Message From the President: Humility, a Prophetic Tradition and Call of Our Times
In his landmark study about successful leadership, Jim Collins, the author of “From Good to Great,” reported that the most successful contemporary leaders possess two unique but paradoxical qualities; a combination of deep personal humility and intense professional will. They are humble but not weak. They are modest, not pretentious, but carry in their hearts a deep and fierce resolve. These leaders attain the highest level of leadership, or what he termed “level 5” of leadership, by attending to people first, giving credit to others routinely, blaming themselves for poor results and relying on inspired standards.
When Luqman the Wise (Al-Hakeem) was giving advice to his son, one of the ten pieces of advice he gave was to be humble and show no arrogance. "And turn not your face away from men with pride." Holy Quran [31:18]
Humility is one of the most universal attributes which transcends time and place. It is the root of all virtues, while the opposite attribute “pride” is the root of all evil. Sadly, in our contemporary lives, it seems humility has been forgotten and replaced by an ugly fascination with arrogance, self promotion and self-worship. Our society rewards self-inflatedness and self-promotion in the media, in the schools and in pop culture yet frowns on humility and modesty.
After the creation of Adam, Satan committed the first sin because of his pride and arrogance. He said to God, “How should I bow to Adam? He does not deserve my respect. He was created from dirt and I was created from fire.”
In order to be humble and refrain from following in the footsteps of evil, we have to understand that we can’t go through life without the grace of our Creator, without the help of our families and without the support of our community. We are as successful as we serve the creation, and in as much as we give due credit for what they do for us. Our successes are not merely the results of our hard work, but the culmination of the efforts of our parents, families and friends, and more importantly, because of the blessings of our Lord, Who gave us the chance to be what we are and to do what we do. The more we serve, the higher we rank in the eyes of our Lord and in the eyes of creation.
Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him), like all prophets in history, was the living example of humility. Even though he was the most accomplished leader in history, according to all fair-minded authorities, he lived a simple life, wore simple clothes, loved the poor and lived among them, helped his wife at home and even playfully raced with her at times of leisure. He consulted with his wife and took her advice in major state matters, joked with children, and listened attentively to the men and women of the community no matter how trivial the issue. He had no thrones, no entourage, no crowns and no castles. He sat on the ground, ate simple foods and slept on the earth. Once he said, “God will elevate anyone who shows humility, but He will destroy anyone who shows arrogance.”
He never in his life showed arrogance or pride, even at the peak of his accomplishments when he entered Mecca after a long struggle. Instead, it was reported that he bowed his head on his camel and offered thanks to the Lord. All prophets were embodiments of this universal virtue. Jesus Christ (peace be upon him), said "I am in the midst of you as he that serveth." Luke 22: 27. His life was a perfect reflection of humility as were the lives of Prophets Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David and Solomon.
In the last eight years, our country was perceived as an arrogant power that not only did not care about the oppressed or the nations in need, but that crushed its foes without mercy, and violated human rights and international norms. Gallup polls found widespread dislike of our country around the world. Respondents overwhelmingly felt that the United States was “ruthless, aggressive, conceited, arrogant, easily provoked and biased.” Arrogance was the hallmark of George Bush’s presidency. He showed arrogance in the way he spoke, the way he dealt with other nations and even in the way he walked. When he declared victory in Iraq during a famous speech aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln warship he said, “We have shown the world the might of the American army.” No wonder he was ranked among the least successful or favored presidents among all American Presidents.
In the Book “Secrets of Tawhid,” Ibn Munawawar said, “Wherever the delusion of your selfhood appears — there's hell. Wherever "you" aren't – that's heaven.” Where we would like to be is our choice.