Whisper 25 : Words on Ambition

What should the life of a good Muslim man be like? Well, let's see what the Koran says about it.

"And We have commended unto man kindness toward parents. His mother beareth him with reluctance, and bringeth him forth with reluctance, and the bearing of him and the weaning of him is thirty months, till, when he attaineth full strength and reacheth forty years, he saith: My Lord! Arouse me that I may give thanks for the favor wherewith Thou hast favored me and my parents, and that I may do right acceptable unto Thee. And be gracious unto me In the matter of my seed. Lo! I have turned unto Thee repentant, and lo! I am of those who surrender (unto Thee). Those are they from whom We accept the best of what they do, and overlook their evil deeds. (They are) among the owners of the Garden. This is the true promise which they were promised (in the world)." (Al-Ahqaf : 15-16)

This implies that by the age of forty a man should be fulfilled, i.e., he should have a home, a wife and children, among other things. If we look around us, that's what we find. Most men marry and beget children even before the age of forty.

But what if a man reached forty years and yet had no home of his own, no wife, no children? Would that be a sign of failure, a curse, or what? In society, yes, that's a sign of failure. Why should a man be called a man if he could not start a family before the age of forty? There's certainly something wrong with him!

Now, what could be "wrong" with such a man? It could be a matter of money. It could be a matter of choice. In either case, the Koran says:

"And let those who cannot find a match keep chaste till Allah give them independence by His grace." (An-Nur : 33)

But for how long, one would ask? How long can a single man keep chaste? How long can a man keep hope?

Well, marriage is not the end of the road, to begin with. Many married men divorce their wives. Many married men complain about their children for various reasons. Many men don't have children in the first place.

So what if a man hastened to marry just to please society and then his wife turned out to be the wrong choice? How long would he tolerate that? What if he found just the right spouse, but then he failed to have children because he or she was barren? How long would he keep hope before he could be blessed with a child? Would he divorce his barren wife just to please society? Well, good men don't do that.

"A mention of the mercy of thy Lord unto His servant Zachariah. When he cried unto his Lord a cry in secret, Saying: My Lord! Lo! the bones of me wax feeble and my head is shining with grey hair, and I have never been unblest in prayer to Thee, my Lord. Lo! I fear my kinsfolk after me, since my wife is barren. Oh, give me from Thy presence a successor Who shall inherit of me and inherit (also) of the house of Jacob. And make him, my Lord, acceptable (unto Thee). (It was said unto him): O Zachariah! Lo! We bring thee tidings of a son whose name is John; We have given the same name to none before (him)." (Maryam : 2-6)

Why did Zachariah (pbuh) resort to du'a (invocations to God)? Why didn't he do just as Henry VIII of England ? He didn't do so because he believed that the fact that his wife was barren wasn't her fault, but rather a matter of Fate. He knew that getting married and begetting children were not personal achievements to pride oneself on, but rather a gift from God. That's why he said : "give me from Thy presence a successor ..." He knew that he could not force the hand of Fate.

"Unto Allah belongeth the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth. He createth what He will. He bestoweth female (offspring) upon whom He will, and bestoweth male (offspring) upon whom He will; Or He mingleth them, males and females, and He maketh barren whom He will. Lo! He is Knower, Powerful." (Ash-Shura : 49-50)

But did Zachariah (pbuh) really expect God to give him a son at such an old age? We don't know. All we know is that he sounded surprised to learn that he would get a son even now that he reached infirm old age!     

"He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren and I have reached infirm old age? He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me, even as I created thee before, when thou wast naught." (Maryam : 7-9)

That was not the first time such "a strange thing" happened. It had happened once before to Ibrahim (pbuh).

