10 Steps to Gaining Taqwa (Fearful awareness of Allah)

[Hamza Asadullah]

10 Steps to Gaining Taqwa (Fearful awareness of Allah)


Take provision; but the best provision is taqwa of Allah. So have taqwa of Me, people of intelligence! (Surat al-Baqara: 197)


What is Taqwa?


Taqwa means consciousness, awe or fear of Allah, which inspires a person to be on guard against wrong action and eager for actions which please Allah and stay away from those actions which displease and anger him.

the skins of those who fear their Lord shiver from it (when they recite it or hear it). Then their skin and their heart soften to the remembrance of Allah." [39:23]


Why should we fear Allah?


It is because we are fully reliant on Allah and we have no control over our final fate and the day and time when we will return to Allah. We are so weak, vulnerable and low beings whereas Allah is the greatest and most high, honoured and has power over EVERYTHING!

Allah can take us at ANY second and what would become of us if we were taken whilst committing a sin? We would risk the torture of the grave and a day so terrible that we cannot even comprehend for what would become of us on the day of judgement?

Therefore we MUST fear Allah and totally submit to him and obey his commands lest we are taken whilst we are indulging in sin and face the torment of the grave, the terrible state of ALL on the harshest of days the day of judgement and the fire of Hell who's fuel is of men and stones.


The fruits of fearing Allah


Ghazali (rahmatullahi `alayhi) said: ‘Fear rips away desires and muddens luxuries so that cherished sins become reprehensible, just as a honey lover is repelled by it when he learns that it has poison in it. This is how fear burns desires; disciplines the organs; subordinates the heart and gives it tranquility. It also enables the heart to rid itself of pride, hatred, and envy; and it leaves it absorbed in it (fear). Hence, the heart becomes preoccupied with its own worries and looks towards its best interest in the long run. It is then engaged in only matters like meditation, self-analysis and struggle. It cherishes its time and moments.’ [Ihya: 4/160]

Hadith - Al-Tirmidhi #5359, Narrated Abdullah ibn Mas'ud

Allah's Messenger said, "If, through fear of Allah, tears--even to the extent of a fly's head--fall from any believer's eyes and drop on some part of his cheek, he will be kept away from Hell by Allah." Ibn Majah transmitted it.


So how can we increase our taqwa or fearful awareness of Allah?


Here are 10 steps for us to increase in and gain taqwa:


1. Recite the Qur'an with its meanings:


We should read the Qur'an with its meanings and try to understand what Allah is telling us in the Qur'an. Contemplate and ponder over the meanings of the verses of the Qur'an and act upon what you learn for learning something beneficial without acting upon it is of no use. We should read each vere of the Qur'an with humility and submissiveness.

Recite the Holy Qur’aan as much as we can for It will come as an intercessor for its reciter’ on the Day of Judgement [Muslim]

Many of the sahaba used to take a long time finishing reciting the Qur'an because they wanted to reflect, ponder, contemplate and act upon each verse of the Qur'an. We should also do the same so that we can gain maximum benefit from each verse of the Noble Qur'an.


2. Remember Allah:


keep your tongue moist with the glorification and remembrance of Allah As much as possible . The more we remember him the more he will remember us. Ponder over the greatness and creations of Allah.

O ye who believe, remember Allah much. And glorify Him morning and evening (33:42-43)

Glorify him no matter what you are doing with your day. Ponder and contemplate over his highness and magnificence. He has power over all so remember him in meekness and awe and humble yourself over his greatness and majesty.


3. Busy yourself with good works:


The more you busy yourself making the best of your time then the less time you will have to even contemplate doing haraam. Take part in local Islamic activities and in the Muslim community. Involve yourself with your local Masjid. Maintain the Masjid as in clean it vacuum any handy work etc. Give dawah locally and involve yourself as much as possible with good works and do everything ONLY to please of Allah.


4. Be with good company:


This is very important because we are who our friends are. If we involve ourselves with the wrong crowd then whether we like it or not then their bad influence will rub off on us and we will end up thinking like them and doing the sins that they do.

Bad company is like poison so we MUST keep away from it. It is better to be alone than with bad company. we should avoid taking as friends those who speak too freely, who miss Salah, who do not dress modestly, who backbite, slander etc.

