Attaining Sweetness In Worship

As we look towards the difficulties endured by our brothers and sisters in Palestine, we recognise that they each have an immovable sense of thabaat (steadfastness/resilience for lack of a better word). From our brother Khaled Nabhan and his response to the loss of his beloved granddaughter Reem (rahimahallah), to the thousands of videos of people responding to difficulty with statements of reliance on Allah –  حسبنا الله ونعم الوكيل. An effect of this is that people in their hundreds are looking into Islam for the first time and many Muslims are wanting to renew and strengthen their faith. 

As we look to strengthen that relationship with Allah , some of us may find that we experience obstacles to this and are not sure why. Even though we want to make use of the last third of the night to engage in night prayers and supplication for our oppressed around the world, we find that we cannot wake up or connect at this time. We may be unable to shed tears at the speech of Allah nor be able to spend lengthy periods of time engaged in ibaadah. 

InshaAllah, over the course of this article we will explore these widespread feelings and the antidote to them. What are the examples from the people of the past and how can we emulate them?

Examples of worship from the legends of the past

Muzahim Ibn Zufar recounts an incident from when he was with the great scholar of the past, Sufyaan at-Thawri¹Hilyat al-Awliya’ 3/154 (rahimahullah). He says:

صلى بنا سفيان الثوري المغرب

We were praying the Maghrib prayer behind Sufyaan at-Thawri and he started off the salah as usual with al-Fatihah. He continues:

فقرأ حتى بلغ { إياكَ نعبد وإياك نستعين }

He recited until he reached the ayah – “You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything).”

When he reached this part of the surah, Sufyaan broke down into tears. Ibn Zufar narrates that the Imam then started reciting again from the beginning of al-Fatihah:

ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ 

All the praises and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the ‘Alamin (mankind, jinn, and all that exists)

Sufyaan continued to break down whilst reciting al-Fatihah and continued to restart again until he was finally able to complete the surah. Abu Nu’aym (rahimahullah) who quotes this story in his Hilyat, comments:

وكم في الفاتحة ما يبكي ، ولكن إلى الله المشتكى من قسوة القلوب!

How many things are there in al-Fatihah that will bring tears to the eye, and make a person cry. To Allah we complain with respect to having hard hearts!

In this example, it is apparent that Sufyaan at-Thawri found a deep connection with the words he was reciting in his prayer. The ayah that had such an impact on him is one that every Muslim has memorized. Whilst learning to speak as an infant, this surah was among the very first things we were introduced to. Each one of us recites these verses at least 17 times a day. Yet, despite such familiarity with these verses, very few of us have responded in a similar manner to Sufyaan. In fact, a story such as this seems strange or alien to us.

When we think about someone who is crying in prayer, we may jump to the conclusion that this person is going through a particularly difficult time in their life at the moment. When the Uncle beside you in taraweeh prayer, who you are 99% sure does not understand a word of Arabic, begins wailing during salah – your mind automatically jumps to the assumption that he must be going through some sort of midlife crisis or having marital issues.  Whereas the reality of these situations is that it is none of these things that this person has found a connection in their salah and that they are tasting the sweetness of worship. 

In another incident, Ibn Fudayl  (rahimahullah) talks about a time when he was at Masjid al-Haram in Makkah.²As-Siyar, 7/277 He said that when he started to do tawaaf around the ka’bah, he noticed Sufyaan at-Thawri in sujood. When someone does tawaaf they have to circumbulate around the ka’bah 7 times and then pray 2 raka’ah of nafl salah. If we consider a scenario where there’s no congestion around the ka’bah and you recite relatively short surahs – doing tawaaf will take you at minimum 10 minutes. Ibn Fudayl narrates that he did 7 sets of this, which at a minimum estimate is nearly an hour. He says that when he started off he found that Sufyaan at-Thawri was in sajdah and by the time he finished, he was still in sajdah. 

Ibn Wahb (rahimahullah) narrated:

رأيت الثوري في المسجد الحرام بعد المغرب صلى ثم سجد سجدة فلم يرفع رأسه حتى نودي لصلاة العشاء

“I saw at-Thawri in Masjid al-Haram after Maghrib prayer. I saw him in sajdah and he remained in sajdah until the call to prayer for the Isha salah.”³Hilyat al-Awliya’ 7/57

The example of Sufyaan at-Thawri is just one of many of our pious predecessors. It may seem to be quite an excessive amount of worship that he engaged in but in reality this was the norm for many of the people of the past. 

