jannahbound*
"So lose not heart, nor fall into despair: and you shall have the upper hand if you are believers." --
Quran (3:139)
"Life is only a crossing point and a passage that is not lasting,
just like a cloud that will soon move, and a dream that one will soon wake up from..."
- Ibn al-Qayyim
Friday, February 22, 2008 @ 9:41 AM
Every soul...
Assalamualaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
Insha'Allah you're all in the best state of Iman and Ihsan, and by the Mercy of the Almighty you are enjoying the Blessings He has bestowed on us all. I was thinking about the imminence of death, every soul will taste death; and I wrote the following:
Imagine this:
He's on his way home, it's hours past midnight and it's dark out. The events of the evening are running through his head as he makes his way down the quiet street. He comes to the corner where he usually crosses, with the stop sign that is near invisible to drivers making the bend. As he steps out onto the street, he smiles to himself recalling the evening, lost in his thoughts, with his headphones in his ears. Just then, he hears a car screech and turns just in time to see the whites of the drivers eyes as he tries to break but can't. Next thing he knows metal body meets his and he is sent flying through the air. He's sprawled on the pavement 5 meters away, breathing his last breaths, the words of the panicking driver mean nothing to him as his vision fades and he struggles to say the words....
Scenario 1: He had just finished exams that day along with his other friends. Midterms could be a drag and as it was he hadn't had much time to relax and enjoy. After all, university is the best time of your life, isn't it? He deserved a reward, he knew it.
"I'm going out ma!" he called into the kitchen as he put on his jacket. "Whereto Yasin?" his mother asked wiping her hands on her apron. "Out, friends. Ammar's going too." he said pulling on his shoes. "I'll be back later." His mother frowned slightly, "At this time of night?... Yasin your brother needs help with math, you know how he gets..." she started. "When I come back. Bye Ma" he said and slammed the door as he left. "Yasin!..... Salam," his mother whispered as she shook her head and returned to the kitchen.
As Yasin walked home, he thought of the amazing night he had spent hitting some of downtown's hottest night spots. His mother didn't know, but what she didn't know couldn't hurt her, right? And besides, a lot of his friends had drank, he didn't. And he didn't dance, just listened to the music. Yeah.
....
Now as he lays on the cold pavement, he struggles to say the words he knows he must, but cannot, as sharp regret pierces his inner being, the music on his mp3 player looping in his ears...
Scenario 2: He had just finished exams, and he was so tired of poring over his biochemistry and psychology textbooks, but the moment he left the exam hall he felt like a free man once again.
He felt a pang. He had spent so much time studying that he had neglected his best friend. The last time he had seen his friend was weeks ago. As he began to leave campus, he came accross his two friends Anwar and Muzammil.
"Salam 'alaikum" he said to his two friends. "wa 'Alaikum Assalam. Hey Zaid, we were just talking, and a bunch of brothers are getting together at Yusuf's apartment, you in?" Anwar asked. He smiled, "Of course I'm in, see you tonight then insha'Allah."
He smiled as he made his way home. He felt elated, his soul nourished. The hours they had spent praying Qiyam, reciting Quran and discussing the trials of the dunya at Yusuf's apartment had left him feeling whole, complete again. The tears they had shed that night, in contemplation of their Lord, seemed to have softened his heart and the Quran he listened to now filled his heart with contentment.
....
Now as he lays on the pavement, head throbbing, struggling to breathe, the Quran continues to play in his ears, his friend in this life, he loved it so dearly. And the cherished words he knew, lived, breathed and acted upon came easily from his lips.
"Undoubtedly, with Allah is the knowledge of the Hour, and He sends down rain and knows what is in the wombs of the mothers and no soul knows what it will earn tomorrow and no soul knows in what land it will die. Undoubtedly, Allah is the Knower, All Aware." (surah Luqman, ayah 34)
Brothers and sisters, let us seek forgiveness from Our Lord and live every moment as if it is our last; for indeed, no soul knows which moment will be its last.
A wealthy man requested an old scholar to wean his son away from his bad habits.
The scholar took the youth for a stroll through a garden. Stopping suddenly he asked the boy to pull out a tiny plant growing there. The youth held the plant between his thumb and forefinger and pulled it out. The old man then asked him to pull out a slightly bigger plant. The youth pulled hard and the plant came out, roots and all.
“Now pull out that one,” said the old man pointing to a bush. The boy had to use all his strength to pull it out.
“Now take this one out,” said the old man, indicating a guava tree. The youth grasped the trunk and tried to pull it out. But it would not budge.
“I – It’s impossible,” said the boy, panting with the effort.
“So it is with bad habits,” said the sage. “When they are young it is easy to pull them out but when they take hold they cannot be uprooted.”
The session with the old man changed the boy’s life.
I am nothing more than a muslimah and mu'minah, insha'Allah, who is striving to please Allah
SWT.
A righteous man once said:
"Whoever enriches his outward behaviour by following the sunnah, and makes his inward soul wealthy through
contemplation,
and averts his gaze away from looking at what is forbidden, and avoids anything of a doubtful nature, and feeds
solely on what is halal- his inner sight will never falter."