O My Soul, Death Is Inevitable, So It Is Better for You to Be Martyred

By Maulana Muhammad Masood Azhar حفظه الله

5) One Morning Or Evening In Jihad

Narrated Abu Huraira (رضي الله عنه), the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said, "A single endeavor (of fighting) in Allah's cause in the afternoon or forenoon is better than all that on which the sun rises and sets." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 1, p392)

In the explanation of this hadith Allama Ibn Dakikul Eed says that the meaning of 'a single expedition in the afternoon or forenoon of the Mujahid being better than all that is on the earth and which is in it,' is that if a person was to be given the whole world and own all the wealth and needs of the world and then he spends all this in a good cause, the reward of this cannot be compared to one noon or forenoon spent by the Mujahid in the battlefield, infact, spending one morning or afternoon in the battlefield is more virtuous than spending all the world in Allah's cause.

Allama ibn Hajar (رحمه الله) that this explanation is more understandable as it is supported by a mursul hadith narrated by Ibn Mubarak (رحمه الله) in Kitabul Jihad.

The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) sent an army in which Abdullah ibn Rawaha (رضي الله عنه) participated. When the army set out, 'Abdullah ibn Rawaha (رضي الله عنه) stayed behind so that he could perform Jumu'ah salah behind the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) and then intended to join the army straight after. The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said to him, "I swear by the One in whose power lies my life, if you were to spend everything on the earth you could not attain the virtue of their one morning." (Fathul Bari, vol. 6, p91)

If the whole world was to be given to you and vou spent it all andwished to attain the virtue of those Mujahids who have spent one morning in Jihad you cannot do so. Hazrat Abdullah ibn Rawaha (رضي الله عنه) only stayed behind because he had been assured about his Shahadah by some words of the Holy Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم). So his desire was to perform Jummu'ah behind the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) and listen to his 'Iman (faith) affecting khutba (speech) and spend some more minutes in the blessed gathering of the Holy Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) and then planned to reach his companions on a fast horse. But the Holy Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) disliked this action and admonished him, that if he was to spend all the wealth of the world, he would not attain the reward of one morning in Jihad which he had delayed.

We find out from this saying that the journey of Jihad is also of the same category of reward as Jihad, similarly, the reward of the journey of coming back from the expedition has been narrated in a hadeeth as, "Returning from an expedition of Jihad is like going for Jihad." (Abu Dawood)

A further reason for this great virtue of spending time in Jihad is that Allah has bought the Muslims lives and wealth in exchange for Jannah. This business transaction can only be fulfilled in the battlefield. Clearly a Muslim is so happy and pleased with this transaction that he offers his life to Allah in the battlefield of Jihad to become the buyer of Jannah (Paradise). A Mujahid leaves everything behind in reaching the battlefield, where he continually- faces death. He has given himself up to Allah, in his march forth to the battlefield and this is the place where his chance of the acceptance of death is available. Taking all this into account it is as though he has given his life and he belongs to Allah. This clearly demonstrates the greatness of participating in Jihad.

Furthermore, some commentators of hadith have mentioned, that the measure of the highness of grades of a human is the love of Allah and sincerity, and the measure of decreasing of reward is the love of the world and deeplv indulging in it.

Although the Jews claimed to love Allah, they were ready to sell their faith for the world and they ran far from death. Had they loved Allah they would have loved death, as death is the door towards meeting the beloved Allah and becoming His special guests, but a Jew even fears from the name of death and wishes to live forever. These contradictions regarding what they say and do have clearly been mentioned in the Holy Quran.

The Mujahid is completely opposite to the character of a Jew, he marches forth in the battlefield leaving worldly luxuries for the love of Allah and to attain His pleasure, in removing Allah's enemies from the surface of the earth. He protects his friends and he loves death and seeks Shahadah, and his greatest pleasure is to shed his blood for his beloved Allah. It is precisely for this reason that his time in Jihad, is of great virtue and his supplication is accepted like the Prophet's (صلي الله عليه وسلم).

The Sahaaba (رضي الله عنهم أجمعين) (companions of the Prophet - صلي الله عليه وسلم) understood the significance of the time spent in Jihad. Therefore, they readily sacrificed all beloved things for Jihad to the extent that the person whom their hearts accepted the most and whom they loved more than their own lives, on his wish they were proud to sacrifice thousands of lives. On his behalf they were ready to sacrifice all their worldly wealth. For the cause of Jihad they even accepted parting from their beloved Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) and there-was no shortage in fulfilling their duty of Jihad.

(Virtues Of Jihad)

Also see: Jaish-e-Muhammad (salallahu 'alayhi wasallam)

» Posted by Seifeddine-M on 3rd February 2011

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