In most if not all cultures its said that your behaviour and character will take to the company of people you hang out with. With this in mind, we should surround ourselves with positive, pious & well grounded individuals. This piece from An Noor
A short while with the friends of Allah
Hazrat Maulana Abrar ul Haq Sahib (RA)
Hazrat said:
“Continue benefiting from the company of the pious; friends of Allah; the Ahlullah and Saleheen. Nowadays there is a widespread misunderstanding in regards to the company of pious people. We have the notion that short visitations and just meeting them is not so beneficial. People think that gaining spiritual benefits from the Ahlullah are restricted to attending their long lectures and formal gatherings. Whereas the reality of the matter is that even simply meeting them is spiritually beneficial and uplifting. The reflection of the light in the hearts of the Ahlullah manifests itself upon those who are present around them.
Those people who have spiritual perception can sense this benefit, not only in meeting the people of Allah, but they experience benefit even in a single glance of the Ahlullah. Take a physical example to understand this point. If a person does not feel the heat or cold of another’s hand at the time of shaking hands, then we say that this person’s hand has become paralyzed. We benefit from electricity through the light that emanates from a light bulb and the cool air given off by the fan even though they utter no words. We benefit from the beautiful fragrance of the flower even though it does not speak. Likewise, the company of the righteous servants of Allah is beneficial even if they may not speak and give long lectures and advices.
One person who had a temper problem came to Hazrat Thanwi (RA) and complained of his condition. Hazrat Thanwi (RA) replied to him that he should daily sit for a while in the company of Mawlana Muhammad Hasan Sahib. So this person did as prescribed and would sit in Mawlana Muhammad Hasan’s shop for a short while every day. After some time he wrote back to Hazrat Thanwi that his temper problem had dramatically decreased from what it used to be.
So what was the mystery behind this? It was the fact that Mawlana Muhammad Hasan Sahib was an incredibly patient and forbearing person in disposition and the reflection of this inner quality manifested itself upon that man. Slowly, slowly the condition of his heart began to change due to this accompaniment. Mawlana Sahib did not give any lengthy talks regarding patience and forbearance. From this we clearly see that accompaniment of the righteous servants of Allah is beneficial even without the lectures and talks. For this reason there should definitely be visitations and meetings with the Ahlullah even if it might for a short while.
(Majalis-e-Abrar; 433)
