Bismillahir Rahmaanir Raheem
From the Discourses of Hazrat Maulana Yunus Patel Saheb
(Rahmatullahi ‘Alayh)
To do
business is not Haraam. In fact it is very virtuous. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi wa Sallam said: “To
earn a Halaal (lawful) livelihood is compulsory after the completion of other
Faraa'idh (obligatory duties).”
In
another Hadith, Rasulullah Sallallahu
‘alayhi wasallam said: “Glad tidings
(of Jannah) are for that person whose income is pure (Halaal), his interior and
exterior is good and he does not cause any harm to people. Glad tidings (of
Jannah) are for that person who practices on his knowledge, spends his excess
wealth (on the needy) and does not engage in useless talk.”[1]
So
earning a Halaal livelihood is 100% Deen …but certainly not the way we are
doing it at present. …What are we really chasing after? Our Rizq (sustenance) is Muqaddar
(predestined) and it is chasing after us. Allah Ta’ala wants to give it to us
easily but we want it the hard way; so it comes like that. …And if a person falls into the traps of
Haraam and into unlawful and deceptive dealings, the Barakah is all lost and
problems prevail.
EMPLOYEES
Nowadays, we work seven days a week, from 7 to 7. If we don’t work like this, then we sometimes make our staff slog in this manner. We have no mercy, no sympathy and no
compassion for them – no thought that they have families – parents, wife and
children – and they need to spend some quality time with their families, that
they too are human and need some rest.
We
like to spend time with our families on week-ends. We take a rest and even go
on holidays. But when it comes to our staff, then sadly we do not like the same
for them. Even if they are sick, they are forced to come to work because we do
not allow them sick leave or we will cut their pay. Such injustices and
grievances are brought to our attention time and again. …This is due to the
greed we have. This is the result of Hubbud-Dunya. Rasulullah Sallallahu
‘alayhi wasallam said: “The love of the world is the root of all
evil.”[2]
The
Hadith Shareef mentions clearly: “Whoever
has faith in Allah and the Last Day, then
let him meet his end while he treats people the way he would love to be treated.”[3]
In
another Hadith, Rasulullah Sallallahu
‘alayhi wasallam said: “None of you
will believe until you love for your brother what you love for yourself.”[4]
Even
if you open 24/7 – 365 days a year, only what is destined for you, will reach
you. It will not be anything more! It will not be a single cent more than what
Allah Ta’ala has already decreed. May Allah Ta’ala grant us the understanding
because we have lost all perspective of the Aakhirah (Hereafter) in our pursuit
for Dunya. It is an obsession. In the process, we make Zulm on our employees. Often
it is the curses of the Mazloom that sometimes tears our lives apart, because
Allah Ta’ala promises to assist the oppressed.
In addition to
giving other advice, Rasulullah Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam would caution his Companions who were
deputed as governors: “Fear the pleading
prayer of a wronged one (Mazloom), for there is no veil between it and Allah.”
There is a
proverb: “Beware of the sigh of the oppressed when they pray; Divine acceptance
readily greets them.”
SUKOON AND BARAKAH
Change
the pattern of work. Work in the obedience of Allah Ta’ala and you, yourself,
will see how much of Sukoon (tranquility) and Barakah (blessings) you will
experience. All the stress, anxiety and depression will disappear. At present,
we ourselves are suppressing and oppressing our souls. The physical body has
got a soul. The soul wants to rise and wants to connect with Allah Ta’ala and
become a true lover of Allah Ta’ala and Rasulullah Sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam. We are suppressing and oppressing that
soul. When there is suppression and oppression of the soul, depression will
then follow.
All
the money of Dunya cannot buy the happiness and peace of the heart and soul.
When we give the soul its sustenance and nourishment, which is Taqwa[5], then
Allah Ta’ala gives Sukoon. Even in the
midst of problems, we will still have Sukoon – like a rose blooming amidst
thorns. Then there will be no evidence needed to see the Sukoon in the person’s
life.
LEARN BUSINESS THE ISLAMIC WAY
Hazrat
‘Umar رَضِىَ الله عَنْهُ would not allow a person to engage in any
business or trade until he had learnt the rules and regulations which governs
business in Islam. Learn the Islamic way of doing trade and business. Make the
business Shari’ah compliant.
Look
at how the Sahaba-e-Kiraam رَضِىَ الله عَنْهُمْ did business. It was neither a diversion
from Allah Ta’ala nor from Deen. Their Tijarah was Ibaadah. Their business and
trade brought so much of Barakah. As an example: Hazrat AbdurRahman Ibn Auf رَضِىَ الله
عَنْهُ, who is also one of the Asharah Mubasharah[6],
would say, in explaining how successful Allah Ta’ala had made him: “If I lift a stone, I find gold and silver
beneath it!"
They
did not pursue the Dunya. No. They pursued the Aakhirah and sought the pleasure
of Allah Ta’ala in everything they did. So Allah Ta’ala made their sustenance
extremely easy and blessed them in their earnings, because their business and
trade was in accordance to the demands of Shari’ah.
In
any effort to earn Dunya, Deen should never be considered as secondary, or be
given the back seat – so to say. Deen should always take precedence and be our
main concern. Our work and activities of Dunya must conform to Deen and
Shari’ah. Deen is the nucleus, or the heart and soul of our lives.
May Allah Ta’ala inspire our hearts in His Obedience,
grant us the understanding of the reality of this worldly life and the
realization that we need to pursue the Aakhirah instead of the Dunya – since it
is the Aakhirah that is everlasting while the Dunya will be left behind very
soon. May Allah Ta’ala grant us the Taufeeq of Amal.
[1]
Tabraani
[2] Mishkaat
[3]
Al-Mu’jam al-Kabīr 10370
[4]
Bukhari & Muslim
[5] Taqwa: Piety / abstinence and restraint from that which is Haraam (forbidden).
[6] The
ten (famous) Companions of Rasulullah Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam, who were
given the glad tidings of Paradise in one sitting.
