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In Thy Name, we Live
Episode 7 - Ar-Raqeeb (The Watcher)
In the name of Allah, The All-Merciful, The Ever-Merciful. All Prayers and Blessings of Allah be upon our master, the most noble Prophet Muhammad (SAWS).
Today's episode is about the Name of Allah, “The Watcher” which is mentioned three times in the Ever-Glorious Qur’an. It is a crucial episode with the goal of helping you live in the guidance of Allah's name, “The Watcher”, who watches both righteous and evil deeds. Allah says what can be translated as, “Does he not know that Allah sees?” (TMQ, 14:96). Hence this is the name that can help you keep your intentions pure and your deeds righteous.
The first point in this episode is the meaning of Allah being watchful over you. This meaning is obvious in the following narrations. Omar Ibnul-Khattab wanted to see how his subjects were doing. He found a shepherd and asked him, “Would you sell me this sheep?” The boy replied, “It belongs to my master.” Omar said, “If your master asks you, tell him that the wolf has eaten her.” He looked at him and said, “Allah is the Greatest. What would I say to Him?” Omar cried and said, “By Allah, you are right. What would you say to Him?”
I ask anyone in our society who cheats people the same question, “What would you say to Him?” This shepherd put the essence of Islam in one sentence.
The second narration is the known story of the milk-seller. While Omar Ibnul-Khattab was walking at night to check on the people, he heard a mother ordering her daughter to dilute the milk. The daughter replied, “Do you not know that the Emir of the believers has forbidden that?” The mother said, “Omar Ibnul-Khattab does not see us now.” She replied, “If Omar does not see us, his Lord sees us.” When Omar heard these words, he put a mark on the house and went to his sons. He told them, “There is a young lady in that house; which of you will marry her? By Allah, I will not let her marry a stranger. If you do not obey me, I will marry her myself.” His son Aasem married her, and in this way the son of the Emir of the believers married a milk-seller for her fear of Allah, The Watcher. Omar Ibn-Abdul-Azeez, the well-known and just ruler descended from this woman. Justice prevailed by the blessings of the words of a woman who feared The Watcher.
In the third narration, during the period of the Tatars, a young man was seeking guidance, but was instead confused. He went to a scholar and inquired how to follow the Prophet's (SAWS) order to believe in Allah then to keep on the straight path. The scholar advised him to repeat the following statement whenever he went to bed, woke up or went out, “Allah looks at me; Allah watches me; Allah witnesses me”, and to come back after a year. The young man kept repeating this statement not only when he was about to commit a sin, but also when he did a good deed. He got nearer to Allah over time, but did not come back to the scholar. The young man joined the army and did well. One day, he saw in his dream that he was lost in the desert and crying on a rock. A group of knights headed by a high-ranking, elegant man came to him. That man dismounted his horse then strongly raised the young man and said, “Stand up Mahmoud. This is your way to Egypt! You will rule it and defeat the Tatars.” The young man went to the scholar and told him about his dream. The latter assured him that it was a good vision. He was Seifuddin Qutoz, the victorious who freed Egypt.
The Watcher knows the treacherous look of the eyes and whatever the chests conceal, as Allah says what can be translated as, “And be secret in your speech, or say it aloud; surely He is Ever-Knowing of the (inmost thoughts) within the breasts (Literally: what the breasts own).” (TMQ, 13:67), “And in case you are loud in (your) speech, then surely He knows the secret and whatever is (yet) more concealed.” (TMQ, 7:20).
Consider the following ayah, “And in His Providence are the keys of the Unseen; none knows them except He. And He knows whatever is in the land and the sea. And in no way does a leaf fall down, except that He knows it…” (TMQ, 59:06). Since He watches even a leaf, Allah watches every movement or quiescence of you.
Remember that Allah is always with you, and bear the following statement in mind, “Allah looks at me; Allah watches me; Allah witnesses me”. If we can be restrained inwardly by this fact, society will improve for the better and the need for external means of control will be minimized. People must be educated to fear the The Watcher. Also, during Ramadan, the youth should train themselves to live in the guidance of The Watcher. When Abu-Bakr assigned Omar the Caliphate, people were afraid of his toughness. Abu-Bakr commented that he was a man whose inside was better than his outside.
The following story has been narrated in Islamic history. A man was cheated by another who took his money. He could not take it back due to a lack of evidence. He was too distressed and later on was confined to bed. When he was at death's door, he ordered his elder son to let his funeral stop at the store of the unjust man and to deliver him a letter after reading it to him. The letter contained, “I went to Allah; He knows what you did to me. He watches both of us. You will follow me soon; we will meet on the Day of Judgment, and I will have my money back”.
Imagine what life would be like if we started living with The Watcher. For those who have not been raised in this way, start living with The Watcher so that you may form the world’s best community. Let us start cleaning our inner selves along with our outer appearance. Since none of us are free from sins, we should constantly remember the Watcher and seek His forgiveness. Allah stresses that we be kind to women as he is The Watcher over our affairs with our wives and women, saying in what can be translated as, “O you mankind, be pious to your Lord, Who created you of one self, and created from it its spouse, and from the two disseminated many men and women; and be pious to Allah, about Whom you ask one another, and to the wombs; (i.e., be pious to the relatives) surely Allah has been Ever-Watchful over you.” (TMQ, 1:4)
The Watcher does not only see our bad deeds, but also our good deeds. You all remember the story of Yunus (Jonah) when he was swallowed by the whale in the deep sea. Can you imagine how lonely he was? He was stranded in the darkness of the mouth of the whale, in the darkness of the deep ocean, in the darkness of the night. “Then he called out in the darkness (saying), “There is no god except You. All Extolment be to You! Surely, I have been of the unjust.” (TMQ, 87:21)
Would you remember The Watcher if you were locked in a cupboard, in your room, and the person who had locked you had left the house with the keys and locked all the other rooms as well? Would you worry and start panicking, or would you remember The Watcher? Let us take a pledge now to try and live with The Watcher throughout the rest of Ramadan. Try practicing this by remembering The Watcher while you walk in the street. Feel His presence and even try having inner conversations with Him.
Methods of Watching
1) Allah himself watches us wherever we are, whatever we do, and whenever we do it. He even knows our unspoken intentions.
2) Angels: The angels on our left and right shoulders watch and record all our moves. Allah says what can be translated as, “In no way does he utter a saying except that close to him is a (Guardian) constantly ready.” (TMQ, 50:18)
3) Conscience: Allah has created a powerful alarm system in our selves, which is our conscience. It automatically switches on whether we commit a sin or do something good. Every act is reflected on our faces. We feel guilty when we commit sins, and our faces light up when we do good deeds. This system is better than any surveillance system used in the world to prevent crime or control traffic. On the Day of Judgment, even our own hands and feet will testify to what we did, while our speech will be taken away from us. “Today We seal up their mouths, and their hands speak to Us, and their legs testify to what they have been earning.” (TMQ, 65:36). As for those who succeed on this day they will say, “(Now), here you are! Read my book.” (TMQ, 19:69).
It is The Watcher who has created within us this system, to remind us that we can never escape from Him. The Watcher has given us this ‘hidden’ system to spare us the uneasy feeling that someone stares at us. Allah has put this system in place for our own good. We are candidates for Paradise and Allah is helping us achieve this eternal success. Even in our supplications, we do not need to tell Allah all the details of our wishes and needs. The Watcher knows exactly what we need and just a simple tear drop is enough in our supplication to get the message across to Him.
Let us return to our selves and make a pledge with The Watcher; that throughout this month we will be better Muslims, so that we may reach the level of ihsan.
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