Perfected Faith: People of Perfected Faith's Turning Towards Allah

Allah surrounds everything. He is nearer to man than his jugular vein. He is the All-Hearing and All-Knowing. Allah knows everything that happens to a human being; not a single thought can remain hidden from Him. A believer knows this and acknowledges that he only needs to think in order to ask Allah for something. Even if this thought is hidden in one's breast, Allah hears it and indupitably answers one's prayer, because Allah is the friend, protector and helper of believers.

According to the Qur'an, prayer is man's turning towards Allah in all sincerity, taking refuge in His infinite and unbounded might, and asking help from Him. It is the acknowledgement of one's weakness before the infinite might of Allah. Prayer is one's personal relation with Allah. All thoughts and wishes of a man remain concealed between the man and Allah. Therefore, there is not the slightest possibility of showing off in this form of worship. It is worship founded entirely on sincerity.

Those who deeply feel that Allah is nearer to them than anybody and anything, that He hears all prayers and answers them all and who live by these truths, are the people of perfected faith. They are again those who turn towards Allah with a sincere heart and know their weaknesses as human beings before His omnipotence. They further know that it is Allah alone Who answers all prayers and saves man from all difficulties and trouble.

Not only in times of trouble or affliction, but at any time and in any situation the people of perfected faith turn to Allah, because, they know that there is not a single moment in a man's life when he is not in need of Allah. They do not wait for an affliction to befall them before they pray to Allah. They know that this is a form of worship, a servant's duty to his Creator, and an important way to draw nearer to Allah. This is, in actuality, one of the most important attributes that distinguishes them from other people. The morality displayed by those who pray to Allah when they are in trouble, but immediately turn their backs soon after they are freed from trouble is described in the following verse:

The people of perfected faith, on the other hand, are the ones who turn towards our Lord whether they are at ease or in trouble, because, they comprehend the insight provided by the verse

They pray as described in the Qur'an. In one verse Allah commands the following:

As is evident, Allah demands a humble and fearful prayer from His servants. Because, in their prayers, the only criteria Allah sets for His servants is sincerity. Our Lord, whom we implore, knows and hears what we utter as well as our innermost thoughts. Aware of this and, following their instincts, people of perfected faith sometimes pray secretly and sometimes aloud, but never make their prayers a matter of ostentation, because, in the Qur'an, Allah draws attention to the importance of "calling on Allah, making religion sincerely His":

Believers "feel Allah's existence" while they pray. While praying, they not only make their requests of Allah but also deeply feel the unity of Allah, His existence, His greatness and His infinite might. In the Qur'an, Allah commands as follows:

While praying, the people of perfected faith keep their minds occupied with the remembrance of Allah's beautiful names. Allah's names make us attain a better understanding of Allah's attributes. Believers who call on Him, aware that He is the most Merciful and All-Compassionate, truly grasp His nearness to His servants and His mercy. Indeed, man can pray to Allah by uttering His beautiful names:

As is true of all other issues, sincere prayer is a quality best exhibited in Allah's prophets. In the Qur'an, the sincerity of the prophets' prayers are especially stressed:

He (Sulayman) said,

He (Musa) said,

In a hadith, we read the following prayer of Allah's messenger: "My Lord! The Lord of the Seven Heavens and The Lord of the great Throne, our Lord and The Lord of all, The Creator of plants and trees: I seek refuge in You from the evil of all creatures; You are the First; Nothing is before You. You are the Last; Nothing is after You." (Muslim)

Believers are also steadfast in their prayers. As the verse says, they "seek help in steadfastness and prayer" (Surat al-Baqara, 45) from Allah. Their submission to Allah and the trust they put in Him accounts for such steadfastness and commitment. A believer feels assured that Allah will certainly answer his prayers. He never despairs and keeps on imploring Him:

A man of perfected faith fears Allah and prays to Him with profound respect and patience. He prays to his Lord at any moment; at an unanticipated time of the day or an unexpected place, a believer takes the time to pray to his Lord in earnest. Even in his busiest moments, he takes refuge in Him, implore Him and asks for His guidance. He does all this because he knows that this is the easiest way to draw nearer to Allah, to attain His approval and paradise. There is no obstacle that would hinder such a one from drawing near to his Creator. Allah only wants His servants to turn towards Him with a sincere heart. Allah commands as follows in the Qur'an:

The Exemplary Attitudes the People of Perfected Faith Assume in Times of Difficulty

Before discussing the attitudes the people of perfected faith assume in times of difficulty, we need to have a true understanding of the way they perceive difficulties. People of perfected faith are those who truly grasp that this world is a place specially designed to put man to the test. They also truly know that the concept of "difficulty" is created to distinguish between "people who really believe" and "those in whose hearts is a disease". Times of difficulty and trouble are important moments for believers that enable them to prove their sincerity in faith. This being the case, contrary to its general meaning, "difficulty" is truly a "blessing" for a man of perfected faith.

