Salaam and Greetings of Peace:
“He frowned and turned away when a blind man came his way. How do you know if (his heart) might be purified or recall (God) and by recollection be rectified? For those who are called wealthy, you attend to them closely and don’t bother if they are purified! Yet from one who comes to you hopeful, fearful and clearly humble, you let your attention be shunted aside.” - (Qur’an 80:1-12)
This Quranic verse, directed toward the Prophet himself (pbuh), is the harshest reminder in the revelation itself of allowing oneself to be distracted by the affairs of the world, and thereby, even momentarily, losing the insight of its true teachings of love and compassion, kindness and guidance in the worship of Allah, the One who has no partners.
It is further related that Aisha, the wife of the Prophet (pbuh), said that if any chapter of the Qur’an could be wiped out, he had wished it would be this short chapter entitled, He Frowned, that addresses him as the one who frowned and chastises him for his treatment of the blind man.
The old and feeble blind man came seeking some knowledge about the new religion of Islam, but his arrival interrupted an important meeting of Arab tribal elders, powerful and rich men, who, if they had embraced the religion, would have greatly strengthened the community, which was under constant threat.
The Prophet (pbuh) had done what almost any other leader would do in looking out for his community through practical means; he ignored the blind man and continued to talk to the powerful tribal elders.
Alhamdulillah! He admonishes even His own Prophet (pbuh) for ignoring the true seeker, for not taking a moment to answer the old blind man. Most certainly this would have been a real lesson to the tribal elders about the new religion of Islam.
Allah knows the truth.
May Allah bless us and grant us all the insight of this lesson and guide us to what is truly important in life.
Ameen.
Ya Haqq!
March 10, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Salaam Brother Irving,
No doubt this is a greater lesson for us followers who would be prone to this type of neglect than the prophet (saw) who has been forgiven his past and future lapse.
Amiin may Allah grant us insight.
March 10, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Precious brother,
Your words give me chills… Such wisdom, such truth to be found here..
You are a peacemaker in the truest sense of the word..
May the lord of peace strengthen you on your path and grant you love that transcends all human understanding,
Amen,
Love and light to you and yours, Maithri
March 10, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Allahu Akbar! It IS a good lesson and great reminder!
March 10, 2008 at 9:58 pm
Salaam brother, thank you for your kind comments on my blog entry. I am glad you liked the poem.
This is such a beautiful lesson, thank you for reminding us of it. More people could benefit by showing compassion instead of frowning and turning away from others. Thank you for your dua’.
March 11, 2008 at 5:33 am
Good reminder, thank you brother.
March 11, 2008 at 7:05 am
salaamzz
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March 13, 2008 at 1:24 am
Salaam,
“Nay ! he has not yet carried out what God commanded him to do. ”
Suppose that is directed to the Holy Prophet, as well?
And this?
“And what ? would make thee know that he would purify himself”
Suppose that is directed at the Messenger of ALLAH as well?
“What” indeed.
Arch-Angel Gabriel, perhaps? God Forgive me, was He out to lunch just then?
“Most certainly this would have been a real lesson to the tribal elders about the new religion of Islam”
Too bad you weren’t around Dear (dear) Darvish … to point that out to the Holy *Prophet* …
Too bad the Messenger of Allah missed out on that chance, hey? Salaam Be Upon him!
Remember:
38:46
And Remember
Our servants
Abraham
and Isaac
and Jacob,
men of Might
and Vision!
38:47
WE Chose them
for * a special purpose * :
To remind people of the abode of the Hereafter.
38:48
And truly, they are in Our Sight
Among the elect
And The Best.
38:49
And Remember
Ishmael
and Elisha
and Dhu’l-Kifl,
They were all
The Best.
38:50
This is a Reminder.
And the righteous will, surely, have an excellent resort –
~
Remember:
48:29
HE it IS Who HAS Sent HIS Messenger
*with Guidance*
and The True Religion
That HE May Cause it to Prevail over all other religions.
And Sufficient Is ALLAH as a Witness.
48:30
[Remember]
Muhammad Is the Messenger of ALLAH.
And those who are with him are hard against the disbelievers
but tender among themselves.
Thou sees them bowing and prostrating themselves in Prayer, seeking ALLAH’s grace and pleasure. Their marks are upon their faces, being the traces of prostrations.
This is their description in the Torah.
And their description in the Gospel is like unto a seed-produce that sends forth its sprout, then makes it strong; it then becomes stout, and stands firm on its stem, delighting the sowers – That HE may cause the disbelievers to boil with rage at the sight of them.
ALLAH has promised, unto those of them, who believe and do good works, ~Forgiveness~ and a Great Reward.
~
/& Salaam
March 13, 2008 at 5:09 am
Respected Brother Irving,
Salaam and my warm hug:)
What a beautiful insight into The Prophet’s Life and the admonishment which Allah offers to His own Beloved Prophet!! Thank you so much for sharing this brother and reminding to reset our perspective with which we view life and our relationship with others.
Ameen to your heartfelt prayer, my beloved Brother:)))
My sincere Love and hugs for you and your blessed family:)
March 13, 2008 at 10:49 am
Assalaamu Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuhu,
Alhamdullilah! Allah is Al ‘Adl, The Just even with our Beloved Prophet (saw). Alhamdullilah!
March 14, 2008 at 7:40 am
Thank you for this post. I had been looking for the reference for a long time.
April 2, 2008 at 1:23 am
Salaams.
‘The Frowned’.. But even there Allah doesn’t calls our prophet by name. Allah addresses other prophets by their name – ya Nuh, Ya Isa, Ya Ibrahim etc. But nowhere does Allah call our prophet Ya Muhammed, indicating His Love for him. Allah always uses adjective to call his habeeb – Abd, Rasool, YaSin, Taha, Dhuha (the dawn), Lail or even Abasa..