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| The Topic Of Izzah-Part Two
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| AnonyMouse (Zainab bint Younus) |
| Article ID: 1508 | 8186 Reads |
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Now we that we know what ‘izzah is and its importance, let’s examine how we lost it, and how we will insha’Allah once again attain it.
If it is Islam that elevates us with ‘izzah, and turning to other than Islam for honor that humiliates us, then given that we are in a state of humiliation, it stands to reason we’ve been turning to other than Islam to raise ourselves, to obtain honor, for some time now.
Just as Abu ‘Ubaydah feared for ‘Umar’s honor based on the state of his clothing, we have also committed the same error, well-intentioned as we are. How often is the argument made that as Muslims in the West, we must look to how other groups arrived as minorities, struggled, worked their way into the system, and finally gained acceptance? How often have we heard that we must observe the history of the Jewish community in America, learn its lessons, follow its footsteps, and rise to some fashion of power as they did? How often have we been told, if only we had a true democracy in our own countries, or if we were just better equipped with secular knowledge, that we would rise to prominence?
This idea of imitating a successful model to achieve the same results can be useful, but only in its proper time and place. With regards to the true crux issue of improving the state of the Muslim Ummah, to return it to its rightful position as the greatest community in the world in every sense, attempting to copy non-Muslims in their paths to success will ultimately result in failure.
Why? Because if we, as Muslims, strive to gain honour through worldly means – whether it be through wealth, education, or politics – without any spiritual foundations, we are setting ourselves up for complete and utter failure and humiliation. Indeed, we have already done so.
Allah has already warned us against falling into this trap of seeking honour in other than Islam:
Give glad tidings to the munaafiqeen (hypocrites) that there is for them a painful punishment – those that take disbelievers as allies instead of the believers. Do they seek with them ‘izzah (honor)? Rather, to Allah indeed belongs all honour! (An-Nisaa’ 4/138-139)
There are countless examples in our communities – both in the West and in the Muslim world – that reflect this painful phenomenon. Our personal lives, our financial crises, our societal woes, our professional struggles... the root cause of each and every single one of our problems lies in our rejection of Allah’s Commands and disbelieving in the fact that our Creator knows what is best for us in this world and the Hereafter.
For the sake of temporary, worldly status and wealth, Muslims continue to deal in riba (interest); to take out huge loans with little intention to pay them off on time and before having to pay interest; to take out mortgages, max out credit cards, to seek and seek and seek for the latest product, the most expensive brand-names, the ultimate in high-tech luxuries. We base our lives on the fickle standards and demands of our consumerist societies, exhausting ourselves in the never-ending rat race, and yet never stopping for a single minute to question why. Our debts pile up, our hearts harden, our souls scream in pain and with every step we drive ourselves to destruction in this world and the Hereafter.
To each and every one of us, I ask: Are we still making money now? What is our status? Where is our ‘izzah? We’ve copied the non-Muslims, we’ve been playing by their rules, and we’re still losing the game – materially and spiritually. Our wallets and our hearts are being crushed.
So won’t we turn back to Allah now, asking Him to forgive us? Won’t we set the standard for our actions according to His Criteria, not “their” criteria, whoever “they” are? Let us all make a concerted effort to turn back to Allah, to understand what He wants from us, and to do our best to make it happen – that’s where our ‘Izzah, our strength, our satisfaction, and security will truly find root, insha’Allah.
We have fallen into a trap: a trap that those who came before us, the Christians, the Jews, and the people before them as well, fell into. This trap of worldliness, of obsessive concern with this dunya and its minutae, is the trap that drew them away from the Favour of Allah and rendered them cut off from His Ultimate Reward. In the Qur’an, Allah has relayed to us many stories of the people before us and how, though they attained much wealth and boasted of high status, they were utterly destroyed. The people of ‘Aaad and Thamud were those who erected huge buildings and carved amazing homes out of solid rock; they boasted of their skills and refused to humble themselves towards their Lord.
As for `Ad, they were arrogant in the land without right and they said: 'Who is mightier than us in strength?' See they not that Allah Who created them was mightier in strength than them. And they used to deny Our Ayat! (Surah Fussilat, verse 15)
Will we destroy ourselves the way the people before us did?
Having said that, one may ask, what then are the real practical steps towards regaining our ‘Izzah as individuals and as an Ummah?
The answer is deceptively simple.
Turn back to Islam and practice it in every single aspect of your life, from the moment you open your eyes in the morning to the minute you go back to sleep. Learn the basics of your religion. Correct your beliefs. Perfect your religious practices: your prayers 5 times a day, every day, at their appointed times. Your fasting in the month of Ramadhaan – the fasting that is with the soul and not just the body.
Strive to increase in good manners and good deeds. Be aware of the world around you, but don’t give into it wholly. Set your sights on the world to come, the Aakhirah, and make Paradise your ultimate goal. Give your life purpose: worshipping Allah with every action, with every word, with every thought.
Do not fear anyone or anything except Allah – stand up for the truth, for justice, even if the world rallies against you because of it. Never compromise your beliefs, be brave, but do not be foolish and reckless.
Be an obedient child to your parents; a loving partner to your spouse; a guiding figure for your children; a friendly companion to your neighbour; an honest and hardworking employee and co-worker; a good citizen to your country. Above all, be a humble and sincere slave of Allah.
This, and this alone, will grant you true ‘Izzah. May Allah grant us, the Ummah of Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), the ‘Izzah that is rightfully ours.
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