We say and believe in the kalima “Lailaha Illallah MuhammadurRasoolallah”. When we utter this Kalima we make a covenant with Allah SWT that we will not worship/obey anyone other than Allah and follow his Rasool SAWS. This is a very important reminder for you and me.
Improvement in deen in One’s life will start by realising that there is a problem in him i.e., weak imaan. A perfect person does not need to improve, which no one can claim that he is perfect. Strive for improvement in deen in one’s life starts from realising the problem, constantly worrying to solve/improve it, making effort towards it and it continues till one dies in the state in which Allah is pleased with him.
Signs of weak imaan
- Committing sins and not feeling any guilt.
- Having a hard heart and no desire to read the Quran.
- Feeling too lazy to do good deeds, e.g. being late for salat
- Neglecting the Sunnah.
- Having mood swings, for instance being upset about petty things and bothered and irritated most of the time.
- Not feeling anything when hearing verses from the Quran, for example when Allah warns us of punishments and His promise of glad tidings.
- Finding difficulty in remembering Allah and making dhikr.
- Not feeling bad when things are done against the Shariah.
- Desiring(Greed) status and wealth.
- Being mean and miserly, i.e. not wanting to part with wealth.
- Ordering others to do good deeds when not practising them ourselves.
- Feeling pleased when things are not progressing for others.
- Being concerned with whether something is haram or halal only; and not avoiding makrooh (not recommended) things.
- Making fun of people who do simple good deeds, like cleaning the mosque.
- Not feeling concerned about the situation of Muslims.
- Not feeling the responsibility to do something to promote Islam.
- Being unable to deal with calamities (Shocked), for instance crying and yelling in funerals.
- Liking to argue just for the sake of arguing without any proof.
- Becoming engrossed and very involved with dunya, worldly things, i.e. feeling bad only when losing something in terms of material wealth.
- Becoming engrossed and obsessive about ourselves.
Ways to improve our imaan
1. Invest time to improve our Imaan
a) Sit in the company of Pious (Scholars, etc)
b) Associate yourself with the environment of the Masjid
c) Frequent recitation of Quran (translation and tafsir) and remembrance of death
c) Attend the gatherings where Allah is remembered which are surrounded by Angels
d) Go in the path of Allah to improve ourselves and remind others – Effort of Tabligh.
e) Give dawah to non-muslim or give reminder to a muslim.
2. Keep friends who remind you of Allah and guide you to the straight path when you stray sometimes. Avoid the company of neglectful (Ghafil) as they will make you neglectful (Ghafil) as well.
3. Protect our gaze, for when the gaze is lowered when it falls on a non-mahram Allah gives the taste of Imaan in our heart. In other words, if the gaze is not protected the taste of Imaan is taken away. Try protecting gaze from watching prohibited things on Television, Movies, Magazines and Internet.
4. Use time wisely. Always invest free time in the activities which will benefit us in the Aakhirah. One day, one hour or one second that passes never comes back.
5. Protecting ourself from Kabaair (Major Sins).
6. Whatever you do, do it only for the sake of Allah
7. Make dua regularly to Allah, to make us stead fast in deen and improve our imaan.