wa 'ala alihi wa sahbihi ajma'een
Indeed, all praise naturally and rightfully belongs to Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon His Prophet and Last Messenger to man, Muhammad ibn Abdullah. Indeed, the best of speech is the Book of Allah; al-Qur'an and the best and only acceptable guidance with which to obey Allah's Word is the Sunnah or way of His Messenger, Muhammad, salallahu 'alayhi wa 'ala 'alihi wa salaam. Amma ba'ad (as to what follows):
Our beloved Rasulullah salallahu 'alayhi wa salaam said: "Indeed in the body is a morsel of flesh that when sound, the whole body becomes sound; and if corrupt, the whole body becomes corrupt. And it is the heart."
Discussed and outlined by our classical scholar Ibn al-Qayyim rahimuhallah are some of the key factors in our behavior and habits, they in which we (unwisely) use our time, that "disease" our hearts compromising our iman and could leave us dangling only by a thread of Islam if something not be done urgently to remedy these flawed aspects of our character.
There are 10 Useless Matters:
1. Knowledge that is not acted on.
2. The Deed that has neither sincerity nor is based on following the righteous examples of others.
3. Money that is hoarded, as the owner neither enjoys it during this life nor obtains any reward for it in the Hereafter.
4. The heart that is void of love and longing for Allah, and of seeking closeness to Him.
5. A body that does not obey and serve Allah.
6. Loving Allah without following His Orders or seeking His Pleasure.
7. Time that is not spent in expiating sins or seizing opportunities to do good.
8. A mind that thinks about Useless Matters.
9. Serving those who do not bring you close to Allah, nor benefit you in your life.
10. Hoping and Fearing whoever is under the Authority of Allah and in His Hand; while he cannot bring any benefit or harm to himself, nor death, nor life; nor can he resurrect himself.
However the greater of these matters are wasting the heart and wasting time. Wasting the heart is done by preferring this worldly life over the Hereafter, and wasting time is done by having incessant hope. Destruction occurs by following one’s desires and having incessant hope, while all goodness is found in following the right path and preparing oneself to meet Allah.
How strange it is that when a Servant of Allah has a [worldly] problem, he seeks help of Allah, but he never asks Allah to cure his Heart before it dies of:
Ignorance,
Neglect,
Fulfilling one’s desire,
And being involved in innovations (in the Deen).
Indeed, when the heart dies, he will never feel the significance or impact of his sins.
[Ref: Imam Ibn ul Qayyim al Jawziyyah: Al-Fawa’id /© 2004 Umm Al-Qura]