For example, there is an incident narrated where Amir, the son of Abdullah ibn Zubayr and great-grandson of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq , found himself in the Haram after Isha and he thinks to himself that he needed to make dua’. So Amir faces the qiblah, starts making dua’, and doesn’t realize that he needs to go home and only stops when he is interrupted by the adhaan for Fajr. 

Before delving further, it’s essential to clarify that the intention behind discussing this matter is not to lay blame but rather to offer a self-reflective reminder. The aim is for each of us to strive towards building a connection with Allah . The hope is that, with Allah’s grace, we embark on this journey before our inevitable departure from this world. 

As well as this, it may be common for someone to question the actions of individuals like Sufyaan at-Thawri, who engage in prolonged public acts of worship. Why would he not do it in private? The key to understanding this lies in the consistency of such practices. When someone makes connecting with Allah , such as sajdah for an hour, a regular part of their private and public life, there is no disparity; they are simply being themselves. It’s the lack of such practices in our lives that leads to us feeling and thinking like this. 

Drawing parallels, Ibn al Qayyim’s students, including Ibn Kathir and Ibn Rajab, observed and shared that he was someone who engaged in very lengthy prayers.  So much so,  that some of his companions would rebuke him for it and he wouldn’t change his ways, signifying that this was his normal habit. 

PC: Muhsin CK (unsplash)

These examples may seem strange or alien to us. It may be that if someone is engaging in worship for such a long period of time, such as prostration for an hour or supplication for the entire night, that we think something has gone very wrong or they are in a time of calamity. We may ponder on times in our lives where we really exerted the utmost effort in connecting to Allah and those few times may be in response to when we have a desperate need. Connecting with Allah in this manner isn’t something that is done on a regular basis or perhaps this can only be achieved by the people of the past, it’s not a normal habit in this era. This is the wrong conclusion to come to, and there are many people amongst us who are able to worship Allah in this way. 

So what’s different between you and them?

Consider another scenario in order to make sense of this. Imagine having a dear friend, perhaps a family member, or someone incredibly close to you that you haven’t seen in a while. Picture a day when your schedule is clear— no pending tasks or responsibilities. It’s a day of pure leisure, let’s say it’s the day of Eid. Your plan for the day is simple: spend time with your friend and enjoy yourself within the bounds of pleasing Allah . 

Now, if someone were to ask you about the duration you intend to spend with this friend, how would you respond?

When posed this question, some of us may answer 4 hours. Some of us will want to spend 6 hours, and some of us would express the desire to spend the entire day with them. At the end of such a day, it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary for you to be emotional and tear up, expressing hope for another day where you can spend time with one another. 

When we connect with the creation, these friends of ours, we don’t find it that difficult to enjoy ourselves and have full concentration on them. Forget 1 hour like Sufyaan-at Thawri, 6 hours; 10 hours – we are able to do it with ease. Yet, when trying to connect with our Creator we find it difficult. 

What’s the reason for this? I’m sure we all have a favorite dessert or sweet food. When we normally have the food, it is something that tastes sweet alhamdulillah. However, when you’re unwell and taste the same food, it no longer tastes sweet. Is there a problem with the dessert and its sweetness or is it with your tastebuds? Similarly, when we are performing salah or reciting the Qur’an, is the problem in these things or is the problem with our hearts?

Commenting on this very concept, Sulayman al-Khawwas said

“Remembrance of Allah in relationship to the heart is like nourishment relative to the body, thus as the body cannot find pleasure in food when it is sick, likewise the heart cannot find the sweetness of remembrance when it is in love with the material world.”⁴ Ibn Taymiyyah’s Essay on the Heart, Abu Ameenah Bilal Phillips

In this instance, when we are not able to taste the sweetness of worship, the problem is with our hearts. 

Commenting on this spiritual bliss that you can attain in the dunya, Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah stated:

إِنَّ فِي الدُّنْيَا جَنَّةً مَنْ لَمْ يَدْخُلْهَا لَمْ يَدْخُلْ جَنَّةَ الْآخِرَةِ

“Verily, there is a Paradise in this world and whoever does not enter it now will not enter the Paradise of the Hereafter.”⁵Madarij al-Salikin 1/452

Malik Ibn Dinar (rahimahullah) spoke about “masakin al-Dunya”, the most needy of people from this world. He describes them as having left without tasting the sweetest thing that the world has got to offer, “معرفة الله عز وجل ومحبته”, knowing and loving Allah ⁶Al-Da’a wa Al-Dawa’a.

Going back to that analogy of you and your friend, if you imagine the time before you first met them and got to know them and someone told you spend a few hour with them. How would you react? Most likely, “I don’t know them – how can I spend 4 or 5 hours with them? Maybe 5-10 minutes so I can get them better.” Similarly, when a person hasn’t built that connection with Allah and gotten to know Him, they would struggle with worshipping Him. 

