TAWAKKUL (Trusting in God)
Several Malaysian newspaper reports revealed that Tabliqh Jema’ah
was responsible for the initial spread of Coronavirus in Malaysia. A gathering
at Masjid Jamek Sri Petaling in Kuala Lumpur took place from Feb 27 to March 1,
drawing 16,000 followers, including those who travelled from overseas. [https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/coronavirus-malaysian-police-to-track-down-4000-participants-of-mosque-event-for-covid].
Many Muslims worldwide possess a distorted perception of trusting in
Allah (tawakkul). There are two
forms of trusting in Allah. The first: Anas Ibnu Malik (r.a.) reported:
A man said, “O Messenger of Allah, should I tie my
camel and trust in Allah, or should I leave her untied and trust in Allah?” The
Prophet (s.a.w.) said, “Tie her and trust in Allah,” (Tirmidhi).
The second: ‘Umar (r.a.)
said, “I heard the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.) say:
‘If you were to rely upon Allah with the reliance, He is due, you would be
given provision like the birds: They go out hungry in the morning and come back
with full bellies in the evening.” (Sunan Ibnu Majah)
The Shari’ah of Islam
required that you comply with the first approach, namely to tie your camel or
lock your car, and then place your trust in Allah over its well-being. The
second approach requires total trust and conviction (Haqqul Yaqeen) in Allah.
It is terribly erroneous to
simply trust in Allah without
taking into account you state of iman (faith). It is a misconception to believe
that just because you believe in it in a theoretical sense it will work out
right, you are wrong. As such, the Tabliqh was right is conveying the message of
reliance in Allah (Ilmul Yaqeen) but lacked wisdom (hikmah) in presenting at
the level of Haqqul Yaqeen, which required total conviction and which has to
be developed with time. According
to Shari’ah, “tying your camel” means taking the necessary precautions
alongside placing your trust in Allah. In relation to COVID-19, wearing a mask
and observing social distance, represents ‘tying your camel’.
