Riyad al-Salihin from the words of the Master of the Messengers, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
Chapter: Striving against the Self (Mujahada).
Allah the Exalted said:
“As for those who strive in Us, We surely guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good.” (29:69)
And He the Exalted said:
"And worship your Lord until there comes to you the certainty (death)."
And He the Exalted said:
“So remember the name of thy Lord and devote thyself with a complete devotion -” (73:8)
Meaning: Devote yourself entirely to Him.
And He, Glorified and Exalted be He, said:
“And whoso doeth good an atom's weight will see it then,” (99:7)
And He the Exalted said:
"And whatever good you put forward for yourselves, you will find it with Allah."
“Lo! thy Lord knoweth how thou keepest vigil sometimes nearly two-thirds of the night, or (sometimes) half or a third thereof, as do a party of those with thee. Allah measureth the night and the day. He knoweth that ye count it not, and turneth unto you in mercy. Recite, then, of the Qur'an that which is easy for you. He knoweth that there are sick folk among you, while others travel in the land in search of Allah's bounty, and others (still) are fighting for the cause of Allah. So recite of it that which is easy (for you), and establish worship and pay the poor-due, and (so) lend unto Allah a goodly loan. Whatsoever good ye send before you for your souls, ye will find it with Allah, better and greater in the recompense. And seek forgiveness of Allah. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (73:20)
And He the Exalted said:
“(Alms are) for the poor who are straitened for the cause of Allah, who cannot travel in the land (for trade). The unthinking man accounteth them wealthy because of their restraint. Thou shalt know them by their mark: They do not beg of men with importunity. And whatsoever good thing ye spend, lo! Allah knoweth it.” (2:273)
The verses in this chapter are numerous and well-known.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"Indeed, Allah the Exalted has said:
'Whoever shows enmity to a friend (wali) of Mine, I have declared war against him.
And My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more beloved to Me than what I have made obligatory upon him.
And My servant continues to draw near to Me with voluntary acts (nawafil) until I love him.
And when I love him, I become his hearing with which he hears,
And his sight with which he sees,
And his hand with which he strikes,
And his foot with which he walks.
If he asks Me, I will surely give him,
And if he seeks refuge in Me, I will surely grant him refuge.'"
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
"I have declared war" means I have informed him that I am at war with him.
"Shows enmity to a friend of Mine" means he takes him as an enemy or a target.
The *wali* is the one who has knowledge of Allah, is constant in His obedience, and is sincere in his worship.
"Draw near" means he seeks closeness.
"Voluntary acts" are the acts of worship that are in addition to the obligatory ones.
"Strikes with it" means he hits with it.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The gravity of showing enmity toward the friends of Allah the Exalted,
Whether by hating them or harming them.
Performing the obligatory acts is prioritized over performing voluntary acts.
Among the causes of Allah’s love for His servant:
The servant’s drawing near to Allah through voluntary acts,
Such as the night prayer (qiyam al-layl), the regular Sunnah prayers, and reciting the Qur'an.
Drawing near to Allah the Exalted by maintaining the obligatory acts,
And performing voluntary acts.
A cause for Allah’s response to the servant’s supplication, and His protection and care for him.
If the servant is truthful to his Lord in his worship,
Until he reaches the station of friendship (wilayah) with Him,
It becomes a right upon Allah to answer his supplication,
If that is good for him,
Or to compensate him with something better in this world or the Hereafter.
On the authority of Anas, may Allah be pleased with him,
From the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
In what he narrates from his Lord, the Almighty and Majestic:
"If My servant draws near to Me by a span,
I draw near to him by a cubit.
And if he draws near to Me by a cubit,
I draw near to him by a fathom.
And if he comes to Me walking,
I come to him at speed."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
"If My servant draws near to Me by a span,"
Meaning: Whoever performs any act of obedience, even if it is small,
I respond to him with manifold honor.
And whenever he increases in obedience, I increase him in reward.
"A cubit,"
Meaning: The forearm up to the elbow.
"A fathom" (ba'),
Is the measure of extending both arms and the distance of the body between them.
"At speed" (harwala),
Is a type of running that involves quickening the pace.
From the benefits of the hadith:
An indication of the generosity of the Most Generous of the generous,
As He gives abundantly in exchange for a little.
Affirmation of the attribute of coming and approaching,
And we believe in it without assigning a 'how' (takyif) or distorting the meaning (tahrif),
Or denying it (ta'til) or likening it to creation (tamthil).
It is an attribute established by the Book and the Sunnah.
On the authority of Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"There are two blessings in which many people are deceived:
Health and free time."
Narrated by al-Bukhari.
"Deceived" (maghbun),
Deception (ghabn) is buying at many times the price,
Or selling for less than the fair market value.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The person accountable (mukallaf) is like a merchant,
And health and free time are his capital.
Whoever uses his capital well attains profit,
And whoever wastes it loses and regrets,
For he is deceived.
One should take advantage of health and free time
To draw near to Allah the Exalted and perform good deeds,
Before they pass away.
Because free time is followed by being busy,
And health is followed by sickness.
Islam is keen on time because it is life,
And on the soundness of bodies,
Because it helps in the perfection of the religion.
The world is the farm of the Hereafter,
So one should provide oneself with piety,
And utilize the blessing of Allah in His obedience.
Gratitude for the blessings of Allah
Is achieved by using them in the obedience of Allah.
On the authority of Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her,
That the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
Used to stand in prayer at night
Until his feet would swell.
