IDEAL YOUTHFULNESS AND YOUNG MUSLIMS' ROLE MODELS

IDEAL YOUTHFULNESS AND YOUNG MUSLIMS' ROLE MODELS

All the praises and thanks be to Allâh, who has sent down to his slave (Muhammad) the Book (the Qur'ân), and has not placed therein any crookedness. (He has made it) Straight to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a Severe punishment from him, and to give glad tidings to the believers (in the Oneness of Allâh Islâmic Monotheism), who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward (i.e. Paradise). wherein They shall remain for ever: and to warn those (Jews, Christians, and pagans) who say, "Allâh has begotten a son (or offspring or children)." no knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. Grave is the word that comes out of their mouths [i.e. He begot (took) sons and daughters]. they utter nothing but a lie. Perhaps, you, would kill yourself (O Muhammad ) In grief, over their footsteps (for their turning away from you), because they believe not In This narration (the Qur'ân). Verily! we have made that which is on earth as an adornment for it, In order that we may test them (mankind) as to which of them are best In deeds.

With these beautiful opening and excellent beginning Almighty Allâh commenced Suuratul-Kahf, the Chapter 18 of the Glorious Qur'ân which doubles as the middle of Allâh's Book. This Suurah was named after some righteous youths (i.e. As'hâbul-Kahf =people of the Cave, which some scholars just refer to as "the Sleepers"; based on the fact that they slept for about more than three centuries in their cave!) that opted for Allâh's path amidst idolatry and sinfulness that were the order of the day among the generality of their elderly folks. The lessons derivable from this eye-opening story have been a theme of my past sermons. What brought back to this story is the fact that our dear students of this beloved institution will be reeling out different programmes and activities starting from next week to mark the fifth edition of annual Da^cwah Week designed to awakening themselves and their immediate community to their obligations towards Islâm and responsibilities towards their society. It is in recognition of this auspicious occasion and solidarity with our academic children that I decide to make the theme of today's sermon and that of next week focuses on ideal youthfulness in the light of Islâm and what society expects from this vibrant group.  

Societies in all human cultures give a great deal of attention and importance to their young. Enormous sums of money and resources are spent and allocated by governments, state institutions and other bodies for the training, education and preparation of the youth in order to absorb and channel their great energies and potential. For the old have always known and assumed that no matter how great or high the efforts and material resources devoted to the training of the young, the investment is worthwhile and always pays off well in the end.

The old also realise that the young are their link with the future and their best assurance that the ideals and the principles they advanced and established, and the achievements and results they brought about, would be upheld, preserved and developed.

It is a fact of life that the time of youth is universally considered to be the time during which a person's physical, mental, intellectual and moral faculties and potential attain their optimum level of development and application. It is the time when the mind shows its inventive and imaginative capabilities in the best form. A twentieth century Muslim writer, Mustafa al-Rafi'ee, describes the time of youth saying..

"Youth is strength, for the sun does not brighten the afternoon as much is it does the morning. In youth there is a kind of life with which death seems to sound like sleep; and during its youth a tree brings forth its fruit, while after that all trees give nothing but wood".

It is also the period of one's life during which one's ability for perception, understanding and absorption of concepts, ideas, thought and knowledge is at its best. This is the reason that makes youth the prime target of all ideological, political and cultural forces and state machinery aiming at the advancement of certain patterns of social organisation or particular systems of mass control and domination.

This potential that lies in the young generation, and the power it represents in social and political terms make the youth of any society the most valuable asset it could possibly possess, and the number one factor that could influence its progress and future. This applies just as equally to Muslim societies as it does in others.

Islam's View of Youth

Islam, as embodied in the Qur'an and the teachings and life of the Prophet Muhammad, Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, appreciate and emphasise the value and importance of young people, and the following discussion will hopefully illustrate this appreciation and concern very clearly. The Qur'an says:

 "Allah is He who created you of weakness, then He appointed after weakness strength, then after strength He appointed weakness and grey hair, . ." (Al- Qur'an  (Suuratur-Ruum) 30:54).

