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Arrogance!
No Go!
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By
Naseema Mall
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20 Feb, 2006
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Most
of the time, people naturally do not like to be criticized, nor
do they like to be accused of being ignorant. But some people
are arrogant and some people enjoy criticizing others. In Islam,
arrogance is completely unacceptable and was the first sin ever
committed when Iblis (Satan) refused to obey Allah's command to
bow down to Prophet Adam (peace be upon him): [And (remember)
when We said to the angels: "Prostrate to Adam". So
they prostrated except Iblis. He was one of the Jinns; he
disobeyed the command of His Lord] (Al-Kahf 17:50).
But
is criticism always bad? Not necessarily so, if it is
constructive criticism and its aim is to offer useful advice
intended to help or improve something and not to insult or
deliberately hurt a person's feelings.
If
you think about it, there is no point in being arrogant. After
all, we are all created from clay, and we are all going to die
and be judged by Allah. And if some people think they have a
right to be arrogant because, for example, they possess more
material wealth, then none of their wealth will follow them to
the hereafter. In fact, the more one has, the more one will be
held accountable for.
Some
people may feel that they are humble simply because they feel
they are religious. However, did you know that the worst type of
arrogance is when you consider yourself to be more religious
than others?
So
how can we try to be humble? Well, first we should make du`aa'
to Allah to protect us from arrogance and to keep us humble. We
should bear in mind that humility means that you:
Think
about the above. Could you easily accept someone's apology?
Could you handle criticism if it was the truth? And if you think
that Allah owes you something for worshiping Him, then you
should remember that we worship Him for our benefit, not His,
because Allah has no needs.
Perhaps
you are wondering, "shouldn't I feel a sense of achievement
when I do well in my exams or sports, or feel happy when I'm
with my friends?" Naturally, when we do well at something,
we feel confident and excited, and the adrenalin runs through
our body. Sure, we should feel confident and happy, as long as
we constantly bear in mind that all the good things in our lives
are a favor to us from Allah and are a blessing. We should also
remember that we should ask only Allah for the good things we
want in our lives.
Fortunately,
when we ask Allah for anything we want, we don't have to go
through an intermediary. We can ask Him directly! That is the
beauty of salah. Isn't it amazing that when we supplicate
to Allah, especially when we want something, that we don't have
to make an appointment? Allah is always there for us.
Supplication is the essence of worshiping Allah because it is an
acknowledgement that He is the only One Who can do anything for
us. If you're wondering, "How come I don't always get what
I ask for?" then keep in mind the following when you
supplicate to Allah:
When
you supplicate to Allah, you should be in a state of purity,
humility, and sincerity. While we can supplicate to Allah any
time we want, it would be best to try and select proper timings,
if possible, like during the last third of the night before
dawn, or while prostrating and immediately after salah
while you still feel close to Allah.
When
you supplicate, have complete faith and confidence that Allah
will respond.
Read
More:
**
Naseema Mall is from
South Africa and works as a freelance journalist. She can be
contacted at youth_campaign@islamonline.net.
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