Prophet Muhammad: The Humble Servant

The essence of being Muslim is being humble.

The word “Muslim” itself means to submit oneself in ultimate humbleness to Allah.

But it is a great irony of the human soul that when we become more humble and submissive to Allah, we fall into a grave trap. We tend to grow in arrogance because we feel our level of submission is better than that of others.

It was this same trap that Satan fell into. Once upon a time, Iblis (Satan) was so pious that he was allowed to worship with the angels. In one twist of events, Iblis was cast out and became the accursed.

His Offense?

Arrogance, Pride, Boastfulness.

He refused to bow to Allah’s creation of man because he thought himself to be better than man.

{(Remember) when your Lord said to the angels: ‘Truly I am going to create man from clay. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by Me, then you fall down prostrate to him…

(Allah) said: ‘O Iblis! What prevents you from prostrating yourself to one whom I have created with both my hands? Are you too proud (to fall prostrate to Adam) or are you one of the high exalted?’

(Iblis) said “I am better than he. You created me from fire, and You created him from clay.} (Quran 38: 71-76)

It is true that we, mankind and Iblis and his kind, were created differently. And it was this difference that caused Iblis to be proud, to hate mankind and become cursed by Allah. We can see this same arrogance and haughtiness played out every day in the hearts of mankind.

Whether we perceive ourselves to be more pious, more intelligent, better at making money, or just from a better race of people, we too often get caught in the trap of thinking we are better. And we end up hating those who are different from us out of arrogance.

Allah says:

And turn not your face away from men with pride, nor walk in insolence through the earth. Verily, God likes not each arrogant boaster. (Quran 31:18)

Allah has created all of us differently with an array of strengths and weaknesses.

So, how can we avoid becoming arrogant toward others as Satan is toward us?

How can we truly be humble?

The best example is that of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). After all he was truly the best of creation and the most humble.

The Prophet’s Humility with the Less Fortunate

“A woman who was afflicted with partial derangement in her mind said:

“O Messenger of Allah, I want something from you. He said: ‘see on which side of the road you would like (to stand and talk) so that I may help you.’ He then stood aside with her on the roadside until she got what she needed.” (Muslim, 2326)

In this short hadith, we will find many examples of the humility of the Prophet.

If he wanted to, the Prophet could have stood in the road and spoken to the woman. And he would have been praised for it. But he did not think himself so important to block the road even while doing a good deed.

In addition, Prophet Muhammad does not admonish this woman for approaching him in such a coarse way. Nor does he turn his nose up at her because she is disturbed. He instead treats her with kindness and provides her with what she needs.

Prophet Muhammad knew that no one is more important than another. He also knew that if Allah had willed, he would be in the same mental state as the woman.

Continue reading…

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“O you who have believed, why do you say what you do not do?” – Qu’ran, 61:2

We hear it often, people say “success breathes success”. Whether it be in the context of a business, organization, or a captain of a team. Without true leaders, success doesn’t permeate. One thing that has constantly amazed me about these leaders is that they don’t show arrogance. Nor do they neglect or belittle any work that is being executed by the workers they manage. A combination of God consciousness and humbleness, keeps them in check.

One brother I know, that is a president of a non profit in NY, Masha’Allah, he is involved with every task you can think of, from strategy to tactical work, he leads by example. You would think that a president of such an organization would be busy in meetings and wouldn’t be involved with day to day tasks that are often deferred to people underneath his leadership. Or he wouldn’t find time to visit his volunteers. It’s not the case, and to me he embodies the true qualities of a leader.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) articulated this beautifully when he said:

“Every one of you is a shepherd and is responsible for his flock. The leader of the people is a guardian and is responsible for his subjects: a man is the guardian of his family and is responsible for his subjects, a woman is the guardian of her husband’s home and of his children and is responsible for them, and the slave of a man is a guardian of his master’s property and is responsible for it. Surely, everyone of you is a shepherd and responsible for his flock.” Source: Sahih Bukhari 6719

The reason I put the verse from the Qur’an above is because often times, you find some individuals who claim themselves as “leaders”, get trapped in their own egotistic bubble as their organizations advance. They get too caught up in sending orders while chilling. Not practicing what they preach. They forget when things are going well, it was team work, or when things fail, they blame those who they manage. True leaders always thank Allah, then give others credit first when things are going well and take blame first when failures occur.

Being in a position of leadership is a big test, if you screw up, you take others with you. It’s no coincidence the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) produced extraordinary people like Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali (may Allah be pleased with them all). He wasn’t just telling others to feed the hungry, he was doing it himself. Actions speak louder than words, and when leaders rise to the occasion, they leave a lasting positive influence that continues.

I’ll end with a quote from Abu Bakr (R) when he elected as the Caliph:

“O People! I have been chosen by you as your leader, although I am no better than any of you. If I do any wrong, set me right. Listen, truth is honesty and untruth is dishonesty. The weak among you are the powerful in my eyes, as long as I do not give them their dues. The powerful among you are weak in my eyes, as long as I do not take away from them what is due to others.

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In every religion, there are always one or two foundations on which beliefs and values are based on. Such is the same with the Muslims who can be regarded as the descendants of Prophet Muhammad. Thus, they ensure that their everyday life is guided by Sunnah as they tend to see it as the perfect bench mark to follow.

But what does it really mean?

The word Sunnah has its origin from Islam and it is an Arabic word which simply means the ways of life of our holy Prophet Muhammad. It can be seen as the second in command when it comes to the root of Islamic religion as most of the Islamic laws which are practiced today are based on it. Thus, it tends to be integrated into the Koran which is the first in command.

