Once the child is around 4 to 5
years of age, his parents send him to school so that he acquires education and
knowledge. Here, the parents decide which school is best for their
child as they are the best
caretakers appointed by Allah for him on this earth; while the school is the means for a child to
acquire education and knowledge.
Once he grows up he earns his
livelihood by using the knowledge and education which he has acquired. His occupation
becomes the means for him to earn his
livelihood.
**Thus it can be said that a child
without his mother remains deprived of Allah’s Mercy in his childhood.
If he is unable to attend school he
remains deprived of knowledge and education. Without knowledge and
education he is unable to earn and hence remains deprived of a healthy
livelihood which Allah has promised.
Thus to have access to Allah’s Mercy or to gain knowledge or to earn livelihood
there are separate means which should
be approached otherwise a person remains deprived of them.
Without
approaching the right means nothing can be gained; this is a universal truth which
is applicable in every aspect of life. That is why Quran instructs us to strive
in this direction and says:
- “Ae Imaandaro Khuda se darte raho aur Uss ke (takarrub (kareeb hone) ke) zariye ki joostaju main raho aur Uss ki raah main jihad karo taake tum kamiyab ho jao.” – (Surah-e-Maida, ayah 35)
“(O ye who believe! Do your duty
to Allah, seek the means of approach
unto Him, and strive with might
and main in his cause: that ye may
prosper.)”
The
above ayah instructs us to constantly strive to seek the means of approaching
Him. It means that though Allah (SWT)
is Omnipresent He is not accessible without approaching the right means.
And if we don’t do this we might never be able to please Him and would remain unsuccessful
in this world and hereafter.
In
order to further understand the importance of this let us see one more ayah:
- “Ae Rasool (SAW) un logon se tum kehdo ke main iss tabligh-e-risaalat per tum se kuch mazdoori to maangta nahin hoon magar tamanna ye hai ke jo chaahe apne Parvardigar tak pahonch ne ki raah pakad le.” – (Surah-e-Furqaan, ayah 57)
“(Say:
"No reward do I ask of you for
it but this: that each one who will may take a (straight) Path to his
Lord.")”
As
per the above ayah the best reward the Muslim Ummah can give to our beloved
Prophet (pbuh&p) for his hard
work of 23 years is to take the path
that reaches Allah (SWT).
**The
ayah of Surah-e-Maida instructs us to seek the means of approaching Allah (SWT) while in the ayah of Surah-e-Furqaan
Allah (SWT) instructs our holy Prophet (SAW) to ask us to take the path that reaches Allah (SWT) as a reward of his
Prophethood. Both the ayahs convey similar messages. This explains that Allah
(SWT) must have created a right path that
reaches Him. And if we wish to be successful in a true sense we need to
find it.
The
pious presence of our beloved Prophet (SAW) has guided us to the light of ‘tawheed’ and has given us the holy
Quran. And thus the holy Prophet (SAW)
is the right means that has enlightened
us by Allah (SWT)’s message and made us true believers. So let us
understand his importance in our lives. As the Quran says:
- "Aur Ae Rasool (SAW) Hum ne tum ko tamam alamon ke liye rehmat hi karke bheja hai". – (Surah-e-Ambiya, ayah 107)
“(And We have not sent you but as a mercy to the worlds.)”
Allah
(SWT) has created our holy Prophet (SAW) as a mercy to the worlds. A person who wishes to seek Allah (SWT)’s
Mercy should come to the holy Prophet (SAW), ignoring he would remain deprived
of the Divine Mercy. Thus the holy
Prophet (SAW) is the means that needs to
be approached to seek Allah (SWT)’s Mercy.
The
above result can be explained further in the light of the following ayah from Surah-e-Nisa:
- “Aur (Rasool (SAW)) jab unn logon ne (nafarmani karke) apni jaanon per zulm kiya tha agar tumhare paas chale aate aur Khuda se maafi maangte aur Rasool (SAW) (tum) bhi unnki maghferat chahte to beshak wo log Khuda ko badaa tauba qubool karne wala Meharbaan paate.” – (Surah-e-Nisa, ayah 64)
-
“(If they had come to you after wronging themselves and asked forgiveness of God, and you had also asked forgiveness for them, they would surely have found God forgiving and merciful.)”
