Usrah Budi 4

Dakwah and Tarbiyyah

What is Da'wah?

    In literature, the meaning of Da'awah is 'to invite'. This word often describes the act of  Muslim inviting others no matter Muslim or Non-Muslim to Islamic practices and faith. 

What is Tarbiyyah?

    Linguistically, the meaning of Tarbiyyah is nurture, growth or increase. The term of this word is the "the ideal approach in developing human nature, both directly through a method of verbal and visual communication or indirectly through providing a role model, according to a specific curriculum that employs certain means and mechanisms in order to facilitate positive change."

    Da'wah and Tarbiyah are really important in Muslim's life as becoming a platform where Muslim receive and give knowledge among each other whereas it can change the life of one. 

In Qurah, Surah An-Nahl, verse 125. 

Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in a way that is best. Indeed, your Lord is most knowing of who has strayed from His way, and He is most knowing of who is [rightly] guided.

    We as a Muslim that we must give Da'wah to others, however, we believed that it is not our responsibility for the outcome whether they want to receive our effort. The most important thing is our heart, our effort when giving Da'wah to others. We should know that only Allah has the power to change others heart. 

    Every Muslim will have a different approach when doing Da'wah, which depends on their strength, knowledge and environment. However, Muslim should understand that when they are giving Da'wah, they need to understand the implementation of Tarbiyah. We cannot expect them to change in one night, as it is impossible and if they could change it, we cannot ensure the consistency of their adaptation. 

    In short, we need to have patience and knowledge when giving Da'wah but does not mean that we do not deserve to give it when we lack of knowledge. In other words, we need to consistently study and learning to be a better Muslim, so we can help others and contribute to society as it is the responsibility of Muslim, which is become a Khalifah in Dunya. We need to believe that our sincere efforts will be counted and will be rewarded in future. 

Ethics of Disagreement

    The human was created with different tribes, gender, personality and etc. Thus, it is normal when people have disagreements as everybody live in a different environment and way. However, as a Muslim, we must believe that there were a lot of reasons why Allah created us differently. 

O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.[49:13]

    We need to understand that no tribes are superior to others, therefore, we cannot look down on others no matter the reasons that could we use. Muslim need to respect each other, thus disagreement is not a valid reason to downgrade each other. 

    When we face a disagreement, we need to know that we have to get away from it if it could lead to an argument as it can create a lot of issues and it might be hard to solve it. In addition, we need to give the truth and point based on the real facts, as Muslim should be honest on everything. Listen and give chances to others without disrespect them. We might face a situation when we have a disagreement with people who lack of knowledge and just want to provoke us, the only best way is to surrender as it just wastes of time because they just want to win over us. 

 

Environment

And [mention, O Muhammad], when your Lord said to the angels, "Indeed, I will make upon the earth a successive authority." They said, "Will You place upon it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare Your praise and sanctify You?" Allah said, "Indeed, I know that which you do not know." [2: 30]

    As a Muslim, we should know that we are Khalifah in this world. Thus, it is our responsibility to take care of the environment. Humankind tends to over-consume world resources until we face bad consequences such as air pollution, climate change, and deforestation. Natural resources need to used moderately so we can have a balanced life parallel with rise of technology and free from environmental issues. 

      IIUM (International Islamic University Malaysia) has launched a campaign "IIUM Zero Single-Use Plastic Campaign) whereas straws and plastic bags are banned. In my opinion, I support the campaign because plastic straws and plastic are one of the items that give bad effects to the environment. The research found that those items are one of the top items that could be found when doing beach cleansup and it also the items that can never be completely broken down even after 200 years. 

 

             

              The 'trash separateness' should be a culture for society in Malaysia. The efforts of using recycling bins will never be wasted as it can help the environment. Manufacturers should take this matter heavily as the bad effects on environmental coming from the industry of the manufacture has become a big issue. Therefore, any ignorance should not be taken lightly by those who have a responsibility with the law. 

 

Death and Life

    Death is the separation of the soul from the body. As a Muslim, we must believe that there's another life after death called afterlife. It is one of the six pillars of faith for a Muslim. In the Quran, Surah Ali Imran verse number 185 : 

Every soul will taste death, and you will only be given your [full] compensation on the Day of Resurrection. So he who is drawn away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise has attained [his desire]. And what is the life of this world except the enjoyment of delusion.

       As a Muslim who knows the existence of Afterlife should be prepared with everything that we could. Muslim should be seeking knowledge every day so we can have the best preparation. We should give ourselves time to reflect our deeds. Avoid the sins and put extra effort into being a better Muslim. If we committed sins before, we should sincerely ask forgiveness from Allah, repent and avoid doing the same mistakes. Allah is All-Merciful, He will forgive you if you repent sincerely. However, we should know that there is a balance between mercy and justice. Thus, we cannot keep committing sins thinking that Allah will forgive you when you do not sincerely ask His forgiveness.

 

        To become a well-prepared Muslim, we need to carry out all compulsory tasks or practices such as Shadahah, prayer, fasting, Zakat and Hajj if physically able and can afford it. Other than compulsory practices, as Abu Hurairah narrated that our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him) said: 

“When a man dies, his good deeds come to an end except three: ongoing charity, beneficial knowledge, and righteous offspring who will pray for him.” (Muslim)

        

From the Hadees above, we can refer to the Islamic scholar named Imam An-Nawawi. 

“The scholars said, the meaning of this hadith is that the deeds of the deceased come to an end as soon as he or she dies, and the renewal of reward ceases for him or her, except in these three cases because he or she is the cause of them:

• his or her offspring is counted among his or her earnings,
• the knowledge that he or she leaves behind through teaching or writing,
• ongoing charity, i.e., a waqf (Islamic endowment).

Men and Women

       

     It is a Fitrah and blessing that we need to think about. Men and Women have a tendency to love each other even though they never have relationship previously. It is a sign from Allah that he can anything that man can never imagine and thinking about. It is a divine sign that Muslim should not take for granted. In surah Ar-Rum: 21

And of His signs is that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquillity in them; and He placed between you affection and mercy. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought.

        Marriage is not just a simple relationship. It came with big responsibilities and obligations. In order to build a happy and blessings marriage life, both husband and wife need to support each other. A happy marriage did not come when only a certain party putting their effort but every single unit of the family should work hard to create a peaceful relationship between them. Marriage is an Amanah that should not be taken lightly. 

        Muslim should be well prepared before getting married. When thinking about marriage, we want the spouses to become support systems for each other. Therefore, we must try to be a good person and putting extra efforts to improve ourselves. In addition, find someone who is fit to our personality, can carry their responsibility and can accept the weakness of us. Generally speaking, find someone who similar in personality, intellect and religion.