Allah chooses whom He wills to be His slaves. And His sincere worshippers will always be saved from the evil that the accursed satan tempts them with.
“And remember Our slaves, Ibrahim, Ishaq and Ya’qub, (all) men of strength (in worshipping Us) and (also) of religious understanding. Verily, We did choose them for a special purpose (ie remembrance of the hereafter). And they are with Us, verily, of the chosen and the best!”
(Quran 38:45-47)
Everybody doesn’t have the same level of faith. The state of perfection can only be achieved by being a true slave of Allah.
Whose Slaves are You?
These categories of people are condemned to fail:
- the slaves of wealth and power
- the slaves of desires
The one whose wealth enslaves him will never get success. Being attracted by the material world, he is inattentive to his Lord.
When he is given something, he is happy. But when it’s taken back from him, he is angry.
Others long for power or objects of their desire. Such people’s hearts are so attached to what they chase that they feel in great need of it.
As Umar Ibn Al Khattab said: “Whenever you give up hope of something, you become independent of it.” So, it’s much better for you to be the slave of Allah.
Servitude to Allah Only
If you depend on other people, you are in a state of servitude. This is the case even though it may appear that you are in a position of responsibility.
The golden rule is:
- to seek from Allah only
- to complain to Allah only
You should seek your sustenance solely from your Lord. If you look for this from others, you will definitely become their slave.
It’s thus not allowed to ask for anything from anyone except in an extreme case.
The Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
“If anyone of you were to take a rope and go and gather wood, that would be better for him than asking people (for help), which they may or may not give.”
(Al Bukhari and Ibn Majah)
“Whoever wants to be independent, Allah will make him independent. Whoever wants not to have to ask people for anything, Allah will help him to be free of that. Whoever wants to be patient, Allah will give him patience. Nobody has ever been given anything better and more abundant than patience.”
(Al Bukhari, Muslim and others)
Prayers of the Prophets
Complaining to your Creator is recommended as you will see in the following extracts:
“I complain of my sorrow and grief only to Allah…”
(Prophet Ya’qub, peace be upon him, in Quran at 12:86)
“O Allah, to You be all praise and to You (Alone) do I complain. You are the (only) One Whom I ask for help, in You I seek refuge and upon You I rely. There is no strength or power except in You.”
(Prayer of Prophet Musa, peace be upon him)
“O Allah, to You I complain of my weakness and helplessness, and of the people’s caring nothing for me. O Most Merciful of those who show mercy. You are the Lord of the dispossessed and You are my Lord. O Allah, to whom will you leave me? To a stranger who will push me away and mistreat me, or to an enemy to whom You have given power over me? As long as You are not angry with me, nothing else matters, but still Your protection and help are better for me. I seek refuge in the light of Your countenance, which lights up the darkness and sets right the affairs of this world and the hereafter, from Your anger and wrath descending upon me. I seek Your forgiveness until You are pleased with me. There is no strength and no power except in Allah.”
(Prayer of Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, at Taif)
Break Free to Purify Your Soul
You are free if your heart is free and you are enslaved if your heart is enslaved. Once your heart tastes the worship of Allah with sincerity, nothing will be more valuable than this.
Prayer shields you from evil and directs you to remembrance of your Lord. And this leads to the purification of the soul.
“Truly he succeeds who purifies it (the soul) and he fails who corrupts it!”
(Quran 91:9-10)
“But those will prosper who purify themselves, and glorify the name of their Lord, and perform prayer.”
(Quran 87:14-15)
“… And were it not for the grace and mercy of Allah on you, not one of you would ever be pure…”
(Quran 24:21)
Discover the Light of Faith
“Whoever loves for the sake of Allah, hates for the sake of Allah, gives for the sake of Allah and withholds for the sake of Allah, has perfected his faith.”
(Abu Dawud)
If you love Allah, you must follow His messenger and He will love you. Please keep searching for information from authentic sources to improve your faith and get closer to your Lord.
When Allah wishes good for you, He will give you the opportunity to learn the religion.
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to the authors (may Allah reward them) of the following book for sharing precious knowledge:
Al Ubudiyyah – Being a True Slave of Allah by Ibn Taymiyah and translated by N Al Khattab.