Overcoming the roadblocks to Qanat

Tasneem Vali offers practical tips for attaining a peaceful and satisfied soul.

Dawn is that part of the day, when you notice the first appearance of light in the sky before sunrise. Allah (swt) in His all encompassing Wisdom tells us: “(It will be said to the pious): ‘O (you) the one in (complete) rest and satisfaction! Come back to your Lord, Well-pleased (yourself) and well-pleasing unto Him! Enter you, then, among My honoured slaves, And enter you My Paradise!’" (Al-Fajr 89:27-30)

The believer’s soul is at peace with its Lord, certain of its way, confident of its fate. It is a soul satisfied in all eventualities, happiness or affliction, wealth or poverty.

The dilemma that we face is how to be the soul that is ‘in complete rest and satisfaction’. The answer is simple and logical. We need a wake-up call from our worries about money, jobs, kids and family; in fact, all the things that tie us to this world obstruct us from attaining true contentment.

There are four simple rules for bringing back contentment into our lives and overcoming any roadblocks to Qanaah (being content with what you have):

(1) Free your heart from hatred. The Prophet (sa) said: “By the One in whose hand is my soul, you will not enter Paradise until you submit. You will not submit until you love one another. Greet each other with peace and you will love one another. Beware of hatred, for it is the razor. I do not say it shaves hair, but it shaves away the religion.” (Bukhari) It’s as simple as that - submit yourself to Allah (swt).

(2) Free your mind from worries. Only Allah (swt) knows the precise moment, when we will take our final breath on this earth. “And no person can ever die except by Allah’s Leave and at an appointed term. And whoever desires a reward in (this) world, We shall give him of it; and whoever desires a reward in the Hereafter, We shall give him thereof. And We shall reward the grateful.” (Aali-Imran 3:145)  

Part of our belief in Allah (swt) requires us to have absolute certainty about Qadr, so why worry? We will get only what Allah (swt) has predetermined for us - just work hard to please Allah (swt).

(3) Live simply (Zuhud - abstinence from the greed of this world). Abu'l-Abbas as-Sa'idi said: “A man came to the Prophet (sa) and said: 'O Messenger of Allah! Guide me to such an action, that when I do it, Allah will love me and the people will love me.’ He said: ‘Be detached from this world, and then Allah will love you, and do not be attracted to what people have, and then the people will love you.’”  (Ibn Majah)

(4) Give more and expect less. Give freely of what you have - time, money, knowledge and energy - but expect a return only from Allah (swt). This world is not designed to be the venue for final judgments; accept Allah’s (swt) wisdom and defer to His logic and commands.

Getting rid of the roadblocks to Qanaah is your decision. Are you going to get up each morning submitting to Allah (swt) or are you going to sulk in bed, going over all your worries? Use each day wisely and hoard good deeds for the Hereafter.