Lecture No. 8
TOPIC: ISLAMIC
PRACTICES
Different Branches
of the Worship
1. Namaz
2. Roza
3. Zakat
4. Hajj
After this general discussion on
faith, we will talk at some length, on the four obligatory modes of worship,
Namaz, Roza, Zakat and Hajj: These items are included among the basic
fundamentals of Islam and are of exceptional importance to the religion.
These are the
pillars on which the whole edifice of faith is raised.
Namaz
Salah, (Namaz) is a particular way
of worshipping Allah and offering devotions to Him which Allah and His Prophet
(S.A.W) have taught us.
Among them the most outstanding is
the Namaz, The value of an article depends on the need it serves. The price of
a motor car is judged not by its color or shape but by the capacity to fulfill
the purpose for which it is meants,nor
is a buffalo sheep or deer according to the way it walks --- it is the
milk it yields that decides .So is Namaz pre –eminent because it plays the most
effective role in the realization of the objectives associated with worship
.This will also explain the numerous conditions that are attached to it e.g.,
the cleanliness of body , the cleanliness of dress, the cleanliness of the
ground on which it is offered and Wazu.
Further some forms of worship are
representative in particular of the Sovereignty and the Omnipotent Power of
God. By carrying them out the worshipper pays tribute to these qualities of the
Divine, making at the same time a confession of his own surrender and
servility. Zakat is a classical instance.
And then there are other forms that
are related more specially to the lovable adorable aspect of divinity .They
serve to symbolize the deep love and devotion of the adorer for the Adored, his
earnest yearning from Him, that He is his heart, soul and everything. The fasts
offer an excellent expression to this side of relationship between man and his
Creator by calling upon him to shun food and drink in the style of a dejected
love ,and so is the Haj a true symbol of love’s frenzy __ the strange dress ,
the curious rituals ,the walking round the House of Ka, aba with someone’s
thought delightfully embedded in the heart and the frantic kissing of a slab of
stone fixed in a corner of that beloved building, the wandering out into the
wilderness and staying there for days and nights __ all these things are there
but to portray the divine ecstasy, the sweet madness of love which in truth,
constitutes the real spirit of this unique pilgrimage.
But , Namaz is comprehensive of both
of these aspects .The dignified, yet respectful , presence before the Almighty
,the disciplined falling in line of the devotes , like lowly slaves ,and the
carrying out by them of fixed monuments in an orderly , systematic manner
demonstrate exquisitely the Over lordship ,the Power the sovereignty of God and
man’s total helplessness ,while the state of the heart , the feelings of
expectancy , of ardent hope and sublime devotion that work themselves up within
it during the prayers ,is typical of the tender emotion of love for the Divine
,The Prophet words ‘ In Namaz lies the coolness of my eyes “ are richly expressive
of the later aspect of the Namaz Often ,when the prayer time came the Prophet
would address his Muezzin Bilal in this loving manner : O Bilal ! Bring comfort
to my heart s soothe the agony that is rising with in is by giving the call to
prayer, It has been remarked by Hazrat Mujaddid Alf-Sani in one of his letters
that , Namaz is the balm for the aching beards . Bring me comfort O Bilal!
Conveys this truth and, the coolness of my eyes lies in Namaz, imparts this
secret.
It is reported that one day Hazrat
Abdul Wahid Lahori,a Khilafah , of Hazrat Mujaddid asked, Will there be Namaz
in the heaven ,The heaven is not the house of action , said someone ,It is the
house of recompense , Why should Namaz be there then ,On hearing it the Hazrat
b\observed with great anguish , How will it then be possible to live in the
heaven .
The tranquility and joy which people whose
Name is a real ,genuine one derive from it can further be imagined from the
following utterance of Hazrat Mujaddid , what Royat is in the Hereafter Namaz
is here in this world: there is great
nearness unto the Beloved in the world in Namaz as there is in the Royat in the
Hereafter.
