The Currency to Akhirah(After Life)

In this Dunya, the currency to getting into prestigious schools/Universities are certificates. The currency to be influential and famous, is to have good looks and speak well. The currency to be amongst the elite is having wealth. The currency to climbing the corporate ladder requires punctuality, knowledge and charm. So what is the currency to Akhirah? Nabi Ibrahim read in his prayer in Surah Ash-Shuara: 83-89 رَبِّ هَبْ لِى حُكْمًا وَأَلْحِقْنِى بِٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ. وَٱجْعَل لِّى لِسَانَ صِدْقٍ فِى ٱلْـَٔاخِرِينَ. وَٱجْعَلْنِى مِن وَرَثَةِ جَنَّةِ ٱلنَّعِيمِ. وَٱغْفِرْ لِأَبِىٓ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ مِنَ ٱلضَّآلِّينَ. وَلَا تُخْزِنِى يَوْمَ يُبْعَثُونَ. يَوْمَ لَا يَنفَعُ مَالٌ وَلَا بَنُونَ. إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى ٱللَّهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ "O my Sustainer! Endow me with the ability to judge [between right and wrong], and make me one with the righteous, and grant me the power to convey the truth unto those who will come after me, and place me among those who shall inherit the garden of bliss, And forgive my father - for, verily, he is among those who have gone astray, and do not put me to shame on the Day when all shall be raised from the dead, the Day on which neither wealth will be of any use, nor children, and when] only he [will be happy] who comes before God with a heart free of evil!" "Qalbun Saleem"

The currency to akhirah can't be seen through our eyes. It is impossible to judge who has qalbun saleem. But Allah has stated in the Quran, what He buys from us. What He accepts from us. (Allah do not need us, we need Him)

Understanding the currency of Akhirah is for us to work towards achieving mardhatillah Allah's pleasure. The things that are loved by Allah. Only after understanding what matters to Allah, it will lighten our expectations with the people we are engaging in this Dunya.

1. Sincerity (إِلَّا عِبَادَ ٱللَّهِ ٱلْمُخْلَصِينَ) The repetitive verse in Surah Saffat, "except, only [those who were] God’s true servants". In the famous 40 hadith of Imam Nawawi, he (may Allah be please with him) started of with the hadith "Verily, The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions". It is easy to start of a journey with a holy intention, but it gets tougher to be consistent with the intention throughout the journey. It gets trickier when the journey has become a habit, because when doing something good becomes easy, the intention may not be as holy as when it first started.
   

2. Muhsineen (The good doers) "ٱلَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ فِى ٱلسَّرَّآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ وَٱلْكَـٰظِمِينَ ٱلْغَيْظَ وَٱلْعَافِينَ عَنِ ٱلنَّاسِ وَٱللَّهُ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُحْسِنِينَ" (who spend [in His way] in time of plenty and in time of hardship, and hold in check their anger, and pardon their fellow-men because God loves the doers of good) Ali-Imran : 134 - Those who spend their wealth towards Allah in time of good and bad - Those who suppress their anger - Those who forgives others Spending our wealth for Allah in good times is easy. But it becomes complicated when we have nothing to offer, except of what we have to survive. I like to share a quote I heard in one of the lectures. "The learned men saves their money through sadaqah" That is how much faith they have in Allah. Suppressing anger in a fast and busy world is tough. Especially living in Singapore where the demand to be perfect is high. If it is not done right, you probably get diagnosed with hypertension. And if suppressed too much, no one will take you seriously. So what is the basis of suppressing anger? (Will write about it another day) Forgiving those who have done you wrong. Wallahi, if you have been so badly hurt in your life, you will understand that not everyone is capable to forgive the pain others has caused. The trauma others has caused and the time needed to heal. Only if the person is lucky enough to heal, cause not everyone heals from a horrible experience either.
   

3. Taubah (Repent) and Thohur (Pure) (إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلتَّوَّٰبِينَ وَيُحِبُّ ٱلْمُتَطَهِّرِينَ) "Verily, God loves those who turn unto Him in repentance and He loves those who keep themselves pure" AlBaqarah : 222 I personally think that the root to every success in this life and hereafter is in Taubah (Repent). Without the door of Taubah, we will continue to be wary of our steps and try hard to be perfect in every situation. And that is exhausting. With Taubah, we acknowledge that we will make mistakes in trying to be better. It gives us some space to practice the littlest knowledge we have, which we may wronged. Taubah is an avenue for us to run to when things do not go as planned. Taubah assures us to continue with our journey. And Allah loves "At-Tawwabin" those who repent. AlMutathohirin (Those who purify themselves)
   

4. Sabr (Patience) (وَٱللَّهُ يُحِبُّ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ) "since God loves those who are patient in adversity;" Ali Imran : 146 We often are afraid to be too patient with people, company, schools, business and so on. Because our patient might not be worthy. Our patient might go to waste. Patience is something that requires risk. Risking our time and effort which might not lead to anywhere. But Allah loves those who are patient in adversity. Now, speaking of sabr here. How do we conclude an adversity? How do we differentiate between adversity and "ignorant"? How do we come to our sense of understanding that this is worth being patient for? The answer is in no. 1. (Intention) A frequent reflection and personal conversation between us and Allah will be the guidance to being patient. Until the day that Allah wants you to quit, is the day that you stop being patient. No one can predict the future, no one can tell you to stop risking your time neither can one force you to be patient with your situation.
   

5. Mutawakkileen (Those who put their trust in Him) (إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُتَوَكِّلِينَ) - Ali Imran:159 There's always a dilemma between effort and putting trust in Allah. There's a formula to "tawakkal", because tawakkal requires some amount of effort too.
   

6. Al-Muttaqin (God Conscious) (إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ) "Verily, God loves those who are conscious of Him." - At Taubah : 4 Someone who is god conscious is not somebody who goes around like a haram police and judging everyone. Rather, he is aware of himself and regularly think of what Allah thinks of him. A god conscious person craves for Allah's attention. A god conscious person gets uneasy when there is no difficulties in life. He is afraid to be too comfortable with this temporary world. He is afraid of being ignored by Allah.
   

7. Al-Muqsiteen (Fair & Reasonable) (إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُقْسِطِينَ) Al-Hujurat:9 "for verily, God loves those who act equitably" To be given the chance to be fair and reasonable mean, a person has to hold a higher authority. Like a judge who is given the power to impose punishment onto a criminal. So does a mother towards her children, a husband towards his wife, a teacher towards the students, an employer towards his staffs and so on. And Allah loves those who act fair and reasonable towards the people under them.
   

The currency to akhirah is never material nor people. The things you love, the wealth and the properties that is a constant distraction will not be of any use in akhirah. Neither are your love ones. The love of your life, your partner, your children nor your friends can help you in akhirah. Rather it is the effort of our soul. The thing about the soul, is that no one can read your soul neither can they see your soul. No one can judge your soul. If you practice all of the above characters that are loved by Allah, many will fall for you. Because when Allah loves you, He will make the people love you too. While many are easily attracted to your warmth of love for practicing the above. None can see your intention. The people who loves you will compliment you, want to be with you, and offers you help. But be careful. They are just human, they make mistake and they have flaws.

It is easy to fall in their trap of "compliments". Remember to always run back to Allah, that is the only shield you have when they attack you with their praises.

May Allah encircle us with the people who love us for Him, and make us love them for Him. Ameen