Ayahs of the Day:
If God were to punish people for their injustice, not a single creature would be left on earth: but God leaves them be until a determined time. And when their time has come, they cannot postpone it even an hour nor yet bring it on. [16: 61]
Hadith of the Day:
Protect (yourselves) from the earth for it is your mother and there is no one who does any act, good or evil, except that it will tell about it. [Tabrani]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Beware, beware! For God has been so protective that it almost seems like Divine forgiveness. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Become an early riser. This simple, practical strategy help many people discover a more peaceful, even more meaningful life. So many people wake up, rush to get ready, grab a cup of coffee, and charge out the door to work. After working all day, they return home, tired. The same is usually true for men and women who stay home with their children: They get up just in time to start doing things for the kids. There is virtually no time for anything else. Whether you work, raise a family, or both, for the most part you are tired to enjoy any time left for you.
As a solution to the tiredness, the assumption is often made, "I'd better get as much sleep as I can." So, your free time is spent sleeping. For many people this creates a deep longing in the heart. Surely there must be more to life than work, children, and sleep. Another way of looking at your fatigue is to consider that a lack of fulfillment and a sense of being overwhelmed both contribute to your tiredness. And, contrary to popular logic, a little less sleep and a little more time for you might be just what you need to combat your sense of fatigue. An hour or two that is reserved just for you--before your day begins--is an incredible way to improve your life.
Many people have told me that this one shift in their routine was the single lost important change they have ever made in their lives. For the first time ever, they are able to participate in those quiet activities they never found the time to do. All of a sudden, the books are getting read, the meditation gets done, the sunrise is appreciated. The fulfillment you experience more than makes up for any sleep you miss out on. If you must, turn off the television at night and get to sleep an hour or two earlier. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Most people are searching for happiness. They're looking for it. They're trying to find it in someone or something outside of themselves. That's a fundamental mistake. Happiness is something that you are, and it comes from the way that you think.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Friday, March 10, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 492
Ayahs of the Day:
Ungrateful for what We have given them. Then enjoy yourselves for now; for you will come to know. And they assign part of what We have provided them to what they do not know; by God, you'll surely be questioned about what you invented. [16: 55,56]
Hadith of the Day:
The first to be summoned to Paradise on the Day of Resurrection will be those who praise God in (both) prosperity and adversity. [Tirmidhi]
Wise Quote of the Day:
He who busies himself in Lord's Work, finds the Lord busy in his work. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Cut yourself some slack. Each of the strategies in this book are geared toward helping you become more relaxed, peaceful, and loving. One of the most important pieces of this puzzle, however, is to remember that your goal is to stay relaxed, to not get too worked up or concerned about how you are doing. Practice the strategies, keep them in mind, yet don't worry about being perfect. Cut yourself some slack! There will be many times when you lose it, when you revert to being uptight, frustrated, stressed, and reactive--get used to it. When you do, it's okay. Life is a process--just one thing after another. When you lose it, just start again.
One of the common mistakes I see when people are attempting to become more inwardly peaceful is that they become frustrated by little setbacks. An alternative is to see your growth and perspective. Say to yourself, "Woops, I lost it again. Oh well, next time I'll handle it differently." Over time, you'll notice drastic changes in your responses to life, but won't happen all at once. No one is going to bat 100 percent, or even close to it. All that's important is that, generally speaking, you are doing your best and that you are moving in the right direction. When you learn to keep your perspective and stay loving toward yourself, even when you prove you are human, you'll be well on your way to a happier life. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Habits are changed by practicing new behavior, and this is true for mental habits as well. What distinguishes what's alive from what is dead is growth, be it in plants or in you.
Ungrateful for what We have given them. Then enjoy yourselves for now; for you will come to know. And they assign part of what We have provided them to what they do not know; by God, you'll surely be questioned about what you invented. [16: 55,56]
Hadith of the Day:
The first to be summoned to Paradise on the Day of Resurrection will be those who praise God in (both) prosperity and adversity. [Tirmidhi]
Wise Quote of the Day:
He who busies himself in Lord's Work, finds the Lord busy in his work. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Cut yourself some slack. Each of the strategies in this book are geared toward helping you become more relaxed, peaceful, and loving. One of the most important pieces of this puzzle, however, is to remember that your goal is to stay relaxed, to not get too worked up or concerned about how you are doing. Practice the strategies, keep them in mind, yet don't worry about being perfect. Cut yourself some slack! There will be many times when you lose it, when you revert to being uptight, frustrated, stressed, and reactive--get used to it. When you do, it's okay. Life is a process--just one thing after another. When you lose it, just start again.
One of the common mistakes I see when people are attempting to become more inwardly peaceful is that they become frustrated by little setbacks. An alternative is to see your growth and perspective. Say to yourself, "Woops, I lost it again. Oh well, next time I'll handle it differently." Over time, you'll notice drastic changes in your responses to life, but won't happen all at once. No one is going to bat 100 percent, or even close to it. All that's important is that, generally speaking, you are doing your best and that you are moving in the right direction. When you learn to keep your perspective and stay loving toward yourself, even when you prove you are human, you'll be well on your way to a happier life. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Habits are changed by practicing new behavior, and this is true for mental habits as well. What distinguishes what's alive from what is dead is growth, be it in plants or in you.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 491
Ayahs of the Day:
Whatever blessings you have is from God; and when adversity touches you, it is to God that you groan. But then when God removes the adversity from you, some of you attribute partners to their Lord. [15: 53,54]
Hadith of the Day:
Procrastination in repaying debts by a wealthy person is oppression. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
O son of Adam! When you see God following you with blessings even though you are disobedient, watch out! [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Acknowledge the totality of your being. We deny the parts of ourselves that we deem unacceptable rather than accepting the fact that we're less than perfect. One of the reason it's important to accept all parts of yourself is that it allows you to be easier on yourself, more compassionate. When you act or feel insecure, rather than pretending to be "together," you can open to the truth and say to yourself, "I'm feeling frightened and that's okay." If you're feeling a little jealous, greedy, or angry, rather than deny or bury your feelings, you can open to them, which helps you move through them quickly and grow beyond them.
