Concealed in words

An Iranian Prince once composed a verse of poetry...

"A black and white pearl is rare indeed"

He tried his best to add a second verse to this, but failed. He requested a number of other poets to help, but none of them succeeded. In desperation, he wrote to the King of Delhi, requesting for a second verse to be sent to him. The poets of Delhi were also unsuccessful. Zaibunisa Makhfi, the daughter of Alamgir Aurangzeb, was one day applying antimony and a teardrop fell from her eyes. Immediately, she composed the second verse:

"A black and white pearl is rare indeed,
Except in the surma mingled teardrop that falls from the eyes of the beloved"

The king sent the verses to the Iranian prince. After reading them, he requested that the poet be sent to him. Zaibunnisa wrote back with her answer in poetic verses:

"As the fragrance is concealed in the petals, I am concealed in my words.
Whoever desires to see me should read my verses"

~ A righteous and intellegent woman realises that her beauty is not to be subjected to the lustful glances of all and sundry. ~

-Khawatine Islam ke Iman Waqi'at, p230
as quoted in "Pearls from the Path", compiled by Moulana Afzal Ismail, Vol 2

The Envier

"By His Wisdom, Allah has made a man's face a mirror which reflects the thoughts that are hidden in his mind and heart. The effects of sickness are seen in the sick man's face, the sorrow of one who is grieving and depressed shows on his face, and the good health of one who is sound is reflected on his face. If a person is happy and content, his hidden thoughts show on his face and through slips of the tongue. If a believer is true and sincere in his faith and humble before the Most Merciful and reads the Quran frequently, that joy and light will show on his face; his nature will be humble and kind and his speech will be polite and noble. The opposite is also true; the effects of an evildoers immortal actions and sin will be reflected in his face and in slips of the tongue, even if he outwordly resembles those who are righteous.

By the same token, the envier who resents the good things that people have and wished that the blessings of Allah be taken away is sick at heart and lacking in faith. No matter how much he tries to conceal what he feels inwardly, he will soon let out the envy that he feels.

The issue of the evil eye includes all people, even those who are righteous if they do not pay attntion to it, whereas envy is only limited to certain people. Hence the envious person has certain characteristics by which he may be distinguished, such as the way he looks and smiles, the expression on his face and the way he speaks. All of that points to what is in his heart. Whatever a person conceals in his heart will inevitably show on his face and through slips of the tongue and in his movements and expressions.

What are the characteristics of the envier?

1. The envier is always angry at the decrees of Allah.
2. The envier always complains and rarely thanks Allah, even if he owns the whole world.
3. He follows up the mistake of the one whom he envies and tries to seek out his faults, and exposes them and exaggerates about them before others.
4. He conceals or ignores or belittles the good qualities and distinguishing characterisitics of the person whom he envies.
5. The envier cannot speak in front of the one whom he envies without addressing him in a laughing jocular anner, but deep down he is filled with hatred and resentment which is clear by the way he looks at him
6. He clearly criticises the one he envies, with or without evidence
7. He looks for opportunities and makes the most of any chance to harm the one whom he envies.
8. Finally, the envier is a troubled man, due to the resentment that is always festering in his heart, so depression and dullness show on his face.

Since envy is a serious disease of the heart, diseases of the heart can only be treated with beneficial knowledge. Such knowledge concerning the disease of envy means understanding that envy will harm you in this world as well as being a sin which incurs the wrath of Allah and avoiding envy is one of the means of entering paradise."

-Extract taken from 'The Jinn and Human Sickness' by Dr Abu'l-Mundhir Khaleel ibn Ibraheem Ameen, Maktaba Darusalam.

Subhannallah, I thought it an ample reminder in these noble days, that I be reminded (and remind) of having good character and the importance of looking at oneself and asking Allah for protection of being of such people such as the enviers. Envy is a serious disease which in this day and age doesnt seem to be taken seriously enough. May Allah protect us of being enviers and protect us from being in the company of or the target of such enviers. May Allah allow us to help the Ummah in the best of ways but make discreet our achievments and allow us to humble ourselves for His Sake. Ameen

Reaffirming

“If you don't stand for something you will fall for anything.”

-Al Hajj Malik al Shabazz [Malcom X]

Allah Knows

Subhannallah. Sometimes, a good old nasheed does the trick.

I love nasheeds because their lyrics are to the point, bold and easy to ponder over, subhannallah. They offer food for thought.

Allah knows is one of my favourites, its lyrics are so simple yet so powerful. Every emotion is described, and i listen to it and always ponder over Allahs Knowledge of each thought regarding each aspect of each part of each of our lives. Its amazing.


"...When you feel all alone in this world
And there’s nobody to count your tears
Just remember, no matter where you are
Allah knows
Allah knows

When you carrying a monster load
And you wonder how far you can go
With every step on that road that you take
Allah knows
Allah knows


No matter what, inside or out
There’s one thing of which there’s no doubt
Allah knows
Allah knows
And whatever lies in the heavens and the earth
Every star in this whole universe
Allah knows
Allah knows

When you find that special someone
Feel your whole life has barely begun
You can walk on the moon, shout it to everyone
Allah knows
Allah knows

When you gaze with love in your eyes
Catch a glimpse of paradise
And you see your child take the first breath of life
Allah knows
Allah knows


When you lose someone close to your heart
See your whole world fall apart
And you try to go on but it seems so hard
Allah knows
Allah knows

You see we all have a path to choose
Through the valleys and hills we go
With the ups and the downs, never fret never frown
Allah knows
Allah knows

Every grain of sand,
In every desert land, He knows.
Every shade of palm,
Every closed hand, He knows.
Every sparkling tear,
On every eyelash, He knows.
Every thought I have,
And every word I share, He knows.
Allah knows ....."

This, along with "test" by Native Deen are really my moments of reflection, moments of weakness, fragile state nasheeds which reinvigorate the ideas of Allahs Love again and inspire me. Alhamdulilah.

Seek Knowledge Even in China

Indeed the angels lower their wings for the seeker of sacred knowledge, pleased with what he is doing. The creatures in the heavens and the earth seek forgiveness for the student of sacred knowledge, even the fish in the sea.

-Prophet Muhammad [saws]

Appreciating Blessings

"Those who do not appreciate their blessings when they have them, will come to realise through losing them"

Shaykh Nuh Keller

Natural Islam

" .. Being close to nature, respecting what it is, and observing and meditating on what it shows us, offers us, or takes [back] from us requirements of a faith that, in its quest, attempts to feed, deepen and renew itself. Nature is the primary guide and intimate companion of faith. Thus, God decided to expose His Prophet, from his earliest childhood, to the natural lessons of creation, concieved as a school where the mind gradually apprehends signs and meanings. Far removed from the formalism of soulless religious rituals, this sort of education, in and through its closeness to nature, fosters a relationship to the divine based on contemplation adn depth that will later make it possible, in a second phase of spiritual education, to understand the meaning, form and objectives of religious ritual. Cut of from nature in our towns and cities, we nowadays seem to have forgotten the meaning of this message to such an extent that we dangerously invert the order of requirements and believe that leaning about the techniques and forms of religion is sufficient to grasp and understand their meaning and objectives, This delusion has serious consequences, since it leads to draininng religious teaching if its spiritual substance, which actually ought to be its heart. . . "

The Messenger
The Meanings of the Life of Muhammad
Tariq Ramadhan