Fiery Ambitions (The fuel that produces Greaatness) by Muhammad ibn Ismail Al-Muqaddim

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Fiery Ambitions
The Fuel That Produces Greatness
علو الهمة
Muhammad ibn Ismail al-Muqaddim
الدار العالمية للكتاب الإسلامي IPH
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190 Fiery Ambitions
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Al-Hafidh Ibn Katheer states about Imam Bukhari:
He travelled to every Hadith scholar in every land that he was able to reach. He wrote on the authority of over 1,000 shaykhs. Al-Firabri said: Nearly 70,000 people heard the Saheeḥ from Bukhari. Out of them, none remain but me.
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A most mind-blowing account was reported about ar-Râzi and his fiery ambitions to journey in pursuit of knowledge. He states:
The first time I travelled was for seven years. I walked over 1,000 leagues and then stopped counting. I set out from Bahrain to Egypt on foot, then to Ramalah on foot, and then to Tarsus,' at 20 years of age.
I shall pace through the length and the width of the earth,
To acquire this knowledge or die as a stranger.
If my soul expires in this, then may Allah guard it,
And the return is near if it survives the danger.
Knowledge spread to distant lands like Morocco and Andalusia through individuals who travelled east and encountered great difficulties in their journeys. These included Asad ibn al-Furȧt, Abul- Waleed al-Baji, and Abu Bakr ibn al-'Arabi.
4. Their suffering from poverty
en route to knowledge
Books of history, biography, and literature are filled with statements of scholars regarding their poverty, loneliness, and perseverance through the near-fatal hindrances they faced. It speaks of how they belittled them, paid them no attention, held firm to patience,
Tarsus is a historical city in south-central Turkey. (Editor)
Fiery ambitions in diverse fields 191
anticipated the reward, and endured their way into the spheres of the prosperous.
Consider this inquiry of where poverty resides, wherein the questioner is curious in order to avoid it; to his amazement, he is informed that this is an impossible mission. The poet said:
I asked poverty: Where do you reside?
It said to me: Under the turbans of scholars I hide! Between us is a brotherhood by which I abide.
I cannot betray that union; I will never leave their side!
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Consider ash-Shafi'i belittling the obstacle of poverty and breaking free of its chains with his patience that overpowered it. The following verses are attributed to him:
Send forth your rain, O Skies of Sarandeeb,
And bring forth the wells of Tukroor to quench us.
Were I to live, then I possess what will suffice. And were I to die, there are enough graves for all of us. My ambitions are kinglike, and as for my soul,
It is that of a free man; contentment is a disgrace to us.
Sarandeeb is a large island that lies on the edge of India (that is, it is located in the cast), while Tukroor is a land that lies far west.
2 See Abu Ghuddah, Safabát min Şabr al-'Ulama', 35 and onwards. One of the things that are noticed is that those with religious positions have very meagre salaries, whether the position involves judging, passing verdicts, teaching, leading prayers, lecturing, calling to prayer and the like. The reason behind it is, as Ibn Khaldoon states:
Earnings are determined by the value of human effort, and these [values] vary, depending upon the extent to which they are needed. Thus, if there is a widespread need for something, its value and price is higher."
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Copyright©2020 International Islamic Publishing House King Fahd National Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data
al-Muqaddim, Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Ismail
Fiery Ambitions-The fuel that produces greatness/Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Ismail al-Muqaddim; Mohammad Ali Elshinawy (translator) - Riyadh, 2020
496 pp; 21 cm
Contents
Pronunciation and Transliteration Chart...
11
Arabic honorific symbols..
15
1- Ambition
1- Mohammad Ali Elshinawy (translator)
11-Title
Hadith grade terms
16
131.3 dc
Legal Deposit no. 1438/8379
ISBN Hardcover: 978-603-501-348-2
About the Word 'Lord"..
Is Copyright Applicable to Islamic Books?.. Publisher's Note
Translator's Foreword..
17
18
21
22
27
All rights reserved for the Publisher. No part of this book may be produced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the Publisher.
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International Islamic Publishing House (IIPH) P.O. Box 55195 Riyadh 11534, Saudi Arabia E-mail: editorial@iiph.com-sales@iiph.com www.iiph.com
Preface
SECTION 1: Introduction
30
Ambition is born along with the human being.
