Contemplative Conundrums

"In the name of God, most Gracious, most Compassionate"

Last night, I saw a friend commenting that she despises people who do eat, smoke and drink in front of others during the fasting month. She also goes on to further point out that these people are not muslims and are despicable.

So, she has contemplated the situation and came out with a conclusion- all of which are really conundrums to her of course.

It is not in our place to question the WHY in people's actions or inactions. We should leave it up to Him to ascertain accordingly. Similarly, we have no right to judge if someone is a bad muslim or if that person is a muslim at all. So it was very disheartening for me to see such a post on Facebook. She has made this issue her problem and in that process riddle herself with the conundrum that can never be answered except by Allah.

But the irony is... fasting is the 3rd pillar of our rukun Islam... so before you begin to judge others, you should see if you yourself have fulfilled the first and second requirements- which are, proclaiming the syahadah and doing your five prayers. Many of us, have been fasting but all we get out of it is the feeling of hunger, thirst and fatigue... because our fast had been nullified when we leave out our obligations to pray.

-sigh-

Then there's the issue of he-who- shall- not-be-named-because-I'm- so-annoyed-at-you. Please do not take 8 years to complete your Honours because procrastination is a sin. (see here)

Ibnul-Qayyim said, ‘There is nothing that Allah has enjoined, but Shaytan has ways of dealing with it, either by inclining (people) towards falling short and being negligence or excessive and exaggeration. He does not care which of these two mistakes a person makes. So he may come to a person’s heart and check it out, and if he finds that he is lazy, negligent and looking for concessions, then he goes along with that. He holds him back and stops him from doing things; he makes him lazy, indifferent and negligent, and encourages him to seek alternative interpretations and hope for forgiveness etc., until a person may give up doing all things that have been enjoined.

One of the ways in which Shaytan does this is mentioned in the hadith recorded in Saheeh al-Bukharee from Abu Hurayrah (radhi allahu anhu), who said that the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam) said,

‘Shaytan puts three knots at the back of the head of any of you if he is asleep. On every knot he reads and exhales the following words, ‘The night is long, so stay asleep.’ When one wakes up and remembers Allah, one knot is undone; and when one performs ablution, the second knot is undone, and when one prays the third knot is undone and one gets up energetic with a good heart in the morning; otherwise one gets up lazy and with a mischievous heart.’ [Saheeh al-Bukharee (21/243)]

Therefore, seek refuge in Him whenever you feel lost because I can't always give you the right answers...

Allahumma innee a`dhu bika mina al-‘ajzi wa al-kasal wa al-jubun wa al-bukhl wa ghalabati al-dayni wa qahri al-rrijaal

(O Allah, I seek refuge in You from helplessness, sloth, cowardice, niggardliness, and burden of debts and domineering men.)

Laa ilaaha illa Allaahu al-`azeem al-haleem, la ilaaha illa Allaahu rabbu al-`arshi al-`azeem, laa ilaaha illa Allaahu rabbu al-ssamaawaati wa al-ardhi wa rabbu al-`arshi al-kareem

(There is no god but Allah, the Glorious and Clement; there is no god but Allah, Lord of the Great Throne; there is no god but Allah, Lord of the heavens and earth and the Noble Throne).”