Saturday, August 24, 2013

Distant

Assalamualikum,

Bismillah

We all don't think alike and we all don't share the same views. We appear to be walking on the same road but even then we don't seem to agree on the route to take. We all want the same goal but some are blinded by other temporary , attractive looking distractions and sadly that is where they send their entire lives: Consumed by it, involved in it and lost. 
I learnt a very important and deep lesson a few days back and for that I am so grateful to Allah swt a lesson among the many I will cherish and I hope that somewhere out there you benefit from it too:
Many of us stumble upon Islam quite literally. We didn't expect to fall in love with it and as you may agree with me the deeper we searched into it the more it consumed us, impressed us and took hold of us ,Alhamdulillah. For some of Islam became the very air we breathe, the eyes through which we see the world and for us the world changed: upside down and inside out. 

We were never the same... We took the steps to become better Muslims and by no means is anyone ever perfect but we try. But as some of you can relate that even when life took a whole new meaning for us, we were still living in the same world , where there exist a myriad of problems  and one of those problems was that of those who do not see Islam the way we do.

We call them "non- practicing folk". In a group of "practicing" Muslims you will find notes being exchanged on them: how they act, what they have to say about Islam and how their behavior drives a Muslim up the wall, angers them etc...

Many times these non- practicing people are very close to us: they are our family. And as we become closer to our Deen and begin to understand what is right from wrong we tend to sometimes forget that these very people are still deserving of our love and attention no matter what they think of Islam. Its not just about those in our families but also people in general that we meet or we see on TV. 

One look at their attire or the sort of job they do, our mind is already made up : oh! Just some misguided , snobby person. We may even begin to pity them feel sorry for them and even hate them because they made fun of our clothes or appearance or whatever.

We forget that back when Islam was not part of our lives we were in a similar category as the people we now seem to pity, hate and look down upon. And you know what the more shocking thing is ? That even in our hearts sometimes we stop seeing these individuals as people! As human beings! Deserving of our respect if not love. We see the exterior : a facade of a mind closed to the possibility that Islam is something "practical" with today's fast paced world. We see their inappropriate manner of dressing, demeanor and bad habits and we think we have this person figured out. 
Do you know what we fail to see or more importantly don't even try to see? That behind this facade is a person a person in need of out time, our respect and possibly help (helping someone doesn't mean you pity them) We hide from them like they are vile and disgusting, we refuse to sit with them because they have something mean to say to us. We go to such great lengths to avoid them and in the end we think we saved ourselves: Dude that guy is going to Hell and I'm staying the Heck away from him. Sadly, nothing could be further from the truth . 
Inside could be a person who if we took out the time to understand and speak to politely might just turn around and see Islam and Muslims differently. You may know this person because they do XZY on a Saturday night but you know what Allah knows them better, infact way better. All you and I are meant to do is try to be nice that is just the first step. Dont go on the appearance, dont judge them by their past just be nice and Insha'Allah we will be taking this discussion further from there :) I hope this was helpful to you as it was to me.



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