Serving the Donkey

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ 

The following is adapted from a swuhbah from Shaykh Muhammad Nazhim Adil al-Haqqani (q.s.) on the 31^st March 2010. 

We are all chasing to raise our egos higher and higher.  We are constantly feeding our egos.  We were not Sent to dunya to feed our egos.  Have we ever seen a king who spent his life in the service of his horse?  Have we ever heard of a king who lives in the stables, tending to his horse, feeding him, grooming him and at the horse’s beck and call?  We are all doing just that.  We have been Honoured by Allah (s.w.t.) as His khalifah, yet we spend all our lives in the filthy stables, tending to our horse, our egos.  In fact, we are tending to our donkeys, as horses are for important people.  Common folk like us, have donkeys.  How can we lower ourselves to becoming slaves to our donkeys?  Certainly, that is not the purpose of our Creation.  Which Book ever taught such an idea?  In the Torah, Gospels and Qur’an, no such idea was ever taught to us. 

No saint of the past has ever lived to look after his donkey’s pleasure.  None!  Yet, for 24 hours a day, we are thinking about how to keep our donkey contented.  Scholars who consider themselves pure must know that as long as they have yet to tame their donkeys, they should not consider themselves holy.  And if they have succeeded, then it is their duty to teach their followers to do so too. 

سُوۡرَةُ الذّاریَات

وَمَا خَلَقۡتُ ٱلۡجِنَّ وَٱلۡإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعۡبُدُونِ (٥٦) 

I have only Created jinn and men, that they may serve Me. (Surah adz-Dzariyat:56) 

Every person must ponder these words.  People view it an honour to be a leader.  That is not true.  Our true Honour is to be Allah’s (s.w.t.) servant.  We must remind ourselves constantly that our mission here is to be the best servant that we can be to our Lord.  Servanthood is the mantle of Honour.  We must not discard it for any temporary worldly honour.  We must not be cheated by Shaythan.  We were created to devote ourselves entirely to Allah (s.w.t.), to seek His Pleasure.  Where in this teaching does it teach us to live in conflict with each other?  We have never been commanded to kill each other. 

سُوۡرَةُ النِّسَاء

...‌ وَلَا تَقۡتُلُوٓاْ أَنفُسَكُمۡ‌ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُمۡ رَحِيمً۬ا (٢٩) 

… nor kill (or destroy) yourselves: for verily Allah has Been to you Most Merciful. (Surah an-Nisa’:29) 

Life is sacred.  It is Divine Gift that none other can give.  Who are we to take it away by force according to our ego?  Allah (s.w.t.) has Raised us above the angels, Declaring to all, that we are His khalifah.  What can be more honourable than that?  Why do we disregard this honourable status and stoop to evil behaviour?  Have we no understanding of what an unparalleled Honour Allah (s.w.t.) has Bestowed on each one of us?  Allah (s.w.t.) Says in the Qur’an: 

سُوۡرَةُ بنیٓ اسرآئیل / الإسرَاء

۞ وَلَقَدۡ كَرَّمۡنَا بَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ ... (٧٠) 

We have Honoured the sons of Adam ... (Surah al-Isra’:70) 

If Allah (s.w.t.) Himself has Honoured us, we must also honour one another.  There is no greater honour that is bestowed than being His khalifah and there is no greater honour earned than being His servant.  Do we understand the real meaning of the word kufr?  The real meaning of kufr is to deny the rights of one whom Allah (s.w.t.) has Given rights to, to disrespect one whom Allah (s.w.t.) has Honoured and to wrest from someone what has been Divinely Given.  Any teaching that teaches us to kill others or to raise ourselves above others so as to oppress are not the true teachings of any religion, be it Judaism, Christianity or Islam.  Any self-created title, which elevates ourselves and degrades others, does not bring us closer to Allah (s.w.t.).  We must not delude ourselves. 

All Christians, Jews and Muslims should read their Scripture and ponder what is contained within.  We have to reflect on the purpose of our creation.  If we do not understand it before we leave this world, you are in danger of being hurled into the blazing Fire.  We must be obedient to Allah (s.w.t.) before He Sends Divine punishments upon us.  We must always be aware that Allah (s.w.t.) is with us.  He is Aware of all that we do.  If we have faith in this, we will always give the highest respect to all of Allah’s (s.w.t.) Commands. 

People are chasing after Shaythan.  They are adopting his ways.  It is like a flood of people rushing to drown in his decadent lifestyle.  They have forgotten the Divine Commandments.  They have forgotten Who Created them.  They have forgotten the purpose of their Creation.  With each step they take to follow Shaythan, they fall into more difficulties and the situation grows worse by the day.  The only solution is to be true to our Lord and leave Shaythan’s ways.  We must follow the chosen ones, the prophets of Allah (s.w.t.).