We sometimes notice points in our Islamic
interpretations that raise questions for some of us in connection with worship. For
example we are told in the case of prayer that either the Prophet or the Imams have said,
"Prayer is the pillar of religion," or if we think of religion as a tent,
"prayer is the pole that keeps it standing." This remark is also quoted from the
narrations attributed to the Prophet, "The requisite for the acceptance of
other human deeds is the acceptance of prayer. In other words, the good deeds of the human
being will be null and void if prayer is incorrect and thereby unacceptable.
Another Tradition says, "Prayer is the means of proximity of every
virtuous being to God". Another Tradition says that the devil is always uneasy with a
believer and shuns him who is devoted to his prayer. The Qur'an, too, shows the remarkable
importance of prayer in many verses.
But sometimes it is stated by some persons that all these traditions
about prayer must be forged and unreliable and uttered not by the Prophet and his
successors but by some devotees in order to win more followers, particularly in the 2nd
and 3rd centuries of the hegira when the matter of worship had gone to such excess that it
had more or less led to monasticism and Sufism.
We see that some people concentrated all their efforts on acts of
worship to such an extent that they ignored other religious duties. For example there was
among All's companions a man called Kabi' ibn Husain who was later known as Khajah Rabi'
whose tomb is in Mashhad. He was known as one of the eight famous ascetics of the Islamic
world and he went so far in asceticism and devotion that he had dug his own grave long
before his death. (It is said that for twenty years he never spoke a word about worldly
matters). Sometimes he went and lay in it reminding himself that the grave was his home.
The only words he was ever heard to say besides prayer was on the occasion of hearing of
Imam Husain's martyrdom. He said, "Woe upon these people who murdered the dear
descendant of their Prophet." It is reported that afterwards he repented having
uttered a sentence other than the invocation of God.
He was a warrior in the time of Ali, peace be upon him, and one day he
came to Hazrat Ali and said that they had doubts about that war they were fighting, as it
seemed to them to be unlawful, for they were fighting against those who in their prayer
turned their faces to Mecca and uttered the formulas of the Islamic creed. This man at the
same time did not want to abandon Ali, peace be upon him, so he asked to be given a task
in which there was no doubt.
Ali, peace be upon him, agreed and sent him to a frontier again as a
soldier so that in case of fighting he would face non-Muslims or idolaters, This man was a
type of ascetic of the time but of what worth was his asceticism and worship? It is
useless to be the follower of a man like Ali, peace be upon him, and at the same time have
doubts about the way shown by him in a holy war. Sometimes people use the phrase,
"Why should one observe a fast based on doubt and uncertainty? It is worthless."
Islam requires insight combined with practice but Khajah Rabi' had no insight. He lived in
the time of Mu'awiyyah and his son Yazid. He had nothing to do with the social problems of
the Islamic society and he used to retire to a corner praying day and night and uttering
nothing but the Name of God and regretting his own remark about the martyrdom of Imam
Husain peace be upon him.
This kind of thing does not accord with Islamic teachings and as the
saying goes, "An ignorant person either goes too fast or too slowly." Some may
say that the phrase, "Prayer is the pillar of religion," 75 is not in harmony
with Islamic teachings since Islam pays more attention to social matters than any other.
Islam says, "God orders to do justice and benevolence " And,'' We sent our
prophets with manifestations and the Book and justice to make people do justice also"
(57:25)It commands people to direct others to goodness and forbid evil 78(3: 110)Islam as
a great religion is the creed of activity and work. If these matters are important in
Islam, then acts of worship and devotion are not so significant. Thus, according to
people, one should follow social teachings and leave acts of devotion and prayer to idle
people who have no other task to perform.
But such thoughts are wrong and very dangerous. Islam should be
recognised as it is. I emphasise this point since I feel that our society is suffering
from a sickness. Unfortunately those who have religious ardour are two groups: One group
follow the way of Rabi' and think of Islam only as a creed for prayers, hymns and
pilgrimage and refer to certain standard books of theology to guide them. They have
nothing to do with the world or social regulations or Islamic principles and education.
The reaction to the slowness of this group is the appearance of a
second group who go too fast and move on the path of excess. They pay all their attention
to social matters, which in itself is a worthy attitude, but ignore acts of worship. I
have met people who can well afford to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca, an injunction which is
regarded as an important matter in Islam. They ignore prayers, and put aside the matter of
imitating a religious leader. They believe that problems related to acts of worship should
be, solved by oneself, without the need of the guidance of others. Thus everyone is
assumed to be a religious expert or a jurisprudent. One is one's own physician and has no
need of consulting a doctor or a specialist. There are some who are slack in fasting and
its conditions in the case of permanent residence or on a journey and do not believe in
making amends for failure to perform acts of worship in their proper time and place.
Both groups consider themselves Muslims but they are not wholly so.
