The Hidden Treasure of Leadership | Hidden Treasures Episode 01 | Mufti Abdul Wahab Waheed

The Hidden Treasure of Leadership

Often we see videos and reels on Instagram talking about how important it is to become a leader. In this month of Ramadan, I would like to introduce you to something more important than that. A quality that is a hidden treasure.

If we are able to uncover it, not only will we become the best leaders, we would become the best people to enter into Jannah. And that is the quality of how to be a follower. When was the last time we were scrolling through Instagram or YouTube and it said the importance of being a follower — or how to become a follower.

The Qur'an's Command to Follow

The entire Qur'an has been sent to the Prophet ﷺ and he has been told:

"These are the Prophets whom Allah has guided. So find guidance through following them."

Hidayah — the pathway to the Akhirah — is through being a follower, not through being a leader. Yes, once I become a follower, I automatically become a leader for other people. But without being a follower — as Allah says:

"Say: If you truly love Allah, then follow me." Without being a follower of the Prophet ﷺ, then we are simply following our own desires — as Allah says:

"Have you seen the one who has taken his own desires as his god?"

Ramadan as a Reminder

So Ramadan is a reminder. This entire structure of our fasting and praying — praying a certain number of Raka'at, fasting at a certain time, ending at a certain time — is a reminder that our life is more successful when we are a follower of our Prophet ﷺ. It is meant to innately bring that awareness within us, our families, and our children: it's not just important to fast, it's not just important to stand for Tahajjud and for Qiyam al-Layl. All of that is an extension of me recognising that I am a follower of the Prophet ﷺ.

So if this is what I need to do — how about the way I speak? How about the way I walk? How about the way I dress? How about the way I work? How about the way I speak to the people around me? In every aspect of my life, it is better for me to be a follower than to be someone who is trying to figure it out themselves, without the background and the backdrop of the Sunnah and the Seerah of the Prophet ﷺ.

The Hidden Gem

So the hidden gem for us in this month of Ramadan is to find that being a follower of the Prophet ﷺ is essentially making us the best leaders.