By Abimbola Abdullahi
Being of service to others is a way of life that leads to happiness.
The Prophet (Blessings and Peace be Upon him) is reported to have said: “Verily, Allah will say to his slave when He will be taking account of him on the Day of Judgement, ‘O’ son of Adam, I was hungry, and you did not feed me.’
He will answer: ‘How could I feed you? You are the Lord of the worlds!’ He will say: ‘Did you not know that my slave so and so who is the son of so and so felt hunger, and you’d not feed him. Alas, had you fed him you would have found that (i.e. reward) with Me.’ ‘O’ son of Adam, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink.’
He will reply: ‘How could I give You drink? You are the Lord of the worlds!’ He will say: ‘Did you not know that my slave so and so, the son of so and so felt thirsty and you did not give him drink. Alas, if you had given him, you would have found that (i.e., reward) with me.’ ‘O’ son of Adam, I became sick, and you did not visit Me.’
He will answer: ‘How can I visit You? You are the Lord of the worlds!’ He will say: ‘Did you not know that my slave so and so, the son of so and so became sick and you did not visit him. Alas, had you visited him, you would have found Me with him.”
Is there a measure of selfless service in life? There is no measurement of selfless service. No matter what the scenario or who is involved, everyone who is involved benefits from one’s selfless acts. The one who shows selflessness may benefit by receiving a “thank you,” or even just a good feeling of helping others. Of course, the ones who receive the selfless acts benefit for obvious reasons.
Selfless service lies at the heart of effective leadership because it encompasses the “ability and willingness to sense right from wrong, selfless from selfish, good from bad, and to make short for loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal courage.
To be truly successful and live a legendary life you must be in balance with all aspects of life and being of service is a big part of that balance. This means being of service to others in whatever way fits your lifestyle. Whether it’s mailing a check to your favorite charity, donating time to the homeless, or assisting in your community as a mentor; it’s as important to you as to those you may serve.
Contribution beyond yourself keeps your life in check, where you form a good foundation to build your successes upon. When you just take from the world you live in and choose not to contribute to it, it keeps you in a state of surviving no matter how much you have or how much money you make.
When you contribute beyond yourself at each stage of progression, you are consuming and contributing which creates balance. Contribution doesn’t happen at the top of the pyramid; it occurs throughout every stage. If you make it only about yourself, you won’t stay in success or significance and feel fulfilled. Success does not always mean making lots of money alone. Success includes having all aspects of your life working together. Job, family, faith, and your place in your community.
There gets to a point when we become altruistic and make it about others. Which by the way, when we redirect that focus to others, we’re still being very self-serving. Because serving other people is a different vehicle to make ourselves feel good. Just like when we buy ourselves that fancy new car, a new smart phone, or a new whatever it is, that’s just a vehicle that makes us feel good about who we are.
But when we can serve other people, we are not only able to see outside ourselves, but we are able to see the beauty and good that brings us beyond ourselves. For anyone to have true fulfillment, we must continue to grow, we also must be willing to make it about more than just ourselves.
There are so many ways of being of service…
Maybe you’re talented in your business, you could mentor others. Perhaps you could volunteer for a troubled youth program. For others, maybe it’s being involved in a choir or something within their religious community.
Every religion extols the importance of giving of oneself for the good of others. There are anecdotes from different religions that relate how someone has found favor with the God because he or she has helped one in need.
Even if a person is not a saint or a holy one, his or her status is raised in the eyes of God due to a noble gesture that leads to the relief of another’s suffering. “A prostitute saw a dog turning around a well on a hot day; it was panting due to thirst. She took off her shoe, filled it with water and gave the water to the dog. The woman was forgiven due to this deed.” [Muslim, Tawba 155, (2245)
We honor heroes who have died for their country. We raise to martyrdom those who have tried to help humanity and have lost their lives in the process. Service is one of the great acts one can do in this lifetime. But there is no dearth of chances to give of ourselves for the good of humanity.
Selfless service presents to us a paradox. To truly perform selfless service, one must act without any desire for a reward or recognition. It is given freely, motivated by an innate desire to help another.
At the time of giving, one forgets one’s own needs and wants, as well as one’s comfort and safety, to help someone else. There are even those who give their own lives to save others.
Truly selfless people do not expect anything in return for their deeds. The underlying paradox of selfless service lies in the fact that while wanting no reward, selfless service elicits the highest reward – the pleasure of the Lord.
The selfless act of a group of Muslim young men who came together 82 years ago for the purpose of giving back to society led to the formation of the Crescent Bearers (1939) Lagos. Countless souls have benefitted from their yearly academic scholarships not to talk of the mourner’s pavilions they have built and continue to maintain in major cemeteries in Lagos, nor the benefits accrued by motherless children’s and old people’s homes in Lagos: And recently the Masjid and Islamic Centre at Abijo, along Lekki Express way. May Allay reward their efforts.
During the lockdown wroth by the ravaging Covid-19 many individuals and groups extended food gifts to the needy even though there were those that reveled in hoarding Covid-19 palliatives; some to the extent of rebranding them as birthday gifts. Allah sees all of us.
Yet, some organizations like the OFF (Not To be Announced, NTA, but Allah knows) spread food gifts all over the metropolis, reaching far-flung nooks and crannies of the city. Allah be praised!
Yet, there are those who not only take delight in giving selflessly, but also building lasting monuments for the good of generations to come.
It is in this area that the name of our brother, friend, and fellow Bearer, Muyinudeen Aderemi Makanjuola comes to mind. His commitment to giving without asking nor anticipating reward has become legendary. His recent addition of another milestone in this terra firma (last Wednesday 24 November) is therefore worth mentioning.
We wish him many happy returns and more years of service to God and humanity. May Allah preserve him, his children, and his children’s children.
There are countless people like him, and it is probably because of them that God has not destroyed this nation of sinners, buccaneers, kamikaze rulers, and pit-vipers, predatory gangs and gangsters, selfish and visionless leaders. It is however true that, “a nation of dishonest people cannot expect a visionary and honest leader as it is from their ranks candidates emerge to jostle for the reins of leadership.” Abdu Rafiu
Barka Juma’at and a happy weekend.
Babatunde Jose
