Emotional wisdom… 12th Juz

Faith in Allah is increased by reading the Quran, praying salah, doing tasbeeh and making dua etc… but there is also another way to increase Allah consciousness and that is to ponder and reflect upon the things that Allah created… it doesn’t need to be something big or extraordinary but even a small insect or a bird can make you think of how great Allah is that He created this small little thing… with complete biological details… and then He doesn’t forget anything… rather the movement of each and every human being, every animal, bird and fish is in His direct knowledge… where they live, what they had for food today… where they spent their time… everything is recorded… and this thought leads you to an increased awareness that surely there is no one greater than Allah… no one can possess such power and knowledge… it is only Allah… the all-knowing and the all-powerful…

And then we must also think about the purpose of the creation of such a vast universe which we cannot encompass with our eyes or our imagination…

All of this is for us… so that we recognize Allah and worship Him wholeheartedly… And it is also the test of our observation and our intellect… do we remain ignorant of all that He created? Or do we just attain knowledge of the created objects to serve our worldly interests? Or do we use this knowledge to connect to the Creator?

But most of us are just concerned with the fulfillment of our needs and desires… it has become the only objective of our life. That is why we get so stressed out when anything bad happens to us…

Sometimes Allah takes away something from us, as a test… but we become so ungrateful that it seems like we have nothing good in our lives anymore… and if we get something good then we give the whole credit to our own abilities… totally ignoring the One who blessed us… boasting and looking down on those who don’t have it…

This is nothing but a reflection of how ignorant we are about the true purpose of life… but this purpose can only be understood by having true faith in Allah. That is why Allah sent Prophets to make people aware of the reality of life… but they didn’t want to change their lifestyles, and so they made fun of the Prophets and called them foolish…

But they didn’t realize that they could not change the reality by making fun of it…

And so they became victims of their own stubbornness and foolishness… when they were simply wiped out from the face of the earth after suffering unimaginable forms of punishment…

This surah is full of these stories one after the other… and I was thinking that what does it have to do with us? If we think about it there is a great lesson for us in all these stories… and that is to make us wake up from our wishful dreams and understand the fact that if we treat the guidance of our Prophet (s.a.w) in the same way like those nations of the past did… then we cannot hope for anything better than what they suffered in the end…

The question is: How much importance are we giving to the teachings of our Prophet (s.a.w)? Do we believe that our success and salvation depends on following His footsteps…?

Next comes Surah Yusuf… and this is the only example where Allah is telling us about the complete story of a Prophet in one continuous form… without repeating any of it in any other part of the Quran…

Allah himself calls it the most beautiful tale… which is awesome in itself!!

The first and foremost lesson to learn from this surah is of emotional intelligence… Prophet Yaqub (a.s.) teaches his youngest son Yusuf not to tell the extraordinary dream he saw… to anyone… specially to his own brothers as they might get jealous…

In this is a great lesson for us that whenever we are overly affected by some emotion like sadness or happiness, we should still not lose control over our senses… and should constantly be alert and conscious of other people’s emotions… so that we can save unnecessary conflicts…

The other thing is that when we get some amazing blessing then we should not be showing off to the whole world just because it makes us happy to let the whole world know what we have got… rather we should be intelligent enough to realize what other people will feel… and if they feel deprived then it’s not going to generate any positive feelings from their end… therefore share your good news with only those about whom you are absolutely sure that they will be happy for you…

The next moment of intense emotions came when the father Yaqub (a.s.) was told by his sons the false news that Yusuf (a.s.) had been killed by a wolf… But He reacted with the most beautiful example of patience… No negative reaction… no angry outburst… no accusations… no blame… This is what the Quran calls Sabrun Jameel… a most beautiful way of keeping your emotions in control… and of course this cannot be possible except for having an absolute trust in Allah that His authority is above every other thing… so nothing can go wrong if Allah doesn’t allow it… and Allah’s decisions are always the best…

