WORSHIP, ITS DEFINITION AND NULLIFIERS
by Sh Abdul Baaree Ath-Thubaytie (Imaam of Haram)
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All praise is due to Allaah, who created mankind for the purpose of His worship. I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allaah. I equally testify that Mohammad is his servant and Messenger. May peace and blessings be upon the Prophet, his family and his companions.

One of the Salaf (the righteous predecessors) said: “Indeed, Allaah has bestowed His favour upon His servants and commanded them to be grateful as much as they can, for gratitude, however little it may be, is a price for the favour, however big it may be. If one does not be grateful, he has exposed the favour to extinction…”

Dear brother! A believer’s soul does not yield to frivolities; however, his soul becomes tranquil, that tranquillity energises it and tells it, “O soul! Be happy, for the home is near and reunion is imminent”. Therefore, do not terminate your journey and thus be denied reaching the home of the loved ones. When Naafi was asked of Ibn ‘Umar’s activities at home, he replied, “He used to perform ablution for every prayer and recite Qur’an in between them [i.e. in between ablution and prayer.]”

Hasan al-Basree said – while describing efforts of Salaf in worship, “I have met people and I have accompanied groups. They (i.e. the people I have met and accompanied) did not use to rejoice at whatever came their way of the beauties of this world; nor did they use to get sad over whatever departed from them of this world. Rather, the world was less significant to them than the soil over which they walked. They would act by the book of their Lord and the Sunnah of the Prophet. During the night they stood up in prayer, prostrated their faces and wept out of fear of Allaah.”

Whenever Ibn ‘Umar missed a congregational prayer, he would atone for that by a day of fasting, a night vigil (in prayer) and manumission of a slave. read more

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SEE THE GOOD IN OTHERS
I said to a friend that I have chosen rather to be silent than to speak because on most occasions good and bad words are scattered concurrently but enemies perceive only the latter. He replied: 'That enemy is the greatest who does not see any good.'

The brother of enmity passes not near a good man
Except to consider him as a most wicked liar.

Virtue is to the eyes of enmity the greatest fault.
Sa'di is a rose but to the eye of enemies a thorn.

The world illumining sun and fountain of light
Look ugly to the eye of the mole.
[GULISTAN]