In a Friday sermon given in Cape Town, Ustadh Amjad Tarsin reminds us about the relationship between the believers and the state of their hearts, to their connection with Allah. He quotes the hadith, “The Messenger of Allah(peace be upon him), said, “Verily, Allah does not look at your appearance or wealth, but rather he looks at your hearts and actions.” (Sahih Muslim)

Traits such as humility, gratitude, trust in Allah, are some of these traits that can adorn our hearts. So many people spend so much time worrying about their appearance, wealth or property. Imam al-Ghazali asks, “How much time do you spend adorning your heart?”

The Prophet(peace be upon him) was sent to a people who had many social ills in their society, and said, “I was sent to perfect character.” Examples include Umar ibn al-Khattab, who was a person of harshness before Islam. Afterward, he completely changed. Now, 1400 years later, people’s hearts are still being transformed by him.

There is no greater way to Allah’s pleasure than working towards purifying our hearts. True knowledge is passed through embodiment, not merely through books. This is why we are called to venerate the scholars and elders, so that we may learn from them.

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