Counsel in Fives

[1] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) was reported to have said, “The one who mocks five will lose five – the one who mocks scholars will lose his Religion (din); the one who mocks rulers will lose this life (dunya); the one who mocks his neighbours will lose their compassion; and the one who mocks his family will lose the joy of living.”

[2] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There will come a time for my ummah when they will love five things and forget five things – they will love this life (dunya) and forget the life to come; they will love property and forget the grave; they will love wealth and forget the [Day of] Judgement; they will love their children and forget the truth; and they will love themselves and forget Allah. They have nothing to do with me and I have nothing to do with them.”

[3] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allah does not give someone five things until He has prepared another five things for him – He does not give him gratitude except that He has prepared for him an increase [in provision and sustenance], He does not give him supplication (du’a’) except that He has prepared its award; He does not give him the asking for forgiveness (istighfar) except that He has prepared for him forgiveness; He does not give him the asking for repentance except that He has prepared for him acceptance; and He does not give him charity except that He has prepared for him its reward.”

[4] Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (radyAllahu`anhu) said, “Darkness is of five types and its lamps are five – love of the dunya is a darkness and its lamp is God-consciousness; sins are a darkness and their lamp is repentance; the grave is a darkness and its lamp is: ‘There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah’; the Hereafter is a darkness and its lamp a righteous actions; and the path is a darkness and its lamp is certitude.”

[5] ‘Umar (radyAllahu ‘anhu) said, “If it were not claiming to know the unseen, I would bear witness that these five types of people will surely be from the people of Paradise – the poor man who has to support a large family; a wife whose husband is pleased with her; the woman who gives her dowry to her husband, considering it as an act of charity; the one whose parents are pleased with him; and the one who repents from sins.”

[6] ‘Uthman (radyAllahu ‘anhu) said, “The signs of a God-conscious person are five– the first is that he does not sit except with someone who is concerned for the Religion and has control over his sexual desires and tongue; if a great fortune befalls him from the dunya he deems it a trial; if he finds a practice to be from the Religion he clings to it, though it may seem insignificant; he does not fill his stomach with the halal fearing that haram may be mixed with it; and he supposes that all of the people will be saved and that his soul will perish.”

[7] ‘Ali (radyAllahu ‘anhu) said, “Were it not for five things all of mankind would have been righteous – contentment with ignorance, covetousness over this world (dunya), miserliness over what is surplus, insincerity in actions, and conceit over one’s opinions.”

[8] ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘As, may Allah be pleased with him and his father, said, “Five things, he who embodies them will be happy in this world and in the next – the first is to regularly say, ‘La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammadun rasulu Allah’ – There is no god but Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah; the second is to say when inflicted with a calamity, ‘Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji?un, wa la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahil ‘alliyyil ‘atheem’ – Verily we belong to Allah and to Him we shall all return, and there is no power or might except by the will of Allah the most High, the Mighty; the thirs is to say in gratitude when giving a blessing, ‘Al-hamdu lillahi rabbil ‘alamin’ – Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Universe; the fourth is to say when beginning anything, ‘Bismillahir rahmanir rahim’ – In the name of Allah the most Merciful the most Kind; and the fifth is to say upon committing a sin, ‘Astaghfiru Ilahil ‘atheema wa atubu ilayh’ – I seek the forgiveness of Allah the Greatest and I repent to Him.”

[9] Al-Hasan al-Basri said, “In the Torah are written five lessons – wealth is contentment, safety is in seclusion, dignity is in rejecting desires, enjoyment is in long days (in the Hereafter), and patience is in a few days (in the dunya).”

[10] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Make us of five before five – your youth before old age, your health before your sickness, your wealth before your poverty, your life before your death, and your free time before your preoccupation.”

[11] Yahya ibn Mu’adh al-Razi said, “He whose appetite increases, his corpulence will increase; he whose corpulence increases, his desires will increase; he whose desires increase, his sins will increase; he whose sin increase, the hardness of his heart will increase; and he whose heart becomes hard will drown in the pitfalls of the dunya and in attractions.”

[12] Sufyan al-Thawri said, “The poor have chosen have five things and the rich have chosen five others – the poor have chosen serenity of the soul, freedom from worries, worship of the Lord, ease of accountability and the highest position. The rich have chosen weariness of the soul, preoccupation with worries, worship of the dunya, severity in accountability, and the lowest position.”

