Musings of a Servant of Allah
Verily in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest. (13:28)On Jordan
SubhanAllah. I don’t ever want to leave Kharabsheh. What a blessed neighbourhood! I live directly opposite the zawiya and am therefore neighbours with Sheikh Nuh, and I have never, ever been happier in life. Even the dust on my shoes has barakah (blessings), because this is the land upon which Prophets walked, and that in itself is healing.
The peace in this place is impossible to put into words. Every day, we wake up to the adhan for tahajjud. I never thought I’d ever be this blessed. Alhamdulilah. My days are filled with studying Arabic, Shafi’i fiqh, Hadith, Seerah….going to zawiya for Hizb Al-Bahr and Latifiyyas, visiting Um Sahl for her women’s lessons…subhanAllah. I couldn’t ask for more.
As much as I miss my family and friends back in Sydney…this is the place where I want to be. May Allah bring those who seek Him into the safety of Kharabsheh, inshaAllah.
Almost there…
Alhamdulilah, only a few more days left til I fly to Jordan 
Hasn’t quite hit me yet, and it probably won’t, not until I’m on the plane with my brother! Please pray that we’ll arrive safely, and return safely too, God willing. Packing up and leaving everyone and everything I know is exciting, especially after such turmoil over the past few years of my life. A fresh start, in the company of those loved by Allah. I can’t ask for more, alhamdulilah. Part of me misses med school (crazy, I know lol) but the rest of me knows that this break is for the best.
My trials remain, as always. Despite the obvious pain, my hardships are a means to reaching Allah, and I’m learning to be optimistic and think the best of my Lord, and my circumstances. Like Sheikh Nuh said to us in the Sydney Suhba, out of all the infinite possibilities for our lives, Allah has chosen the absolute best for us, in His Divine Wisdom.
You are exactly where you need to be. It’s up to you to use this moment to draw closer to God, or stray away. So whether it be the loss of a loved one, your health, your wealth – whatever it may be – it happened because God willed it, and He loves you, and He wants you to return to Him. It’s the nature of the human being to forget….the root word for the arabic word for human (insaan) is naasiya, which means ‘to forget’. So these blows of fate, no matter how painful, are gentle reminders that God is the one in control, and that He is the only one whom we can seek solace from. What a lonely existence it is, without Him. So ask Him! He loves to be asked. Another beautiful gem Sheikh Nuh gave us at the Sydney Suhba was this: each time the tongue of the servant utters a prayer for something, know that Allah wants to give it to him.
If there’s one thing that can fill your heart with distraction and empty it from any longing for God, it’s music! So check this link out, and download that mp3 file.
Here’s an interesting article:
Getting Rid of the Need for Approval
Posted by Abu Ulfah in Guidance, Priorities, Reflection, The Self on 03 15th, 2009 | no responses
Bismillāh ar-Rahmān ar-Rahīm
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
On getting rid of the need to look to creation for approval
Strive to purify your heart from the fear of creation and from putting your hopes in them, for this would make you remain silent when faced with falsehood, compromise your Dīn and neglect exhorting to good and forbidding evil, this would be humilation enough, for a mu’min is strong by his Lord, he has no fear and no hope except in Him.
When one of your brother Muslims offers you something by way of showing affection, take it if you need it, thank Allāh for He is the real giver and thank the one whom Allāh has chosen to deliver it to you. If you do not need it, see whether it would be better for your heart to take it or refuse it, if you refuse, do it tactfully so as not to hurt the heart of the giver, for the feelings of a Muslim have great rank with Allāh.
Beware of refusing for the sake of acquiring a reputation, or of accepting for your lust, however, to take for lust is better than to turn down to acquire a reputation of ascetism and of turning away from dunyā. The truthful and sincere will not be confused by this, his Lord gives him a light in his heart by which he knows what is required of him.
Imām ‘Abdallāh Ibn ‘Alawī al-Haddād
Risālah Ādāb Sulūk al-Murīd
http://www.spiritual-tendencies.com/2009/0…d-for-approval/
Excitement!
Salams world!
