THE DECEPTION OF THE WORLD (Part 9) – Hazrat Maulana Thanvi رحمه الله
Hakeemul Ummah Hazrat Moulana Ashraf Ali Thaanwi Sahib رحمه الله shares a Hadith wherein Sayyidina Rasoolullah صلى الله عليه وسلم has said; “The son of Ādam (عليه السلام) says, ‘My wealth! My wealth! What is yours except that which you have eaten and transformed into waste, that which you wore and transformed into rags and that which you spent in charity and sent forward to await you? That alone is yours.'”
Let us be very clear; neither does the wealth, nor our wives and not even our children belong to us. We are but labourers who are pulling carts on which are loaded wives, children and wealth. Separation will most certainly take place on reaching the final destination.
Hazrat Thaanwi رحمه الله has emphasised that labourers and workers are not owners. We are in reality labourers and servants; how then can we become masters? We are inconsequential. Greatness belongs to Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله alone! We are overpowered, overwhelmed and subdued. Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله is All Powerful and He asserts in the Holy Qur’ān:
وله الكبريآء فى السموات والأرض
‘And His is the Majesty in the heavens and the earth.’
The reality is that man is beguiled by the false glitter of this world. In his deviation, man desires to acquire more wealth. In this way, he becomes forgetful of good deeds which will secure his Aakhirah. He therefore remains ‘rich’ in this short worldly life but will be tragically a wretched destitute in the Aakhirah.
اللهم احفظنا يا الله!
In a Hadith narrated by Hazrat Abu Hurairah رضي الله عنه, Sayyidina Rasoolullah صلى الله عليه وسلم has said:
ليس الغنى عن كثرة العرض ولكن الغنى غنى النفس
‘Abundance of worldly means does not (in itself) constitute what is called “richness” – Real “richness” is the richness of the heart.’
The richness of the heart depends on our association with Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله. Attachment to Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله will cause us to be disinclined to the illusion of the world. When Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله, the All Powerful, illuminates the heart of His lover with glimpses of His nearness, everything pales into insignificance. As a potent reminder for all of us; when we will become contemplative of the omnipresence of Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله, our actions will then conform with the sublime example of Sayyidina Rasoolullah صلى الله عليه وسلم.
Attachment to Allah Ta’ala جل جلاله results in perpetual honour, respect and endowment in this world and the Aakhirah.
(To be continued ان شاء الله)
