Life would be meaningless unless there is 'take away' from Ramadhan

MUSCAT: As the holy month of Ramadhan bids adieu, scholars advocate that all the hunger pangs endured, prayers and supplications devoted to life would be meaningless unless there is a 'take away' to pursue throughout the next 11 months.
While patience, forbearance, generosity and devotion are four qualities humans should adhere to, arrogance, boasting, showing off worldly pride and envy are four vices one should continue to refrain from.
Hatim al Abdisslam, a scholar and orator, says there is a hadith that mentions four main takeaways from the holy month.
'As the fast begins, believers engage in acts of worship, with prayer and recitation of the Holy Quran being the most common 'good deeds'. The Prophet (PBUH) has mentioned several diseases that completely destroy worship and good deeds. Some of them are arrogance or pride, 'Ujb' or boasting which is the feeling that one is good and also 'Riya' or worldly pride.'
'In short, it can be said that 'Riya' is the act of pleasing and considering the creations beyond the interests of Allah. Make it a point not to live your life as you like by considering the interests of others, thinking about what they will say and think,' he said.
It is the act of considering the wishes of the community of creations rather than the wishes of the Creator. There is a hadith that says 'Riya' is part of shirk. The worship or prayers of one who has it will not be accepted. The vision of Allah while entering paradise will be prevented for them.
There is also a problem of 'Hasad' or envy which is the feeling of being upset at the happiness of another, or feeling happy at the sorrow of another. 'We usually feel jealous of people who are very close to us, our neighbours, businessmen, if they buy a new car, land, or building, there is some sort of discomfort in us. When we hear they have collapsed and incurred losses, there is some sort of relief. The Prophet (PBUH) said, 'Just as fire eats wood, jealousy eats good deeds'. There will be no good deeds left, and jealousy is also an expression of dissatisfaction with the decisions of Allah,' he added.
One can feel jealous of anything, from your ancestral home, wealth, beauty, abilities and living conditions. You feel uneasy when another organisation or establishment is growing, and you feel happy when you see a newspaper article against them. You feel sad when their leader is recognised, and a little happy when their leader is criticised.
'What makes those with these bad qualities different is that those who have them are very unlikely to recognise that they have them. They can only be caught by looking at themselves very carefully and critically. There may only be a small abscess on the outside, but inside it is a deadly cancer,' Hatim said.
'So, it is very important to first realise that one has the disease and approach the Holy Quran for clarification or a scholar to talk to and find out what the root cause is, then try to rectify it within your character,' he added.