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Al-Iftiqar (being a submissive servant of Allah):
Dear brother, our new topic in the series of Means of Access and Signs of Acceptance is Iftiqar (Being a Submissive Servant of Allah). The servant is a servant, the Lord is the Lord, and the Lord is Rich, Omnipotent and Knowledgeable, whereas the servant is poor, weak and ignorant. This is the original thing, for Allah is the Lord and man is the servant.
All the meanings of Iftiqar, which might occur to your mind and which are about materialistic poorness, have nothing to do with our lecture today. Iftiqar is a very high rank, and it equals the rank of Obudiyah (being a worshipping servant of Allah). As I have mentioned earlier, the servant is a servant and the Lord is the Lord, and as a human being, your nature, your reality and your identity entails that you need Allah.
The topic I will tackle in our lecture is that man is weak, which is a fact, and not a sort of courtesy. Hence, regardless of all his power, personality, control or high position, man is a weak creature, simply because whatever he owns depends upon the liquidity of his blood; if he has a clot in a very tiny vessel in his brain, he might become paralyzed or blind. Thus, all man's power, control and wealth depend on his heart beats or the growth of his body cells; if the heart stops beating or if he has cancer, he becomes a piece of news after being a person.
Arrogance contradicts Iftiqar of Allah:
Dear brother, one of you might be very rich, powerful or knowledgeable, yet he ought to seek his needs from Allah, and this is the example of the believer. On the other hand, you might be very poor, weak and ignorant, yet you might be arrogant.
Consider this example: someone might be surprised with many guests in his house, and all he has to serve them is little amount of yogurt. If he adds five times of water to it and put some ice, it will become a tasty drink to the guests. However, if he adds one drop of oil to this yogurt, he will spoil it. Arrogance is like this one drop of oil, for it contradicts being a slave of Allah. Better yet, it is a major sin.
One might be very poor, weak or ignorant, yet he might be arrogant, whereas another man might be very rich, powerful and knowledgeable, yet he is always in need of Allah, and this is the example of the believer for he is in a state of Iftiqar. The amazing thing is that when you become humble to Allah, you depend on Him and you declare your full submission to Him, Allah will raise high your fame, will exalt your status and will bestow upon you loftiness that is only known by those who taste it.
Mankind are in need of Allah in everything:
Dear brother, we are all, with no exception, in need of Allah in our existence, in the continuity of our existence, in meeting our needs, in walking, in staying, in our sight, in our hearing and in our minds. When a respectful person becomes insane, the closest people to him and the dearest of them will find a way to admit him to a mental hospital, and they will pay the effort and beg this person or that person to see it through. Thus, man is in dire need of Allah in his sanity, sight, hearing or power. You are able to walk with your two legs, and you can go to the bathroom alone without the help of anyone, and this is but a grace. Furthermore, you are in dire need of Allah when you sleep, wake up, look, hear, speak and think. The more you submit to Allah the closer you will be to Him, but when you take pride in yourself and you say, "I am self-reliant", Allah will abandon you.
﴾I am better than him (Adam),﴿
When Iblis said it, Allah destroyed him.
﴾Is not mine the dominion of Egypt﴿
When Fir'aun (Pharaoh) said it, Allah destroyed him too.
﴾We have great strength, and great ability for war﴿
When the people of Balqis (queen of Saba') said it, Allah destroyed them.
﴾This has been given to me only because of knowledge I possess﴿
When Qarun (Korah) said it, Allah destroyed him. Hence, the meaning of Iftiqar to Allah is but a manifestation of man's full submission to Him.
Allah either supports or abandons us:
Dear brother, we are in dire need of this lecture every day, yet every hour and every minute. When you are in a state of Iftiqar to Allah, Allah will look after you, but when you say, "I am self-reliant", Allah will abandon you. Who are we to say that we are self-reliant? The Prophet PBUH and his companions were the elite of mankind, and in Badr Battle they were in a status of Iftiqar to Allah, and so Allah granted them victory, but on the day of Hunain, some of them said, "We will not be defeated due to our huge number", and they took pride in their number and harness, so they were defeated. You are in dire need of our lecture today in every minute of your life.