[13] ‘Abdullah al-Antaki said, “Five things are from the remedies of the heart – sitting with the righteous, reading the Qur’an, emptiness of the stomach, standing at night [in prayer], and supplicating at dawn,”

[14] The majority of the scholars have agreed that, “Contemplation is of five types – contemplating Allah’s signs results in affirming the oneness of Allah (Tawhid) and in conviction; contemplating Allah’s blessings results in loving Allah; contemplating Allah’s promise [of reward and paradise for the good-doers] results in creating a desire to do good; contemplating Allah’s punishment results in fear and awe of Him; and contemplating one’s shortcomings in obedience despite Allah’s blessings and mercy towards oneself results in a sense of shame and humility.”

[15] An ascetic said, “There are five obstacles to attaining God-consciousness (taqwa), and only the one who overcomes these will attain it – choosing hardship over ease, exertion over rest, lowliness over pride, silence over idle talk, and death over life.”

[16] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “Discreetness safeguards secrets, charity safeguards wealth, sincerity safeguards good deeds, truthfulness safeguards speech, and consultation safeguards opinions.”

[17] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “In the gathering of wealth there are five [blameworthy] things – wearing oneself out in gathering it; neglecting the remembrance (dhikr) of Allah in preserving it; fear of robbers and thieves; being labelled a miser on account of it; and leaving the company of the righteous due to it. In distributing one’s wealth to the poor there are five [praiseworthy] things – ease of mind due to abandoning its amassing; having time to remember Allah rather than worrying about preserving it; safety from robbers and thieves; gaining the title of ‘generous’; and accompanying the righteous due to leaving it behind.”

[18] Sufyan al-Thawri said, “No one in this age amasses wealth except that he has five traits – the delusion that his lifespan will be long, overpowering greed, intense miserliness, lack of piety, and forgetfulness of the Hereafter.”

[19] A poet said:

“O you who seeks the hand of the dunya in marriage! Know that she has a new lover everyday

She takes a husband now, yet gives herself at the same time to another elsewhere

She only accepts lovers so that she may kill them in her bosom one by one

I have been fooled and the affliction is spreading in my body little by little

Ready yourself and take provisions for death, for the herald has called: ‘tis time to leave, ‘tis time to leave!”

[20] Hatim al-Asamm said, “Hastiness is from Satan except in five situations in which it is the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah to hasten – feeding the guest when he arrives; preparing the deceased for burial when he dies; marrying off the daughters when they reach the age of maturity; paying a debt when it is due; and making repentance from a sin as soon as it is committed.”

[21] Muhammad ibn al-Duri said, “The damnation of Iblis was due to five things– he did not acknowledge his sin, he did not regret it, he did not blame himself, he did not resolve to repent, and he lost hope in the mercy of Allah. The salvation of Adam was due to five things – he acknowledged his sin, he regretted it, he blamed himself, he hastened to repent, and he did not lose hope in the mercy of Allah.”

[22] Shaqiq al-Balkhi said, “Five precepts are obligatory upon you, so practice them – worship Allah to the extent that you need Him; take from the dunya to the extent of your stain in it; disobey Allah to the extent that you can bear His punishment; prepare provisions during the dunya to the extent of your stay in the grave; and work for Paradise to the extent of your desired rank in it.”

[23] ‘Umar (radyAllahu ‘anhu) said, ‘I have seen all types of friends but I never found a friend better than safeguarding the tongue, I have seen all types of clothes but I never found clothes better than God-consciousness, I have seen all types of wealth but I never found wealth better than contentment; I have seen all types of good deeds but I never found a good deed better than giving good advice; and I have seen all types of food and I never found food more delicious than patience.”

[24] An ascetic said, “Asceticism (zuhd) is in five things – confidence in Allah, independence from creatures, sincerity in actions, bearing oppression, and contentment with what one has in his hand.”

[25] During some of his supplications and entreaties, a devotee said, “O my Lord! Thinking that my lifespan will be long has deluded me, love of the dunya has destroyed me, Satan has misled me, the nafs that inclines to evil prevented me from abiding by the truth, my wicked companion helped me in disobedience, so save me O Helper of those who seek help! If You do not have mercy on me then who will?”

[26] The Prophet (salAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) said, “There will come a time for my ummah when they will love five things and forget five others – they will love this world (dunya) and forget the next world; they will love life and forget death; they will love palaces and forget the grave; they will love wealth and forget the [Day of] Account; and they will love creatures and forget the Creator.”

[27] Yahya ibn Mu’adh al-Razi said in his entreaties and supplication, “O my Lord! The night is only pleasant to me when I supplicate to You; the day is only pleasant to me when I obey You; the Hereafter will only be pleasant to me if I receive Your pardon; and Paradise will only be pleasant to me if I see You.”