There are different types of Sunnah that form the belief of most Muslims that you see today and they range from; Sunnah of eating, drinking, toilet, sleeping, clothing etc. however, for the purpose of this write up; we shall take a surface look at 3 of the sunnah.

Sunnah of eating

This attempts to teach every muslim the qualities that they are expected to exhibit towards food each and every time. It can be regarded as the commandments of eating as laid down by Prophet Muhammad. Some of them include; making use of the right hand to eat, not eating unnecessarily, moderate food and drinking, always giving thanks to Allah for the food provision.

Sunnah of clothing

This is aimed at guiding the muslims believers on how they can dress in public to uphold their faith and religion. It includes; wearing white clothes, putting on right shoes first before left, men should wear topee, females should wear scarves etc.

Sunnah concerning anger

This entails guiding muslims each time their patience is tested. It means staying calm when upset, being humble every time, forgiving those who offend you and so on.

From the above, it can be seen that belief and values been displayed by some muslims today has always been there right from time.

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Wet dreams are accepted as part of a male’s growing into maturity, but little is talked about of this natural occurrence in a young woman. Both sets of the genders mirror each other in most things, so why should this be any different? As the prophet has said, Allah has made a carbon copy of each sex internally, so what happens in one body will happen in the other.

Female ejaculation in Islam is seen to be a part of the natural evolving of the body, leading into puberty. It can occur around the time of the development of breasts and hair under the armpits and in the genital region. This can be as early as eight, or it may delay until the female child is over ten. Unless there is something abnormal, this is simply a part of growing into maturity and becoming ready for potential child-bearing. Some corruption is responsible for the emphasis on sex; therefore anything that seems out-of-the-ordinary is made out to be different, although it has existed since Man was created. Another reason for the lack of information is that many lecturers are male and women can be very shy about discussing their concerns about this phenomenon with them, including their doctor.

If a person experiences one of these wet dreams during genuine sleep, then it is perfectly natural and no blame can be placed on the person concerned. Although a female’s vagina is always moist due to normal secretions, a female ejaculation, like the man’s, increases this moisture and is usually a sign that this has occurred. Although it may not be as much as the male’s, it is usually accompanied by erotic dreams or feelings and often culminates in a feeling of satisfaction.

If this has occurred then the person should cleanse themselves by washing or ghusal, as the prophet advised. As the person grows in maturity and control of their body, it is often possible to control these urges, but, as they occur during sleep, most people cannot. Many people wake just before ejaculation, with a vague memory of fullness in the genital area, but cannot recall any reason for it being so. In puberty, it is simply a release from sexual dreams.

Umm Salamah said: “Umm Sulaym came to the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu alihi wasalam, and said, “O Messenger of Allah, Allah is not too shy to tell us the truth. Does a woman have to do ghusl if she has a wet dream?

” The Prophet said: “Yes, if she sees water (a discharge).” Umm Salamah covered her face and said, “O Messenger of Allah, can a woman have an erotic dream?”He said, “Yes, may your hands be rubbed with dust. How else would her child resemble her?” (Bukhari)

It is thought to be a very wise parent, preferably the mother, who discusses this symptom with her daughter, before she reaches the age of puberty. Otherwise she will almost certainly be given quite the wrong idea from her classmates or even a teacher who is not comfortable with the topic. Most women are not comfortable with talking about the subject either, but it is a natural part of life and growing, and if she reflects, she may remember this happening in her early life also, so there really should be no embarrassment in talking to your daughter about it.

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Nikah is the Islamic word for a marriage contract in which the bride and the groom promises in front of relatives usually close family members of both the sides to accept each other for the rest of their lives.

The importance of Nikah can be understood through the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) who replied when once asked “What is more important than prayers”, he replied, “the spirit of prayer”, similarly when asked what was more important than fasting the answer was the spirit of fasting and so for everything else I Islam the most important thing is the spirit behind the action as it is the main guide which leads to action. So in this case what is more important than the marriage is its spirit which in this case is the Nikah?

NIKAH is a binding between two souls which can be conducted either at a single place where both the groom and bride are present or the help of the modern technology can also be taken and nowadays telephone and internet is also being used for conducting Islamic marriages or the Nokah.

The Hijab, which is the Arabic word of the veil is much emphasized is Islam and is considered a part of it as Islam lays much stress on the covering of a Muslim women in every age and step. In many societies Hijab is considered as a cultural part and something that is not a part of the Islamic religion however this is not the case. Anything that is deemed as cultural tends to have its roots from common practices and customs that have been living through for a long time now. Rather the covering of the women which resided in the past and carried on as a cultural aspect was known as the “Jahiliyah” which covered the women rendering her as a lower being as compared to man.

Islam gave the concept of Hijab or a veil to make the women an equal part of the society rather earning her more respect and dignity in the society. Our Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) declared clearly that it is incumbent upon every single Muslim to search for awareness no matter how far you have to go searching for it. Islam respects all women as equals in a society and the reason for recommending Hijab to them is only to provide them more self respect and an added bodily protection from the evils and wrongs of the society which are also a part of every civilization.

Women in Islam have many rights which were given to them 1400 years ago which are not well known even by many Muslims today. Women in Islam is give in some instances much more respect and honor than anything else and women are not just mere individuals to serve men or look after their homes or babies rather they are acknowledged as an individual being that has much self respect.

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