So I said to him,
"Why do you do this, O Messenger of Allah,
When Allah has forgiven your past and future sins?"
He said,
"Should I not love to be a grateful servant?"
Agreed upon.
"Swell" (tatafattar) means to crack.
"Grateful" (shakur),
Meaning: One who is very grateful,
Acknowledging blessings in both word and deed.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The great striving of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
In the worship of Allah.
Whoever Allah has blessed with a favor,
And singled out with a virtue,
Must be grateful for it.
The blessing must be a cause for increased gratitude.
Ibn Abi Jamrah said:
It should not cross our minds
That the sins which Allah the Exalted informed us
That He, by His grace, forgave for the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
Are of the same nature as those we fall into,
Allah forbid.
Rather, it is of the nature of fulfilling what is due to Lordship in terms of glorification, exaltation, and gratitude,
And placing humanity in its proper place, even if its status was raised where it was raised.
For it is incapable of describing that, because it is among the created things.
And the abundance of blessings upon the one whose status was raised more than others
Multiplies the duties upon him,
So incapacity occurred,
And the forgiveness was for that.
On the authority of Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
When the ten (days) entered, would keep the night alive,
Wake his family,
Strive, and tighten his waist-wrapper.
Agreed upon.
The intended meaning is the last ten days of the month of Ramadan.
The waist-wrapper (mi'zar) is the loincloth.
It is a metaphor for abstaining from women.
And it is said:
The meaning is his girding himself for worship.
It is said:
"I have tightened my waist-wrapper for this matter,"
Meaning: I have girded myself and devoted myself to it.
From the benefits of the hadith:
It is part of resolve to seize virtuous times with righteous deeds.
It is recommended to keep the night alive in Ramadan,
Especially the last ten days of it,
For they have a special virtue.
Whoever wishes to strive in worship
Must protect himself from what discourages or weakens him,
Or distracts him from it.
The best of a servant's prayer after the obligatory ones
Is that which is in the night, especially the latter part of it.
The wise person is the one who makes goodness encompass his family.
A servant should be keen on his family,
Commanding them to worship and being patient upon it,
And protecting them from the Fire of Hell through that.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, who said:
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"The strong believer
Is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer,
And in each there is good.
Be eager for what benefits you,
Seek help from Allah, and do not be incapable.
And if something befalls you,
Do not say, 'If only I had done such and such,'
But say, 'Allah has decreed, and what He willed, He did,'
For 'if only' opens the work of Satan."
Narrated by Muslim.
"The strong,"
Meaning: In his religion and his body,
And his soul and his intellect,
Who is fit to carry the religion, call to it, and defend it.
And the weak is the opposite.
"And in each there is good,"
Because they share the foundation of faith.
"Do not be incapable,"
Meaning: Do not be negligent in seeking what benefits you.
"Opens the work of Satan,"
Meaning: His whisperings that lead to loss.
From the benefits of the hadith:
The superiority of the people of faith over one another in their faith,
Even if they share in its foundation.
Faith is speech and action,
It increases with obedience and decreases with disobedience.
A believer should strive against his self
To reach the rank of the strong, perfect believers.
The encouragement to gather the strength of faith
Along with physical strength.
Indeed, strength and weakness
Are relative to striving against the self,
Maintaining obedience,
Doing what benefits people,
And to ward off evil from them.
A person must be keen to pursue what is beneficial for him,
Especially regarding matters of his faith.
Guidance toward the remedy when what is decreed occurs,
Which is by submitting to the command of Allah,
Being content with His decree and predestination,
And turning away from dwelling on what has passed,
For that leads only to loss.
This is done by saying,
"Allah has decreed, and what He willed, He has done."
Regretting what has passed does not bring it back.
A person must strive to compensate for it by being content
With what Allah has decreed,
And by increasing in future acts of obedience.
Regretting what has passed
Is among the deceptions of Satan,
With which he corrupts a person's heart,
Making him sorrowful and despairing of the mercy of Allah.
Belief in predestination, both its good and its evil,
And that whatever Allah willed has come to pass;
There is no one to reverse His judgment and no one to repel His decree.
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him,
That the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
"The Fire is veiled by desires,
And Paradise is veiled by hardships."
Agreed upon.
In a narration by Muslim,
The word "surrounded" (huffat) is used instead of "veiled" (hujibat).
It carries the same meaning,
Meaning that between a person and it lies this barrier;
Once he overcomes it, he enters it.
Desires:
Meaning the worldly things one finds pleasurable,
Which the Sacred Law has forbidden one to engage in.
Included in this are doubtful matters.
Hardships:
Meaning what the morally responsible person is commanded
To struggle against his own self to perform or avoid,
Such as performing acts of worship properly,
Maintaining them,
And abstaining from forbidden things in speech and action.
Among the benefits of the hadith:
The cause of falling into desires
Is Satan’s beautification of the reprehensible and the ugly,
Until the soul perceives it as good,
And thus inclines toward it.
The soul may dislike things,
While they contain much good.
As the Almighty said:
"Fighting has been enjoined upon you,
While it is hateful to you."
"And it may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you."
“Warfare is ordained for you, though it is hateful unto you; but it may happen that ye hate a thing which is good for you, and it may happen that ye love a thing which is bad for you. Allah knoweth, ye know not.” (2:216)
"And Allah knows, while you know not."
One must struggle against the soul,
And wean it away from its desires and habits.
The Fire and Paradise are already existing and created.
Riyad al-Salihin.