“Taqwa” is an Arabic word and it can be barely translated to any English world. Somehow, it’s we may translate it to words such as piety, righteousness, and God-conscious, etc. Here in this blog, we will try to explain Taqwa and its significance in Muslim life.
What is Taqwa?
Their word Taqwa is mentioned in the Quran at various places. The people who hold Taqwa are called Muttaqoon in Quran.
[su_quote]This is the Book (the Quran), whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are Al-Muttaqin (People of Taqwa).[/su_quote]
(Sura Al-Baqarah:2)
In Surah Yunus Allah said,
[su_quote](O mankind! There has come to you good advice from your Lord, and a healing for that which is in your breasts (disease of ignorance, doubt, hypocrisy, and differences), a guidance and a mercy for the believers[/su_quote]
(Surah Younus:57).
Various Islamic scholars have coined definitions of Taqwa. Hazrat Abu Darda R.A said: “From the completion of Taqwa is that the servant fears from His Lord even with regard to things, the weight of an atom.”One of the more complete definitions and explanations was provided by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah. He states that Taqwa “includes doing everything that Allah has enjoined whether it is wajib (obligatory) or mustahabb (recommended), and avoiding all that He has forbidden, whether it is haraam (forbidden) or makruh (disliked).”
Therefore Taqwa is an attitude that a believer adopts in order to prove his submission to Allah SWT and molding his/her self to attain the pleasure of Allah SWT. Taqwa is like a filter that restricts the unneeded desires and acts and only permits the acts which Allah wants us to do.
The Taqwa is about fearing Allah in every step of life. Keeping in mind that Allah is watching us and we are responsible for our every action will keep us on straight path and this is Taqwa. It’s the taqwa which gets the believer out of warm bed in winters for morning prayer. In fact, Taqwa is the driving force for all worships and rituals. Allah wants he believes to grow their taqwa that is considering his pleasure and displeasure in every act.
[su_quote]…but it is the Taqwa (piety) from you that reaches Him.[/su_quote]
How to attain Taqwa:
When we say “La Ilaha Illallah”, we submit ourselves to Allah SWT and declare that he has all rights to be obeyed. We should live our lives as a servant of Allah SWT and realize that salvation is only through Allah’s grace and mercy.
We can also attain taqwa through auditing our selves regularly and evaluate ourselves that where we are standing and what are our preparations to face Allah SWT on the day of judgment. Allah says in the Quran:
[su_quote] O you who believe! Fear Allah and keep your duty to Him. And let every person look to what he has sent forth for the morrow (tomorrow), and fear Allah. Verily, Allah is All-Aware of what you do[/su_quote]
(Surah Al-Hashr:18).
And the last ayah of Quran which was revealed also says:
[su_quote] And be afraid of the Day when you shall be brought back to Allah. Then every person shall be paid what he earned, and they shall not be dealt with unjustly (Surah Al-Baqara: 281).[/su_quote]
So, we should keep in mind that our fate depends on Taqwa in our hearts. If hearts will have taqwa our deeds will obviously become righteous and we will not stray from the right path. We will stay in the limits set by Allah for us and we will get Allah’s blessings and mercy, and we will be successful in this life and hereafter.
We should, therefore, not delay taking a strong decision to increase our Taqwa. As Allah says in the Quran: “Verily, the most honorable of you with Allah is that (believer) who has At-Taqwa” [al-Hujrat 49:13].
