The tenth door is Material Means : The Sheikh says from those means are those material means like for instance being a farmer, a merchant or a manufacturer – any means from the material means as long as you don’t destroy yourself. You were not created for the purpose of the Dunya.
You were created for the purpose of Allaah (azza wa jal) i.e for the purpose of worship and the most important thing is satisfaction and continence, i.e self-control with regards to passions and seeking self-sufficiency from Allaah and satisfaction in Him.
And you know that some people only have a motor and Allaah made his sustenance from that –– the sustenance of his family, that one motor. And some of them a donkey, and some people from villages have only one donkey and he spends from that for his whole family. Some a camel, some an ox —- he tilts for the people and supports the family. And for some of them an electric tool, or pliers and support from this a whole family.
Some of them have 3, 4, 5, items in his possessions, he sells and spends on his family. And others have miswaak and he spends on his family. And another has perfume of antimony (khul) and he spends on his family. So it is more a means that you work by.
As you would say : ‘O Allaah this is the dua and it is upon You to answer it.’ In the same way you say : ‘O Allaah this is the means and it is upon You to provide for me.’
You don’t depend upon the means. Because if you depend upon the means and only the means then you would have depended or put your trust in other than Allaah — and this is not permissible. This is a mere means. If it wasn’t for the fact that Allaah ordered us to take towards the means, we would have not taken towards it. However, it is an order of Allaah and look at Maryam (alaihissalam) while she was in her post-natal bleeding, Allaah says to her :
‘And shake the trunk of the date palm towards you and it will let fall fresh ripe dates upon you. ‘
In this state of pregnancy while being weak and with that He still said : ‘Shake the trunk of the date palm towards you.’ There must be working by the means. Work by the means. We are not dervishes — people that do nothing. We are Muslims and people of daleel and people of the Qur’aan and the Sunnah. We work by the means — in a safe correct means that which does not come in conflict with the deen. i.e. the means is not something unlegislated by Allaah.
One person who might say, ‘we steal’ and this is a means. The other may say, ‘we fornicate’ and this is a means. Another sells intoxicants and says ‘this is a means.’ These means are unlegislated, forbidden. Or asks for bribes or robs or plunders and says ‘this is a means’ or cheats and deceives and says ‘this is a means.’ No, there must be with regards to the means that they have to be legislated from what Allaah has made halaal, not being any disobedience in it, not having any opposition to the deen of Allaah. He mentioned the ayah :
‘And shake the trunk of the date palm towards you and it will let fall fresh ripe dates upon you. ‘
The sheikh reiterates that every time he entered the mihrab — the praying place of the private room, he (Zakariya) found her (Maryam) supplied with sustenance even though Allaah told us this about her. He found with her sustenance. He (Zakariya) said : O Maryam, from where did you get this? She said : From Allaah. Verily, Allaah provides sustenance to whom He wills without limit.
And at that time Zakariyya invoked his Lord. If you work with the legislated, trusted means, you are trusting in Allaah (subhana wa ta’ala) and by Allaah your rizq will come to you, no doubt. And I have put forward for you examples and Allaah puts forward parables for the people so they can reflect. I said to you : a person spends on his family by selling ‘miswaak and that one spends on his family by being a seller of oil, and that one a seller of ghee and that one a seller of honey and that one is a seller of wheat. He sells wheat and that one is a ‘bazzaar’ and he sells seeds.
The books of biographies are filled with this, that of our pious predecessors. And that one is ‘al-Kayyaal’ — he has a scale and he weighs things for people and they pay him and that one fixes shoes, nails it and ties it. Up until now all what I mentioned is present and it is a sign from the signs of Allaah and ar-Razzaaq, He is Allaah (azzawajal) and you may very well find that a person who fixes shoes is in a state of self-contentment than a big merchant and a big manager. Or a ‘sayy aathi’ —- the one who fixes watches and sells watches.
You may very well find him in a state of contentment. He has 4 watches in his possessions and he sells it, goes home and is comfortable. You may not find this self-contentment with a merchant or a big manager. Each one of them — his head is filled with problems and he doesn’t find comfort in his sleep and is not patient, and is not resting. Everything is preoccupation and stress and a lot of them become victims to diabetes, cancer and asthma.
The other one is comfortable i.e the one who sells honey, wheat, watches etc. He is content with himself. He is not concerned with taxes or he is not concerned with the rent of a store or show room. And the most important thing is self-contentment.
From : Means of Sustenance: Shaykh Muhammad Ibn ‘Abdul-Wahhaab al-Wassaabee. May Allaah reward the sister who Transcribed from the Audio
Credits: abdurrahman