My teacher (حفظه الله) told us the story of an Imam who would spend quite a long time leading the prayer. A man from the congregation approached the Imam one time after the salah and asked him to shorten the prayer due to the various needs and commitments they had such as work, etc. The Imam attentively listened without offering any immediate response. However, on a subsequent day after the prayer, the Imam sought out the same individual, who happened to be involved in matters related to housing and estates, for advice. A 30-minute conversation ensued. After this all, the Imam told him “my dear brother, didn’t you complain to us about how we lengthen the prayer and how each prayer is about 10 minutes long, and you were annoyed at me for spending about 2-3 minutes too long, as there are other commitments the congregation has. What about right now?”

In such a scenario, and with many of us the problem is with the heart. 

Allah ﷻ tells us in Surah al-Hajj:

“So have they not traveled through the earth and have hearts by which to reason and ears by which to hear? For indeed, it is not eyes that are blinded, but blinded are the hearts which are within the breasts.” [Surah Al Hajj: 22;46]

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said “Indeed Allah ﷻ created the human heart for them to know things in the same way in which He created the eye to see things and the ear to hear things. He ﷻ created every part of the human body for a specific purpose and a particular function.”⁷Majmoo’ al-Fatawa  The heart and other parts of the body need to be used in accordance to the purpose for which they were created, and the higher purpose of the heart is a spiritual one. 

Shaykh al-Albani (rahimahullah) elaborates that “the heart, which is where faith, righteousness, and taqwa, as described in various texts, resides is not the same as the piece of flesh. Rather, it is the essence of a person’s life, both body and soul.”⁸Silsilah al-Huda wa-Noor

A pure heart will make your efforts to connect with Allah more fruitful. When a person knows Allah , they will love Him. It is through this action of the heart (a’mal qalbiyyah) that they will obey Him. 

He ﷻ said:

“Say, [O Muhammad], “If you truly love Allah, then follow me; Allah will love you and forgive you your sins; and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” [Surah Ali-Imran 3;31]

It is for this very reason you may find a fit and athletic young person who struggles to carry out acts of ibadah, yet those very same things are achieved by an ailing, elderly individual. Yes they may use walking sticks or a Zimmer frame and they struggle slowly through the worship, yet they still make the prayer or recite the Qur’an. The difference is that this elderly person has a love for Allah in their heart which has boosted their limbs to be able to do the right things. Muhammad Ibn ‘Ajlan said, “Allah placed a believer’s strength in his heart and he did not place it in his limbs. Haven’t you noticed that a feeble old man may fast the hottest days of the year and stand the night in prayer, while a young person is unable to do that?!”⁹Shu’ab al-Iman 2905

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said

“Allah strikes a parable of the straight path. On either side of the path are walls with open doors over which are hanging curtains. Upon the gate of the path is a caller, saying, ‘O people! Enter the straight path altogether and do not divert to the side!’ A caller is placed above the path and when anyone intends to open those doors in the slightest, he says, ‘Woe to you! Do not open it or else you will enter it!’ The path is Islam, the curtains are the limits of Allah, and the open doors are the prohibitions of Allah. The caller at the head of the path is the Book of Allah, and the caller above the path is an admonition from Allah in the heart of every Muslim.” [Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2859]

The hard heart 

Allah ﷻ said:

“So is one whose breast Allah has expanded to [accept] Islam and he is upon a light from his Lord [like one whose heart rejects it]? Then woe to those whose hearts are hardened against the remembrance of Allah . Those are in manifest error.” [Surah Az-Zumar 39;22]

Malik Ibn Dinar (rahimahullah) commented on this verse saying:

مَا ضُرِبَ عَبْدٌ بِعُقُوبَةٍ أَعْظَمَ مِنْ قَسْوَةِ قَلْبٍ 

“A servant is not struck by a greater punishment than having a hard heart.”¹⁰Tafsir al-Qurtubi 39:22

What are the causes of a hard heart?

