The Good Life:

Life With Allah

 Contents

The Good Life: Life With Allah 4

The Good Life 6

Why Do We Not Experience the Sweetness

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of Iman and Worship?

The Good Life = A Life of Luxury? 10

The Good Life = A Life With Allah 11

How Can We Attain the Good Life? 13

The Eternal Good Life 15

The Good Life

Life With Allah

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 The Good Life:
Life With Allah

W e all want happiness. How we define this though, and

how we seek it, differs. For some of us, happiness
is wealth and material abundance. For others, it’s fame and
renown. For others, it’s sensual pleasure and gratification.
And for some, it’s a breakthrough in their field of expertise.

Amidst today’s unbounded pleasures and excess, however,

more of us than ever remain unfulfilled. No matter how
much we buy and consume, or how much we’re validated
and gratified, there still lurks within us a void, a lingering
feeling of emptiness that we cannot remove. That reassuring
satisfaction and contentment we hope will come, actually
never does.

It’s because we have suppressed and ignored an inborn

instinct to know and worship our Maker. It’s this instinct that
is man’s path to happiness. Allah says, “But whoever turns
away from My Reminder will certainly have a miserable life,
then We will raise them up blind on the Day of Judgment”
(20:124).

Knowing Allah c and, as a natural corollary, upholding our

obligations to Him, is the true antidote to today’s emptiness
and despair.

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T “
ruly in the heart there is a certain loneliness
that cannot be removed except by spending
time with Him in solitude. In it there is a sadness
that cannot be removed except through the
happiness of knowing Him and being
true to Him …

In it there is a void that cannot be filled except

through loving Him, turning to Him constantly,
always remembering Him, and being sincere to
Him. Were a person to be given the entire world
and everything in it, it would never fill this void.”
(Ibn al-Qayyim r)

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 The Good Life
Allah c says in the Qur’ān:
ُ َ‫احِلـا ّم ِۡن َذ َكر ا َ ۡو اُنۡ ٰىٰث َو ُه َو ُم ۡؤم ٌِن فَل‬
‫ـن ۡحي ِ َي َّن ُه‬ ً ِ ‫َم ۡن َع ِم َل َص‬
ٍ
َ ۡ ُ َ ۡ َ ۡ ُ َ َ َ ۡ َ ۡ ُ َ ۡ َ ۡ ُ َّ َ ۡ َ َ َ ً َ ّ َ ً ٰ َ
‫ن‬
‫​  ولـنج ِزيـنهم اجرهم بِاحس ِن ما اَكنوا يعملو ‏‬ ۚ ‫حيوة طيِبة‬
“Whoever does good, whether male or female, and
is a believer, We will surely bless them with a good
life, and We will certainly reward them according
to the best of their deeds” (16:97).

T his āyah tells us that to live a good life, we need to be

people of: 1 firm belief in Allah (īmān) and 2 righteous
deeds (ʿamal ṣāliḥ)

What then is the ‘good life’? The ‘good life’ is the ‘paradise
of this world’. It is a life in which a believer attains a deep
sense of contentment, happiness and inner bliss through his
worship, closeness and intimate conversation with his Creator.

Abū Bakr al-Warrāq r defined ‘the good life’ as “the

sweetness of obedience.”

What does it mean to ‘taste the sweetness of obedience’

or to taste the ‘sweetness of īmān’ (as mentioned by our
beloved Prophet g)? Just as we enjoy the sweetness and
incredible flavours of delicious foods with our mouths, īmān
and worship also consist of a sweetness and special flavour
which can be ‘tasted’ by our hearts. Thus, the ‘good life’ is
the good life of the heart, and this is the real life.

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In this world, the reward for īmān and righteous deeds is a
good life. In the hereafter, however, there is even more, as
we read in the āyah above: “We will certainly reward them
according to the best of their deeds”. Imām al-Ghazālī r
said, “If the only reward of the person obeying Allah was the
sweetness of the obedience, and feeling comfort in privately
conversing with Him — it would be enough! Then how about
the additional bliss of the hereafter?!”

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 Why Do We Not Experience
the Sweetness of Iman
and Worship?

M any of us exert ourselves in acts of worship, and yet

do not experience this sweetness and happiness. One
of the primary reasons is that we focus solely on the outer
physical actions, and we do not give sufficient attention to
the core of the worship: the inner state of the heart which
accompanies it. Ibn al-Qayyim r writes, “You may find
a person who fasts, prays, does dhikr and recites Qur’ān
abundantly, but nothing from his actions reach his heart:
no fear, no hope, no love, no conviction in Allah and no
happiness with Him.”

