Quest to the Straight Path

(published in 2010)

http://issuu.com/tmvmag/docs/tmvmagazine2010

Picture yourself on a lighted road in the dark woods that leads straight from your difficult day at work and directly towards your home filled with security and peace where all your loved ones reside. You are driving while your GPS is guiding you on where to turn and how to get where you need to get. Except for this straight path, all the rest of the ways are filled with the darkness of the woods with paths leading to destinations away from your home. On each of these paths, there are things that tempt you to stop, to come there way, and lead you astray and are filled with all kind of evil. However, you have to stay firm and direct your love, efforts, attention towards reaching the safety of your home, your final destination point.  

In Islam, when we think about the straight path, sirat al mustaqeen which we recite in Al Fatiha, we are asking for something of this nature, to guide us to this straight path, the path upon which is the grace of Allah and not a path which earns Allah’s wrath. This is part of the verse that opens the Qur’an before leading to the many different stories about the kinds of people that went astray, and we recite Al Fatiha at the beginning of every prayer no matter what sect a person belongs to, all of us are seeking to walk on the same path, the straight path that will lead us towards Allah (swt).

To find this straight path, the GPS which is like our guide that will lead you home, is the Quran, and your destination point is Allah (swt). The path is lighted and it is clear and open. Iblis (satan) and his followers try to divert us from going to this straight path. The Quran mentions that there are seven gates of hell in the following verses; “Allah says  ‘This way of my sincere servants is indeed a way that leads straight to Me. For over My servants no authority shalt thou have, except such as put themselves in the wrong and follow thee. And verily, Hell is the promised abode for them all. To it are seven gates: for each of those gates is a special class of sinners assigned.” (Al Hijr; 41-44).  To understand what these satans are inviting us towards to follow them, we need to understand what the major sins are, and what the straight path is. Righteous deeds would be things like establishing the five daily prayers, respecting your parents, giving in charity, being good to neighbours, helping the needy and keeping a peaceful and clean environment around you where you constantly learn and recite the Qur’an. What the satans are inviting us towards may be things such as associating partners with Allah (swt), worshipping idols and false gods, evil within us such as pride, anger, depression, lust, envy, greed or gluttony that cause us to spread evil in the world while being in a state where what is wrong seems fair seeming to us. Consider when a person is extremely angry, they think it is okay to yell at someone, throw things around and sometimes even cause murder. Similarly when we enter an evil state the wrong seems fair seeming to us. These things divert us from the straight lighted path and into a different dark path in the woods. Consider, when doing something of the nature, are you doing it for Allah (swt)? Than how can it lead you closer towards him when your purpose and destination is no longer Allah?

While we are on this straight path the key thing we need to always remember is that when we strive, do deeds or work hard towards a goal, are we doing it for Allah (swt)? Or are we doing it for a worldy benefit. For example, is what we are doing to honor the family we are in, to follow our parents ways or are we doing it because we feel it is the right thing to do that Allah (swt) has commanded.  The good deeds that we are doing, are they to please and impress others so that they can accept us? Or, are they for Allah (swt). Are we doing good such as providing people with healthcare benefits because we are trying to help people for the sake of Allah (swt)or  are we doing it for wealth? Keeping clean and clear intentions while in prayer, while in school, while around a group of people, while preaching or discussing religion are all very important because in the end these are the things that are going to get you where you need to go and keep a clear direction and strong purpose to reach towards Allah (swt).

The Quran, finally, is our guide and it is not a weapon for us to use towards other people. It is not a political game to reach power, it is our guide. There are many examples of prophets, civilizations, individuals in the Qur’an and the examples of those people surround us today on every direction and even though there are wrong things happening around us, a lot of the time these are examples for us on what not to become. Similarly, there are righteous practicing Muslims that surround us and these are examples of what kind of people we need to become. The reality is that we need to strive within, find the best examples around us that follow most of the teachings, learn from the example of our prophet (pbuh) and strive to become like them. Out of mercy we can tell the people around us if they are doing something that is going to lead them to hell or are wrongdoing but only with the knowledge that they are going to listen to our advice or if we have guardianship over them, or a group of individuals striving towards the same goals to learn to correctly practice Islam. However, in the end it is ourselves we are constantly trying to improve. Islam was inspired, and not enforced and it is not right to enforce it on anyone because their intention is fear and not Allah (swt) and Islam is not a religion that can be successful through enforcing and so we must focus on ourselves and keep our own intentions clear. We shouldn’t be using the Quran as a weapon to prove why a person, or a sect is incorrect or look down upon anyone but we should study the Quran, and follow it to the best of our ability one step at a time because in the end, it is the firm belief in Allah, the five daily prayers, giving zakat, respecting parents, neighbours, helping the needy, giving in charity and protecting your chastity and purity that are going to guide a person towards their destination.

Just to name a few benefits of being a believer, A person that prays five times a day will be clean, organized, punctual with a clean. They will be giving, caring, honest and fair. Their face will be calm and they will have a kind loving and modest nature. Just a prayer follows many characteristics but at the same time we need to recognize that we are all striving and are not perfect but the practice of Islam changes a person’s life one step at a time.  

Once we begin to use the Qur’an as a guide, practice the fundamental principles of islam, avoid the sins and keep our intention clear of what our destination needs to be, than we will be guided to the straight path. I am not going to say that the straight way is easy because the further you go on the straight path, the greater the diversions to lead us astray to another destination, but still, we have to strive towards the right goal to fulfill the purpose of our life.