The emotion of insecurity came to Yusuf (a.s.) too when he was all alone in the darkness of the well… when he was bought as a slave… But he also remained calm and composed, taking everything as the will of Allah… serving his master in the best way and making it into a positive experience by learning things in that environment… and becoming so mature and wise…

And then came the emotional test of temptation when the lady of the house seduces him… again he remains in control and escapes the temptation with the help of Allah…

The thing is that Allah has guided us too… we know very well how to behave in all these situations… Allah has given us the light of Quran and Hadith… we can see the right way… but still most of us behave like ignorant people… always so full of heated arguments and negative reactions… why? why is there such a lack of wisdom among us… why? The reason is that knowing is not enough…

Just claiming to believe is also not enough…

The ultimate key is to do what we know… to act on what we learn… to show from our reactions that we know what sabrun jameel means… just to memorize its definition is not going to make us wise… maturity comes by following the right way… at the right time…

May Allah make us wise and truly knowledgeable… ameen

 

Re-defining Faith… Juz-11

The beginning of the 11^th Juz is all about the Hypocrites in Madinah who did not accept the call of the Prophet (s.a.w) to join in the Tabuk expedition and were now making excuses to hide their true reason… which was lack of faith…

This has an amazing similarity to the attitude of a vast majority of Muslims today… whenever we are not willing to make any kind of sacrifice, then we hide behind all sorts of excuses… and we just don’t want to accept the fact that our basic reason for not following the will of Allah is that we just don’t think it’s that important…

One more thing that has made me re-think about the definition of faith is that before this Ramadan I used to think that faith means to believe in something… to not have any doubts about it… But when I saw the difference in my attitude towards worship before and during Ramadan, I began to realize that faith doesn’t just mean to believe in Allah and His Messenger (s.a.w) rather it means that you give utmost significance to your beliefs… because you can only act on something which is important to you…

Because even before Ramadan we didn’t have any doubts about Allah or His right to be worshipped… rather we had complete conviction beyond any doubt… yet this conviction was not enough to make us worship like we are all doing in Ramadan… so what is it, that has changed?

It’s the significance of this month that moves our hearts… and also because the barakah of fasting in this month makes it easier for us to conquer ourselves… and the shaitan is chained up… so there are lesser obstacles in the way…

But still the benefits of this month are achieved only by those who believe it to be an important opportunity that cannot be ignored or taken lightly…

We might please people and look good in their eyes by making claims of faith and by saying that the pleasure of Allah is the most important goal of our life… but this claim is tested five times a day when we stand in prayer… how eager we are to run towards Allah… how much importance do we give to it over every other activity… or is it the other way round?

And then there are other times too when we can see our level of faith… and that is when we get hurt by people… when they abandon us or ignore us or mistreat us… in those moments of pain and misery where do we turn to? Who do we think can heal our wounds? Whose comfort do we yearn for? Allah has revealed a most powerful and reassuring dua in the final ayah of surah Taubah:

 فَإِنْ تَوَلَّوْا فَقُلْ حَسْبِيَ اللَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ ۖ وَهُوَ رَبُّ الْعَرْشِ الْعَظِيمِ {129}

Then if the people turn away… then say: Allah is sufficient for me. There is no one worthy of worship except Him. In Him have I put my trust, and He is Lord of the Tremendous Throne.

I used to think how can we attain true faith… So Alhamdulillah this Ramadan Allah has taught me that it can only be achieved my reading, understanding and thinking about Quran… Because the transformation of our hearts requires nothing less than a miracle… and we have a living miracle in our homes, in our hands but we don’t appreciate it as such… and that’s why Allah revealed such a beautiful ayah in surah Yunus which seems like waking us up from our ignorance…

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ قَدْ جَاءَتْكُمْ مَوْعِظَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّكُمْ وَشِفَاءٌ لِمَا فِي الصُّدُورِ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ {57}

O mankind! there hath come to you a direction from your Lord and a healing for the (diseases) in your hearts,- and for those who believe, a guidance and a Mercy.

