ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Perfect Role Model: The Prophet of Islam Living Modestly The principle of living modestly and not drowning oneself in pleasure, material acquisitions and the life of this world is an enlightened and constructive principle that uncovers man's potential and allows his spirit to soar.

The extent to which man pays attention to material embellishments and the more his ties to this world increase, the more he is deprived of spiritual pleasures, radiant wisdom and inner light. Spiritual men of God, who have high goals and lofty destinations in sight, never tie themselves down to the embellishments of this world.

They realize that being attached to worldly pleasures and attaining spiritual perfection are like the East and the West; when a person gets close to one of them, in reality he has moved away from the other. For this reason spiritually minded persons apply themselves totally in trying to reach proximity to God which is the goal of creation.

They do not waste their valuable lives on worthless matters, for arriving at this exalted destination is not possible without living modestly and expressing disinterest in matters related to this world. Of course what we have said here does not contradict things like developing society or making progress in various fields of knowledge, handicraft and industry, all of which are amongst man's duties in this material world.

Rather, that which is objectionable consists of two things: the first is being attached to worldly affairs [in other words, this world becomes the goal rather than a means for accomplishing a higher goal, realized in the Afterlife] and one's heart becomes tied to transient favors. The second is becoming drowned in pleasures and having a luxurious lifestyle.

The Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), the greatest role model for all of mankind, paid careful attention to the principle of living modestly and in this way, guided mankind toward the vast possibilities of spiritual advancement. A point worth making here is that the principle of simplicity is a relative principle that differs with regards to time and conditions.

It is possible that a particular lifestyle might be considered very comfortable under particular circumstances and that same lifestyle, under different circumstances, due to changes in society, might be regarded as simple.