Saturday 16 March 2013

Things causing poverty




Mar 16, '13 12:07 PM
for everyone
According to Hazrat Ali (a.s.), there are certain things which lead to poverty are sixteen:
a)      Having cobwebs in the house
b)      Urinating in bathroom
c)      Eating in the state of Janabat
d)      Cleaning teeth with stick used in sweeping
e)      Combing hair while standing
f)       To have dirt in the house inspite of having a broom in the house
g)      Taking a false oath
h)      Adultery
i)        Greediness
j)        Sleeping between Namaz-e-Maghrib and Isha
k)      Sleeping between early morning and sunrise
l)        Saying lies
m)     Sending away a beggar, particularly in the night, empty handed
n)      Behaving badly with relatives
o)      Spending more than the capacity

There are seventeen things which lead to wealth or make one well-off:



Mar 16, '13 12:08 PM
for everyone

a)      Offering Asr prayers immediately after Zohr prayers
b)      Offering Maghrib and Isha prayers together
c)      Reciting further prayers and Doas after the Morning and Asr prayers
d)      Being kind and generous to one's relatives
e)      Going early in the morning to earn one's living
f)       Sweeping the house
g)      Reciting Istighfar (i.e. ‘Astaghfirullah-a-Waatubo Ilaihe’) often
h)      Refraining from misappropriation of other's property
i)        Speaking correctly
j)        Reciting the words of the muezzin proclaiming the Azaan
k)      Keeping silent in the toilet
l)        Not being greedy for the material things
m)     Thanking for the blessings being received
n)      Washing the hands before taking food
o)      Eating the remnants of a meal left on the table-cloth
p)      Saying ‘Subhan Allah’ thirty times every day
q)      A person who will repeatedly say ‘Subhan Allah’ will be kept safe from 70 types of curses by God; one of which is poverty

The Purpose of the Hidden Imam (a.t.f.s.)



Mar 16, '13 12:53 PM
for everyone


God appointed the Imam of the Age to be a guide amongst people; however it is the people who are the obstacle to his appearance, and whenever they are ready for a single, divine world rule, formed on true justice observing rights, truths and realities, putting into practice all the laws of Islam without any dissimulation or fear, al-Mahdi will openly declare himself. So, with regard to Allah, the Merciful, there is not the slightest lack of favour or mercy, for the fault lies with the people that the Imam is hidden and the appearance of his rule is delayed. Still, it must be remembered that the benefits of the existence of the Imam are not limited to outward guidance among people, for the pure existence of the Imam has other benefits which are not necessarily evident among people. 

The most important benefit of the Imam's existence is that he is the intermediary for Divine Favor. For, one the basis of the evidence scholars have produced and also according to numerous hadiths which speak about the Imamate, if there were no Imam (a.s), the relation between the world and its creator would no longer exist, because all of the fovours of Allah come through the Imam to the rest of humanity. 

In many hadiths it is said very clearly that the earth will not remain without an Imam. The Imam is the heart of the world of existence, the leader, the preceptor of mankind, and for this reason his presence or his absence makes no difference. what is more, the spiritual guidance of the Imam towards worthy individuals will always be there, although they may not see him, especially as it is mentioned in hadiths that the Mahdi comes and goes in among the people in the meetings of the believers without anyone understanding. 

Thus the guarding of Islam and the protection of the worthy is well undertaken by the Imam, even during the time of his occultation. In reality the hidden Imam is like the sun behind a cloud from whose light and heat existent things may profit, although the ignorant and the blind may not see it. Imam Sadiq (a.s) also said in answer to the question: " How can people benefit from a hidden Imam?": " Just as they do from the sun when it is behind a cloud." We would now like you to look at this excerpt from the that the shi'a sect is the only religion which maintains eternally the link of Divine guidance between God and his creation and continually keeps alive the union of walayat. 

The Jewish religion, finished prophethood, which is the relationship between god and the world of man, with Moses, and do not acknowledge the prophet hood of Jesus or Muhammad. Thus they have served this link , The Christians, also , stopped with Jesus, and the Sunni Muslims stood still with Muhammad. With the seal of prophet-hood among the latter, they admit of no further link being maintained between the Creator and creation. 

"Only the Shi'a faith believes that the prophethood ended with Muhammad, but that wilayat, which is this link of guidance and progression, continues to live after him and forever. "Indeed, only among the Shi'a does this reality between the world of man and the Divinity remain forever." 