The company of such people is poison; just even sitting and talking with them will lead one to commit sins. Just as a person who sits for a long time with a perfume seller begins to smell nice, and a person who sits by a gutter cleaner begins to smell awful, similarly a person who spends time in the company of the wicked eventually gets affected badly by them.

Instead we should seek out pious friends who fear Allah taala and who have the qualities of humility, charity, compassion, modesty and knowledge. If we sit with them we will always benefit and they will be a means for us to get closer to Allah!


Remember: “All friends will be enemies of one another on that Day (Day of Judgment) except those of the virtuous.” (al-Qur’an 43:67)



5. Learn religious knowledge:


Try to acquire as much knowledge as is possible and act upon everything you learn for learning without acting upon that knowledge is of no use and we will be accountable for the knowledge we had that we never acted upon. Spend time with the learned and sit with them and take wisdom from them. Go to Islamic courses and involve yourself with learning about the deen as much as you can as we should continue to acquire knowledge of Islam until our very last breath.

A person without knowledge is like someone walking along a track in complete darkness. Most likely his steps will wander aside and he easily can be deceived by shaytaan. This shows that our greatest danger lies in our ignorance of Islamic teachings and in our unawareness of what the Qur’an teaches and what guidance has been given by the Prophet (Sallallahu Alaiyhi Wasallam). But if we are blessed with the light of knowledge we will be able to see plainly the clear path of Islam at every step of our lives. We shall also be able to identify and avoid the dangerous paths of Kufr, Shirk and immorality, which may cross it. And, whenever a false guide meets us on the way, a few words with him will quickly establish that he is not a guide who should be followed.

Every one of us, young or old, man or woman, should at least acquire sufficient knowledge to enable ourselves to understand the essence of the teachings of the Qur’an and the purpose for which it has been sent down. We should also be able to understand clearly the mission, which our beloved Prophet (Sallallahu Alaiyhi Wasallam) came into this world to fulfil. We should also recognize the corrupt order and system, which he came to destroy. We should acquaint ourselves, too, with the way of life which Allah has ordained for us.

No great amount of time is required to acquire this simple knowledge. If we truly value Iman, it cannot be too difficult to find one hour every day to devote for our Iman.



6. Always be alert and aware of whatever may divert you away from Allah:


Be alert to anything that may lead you towards sin. Shaythan is always wanting to lead us astray and he may pounce on us when we are not aware so we must always have an awareness of his evil tricks.

We must think that whilst we commit any action we may be taken by death for death awaits no one so before doing any action we must think is it good for us or bad and if it is bad then we must realise that we CANNOT take the risk of the consequances were we to die in that state.

We must also guard our tongues because the tongue will be that which will lead the most Muslims into Jahannam. Therefore we must think before we speak and if we know we are not going to say anything useful then it is better to not speak at all than to risk committing a sin.

Therefore let us be alert to the carnal pleasures that may lead to the realm of the forbidden and always be aware that Allah is watching us because he really is and it is not just a cliche! if we gain awareness that Allah is watching us no matter what we are doing then we would think twice before committing a sin!


7. Be humble in character:


Shun arrogance and pride and never think of yourself as better than anyone else.

Al-Nawawi (RA) said:

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “And no one humbles himself before Allaah but Allaah will raise him (in status).”

Humbleness is to know the value of oneself, to avoid pride, or disregarding the truth and underestimating people. As the Prophet sallallahu`alaihi wa sallam said, according to Muslim and others, "Al-Kibr is rejecting the truth and looking down upon people" [Muslim, Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud].

Humbleness is for one who is important and significant and he fears to gain notoriety or to become too great among people. Humbleness is that one should humble himself with his companions.

Humbleness is to humble oneself to one who is below you. If you find someone who is younger than you, or of less importance than you, you should not despise him, because he might have a better heart than you, or be less sinful, or closer to Allah than you. Even if you see a sinful person and you are righteous, do not act in arrogance towards him, and thank Allah that He saved you from the tribulation that He put him through.

Humbleness is that your deed should not become too great in your eyes. If you do a good deed, or attempt to get closer to Allah ta`ala through an act of obedience, your deed may still not be accepted, "Allah only accepts from those who have taqwa (fear of Allah)." (Surat al-Maida: 27)


8. Do everything to please Allah:


Everything you do in your life do it JUST so that you can please Allah. This will ensure that you think before you do any action so that you can do everything to please Allah and keep away from anything that displeases him. This awareness will ensure that you are always doing good works or at least trying to find ways of doing good works just so that you can please Allah and get closer to him.

