BismiLlah,
This is about the reality of making sacrifices. What have we sacrificed for Allah? What do we sacrifice for Allah? The hadith of Ibn Umar (ra) comes to mind.
حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ أَبُو الْمُنْذِرِ الطُّفَاوِيُّ، عَنْ سُلَيْمَانَ الأَعْمَشِ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي مُجَاهِدٌ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ أَخَذَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِمَنْكِبِي فَقَالَ " كُنْ فِي الدُّنْيَا كَأَنَّكَ غَرِيبٌ، أَوْ عَابِرُ سَبِيلٍ ". وَكَانَ ابْنُ عُمَرَ يَقُولُ إِذَا أَمْسَيْتَ فَلاَ تَنْتَظِرِ الصَّبَاحَ، وَإِذَا أَصْبَحْتَ فَلاَ تَنْتَظِرِ الْمَسَاءَ، وَخُذْ مِنْ صِحَّتِكَ لِمَرَضِكَ، وَمِنْ حَيَاتِكَ لِمَوْتِكَ.
Narrated Mujahid: `Abdullah bin `Umar said, "Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) took hold of my shoulder and said, 'Be in this world as if you were a stranger or a traveler." The sub-narrator added: Ibn `Umar used to say, "If you survive till the evening, do not expect to be alive in the morning, and if you survive till the morning, do not expect to be alive in the evening, and take from your health for your sickness, and (take) from your life for your death."
– Sahih al-Bukhari 6416, https://sunnah.com/bukhari:6416
What does a traveler need until he gets to his destination? One of the scholars mentioned that ar-Rasul (SAW) mentioned that a person should be a stranger first. Even better, ar-Rasul (SAW) added, a person should be a traveler instead. When one is a stranger, they can still be a dweller in a certain land, even if they are not mixing with people. However, a traveler does not stay longer or do anything more than they need to, to avoid missing their appointment at their destination.
وَٱبْتَغِ فِيمَآ ءَاتَىٰكَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلدَّارَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةَ ۖ وَلَا تَنسَ نَصِيبَكَ مِنَ ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَأَحْسِن كَمَآ أَحْسَنَ ٱللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ ۖ وَلَا تَبْغِ ٱلْفَسَادَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُفْسِدِينَ
But seek, through that which Allāh has given you, the home of the Hereafter; and [yet], do not forget your share of the world. And do good as Allāh has done good to you. And desire not corruption in the land. Indeed, Allāh does not like corrupters."
— Al-Qasas 28:77, Saheeh International
Allah started by mentioning that we should seek the home of the hereafter with what Allah has given us. And, in not forgetting the dunya, we have to remember that we have a fixed amount of consciousness that we direct towards one thing or another. The idea is that we need to subject our thoughts, dreams, desires, actions, and speech – primarily – to seeking the home of the hereafter. If we get exhausted, we take from the dunya what we need to continue.
Although this might be difficult, imagine what life would look like when we live the reality of this verse:
قُلْ إِنَّ صَلَاتِى وَنُسُكِى وَمَحْيَاىَ وَمَمَاتِى لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
Say, "Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living, and my dying are for Allāh, Lord of the worlds.
— Al-An’am 6:162, Saheeh International
Giving everything to Allah and taking only what sustains us until we get to give the next set of things to Allah.
Who are we? Why do we do the things that we do? Those things we call ours, why do we call them ours? Islam, itself, is a form of sacrifice, willingly submitting our will to Allah’s will – both in the form of the Shariah and Qadr.
Sacrificing complaining for accepting Qadr. Sacrificing our passions and desires for that which pleases Allah. Sacrificing our intellect for a greater intellect, The Bestower (of intellectual abilities). Islam is rooted in sacrifices.
There are two examples that come to mind – three actually, taking into consideration the fact that we are in Ramadan: Ibrahim AS, the reality of Ramadan, and the condition of attaining Taqwa. Let's start with the last one:
لَن تَنَالُوا۟ ٱلْبِرَّ حَتَّىٰ تُنفِقُوا۟ مِمَّا تُحِبُّونَۚ وَمَا تُنفِقُوا۟ مِن شَىْءٍ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ بِهِۦ عَلِيمٌ
Never will you attain the good [reward] until you spend [in the way of Allāh] from that which you love. And whatever you spend - indeed, Allāh is Knowing of it.
