حِفْظُ العُقُولِ وَبِنَاءُ المُسْتَقْبَلِ : Preserving Minds and Building the Future

Al Quran is the final Holy Book revealed upon the Last of Prophets Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH). The Quran & Sunnah is the only source of holy guidance as it entails detailed instructions for each and every walk of human life. Here guidance from Quran for the followers of Islam (حِفْظُ العُقُولِ وَبِنَاءُ المُسْتَقْبَلِ : Preserving Minds and Building the Future) is discussed wrt the importance of safe gaurding the mental thoughtfulness for building the future for better living from Quran and Hadith of Prophet ﷺ. This is an approved Jumma Khutba from the Sultanate of Oman and translated in English.

أَعُوذُ بِاللّٰهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

In the name of ALLAH, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

حِفْظُ العُقُولِ وَبِنَاءُ المُسْتَقْبَلِ

Preserving Minds and Building the Future

Praise be to Allah, Who urged the preservation of the intellect and made it a fundamental pillar for goodness in speech and action. I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah alone, without any partner; He created man and honored him, and bestowed His blessings and bounties upon him. I also bear witness that our master and prophet, Muhammad ﷺ, is the servant of Allah and His Messenger—the most sound of people in intellect, and the most truthful in speech and deed. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, all of his companions, and those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment. This is the translation of the recited verse from Surah Al Hujraat:

أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فاعوذ باللہ من الشیطان الرجیم- بسم اللہ الرحمن الرحیم

إِنَّمَا ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ إِخۡوَةٌ۬ فَأَصۡلِحُواْ بَيۡنَ أَخَوَيۡكُمۡ‌ۚ وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تُرۡحَمُونَ (١٠) يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ لَا يَسۡخَرۡ قَوۡمٌ۬ مِّن قَوۡمٍ عَسَىٰٓ أَن يَكُونُواْ خَيۡرً۬ا مِّنۡہُمۡ وَلَا نِسَآءٌ۬ مِّن نِّسَآءٍ عَسَىٰٓ أَن يَكُنَّ خَيۡرً۬ا مِّنۡہُنَّ‌ۖ وَلَا تَلۡمِزُوٓاْ أَنفُسَكُمۡ وَلَا تَنَابَزُواْ بِٱلۡأَلۡقَـٰبِ‌ۖ بِئۡسَ ٱلِٱسۡمُ ٱلۡفُسُوقُ بَعۡدَ ٱلۡإِيمَـٰنِ‌ۚ وَمَن لَّمۡ يَتُبۡ فَأُوْلَـٰٓٮِٕكَ هُمُ ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ (١١) يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱجۡتَنِبُواْ كَثِيرً۬ا مِّنَ ٱلظَّنِّ إِنَّ بَعۡضَ ٱلظَّنِّ إِثۡمٌ۬‌ۖ وَلَا تَجَسَّسُواْ وَلَا يَغۡتَب بَّعۡضُكُم بَعۡضًا‌ۚ أَيُحِبُّ أَحَدُڪُمۡ أَن يَأۡڪُلَ لَحۡمَ أَخِيهِ مَيۡتً۬ا فَكَرِهۡتُمُوهُ‌ۚ وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ‌ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ تَوَّابٌ۬ رَّحِيمٌ۬ (١٢) يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقۡنَـٰكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ۬ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلۡنَـٰكُمۡ شُعُوبً۬ا وَقَبَآٮِٕلَ لِتَعَارَفُوٓاْ‌ۚ إِنَّ أَڪۡرَمَكُمۡ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ أَتۡقَٮٰكُمۡ‌ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ۬ (١٣)

The believers are nothing else than brothers (in Islâmic religion). So make reconciliation between your brothers, and fear Allâh, that you may receive mercy. (10) O you who believe! Let not a group scoff at another group, it may be that the latter are better than the former; Nor let (some) women scoff at other women, it may be that the latter are better than the former, Nor defame one another, nor insult one another by nicknames. How bad is it, to insult one's brother after having Faith [i.e. to call your Muslim brother (a faithful believer) as: "O sinner", or "O wicked"]. And whosoever does not repent, then such are indeed Zâlimûn (wrong-doers). (11) O you who believe! Avoid much suspicion, indeed some suspicions are sins. And spy not, neither backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it (so hate backbiting)[] . And fear Allâh. Verily, Allâh is the One Who forgives and accepts repentance, Most Merciful. (12) O mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another. Verily, the most honourable of you with Allâh is that (believer) who has At-Taqwa [i.e. he is one of the Muttaqûn (pious - see V.2:2). Verily, Allâh is All-Knowing, All-Aware. (13)

Surah Al Hujraat – 10-13

O servants of Allah: Fear Allah as He ought to be feared; for indeed, piety (Taqwa) is the honor of the believer and the path to his salvation. Know—may Allah have mercy on you—that Allah has honored mankind with the greatest honor: ALLAH says in Surah Al Israa:

وَلَقَدْ كَرَّمْنَا بَنِي ءَادَمَ وَحَمَلْنَاهُمْ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ وَرَزَقْنَهُم مِّنَ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَفَضَّلْنَهُمْ عَلَى كَثِيرٍ مِّمَّنْ خَلَقْنَا تَفْضِيلًا

And We have certainly honored the children of Adam and carried them on land and sea and provided for them of the good things and preferred them over much of what We have created, with [definite] preference.

