A Letter to a Dear One — Page 84
84 Letter to a Dear One as a result of the operation or had a miraculous escape, the doctor’s action remained wicked and would have incurred the wrath of Allah. During one of the early battles of Islam, one man was fighting with great vigor and bravery from the Muslim side. He had killed and injured many of the enemy. When the Holy Prophet ( ” allall ā hu ‘alaihi wa sallam) saw him, he told his Companions that the man belonged to hell. Upon hearing this, one of the Companions was intrigued and followed the man in order to observe his fate. The man fought with much enthusiasm and made many assaults on the enemy. Later he was injured and left the battlefield. He stood his sword on its clutch and by dropping his body on it, killed himself. He thus proved that he indeed ‘belonged to hell. ’ It was later found out that the man had not joined the battle in the cause of Allah; rather he had enmity against a few of the opposite side and had used the occasion to take revenge. He had joined the Muslim side and killed and injured the people he had personal enmity with. His course of action was the same as the rest of the Muslim force and he had apparently helped the cause of the Muslim side a lot. However, those who were fighting in the cause of Allah indeed earned paradise whereas this person chose the path to hell by killing himself. In another battle the Holy Prophet ( ” allall ā hu ‘alaihi wa sallam) noticed that one of his Companions who, despite being weak and frail, was going about haughtily in order to show off to the enemy. The Holy Prophet ( ” allall ā hu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said that Allah does not approve of haughtiness. However, at that moment Allah the Almighty approved of the person’s haughtiness against the enemies of Islam. That is to say, an un-desirable action, with regards to its intention and circumstances, became the source of Allah’s approval. The same applies to marital relationship. In its origin, it fulfills a natural urge that is neither good nor bad. According to the circumstances it can be either good or bad. A married couple who live with love and affection and treat each other with kindness and stay within the limits prescribed by Allah and the foundation of their relationship is based on piety, and they wish for virtuous offspring with the intention that the offspring will be righteous and will uphold Allah’s pleasure in the world, have a blessed relationship. However, if a man and a woman have a relationship based on physical attraction and they are not married, then this relationship, due to being inappropriate is