Love … What is it? Someone will say that love is a feeling in relation to another person. As Marquez said: “Perhaps in this world you are just a person, but for someone you are the whole world.” But longing for someone, attraction, bright dreams, desire for good for others – is all this love? Or maybe love is something more than a feeling? We’ll try to understand love and its nature in Islam.
What really love means?
When talking about love, people turn to the most exalted words. The most beautiful of them can be found in the immortal works of writers and poets. And how many proverbs and sayings have been invented, and they are all true and conceal so much meaning! After all, “all ages are submissive to love”, “with a lovely paradise and in a hut”, “for a loved one, even to the ends of the world”!
But still, the majority will agree that many people are looking for love all their lives, and when they find it, after a certain time they realize that this is not it at all … after all, they were expecting something completely different … And all these searches and expectations can continue until the end of life.
What is the reason for so many disappointments? Perhaps people are looking for that very love in the wrong place? Or is she somewhere nearby, but they simply do not notice her – the one that will give peace to the soul and make everyone happy? But it is precisely because of such blindness that we can lose true love, a part of ourselves. Many do not even know what can cause such torment, when a person, having a lot of attention, understanding, care of relatives, remains unhappy, because he feels a kind of emptiness inside himself that nothing can fill.
Such a feeling arises precisely among those who consider themselves to be among the people who have not felt and have not fully understood what love is.
Quite often there are situations when people believe that they love each other, are painfully worried if they part for a while. But at the same time, communication, intimacy occurs in some narrow part of their life, and in all other respects they are almost strangers.
Still, I wonder why children know what love is, but when they grow up, they lose this knowledge or hide it behind a heap of dead concepts.
Why in response to the question “What is love?” Are adults babbling something unintelligible or making a helpless gesture?
Everyone knows about love, but no one can really explain what it is.
Love and its nature in Islam
Have you ever thought about what you are just looking for in the wrong place? Do you know that there is someone who loves you more than your own mother? Yes, it is more than a mother who endured and gave birth in agony, who forgives all insults and mistakes, and about whom the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
“Paradise is under the feet of your mothers.”
Who can love more? The answer is obvious – the Almighty is the one whom everyone asks for help, whom they praise. And what does the love of Allah mean? Here are some examples.
It is narrated from the words of Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
“Verily, Allah Almighty said:” I will declare war on the one who is at war with the one who is close to Me! The most beloved of all, whatever my servant does in striving to get closer to Me, is for Me that which I have charged him with as a duty, and My servant will try to get closer to Me, doing Navafil (that is, performing voluntary forms of worship) while I will not love him, but when I love him, I will become his hearing, through which he will hear, and his vision, through which he will see, and his hand, which he will grab, and his leg, with which he will walk , and if he asks Me for something, I will grant it to him, and if he turns to me for protection, I will protect him “” (Bukhari). This is what love and its nature in Islam.
One day a Bedouin Arab arrived in Medina to meet with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). He was poor, so he could not give him a gift, but he was ashamed to come empty-handed. In the steppe, he caught a pigeon chick and took it with him.
Having met with the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) in the mosque of Medina, he presented him with a chick. At that moment, everyone saw that the dove burst into the mosque, and, in spite of the audience, flew up to its chick. Everyone was surprised at the dedication and love of the dove.
Addressing the Muslims who were watching what was happening, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
“Have you seen how much a mother loves her child? Know, then, that the love and mercy of Allah for his slaves is much greater than the love of this bird for his chick. “
The Great Creator in this world is merciful to everyone. Everyone equally enjoys the generosity of the earth, the taste of water, and the warmth of the sun.
In another tradition, which is mentioned in the Saheeh of Muslim and other sources, it is said that once captives captured in battle were brought to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). At this time, the crying of a child was heard. One of the captives immediately rushed to the children, took the baby in her arms and began to feed him with milk.
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) asked the audience:
“Do you think this woman will throw her child into the flames?” Companions unanimously answered: “Of course not!” Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “You know, the love of Allah for her slaves is thousands of times greater than the love of this woman for her child.”
Is this love not thirsty for those who seek it and do not find it? Perhaps, without noticing it, people remain unhappy and feel an inner emptiness.
But, so little is needed to feel it – just do not forget about the Almighty, that He loves each of us more than his own mother. It was He who created us, and it is to Allah that the soul is drawn, seeking pacification. And if people can understand this, they will feel like a cup full of goodness, light, love, happiness.
Often people who do not know anything about Islam or have incorrect information consider Muslims to be jihadists and terrorists who hate all gentiles. Believe me, this is not the case. After all, jihad is, first of all, the struggle of a person with himself for the purpose of self-improvement.
And from the above, it is easy to understand that no real Muslim (if he really is) can harm another person, because his whole life is dedicated to Allah, and the Almighty, as we said, loves each of us more than his own mother … So how can he then call himself a Muslim and say that he believes in the Creator if he does harm to the one whom God loves?
Islam does not recognize violence, either physical or psychological. A Muslim should never be the first to use force, but he is only allowed to respond to violence. Although in this case, Islam encourages forgiving injustice:
“If you punish them, then punish them as they punished you. But if you are patient, it will be better for the patient. ”(Quran, 16: 126)
Conclusion
Therefore, a person who truly believes in God tries to do as He has commanded. Such a person changes his bad qualities to good ones, in other words, does as much good as possible on earth in order to make others happy by opening a path for them, following which they can find peace of mind, happiness and understand the true meaning of their existence.
Here it is, the true love that we are all looking for and which is able to fill the void – the love between man and his Creator. And the one who discovered it for himself is truly the happiest of people.
As the saying goes: “I asked the tree to tell me about the Almighty, and it bloomed.” May these beautiful flowers never fade in your heart.