I was told that a neurosurgeon always offers two Rak'at before he operates on the patient. He offers this prayer in front of the operating table, and after that he invokes Allah to make him take the right decision. Regardless of your career whether it is in medicine, law, architecture or teaching, if you ask for Allah's Help, you will get Divine aid, prosperity, victory, support, success and outstanding, but if you take pride in what you have, Allah will abandon you.
I was in a visit to an Arab country when a doctor told me the story of his deceased wife. He said that there were lots of complications when she was about to deliver her baby, so he consulted a local gynecologist, and asked him to see what another gynecologist thought about her situation, but this gynecologist said to him, "I am the best in this field." he said that arrogantly, so during the delivery, he made a fetal mistake which cannot be made even by a nurse. Consequently, his wife died, and the husband pressed charges against the doctor who had his license of practicing medicine withdrawn. It was the first case of its kind in that country. He was simply asked to consult another doctor, but he was too arrogant to do so. Thus, when you say, "I am self-reliant", Allah will abandon you.
We are in dire need of this lecture every hour and every minute, in our commerce, in our jobs and in our careers, while we are on travel and when we settle, in our children's upbringing and in our way of treating our wives. Keep in mind that whenever you say, "I am self-reliant", Allah will abandon you, but whenever you say, "O Allah, I am in need of Your Help", Allah will look after you. Therefore, man swings between being supported by Allah and being abandoned by Him.
In Badr Battle Allah supported the companions of the Prophet PBUH, but in Hunain, He abandoned them. Thus, when we are abandoned by Allah, this will be the result of hidden Shirk we committed. In other words, when man believes that victory comes from an earthy powerful party, and so he is after pleasing this and that powerful country, he will get nothing, but when he pins his hopes on Allah the Almighty, he will become the most powerful person.
Allah elevates whoever is in the state of Iftiqar to Him:
Dear brother, Iftiqar is basically being entirely submitted to Allah, Sublime and Exalted be He, being a true servant of Him, being keen on your submission to Allah, knowing it and knowing yourself. Iftiqar exalts you to the higher ranks of closeness to Allah, and it provides you with limitless power, affluence and knowledge.
You should know who you are, for you are a weak servant of Allah, and you are powerful only when Allah grants you power, but when you depend on yourself you will become weak. Thus, you gain richness and knowledge by being in a state of Iftiqar to Allah, and you gain nothing when you relay on yourself and become ignorant of the reality of your ownself. When you know your ownself very well, you will become closer to the rank of slavery (to Allah) which is manifested in Iftiqar to Him. The Prophet PBUH was a slave of Allah who acquired the highest rank of closeness to Him, for he reached Sidrat Al-Muntaha.
﴾Near Sidrat-ul-Muntaha [lote-tree of the utmost boundary (beyond which none can pass)],﴿
No human being has reached that rank of closeness. It is reported in the Prophetic Sunnah:
(('Abdullah b. Amr b. al-As reported Allah's Messenger (PBUH) as saying: When you hear the Mu'adhdhin, repeat what he says, then invoke a blessing on me, for everyone who invokes a blessing on me will receive ten blessings from Allah; then beg from Allah al-Wasila for me, which is a rank in Paradise fitting for only one of Allah's servants, and I hope that I may be that one. If anyone who asks that I be given the Wasila, he will be assured of my intercession.))
Allah the Almighty says:
﴾So did (Allah) convey the Inspiration to His slave [Muhammad PBUH through Jibrael (Gabriel)].﴿
﴾To His slave [Muhammad PBUH through Jibrael (Gabriel)].﴿
Pay attention to this rank:
﴾Near Sidrat-ul-Muntaha [lote-tree of the utmost boundary (beyond which none can pass)],﴿
It is the highest rank of closeness:
﴾The (Prophet's) heart lied not (in seeing) what he (Muhammad PBUH) saw. Will you then dispute with him (Muhammad PBUH) about what he saw [during the Mi'raj: (Ascent of the Prophet over the seven heavens)]. And indeed he (Muhammad PBUH) saw him [Jibrael (Gabriel)] at a second descent (i.e. another time). Near Sidrat-ul-Muntaha [lote-tree of the utmost boundary (beyond which none can pass)], Near it is the Paradise of Abode. When that covered the lote-tree which did cover it!﴿
Dear brother, the more you submit to Allah with Iftiqar, the higher Allah will raise your fame, your rank and your remembrance. Let alone, Allah will give you reverence and loftiness and will cast love into people's hearts to you.