Surah Al-Isra: 70

Allah has dignified the intellect by making it the basis and locus of legal accountability (Takleef), as well as man's guide and illuminating beacon. It is stated in the hadith: "A person has not acquired anything like an intellect that guides its owner to righteousness or turns him back from destruction." For this reason, preserving the mind is considered one of the five major necessities (Al-Darooriyyat Al-Khams) in Islam. This great honoring of mankind is vividly manifested in the prohibition of everything that harms the mind, corrupts it, or destroys it: ALLAH says in Surha Al Maeda:

يَأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا إِنَّمَا الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالْأَنصَابُ وَالْأَزْلَامُ رِجْسٌ مِنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطَانِ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

(O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificial] altars, and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful.)

Surah Al Maeda - 90

By analogy, everything that resembles wine in its underlying cause of intoxication and loss of sanity is measured against it. The Prophet ﷺ said: ((كُلُّ مُسْكِرٍ خَمْرٌ ، وَكُلُّ خَمْرٍ حَرَامٌ)) (Every intoxicant is khamr (wine), and every khamr is haram (prohibited).) Brothers in Faith:

When Islam prohibits any food or drink, it does not do so in vain; rather, it prohibits it because of the inherent harm it carries and the danger involved in its consumption. Among the prohibitions that must be warned against are narcotics (drugs) of all types and names. They are poisons that bring misery and grief to those who use them, leaving them looking weak, feeble, depressed, sorrowful, ailing in body, and diseased in thought. Such a person can neither perform useful work nor fulfill any hope for themselves or their society. How can good be expected from a person who has clothed themselves in vices and abandoned virtues?

Drug addiction inflicts severe damage on a person's intellect, religion, and chivalry (Muroo'ah). It impairs their mental faculties and intellectual capabilities, rendering them incapable of discerning truth or distinguishing falsehood. Allah Almighty says in Surah Al Baqara:

وَلَا تُلْقُوا بِأَيْدِيكُمْ إِلَى التَّهْلُكَةِ

And do not throw [yourselves] with your own hands into destruction.

Surah Al Baqra - 195-Part

Islam has strictly forbidden harm and rejected it entirely, as the Prophet ﷺ said: ((لا ضَرَرَ وَلا ضِرَارَ)) (There should be neither harming nor reciprocating harm.) Can any rational person dispute that drug abuse leads to affliction with diseases, thereby crippling a productive energy within society, while the state bears the financial burdens of their treatment and medication? When these epidemics spread, they shake the very foundations of the economy. How much money is wasted in vain for an intoxicant or a sedative? How many families that once enjoyed peace of mind and stability have had their conditions altered and their fates ruined because of drugs? Whoever becomes addicted and habituated to this brings poverty upon themselves and deprives their soul of happiness. This is pure extravagance and wastefulness, and Allah the Almighty says in Surah Al israa

وَلَا تُبَذِّرْ تَبْذِيرًا ، إِنَّ الْمُبَذِّرِينَ كَانُوا إِخْوَانَ الشَّيْطَانِ وَكَانَ الشَّيْطَانُ لِرَبِّهِ كَفُورًا

And do not spend wastefully. Indeed, the wasteful are brothers of the devils, and ever is Satan to his Lord ungrateful.

Surah Al Israa - 26-27

Nothing is dearer to a human being than enjoying health and vitality, and nothing is more detestable to a rational mind than living bedridden and sick, for no reason other than failing to govern themselves with intellect, choosing instead to be driven by whim and desire.

O Muslims: There are underlying causes that drive some youth to abuse drugs and psychotropic substances, stemming from a weak religious deterrent and a lack of awareness of Divine oversight, forgetting the words of Allah Almighty in Surah AL Nisa:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا

Indeed, Allah is ever, over you, an Observer.

Surah Al Nisa: 1-Part

They remain heedless of His deterrent verses, such as His saying in Surah Al Qamar:

وكُلُّ صَغِيرٍ وَكَبِيرٍ مُسْتَطَرٌ

And everything, small and great, is inscribed.

