The Idealists' Curse

I've learnt a lot of things in the past 2 years. Is that people are not what they seem. The closest to you can hurt you badly and that expectation is the root of all heartache. How i wish i could go back in time and undo my wrongs and mistakes. At times I feel annoyed at myself for being so imperfect and insufficient. I think the reason we were created in our weak state is so that we learn to sift through the delusions of strength and grandeur or this dunya and learn to rely on our Creator. The only One who is absolute and free of weaknesses and dependencies. When I realize how weak I am, I come to the conclusion how much in need of God us human beings are. Yet it amazes me to see people who deny God and His existence. I've tried to subconsciously secularize myself and replace Him with many things. Career, lofty notions of success and power and fame and of course relationships. Again and again I discover my own limitations and my own insignificance in His grand scheme of things. It is a miracle I'm still alive and it is by His will. Therefore it must be for a purpose that I am still alive. And that is why I believe. Because I've learnt through experience that you cannot replace the One with worldly whims and fancies of any sort. Sure you can work hard and achieve success but it is only by abiding with His rules of ethics and hardwork that you find success. How fair is He that even those of us who do not believe in him still live, breathe and enjoy success, even more so than the "believers". If I were a creator of anything, I would not be as generous or giving. I would want people to live on My terms. Yet here is a Creator that does not expect anything but the best for us, who wants us to guard our souls against Shaitan's schemes because He loves us and wants us to enter Jannah. Not because he expects any consideration from us-not that we are capable of giving consideration on bilateral terms with Him-but because He wants to purify our souls and ensure that the spark of God's goodness that is inside of us does not get dulled and killed off by the murky and deceitful waters of the dunya. He wants us to realize our true potential of goodness and therefore has put us through many tests. I believe that the more vigorously one is tested, the more it shows that He loves us. I have also learnt that expectation is the root of all heartache. If you truly want to be happy then be happy for your significant other. Do not expect anything in return. Because when you expect you lay out the groundwork for that other person to earn your approval or affection on your terms and not on his or her terms,i.e the way he or she is. And one important message I believe God has been trying to get through to me is that one should never judge another without walking in their shoes for a day. This is directly correlated with how and what you talk about. I've discovered through that wonderful imam Suhaib Webb the clarity and beauty of the triple filter test. Before you judge or talk about someone else or report anything about a person to another ask yourself: 1) Is the thing you are about to repeat to another about that person true? 2) Is the thing you are about to repeat to another about that person something good about that person? 3) Is it useful to you or society. If it doesn't fulfill any of the criteria than obviously it fails the test and therefore one should not repeat it, albeit, what a juicy piece of gossip it may be about a contentious figure. I know this is easier said than done but as long as one tries, He will acknowledge every little effort you make. For example if one is used to gossiping about a particular person one should change the topic if someone else brings it up subtly so as not to fall into the trap of backbiting a person. The bottomline is that when you gossip, you are judging that person by ousting his or her faults. The duty of a good muslim is to hide the flaws of his or her brothers and the only time we should expose them is only to the person we intend to help and no other time. Thereby it follows that when you gossip label someone you put yourself on a higher pedestal as someone who is incapable of mistakes and is perfect. The more you gossip the higher and higher the pedestal becomes until it reaches the heavens and when YOU make a mistake, you become your harshest critic and lead a miserable, dissatisfied life based on all the careless, unfounded judgments you have made about others. And what disgusts me most is people who judge and show disdain for others based on cultural, physical or religious differences. What is with the whole " whitening" campaign going on? It's disgusting. God made all of us beautiful in our own different ways and just because we have been colonized by white people once does not mean that they are gods or are perfect just because they are white. The epitome of this skin colour profiling can be seen in the Rakhine state where the darker muslims are segregated, ostracized and suffer from stereotyping and prejudice and now a stated endorsed genocide merely because of their skin colour. Darker skin has come to be associated with all that is bad, disdainful and lower class whilst anything white has come to be associated with all that is good and so on. It is disgusting when Man starts putting labels on God's creations based on his own limited knowledge and spiritual decadence. It's not just moral depravity that's engulfing the world. It's depravity, decay and degradation in every sphere of life. The material world( unrealistic standards of beauty), food industry( fast foods galore, education( it's spreading ignorance and killing minds fresh for nurturing). The list goes on and on. Sometimes I can't helping feeling like I'm drowning in a cesspool of bullshit. But then again being in a cesspool makes you appreciate the gems of human beings that embody the universal principles everyone seems to have forgotten, even more. I hope that with time I'll have it in my power to change myself and those around me in a world that is kinder, fairer and good. Signing out. Peace Yo. SK