– Aal-e-Imran 3:92
Taqwa, the yardstick that determines one's rank in the sight of Allāh, can't be attained except by spending what one loves – money, time, resources, knowledge, etc. One doesn't make more money by keeping it, one makes more by investing. Taqwa is a more important resource than all of the things we love.
ٱلْحَجُّ أَشْهُرٌ مَّعْلُومَٰتٌۚ فَمَن فَرَضَ فِيهِنَّ ٱلْحَجَّ فَلَا رَفَثَ وَلَا فُسُوقَ وَلَا جِدَالَ فِى ٱلْحَجِّۗ وَمَا تَفْعَلُوا۟ مِنْ خَيْرٍ يَعْلَمْهُ ٱللَّهُۗ وَتَزَوَّدُوا۟ فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ ٱلزَّادِ ٱلتَّقْوَىٰۚ وَٱتَّقُونِ يَٰٓأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَلْبَٰبِ
Ḥajj is [during] well-known months, so whoever has made ḥajj obligatory upon himself therein [by entering the state of iḥrām], there is [to be for him] no sexual relations and no disobedience and no disputing during ḥajj. And whatever good you do - Allāh knows it. And take provisions, for indeed, the best provision is fear of Allāh. And fear Me, O you of understanding.
– Al-Baqarah 2:197
As to the second, this is the reason why fasting in the month of Ramadan was legislated:
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous
– Al-Baqarah 2:183
What is fasting in the month of Ramadan if not refraining from indulging (in the permissible!) of those things we love and spending our resources in the path of Allah?
As to the third, this sacrifice is THE sacrifice of al-Khalil, Ibrahim AS. Ibn Abi al-Izz (rh) in his commentary on Aqeedah at-Tahawiyyah went into a sweet discussion of this issue – please look it up. In summary, this sacrifice was the sacrifice that firmly established that Ibrahim AS was Allah's khalil.
عَنْ أَبِي قَتَادَةَ عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَدَعَ شَيْئًا لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ إِلَّا بَدَّلَكَ اللَّهُ بِهِ مَا هُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنْهُ
Abu Qatadah reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Verily, you will never leave anything for the sake of Allah Almighty but that Allah will replace it with something better for you.”
– Musnad Aḥmad 23074, declared Sahih by al-Arna’ut and al-Albaani
I'll start ending by mentioning the statement of Mu'awiyah (ra) about AbuBakr (ra) and Umar (ra):
“AbuBakr (ra) didn't want this world and the world didn't want him. Umar (ra) didn't want this world and the world wanted him. As for us, we are deep inside this world.”
Allah said:
ٱنفِرُوا۟ خِفَافًا وَثِقَالًا وَجَٰهِدُوا۟ بِأَمْوَٰلِكُمْ وَأَنفُسِكُمْ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ
Go forth, whether light or heavy, and strive with your wealth and your lives in the cause of Allāh. That is better for you, if you only knew.
– At-Taubah 9:41
One of my mentors said to me: “Travel lightly.” I took it to mean this: “light in weight, heavy in faith.” Once our hearts are light, free of the weight of the distractions in the dunya, we are ready to be heavy in faith. The lighter the weight of the dunya on our hearts, the faster we can cross the bridge (one of the stations of the day of judgment), bi idhniLlah taala.
Again,
عَنْ أَبِي قَتَادَةَ عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ إِنَّكَ لَنْ تَدَعَ شَيْئًا لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ إِلَّا بَدَّلَكَ اللَّهُ بِهِ مَا هُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنْهُ
Abu Qatadah reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Verily, you will never leave anything for the sake of Allah Almighty but that Allah will replace it with something better for you.”
Whatever lessons that I mentioned that are true are from Allah. May Allah forgive and overlook the errors, and prevent them from taking root in the minds of the readership, aameen. Please forgive whatever incoherency you find in the writing. May Allah grant us all the goodness of Ramadan, aameen.
– Umar Hfe, looking to become Umar al-Badawiy
Ramadan 2nd, 1445
March 12th, 2024