Page 98 - Self-Sacrifice in the Qur'an's Moral Teachings

Self-Sacrifice in the Qur'an's Moral Teachings

At the time of our Prophet (saas), many people had no will to sacri-
fice and were intimidated by hardship and difficulty. This attitude is
well-documented in the Qur'an, where Allah encourages people by re-
minding them that they can be successful only with His help: "… and
when you asked the believers: "Is it not enough for you that your Lord

reinforced you with three thousand angels, sent down?" (Surah Al
'Imran: 124). But they did not want to sacrifice, and so gave various ex-
cuses, hoping that our Prophet (saas) would allow them to stay behind:
There are only grounds [of complaint] against those who ask
you for permission to stay when they are rich. They were
pleased to be among those who were left behind. Allah has
sealed up their hearts, so they do not know. (Surat at-Tawba: 93)
Some said that their houses were exposed, or that it was too hot,

or that they could not afford it. But although they did not have the
means, many of our Prophet's (saas) Companions showed their self-
sacrificial spirit by joining the battle on foot. Some even wept because
they could not accompany him, while others did not sacrifice even
though they could, and others hid behind each other and sneaked
away from the Muslims: "Allah knows those of you who sneak away.
Those who oppose his command should beware of a testing trial
coming to them or a painful punishment striking them" (Surat an-
Nur: 63). However, the right thing for them to do would have been to
show loyalty and faithfulness by sacrificing even when hard-pressed.
Allah tells us that these people were more attached to this world:
"Would that there had been more people with a vestige of good
among the generations of those who came before you, who forbade

corruption in the land, other than the few among them whom We
saved. Those who did wrong gladly pursued the life of luxury that they

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