“Believe in yourself. Always.”— Unknown
“Believe in yourself. Always.”— Unknown
“Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”— Mark Twain
And maybe you feel you don’t belong in this world because you aren’t meant to. None of us is.
As Prophet Muhammad ﷺ so perfectly noted — ‘Be in this world as if you were a stranger or a wayfarer.’
In Islamic thought, wordly life is seen as a transient, passing journey. Impermanence is the nature of the abode. You feel out of place in this world because you are meant for a better one.
But it is something you have to strive towards, by living a life of ihsan (of goodness and beauty, as taught by the Messengers), and if your heart is in the right place, even if you walk with small, fumbling and faltering steps, Allah’s mercy will bring you in and bring you close. That’s where home is — when the Creator is content with His creation, and the creation is in awe of and in love with its Creator.
“O soul at peace!
Return to your Lord, well-pleased, well-pleasing”
— (Qur'ān, 89:27,28)
(via chaoticgood-x)
“No one can be responsible for where or how we each begin. No one has the freedom to do anything or everything, and all choices bring consequences. What we choose to do next, though, how to spend our resources or attention or effort, this is what defines us.”— Seth Godin
“Be with someone who will take care of you. Not materialistically, but take care of your soul, your well being, your heart.”— Unknown
رَّبُّكُمْ ذُو رَحْمَةٍ وَاسِعَةٍ
Your Lord is of unbounded mercy
— Surah Al-An'am [6:147]
“Ibrahim (as) was thrown into fire. God willing none of us will ever face such a trial in this life. But there is not a person who won’t get thrown into some sort of emotional, psychological or social fires in their life. And don’t think for a moment that God cannot make those fires cool for us.”
"بِرُّ الوَالِدَيْنِ كَفَّارَةُ الكَبَائِر"
- الإمَامُ أحمَدُ بْنُ حَنْبَل
“Righteousness to one’s parents expiates the major sins”
- Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal
• Wake up for Tahajjud prayers at least once a week.
• Fast on Mondays and Thursdays. And the white days every month.
• Spread salaam to those whom you know and those who you don’t know. The full salaam.
• Send peace and blessings upon the prophet Muhammad, everyday. Salla Allaahu ‘alayhi wassalam.
• Read the morning and evening and sleep adhkaar every day without fail.
• Read at least one page of the Qur-aan with the translation a day. Gradually increase.
• Dedicate at least 20 minutes a day to read from tafseer Ibn Kathir. Take notes.
• Aim to memorise the Qur-aan. Make the intention and set realistic goals.
• Have the Qur-aan or a beneficial tape playing anytime you can. When you’re getting ready in the morning… Brushing your teeth, washing your face, eating your breakfast, driving, cooking… Etc.
• At least 15 mins a day to listen and FOCUS on an Islamic reminder/audio. Or read out of an Islamic book. Take notes.
• Lower your gaze.
• Don’t talk to opposite gender without reason.
• Try to pray as soon as the time has been called.
• Pray the sunnah prayers.
• Do the adkhaar after each prayer. Astaghfirullaah. Alhamdulillaah. SubhaanAllaah. Allaahu akbar. Ayaatul kursi. Du'aa.
• Kiss your parents. Hug your parents. Smile at your parents. Serve your parents. Be kind, be kind, be kind.
• Give small gifts.
• Smile to people and say hello.
• Tell people you love them.
• Keep in regular touch with your relatives, even if its through a text.
• Give bottles of water to strangers on a hot day.
• Give glasses of water to those close to you on a hot day. And a normal day.
• Hold the door open for people.
• Offer the seat you have to someone.
• Make genuine du'aa for those you think of, those who ask you to, and those who you you say you will to.
• Think of your brothers and sisters around the world, the situations they’re in and pray for them.
• Attend the masjid regularly for prayer and talks. Think of the angels surrounding you and supplicating for you.
• Treat people according to your manners and values, not theirs.
• Eat your greens. Exercise. Brush your teeth. Brush your hair. Shower. Exfoliate. Moisturise your skin. Wear clean clothes.
• Know you can’t please everyone. And forgive the mean ones.
• Do it all for His sake.
• Beg for jannatul firdous. Beg for jannatul firdous. Beg for jannatul firdous.You will fall again and again. It’s in your nature. Just don’t stop getting up. Keep struggling and striving till you get there. Because eventually, by His will, you will.
(via suhyla)
A student once asked anthropologist Margaret Mead, “What is the earliest sign of civilization?” The student expected her to say a clay pot, a grinding stone, or maybe a weapon.
Margaret Mead thought for a moment, then she said, “A healed femur.”
A femur is the longest bone in the body, linking hip to knee. In societies without the benefits of modern medicine, it takes about six weeks of rest for a fractured femur to heal. A healed femur shows that someone cared for the injured person, did their hunting and gathering, stayed with them, and offered physical protection and human companionship until the injury could mend.
Mead explained that where the law of the jungle—the survival of the fittest—rules, no healed femurs are found. The first sign of civilization is compassion, seen in a healed femur.— Ira Byock, The Best Care Possible: A Physician’s Quest to Transform Care Through the End of Life (x)
(via mindofeloquence)