Wisdoms from dreams

SERVING OTHERS
the better of the two in the sight of allah is the one who serves the other first.

THANKS FOR ALL BODY PARTS

I cannot praise You what is due to You my Lord
for without You i could not see, hear, speak, think, breathe, etc.  Every body part we use we owe thanks to Allaah for.  And our debt is a sin we must also ask forgiveness for.

BEAUTIFUL DUNYA
The world (dunya) is like a young blond woman who is interested in fashion, fornication, beauty, etc and so it is easy to become attracted to her and distracted by her..fall under her spell of heedlessness and forgetfullness of Allah swt and preparing for the hereafter.

NUR of ALLAHS NAME
Whenever you pray optional prayers in your homes or an object in the house reminds you to do dhikr (sayings of remembrance of God swt)

 - e.g. as you walk through a door it reminds you to say "b-ism-il-lahi walaj-na wa b-ism-il-lahi kharaj-na wa 3ala rabbi-na tawakkal-na (in Gods name we enter and in Gods name we leave and in Him we put our trust)".... or as you get up from a seat and it reminds you to say "subHana-ka wa bi-hamdi-k laa ilaaha illa ant. Astaghfiru-k. Wa atuubu ilay-k. (Glory and praise be to You. Theres no god except You. I seek Your forgiveness and i repent to You)"...etc

- then it is as if Gods name is written on that object (although you cannot see it) and a nur (light) is shining out from it (although you cannot see it)!

If the dhikr is done continuously and abundantly (because the house causes so much remembrance of God), the darkness in your home becomes replaced with nur (light) from Gods names until it becomes so bright that it is like a mosque wherein angels and blessings regularly descend.

POWER OF PRAYER?
I was walking in the market with my mother and wife.  There were some orange prayer beads that seemed to have some supernatural power and my mum bought it and hung onto it dearly l, as if she worshipped them.  My wife was also impressed by the prayer beads, as were many people and shop owners in the market, all believing the prayer beads to have some power.  I was thinking to myself why cant these people see that the prayer beads are powerless...just plastic beads like all the other objects in the market...except that allaah swt had done the supernatural miracle we saw and purposely allowed it to appear that the power had come from the prayer beads.  Did no one else realise it?  It seemed most people simply believed the beads were special and powerful.  The forgot all blessing and power was from God.

The prayer beads symbolised dua and prayers.  Too many people put their trust in the words of the dua and prayer believing them to be powerful like a sort of magical phrase.  They should remember that there is no power or might except in God. The dua and prayers only work because of God. He allows it to seem like the prayers and duas ans medicine themselves are what is helping u...but in reality it is only Him who helps you when u call upon Him in dua and prayer.  Please dont be tricked into minor shirk by believing some silly plastic prayer beads...or some silly words you utter from your lips...are what save u...they r powerless...like any other words we say....only God helps you or gives power when He wills.  If He decides to give power whenever u say certain words (ie dua...prayer) then it was still Him who decided that...and all power is from Him alone...not your words.

SLEEPING EARLY
before going to sleep, you should say your adhkar, aduaa, reciting Quran, as that is like your tent and lights to protect you from the wild insects and animals that lurk around during the night while you sleep.  If you go to sleep without doing that, it is like you are a person camping in the woods, who just lies down on the floor and falls asleep without putting up his tent or lights or taking any precautions - so he is susceptible to all the insects and animals that may fly onto him or walk over him and urinate on him, etc.  The exception to this rule is if it is late, and in such a case it is better to lie down to sleep early in the night, at the same time every day, because there is blessing in going to bed early (so you can wake up more easily for fajr).  If you lie down and sleep early every day, it is better than going to bed late (even if it is because you were doing your work or adhkar) and then waking up late.  This is because if you sleep early, not only will you wake up early for fajr, you can always wake up in the middle of the night and do your night prayer (tahajjud) and put up your tent and lights then (adhkar, dua, Quran, etc)

CACTUS
This deen (religion) is like a cactus in the desert. Imaan (belief) is its roots keeping the cactus grounded and firm but it is hidden beneath the sand so that others can not see it nor know if it exists or not (we donot know if someone has sincere belief or is a hypocrite) but without the roots the cactus body will be uprooted easily by others and will not have nutrients and water so will be empty (false) inside.
The body of the cactus is the Islam (Fiqh) that is seen by others. It looks spiky and ugly so people want to stay away from it but not many know it can sprout beautiful flowers too and the flowers are the iHsan (excellence) ; the beauty of the religion.  Also - When you have flowers, birds (angels) will come and visit you.

