Umar Radiyallahoanhu once went to Rasolallah ﷺ and inquired about the verse ثُمَّ لَتُسْأَلُنَّ يَوْمَئِذٍ عَنِ النَّعِيمِ ( تکاثر) and mentions the condition of hunger and hardships faced by the Companions that sounded a little complaining.

Rasolallah ﷺ nurtured his Companions in such a way that against any wordly hardships, instead of allowing them to moan, their attention were immediately drawn towards contentment and upon the comfort and blessings provided by Allah swt. Rasolallah ﷺ sighed and immediately started counting the blessings and asked Umar RA if he wasn’t provided with water and had any issues in urination?

There are countless blessings that we enjoy everyday. The fresh air, the pure drinking water, the delicious food, good health, comfortable driving, pleasant sleeps, well being of our family, prayers from parents, faithful spouses, obedient children, the clothing, the faith in Allah swt, the ability to pray, the urge to help those in need, the strength to avoid sins, the tears of repentance. Each of them is a blessing and it is a fact that we normally get used to them and forget to be grateful to Allah swt. The pious people have a very different world view. They see every favor that they encounter in their lives as a Divine gift.

Maulana Shah Abdul Ghani Phoolpori ra used to spend about 10-12 hours after Isha in prayers, reciting Quran, performing zikr and duas at a small local mosque and my shaikh Hazrat Maulana Hakim Muhammad Akhtar sb ra used to accompany him. Everyday around afternoon pulses with bread would come from home and Maulana used to take the meal with such a joy and excitement as if he was having some biryani or pulao. Upon enquiring reason for such a joy he used to say that you look at the contents but I feel that my beloved Allah swt is offering this food Himself to me! And that is the reason for my excitement.

We must make a habbit to concentrate and realize Allah swt’s blessings and thank Allah swt for all the blessings that we receive. This practice will increase the usefulness of those things and blessings.

لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ

بے کیفی میں بھی ہم نے اک کیفِ مسلسل دیکھا ہے
جس حال میں بھی وہ رکھتے ہیں اس حال کو اکمل دیکھا ہے
جس راہ کو ہم تجویز کریں اس راہ کو اثقل دیکھا ہے
جس راہ سے وہ لے جاتے ہیں اس راہ کو اسہل دیکھا ہے

Hazrat Maulana Hakim Muhammad Akhtar Sb ra used to say that the real thank is to avoid the deeds that displeases Allah swt. If we merely utter the words of thanks (الحمدللہ، الحمدللہ) but continue to displease the Lord through our actions then this cannot be termed as the real thanks.

May Allah swt give us strength to avoid the disobedience and thank Allah swt for all His blessings in true spirit. Ameen