Contemplation is one of the greatest deeds performed by the heart; it is the key that opens the door which allows the light of guidance to enter; it is the initial step in the direction of correct understanding and comprehension; many people know its virtue but are unaware of its reality, essence and its fruits.
Allah has commanded us to contemplate, but few do so. He Almighty also praises the few who actually do. Allah Says what means: “[Those] Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], 'Our Lord! You did not create this aimlessly…'” [Quran 3: 191]
‘Ataa’ said: “Ubayd ibn ‘Umayr and I once went to visit ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, and when we arrived she spoke to us from behind a veil saying: ‘O ‘Ubayd! What stops from visiting me?’ He, may Allah be pleased with him, replied: ‘The narration in which the Prophet said: “Visit at intervals, people would therefore like and miss you more.” Then he asked her: ‘Tell us the most amazing thing that you experienced with the Prophet ; she then wept and said: ‘All his affairs were amazing, but one night he came to me (i.e., it was her turn to spend the night with) and said to me: “Do not interrupt me, for tonight I wish to worship my Lord.” Then, he performed ablution, stood up in prayer, and cried until his beard was soaked; then, he went down into prostration and continued to cry until he soaked the floor, then, he concluded his prayer and laid down on his side until Bilaal, may Allah be pleased with him, came to inform him that it was time for the Fajr prayer, and when Bilaal, may Allah be pleased with him, saw his condition, he inquired: ‘O Messenger of Allah! Why do you cry so much when Allah has forgiven all your past and future sins?’ He replied: “Some verses were revealed to me last night; woe to the one who recites them and does not contemplate over them!” Then he recited what means: “[Those] Who remember Allah while standing or sitting or [lying] on their sides and give thought to the creation of the heavens and the earth, [saying], 'Our Lord! You did nor create this aimlessly…” [Quran 3: 191]
Muhammad ibn Waas’i narrated: “A man from the people of Basrah travelled to Umm Tharr, may Allah be pleased with her, after the death of Abu Tharr, may Allah be pleased with him, and asked her about the manner in which Abu Tharr would worship, and so she replied: ‘He would spend most of his day in a corner of the house, contemplating.’”
Al-Hasan said: "He whose words are not those of wisdom, his silence is not spent in contemplation and his observations are not to take lessons. Such a person is heedless and is squandering his time.” He said regarding the following verse in which Allah Says what means: “I will turn away from My signs those who are arrogant upon the earth without right…” [Quran 7: 146] that it means "I (i.e., Allah) will prevent their hearts from contemplating.”
‘Abdullaah ibn Al-Mubaarak once saw Sahl ibn ‘Uday in silent contemplation, so he asked him: “How far have you reached?” to which he replied: “The Siraat (i.e., the bridge over Hell).”
Bishr said: “If people contemplate over the greatness of Allah, they will never disobey Him.”
Abu Shurayh once sat down and covered his head with his garment and began weeping. When he was asked why, he replied: “I contemplated, and realised how much of my life has ended, how few my good deeds are, and how close I am to death - so I cried.”
Abu Sulaymaan once advised the people saying: "Train your eyes to cry and your hearts to contemplate.”
Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “Contemplating over good deeds causes one to perform them and regretting evil leads to one abandoning it. When the slave’s main concern is to please Allah, He will make his silence be spent in contemplation and his speech consist of praise and gratitude to Allah.”
The most honourable gatherings are those which are spent in contemplation and pondering upon the Names and Attributes of Allah, Hell, Paradise, the reward of Allah, the punishment of Allah, the favours of Allah, the Hereafter, and the verses of the Quran. These are indeed the sweetest and purest gatherings.
Imaam Shaafi’i said: “Virtue lies in four things: Wisdom, the basis of which is contemplation; chastity, the basis of which is controlling one's desires; strength, the basis of which is controlling oneself at the time of anger; and justice, the basis of which is being moderate in ones views.”
The most beneficial type of contemplation is over:
· What benefits the slave in the Hereafter and how to achieve them.
· Preventing evil consequences in the Hereafter and how to avoid them.
These are the most honourable matters to contemplate over, and the way to attain such benefits and prevent such evils is by contemplating over the favours of Allah, His commandments and prohibitions, His Names and Attributes in the Quran and the Sunnah, how quickly this life will vanish, and the eternal nature of the Hereafter. The more one thinks about the brevity of this life, the more effort he will exert to appropriately utilise his time. After these matters, the following are next in importance:
· Matters that are beneficial in this life, and how to attain them.
· Evils that could afflict one, and how to avoid them.
Allah Has mentioned contemplation in the Quran and parallels it with mentioning His favours, His creation and His abilities, such as when He Almighty Says what means: “Would one of you like to have a garden of palm trees and grapevines underneath which rivers flow in which he has every fruit? But he is afflicted with old age and has weak [i.e., immature] offspring, and it is hit by a hurricane containing fire and is burned. Thus does Allah make clear to you [His] verses that you might give thought.” [Quran 2: 266] Such a man’s heart would be attached to his garden from the following perspectives:
· It is a huge garden, not a small one.
· It includes many types of trees such as palm trees and grape trees.
· It includes trees that are very expensive.
· The garden is watered by running rivers and not from wells, which would have meant that a great deal of hard effort would be required to irrigate it.
· The man has become old and naturally needs a means of income without having to expend much effort.
· His children are young and sick, and he fears that they would not have any source of income after his death except from this garden.
All the aforementioned points mean that the man's attachment to the garden would be immense, so how devastated would he be if this garden were to be struck by a tornado that would cause a fire that would raze his garden? He would be affected deeply; he would be confounded and distressed. Let us contemplate, why did Allah give such an example?
This is an example that Allah gives to those who perform many good deeds, but do them only to be seen doing so. On the Day of Resurrection, these people will need every good deed that they performed and their rewards. They will see the deeds that they performed in this life and also see Hell before their very eyes. The sun will descend, very close to people’s heads. They will sweat greatly. The Siraat will be erected over the Hellfire and the only way for salvation will be by virtue of their good deeds, after the mercy of Allah. But what will happen then? Allah will then make their deeds worthless and scatter them everywhere. How devastated will they then be? What would it therefore take to make people contemplate and thus strive to be sincere in their deeds? It would take examples such as these - that are found in the Quran.
Other similar verses are for example where Allah Says what means: "The example of this [worldly] life is but like rain which We have sent down from the sky that the plants of the earth absorb – [those] from which men and livestock eat – until, when the earth has taken on its adornment and is beautified and its people suppose that they have capability over it, there comes to it Our command by night or by day, and We make it as a harvest, as if it had not flourished yesterday. Thus do We explain in detail the signs for a people who give thought.” [Quran 10: 24]