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Believers as
Defined in Surat Al-Mu’minun By Sheikh. Jamal Ed-Din Zarabozo
In the Qur’an, Almighty Allah describes
the believers "Al-Mu’minun” with many characteristics. At the beginning of Surat
Al-Mu’minun some of these great attributes are mentioned that
draw a vivid picture of the believers and their reward. In this
article the writer is discussing only three of these attributes
digressing into the deeper meanings of the verses that portrait
a lucid picture of the believers.
One of Almighty Allah’s great
miracles that He bestowed upon Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings be upon him) was aiding him with an elite community of
believers"Mu’minun" who fully
understood the meaning of faith. The deeds of the early Qur’anic
generation of believers were governed by their righteous belief
and virtuous attributes.
Today, Muslim societies are in great
need of such qualities and attributes that will uplift their
faith and strengthen their consciousness of Allah, the Exalted Creator. The utmost success of the entire Muslim
nation in this life and the Hereafter is based on their correct
comprehension of the meaning of faith; and hence, reflecting the
noble attributes of the believers in their daily life.
Almighty Allah says,
(Successful indeed
are the believers, Those who are humble in their prayers, Who
avoid vain talk, Who are active in paying zakzh.) (Al-Mu’minun 23: 1-4)
These glorious verses are in the
beginning of Surat Al-Mu’minunthat takes its name from the first verse. The name of the surah
reflects its theme and defines its subject. Therefore, it begins
with the attributes of the believers and digresses into the
signs of faith in both the individual and the society.
The context of the surah declares and
calmly argues the sentimental logic and feelings that inspire
thought and the consciousness. The mood dominating the surah is
that of faith presented through its subject. Its opening verse
depicts the scene of solemnity and full submissiveness insalah:( Those who
are humble in their prayers), followed by the splendid description of the believers and their
righteous attributes.
Those who have accepted the message of
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and followed
him have acquired most of the noble qualities. This is a
practical proof of the truthfulness of his message.
It was related by ‘Urwah Ibn
Az-Zubair that `Umar ibn
Al-Khattab (may Allah be
pleased with him) said:
"This surah was revealed in my presence and I myself observed the
state of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) when it
was being revealed. When the revelation ended, the Prophet
(peace and blessings be upon him) remarked: ”On this
occasion, ten verses have been sent down to me, that the one who
measures up to them, will most surely go to Paradise.” Then
he recited the beginning verses of this Surah.” (Ahmad)
The Utmost Success
Almighty Allah says in the first verse:
(Successful indeed
are the believers)
This is a divine promise and a clear
declaration of success to the believers.
("This is”
Allah's promise! Allah will not fail His promise, but most
people do not know.)(Ar-Rum 30: 6)
The believers, who have attained true
success, either individuals or collectively, are those
who have accepted the Message of Muhammad (peace and blessings
be upon him), acknowledged him as their guide and followed his
example.
This assertion cannot be fully
appreciated unless one keeps in view the background on which it
was based. On one hand, there were the chiefs of Makkah, the
opponents of Islam, whose businesses were thriving and who were
enjoying every aspect of life.
On the other hand, there were
Muslims, a majority of whom were either poor ordeprived of their
properties who were poor
because of the ruthless antagonists of Islam.
Therefore, the assertion,(Successful indeed
are the believers)with which the surah begins, declares to the disbelievers
throughout the ages that their criterion of success and failure
is not only money, fame and secular gains as many would think.
For besides being transitory and limited in nature, it is based
on misconceptions that lead to real failure and imaginary
success.
The followers of Muhammad (peace and
blessings be upon him) whom thedisbelievers regard as failures,
are truly successful as they, by following Muhammad’s right
guidance, have struck a bargain which would lead them to true
success and everlasting bliss in this world and in the
Hereafter. However, the disbelievers incur loss and negative
consequences in this world and the Hereafter by rejecting
Muhammad’s message (peace and blessings be upon him).
This is the main theme of the surah and
the entire discourse, from beginning to end, is meant to impress
it. The noble characteristics of the believers that are pointed
out in the next few verses are the arguments to prove the above
assertion.
The Muslim character is fully and
perfectly depicted by these characteristics of which the highest
degree was that of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
He was the best of Allah’s creation that Almighty Allah
described in His noble Qur’an,
(And most surely
you (Muhammad) conform (yourself) to sublime morality.)(Al-Qalam 68: 4)
When`A’ishah(may
Allah be pleased with her) was asked about the character of the
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), she replied: “His
character was the Qur’an,” then she recited: (Successful indeed are the believers) till(And those who
keep a guard on their prayers). Then she said:
“That is how The Prophet was”. (An-Nasa’i)
Proving the assertion in the first
verse and highlighting the attributes because of which the
believers deserve divine reward, the surah portrays an clear
picture of these attributes.
A Matchless Manner in Prayer
(Those who are
humble in their prayers"Khashi`un")
"Khashi`un", which is the Arabic
word for "humble’’ or "submissive", is from the word "Khushu`". It
means to bow down, to express humility which is a condition of
the heart and the body.
