How Can a Friend Be Your Way to Paradise!

By  Shiam El-Bassiouni

Staff Writer – IslamOnline.net

Friendship is a significant meaning we need to truly comprehend and appreciate. The meaning of "the good friend" differs from one to another. Some people believe that the righteous friend is the one whom you trust and can tell all your secrets. Others define that person as one who stands by your side in sadness and in happiness alike.

Although opinions vary, all of them are relatively correct. And if we put the different views together, they can still form a true definition of the righteous friend. But there is a significant meaning and role for the virtuous friend that is missing: The one who assists you to be more close to Almighty Allah, obey His orders and teachings, and be a positive and beneficial individual for the Ummah (Muslim nation).

Criteria

Think for a while about your friends, and let me ask, "How do you choose your friends? What is the role of your friends in your life? Is it solely to go out and have fun with you?" If you answered in the affirmative, then you have to rethink and try to understand the meaning and role of the righteous friend. He or she is not just someone to enjoy your time with. The role of the friend is more profound than such a superficial point of view.

A friend can help you carry out great deeds and thus gain rewards and reach Paradise. On the other hand, that very friend can weigh you down on your quest to Paradise. Your friends can have a great influence upon you, even more than your family does. That is why it is very important to be cautious in selecting your friends.

The essential thing you should think about while choosing your friends is their closeness to Almighty Allah, and you can know this not only through their appearance — as it can deceive in many cases, but also through their attitudes, behavior, beliefs, and actions.

These kinds of friends who are all the time thinking of ways to gain heavenly rewards and be more close to and satisfy Almighty Allah through all their actions are the ones whom you can trust and seek their friendship.

Impact

If you do not pray, if you never fast, if you gossip, or if you do not have any active role in your society, your friends are the ones who can either help you improve your behavior and attitude to the better or can worsen your morals, attitude, and even beliefs.

Evil and ill-natured friends can push you toward doing bad deeds. Lying, smoking, or even being addicted to drugs are but some of the terrible results of so-called friends.

Mohamed Nabil, a 29–year-old German engineer, has met various good people whose friends negatively influenced and worsened their behavior. "Friends have an obvious impact upon one another to the extent that might influence one's whole life," said Nabil.

On the other hand, the righteous friend is capable of making a positive influence upon your life, changing it to the better. For instance, your friend who does charity activities can encourage you to participate with him or her; instead of wasting your spare time doing nothing or in places full of haram with evil friends, such a righteous friend can accompany you to visit an orphanage, attend Qur'an lessons, or spend your time in other useful things.

Even in times of fun and merriment, which I believe are very significant among friends, things differ greatly with the good friend, as he or she always reminds you of renewing your intention for the sake of Almighty Allah anywhere and at any occasion. In addition, the righteous friend always promotes you to do things to keep the honor and the beauty of Islam awake in your heart.

This was the case with Iman Al-Sherif, a 25–year-old Egyptian, whom one of her friends traveled to Denmark after the cartoons row in an attempt to alter the negative image Islam had garnered there. What encouraged Al-Sherif to think of doing something to improve Muslims' image all over the world? "My friend was the one who encouraged me to do something for my Ummah, and from there I started to read more about Islam and I took a course in introducing Islam to non-Muslims. Actually, I cannot deny the role of my friend in helping me to be more positive," said Al-Sherif.

Think

With virtuous friends, you will be positive and beneficial to Islam and Muslims, and you will be able to live a life free of selfishness, sadness, hatred, and anxiety that exist among evil friends.

You may not feel the impact of your friends upon you, but if you think deeply, you will find that even if you have a strong personality, you will be influenced by them. That is why you have to choose your friends wisely, as they can alter your whole life whether positively or negatively.

For this reason, Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "A person is likely to follow the faith of his friend, so look whom you befriend" (Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi).

It is very essential to understand this hadith; it shows the sound impact of friends upon one another and the essentiality of selecting the virtuous friend.

Think about it, and even — God forbid — if all your friends are evil, you have to search for at least one virtuous friend who can be your companion on your way to Paradise!

Shiam EL-Bassiouni is a staff writer at youth for the future. A graduate of the American University in Cairo, she holds a bachelor's degree in journalism and mass communication. She is interested in the issues of youthand community development. She has worked with a number of voluntary organizations and charities. She can be contacted at youth_campaign@iolteam.com