Success

30
Apr
2020
Sūrah al-Fajr: Redefining Success

Sūrah al-Fajr: Redefining Success

Sūrah al-Fajr is a Makkan Sūrah. It contains thirty short and powerful verses, and its theme relates to the rise and fall of nations and their accountability on the Last Day. The primary audience of this Sūrah was the pagan leaders of Makkah. They had grown arrogant in their power and this caused them to reject the message.

The Sūrah begins with a series of oath on various aspects of creation that indicate the passage of time. Allah takes an oath on the dawn, the blessed ten nights (first ten nights of Dhul Hijjah), the concept of odd and even numbers, and the passage of night. All of these concepts relate to time. In this way, the reader is drawn to reflect on the passage of time and the reality of death.

The Fate of Tyrants

 The leaders of Makkah were arrogant and did not take the message seriously. So Allah draws their attention to the arrogant leaders before them. In the next few verses, Allah lists various nations that were destroyed due to their arrogance. These include ʿĀd, Thamūd, Iram and the Pharaoh. The stories of ʿĀd, Thamūd and the Pharaoh are repeated throughout the Quran and are well known.

The reference to Iram, however, is a matter of controversy and a lot of differences of opinion. Some commentators say that Iram is simply an adjective describing the buildings of Ad. While others say it refers to another lost city that was also destroyed for its arrogance. Allah knows best. The identity of Iram is not relevant to the message of these verses. The message is clear; nations before you were destroyed because of their arrogance, so do not think that you will get away with it.

The Alternating Tests of Life

The next two verses remind us that life is a series of tests. These tests alternate between good times and bad times. In these verses, Allah refers to both times as tests.

As for man, whenever his Lord tests him, and honors him, and prospers him, he says, “My Lord has honored me.” But whenever He tests him and restricts his livelihood for him, he says, “My Lord has insulted me.”

Sūrah al-Fajr 89:15-16

These two verses show us how most of humanity views good and bad times, and contrasts this with the Islamic view. The majority of people view wealth and success as honor and gifts from God. They see it as validation that what they are doing with their lives must be right. It doesn’t even cross the mind of the average person that wealth and success are tests from God.

But when times are tough, and when people face poverty and hardship. They see it as God being angry with them. They see it as disgrace, humiliation and being abandoned by God. These two reaction reflect a materialistic outlook of life. Relying on worldly success as an indicator of one’s spiritual status is folly.

Rather, Allah draws our attention subtly to the reality. He refers to both wealth and poverty as tests. This is the reality of life. A pious person could be either wealthy or poor, neither affect his piety in any way. A rebellious sinner could also be rich or poor, neither wealth nor poverty reflect his position in the sight of Allah.

Wealth and poverty are not indicators of piety or acceptance. They are simply tests from the tests of life. Allah tests some people with wealth and He will hold them accountable for what they do with that wealth. He tests other people with poverty and will hold them accountable for how they react to that poverty. And He tests some people with both at alternating stages of their lives.

How to pass the test of wealth

The verses that follow teach us how the pagans of Makkah were failing the test of wealth. Passing the test, therefore, lies in doing the opposite of what they did.

Not at all. But you do not honor the orphan. And you do not urge the feeding of the poor. And you devour inheritance with all greed. And you love wealth with immense love.

Sūrah al-Fajr 89:17-20

In these verses, Allah draws our attentions to five ways in which people fail the test of wealth; abandoning orphans, disregarding the poor, stealing inheritance, greed, and loving wealth in an unhealthy manner. The last point is really the core of the matter. An unhealthy obsession with wealth leads to greed, miserliness and oppression in the name of amassing wealth.

Each of these on their own, however, are signs of failing the test of wealth. Allah tests some people with wealth to show how they will use it. Passing the test lies in remain spiritually detached from the wealth (Zuhd), avoiding greed, and being generous to those less fortunate. Failing it lies in the opposite.

The love of wealth is natural, and it cannot be removed completely from the hearts of people. What is condemned is an unnatural love of wealth, an obsession with it. Obsessing over wealth is unhealthy and opens the doors to various evils. This makes the test of wealth more difficult for many people than the test of poverty.

