When Umar bin al-Khattab (رضي الله عنه) was walking in the market, he passed by a man who was supplicating,
اللهم اجعلني من القليل اللهم اجعلني من القليل
“O Allah, make me from the few! O Allah make me from the few!”
So ‘Umar said to him, “Where did you get this du`a’ (supplication) from?” And the man said, “Allah in His Book says:
و قليل من عبادي الشكور
‘And few of My servants are grateful.’ (Qur’an 34:13)”
So ‘Umar wept and admonished himself, “The people are more knowledgeable than you, O Umar!
O Allah make us from Your ‘few’ servants.”
Sometimes when you advise someone to leave a sin, they respond with “But everybody does it, it’s not just me!”
But if you look for the words “most people” in the Qur’an, you will find that most people –
ولكن اكثرهم لا يعلمون
“And however most people do not know” (7:187)
ولكن أكثرهم لا يشكرون
– “and most people do not show gratitude” (2:243)
and
و لكن اكثر الناس لا يؤمنون
– “and most people do not believe” (11:17).
And if you look for “most of them”, you will find that most of them are
و آن أكثرهم فَاسِقُون
– “definitely disobedient” (5:59)
و لكن أكثرهم يجهلون
– “ ignorant” (6:111)
بل أكثرهم لا يعلمون الحق فهم معرضون
– “turning away” (21:24)
So be of the “few”, whom Allah says about them:
و قليل من عبادي الشكور
– “And few of My servants are grateful.” (34:13)
و ما امن معه الا قليل
– “But none had believed with him, except a few.” (11:40)
في جنات النعيم ثلة من الاولين و قليل من الآخرين
– “In the Gardens of Bliss, A [large] company of the former peoples, And a few of the later peoples.” (56:12-14)
Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) said, “Go on the path of truth and do not feel lonely because there are few who take that path, and beware of the path of falsehood and do not be deceived by the vastness of the perishers.”
[Found in Kitab al-Zuhd by Ahmad bin Hanbal (رحمه الله), and also in the Musannaf of Ibn Abi Shaybah.] –
May Allah Ta’ala make us of His few servants, Ameen.
Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) : “No servant is struck with a greater punishment than the punishment of a hard heart and distance from Allāh”
● [الفوائد ١٤٢]
1 Rajab 1437