قُلْ بِفَضْلِ اللَّهِ وَبِرَحْمَتِهِ فَبِذَٰلِكَ فَلْيَفْرَحُوا هُوَ خَيْرٌ مِمَّا يَجْمَعُونَ {58}

Say: In the grace of Allah and in His mercy– in that they should rejoice; it is better than that which they gather.
I love this ayah because it seems to me like a miraculous cure from depression and negative thinking from which there seems to be no other way out…

Therefore we must read Quran with the intention of getting cured… not just for getting rewards…

The story of Prophet Yunus (a.s.) is something that used to captivate me whenever I read about it… but today when I was trying to visualize his horror at being thrown into the sea and then being swallowed by a fish… I understood something that I hadn’t thought of before… I realized that even though being swallowed by a fish would have been such a devastating experience for Prophet Yunus (a.s.)… but if it hadn’t been for the fish, He would have drowned… so sometimes in our lives too Allah makes us get trapped in the belly of a fish in the form of some difficulty which seems so awful… but we should remember that this is saving us from getting drowned in the ocean of a much bigger trouble… so we should keep our faith in the love and mercy of Allah no matter how desperate our situation might be… because Allah has promised to save the believers…

ثُمَّ نُنَجِّي رُسُلَنَا وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ حَقًّا عَلَيْنَا نُنْجِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ {103}

In the end We deliver Our messengers and those who believe: Thus it is a right upon us that We should save those who believe!

Getting rid of sadness… Juz-10

The 10^th Juz starts with the mention of the battle of Badr in which the Muslims came out with a great victory… despite being far less in number and power… Now this was not a planned event on the part of the believers… rather Allah Himself created a situation that they had to come face to face with the enemy…

Sometimes it happens in our life too that we have to come across situations that seem literally impossible to endure… but Allah makes us go through those tests to show us that He can give us victory over the most difficult obstacles…

So whenever you have to deal with things against your choice then have faith in Allah that this test is for your own good even though it does not appear to have any benefit at the moment… but you never know how much Allah is going to bless you through it… so keep your faith and do your best!!

The key to success lies in the 45^th and 46^th ayah of surah al-anfaal in which Allah tells us that when you come across some adversity then remain steadfast and remember Allah a lot so you will become successful…

Remembering Allah is so important because this will keep your focus on your true goal… thus you will remain free from pride and other distractions…

The other thing which Allah emphasized for success is to have unity and brotherhood… the love for your fellow beings is something that cannot be bought even if you pay the entire treasures of the earth… still you cannot have it unless Allah gives it to you from his own bounty… So we should take care of this blessing and be very careful not to spoil the love which Allah put in our hearts for one another…

And then we must also remember that the biggest blessing of all is to love Allah above every other thing… in fact it is so important that it is a condition for true faith… so if we want to be counted as true believers then we must ensure that nothing should come above Allah… He must be our top most priority…

This is the kind of love that brings extraordinary strength and determination in the heart of a believer… real courage cannot be achieved without it…

Just imagine how brave and courageous was our beloved Prophet (s.a.w) When He was migrating to Madinah with His companion Abu Bakr (r.a.) they had taken refuge in a cave… and the enemy came so close that Abu Bakr (r.a.) became anxious… at that time the Prophet (s,a,w) assured Him: “ Do not grieve… Allah is with us!”

