Question:
Praise be to Allah and countless blessings upon his Beloved Prophet Muhammad (saws), his family and ummah, and all the awliya and guiders of this time and all times.
I thank Allah that there has been made for us murids a means of nearness to our Shaykhs and guidance of Allah via these many online websites. We are able to watch sohbats, read articles and books, and interact with one another in fellowship in ways we never could before. Alhamdullilah.
However, is it possible for an individual to get so caught up in their fervor for these blessings, that they spend a majority of their time watching sohbats and so forth, and end up neglecting certain responsibilities of life?
For instance, if someone is spending a good part of the day devoting themselves to Mawlana Nazim online but neglecting to get a job (if they are male) or taking care of the home (if they are female), are they blessed for their enormous devotion or are they disobedient because of the lack of “balance” in their lives?
Answer:
A`udhu Billahi min ash-Shaytaani ‘r-rajeem
Bismillahi ‘r-Rahmani ‘r-Raheem
Allah praises this Community of Muhammad in Quran as being a “Balanced Community” Ummatan Wasatan. Therefore we should look for the balance in all affairs of our lives. between worship, sleep, and work our Shuyukh suggest a division of eight hours for each:
- worship,
- sleep
- work.
Worship can include, dhikr, prayer, Quran, study, listening to sohbets, and time taking care of one’s family,. Working is 8 hours, and rest is 8. If not balancing these three, one would be considered erratic and this would be blameworthy.
Wa Allahu `alam
Kamau Ayyubi
