Let us start at the beginning – the bottom of the

personal development map (Sent with cure-1). In our

analysis of the ailments of Ummah, the root malady of

all ailments was identified to be:

§     Weakness of faith and insufficient commitment to

Deen;

§     Religious ignorance, Muslims making decisions on the

basis of customs and traditions instead of proper

Islamic knowledge; and,

§     Misleading and incorrect religious paradigms.

To remedy these key maladies, we need to invest our

time and efforts into the following:

1.    We must increase our knowledge and understanding of

the Qur-aan and its message, teachings and commands

and continuously reflect on how to make the guidance

provided by the Qur-aan become an integral part of our

individual and collective lives so that our lifestyles

are immersed in its spirit, saturated with its colour

and reflective of its beauty.

2.    Allaah SWT did not only reveal the Holy Qur-aan,

but sent a messenger with it as well. The job of the

messenger was not only to teach the words but also to

explain their meaning and implications and to

demonstrate practically how they are to be put into

action. The way he ran the Islamic movement, the way

he led his followers, the way he dealt with

adversaries and the way he lived his whole life was a

practical demonstration of the Holy Qur-aan.

Obviously, a deep understanding of his Seerah, its

missionary aspects and the wisdom he used to deal with

diverse situations is essential to fully understand

the message of the Holy Qur-aan and to draw guidance

from it.

Also, if the meaning of a word, phrase, verse or

command of the Holy Qur-aan was determined by the

actions or the words of the Prophet, that is the

meaning of the said segment of the Qur-aan. He being

the direct recipient of the revelation, and being

directly instructed and taught by Allaah, his word is

the final authority for all the believers to follow.

These practices of the prophet were transmitted to us

by two means: the continuous practical demonstration

and transmission through actions of the believers from

generation to generation and authentic reporting of

those actions and behaviours through narrators of

Hadeeth. Hence, the study of Hadeeth must become an

integral part of building Islamic foundations.

3.    The Qur-aan is not a theoretical set of precepts

that were presented in a vacuum or in an abstract

world. Allaah SWT sent a messenger and charged him

with the responsibility of establishing a society that

puts the teaching of the Qur-aan in practice exactly

as intended and with the task of launching and

completing the Islamic mission or movement to

establish such a society. As the mission was launched

and as it progressed, the Holy Qur-aan provided him

the guidance at every stage. As each revelation of the

Qur-aan was received, the Prophet put it into practice

exactly as directed. Hence, the Seerah (the biography)

of the Prophet and the Qur-aan have a very intricate

relationship. Considering this intricacy of

relationship between the Qur-aan and the Seerah, it is

essential that we must study and reflect on the Seerah

along with the Qur-aan.  In addition to showing how

the recipient of the message (SAAWS) put the message

into action, it will help us visualize the

circumstances when the verses were revealed and help

us understand their impact and wisdom. The ability to

relate the various parts of the Qur-aan with the

pertinent stage of the Prophet’s mission really

enables a person to get the complete picture and

understanding of the message.

4.    Although the Qur-aan, Hadeeth and Seerah provide

the guidance and practical demonstration by the

Prophet of putting that guidance into one’s lifestyle,

the society of the companions provides a concrete

example of the personalities and society that comes

into being when Qur-aan and Sunnah are put into

practice. The stories of the life of Sahaabah give us

glimpses of that Islamic personality and society. In

addition, they also provide exciting, stimulating

examples of how common people practised the religion

and how they received and perceived the message. The

examples of first addressees and acceptors of the

guidance help fill the gap, if any was left, in,

understanding the message through the Qur-aan and the

Hadeeth. In addition, it demonstrates that the

guidance is very practical, within human capabilities

and not beyond the realm of ordinary people like us.

This is exactly what we pray for while reciting Soorah

Faatihah:

“Guide us to  and keep us on the Straight Path  – the

path of those whom You blessed .”

In answering that Duaa, Allaah SWT gave us the Qur-aan

to show us the straight path. As explained by Soorah

Nisaa 4:69, those who have been blessed are the

prophets and their most dedicated companions. Hence,

the Uswah of our Rasool (known through Hadeeth,

Seerah) and the Seerah of Sahaabah highlight the path

shown by the Qur-aan.

5.    However, ignorance has created a vicious circle.

Many Muslims have developed wrong ideas, outlooks and

paradigms about Islam and Islamic behaviour. The study

of the Qur-aan should be able to correct that problem.

Unfortunately, when people approach the Qur-aan with a

wrong mindset and a wrong outlook, they derive invalid

conclusions from their study of the Qur-aan. Some of

those are seriously against the very spirit of the

Qur-aan. Thinking that those views are deduced from

the Qur-aan, holders of those opinions become firmer

on their opinions, create groups and new sects and

division in the Ummah. Hence, people need to

understand how to approach and understand the Qur-aan.

6.    Unfortunately, when it comes to Hadeeth, there are

very strong extremist feelings among various groups.

Hence we need to learn a balanced, moderate and

healthy view about them.

7.    Although it is critical to know what the straight

path is, it is also useful to know what it is not.

Without being aware of the signs when a person has

strayed off the course, he may not know that he is

lost. He may keep going on the wrong path assuming he

is following the right path. When it comes to

religion, it happens quite often. That is what

happened to previous Ummah’s and that is what created

Jews and Christians. Hence, to know when we have

drifted off the course we must be well aware of where

the Jews and Christians went wrong. Reflection on the

follies of the Jews and Christians shows us the perils

that must be avoided.  That is what is reminded to us

multiple times a day through the Faatihah:

“Not those who attracted anger, nor the misguided .”

This provides the firm foundation for our personal

development plan. And Allaah SWT had ensured that we

are reminded of this “foundation building” multiple

times a day through the recitation of Soorah

Al-Faatihah in every Raka’at of Salaah.

8.    However, we may learn all these things but never

relate them to our practical life. Instead of reading

the Qur-aan and components of essential knowledge

mentioned above as books of history or novels, we must

read them as manuals of practice. While reading, we

must deeply reflect on them and compare our personal

lifestyles with what we are reading so that we can

change positively where we are not up to par and we

can avoid the pitfalls where others made the mistakes.