_Imām Ibn Qudāmah Al-Maqdisi -rahimahullāh-_
Said:
Know verily that, Allāh in His infinite mercy, used to bestow some good qualities to some people and makes it to be part of their nature such as generosity, bravery, shyness, trustworthy and forbearance etc. while some people, need to build, strive hard and train themselves on such qualities before they could achieve it, and this is where the issue of struggling with the heart arises.
When one trains himself on certain character to the extent that it becomes a habitual act, such behavior becomes part of his nature. Thus, whosoever wants to be a generous person, then he should struggle to make generosity his habitual act thereby becoming part of his nature as if he was created with the character.
Likewise, whosoever wants to be a humble person, then he should be soft, kind to others and he should be ready to pardon others of their mistakes. By so doing, the act becomes part of his nature.
This technics, applies to all form of characters one wishes to achieve either one wants to become a writer, Ā’lim, Faqih etc. And this is also applicable in the case of bad characters.
Therefore, whosoever follows the path of laziness and lack of determination, such act will soon become part of his nature and he will not be able to attain much goals.
Moreover, one should not see nor consider any act as insignificant no matter how small it is, either good or bad. For any deed, either good or bad, has its own effect either negative or positive.
Companionship also assists a lot in coaching oneself on a certain character. For this, it is highly encouraged for one to have good friends and companions.
In this regard, our beloved Messenger sallallāhu ‘alayhi wasallam said:
_المرء على دين خليله فلينظر أحدكم من يخالل_
_A man follows the religion of his close friend, thus, let each of you look who he takes as close friend.”_
Transmitted and recorded by Imām At-Tirmidhi in his ‘Sunan'(7/49). Shaykh Al Albāni declared it as Hasan in ‘Sahihu Al Jāmi’#3539.
*17th Rabī’u Ath-thāni, 1438H.*
Allāhu A’alam! Bārakallāhu fīkum!
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