When you no longer think of your negative feelings as a big deal, or as something to fear, you'll no longer be as frightened by them. When you open to the totality of your being you no longer have to pretend that your life is perfect, or even hope that it will be, Instead you can accept yourself as you are, right now.
When you acknowledge the less than perfect parts of yourself, something magical begins to happen. Along with the negative, you'll begin to notice the positive, the wonderful aspects of yourself that you may not have given yourself credit for, or perhaps been aware of. You'll notice that while you may, at times, act with self interest in mind, at other times you are incredibly selfless. Sometimes you may act insecure or frightened, but most often you are courageous. While you can certainly be uptight, you can also be quite relaxed. When the negative characteristics arise you can begin to recognize them as part of a bigger picture. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love. There's only a scarcity of resolve to make it happen.
Whatever blessings you have is from God; and when adversity touches you, it is to God that you groan. But then when God removes the adversity from you, some of you attribute partners to their Lord. [15: 53,54]
Hadith of the Day:
Procrastination in repaying debts by a wealthy person is oppression. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
O son of Adam! When you see God following you with blessings even though you are disobedient, watch out! [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Acknowledge the totality of your being. We deny the parts of ourselves that we deem unacceptable rather than accepting the fact that we're less than perfect. One of the reason it's important to accept all parts of yourself is that it allows you to be easier on yourself, more compassionate. When you act or feel insecure, rather than pretending to be "together," you can open to the truth and say to yourself, "I'm feeling frightened and that's okay." If you're feeling a little jealous, greedy, or angry, rather than deny or bury your feelings, you can open to them, which helps you move through them quickly and grow beyond them.
When you no longer think of your negative feelings as a big deal, or as something to fear, you'll no longer be as frightened by them. When you open to the totality of your being you no longer have to pretend that your life is perfect, or even hope that it will be, Instead you can accept yourself as you are, right now.
When you acknowledge the less than perfect parts of yourself, something magical begins to happen. Along with the negative, you'll begin to notice the positive, the wonderful aspects of yourself that you may not have given yourself credit for, or perhaps been aware of. You'll notice that while you may, at times, act with self interest in mind, at other times you are incredibly selfless. Sometimes you may act insecure or frightened, but most often you are courageous. While you can certainly be uptight, you can also be quite relaxed. When the negative characteristics arise you can begin to recognize them as part of a bigger picture. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love. There's only a scarcity of resolve to make it happen.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 490
Ayahs of the Day:
God said, "don't adopt two gods, for there is only one God: so let it be Me that you fear." And to God belongs what is in the heavens and the earth; and to God is due perpetual devotion. So do you fear other than God? [16: 51,52]
Hadith of the Day:
Someone who sets forth in search for knowledge is busy in the cause od Allah until he returns from his quest. [Tirmidhi]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The thankful believer is closest to well being. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Think of your problems as potential teachers. Most people would agree that the greatest sources of stress in our lives is our problems. To a certain degree this is true. A more accurate assessment, however, is that the amount of stress we feel has more to do with how we relate to our problems than it does with the problems themselves. In other words, how much of a problem do we make our problems? Do we see them as emergencies, or as potential teachers?
Problems come in many shapes, sizes, and degrees of seriousness, but all have one thing in common: They present us with something that we wish were different. The more we struggle with our problems and the more we want them to go away, the worse they seem and the more stress they cause us. Ironically, and luckily, the opposite is also true. When we accept our problems as an inevitable part of life, when we look at them as potential teachers, it's as if a weight has been lifted off our shoulders.
Think of a problem that you have struggled for quite some time. How have you dealt with this problem up until now? If you're like most, you've probably struggled with it, mentally rehearsed it, analyzed it again and again, but have come up short. Where has all this struggle led you? probably to more confusion and stress. Now think of the same problem in a new way. Rather than push away the problem and resist it, try to embrace it. Mentally, hold the problem near to your heart. Ask yourself what valuable lesson(s) this problem might be able to teach you. Could it be teaching you to be more careful or patient? Does it have anything to do with greed, envy, carelessness, or forgiveness? Or something equally powerful?
Whatever problems you are dealing with, chances are they could be thought of in a softer way that includes a genuine desire to learn from them. When you hold your problems in this light, they soften like a clenched fist that is opening. Give this strategy a try, you'll agree that most problems aren't the emergencies we think they are. And usually, once we learn what we need to learn, they begin to go away. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
When something bad occurs: Al-hamdu li'Llahi ala kulli hal (Praise be to Allah, in every state)
Food for thought:
Every moment that you spend upset, in despair, in anguish, angry, or hurt because of the behavior of anybody else in your life is a moment in which you've given up control of your life.
God said, "don't adopt two gods, for there is only one God: so let it be Me that you fear." And to God belongs what is in the heavens and the earth; and to God is due perpetual devotion. So do you fear other than God? [16: 51,52]
Hadith of the Day:
Someone who sets forth in search for knowledge is busy in the cause od Allah until he returns from his quest. [Tirmidhi]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The thankful believer is closest to well being. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Think of your problems as potential teachers. Most people would agree that the greatest sources of stress in our lives is our problems. To a certain degree this is true. A more accurate assessment, however, is that the amount of stress we feel has more to do with how we relate to our problems than it does with the problems themselves. In other words, how much of a problem do we make our problems? Do we see them as emergencies, or as potential teachers?
Problems come in many shapes, sizes, and degrees of seriousness, but all have one thing in common: They present us with something that we wish were different. The more we struggle with our problems and the more we want them to go away, the worse they seem and the more stress they cause us. Ironically, and luckily, the opposite is also true. When we accept our problems as an inevitable part of life, when we look at them as potential teachers, it's as if a weight has been lifted off our shoulders.
