My dear respected brothers and sisters! Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu! Alhamdulillah, we are passing through the blessed month of Ramadan. It is not only the month of fasting. It is the month of the Qur’an. It is the month of compassion. It is the month of piety. It is the month of patience. It is the month of seeking forgiveness from Allah. It is the month of thankfulness to Allah. It is the month of spending in charitable causes to attain the pleasure of Allah. The Qur’an tells us that the primary objective of fasting is to attain taqwa.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, so that hopefully you will have taqwa. (al-Baqarah, 2:183)
Insha’Allah, in today’s talk, I’ll speak briefly on the meaning of taqwa, the attributes of the people of taqwa, the benefits of taqwa, and some of the ways to achieve taqwa in our lives. Taqwa is one of the most important and comprehensive principles in Islam, It is among the highest moral qualities that a Muslim can attain. The word taqwa is derived from the Arabic word ‘waqaya’ which means “to be protected from the harmful.”
As a term in the Shari’ah, taqwa means to protect oneself from acts that are sinful by leaving what is unlawful or forbidden. Allah the Almighty through His infinite knowledge, wisdom and mercy has informed us through the final divine message – the Qur’an, and the final messenger – Muhammad (SAW), as to what is lawful and beneficial and what is unlawful and harmful. Allah (SWT) does not desire any harm to happen to any of His creatures. All that is prohibited by Allah or acts that He tells us not to do are harmful to us. They cannot become beneficial or permissible even if the whole world and the entire mankind may say to the contrary.
The term taqwa has also to be understood in the context in which it is used in the Qur’an because it has different shades of meanings, some of which are: God-consciousness, self-restraint, righteousness, piety, guarding oneself against evil, and fear of Allah (SWT). God-consciousness implies a sense of presence of Allah (SWT) – awareness that Allah (SWT) is watching us. A God-conscious person will always try to obey Allah (SWT) and seek His pleasure in whatever he does. He knows that by disobeying Allah (SWT), even if he escapes harm or punishment in this world, he will be punished in the hereafter, and the ultimate punishment is to fail in the hereafter, the consequence of which is hell-fire.
In the Qur’an, the very first command that has been addressed to the entire humanity in ayah 21 of Surat al-Baqarah says:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اعْبُدُوا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
O mankind, worship your Lord, who created you and those before you, so that you may have taqwa. (al-Baqarah, 2: 21)
This the essence of the message to which the Qur’an invites all mankind so that it is saved from false beliefs and unrighteous conduct in this life, and from the punishment of God in the Next. The expression لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَتَّقُوۡنَ has been translated here as, “so that you may have taqwa. It has also been translated by commentators of the Qur’an as, “so that you are saved,” “so that you guard yourselves against evil, “so that you become God-fearing,” “so that you become mindful of Him,” so that you become righteous,” “so that you become pious,” and there are other translations as well. Hence the term taqwa is a very nuanced term, expressive of several meanings. Elsewhere, addressing the believers, the Qur’an says:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا قُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا
O you who believe, save yourselves and your families from the Fire (at-Tahrim, 66:6)
Ali ibn Abi Talib (RA) defined taqwa as: “Fearing Allah (SWT), adhering to His commandments, being content with what He has provided us with, and getting ready for the journey from this world to the next.” Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (RA), would say in his sermons,
خَيْرُ الزَّادِ التَّقْوَى وَرَأْسُ الْحِكْمَةِ مَخَافَةُ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ
“The best provision is taqwa, and the foundation of wisdom is the fear of Allah Almighty.”
Taqwa is put into the heart of the believers to cause them to fear Allah. Actually, fear of Allah signifies fear of the punishment that would come from the disobedience of Allah. When we obey Allah as He should be obeyed, and we keep repenting to Him and turning to Him, seeking His forgiveness for our lapses, then we have a hope in His infinite mercy. So, fear of Allah and hope in Allah are inseparable and they constitute the basic components of iman or true faith.
The example of taqwa is like that of a thorny path. When you see a thorn, you keep away from it lest you harm yourself by getting pricked by it. Similarly when you see a sin, you guard yourself against it lest you get harmed by its evil consequences. It is only Allah (SWT) who knows the state or degree of taqwa of a person because the seat of taqwa is the heart. On one occasion the Prophet (SAW) pointing his finger towards his heart said, “Taqwa is here.” And only Allah (SWT) knows what is in the heart of a person.
Who are the people of taqwa or the muttaqeen? What are their attributes? What is so special about them? Let us see how the Qur’an describes them. Allah says in ayah 133 of Surat Aal-i-‘Imran,
وَسَارِعُوا إِلَى مَغْفِرَةٍ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا السَّمَوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ
Race with one another towards forgiveness from your Lord and towards a paradise the width of which spans the heavens and the earth. It has been prepared for the muttaqeen. (Aal-i-Imran, 3:133)
So, the first thing a believer has to realize is that he is weak and not free from sin. Taqwa does not imply perfection. One who has taqwa is also subject to committing sins, but as soon as he finds he has fallen into sin, he immediately remembers Allah (SWT) and asks for His forgiveness and his faith gives him hope. He abandons his wrong conduct and makes amends. He does not persist to do anything wrong that he may have done. The next ayah says:
الَّذِينَ يُنْفِقُونَ فِي السَّرَّاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ
Those who spend (for Allah‘s sake) in prosperity and adversity, and those who control anger and forgive people. And Allah loves those who are good in their deeds (Aal-i-Imran, 3:134)
Spending implies not only wealth but also our time, labor, skills, experience, and other resources granted to us by Allah (SWT). So we have to ask ourselves how much we are spending in the path of Allah from the things He has blessed us with, and what priority does Islam as a way of life have in our lives. Those who have taqwa (the muttaqeen) also control their anger and forgive others out of love, and this is something very difficult, because people generally tend to be unforgiving and vengeful. And the following ayah is:
وَالَّذِينَ إِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً أَوْ ظَلَمُوا أَنْفُسَهُمْ ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلُوا وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ
And those who, when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins – and who can forgive sins except Allah ? – And [who] do not persist in what they have done while they know. (Aal-i-Imran, 3:135)
Immorality refers to all types of lewd, vulgar and shameful deeds. Let us go through some of the verses of the Qur’an that mention about the benefits and rewards for the people of taqwa – the muttaqeen.
ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لا رَيْبَ فِيهِ هُدًى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ
This is the Book! There is no doubt in it; a guide to the muttaqeen. (al-Baqarah: 2:2)
وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الْمُتَّقِينَ
And have taqwa of Allah, and know that Allah is with those who have taqwa. (al-Baqarah, 2:194)
وَاللَّهُ وَلِيُّ الْمُتَّقِينَ
Allah is the Protector of those who have taqwa. (al-Jathiyah, 45:19)
فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُتَّقِينَ
Allah loves those who have taqwa. (Aal ‘Imran, 3:76)
وَمَنْ يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يُكَفِّرْ عَنْهُ سَيِّئَاتِهِ وَيُعْظِمْ لَهُ أَجْرًا
Whoever has taqwa of Allah; He will erase his bad actions from him and greatly increase his reward. (at-Talaq, 65:5).
وَمَنْ يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يَجْعَلْ لَهُ مَخْرَجًا وَيَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُ
Whoever has taqwa of Allah; He will find a way out for him, and provide for him from where he does not expect. (at-Talaq, 65:2-3)
وَمَنْ يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يَجْعَلْ لَهُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِ يُسْرًا
Whoever has taqwa of Allah — He will make matters easy for him. (At-Talaq, 65:4)
إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ
Allah only accepts from people who have taqwa. (al-Ma’idah, 5:27)
إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي جَنَّاتٍ وَعُيُونٍ
The people with taqwa will be among gardens and springs (al-Dhariyat, 51:15)
يَوْمَ نَحْشُرُ الْمُتَّقِينَ إِلَى الرَّحْمَنِ وَفْدًا
On that day, we will gather those who have taqwa as a delegation. (Maryam, 19:85)
فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَعْطَى وَاتَّقَى () وَصَدَّقَ بِالْحُسْنَى () فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْيُسْرَى
As for him who gives and has taqwa, and believes in goodness, we will smooth his way toward all that is easy. (al-Layl, 92:5-7).
إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ
The noblest among you in Allah´s sight is the one with the most taqwa. (Al-Hujurat, 49:13)
وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَيُعَلِّمُكُمُ اللَّهُ
Have taqwa of Allah and Allah will give you knowledge. (al-Baqarah, 2:282). May Allah make us among the people of taqwa; Ameen.
Brothers and sisters! Whenever we perform a good deed, Allah (SWT) rewards us by guiding us to another good deed. On the other hand, doing a bad deed without regretting over it and without seeking forgiveness from Allah (SWT) will lead us to commit another bad deed, whether of the same type or of a different type. Doing a bad deed without remorse may lead the person to repeat it again and again, and when that becomes a norm, it can cause that person to become a sinner to the point that his or her heart will be sealed from receiving guidance. Therefore, it is essential to feel regret and remorse after committing an evil deed. It needs to be offset through sincere repentance (tawbah), seeking forgiveness (istighfar) and by following it up with a good deed.
إِنَّ الْحَسَنَاتِ يُذْهِبْنَ السَّيِّئَاتِ ذَلِكَ ذِكْرَى لِلذَّاكِرِينَ
“Truly, good deeds drive away evil deeds. This is a reminder to the mindful.” (Hud, 11:114)
There is a also a hadith that says: “Fear Allah wherever you may be and follow up an evil deed with a good one which will wipe it out, and behave with excellent character towards people.” Thus, good character is also a characteristic of taqwa. And we are commanded through this hadith to behave with people in a good manner.
What are the means or ways to achieve taqwa? Taqwa is not something that can be achieved overnight. One has to consciously, persistently and diligently work for it. Some of the means to achieve taqwa are: We should remember Allah (SWT), and the best way of remembrance is through the Qur’an, which is also called al-Zikr or ‘the remembrance.’ In this sense, it would mean believing in the Qur’an, reading it, understanding it, implementing its teachings in our lives, and conveying its message to others. We should observe Allah’s commandments and avoid His prohibitions. We should repent for the sins of the past. We should refrain from committing sins in the future. We should be fearful of Allah whenever we think of committing a sin. We should be hopeful of Allah’s forgiveness. We should guard our senses and ensure that what we see, what we hear or what we say will not displease Allah. We should remember death and know that the life of this world is only a passing phase where each one of us is being tested, both in prosperity and adversity.
Brothers and sisters! What better time could there be than the month of Ramadan to cultivate taqwa within us. Let me conclude by saying that taqwa is the driving force that can help us endure the struggles in this world and draw us close to Allah (SWT). Taqwa involves a continual awareness and connection with the Creator while exemplifying good character with the creation. It is an essential quality of a believer, which is echoed numerous times in the Qur’an and Prophetic traditions.
May Allah turn our hearts towards taqwa and towards His obedience. May He make us among the muttaqeen. Ameen.
