6 HABITS OF A SUCCESSFUL MUSLIM
In the Qur’an, ‘falaaH’ means success and the word ‘mufliHoon’ is used to describe those that are truly successful. It stems from the root word fa-lam-Ha which is the same root word for ‘fallaH’ which is the arabic word for farmer. Upon reflection, the believers are like farmers who plant the seeds of good deeds for Allah and wait patiently to reap what they sow, in this world and/or in the next. And Allah knows best.
There are many verses in the Qur’an which tell us what it is to be among those that are successful and I encourage you to read them. But for now, here are just 6 habits for success that are mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah.
In sha Allah these habits will help us to achieve success in this world and the next and help us to better worship Allah, seek His pleasure and mercy and attain the reward of Jannah.
1. PURIFICATION
Purification is something that is part of Islam. And Allah says in the Quran that:
“He indeed is successful who purifies himself ” – Quran 87:14
In the Quran we can find two main types of purification: Inner purification – purification of the heart and soul. As well as outer purification – such as general cleanliness and ritual purification (for example, the act of making wudhu and ghusl at appointed times). Allah asks us to do both.
OUTER PURIFICATION
Not only is there references in the Qur’an and Sunnah to perform ritual ablution, we are also asked to be clean.
“Purify your garments and shun uncleanness.” – Quran 74:4-5
INNER PURIFICATION
In the beginning of Surah Ash-shams, the purification of the soul is so important, that Allah makes an oath 7 times that those who purify their soul will be successful (Surah Ash-shams 91:1-9):
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
By the Sun and his (glorious) splendour;
By the Moon as she follows him;
By the Day as it shows up (the Sun´s) glory;
By the Night as it conceals it;
By the Firmament and its (wonderful) structure;
By the Earth and its (wide) expanse:
By the Soul, and the proportion and order given to it;
And its enlightenment as to its wrong and its right;-
Truly he succeeds that purifies it.
Surah Ash-shams 91:1-9
SO WHAT ARE SOME WAYS WE CAN PURIFY OURSELVES?
We can make an effort to be clean and tidy and we can also do ritual purification such as ablution. In fact we can find a hadith that shows the ritual purification of ablution actually simultaneously cleanses us of our sins:
Abu Huraira reported: Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: When a bondsman-a Muslim or a believer-washes his face (in course of ablution), every sin he contemplated with his eyes, will be washed away from his face along with water, or with the last drop of water; when he washes his hands, every sin they wrought will be effaced from his hands with the water, or with the last drop of water; and when he washes his feet, every sin towards which his feet have walked will be washed away with the water or with the last drop of water with the result that he comes out pure from all sins.”
[Book 2, Number 0475:]
Allahu akbar! What blessings come with ablution!
To purify our inner selves we can seek forgiveness and ask Allah to purify us from our sins. We can think well of others, be kind, have clean hearts and we can also remember Allah often.
Abdullah ibn Mu’awiyah reported: A man said, “What is purification of the soul?” The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
“that one knows allah the almighty is with him wherever he is.”
[ Source: al-Mu’jam al-Ṣaghīr 528, Grade: Sahih]
PURIFYING OUR INTENTIONS
Another act of purification we can do is beginning a task with the right intention. Before starting our tasks, we can say bismillah and make the intention to do our task for Allah. And it is not limited to acts of worship such as reading the Qur’an, making wudhu or praying. We can say it before we eat, before we clean, before we drive, before we work etc. If we intend our tasks to be for Allah, our daily tasks may be an act of worship in sha Allah.
At the end of the day, our first and foremost purpose is to Worship Him.
Allah tells us in the Qur’an:
“And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me” – Quran 51:56
2. PRAYER
“Successful are the believers… who keep a guard on their prayers. These are they who are the heirs, Who shall inherit the Paradise; they shall abide therein.” – Quran 23:1-11
After purification through ablution and worshipping Allah through our Salah prayers, who better to ask for help to succeed than Allah the almighty – the only One who can grant us success and is able to do all things.
3. TAKE ACTION
Allah states:
“And that man can have nothing but what he strives for” – Quran 53:39
In order to succeed, we need to take action and do good deeds.
The Qur’an tells us:
“And those whose scales are heavy [with good deeds] – it is they who are the successful.” – Quran 23:102
4. CONSISTENCY
Not only must we take action, but we must also do it consistently in order to get results.
Abu Huraira narrated that the Messenger of Allah (SAWS) said, “Take on only as much as you can do of good deeds, for the best of deeds is that which is done consistently, even if it is little.” – Source: Sunan Ibn Mājah 4240 [Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to Al-Albani] It states in the Quran that those who carry out the Salah prayer (which is prescribed to be prayed regularly at 5 times per day will be successful:
“Those who establish regular Prayer, and give zakat, and have (in their hearts) the assurance of the Hereafter. These are on (true) guidance from their Lord: and it is those who are the successful” – Quran 31:4-5
5. PATIENCE
Patience is not only about taking action and patiently waiting, but it is also about being resilient and god fearing through the hard times.
“O you who believe, have endurance in suffering, be patient and persevere, strengthen each other and be firm, and be pious and fear God that you may find success.” – Quran 3:200
Remember that whatever happens to us (or doesn’t happen to us), we need to be strong in faith and have complete reliance and trust in Allah and that His plan is best.
6. GRATITUDE
Being grateful to Allah puts us on our path towards success. We are told in the qur’an:
“So remember the favors of Allah that you might succeed.”
– Qur’an 7: 69
There are so many things to be grateful for in our lives and counting our blessings can help us to be patient through hardship. It can help us cultivate a more positive heart and mind and being grateful to Allah is a beautiful act of worship full of blessings. In fact, Allah tells us in the Qur’an:
“If you are grateful, I will give you more” – Qur’an 14:7
As we have seen, the habits of: Purification, Prayer, Taking Action, Consistency, Patience and Gratitude can all help lead to success. Just remember that with our goals for the dunya and akhira, success is only through Allah:
“He (prophet Shu’aib) said, “O my people! Consider if I stand on a clear proof from my Lord and He has blessed me with a good provision from Him. I do not want to do what I am forbidding you from. I only intend reform to the best of my ability. My success comes only through Allah. In Him I trust and to Him I turn.” – Qur’an 11:88
My Success (Tawfeeqee) in the above Qur’an verse stems from the root word waw-faa-Qaaf which means to reconcile or agree. Our Success is only possible if Allah allows or agrees it to be.
So we should continue to get into the habit of doing acts of worship to please Allah and ask Allah to be among those that are truly successful.
May Allah grant us success in this life and the hereafter. Ameen
– Notes of Noor