Here
the above ayah has shown us the method of invoking Allah (SWT)’s Mercy and
Forgiveness. As per the ayah the Muslims who wronged themselves if they wished
to seek Allah (SWT)’s Forgiveness and Mercy needed to approach the holy Prophet
(SAW) and pray to Allah (SWT) for His forgiveness. But Allah (SWT) still did not guarantee His Forgiveness
to them unless the holy Prophet (SAW)
also wished so.
This
clarifies that in order to reach Mercy of Allah (SWT) intercession of the
holy Prophet (SAW) is required without which Allah’s Mercy can never be
invoked. Does this mean that the holy Prophet (SAW)’s intercession would
work for Muslims in every situation? Let us see the following ayah:
- “(Ae Rasool) khwah tum unn (munafiqon) ke liye maghferat ki dua maango ya unnke liye maghferat ki dua na maango (unnke liye barabar hai) tum unnke liye sattar bar bhi bakhshish ki dua maango ge to bhi Khuda unko hargiz na bakhshega ye (sazaa) iss sabab se hai ki unn logon ne Khuda aur usske Rasool ke saath kufr kiya aur Khuda badkaar logon ko manzil e maqsud tak nahin pahonchaya karta.” – (Surah-e-Tawba, ayah 80)
“(Ask forgiveness for them or do
not ask forgiveness for them; even if
you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will not forgive them;
this is because they disbelieve in
Allah and His Apostle, and Allah does not guide the transgressing
people.)”
The
above ayah refers to the hypocrites who accepted Islam in public but remained
infidel in their hearts. Allah has
denied them with His Mercy since they disbelieved in Allah and the holy Prophet
(SAW). And the ayah further says that even if the holy Prophet (SAW)
interceded on their behalf for 70 times Allah would not forgive them. This shows
the amount of dislike Allah has for the hypocrites (Munafiq).
During
the time of the holy Prophet (SAW) the Munafiq
led a life of a normal Muslim in public and followed Islamic rituals, in
such a situation it became difficult to identify him and separate him from a true
believer. But it was important to recognize him and hence the holy Prophet (SAW)
has given us a parameter to recognize
and identify him which can be implemented even today:
- He has said: “Ya Ali your love is Imaan and your hatred is Nifaaq.”
Mawla
Ali (A.S) has further explained the above hadith
to separate a Munafiq from a Momin. He has said that:
- “By the Lord who created! no doubt Prophet made an oath that none will love me except a Momin; and none will have grudge for me except a Munafiq.” (Ref: Sahih Muslim narration 240, Sunan tirmidhi; 849/3736, Sunan Nisai; 8/116/5033, Masnad Ahmed; 1/83/642 and 95/731 and 128/1062; and 6/292/27040, Mishkaat; 2/503/6088 and many more)
Jabir and Abu
Dharr, the well known companions of the holy Prophet (pbuh), used to say:
- "During the lifetime of the Prophet we used to distinguish a Munafiq by his enmity to Ali."
(Ref: Ibn Abd Al
Bir: "al Istiab Part 2, pp 474, 477. Ahmad Ibn Hanbal: Al-Musnad Vol 1, pp
54, 77, 138 Vol 5 , pp 350, 366. Sawaiq Al Mohriqa, Chapter 9, Fasl 2. Yanabi
al Mawadda Chapter 6 P 74. Kanz Al Ummal Vol 6 P 390)
Thus the enmity towards Mawla Ali (A.S)
is the parameter to identify a Munafiq
from a Momin. It means that however devout a Muslim
seems to be if he hates Mawla Ali (A.S) he would never be considered as a Momin and would be deprived of Allah’s
Mercy forever.
**Allah (SWT) would bestow His
Mercy upon a Muslim only if the holy Prophet (SAW) also wishes so but in every
situation Allah (SWT) would keep the hypocrites (Munafiq) deprived of His Mercy. The hypocrites can be identified
by their hatred towards Mawla Ali (A.S), thus we can say that Allah (SWT) would never forgive those who
hate Mawla Ali (A.S). Hence love for Mawla Ali (A.S) is the path to
reach Allah (SWT)’s Mercy.
