The Heart That Leads to Jannah | Hidden Treasures Episode 07 | Mufti Aasim Rashid

The Heart That Leads to Jannah

As we go through life, our experiences, our interactions are not always very pleasant. We are then faced with first the challenge of coping with those unpleasant interactions and dealings. Someone has said something, someone has done something, someone has treated us unfairly.

So the emotional toll that it takes on us to be able to cope with that and deal with that and then to be able to move beyond that to the point where we have been able to get it out of our system, it's not an easy thing to do, which is why it is one of the most rewarding things to do. On the Day of Judgment, the only thing that will be of benefit to us is a heart that has been brought, preserved, pure, protected and presented to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in that state. And this heart cannot be fully cleansed, it cannot be fully pure if it has ill feelings and malice towards others.

Cleansing the Heart of Ill Feelings

So the challenge for all of us is that just as we are purifying our heart through acts of worship and we are getting our sins and our omissions and commissions pardoned by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala through extra devotional acts, there is also a section of our heart that can only be cleansed if we rid it of the negative feelings that we have towards others. This involves pardoning people for things that they may have done and pardoning is a big thing, it's a difficult thing, but again this is why it is so rewarding in the sight of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. It involves having good assumptions about people.

Negative assumptions lead to negative thoughts, lead to negative perceptions and those things remain inside. The Prophet ﷺ told his companions that don't convey negative things about people to me because I want to come out and meet all of you in a state that my heart is clean and untainted for everyone, where I view everyone in a beautiful light. I see everyone from a positive perspective. I have good assumptions and hopes about everyone.

Starting and Ending Each Day with a Pure Heart

The Prophet ﷺ tells Anas رضي الله عنه: if you can start your day and end your day in such a state that you have no ill feelings towards anyone, then do so. Starting the day with a completely clean heart is important because there will be baggage from the previous day that's lingering.

There will be some unpleasant feelings and emotions towards someone, those residual things that may carry with us into this new day, but we need to rid our system of those feelings. And then as we go through the day, there may be other things that are bothering us, that are troubling us, something that sticks in our mind, but before we go to sleep, we once again cleanse our system and make our heart pure and clean. We start our day with love, good intentions and positive perceptions of people and we try to end our day in the same way.

Reviving the Sunnah of a Clean Heart

Then the Prophet ﷺ says that this is also my Sunnah, and whoever revives my Sunnah:

"Whoever revives my Sunnah has truly loved me, and whoever has loved me will be with me in Jannah."
(Sunan al-Tirmidhī, Hadith 2678)

The Example of Abdullah ibn Salam

In one narration, the Prophet ﷺ told his companions that the next person who enters into the masjid is from the people of Jannah. That person happened to be Abdullah ibn Salam رضي الله عنه. So later the companions spoke to him and said: what is the action that you have most hope from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that it will be accepted? — because they all wanted to have that privilege and that status that Abdullah ibn Salam رضي الله عنه had.

He said: look, I'm a very weak person, I can't speak about any great deeds that I'm doing, but if you ask me about what I have the most hope from in my actions, it's two things.

Number one: I keep my heart clean about everyone. I don't keep ill feelings inside towards anyone.

Number two: I don't engage in things that are not of concern to me. I don't delve into those matters, I don't waste time in those activities, I don't bring that kind of speech onto my tongue that is not purely beneficial for me.

Conclusion

So let us intend and undertake to cleanse our hearts from ill feelings, just as we have intended to cleanse our hearts from the effects of our own mistakes and our sins.