This is taken to be the most succinct and direct reference to the three main phases of a person's life; childhood, during which one is weak, dependent and helpless; youth, during which one is fully developed, free to act and think and full of strength, vitality and energy; and old age, when a person reverts to being helpless and depending on others-into a state of complete weakness with the faculties dwindling and the energy fading away and vitality receding and failing rapidly. The Prophet, Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, was known to frequently seek Allah's refuge from amongst other things, old age.

The Prophet (P.B.U.H.) is also reported to have mentioned a righteous youth among seven categories of people whom Allah will, on the Day of Judgement, protect under His "shade" when he said: ". . . a young man who grew up in devotion to Allah".                                              

We also find that the Qur'an and the Prophet (P.B.U.H.) indicate that all through the history of Allah's message to man, from the time of Adam to that of Muhammad (P.B.U.H.), it was the youth who played the major and decisive role in upholding the word and the Shari'ah of Allah.

The Qur'an related that when Prophet lbrahim (P.B.U.H.) challenged the non-believers of his time and destroyed their idol-gods, he was a young man, probably in his twenties. Both the muffasireen lbn Kathir and Sayyid Qutb take this view. Ibn Kathir relates that the great authority on tafseer, the Sahabi Abdullah lbn Abbas said:" . 

"Allah appointed no prophet but he was a young man, and no aalim has acquired his knowledge except during his youth."

Prophet Yusuf  (P.B.U.H.) is also said to have been appointed a minister by the ruler of Egypt, to take charge of the country's financial affairs during a hard period of a severe famine when he was thirty, according to lbn Kathir. Prophet Yahya (P.B.U.H.), the Qur'an says, was given  "the wisdom while a young boy." (Al-Qur'an (Suuratu Maryam) 19:12). 

And the same applies to several other prophets and messengers, Allah's peace be upon them all. The Qur'an also relates the story of Ahlul- Kahf, the Sleepers, who ran away from their families and their people in order to be able to practice their belief in the One God, and keep their devotion to Him and protect themselves from the evils of a Kafir (infidel unbelieving) society. Allah took care of them by directing them to the Cave and sending them to rest, sleeping for three hundred and nine years. This group, the Qur'an describes as "fityatun", who believed in "their Lord" and Allah "gave them more guidance".

The Arabic word fityatun is a synonym of the word shabab which means youth or young people. Ibn Kathir comments that young people are far more responsive to the truth and more apt to heed the call than the old ones who had gone too far astray and were accustomed to non-belief. Thus, he continues, the majority of the Prophet's followers were young people, while the old and elderly of Quraish in the main had clung to their age-old beliefs and retained their religious customs and traditions with the result that only very few of them embraced Islam willingly.

My brothers and sisters, experience and study show that there is a maximum level of human activity and vitality during one's lifetime, after which a person continues to live and draw from the achievements, knowledge and experience of his youth, and very little that is original and new can be Incorporated into his aptitudes and skills; one merely develops and improves on those youth-acquired skills. This is a rule that can of course have exceptions, but there is all the evidence to make it stand good.

This period of optimum ability in one's life is referred to in the Qur'an as bulugh al-ashudd, reaching full age, and is said to fall between the ages of thirty and forty years (Al-Qur'an :15) and is considered the age at which a person reaches full maturity and becomes qualified to assume and receive the highest and most demanding duties and responsibilities; a number of Prophets were appointed to prophethood on reaching their ashudd (7:22; 28:14), including the Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) himself, the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, who was called to Prophethood at the age of forty.

Ibn Kathir's statement that it was mostly the youth who responded to the call of Islam at the early days during its early days is supported by the hadith which reported that the Prophet (P.B.U.H.) to have said: "I have been sent with the pure and natural religion, to the youth (who) had backed me while the old had opposed me".

Some notable role models  for our youth from Islamic History

It is an often forgotten or overlooked fact that Islam was almost from the start influenced by and identified with youth. lbn Ishaq mentions that the first male to believe the Prophet (P.B.U.H.) and give him support and believe in Islam was a ten-year-old boy named Ali ibn Abi Talib. Almost all of the first followers of the prophet were below the age of forty and included individuals like Az-Zubair ibn al-Aawwam who became a Muslim at the age of sixteen (his uncle used to punish him for that by wrapping him in straw mats and hanging him up and blowing smoke at him in an attempt to dissuade him from accepting ]slam, but he used to reply that he would never go back to Kufr again) and Abu 'Ubaidah Ibn al-Jarrah became Muslim at seventeen, and several others.

