12 March 2026

4-minute read

Every Muslim, young or old, black or white, Arab or non-Arab, male or female, pious or not, all desire to become the beloveds of Allāh. That is the goal. That is the zenith and the apex of what we desire and hope to achieve. Jannah is an extra perk. If you become the beloved of Allāh, you have achieved in this world and you have achieved in the Hereafter. But there are multiple ways of reaching Allāh and becoming the beloved of Allāh. What is one of the most effective way? Ibn Hajar mentions Nuh عَلَيْهِ الصَّلَاةُ وَ السَّلَامُ. We know that Nuh عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ preached to his people for nine-hundred and fifty years and hardly anybody listened to him, so after that, he raised his hands and supplicated to Allāh:

 لَا تَذَرْ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ مِنَ الْكَافِرِينَ دَيَّارًا، 

إِنَّكَ إِن تَذَرْهُمْ يُضِلُّوا عِبَادَكَ وَلَا يَلِدُوا إِلَّا فَاجِرًا كَفَّارًا

“Allāh, I’ve tried for nine-hundred and fifty years, and my conclusion now is if You don’t destroy them, they will perpetuate this shirk.” And we know that Allāh destroyed them. The deluge and the floods of Nuh عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ is an interesting story but Allāh wanted to teach Nuh عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ  and us a lesson until the Day of Qiyaamah.  Allāh gave Nuh عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ an instruction and He said ‘Oh Nuh, I want you to make pots of clay.”  A simple task – just make pots of clay. It is an instruction from Allāh, so no questions were asked. He started making clay-pots and after he had made a few, Allāh said, ‘Nuh, I want you to break them. Break them, yourself’. So Nuh عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ took the first one, he threw it, and it broke. He took the second one and broke it. By the time he came to the third one, he was crying. Then a revelation came from the Heaven. Allāh said, ‘Nuh, why you crying? It is a pot of clay’. He said, ‘Oh Allāh, I understand it is a pot of clay, but I made it with my own hands.’ So Allāh responded and said, ‘Nuh, you asked me to destroy those people. Yes, they were associating partners with me. Yes, they were rejecting my Nabi, but did it not occur to you that I created them, and you are asking me to destroy them?’

This is where the Hadith of Rasoolullah (ﷺ) comes in:

أَلْخَلْقُ عِيَالُ الله

This means that the creation is the family of Allāh. In reality, Allāh has no family

لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ

What is meant is that like your family are the closest to you, there are some from the creation who are the closest to Allāh, the beloved of Allāh. Who are they?

مَنْ أَحْسَنَ إِلى عِيَالِه

They are those who are good to the rest of Allāh’s creation. In simple words, if you want to become the beloved of Allāh then live to serve the creation of Allāh.  The ‘I’ must die and the ‘we’ must live. It must not be about yourself. There is no achievement and no greatness in what you only can achieve only for yourself.  Research has shown that people who live for themselves, no matter what they achieve are not truly happy and people who live to make others happy, enjoy true happiness.

خَيْرُ النَّاسِ أَنْفَعُهُمْ لِلنَّاسِ

The best of people is he who lives to serve Humanity. May Allāh make us all from amongst them.

{Extracted and adapted from Volume One of the book In Pursuit of Purpose by Ml Sulaimaan Ravat}