Before every action we should think to ourselves is this action going to derive any benefit to us or is it going to cause us more harm than good. If we think like this before EVERY action then we will do a lot less sins and a lot more good and we would also gain a fearful awareness of Allah of the consequances of doing that which displeases Allah.


9. Focus on the main purpose of our lives:


We should keep reminding ourselves of the purpose of our life and why we are here. Throughout our daily lives especially in our busy day we forget our main purpose and therefore end up doing a lot of sin and wasting time.

Therefore before doing any action think of your main purpose in this life and then think is what i am going to do or even think of doing compatible with the main purpose of my life? If it is then do it and if it is not and will just either waste your time or lead you towards sin then keep away from it.

Think to yourself that you have NO time whatsoever to do that which will not conform to your main purpose in this life and so evrything you do should conform to and be compatible with your main purpose in this life which is to worship Allah and do everything to please him and stay away from anything he has forbidden us from and which displeases him. We should also think that anything which will not be of benefit to us is a waste of time and therefore we will ALWAYS be searching for ways to please Allah and to add to our good deeds.


10. Remember much the destroyer of pleasures: DEATH!


The Messenger of Allah (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) said: "Remember often the destroyer of pleasure." (Sunan al-Tirmidhi and Sunan al-Nasa'i)

Know that it can strike at ANY second and be aware that if it were to strike whilst you were committing a sin then how will you be raised in that state and what will be our state in the grave and on the day of judgement? What will you answer to Allah when you were fully aware of the implications and consquences of our actions? For man is heedless.

Therefore remember death much and make it a habit to visit the graveyard at least once a week so that you may be reminded of death and know that you may end up in the grave alongside the others at ANY second and the next grave dug could be yours or mine.

May Allah make us of the most fearful of him and of the pious and may he bring us closer to him and guide us to the straight path. May he save us from the torment of the grave and the fire of hell. Ameen

And Allah knows best in all matters

[Hamza Asadullah]

Al Hasan Al Basri said: A believer believes in what God has said. He is the best of men in his deeds, but he fears God most, so that if he spends the size of a mountain of money, he would not be sure of his reward until he sees this with his own eyes. The more righteous and charitable the believer is, the more afraid of God he becomes. While the hypocirte says: Men are too many, I shall be forgiven. There is no harm on me. Thus he acts badly, but wishes many things from God.

[Hamza Asadullah]

Mu `adh bin Jabal said –

“On the Day of Judgment, it will be announced: ‘Where are the ones who had taqwa?’ So they (the ones with taqwa) wil stand up from under the Shelter of the Compassionate. Allah will not be invisible to them.”

People asked Mu`adh who are the ones with taqwa. He replied: “Those who stay away from shirk and worshipping idols and then purify their deen for Allah.”

[Al-Mufarridun]

May Allah(swt) make us amongst whose who have Taqwa. Ameen

Jazakallah khair brother Hamza.

[Eric H]

Greetings and peace be with you Hamza81;

Thanks for sharing

Blessings

Eric

[lausiv]

the person who never lived in Islam will take some time to be able to perform all fardh of Allah. the person cannot have beard because of weak iman but with passage of time he will grow beard. is it ok to slowly slowly get into Islam?

[Hamza Asadullah]

the person who never lived in Islam will take some time to be able to perform all fardh of Allah. the person cannot have beard because of weak iman but with passage of time he will grow beard. is it ok to slowly slowly get into Islam?

Asalaamu Alaikum, A person can take his time in those matters which are not fard (obligatory) upon him. So a person should not miss a single prayer and they should not miss a single payment of Zakaat if they are eligable to pay it and they should not delay Hajj if they can afford it and they should not miss a single fard fastin Ramadan if they are able to keep them. They should treat their parents and neighbours with utmost kindness and they should make every effort to go towards Allah for time is not on our side and it is slipping away from our grasp. Every second is a second nearer to death. Every second is a second nearer to when we will be in our graves. Every second is nearer to when we will have to stand in front of Allah and be questioned about the lives we lead in this world.