"They said: Be not afraid! Lo! we bring thee good tidings of a boy possessing wisdom. He said: Bring ye me good tidings (of a son) when old age hath overtaken me? Of what then can ye bring good tidings? They said: We bring thee good tidings in truth. So be not thou of the despairing. He said: And who despaireth of the mercy of his Lord save those who are astray?" (Al-Hijr : 53-56) 

"And his wife, standing by, laughed when We gave her good tidings (of the birth) of Isaac, and, after Isaac, of Jacob. She said: Oh, woe is me! Shall I bear a child when I am an old woman, and this my husband is an old man? Lo! this is a strange thing! They said: Wonderest thou at the commandment of Allah? The mercy of Allah and His blessings be upon you, O people of the house! Lo! He is Owner of Praise, Owner of Glory!" (Hud : 71-73)

For people like Zachariah and Ibrahim, the difference between believing and knowing doesn't matter much when it comes to matters of Faith. These people know what they believe in, and if they don't know, they ask questions while sticking to their belief.

"And when Abraham said (unto his Lord): My lord! Show me how Thou givest life to the dead, He said: Dost thou not believe? Abraham said: Yea, but (I ask) in order that my heart may be at ease. (His Lord) said: Take four of the birds and cause them to incline unto thee, then place a part of them on each hill, then call them, they will come to thee in haste. And know that Allah is Mighty, Wise." (Al-Baqara : 260)

"And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had withdrawn from her people to a chamber looking East, And had chosen seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our spirit and it assumed for her the likeness of a perfect man. She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the Beneficent One from thee, if thou art God fearing. He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless son. She said: How can I have a son when no mortal hath touched me, neither have I been unchaste! He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me. And (it will be) that We may make of him a revelation for mankind and a mercy from Us, and it is a thing ordained." (16-21)

The problem is not with those people. The problem is with us, with most of us--at least. We know for sure that it's only God Who can decide our fate, and yet we don't want to believe in that--just out of arrogance. We continue to disbelieve in what we know is the Truth until we get caught in a situation where we give up our arrogance and burst into tears and prayers, imploring God to save us.

"He it is Who maketh you to go on the land and the sea till, when ye are in the ships and they sail with them with a fair breeze and they are glad therein, a storm wind reacheth them and the wave cometh unto them from every side and they deem that they are overwhelmed therein; (then) they cry unto Allah, making their faith pure for Him only; If Thou deliver us from this, we truly will be of the thankful. Yet when He hath delivered them, behold! they rebel in the earth wrongfully. O mankind! Your rebellion is only against yourselves. (Ye have) enjoyment of the life of the world; then unto Us is your return and We shall proclaim unto you what ye used to do." (Yunus : 22-23)

"Hast thou not seen how the ships glide on the sea by Allah's grace, that He may show you of His wonders? Lo! therein indeed are portents for every steadfast, grateful (heart). And if a wave enshroudeth them like awnings, they cry unto Allah, making their faith pure for Him only. But when He bringeth them safe to land, come of them compromise. None denieth Our signs save every traitor ingrate." (Luqman : 31-32)
 
"And when harm toucheth you upon the sea, all unto whom ye cry (for succour) fail save Him (alone), but when He bringeth you safe to land, ye turn away, for man was ever thankless. Feel ye then secure that He will not cause a slope of the land to engulf you, or send a sandstorm, upon you, and then ye will find that ye have no protector? Or feel ye secure that He will not return you to that (plight) a second time, and send against you a hurricane of wind and drown you for your thanklessness, and then ye will not find therein that ye have any avenger against Us?" (Al-Isra : 67-69)

"Say: Can ye see yourselves, if the punishment of Allah come upon you or the Hour come upon you, calling upon other than Allah? Do ye then call (for help) to any other than Allah? (Answer that) if ye are truthful.  Nay, but unto Him ye call, and He removeth that because of which ye call unto Him, if He will, and ye forget whatever partners ye ascribed unto Him." (Al-An'am : 40-41)

Now, where does our arrogance come from? It comes from our desire to show off. We want to show people around us that we are self-independent, we are the best. We want the world to know that we got our job because, as they say, "one Scotsman's worth 3 Englishmen". Idem for one's spouse. Idem for one's children. Idem for one's fortune. It's all the fruit of our ambition. It's all a matter of merit.