Think of a problem that you have struggled for quite some time. How have you dealt with this problem up until now? If you're like most, you've probably struggled with it, mentally rehearsed it, analyzed it again and again, but have come up short. Where has all this struggle led you? probably to more confusion and stress. Now think of the same problem in a new way. Rather than push away the problem and resist it, try to embrace it. Mentally, hold the problem near to your heart. Ask yourself what valuable lesson(s) this problem might be able to teach you. Could it be teaching you to be more careful or patient? Does it have anything to do with greed, envy, carelessness, or forgiveness? Or something equally powerful?
Whatever problems you are dealing with, chances are they could be thought of in a softer way that includes a genuine desire to learn from them. When you hold your problems in this light, they soften like a clenched fist that is opening. Give this strategy a try, you'll agree that most problems aren't the emergencies we think they are. And usually, once we learn what we need to learn, they begin to go away. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
When something bad occurs: Al-hamdu li'Llahi ala kulli hal (Praise be to Allah, in every state)
Food for thought:
Every moment that you spend upset, in despair, in anguish, angry, or hurt because of the behavior of anybody else in your life is a moment in which you've given up control of your life.
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 489
Ayahs of the Day:
And all in the heavens and all on the earth bow to God, from animals to angels, without being proud; they are in awe of their Lord above them, and they do what they are directed. [16: 49,50]
Hadith of the Day:
Every sin of a martyr is forgiven except debt. [Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The accomplished spiritual is the one who has achieved the balance between hope and fear. [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
Do a favor and don't ask for, or expect, one in return. This is a strategy that can help you practice integrating service into your life. It will show you how easy it is and how good it feels to do something nice for someone without expecting anything in return. So often, either consciously or unconsciously, we want something from others, especially when we have done something for them. It's almost as though we keep score of our own good deeds rather than remembering that giving is its own reward.
When you do something nice for someone, just do it, you'll notice (if you are quiet enough inside yourself) a beautiful feeling of ease and peace. Just as vigorous exercise releases endorphins in your brain that make you feel good physically, your acts of loving-kindness release the emotional equivalent. Your reward is the feeling you receive in knowing that you participated in an act of kindness, or don't need something in return or even a "thankyou." In fact, you don't even need to let the person know what you have done.
What interferes with this peaceful feeling is our expectation of reciprocity. Our own thoughts interfere with our peaceful feelings as they clutter our minds, as we get caught up in what we think we want or need. The solution is to notice your "I want something in return" thoughts and gently dismiss them. In the absence of these thoughts, your positive feelings will return. See if you can think of something really thoughtful to do for someone, and don't expect anything in return. When you complete your favor, see if you can tap into the warm feeling of knowing you have done something really nice without expecting anything from the person you have just helped. If you practice, you'll discover that the feelings themselves are reward enough. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Your own expectations are the key to the whole business of mental health. If you expect to be happy, healthy, and fulfilled in life, then that is where you'll place your attention, and that is what you will manifest.
And all in the heavens and all on the earth bow to God, from animals to angels, without being proud; they are in awe of their Lord above them, and they do what they are directed. [16: 49,50]
Hadith of the Day:
Every sin of a martyr is forgiven except debt. [Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The accomplished spiritual is the one who has achieved the balance between hope and fear. [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
Do a favor and don't ask for, or expect, one in return. This is a strategy that can help you practice integrating service into your life. It will show you how easy it is and how good it feels to do something nice for someone without expecting anything in return. So often, either consciously or unconsciously, we want something from others, especially when we have done something for them. It's almost as though we keep score of our own good deeds rather than remembering that giving is its own reward.
When you do something nice for someone, just do it, you'll notice (if you are quiet enough inside yourself) a beautiful feeling of ease and peace. Just as vigorous exercise releases endorphins in your brain that make you feel good physically, your acts of loving-kindness release the emotional equivalent. Your reward is the feeling you receive in knowing that you participated in an act of kindness, or don't need something in return or even a "thankyou." In fact, you don't even need to let the person know what you have done.
What interferes with this peaceful feeling is our expectation of reciprocity. Our own thoughts interfere with our peaceful feelings as they clutter our minds, as we get caught up in what we think we want or need. The solution is to notice your "I want something in return" thoughts and gently dismiss them. In the absence of these thoughts, your positive feelings will return. See if you can think of something really thoughtful to do for someone, and don't expect anything in return. When you complete your favor, see if you can tap into the warm feeling of knowing you have done something really nice without expecting anything from the person you have just helped. If you practice, you'll discover that the feelings themselves are reward enough. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Your own expectations are the key to the whole business of mental health. If you expect to be happy, healthy, and fulfilled in life, then that is where you'll place your attention, and that is what you will manifest.
Monday, March 06, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 488
Ayahs of the Day:
Or God's seizing them with gradual wastage? Yet it is the fact that your Lord is indeed kind, merciful. Do they not observe what God has created? their shadows revolve from the right and the left, bowing to God as they shrink away. [16: 47,48]
Hadith of the Day:
Pay (regular charity) out of your property, for truly it is a purifier....be kind to your relatives, and acknowledge the rights of the poor, of (your) neighbors, and of those who ask for assistance. [Fiqh us Sunnah]
Wise Quote of the Day:
How strange is the one who claims to know the reality of death and yet can go on enjoying himself heedlessly, and the one who recognizes the evanescence of the world yet longs after it tirelessly. [Othman radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Make service an integral part of your life. To become a kinder , more loving individual requires action. Yet, ironically, there is nothing specifically you have to do, no prescription to follow. Rather, most genuine acts of kindness and generosity seem natural; they stem from a type of thinking where service and giving have been integrated into the person's thought process.
If one of your goals is to help others, you will find the most appropriate ways. Your chances to be of service are endless. The key, is to remember that being at service isn't a one-time effort. It's not doing something nice for someone and then wondering why others aren't being nice too, or doing things for us. Instead, a life of service is a life long process, a way of thinking about life. Does the trash need to be taken out? If so, go ahead and take it out even if it's not your turn. Is someone you know being difficult? May be they need a hug or someone to listen to them. Are you aware of a charity that is in trouble? Could you possibly give a little extra this month?
