DO NOT LET your heart become attached to the dunya.
وَمَا ٱلْحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنْيَآ إِلَّا مَتَـٰعُ ٱلْغُرُورِ
“And what is the worldly life except the enjoyment of delusion.” (al-Hadid 20)
This verse, “Wa mal-ḥayātud-dunyā illā matā‘ul-ghurūr,” contains two profound words that invite deep reflection.
The first is dunyā. We often translate it as “worldly life,” yet in the Arabic language it carries a deeper, more sobering meaning. Dunyā refers to something low, inferior, and beneath one’s true dignity—something akin to a gutter or a sewer. Allah, in His perfect wisdom, reminds us through this imagery that the worldly life is base and fleeting. Just as one would rush to lift themselves out of a gutter, so should the believer strive to rise above the lowness of the dunya, seeking instead the higher, purer realms of nearness to Allah.
The second word is matā‘. It signifies a tool, an object used to fulfil a purpose, never the purpose itself. Imagine giving a poor man a set of tools, intending for him to use them to build a home. Years later, you return only to find that he has built nothing. Instead, he has fallen in love with the tools: polishing them, admiring them, treating them as his treasure. How would such a person be viewed? Surely as one who has forgotten the greater purpose, lost in admiration for what was meant to serve him, not captivate him.
This is the condition of the human being when he becomes attached to the dunya. The dunya is merely a tool—an opportunity, a bridge, a means, to reach our true home: Jannah. It was never meant to be the destination, never meant to settle in our hearts.
When the dunya becomes our ultimate pursuit, when it occupies our love and longing, we resemble the man who clings to his tools while neglecting the home he was meant to build.
So let us guard our hearts. Let us use the dunya as it was intended, briefly, wisely, and purposefully, while keeping our gaze and heart fixed on the eternal abode where true joy resides.
Living For Islam 