Assignment of Islamiat

Group Members:
Rabia Ahmad Sabah Afzal Hareem Naeem Hafiza Sheema (46) (51) (27) (181)

Section: A Submitted to: Sir Kamran Khan

The Correct Islamic Attitude

The chief qualities a Muslim should display:

Truthfulness:
The great sage and scholar of Islam, Ibn al-Qayyim, said: Truthfulness is the greatest of stations, from it sprout all the various stations of those traversing the path to God; and from it sprouts the upright path which if not trodden, perdition is that persons fate. Through it is the hypocrite distinguished from the believer and the inhabitant of Paradise from the denizen of Hell. It is the sword of God in His earth: it is not placed on anything except that it cuts it; it does not face falsehood expect that it hunts it and vanquishes it; whoever fights with it will not be defeated; and whoever speaks it, his word will be made supreme over his opponent. It is the very essence of deeds and the well spring of spiritual states, it allows the person to embark boldly into dangerous situations, and it is the door through which one enters the presence of the one possessing Majesty. It is the foundation of the building of Islam, the central pillar of the edifice of certainty and the next level in ranking after the level of prophet hood. By practicing truthfulness, a person betters himself, his life is made upright and due to it, he is elevated to praiseworthy heights and raised in ranks in the sight of God as well as the people. As the Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him, related: I order you to be truthful, for indeed truthfulness leads to righteousness, and indeed righteousness leads to Paradise. A man continues to be truthful and strives for truthfulness until he is written as a truthful person with God. And beware of falsehood, for indeed falsehood leads to sinning, and indeed sinning leads to the Fire. A man continues to tell lies and strives upon falsehood until he is written as a liar with God. So, truthfulness is something which is to be cultivated till it becomes implanted in a persons soul and disposition and therefore reflected throughout the persons character. Ali b. Abi Talib, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, mentioned the positive reciprocal effect of behaving truthfully with people in this worldly life: Whoever does three things with regards to people, they will necessitate three things from him: whenever he speaks to them he is truthful; whenever they entrust him with something he does not betray them; and whenever he promises them something he fulfils it. If he does this, their hearts will love him; their tongues will praise him; and they will come to his aid.

Sincerity:
Allah says in surat Al-An'am, (verse 162 and 163), what can be translated as, "Say (O Muhammad): "Verily, my prayer, my sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allah, the Lord of the world. He has no partner. And of this I have been commanded, and I am the first of the Muslims." Also Allah says in Surat Al-Bayyinah, (verse 5), what can be translated as, "And they have been commanded not, but that they should worship Allah, and worship none but Him Alone."

Islam has invited us to sincerity and persuades within it. The meaning of sincerity is that what the person says and his deeds should be for the sake of Allah not to show the people or to be proud of himself with them. Acceptance of deeds depends on sincerity. A man came to the prophet (S.A.W.) and said: O Messenger of Allah I do deeds for the sake of Allah and I like to show the people my position. The prophet (S.A.W.) did not answer till it was revealed in Surat Al-khaf, what can be translated as, "Who ever expects to meet his Lord, let him work righteousness, and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord" Sincerity to Allah is a sign of the completeness of faith. Imams Abou Dawood and At-Termithi reported a good hadith that the messenger (S.A.W.) said: "Whoever loves for Allah, hates for Allah, gave for Allah and forbade for Allah, then he completed his faith." Allah looks to the heart and what in it from intentions not to the appearance or the shape of the deeds. Imam Muslim reported that the messenger of Allah (S.A.W.) said: "Allah does not look to your bodies and appearances, but He looks to your hearts." The sincerity of deeds for the sake of Allah is a security and protection for the believers from the problems of the life.

