By Asma bint Shameem
Thankfulness to Allaah is not just to say ‘Alhamdulillaah’ absentmindedly with the tongue.
Rather, TRUE Thankfulness has three parts:
1. It’s SAYING it with the *tongue*.
2. And being CONTENT in the *heart*.
3.And SHOWING it in your ACTIONS by USING your *limbs* and *faculties* in OBEYING Allaah and keeping them away from all that’s displeasing to Him.
THAT’S true Thankfulness
THAT’s real Shukr.
Shukr is a whole ATTITUDE
It’s a WAY OF LIFE.
Ibn al-Qayyim said:
“Gratitude should be:
in the heart, in submission and humility;
on the tongue, in praise and acknowledgement;
and in the physical faculties, by means of obedience and submission.”
(Madaarij al-Saalikeen (2/246)
Abu Hazim al-Zahid said:
“As for the one who gives thanks with his tongue but does not give thanks with all of his physical faculties, his likeness is that of a man who has a cloak; he takes hold of the edge of it, but does not put it on, so it is of no benefit to him against cold or heat or snow or rain.”
Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali said:
“Gratitude is of two degrees:
1. One of which is OBLIGATORY, which is doing obligatory actions and avoiding haram (unlawful) things.
This is essential and is sufficient as gratitude for these blessings.
Hence one of the salaf said:
“Gratitude means giving up sin”.
And one of them said:
“Gratitude means not using any blessing to help one to disobey Him.”
2. The second degree of gratitude is that which is RECOMMENDED, which is when, after doing obligatory actions and avoiding haraam things, a person does supererogatory acts of worship.
This is the level of those who have gone ahead and are closer to Allaah.”
(Jaami’ al-‘Uloom wa’l-Hukam (p. 245, 246)
*HOW to thank Allaah*
*a) With the HEART*
Thanking Allaah with the heart means you ACKNOWLEDGE that in your heart.
KNOW and BELIEVE that the Giver of ALL the innumerable blessings and the Bestower of EACH and EVERY bounty is no one but Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta’aala, al-Kareem, the Most Generous.
Everything IN you, ON you and AROUND you is from Allaah Alone.
So VENERATE Him, ATTRIBUTE it to Him Alone, and GLORIFY Him.
For it is HE Alone Who blessed you.
It is He Alone Who gave you.
And if He had withheld it from you, NO ONE could EVER give it to you.
Giving thanks with the heart also means to be HUMBLE and MODEST.
Because you KNOW and acknowledge that all blessings are a GIFT to you from Him.
It’s HIS Credit.
HIS Virtue.
HIS Praise.
And NOTHING to do with you.
*b) With the TONGUE*
Thanking Allaah with the tongue means that you ACKNOWLEDGE that on your lips.
So give thanks to Him when you sit down to eat.
And give thanks to Him when you wake up in the morning for giving you new life...
And give thanks to Him when you put on your clothes, and when you relieve yourself and when you go to bed.
Give thanks to Him for EVERY Blessing you see in your life.
SAY Alhamdulillaah.
And MEAN it.
*c) With the LIMBS*
Giving thanks to Allaah with the limbs means to use your eyes and ears and hands and feet in goodness and obedience;
Don’t use them for evil and transgression.
Don’t use your hands to inflict harm or commit evil.
Don’t walk with your feet to haraam places.
Lower that gaze and don’t let it fall on the forbidden.
Don’t listen to music.
Don’t hear any gossip.
Don’t use your tongue in cursing, or lying or backbiting.
No hurtful words.
No snide remarks.
Instead; say a kind word, a sincere advice, a beautiful encouragement.
Use your eyes to SEE nothing but good.
Use your ears to HEAR nothing but good.
Abu Haroon said:
“I entered upon Abu Hazim, and said to him:
“May Allah have mercy on you, what is the gratitude of the eyes?
He said:
“If you see something good with them, you mention it, and if you see something bad with them, you conceal it.”
I said:
“What is the gratitude of the ears?”
He said:
“If you hear something good with them, you remember it, and if you hear something bad with them, you forget it.”
What a beautiful way to thank Allaah for these precious and irreplaceable blessings of the eyes and ears!
Remember that gratitude for blessings is a blessing in itself, which needs to be given thanks for!
So we even need to thank Allaah for enabling us to thank Him!
Subhaan Allaah!
Alhamdulillaah!
Al-Fudhayl ibn ‘Iyadh said:
“Whoever *recognises* the bounties of Allaah from His *heart*, and thereupon thanks Allaah with his *tongue*, he would not finish thanking Allaah, except that he sees MORE (of Allaah’s bounties), for Allaah Ta’ala said:
“If you be thankful, We will increase you (in bounty)” (Surah Ibrahim: 7)
May Allaah enable us to truly appreciate His Blessings upon us and make us amongst the grateful. Ameen.
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