WISDOM FROM THE PROPHET

Gift to Humankind

THERE are three things that are especially pleasing to God: that you should worship Him, ascribing no partners unto Him; that you should all cling to the rope of God and not be divided among yourselves; and that you should have a benevolent attitude towards those whom God has put in charge of your affairs. And three things cause Him immense displeasure: idle talk, asking too many questions and wasting money. (Sahih Muslim)

Worshipping God means concentrating one’s entire attention on Him. One who truly worships Gods feels empty if there is no place in his life for God. To ascribe partners to God, on the other hand, is to make something besides God the focus of one’s attention. To forsake all forms of false worship, and to serve one God alone, is the essence of Islam. When one does this, one becomes a selfless soul; one thinks of others before oneself. Those who have developed such qualities will remain united among themselves; they will not split up into sects. They will have a benevolent, co-operative attitude towards others who are in positions of responsibility; they will not set themselves up as rivals to those who are in power. They will work for the common good and contribute towards the benefit of humankind in general. Pleasing God by serving His creation will be their goal as they are the true worshippers of God. This is the understanding of how the three things— worshipping God, not being divided and an attitude of benevolence are interconnected.


It is pleasing to God that you should have a benevolent attitude towards those whom God has put in charge of your affairs

The three things which are displeasing to God are such that all the three if present in a person will cause him to be a person who is not beneficial to the entire society. Idle talk and prattle harms other people’s reputation, robs their peace of mind, can cause quarrels and fights, ill will, lead to spread of false news etc. Asking unnecessary questions, prying in the personal affairs of others, asking questions based on false suspicions make a person unwelcome in gatherings. Likewise spending money extravagantly robs one of the chances of spending it on constructive activities.

The above wisdom taught by the Prophet is applicable so much more in the present times where we are witnessing so much of mayhem in the societies where people are prying in others’ matters unrestrained; and materialistic culture is the rule of the day.