Owing to this perception, they put their trust in Allah when they meet with hardship. Meanwhile, they never forget to pray that Allah may not burden them with more than they have the capacity to bear:

In the face of a difficulty, they understand that it is a trial "which they have the strength to bear" and thus try to show their submission to Allah and their trust in Him in the best way possible. They know that the attitudes they assume in times of ease and those they display in hardship are not the same in the sight of Allah. On this subject, Allah gives the following example:

As the above verse also stresses, people who seek Allah's approval in times of hardship are superior to those who do not make any effort. Their holding fast to their religion in such hard times reveals the profoundness of their faith. It is difficult to judge the sincerity of a person who makes sacrifice in times of ease. Putting people to the test through hardship is a way by which Allah distinguishes between those who are truthful and those who are liars.

Allah's testing believers with difficulties serves another purpose. Having experienced a difficulty makes an individual appreciate the value of a blessing much better and this makes him feel more grateful. This is because, difficulty and pain matures the human spirit. Difficulties in this world enable man to make the comparison between the good and bad, abundance and scarcity, comfort and inconvenience. Only through these comparisons does a man appreciate the worth of the material and spiritual blessings he enjoys. More importantly, these difficulties enable him to truly understand how much he is in need of Allah and to comprehend his weakness before Him. The kind of hardships through which a person can be put to the test in this world are specified as follows:

Abeliever who bears this verse in mind prepares himself for difficulties even before he encounters them and promises Allah that he will show determination in patience and submission, and remain devoted, whatever the circumstances may be. His perfected faith accounts for this noble attitude. In the face of fear, unbearable hunger, poverty, an injury or loss of a loved one, he remains committed to being contented with Allah and to assuming a grateful manner towards Him. He sees all such circumstances as a means to draw nearer to Allah and to attain paradise. One verse reads:

A believer who has reached this maturity of faith is aware that one cannot attain a great reward like paradise merely by only saying: "I believe":

Again in another verse Allah draws our attention to this important truth: Or did you suppose that you would enter the Garden without facing the same suffering as those who came before you? Poverty and illness afflicted them and they were shaken to the point that the Messenger and those who shared his faith cried out:

These verses reveal that, in compliance with the immutable law of Allah, all human beings who have ever appeared on earth have faced these difficulties. They were also tested by having their wealth and life put at stake; they were also subjected to the cruelty and pressure of disbelievers and thus the difference between true believers and insincere ones became apparent. That is why, the moment a believer becomes acquainted with the Qur'an, he starts to prepare for these events. However, these events, which occur in compliance with the essence of trial, may not be exactly the same as those under the conditions of our Prophet's time. In our day, we probably meet difficulties under very different circumstances.

A man who has attained perfected faith knows that each and every untoward event he experiences is, without exception, a trial from Allah. The kind of adversity he is faced with may be hunger, loss of wealth or life as well as the trials he may encounter in daily life. Sometimes all kinds of adversity come one after another. One may lose a loved one at a quite unexpected time. At the same time, one may have financial problems. All this distress may be coupled with serious health problems. Seeing all these as an opportunity, the devil may meanwhile seek ways to tempt the afflicted person. In the midst of such distress, another believer may ask for his help. Under all conditions, a man of perfected faith responds with an attitude that best pleases Allah and never makes anyone who seeks assistance become conscious of the difficulties with which he grapples. The tone of his voice, the expression on his face or his manner conveys his willingness to help.

A man of perfected faith displays all this patience and these fine moral virtues because of his devotion to, respect for and fear of Allah and his submission to Him.

The above example succinctly conveys the point that no matter how dire the circumstances may be, a man of perfected faith never deviates from virtuous conduct and manners. Aware that all afflictions befall human beings at the will of Allah, he seeks relief and solutions from Allah alone. This world is but a temporary abode for him; he will remain here for a specified period of time and then depart; what really matters is to exercise patience under all conditions, to live by the values that please Allah and obtain His approval.

Everything in the life of this world is transitory. A man must principally keep in mind that he is being tested with these temporary events and, based on the results of this trial, an eternal abode awaits him in the hereafter. The real abode of man is the hereafter. Even if one experiences the severest pain, difficulty or distress in this world, all of these will ultimately abate or death will put an end to them.

This also holds true for the contrary. None of the blessings the individual enjoys in this world belong to him. When death comes upon him, he will leave them all behind. It may well be that one who led an ostentatious life in this world will end up in the torment of hell. What we mean here is that, the favourable quality of the life a man enjoys in this world is by no means a criterion; such a life is but a trial. One who has undergone difficulties in this world may well be someone who is worthy of a blissful life in paradise. That is because in this world, he took Allah as a friend, and exercised patience in order to earn His approval. These people will say the following in the hereafter:

They will say,