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Charity Begins at Home
By A Staff Writer
Muslims these days, are not spending enough time to improve their inter-personal relations with their near and dear ones.
• Adil Fareed, 19, skipped his second year B.Sc (IT) examination, instead preferring to go for dawah work in interiors of Maharastra. He failed in the annual examination. His mother suffered from depression because she is worried about her son’s future.
• Munaf Patki, 21, cancelled his enrolment from MMS (Masters in management studies), because he believes that dawah work is more important than studies. He said “ Allah will provide him with sustenance”.
• Aijaz Memon, 26, left his business unattended for four months. He was busy in dawah work in different parts of India. In his absence, his wife delivered their first child. His logic, dawah work is more important then business, wife and children.
• Usman Shaikh, 34, divorced his wife, as she did not endorse his absence from home for four months doing dawah work and not taking care of the family.
Taking the name of Islam and neglecting the very duties enshrined in the Quran and Hadith will lead to social tension and break up of the family structure. What Islam teaches is to maintain complete balance in all sphere of life. In Islam, the time and money spent on family members is considered as Sadaqa.
A Sahih Bukhari hadith as narrated by Sad: The Prophet (Pbuh) visited me at Makkah while I was ill. I said (to him), “I have property; May I bequeath all my property in Allah’s Cause?” He said, “No.” I said, “Half of it?” He said, “No.” I said, “One third of it?” He said, “One-third (is alright), yet it is still too much, for you’d better leave your inheritors wealthy than leave them poor, begging of others. Whatever you spend will be considered a Sadaqa for you, even the mouthful of food you put in the mouth of your wife”. Thus, the Prophet taught us to take care of our family members first as they have rights over our wealth and time.
Many people who for the sake of promoting their organisation’s cause, misinterpret the Quran. Let us see what the Quran has to say about these issues. “And we have enjoined on man (to be good) to his parents: in travail upon travail did his mother bear him, and in years twain was his weaning: (hear the command), “Show gratitude to Me and to thy parents: to Me is (thy final) Goal”-Chapter: 31-Verse:14.
Students like Adil Fareed are misguided to sacrifice their studies and career for short-term organisation activities or dawah progammes. According to the Sahih Bukhari hadith as Narrated ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud: The Prophet said, “Do not wish to be like anyone except in two cases. (The first is) A person, whom Allah has given wealth and he spends it righteously; (the second is) the one whom Allah has given wisdom and he acts according to it and teaches it to others.”
Earning wealth and acquiring knowledge is liked by Allah. Without education it is difficult to acquire knowledge. Money is not the root of all-evil. The love of money is the root of all-evil. Many of the Prophet’s companions were rich. Prophet loved them all. They spent in the cause of Allah.
Many of us are more worried about the entire world, neglecting immediate family members. Many people know Islam not from the authentic sources, but from hearsay. Whatever decision an individual takes, it must be based on the guidelines of the Quran and Sunnah. Many a times people take decision claiming that they are following the Prophet’s path. Unfortunately, they do not approach the Quran and Sunnah for guidance, but follow the tradition of their family or policy programmes of the organisation.
How much time does a Muslim spend improving his relationship with mother, father, brother, sister, wife, son, daughter and other relatives? Instead many Islamic organisations focus on the cosmetic and frivolous issues and emotionally black mail the innocent people to devote time for organisational activities even at the cost of their near relatives. A person who does not have a sound relationship with his near and dear ones and who does not contribute to make his neighbourhood a better place to live, is not fit for the dawah work. As it is said, “Charity begins at home”.
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