Who can say it except the one with the utmost conviction in Allah’s support… and this conviction can only be built with love… and trust…

Form this I learned that just as love of Allah strengthens the heart… similarly sadness and despair makes it weak…

So when we get these negative emotions then we should not let ourselves get drowned in our weakness… so keep this dua in front of you, which was prescribed by the Prophet (s.a.w) himself:

O Allah I seek your protection from worries and sadness, and weakness and laziness, and stinginess and cowardliness, and from debts and the oppression of people…

True faith is expressed by optimism and hope… because if you truly believe that Allah is the owner of everything and that He is your provider then how can any worry touch your heart… therefore sadness and anxiety shows that you need to work on your relationship with Allah… the stronger it gets, the happier you will be…

May Allah help us to become strong believers so that we can cross this test of life with enthusiasm and hope… ameen

 

Messages of Hope…from Juz-9

This Ramadan,  I have realized that if Allah can make me survive without water in these long summer days; then He can give me energy to give up my bad habits too… if only I can make the same kind of commitment to Him the way I do in fasting… This makes me so excited when I think of the endless possibilities of detoxifying my heart and my life from all the things which otherwise seemed so impossible to overcome…

The journey through the 9^th Juz of Quran was so awesome… as it made me aware of a lot of flaws which creep into our hearts but we assume like we don’t have them… one of them is pride…

Analyze yourself…e.g. watch your reaction when someone points out some fault of yours… or when other people are being given importance… especially whom you don’t approve of… are you able to accept both these situations calmly? Or does it raise your temperature?

If the signs are not good then pray to Allah for genuine humbleness for yourself and open heartedness for others…

The other thing I learned was about Sabr… it was the story of the group of magicians who accepted Islam after witnessing the miracles given to Prophet Musa (a.s.)…

It was a time of great trial for them as the Pharaoh threatened to kill them for changing their beliefs… so at that point they made this dua:

Rabbana afrigh Alaina sabran wa tawaffana muslimin…

Our Master pour Sabr over us and let us die as muslims

This was a great lesson that sabr is not just to control your emotions after you are afflicted with some calamity… rather it is also an energy that gives you strength when you are in terrible fear of something that’s going to hit you… so we should ask Allah for sabr whenever we feel threatened…

Another thing is that even though we should always ask Allah for safety and protection against all harmful things… but we should also remember that this life is a test and so Allah will make us go through tough situations so that we might become better and stronger… therefore when there is some difficulty in life then remind yourself that it is a test from Allah and He wants good for you… so don’t waste this time in blaming others… rather we should analyze and correct our own flaws… Because the best lessons we learn are not through books and lectures… but they are learnt through the painful experiences of life…

But there are some people who don’t learn anything because their focus remains on other people’s mistakes… they will keep blaming this and that and so their hearts remain untouched and unaware… Allah calls such people as animals or even worse than animals… because if we don’t use our intellect then we will lose the very asset that elevates our status above other creatures… and if we don’t think and pursue our purpose of existence then our lives will be nothing but a cycle of eating, drinking and sleeping…

The biggest harm in following a lifestyle based on the fulfillment of desires, is that it makes us selfish… and dissatisfied… such a person cannot have healthy relationships… and thus cannot find happiness and tranquility…

Sometimes it can also happen that you are doing your part with hundred percent sincerity but still other people don’t appreciate you… Or you call them towards the path of success… the path of Allah’s obedience… but they reject you… ignore you… or even start hating you…

For such painful times Allah has given us a most precious at the end… with which we can attain reassurance and satisfaction…

وَإِنْ تَوَلَّوْا فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ مَوْلَاكُمْ ۚ نِعْمَ الْمَوْلَىٰ وَنِعْمَ النَّصِيرُ

And If they turn away, be sure that Allah is your Protecting Friend – the best to protect and the best to help.(8:40)

Some thoughts from… day-8

Today I learned something most profound, that fasting is of three types…

• The common fast

• The special fast; and

• The Ultra special fast

The common fast is to stay away from food, drink and intimacy… this is observed by the majority of people..

