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THE STRUCTURE OF PERSONALITY

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romePersonality Development in Islam
Salmaan ibn Fahd al-'Awdah
Article ID: 851 | 1444 Reads
PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT IN ISLAM
AND ITS EFFECTS ON NATIONS AND CIVILISATIONS
To download the PDF version, Right-Click here and select "Save Target As..."
INTRODUCTION
Praise be to Allah; we praise Him, seek His forgiveness, and turn to Him in repentance. We seek
refuge with Him from the evils of our souls and the evils of our deeds. Whomever Allah guides,
none can misguide, and whomever Allah leads astray, none can guide. I bear witness that there is no
god but Allah alone without partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and
Messenger.
The individual is the basic element from which all principles and beliefs are brought forth, and upon
which all nations and civilizations are built. If a nation is successful in developing its people as
strong and complete individuals, then, with Allah’s help, it will be able to realize a glorious future
for itself. It will also be able to promote and defend its religion and its beliefs. If, on the other hand,
a nation fails to develop its individual members, or if its people are deficient in carrying out some of
the activities of life, then that nation is doomed to weakness, destruction, and obscurity. In the
chapters that follow, we shall attempt, with Allah’s permission, to shed some light on this important
topic.
Our discussion will be organized under the following headings:
Chapter One: The importance of the individual to the issue of nation building.
Chapter Two: Special qualities of an exemplary individual character.
Chapter Three: Men of distinction who developed under the Prophet’s tutelage.
This final chapter is of special importance, because it provides for us examples of people who we
should strive to emulate. By doing so, perhaps Allah will place us in their company in Paradise.
Truly, this is Allah’s affair and He is fully capable of carrying it out.
CHAPTER ONE
The Importance of the Individual to the Issue of National-Building
The First Islamic State:
The first Islamic state, which was established by Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him), was
established on the shoulders of strong, powerful men: first on those of Allah’s Messenger himself,
then on the shoulders of his Companions. This holds especially true for the earliest Companions who
took over the reigns of the state, like Abû Bakr, `Umar,

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`Uthmân, `Alî, Abû `Ubaydah, and Sa`d b. Abî Waqqâs (may Allah be pleased with them all).
When we look at a nation that enjoyed such a history a nation that sings the praises of its own
glorious past, a nation that had strength, fortitude, and divine assistance, a nation that produced
many notable people or when we look at a nation that has achieved wealth, prosperity, and prestige
or any kind of greatness whatsoever, we find that the secret of its strength and fortitude was its
cultivation of upright individuals who were willing to make sacrifices for the sake of the values,
beliefs, and principles that the nation upheld and for the sake of the nation itself.
The Concern of the Leadership for Individual Development:
The effects that the individual has on nation building and on the makings of civilization have been
the concern of reformers and religious people since the dawn of Islam. `Umar b. al-Khattâb sat in the
company of some Companions and said to them: “Wish for something.”
Someone said: “I wish that this place were filled with gold so I could spend it for the sake of Allah.
`Umar repeated his demand: “Wish for something.”
Someone else spoke up and said: “I wish it were filled with pearls, ornaments, and jewels so I could
spend them for the sake of Allah and give them in charity.”
No doubt, these wishes were very noble, but they were not what was on `Umar’s mind.
So he said again: “Wish for something.”
They said to him: “We do not know what to wish for, O Commander of the Faithful.”
`Umar then said: “I wish it were filled with men like Abû `Ubaydah b. al-Jarrâh, Mu`âdh b. Jabal,
Sâlim the freed slave of Abû Hudhayfah, and Hudhayfah b. al-Yamân!”1
`Umar, therefore, was not concerned about wealth or money that might be spent for the sake of
Allah, but he was concerned with something much more serious: character development. An upright
individual who has true faith in what he believes will be capable of securing wealth and money if
just by virtue of his strength and history has shown us that this is the case.
These are the people that nations rely upon of course, after their total reliance on Allah and if
these people are blessed with patience and fortitude in following their principles and their beliefs,
then their noble deeds will become almost like miracles. It is of utmost

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romePersonality Development in Islam Salmaan ibn Fahd al-'Awdah Article ID: 851 | 1444 Reads PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT IN ISLAM AND ITS EFFECTS ON NATIONS AND CIVILISATIONS To download the PDF version, Right-Click here and select "Save Target As..." INTRODUCTION Praise be to Allah; we praise Him, seek His forgiveness, and turn to Him in repentance. We seek refuge with Him from the evils of our souls and the evils of our deeds. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide, and whomever Allah leads astray, none can guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone without partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. The individual is the basic element from which all principles and beliefs are brought forth, and upon which all nations and civilizations are built. If a nation is successful in developing its people as strong and complete individuals, then, with Allah’s help, it will be able to realize a glorious future for itself. It will also be able to promote and defend its religion and its beliefs. If, on the other hand, a nation fails to develop its individual members, or if its people are deficient in carrying out some of the activities of life, then that nation is doomed to weakness, destruction, and obscurity. In the chapters that follow, we shall attempt, with Allah’s permission, to shed some light on this important topic. Our discussion will be organized under the following headings: Chapter One: The importance of the indi ...
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