An elder once advised, “If someone extends their hand in front of you, do not let it return empty.” The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) even said that if you have nothing to give, a smile is also a form of charity. This brings us to the topic of beggars, especially those who are professional beggars or healthy and strong individuals who still beg in the streets and markets. We all know that some people run this as a business, and some pretend to be disabled. Despite this, the elder insisted that no matter who it is, only see the outstretched hand and do not let it return empty. Do not argue about why a healthy person isn’t working. You do not know what compulsion lies behind their apparent health. Leave it to Allah and fulfill your duty.
When I pondered over this, my heart strongly endorsed the elder’s wisdom. Can we truly say with our hands on our hearts that we deserve what Allah has given us? Our situation is such that we blatantly violate Allah’s clear commands day and night. We verbally profess faith, but our actions do not align with it. We are like an employee who always says “Yes, Sir” to the boss but never actually follows his orders! We verbally acknowledge Allah as the provider but, in reality, believe our efforts, jobs, businesses, or other economic endeavours are the sources of our sustenance. By embodying the qualities that Allah has reserved for Himself, we commit an unforgivable sin of associating partners with Him.
Regrettably, while arguing with Allah’s distressed servants, we forget ourselves. Our Allah forgives many of our shortcomings and grants us sustenance and worldly pleasures. Are we among those who obey Allah as much as a single meal’s worth? Can we claim any right to the blessings we receive as compensation for our deeds? Do we work so diligently for our Lord that we can justify what we have? The truth is, when I sit down for breakfast, I sometimes wonder why I am receiving this. Everything I need is available, but what deed or effort has earned me this? In my daily life, I do not see any act that makes me deserve of even a single morsel. We live like faithless people, practically denying Allah.
A friend once remarked that in Pakistan, cloth merchants use shorter measuring tapes, and other measuring standards are not up to mark. There is hardly a petrol pump with accurate meters and pure oil. It was generally believed that motorway petrol pumps were accurate, and I often refuelled at these pumps during my travels in Pakistan. But one day, it was reported that an inspection found more than half of these pumps to be faulty. An authentic Hadith states that a nation that cheats in measurement is deprived of sustenance, but we do not care. A nation was punished and destroyed for the crime of cheating in measurements, but who takes heed? Here, those entrusted with the nation’s treasury loot millions and billions and stash them in foreign bank accounts, and through one National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), they get another chance to plunder the nation’s wealth. When each new government presents the previous rulers’ record of looting, the nation is left breathless.
Whenever I look at the current state of the country, where Pakistan ranks second in the world for the number of Hajj pilgrims and first for Umrah pilgrims, yet ranks 160th on the global honesty index, and according to the World Justice Project’s annual report, Pakistan’s judicial system is ranked 130th out of 139 countries for adherence to the rule of law. Corruption is rampant: a meter reader who takes bribes records 1500 units as 500, a butcher charges for pure meat but weighs bones with it, a milk seller who adulterates milk while advertising purity, a police officer who adds two extra packets of heroin to an innocent person’s FIR, a teacher who signs in from home and collects a salary, a shopkeeper who shortchanges customers, a minor official who takes a cut from bribes meant for his boss, an athlete who tarnishes the nation’s name by fixing matches, and so on. This is the harsh reality of our society, where cheating, dishonesty, and corruption are pervasive at every level.
A young person who stays up all night watching movies and spreading nonsense and lies on social media, only to fall asleep as soon as the call for Fajr prayer (Allah Akbar) is heard; an MPA or MNA who embezzles millions to build a road worth ten lakhs; a contractor who steals millions to install a ten thousand rupee hand pump; a councillor who embezzles thousands to build a small drain with just a few hundred; a landlord who lends heavy interest loans for growing grain; a revenue officer who manipulates land records to leave ill-gotten wealth to his son – all these people are shamelessly engaged in their corrupt activities.
Doctors who perform Umrah with commissions earned from medications and lab tests, journalists who sell their pens for money, religious leaders and preachers who collect donations in the name of religion – when everyone is making holes in the boat, we cannot then claim, “The hole made by so-and-so was bigger than mine, that’s why the boat sank!” Everyone is guilty, and each person, by using social media without verifying information, believes they are free of blame. If, in these times, we are ruled by politicians who continually harp on about a “new and old Pakistan,” isn’t this the punishment for our deeds? The question is, what should we do to improve the country’s situation in these circumstances? What are the factors that have led to our country being deprived of countless experts who have a genuine desire to serve the nation honestly?
Without immediately eliminating the usurious system, we can never realize the dream of establishing a welfare state. Our national constitution contains provisions regarding Islam, but our rulers have always remained secular and believe that the country’s salvation lies in secularism. Secular leaders from around the world are our ideals, and we have legitimized interest, which is a war against Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him), and insist upon it. This means we consider ourselves more powerful than Allah and His Prophet (God forbid). The extent of this is that our political leaders, who apparently do not tire of taking the name of Islam day and night, are involved in interest-based businesses with banks. To evade national taxes and show off their generosity, they also run some charitable organizations with these businesses. They think that perhaps in this way, they can win the hearts of the people and also please the Creator and earn a place in His paradise.
We were talking about beggars, and you do not know why someone is a beggar. Why is a woman a prostitute? We make a woman a prostitute, enjoy her services, and then arrest her for breaking the law, with the punishment being stoning. Whenever I visit Pakistan, I buy newspapers from the boy selling them at various traffic lights, appreciating his hard work. I urge you not to let the outstretched hand before you go empty. Isn’t it enough that the hand is not yours but someone else’s and you are the giver, not the taker!
The new Islamic year has begun. Let us prostrate before our Lord and not only pray for the elimination of the usurious system from the country but also repent sincerely for this heinous act. Who knows, perhaps the prayer of just one person at a particular moment might change the fate of Pakistan.