Humbleness, or "Khushu`" of the
heart is to fear and stand in awe of Almighty Allah, andKhushu`
of the body is to bow one’s head and lower one’s gaze and voice
in Allah’s Company. Whileperformingsalah, a Muslim is required to showKhushu` of both the heart and
the body, and this is the essence ofsalah.
Though Khushu` is actually a
condition of the heart it is manifested
by the body as a matter of course. A Muslim, during salah ,should neither
turn right nor left, neither shift about nor incline sideways.
But, he should fix his gaze on the place of prostration.
Similarly, a Muslim should stand
straight in salah and recite the
verses of the Qur’an in the sweetest voice. It is also not
approved for a Muslim to offersalah in a hurry. The
injunction is that each part of salah should be performed in perfect peace and tranquility before doing
the next part.
Along with this etiquette of the
body, it is also important that a Muslim avoids thinking of
anything during salah so as to purify
his thoughts and keep his mind in full harmony and in tune with
Almighty Allah in order to sense His grace. The Muslim should
also try his utmost to ensure that the mind and heart are
completely turned towards Almighty Allah to worship Him alone.
Performed as described above, salahshould have impressive influences on the Muslim’s behavior. His
speech, deeds and dealings should be conducted by the spiritual
power attained fromsalah.
Avoiding Vain Speech
(And those who
avoid vain talk (laghw))
Literally, the wordLaghw (vain
talk) is anything nonsensical, meaningless and vain, which
achieves nothing and attains no goals or purpose in life.
Muslims pay no heed to such useless things and show no
inclination or interest in them.
If by chance they see or pass by
people who indulge in such things, they keep away, avoid them
scrupulously and treat them with utmost indifference. This
attitude has been described in surat Al-Furqan in the context of showing some of the attributes of
Muslims.
Almighty Allah says,
(Those who witness no falsehood, and, if they pass by futility, they
pass by it with honorable “avoidance”)(Al-Furqan 25: 72)
This is indeed one of the outstanding
characteristics of Muslims. A Muslim is asked to distract
himself from evil vain talk. Instead, his attention should be
diverted towards the remembrance of Allah and contemplation of
His signs in the universe.
He should also be occupied in
maintaining his faith in different ways such as purifying his
soul, holding steadfast to his faith, enjoining what is good and
avoiding what is evil and protecting the community from
corruption.
Hence, a Muslim always feels the burden
of responsibility regarding the world as a place of test; and
life as a limited time allowed for that test. This feeling makes
the Muslim behave seriously and responsibly throughout life and
to spend each moment of his life doing what is useful and
productive for his ultimate results.
Killing Time?
Even in matters of recreation and
sport, the Muslim approaches only those acts that lead to a good
end in life and do not result in wasting time. For the Muslim
time is not something to be killed, but it should be used
profitably and productively.
Furthermore, the Muslim is a person who
possesses right thinking, a pure nature and fine taste.
Therefore, he only participates in useful talk with no
inclination to indecent deeds or indulging in idle talk.
Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with
him) narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
said:
"Let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day either speak
good speech or keep silent.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
The Muslim may have a fine sense of
humor, but must not be given to jesting, joking or ridicule, nor
can he endure dirty jokes. He never takes part in abusive
language, back-biting, slander, lying, immoral songs,
fortune-telling or indecent talk as all of these are, for him, a
source of torture and agony.
Describing the atmosphere of the
promisedParadise and the kind of speech that would be heard
there, Almighty Allah says,
(They shall not
hear therein vain or sinful discourse.)(Al-Waqi`ah56: 25)
Besides purifying his tongue of vain
talk, the Muslim is also required to purify his money by
charity; either obligatory charity; zakah, or voluntary charity;sadaqah.
Perfect Charity
(And those who are
active in deeds of charity“zakah” )
The word zakah,in Arabic,
literally means purification and development without
obstruction. As an Islamic term, it implies both the portion of
wealth taken out for the purpose of purifying the rest of the
wealth and the act of purification itself.
The words in this verse mean that the
believer constantly practices purification. Thus, the meaning is
not confined to payingzakahdues only, but it
extends to self-purification which includes purification of
morals as well as wealth, property, and life in general.
Hence, purification is not limited to
one’s own self, but it includes the purification of the lives of
other people as well. So, the verse means that Muslims are the
people who purify themselves as well as others.
This fact has been stated in other
places in the Qur’an, for instance:
(He indeed shall be
successful who purifies himself, and magnifies the name of his
Lord and prays.) (Al-A`la 87: 14-15)
However, this verse is more
comprehensive in meaning because it stresses the purification of
both society and one’s own self. This was also confirmed by the
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he said,
"To smile in the company of your brother is charity. To command
to do good deeds and to prevent others from doing evil is
charity. To guide a person in a place where he can go astray is
charity. To remove troublesome things like thorns and bones from
the road is charity. To pour water from your jug into your
brother’s is charity. To guide a person with defective sight is
a charity for you.”(Al-Bukhari)
Sh. Jamal Ed-Din Zarabozo is an
internationally known writer and speaker who has lectured in
North America, Europe, Australia and the Middle East.
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