Before Prophethood (2/2)

Lessons To Be Learned

A researcher may learn the following lessons from studying the events described above:

1. That the more highly-regarded a daa'iyah or social reformer is among his people, the more likely the people will listen to him. People usually look down on callers and reformers if they are of humble origins or modest background. But if there comes to them one whose noble birth or whose family's social status they cannot deny, they will not be able to say anything about him but lies and fabrications which they will take as an excuse not to listen to him or heed his call. Hence, the first thing that Heraclius asked Abu Sufyaan, after the Prophet had sent a letter to Heraclius calling him and his people to Islam, was: "What is his lineage amongst you?" Abu Sufyaan answered, although at that time he was still a mushrik, "He is one of the noblest of us in lineage." When Heraclius had finished questioning Abu Sufyaan and had listened to his answers, he explained to him why he had asked him these questions about Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him). Heraclius said: "I asked you what his lineage was amongst you, and you said that he was one of the noblest of you in lineage. That is because God never chooses a Prophet except from among the noblest of his people and the best in lineage."

It is true that Islam does not give any weight to nobility of descent when it comes to deeds, but this does not mean that there is no connection between noble descent and noble deeds. The higher a person's status, the more chance there is of success, as the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said according to a saheeh hadith:

"The best among you during the Jaahiliyah are the best among you in Islam, if they understand properly."

2. If the daa'iyah goes through the pain of being an orphan or suffering hardship when he is young, that will make him more sensitive to noble humane feelings, and he will be filled with compassion and mercy towards the orphans, the poor and persecuted; he will strive harder to be just to these groups and show mercy and compassion towards them. Every daa’iyah needs a large amount of noble humane emotions that will make him feel the pain of the weak and wretched. There is nothing better than suffering in his own life to give him the feelings of the orphans, poor and needy.

3. The closer the daa’iyah s lifestyle is to the fitrah (nature) and the further away he is from a complex lifestyle, the more pure, and strong will be his mind, body and soul, and the more sound is his speech and thinking. Hence, it was not by chance that Allah chose the Arabs to bring the message of Islam, because, in comparison to the neighbouring civilized nations, they were purer in spirit, sounder in thinking, more proper in morals, and more able to endure the hardships of war for the sake of Allah and spreading His message throughout the world.

4. No one is qualified to lead the da’wah except one who is intelligent and alert. So those of low or average intelligence are the least deserving of leading the intellectual reform or spiritual movement. Rather, it is one of the laws of life that no one who is dull-witted or confused in his thinking or hold weird views will be able to lead in any field of life with any degree of success. If by chance or circumstance such a person attains a position of leadership, he will quickly falter and his people will shun him, after his actions demonstrate his stupidity, oddness or confused thinking.

5. The daa'iyah must be able to depend on himself to earn a living, or have a decent source of income, without begging or humiliating himself in any way.

Sincere and noble daa'iyahs, do not accept to live on people's charity and gifts. What respect can they have from their people if they humiliate themselves by begging and asking from people, even if they do not do that openly? If we find a person who claims to be a daa'iyah accumulating wealth from people through all kinds of deceit, then we may be certain that he has no self-respect, so how must his people and his neighbours view a person who accepts humiliation for himself? How can he call people to noble characteristics and conduct, and confront false and corrupt rulers, and fight evil and immorality, and spread the noble spirit of righteousness among the ummah?

6. If the daa'iyah is righteous during his youth and has lived a good life, this is more likely to bring him success in his efforts to call people to Allah, reform their morals and fight evil. For there will be no one who can criticize his personal conduct before he began his da’wah work. We often see that when people undertake da’wah (call, preaching) and reform efforts, especially in the field of moral reform, one of the most off-putting factors is when people remember their immoral past and previous bad behaviour. This ill-spent past may make people doubt the sincerity of such daa'iyahs, who may be accused of hiding behind the reform effort for ulterior motives, or of not starting to call for reform until they had had their fill of the pleasures of life, and because of their circumstances or their age they no longer had any hope of continuing to have the worldly gains, wealth, fame or status that they previously enjoyed.

But in the case of the daa'iyah who was righteous during his youth, he can continue to hold his head high with a clear conscience. The enemies of reform will not find any way to criticize him for his recent or more distant past; they will not find in his past any grounds for exposing him or calling people to look down on him.

Yes, Allah accepts the repentance of the one who repents to Him sincerely, and He erases his past evil deeds with his present good deeds, but this does not benefit the daa'iyah who wants to succeed in his da’wah, who could have hoped for greater success if he had a better past and a better reputation.

7. If the daa'iyah has the experience of travel, living with the masses and becoming familiar with the people's customs, circumstances and problems, this will have a great impact on the success of his da’wah. Those who interact with people through books and articles without mixing with people of different backgrounds are doomed to failure in their calls for reform. The people will not listen to them or respond to their call, because they will see that they know nothing about their circumstances and their problems. Whoever wants to bring about reform among religious people has to mix with them in their mosques, gatherings and meetings. Whoever wants to bring about reform among the workers and peasants has to mix with them in their villages and factories, eat with them in their houses, and speak to them in their meetings. Whoever wants to reform the people's interactions with one another has to mix with them in their marketplaces, shops, factories, clubs and gatherings. Whoever wants to reform politics must mix with politicians and get to know their organizations, listen to their speeches, read their manifestoes and agendas, then get used to the environment in which they operate, their cultural background and the aims which they are striving to reach, so that he will know how to address them without putting them off, and how to aim his reform efforts, so that they will not resist him because of personal dislike or emotional reasons.

So the daa'iyah must have some experience of life and some knowledge of people's affairs, so that he will be able to fulfil the command of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He)

"Invite [mankind, O' Muhammad] to the way of your Lord [i.e. Islam] with wisdom [i.e. with the Divine Revelation and the Quran] and fair preaching..." (Quran, Surah An-Nahl, 16: 125)

How wonderful is the advice to,

"Address people according to their intellectual level; do you want Allah and His Messenger to be rejected?"[1]

8. The daa'iyah who wants to call people to Allah should spend time alone every now and then, when his soul may make contact with Allah and he can keep away from all the things that may upset him such as bad attitudes, the stress of life and disturbances around him. During such times of solitude, he should take stock of himself and see if he has fallen short in doing good, or deviated in any way, or failed to follow the wisest course, or made a mistake in his method or way, or indulged in arguments with some people to such an extent that he forgot to remember Allah and feel close to Him, remember the Hereafter with its Paradise and its Hell, together with death and its suffering and agonies. Hence tahajjud and qiyaam al-layl (prayers at night) were made obligatory for the Prophet (Peace be upon him), and they are mustahabbat (recommended) for others. Those who should be most eager to perform these nafl prayers are the daa'iyahs who seek to call people to Allah and His shari'ah and Paradise.

Solitude, tahajjud and standing to worship Allah in the depths of the night bring joy which no one knows except those whom Allah honours with these acts of worship. Ibraheem ibn Adham (may Allah have mercy on him) used to say after doing these prayers, "We are experiencing joy which if the kings were aware of it, they would fight us for it."

It is sufficient for us to note the words that Allah addressed to the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him):

"O' you wrapped in garments [i.e. Prophet Muhammad]! Stand [to pray] all night, except a little — Half of it or a little less than that, Or a little more. And recite the Qur’an [aloud] in a slow [pleasant tone and] style. Verily We shall send down to you a weighty Word [i.e. obligations, laws]. Verily the rising by night [for Tahajjud prayer] is very hard and most potent and good for governing oneself and most suitable for [understanding] the Word [of Allah] '." (Quran, Surah Al-Muzzammil, 73: 1-6)