HAZRAT IBRAHIM – THE KHALEEL OF ALLAH
The three major religious communities, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, all claim to be “the children of Ibrahim.” The Jews believed that by virtue of their lineage to Ibrahim (as) they were the chosen people…the children of Ibrahim and prophet hood was a privilege granted only to them. Christians on the other hand believed the Jesus (Isa) was also a descendant of Ibrahim, who graciously paid for the sins of humanity by giving up his life. The Jews derived from Ibrahim racial superiority, while the Christians derive the concept of atonement from him. What do we as Muslims derive from Ibrahim (as) ?
The Quran says: “Behold, he (Ibrahim) approached his Lord with a sound heart.” (37:84) The need for a “qalb salim.” (sound heart) is what we derive from Ibrahim (as)
A heart that is absolutely free from Kufr (disbelief) and Nifaaq (hypocrisy). It is heart that is free from Kibr (pride), Hasad (jealousy) and Hiqd (hatred). In the words of Qurtubi (R.A.) it is an absolutely sincere) heart.
A person with a sound heart is:
ONE WHO LOVES FOR OTHER WHAT HE LOVES FOR HIMSELF: Rasoolullah e said: “None of you can (truly) believe until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” (Bukhari, Muslim)
ONE WHO ALWAYS HAS GOOD THOUGHTS ABOUT OTHERS: Anas bin Maalik (R.A.) used to say that: “Most of the dwellers of Jannah are “AL-Bulh.” Al-Bulh are people who have clean hearts and who always entertain good thoughts regarding others. Qurtubi
ONE WHO LEADS A LIFE OF TOTAL OBEDIENCE: “…. There is a piece of flesh in the body; if it is good, the whole body is good. And if it is bad, the whole body is bad. Listen! That piece of flesh is the heart.” (Bukhari, Muslim) “The heart is the king of the limbs and the rest of the limbs are its soldiers; they always obey him by implementing his instructions and they never disobey him in any regard. (Remember) when the king is pious, his soldiers will also be pious. Similarly, when the king is sinful, his soldiers will also be sinful.”
As Muslims our challenge is to develop a heart that is inflamed with the love of Allah, a heart unaffected by the diseases and melodies that generally affects others, a heart that is not only the seat of feelings and emotions but also of intelligence and action. In short it implies the whole character of an individual. The lesson we learn from the life and mission of Ibrahim (as) is to continually look at the state of our hearts. How pure is my faith in Allah, how clean is my heart from hypocrisy, deceit, arrogance, jealousy and pride?