The special fast is to stop your whole being from doing sins…or other useless activities… this is accomplished by few people…

And the Ultra special  fast is to stop the mind from thinking negative or useless thoughts…like envy or hatred … or making false assumptions about others etc… this is the most rare form of fasting in which a person avoids thinking of anything that distracts him from remembering Allah…

It was such an eye opener for me to realize how important it is for us to keep this third type of fast…because the purpose of fasting, as defined by Allah Himself, is to attain taqwa…and since taqwa resides in the heart, therefore how important it is for us to clean and purify our hearts…

No wonder we go through the entire Ramadan, year after year… we fast and we pray and read Quran but our characters remain untouched…as soon as the blessed month is over we are back to our worldly life… as if the whole exercise that we went through was nothing but a dream…

It happens like this, because our fasting is only restricted to staying hungry and thirsty… and we never clean up our hearts…

Whereas the reality is that the hearts have to be cleansed because this is where we will sow the seeds of good thoughts and ideas that we daily learn from the Quran… and then these seeds of ideas will come out as the plants of good actions…

Imagine if every individual is going through this process of self-purification and self-development then what a revolution it will create in the whole society…we will then become the people of Quran… the representatives of Allah’s deen to the whole world… through our character and behavior…

Therefore this Ramadan we should sincerely make an intention to achieve a heart that is free from distractions and harmful thoughts… so that we can get full benefit from the guidance of Quran.

To achieve this objective we need to immerse ourselves in the company of righteous people… because if we keep following the trends of the majority then they will lead us away from success…because their lives are being motivated by assumptions and temptations… and not by any true knowledge…

The difference between ignorance and guidance is like life and death… light and darkness…

Allah has revealed a most beautiful ayah:

[6:122] Is he who was dead then We raised him to life and made for him a light by which he walks among the people, like him whose likeness is that of one in utter darkness whence he cannot come forth?

The question is that if this difference is so clear then why do most people prefer to remain in the dark? Don’t they want to have life and light? The reason is that the devil has created an illusion of glamour and attraction in sins… and so the people who reject the true guidance think that they are enjoying life… they can do what they want… but this is just their self-deception… because this glitter and show of freedom is just a disguise behind which they hide their loneliness and despair… and that is why they constantly want to remain immersed in one form of entertainment or the other, because they do not want to face the reality of their purposeless existence…

Most of the time it is the pride inside the heart that makes a person so stubborn in not accepting the truth… just like the devil who was so full of himself that he refused to bow down in front of Adam (a.s.)

All his years of worship were burnt up in that one act of arrogance and disobedience… so we must never be proud of our achievements because this pride is like a fire that burns all goodness…

One of the most vivid signs of pride is that a person will want to show his good deeds to others… and his talk will be mostly about his own achievements…

Therefore we must be very careful on these two points… force yourself to keep your worship and other good deeds a secret between you and Allah… and keep a check on how you talk… choose topics that don’t begin with “I-me-myself”…

Learn to appreciate others and always think that maybe Allah loves them more because of something that only He knows about them… So be humble and ask Allah for His guidance…

We can never be totally free from sins… the most we can do is to keep trying and keep praying… This is the way of becoming a mohsin… cry over your mistakes… seek forgiveness… do taubah and move on…

May Allah accept our struggles in His path… ameen

Feel the true happiness… Juz-7

Allah has made Quran easy to understand but most people think that it is too hard… they say we try to learn it but it’s so tough… the reason is that it becomes easy according to the importance you give it in your life… If you think that you don’t really need any relationship with Allah’s book but just read it in order to fulfil a duty… then your heart doesn’t open up to it and so you remain distant from its meanings… but when you decide that your whole life depends on having a deep bond with Allah through His Noble Quran… when you feel like nothing can fill the emptiness of your heart except the words of Allah… when you crave for it like a thirsty person craves for water in a desert… then you will ensure that you maintain a constant relationship with it… and this constancy of returning to the word of Allah again and again will make its meanings apparent to you… so the key words are sincerity of purpose and being constant…

The other thing to understand is that the heart keeps craving for one thing or the other… just like the body needs food, similarly the heart needs to feel happiness and satisfaction… if we don’t provide it with the good and pure words of Allah, then it will seek it elsewhere… that is how people become addicted to harmful things… sometimes even getting involved in intoxicating stuff like alcohol or drugs… we should be very clear on this that all such addictions are strictly forbidden…