When you submit to Allah you gey exalted in Allah's Sight:
As I have mentioned earlier, it is an inverse connection, for the more you submit to Allah the higher He will raise you. Allah addressed His Prophet PBUH by saying:
﴾And raised high your fame?﴿
The Prophet's name is mentioned whenever Allah's Name is mentioned, and there is no human being on earth who has got that rank of fame, is there? We say, "There is no Deity worthy of worship except Allah and Muhammad PBUH is His Messenger. Furthermore, the Creator of the heavens and the earth has sworn only by the life of Muhammad PBUH among all mankind:
﴾ Verily, by your life (O Muhammad PBUH), in their wild intoxication, they were wandering blindly. ﴿
In fact some scholars defined Iftiqar precisely. They indicated that being in a state of Iftiqar means you are in a sublime position in His Sight, and that the word itself is not derived from the adjective Faqeer (poor) which means that man cannot meet his needs, and so he may beg people to meet his needs.
The true believer acknowledges Allah's Favor upon him:
I repeat; you may be powerful, rich and knowledgeable, yet you are in a state of Iftiqar to Allah, and this is how the Prophets, peace be upon them, were. Though our Master Yusuf PBUH was a Prophet, he said:
﴾ Unless You turn away their plot from me, I will feel inclined towards them and be one (of those who commit sin and deserve blame or those who do deeds) of the ignorants." ﴿
Despite his chastity and righteousness, he showed his Iftiqar to Allah. Our Master Ibrahim PBUH said:
﴾ And keep me and my sons away from worshipping idols.﴿
Allah gives you the grace of having good social stand making you belong to a very lofty family, while other rich people are regular attendants of nightclubs, so if Allah helps you be a knowledgeable person who teaches people or cure them (if you are a doctor) or He helps you have a successful lawful commerce or industry, you should know that your career is not the reason behind your success. If you consider it so, you fall into Shirk. Thus, you should acknowledge Allah's Favor upon you as a true believer.
Man sometimes elevates himself to a Divine Status out of ignorance or foolishness; he may say to someone he was generous to, "I supported you financially" or he may say, "I guided you to Allah", but who are you to say such things?
((…did I not find you erring and Allah guided you aright through me…))
Look how submissive to Allah he PBUH was.
The submissive one to Allah never credits himself for his knowledge or deeds:
Dear brother, the one who believes in Allah says, "Allah bestows upon me His Graces" "Allah is generous to me by giving me the wife, the high scientific degree, the house, the good health and children". The true believer acknowledges Allah's Favor upon him, whereas the non-believer says:
﴾This has been given to me only because of knowledge I possess﴿
He says to you, "This is something I have earned by paying effort and striving." In such a case, and even if man is very clever, Allah might make him a beggar.
Your smartness does not count when you deal with Allah, but what really counts is your righteousness, and the righteous person gains prosperity. When you say, "I am self-reliant", "I give whoever I wish" "I deprive whoever I wish" or "I punish as I wish" you are elevating yourself to a Divine Status which contradicts submissiveness to Allah. The believer says without even thinking, "Allah honored me" or "Allah gave me this house, led me to this good wife and granted me dutiful children." Thus, every grace the believer gets from Allah is acknowledged and is considered a Divine Favor upon him.
Dear brother, some people ask a scholar, "When someone is entitled to the term "Iftiqar to Allah"? He answered, "When nothing in him is left for him." Then they asked, "How is that?" The scholar answered, "When someone takes pride in what he has, then he is not in a state of Iftiqar. When man is rich and his richness is ascribed to Allah, then he is in a state of Iftiqar, but if he claims self-reliance, then he is not in a state of Iftiqar. The same goes for any other graces like knowledge and wisdom, for they are but graces from Allah." The successful amongst the believers are those who are in a state of Iftiqar.
