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| Bidāyat al-hidāya, dated AH 800 (AD 1397). British Library, Add 9517/1, ff. 1v-2r noc [Source: Asian and African studies blog] |
About one thousand years
ago, a student of the great al-Imām Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ghozālī
asked him to summarize his most celebrated work: “The Revival of Religious
Sciences” (Iḥyā` 'Ulūm al-Dīn). His forty-volume commentary on Muslim
spirituality gained a fitting introduction when he wrote this summary: “The
Beginning of Guidance” (Bidāyat al-Hidāyat).
“The Beginning of Guidance”
is a book about the etiquettes of everyday life. Its three sections highlights
a series of actions that help readers turn closer to God. Our Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ
said the most weighted deed on the Day of Judgment is good manners, and
al-Imām al-Ghozālī used this mindset to prepare students for knowledge.
This introduction to the
rest of his work makes the purpose of learning clear: through obedience,
refraining from disobedience, and the etiquette of companionship with the
Creator and creation we can use the knowledge of our day to day lives to
develop sincerity. We can use each section of the book to be God-conscious.
In part one, al-Imām
al-Ghozālī describes what we can do from the moment we wake to when we sleep
that helps us make the most of our days. He then transitions to the second part
by organizing acts of disobedience with each limb that can commit them (eyes,
ears, mouth, etc.). Having established a standard on how to treat the self,
al-Imām al-Ghozālī then wrote the third and final part of the book on
etiquettes of relationships: between human and God, teacher and student, child
and parent, and even the etiquette of treating people you don’t know.
You don’t have to be the
proverbial student of knowledge to benefit from this book: the book’s purpose
is to make a human of a human. The book provides counsel based in the prophetic
tradition and duas that add blessing to your actions. “The Beginning of
Guidance” gives motivation and an action plan for anyone who wishes to spend
time wisely. It made me want to be more accountable for my every day.
As al-Imām al-Ghozālī
wrote, “Your time is your life, and your life is your capital: by it you make
trade, and by it you will reach the eternal bounties in the proximity of God.
Every single breath of yours is a priceless jewel, because it is irreplaceable;
once it is gone, there is no return for it.”
We can use “The Beginning
of Guidance” to remind ourselves of where our days will take us: “Do not
rejoice except in an increase of knowledge or an increase of good works. Truly
they are your two friends who will accompany you in your grave, when your spouse,
your wealth, your children, and your friends will remain behind.”
True spirituality is living
Prophetic guidance, with excellence. Imam Ghazali’s Beginning of Guidance
outlines how a believer should practically live Prophetic guidance– day to day,
from waking to sleep. The text also outlines how to avoid sin and how to
fulfill the rights of others with excellence—two other keys to living guidance.
Take this inspiring and practical learning journey—learning to walk in the
footsteps of Our Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ—and to
live the realities of our daily call, “Guide us to the Straight Path.”
alobatnic
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