4 Traits of Successful People in Light of the Quran

4 Traits of Successful People in Light of the Quran

The Holy Quran; the book containing answers to every question fathomable,  the perfect guidance for all mankind. Given that Allah (SWT) Himself vowed to protect it, it is the sole Holy Scripture that is devoid of error. Each one of us is struggling and tirelessly striving towards one common goal – SUCCESS. Every one desires to experience the sweetness of success, whether it is in our businesses, homes, careers or academic pursuits. The definition of success differs from person-to-person, from religion-to-religion. Similarly,  The notion of success in Islam has been slightly modified as well, the Quran states,

 "These depend on guidance from their Lord. These are the successful [ones].” [2:5]

Al-Baqarah, which translates to "The Cow," is the second Surah and is the longest in the Divine Book with a total of 286 verses. It discusses various incidents and imparts many lessons, but one of its most crucial lessons is the traits of a successful person. The first five verses of this Surah comprise Allah's mention of five traits possessed by successful people, 

الٓمٓ (١) ذَٰلِكَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبُ لَا رَيْبَ ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًۭى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ(٢) ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَـٰهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ (٣) وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ(٤) أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ عَلَىٰ هُدًۭى مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ(٥)

Alif-Lãm-Mĩm. This is the Book! There is no doubt about it1—a guide for those mindful ˹of Allah˺, who believe in the unseen,1 establish prayer, and donate from what We have provided for them, and who believe in what has been revealed to you ˹O Prophet˺1 and what was revealed before you, and have sure faith in the Hereafter. It is they who are ˹truly˺ guided by their Lord, and it is they who will be successful. [2:1-5]

According to the Quran, those who embody all five attributes will be the most successful and well-guided. The 4 attributes being;

• Believe in the Unseen

• Prayer/Salat

• Charity

• Belief in Revelation 

BELIEF IN THE UNSEEN

There are 3 types of Faith; Ilm-Ul-yaqeen, Ain-Ul-Yaqeen and Haq-Ul-Yaqeen. Ilm-Ul-yaqeen means faith acquired by knowledge, Ain-ul-yaqeen means faith acquired through sight, and Haq-ul-yaqeen means faith acquired through experience. Our primary characteristic as Muslims is our faith in the unseen. Allah (SWT), the prophets, the angels, the Heavens, and hellfire are all part of the unseen. We must not waver in our commitment to this idea because it is one of the pillars of Iman. Allah has created the entire universe in an organised, systemic way, allotting each creation of his with a duty such as; Angles being direct to worship Allah (SWT), Prophets being entrusted with the task of spreading the divine message of Allah (SWT),etc. This flawless creation of the universe has been observed but since we haven't had the opportunity to see the Almighty our unwavering  Iman -in him and his creations- is what sets us apart from the non-believers, contradicting The famous adage "seeing is believing". 

Prayer/Salat

Do you feel remorse after skipping a salah and make a promise to never skip another one again? or do you find yourself relapsing into the same old pattern of inaction followed by regret? The second crucial quality is prayer/salat (namaz). If someone performs good deeds but neglects their prayers, their good deeds will not be given the appropriate weight. Which is why the more strongly you believe in the unseen, the more determined you'll be to strive for Jannah and erect a barrier between yourself and the fires of Hell. Prayer allows the believer to enrich their spirituality and nurture their soul's right to love and worship the Creator, Allah (SWT). The Quran repeatedly emphasises the value of prayer, and the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) also made this point: “Know that among your duties, prayer is foremost”. Muslims utilise prayer to calm and pacify themselves as well as to find solutions to their difficulties. Additionally, in another surah, it mentions the importance and correlation of prayer and success, 

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ

ٱلَّذِينَ هُمْ فِى صَلَاتِهِمْ خَـٰشِعُونَ

“Successful indeed are the believers: They who are during their prayer humbly submissive [khaashi‘oon]” [23:1-2]

Charity

The Qur'an reminds us that there is a "recognised right, for the needy and deprived," [70:24–5] over our wealth, as zakat is not restricted to the month of Ramadan alone. Therefore, a Muslim who gives for the benefit of others is doing their duty to those in need and preventing him or her from being egotistical about their own generosity. Giving to charity is among the most admirable ways to succeed, and the doors to success are always open. The Prophet said, "The upper hand is better than the lower hand (i.e. he who gives in charity is better than him who takes it). One should start giving first to his dependents and charity isn't always indicative of wealth, dispense of simple acts of kindness, strengths, abilities, knowledge, energy and everything that you can utilise to benefit humanity for the sake of Allah (SWT) can be considered a charity.

BELIEF IN REVELATION

Revelation is an extremely important concept within Islam. The Holy Quran, a text that was directly revealed from God and preserved in its original Arabic language for later generations of believers, is the most important source of Islamic truth. Out of more than 100,000 prophets entrusted with the duty of spreading the word of islam, to declare that there is only one God, who is the creator and preserver of the universe, and that people must worship and obey Him, a divine book was revealed to only 4 prophets. The Taurat revealed to Prophet Musa(AS), The Zaboor revealed to Prophet Dawood(AS), The Injeel revealed to Prophet Isa (AS) and lastly the Holy Quran revealed to the last Prophet, Prophet Muhammad (AS). Throughout the years alterations were made to the other books however, the Holy Quran remains unmodified as its protection was promised by Allah(SWT), 

إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا ٱلذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُۥ لَحَـٰفِظُونَ

It is certainly We Who have revealed the Reminder, and it is certainly We Who will preserve it. [15:9]

The lessons and attributes highlighted in The Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet are the perfect examples of what attributes us muslims should strive to adopt. The first ever verse revealed to The Holy Prophet being “Iqra” , directly translating to ‘Read’, is indicative that the Quran urges us to gain Knowledge and education to become our most polished selves regardless of our genders, race, ethnicity,etc.

To conclude, belief in Allah (SWT) is the foundation of one’s Iman and strengthening this core faith is the best approach to face life’s undulations. Reliance on Allah (SWT) is encouraged in Islam as he is the Al-Mighty and He is ever present for his believers.