Our precious sister, Nadia is teaching us the meaning of Iman. She has been having lessons with us on pillars of faith Alhamdulillah. Masha Allah tabarakallah her sessions are very lively and a feast to my senses. I am a visual and kinesthetic learner so her style works for me alhamdulillah. So what is Iman? It comes from the Arabic root letters aa mi na ( aamina) which means to give security and peace. Iman gives us a framework to think and live with alhamdulillah.
There are 3 levels of faith... Islam, Iman and Ihsan. In sha Allah our aim is Ihsan, the highest level bi idnillahi ta'ala!
Islam is the outward actions such as the five pillars of Islam- Shahada, Salah, Zakah, Sawm and Hajj.
Imaan is the inward actions which are based on the foundations of the five pillars of Islam .
Ihsan is intensifying our worship to gain closeness to our Rabb. I have added the Hadith which teaches us the three terms in details. It is known as Hadith Jibreel . Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala sent the archangel Sayyidina Jibraeel AS to teach us our beautiful religion. This is one of the core hadith to remember and follow on a daily basis in sha Allah.
Hadith Jibreel
Umar ibn al-Khattab reported: We were sitting with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, one day, a man appeared with very white clothes and very black hair. There were no signs of travel on him and we did not recognize him. He sat in front of the Prophet, rested his knees by his knees, and placed his hands on his thighs.
The man said, “O Muhammad, tell me about Islam.”
The Prophet said, “Islam is to testify there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to establish prayer, to give charity, to fast the month of Ramadan, and to perform pilgrimage to the House if a way is possible.”
The man said, “You have spoken truthfully.” We were surprised that he asked him and said he was truthful.
He said, “Tell me about faith.” (Faith is Imaan in Arabic)
The Prophet said, “Faith is to believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, His Messengers, the Last Day, and to believe in providence, its good and its harm.”
The man said, “You have spoken truthfully. Tell me about excellence (Ihsan).”
The Prophet said, “Ihsan (Excellence ) is to worship Allah as if you see Him, for if you do not see Him, He surely sees you.”
The man said, “Tell me about the final hour.”
The Prophet said, “The one asked does not know more than the one asking.”
The man said, “Tell me about its signs.”
The Prophet said, “The slave-girl will give birth to her mistress and you will see barefoot, naked, and dependent shepherds compete in the construction of tall buildings.”
Then, the man returned and I remained. The Prophet said to me, “O Umar, do you know who he was?” I said, “Allah and His Messenger know best.”
The Prophet said, “Verily, he was Gabriel who came to teach you your religion.”
Source: Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim
Conditions of Iman:
1. Belief in the heart
2. Statements of the tongue
3. Actions of the limbs
4. Iman increases with obedience
As you can see, I cannot say my iman is in my heart and I don't need to pray, fast etc. Sometimes we meet people who claim they have Iman in their heart but they believe they don't need to manifest their Iman through their limbs. Imagine as a mother, I tell my children that I love them but I don't express the love through my action. I neglect them. Is that really love? As believers we love our Rabb, we believe in our heart and we do our best to express the love through worshiping Him the way He wants, with every blessing He has blessed us with bi idnillahi ta'ala. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala enable us to fulfil the conditions of Iman, ameen!
Nadia reminded us the similarity between the elegant Date palm tree and a believer (Mu'min) . This was my favourite part as I am a passionate plant lover ! Alhamdulillah for the awesome nature !
Abdullah ibn Umar reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The parable of the believer is that of a date palm tree. Whatever you take from it will benefit you.”
Source: al-Mu’jam al-Kabīr lil-Ṭabarānī 13514
Grade: Sahih (authentic)
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| Seeds of Date Palm in Jannah insha Allah |
1. Date palm trees are evergreen trees. It doesn't shed leaves. Our submission to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala never stops. Believers worship their Rabb in every season, in good days as well as in challenging days.
2. The tree provides shade through out the year. Believer supports others in every situation.
3. Date palms are strong, tall and lofty in nature. Believers are strong in heart and present themselves in a beautiful, lofty manner.
4. Date palms has deep network of roots. Even in stormy weather , the roots help the tree to stay intact. A strong believer doesn't break down during a difficult phase of her life. In fact, challenges make her more resilient and humble . It teaches her to have empathy.
5. The tree yields sweet dates throughout the year. A believer always share his goodness with others.
6. The older the date palm , the sweeter the dates. The older the believer, the more the wisdom bi idnillahi ta'ala. So old is gold! May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala enable us all to age gracefully , ameen!
7. The tree can survive hostile environments. The date palms are native to desert climates especially in the middle eastern countries. Imagine the Ummah struggling in different parts of the world! Their Iman is keeping them firm alhamdulillah. Their faith is unwavering subhanallah!
8. Even if the tree is uprooted, if the roots are not disconnected , it still can survive and carry on producing dates. Sometimes believers can be unwell but they can still benefit others.
There are so many fascinating facts about the Date palm tree. I have shared two links here if you are interested to research more in sha Alllah. I cannot thanks Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for this amazing plant alhamdulillah. So much to be grateful for in sha Allah !
Natural History Museum Date Palm: The cornerstone of civilization
Date palm at Kew Garden
Let us go back to the topic of this post , Iman !
Imaan wears off just like our clothes wear off ( paraphrasing a hadith). So how can we renew our imaan ?
1. Seek knowledge
It is very important to actively seek knowledge . Sometimes as parents we facilitate for our children to seek knowledge but we do not seek it for ourselves! Knowledge of the Deen is crucial for every one of us. I loved Nadia's words, " Sign up and show up!"
May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala increase us in knowledge and enable us to benefit from it, ameen!
2. Make du'a for gaining Iman
We must ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for Iman. O Allah ! Please revive our Iman, revive our yaqeen (certainty). She mentioned the du'a taught by beloved Rasulullah Salllallahu alaihe wa sallam which should be made after the salah .
Mu'adh (May Allah be pleased with him) reported:
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) took hold of my hand and said, "O Mu'adh! By Allah I love you, so I advise you to never forget to recite after every prayer: "Allahumma a'inni ala dhikrika, wa shukrika, wa husni 'ibadatika (O Allah, help me remember You, to be grateful to You, and to worship You in an excellent manner)."
[Abu Dawud].
