INDICATION OF HIDAYAH

INDICATION OF HIDAYAH

When God expelled Adam, his wife Eve and his number One enemy the Satan from Paradise, God told them that He would be sending Prophets and revealing books for the guidance of the children of Adam as the Satan and his minions would mislead them. True to His commitment (and none can be more true in promise than God), God sent hundreds of thousands of Prophets from Adam to Muhammad (Peace be upon him), the last Prophet with whom Prophethood came to an end. Practically, a Prophet was sent to each nation and each land. The famous of these Prophets, whose names have been mentioned in the Holy Qur’an, are Noah, Hood, Salih, Ibrahim (Abraham), Ishmael, Isaac, Lot, Jacob, Shuaib, Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, Job, Jo’nah, Zakariah, John, Jesus, and Muhammad (may Allah’s peace be upon all of them).

If all the verses of the Noble Qur'aan that discuss Hidayah were to be enlisted, a small booklet would have to be compiled. And if we farther had to explain each of those verses, we'd end up with volumes.

The gist of it all is that Allah has the power to guide whomsoever He wills. And If Allah wished to, he could have guided every single person on to the straight path of Islam. However, in that case there would have been no point in sending us to this world. Allah has made the life of this world a test of our faith in Him. Therefore Allah Ta'aala clearly explained the straight path to us, leaving no room for doubts and confusion. Allah sent messengers and revealed divine scriptures for the guidance of mankind from Adam (AS) till the last man to walk on earth. The last and final Messenger, Muhammad (sallalaahu alayhi wa sallam) was sent with the Qur'aan that serves as a source of guidance till the end of time. The Qur'aan is replete with guidance and is perfect for every era and time, even though it was revealed 1400 years ago. The Last Sharee'ah of the prophet Muhammad (sallalahu alayhi wa sallam) encompasses laws and solutions for every situation in every era.

Now it is every human-being's choice, whether to take full advantage and benefit from the sources guidance at his disposal (The Qur'aan, The Sunnah, and the teachings of the pious predecessors), or to ignore it and forsake it for something else that will be of no avail to him in the hereafter.

Allah has taught us to seek guidance to the straight path from Allah, in every raka'ah of every salaah, when we recite Surah Fatihah. This fact is enough to highlight the importance of holding on to the true guidance of Allah without straying from the straight path. It also goes to show that without the help of Allah none of us can ensure that we do no stray.

"Guide us to the straight path;” (al-Faatihah, 5)

‘Hidaayah’ (guidance) is divided into three categories.
The first is the guidance Allaah gave to everything after creating it so that it functions appropriately and serves the purpose it was created for. As a result, the system of this world runs in a manner that boggles the mind.

For example, Allaah guided the sun to give light during the day and secrete itself during the night. Thus, each day it rises at a specific time, and sets at a specific time, and never do we find that it has failed in it is duty. This type of guidance applies to all things, animate and inanimate.

The second is the guidance Allaah sent for Man and Jinn (the creation that is blessed with sense of comprehension) in the form of Divine Scriptures and Prophets. Every individual has the choice to accept or reject it, and his choice will decide his outcome. In this regard, the Noble Qur’aan, and Prophets can be called bearers of guidance.

The third is exclusive to the believing and Allaah-fearing ones from Man and Jinn, and is received directly from Allaah . It is when Allaah grants an internal ability to accept the guidance of the Qur’aan and the Prophet and act accordingly, another name for which is ‘Tawfeeq’. This guidance knows no bounds, for one can never do “enough” when it comes to pleasing Allaah . There is always room for improvement. It increases and decreases according to one’s actions. Even the greatest prophet or saint is desirous of progressing in this field until his last breath.

From this we understand that guidance is something every existing thing has to a certain extent, but at the same time even the most superior of Allaah’s servants is not dispensed from attaining its pinnacle. That is why asking Allaah for guidance has been rendered the most important supplication of the opening chapter of the Qur'aan, int which Allah instructs His bondsmen to ask Him to guide them in every aspect of life, towards the right way which is devoid of any misconception or misconduct, and does not lead to an evil outcome; a path that entails success and salvation. Where there are hundreds of deviated paths, based on self-pleasing innovations or logical explanations, may Allaah always keep us on the highway of Deen. It is possible that despite being on the straight path, one may unknowingly succumb to the deception of the Devil or the ‘self’ (carnal desires), and thus is mislead, and follows his desires under the banner of Islam. He begins to think this is the proper Islam, when in the light of the Qur’aan and Sunnah it is nothing short of deviation. That is why it should be our constant plea to Allaah that He keeps us steadfast on the upright Deen. One cannot achieve success in the world or the hereafter without the straight path.

Even in worldly problems the recitation of this verse has proved to be distinctively effective.
One of the women from the household of the famous cleric Moulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi was experiencing difficulty in making a middle parting in her hair. Maulana advised her to read this verse before attempting, and when she complied the task was accomplished.

In a conclusion, God also revealed books which were given to the Prophets for guidance of the human beings. The famous of these books which have been mentioned in the Qur’an along with the name of the Prophet to whom given are four. The names of these books are: Torah given to Prophet Moses, Psalms (Zabur) given to Prophet David, Gospel (Injeel) given to Prophet Jesus Christ and Al-Qur’an given to Prophet Muhammad. Besides these four books, the Qur’an also mentions, without naming them, the books given to Prophet Abraham.
The above mentioned books contain the messages of God revealed to the Prophets through Angel Gabreil. The teachings of these books mainly emphasise Unity of God and enjoin the people to worship Allah alone, the Almighty One God of the universe, and not to assign any partners with Him.