Assalamu Alaikum,
Allaah – the Most High – says:
“But He will call you to account for what your hearts have earned.†(2:225)
“The day when neither wealth nor children will be of any avail, except he who comes to Allaah with a clean and pure heart.†(79:88-89)
The Prophet (sall-Allaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said:
“Indeed there is a piece of flesh in the body; if it is sound, then all of the body is sound. However, if it is diseased, then all of the body is diseased. Truly that is the heart.†[1]
Al-Haafidh ibn Rajab (d.795H) – rahimahullaah – said:
“So hearts will not be corrected until the ma’rifah of Allaah - being in awe of Him, loving Him, fearing Him, relying and trusting in Him, hoping in Him - is firmly implanted in them. This is the reality of Tawheed and the meaning of the statement Laa ilaaha illallaah (None has the right to be worshipped except Allaah). So the hearts cannot be corrected until Allaah is made the ilaah (deity) to be known, loved, feared and hoped for; and that He becomes the only deity (ilaah) worthy of this - without associating any partners with Him in this. So know that the world - whatever is above and whatever is below in the waters - will not be corrected, except when the actions of its people are all for Allaah’s sake. Since the actions of the body follow from the actions and intentions of the heart, then when the heart’s actions and intentions are only to Allaah alone, then it is corrected, and all the actions of the body will likewise be corrected. However, if the actions and intentions of the heart are directed to other than Allaah, then it is corrupted, and likewise, all the actions of the body will be corrupted in proportion to how much the heart has been corrupted.†[2]
Indeed, we may begin to appreciate the greatness of Allaah – the Most High – and being in awe of Him, by considering some narrations regarding what He – the Most High – has created. The Prophet (sall-Allaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said:
“Indeed I see what you do not see and hear what you do not hear. Heaven has groaned, and it has a right to do so. By Him in whose Hand is my soul! There is not in the heaven a space equivalent to four fingers, except that an Angel has prostrated his forehead to Allaah in it. If you knew what I know, you would laugh little and weep a lot, and you would not take delight in women in their beds, but rather you would go to the wilderness and implore Allaah for help.†[3]
He (sall-Allaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said:
“The Seven Heavens compared to the Kursee (the Chair) is like a ring which is thrown into the desert. And such is the magnitude of the ’Arsh (the Throne of Allaah) compared with the Kursee.†[4]
He (sall-Allaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said:
“I have been given permission to relate to you about the Angels of Allaah – the Most High – that carry the ‘Arsh (Throne). Between one of the Angels ear and shoulder is the distance of a seven hundred year journey.†[5]
And he (sall-Allaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) said:
“Al-Baytul-Ma‘moor is the seventh heaven (directly above the Ka’bah). Each day seventy-thousand Angels enter it, and they will not return until the Day of Resurrection.†[6]
So, “the need of the servants for this (type of) knowledge is greater than every other need; and it is the most necessary of all things for them, since there is no life for the hearts, nor any delight, nor any tranquillity, except through knowing their Lord, the Only One who deserves to be worshipped, their Creator – with His Names, His Attributes and His Actions, and that He – along with all of that – is more beloved to the person than anything else. So man’s striving is with regards to everything that will draw him nearer to Allaah, to the exclusion of the creation. So the people who know Allaah the best, are the one who best follow the way to Him, and know best what lies at the end of the way.†[7]
Salam
