1) Jannah Surrounded by Difficult ThingsRasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) said: “When Allah created Paradise, He said to Jibreel: ‘Go and look at it.’ Jibreel went and looked at it, then came and said: ‘O my Lord! By Thy might, no one who hears of it will fail to enter it.’ Allah then surrounded it with disagreeable things, and said: ‘Go and look at it, Jibreel.’ He went and looked at it, then came and said: ‘O my Lord! By Thy might, I am afraid that no one will enter it.’When Allah created Hell, He said: ‘Go and look at it, Jibreel.’ Jibreel went and looked at it, then came and said: ‘O my Lord! By Thy might, no one who hears of it will enter it. ‘Allah then surrounded it with desirable things and said: ‘Go and look at it, Jibreel.’ Jibreel went, looked at it, then came and said: ‘O my Lord! By Thy might and power, I am afraid that no one will remain who does not enter it.’ [Abu Daud]
Hellfire is surrounded by tempting things and sin appears attractive to us. On the other hand, Jannat is surrounded by difficult things such as sharing wealth, exercising self control and sacrifice. In school, for instance, we do not consider it fair to give the student who worked hard and did well the same grade as one who did not bother with his or her studies and failed. Similarly, Allah’s justice does not allow the compensation of the doer of evil and the doer of good to be the same either. It would not be fair for human beings to be given eternal life and eternal happiness without our having at least attempted to earn it.
2) A Goodness Through and ThroughRasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said: “Modesty is a virtue through and through, or said: Modesty is a goodness complete.” [Muslim]
Once the Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) passed by a man who was admonishing his brother regarding Haya and was saying, 'You are very shy, and I am afraid that might harm you.' On that, Allah's Apostle said, 'Leave him, for Haya is (a part) of Faith.' [Bukhari]
This hadith tells us that there is nothing bad about modesty. Therefore, if something is purely good, then however much you have of it, it can only be good for you. This is something to especially remember in these times when ‘moral’ and ‘modest’ are portrayed as ‘backward,’ ‘oppressed' and 'under-confident.’ A person with Haya does not show off his mind, body, or anything else. Haya is translated as modesty but it includes all of the following meanings as well: self respect, bashfulness, having scruples, having awareness of Allah. This word is a prime example of how much is lost in translation from Arabic to any other language.
3) A Dead Lamb Anyone?“Jabir b. Abdullah reported that Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) happened to walk through the bazaar coming from the side of 'Aliya and people were on both sides of him. There he found a dead lamb with very short ears. He took hold of its ear and said: ‘Who amongst you would like to have this for a dirham?’ They said: ‘We would not like to have it even for less than that as it is of no use to us.’ He said: ‘Do you wish to have it (free of any cost)?’ They said: ‘By Allah, even if it were alive (we would not have liked to possess it), for there is defect in it, as its ear is very short; on top of that it is dead now.’ Thereupon, Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) said: ‘By Allah, this world is more insignificant in the eyes of Allah than (this dead lamb) is in your eyes.’” [Muslim]
This hadith is a wonderful reminder of the insignificance of this world; yet how much we fret for it. Our worries for the things of this world should be more proportionate to their importance. We ask Allah (subhana wa ta'ala) to give us eternity, never ending life. On top of that we want it in a place better than we can possibly imagine. In it we expect to have youth for ever, no noise, nothing unpleasant, no worries. In this everlasting life, in Paradise, we also expect to get more beautiful and enjoy more luxuries with each passing day, although after the first day we cannot imagine that anything could be better. We expect never to be separated from our loved ones, or feel anything except positive emotions.
In return for this, when Allah (subhana wa ta'ala) asks us to obey Him for just 70-80 years, maybe a little more or a little less, we think it too much? He is asking you for a drop, while you are asking Him for the ocean!This hadith also illustrates what an exceptional teacher Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) was. We know what impact visual aids have. The more theoretical the words, the less of an impact they have, the more the thoughts can be translated into visuals or experiential, the more lasting its impact. Now we have educationists teaching us to use the same techniques that were employed by Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) as a teacher.
4) Sinning PubliclyRasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) said: “All of my ummah are apt to be forgiven, except for those who commit sins openly.” [Bukhari]
When a person commits a crime in public, justice demands that the criminal be punished. The purpose of punishment is that it acts as a deterrent. If a criminal is not punished, it provides an incentive to all would be criminals to go ahead.Similarly, so long as a sin is known only to the sinner and Allah, Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) may forgive it. But when sin is committed publicly, the punishment becomes incumbent on the sinner. Sinning publicly shows a person's insensitivity towards the enormity of what they are doing. Seeing sins taking place in public, also desensitizes other people to the sin, taking them one step closer to doing it themsleves. This is why, even if we are to find out about immoral activities happening, we should not broadcast them, for to do so would further spread evil in society.
5) Good In Every AffairRasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wasallam) said: “Strange are the ways of a believer for there is good in every affair of his, and this is not the case with anyone else except in the case of a believer: For if he has an occasion to feel delight, he thanks (Allah), thus there is good for him in it, and if he gets into trouble and shows resignation (enduring it patiently), there is good for him in it.” [Muslim]
A Muslim is thus truly blessed, regardless of the circumstances of his/her life. A non-Muslim considers himself fortunate only if he is healthy, wealthy, happy and more. But a Muslim is lucky all the time. This is because he/she is accruing reward for Jannah whether they are healthy or terminally ill, prosperous or needy, relaxing in palaces or rotting in jails. This is indeed a unique favour of Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) to his pious servants.