We
just saw that love for Mawla Ali (A.S) is the path to reach Allah (SWT)’s
Mercy. This means that Mawla Ali (A.S) can also intercede and be a means for
our salvation. Let us confirm this with Quran. We would see the following two
ayahs for this purpose:
- “Aur Jis shakhs ke liye wo ijaazat ata farmaye uske siva kissi ki sifarish us ki bargaah main kaam na aayegi.”- (Surah-e-Saba, ayah 23)
- "(No intercession can avail in His Presence, except for those for whom He has granted permission)”
As
per the ayah Allah (SWT) would not consider any intercession valid except of those who are granted permission
to intercede by Him. In the light of
the above ayah let us contemplate on the following ayah from Surah-e-Baqra:
- “Aur logon main se Khuda ke bande kuch aise hain jo Khuda ki (khushnudi) haasil karne ki gharaz se apni jaan tak bech daalte hain aur Khuda aise bandon per bada hi shafqat wala hai.” – (Surah-e- Baqra, ayah 207)
- “(And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah; and Allah is Affectionate to the servants.)”
The ayah from Surah-e-Saba talks about those who
are given permission of intercession while the above ayah from Surah-e-Baqra is referring to an
individual who has sold himself to purchase Allah (SWT)’s Pleasure. There is a huge difference between
permission and pleasure. When you
permit someone it is a command and is always conditional; a person
would have to follow the rule and regulations and would have to behave according to the permission granted. But when you are pleased with someone the
pleasure is unconditional and you are happy about his actions in totality.
Imam Ghizali in his Tareekh-e-Khamees writes that the above ayah of Surah-e-Baqra was revealed appreciating the sacrifice of Mawla Ali (A.S)
when he slept on the bed of the Holy
Prophet (SAW) during the night of ‘Hijrat.’ Similar tradition is also mentioned by
Imam Hakim on the authority of Ibn-e-Abbas in his Mustadrak. (Ref: Tareekh e Khamees, Imam Ghizali,
Mustadrak, Vol 3 Page 4, Imam Hakim).
The selflessness of Mawla Ali (A.S) and his loyalty
towards Islam and the holy Prophet (SAW) was so appreciated by Allah (SWT) that
Allah gifted Mawla Ali (A.S) with His
Pleasure. So whatever pleases Mawla Ali (A.S) pleases Allah (SWT). By
contemplating on both the above mentioned ayahs we can infer that the power of
intercession would be given to a person whom Allah (SWT) permits but Mawla Ali
(A.S) owns Allah’s Pleasure hence not
only Mawla Ali himself but even a person whom Mawla Ali permits would be able
to intercede successfully.
**The holy Prophet (SAW) has been created as Mercy to
the Worlds and Muslim Ummah would be
bestowed upon with Allah (SWT)’s Mercy because of the holy Prophet (SAW)’s
intercession. Mawla Ali (A.S) has got Allah (SWT)’s Pleasure so this Mercy would be bestowed upon only
those whom Mawla Ali (A.S) allows.
The household of the holy Prophet (SAW) is
purified by Allah (SWT) as per the ayah (33:33) and the holy Prophet (SAW) has
said that in the love for Ahlulbait
lies the foundation of Islam. So let us see an ayah which refers to this
exalted household:
- “Wo Qandeel un gharon main roshan hai jinki nisbat Khuda ne hukm diya hai ke unki taa’zim kijaae aur unmain Uska naam liya jaae jin main subah wa sham wo log Uski tasbih kiya karte hai.” – (Surah-e-Noor, ayah 36)
- “((The Light is lit) in houses which Allah has permitted to be exalted and that His name may be remembered in them; there glorify Him therein in the mornings and the evenings)”
In
the above ayah Allah (SWT) says that His Light
is lit in certain houses where His name is glorified mornings and evenings.
He appreciates the inhabitants of
these houses and has liked the way
they have glorified Him so much so that He has permitted these houses to be
exalted.
Sala’bi has quoted Anas
Ibn-e-Malik and Buraida, that when the holy Prophet (SAW) recited this verse,
Abu Bakr stood up and asked pointing towards the house of Ali (A.S) and Fatema (A.S), whether that house
was included in the houses referred to? The holy Prophet (SAW) replied saying “Yes, and it is better than other houses
that are referred.” (Ref:
Durr-e-Mansur, Vol 5, P 50)
Allah (SWT) has appreciated the selfless devotion of
the family of Mawla Ali (A.S) and Janaba Fatema (S.A) in the above ayah and
hence He has also permitted their house to be exalted. Their house is the best
which has glorified Allah (SWT). Now let us see the following ayah and in the
light of the above mentioned ayah we would then contemplate on both these
ayahs:
- “Us din kisi ki sifarish kaam na aayegi magar jis ko Khuda ne ijazat di ho aur us ka bolna pasand kare.” – (Surah-e- Taha, ayah 109)
- “(On that day shall no intercession avail except of him whom the Beneficent Allah allows and whose word He is pleased with.)”