Spiritual Success

If wealth and fame are not signs of success, how then do we define success? The Sūrah ends with a reminder about the Day of Judgment, the day when we will receive the results of the test of life. It is the Day when Allah will hold people to account and people will wish they spent their lives preparing for that day.

The final verses of this Sūrah redefine success for us. Success is not wealth, fame or power. Success lies in purifying our souls, earning the pleasure of Allah and entering Paradise. These closing verses are extremely powerful and touch the soul on a deep level. It is the custom in many parts of this Muslim world to recite these verses when a believer passes away.

These final four verses are a summarized formula for real success; a pure soul, contentment, the pleasure of Allah and entrance into Paradise. What more could any believer ask for? Wealth and poverty are part of the test of life, success lies in having a good ending. The best ending is for your soul to be greeted with these beautiful words;

O Soul that is in a state of inner peace. Return to your Lord, happy and accepted (by Allah). So enter among my worshippers, and enter my Paradise.

Sūrah al-Fajr 89:27-30
Posted by Ismail Kamdar
14
Feb
2020
The ONE THING needed to accomplish any goal

The ONE THING needed to accomplish any goal

This article isn’t a pep talk. It isn’t a fluffy motivational article about willing what you want into existence or the power of positive thinking. This is real talk.

I have spent a lot of time analyzing the lives of successful people (in both religion and worldly affairs) and even wrote a book about such a person recently. In all this research, I noticed a lot of common trends, but ONE THING stood out in ALL of them. This article is about that ONE THING.

The ONE THING is NOT

It is not positive thinking. It is true that every successful person I know is an optimist and thinks positively, but that is just a part of what makes them successful.

I also know a lot of people who think positively and accomplish nothing. Because all they do is think. These people think that they will attract good things into their lives just by thinking, without any action or effort. This is a ridiculous approach to success and it just doesn’t work.

So what then is the ONE THING.

Well the ONE THING is definitely NOT

You may then assume that the ONE THING is taking action. Again, this is a common trait in every successful person I know. They all take action and work until their ideas become realities. They do NOT stop until they accomplish their goals, and never hold back from trying their best.

However, I also know a lot of unsuccessful people who took action. They took action, failed and gave up. Or they may have tried multiple times, multiple different things, yet all failed so they gave up eventually. Their actions led to nothing because positive thinking + action does NOT equal success.

So what is it then?

No, the ONE THING is not

You may then assume it is NOT giving up on your goal. Once again, this is a common trait in successful people. Successful people are unwavering in their desire to succeed and do not give up easily. They will push through every hurdle and overcome every barrier to achieve their goals. This is definitely a common trait in them.

But it isn’t the ONE THING. Because there are many people who never give up, yet never achieve their goals. The terrible singer who dreams of being famous, the poor writer who tries desperately to gain readers, the boring teacher who keeps seeking new students. They never give up, and waste their lives pursuing something they just aren’t good at.

So does that mean the ONE THING is…

Nope! The ONE THING is not that either

Does that mean the ONE THING is working on your strengths and mastering them? Well, this is a common trait in most successful people. They figure out what they are good at, put in the hours, and eventually master it. But mastery alone is not enough for success.

Many great authors go unread, many great actors unrecognized, and many amazing products lost in the dusty aisles at the back of the store. Mastery is needed, but there is ONE THING that every successful person has that combines all of the above and eventually leads to success, and it is not easy at all.

SUCCESS = Positive thinking + Taking Action + Never Giving Up + Mastery +

The ONE THING many people miss

The missing ingredient that most people don’t see and recognize, but is clear in every success story; unreasonable effort. To go above and beyond what others are willing to do to achieve your goal. This is the missing ingredient. The difference between the successful entrepreneur and the average one, the key that opens the iron-locked door, the golden principle.

If you truly want to succeed at a ridiculously high goal, then you the following formula: Positive thinking + Taking Action + Never Giving Up + Mastery + Unreasonable Effort = SUCCESS.

It is this last part that most people overlook. It is this step that scares the average person away. Yet it is this very step that is most crucial for achieving what others think is not even possible.

