Reflections: Good Manners of the Seeker by Imam al-Haddad
The opening chapter of Imam el Haddad’s book, Good Manners of the Seeker, which openly expresses the idea of this ba’ith or urge truly hit home as Zahraa’s second year course was possibly one of the last things that I had initially envisioned myself doing:
‘I simply have to go to university!’, I would think to myself.
Alhamdulillah, even though coming to do Zahraa second year wasn’t what I had thought of doing, I am without a doubt certain that this is the best place for me to be in at this given point in time. I find it amazing how things just unfold as they should be. The idea of a ba’ith can even further extend to the fact that sometimes you find yourself in a place that you never thought you’d find yourself in. Despite the many spiritual benefits of being here, I found myself in a position where Allah has blessed me with many material and worldly benefits after attending Zahraa this year: The way I see it, it’s almost as if Allah has been sending these many gifts my way as a way of saying ‘ If you take care of your aakhirah, I’ll take care of your dunya’. The amazing thing is that my dunya is technically already and always has been taken care of and I would recently be thinking to myself, ‘What am I doing to deserve all these good opportunities coming my way? I am merely doing what has been expected from me all along!’. It sometimes feels like a parent-child relationship wherein small acts are rewarded greatly by a parent.
I’ve noticed however that even with this knowledge, one needs a constant reminder. It’s easy to just nonchalantly go through my day without being aware of these teachings. But to be the one who doesn’t try at all is more foolish than being someone who tries to do something even if it’s only a little.
Read: Journey through Migration
Chapter 4 in Imam el Haddad’s book highlights the fact that we should guard ourselves against being deceived by worldly beauty. In the first tazkiyyah session, we were asked what we envisioned our future to look like or lives in general and my immediate response was ‘to be the best in…..’. I was however, brought back to the fact that perhaps what I consider to be the best, may not be what Allah considers to be the best. I was then given a task to write down ahadith that pertain to excellence and how to be the best of people in this Ummah. My focus was immediately shifted to a new and refreshing paradigm: wherein there lies more room for fulfilment and longevity.
Furthermore, of the practical actions that I tried to implement such as eating less, talking less, using your nafl salaahs to your advantage, taking a nap in the afternoon – the act that stood out most for me was the ‘saa’at el faatimiyah’. This time spent in solitude on the balcony with the cool breeze coming my way was absolutely blissful. I realised that that is how I renew my faith: It’s not through mass gatherings and a multitude of lectures. Yes, they all definitely benefit me, but I need my time to have a sincere connection with my Rabb.
Alhamdulillah for the very practical things that I’ve learnt thus far as well as the abstract concepts that proved itself to be very beneficial.