I read about an American physician who considered jogging a very healthy exercise, and he used to jog 20 kilometers per day. Also, he wrote books, gave lectures and was on TV shows to talk about the subject and how jogging is the only way to maintain the heart. Though he is right about jogging, he elevated this sport to a Divine Level, so ironically, he died while he was jogging in his prime. I have nothing against jogging, on the contrary, jogging is very healthy, but beware of depending on it more than you depend on Allah. Thus, man should consider jogging by the support of Allah a healthy means to maintain the heart, and he should never say, "Working out makes you live longer"
Your lifetime is preordained by Allah, and sport does not make it longer or shorter, but rather sport gives you healthy life, and without working out, you may spend part of your life bed-ridden. Hence, sport has nothing to do with man's lifetime, but it is important to man's wellbeing.
A doctor who works in a hospital once said to me, "I am never attracted by a woman, and I am not interested in women no matter how beautiful they are". I said to him in return, "Our Master Yusuf PBUH was more polite with Allah regarding this point, and he said, "Unless You turn away their plot from me, I will feel inclined towards them and be one (of those who commit sin and deserve blame or those who do deeds) of the ignorant." [Yusuf, 33].
Being in a state of Iftiqar will raise high your fame and rank and will draw you closer to Allah the Almighty. The one in a state of Iftiqar to Allah never takes pride in the knowledge he has or the deed he offers, but rather he acknowledges Allah's Favor upon him and among these Divine Favors is being Muwahid (believing in Allah Alone), being submissive to Allah and being created in the first place.
Allah's Graces upon man:
Allah the Almighty bestowed upon you the grace of existence. Whenever I read a book that is published before I was born, it crosses my mind that when this book was published, where was I? I was nothing.
﴾Has there not been over man a period of time, when he was nothing to be mentioned?﴿
You have no existence whatsoever, then you were created, so you have been granted the grace of existence, provision and guidance.
In India, there are people who worship rats, and I have read this information in an article published in a Dutch newspaper. They build lavish and huge temples where thousands yet million of rats wander around drinking milk, eating wheat and hopping on the shoulders of the worshipers. Some nations in Japan idolize the private parts of man, and there are nations who worship the waves of the sea, the sun, the moon or the rocks. Allah honored us with worshiping the Creator of the heavens and the earth, which is a great grace and a Favor of Allah upon us. Also Allah gives us good looking, and the Prophet PBUH used to say upon looking in a mirror:
((O Allah! As you have beautified my outward/physical appearance, then beautify my inward appearance (character).))
Everything in our creation is perfect, and since you can walk, talk, eat, drink, hear and see, all your physical systems are sound.
When you seek your needs from Allah you become richer:
Dear brother, some scholars said, "The state of Iftiqar does not contradict being rich." There are rich people who make you love richness out of their humility, humbleness and generosity, and there are powerful people who are humble, and they acknowledge Allah's Favor upon them.
((Faith is a restraint against all violence, let no believer commit violence.))
Our master Umar Ibn Abdul Aziz, may Allah have mercy on his soul, chose one of the most notable characters, and he said to him, "Stay with me, so whenever you notice that I commit a mistake, hold me from my clothes, shake me strongly and say to me, 'Fear Allah O Umar; you will die one day (and will meet Allah)'."
You might be very rich, yet you are in a very exalted state of Iftiqar to Allah, and the more you are modest, the richer Allah will make you, the more humble you are before Allah, the more glorious Allah will make you, the more you fear Allah, the safer Allah will make you and the keener you are on obeying Allah the higher He exalts you. On the other hand, the more arrogant you are, the lower Allah abases you. Well, it is an inverse connection: the more submissive you are to Allah, the higher He exalts you, but the more arrogant you are, the lower He abases you.