Why is the Imam of the Age (a,t,f,s,) in Concealment?



Mar 16, '13 12:54 PM
for everyone



The existence of the Imam (A.S.) and the successor of the Prophet (S.A.) was necessary for a number of reasons, such as settling differences, explaining the laws of Allah, and giving spiritual, inward guidance, and that Allah, the Merciful, appointed Amir al-Mu'minin (A.S.) and after him eleven descendents, one after the other, as Imams after the Prophet of Islam. 

It is obvious that the duties of the Imam of the Age, in all the aspects of the Imamate, are the same as that of his predecessors. If there were no hindrance, it would be necessary that he be clearly manifested, so that people might prosper from all the benefits of his existence. So why was he hidden from the very first? Basically, there is no need to look for the philosophy or reasons behind his occultation so as to believe in the rule of Allah, for there is no obligation on us to know the basic reason for it, just as we remain ignorant of the metaphysics behind many other things. 

It is sufficient that we know on the basis of the many hadiths and true Proofs that God, the All-Mighty, sent his own Proof, but that, for various reasons, He kept him hidden behind the curtain of occultation. 

It can also be found from some hadiths that the basic and fundamental reason for the occultation will become known after the appearance of al-Mahdi. 'Abdullah al-Fadl al-Hashimi says: "I heard from Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq (A.S.) that he said: 'The occultation will be indispensable for the Lord of Power, so that the people of vanity will fall into doubt about him.' I asked: 'Why?' He said: 'For a reason which I am not at liberty to declare.' I asked: 'What will his rule be?' He replied: 'The same rule as existed in the occultations of previous Proofs. It will not be disclosed until-after his appearance, just as the rule of the works of Khidr was not known (meaning the drilling of a hole in the boat, the killing of the youth, the repairing of the wall in the story of Khidr in the Qur'an) until Musa and Khidr decided to part company. O Fadl, the subject of the occultation is a command of Allah and a secret of His secrets, and since we acknowledge Allah to be Wise, we must accept that all his acts are done with Knowledge and Wisdom, even if the reason for them is not known to us."' Of course the benefits of al-Mahdi's occultation can be discovered, and these have been indicated in some of the hadiths. For example: 
1. A test for people is one of the benefits of the occultation of the Imam of the Age: on one side, a group without faith, whose inner feelings become evident; on the other side, those in the depths of whose hearts faith have taken root, their hope of deliverance, their patience in adversity, their faith in the unseen becoming more perfect, their worthiness becoming known, and degrees of spiritual reward falling to them. Musa ibn Ja'far (AS.) said:

1. "When my fifth descendent becomes hidden, persevere in your religion, so that no one may turn you away from it. There will be an occultation for the Lord of that Age, when a group of believers in him will relinquish their belief. This occultation is a test by which Allah will test his slaves."
2. A Protection for the Imam against being killed: From a study of the leaders of Islam, and their situation vis-a-vis the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphs, we can clearly see that if the twelfth Imam manifested himself they would surely kill him or poison him like his forefathers. Because when they heard and knew that there would arise from the family of the Prophet, from the descendents of 'Ali and Fatimah (A.S.) someone who would destroy the government of the oppressors, and that that person would be child of Hazrat Imam Hasan al-'Askari (A.S.), the Abassids planned to kill him. But Allah protected him and his enemies lost hope. 

Zurarah relates from Imam Sadiq (AS.) that he said: "There will be an occultation prior to the appearance of the Qa'im." Zurarah asked: "Why?" He said: "So that he may escape being killed, and that occultation will continue till the ground for his appearance and triumph over the rule of the oppressors is ready."
3. The third benefit that can be gleaned from the hadiths is that by this means al-Mahdi will be saved from having allegiance made to him by the oppressors, Caliphs, and usurping rulers. When he appears no one will swear allegiance to him, so that he can freely expose the truth and establish a just and righteous rule.

A Necessary Reminder



Mar 16, '13 12:56 PM
for everyone


Belief in the Imam of the Age means that the link between people and the unseen world is inseparable, and someone who believes this must always remember al-Mahdi and await the appearance of this hidden reformer. 

Of course, waiting for the Imam of the Age does not mean that all Muslims and Shi'as should fold their arms and take no measures in the way of furthering the aims of Islam, only waiting for him to appear. 

