The aspirations of the believers on the path that will lead them to their Lord differ from one person to another. Yet there is a common thread that unites them in this quest for the Pleasure of Allah. It is to become more than a good Muslim: to be a true believer, whether man or woman, is the main wish.
How can this goal be reached? What are the criteria to meet in order to hope to be among the believers whom Allah is pleased with? Let us see, through the Quranic verses, how to get there.
Muslims or believers, what difference does it make?
To be a Muslim is to bear witness to the Oneness of Allah without associating anything with Him, and that Muhammad is His Prophet and Messenger, and to comply with the commandments of Allah while being submitted to one's Lord. Yet some people have the characteristics of Muslims, namely that they acknowledge within themselves the existence of God, say La Ilaha Illa Lah (There is no god but Allah) with their tongue and may even practise some of the Muslim rites, but are not for all that considered believers. Why? To be a believer, and thus to have faith, has not yet truly penetrated their heart, as this verse addressed to the Bedouins of the time of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, testifies.
Indeed Allah said:
This verse clearly shows that to have faith is not only to believe but to obey.
The word Islam means to submit but that does not yet mean having the qualities of the believer. So what are they?
There is a specific way in the Holy Quran with which Allah addresses the believers and it is that one which we are going to focus on in this article. The one where He, to Him belong the Majesty and the Glory, does so by calling upon them in these terms: \"O you who believe\" \"O you who have believed\".
The qualities of the believers towards Allah
The Muslim who wishes to draw closer to his Lord by reading the Quran can find in it what is expected of him, what Allah wants for him. It is enough to absorb the qualities mentioned, the recommendations and exhortations given.
And for all those who might think that this advice or these prohibitions are not addressed to us because they were revealed at a specific time for the community of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, in his time, their answer is found in the following verse:
Here then is what is expected of the believers, who believe in Allah, at all times:
- To be sincere in one's repentance S.66 V.8
- to fear Allah
- To believe in His Messenger S. 57 V.28
- To obey Him S.47 V.33
- To answer His Call S.8 V.24
- Not to betray Him S.8 V.27
- To be truthful S.9 V.119
- To remember the favours of Allah upon them S.33 V.9
- To remember Allah abundantly S.33 V.41
- To speak with uprightness S. 33 V.70
- To make the cause of Allah triumph S.47 V.7
- To pay attention to what one has sent forth for tomorrow because He knows what one does
- S.59 V.18
- To acknowledge that this life is a trade with Allah in order to be saved from the punishment S.61 V.10
- Not to be distracted from the Remembrance of Allah S.63 V.9
- Not to take as allies the people against whom Allah is angry S.9 V.23
The attitude towards the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him
These recommendations from Allah, to Him belong the Glory and the Majesty, were addressed to the companions of the Prophet to educate them and to allow them to perfect their behaviour towards the best of the creatures who has walked the Earth, our beloved Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.
Most of them are addressed to us too, because even though we no longer live in the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, to love him, to follow him and to listen to him will be the behaviour of the believers until the end of time, in order to attain a complete faith, as this prophetic saying addressed to Omar, may Allah be pleased with him, reminds us:
Indeed, Omar, may Allah be pleased with him, was walking with the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in the company of a few other companions, when the Prophet took him by the hand to keep walking. Omar then said to him:
- \"I love you Ya Rassoul Allah! (O Messenger of Allah)\"
The Prophet then asked him whether he loved him more than his wife, to which he answered yes; more than his money, to which he answered yes; more than his father and mother and everyone else, to which he answered in the affirmative. At these words, the Prophet asked him whether he loved him more than his own self, to which Omar answered no. The Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, then replied to him:
\"No, Omar, your faith will not truly be complete until you love me more than your own self\".
Omar went away to reflect and came back to tell him yes a little later. And the Prophet said to him: \"Now Omar! Now Omar! (implying: now you have complete faith!)
Among these recommendations made by Allah in the Quran to the believers with regard to the beloved of Allah, Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, there are therefore:
- believing in him S.57 V.28
- not turning away from him when he speaks S.8 V.20
- not betraying him, nor betraying his trust and that of Allah S.8 V.27
- answering the Prophet (and Allah) when he calls us to the true life (that of the Hereafter) S.8 V.24
- obeying him (as one obeys Allah) at the risk of seeing one's actions rendered vain S.47 V.33
- not raising the voice at the Prophet, as if they were speaking among themselves S.49 V.2
- not plotting against him during secret conversations, not disobeying him S.58 V.9
- preceding a private conversation planned between them and him with an act of charity S.58 V.12
- not grieving him by visiting him constantly, without notice S.33 V.53
The attitude of the believers towards the enemy
The following verses forbid fleeing from combat in the Path of Allah, except to rally to the Prophet or another group. These verses concern, for some scholars, only the companions of the Prophet present at the battle of Badr and Uhud. The argument favouring this opinion is that the Prophet had supplicated Allah, saying to Him that if these companions died, no one would worship Him any longer on Earth. Allah therefore threatened with the Fire of Hell all those who fled the battle among his companions, Ansar or not.
With the exception of the reasons cited above, fleeing is therefore considered, according to a hadith reported by Abu Hurayra, from Bukhari and Muslim, as a capital sin:
The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: \"Avoid the seven perils!\" And the companions asked him: O Messenger of Allah, what are these perils?\" He then answered: \"They are: polytheism, magic, the killing of a soul that Allah has forbidden except for a just cause, devouring the property of orphans, fleeing on the day of battle in the Path of God, and the defamation of married, heedless and believing women\".
- Not to turn one's back on the enemy
- To be firm and to remember Allah much
The behaviour of the believers with others
The believer does not only devote a sincere worship to his Lord, he is also remarkable towards his peers. He aspires in any case to be so and constrains himself to it to the point of clothing himself in the finest qualities, in order to attain an exemplary behaviour like that of our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.
Among them:
- To forgive those we love because evil can sometimes come to us from where we do not expect it. Thus Allah warns us that family can be an enemy to us but that forgiveness, turning the page on their faults, is better. S.64 V.14
- remaining consistent and not saying what one does not do S.61 V.2
- good conduct in assemblies S.58 V.11
- not conjecturing, not holding a bad suspicion about others, not spying and not backbiting in the absence of others S.49 V.12
- not lending an ear to rumours and not harming others S.49 V.6
- not mocking one another and not giving each other nicknames S.49 V.11
- being just in a divorce S.33 V.49
- teaching those under our responsibility to ask permission before entering the home in order to preserve privacy S.24 V.58
- asking permission before entering people's homes and greeting them S.24 V.27
- not following the footsteps of the devil S.24 V.21
- they must spend their wealth in the path of Allah, unlike those who hoard gold and silver S.9 V. 34
Prayer as the source of all success
Just as the testimony of the Oneness of Allah is always joined in the Quran with kindness towards one's father and mother, within the same verse, prayer is correlated with the promise of success by the All-Powerful. When the muezzin of the mosque makes his call to prayer, does he not say \"Hayy 'alal falah!\" \"Come to success!\"?
The Friday prayer is preferable for the believer to any business, to his work or to any occupation, lucrative or not.
We pray that all the believers, as well as ourselves, may sincerely reform themselves, seeking only the Mercy and the Pleasure of our Lord. May we all conform to what Allah has revealed to His Prophet and Messenger Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and meet Him with a smiling face, among His pleased Servants. Amin
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