Nawawi Hadith #40- The Muslims attitude towards the worldly life Be in the World Like a Stranger. . . On the authority of ibn Umar (radiAllahu anhuma) who said: The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi Wa salam) took hold of my shoulder and said, Be in the world as if you were a stranger or a traveler along a path. And ibn Umar would say, If you survive till the late afternoon, do not expect [to be alive in] the morning. If you survive till the morning, do not expect [to be alive in] the late afternoon. Take from your health for your sickness and from your life for your death. [Bukhari] Points Related to This Hadith -In this hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) has instructed Muslims to give this world and this life its proper due, all toward the overall goal of achieving the good of the Hereafter. In other words, even the stranger and the traveler have to meet their needs in this world. They make sure that they meet these needs in such a way that it does not harm their overall goal. Hence, this hadith is not implying that one must abandon everything of this world. Instead, it is implying that ones heart should not be attached to this world (as in the case of a stranger), and that one is only taking from this world what he needs to carry on his journey to his destination (as in the case of a traveler). As Saeed ibn Jubair said, This worldly life is a deceiving form of enjoyment if it diverts the person from seeking the Hereafter. However, if it calls a person to seeking Allahs pleasure and seeking the Hereafter, then it is an excellent means. -The attitude of the believer should be the following: When he does work that he knows will help him achieve his goal of reaching Paradise, he should be happy and pleased. When he does work that harms that goal, he should be unhappy and dismayed. This is his case regardless of how much he is given of this world. In other words, his standard for happiness is not what be receives or does not receive of this world. His standard for happiness is whether the work he has done will help him achieve his overall goal of pleasing Allah and attaining Allahs forgiveness and mercy. - Paradise for the believer is like- indeed greater than- the joy a traveler feels when he finally reaches his destination and the joy that a person feels when he is finally in the company of those with whom he belongs, in the place where he belongs. Summary of the Hadith -A believer has one of two attitudes toward this worldly life: that of a stranger or that of a traveler along a path. His heart and his sights must be set on his real home and final resting place. -The believer takes from this world the provisions that he needs to reach his final destination. He must always prepare for death and not expect to be living in this world forever. -The believer takes advantage of those resources or opportunities that Allah has given him before it is too late. He takes advantage of his health before sickness comes to him and his life before death comes to him. [ commentary of the forty Hadith of Nawawi by Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo] O Allah! We ask You for everything that is good, in this life and the Hereafter, whether we know it or not; and we seek Your protection from everything that is bad, in this world or the Hereafter, whether we know it or not. O Allah, by Your Mercy! Make things easy for us and help us do anything that pleases you and is good for us in this world and the Hereafter. O Allah! Set right our religion that guards our souls from sins, make this world where we live better for us and make the Hereafter to where we return better for us. Let life be a cause for more good, and let death put an end to any evil that may befall on us. We ask You, our Lord, to give us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and to protect us from the torment of the Fire. Aameen
Posted on: Mon, 29 Dec 2014 17:31:17 +0000
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