How does your garden grow?

A perennial women’s issue is financial empowerment, for which there are no quick and easy answers as our circumstances, situations, standards and goals are unique. Advice on personal financial management abounds through the internet, cable shows, talk radio and bookstores, never mind through family and friends…even infomercials! Many of us can name at least one of the recent personal finance best-selling authors.

As believers, let us start from our sources of advice, the Qur’an and the Sunnah (traditions) of the Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings be upon him, as conveyed through the hadith literature. Believers will have hoped that Allah in His mercy exchanges what they have cultivated in their lives and wealth for Paradise.

إِنَّ اللّهَ اشْتَرَى مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَنفُسَهُمْ وَأَمْوَالَهُم بِأَنَّ لَهُمُ الجَنَّةَ …فَاسْتَبْشِرُواْ بِبَيْعِكُمُ الَّذِي بَايَعْتُم بِهِ وَذَلِكَ هُوَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ 9:111

9:111(Saheeh International) Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties for that they will have Paradise…So rejoice in your transaction which you have contracted. And it is that which is the great attainment.

This series is about both preparing for this exchange and for freedom from the financial shackles mankind creates for itself. Money facilitates much and we are to seek wealth for its good usage but liability to Allah is ever present whether one must work for money, is rich or living solely from residual income, or is sustained through another’s effort. Our financial transactions in our own right and/or on the behalf of our spouses are an integral part of our worship of Allah, the Most High.

The Lay of the Land

Behold your garden – your life and property – that you cultivate from moon to moon. How does your garden grow? Every woman needs to know the contents of her garden starting with the lay of the land. Muhasabah, or self-accounting, is imperative. Accepting the reality of whom and how we are is the first step in any process of development because knowledge is always a precondition for right action. Besides knowing ourselves, we also need knowledge of correct dealings from the shari’ah (Islamic law) point of view. Let us first appreciate who we have shown ourselves to be and what we have prepared to offer Allah.

№ 1: Condition the Soil

The heart is soul-infused soil and its best conditioner is taqwa, i.e. God-consciousness. The process of removing inhibitors to growth out of love for Allah – tazkiyyah or purification of soul – concerns emotional states we indulge and ‘acting out’ behaviors. Remember, if we want transformation then we must attend our inner selves,

ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّ اللّهَ لَمْ يَكُ مُغَيِّرًا نِّعْمَةً أَنْعَمَهَا عَلَى قَوْمٍ حَتَّى يُغَيِّرُواْ مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ وَأَنَّ اللّهَ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ (8:53)

8:53 (Y. Ali) Because Allah will never change the grace which He hath bestowed on a people until they change what is in their (own) souls: and verily Allah is He Who heareth and knoweth (all things).

The best aid to inner reform I’ve encountered is Purification of the Heart by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf. Topics include miserliness, envy, arrogance, fear of poverty, lust, and a host of other ‘afflictions’ that affect how we approach life, never mind how we handle money. For those of a spiritual bent, The Energy of Money: A Spiritual Guide to Financial and Personal Fulfillment by Maria Nemeth, Ph.D. packs quite a wallop as well.

An Assignment, Should You So Accept…

Regardless of marital status, please listen to “7 Ways to Increase Your Sources of Income and Establish Financial Security, Before & After Marriage,” by Shaykh Yasir Birjas at www.practimate.com . The subtitle piqued my interest – Which Sources of Income Are You Considering Currently? Learn Ways to Secure Your Rizq That Very Few People Know About – and I wasn’t disappointed.

After listening (the video lasts approximately 30 minutes) come back and share your takeaways. What part impacted you most?

M. Hibah McNeal-Boddie is a convert to Islam of 11 years currently based near Honolulu, Hawaii with her husband and four children. She is the owner and CEO of My Money Matters LLC, of which Muslimah Money Matters is both a trade name and blog. Hibah is an Islamic economics and finance enthusiast and is working toward CFP (Certified Financial Planner) certification, aiming to offer practical products and services enabling Americans to achieve shari’ah-compliant living. Of additional interest is increasing strategic Muslimah philanthropy, as women are – ultimately – society’s greatest producers and change agents. Hibah holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. She became the Guest Financial Writer at Muslimah Source in April 2009.

Photo Credit: Tamara L Redfern