al-Tawassul: Anwauhu wa Ahkamuhu - Nasir al-Din al-Albani - (36)

al-Tawassul: Anwauhu wa AhkamuhuNasir al-Din al-Albani

and his profound mercy toward them, culminating in that unparalleled and moving act—one that, in my estimation, no other human being, save the Prophets, has ever matched in honoring his parents to such a degree.

The second man sought Allah’s favor through his chastity: he refrained from fornication with his cousin, whom he loved with an ardor no man could surpass, after he had gained power over her and she had yielded against her will because of hunger and destitution. Yet when she reminded him of Allah, his heart awoke, his limbs were humbled, and he left her untouched along with the money he had given her.

The third man sought nearness to Allah by safeguarding the right of a laborer who had departed, leaving behind his wage—one farq1 (a sizable measure) of rice, as an authentic wording of the hadith states. The employer invested that wage, nurturing it until it produced sheep, cattle, camels, and servants. When the laborer later fell into need, he remembered his small wage and returned to claim it. The employer handed over the entire accumulated wealth to him. Stunned, the man thought he was being mocked; but once he was convinced of the employer’s seriousness and realized that his wage had been cultivated until it had become that fortune, he drove it all away in joyous amazement, leaving not a single item behind.

By Allah, the conduct of this employer attains the pinnacle of beneficence toward a worker, embodying the highest ideal achievable in caring for and honoring him—an ideal not approached by even a tenth of the stance taken by those who claim to champion laborers and the downtrodden, trafficking in slogans of protecting the poor and needy and securing their rights.

Thus the three of them called upon their Lord, exalted be He, seeking His favor by means of these deeds of consummate righteousness and these acts of exceptional generosity, declaring that they had performed them solely to attain the good pleasure of Allah Almighty, desiring neither some immediate gain of this world nor any quick personal benefit or

(1) A dry measure whose capacity is roughly equal to three saʿs.

ورأفته الشديدة بهما حتى كان منه ذلك الموقف الرائع الفريد، وما أحسب إنساناً آخر، - حاشا الأنبياء ـ يصل بره بوالديه إلى هذا الحد. وتوسل الثاني بعفته من الزنى بابنة عمه التي أحبها كأشد ما يحب الرجال النساء بعدما قدر عليها، واستسلمت له مكروهة بسبب الجوع والحاجة، ولكنها ذكرته بالله ﷿، فتذكر قلبه، وخشعت جوارحه، وتركها والمال الذي أعطاها. وتوسل الثالث بحفاظه على حق أجيره الذي ترك أجرته التي كانت فَرَقاَ١ من أرز كما ورد في رواية صحيحة للحديث وذهب، فنماها له صاحب العمل، وثمرها حتى كانت منها الشاه والبقر والأبل والرقيق، فلما احتاج الأجير إلى المال ذكر أجرته الزهيدة عند صاحبه، فجاءه وطالبه بحقه، فأعطاه تلك الأموال كلها، فدهش وظنه يستهزىء به، ولكنه لما تيقن منه الجد، وعرف أنه ثمرّ له أجره حتى تجمعت منه تلك الأموال، استساقها فرحاً مذهولاً، ولم يترك منها شيئاً. وأيْم الله إن صنيع رب العمل هذا بالغ حد الروعة في الإحسان إلى العامل، ومحقق المثل الأعلى الممكن في رعايته وإكرامه، مما لا يصل إلى عشر معشاره موقف كل من يدعي نصرة العمال والكادحين، ويتاجر بدعوى حماية الفقراء والمحتاجين، وإنصافهم وإعطائهم حقوقهم. دعا هؤلاء الثلاثة ربهم سبحانه متوسلين إليه بهذه الأعمال الصالحة أي صلاح، والمواقف الكريمة أي كرم، معلنين أنهم إنما فعلوها ابتغاء رضوان الله تعالى وحده، لم يريدوا بها دنيا قريبة أو مصلحة عاجلة أو

١ مكيال تقدر سعته بثلاثة آصع.