Prosperity is Sincerity to Allah
بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
In the Name of Allah Most-Compassionate, Most-Merciful
What you will find below is guidance from the Qur’an and Sunnah about the purpose behind our existence insha’Allah, and Allah alone has full knowledge of all things. May it be of benefit to you and me, for now and for the future. And may it be a source through which we are able to achieve greater sincerity, a renewal of intentions, and our furthering towards Allah, and not towards a life of this world. Ameen. What I will convey to you here is how one should seek prosperity in Allah alone, refuge in Him alone, protection from shaitan the accursed through Allah alone, and protection from wreaking destruction upon oneself, by oneself.
وَكَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا قَبْلَهُم مِّن قَرْنٍ هُمْ أَحْسَنُ أَثَاثًا وَرِئْيًا
“But how many (countless) generations before them have we destroyed, who were even better in equipment and in glitter to the eye?” (Quran, Maryam 19:74)
Some people traverse their entire lives without ever having arrived at the point of self-realisation, in their acknowledgment through self-honesty, that prosperity is through sincerity, and sincerity is through Allah alone. Knowing this is quite different from understanding it through experience and hence living by it. Knowing it alone provides scant benefit, and only seeking to know it without its implementation, will eventually lead to a hardening of the heart. Thus in finally acknowledging, that amongst other things, this path of genuinely serving the poor, weak, and destitute, and ones Lord is immense and necessitates an immense commitment to The Truth, Self-Sacrifice, Hardship, Learning, Humility, Suffering, Honesty and most importantly Sincerity – one recognises – this path is not something a person claims for themselves. It is an invitation from Allah, for not everyone is capable of it. Thus it is better in the Sight of Allah, out of humility, to make the sincere intention of not being able to undertake this path, than to make the insincere claim of being capable of undertaking it, and when faced with it, turn on ones heels. Allah prefers the servant that is honest about who he is, than the one who claims what he is not.
أَمْ حَسِبْتُمْ أَن تَدْخُلُواْ الْجَنَّةَ وَلَمَّا يَعْلَمِ اللّهُ الَّذِينَ جَاهَدُواْ مِنكُمْ وَيَعْلَمَ الصَّابِرِينَ
“Did you think that you would enter Heaven without Allah testing those of you who fought hard (In His Cause) and remained steadfast?”(Qur’an, Al’e Imran 3:142)
Thus, it is often the case amongst people who make great claims about their religion and sincerity, to have little by way of proof to demonstrate those claims. This is a sign for those that are truthful, that sincerity is in itself a gift from Allah to those that seek Him and seek to be truthful, in which case He rewards those people with the opportunity to seek Him, as opposed to being granted sincerity simply by asking for it. The opportunity to seek Him comes about through an invitation to goodness, and seeking that goodness, establishing it, following it, living by it, in turn brings a person sincerity and closeness to Allah. However, it is usually at the point of this invitation that most people decline the invitation to goodness, and return it back to Allah. For every claim there is its equivalent proof.
Allah does not need our goodness, He wants us first and foremost, to be honest with ourselves, not to make claims we cannot fulfil. Thus, rather than seeking to construct a facade of sincerity, ones efforts are better plied towards understanding the composition of sincerity, and seeking to establish it in one’s life. Again, it is not uncommon to find people exchanging stories of the courage, valour and chivalry of the Sahaba, their self-sacrifice, suffering and efforts, are considered as mere fables to while away the hours, rather than one’s own genuine aspirations. Thus without their realisation and as Allah often reminds us, ‘their desires leave them in the lurch’. They forego the greatest of all blessings, that of sincerity, of not believing in what they say, and not acting upon what they believe. This was not the way of the Prophet (s) and nor of his blessed companions. It is better to undertake a small act with sincerity, than to use great words and make great aspirations that lack sincerity.
Remember, that to taste the sweetness of emaan and sincerity first begins by being sincere in speech and action, through which that sincerity translates into being sincere with others. How we are with others is a reflection of what our hearts contain. Always seek to present yourself to others as you are at this moment in your life, and not how you would like to be in ten years time. That person is yet to be made, and whilst it is good to possess this aspiration, who you are now is where you are now, in your knowledge, experience and development, and who people need to see. Do not seek a pace other than the one Allah has assigned to you.
“Be like the reed that bends in the wind, bend to His will, if you do not, you risk being broken by His will”
In that submission you will find much greater peace than forcing something that will occur only as Allah has intended. Be happy with that, it may be that Allah will change you, but not before you strive to change yourself through a genuine acceptance of who you are and where you are. Only then might you put yourself in the best position to gain knowledge of which you have no knowledge. Empty your heart of everything else and you will find Allah in your heart. For Allah does not occupy the hearts of those occupied with other than Allah.
