The
following is a brief summary of some of the key ideas and lessons I derived
from of a talk delivered by Shaykh Seraj Hendricks at the Zawiyah Institute in Cape Town, South Africa on the topic of Mi’raj on the
17/6/2012.
As muslims commerate the Prophet’s
(p.b.u.h) miraculous twin journey’s of the Isra and the Mi’raj, it is opportune
to reflect of some of the amazing character building lessons that flow from the
prophetic example.:
The magnanimity of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) is
poignantly illustrated in his du’a responding to the persecution and
humiliation by the people of Ta’if:
Following this, equally remarkable is his response to the offer of help that came in the form of the Angel of the Mountains. The prophet refused this indicating that “they did not know” and he prayed that their future off-spring would one day become true worshippers!
The following lessons may be extracted from these events:
1.
Despite the enmity
of the people of Ta’if the Prophet did not sever ties with them
2.
He made du’a for
them despite their disdain and castigation
3.
He made excuses
for their behaviour
4.
He remained
optimistic despite very bleak conditions and severe circumstances.
In addition, the following benchmarks of Adab need to be pursued in emulation of our Prophet (p.b.u.h) and in the ongoing struggle for self- purification:
·
When one experiences
suffering or hardship, not complain to people but complain to Allah (in the
right tone though)
·
Never to demand
that others should earn one’s respect – respect people unconditionally, as the
creation of the All-mighty. This is the default position of a muslim. Any such
a demand is a likely manifestation of Kibr.
·
Speak and act well
towards others – so as not to cause hurt. The fitrah (the primordial way,
endowed by Allah) is for human beings to avoid being pain in life, so we would
be transgressing this fitrah by inflicting pain on Allah’s creation.
·
Strive for
objectivity – to see things as they are. Without bias, prejudice, half-truths,
assumptions, generalisations, stereotyping, etc. This is what the prophet
demonstrated both in times of hardship and elevation ( e.g. The Mi’raj)
May Allah, The Most High, give us the wisdom and resilience to embrace these elements of the prophetic mindset and behaviour in confronting the many challenges facing the us in these turbulent times.
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