Surah Al Qamar - 53

This heedlessness drives its victim into the clutches of drug trafficking networks that target our youth and children. They influence them through various means—enticement, intimidation, temptation, and encouragement—until they fall as easy prey into their hands, seek refuge in Allah. These networks succeed because they rely on individuals whose only concern is to corrupt others and line their pockets with money, exploiting the bond of companionship to achieve their malicious goals. They are not content with consuming these prohibitions unless their peers share them, so they exert every effort to influence them until they become addicted and it becomes a habit. However, the one who beautified their evil deeds to them will disown them on the Day of Resurrection. Consider—may Allah have mercy on me and you—how Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala depicts the extent of a person's regret for following an evil friend in Surah AL Furqan:

وَيَوْمَ يَعَضُّ الظَّالِمُ عَلَى يَدَيْهِ يَقُولُ يَلَيْتَنِي اتَّخَذْتُ مَعَ الرَّسُولِ سَبِيلًا ، يَتَوَيْلَتَى لَيْتَنِي لَمْ أَتَّخِذْ فُلَانًا خَلِيلًا

And the day the wrongdoer will bite on his hands and say, "Oh, I wish I had taken with the Messenger a way. Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken that one as an intimate friend."

Surah Al Furqan - 27-28

At that moment, he will regret, but it will no longer be a time for regret.

So fear Allah, O servants of Allah, and adopt the means of health and well-being; for they are your provisions for your acts of worship, and your treasure for your productivity and the building of your nations. I say what you hear, and I seek forgiveness from Allah the Supreme for me and for you.

So seek His forgiveness, He will forgive you, for He is the Forgiving, the Merciful. Call upon Him, He will respond to you, for He is the Beneficent, the Generous.

Praise be to Allah, Who made the stage of youth the finest stage of strength, giving, and prosperity. I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah alone, without any partner, and I bear witness that our master and prophet, Muhammad ﷺ, is the servant of Allah and His Messenger. He raised the youth to love virtues and warned them against the paths of vice. May peace and blessings be upon him, his family, all his companions, and those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment.

O Muslims: Know that we live in a world full of challenges and crowded with shifting influences. It is therefore highly incumbent upon us to fortify our youth against all ideas and behaviors that contradict our values and the security of our society. This is achieved by raising the youth upon obedience to Allah and His Messenger and planting the sound creed (Aqeedah) in their hearts, for it is the foundation of righteousness and integrity. Furthermore, it is essential to connect young people with good companions so they may benefit from their knowledge and learn from their manners. Let us not forget the importance of keeping the youth connected to society, as this brings strength and familiarity.

Every one of us, O servants of Allah, is required to cooperate in this regard as mentioned in Surah Al Maeda:

وَتَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْبِرِّ وَالتَّقْوَى وَلَا تَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْإِثْمِ وَالْعُدْوَانِ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ شَدِيدُ الْعِقَابِ

And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty.

Surah Al Maeda - 2

Among the most important factors aiding this solidarity is taking community initiatives dedicated to useful programs that occupy the time of the youth, such as competitions, recreational trips, and voluntary initiatives. If they find constructive ways to fill their time, they will not resort to vices and destructive paths. Another beneficial means is reporting anyone who deals in or promotes drugs to the competent anti-narcotics authorities. Failing to inform the authorities about drug dealers is considered concealing a crime, which falls under the generality of the saying of Allah Almighty in Surha Al Noor:

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُحِبُّونَ أَن تَشِيعَ الْفَاحِشَةُ

Indeed, those who like that immorality should be spread.

Surah Al Noor - 19

So, fear Allah, O servants of Allah, and cooperate among yourselves to bring forth a generation that stays away from prohibitions and stands united to confront problems, finding the best remedies to overcome all crises.

O servants of ALLAH, remember this command of ALLAH:

قُلۡ يَـٰعِبَادِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسۡرَفُواْ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمۡ لَا تَقۡنَطُواْ مِن رَّحۡمَةِ ٱللَّهِ‌ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَغۡفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا‌ۚ إِنَّهُ ۥ هُوَ ٱلۡغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

Say: "O 'Ibâdî (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of Allâh, verily Allâh forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

Surah Az Zumr – 53

هَذَا وَصَلُّوا وَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى إمَامِ الْمُرْسَلِينَ؛ مُحَمَّدٍ الهَادِي الأَمِينِ، فَقَدْ أَمَرَكُمْ رَبكُمْ بذَلكَ حينَ قَالَ

إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ وَمَلَـٰٓٮِٕڪَتَهُ ۥ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى ٱلنَّبِىِّۚ يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ صَلُّواْ عَلَيۡهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسۡلِيمًا

Surah Al Ahzaab – 56