The leaders of Quraish used to appeal to Abu Bakr not to recite the Qur'an in front of his house in case he tempted "our young men" to becoming interested in Islam. They knew the value of their young, and realised the fact that young people are always prone to change and liable to be influenced by new ideas, and are easily attracted by such powerful and overpowering forces as that of the simple but penetrating logic and beauty of the Qur'an.

Throughout the Makkan period it was men in their youth who upheld Islam and carried it fully in face of all the odds, while the elder members of society resisted its spread and progress and posed an ever growing threat to its followers. At Madina also it was young people who were first responding to the Prophet's search for support and adherents.

In the early days of Islam, when Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) called his people to embrace Islam, they did not accept it easily. The tribe of Quraysh, to which the Prophet belonged, was reluctant to leave the religion of its forefathers, and the unbelievers spared no effort in trying to eliminate the religion from existence. They resorted to every conceivable means and method of torture and persecution. They ridiculed the new converts and subjected them to all kinds of hardships in order to force them to renounce their faith.

But the ill-treatment only made them more determined and firm. Among the early converts who suffered most were the Yassir family, Bilal and Khubab. The latter was in fact publicly executed to deter others from embracing Islam; but nothing could turn the Muslims away from their faith. This situation continued for thirteen years in Makkah, while the Muslims were still weak.

Then Allah (Subhanahu wa ta'laa) instructed His Prophet (P.B.U.H.) to migrate from Makkah to Madinah, then known as Yathrib. This migration marked a turning point in Islamic history as the Muslims found support in Madinah. Within a few years, their situation changed from weakness to strength.

However, the Hijrah itself was overshadowed by all kinds of dangers. The Quraysh conspired to kill the Prophet before he left Makkah, and they contrived a master plan to assassinate him. They agreed that each clan should select a warrior to represent it, whereby the warriors would jointly stab the Prophet. The idea behind this plan was to escape the onus of blood compensation and tribal feuds. In this manner, all the clans would share the compensation, and at the same time, the Prophet's clan could not engage in war against the allied tribes.

But Allah (swt) protected His Prophet (P.B.U.H.) from their conspiracy. As the group selected to carry out the plot gathered outside the Prophet's home, he asked his cousin, Ali ibn Abi Talib, to sleep in his bed. Then the Prophet left silently under the cover of darkness, as he recited these verses of the Qur'an: 

"And We have put in front of them a barrier, and We have covered them so that they cannot see."
[Qur'an  (Suuratu Yaasin) 36:9]

The Prophet (P.B.U.H.) went to his close companion, Abu Bakr, and they left Makkah secretly, accompanied by Abu Bakr's servant, Amir ibn Fuhayrah, and a guide who had good knowledge of the way. The group left in a direction other than the one usually taken to Madinah so as to escape the pursuit of their adversaries. The Prophet and Abu Bakr hid in the cave of Thawr, near Makkah, to wait for the frantic search of the unbelievers to subside. In fact, The Quarysh placed a reward of a hundred camels for whoever would capture the Prophet before he reached Madinah.

It is worth noting here the role played by Muslim youth in this crucial journey, which required much planning, secrecy and courage. Four young people who stood up to this task were Ali ibn Abi Talib, Amir ibn Fuhayrah, Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr and Asma' bint Abi Bakr. The role of Ali on the night of the Prophet's escape from assassination has already been mentioned. Abdullah sneaked out each night to inform his father and the Prophet of what was transpiring in Makkah among the unbelievers, and of the relentless search they were undertaking.

Amir, on the other hand, drove his sheep to graze over and wipe out any footprints leading to the cave where the Prophet and Abu Bakr were hiding. Asma' took food and water to them. She stood firm in the face of close scrutiny by the leaders of Quraysh, such that one of them even hit her hard to extract from her information of the whereabouts of the Prophet and Abu Bakr. One day, Asma' could not carry the food and water with her bare hands, so she tore her waist band into two sashes and used them to tie and carry the provisions on her shoulders. When she reached the cave and the Prophet saw what she had done, he said to her, "Surely, Allah has exchanged your two sashes with two sashes in Paradise."

