LOVE OF THIS WORLD Can Land You In Hell. Don't Trade Your Hereafter ...

 

Love of This World Can

Land You In Hell

Don’t Trade Your Hereafter

For Petty Material Gains!

(M. Javed Naseem)

 

أُولَـٰئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱشْتَرَوُاْ ٱلْحَيَاةَ ٱلدُّنْيَا بِٱلآخِرَةِ

فَلاَ يُخَفَّفُ عَنْهُمُ ٱلْعَذَابُ وَلاَ هُمْ يُنصَرُونَ

'These are the people who trade the Hereafter

for the life of this world. So their punishment

will not be reduced, nor will they be helped.'

(al-Quran 2:86)

The Evil Empire (US-EU-IsraHell) is ruling the world ruthlessly. This Develish empire knows no decency, justice, fairplay, humanity and compassion. The evil butchers are playing the game of death & destruction with other (small and weaker) countries. They are pursuing the agenda of the hegemony of the world. Those leaders who do not submit or accept their terms are labelled the enemy and are attacked. Their towns and infra-structure is being destroyed and millions of people are mercilessly slaughtered. Bombs and bullets, missiles and rockets are flying in the Middle Eastern countries and the Latin America. The world has become the property of the while Devil and his cronies. People are getting no break and they are praying to God for help.

On the smaller level, the race is also on – a very vicious race for the worldly possessions, among the people of those countries that are oppressed and attacked by the Evil Empire. And Muslim countries are on top of that list. We are trying to accumulate as much of money and material things) as possible – and as quickly as possible too – by all means (Halal or Haram). In the process we don’t care about how much misery, pain, trouble and discomfort we bring to others – as long as it is not happening to us. And on top of it, every one of us is complaining about the corruption and injustice in the world, as if only others are responsible for that.

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We don’t practice caring and sharing any more!

We have embraced materialism and abandoned

humanity. We have replaced compassion with

selfishness. The main reason for corruption and

injustice in the world is our greed and

the never-ending ‘love of this world’.

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There is a very beautiful small chapter (Surah) in the Quran and it is called at-Takathur (or al-Takassur). It has only 8 short verses. In the very first verse Allah wakes you up and shakes you up by saying:

“Competition for more ˹gains˺ diverts you

˹from Allah˺, until you end up in ˹your˺ graves…”

Allah-o-Akbar! How clear a warning! The race for the material world has diverted our attention, our focus and our efforts from the real goal – to achieve Paradise by pleasing the Lord Almighty. We are wasting our talents and energies on superficial things and then we complain that we have no peace of mind. We have only stress, tension and depression. We survive on drugs and medication. And most of us keep doing that till we hit the grave. Some of us don't even fast under the advice of their corrupt doctors because they fear that fasting will kill them.

We should not forget that we are part of the Creation and there is the Supreme Creator above Who is running the show. If the creation is disconnected from its creator, it dies. Simple as that! You cannot separate the unit from the sum. We cannot survive if we are disconnected from our Creator, especially when the Creator has warned us: “Remember Me, I’ll remember you!”

It looks like that despite all the knowledge, guidance and information easily available to us, we still don’t understand our purpose of life. This world is a temporary phase of our short journey. We are in transit. Our destination is Paradise in the Hereafter. We are given an opportunity here to work on our objective. Time is short and art is long! But most of us don’t seem to realize it.

وَمَا ٱلْحَيَاةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلاَّ لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ وَلَلدَّارُ

ٱلآخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لِّلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ أَفَلاَ تَعْقِلُونَ

“What is the life of this world but play and

amusement? But best is the home in the

Hereafter, for those who are righteous.

Will you not then understand?”

(al-Quran 6:32)

That’s a good reminder, but for those who understand! Most of us are slaves of our own desires and temptations. We are chasing the pleasures of this world and have forgotten that one day we would be buried under tons of dust. That day can come any time! And what is worse than answering questions about this life on the Day of Judgment?. Now, let’s get back to the main message of Surah at-Takathur.

