Ihsan: The Art of Living in Islam

But do good; for Allah loves those who do good. (Al-Baqarah 2:195)

Our religion has three main aspects: Iman, Islam and Ihsan. Iman is faith. It is to believe to believe in Allah, in His angels, in His Books, in His Messengers, in the Last Day and in the Qadar (the Power and Foreknowledge of Allah). Islam is to accept the five pillars: the declaration of faith, prayers five times a day, Zakat, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and Hajj for those who can afford it. The third aspect is Ihsan which means doing everything in the best and beautiful manner. The Prophet –peace be upon him- described Ihsan as "to worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, though you see Him not but He sees you." In the modern metaphor we can say that Ihsan is "the Art of living."

The Prophet – peace be upon him - said: Allah has prescribed excellence upon everything." (Muslim, Hadith no. 3615)

We all have a limited life time; none of us is going to live in this world forever. In the Qur'an Allah reminded us three times about a fact – and this is an unchangeable fact; it was true in the past, it is true now and it will remain true until the end of this world - and it is this:

Every person will taste death… (Al 'Imran 3:185; Al-Anbiya' 21:35; Al-'Ankabut 29:57)

Whatever we may say or think about each other; there is one thing very true and no one can deny it. It is this that we are all going to die sooner or later. We hope and pray to live long life; but still none of us shall live forever. So the life of this world is temporary, transitory and ephemeral; but it is dead serious (no pun intended). The fact is that not only this life but our eternal life depends on this life. We can make or break ourselves here in a short period of time for the eternal life to come. We should make good use of this life and we have to live in the best possible way. Whatever we do we should do in the most beautiful manner. In other words we have to learn 'Ihsan' the art of living.

There is a big difference between what is right and what is good. Sometimes people do right things; but they do not do them in a good way. Our Prophet –peace and blessings of Allah be upon him- taught us that we should always do right things but we must do them in the most beautiful manner. We must learn the art of doing right things in good ways. Allah says:

Do no mischief on the earth, after it has been set in order, but call on Him with fear and longing (in your hearts): for the Mercy of Allah is (always) near to those who do good things. (Al-A'raf 7:56)

Every believer must learn this art. The life of every Muslim must be beautiful, inspiring and motivating to others. Whether a person is young or old, male or female, rich or old, black or white, Arab or non-Arab, every person must reflect the beauty of Islam in his/her life. We must learn the art of prayer, the art of family life, the art of business, the art of dealing with friends and with foes. Prophet Muhammad –peace be upon him- told us that in every situation we must reflect this art and this beauty in our life. He – peace and blessings of Allah be upon him- was the best role model. His life was the most beautiful, most attractive and most inspiring life. He was good as a teacher and preacher. He was also kind and loving as a husband, a father and a neighbor. He was a beautiful leader and statesman. Moreover, he was the best worshipper of Allah. Allah said about him:

Indeed, you have a great moral character. (Al-Qalam 68:4)

We do not have to agree with every person and it is not necessary that all people should agree with us. However, one thing we should always try to do, that every one we come into contact with us should be able to say that this Muslim is a very decent person. He is honest, not a crook; he is trustworthy, not a phony person. Someone said nicely that remember when you came to this world, you were crying but everyone around you was laughing and happy. Now live in this world in such a way that when you depart this world you are happy while everyone else is crying and sad. You will leave this world happy only if you live nicely and then those around you will miss you. This will happen only if you learnt the art of living. The Prophet –peace be upon him- said,

Anas bin Malik said, "The Prophet –peace be upon him- said to me, 'O my son, if you can have your morning and evening in such a way that you have no deceit and evil against anyone then do so.' Then he said, 'O my son, this is my Sunnah and whosoever love my Sunnah he loves me and whosoever loves me, he will be with me in Jannah.'" (Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith no. 2602)

The art of living is that we live in such a way that we have no deceit, no evil against any person. It is reported that the Prophet – peace be upon him - used to pray and actually through his prayers he used to teach us the Islamic lifestyle. He used to teach not only the prayer but also the art of life.

Abu Hurairah said, "The Prophet – peace be upon him - used to pray, 'O Allah, I seek your protection from quarrels, hypocrisy and bad manners.'" (Abu Da'ud, Hadith no.1546 )

The life that is free from quarrels, hypocrisy and bad manners is indeed a beautiful life. One who knows how to live that life actually knows the art of living. In another Hadith it is said that Prophet – peace be upon him - used to say in his prayers:

Anas ibn Malik reported that the Prophet – peace be upon him - used to say, "O Allah I seek your protection from anxiety and grief, disability and laziness, cowardice and stinginess, and the burden of debt and the dominance of people." (Al-Bukahri 5892)

Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawzi in his Zadul Ma'ad said that this Du'a reflected some of the important moral and spiritual concerns of the Prophet. These prayers actually reflect the true and beautiful life that a believer must aspire to have. The art of living is to live without worries, anxieties, being healthy and active, not disabled and lazy, ready to help others physically and financially not being a coward and stingy person, and it is also to live within your means, not taking too much loans and also being saved from bad influences and bad companies. This is the art of life in Islam. Allah says in the Qur'an:

Whosoever, male or female, does good deeds and has faith, We shall give a good life and reward them according to the best of their actions. (Al-Nahl 16:97)

(Khutbah at ISOC – Jumadal 'Ula 1, 1428/ May 18, 2007)