The
above ayah says that no intercession
would work on the day of Judgment except of those who are allowed by Allah (SWT) and He is pleased by their words. Now
in the previous ayah from Surah-e-Noor
Allah (SWT) has acknowledged the glorification and selfless prayers of the
family of Mawla Ali (A.S). Thus He
has liked their prayers and hence we can say that their words of glorification
are appreciated by Him. Allah
(SWT) has also allowed their house to be exalted which shows His love
for them. Hence we can infer that the
intercession of the family of Mawla Ali (A.S) i.e. of Mawla Ali (A.S)
himself, Janaba Fatema (S.A), Imam Hasan (A.S), Imam Hussain (A.S) and their
other chidren and Imams from their lineage is
valid and would hold true on the day of Judgement.
That
is the reason our beloved Prophet (SAW) has said:
- “Acknowledgment of Aal-e-Mohammed (the children of Mohammed (SAW)) means salvation from the Fire, and love of them is a passport for crossing the Bridge of Sirat and obedience to them is a protection from Divine Wrath.” ( Ref: “Shifa” by Qazi Ayaz, Part 2, Pg 40)
**The Holy Prophet
(SAW) is Mercy to the worlds. Mawla
Ali (A.S) has earned Allah (SWT)’s
Pleasure and Panjetan Paak (A.S) are the valid intercession on
the day of Judgment. If we love them we can be assured of our salvation.
We
have seen earlier in the article that Munafiq
are kept away from Allah (SWT)’s Mercy and no prayers for their forgiveness
would ever be accepted by Allah. Faithful Momins
are the one Allah (SWT) loves and He would definitely hear their prayers so
let us see now what Allah (SWT) says about Momins:
- “To phir samajhlo ke Khuda ke siwa koi Ma’bud nahin aur (Hum se) apne aur Imandar mardon aur Imandar aurton ke gunah ki maafi maangte raho aur Khuda tumhare chalne phirne aur thaharne se (khub) waqif hai.” – (Surah-e-Mohammed, ayah 19)
- “(Know then, therefore, there is no God but He, and ask forgiveness for your sins and those of believing men and women. God knows your wanderings and your destination.)”
In
the above ayah Allah (SWT) has ordered a believer to pray for his forgiveness along with the forgiveness of fellow believer
men and women. This clearly means that in this world Allah (SWT) has not
only accepted intercession of believers for their believer brothers and sisters
but instructed them to do so regularly. So when He has considered intercession
of a Momin valid for the other Momins in this world can we say that
same would hold true on the Day of Judgment?
Now
Mawla Ali (A.S) is Amir-ul-Momineen (Commander
of Faithfuls) and from various ahadith we
have known that a Momin cannot be defined other than his
love for Mawla Ali (A.S).That is the reason the holy Prophet (SAW) has said
that:
- “The preface of a Momin’s treatise of deeds is the ardent love for Ali (A.S).” (Ref: Sawaiqa Mohraika, P 120, Tarikh ibn-e-Asakir, vol 42, P 7, Tarikh al Baghdad, P 177)
When
we relate the above hadith with the
above mentioned ayah we can infer that a
true believer is the lover of Mawla Ali (A.S) and his prayers seeking
forgiveness for the other believers is accepted by Allah (SWT) in this world.
And if that is the case then can the lover of Mawla Ali (A.S) and Imams from
his lineage intercede on behalf of other Momins
for their salvation on the Day of Judgment? Would this intercession be accepted
by Allah (SWT)?
- “Us din yeh (gunehgaar) log sifaarish per bhi qadir naa honge magar haan jis shakhs ne Khuda se sifaarish ka iqraar le liya ho.” – (Surah-e-Maryam, ayah 87)
- “(They shall not control intercession, save he who has made a covenant with the Beneficent Allah.)”