The best way to be of service is often very simple--it's those little, quiet, often unnoticed acts of kindness that I can choose on a daily basis--being supportive of a new endeavor by my spouse, or simply taking the time and energy to listen. There is an ancient saying, "Giving is its own reward." it's really true. When you give, you also receive. In fact, what you receive is directly proportional to what you give. As you give more freely of youself in your own unique ways, you will experience more feelings of peace than you ever thought possible. Everyone wins, especially you. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for thought:
Be consistently aware of the need to serve God and to serve others in any way and all of your actions. That is the way of the miracle worker.
Or God's seizing them with gradual wastage? Yet it is the fact that your Lord is indeed kind, merciful. Do they not observe what God has created? their shadows revolve from the right and the left, bowing to God as they shrink away. [16: 47,48]
Hadith of the Day:
Pay (regular charity) out of your property, for truly it is a purifier....be kind to your relatives, and acknowledge the rights of the poor, of (your) neighbors, and of those who ask for assistance. [Fiqh us Sunnah]
Wise Quote of the Day:
How strange is the one who claims to know the reality of death and yet can go on enjoying himself heedlessly, and the one who recognizes the evanescence of the world yet longs after it tirelessly. [Othman radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Make service an integral part of your life. To become a kinder , more loving individual requires action. Yet, ironically, there is nothing specifically you have to do, no prescription to follow. Rather, most genuine acts of kindness and generosity seem natural; they stem from a type of thinking where service and giving have been integrated into the person's thought process.
If one of your goals is to help others, you will find the most appropriate ways. Your chances to be of service are endless. The key, is to remember that being at service isn't a one-time effort. It's not doing something nice for someone and then wondering why others aren't being nice too, or doing things for us. Instead, a life of service is a life long process, a way of thinking about life. Does the trash need to be taken out? If so, go ahead and take it out even if it's not your turn. Is someone you know being difficult? May be they need a hug or someone to listen to them. Are you aware of a charity that is in trouble? Could you possibly give a little extra this month?
The best way to be of service is often very simple--it's those little, quiet, often unnoticed acts of kindness that I can choose on a daily basis--being supportive of a new endeavor by my spouse, or simply taking the time and energy to listen. There is an ancient saying, "Giving is its own reward." it's really true. When you give, you also receive. In fact, what you receive is directly proportional to what you give. As you give more freely of youself in your own unique ways, you will experience more feelings of peace than you ever thought possible. Everyone wins, especially you. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for thought:
Be consistently aware of the need to serve God and to serve others in any way and all of your actions. That is the way of the miracle worker.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 487
Ayahs of the Day:
Do those who plot evils feel secure from God causing the earth to swallow them up, or the coming of punishment to them from where they do not perceive, or God's seizing them in the midst of their comings and goings, they being unable to prevent it. [16: 45,46]
Hadith of the Day:
Do not do evil to those who do evil to you, but you deal with them with forgiveness and kindness. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Covetousness is itself poverty regardless of how rich one is; detachment is itself wealth regardless of how poor one is; and not wanting vengeance is itself patience regardless if one was wronged or not. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
A quiet mind is the foundation of inner peace. And inner peace translates into outer peace. Although there are many techniques for quieting the mind, such as reflection, deep breathing, contemplation, and visualization, the most universally accepted and regularly used technique is meditation. In as little as five to ten minutes a day, you can train your mind to be still and quiet. This stillness can be incorporated into your daily life, making you less reactive and irritable, and giving you greater perspective to see things as small stuff rather than as emergencies. Meditation teaches you to be calm by giving you the experience of absolute relaxation. It teaches you to be at peace.
There are many different forms and variations of meditation. Essentially, however, meditation involves emptying your mind. Usually, meditation is done alone in a quiet environment. You close your eyes and focus your attention on your breath--in and out, in and out. As thoughts enter your mind, you gently let them go and bring your attention back to your breath. Do this over and over again. Over time, you'll train yourself to keep your attention on your breath as you gently dismiss any stray thoughts.
You'll quickly discover that meditation isn't easy. You will notice that your mind will fill with thoughts the moment you attempt to keep it still. It's rare for a beginner to be able to focus attention for more than a few seconds. The trick to becoming an effective meditator is to be gentle on yourself and to be consistent, Don't be discouraged. A few minutes each day will reap tremendous benefits, over time. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
P.S: Our meditation has been prescribed for us in the form of five daily prayers, if we are able to focus more on what we are uttering, rather than just the mechanical aspect of it, we will be able to set our minds free, inshaAllah.
Food for Thought:
A non-doer is very often a critic--that is, someone who sits back and watches doers, and then waxes philosophically about how the doers are doing. It's easy to be a critic, but being a doer requires effort, risk, and changes.
Do those who plot evils feel secure from God causing the earth to swallow them up, or the coming of punishment to them from where they do not perceive, or God's seizing them in the midst of their comings and goings, they being unable to prevent it. [16: 45,46]
Hadith of the Day:
Do not do evil to those who do evil to you, but you deal with them with forgiveness and kindness. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Covetousness is itself poverty regardless of how rich one is; detachment is itself wealth regardless of how poor one is; and not wanting vengeance is itself patience regardless if one was wronged or not. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
A quiet mind is the foundation of inner peace. And inner peace translates into outer peace. Although there are many techniques for quieting the mind, such as reflection, deep breathing, contemplation, and visualization, the most universally accepted and regularly used technique is meditation. In as little as five to ten minutes a day, you can train your mind to be still and quiet. This stillness can be incorporated into your daily life, making you less reactive and irritable, and giving you greater perspective to see things as small stuff rather than as emergencies. Meditation teaches you to be calm by giving you the experience of absolute relaxation. It teaches you to be at peace.