• Sinning

Understanding the clarity of certain actions, like the prohibition of alcohol and the permissibility of consuming fruits, is straightforward. However, the gray areas, things in between that we haven’t researched or checked up on with a person of knowledge, may lead to uncertainty. When internal conflict arises, causing hesitation and a sense of discomfort, it becomes crucial to heed those warning signs. If your heart wavers, expressing doubt about the permissibility of an action, and you feel a moral unease, it is advisable to refrain from it.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ  said,

“The lawful is clear and the unlawful is clear, and between the two of them are doubtful matters about which many people do not know. Thus, he who avoids doubtful matters clears himself in regard to his religion and his honor, and he who falls into doubtful matters will fall into the unlawful as the shepherd who pastures near a sanctuary, all but grazing therein. Verily, every king has a sanctum and the sanctum of Allah is His prohibitions. Verily, in the body is a piece of flesh which, if sound, the entire body is sound, and if corrupt, the entire body is corrupt. Truly, it is the heart.” [Sahih al-Bukhari 52, Sahih Muslim 1599]

As well as this,  RasulAllah ﷺ said “Beware of minor sins. Verily, they pile upon a man until he is ruined.”¹¹Musnad Ahmad 3808

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah provided a profound insight into the dynamics of sin and its impact on the human heart. He said “When a person develops the habit of ignoring minor sins, his heart becomes progressively hardened to sin in general and major sins then become easy for him to commit. By being conscious of the smallest of sins and scrupulously avoiding them, the believer becomes firmly protected from major sins.”¹²Majmoo’ al-Fatawa

So the first thing that causes a hard heart is sins, one dot, followed by another dot until there’s a big cover on the heart. This accumulating layer poses a significant barrier to maintaining a strong connection with faith. Without sincere repentance for sins, the heart becomes burdened, making it challenging to connect without a very strong wave of imaan to penetrate it.

• Doing things in excess 

Anything that is done too much will affect the heart. Even permissible actions in excess are a problem. For example, if you engage in excessive amounts of speech and you hardly remember Allah   – it will lead to a hard heart. 

Ameerul Mu’mineen, Umar ibn al-Khattab said:

من كثر كلامه كثر سقطه , ومن كثر سقطه قل حياؤه , ومن قل حياؤه قل ورعه , ومن قل ورعه مات قلبه 

“A person who speaks a lot, will make a lot of blunders, and he who makes a lot of blunders will have less modesty, and whoever has less modesty will have less piety, and whoever has less piety, his heart will die.”¹³ Al-Mu’jam al-Awsat, At-Tabarani

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

لَا تُكْثِرُوا الْكَلَامَ بِغَيْرِ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ فَإِنَّ كَثْرَةَ الْكَلَامِ بِغَيْرِ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ قَسْوَةٌ لِلْقَلْبِ وَإِنَّ أَبْعَدَ النَّاسِ مِنْ اللَّهِ الْقَلْبُ الْقَاسِي

“Do not speak too much without mentioning Allah. Verily, talking too much without remembering Allah hardens the heart. The furthest of people from Allah is one with a hard heart.” [Sunan al-Tirmidhi 2411]

Another example is with food and eating in excess, even if it is food that is halal for you to consume. If you are someone who eats until your stomach is bloated and you are no longer able to put any more food into your mouth, you will likely be someone with a hard heart. Yes, the Sahaba [ranhuma] would do this once in a while, but this was far from their habit. 

Our mother, A’ishah said:

إِنَّ أَوَّلَ بَلاءٍ حَدَّثَ فِي هَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ بَعْدَ قَضَاءِ نَبِيِّهَا صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ الشِّبَعُ فَإِنَّ الْقَوْمَ لَمَّا شَبِعَتْ بُطُونَهُمْ سَمِنَتْ أَبْدَانُهُمْ فَتَصَعَّبَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَجَمَحَتْ شَهَوَاتُهُمْ

“Verily, the first trial to occur in this nation after the passing of its Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, was people eating to their fill. For when people fill their stomachs, their bodies are fattened, their hearts are hardened, and their desires are uncontrollable.”¹⁴al-Ju’ li-Ibn Abi Dunya 22

On one occasion, Umar ibn al-Khattab saw a man with a large belly and he said, “What is this?”  The man said, “It is a blessing from Allah.” Umar said, “No, rather it is a punishment.”¹⁵Hadith Muhammad ibn Abdallah al-Ansari 42

Fudayl Ibn Iyad (rahimahullah) said “Two characteristics harden the heart: too much sleeping and too much eating.”¹⁶Tarikh Dimashq 48/422

Likewise with excessive laughter. If you look at the biography of Sufyaan at-Thawri, you would find that he too would joke and laugh. One of his students, Isa Ibn Muhammad relayed that he would sometimes laugh to the point of lying down and stretching his legs. Laughter is okay but there needs to be a balance. If you are always laughing, it damages the heart. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said “Do not laugh too much, for laughing deadens the heart.” [al-Tirmidhi, 2305]

Cures for a hard heart 

• The Remembrance of Allah  

The most powerful cure for a hard heart is the dhikr of Allah . When Allah ﷻ speaks about remembrance of Him in the Qur’an, he describes it as “قليل” and “كثر” – hardly any and a lot. 

