The Fear of Allah: The Path to Salvation
The Fear of Allah: The Path to Salvation
Address by Huzoor Wala Shan Pir Sahib (RA)
5 July 1986
Address No. 52
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِیْمِ
فَنِعۡمَ الۡمَوۡلٰی وَ نِعۡمَ النَّصِیۡرُ
رَبِِّ اشۡرَحۡ لِیۡ صَدۡرِیۡ وَیَسِّرۡ لِیۡۤ اَمۡرِیۡ وَ احۡلُلۡ عُقۡدَۃً مِّنۡ لِّسَانِیۡ یَفۡقَہُوۡاقَوۡلِیۡ
اَللّٰهُمَّ صَلِ عَلٰی سَیّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍوَّعَلٰی اٰلِ سَیِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍوَّعَلٰی اَصْحَابِہٖ وَعَلٰی اَذْوَاجِہٖ اَجْمَعِیْنَ وَبَارِکْ وَسَلِمْ وَصَلِ عَلَیْہٖ
All praise is for Allah.
Countless thanks to Allah Almighty, the Master of the Kingdom, Who has once again granted us the opportunity and privilege to gather here for His pleasure, in His remembrance and in His love. Millions and billions of blessings and peace be upon the Leader of the Prophets, the Beloved of Allah, Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa (PBUH), through whose blessings this grace has been bestowed upon us.
Respected Listeners!
Allah Almighty has said:
يٰٓاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ وَلْتَنْظُرْ نَفْسٌ مَّا قَدَّمَتْ لِغَدٍ ۚ وَاتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ ۭ اِنَّ اللّٰهَ خَبِيْرٌۢ بِمَا تَعْمَلُوْنَ
“O you who believe! Fear Allah, and let every soul look to what it has sent forth for tomorrow. And fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is All-Aware of what you do.”
(Surah Al-Hashr, 59:18)
This command of Allah makes it absolutely clear that this world is a preparation for the Hereafter. Whatever we do in this world, we shall receive its consequence in the Hereafter.
Since this world is temporary, and a person comes into it only once, whereas the Hereafter is everlasting, we must fear Allah and should not ruin our eternal life merely for the sake of comfort and pleasure in this temporary world.
No one should deceive himself by thinking that if he does not openly commit a wrong deed, how could he be punished for it on the Day of Judgment? He may think that he keeps his actions hidden.
Allah Almighty warns us not to remain under such a deception. Even if a person performs an action behind a thousand veils, Allah is fully aware of every one of his movements. Therefore, correct your deeds. Shape your lives conform to the commands of Allah Almighty and His Messenger (PBUH), so that you may receive Divine support in this world and be granted the blessings of Allah in the Hereafter, and be protected from disgrace and punishment.
Honoured Members of the Gathering!
Allah Almighty does not require anyone’s righteous deeds, nor does any benefit from our good deeds reach Allah. Rather, those deeds which Allah has declared good and commanded us to perform are necessary for the betterment of society. They are essential for the welfare of society and beneficial for it.
The benefit of such deeds ultimately reaches the person who performs them and the environment and people around him.
Likewise, the deeds from which Allah has forbidden us do not cause any harm to Allah, because the Pure Being of Allah is far above all benefit and harm. Rather, committing such deeds brings disgrace and destruction upon a person’s own life and becomes destructive for the society in which he lives.
Therefore, Allah has given these commandments for the guidance of human beings, saying, in effect:
“O servant of Allah, do this deed; there is goodness for you in it. And refrain from those deeds in which there is harm for you.”
A human being, listening to his enemy Satan, begins to commit actions that become the cause of his own destruction. This is why Allah’s displeasure arises: if you choose disobedience, refuse to follow the commands your Lord has given for your own benefit, and give greater importance to the words of your enemy, then go and follow him—and you will be disgraced both in this world and in the Hereafter.
It is essential to understand that the Master of the Kingdom has made human beings the noblest of creation and has created this world and the blessings of the Hereafter for them. Allah is extremely Merciful toward His servants. He never desires that His servants disobey Him and suffer the punishment of both worlds.