I’m so thrilled! InshaAllah Sheikh Nuh and his wife Um Sahl are arriving on Thursday! I’ve waited a year for this, and subhanAllah, what a year it’s been. So much has happened, and alhamdulilah, I’m so relieved that I’m in a much better place now.
My health issues have stabilised, and I’m looking forward to my trip to Jordan on the 23rd of June. Seeing my team of health care providers has really helped, alongside attending my weekly dhikr gatherings. Healing isn’t complete when it’s just the medical. There’s the spiritual side that needs nurturing too.
I’m currently catching up with friends and spending time with family. A year ago, I couldn’t have been able to imagine the general state of internal peace I’ve been blessed with. Verily, after every hardship, there is relief! Seeing old friends from med school is also so lovely…they’ll be interns in a matter of months. I’m so proud of how far they’ve come. It’s a journey I stepped away from, but here’s to my own version of a bright shiny future. My friends will all be incredible doctors. Caring, competent and insightful. Wonder what I’ll be?
I can’t wait to embark on the Shifa Summer Program in Jordan! It’ll be a welcome break after my YEARS of secular education. My decision to put medical school on hold has still ruffled a few feathers, despite my own state of contentment. It’s puzzling when spectators to my life are upset when I’m not! Strange, strange.
Sheikh Naeem raised an interesting point in one of his lectures. He said that the Muslim ummah is in desperate need of saviours to lead us out of the darkness of ignorance….but our best minds have been sent to study Medicine at Harvard because their parents want comfortable retirements. Sad, but true. Chasing after material wealth will never bring lasting contentment. Sure, we do need Muslim doctors to respond to the unique spiritual needs of Muslim patients, but it’s a sad day when Muslim parents are devastated when their children stop medical school to become scholars instead. And it happens.
On Sacrifice
Assalamualaikum world!
Ok so I’m back, after far too long
Thought I’d muse on something close to everyone’s heart. At some stage in anyone’s life, we’re faced with challenges.
We will surely test you in your wealth and in yourselves and you will hear many hurtful things from those who were given the book before you and from those who associate others with Allah. If you are steadfast and beware of Allah, that is the strongest position.
Aal ‘Imraan: 186
Amongst the hardest tests, I’ve found, involve giving up something you love for the sake of Allah. Something which you know, deep down, isn’t good for you in this life and the next.
Our vices may be different, but they all have the same effect – they harden our hearts, and bring us further away from Allah, our Merciful Creator.
As hard as it is to make that sacrifice, make dua and ask Allah to give you that courage to step up, and make that clean break. It’ll hurt at first, but after hardship, there is relief. And even if you fall again, get up and ask Allah for strength, guidance and forgiveness. His Mercy is greater than our mistakes.
Sacred Law was taught to us to increase good, and to decrease harm. Allah knows how fallible we are, so in His Mercy, He has sent down Prophets and Revelation, to help us reach Him. Think of our end goal – Jannah – where we can find lasting peace and His eternal pleasure. Make every day a concerted effort to get on step closer to Him.
Look at the small blessings we have everyday, to spur you into higher levels of worship. A roof over your head. Family and friends. The freedom to go to work and school. A wide selection of food to choose from. The luxury of holidays. SubhanAllah, so many of us are blessed, and all of this originate from Allah, Most Generous.
May Allah make it easy for you when you give something up for His sake. Know that He will reward you with something far, far greater.
Victorian bushfires
Please making dua for Allah to ease the suffering of those in Victoria. The death toll has increased to 84….makes you stop and think about the fleeting nature of life.
The saddest part of this tragedy is that some of these horrific fires were deliberately lit. Justice will be served – whether it be in this life, or the next.
I’m back!
*sheepish wave*
I’m still alive. Really! Incredible life changes have occurred…all positive, because alhamdulilah, everything is good for the believer.
Quick run-down: I’m still deferring Medicine due to illness, have worked in a full-time job since September 2008 and am saving up to go to Jordan in June, inshaAllah.
Alhamdulilah, I’ve never felt so at peace before. I’m in a new place of stability, and am not as unwell as I was at the end of 2007. 2008 was the best year of my life because I finally had the space and time to rest, recover, and sort out a new direction for me. So it’s onwards and upwards from here.