By the way, wasn't Zachariah (pbuh) an ambitious man? Wasn't Ibrahim (pbuh) an ambitious man? Well, the answer would depend on what we mean by ambition! If ambition means the desire to attain glory, power, social success, etc., I don't think Zachariah (pbuh) and Ibrahim (pbuh) were that kind of person to have such a desire. If ambition means aspiration for a noble goal, a strong will to please God (and save humanity from evil) with deeds that would continue even after one's death, then, definitely, there's no doubt Zachariah (pbuh) and Ibrahim (pbuh) were just that kind of men. And that's what God wants good Muslim men to be like. How? Well, let's see this first:

"Or deemest thou that the People of the Cave and the Inscription are a wonder among Our portents? When the young men fled for refuge to the Cave and said: Our Lord! Give us mercy from Thy presence and shape for us right conduct in our plight, And in like manner We disclosed them (to the people of the city) that they might know that the promise of Allah is true, and that, as for the Hour, there is no doubt concerning it. When (the people of the city) disputed of their case among themselves, they said: Build over them a building; their Lord knoweth best concerning them. Those who won their point said: We verity shall build a place of worship over them." (...) "And say not of anything: Lo! I shall do that tomorrow, Except if Allah will. And remember thy Lord when thou forgettest, and say: It may be that my Lord guideth me unto a nearer way of truth than this." (Al-Kahf : 9-24) "And (it is said) they tarried in their Cave three hundred years and add nine. Say: Allah is best aware how long they tarried. His is the Invisible of the heavens and the earth. How clear of sight is He and keen of hearing! They have no protecting friend beside Him, and He maketh none to share in His government." (Al-Kahf : 25-26)

See? These good young men left the city (with all its glamour) and took refuge in a cave. And it is clear from those verses above that God liked these young men. And yet God did not look at what these young men had "achieved" in their lives (or at what they looked liked). ("And thou wouldst have deemed them waking thou they were asleep, and we caused them to turn over to the right and the left, and their dog stretching out his paws on the threshold. If thou hadst observed them closely thou hadst assuredly turned away from them in flight, and hadst been filled with awe of them." (Al-Kahf : 18)) God rather looked at what was in these young men's hearts. God praised what was in the young men's hearts and did not praise "the achievements" of their people back in the city--just as the Queen of Sheba did not praise Suleiman for the wonders of his palace, but praised God instead. It was not the Queen's eyes that spoke (when "It was said unto her: Enter the hall. And when she saw it she deemed it a pool and bared her legs. (Solomon) said: Lo! it is a hall, made smooth, of glass. She said: My Lord! Lo! I have wronged myself, and I surrender with Solomon unto Allah, the Lord of the Worlds." (An-Naml : 44)), but it was rather her heart that uttered those words of truth. That's why the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: "Allah does not look at your bodies nor does he look at your images, but He looks into your hearts." The true "civilisation" is in the hearts of people, not in their buildings and constructions. The true power is in the hearts, not in the bodies. 

"He said: O chiefs! Which of you will bring me her throne before they come unto me, surrendering? A stalwart of the Jinn said: I will bring it thee before thou canst rise from thy place. Lo! I verily am strong and trusty for such work. One with whom was knowledge of the Scripture said: I will bring it thee before thy gaze returneth unto thee. And when he saw it set in his presence, (Solomon) said: This is of the bounty of my Lord, that He may try me whether I give thanks or am ungrateful. Whosoever giveth thanks he only giveth thanks for (the good of) his own soul: and whosoever is ungrateful (is ungrateful only to his own soul's hurt). For lo! my Lord is Absolute in independence, Bountiful." (An-Naml : 38-40)

But does this mean that God wants good men to be wretched homeless people going around begging disbelievers on the street? Does God want good men to live in caves, far away from towns and cities? No, far from it. 

Innocent Whispers