Indeed, the story of the circumstances surrounding the Prophet's migration serves as an inspiration for Muslim youth in all generations. These young individuals realised the significance of the Message of the Prophet and importance of his personal safety for the survival of Islam. They therefore made the decision to contribute to the success of the Islamic message with all the means at their disposal.

The sacrifice each one of them made reveals the love and loyalty that they had for the Prophet . They also serve as role models for all Muslims youth to emulate. Youth is the most vigorous and dynamic stage in an individual's life.

Therefore, Muslim youth of today should realize their role in Muslim society, and they should contribute selflessly to the advancement of the Muslim Ummah. In a hadith, the Prophet said that among the things for which every person will be held accountable on the Day of Judgment is his/her youth and how he/she spent it. The Muslim youth should therefore rise to the occasion and shoulder their responsibilities to their communities.

They must also have the courage and foresight to help shape the future of the Muslim Ummah.

The Prophet (P.B.U.H.) used to take young people above the age of fifteen to battle with the army. At the battle of Badr he turned back some young men under fifteen and they were very disappointed; one of them, 'Umair ibn Abi Waqqas, started to cry and the Prophet felt sorry for him and allowed him to join the army. He went to battle, fought and was martyred,

It is also known that the Prophet (P.B.U.H.) assigned a number of key positions and responsibilities to young people. When the Thaqeef tribe accepted Islam he put 'Uthman lbn Abi Abbass in charge of them although he was the youngest of them, because Abu Bakr had told him that the boy was the keenest one of them all to understand Islam and the Qur'an.

When the first delegation from Madina accepted Islam the Prophet sent back with them a young man by the name of Mus'aab lbn 'Umair to teach them the Qur'an and Islam. Among those whom he used to consult was 'Usama lbn Zaid, who was about twenty-one when the Prophet died. 'Aysha related that during the very trying episode when the Prophet's household was slandered, the Prophet consulted Ali and 'Usama on what course of action to take. This in itself is an indication of the respect and value the Prophet attached to young people and their views.

He, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, appointed a young man of twenty-one, 'Itab lbn Usayd, a governor of Makka when it was conquered and he became the first Imam to lead the prayer there. He left Muaath as a teacher and religious instructor to the people of Makka when he was only twenty years old.

Shaykh Al-Kandahlawi in his book, "Lives of the Sahaba", relates that the Prophet used to have twenty young men from the Ansar with him at all times, whom he would send to various missions and for various purposes to attend to his affairs.

The young man 'Usama referred to earlier was to play an even more decisive role in the history of early Islam. The Prophet during his later days was preparing an army, the biggest Madina had even seen, including such senior Sahaba as Abu Bakr and 'Umar, with 'Usama, not twenty-one then, as its head. The Prophet, however, passed away before the army could leave Madina and proceed to face the Roman empire. Abu Bakr, his successor, went ahead with the plans to send the army keeping 'Usama in charge of it. Some older Sahaba expressed a certain amount of dissatisfaction at 'Usama's choice as the leader of a 3,000 strong army, but the Prophet asserted that "Usama was well up to the task", and he was proved right.

Amongst women also, the youth played important roles in the building of the Muslim Ummah. Asma, daughter of Abu Bakr, played one of the most vital and daring roles in the history of Islam during the uncertain and dangerous episode of the Hijrah, the Prophet's escape from Makka and immigration to Madina. Her sister, Aysha, who was also a wife of the Prophet, emerged as an authority on Islam during the time of the Khilafah.

She was only about twenty years old when the Prophet died, but by the time of 'Umar and 'Uthman she had been established and recognised as an authority on Sunnah and a remarkable jurist in her own right.

Ibn Abbas was also very young when he emerged as a unique and impeccable authority on the Qur'an and tafseer, so much so that 'Umar used to consult him and take his view in the presence of older and more senior Sahaba. Amongst the army leaders who led Muslims into Iraq; Persia, Egypt, North Africa and Spain were several below the age of forty. Muhammad Ibn Qasim conquered Sind in India when he was seventeen.