Full-time work is just fabulous. I’ve met incredible people, and made some friends whom I intend to keep for life…
Shaykh Abu’l-Hasan said this to Ibn ‘Ata’ Allah, in response to the younger man’s various worries and sadnesses:
There are four states of the servant, not five: blessings, trials, obedience, and disobedience. If you are blessed, then what God requires of you is thankfulness. If you are tried, then what God requires of you is patience. If you are obedient, then what God requires of you is the witnessing of His blessings upon you. If you are disobedient, then what God requires of you is asking forgiveness.
Ibid., p.196, read in The Key to Salvation: A Sufi Manual of Invocation
:)
Salams world!
So…I’m back. Alhamdulilah. Lots has happened, subhanAllah. Life is an ongoing journey…with ups and downs. What matters is dealing with it with as much optimism and trust in Allah as possible.
The Sydney suhba 2008 was incredible. It was such a blessing to be able to sit in the presence of Shaykh Nuh, and later on, his wife Umm Sahl. Alhamdulilah, they’ll be coming every year now, instead of every two years! We’re so blessed. InshaAllah next year Umm al-Khayr and Sheikh Ashraf will come too.
Gratitude marks my path to the Divine. Knowing that everything I am afflicted with is not ‘by accident’, but through the loving kindness of Allah, because He knows what will bring me closer to Him. He is what I regard Him to be, and in my time of need, He is my Compassionate, Merciful and Generous Lord, who hears my call. Sheikh Nuh’s advice to me is to remain optimistic. Hope is always so very important when faced with the trials of this world.
I’ve reached a crossroads in my life now. What keeps me focused and grounded is the remembrance that Allah Most High, in his Perfection, knows me better than any other, and has placed me exactly where He wants me to be. It’s up to me to reflect upon my situation, and reap the fruits of it.
There is good in everything Allah tests us with. May Allah grant us all patience, steadfastness, and acceptance of His Decree.
On the Harvard suhba…
Shadhili tariqa: the path to the divine
Do check out the very interesting audio selection on the left hand side. A very soothing reminder, especially in times of difficulty.
The entire selection is here: Harvard suhba.
I particularly like how Shaykh Nuh reminds us all about that eternal truth – everything perishes except for Allah. Where will we be, 50 million years from now? All gone. But Allah remains – and all deeds that done for His sake.
May Allah accept our good deeds.
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A few of my close friends from med school are back from overseas…can’t wait to catch up! Lots has happened. Alhamdulilah, I’ve been blessed with a few good friends, and I can’t wait to sit down and catch up over coffee or dinner. I’ll miss not being in their cohort, with my whole deferral and all…but all things happen for a reason. Allah is the best of planners.
I used to honestly believe in this quote “I am the Master of my fate and the Captain of my soul”…but that’s not the truth of the matter. Allah is the master of every atom in this universe. That’s a huge blow to the ego, but also a relief – realising that no matter how well-intentioned and perfectly executed a plan is – if Allah decides it not to be, it will not, and if He decides it is to be, then it will. Allah is the one in charge. And alhamdulilah for that, because we’re human, necessarily imperfect, and Allah runs the universe to perfection. We’re just too limited to see it, at a macro level. He does not wish bad upon His creation, and loves us more than we love ourselves.
Surrendering to the decree of Allah can be difficult for control freaks e.g. myself. Just…let…go…
On The World of Retail
If there’s one thing you take away from my entire BLOG – it’s this…..please, be kind to the person behind the cash register. We’re still people! With feelings!
I’m having a surprisingly great time, working as a Christmas Casual at one of the biggest department stores in Sydney. I’ve learned a lot about what it’s like to actually provide customer service.
I’ve worked at the loading dock and the shop floor. There’s this hilarious rivalry between the two. The folk at the loading dock are a lovely, down-to-earth type. The ones on the floor are very customer-service oriented. So when I got back to working at the loading dock, one of the guys asked “It’s better down here, isn’t it?” I grinned and laughed, and said it depended on my mood.
SO, be nice to your customer service lot! We’re still people, with feelings. When you browse, pick up the things you drop. We appreciate it!