On the same note we see that nowadays people will remain free from these notorious things but they are addicted to other things like internet and smart phones… we should be aware that if we keep filling our hearts and minds with useless entertainment then naturally we cannot expect to find peace in salah or recitation of Quran… just like people who get hooked with junk foods cannot enjoy good and pure food…

So if we have understood the value of Quran then we need to detox our souls from the harmful addictions and stay away from them… only then the heart will get a chance to taste the sweetness of Allah’s remembrance…

Such a person who can sacrifice temporary pleasures to gain the closeness of Allah is truly a “mohsin”… I was thinking that since being a “mohsin” is my goal this Ramadan… then I should first understand what a mohsin is… this is the title for someone who goes out of his way to beautify and excel in everything that he does… whether it is salah… or being helpful and kind to others… and it begins with doing a favour on your own self and stay away from things that bring you nothing but weakness of imaan… because if you cannot do ehsaan on your own self then how can you be a mohsin for others?

To gain self-control is probably the most difficult thing in this world but look at yourself and see how you control yourself in Ramadan from such basic needs as eating and drinking? How do you accomplish this?

This is only possible because you made a promise to Allah that you will fast the whole day and so Allah helps you to complete your fast… and He makes you so very conscious about it that even when you put water in your mouth for wuzu, you spit out every drop of it even though no one is looking… but you become so aware that Allah is looking…

You knew this fact before Ramadan too… but you didn’t care enough to stop from things that Allah has clearly forbidden us…

This means that keeping a fast gives you an increased awareness of Allah and so you will not do anything that might break your fast… this is the meaning of having Taqwa which is the very essence of fasting…

So if you really want to break away from your addiction to sins and other useless stuff… then all you need to do is to make a promise to Allah… and if your intention is sincere then Allah will make your heart conscious against those things… and you will use the time and energy in beneficial things that raise your level of imaan and good deeds…

Thus your all time struggle will not be to run after personal pleasures… rather it will only be in one direction… how to make Allah happy…

Just having this intention and making sincere efforts towards it gives you a gift beyond your expectations… and that is the gift of happiness… especially from Allah…!!!

Otherwise if we prefer to remain entangled in the affairs of this worldly life at the cost of forgetting our life in the hereafter then we should remember that the pleasures of this world are nothing but an illusion… nothing can satisfy us except Allah’s remembrance because He created this need within us… and just like the need of thirst can be quenched only with water… and no amount of precious objects can be an alternative for water… similarly there can be no alternative for the love and mercy of Allah…

May Allah help us to realize it and act upon it… ameen

 

Timeless Lessons… Juz-6

Today I couldn’t listen to the class of dawra-e-Quran so I just opened the Quran and read this portion to find some of the lessons that Allah wants me to learn…

The first thing which struck me as very important is the very first ayah of this surah… 

Allah does not love the public utterance of negative speech unless (it be) by one to whom injustice has been done; and Allah is Hearing, Knowing.

This includes all sorts of criticism and negative comments that we keep uttering… and we think this is so normal… but we never stop to think that Allah dislikes all such hurtful talk… so one of our goals for Ramadan should be to correct the way we talk… either it should be positive and beneficial… or we should remain quiet…

This will be a good way to detox our environment from harmful rays of negative emotions which cause anxiety and depression…

However there is only one exception and that is of a person who has been wronged… such a person against whom any injustice has been done, can express his feelings but they should also be done in front of someone who can help him solve his problem… just broadcasting your hurts in public to gain sympathy is also very counterproductive…

Next I found an ayah in which Allah is telling us that some of the good and beneficial things were also made haram for the bani Israel , which were originally allowed but later became forbidden…because of the following reasons…(4:160,161)

• they used to do injustice

• stopping people from the way of Allah

• taking interest (ribaa)

• consuming other peoples’ wealth illegally

I was thinking that how ironic it is that these same sins have become so widespread among the muslims… but even though Allah hasn’t sent any command to make certain things haram for us… but look at how many diseases have disrupted our lives …and so we have been deprived of the good things like wheat, milk, eggs, nuts and other foods due to several dietary restrictions…

So much research is done to find out the cause of these allergies and other diseases… but have we pondered over the fact that some of our sins may be the reason for it?

