Today's Reminder
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Living The Quran
Signs of The Truth
Al Zumar (The Companies) - Chapter 39: Verse 63
"His are the keys of the heavens and the earth. So those who disbelieve in God's Revelations and signs - such are they who are the losers."
God has two different sets of laws: those that govern the universe, including the aspects of human life independent of humankind (which are God's signs of the truth, and which we wrongly call the "laws of nature" - these are the subject matter of the natural sciences); and the other being the Religion. Both require obedience. Results for the latter usually are deferred to the Hereafter, while the returns of obedience or disobedience to the former usually come in this life.
For example, the reward for patience is success, while the punishment for indolence is privation. Industry brings wealth, and steadfastness brings victory. So being a sincere believing Muslim requires obedience to both of these laws. When Muslims, in addition to their failings in the religious life, neglect to fulfill the requirements of obedience to God's laws of life and the universe (God's signs of truth), they become losers in the world relatively to those unbelievers who have obeyed them. However, those who reject God's Revelations (which are also God's signs of the truth) will be eternal losers, as they will lose in the Hereafter.
Compiled From:
"The Quran: Annotated Interpretation in Modern English" - Ali Unal, pp. 958
From Issue: 648 [Read original issue]
Understanding The Prophet's Life
Seek the Good in Everyone
We must recognise that every person who believes in Allah and in His Messenger cannot be devoid of some inborn good, however evil his practice may be. Involvement in major transgressions does not uproot a person's iman unless the transgressor deliberately defies Allah and scorns His commands. We have to heed the Sunnah of the Prophet who used to treat wrongdoers as a physician would treat a patient, not as a policeman would treat a criminal. He was very kind to them and always listened to their problems.
The following example illustrates this point: a Qurayshi adolescent once came upon the Prophet and asked permission to fornicate. The Prophet's Companions were so outraged by the young man's request that they rushed to punish him, but the Prophet's attitude was totally different. Calm and compose, he asked the young man to come closer to him and asked: 'Would you approve of it [fornication] for your mother?' The young man replied: 'No'. The Propohet said: '[Other] people also would not approve of it for their mothers'. Then the Prophet repeatedly asked the young man whether he would approve of it for his daughter, sister, or aunt? Each time the young man answered 'No,' and each time the Prophet added that '[Other] people would not approve of it for theirs'. He then held the young man's hand and said: 'May Allah forgive his [the young man's] sins, purify his heart, and fortify him [against such desires]' (Ahmad and Tabarani).
The Prophet's sympathetic attitude clearly indicates a gesture of goodwill, a conviction that inborn goodness of the human self outweighs the elements of evil which could only be transient.
Source:
Islam: The Way of Revival, "The Ethics of Dawa and Dialogue" - Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, pp. 224, 225
From Issue: 466 [Read original issue]
Cool Tips!
Seven Ways to Peace and Happiness
Rule 1: Let's fill our minds with thoughts of peace, courage, health, and hope, for "our life is what our thoughts make it."
Rule 2: Let's never try to get even with our enemies, because if we do we will hurt ourselves far more than we hurt them. Let's never waste a minute thinking about people we don't like.
Rule 3:
A. Instead of worrying about ingratitude, let's expect it.
B. Let's remember that the only way to find happiness is not to expect gratitude - but to give for the joy of giving.
C. Let's remember that gratitude is a "cultivated" trait; so if we want our children to be grateful, we must train them to be grateful.
Rule 4: Count your blessings - not your troubles!
Rule 5: Let's not imitate others. Let's find ourselves and be ourselves, for "envy is ignorance" and "imitation is suicide."
Rule 6: When fate hands us a lemon, let's try to make a lemonade.
Rule 7: Let's forget our own unhappiness - by trying to create a little happiness for others. "When you are good to others, you are best to yourself."
Compiled From:
"How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" - Dale Carnegie, p. 186.
From Issue: 578 [Read original issue]