The distinctive merit of the Namaz,
hence lies in this that it reflects fully the Sovereignty and Over lordship of
God as well as His lovability and Elegance, In its form it portrays the
complete submission of man to his Master, in its spirit it is filled altogether
with the essence of the joy, the tenderness and the rich melancholy of love .It
is Namaz alone which unites in itself so successfully the two seemingly
apposite aspects. And this fact, on its won should be enough t lift is above
the other modes of worship.
Zakat
Zakat is the name given in Islam to
that portion of money or wealth which, as per Allah’s command is given to the
poor and the needy so that they become the owners of it. In other words,
fasting and prayers are forms of bodily worship while Zakat is a form of
worship which is pecuniary in nature.
After the Namaz, the next in order
of preference among the fundamentals comes the Zakat. The basic function of
Zakat is the same as the of any other form of worship It is the seeking of God,
s pleasure and the cleansing and purification of the self. It is a patent fact that
, more frequently than not , sins and crimes have their origin in the lust for
wealth and the lust for power __ and between the tow ,the former is a more common malady .Zakat is
a means for breaking the force an the malignancy of the malady of lust for
wealth , In the Quran Zakat is often mentioned simultaneously with Namaz which
shows that it is almost equal to the latter in importance in the Islamic
organic station of worship , When after the death of the Prophet some of the
Arab tribes refused to pay the Zakat, the Caliph ,Hazrat.
·
The Namaz consist of a number of cyclic
parts each ending with two sajdas (touching of the ground with the forehead)
these parts is known as Rakatas- Translator.
·
The middle hour between sunrise and the
meridian- translator.
·
Tirmizi
·
Ibid
·
Abubakar, felt compelled to declare war
upon them and in taking that extreme step, he had the full support of the holy
companions. Sueh, in the word, is the importance of Zakat in Islam.
·
The
financial demands of the faith from its followers do not end with Zakat, they
extend further and assume many other forms, it is clearly stated in a tradition
that “Besides Zakat there are some other claims too, on wealth” these other
claims have been thoroughly enumerated by the theological doctors at their
proper place.
The manner in which the virtues of
spending in the way of god are extolled in the Quran and the various styles of
expressions that have been employed for the purpose go to confirm that it is an
indispensable constituent of faith. Yet universal as the indifference of
Muslims to their religion has come to be no where it is more evident than in
this particular sphere. people have become so selfish these days and the love
of money has grown so enormously among them that the practice of sharing one’s
wealth with a needy an indigent brother is disappearing fast from their midst
and even these who do so, a majority of them are guilty of gross carelessness
with respect to eth laws and regulations Divinely laid down for it, with the
consequence that they do not drive the full benefit from it as promised in the
Quran.
When Zakat is a fundamental
obligation like the Namaz, the desire should, naturally, be to discharge it
with equal care and ardency. A Zakat that is paid in an off-hand manner, without
the urge to make the most of it by paying scrupulous regard to all the relevant
rules and requirements, is akin to Namaz which is offered up in haste and without proper
attention lacking in both ,life and luster. Some of the ways of vesting the
Zakat with a greater inner content can be:
First, to get to know all the rules
and principles of Zakat and cultivate sincerity of purpose.
Second, to take good care to spend
it on what seem to be the most deserving and legitimate parties and objects,
that is, parties and objects in spending on which there is the hope of the
greatest reward from God.
Third, to hate the idea of having
bestowed any favour on the person to whom it is given away, nor to look down
upon him in any way on that account, but on the other hand, to feel genuinely
obliged to him because it was through his agency that one was enabled to acquit
oneself of the duty properly and well, and to acknowledge it ungrudgingly by
word and deed.
Fourth, to call up the convictions
to the mind, while giving away the Zakat, as in the case of Namaz, that God is
present here, there and everywhere, seeing all and observing everything: He is
watching this act of mine, as well as the intent that is operating behind it,
and it is in His presence and by His command that I am doing this little
service to a servant of His.
If the Zakat begins to be paid in
the manner and spirit indicated above, its beneficial results can be
experienced in this very existence; such abundance and prosperity will be
witnessed in trade and agriculture that men will be astounded.