For as the great Shi'ite scholars have been saying from the earliest times, all Muslims and Shi'as have the duty to make every effort in the path of establishing and strengthening Islamic knowledge and laws in the face of injustice and evil, to struggle against this with all their possibilities; or, in other words, to strive till the preparation for a just rule has been made, till society has been so harmonized that all those with complaints have seen justice; and if there is any oppression or cruelty reigning among people, to protest against it, and continue in this way. 

SINCERITY OF INTENTION (NIYYAH)



Mar 16, '13 12:58 PM
for everyone


Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (a), while explaining the utterance of God Almighty, 

"That He might try you (to see) which of you is fairest in works." (67:2) said: "It does not mean one of you whose deeds are more numerous but one who is more rightful in his conduct, and this rightness is nothing but fear of God and sincerity of intention (niyyah) and fear." Then he (a) added: 

"To persevere in an action until it becomes sincere is more difficult than (performing) the action itself, and sincerity of action lies in this that you should not desire anyone to praise you for it except 
God Almighty, and intention supersedes action.Lo,verily,intention is action itself." 

Then he recited the Qur'anic verse, "Say,everyone acts in accordance with his character (shakilatihi)", (17:84) adding, "That shakilah means niyyah."

Trust in Allah and let your mind seek His protection in every calamity and suffering



Mar 16, '13 1:00 PM
for everyone

Trust in Allah and let your mind seek His protection in every calamity and suffering; because you will thus entrust yourself and your affairs to the Best Trustee and the Mightiest Guardian. Do not seek help and protection of any body but Allah. Reserve your prayers, your requests, your solicitations, your supplications and your entreaties to Him and Him alone.

Therefore the best thing for you to do is to seek guidance of the one who has created you, Who maintains and nourishes you, Who has given you a balanced mind and normally working body. Your prayers should be reserved for Him only, your requests and solicitations should be to Him alone.

You should be afraid of Him and no body else. You beg of Him to grant you your heart’s desires; you lay before him the secrets of your heart; you tell him about all the calamities that have befallen you and misfortunes that face you, and beseech His help to overcome them. Think over it that by simply granting you the privilege of praying for His favors and Mercies, He has handed over the keys of His Treasures to you. Whenever you are in need, you pray and He confers His favors and Blessings
!

How to preserve Ikhlas – a few practical points



Mar 16, '13 1:16 PM
for everyone


If you have done some good actions solely to please God, helped someone or are performing obligatory or supererogatory acts of worship then know that  you can never be secure from the evil of Satan and your lowly self (nafs alammarah) until the end of your life. 
 
You must exercise vigilance, as your low self may prompt you to make a  verbal mention of it in front of your friends or acquaintances, or to express it  in the way of a subtle hint without directly mentioning it. For instance, if you  are regularly observing night prayers, your low self may prompt you to pass  a hint by speaking about the good or bad weather conditions at daybreak or  about supplications or the call for  fajr prayers, thus polluting your act of  worship with riya. You must, thus resist all such tendencies.
 
You must keep a watch over yourself, like a kind physician or nurse, and not  let the rebellious self get out of control; for a moment of neglect may give it  the opportunity to break its reins and lead your sincere actions into ruin.

Purification of intention from all levels of duality (shirk)  and showing-off
(riya), constant vigilance over it, and its perseverance in purity makes up a  difficult task. 
 
Try to remind yourself of your duties and judge your intention and actions in  the light of following verse of the Holy Qur’an: Say: "Truly my prayer and  my service of sacrifice, my life and my death are (all) for Allah, the Lord of  the Worlds. (6:162). 
 
And as long as you have egoism and self-seeking, love of office and position,  even if you take a step for the acquisition of divine knowledge or spiritual  excellence, these will be ultimately sought for selfish ends. God-seeking and  self-seeking cannot go together. Rather, if God is sought for the sake of the  self, the ultimate goal is the self and the ego. [Al-Khumayni,  Forty Hadith,
chapter 20, p.8]

Conclusion: 

The first step in the journey towards God is abandonment of self-love and  crushing the head of egoism under one's foot. To the extent that one succeeds in purging his or her heart of self-love, the love of God shall enter it to the same  extent and it shall also be purified of latent shirk (egoism).   

Prophet Muhammad (s) said: “The person who devotes himself sincerely to God for forty days, streams of wisdom will flow from his heart to his  tongue.”
 
[Al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur, vol.2, p. 237]