Unselfishness:
Sometimes the Prophet (peace be upon him) used a form of stern warning in order to impress on people the horrid nature of the action he is warning against. One of the stronger forms of warning is that which the Prophet uses in the following Hadith related by Al-Bukhari on the authority of Abu Hurayrah who quotes the Prophet as saying: God shall neither look at three types of people on the Day of Judgment nor cleanse them of sin. They shall also endure grievous suffering. The first is one who has along the road water in excess of his needs, but refuses to give some of it to passersby. The second is one who pledges loyalty to a governor only in the hope of receiving certain gains: if he gets that, he is happy and if he is denied it, he is unhappy. The third is one who sets up his goods in the afternoon and swears by God that he has paid (or offered) for it so much, leading others to believe him. The Prophet then read the Qur'anic verse that says: Those who barter away their covenant with God and their oaths for a trifling gain will have no share in the life to come. God will neither speak to them, nor cast a look on them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He cleanse them of their sins. Theirs will be a grievous suffering. The common denominator that applies to all three types is selfishness and greed. They are all after their own interests, caring little for other people. The first, the one who denies some water to a passerby, is so full of greed that he will not give water, which he has no need for, to one who needs it. He forgets that water is granted to mankind by God. They need it for living and God has set in operation certain laws of nature that ensure that people get water all the time for themselves, their cattle and farmland. The second type is more common. People often pledge their loyalty to rulers and governors only for their own benefit. They are after certain gains. Unless they get such gains, they are dissatisfied. Their

dissatisfaction may go further than thoughts and feelings. It may develop into encouraging rebellion or strife in society. The main factor in all this is the gain one hopes to achieve. It has nothing to do with the ruler being good, just or diligent in serving the community. An important aspect in the Prophet's warning is concerned with the need of being true to one's pledges. If one pledges loyalty to a governor, the pledge should be sincere, free of personal ambitions, and made only to serve the interests of the community. To relate ones loyalty to what one hopes to receive of personal gains is to make a mockery of ones pledge. Needless to say, a pledge of loyalty is a very serious matter. Hence, it must never be related to what one hopes to receive from the ruler to whom one has pledged full loyalty. The third type is again very common. People are eager to sell their goods at a profit. The greater the margin of profit, the happier they are. If the customer tries to get a discount, the seller tries to assure him that the goods are worth more. One way of convincing people that they are not paying too much for their merchandise is to swear by God that the price is right. A trader may swear that he paid for the goods so much and that his profit is so little or very reasonable. Alternatively, he may swear that he was offered more for it. The customer is more likely to believe him when he swears by God. If, however, the truth does not match the oath, and the oath is false, the offense is very serious indeed as it seeks to cite God in support of one's false claim. In all these situations, selfish and greedy people earn themselves God's displeasure that results in God ignoring them on the Day of Judgment when they are destined for grievous suffering.

Humility:
God created human beings to worship Him and a practising Muslim in, essence, should be able to worship God in every second, of every hour of every day. Islam is a way of life and it means nothing more, or less, than submission to the One God. And I (God) created not the jinn and humans except they should worship Me Alone. The concept of God in Islam describes Him as the most Merciful and the most Loving and whatever He prescribes for humankind is in the best interest of humankind. Submission to the will of God is a pathway to purity, to peace and ultimately to Paradise. The word Quran most frequently uses to describe worship is Ibadat. Ibadat is the root of the word ubudiyyah, which means to express ones humility or humbleness, and as with most Arabic words there are many shades of meaning. Ibadat involves more than an awareness of humility. It is the complete sense of humbleness that overcomes one who is totally submitted to the will of God, the Almighty. Worship is submission to God, the essential part of submission is humility. So glorify the praises of your Lord and be of those who prostrate themselves Humility can guide us to Paradise, just as its opposite, arrogance, kibr in Arabic, can only lead us into Hell. Humility comes from knowing about God and recognising His greatness, venerating Him, loving Him and being in awe of Him; and it comes from knowing about oneself and ones own faults, and weaknesses. God gives this characteristic to those who struggle to become close to Him through deeds of piety and righteousness. A companion close to the Prophet Muhammad heard him say,

Wealth does not decrease because of charity, and God increases His slave in honour when he forgives others. And no one humbles himself before God but God will raise him (in status). Humility is one of the greatest blessings God can bestow on a human being. It allows one to achieve genuine submission. Prophet Muhammad was truly submitted to God; his character was one of complete humility and based on sincere trust in God. He was a model of kindness and humbleness. In fact, the characteristics displayed by Prophet Muhammad were the exact opposite of pride and arrogance. Every aspect of his life reflected humbleness, even his walking, talking, sitting or eating. And the slaves of God are those who walk on the earth in humility and calmness, and when the foolish address them (with bad words) they reply back with mild words of gentleness.