DIVING INSTRUCTOR
Acqyiring knowledge is like diving in water. To dive deeper you need an experienced instructor that can show you how to breathe and dive safely without drowning. Without one you cannot go as deep as quick as someone with an instructor.  Also the deeper one goes the higher the pressure and the hotter it becomes. More difficult. Such is the person who acquires alot of knowledge. They weep much and laugh little. This is because the more you know the more responsibility you have to act on it and thus more difficult to live since if you do not act on the knowledge acquired you face a harsher punishment than if you had been ignorant. Nevertheless if you can handle the heat and pressure of the deep depths of knowledge by acting on the knowledge acquired appropriatwly then you can reach the higher levels of paradise bi idhnillah. And so it is worth it.  The deeper you dive the higher the risks but the higher the rewards too.

The birds and the bread

My brother and i were walking down central london catching up and reflecting on life.   He had mentioned that he'd recently left a good job to take some time out of the rat race and consider a career change.  But after two months or so of soul searching, his savings were beginning to dry up.  Since he still had not found any new jobs that he wanted to go into, he became concerned about things such as being able to provide a meal on the table for his family.

Just then, as he was talking, my brother noticed a long loaf of french bread that had been left on the roadside for the birds to eat.  (No he didnt pick it up and start eating!! He wasnt that desperate).    He noticed that the person who left the bread had not removed the plastic wrapping and so none of the pigeons could eat it.  So he tore open the wrapper to allow the birds to have access to the bread.

 "Thats it!" i said.  "Thats the answer to your concern!"   My brother looked at me with a puzzled expression as if to say "what the **@# are you on about?".   I told him the little lesson that i had learnt from the 'birds and the bread':

Our sustenance is provided to us from God, just like the bread was provided by someone to the birds.  However, this doesnt mean we just sit back and expect God to put the provisions into our mouths and chew it for us.  we must do some work to unwrap the bread.  That is what our jobs, our work, our livelihood is for..an act of unwrapping the bread (By working  we are granted access to our God given provisions).

However, what my brother and i had forgotten was that our jobs and our work was not the true source of the provision (bread). when the bread (provision) is finished, no amount of unwrapping (working) will give us access to more.  For more, we need to be patient as we wait to be given another loaf from our Provider (God).  

Salat al-istikharah

If you need to go to a destination BUT the road there is blocked off with a sign saying forbidden.  What do you do?

Some people would have answered: just go through the path this one time. It is understandable and permissable in your case because you need to get to the destination.  BUT they are living dangerously and ignoring clear warnings and guidance.  You cant be Too liberal with prohibitions.

Some people would have answered: you cant go to your destination because its forbidden so stop and turn back.give up. But they would also be wrong. The destination is not forbidden...only the path to get there is.

So what do most people not say?   most people forget that there are other paths to get to the same destination.  There is rarely ever only one way.  So think outside the box. Be creative.

What even less people will say is this:  pray salat al-istikhara to ask God to guide you to the best path to the destination if the destination is good for you and your deen.  If it isn't then God will block off every path to that destination and instead guide you to a path leading to a better destination.  (The actual arabic word "istikhara" means "to seek the best")

Here is an example:
A Muslim is learning martial arts but doea not want to bow to show respect to his sensei. He doesnt mean to be disrespectful because he is only trying to avoid doing something which was forvidden by the prophet saas.  But the sensei non the less will feel disrespected if he doesnt bow when every other student does.  Not wanting to be arrogant or a disrespectful student nor a bad muslim...what should he do?  The destination (showing respect to others) is not forbidden (it is actually encouraged...but the path (bowing to anyone other than God) is forbidden.  So what would you do?

