Friday Nasiha

Al-Baqara (The Cow)
Chapter 2: Verse 46

Our Goal is the Hereafter
"Who realize that they have to meet their Lord and that to Him they are destined to return"

Many people try to ride two boats at the same time and suffer in both ways. We should decide that we have to earn the Hereafter and only the Hereafter from the whole of this temporal life. And even when we seek to earn the world, that should also be in order that we might earn the Hereafter. If we do so, we will join the ranks of those "who realize that they have to meet their Lord and that to Him they are destined to return". We shall have attained that Khushu (submissiveness and humility) which is something so valuable that if we are devoid of it, no amount of knowledge will be of any avail. On the other hand, if we have khushu it will be easy for us to observe sabr (patience) and salah (Prayer). Both of these are the keys to all the good of this world and the Hereafter.

The secret of attaining taqwa - the token of a successful life - also depends upon our clearly deciding and resolutely persevering with the decision that our goal is the Hereafter. The underlying objective of all worldly concerns and preoccupations should be to earn the Hereafter. If we always keep the Hereafter in view, we shall not only attain taqwa but the blessings of this world and the Next shall also be ours. All kinds of blessings shall be showered upon us from every direction, we shall be free of every consternation, we shall be granted livelihood from the sources that are not even in the far reaches of our imagination. We shall also become the rightful inheritors of Paradise. In order to achieve this, we should keep the thought of death and the different stages through which one will have to pass in the Hereafter close to our heart.

Source:
"Dying and Living for Allah" - Khurram Murad, pp. 68-69

'I want it to be a simple building, like the thatching of my brother Moses. But in reality this world is more transient than would deserve even such a simple building - wa al-Amr a'jal min dhalik (the matter is more transient than that)'.

'O Lord! there is no worthwhile living but one oriented towards the Hereafter.'

That is all part of the goodness and kindness that people follow. This is where the woman serves her husband in those things that she mentioned, such as preparing food, cooking, washing, clothing and so forth. This is all voluntary work on the part of a woman towards her husband and her good dealings with him. These are all good acts on her part. None of that is obligatory upon her. If she refused to do any or all of that, she would not be sinful. In fact, he must do those jobs for her and it is not permissible for him to force her to do any of them. This is what the woman does on a voluntary basis only. It is a beautiful custom that women have been following since the first generations until now. Only two things are obligatory upon the woman; keeping herself ready and prepared [sexually] for her husband and staying in his house.