Worship
The most pleasurable of all things for the Noble Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) was his relationship with the Worshipped and private and intimate talks with God. He would never grow tired of his servitude towards God. Sometimes he would experience states in his prayer that only God's intimate friends are worthy of experiencing. Without a doubt, expressing servitude towards God as well as these private and intimate talks bring about a particular form of enthusiasm that causes all other than God to be left in the valley of the forgotten. The field of man's heart is transformed into a salt marsh where the love of other than God can never grow.
The heart speaks naught but the language of love,
The soul seeks nothing but the way to your love,
Your love made my desert heart like a salt-marsh,
Such that affection for no one else can ever grow there.
It is by means of serving and worshipping God that a person can experience peace and serenity within himself. He finds himself and discovers his place in the order of existence. The Great Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would maintain this state of worship in the most complete manner. The gnostic form of worship that he experienced could not be experienced by many.
‘Āishah (the Prophet's wife) said, "The Messenger of God would be speaking to us and we would be speaking to him, until the time for prayer would set in, and then it was as if he did not know us and we did not know him."[1]
The Commander of the Faithful, ‘Alī (peace be upon him) said, "The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would never procrastinate his prayer for dinner or anything else. When the time for prayer arrived, it was as if he did not know his family and friends." [2]
Imām Sajjād (peace be upon him) has clarified the Prophet's desire and enthusiasm for worship as such, "The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would stand on the tips of his toes, then God revealed the following verse, "Ṭā Hā, We have not revealed the Qur’an to you for you to experience great discomfort"[3] (chapter 20, Ṭā Hā, of the Holy Qur’an , verse 1)’.
It has also been narrated that: One night, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) was in the home of one of his wives (Umm Salamah). After a little of the night had passed, Umm Salamah saw that the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) was not in bed. She got up and went looking for him. All of a sudden she noticed that he was standing next to the room with his hands raised, his eyes full of tears and he was saying the following; "O God, don't take away the good you have given me. O God, don't please my enemies and those who are jealous of me. O God, don't allow their evil from which you saved me to come back. O God, don't leave me to myself, even for one moment."
At this point, Umm Salamah began crying. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said, "Why are you crying, Umm Salamah?"
She said, "May my father and mother be your sacrifice, why shouldn't I cry? Even though you have such a high station and the fact that God has forgiven your past and future sins, you talk to God in this way (it is more appropriate for us to fear God and to cry in His presence)."
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said, "How can I be safe when God left Prophet Jonas (peace be upon him) to himself for only a moment when that which afflicted him took place."[4]
As one can see, The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) perpetually saw himself in the presence of God and he would remember God with his heart and tongue and in this way, he caused the water of monotheism to flow across the land of his spirit, to the point where the tree of proximity to God was rooted in his heart and mixed with his being.
Health and Hygiene
Islam is a religion that takes all aspects of mankind into consideration. For this reason, the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) gave great importance to personal hygiene and he encouraged others to do so as well. There are numerous instances concerning the emphasis the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) placed on health and here reference will be made to a few of these:
1. He (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would not breathe in his cup while drinking. If he wanted to take a breath, he would remove the cup from his mouth."[5]
2. When asked why Muslims do not become ill as often as others he replied, "We are a people who do not eat until we become hungry and when we eat, we do not fill ourselves."[6]
3. The Commander of the Faithful, ‘Alī, peace be upon him, said, "We would soak raisins or dates in water for the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). The first and second days he would eat from it, but when they started to putrefy, he would say to throw it out."[7]
4. "The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) was never seen to have used the restroom without performing the ritual ablution (wuḍū’) afterwards, and this he would begin with brushing his teeth."[8]
By cutting his nails, applying oil to his body, using collyrium, removing body hair and clipping his moustache which were all part of his weekly routine of personal grooming, the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) made Muslims aware of the importance of personal hygiene. His sayings concerning cutting one's nails and clipping one's moustache clarify the physical and psychological benefits as well as the benefits in this world and the Hereafter. Amongst his sayings is the following: "If one cuts his nails on Friday, God will remove sickness from his fingers and put a remedy in its place."[9]
Elsewhere he (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said, "None of you should grow your moustache long, for Satan (perhaps a reference to bacteria) takes it as a refuge in which he hides."[10]
Living Modestly
The principle of living modestly and not drowning oneself in pleasure, material acquisitions and the life of this world is an enlightened and constructive principle that uncovers man's potential and allows his spirit to soar. The extent to which man pays attention to material embellishments and the more his ties to this world increase, the more he is deprived of spiritual pleasures, radiant wisdom and inner light.
