People ask me, What is the purpose of life?
And I respond, In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were not made to last forever, and Allah wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body-- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This life is a warm-up act - a dress rehearsal. Allah wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity...We were made by Allah and for Allah, and until we figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either we are in one now, we're just coming out of one, or we're getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that Allah is more interested in your character than our comfort; Allah is more interested in making our life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my teacher, traveling away and I, starting university.
I used to think that life was hills and valleys - we go through a dark time, then we go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times we have something good and something bad in our life. No matter how good things are in our life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in our life, there is always something good we can thank Allah for.
We can focus on our purposes, or we can focus on our problems: If we focus on our problems, we're going into self-centeredness, which is my problem, my issues, my pain. But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get our focus off ourselves and onto Allah and others.
Sometimes, despite hundreds of prayers and pleas, Allah does not give us an easy solution. Difficulties remain complicated and grueling but through them, Allah strengthens our character, gives us the opportunity to repent our our past sins, redeem ourselves, draw close to Him and help people.
We have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. How to be genuinely grateful for Allah's gift of life? time? health? family? and knowledge?
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity? Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by Allah's purposes ? When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, Allah, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better. Allah didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a list. He's more interested in what I am! That's why we're called human beings, not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE ALLAH!!
Difficult moments, SEEK ALLAH!!
Quiet moments, WORSHIP ALLAH!!
Painful moments, TRUST ALLAH!!
Every moment, THANK ALLAH!!!
Source: Rick Warren
سورة الفاتحة is our mission statement in life. It deals with the essence of ourselves as human beings and with our identity as Muslim.
ReplyDeleteالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ - All praise and thanks are due to Allah, the Lord of the universe.
We love Allah because He is perfect. In His creation of the universe, in His sustaining and providing for His creation and planning the course of life and protecting life, Allah is Absolute, Competent,Faultless, Precise, Accurate, and Capable.
الرَّحْمَـٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ - The Most Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
Despite possessing magnificent and matchless might and power, Allah is excessively Magnanimous and Compassionate. He is the Loving, the Forgiving, The Forbearing with all His Creation.
مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ - Owner of the Day of Recompense
Allah gently reminds us of the Day of Judgment. He warns us kindly of our reckoning so we take full responsibility of our actions, refine our manners and dealings with others.
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ - You alone we worship and from You alone we seek help.
The realization of Allan's Grandeur and Greatness, Hereafter and meeting with Allah develops a will to worship Allah in this life, to seek Allah's pleasure and approval.
This intention and drive to become a better person needs direction and guidance from Allah.
اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ - Guide us to the straight path
صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا الضَّالِّينَ - path of those whom you blessed and not those who earned your anger and those who are astray.
Allah blessed the Prophets (a.s), the righteous, the truthful and the truthful. Our goal in life is to be like them and steer clear of everything that displeases Allah or deviates us from attaining His pleasure.
Abu Qilabah was an Arab man who lost all his limbs (hands and feet) except his tongue, his daughter and his son all in one day. When he was informed of the final calamity (his son eaten by a wild animal - they lived in a desert), he said, "O Allah, I cannot find the words to thank you enough."
ReplyDeleteAny other person in his position would commit suicide or at the least, slip into a comatose depressive state. Yet this man is emotionally intact. His mental health is not damaged. Why?
We get a paper cut and we cry wolf for forty days and this completely ruined and crippled man does not even utter a word of despair. How come?
Because this man defined himself around Allah and so he was able to retain his composure. His identity and essence of being was Allah not his children or his wealth, and not even his physical body. So when his children died and his his limbs were slit, his sense of self, his purpose of being, his morale and identity were not wounded. He was unaffected by the loss.
Its psycho isn't it? But its true and it is possible. Remember the woman at the time of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) who was informed that her father, brother, son and husband (entire family) was martyred at the battle of Uhud? When she saw Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) alive, what did she say? The good news of his well-being supersedes every sorrow and grief.
Call to mind what the companions (r.a) would say to the Prophet (s.a.w), "May my mother and father be sacrificed for you." The extent of their love was so swell that they the renouncing of their own parents seemed pale in comparison.
Some people love their jobs to this length. They'll work themselves to death. Some are obsessed over their grades, others, addicted to fame or games or some other charades. But what does money do to people? Ph.D, celebrity status, drugs and DVDs? These things come and go, put on a temporary show. Blind us, intellectually bind us and go. In worshiping Allah are people truly free. Do sajda to Allah in the hours of night until morning wee. You'll get comfort, support and glee. (lol This is my little rap, don't mind).
وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُم بِشَيْءٍ مِّنَ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِّنَ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَنفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَاتِ وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ [Qur'an, 2:155] Life is entirely about a series of ordeals. In life, we'll be frightened and distraught, hungry, intimidated, desperate, low-incomed and so on. This is promised by Allah. So the purpose of life is to suffer? No! It's to be patient. And patience is composure of the heart.
ReplyDeleteإِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ is our identity. We are originated by Allah and we shall return to Allah. Our entire state of existence revolves around the worship of Allah.
Its like when a child is watching TV, he is so engaged in the cartoon, so emersed in the characters that he hears nothing that is happening around him in the real world. He doesn't see anything but the TV, as if nothing else but the TV exists for him. This is the type of concentration we need in our worship of Allah. A total, arrant focus on Allah and a fervent disregard to everything else.
Not that we should become hermits but the gain and loss of material things should not bother us, should not make or break our self-esteem. We shouldn't measure ourselves, our happiness and purpose in life with physical things. Use the world to do good and reap its reward in the Hereafter and not make and enjoy the world as if it was Heaven itself with no afterlife in mind.
When Kazaan declared an attack on Syria, all it inhabitants, including its governor fled to Egypt. Imam ibn Taimia mustered the courage to lead a group of Mu'tazillah scholars (who were the majority in Syria) to pay Kazaan a visit. At first, the Mu'tazillah scholars refused because (1) they were petrified of Kazaan, he was similar to Pharaoh in his cruelty and oppression and (2) the Mu'tazillah hated Ibn Taimia because he was the only voice of Tahweed that outsmarted all their arguments of shirks and bid'aa.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, so they enter Kazaan's entourage. Kazaan commanded the scholars to take a seat but Ibn Taimia refused to comply. He took a stand and reprimanded Kazaan like a father scolds his little son, forcefully and strictly. The scholars slowly moved to the back of the room in fear of Kazaan's ferocious response.
Much to their surprise, Kazaan was baffled by Ibn Taimia's courage and honesty. He requested that Ibn Taimia sit with him but he refused. He presented Ibn Taimia and his companions with food but he also denied the offer. He said to Kazaan that the meat (food) belonged to the Muslims and he stole it. That he was tyrannical and sinful and that he should leave the Muslims and go back to where he came from.
Awe-struck by ibn Taimia, Kazaan agreed to all of his demands and repaired Syria for all the damages his army incurred with his own money and vacated Syria.
The Mutazillah scholars were amazed by the sincerity and taqwa they witnessed from Ibn Taimia. They said they thought he was crazy to risk all their lives like that and went on their way. As they journeyed home, bandits robbed them, even took their clothes and they had to walk home naked. While the bandits left ibn Taimia unharmed. They respected and feared him because he was a man of Allah.
Ibn Taimia is an example of a man active in his belief in Allah, emersed in his faith in Allah to a point that it took hold of his life, it defined and dictated him.