33
The journeyers need 'ambition' to
drive and elevate them and 'knowledge'
to grant them vision and guidance... The categories of people with regard to the two strengths: knowledge and action Ambition resides in the heart
Believers' ambitions reach further than their actions
The believers' strength is in the heart ...
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Fiery Ambitions
Al-Ameer Shams al-Ma'âli Qaboos states, "Merits are built by bearing inconveniences; striving in grand affairs earns a beautiful reputation."
A poet said:
We are those who do not understand moderation,
We are those who take on the world, or die trying.
We belittle expending our souls for the grand affairs,
And engaging a houri means seeing her dowry as trifling.
One of them responded when criticized for his hard work, "This
world existed before I did; it will continue to exist and I will not Hence, I do not want to be cheated for my days here."
A poet said:
They shook off sleep and raced for the heights,
For the heights are reserved for those with sleepless nights. Prayer is better than sleep, toughness is better than fragility. Death is better than dishonour, and the glorious are those who triumph.
So leap forward towards either your dreams or your death, For every lover of this world is truly disgraced.
The ambitious take off with confidence, strength, and bravery towards their goals that are defined by a clear vision and knowledge. They take on the challenges and belittle the obstacles, as 'Amr ibn al-As (4) said, referring to the grand and risky matters rather than the insignificant ones, "Stick to every slippery, perilous matter." Mu'awiyah () commented, "Whoever seeks something great must risk something great."
A poet said:
Leave me to endure the frights of the age, For its frights are followed up by its delights. Ka'b ibn Zuhayr said:
The qualities of the ambitious 55
He who does not tolerate the frights is worthless, And any trip, unaided by Allah, is aimless. Another said:
Let me attain the unattainable from the heights, For the steep heights are hard, and the easy are trifling. You wish to reach the heights for a cheap price? Acquiring the honey is after bearing the bee's sting. Ash-Shareef ar-Radi said:
I sought eminence but it refused, and it has always been, That the beloved [at first] rejects the lover with force.
I was patient until I finally achieved it, and did not say, out of annoyance:
The cure for hatred is a divorce.
The ambitious ones constantly pursue what they seek, regardless of where it takes them.
Ambitions were troubled and exiled continuously. Sending them running from one land to the next. Another (poet) said:
If I do not find what I seek in the land where I reside, To another, with determination and a saddle, I ride. Mâlik ibn ar-Rayb said:
Journeying the earth is an alternative for a place of humiliation, And every city where there are people can be my location.
The ambitious continue to soar towards prestige with the wings of their ambition. They do not care about anything. They are unaffected by the blame of the blamers and the disheartening comments of the discouragers. A poet said:
I outraced the entire world to the heights, With a correct idea, and a fiery conviction. My wisdom shined with the light of guidance.
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Fiery Ambitions
Fiery Ambitions - by Allah's permission - has been a spectacular jolt of strength and optimism for many Muslims across the globe. Through it, you will be infused - Allah willing-with pride in your religion as well as in the unrivalled inspiring personalities who adhered to it throughout history. You will read about the princes of piety, the sages of scholarship, the chiefs of charity, the captains of courage, the authorities in altruism... and the secret to becoming one of them!
To the overachieving soul who is not content with only reading about exceptional human beings and yearns to find a seat amongst them: pull this book close. To the adamant soul who has tried to unlock the code to greatness for years, but to no avail: discover the treasure map in these pages. To the pure, pious soul who is not satisfied with one lifetime of good deeds and earnestly wishes to be a source of inspiration long after departing this world: make that a reality with Fiery Ambitions.
About the author
Dr. Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Ismail al-Muqaddim is a distinguished Egyptian scholar and psychiatrist whose resume in Islamic work speaks for itself. As the author of over 20 pioneering books in Arabic and founder of the Salafi Dawah of Alexandria in 1977, with more than 2000 lectures available online, his role in reviving and teaching authentic Islamic thought has been profound. Among Dr. al-Muqaddim's works that IIPH has translated into English (and other languages) are: Making Sense of the Portents of the Hour, Haya': Understanding the Islamic Concept of Modesty, and Fitnah: The Concept of Discord and Conflict among Muslims.
IIPH
ISBN 978-603-501-348-2
9786035013482"