Seek sincerity of speech through avoiding false eloquence’, the Prophet (s) hated it. It is disingenuine, which might sound good to the ears of some, will readily cause the sincere to depart from you as swift as darkness is dispelled by the presence of light. Make your aspirations the highest, but only for the akhira. Be wise not to use the gifts of Allah as ostentatious displays, or used towards the dunya. Do not use the precious gift of aspiration, and all the other beautiful gifts of Allah for a paltry gain for the dunya, for this is a sign of ignorance and spiritual deficiency. Instead, if you genuinely seek Allah then you will find Him through good, righteous, sincere people, so seek them, for you will not find Allah with the insincere. You have been forewarned. Apply the words of Allah when He says,
وَابْتَغِ فِيمَا آتَاكَ اللَّهُ الدَّارَ الْآخِرَةَ
“But seek, with the (wealth) which Allah has bestowed on thee, the Home of the Hereafter…” (Qur’an, Al-Qasas 28:77)
In these words is contained the entire purpose for which wealth is sought. It is Allah alone Who determines provisions and it is He alone that will choose yours. There is nothing contained in the heavens nor on earth that has the power to add or take away what Allah has already assigned to you. So, do not fear poverty, for it is not a sign of God’s displeasure. And nor is wealth a sign of God’s good pleasure. They are mere tools for the achievement of another much greater purpose. Do not fear people, for only Allah is worthy of being feared. Do not use wealth and status as display signs to others, of God’s favouring of you. It is insincere and misleads people. Only Allah determines the stations of people with Him.
Guard yourself from falling into the pitfall of seeking a station greater than you possess, or you will be rewarded with one much less than you deserve. Be happy where you are, it is where you are meant to be, be happy where you are and Allah will cause you to move forward when He determines you are ready. Do not seek to display a station to others that is not of your belonging, it will again cause the righteous and sincere to depart from you as swiftly as blessings leave the unrighteous, and may well result in your being awarded a station much less than the one Allah had prepared for you. Do not allow yourself to be led by your insecurities and nor allow the fear of poverty to overcome you, both are the tools of shaitan, who will use them against you at every opportunity. Seek a life of this world and you may well find yourself amongst the insincere. Seek sincerity and you may well find yourself with a reward much greater than you could ever have calculated or imagined by yourself. Read and reflect on the following verses, in them you will find much guidance and wisdom. And Allah has full knowledge of all things. In Him we place our trust and in Him we seek refuge. Ameen.
Surah as-Saffat (v. 83-111)
83. Verily among those who followed His Way was Abraham.
84. Behold! he approached his Lord with a sound heart.
85. Behold! he said to his father and to his people, “What is that which you worship?
86. “Is it a falsehood, gods besides Allah, that you desire?
87. “Then what is your opinion of the Lord of the worlds?”
88. Then did he cast a glance at the stars.
89. And he said, “I feel sick!”
90. So they turned away from him, and departed.
91. Then did he turn to their gods and said, “Will you not eat?
92. “Why do you not speak?
93. Then did he turn upon them, striking with the right hand.
94. Then (his people) came towards him hastening.
95. He said: “Do you worship what you yourselves carve,
96. “When Allah has created you and what you make?”
97. They said, “Build him a furnace, and throw him into the blaze”
98. And they wished him ill, but We made them the undermost.
99. He said: “I will go to my Lord! He will surely guide me!
100. “O my Lord! Grant me one of the righteous.”
101. So We gave him the good news of a wise son.
102. And when (his son) was old enough to walk with him, (Abraham) said: “O my son, I see in a vision that I offer you in sacrifice: Now what is your view!” (The son) said: “O my father! Do as you are commanded: Allah willing, you shall find me steadfast.”
103. So when they had both submitted their wills (to Allah), and he had laid him prostrate on his forehead,
104. We called out to him “O Abraham!
105. “You have already fulfilled the vision. Thus do We reward those who are excellent”.
106. For this was a clear test.
107. And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice:
108. And We left for him among later generations (the salutation):
109. “Peace upon Abraham!”
110. Thus indeed do We reward those who are excellent.
111. He is one of Our believing servants. (Quran, as-Saffat 37: 83-111)
The Righteous guide people to Allah and to the garden, sacrificing all they have for His cause. The unrighteous and ignorant guide people to other than Allah and to the Fire, sacrificing all they have for other than Allah. Many sacrifice their most precious possessions to this world, and yet those that truly recognise the preciousness of their gifts give them to none but Allah. That is one of the wisdoms behind the story of Ibrahim (as).
May Allah count us amongst the righteous and save us from the ignorance of our own souls and from the ignorance of others. May we seek protection in Him, from Him. May we not be left for the blinking of an eye to our nafs, as was the dua’a of the Prophet (s). May we be of great benefit to our entrusted soul, to our Lord and to His religion. A light among lights. Amidst this beautiful religion that is Islam. Ameen.
