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Khaberni - Dr. Amr Khaled, the Islamic preacher, said that Ihsan is the secret of the strength and distinction of the Islamic religion, considering that living with it is the best way of life, and the way to reach the love of God Almighty.
Khaled added in the seventeenth episode of his Ramadan program "Guide - A Journey with the Quran," that there is no accurate translation for the meaning of Ihsan in any language other than Arabic, because Ihsan in Islam has two meanings; spiritual: "to worship Allah as if you see Him," and a life meaning: "Allah has prescribed Ihsan on everything..."; that is, to bring out the best in you.
Ihsan.. the secret to the distinction of Islam
Khaled clarified that all spiritual and material matters fall under the umbrella of Ihsan, which is the secret to the distinction and strength of Islam, because Christianity is distinguished by spirituality, at the expense of the material aspect, while Judaism focuses on the material side, neglecting the spiritual aspect. Meanwhile, Islam combines both the spiritual and material sides together (Ihsan), therefore it is considered the final religion.
A way of life
Khaled emphasized the importance of Ihsan in Islam and its implementation as a way of life, stressing the necessity to start spiritually and then extend it to life, because prioritizing the life aspect over the spiritual will lead to spiritual fatigue, preventing continuity until the end, which is what the West is currently experiencing, as the current generation lacks the productivity energy that distinguished previous generations.
Khaled cited in his discussion about Ihsan a hadith described by Imam Shafi'i as a quarter of the Islamic religion. Omar bin Al-Khattab, may God be pleased with him, said: While we were sitting with the Prophet, peace be upon him, one day, a man with extremely white clothes and very black hair appeared, showing no signs of travel, and none of us knew him, until he sat by the Prophet, peace be upon him, aligned his knees with his knees, placed his hands on his thighs, and said: "O Muhammad, tell me about Islam," so he said: (Islam is to testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, to establish prayer, give zakat, fast Ramadan, and perform Hajj to the House if you are able to) and he said: "You have spoken the truth," which surprised us for he would ask him and affirm the answer, and then said: "Tell me about Iman," he said: (to believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, His Messengers, the Hereafter, and to believe in destiny, its good and its bad) and he said: "You have spoken the truth," then he said: "So tell me about Ihsan," he said: (to worship Allah as if you see Him, though if you cannot see Him, indeed He sees you), he said: "Tell me about the Hour," he said: (The one being questioned knows no better than the questioner), he said: "Tell me about its signs," he said: (That the slave-woman will give birth to her mistress and you will see the barefoot, the naked, the destitute, the shepherds of sheep competing in tall buildings) then he went away and after a while, he said: (O Omar, do you know who the questioner was?), I said: "Allah and His Messenger know best," he said: (Indeed, it was Gabriel who came to teach you your religion) reported by Muslim.
He said that based on the previous hadith, the components of the religion are three: Islam, Iman, Ihsan, describing Ihsan as it represents the spirit of the first two; for prayer without Ihsan becomes rigid molds without spirit, and believing in angels without feeling becomes rigid faith, as if you put a board or "tableau". While Ihsan represents the active substance of Islam, and its spirit and the secret of its strength and distinction, which distinguishes us from other religions and civilizations.
Ihsan.. a feeling of divine presence
Khaled explained the meaning of Ihsan as: "the feeling of divine presence (as if you see Him), and that is by turning to Allah Almighty, by saying: Lord, do not leave me alone in life, if people are not pleased with you, to say to Him: Lord, your pleasure is the most important, and to pray and to feel the divine presence," considering the sweetest conclusion to the Quran in our lives, "to feel during it that Allah Almighty is speaking to you."
Nevertheless, he pointed out the absence of Ihsan from our lives, despite being the active substance of Islam, which he explains as a result of being heavily influenced by material civilization, saying that living with Ihsan leads to a "sweet psyche," which positively reflects on your mental state, making you bring out the best in you, and ridding you of psychological pressures, and moving with a better mood. Because your eye is on the Creator.
And Khalid said: "A person cannot live in life without getting a compensation, for if he gives, he must take, and if he does not take, the productivity decreases," while Ihsan leads to the dropping of expectations, because the Creator is the one who rewards you for what you do with Ihsan, "And they feed, for the love of Allah, the indigent, the orphan, and the captive,—We feed you for the sake of Allah alone: no reward do we desire from you, nor thanks."
Live the remainder of Ramadan with Ihsan
And Khalid urged to live the remainder of the days of Ramadan with Ihsan, saying: "To reach the level of Ihsan in the last ten days, you must bring out the best in you: with Allah in worship, with people in manners, and with life in perfection and creativity."
And he said that Allah Almighty describes the Quran as the book of Ihsan, "And follow the best of what has been revealed to you from your Lord before the penalty comes on you suddenly while you perceive not,” "We do relate unto you the most beautiful of stories, in that We reveal to you this (portion of the) Quran" and "Allah has revealed the most beautiful message in the form of a Book, consistent with itself, (yet) repeating (its teaching in various aspects): the skins of those who fear their Lord tremble thereof; then their skins and their hearts do soften to the celebration of Allah's praises."
Rewards for doers of Ihsan
Khaled listed 6 rewards for doers of Ihsan, as follows:
- Love of Allah: Ihsan is the most loved trait by Allah in the Quran "and be good; verily, Allah loves the doers of good."
- Allah makes the difficult easy for you: "no burden is there on the doers of good."
- Guarantee of success in life: "We do not allow to be lost the reward of anyone who did well in (his) deeds."
- The highest levels of heaven: "And the first forerunners [in the faith] among the Muhajireen and the Ansar and those who followed them with good conduct."
- The vision of Allah Almighty: "For those who have done good is the best [reward] and extra."
- Whenever you do good, a part in your life is made better: "Is there any Reward for Good other than Good?”
The Ihsan Project
And Khalid elaborated on the Ihsan project, which he described as "a life project," and said that it is based on defining Ihsan in a contemporary way: a deep feeling for Allah, which makes you worship Him as if you see Him, thus bringing out the best in yourself: with Allah in worship, with people: in manners, with life: in perfection and creativity, becoming one of Allah’s most beloved worshippers.
He explained that the youth and girls are the core of the Ihsan Academy project, who acquire a series of the most beautiful traits during their training, which are: a contemporary original human, non-confrontational (against extremism), loving goodness and beauty (good for our countries and nations).
Watch the episode:
https://youtu.be/ov7FNg9fKf0?si=XTxq7AyypwUQjbj8