There are many different forms and variations of meditation. Essentially, however, meditation involves emptying your mind. Usually, meditation is done alone in a quiet environment. You close your eyes and focus your attention on your breath--in and out, in and out. As thoughts enter your mind, you gently let them go and bring your attention back to your breath. Do this over and over again. Over time, you'll train yourself to keep your attention on your breath as you gently dismiss any stray thoughts.
You'll quickly discover that meditation isn't easy. You will notice that your mind will fill with thoughts the moment you attempt to keep it still. It's rare for a beginner to be able to focus attention for more than a few seconds. The trick to becoming an effective meditator is to be gentle on yourself and to be consistent, Don't be discouraged. A few minutes each day will reap tremendous benefits, over time. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
P.S: Our meditation has been prescribed for us in the form of five daily prayers, if we are able to focus more on what we are uttering, rather than just the mechanical aspect of it, we will be able to set our minds free, inshaAllah.
Food for Thought:
A non-doer is very often a critic--that is, someone who sits back and watches doers, and then waxes philosophically about how the doers are doing. It's easy to be a critic, but being a doer requires effort, risk, and changes.
Saturday, March 04, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 486
Ayahs of the Day:
We never sent before you any but men whom We inspired--so ask the people with the Reminder, if you do not know--with clarifications and scriptures. And We revealed to you the Reminder, that you might clarify to people what had been revealed to them, and that they might reflect. [16: 43,44]
Hadith of the Day:
One who cares for widows and the poor is like those who fight in the way of Allah or those who spend their days fasting and their nights praying. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Rein in your tongue from complaining about others, and you will be granted a life of happiness. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Remember that you become what you practice most. Repeated practice is one of the most basic principles of most spiritual and meditative paths. In other words, whatever you practice most is what you will become. If you are in the habit of being uptight whenever life isn't quite right, repeatedly reacting to criticism by defending yourself, insisting on being right, allowing your thinking to snowball in response to adversity, or acting like life is an emergency, then, unfortunately, your life will be a reflection of this kind of practice. You will be frustrated because, in a sense, you have practiced being frustrated.
Likewise, however, you can choose to bring forth in yourself qualities of compassion, patience, kindness, humility, and peace--again, through what you practice. It's safe to say that practice makes perfect. It makes sense, then, to be careful what you practice.
This isn't to suggest that you make your entire life into a great project where the goal is to be constantly improving yourself. Only that it's immensely helpful to become conscious of your own habits, both internal and external. Where is your attention? How do you spend your time? Are you cultivating habits that are helpful to your stated goals? Is what you say you want your life to stand for consistent with what your life really stands for? Simply asking yourself these and other important questions, and answering them honestly, helps to determine which strategies will be most useful to you.
Sadly,many people spend far more time washing their car or watching reruns of television shows they don't even enjoy than making time for aspects of life that nurture their hearts. If you remember that what you practice you will become, you may begin choosing different types of practice. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
You have a very powerful mind that can make anything happen as long as you keep yourself centered. The elevator to success is out of order. You're going to take the stairway, one step at a time.
We never sent before you any but men whom We inspired--so ask the people with the Reminder, if you do not know--with clarifications and scriptures. And We revealed to you the Reminder, that you might clarify to people what had been revealed to them, and that they might reflect. [16: 43,44]
Hadith of the Day:
One who cares for widows and the poor is like those who fight in the way of Allah or those who spend their days fasting and their nights praying. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Rein in your tongue from complaining about others, and you will be granted a life of happiness. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Remember that you become what you practice most. Repeated practice is one of the most basic principles of most spiritual and meditative paths. In other words, whatever you practice most is what you will become. If you are in the habit of being uptight whenever life isn't quite right, repeatedly reacting to criticism by defending yourself, insisting on being right, allowing your thinking to snowball in response to adversity, or acting like life is an emergency, then, unfortunately, your life will be a reflection of this kind of practice. You will be frustrated because, in a sense, you have practiced being frustrated.
Likewise, however, you can choose to bring forth in yourself qualities of compassion, patience, kindness, humility, and peace--again, through what you practice. It's safe to say that practice makes perfect. It makes sense, then, to be careful what you practice.
This isn't to suggest that you make your entire life into a great project where the goal is to be constantly improving yourself. Only that it's immensely helpful to become conscious of your own habits, both internal and external. Where is your attention? How do you spend your time? Are you cultivating habits that are helpful to your stated goals? Is what you say you want your life to stand for consistent with what your life really stands for? Simply asking yourself these and other important questions, and answering them honestly, helps to determine which strategies will be most useful to you.
Sadly,many people spend far more time washing their car or watching reruns of television shows they don't even enjoy than making time for aspects of life that nurture their hearts. If you remember that what you practice you will become, you may begin choosing different types of practice. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
You have a very powerful mind that can make anything happen as long as you keep yourself centered. The elevator to success is out of order. You're going to take the stairway, one step at a time.
Friday, March 03, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 485
Ayahs of the Day:
As for those who have gone into exile for God after having been oppressed, We will make a good place for them in this world, though the reward of the hereafter is certainly greater--if they only knew--those who are constant and trust in their Lord. [16: 41,42]
Hadith of the Day:
Verily, Allah will only show mercy to those of His servants who do good to others. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
To be humble is to accept the truth and submit to it even if you heard it from a child or someone who is uneducated or ignorant. [Fudhayl ibn Iyaadh]
Guidance of the Day:
Be willing to learn from friends and family. One of the saddest observations I've made centers on how reluctant many of us are to learn from the people closest to us--our parents, spouses, children, and friends. Rather than being open to learning, we close ourselves off out of embarrassment, fear, stubbornness, or pride. It's almost as if we say to ourselves, "I have already learned all that I can (or want to learn) from this person; there is nothing else I can (or need to) learn."