In all fields of learning, religious and secular life young men have had profound influences upon the whole history of the Muslim Ummah (global community). Imam Ghazali of blessed memory began teaching at the age of twenty-eight and became the most renowned and celebrated scholar of his time before he reached thirty-four years of age. The Turkish Sultan Muhammad the Conqueror assumed the Khilafa (leadership of the entire Muslim Ummah) at twenty-two and conquered Constantinople (Istanbul) at the age of twenty-four.

The recent and contemporary history of Islam too, produced a number of young men who have left their mark on the history of Islamic da'wah. Abul A'la Maududi formed the Jama'at lslami before he was thirty years. Hasan al-Banna organised the Muslim Brothers Society when he was only twenty-one and led it all through his life, which was ended by an assassin's bullet before he reached forty years of age. These two movements are among the two most influential Islamic movements of this century.

Such are the qualities and the potential of Muslim youth, and such has been the result of their efforts and work.

 Before rounding up this sermon, it is pertinent to remind us of essence of time in accomplishment of good deeds and the grave danger inherent in procrastination. Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, advised us to take advantage of five matters: 

“Take advantage of five matters before five other matters: your youth before you become old; your health before you fall sick; your wealth before you become poor; your free time before you become busy; and your life before your death."

This lesson from the Prophet Muhammad (P. B. U. H) reminds us of the importance of being thankful for our blessings and making the most of the time we have been given. We are constantly reminded, throughout the Quran and the traditions of the Prophet (P. B. U. H) , that time is passing faster than we realize, so we must make wise choices.

It is mentioned in the Quran that when we stand before Allah on the Day of Judgment, it will seem as if time has passed so quickly:  "We stayed a day or part of a day. Ask of those who keep account” (Quran 23:113).  Many people will beg Allah for more time to go back and make things right.  "Until, when death comes to one of them (the unbelievers), he says: 'My Lord! send me back!'" (Quran 23:99).  Before time runs out, take advantage of these five matters.

 Your youth before you become old..

As young men and women, there is tendency that most of you take your youthfulness and energy for granted. You feel as if you have all the time in the world to fulfill your dreams and make your mark in the world. But the future creeps up on us slowly -- gray hairs start to appear, our responsibilities pile up, and our energy drops. While at its peak ,your youthful energy and hope should be dedicated to the service of Allah and used, to help others.

 Your health before you fall sick..

Health is another thing that many people take for granted, until they lose it.  Even young people may experience an injury or illness which limits their ability to fulfill their dreams and responsibilities. Pain and sickness are a test from Allah, and one who endures with patience and faith will be rewarded. However, human beings are frail, and we never know when our good health will be taken from us.  Our healthy bodies and minds are a blessing that we should not waste. You are in a stage of life that you should not be satisfied with doing obligatory acts of ^cIbaadah (worship) alone. Try to make hay while the sun shines by utilizing the vigour you are presently enjoying in venturing to all forms of supererogatory acts of worship and recommended deeds that will make you merit "First Class" grade on the day that all grades and fames will fade away but Taqwaa  (Fear of Allah or being conscious of Him) will only be yardstick of greatness and happiness. 

 Your wealth, before you become poor...

Wealth is another blessing that Allah gives some people.  Wealth can take the form of money, but also our knowledge, skills, and time.  A believer should give as much as possible in charity while there is still something to give. We should not fear poverty, for Allah always provides; rather we should use our wealth to worship and please Allah.  The Quran says: "The likeness of those who spend their money for Allah’s sake, is as the likeness of a grain (of corn).  It grows seven ears; every single ear has a hundred grains; and Allah multiplies (increases the reward) for whom He wills.  Allah is All-Sufficient for His creatures' needs, the All-Knower" (Quran 2:261).

 Your free time before you become busy..

Time is something that all of us have, even if we think we're too busy to do anything else.  We should not use our precious time in useless activities that have no benefit to us. While relaxation and entertainment are important to the human spirit, we must be careful to balance our time with other fruitful activities.  Use your free time wisely. While Islam does not totally frown at socializing, it regulates it by spelling out the ones that will to Allah's wrath and failure in accomplishments of ambitions. I think you are all familiar with all these forbidden things and attitudes that most contemporary youth engage in. My dear boys and girls, shun these unacceptable forms of life-style and distance yourselves from these undesirable elements. Borrow leave from exemplary youth whose examples have been cited for you.