Patience:
A western commentator, William Patron, has observed: One of the fruits of Islam has been that stubborn durable patience which comes out of the submission to the absolute will of God. This observation is indeed very apt. Islam attaches great importance to patience. Most of the verses of the Quran have a bearing, directly or indirectly, upon this virtue. In truth, patience is an attribute without which the very thought of Islam is unimaginable. The present world is designed in such a way that here one has repeatedly to face unpleasant experiences, inside as well as outside the home. Now if people were to fall to wrangling on all such occasions, they would fail to advance along the path of human progress. That is why Islam has placed great emphasis on patience, so that by avoiding all unpleasantness, man may continue his onward journey towards the higher goal God-realization. The traditions have laid great emphasis on the importance of patience. The Prophet once said: Listen and obey and be patient. On another occasion he observed: God has commanded man to be patient and forgiving. A companion of the Prophet said: The Prophet and his companions always remained patient in the face of persecution at the hands of enemies. It is true that patience provides the basic quality for Islamic activism. In this world no one can adhere to the path of Islamic virtue without remaining patient. Patience is the exercise of restraint in trying situations. It is a virtue, which enables the individual to proceed towards worthy goals, undeflected by adverse circumstances or repeated provocations. If he allows himself to become upset by opposition, taunts or other kinds of unpleasantness, he will never reach his goals. He will simply become enmeshed in irrelevancies. Patience, as well as being a practical solution to the problems faced in the outside world, is also a means of positive character building. One who fails to exercise patience, gives free rein to negative thoughts and feelings, develops a personality which is likewise negative while one who remains

patient is so morally bolstered by his own positive thoughts and feelings that he develops a positive personality.

Forgiveness:
On the authority of Anas, who said: I heard the messenger of Allah say: Allah the Almighty has said: O son of Adam, so long as you call upon me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great as its.

To receive forgiveness from God there are three requirements:

Recognizing the offense itself and its admission before God. Making a commitment not to repeat the offense. Asking for forgiveness from God.

If the offense was committed against another human being, or against society, a fourth condition is added: Recognizing the offense before those against whom offense was committed and before God. Committing one not to repeat the offense. Doing whatever needs to be done to rectify the offense and asking pardon of the offended party. Asking God for forgiveness.

There are no particular words to say for asking forgiveness. However, Muslims are taught many phrases and words to keep repeating daily asking Gods forgiveness. For example: Astaghfiru-Allah, I ask forgiveness from Allah Subhanaka-Allah humma wa bi hamdika wa ash-hadu al la Ilaha illa Anta astaghfiruka wa atubu ilayk, Glory be to You, Allah, and with You Praise (thanks) and I bear witness that there is no deity but You, I ask Your forgiveness and I return to You (in obedience).

Islamic teaching presents the prophet Muhammad as an example of someone who would forgive others for their ignorance, even those who might have once considered themselves to be his enemies. One example of Muhammads practice of forgiveness can be found in the Hadith, the body of early Islamic literature about the life of Muhammad. Humbleness to and love for Allah can only be actualised through worshipping Allah in all aspects. Among the major acts of worship is repentance. Even the greatest repentance which is the highest and the most compulsory act of worship is repentance from disbelief. Allah says regarding what Prophet Hood as told his people: And O my people! Ask forgiveness of your Lord and then repent to Him, He will send you (from the sky) abundant rain, and add strength to your strength, so do not turn away as Mujrimun (criminals, disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah).

