By Nasmira Firdous
Bismillah
6. How Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala Helps Through Those Whom We Hang Out With
A few months back, I was being overloaded with work, studies, exams and
assignments, which was topped with a challenge I had never thought I
would have to encounter. As much as I wanted to recite the duas for
difficulty, my heart was unyielding. It sent a shiver down my spine
because then, at that point of time, I realized why it wouldn’t be easy
for everyone to recite the shahadah as much as they would want to, when
they are on the clutches of death.
I was not even able to recite the duas with full concentration,
subhanAllah! Hanging out with the right type of friends who sent
beneficial links to Islamic websites was Allah subhaana wa ta'aala’s way
of bringing me out of it rather than allowing me to get stuck in the
madness that was engulfing. A surprising coincidence being two of those
friends ended up sending the link of the same article to get me back on
track, and the link was about understanding Allah subhaanahu wa
ta'aala’s Names and Attributes, subhanAllah! If it were not Allah
subhaanahu wa ta'aala wanting me to learn more about Him, I don’t know
what else it was.
7. Never Underestimate The Power Of Your Actions
If you are in an environment that does not provide a righteous friend
circle, remember your actions always speak louder than words. Lead from
the front, show your friends that you are willing to change for the
better and are here on Planet Earth to please your Lord, and to expect
His acceptance alone. Ultimately, remember, you will be standing alone
on the Day of Judgment and your actions and words will be your only
saviors, so make sure they are pleasing to Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala
even if they appear “displeasing” to your friends.
Having a large circle of non-Muslim friends, it was not an easy process
for me personally. However, when you preach and show others the beauty
of this religion with your actions and your words, they start accepting
you for who you are and in some cases, even come forward to ask more
about Islam.
I have had friends who could not understand the concept of me wanting to
remove my pictures from Facebook. However giving them a straightforward
answer did the trick and there were no ill feelings later on. When you
decide to put your foot down, others will comply, almost always. And the
ones who do not comply, its time you filter them out of your friend
list insha’Allah. While it may seem highly important to have such
friends in your circle, remind your nafs that having Allah subhaanahu wa
ta'aala in your life is much, much more important than anything else.
A friend of mine was known to attract others with her amazing character
and personality. So much so, that people learnt a lot about Islam
through her informal chats. And one day, one of her friend came forward
to say that she wanted to convert to Islam and recite the shahadah! All
of this just by looking at her conduct and her verbal-informal dawah,
subhanAllah! Therefore, never underestimate the power of your actions or
words. You might be able to change those whom you’re hanging out with
when you decide to please Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala, insha’Allah.
8. Do Not Cut Off
Probably, the biggest mistake I did was cut off a little too completely
from friends whom I thought would never change. Allah subhaanahu wa
ta'aala taught me a powerful lesson here. He subhaanahu wa ta'aala
showed me that it is He who controls people’s hearts and that He could
change anyone the way He subhaanahu wa ta'aala wanted, not the way I
perceived. We were teenage friends and our goals were predominantly
dunya-oriented. When I began to change bi’ithnillah, I was hardly in
touch with her for almost 5 years. Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala sent her
back to me and our friendship has skyrocketed ever since. Not a single
day passes without we discussing Islamic stuff or Quranic ayats or
exchanging beneficial Islamic videos. And this was the same friend with
whom I would discuss absolutely mundane things a few years back,
subhanAllah!
So never ever think your friends will not change their old ways. It
might be Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala’s way of changing them through you!
Maybe Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala wants you to act as His soldier! Take
up the challenge with pride.
9. Stay With The Righteous
Remember to always hang out with righteous friends, the ones who would
remind you of Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala and Islam. Why do I say so? I
heard an extremely scary and sad story a few days back about a girl who
had no ounce of Islam in her life but was attracted to the weekly
halaqas being conducted in her University, underwent an amazing
transformation and started wearing her hijab and niqab too! She started
giving halaqas to other girls and gave herself as an example who changed
when Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala decided to guide her. She would often
move the other girls to tears when she gave speeches. She rejected many
marriage proposals because she wanted a brother who was high in terms of
his eeman. She got married to a “religious” man and the guy’s family
started changing her little by little, asking her not to be “extreme”.
And soon, in less than a year, she went back to her old ways of not
wearing hijab and even started wearing revealing clothes. SubhanAllah!
Always, always remember to hang out with the righteous who would remind
you about Allah subhaanahu wa ta'aala. Also, don’t forget to ask Allah
subhaanahu wa ta'aala to keep your hearts firm on this deen. Always!
I would like to sign off with a part of the following hadeeth:
Prophet Muhammad sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “Surely the people of
Jannah when they enter Jannah and they do not find those companions of
theirs who were with them upon good in this world, then verily they will
intercede for them in front of Allah Ta’ala and they will say: “O
Allah! (Save) our brothers (for they) used to pray with us, fast with us
and also do good deeds with us.” Allah will say, “Go and take out (of
Hell) anyone in whose heart you find faith equal to the weight of one
(gold) Dinar.” Allah will forbid the Fire to burn the faces of those
sinners. They will go to them and find some of them in Hell (Fire) up to
their feet, and some up to the middle of their legs. So they will take
out those whom they will recognize and then they will return, and Allah
will say (to them), “Go and take out (of Hell) anyone in whose heart you
find faith equal to the weight of one half Dinar.” They will take out
whomever they will recognize and return, and then Allah will say, “Go
and take out (of Hell) anyone in whose heart you find faith equal to the
weight of an atom (or a small ant),” and so they will take out all
those whom they will recognize.’”[1]
Hassan al-Basri, rahimahu Allah said: “Have lots of believing friends
because they will be able to intercede for you on the day of Qiyaamah.”
So, who do you want to hang out with?
References:
1. Sahih Bukhaari in Kitaab al-Tawheed, no. 7440
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