Taqwaa and ‘Ibaadah (worship)
Taqwaa and Mu’aamalaat (interpersonal relationships)
Ulama Institute #1
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- In Islam our practical life has been divided into two main categories, (‘ibaadah) and interpersonal relationships (mu’aamalaat). The first category deals mainly with our relationship with Allah while the second category deals with our relationship with others. In this lesson we will see how taqwaa affects both our relationship with Allah (ibaadah) and our relationship with others (mu’aamalaat).
- Building a relationship with Allah ﷻ and worshipping Him is the most important thing expected of a Muslim. It is through worship that we build a good relationship with Allah ﷻ and become conscious of Him. In fact our main purpose in life is to worship Allah ﷻ and establish a good relationship with Him. Regarding this, Allah ﷻ says in the Qur’aan
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الجِنَّ وَالْإِنس إلا ليعبدون ( سورة الذاريات: ٥٦)
… And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me. [Soorat Adh-Dhariyat: 56]
- Islam has put certain acts of worship in place in order to establish a good relationship with Allah ﷻ and increase our consciousness of Him These acts of worship include: Salah, Zakah, Sawm and Hajj, which constitute a major part the pillars of Islam (Arkaan al-Islaam).
- Furthermore, we find that all these acts have been made compulsory so that we may establish a good relationship with Allah ﷻ and increase our awareness of Him .
Regarding Salah and increasing our consciousness of Allah (taqwa Allah). The Qur’aan reads:
إِنَّنِىٓ أَنَا ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّآ أَنَا۠ فَٱعْبُدْنِى وَأَقِمِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ لِذِكْرِىٓ (سورة طه : ١٤)
Indeed, I am Allah. There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance. Soorat Taa haa: 14]
- Secondly, Zakah (Compulsory Charity) is not just giving of our wealth to those in need, but it is about becoming conscious of the fact that everything in essence belongs to Allah ﷻ . This is in fact the foremost reason why we give Zakah.
With regards to Sawm (fasting), there is no doubt that the main reason for this particular act of worship is to establish a good relationship with Allah ﷻ and become conscious of Him Allah ﷻ says:
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ (سورة البقرة : ١٨٣)
O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous [attain taqwaa]. [Soorat al-Baqarah: 183]
- It is clear from the above verse that we fast to attain taqwaa- that you may become righ- teous (attain taqwaa). In fact, among all the verses pertaining to worship this is the only verse where the commandment is followed by the reason for doing it.
- Furthermore, even the Hajj has been put in place so that we may establish a relationship with Allah ﷻ and become conscious of Him. Wuqoof (standing) on ‘Arafah, which takes place on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah, is considered to be the highlight of the Hajj. On this day the Prophet ﷺ emphasized the importance of establishing a relationship with Allah ﷻ , which is the essence of universal brotherhood in Islam.
This is beautifully illustrated by the following verse of the Qur’aan,
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَـٰكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍۢ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَـٰكُمْ شُعُوبًۭا وَقَبَآئِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ أَتْقَىٰكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌۭ (سورة الحجرات : ١٣ )
“O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous (those who have taqwaa) of you…”. Soorat al-Hujaraat: 13]
- All of the acts of worship (baadah) mentioned above have been made compulsory so that we may establish a relationship with Allah ﷻ , and become conscious of Him. Once we have established a good relationship with Allah, based on true taqwaa,
- we should become conscious of our relationship with others. Therefore the acts of worship also have a social dimension to it, which is our relationship with others, personal or business. Our relationship with Allah ﷻ and our consciousness of Him inevitably affects our interpersonal relationships (mu’aamalaat). Establishing a good relationship with Allah ﷻ must result in establishing a good relationship with His creation.
- The strength of our interpersonal relationships depends a lot on the strength of our relationship with Allah ﷻ . So, if we have a good relationship with Allah ﷻ , based on taqwaa, it would be easy for us to establish a good relationship with others and also establish true universall brotherhood. It would therefore not be difficult for us to treat people fairly or part with our money when paying our Zakah. Righteous deeds are inevitably governed by our inner consciousness of Allah ﷻ -taqwa Allah. Even our obedience and disobedience of the laws of Allah ﷻ are governed by consciousness of Him. Therefore if a person performs a bad deed he/she could not have been conscious of Allah ﷻ at the time of performing the act. If he/she was truly conscious of Allah at the time of performing the act, his/her consciousness (taqwaa) would have prevented him from doing it.
- Above everything our interpersonal relationships play a very important role in our relationship with Allah ﷻ . As Muslims we will only be able to worship Allah ﷻ truly, if we maintain a good relationship with others, without feeling superior to them or looking down upon them.
Taqwaa also regulates the life and character of Muslims. If a person is conscious of Allah (possesses taqwaa), he will not be unkind or rude to anybody else; he will deceive others; he will be honest and truthful and he will strive to fulfil the rights of others.
Learning from the lesson
- The relationship between taqwaa and worship (‘ibaadah).
- How consciousness of Allah ﷻ impacts on our interpersonal relationships
- Realization that taqwaa is the essence of our relationships – with Allah ﷻ and others.