Purity and Cleanliness:

Islam greatly approves cleanliness. According to the Quran: Allah loves those that turn to Him in repentance and purify themselves. When man rues his mistakes and returns to the path of truth, this is called an act of repentance. As such, it purifies mans inner self. Just as by using water we can cleanse the dirt from the body, so by repentance we can purify the soulthe inner-self. That is why Islam lays great stress on both these things. According to a hadith: "Purity is half of faith." Similarly the Prophet of Islam once observed: "God is clean and loves cleanliness." Man is a creature who has been specially granted the quality of sensitivity. That is why man naturally likes cleanliness, and since Islam is a religion of nature, it lays great stress on cleanliness. Mans body, his clothing and his home, should all be pictures of cleanliness. It was due to the importance given to cleanliness that the companions of the Prophet used to bathe daily. According to Muwatta Imam Malik, Abdullah ibn Umar spoke of how his father used to take a bath before each prayer. In this way he used to bath five times a day. The third Caliph, Usman ibn Affan, used to bath daily (Musnad Ahmad). The cleanliness of body and soul is one of the basic demands of Islam.

Honesty:
Honesty is one of the greatest of all moral virtues. From it springs forth many of the noblest of human qualities like integrity, chastity, and valour. Some people might suppose that honesty is restricted to words. This is not the case. Honesty can manifest itself in our actions as well as in our innermost state of being. Honesty and truthfulness are two interrelated traits. A true Muslim must have both traits. Both the Quran and hadith has emphasized on being honest and truthful in all the matters of life. Honesty descended from the Heavens and settled in the roots of the hearts of men (faithful believers), and then the Quran was revealed and the people read the Quran, (and learnt it from it) and also learnt from the sayings and traditions. Both the Quran and the traditions strengthened their honesty. The great scholar and ethical thinker, al-Muhasibi, once said: For honesty to be complete, it must exist in three things. It must exist in the heart as ones faith, it must exist in the intentions behind ones deeds, and it must be present in the words that one speaks. Allah commands the believers, saying: O you who believe! Fear Allah and be with those who are honest. Allah gives glad tidings to the believers who are honest. He says: Allah will reward the honest people for their honesty. Allah informs us that our honesty will bring us good even in this world: And when a matter is resolved upon, it would be best for them if they were true to Allah. And of course, honesty will be of doubtless benefit to us in the Hereafter. Allah says: This is the day that the honest people will benefit from their honesty.

Allahs Messenger (peace be upon him) was renowned for his honesty long before he began to receive revelation and became Allahs Messenger. He had been known among his people for years as al-Amin (the Trustworthy). The Prophet (peace be upon him) informed us of the effects that both honesty and dishonesty have on our personalities when he said: Honesty brings about security and lying fosters doubts. The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said: Honesty leads to righteousness and righteousness leads to Paradise. A man remains honest and concerned about honesty until he is recorded as an honest man with Allah. Lying leads to sinfulness and sinfulness leads to the Fire. A man keeps lying and remains partial to lies until he is recorded as a liar with Allah. [Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim] He also explained the effects that honesty and dishonesty have on our interpersonal dealings: Honesty and clarity are blessed for both parties to a sale, while concealment and deceit destroy the blessings of their sale. We must be honest in our relationship with Allah. There are many dimensions to this most important expression of honesty. There is our sincerity to Allah. Then there is being cognizant that Allah is ever watchful of what we do. There is the sense of humility and shame that we must feel before Him. If we truly want to be honest in our relationship with Allah, we must become so fully sincere to Him that there remains in our hearts no other motive for what we do but to seek His pleasure. We must care nothing for the thanks and appreciation of our fellow men. We can achieve this by making our greatest concern the attainment of Allahs mercy. We must be constantly aware that Allah is ever watchful over us. This will make us feel too shy to ever willingly disobey Allah. Honesty with other people is also extremely important. There are many aspects to this as well. We must be honest in giving advice to people. We should be sincere in our advice and truly do our best to help people avoid misfortune and attain what is good for them. We need to be even more honest with our spouses. We must be able to confide in them and speak freely to them about our concerns, our secrets, and our ambitions. A husband or wife is a life partner, a friend, a confidant. The more openly a husband and wife are able to communicate with each other in an atmosphere of trust and confidence, the stronger their relationship will be.