 Your life before your death...

Allah blesses us with life each and every single day.  None of us know when this will be taken from us; we cannot guarantee that we will have a "tomorrow" to rectify the problems of our past.  Each day we wake up, is a new opportunity to do well: spending in charity, worshipping sincerely, performing random acts of kindness, helping others.  We sometimes don't realize that death could be imminent, until we see or know someone who dies unexpectedly.  The final advice from the Prophet Muhammad is to take advantage of the time we have.  Don't put things off for tomorrow, because there might not be one.

My dear listeners, since a Muslim youth cannot be alienated from the broad meaning of a Muslim, our young ones have a onerous responsibility of being good ambassadors of Islam wherever they are.  For the purpose of emphasis and\or clarity, I need to generally explain who a Muslim is, as actions and inactions of some of us suggest that our affiliation to this great Religion of Islam stops at proclamation or nominal identification only. A Muslim is somebody who willingly submits himself\herself to the will of Allah, the Most High, the Creator of Heavens and Earth and whatever is between. He\she is somebody who embraces Islam (i.e. Islamic principles and teachings) as a way of life; that who lives his\her life in accordance with dictates of Allah in the books of guide, Qur'an and Hadith of holy Prophet Muhammad (P. B. U. H). Muslim lives in accordance with Islamic Shari^ch ( i.e. regulations and laws) and is constantly and continuously conscious in his\her actions, deeds and sayings. In summary, his\her life is symbolized by what is aptly captured in part of verse 52 of Suuratu Aal ^cImran (Chapter 3) thus:  (We believe In Allâh, and bear witness that we are Muslims (i.e. we submit to Allâh).

Furthermore, a Muslim believes in the Day of Accountability (i.e. Yaomul-Qiyaamah or Yaomul-Hisab), the Day of Recompense and is constantly guided by that believe in his daily activities. He believes that Allah is watching him at all times even when he does not see Allah, and as such he is been very careful to cross the bounds set by Allah. He is the one that has good knowledge of what is expected and required of him knowing well that Allah cannot be worshipped from the position of ignorance. According to Hadith Qudsiy, Allah was quoted by His Prophet (P. B.U. H) to have said: "Know Me first before you worship Me; for if you do not know Me well you cannot be able to worship me deservedly".  This makes acquisition of Islamic knowledge mandatory for every Muslim.

A Muslim is a peace-loving individual who prides himself in spreading the message of peace even by way of greetings; as Muslims were enjoined to greet one another with the Word of Peace "As-Salaam ^cAlaeykum Warahmatullaah Wabarakatuh" meaning "May peace of Allah, mercy and blessings be upon you". And the one greeted is mandated to respond in same way or even in better manners than he was greeted. The Prophet (P. B. U. H) was reported to have said: "A true Muslim is whom people feel secure from the evils of his hands and tongue".

Dear brothers and sisters, the hand and tongue are the two mostly dangerous parts of the body used in destroying people. Hands are used to harm, injure or kill while tongue is even more deadly in achieving these aims. This is why Allah praised His servants who use this parts judiciously where He asks rethorically thus: (Who is better In speech than He who [says: "My Lord is Allâh (believes In his Oneness)," and Then stands Straight (acts upon his Order), and] invites (men) to Allâh's (Islâmic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims") {Qura'n 41 (Suuratu Fussilat), 33).

My dear children, a youth in Islam is anyone who has attained the age of puberty, when he becomes accountable for his actions and inactions before Allah. By qualifying you as a youth we mean you are a Mukallaf, responsible under Shari^cah to comply by the dictates of your religion. Anybody in your age bracket is the future and pride of any community, society or nation owing to your vintage position of youthfulness, vibrancy and hope. Unlike many of us who are already full grown men and women, you are full of energy, ability and endowed with feeling of positivity and possibility. You should, therefore, carry most of the burdens of a Nigeria or the entire Muslim (Ummah) on your shoulders; because you symbolise today's agent of change and tomorrow's array of hope. Therefore, it is in the interest of Islam that you are alive to your responsibilities and realize your role and importance in the twin virtues of righteous and active participation of nation-building. Let your motto be "Be prepared" and your logo be "ever ready".