I think. A lot. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn’t. And that is okay because I just keep on finding better and broader ways to think about stuff as I live, regardless of whether it is mundane or extraordinary.
Then, there is religion. There is Islam. A belief system.
Countless number of things in my environment that have and will continue to shape what I believe in, who I am, what I stand for and what I strive to be, and among them, religion is my foundation, as it should be and as I want it to be.
For all the point of views I have obtained throughout, donning an Islamic lens was my way of integration (we all have our methods, and this is mine).
Background
I wasn’t always perfect. I guess no one ever is or will be, so let me just dismiss that thought. We all have our thoughts on perfection or idealism. Are they far-fetched standards? Dreams? Goals?
I can’t answer in your case, I can only in mine. But what I can help you with is viewing at them through a way, or different ways. Why I say ‘different ways’ is because having so many ways to process a certain thought or idea leads to getting confused on your foundations, in the event that they aren’t grounded. That was my problem. That, is where I wasn’t perfect. This very imperfection or problem of mine led to even worser complications, where I lost my sense of self. But don’t worry, I am better. I got better. And I believe, better.
Anyways, we all see the world differently, in our own unique ways. There are certain parts and ways we align with, and certain ones we don’t. I have a vague idea of how other people view the world. It is unrefined, and for the most part, even largely false (everybody is a factor, including me). But it helps. Because it eventually helped me see the world better, and evaluate my own thought process and life even more better.
I lay below certain thoughts I came across, and how I refined them to benefit myself, through Deen. It may be ugly, it may be pretty, and I hardly care. I value them regardless, because they help me live.
Read and ponder wisely.
1. People who want to reach Heaven, are afraid to die to even reach there. Abandonment of their worldly desires? Or a question of their worth?
Look, I don’t know about you but this is true. It actually is, in this present age and time.
Being afraid of death is good, questioning your worth is all good. For we will never know whether we are worthy of reaching the Heavens up above.
But being a Muslim, we are taught something else…
Heaven is the real goal, your life in this Dunya is only temporary.
Paraphrased, not original words. But this is the essence. I leave it to you to ponder upon it.
2. You are the sole factor in determining your outcome. Its always you. Its always the amount of work you put in and the amount of belief you have in yourself. Nothing else matters. Keep on working.
I’m pretty sure this has become way too common of a self-thought or a set of lines people pass around to motivate others.
It is wrong, but not totally. It is partly right.
Belief is the root factor that determines your future outcomes. For us, it relates to Belief in Allah and then in one’s abilities.
Do what you can to achieve. Put in your all. You do play a role in determining the outcome. Play your part as much as you can and however you can. But along with it, allow Allah to favor the outcome. Because let’s be honest, we don’t know what is best for us, we never have. Only Allah does.
Commit, Perform, and leave the rest to Allah. You will win.
3. Distraction is the ultimate go-to painkiller for any kind of pain, to the point we have become addicts.
This could be a doozie for some of you, but I don’t know, I just had to.
Most, if not all of us, are victims to this. It just cannot be denied.
We all have had our struggles. Some of them would be private, or slightly public (if you had shared aspects) or even largely public.