Thus, to attain a good life, we have to combine the external

acts of obedience with the internal states of the heart, also
called ‘the actions of the heart’.

The actions of the heart include:

• firm belief (īmān), knowledge of Allah (maʿrifah),
• sincerity (ikhlāṣ), piety and mindfulness (taqwā),
• repentance (tawbah), trust in Allah (tawakkul),
• hope (rajā’), fear (khawf), gratitude (shukr),
• patience (ṣabr), love (ḥubb), cyearning for Allah (shawq)
and certainty (yaqīn).

Just as our bodies need food and drink to grow and sustain
themselves, our hearts and souls need their food (‘soul food’)

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to flourish and stay healthy.

This will also mean having to purify our hearts from its
diseases (pride, envy, greed, heedlessness, hypocrisy
etc). When we are sick, we do not enjoy the taste of food.
Sometimes we cannot even taste the flavour. If we are feeling
nauseous, even the most expensive meal would not entice
us to eat. Likewise, if our hearts are sick and diseased due to
committing sins and following desires, we cannot enjoy the
‘sweetness of īmān’. We cannot find joy in worshipping Allah.

Ibn Taymiyyah r said, “If you don’t find sweetness and joy
in the deed you perform, then doubt its sincerity, for Allah b
is Shakūr (Most Appreciative and Rewarding).” This means
that Allah will reward His servant for his deeds in this world
by granting him sweetness and tranquillity in his heart. But if
he finds that his heart lacks delight and joy, then his deed is
imperfect and defective.

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 The Good Life =
A Life of Luxury?

W e may think that the ‘good life’ is a life devoid of

any difficulties; a comfortable luxurious life. On the
contrary, those who enjoy the ‘good life’ may experience
some of the worst worldly difficulties. However, despite the
difficulties and severe illnesses they may suffer, their hearts
are at peace. Their hearts are content with Allah’s decree.
They may have very little material wealth, but their hearts
are brimming with and the love of Allah. Our beloved
Prophet g is the person who best personified this. He g
owned very little of the world: he would sleep on a simple mat
which would leave marks on his blessed back, but despite
this, he lived the best life.

Ibn al-Qayyim r explains that the ‘good life’ in the above

āyah does not refer to a life of fine clothing, food, drink and
spouses, as Allah b may bestow this in far greater quantities
to His enemies. But rather the ‘good life’ is the life of the
believer who occupies himself with one goal: pleasing his
Beloved b. Instead of feeling confused and torn in many
directions of life, the believer who enjoys the ‘good life’ has
one focus. Everything he does and seeks is to attain the love
and closeness of his Beloved.

When he speaks, he speaks for Him. When he is silent, he is

silent for Him. When he moves, he moves for Him. When he is
still, he is still for Him.

His focus is Allah. He lives for Allah. He dies for Allah.

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 The Good Life =
A Life With Allah

A life with Allah begins with sincere repentance (tawbah),

and revelling in the joy of reuniting with one’s Creator
after having been away.

It is a life in which one relishes the sweetness of ṣalāh, as

our beloved Prophet g said, “My utmost joy has been put
in ṣalāh” (Nasā’ī). It is a life in which there is nothing more
delightful and soothing to the heart than conversing and
crying to one’s Lord in the stillness of the night, alone.

It is a life in which one feels the joy of hunger when fasting,

and gives up his base desires —which he loves — for his
Beloved, who he loves much more.

It is a life in which one makes the Qur’ān his best friend, and
finds immense peace in its recitation as, “There is nothing
sweeter to the lover than the words of his beloved, for it is the
joy of their hearts and their utmost desire” (Ibn Rajab r).

It is a life in which one happily serves his family, neighbours

and the creation of Allah selflessly. It is life in which one
overcomes his ego and emulates the sublime character
(akhlāq) of Allah’s beloved, Muḥammad g.

It is a life in which one feels greater joy in helping others and

giving charity than the recipients of the charity themselves. It
is a life in which one is ready to sacrifice his own life, and cry
out “By the Lord of the Kaʿbah! I have won!” (Bukhārī).

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A life with Allah is a life in which the love of Allah supersedes
everything else. It is a life of utmost dedication to Him, in
which he loves to spend time worshipping Him, and his
greatest desire is to meet Him and see Him in Paradise.