Islam does not agree with the phrase, "To believe in some things and disbelieve in
other things." It cannot agree with the acceptance of worship coupled with the
rejection of its moral and social questions, or vice versa. You notice that whenever the
Qur'an says, "Perform your ritual prayer," it is followed by, your alms. The
first injunction concerns the relation between a creature and God and the second one shows
the relation between one creature and others. Thus a true Muslim has a dual responsibility
towards God and towards human beings and to their society in a permanent way. No Islamic
society can be built without worship and invocation of God and prayer and fasting. In the
same way, no pious society can exist without directing to goodness and forbidding evils
and without kindly relations between individuals, even though a person may be a pious
individual.
We see Ali, peace be upon him, as the most exalted, pious man, so much
so that his worship was proverbial, a worship full of terror and love and tears. After his
death, a man called Zirar , who was a companion of his, met Mu'awiyyah who asked him to
describe All, peace be upon him, for him. Zirar narrated something he had witnessed about
Ali, peace be upon him. He said, "One night I saw him in his special worshipping
place of worship.' He was twisting with the fear of God like a man bitten by a snake and
weeping with deep sorrow and saying, 'Oh, for the fire of hell', Mu'awiyyah wept on
hearing this.
Before Ali's death, Mu'awiyyah met Abass bin Hatam and intended to
provoke him against Ali, peace be upon him, so he asked him about his three sons who had
been killed fighting for Ali, peace be upon him. He wished to hear Abass blame Ali, peace
be upon him and so he said, "Was it fair of him to deprive you of your three sons and
save his own sons from death in the battlefield?"
Adass answered, "It was I who was unfair to him. I should not be
alive while he is buried in the earth." When Mu'awiyyah saw that he had failed in his
purpose, he asked Adass to describe Ali, peace be upon him, fully for him, which he did.
When he ended his narration, he noticed tears flowing down Mu'awiyyah's beard and wiping
them with his sleeve, saying, "Alas! Time is too sterile to produce a man like
Ali." You see how truth reveals itself.
But was Hazrat Ali only a pious man of the altar? No. We see him also
as the most social being, well aware of the conditions of the poor and helpless and all
who brought their complaints to him. Though he was a Caliph, he went among the people,
dealing with their affairs. When he met merchants he shouted, "You should first go
and learn Islamic questions of trade."82ln other words, before engaging in commerce,
they should know divine injunctions about what is lawful and unlawful in every deal. He is
also reported to have used a phrase to a poor beggar who begged him for something. Ali,
peace be upon him, looked at him and saw that he was capable of working but had chosen
begging as a trade. He gave him advice and said, "Follow your honour and dignity,
" a phrase that he addressed to every person. For work brings dignity and honour.
Ali, peace be upon him, is thus a true Muslim: Pious in worship, a just judge in the
court, a brave soldier and commander on the battlefield, a fine orator at the pulpit, a
remarkable teacher in his chair, and a wonderful and perfect example in every other
accomplishment.
Islam can never approve of half-hearted acceptance of its injunctions
or belief in some of them and not in others. This is a wrong way adopted by some ascetics
who considered Islam to consist of praying, or those who ignored acts of devotion
altogether.
The Qur'an says, 'Muhammad is the Prophet of God and those who are with
hint are hard against the unbelievers, compassionate among themselves.'' (4 8.2 9)
In this sentence, the feature of an Islamic community is portrayed. In
the first part of it, the matter of following faith and the Prophet is expressed and in
the latter part, the question of standing firmly against infidels is mentioned. Thus these
seeming devotees who make a mosque their home and say no word when they are driven on by a
single soldier, are not MusliI71S. The most important quality of a Muslim according to the
Qur'an is showing firmness and strength against an enemy.
The Qur'an says, "Faint not, neither sorrow you shall be the upper
ones if you are believers. "84(3:133) Islam does not allow weakness in religion. Will
Durant says in his history of Civilisation that no religion but Islam calls upon its
followers to be so strong and steadfast.
To bend the neck with helplessness, to dress poorly and in a dirty way,
to walk lazily and to pretend to be forlorn and indifferent to all around you and sigh and
groan are all contrary to Islam. The Qur'an says, "And as for the favour of your
Lord, announce (it). "(93:11) God has given you blessings like health and strength.
Why do you show yourself so helpless? This is ingratitude. Ali, peace be upon him, was
never such a man. He stood ably and strongly against enemies.
What about being kind to others ? We sometimes meet devotees who are
never kind and are usually glum and unsociable. They never laugh and seldom smile as if
the whole of humanity is indebted to them and yet they suppose themselves to be attached
to Islam Is it enough to stand firmly against enemies and be kind to Muslims? The answer
is no. The Qur'an says, "You will see them bowing clown , prostrating themselves,
seeking grace from God and good pleasure "(48:29) This speaks of those who have the
two above qualities of steadfastness and kindness and in their prayers and
prostrations sink so deeply in their devotion that you can see in their faces all
signs of chastity and godliness.