The
above ayah says that no one would be able to control intercession except a few
who have made a covenant with Allah (SWT). This further confirms that there
would be people on the Day of Judgment whose intercession would provide
salvation to others.
The
prominent Islamic commentators have written that ‘Made a Covenant with Allah’ is ‘The Promise of loving and following the Imams from the household of
the holy Prophet (SAW)’ which believers have made with Allah (SWT). (Ref: Tafseer Dhur Mansoor, Vol 4,
Sawaiq-e-Mohriqa and many more)
èA
true believer is the one who loves and follows Mawla Ali (A.S) and Imams from
his lineage. This love for the Imams is the covenant he has made with Allah
(SWT) and in return of this covenant Allah (SWT) has granted a believer to
control intercession on the Day of Judgment. Yes, a believer can also provide salvation to other believers on
that day.
In the initial section
of this article we went through the ayah where Allah (SWT) has ordered us to
seek the means that approaches Him. In another ayah from Surah-e-Furqaan, as a reward for the holy Prophet (SAW)’s
Prophethood Allah (SWT) wants the Muslims to take the Path that leads to Him.
We then also inferred that loving the holy Prophet (SAW) and his holy Progeny
(pbut) is the covenant we have made to Allah (SWT) and hence they are the means
of salvation and through their intercession only we can expect to get rewarded.
It means that they are the means to
approach Allah (SWT) and they are the path that reaches Him.
Thus
the best reward a Muslim can give to the holy Prophet (SAW) is to take the path
that reaches Allah (SWT) in the light of earlier discussed ayah of Surah-e-Furqaan (ayah no. 57) and this
path is the love for the holy Prophet (SAW) and his Progeny (pbut). And that is
why the Quran says:
- “Ae Rasool (SAW) tum kehdo ke main apni tableegh-e-risalat ka apne karabatdaron ki mohabbat ke siwa tumse koi sila nahin maangta” – (Surah-e-Shura, ayah 23)
By consensus of opinions
of prominent commentators and writers the above-mentioned ayah refers to the
Prophet’s kith and kin and the word “al
qurba” refers to Ali (A.S) &
Fatema (A.S) and their children (Ref:
Sa’labi, Suyuti, Baidhavi, Bukhari,
Muslim, Ahmed ibn Hambal, Allama Zamkhashri Vol 3, P 68).
The
holy Prophet (SAW) and his holy Progeny (pbut) are the Divine Favour Allah
(SWT) has bestowed upon us as they are the valid intercession and path for us
to approach Allah (SWT) and seek salvation. In order to better understand this
let us see the hadith of Imam
Jafar-e-Sadiq (A.S) before we finally conclude the article:
- Imam Al-Sadiq (PBUH) said:
"Allah
created us in beautiful forms. He
created us to be His Eye on His servants, His Spoken Words to all mankind, His Giving Hand that bestows mercy and
sympathy upon His servants, His Face by which He is worshiped, His Gate that
leads to Him and His treasurers on earth and in the skies. By us, trees
gave its fruits, crops were harvested and rivers flowed. By us, skies rain and
seeds grow. By our worshiping, Allah
is worshiped and if it wasn't for us, Allah would have
never been worshiped."
(Ref:
Al-Kafi Vol 1 Page 144, Al-Mohatazir Page 154, Al-Tawheed Page 151,
Al-Bihar-ul-Anwar Vol 24 Page 197, Al-Saqlain Noor Tafseer Vol 1 Page 650)
**Thus coming to the conclusion we can say that Allah (SWT) has created the holy
Prophet (SAW) as mercy to the worlds. Hence his presence in our lives is
similar to the presence of a caring mother. When a child obeys his parents and
goes to a school he gains knowledge and education but if he disobeys he remains
ignorant (‘Jahil’) similarly if a
Muslim does not obey the holy Prophet (SAW) and does not love his Progeny
(pbut) he remains ignorant and deprived of salvation. The above conclusion can be substantiated in the light of the hadith
of the holy Prophet (SAW) which is recorded in the prominent books like Sahih
Bukhari, Musnad Ibn Hambal and others, which says “He who dies without knowing the
Imam of his time dies the death of (the days of) ignorance (Jahilya).” But
we don’t have to worry as we are fortunate that Allah (SWT) has guided us to His
true path. So let us thank Him and pray to Him that may He always keep us
steadfast and bless us with successes of both the worlds. Aamin
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