Assalamu’alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
Bismillahir- Rahmanir-Rahim
1. Opening
Friends whom Allah has honored, our eyes are often deceived by the décor of this world. We live in an era where a person’s social status is often measured by where they work, how fragrant their office is, or how luxurious their uniform looks. We tend to respect those in ties in high-rise buildings, and close our eyes to those sweating in quiet corners.But let us clean the lenses of our faith. The true heroism of a believer is when he can see beyond those physical boundaries. In Allah SWT’s sight, the nobility of a profession is not determined by the beauty of its location, but by the lawfulness of its essence and how that profession safeguards honor and obedience to Him.
Let us reflect on Allah SWT’s words about the false pleasure of worldly life that often deceives the eye:
وَمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلَّا مَتَاعُ الْغُرُورِ
“And the life of this world is nothing but the enjoyment of delusion.” [QS. Āli ‘Imrān: 185]
In contrast, Allah deeply loves His servant who works hard to keep himself and his family from begging, even if the work looks crude in people’s eyes. Rasulullah ﷺ said in a hadith that greatly soothes the souls of hard workers:
مَا أَكَلَ أَحَدٌ طَعَامًا قَطُّ خَيْرًا مِنْ أَنْ يَأْكُلَ مِنْ عَمَلِ يَدِهِ، وَإِنَّ نَبِيَّ اللَّهِ دَاوُدَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ كَانَ يَأْكُلُ مِنْ عَمَلِ يَدِهِ
“No one has ever eaten food better than that which he eats from the work of his own hands. Indeed, the Prophet of Allah Dāwūd, peace be upon him, used to eat from the work of his own hands.”[HR. Bukhārī]
2. Lessons and Message
The highest moral message from this reality is: True nobility lies in Allah’s pleasure, not in people’s admiring gaze. A luxurious shop—air-conditioned, with gleaming marble floors and a fragrant scent—yet filled with disobedience—like exploiting the looks of sexy women to attract customers or engaging in deceitful transactions—is in truth a smooth road to Allah’s wrath and His Hellfire. Conversely, a grimy auto workshop in a back alley, noisy with hammer blows, hot air, and a floor covered in spilled black oil—as long as it is run with honesty and guards the limits of the Sharīʿah—is a school of taqwā and a highway to Allah SWT’s pleasure.
Let us recall a very moving incident in the Prophetic biography. Once, Rasulullah ﷺ had just returned from the Battle of Tabūk. He saw the hands of one Companion named Saʿd al-Anṣārī. Saʿd’s hands looked blistered, his skin dark, rough, and cracked from splitting rocks and hoeing the ground every day to provide for his family. Seeing those rough hands, Rasulullah ﷺ did not turn away or feel uncomfortable. On the contrary, he reached for Saʿd al-Anṣārī’s hand, held it with deep respect, and kissed that rough hand before the other Companions. While holding Saʿd’s hand, Rasulullah ﷺ said in a voice that stirred the soul: “These are the two hands that will never be touched by the Fire.” Imagine, hands dirty with soil and stone became the most noble hands because of their lawfulness. This is a hard slap for us who often feel ashamed of having rough work, when that is precisely where Allah’s loving gaze rests.
Imagine you see two bottles. The first is a crystal perfume bottle—very beautiful, exquisitely carved, and placed in a luxurious glass cabinet. But do you know what’s inside? Inside is a deadly poison that, if even a drop is swallowed, will destroy the body’s organs. Beside it is a small, opaque, dull, oily plastic bottle placed in a dusty medicine box. But inside that plastic bottle is a herbal medicinal liquid that can save a person’s life.An intelligent person will never praise the crystal perfume bottle and ignore the plastic medicine bottle. Such is the world. Do not chase the “crystal bottle” of a luxurious job that poisons our faith, and belittle the “plastic bottle” of rough work that is in fact the medicine for our Hereafter salvation.
These days there are many paradoxes that tickle us. When asked by a prospective father-in-law, “Son, where do you work?”
With pride and a puffed chest he answers, “I’m the operations manager at the hottest nightclub in town, Uncle. The place smells great, my clothes are always sharp, and I meet celebrities every day!” The prospective father-in-law immediately smiles wide and gives his blessing. Meanwhile, in another corner, a pious young man, when asked about his job, answers softly while scratching his head, “I just run a welding and motorcycle repair shop in the alley behind my house, Uncle. Every day my face is black with soot, my clothes smell of oil, and my nails are never clean.” The prospective father-in-law immediately clears his throat and looks for a reason to end the chat.But if we use the Hereafter calculator, that workshop young man—every time his hands get oily while remembering Allah in _dhikr_—his sins are washed away along with the dripping oil. Meanwhile, the young man in the nightclub, every time he witnesses disobedience, the “tax” of his sins keeps piling up even though his body smells of imported perfume! So, what’s the point of having a son-in-law who smells good in this world, but in the Hereafter “smells burnt” from Allah’s wrath?
3. Conclusion and Closing
Friends, let us realign our standards of life success. Success is not about how fragrant our workplace is, not about how shiny the floor beneath our feet is, and not about how respected our position is in people’s eyes. True success is how clean the wealth is that we bring home to feed our children and wife.Never feel inferior because of clothes stained with oil, never be ashamed of a face tired from seeking the lawful.
As long as the path we walk is straight upon Allah’s Sharīʿah, hold your head high. For perhaps your sweat that smells of oil on earth is, in fact, as fragrant as musk before the angels in Heaven
. والله أعلم بالصواب
الحمد لله رب العالمين
Wassalamu’alaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.
Abu Sultan Al-Qadrie
