Feb 16
29
Charity Begins at Home
We all want to be leaders; we all want to be pioneers. We want to be better than we were yesterday and in the end we all want to change the world in our image.
Change begins when we take a stand, when we are courageous enough to change ourselves.
Ilya abu Madhi says : كن جميلا ترى الوجود جميلة
‘Be yourself beautiful, you shall see all existence as beautiful’
Self awareness is being aware of what traits make you who you are. Knowing who and what makes you is the first step to become beautiful – the first step to change the world; to change our world.
Children are elements of change. The birth of a child changes a couple to a family. We look to the innocence of a child as hope for the future of the world. Even as they grow, they are so innocent as to forgive us for dropping them off a flight of stairs. They strive for change so hard that they stand and fall as many times as it takes if only to move one step. They strive to grow, they strive to change from fumbling bumbling toddlers into people whom we look up to.
At first, this child has to acknowledge that sleeping all day is a hazard and that instead of wailing he should be more self sufficient like the other towering humans. This raises the question of whether the child needs another human at all – and unsurprisingly a research on a real ‘Tarzan’ child, Lyokha, in Moscow, who was raised by wolves has proved the necessity of a human to be true. A teacher in the form of a human is needed for the child to emulate their movements and gain the correct posture. This is the first step of change for any human but even then we need help.
Allah TA states : علم الانسان ما لم يعلم – سورة العلق اية ٥
“(He) Taught man that which he did not know”
Seeing our need to copy the actions of our predecessors, it’s given that the first man would have needed to be taught in order to survive – otherwise we may have never attempted to change from our fetal position.
Concluding that we would need someone to emulate lets us ascertain that change is not possible without someone and that we are in no way ‘independent’. We need a brother to help us change, we need a parent, a teacher or a mirror to show us where we are wrong and support us through our change.
Rasulullah SA states:
المؤمن اخو المؤمن لا يظلمه ولا يشتمه
‘A Mumin is a Mumin’s brother; he neither wrongs him nor insults him’
المؤمن مرآة صافية
‘A Mumin is a mirror to another Mumin’
The child needs someone willing and caring to show him the ropes. He needs love to nurture because fear of the parent teaches very little to the child. Fear fosters hate; while love can teach anything, hate cannot. Love can change, hate cannot. Even today, as we grow up and learn – love teaches where hate will never manage to do so.
المؤمن للمؤمن كالبنيان يشد بعضه بعضا
‘A Mumin for another Mumin is like a structure whose various parts support one another. ‘
A family loves one another, a family strives to become better together. Brother helping brother, sister trusting sister and child emulating the parents. More than blood, it is love that joins us together which makes us stronger. Love for Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin TUS joins every Mumin together – and we are all family. We uplift one another for Maula TUS. Together, helping one another by helping just one brother like little mirrors, teaching and emulating, we can be the best. We CAN change the world.
As Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin RA states
وواس الذي حبا يواسي اخاه في
امور حيوة موسعا لقلائل
(O Allah TA) Come to the aid of the Mumin who, out of love and affection, assists his brother in all matters of his life and fulfils his needs.
He also states:
كل عمل بالاخلاص – و ان كان صغيرا- يأتي بالاجر الموفور
Any act carried out with unwavering faith, even if small, merits plentiful reward.
Maula TUS wants us to be our best, together. As Maulana Ali states:
من ظن بك خيرا فصدق ظنه
If someone thinks well of you, then ratify his thoughts in you.
So shall we not change and become better? Shall we not become the best family? Shall we not emulate until we change our worlds?
May Allah TA grant our Maula, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin TUS, a long happy and prosperous life as long as the rivers of knowledge flow. Ameen.