Goodness and kindness to others:

Kindness is the act or the state of being kind, being marked by good and charitable behaviour, pleasant disposition, and concern for others. It is known as a virtue, and recognized as a value in many cultures and religions. Research has shown that acts of kindness do not only benefit receivers of the kind act, but also the giver, as a result of the release of neurotransmitters responsible for feelings of contentment and relaxation when such acts are committed. Kindness is a mark of faith, and whoever is not kind has no faith. The religion of Islam greatly encourages peace, love, kindness, and compassion. In the Quran, there are several verses about these traits. Prohibition of racism in Islam The racism is strictly prohibited in the religion of Islam. Prophet Mohammed P.B.U.H: Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than Allah.

And of mankind is he who would sell himself, seeking the Pleasure of Allah. And Allah is full of kindness to (His) slaves. And give not unto the foolish your property which Allah has made a means of support for you, but feed and clothe them therewith, and speak to them words of kindness and justice.

Goodness in moral aspect is that which is humane, brings goodness, and has value for people and sapient beings and leads to proper development and progress. Good deeds are those that are taught and preached by religion and give advice. Sometimes a synonym of this is "beautiful deeds". Good deeds emanate from true and pure love, compassion and good feelings. The ability to make good is a characteristic for moral excellence. Christians believe that goodness comes from God as he created everything. At the beginning of the creation of the world. The Prophet Muhammad ( peace be upon him) said: He who gave up disputing while he is right, a palace of high rank in Paradise will be built for him. He who gave up disputing while he is a fabricator, a palace in the center of Paradise will be built for him. (al-Tirmidhi who declared it as hasan) There are no people who went astray after having been guided except for indulging in disputation. (al-Tirmidhi)

Consideration and respect for others:

Respect is really about what we admire in the world and in people. People tend to admire things that they want. For example, if you want to be beautiful you will respect beauty. If you respect women, you will treat them with kindness and love. What we want tells a lot about who we are. The reason for respect is that you can more likely get things that you respect. If you do not respect money, you will never have it. If you do not respect beauty, you will let yourself go. What we respect is a clue to what we want in life.Many people that are trying to attract good things into their life have one major flaw. They do not respect what the seek. For example, if you do not respect wealthy people, you are not going to ever be a wealthy person. Your own values and brain will sabotage your efforts. You need to show respect for things that you want. Respecting good things will bring more good into your life. God and His angels send blessings on the Prophet: ye that believe! Send you blessings on him, and salute him with all respect. We sent thee(O Muhammad) not, but as a Mercy for the World And Most Certainly, thou (O Muhammad) are of most sublime and exalted character. If ye do love Allah, Follow me(Muhammad Saw): Allah will love you and forgiveyoursins.

Courage:
Courage enables us to face difficulty, danger or pain in a way that allows us to maintain control over a situation. We can build courage by identifying things that frighten or challenge us and thinking of strategies for coping with them. We also can build courage by remembering that nothing can harm us unless Allah wills it and nothing can benefit us unless Allah wills it. Courage is the sign of manliness and in many tasks these qualities serve as a bridge to success. Rather no achievement, progress and advancement are attainable without courage and gallantry. All social and intellectual revolutions too require these qualities. Here we can further clarify by giving an example from history. After the passing away of the Holy Prophet (saw), a person named Musailima Kazzab claimed to be a prophet in Oman. The Muslim army went there to crush him. Musalimas men scattered away but he himself and some of his companions took shelter in a garden. That garden had four walls and it was situated in the midst of a castle. There was enough provision for four months in that fort. The Muslim soldiers remained around the fort for some days but could not do anything. A meeting was held under the leadership of a famous commander Abu Dajana wherein, in the very beginning, it was decided that if Musailima were not captured at the end of the siege, the mischievous fellow would continue to mislead the people by his deceitful gestures and thus would prove to be great risk to Islam. So it would not be a matter of regret if some Muslims were martyred in an attempt to capture him. Then there was a discussion about the ways of arresting him. Abu Dajana said, I want only ten persons who are ready to sacrifice their lives for this cause. At once ten people came forward as volunteers. Then Abu Dajana said, These ten persons including myself will, one by one, sit on a shield. Other soldiers will, with the help of their spears, raise that shield upward until the hand of the man sitting on the shield reached up to the wall of the castle. Thus when all reach the wall they will enter the castle with the help of ropes. First of all I will hold the rope and go inside and try to open the gates from inside. If my companions see that I am killed, another will follow. If he too is killed, the third man will get in. In this way, as a result of the self-sacrifice at least one person will reach the gate and open it for the Muslim army. Per chance, Abu Dajana, himself achieved the task. He lowered a rope, entered the fort, fought for a while and succeeded in opening the gate. Thus the last center of corruption was destroyed with the capture and killing of Musailima Kazzab. Had Abu Dajana not shown this courage, the Muslims would have never succeeded.

