Man was created solely for the purpose of fulfilling ubudiyyah to Allah. Ubudiyyah is a comprehensive term that asserts the meaning of the verse “ Only You we worship and only You we ask for help.” Al-Fatihah:5. It comprises the slavery of the heart, tongue and limbs to Allah. Ubudiyyah is the purpose while seeking help from Allah is the means to attain it. This purpose of man’s life is fulfilled not by following man’s desires and opinions but by following the rules(ahkam) and Syari‘ah (prescribed path) of Allah. This is the path of salvation which frees the heart from the misery of slavery towards created beings.
A heart in ubudiyyah is one that is nearest and most beloved to Allah. In the journey to Allah, there are stations the heart is expected to attain in order to fulfill ubudiyyah. What is meant by ‘station’ is a praiseworthy quality that the heart has succeeded in acquiring through personal struggle with the help of Allah. Each constant quality of the heart will externalize itself in a person’s words and actions. There will appear in the tongue and limbs actions which show the presence of a certain state of the heart. Take for example, sabr. It may begin by the heart ‘experiencing’ this state of sabr for certain moments but through persistent inner struggle, it becomes more rooted and becomes a constant quality which constitutes one’s character(akhlaq). Sabr will then be manifested naturally and effortlessly as external deeds of the tongue and limbs. The Prophet PBUH said: “ Indeed knowledge is acquired by learning it and patience(sabr) is acquired by imposing it upon oneself.” (declared sound (hasan) by alBani Silsilah al Sahihah)
Proximity and being far from Allah are not matters of distance, rather they are meanings pertaining to one being favoured with acceptance or deprived by being unaccepted by Allah. How close a person is to Allah depends on the attributes or qualities of his heart which externalizes as his actions and deeds. Those who have been favoured with acceptance by Allah are the Prophets, the truthful, the righteous and the martyrs. None except the repenting heart realizes the deep meaning and relevancy of the powerful du‘a: “ Show us the right path, the path of those whom You have favoured, not those who have earned Your wrath and those who have gone astray.” Surah al-Fatihah:6-7.
The first station or quality of the heart is tawbah (repentance) without which the journey will never begin. It is a constant state of a believer’s heart which accompanies him throughout his journey to Allah. His need for tawbah supersedes every other need. Allah has made tawbah the cause for a believer’s success.
What brings the heart to the station of repentance? It is primarily ‘ilm (knowledge). In the context of repentance, knowledge generates fear and muhasabah which are the two prerequisites for repentance.
When knowledge has penetrated the heart, the first fruit is fear of Allah. Allah says in the Quran regarding fear: “Verily the ones who fear Allah from among My slaves are those with knowledge.” Surah Fatir:28. Knowledge which does not give fruit to fear of Allah is merely information stored in the brain.
The Quran is the primary source of knowledge. When a man opens his heart to listen to the word of God and ponders upon its meaning, this miracle will find a way into his heart. Indeed the Quran is Nuur: a spiritual light which gives life to the spiritual heart. A light which will synchronize with the light of the fitrah ( natural disposition) of man. It is this ‘light upon light’ which empowers the heart’s ability to ‘see’ , ‘hear’ and understand. This is the intelligence and wisdom of the heart.
Understanding the Quran generates awareness of the perfection of the Creator and reveals the actual reality of the created beings in contrast to Him. Only when blessed with the light of wisdom can we see the ugliness and lowliness of the nafs in us and realize how unjustly we have behaved towards Allah Ar-Rahman Ar-Rahim. How kind and good our Master has been to us and how evil and ungrateful we have been. This is the act of careful and sincere introspection of oneself. Indeed, it creates a realization which generates pain, regret, sorrow and grief for past sins. The burning regret (nadamun mukhrik) should be accompanied by a strong resolve (azamun muhqiq) not to return to the sin. These are the internal indicators of tawbah.
The external indicators of tawbah include eyes dripping with tears when alone with Allah; being more watchful towards every motion of the nafs; performing more righteous deeds and refraining from sins; and being more careful of the use of the tongue, stomach and external organs. Indeed tawbah increases our fear of Allah. It clears our hearts so that we have better vision of our faults and imperfections. Our sins become more discernible and thus leading us to more frequent and intense tawbah.
Allah commands the believers to repent from their sins. Sins are violation of the rights of God or the rights of creatures or both. The lowly nafs always lead men to sin except by the mercy of Allah. The imperfections of the nafs are due to the ailments of shirk, kufr, nifaq, kibr, ujub, riyaa, hasad, ghaflah, ignorance, greed, attachment to dunya, love of shahwah and so on. Scholars mention at least a hundred of them. They differ in number and severity in each person and will be externalised in his conduct and behaviour.
“ And repent all of you to Allah, O believers, in order that you become successful.” An-Nuur:31
“Those who do not repent they are the unjust (dzalimun).” Al-Hujurat:11
Allah made tawbah a cause for success and the command was phrased with a note of optimism. None is optimistic for success except those who are in constant repentance, from the beginning of their journey to the end. O Allah, make us of the at-tawwabin. Allah defined those who do not repent as dzalimun. Continuously living in a state of unawareness and ma’siyah is dzulm (injustice). There is no one more unjust to himself than the one who is unaware and ignorant of the Creator, His rights, the imperfections of one’s own nafs and consequently of one’s deeds. And dzulm is haram. Therefore, tawbah is wajib (obligatory). The Prophet SAW asked forgiveness and repented more than seventy times a day.
To the general people, tawbah must be done purely out of the fear (khauf) of Allah. The more we understand His Attributes of power and might, the more we fear His wrath and punishment and the more intense will our repentance be. Our repentance must not be driven by the desire to seek the approval of people, or due to status quo, or because we can no longer commit the sins due to unfavorable external conditions or a physical handicap in us.The tawbah must emanate from an inner urge in us which is the fear of Allah and His Punishment.
The second type of tawbah is of a higher level experienced by those with greater ‘ilm of Allah. As he realizes the Rahmah, Beauty and Majesty of Allah at a more advanced level in his heart, he develops the feeling of humility, shame and modesty towards Allah. This is hayaa (modesty) which is so strong in the Prophet SAW. The realization of the perfection of the Creator and the awareness of being watched by this “Perfection” is so overwhelming. How could one with hayaa of Allah possibly do an act internally or externally against the intent of the Creator? The meter of the heart is so sensitive, calibrated to such high precision, it can detect an atom’s size of deviation from the path of worship.
How soothing it is to the broken heart to know that The Master has love(hubb) for the ‘abd who constantly repents. So powerful is the incentive captured in the meaning of His words: “ Indeed, Allah has hubb (love) for the tawwabin (those who are steady and constant in their tawbah)...” Al-Baqarah:222.
The Most Forgiving Master is the One who accepts tawbah. He loves with an unequal compassion, generosity and mercy the ‘abd whose heart is continuously in the state of repentance. The ‘abd who, throughout the journey, is conscious of the purity of his heart and is always cleansing it with tawbah.
Adapted and compiled. Please refer to Imam Ibnul Qayyim Madarij as-Saalikin volume 1 and Imam al-Ghazali Ihyaa Ulumuddeen for further reading. Wallahua’lam. Astaghfirullah.
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