It's sad because the people closest to us know us the best. They are sometimes able to see ways in which we are acting in a self defeating manner and can offer very simple solutions. If we are too proud or stubborn to learn, we lose out on some wonderful, simple ways to improve our lives. It's such a simple shortcut for growth, yet almost no one uses it. All it takes is a little courage and humility, and the ability to let go of our ego.
This is especially true if you are in the habit of ignoring suggestions, taking them as criticism, or tuning out certain members of your family. Imagine how shocked they will be when you ask them, sincerely, for their advice. Not only does this make the person you are asking feel wanted and special, but end up getting some terrific advice. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
The trouble with experience is that so few people are born with it. Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.
As for those who have gone into exile for God after having been oppressed, We will make a good place for them in this world, though the reward of the hereafter is certainly greater--if they only knew--those who are constant and trust in their Lord. [16: 41,42]
Hadith of the Day:
Verily, Allah will only show mercy to those of His servants who do good to others. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
To be humble is to accept the truth and submit to it even if you heard it from a child or someone who is uneducated or ignorant. [Fudhayl ibn Iyaadh]
Guidance of the Day:
Be willing to learn from friends and family. One of the saddest observations I've made centers on how reluctant many of us are to learn from the people closest to us--our parents, spouses, children, and friends. Rather than being open to learning, we close ourselves off out of embarrassment, fear, stubbornness, or pride. It's almost as if we say to ourselves, "I have already learned all that I can (or want to learn) from this person; there is nothing else I can (or need to) learn."
It's sad because the people closest to us know us the best. They are sometimes able to see ways in which we are acting in a self defeating manner and can offer very simple solutions. If we are too proud or stubborn to learn, we lose out on some wonderful, simple ways to improve our lives. It's such a simple shortcut for growth, yet almost no one uses it. All it takes is a little courage and humility, and the ability to let go of our ego.
This is especially true if you are in the habit of ignoring suggestions, taking them as criticism, or tuning out certain members of your family. Imagine how shocked they will be when you ask them, sincerely, for their advice. Not only does this make the person you are asking feel wanted and special, but end up getting some terrific advice. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
The trouble with experience is that so few people are born with it. Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 484
Ayahs of the Day:
They swear by God the most intent of their oaths that God will not resurrect the dead. Oh, no! It is a promise binding on God--even though people don't know--to clarify to them what they differed on, and so that those who scoffed may know that they were the ones who were liars. Our only word to something when We intend it is that We say to it "Be," and it is. [16: 38,39,40]
Hadith of the Day:
Those who show no mercy will be shown no mercy. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
There is no good in excess, just as there is no excess in good. [imam Abu Hanifa]
Guidance of the Day:
Practice ignoring your negative thoughts. It has been estimated that an average human being has around 50,000 thoughts per day. That's a lot of thoughts. Some of these thoughts are going to be positive and productive. Unfortunately, however, many of them are also going to be negative--angry, fearful, pessimistic, worrisome. Indeed, the important question in terms of becoming more peaceful isn't whether or not you are going to have negative thoughts--you are--it's what you choose to do with the ones that you have.
In a practical sense, you really have only two options when dealing with negative thoughts. You can analyze your thoughts--ponder, think through, study, think some more--or you can learn to ignore them--dismiss, pay less attention to, not take so seriously. The latter option, learning to take negative thoughts less seriously, is infinitely more effective in terms of learning to be more peaceful.
When you have a thought--any thought--that's all it is, a thought! It can't hurt you without your consent. For example, if you have a thought from your past, "I'm upset because my parents didn't do a good job," you can get into it, as many do, which will create inner turmoil for you. You can give the thought significance in your mind, and you'll convince yourself that you should indeed be unhappy. Or, you can recognize that your mind is about to create a mental snowball, and you can dismiss the thought. This doesn't mean your childhood wasn't difficult--it may very well have been--but in this present moment, you have a choice of which thoughts to pay attention to.
The same mental dynamic applies to thoughts of this morning, even five minutes ago. An argument that happened while you were walking out the door on your way to work is no longer an actual argument, it's a thought in your mind. This dynamic also applies to future-oriented thoughts of this evening, next week, or ten years down the road. You'll find, in all cases, that if you ignore or dismiss a negative thought that fills your mind, a more peaceful feeling is only a moment away. And, in a more peaceful state of mind, your wisdom and common sense will tell you what to do. This strategy takes practice but is well worth the effort. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
If you see a problem, it's yours. If you think somebody should do something about it, remember, you are as much a somebody as anybody.
They swear by God the most intent of their oaths that God will not resurrect the dead. Oh, no! It is a promise binding on God--even though people don't know--to clarify to them what they differed on, and so that those who scoffed may know that they were the ones who were liars. Our only word to something when We intend it is that We say to it "Be," and it is. [16: 38,39,40]
Hadith of the Day:
Those who show no mercy will be shown no mercy. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
There is no good in excess, just as there is no excess in good. [imam Abu Hanifa]
Guidance of the Day:
Practice ignoring your negative thoughts. It has been estimated that an average human being has around 50,000 thoughts per day. That's a lot of thoughts. Some of these thoughts are going to be positive and productive. Unfortunately, however, many of them are also going to be negative--angry, fearful, pessimistic, worrisome. Indeed, the important question in terms of becoming more peaceful isn't whether or not you are going to have negative thoughts--you are--it's what you choose to do with the ones that you have.
In a practical sense, you really have only two options when dealing with negative thoughts. You can analyze your thoughts--ponder, think through, study, think some more--or you can learn to ignore them--dismiss, pay less attention to, not take so seriously. The latter option, learning to take negative thoughts less seriously, is infinitely more effective in terms of learning to be more peaceful.
When you have a thought--any thought--that's all it is, a thought! It can't hurt you without your consent. For example, if you have a thought from your past, "I'm upset because my parents didn't do a good job," you can get into it, as many do, which will create inner turmoil for you. You can give the thought significance in your mind, and you'll convince yourself that you should indeed be unhappy. Or, you can recognize that your mind is about to create a mental snowball, and you can dismiss the thought. This doesn't mean your childhood wasn't difficult--it may very well have been--but in this present moment, you have a choice of which thoughts to pay attention to.