So we must firstly fulfill every fard obligation without delay and secondly we must make every effort to get closer to Allah and to do everything to please him and refrain from anything which displeases him. We will never become perfect for Allah does not expect perfection. But he expects us to try our best.

Most of the time when people say they are trying their best they are in fact not trying their best for if anyone was to try their best they would achieve so much. So we must try our best and if we slip and fall then that is fine because we are human. We must constantly repent and ask of Allah to forgive us and make firm intention with remorse not to repeat the act again. Even if we keep slipping but we are trying then surely Allah is most merciful.

May Allah enable us to go towards him and not waste a second more in doing so. Ameen

[Hamza Asadullah]

The Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) fearing Allah's wrath

Narrated Anas (Radi-Allahu 'anhu):

Whenever a strong wind blew, anxiety appeared on the face of the Prophet
(Sallallahu 'Alaihi Wa Sallam) (fearing that wind might be a sign of
Allah's wrath).

Bukhari Vol. 2 : No. 144

[~Zaria~]

Assalamu-alaikum,


What is Ihsan?" Allah's Apostle (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) replied, "To worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you cannot achieve this state of devotion then you must consider that He is seeing you." (Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim)

How does one reach the above state?

"To worship Allah as if you SEE Him"?

> What should one be imagining of Allah (subhanawataála)?

[جوري]

> What should one be imagining of Allah (subhanawataála)?

This verse always comes to mind when I think of ihsaan:

Al-Nour (The Light)[24:35] [RECITE]

[top] [next match]

Allahu nooru alssamawati waalardi mathalu noorihi kamishkatin feeha misbahun almisbahu fee zujajatin alzzujajatu kaannaha kawkabun durriyyun yooqadu min shajaratin mubarakatin zaytoonatin la sharqiyyatin wala gharbiyyatin yakadu zaytuha yudeeo walaw lam tamsashu narun noorun AAala noorin yahdee Allahu linoorihi man yashao wayadribu Allahu alamthala lilnnasi waAllahu bikulli shayin AAaleemun

24:35 Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The Parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche and within it a Lamp: the Lamp enclosed in Glass: the glass as it were a brilliant star: Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it: Light upon Light! Allah doth guide whom He will to His Light: Allah doth set forth Parables for men: and Allah doth know all things.

[~Zaria~]

^ JazakAllah khayrun ukthi,

Should I be imagining 'light' when standing in salaah, and at all other times?


Perhaps its because Im not at this 'state of devotion', that I need to ask this at all.....: (

[جوري]

^ JazakAllah khayrun ukthi,

Should I be imagining 'light' when standing in salaah, and at all other times?


Perhaps its because Im not at this 'state of devotion', that I need to ask this at all.....: (

I don't like to imagine Allah swt or paradise and I understand that the latter at least is at odds with how many Muslims approach the topic given that thinking of the rewards that lie ahead give an impetus to do better and try harder. I often think of these verses from Suret Al'Araf:

7:143 to top

Sahih International
And when Moses arrived at Our appointed time and his Lord spoke to him, he said, "My Lord, show me [Yourself] that I may look at You." [ Allah ] said, "You will not see Me, but look at the mountain; if it should remain in place, then you will see Me." But when his Lord appeared to the mountain, He rendered it level, and Moses fell unconscious. And when he awoke, he said, "Exalted are You! I have repented to You, and I am the first of the believers."

There's none like unto him, the sublime the indivisible so how can we with our limited mind compass the unfathomable? I am not a scholar and can't give you scholarly advise but I believe it is the sort of thing you see in your heart and grasp what he wills you to grasp in your soul as a part of the fiber of your being but not at all in a physical sense.
I have unfortunately had that sort of 'religious experience' where I felt his infinite mercy and grace a handful of times but that is really my fault. I can't seem to let the spirit soar.. so many things grounding me here on earth none of them pleasant.. none of them I care to admit to but they make me an everyday sinner, a worthless one at that...
so maybe someone else will step up where I have failed..

[جوري]

ukhty,
I asked someone yesterday for you about your query and I was told that the point was missed entirely. It isn't about 'imagining God' at all astghfor Allah. It is about having a very strong awareness that Allah swt is watching you and you being mindful of that with every deed until the deeds are perfected. I was given the example of being in an exam where you know that you're being monitored. How you're being monitored doesn't matter but you're very aware of it that every action you take is with that in mind so you work on the straight and narrow but hopefully not just out of fear but love and preparedness.