Roza
Fasting means willing abstention
from eating, drinking and satisfaction of certain demands of the flash, from
predawn to sunset.
Arabic equivalents
for fasting are Saum and Siam. The breaking of the fast is known as If tar.
The third practical plank is the
Roza (or the fast). It is a most excellent means for the development of the
celestial element in our nature. It purges the self and is especially
beneficial for cultivating Divine virtues like contentment, alms endurance, and
piety. During the fast a person forges a special link with the Celestial World
by crushing down the animal appetites. but these results can be achieved only
when it is undertaken with all the solemnity of an aot of worship, the
instruction laid down in its context are sincerely obeyed and nothing is done
that may militate against the sanctity
of the deed. The first thing in this regard is to leave all sinful conduct
strictly alone, more particularly that which operation to the mouth and the
tongue. if this is not done, the fast will be bereft of all the spiritual
consequences. we say 5this on the authority of the tradition that “if a person
does not abstain from falsehood, deceit and perfidy while fasting, it is
immaterial to God that he goes without food and drink, and does hunger and
thirst” another tradition to the same effect reads, “Many are there among those
who keep the fasts that gain nothing from them except hunger and thirst”.
It follows, therefore, that our
ambition should be to obtain the maximum advantage from the fasts as from Namaz
and Zakat, in terms of our spiritual progress and evolution. What is required
for this, first and foremost, is to refrain from every thing that is forbidden,
including the Makroohat. The sins emanations from the mouth are particularly to
be guarded against, so much so that it is prohibited in the Tradition even to
shout or to talk in a loud voice during a fast. Conversely, the endeavor ought
to be to practice greater goodness and pay more attention to the deeds of
virtue during the period of fasting, especially to those that are associated
with the mouth. E.g. Zikr and Tilawat.
Hajj
There
exists a special relationship, a peculiar affinity, between the Prophet—and,
through him, between His Ummah—and Hazrat Abraham. The Hajj, in truth,
constitutes both in its form and essence, the symbolization of the latter’s
supreme devoutness and matchless submission to the Will of God.
And the idea underlying its ordainment is that
every Muslim who can afford to undertake the pilgrimage should, at least, once
in his life, betake himself to the place where the most glorious episode of
Hazrat Abraham’s life of utter dedication to his Creator had taken place, and
cast himself, for the time being, in the role of that superbly self—effacing,
all—sacrificing Friend of the Lord. He should give a practical proof of his
attachment to the path of that true friend, slave and devotee of the Devine,
and of his respectful devotion to the distinctive practices the Lord has
ordained for the occasion and create within himself the sincere urge to dye his
entire existence, inwardly as well as outwardly, in the hue of that august
patriarch and give his soul a chance to take in its share of the magnificent
spiritual glories of the place.
I shall dwell no further on the
essential beauty and richness of the Hajj because these can be understood
properly only when one experiences them personally during the course of the
pilgrimage. This much, however, I will certainly say that when, by the Grace of
God, you may decide to undertake the pilgrimage concentrate more on preparing
yourself inwardly and spiritually for it than on anything else. Sadly enough,
people bestow the greatest thought on the material comforts of the journey,
they even want to take with them such trivial articles as salt, pepper and
pickles and equip themselves with as many as ten suits of clothes—; they get
occupied with these preparations for months in advance but do nothing by way of
making themselves fit spiritually for the great occasion. The result is that
they gain nothing from it, and come back as they had gone. It is not that a
pilgrim is not allowed to furnish himself with material necessities before he sets
out for the pilgrimage—within a proper limit it is essential to do so—, but
these things do not make the real equipment for the Hajj. The real equipment
lies in getting oneself ready with all the information needed for the carrying
out of the duty and in the acquirement of that inner fitness which enable one
to receive the rich spiritual benefits accruing from it. An important part of
the endeavor to establish Hajj must be to create in the people’s minds an
awareness of this fact, without it, the Hajj will remain a soulless form and an
empty ceremony.
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