One of the most beautiful thing and the most important thing about the concept of worship in Islam is the truly unique way in which it incorporates the feelings of love, fear and hope within the hearts of the worshippers of Allah (Glory be to Him). Understanding how to combine these three qualities into the worship (‘ibaadah) of Allah (Glory be to Him) is one of the most essential things that every Muslim must grasp, not least because every sect which has drifted from the Straight Path has strayed in this aspect of worship.
The deviation of the other Religions in this regards is clear for all to see: “God is Love! Jesus is Love!” say the Christians, denying the fact that God should be feared too. As for the Jews, then their hearts are filled only with hope – hope in the belief that the Fire will not touch them since they are the “Promised People”.
In Islam however, no worship is complete without the presence of all three qualities: LOVE of Allah (Glory be to Him), HOPE in His Mercy and FEAR of His Punishment. Contemplate the opening Surah of the Qur’an – Surah Fatiha 1:1-3 and you will see for yourself.
Ayah 1: “All Praise [and Thanks] are for Allah (Glory be to Him), Rabb of all the worlds.”
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In this opening ayah (statement) of the Qur’an, we have LOVE of Allah (Glory be to Him) and every time we recite this ayah we are testifying to our love for Allah (Glory be to Him). How is that you ask? IT is because in this ayah, we are acknowledging that Allah (Glory be to Him) is our Rabb and the Rabb of all the worlds. Rabb is usually translated as ‘the Lord’, but this translation does not do justification to this name of Allah (Glory be to Him) and all the meanings that this name carries. In reality Rabb means that Allah (Glory be to Him) is the Creator of everything; He sustains and nourishes everything; He gives life and death; anything good which we have is from Him; everything is dependent on Him and nothing can happen unless He wills it. Furthermore, for the Muslim He – the Rabb – is the One who has guided us to the Truth and given us good morals and manners.
Thus when we testify that Allah (Glory be to Him) is our Rabb, then we are acknowledging that He is the One who has given us so many blessings – so many that is we tried to enumerate His blessings upon us, we could not count them. So how could we not love Him? After all, we know that when someone gives us even a small gift or shows even a small act of kindness towards us, then we develop so much love for them on account of that – so imagine then the love we should have for our Rabb who has given us everything: nice families, shelter, security, food, health, and above all, Guidance to Islam and the Sunnah. We should be overwhelming in our love for Him and thank Him and say: “All Praises [and Thanks] are for Allah (Glory be to Him), Rabbil-‘aalameen.”
