Loftier Goals in Life

Commenting on 2:201 of the Quran which states:

Our Lord! Give us the good of this world and the good of the hereafter…

Al-Hasan Al-Basrî – Allah have mercy on him – said:

The good of this world is knowledge and worship, and the good of the hereafter is Paradise.

Al-Âjurrî in Akhlâq Al-’Ulamâ’ no. 30 and Ibn Jarîr in his Tafsîr of this verse.

Scholars of tafsîr like Ibn Jarîr and Ibn Kathîr point out that ‘the good of this world’ is general and includes all those things which have been allowed for us to enjoy and which are considered useful by people for day-to-day living. And they point out that above this; the good of this world includes those things which will lead to success in the hereafter. This narration reminds us of these loftier things we should ask Allah for, and that the good of this life embraces what is required or recommended for a worshipper of Allah to acquire on this Earth, like knowledge of his religion and good deeds.

More:

1. Knowledge transforms the student
2. Food for Thought, not for Stomachs
3. Knowledge on the Mind
4. Ignorance and the Sword
5. Responsibility in Knowledge and Da’wah
6. Talk is Easy
7. Two Requirements for Knowledge