The same mental dynamic applies to thoughts of this morning, even five minutes ago. An argument that happened while you were walking out the door on your way to work is no longer an actual argument, it's a thought in your mind. This dynamic also applies to future-oriented thoughts of this evening, next week, or ten years down the road. You'll find, in all cases, that if you ignore or dismiss a negative thought that fills your mind, a more peaceful feeling is only a moment away. And, in a more peaceful state of mind, your wisdom and common sense will tell you what to do. This strategy takes practice but is well worth the effort. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
If you see a problem, it's yours. If you think somebody should do something about it, remember, you are as much a somebody as anybody.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 483
Ayah of the Day:
We have in fact sent a messenger to every people, telling them to serve God and turn away from idols. Among them were those whom God guided, and among them were those who deserved to go wrong. So travel the earth and see how those who denied truth ended up. [16: 36]
Hadith of the Day:
On the Day of judgment, every relationship will appear before those who have them, and then the relationship will testify that it was maintained, if it was maintained, or that it was severed, if it was severed. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Only take as your companions those who have these four qualities: generosity even when they have little, willingness to pardon an offense committed against them, patient endurance in times of affliction, and contentment with God's decree for them. [Shaykh Abul Hasan Shadili]
Guidance of the Day:
Think of what you have instead of what you want. One of the most pervasive and destructive tendencies is that of focusing on what we want instead of what we have. It doesn't seem to make any difference how much we have; we just keep expanding our list of desires, which guarantees we will remain dissatisfied. The mind-set that says "I'll be happy when this desire is fulfilled" is the same mind-set that will repeat itself once that desire is met. If we don't get what we want we keep thinking about all that we don't have--and we remain dissatisfied.
If we do get what we want, we simply re-create the same thinking in our new circumstances. So, despite getting what we want, we still remain unhappy. Happiness can't be found when we are yearning for new desires.Luckily, there is a way to be happy. It involves changing the emphasis of our thinking from what we want to what we have. Each time you notice yourself falling into the "I wish life were different" trap, back off and start over. Take a breath and remember all that you have to be grateful for. When you focus not on what you want, but on what you have, you end up getting more of what you want anyway.
If you are grateful for your spouse he/she will be more loving. If you're grateful for your job, you'll do a better job, be more productive, and probably end up getting a raise anyway. If you focus on ways to enjoy yourself around home rather than waiting to enjoy yourself in Hawaii, you'll be in the habit of enjoying yourself. Make a note to yourself to start thinking more about what you have than what you want. If you do, your life will start appearing much better than before. For perhaps the first time in your life, you will know what it means to feel satisfied. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Ya Hayyu ya Qayyum, bi rahmatika astaghith. (O You, the Everlasting and All-Sustainer, persistently Do I invoke Your mercy).
Food for Thought:
Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can't, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep saying it.
We have in fact sent a messenger to every people, telling them to serve God and turn away from idols. Among them were those whom God guided, and among them were those who deserved to go wrong. So travel the earth and see how those who denied truth ended up. [16: 36]
Hadith of the Day:
On the Day of judgment, every relationship will appear before those who have them, and then the relationship will testify that it was maintained, if it was maintained, or that it was severed, if it was severed. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Only take as your companions those who have these four qualities: generosity even when they have little, willingness to pardon an offense committed against them, patient endurance in times of affliction, and contentment with God's decree for them. [Shaykh Abul Hasan Shadili]
Guidance of the Day:
Think of what you have instead of what you want. One of the most pervasive and destructive tendencies is that of focusing on what we want instead of what we have. It doesn't seem to make any difference how much we have; we just keep expanding our list of desires, which guarantees we will remain dissatisfied. The mind-set that says "I'll be happy when this desire is fulfilled" is the same mind-set that will repeat itself once that desire is met. If we don't get what we want we keep thinking about all that we don't have--and we remain dissatisfied.
If we do get what we want, we simply re-create the same thinking in our new circumstances. So, despite getting what we want, we still remain unhappy. Happiness can't be found when we are yearning for new desires.Luckily, there is a way to be happy. It involves changing the emphasis of our thinking from what we want to what we have. Each time you notice yourself falling into the "I wish life were different" trap, back off and start over. Take a breath and remember all that you have to be grateful for. When you focus not on what you want, but on what you have, you end up getting more of what you want anyway.
If you are grateful for your spouse he/she will be more loving. If you're grateful for your job, you'll do a better job, be more productive, and probably end up getting a raise anyway. If you focus on ways to enjoy yourself around home rather than waiting to enjoy yourself in Hawaii, you'll be in the habit of enjoying yourself. Make a note to yourself to start thinking more about what you have than what you want. If you do, your life will start appearing much better than before. For perhaps the first time in your life, you will know what it means to feel satisfied. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Ya Hayyu ya Qayyum, bi rahmatika astaghith. (O You, the Everlasting and All-Sustainer, persistently Do I invoke Your mercy).
Food for Thought:
Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can't, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep saying it.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 482
Ayahs of the Day:
Are those others waiting for anything but the angels to come to them, or the decree of your Lord to come? That is what before them did. And God did not wrong them; rather it was they who wronged themselves. So the evils of what they did came upon them, and what they had laughed at surrounded them. [16: 33,34]
Hadith of the Day:
Whoever would be pleased to have their sustenance and lifespan increased, let them maintain their ties of kinship. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Know that it is with ilm (knowledge) that you must speak, and that it is with hilm (forbearance) that you must remain silent. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Practice being in the "eye of the storm." The eye of the storm is that one spot in the center of a twister, hurricane, or tornado that is calm, almost isolated from the frenzy of activity. Everything around the center remains peaceful. How nice it would be if we too could be calm and serene in the midst of chaos--in the eye of the storm.