It is narrated from the Prophet that the disciples of Christ asked him
with whom they should associate and he answered, "Sit with someone whose sight
reminds you of God, whose speech increases your knowledge and whose conduct persuades you
into doing good." The verse continues, "That is their description in the Old
Testament and their description in the New Testament like a seed-produce that puts forth
its sprout, then strengthens it so it becomes stout and stands firmly on its stem,
delighting the sowers that He may enrage the unbelievers on account of them " (48:29)
A nation possessing all the above attributes must be a remarkably find
nation. Now, tell me,, why should Muslims be so decadent, docile and miserable. Which of
those qualities mentioned before do we possess? What should we expect? Although we admit
that Islam is a social creed, why should we scorn worship and prayer and communion with
God? Let me assure you that taking prayers lightly is a sin as ignoring them is a sin.
On the death of Imam Ja'far Sadiq, peace be upon him, as Abu Bassir
came to offer Umm ul-Hanida his condolences, the latter wept and so did the former. Umm
ul-Hanida then narrated something that had happened in the last moments of the life of the
Imam. She said that he sank into a trance and then opened his eyes and asked for all his
relatives to be present. After they had all gathered there, the Imam addressed them the
following remark and then died.
He said, "Those who take ritual prayers lightly will never gain
our intercession." So you see that he did not speak of those who ignore ritual
prayers altogether, for, the consequence of that is obvious. What does 'taking the ritual
prayers lightly' mean? It means that in spite of having time, an opportunity, one may
postpone them and just before it is getting too late, perform the acts of devotion hastily
and perfunctorily, without giving the mind and spirit the necessary tranquillity before
beginning to say the ritual prayer. Experience has shown that in a household where ritual
prayers are taken lightly, no interest is shown by its members to pray or to pray
properly. One should choose a spot in the house allotted to acts of devotion, or, if
possible, a separate room for them and carry on with ablution without haste and spread a
clean prayer-carpet and accompany all the preliminary acts with the convocation of God.
Ali, peace be upon him, began with , "In the Name of God and with the help of God. Oh
God place me among those who repent; place me among those who cleanse themselves."
Two nights ago I spoke about repentance and explained that repentance
meant purifying oneself. Washing the body is the prelude to purifying the spirit; it
refreshes the face, but since the intention is to cleanse the spirit, too, it gives one a
sacred aspect. Ali, peace be upon him, in his ablution prayed to God to illuminate his
face on the Day of the Resurrection where many faces are black with shame and sin. Then he
said this prayer on washing his right hand, "Oh God, on the Day of Resurrection, put
my book of deeds in my right hand," and on washing his left hand, he said, "Oh
God, do not give me my book of deeds in my left hand nor from behind my back. Oh God, do
not let it be shackled to my neck; I seek refuge from You from the fire of hell."
Then, on touching his forehead with water, he said, "Merge me into
your grace and blessings.'' . Then on touching his feet with water he said, "Oh God,
direct my efforts towards such a path of your satisfaction." Such an ablution which
is accompanied by so many pleadings is of a different worth and merit than what most of us
are accustomed to perform. We should not lightly disregard all these rites and confine
ourselves only to the absolutely obligatory parts.
Let us see what religious authorities say about this. Should we repeat
the following sentence three times or only once, "Glory be to God, praise be God,
there is no god but God and God is great."96An authority may say, "Once is
enough, since it is obligatory but the second and third repetitions are recommended."
Should we, on the basis of this verdict, confine ourselves to saying this prayer only
once?
In the same way, fasting may be taken lightly. I am saying this as a
joke, but if I were God I would not accept such fasts. I know some people who stay awake
at night in the month of Ramadhan, not to worship and pray, but to drink tea, smoke and
eat fruit. In the morning, they say their ritual prayers and go to sleep. Some of them
sleep all day and wake up near sunset to say their daily ritual prayers hastily before it
is too late and get ready to break their fast. What kind of a fast is this? When you do
not give yourself the chance of feeling the pain of abstemiousness? This is fasting
lightly and is really an insult to a fast.
Again we go on a pilgrimage to Mecca but perform the rites lightly in
the same way as our prayers and fasts. Similarly the matter of the call to prayer may be
taken it is said that the call to prayer should be uttered melodiously to attract and
invite people to prayer, in the same way that the Qur'an should be recited clearly,
fluently and with a fine voice. Some people are gifted with a fine voice, but if you ask
them to sing out the call to prayer, they consider it below their dignity to be known as a
muezzin. But it is really an honour to be one. Ali himself was one, even when he was a
Caliph. There is no disgrace attached to this task and no nobility to forsake it.
Thus no act of worship should be taken lightly. The merit of Islam is
in its comprehensiveness, not in being so absorbed in devotion as to ignore every other
duty, nor to be so involved in social matters to forget acts of devotion. Although a
prayer is for its own sake and for proximity to God, if we scorn worship, we are ignoring
other duties, too. Worship is the executive and guarantor of other Islamic injunctions.
Here I end my discourse and pray God to make us true worshippers, to
acquaint us with the comprehensiveness of Islam, to make us whole-hearted Muslims, grant
us pure intentions, forgive our sins in these precious nights, and grant salvation to our
deceased ones.