A) bend his religion and bow to the sensei this once
B) stick to his guns and say too bad to the senseis feelings
C) be creative and show respect another way...by giving a gift perhaps?
D) Pray salat al-istikharah and let The Most Wise guide you to the best way that you may never have considered?

Allahumma
Innee astakhiruka bi 3ilmik
Wa astaqdiruka bi qudratik
Wa as'aluka min fadlika l3adheem

Fa innaka taqdiru wa laa aqdir
Wa ta3lamu wa laa 3alam
Wa anta 3allamu lghuyoub

Allahumma
Inn kunta ta3lam anna hadha lamra khayrul lee
fee deenee wa dunyaya
Wa aakhiratee wa 3aqibatee amree
wa 3ajilihi wa ajilih

Fa qdirhu lee
Wa yassirhu lee
Thumma baarik lee feeh

Wa inn laa
Fa srifhu 3annee
Wa yassir lee alkhayra Haythu kaan
Wa raddinee bi qadaa'ik
Ye arHam urraHimeen

Hidden sins

This is a reminder for myself first and whoever else takes benefit from it.
Anythign good in it - then AlHamdulilah.
Anything bad in it - then it is from my own ignorance - may Allah forgive me.

Dear brothers and sisters,
Beware the hidden sins
those which can quickly corrupt the heart

e.g.  Rage (If we want to earn the Anger of Allah - one sure way is to get Angry with Allah's creatures, even if they wrong you - only if they wrong Allah would the prophet s.a.a.s become angry.  Similarly if we want to earn the forgiveness and mercy of Allah, then we should show forgiveness and mercy to Allah's creatures)
   Pride (Pride is Allah's cloak.  Those who wear it, Allah will lower them.  Those who lower themselves, Allah will raise them)
   Self-Righteousness (Thinking we are so good at something...e.g. thinking we are so pious or intelligent, etc.  Being pleased with yourself and praising yourself or seeking praise from others for what you've done.  There is none worthy of praise except Al-Hameed)
   Envy (do not look to those with more blessings than yourself.  instead look to those with less blessings than yourself so that you may be grateful for the blessings you are given.)
   Lust (adultery starts in the heart.  the actions simply confirm it) 
  Laziness/Lethargy (too much sleep and food and play and luxury will distract you and harden your heart. Hell is surrounded by many tenpting, desirable things while paradise is surrounded by difficult, ugly things. God loves those who strive for His way) 
   etc...

Two things to do all the time continually

Taqwa = always doing every action with the sole intention of earning God's pleasure and striving for His love and fearing that you may displease Him, lose His love or earn His wrath

Taubah = continually repenting to God, weeping over the wrongs you have done to yourself and others, both knowingly and unknowingly, in the past and in the future, begging Him to cleanse you like dirt is cleansed from a shirt leaving it beautifully bright and sparkling white.

Fate and free will - part IV: aligning free will with fate to aknowledge there is nothing worthy of worship except God ( TawHeed)

TawHeed = " laa ilaaha illa-llaah " = literally: "no god except God"...and if we expand that: "[there is] no 'object of worship' except God"...or more commonly translated: "there is nothing worthy of worship except Allah".

The prophet saas said you worship what you think of most

So to truly embody TawHeed we need to always and only think about God swt.  That essentially means not obsessively thinking about others. But more importantly not obsessively thinking about yourself!  Your 'self' is also known as your 'ego'. 

So what exactly is the ego?

Psychology defines it as having 3 main components:
1) The view you have of yourself (Self image)
2)How much value you place on yourself (Self esteem or self-worth)
3) What you wish you were really like (Ideal self)

So let us look at ways to reform each of these 3 components of the ego so that your ego/self/intentions are aligned with fate/Divine Will.  This does not mean getting rid of your ego. It means surrendering your SELF/ego/free will to the Will of God.Thus you will truly be a muslim (self-surrendered) as are the rocks, birds, trees and bees.What pleases Him is what you find pleasure in. What displeased Him is what you find displeasure in.  You do things with the jntention of pleasing Him and in doing so you also find pleasure. You intend to avoid things which displease or anger God and are also displeased or angered by such things. 

