Haya

 

 

The Holy Quran(Al Hijr - 97)

Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do. 

 

Introduction

 

Over centuries, since his creation, the human being has made great progress. Especially in the recent past he has made advances in leaps and bounds in the fields of Science, Medicine and Technology. He has travelled into space; delved into the depths of the oceans; has made his and his fellow human’s life comfortable through various inventions and discoveries; found cures for diseases – the list goes on.  There is, however, one area of his life that has seen no progress – in fact there are clear signs of degeneration and that is his inability to annihilate social evils.

 

All around us we see a steady rise in crime, drugs, social inequity and discord, rise in the rate of divorce, dwindling faith in the institution of marriage and family. In contrast, friendships that have no boundaries are gaining prominence. Temporary and casual relationships seem far more attractive as opposed to long term associations that are bound by honour and responsibility.  Why do you think this is happening?

 

The reason for this is that Man has not been able to manage and strengthen his relationships with those around him.  This ‘distance’ between him and the people around him has steadily grown until he is an island – isolated, self-centred. He is now a victim of an all-consuming sickness – a disease that affects him both as an individual and as social being. This has led to a societal decline and degeneration of humanity as a whole.

 

From an Islamic perspective - the clear reason for this is man’s growing distance from morality and ethics – particularly Islamic Ethics. He has not been able to find solutions to these social evils.

 

This distance from Islamic Values has made him turn to false prophets and beguiling tricksters who mislead and misguide him through magic and enchantment. They offer false promises and illusions of relief which actually offer only temporary resolutions but which man is ready accept as THE THING he is searching for.

 

Inherently – every human has the urge to seek out the ‘Samad’ – a natural need which gets abused by the fraud merchants who tantalise him with illusionary placebos. This is like giving a hungry baby a soother – denying the baby the milk it is crying for, and replacing it with something quite useless but which is able to silence the baby for a while.

 

Man ends up in this situation because his nafs lacks the direction – without the right training it flounders and gropes in the dark. It does not know what it is seeking and gets lured by the enticing traps laid out in readiness by these con-artists.  

 

As the Quran says in Surah Jinn:6

 

Indeed some persons from the humans would seek the protection of some persons from the jinn, thus only adding to their rebellion. 

 

Man should actually be turning to the Quran to find relief – instead of which he turns towards those who create, behind a false sense of well-being, disorder and anarchy.

 

In Surah Isra Ayat 82, Allah (swt) says:

 

We send down in the Quran that which is a cure and mercy for the faithful; if only people headed the call.

 

A hadith from Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) who said:

A day will come when people will be suffering from six kinds of social agony;

When asked what they were, he said:

1.      Disobedience – people will obliterate the Islamic rules and blatantly disobey them, close their eyes to the Islamic code of conduct and have no reservation about acting contrary

2.      Ungratefulness – They will not appreciate all the mercies that have been bestowed on them and live as thankless ingrates  

3.      They will compete with each other in amassing wealth and material possessions

4.      Rivalry - in worldly matters will obsess them

5.      They begin to avoid meeting each other due to resentment

6.      Jealous – They will covet what others possess – never satisfied with what they have

 

When asked what would their fate be, he (as) said that they would end up being ruled over by an unjust tyrant.

 

People have forgotten the rules of socialising – for every aspect of our day’s activities. The rules of behaviour of with one’s parents, with one’s spouse, with one’s children, with one’s relatives have not been ingrained and therefore man has grown into a heedless creature, an unbroken horse with not self-control, monitoring or boundaries.

 

The Quran repeatedly reiterates the need for honour and decorum in dealing with each other.  

(Nisa 19 Luqman 15)

 

There was also a reference to a book: 1000 Hadith on a momin. It covers all the aspects of human life. It has listed a thousand but still not complete.

 

 

Definition of Haya

 

There is no word in any language that is the same as Haya in Arabic. It is often used to mean, modesty and humility. But in truth that does not sufficiently define Haya. Haya is a very highly regarded Value in Islam and is in-fact the source of all good values.

 

There is a Hadees of the Prophet (pbuh)

Al islamo uryani wa libasuhu haya

(Islam is bare and it’s clothing is haya)

 

And a hadees from Imam Ali (as)

Al haya sababun min kulle jameel –

(Haya is the source of everything beautiful, good, kind and worthy.)

 

To understand Haya, it is worth striking off all the things Haya is not:

 

·         Haya is not shame and embarrassment as it is generally taken to mean in Urdu. You experience shame and embarrassment when you have done something wrong and you are embarrassed by your failing or shortcoming.

·         Haya is not shyness. Shyness is when you lack the confidence to do something.

·         Haya is not Taqwa or God consciousness.

·         Haya is not fear that causes one to behave in a particular way.  

·         Haya is not the Shariyat or the laws that govern the life of a Muslim. There may be places when shariat allows something but haya does not allow it. (Like sleeping naked – shariyat has no problem – but haya does not permit you.)

·         Haya is not an action but it is an attribute (Malakey)

 

 

Then what is Haya?

 

·         Haya is a voluntary state a person is in.

·         It is the overseer and supervisor of you actions - is the nazir.

·         Haya is the reason for all beautiful actions, the base and foundation of all commendable qualities one might possess.

·         It is the covering and clothing of Islam

·         If you were to paint haya - it would be the portrait of Imam Husain

·         Haya is more important than haram e shari

·         Just like there is no equivalent for ‘bismillahir Rahaman nir Raheem’ or ‘Samad’ there is no word in any language which is the same as ‘haya’

·         Haya is in the urf - optional state

·         Haya is not an action but it is an attribute (Malakey)

·         Children within the family will be ba-akhlaq if there is haya in the parents

 

Wow! That was one Amazing lesson! Haya then, is something that can make you soft and mellow, gentle and giving, patient and forbearing, wise and careful … haya is then a higher state of consciousness - it’s like a qualification that makes one more aware. SubhanAllah.