Moderation:
Moderation is the process of eliminating or lessening extremes. It is used to ensure normality throughout the medium on which it is being conducted. Common uses of moderation include: Ensuring consistency and accuracy in the marking of student assessments. A moderator may remove unsuitable contributions from the website, forum or IRC channel they represent in accordance with their moderation system. A more proactive nuance is found in the Methodist church's use of the term for the heads of its conferences.

A neutron moderator is used to slow down neutrons in a nuclear reactor. A lifestyle choice by which many college students abide so as not to become alcoholics.

Moderation is also a principle of life. In ancient Greece, the temple of Apollo at Delphi bore the inscription Meden Agan 'Nothing in excess'. Doing something "in moderation" means not doing it excessively. For instance, someone who moderates their food consumption tries to eat all food groups, but limits their intake of those that may cause deleterious effects to harmless levels. Similarly in Christianity, moderationism is the position that drinking alcoholic beverages temperately is permissible, though drunkenness is forbidden (see Christianity and alcohol). Moderation is a characteristic of the Swedish national psyche, more specifically described by the Swedish synonym Lagom. Moderate Muslims adhere to the concept of contextual relativism as a way to grasp meaning from the Quran.

Cheerfulness:
The truth is, cheerfulness is neither an unusual emotional high nor an unusual intensity of will. Cheerfulness is a settled disposition. Cheerfulness is a settled outlook on life and settled input into life. Of course we have bad days, and will continue to have them. Nonetheless, its the settled disposition that counts. Its the backdrop against which our life is lived. Cheerfulness is the atmosphere we live out of ourselves and the atmosphere we breathe out on other people. Cheerfulness is crucial. We have to be cheerful if we are going to be life-affirming. Mental health experts tell us that the major symptom of low-grade depression isnt feeling sad. The major symptom of low-grade depression is what psychiatrists call psycho-motor retardation, or what wed more commonly dragginess. Someone tells us he doesnt have any energy, cant seem to get going, cant seem to get interested, is always weary because he had the flu five times last winter. But nobody gets the flu five times per winter. Hes not flu-ridden; hes depressed. Without cheerfulness we cant be life-affirming. The ground of our cheerfulness is never whats going on around us. The ground of our cheerfulness is something else. Its the call -- to live in the company of Jesus Christ. Its the response his call has freed us to make. Its the reception our response has been accorded. This is where our cheerfulness is rooted. His call has quickened our response; and our response has met with a reception characterized by merriment. We began today by noting that the cheerless person leaves us all feeling drained. We noted too that the cheerfulness of Christians isnt rooted in our surroundings but is rooted rather in Christs winsome call to us, our self-abandoning response to him, and the joyous reception he accords our response. Rooted in this cheerfulness we shall find our Lords word confirmed in us as he tells us again and again to be of good cheer just because he has overcome our turbulent world. And we shall know with the apostle that what is offered to God and given to our neighbour our hilarious cheerfulness renders a life-bestowing act of mercy.

Thank You