SWIMMING ON THE SAND

My son, Allah is very great. In front of the greatness of Allah Ta’ala, no one has any value. One must not be proud. It is Allah Ta’ala alone who has the ability to do what He wants, when he wants and the way He wants. Everything lies in the hands of Allah Ta’ala. Nothing lies in the hands of anyone. When one will grasp this point, one will not be afraid of anyone besides Allah Ta’ala. Everything that one does, will be solely for His pleasure and if anything displeases Him, one will not do it although one’s beloved ones would want one to do it. Is there a greater pleasure than the pleasure that a person receives in living for the pleasure of Allah Ta’ala? Ya Allah! There is no pleasure and no desire in front of this pleasure.

O Allah! Grant us all this willpower! 

My son! When you will live for the pleasure of Allah Ta’ala, you will only see one thing. It is the presence of Allah Ta’ala. You will live and die for Him. You will be satisfied to die for the One who never dies. If the world is dying for a corpse, then how much more should you die for a Rabb who does not die? When you reach this stage, you will see Him everywhere. 

It is mentioned in a Hadith: 

"Remember Allah, you will see him in front of you."

Perhaps it is when a person attains this stage that Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alaihi Wasallam) has said that Allah becomes his ear with which he hears, his eyes with which he sees, his hand with which he holds and his feet with which he walks. This is a very high stage that cannot be explained in words. One must live it, taste it and experience it to understand. Unfortunately, those who experience it, cannot describe it. If they explain it also, people will not understand or they will misunderstand it. Instead of accepting their shortcoming and weakness, they consider the person as insane. It is like a person who, instead of acknowledging his shortcoming, finds the mirror ugly. So, it is a stage that lies between the inability to explain and criticism.

My son! Consider your own shortcomings before looking at the shortcoming of the next person as this is easier and more profitable for you. Then, you may correct your shortcomings that will bring you closer to your Rabb. This will not stop you from assuming your duty and responsibility of correcting the mistake of the next person. On the contrary, you will do it better as you will correct him without considering yourself better than him. Otherwise, you will tend to insult and denigrate him. When you intend to insult, you forget that you have shortcomings also. Yes, you will forget that your knowledge is summarised in studying and knowing the translation of merely a few books. You are considering the little water in which you are swimming with such pride as if it is an ocean, without realising that it is merely a small drop of water of the ocean that you have not seen and have not known as yet. 

My son! A small advice. It is in your interest to swim on the sand if you have to. Do not enter the water. Otherwise, you will drown!

[English version of "Nage lors di sable" – Al Jamiat – Vol.1 No.15]