Another great lesson which I learnt in ayah no-171 of the same surah is that we should not exceed the limits of our religion… and stop exaggeration in our speech and actions… because Allah has not allowed us to say anything about Him and His deen which is not true…

Exaggeration is a kind of lie because you increase the value of something far beyond the limit which Allah has set for it…

The cure for this attitude is in gaining the true knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah… and stop saying things out of our own imagination… Allah says:

 O people! surely there has come to you manifest proof from your Lord and We have sent to you clear light.
Then as for those who believe in Allah and hold fast by Him, He will cause them to enter into His mercy and grace and guide them to Himself on a right path. (4:174,175)

Next comes Surah Al-Maaidah…

Allah starts it by reminding us that we should always fulfill our promises… whether these were made to people or to Allah… never take it lightly!

And then we should always support others in righteous and beneficial things… but we should never become a part of things which are sinful and unjust…

This surah contains the beautiful ayah which speaks volumes about the completeness and perfection of Allah’s Book and His deen…

 This day have I perfected for you your religion and completed My favor on you and chosen for you Islam as a religion; (5:3)

Something that is perfect and complete doesn’t need additions…

That is why if someone invents something new in the religion then it is strongly condemned because it becomes a negation of this ayah…

One of the miracles of Quran is that it is such a compact book yet it contains so many repetitions to clarify things for us and also contains detailed instructions too… like the process of wuzu has been explained in this surah… and not only the physical steps but also the purpose has been mentioned… that it is not to put any burden on us but something to purify and refresh us so that we can enjoy the meeting with Allah is salah…

I was thinking that if we are meeting someone important and we didn’t get time to clean up and dress up then most of the pleasure gets spoiled… similarly to be really fresh and clean creates a big impact on how you feel in prayer… so Allah calls it a favor upon us that he made wuzu an obligation so that we would never be deprived of its pleasure…

I was thinking that if we could remember this then how gladly we would go to perform wuzu instead of being burdened by it…

In Ayah 14 Allah says that the people who called themselves “nasaraa” i.e. the Christians forgot much of what was revealed to them and so as a result they became divided into sects and there emitted hatred and enmity among one another…

This is an eye-opener for us that if we also don’t remember all that Allah has revealed to us in the Quran then it will only result in division and enmity and hatred…

On the contrary those who make it their goal to please Allah and they put their egos aside… then only these will be guided to the ways of peace and success…

There hath come to you from Allah a (new) light and a perspicuous Book, With it Allah guides him who will follow His pleasure into the ways of safety and brings them out of utter darkness into light by His will and guides them to the right path. (5:16)

Then I came upon an ayah which really scares me… and it means that if we don’t care for our religion then Allah will replace us with other people who will do all that makes Allah happy… what scares me is that we are becoming more and more devoid of these qualities…

• they will love Allah

• they will be worthy of Allah’s love

• kind and softly humble with the believers

• firm and straightforward with those who reject the true faith

• doing utmost struggle in the path of Allah

• not being offended and weakened by the negative comments of critics…

So if we want to remain in Allah’s favours then each and every one of us must evaluate… how many of these points do I have in myself?

Sometimes the reality of our situation makes us sad and we feel like there is no hope for us… But Allah is ever merciful for us so he says:

 Why don’t they turn to Allah, and seek His forgiveness? For Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.(5:74)

So our solution is in seeking Allah’s forgiveness… And this includes being truly aware of our faults and then making all efforts to correct our ways…

May Allah forgive us and shower his endless mercy upon us… ameen.