing what he was created for, he should hasten to the remembrance of Allâh and drawing near Him with an open heart. Next, he should bring his self to account for the words he has spoken, for the steps his feet have taken, for the things his hands have grasped, and for what his ears have listened to. He should ask himself, “What did I want this for? What did I do that for? Whom did I do this for? Why did I do it like that?” He should know that every action and every word are accounted for in two books, one is entitled, “For whom did I do it?, and the other, “How well did I do it? The first question is concerned with sincerity, and the second is concerned with the action itself. Allâh, the Exalted, says: If the truthful ones are going to be asked about their truthfulness, and will be judged in accordance with how truthful they were, what do you imagine will be the case with people of falsehood?
Posted on: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 18:17:21 +0000