By Allah, the world is only sweet with His remembrance;

the Next Life is only sweet with His forgiveness; and
Paradise is only sweet with seeing His Noble Face.”
(Dhū al-Nūn r)

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 How Can We Attain
the Good Life?
1 Knowledge. We have to continuously learn about Allah
b through His Names, His Words, His creation and by
worshipping Him. We have to learn about His beloved g who
practically demonstrated to us how to live a ‘good life’, and
we have to learn about the ‘actions’ and the ‘diseases’ of the
heart. One of the predecessors said, “How misfortunate are
the people of the world who left the world without having
experienced its greatest delight!” When he was asked, “What
is its greatest delight?”, he replied, “Knowing Allah, loving Him,
finding comfort in His closeness, and longing to meet Him.”

2 Battling the inner self (nafs). In our journey to Allah,

the initial stages will feel very difficult at times. We have to
persevere and keep going, until our hearts become attached
to Allah. Once our hearts are attached to Allah, the acts of
worship will no longer feel difficult and we will begin to enjoy
them. Abū Zayd r said, “I forced my nafs (inner self) to go
to Allah whilst it was crying, until I was able to take it to Him
whilst it was laughing.”

3 By performing all the obligatory deeds and additional

voluntary deeds. In a ḥadīth qudsī, Allah states, “My servant
continues to draw close to Me with voluntary deeds until I
love him” (Bukhārī).

4 Spending time in isolation with Allah. This includes

reciting the Qur’ān with reflection (tadabbur), dhikr with
reflection (tafakkur), talking to Him intimately in heartfelt

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duʿā’; and combining all of the above in ṣalāh with humility
and full focus (khushūʿ). This has a deep impact on
strengthening our connection with Allah and increasing in
love for Him. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī r said, “Indeed the beloved
of Allah are those who have inherited the good life and tasted
its bliss, due to conversing privately with their Lord and
experiencing the sweetness of His love in their hearts.”

5 Staying aways from sins. Wuhayb b. Ward r was asked,

“Can the sinner taste the sweetness of worship?” He said,
“No, not even the one who considers doing the sin.”

The ‘good life’ is attained through lofty aspirations, true

love, and a sincere intention.” (Ibn al-Qayyim r)

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 The Eternal Good Life

T he worldly ‘good life’ is merely a glimpse of the eternal

good life of the hereafter, the joy and pleasure of which
is unimaginable. A saint of Allah said, “There are times when
I say: if the people of Paradise have anything like this, then
how blissful must their lives be!” Another stated, “There are
times when the heart bursts in joy (out of the love for Allah).”

After quoting the above, Ibn al-Qayyim r writes, “Glorified is

the One who lets His slaves witness His Paradise well before
they meet Him, who opens its doors to them in this world of
deeds; and who gives them some of its joy, its breeze and
its perfume, so that they may seek it and hasten towards it
with all their strength.”

There is an ‘early paradise’ in the world. It is to know

Allah, to love Him, find comfort in Him, long to meet Him,
fear Him and obey Him. Beneficial knowledge leads one
to attain this. Whoever’s knowledge leads him to enter
this ‘early paradise’, will enter Paradise in the next world.
And whoever does not sniff the fragrance of the ‘worldly
paradise’, will not sniff the fragrance of the Paradise of
the hereafter.” (Ibn Rajab r)

Let us have firm belief in Allah (īmān) and do righteous deeds

(ʿamal ṣāliḥ) so that we become from, “Those whose souls
the angels take (in death) while they are good and virtuous.
They will say to them, ‘Peace be upon you. Enter Paradise for
what you used to do” (16:32).

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Let us live a life with Allah, so that in our final moments, the
angels will come to us and say, “Come out, O good soul that
was in a good body! Come out praiseworthy, and receive the
good news of serenity, bliss, and a Lord who is Pleased and is
not angry.” (Ibn Mājah)

Let us live a life with Allah, so that on the Day of Judgement,

we will be led to Paradise. With its gates already open, we
pray that the angels will welcome us saying,

ْ ٰ َ ُْ ُ ْ َ ْ ُْ ْ ُ َْ َ ٌٰ َ
‫دِلي َن‬
ِ ِ ‫سلم عليكم ِطبتم فادخلوها خ‬
“Peace be upon you. You have been good so come in,
to stay forever.”

May Allah – the Lord of Majesty and Honour – make us of

those who relish and delight in His worship in this world, and
of those who will be fortunate to gaze at His Magnificent
Face in the Eternal Abode of Bliss.

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lifewithallah.com

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