THE ART OF DA’WAH PART 1
Examples to understand
It is not an overnight process. All the Prophets and Messengers underwent a period of waqfah tarbiah, or a period of isolation from dunia, in order to contemplate. Musa AS was a strong youth who grew up in the palace of the king of Egypt. He lived a life of luxury, but he was forced to flee Egypt after killing a man by accident. During that time, he lived as a shepherd in the desert. When he led Bani Israel across the Red Sea, Allah asked him to hit the sea with his staff, and this caused the sea to part. In some reports, Musa AS saw the Pharaoh and his army closing in on them, and hit the water with the staff to close the sea without being commanded to do so yet by Allah. He was told that this would not work because he was not doing it because of Allah’s command.
Musa AS then spent a lengthy amount of years in a desert environment: from a luxurious life in a palace to a wanderer in the desert to remind him that Allah, and not the individual, is the doer to the point that the individual has to suppress his own desires. He does not talk, think or act without seeking the aid of Allah, because only Allah can cause the result to happen.
This teaches us that the actions of Prophets and Messengers are not according to their whims and fancies, but according to Allah’s orders. Musa AS was a physically powerful man. When he returned from meeting with Allah, he grabbed his brother by the hair and beard in anger. We learn from this that Musa AS was a very tough man, with little tolerance for mistakes.
We can see that all Messenger and Prophets have to go through different conditions and different trials to remember who the owner of everything is.
Example to be learnt
If we are giving invitation to Allah without response, there might be something wrong with our manner which has caused our words not to be heard. We should work on ourselves from the beginning of the invitation and to prepare ourselves and handle people according to the way that Allah directs. We may talk all we want, but Allah will only allow the words to be heard in the way that Allah wants. To invite to Allah you have first to “invite yourself” to your own journey and discovery of Islam. For example, learn the names of Allah and familiarise yourself with His characteristics. The memorization of Allah’s attributes is highly recommended for all Muslims but is not the academic memorisation, but to implement and live that knowledge out.
It is our manner that attracts or repels others. There is no report of aMessenger with bad manners or rude behaviour.
Rasulullah SAW preached constantly for 13 years in Mekah, and of these 13 years, less than a hundred people turned to Islam. This averages less than10 a year, and this is in relation to a man who was most beloved by Allah, endowed with the utmost quality ever been given to mankind, supported by Jibril AS all the time!
We can see with all the above that Allah did not open for His beloved for 13 years, for a wisdom He knows. The Owner is the one who will open, which means that we have to worship more and go back to Allah more.
Also, whatever you are doing must be for the sake of Allah alone, and not for others. People usually only put efforts on their family members and not to others. If you really want to do something for Allah, you have to realise that you are working for Allah in accordance to His terms, whether He opens or closes for you. This is to keep your arrogance in check and to remind you that you are not the master of your destiny or those of others.
At the opening or conquest of Mekah, Rasulullah SAW entered the city with humility, because he attributed the victory to Allah and not to his own efforts.