& as always Allah swt knows best,

[~Zaria~]

ukhty,
I asked someone yesterday for you about your query and I was told that the point was missed entirely. It isn't about 'imagining God' at all astghfor Allah. It is about having a very strong awareness that Allah swt is watching you and you being mindful of that with every deed until the deeds are perfected. I was given the example of being in an exam where you know that you're being monitored. How you're being monitored doesn't matter but you're very aware of it that every action you take is with that in mind so you work on the straight and narrow but hopefully not just out of fear but love and preparedness.

& as always Allah swt knows best,

JazakAllah khayrun for the response ukthi, and making the effort to enquire : )

I think, what has been described to you, is the second part of the hadith:

What is Ihsan?" Allah's Apostle (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) replied, "To worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you cannot achieve this state of devotion then you must consider that He is seeing you." (Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim)

I am still struggling with the first part.

Insha Allah, He blesses me, and us all, oneday with this level of taqwa.
Ameen.

[جوري]

JazakAllah khayrun for the response ukthi, and making the effort to enquire : )

I think, what has been described to you, is the second part of the hadith:



I am still struggling with the first part.

Insha Allah, He blesses me, and us all, oneday with this level of taqwa.
Ameen.

I asked for you the spokesperson from Al-Azhar ukhty sheikh ibrahim Nejm who is here for only a couple of days.. the operative word here is 'ka'anaak' which means as if you were to see. it isn't a literal palpable knowledge or a literal seeing.. and later states inn lam takoum tarah which is a given that you won't see him then know that he's all seeing..

and Allah swt knows best but the Arabic language can never be given its true essence when translated..

[Hamza Asadullah]

JazakAllah khayrun for the response ukthi, and making the effort to enquire : )

I think, what has been described to you, is the second part of the hadith:



I am still struggling with the first part.

Insha Allah, He blesses me, and us all, oneday with this level of taqwa.
Ameen.

To reach the level of Ihsaan is the epitomy of what we should all strive to achieve in our deen. It is something that many of us will struggle with getting anywhere near. But nonetheless we should all strive to achieve and keep persevering to do so. It is a state that can only be achieved by leaving the all sins especially major ones. It requires one to detatch oneself completely from the dunya. It requires that one follows the commands of Allah wholeheartedly and to follow the Sunnah. It requires that one remembers Allah no matter what one is doing. It requires one to have fearful awareness of him. So much so that if one was to approach a sin then one would get scared thinking that Allah is watching them at that very moment and that they must keep away from that sin lest they gain the wrath and anger of Allah.

To reach ihsaan will require a lot of effort and total detachment from the dunya (worldy materialistic life) but once one reaches the level of Ihsaan then NOTHING in this world can ever effect that person or deter him from being of service to his lord. As Ibn Taymiyyah (Ra) once said when he was asked about the terrible persecution he went through from being imprisoned throughout his last days:

'My Jannah Is In My Heart And Nobody Can Take It From Me.’ When He Was Asked About The Secret To His Happiness, He Said "Allah Has Freed Me From This World, For Himself."

So Ihsaan is acheived in ones heart and it is a state that we should all aspire to reach. I have already listed some of the things we can do to achieve this state above. Another way of doing it is meditation. Meditation in pondering and contemplating over the greatness of Allah and the favours he has done upon us. Even if that be for a short while a day maybe after a particular Salaah or whenever we are relaxed . On top of that we may also note down the fact that Allah is watching us and for us to be aware of him at all times, maybe on a piece of paper or as a screen saver on our phones or whatever we are likely to look at constantly throughout the day. Once we start getting a habit of reminding our selves to be more aware of Allah then we will eventually always be aware of him no matter what we do and this will aide us to reach Ihsaan.

Regarding what we should imagine then we should be more aware of him being there or being present than actually imagining anything in particular. What matters most is that we are aware he is watching and present. To feel his presence and the fact that he certainly is watching us no matter what we do.

May Allah enable us to reach the highest peak of Imaan - Ihsaan. Ameen

[Hamza Asadullah]

Taqwa (Consciousness of Allah)

[Hamza Asadullah]

[Hamza Asadullah]

[Hamza Asadullah]