Friday Nasiha

Living The Quran

Terrestrial Body
Taha (Taha) - Chapter 20: Verse 55 (partial)

"From it We created you and to it We shall return you."

Know that the Adamite is two things: spirit and body. The spirit is from light, and light is celestial. The body is from dust, and dust is terrestrial. The spirit wants to go up because it is celestial. The body wants to go down because it is terrestrial. In the perfection of His power, the King bound the two together. The spirit was bound to the body, and the body was bound to the spirit, so both are in bonds. The spirit and the body settled down together.

On the day of death, when the life of the servant comes to an end and the moment of death arrives, the bonds are loosened, as when a bird comes out of its cage. The spirit rises up from the body and goes skyward to its nest. The body takes the road of the earth to its centre. The spirit is put into a lantern of light, which is hung from the tree of blessedness. The body is wrapped in a shroud and entrusted to the earth. This is why the Lord of the worlds says, "From it We created you and to it We shall return you."

It is as if the King is saying, "Once I make dust the cause of being, and then again I make it the cause of nonbeing. Thus the world's folk will know that I am perfectly powerful, and I give being to all that is."

O Chevalier! If you ever pass through a graveyard, be careful to look at that encampment with an eye to taking heed.

It is not dust that you see, it is the bodies of the dear ones, the flesh and skin of the young, the elegant stature of those nurtured in joy, the hair and beards of the old folk.

We have decayed, but the rising stars have not.

The mountains remain after us, and the artifacts.

Compiled From:
"Kashf al-Asrar wa Uddat al-Abrar" - Rashid al-Din Maybudi. pp. 314, 315

From Issue: 1023 [Read original issue]

Understanding The Prophet's Life

Productive Morning

Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) asked Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) to bless us in the early morning hours, he said: “O Allah, bless my Ummah in its early hours” [Tirmidhi]

If you find yourself not doing much during Ramadan because you’re tired most of the time or feel sleepy because you’re fasting, here’s a little cool productivity tip to get lots of work done during a Ramadan day:

Get ONE of your most important tasks done first thing in the morning right after fajr prayer.

Here are 2 reasons why this technique would work:

1. You just had suhoor before fajr, therefore, your energy levels should be at its highest (note: assuming here that you have suhoor as late as possible).

3. If you get this ONE important task done after fajr, guess how you’ll feel rest of the day? Super productive! This feeling will propel you to be productive rest of your day and just hack through your workload so effortlessly!

Compiled From:
ProductiveRamadan.com, ProductiveMuslim

From Issue: 591 [Read original issue]

Cool Tips!

The Most Important Words

When it comes to getting along with your parents, the single most important word is please. The two most important words are thank you. The three most important words are I love you. The four most important words are How can I help? There is power and magic in each.

Saying please is polite and shows respect. The same goes for thank you. Nothing perturbs parents more than ingratitude. So look for ways to say thank you, whenever you can.

"Thanks Mom. Dinner was yummy."
"Dad thanks a lot for letting me use the car last night. I had a great time."

I love you is the next most important phrase. In some homes, hugs and sure love yas are passed around freely. In others, it's not so warm and fuzzy. If that's your lot, try being a cycle breaker and starting a new trend in your home, where you express love and affection in one way or another. It only takes one person to get started.

How can I help? is the next most important phrase. Caution: Make sure your parents are sitting down when you try this out on them because it might give 'em a stroke.

"Mom, I know you're totally stressed right now. How can I help?"
"Oh, no! Look at the garage. It looks like a tornado hit it," says your dad.
"How can I help, Dad?" you say back.

Compiled From:
"The 6 Most Important Decisions You'll Ever Make" - Sean Covey, pp. 135, 136

From Issue: 575 [Read original issue]