The Makkan Period, Part 1: Why We Study the Sīrah
Section 7 of 15 · The Life of the Prophet Muhammad: The Makkan Period
Dearer Than Everything Else
قُلْ إِن كَانَ ءَابَآؤُكُمْ وَأَبْنَآؤُكُمْ وَإِخْوَٰنُكُمْ وَأَزْوَٰجُكُمْ وَعَشِيرَتُكُمْ وَأَمْوَٰلٌ ٱقْتَرَفْتُمُوهَا وَتِجَـٰرَةٌ تَخْشَوْنَ كَسَادَهَا وَمَسَـٰكِنُ تَرْضَوْنَهَآ أَحَبَّ إِلَيْكُم مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ وَجِهَادٍ فِى سَبِيلِهِۦ فَتَرَبَّصُوا۟ حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِىَ ٱللَّهُ بِأَمْرِهِۦ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِى ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلْفَـٰسِقِينَ
“Say, “If your fathers and your sons and your brothers and your spouses and your clan and the wealth you have earned and the trade you apprehend will recede and the homes you like are dearer to you than Allah and His Messenger and Jihād in His way, then, wait until Allah comes with His command. Allah does not lead the sinning people to the right path.”” (9:24)
Allah (swt) says: say, if it be that your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your mates, or your kindred, the wealth that you have gained, the commerce in which you fear a decline, or the dwellings in which you delight, are dearer to you than Allah or His Messenger or striving in His cause, then wait until Allah brings about His decision — and Allah guides not the rebellious. This is stating that our love for Allah and His Messenger, and striving in the cause of Allah, should be paramount to everything else: our fathers, our sons, our brothers, our mates, our kindred, our wealth — everything. Allah, His Messenger and Islam should be the dearest thing to every one of us.
The third reason: why is sīrah studied? To follow the way of Muhammad (peace be upon him). Ibn Ḥazm says, "Whoever seeks the preeminence of the Hereafter, the wisdom of this life, the just purpose, and the embodiment of morality and character, let him follow Muhammad, the Prophet of Allah." So Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the embodiment of khuluq, the perfect character, and by studying his sīrah, his way can be followed more closely.