Surah at-Takathur (al-Takassur)

 سورہ التکاثر

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

أَلْهَاكُمُ ٱلتَّكَّاثُرُ حَتَّىٰ زُرْتُمُ ٱلْمَقَابِرَ كَلاَّ سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

ثُمَّ كَلاَّ سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ كَلاَّ لَوْ تَعْلَمُونَ عِلْمَ ٱلْيَقِين

لَتَرَوُنَّ ٱلْجَحِيمَ ثُمَّ لَتَرَوُنَّهَا عَيْنَ ٱلْيَقِينِ

ثُمَّ لَتُسْأَلُنَّ يَوْمَئِذٍ عَنِ ٱلنَّعِيمِ

'Competition for more ˹gains˺ diverts you

˹from Allah˺, until you end up in ˹your˺ graves.

But no! You will soon come to know. Again, no!

You will soon come to know. Indeed, if you were

to know ˹your fate˺ with certainty, ˹you would

have acted differently˺. ˹But˺ you will surely

see the Hellfire. Again, you will surely see it

with the eye of certainty. Then, on that Day,

you will definitely be questioned about

˹your worldly˺ pleasures.'

(al-Quran 102:1-8)

Similar message was delivered to every nation belonging to every Prophet/Messenger of God in the old. But only a few paid heed. Most of them went astray. The Torah of Prophet Moses and the Gospel of Prophet Jesus conveyed to us the same message.

The Bible says:

“You adulterous people! Don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” (James 4:4)

“The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.” (1 John 2:17)

“What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” (Mark 8:36)

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.”(Romans 12:2)

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.” (1 John 2:15)

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: To look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” (James 1:27)

“For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life -- comes not from the Father but from the world.” (1 John 2:16)

Prophet's Simple Living

Here's an excerpt from a long narration. Narrated Ibn Abbas: “For the whole year I had the desire to ask Umar bin Al-Khattab regarding the explanation of a verse (in Surah Al-Tahrim) but I could not ask him … 'Allah's Apostle smiled while he was lying on a mat made of palm-tree leaves with nothing between him and the mat. Underneath his head there was a leather pillow stuffed with palm fibers, and leaves of a saut tree were piled at his feet, and above his head hung a few water skins. On seeing the marks of the mat imprinted on his side, I wept. He said.' 'Why are you weeping?' I replied, "O Allah's Apostle! Caesar and Khosrau are leading the life (i.e. luxurious life) while you, being Allah's Apostle, are living as a destitute". The Prophet (s.a.w.) replied. 'Won't you be satisfied that they enjoy this world and we the Hereafter?'” -- (Bukhari, Book 60, No. 435)

Greed & Race For Materialism

Narrated Sahl bin Saad: “I heard Ibn Zubair who was on the pulpit at Mecca, delivering a sermon, saying: O men! The Prophet used to say, ‘If the son of Adam were given a valley full of gold, he would love to have a second one; and if he were given the second one, he would love to have a third, for nothing fills the belly of Adam's son except dust. And Allah forgives he who repents to Him." Ubai said, "We considered this as a saying from the Quran till the Sura (beginning with) 'Competition for more ˹gains˺ diverts you ˹from Allah˺ ...' (al-Takassur or Takathur) was revealed." (Bukhari, Book 76, No. 446).

The Quran Says:

فَإِذَا قَضَيْتُمْ مَّنَاسِكَكُمْ فَٱذْكُرُواْ ٱللَّهَ كَذِكْرِكُمْ آبَآءَكُمْ أَوْ أَشَدَّ ذِكْراً

فَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ رَبَّنَآ آتِنَا فِى ٱلدُّنْيَا وَمَا لَهُ فِى ٱلآخِرَةِ مِنْ خَلاَقٍ

وِمِنْهُمْ مَّن يَقُولُ رَبَّنَآ آتِنَا فِى ٱلدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً

وَفِى ٱلآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقِنَا عَذَابَ ٱلنَّارِ

“So when you have accomplished your holy

rites, celebrate the praises of Allah, as you

used to celebrate the praises of your fathers,

with far more heart and soul. There are men

who say: "Our Lord! Give us (your bounties)

in this world!" but they will have no portion

in the Hereafter. And there are men who say:

"Our Lord! Give us good in this world and

good in the Hereafter, and protect us from

the torment of the Hellfire!"

(al-Quran 2:200-201)

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