I worship You

O Allah! If I worship You for fear of Hell, 

burn me in Hell, 

and if I worship You in hope of Paradise, 

exclude me from Paradise. 

But if I worship You for Your Own sake, 

grudge me not Your everlasting Beauty.

  

Ya Allah, jika aku menyembahMu karena takut neraka, 

bakarlah aku di dalamnya, 

dan jika aku menyembahMu karena mengharap surga, 

campakkanlah aku darinya. 

Tetapi, jika aku menyembahMu demi Engkau semata, 

Janganlah Engkau enggan memperlihatkan keindahan wajahMu Yang abadi padaku.”

If I adore You out of fear of Hell, burn me in Hell!

If I adore you out of desire for Paradise,

Lock me out of Paradise.

But if I adore you for Yourself alone,

Do not deny to me Your eternal beauty.

"Everyone prays to You from fear of the Fire;

And if You do not put them in the Fire,

This is their reward.

Or they pray to You for the Garden,

Full of fruits and flowers.

And that is their prize.

But I do not pray to You like this,

For I am not afraid of the Fire,

And I do not ask You for the Garden.

But all I want is the Essence of Your Love,

And to return to be One with You,

And to become Your Face."

"I have made You the Companion of my heart.

But my body is available to those who desire its company,

And my body is friendly toward its guest,

But the Beloved of my heart is the guest of my soul."

Quote:  ― Rābiʻah al-ʻAdawīyah

Rabiah al-Adawiyah introduced the actual concept of Divine Love to introduce the idea that God should be loved for God's own sake, not out of fear.

Repentance for her was a gift from God because no one could repent unless God had already accepted him and given him this gift of repentance. 

Sinners must fear the punishment they deserved for their sins, but she also offered such sinners far more hope of Paradise than most other ascetics did. 

She taught worshipping God neither from fear of Hell nor from hope of Paradise

Rabia was in her early to mid eighties when she died, having followed the mystic Way to the end. She believed she was continually united with her Beloved. As she told her Sufi friends, "My Beloved is always with me" She died in Jerusalem in 185 AH. 

Syafuan Gani

Doha, Qatar