It is narrated in a noble Hadith that the Holy Prophet (PBUH) was going on a military expedition. He passed by some people and asked:
“Who are you?”
They replied:
“We are Muslims.”
A woman among them had her child with her. Whenever a flame of fire arose, she would immediately draw her child close to herself.
She came into the presence of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and asked:
“You are the Messenger of Allah?”
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) replied:
“Yes.”
She said:
“May my parents be sacrificed for you. Is Allah not Ar-Rahman and Ar-Raheem—the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful?”
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) said:
“Indeed, He is.”
She asked:
“Is Allah not more merciful to His servants than a mother is to her child?”
He replied:
“Indeed, He is.”
She then said:
“A mother would never throw her own child into the fire.”
Upon hearing this, the Holy Prophet (PBUH) lowered his blessed head and began to weep. After some time, he raised his head and said:
“Allah Almighty only punishes among His servants those who rebel against Him; and the one who rebels most severely is the one who refuses to say La ilaha illallah.”
The meaning is that Allah Almighty created Paradise for human beings and showed them the straight path upon which a person becomes truly human. To teach this path, Allah sent one hundred and twenty-four thousand Prophets, sent their devoted servants, and revealed Books of guidance.
He commanded humanity:
“Do these deeds, and you will be successful in this world as well as in the Hereafter, and you will attain My blessings.”
Then, if a person refuses to obey and instead follows his enemy, how great—and how severe—is his rebellion! Such people are the ones who shall face everlasting punishment.
La ilaha illallah does not mean merely uttering these words with the tongue. A person must say them from the heart, understand their meaning, and act upon them.
It means:
There is no deity except Allah.
No one is worthy of worship except Him.
No one is worthy of being obeyed as an absolute master except Him.
No one is worthy of placing one’s ultimate hope in except Him.
Therefore, only His command should be followed. Whatever the lower self and Satan urge a person to do against His command is itself misguided and shows the wrong path. Such a command is not worthy of being obeyed.
Brothers in Islam!
This fear—the fear of Allah—is itself a means of salvation.
When the fear of Allah takes root in a person’s heart, and he sincerely believes that Allah is the Master of this world and the Hereafter, the Master of reward and punishment, and that a day will certainly come when he will have to answer before Him—a day when nothing except servitude to Allah will avail him, and which will be an extremely difficult day—then a person inevitably begins to correct his deeds according to the command of his Master.
In this way, he becomes a truly righteous human being.
Allah alone is the One without partner. He desires that His servant recognize Him and know that, apart from His Being, there is no other master. No one shares in His power, and He alone is worthy of being feared.
Whoever develops this certainty becomes deserving of salvation. Even if he has committed many sins, they may be forgiven.
It is related in a noble Hadith that there was an extremely sinful man. When he was nearing death, he instructed his family:
“When I die, burn me completely. Then scatter half of my ashes into the sea and let the other half be scattered by the wind.”
When he died, his family carried out his instructions. They burned him and scattered half of his ashes into the air and half into the sea.
Allah Almighty commanded the sea, and the sea gathered together all the ashes that had been cast into it. He commanded the land, and it too gathered all the ashes that were within it.
Then Allah Almighty asked the man:
“Why did you do this?”
He replied:
“O my Lord, I did it out of fear of You, and You know best.”
Allah Almighty forgave him.
Thus, it became evident that the fear of Allah became the means of this man’s salvation.
Honoured members of the gathering!
This gathering of the blessed Awraad is held so that those who possess the fear of Allah may come together and remember Him, acknowledge our helplessness and weakness, and praise Allah and His Messenger (PBUH).
In this manner, through the blessings of His beloved Names, we seek deliverance from religious and worldly difficulties and ask for salvation in the court of Allah Almighty.
Therefore, adherence to this practice is essential, and it is equally essential that it be recited with this very intention and aspiration in the heart.
Now, let us begin.
In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful
The blessed Awraad-e-Nazeeriyah Sharif were recited, followed by supplication.
