Bismillah Alhamdulillah wash-sholaatu wassalaamu ‘alaa rasulillah waba’du
All praise be to Allah, the Provider, the most Generous. He offered us unlimited kindness. Glad tidings shall, therefore, be to those, who obey Him, are satisfied with his favours and grateful to Him always.
I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship, except for Him alone without any partners or peers and that Muhammad, the best example of contended people, is His Servant and Messenger, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, his companions, and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
I urge myself first and all of you to obey Allah and be submissive to Him. Verily, Allah, Exalted is He, has declared the truth in His Holy Book:
"O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer." (Annisaa: 1).
He also says,
"So give good tidings to My servants who listen to speech and follow the best of it." (Azzumar: 17-18).
Dear Muslims,
Allah the Almighty has created Man and gave him abundantly. There are those who are happy with what they have received, but there are also the greedy, the unsatisfied. Allah the All-Glory says,
"and as for man, when his Lord tries him and [thus] is generous to him and favours him, he says, 'my Lord has honoured me.' But when He tries him and restricts his provision, he says, 'My Lord has humiliated me'." (Al Fajr: 15-16).
Actually, the successful is the one who surrenders to Allah and is content with destiny. He neither complains nor gets upset. Allah the most Exalted says,
"do they distribute the mercy of your Lord? It is We who have apportioned among them their livelihood in the life of this world." (Azzukhruf: 32).
Thus contentment is to be construed as the act of accepting willingly what is available and never getting frustrated or angry at what is not accessible.
It is beneficial for man and is fundamental to his self-esteem. Its value cannot be measured. It is a source of happiness that never ends, and is a kind of wealth that never dwindles. Further, it is a requirement for a peaceful life as the Almighty says,
"whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do." (Annahl: 97).
Here, a good life means any aspects of comfort but it is mostly associated with contentment as reported by scholars, who quoted Ali Ibn Abu Talib and Ibn Abbas amongst others.
Indeed, whoever is blessed with satisfaction, he has succeeded. Allah's Messenger pbuh said in this regard,
"the successful is the one who enters the fold of Islam and is provided with sustenance which is sufficient for his day's needs, and Allah makes him content with what He has bestowed upon him."
Our Guide Muhammad pbuh was pleased with what Allah had granted him, and would look forward to the next life, seeking his Lord's acceptance. He would supplicate to the All-Powerful saying,
"O Allah, make the provision of the family of Muhammad sufficient for them."
That is, making them financially independent and sparing them extreme necessity.
Dear Servants of Allah,
Because the self is naturally inclined to own more things, our Guide Muhammad pbuh warned us saying,
"if the son of Adam were to possess two valleys of riches, he would long for the third one."
It was also said that the self remains avidly desirous if it is left at free will, and will never be satisfied until it is restrained.
That is why the Prophet pbuh used to educate his Companions into avoiding the obsession with increasing one's possessions and guide them to ways to satisfaction and happiness. It was narrated that Hakim Ibn Hazzam, may Allah be pleased with him, said,
"I asked the Messenger of Allah pbuh and he gave me, then I asked him and he gave me, then I asked him and he gave me.
Then he pbuh said, 'this wealth is attractive and sweet. Whoever takes it without insisting, it will be blessed for him, and whoever takes it with avarice, it will not be blessed for him. He is like one who eats and is not satisfied. And the upper hand is better than the lower hand'
I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, By the One Who sent you with the truth, I will never ask anyone for anything after you, until I depart this world'."
The Companions endorsed this prophetic guidance with honesty and raised their children on the same. They taught them not to look at what is in others' hands.
Here is another example of Saad Ibn Abi Waqqas, may Allah be pleased with him, who advised his son to avoid greed, as it leads to poverty, and ignore what others have. He explained to him that contentment is the true wealth and peace of mind.
Dear Muslims,
Our Prophet pbuh instructed us to adopt ways to reach contentment based on the firm faith that blessings are from Allah only. The All-Glory said,
"and whatever you have of favour - it is from Allah. Then when adversity touches you, to Him you cry for help." (Annahl: 53).
In another verse, Allah says,
"indeed, it is Allah who is the [continual] Provider, the firm possessor of strength." (Adhariyat: 58).
In the same regard, He pbuh also told us to think of Allah's gifts to us and avoid comparing ourselves with others. And if we were to do so, it should be with those who are less fortunate. Only then can we truly value Allah's blessings to us without undermining them. The Prophet pbuh said,
"look at those who are lower than you (financially) but do not look at those who are higher than you, lest you belittle the favours Allah conferred upon you."
This means satisfaction cannot be attained unless we overlook other people's property and privileges. In fact being wealthy is much associated with feeling happy with what Allah has granted us, as the Prophet says,
"be satisfied with what Allah has allotted for you and you shall be the richest of the people."
He also said,
"riches does not mean, having a great amount of property, but riches is self-contentment."
Truly a self-contended person is well respected amongst the community; he or she is more valued than the ill-aspiring and the wealth-mongering.
Hasan Al Basri said,
"you will continue to be generous to people, who will act in the same way [by treating you nicely]. They will do so as long as you do not aspire to what they have in hands. But if you did, they would underestimate you and hate you."
Anyone blessed with contentment he will sense Allah's gifts to him and appreciate them fully. But those who deny their Lord's favours and fail to thank Him cannot be satisfied. The Prophet pbuh said,
"O Abu Hurairah, be cautious, and you will be the most devoted of people to Allah. Be content and you will be the most grateful of people to Allah."
Being aware of the merits of contentment, we implore Allah to help us be satisfied in all of our matters and grant us acceptance. We also pray to Allah to help us obey Him, His Messenger Muhammad pbuh and those He has decreed on us to obey in compliance with His orders:
"O you who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, and those charged with authority among you." (Annisaa: 59).
May Allah direct us all to the blessings of the Glorious Quran and the Sunna of His Messenger pbuh and benefit us all in whatever is in them.
I say this and ask Allah the Great, the Most Honoured for forgiveness for me, you and all the Muslims for every sin, so invoke Him for forgiveness, for He is the Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.
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