He ﷻ tells us of the dhikr of the munafiqeen in Surah an-Nisa:

“Indeed, the hypocrites [think to] deceive Allah, but He is deceiving them. And when they stand for prayer, they stand lazily, showing [themselves to] the people and not remembering Allah except a little,“ [Surah An-Nisa 4;142]

When you barely remember Allah , it is not enough to clean up and purify the heart. However, when Allah ﷻ speaks of the believers – He tells them:

“And when the prayer has been concluded, disperse within the land and seek from the bounty of Allah, and remember Allah often that you may succeed.” [Surah Al-Jumu’ah 62;10]

If we remember Allah regularly throughout our day, slowly our sins will start to disappear. Within the tradition, our hearts are often referred to as vessels or containers. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said

“Verily, Allah has vessels among the people of the earth, and the vessels of your Lord are the hearts of His righteous servants. The most beloved of them to Him are the softest and most tender of them.”¹⁷Musnad al-Shamiyyin lil-Tabarani 840

Commenting on this likening of the heart to containers or vessels, Ibn al Qayyim (rahimahullah) mentioned that these are vessels filled with either good or evil.¹⁸Miftah Dar as-Sa’adah (2/403-416) If we think about a container, once it is filled to the brim can it be filled with other things? Likewise, when you remember Allah a lot and reach the brim, other bad actions that will impact the heart such as backbiting will stop. Commenting on the need to fill the heart with the remembrance of Allah , Ibn Mas’ud said, “Verily, these hearts are vessels, so occupy them with the Quran; do not let them be occupied with anything else.”¹⁹Jami’ Bayan al-‘Ilm wa Fadlih 263

• Nourish the heart with the Halal

We need to ensure that when we are eating food, that it is 100% halal. This is not just in the manner in which meat is slaughtered but also in the earnings used to purchase that food. 

RasulAllah ﷺ said,

“O people, Allah is purely good, and He only accepts what is purely good. Verily, Allah has commanded the believers as He has commanded His Messengers. Allah said:

“O Messengers, eat from wholesome foods and act righteously, for I know what you do” [Surah Al-Mu’minun 23:51]

And Allah said

“O you who have believed, eat from the good things which We have provided for you and be grateful to Allah if it is [indeed] Him that you worship.” [Surah Al Baqarah: 2:172]

Then, the Prophet mentioned a man who traveled far, becoming disheveled and dusty, and he raised his hands to the sky, saying, “O Lord! O Lord!” Yet his food is unlawful, his drink is unlawful, his clothing is unlawful, and he is nourished by the unlawful, so how can he be answered?”²⁰Sahih Muslim 1015

Fudayl Ibn Iyad (rahimahullah) was asked about Ahlus Sunnah and their characteristics and he said:

أهل السُّنة مَن عرف ما يدخل بطنه من حلال

“Ahlus Sunnah are those who ensure that the food that enters their stomach is halal.”²¹Kashf al-Kurbah, Ibn Rajab

When Imam Ahmad (rahimahullah) was asked by someone how can I ensure I have a soft heart, he said by making sure your earnings and what you eat is halal.²²Manaqib Imam Ahmad, pg 255

It is very important that we make sure we’re content with how we earn our money and that whatever we put in our stomachs is halal. By being vigilant in this manner, it will ensure that we prevent our hearts from being damaged by the impermissible and increase the acceptance of our duas.

“The Day when neither wealth nor children will be of any benefit.” [Surah Ash-Shu’arah 26;88]

“Only those who come before Allah with a pure heart will be saved.” [Surah Ash-Shu’arah 26;89]

يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِي عَلَى دِينِكَ. ‏اللهم مصرف القلوب صرف قلوبنا على طاعتك. 

‎اللهم اصلح احوال المسلمين في فلسطين، يا ذا الجلال والاكرام. ‎اللهم انهم مغلوبون فانتصر لهم. ربنا اعنهم ولا تعن عليهم، وانصرهم ولا تنصر عليهم، وامكر لهم ولا تمكر عليهم، واستعملنا في نصرة دينك واهدنا سبل ذلك يا رب العالمين. للهم احفظ إخواننا حراس المسجد الأقصى. اللهم أعِنَّا على نصرتهم.  ‎ربنا افرغ عليهم صبرا وثبت اقدامهم وانصرهم على القوم الكافرين. 

[Recommended further reading: Heart Therapy – Dr. Ali Albarghouthi]

Related:

– Seeking Out The Spiritual Underpinnings Of Our Ritual Acts of Worship

– 3 Ways to Keep Your Acts of Worship Sincerely For The Sake of Allah Alone