Spiritual men of God, who have high goals and lofty destinations in sight, never tie themselves down to the embellishments of this world. They realize that being attached to worldly pleasures and attaining spiritual perfection are like the East and the West; when a person gets close to one of them, in reality he has moved away from the other. For this reason spiritually minded persons apply themselves totally in trying to reach proximity to God which is the goal of creation. They do not waste their valuable lives on worthless matters, for arriving at this exalted destination is not possible without living modestly and expressing disinterest in matters related to this world. Of course what we have said here does not contradict things like developing society or making progress in various fields of knowledge, handicraft and industry, all of which are amongst man's duties in this material world. Rather, that which is objectionable consists of two things: the first is being attached to worldly affairs [in other words, this world becomes the goal rather than a means for accomplishing a higher goal, realized in the Afterlife] and one's heart becomes tied to transient favors. The second is becoming drowned in pleasures and having a luxurious lifestyle.
The Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), the greatest role model for all of mankind, paid careful attention to the principle of living modestly and in this way, guided mankind toward the vast possibilities of spiritual advancement. A point worth making here is that the principle of simplicity is a relative principle that differs with regards to time and conditions. It is possible that a particular lifestyle might be considered very comfortable under particular circumstances and that same lifestyle, under different circumstances, due to changes in society, might be regarded as simple. Therefore, when it is said that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) lived a simple life and that we should make him our role model, this does not mean that our homes, method of transportation, food and clothes should be exactly like his in terms of quality and quantity. Rather, what is intended is that the current general understanding of people today regarding present conditions, changes and advancements in technology must be taken into consideration in order to determine what type of lifestyle is considered simple and free of hassle. In other words, from this principle one should not draw the conclusion that since the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), for example, lived in a house made of clay or ate out of dishes made of clay or rode a particular animal, one should do the same today. Rather, what is important is observing the principle of living simply while paying attention to the particular present conditions of time and place. Some aspects of the simplicity of the Noble Prophet's lifestyle will now be discussed.
1. Anas ibn Mālik has said, "The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would not eat out of a tray or a platter, nor would he eat thin, refined white bread (apparently the food of the elite of that time)."[11]
2. ‘Āishah (the Prophet's wife) has said, "The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would never eat his fill."[12]
3. Imām al-Bāqir (peace be upon him) has said, "Halvā (a jellylike sweet) was brought to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) but he refused to eat it. He was asked: 'Do you consider this to be forbidden?' He said, 'No, but I despise (getting used to it and) craving it.' Then he read the verse of the Qur’an that says, 'You did away with pure food in your life in this world'.[13]
4. Imām ‘Alī (peace be upon him), describing the Great Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) has said, "He took only that which he absolutely required from this world and he did not take the smallest look at it. He had the thinnest waist and the hungriest stomach of all the people of this world. He (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) would eat on the floor, sit like a slave, mend his shoes with his own hands, patch his clothes with his own hands, ride a bare donkey (without a saddle), seat another person behind him and when there was a design on the curtain hanging on the door of his house, he said to one of his wives, 'O so-and-so, take it away from my sight, for when I look at it I remember this world and its embellishments'."[14]
[1] Biḥār al-Anwār, vol. 84, p. 257.
[2] Majmu'ah Warrām, vol. 2, p. 78.
[3] Biḥār al-Anwār, vol. 16, p. 264.
[4] Biḥār al-Anwār, vol. 6, p. 218.
[5] Makārim al-Akhlāq, vol. 1, p. 32.
[6] Sunan an-Nabī, p. 181.
[7] Da‘ā’im al-Islām, vol. 2, p. 128.
[8] Muḥajjah al-Bayḍā’, vol. 1, p. 296.
[9] Makārim al-Akhlāq, vol. 1, p. 123.
[10] Makārim al-Akhlāq, vol. 1, p. 125.
[11] Makārim al-Akhlāq, vol. 1, p. 171.
[12] Majmū'ah Warrām, vol. 1, p. 101.
[13] Maḥāsin, p. 343.
[14] Nahj al Balāghah, sermon 159.