The author who spends countless hours honing his skill, and the rest of his time marketing his books, establishing networks and growing his reader list. That is the author that is going to eventually breakthrough and succeed. The entrepreneur who works abnormally long hours, tries ideas that nobody thought of before, pushes himself way out of his comfort zone, and works on projects that seem impossible to realize, that is the entrepreneur that rises above all.

Even in religion, it isn’t the average Muslim that we all look up to. It is the people of Ihsan, the ones who put in unbelievable effort into worshipping Allah, doing good deeds that the rest of us don’t even think of or are too lazy to do. Those are the ones who reach the highest levels of faith.

So there you have it, the recipe for success; Positive thinking + Taking Action + Never Giving Up + Mastery + Unreasonable Effort.

So what are you going to do with this knowledge?

Ready to take the next step? My new book breaks down the life of a man who succeeded in religion and worldly affairs and extracts fifteen principles from his life. Grab your copy here or at Amazon.

Posted by Ismail Kamdar in Goal Setting
03
Apr
2017

Beyond success: the one thing that successful people do differently

Beyond success: the one thing that successful people do differently

The internet is littered with dozens of articles about how to be a successful person. These articles range from serious well-written advice to fancy fluffy nonsense. Today, let us separate the gold from the dirt. If you read all the well-researched, well-written articles on successful people, you will find they all have one common message.

You see, there is one thing that all successful people do differently from unsuccessful people. And it isn’t easy. It isn’t something you would like to do.

What is success any way?

Before I tell you what that one thing is, we need to define success. When you saw the title: successful people, what image popped into your mind?

successful people

Is this your image of success?

Was it an image of a wealthy tycoon driving a fancy sports car?

Perhaps it was the image of a billionaire who donates millions in charity?

Or was it just someone who did work they enjoy and worked their own times?

It could have been someone with a happy family and a content life?

I hope it was a practicing Muslim who has earned Allah’s pleasure?

You see, success is a subjective word. So in order for this article to make sense, we need to settle on a definition of success. That definition doesn’t have to apply to life as a whole, just the theme of this article. This article is about being successful in your field of choice/career path.

Some do and some don’t

In every field, there are successes and there are failures.

There are authors who never sell more than hundred books. And there are authors who are multi-time best sellers.

Likewise, There are doctors who lose their certification due to malpractice. And there are doctors who become world renowned for being the best in the world.

Thousands of businesses shut down every year. Yet there are thousands of successful businesses as well.

You will meet teachers who you would never entrust your children to, and you will find amazing teachers who inspire children to be their best.

In every field, some fail, some succeed, and most fall somewhere in between, in the land of mediocrity.

So what separates the successful people from the rest?

They do what everybody else doesn’t want to do. They do the hard work. The scary work. The irritating work. They are the ones who see something they don’t want to do, but do it anyway because they know it will take them one step higher on the ladder of success.

You see, success only isn’t about doing what you love. There are many people who only do what they love and never experience success. (especially if they love to waste time or binge watch TV series)

Success is more than that. Success is about going beyond expectations, and doing what everybody else puts off doing.

The successful author is the one who spends the nights writing thousands of words that nobody will ever read, just to improve her writing skills.

That successful doctor is the one who never misses a conference and is always up to date with the latest research, even if it means sacrifice some personal time to do some reading.

The successful businessman is the one who invests a lot of money into training, courses, mentoring and books. So he learns what other businessmen do not, applies it and in doing so, surpasses the others.

And the successful teacher is the one who spends nights, weekends and holidays researching, preparing and learning how to be a better teacher. So she surprises her students with the latest teaching techniques. Inspires them with her positive attitude. And leads them to excel by leading by example.

Simply put…

Whatever field you have chosen, there is only one way up the ladder. Find what nobody else wants to do, but is necessary for growth, and be the one who does it.

Whether it is waking up earlier, investing in resources, researching an intricate topic, studying something new, or being better at customer service. Find the hard stuff and do it.

Do this one thing, and you too can succeed in any field.

Posted by Ismail Kamdar in Business