Thankfulness is Integral to Faith
| Khatib : |
Sadullah Khan |
| Khutbah No: |
217 |
| Khutbah Date: |
11/24/06 |
[b]بَلِ اللَّهَ فَاعْبُدْ وَكُن مِّنْ الشَّاكِرِينَ[/b][i]Rather worship Allah and be of those who are thankful[/i][b][Qur’an 39:66] [/b][b]
Shukr & Dhikr[/b]Allah Commands us [Qur'an 2: 152].
[b]فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ وَاشْكُرُواْ لِي وَلاَ تَكْفُرُونِ[/b][i]“Remember Me, I remember you; Be thankful and not ungrateful.”[/i]There is an emphasis on ذكر God-consciousness and on شكرGratitude in this divine injunction. The concept of being grateful/thankful to Allah, is to realize and acknowledge that every kind of grace and favor is granted ultimately by Allah. The Qur’an thus begins with
bismillah (in the Name of Allah) followed by
al-hamdulillah (all praise and thanks is due to Allah); significantly meaningful phrases with we begin and end every action of importance.Allah has granted us so many favors; let alone counting up these favors, it is inconceivable even to categorize them [Q 16:18]. Since there is no limit to the favors of Allah, a believer should unceasingly keep himself occupied with the remembrance of Allah and express his gratefulness to Him; hence the association of
dhikr / remembrance of Allah with
shukr/ thankfulness to Allah.
إِنَّا خَلَقْنَا الْإِنسَانَ مِن نُّطْفَةٍ أَمْشَاجٍ نَّبْتَلِيهِ فَجَعَلْنَاهُ سَمِيعًا بَصِيرًاإِنَّا هَدَيْنَاهُ السَّبِيلَ إِمَّا شَاكِرًا وَإِمَّا كَفُورًاWe created the human being from a drop of mingled sperm, in order to test him: We gave him the faculties of hearing and sight and provided him wit guidance; whether he be grateful or ungrateful (depends on him). [Q 76: 2-3] Shukr & ImaanBeing thankful/grateful is an essential part of our faith and a significant aspect of the Islamic way of life. There are over seventy verses in the Qur’an pertaining to thankfulness, and being thankful has been a fundamental characteristic of Prophets …Musa/Moses [Q 14:5], Dawood/David [Q 34:13], Sulayman/Solomon [Q27:19]Among the well-known prayers of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was …
اللهم اِنِّي أسألك ... قلبًا شاكِرًا“O Allah! I ask Thee… for a grateful heart.”That is why it is expected of a mature person to have the capacity to perpetuate this noble trait and to express gratitude …
“O my Sustainer! Inspire me so that I may forever be grateful for those blessings with which You have graced me…” [Q 46:19] Shukr & KufrIn the Qur’an, [Q2:152][Q14:7] the opposite of shukr being “grateful” / “thankful” is defined by the term kufr “disbelief”, which is synonymous here with being “ungrateful”. This definition indicates the importance attached to being grateful and equates thankfulness to worship. O you who believe! Eat of the good things that We have provided for you, and be grateful to Allah, if it is Him you worship. [Q2:172].
Shukran lin-NaasA wise philosophy of life would be to always be of those who give and forgive; never be of those who get and forget. The ethical dimension to gratitude demands genuine thankfulness proportionate to the blessings received, never to deny those blessings nor devalue the worth of those who so bless us. It is perchance with this in mind that our beloved Prophet reminded us:
من لم يشكر الناس لم يشكر الله "Whosoever is not thankful to people is not thankful to Allah." Grateful People are among the Best of PeopleWe have been advised by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) …
“Value five things before five; Value youth before old age, Health before sickness, Free time before being occupied, Wealth before poverty, and Life before death.” How we value and appreciate what we have greatly determines what we become and who we are. Our gratitude, our thankfulness is a reflection of our spiritual depth, our moral purity; it is a testimony to our character. There are so many who have so much to be thankful for, yet there are so few who are thankful. Allah reminds us
وَقَلِيلٌ مِّنْ عِبَادِيَ الشَّكُورُ how few people are there who are thankful. [Q 34:13] Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said:
من لم يشكر القليل لم يشكر الكثير“Whosoever is not thankful with a little won't be thankful with a lot.”Wise is the person who grieves not for what he does not have but gratefully rejoices in what he does have. We must learn to be thankful for what we have; we could end up having more, but if we concentrate only on what we don't have, we'll never ever have enough.Allah says:
لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ “If you are grateful, Allah shall increase for you.” [Qur'an 14:7] Realize, how we use our blessings is an indication of our level of gratitude. When asked, “Who are the best of people?” Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) replied:
اذا غضبوا غفروا و اذا ابتلوا صبروا ، و اذا احسنوا استبشروا ،و اذا أساءوا استغفروا ،“Those who are cheerful when they do good, who are repentant when they do wrong, who are grateful when they receive, who show patience when in difficulty and pardon when they are angered.”
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