1)rectifying self image:
this needs to be as realistic as possible (are you a cat looking in the mirror and seeing your reflection as a lion?). Alternatively, it needs to be unimportant to you. So much so that you have no image of yourself in your minds eye.  However, this is difficult and takes practise.  most people naturally tend to 'label' or see themselves as a certain type of person (e.g. a geek,a Latino, a scholar, etc).  It is also why titles are such dangerous things as they remind us of this image we must see ourselves as.  However these false images are all illusions that others create for us or that we create for ourself. These illusions may serve to empower you... but ultimately they also limit you. E.g. You may believe you can't kiss your own children because that is not "manly" as the way you see yourself.  Or that you can't wash the dishes because that is not the "mans" role. Etc.  Do not have ano fixed self image.  Be like water. Colourless and shapeless and yet able to take on any colour and shape.

2) rectifying self worth:
 do not value yourself above anything else. Even if you do many good deeds. Do not value yourself. This leads to pride and self righteousness.  All good you do is from God. So value Him and know that the value of this world in His eyes is less than the weight of a fly's wing or less than the value of a rotting, dead donkey on the side of the road.

3) rectifying ideal self:
 do you wish to be a rock star? Or a footballer? Or a prophet? Or a saint? Etc.  Or do you simply wish to be like whatever God likes and is pleased with?   This was the aim of His prophets and messengers and righteous slaves. 
Yes these human beings are the best examples for us and it may seem harmless to wish to BE one of them. But Ask yourself. Did any of the prophets a.s. wish to be prophets or the messiah, etc?   Or did they acknowledge and embraced the fact that they are but slaves of God...grateful slaves...bestowed with favours by the wisdom and mercy of God.
So if you want to be like the prophet saas for the intention of drawing nearer to God swt, focus on trying to do as the prophets a.s. did and said and taught...just as a student would learn from their teacher.  A good student is not the one who aims to be like the teacher because they admire his status and position....a good student is the one who implements their teacher's teachings and lessons in their own selves...and thus the student truly becomes like the teacher. 

Also let us not forget to do as the prophets a.s. did and continually Ask Him to guide us to be what He is pleased with.

O God I ask for Your love

And the love of those You love

And love of the poor

And love of the actions that bring me closer to Your love

Fate and Free will part III: submitting to find peace (islam), harmony with the universe and divine love.

Anything we desire that goes against the will of God is not what is best.  God knows and wants what is best.  So we should want to do things that God wants (ie what has been decreed by God) even if it displeases us..and we should ask that He makes us pleased with what pleases Him.

 But if everything follows the will of God how can anything go against it? Everything that happens is the will of God (fate) but some people are not happy with it because their intention was to go against it or was something other than it (free will).  Even though their intentions do not directly determine their actions (contrary to what we think) since all actions are decreed and determined by God.  However we are tested on our intentions.  Were we intending to do that action we did? If we were given true control over our actions (whereby every intention and thought becomes materialised in this world...a bit like what happens in lucid dreaming) would we still have done the same?

However, even though our will power and intentions do not have direct control in this world...they still do have indirect effects (as we saw with the example of evil eye).   When someone exerts their will against the world in a manner that is out of rhythm with the cycles of change, they may disrupt that harmony and unintended consequences may more likely result rather than the willed outcome. 

one's free will is not the root problem. one must place their will in harmony with the natural universe or the Divine Will of God. Thus, a potentially harmful interference may be avoided, and in this way, goals can be achieved effortlessly.

Thus the one who truly submits and surrenders their selves and their will to the Will of God (this is the meaning of islam) they will not struggle against fate or Gods decisions...but will allow their free will and intentions to be alignined with the God's natural order of things..the winds of fate.. the divine Will of God..and will allow himself to be guided by Him..just like all of his other creation is guided by Him (that is why animals and plants are muslim/submissive to God by their nature)

.the person has annihilated his ego and self desires that contradict with God's desires...the person only desires to do what pleases God..what God desires