Man should acknowledge the graces he has when he owns them:
Dear brother, the matter of richness and Iftiqar has to do with man's insight, so in order to reach the state of Iftiqar, man should not fake anything. Some people might utter the words of Tawheed, yet they are very arrogant, and they might say the words of humility, yet they are very aggressive. Therefore, I do not want you to utter the words of Tawheed only, but I want you to live the meaning of being submissive to Allah.
When you enter your house say, "Praise be to Allah who provided me with a house to dwell in while there are a lot of homeless people." If you have a key to a house, regardless of its size, and regardless of being a basement or an apparent and of being leased or owned, you have a place to dwell in, to sleep in, to have a shower in, to eat in, and to get rest in.
I travelled once to a country for business in summer, and I could not find a hotel to check in, and it was between Asr time and evening, so when I finally found a place with a roof where I can have some sleep, I tasted the meaning of the Hadith, "Praise be to Allah who provided me with a house to dwell in while there are a lot of homeless people." You should recognize the graces of Allah, and you should acknowledge them as long as you have them not when you are deprived of them. Take for example power balance that used to be in the world; there was the bipolar system that used to rule the world in the 20th century when the two powerful countries Russia and America ruled the world. Actually it was a great grace which we overlooked (considering what the unipolar system [The United States only] is doing to the world now).
The real submission is to be in continuous need of Allah under all conditions:
Dear brother, a very outstanding statement was said about the Prophets, peace be upon them, "They are rich though they might be poor, and they are poor when they are rich." They are rich, because they are in the state of Iftiqar to Allah, and so they are in need of Allah, and this paradox need to be delicately comprehended, for the real Iftiqar is to be in continuous need of Allah in all your conditions and situations. Is it acceptable to act arrogantly when you are powerful and to act humbly when you are sick? No, it is not, but unfortunately the majority of people are like that; when one of them is powerful and rich he treats people arrogantly, but when he gets sick, he acts humbly.
A man once frowned and said, "One cannot live in this country." I asked, "Why?" He answered, "The market is stagnant", but as I knew he used to make bargains which brought millions to him when the Dollar equaled three Liras, which meant his income was 100 folds more than his needs. One day he got very sick, and upon visiting him he said, "O Ustaz, I realized that man can live with an income of 1000 Liras." This story happened in the seventies, and he turned from being a millionaire into someone who could meet his needs by 1000 Liras per month, but when he was healthy, millions did not suffice him.
Allah describes the believer as someone who is grateful, whereas those who turn away from Allah the Almighty are described as follows:
﴾And You will not find most of them as thankful ones (i.e. they will not be dutiful to You)." ﴿
A rich man complained saying that he lost 8 million, but the fact is that his profits were less than usual by 8 million, so his profits were 100 million, and they became 92 million, yet he considers it a loss instead of praising Allah and saying, "Allah is Generous to us."
﴾ Nay! Verily, man does transgress all bounds (in disbelief and evil deed, etc.). Because he considers himself self-sufficient. ﴿
Being submissive to Allah is the outcome of man's faith and righteousness:
Dear brother, the topic of Iftiqar is very crucial. Believe me, if I say that Iftiqar is the outcome of religion, faith, righteousness and connection with Allah, this does not mean in any way that you should be inferior to your enemy. Abu Dujana took the Prophet's PBUH sword, he raised his head and started strutting proudly amongst the Mujahideen. Upon seeing this, the Messenger of Allah PBUH said, "This is a sort of walking Allah detests except in such a situation (Jihad)."
Accordingly, when you are in front of the powerful party, you should be proud of your Islam, you should be powerful and you should never settle for the less, so be the obstacle on the path of your enemies' plot. I hope that no one of you misunderstand the state of Iftiqar by thinking that it is to be naïve, not at all! The believer is very prudent, clever and powerful when he meets his enemies, but between him and Allah, he is in the highest rank of Iftiqar to Allah. I repeat; he is in a state of Iftiqar between him and Allah, but he is coherent and strong when he faces his enemies.
﴾ The recompense for an evil is an evil like thereof, but whoever forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from Allah. Verily, He likes not the Zalimun (oppressors, polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc.).﴿
Dear brother, we will continue this topic isnha' Allah.
