Monday, March 10, 2008

Al-Naziat (The Setting Stars)


But unto him who shall have stood in fear of his Lord's presence 
And held back his inner self from base desires 
Paradise will truly be the goal

How numerous the tongues that move with the name of Allah  
But how meagre the benefit 

And how rare the hearts that become genuinely humble at the mention of Allah 
Yet how desperate the need of the world for those rare hearts 

Undoubtedly
The ruin of religion comes about when it digresses into empty words and forms 

And the mission of religion will not have been accomplished 
Until the day it creates in all men 
Living Conscience
Pure Mind 
And hearts that aim in awe 
At countenancing the divine 

That is what true dhikr is 

Accounted among the influences of this kind of dhikr 
Is that it curbs man's appetite for wealth 

Thus 
Those who remember Allah 
Are never obsessed by greed for more and more 
And are certainly never demeaned by greedy or covetous constitutions 

Rather 
They earn their money honourably 
And spend it on their legitimate needs 
Without ever thinking to hoard or accumulate it


Source: Remembrance And Prayer - (Muhammad Al-Ghazali, p. 159)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Really beautiful and true words. We do indeed need those rare hearts more and more today. Thank you for the post :)

Ya Haqq!