Surprisingly enough, it's much easier that you might imagine to be in the eye of a "human storm." What it takes is intention and practice. Suppose, for example, that you are going to a family gathering that is going to be chaotic. You can tell yourself that you are going to use the experience as an opportunity to remain calm. You can commit to being the one person in the room who is going to be an example of peace. You can practice breathing. You can practice listening. You can let others be right and enjoy the glory. The point is, you can do it if you set your mind to it.
By starting out with harmless scenarios like family gatherings, you can build a track record and enjoy some success. You'll notice that by being in the eye of the storm, you'll be more present-moment. You'll enjoy yourself more than ever before. Once you have mastered harmless circumstances like these, you can practice on more difficult areas of life--dealing with conflict, hardship or grief. If you start slowly, have some success, and keep practicing, pretty soon you'll know how to live in the eye of the storm. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
To be wronged is nothing, unless you remember it.
Are those others waiting for anything but the angels to come to them, or the decree of your Lord to come? That is what before them did. And God did not wrong them; rather it was they who wronged themselves. So the evils of what they did came upon them, and what they had laughed at surrounded them. [16: 33,34]
Hadith of the Day:
Whoever would be pleased to have their sustenance and lifespan increased, let them maintain their ties of kinship. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Know that it is with ilm (knowledge) that you must speak, and that it is with hilm (forbearance) that you must remain silent. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Practice being in the "eye of the storm." The eye of the storm is that one spot in the center of a twister, hurricane, or tornado that is calm, almost isolated from the frenzy of activity. Everything around the center remains peaceful. How nice it would be if we too could be calm and serene in the midst of chaos--in the eye of the storm.
Surprisingly enough, it's much easier that you might imagine to be in the eye of a "human storm." What it takes is intention and practice. Suppose, for example, that you are going to a family gathering that is going to be chaotic. You can tell yourself that you are going to use the experience as an opportunity to remain calm. You can commit to being the one person in the room who is going to be an example of peace. You can practice breathing. You can practice listening. You can let others be right and enjoy the glory. The point is, you can do it if you set your mind to it.
By starting out with harmless scenarios like family gatherings, you can build a track record and enjoy some success. You'll notice that by being in the eye of the storm, you'll be more present-moment. You'll enjoy yourself more than ever before. Once you have mastered harmless circumstances like these, you can practice on more difficult areas of life--dealing with conflict, hardship or grief. If you start slowly, have some success, and keep practicing, pretty soon you'll know how to live in the eye of the storm. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
To be wronged is nothing, unless you remember it.
Monday, February 27, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 481
Ayahs of the Day:
Everlasting gardens, where they will enter, with rivers flowing below them, where they will have what they want. Thus does God reward the conscientious. Those who are in wholesome states when the angels take them, saying, "peace upon you. Enter the garden for what you have done." [16: 31,32]
Hadith of the Day:
Worship Allah and associate no other with Him. Perform salah, give zakah, and maintain good family relations. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
An expert jurisprudent is one who does not cause people to despair God's mercy, does not cause them to lose hope of refreshment from God, and does not cause them to feel exempt from the design of God. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
When you feel yourself getting angry, take a long, deep inhalation, and as you do, say the number one to yourself. Then, relax your entire body as you breathe out. Repeat the process with the number two, all the way through atleast ten (if you're really angry, continue to twenty-five). What you are doing here is clearing your mind with a mini version of a meditation exercise.
The combination of counting and breathing is so relaxing that it's almost impossible to remain angry once you are finished. The increased oxygen in your lungs and the time gap between the moment you became angry and the time you finish the exercise enables you to increase your perspective. It helps you make "big stuff" look like "little stuff." The exercise is equally effective in working with stress or frustration. Whenever you feel a little off, give it a try. The truth is this exercise is a wonderful way to spend a minute or two whether or not you are angry. It's relaxing and enjoyable. Often, it keeps one from getting angry in the first place. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
PS: Instead of the numbers, if we mention "Allah" with each breath it will be rewarding as well, inshaAllah.
Food for thought:
Kind words are short and easy to speak, but their echos are truly endless.
Everlasting gardens, where they will enter, with rivers flowing below them, where they will have what they want. Thus does God reward the conscientious. Those who are in wholesome states when the angels take them, saying, "peace upon you. Enter the garden for what you have done." [16: 31,32]
Hadith of the Day:
Worship Allah and associate no other with Him. Perform salah, give zakah, and maintain good family relations. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
An expert jurisprudent is one who does not cause people to despair God's mercy, does not cause them to lose hope of refreshment from God, and does not cause them to feel exempt from the design of God. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
When you feel yourself getting angry, take a long, deep inhalation, and as you do, say the number one to yourself. Then, relax your entire body as you breathe out. Repeat the process with the number two, all the way through atleast ten (if you're really angry, continue to twenty-five). What you are doing here is clearing your mind with a mini version of a meditation exercise.
The combination of counting and breathing is so relaxing that it's almost impossible to remain angry once you are finished. The increased oxygen in your lungs and the time gap between the moment you became angry and the time you finish the exercise enables you to increase your perspective. It helps you make "big stuff" look like "little stuff." The exercise is equally effective in working with stress or frustration. Whenever you feel a little off, give it a try. The truth is this exercise is a wonderful way to spend a minute or two whether or not you are angry. It's relaxing and enjoyable. Often, it keeps one from getting angry in the first place. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
PS: Instead of the numbers, if we mention "Allah" with each breath it will be rewarding as well, inshaAllah.
Food for thought:
Kind words are short and easy to speak, but their echos are truly endless.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 480
Ayah of the Day:
And it will be said to those who were conscientious, "What did your Lord send down?" They will say, "Good." For those who have done good in this world there is good. And the home of the hereafter is even better still. How excellent is the home of the conscientious. [16: 30]
Hadith of the Day:
Verily, the best of all good-doing is for one to do good to those who were beloved by his father. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
It is Jihad which lays down the last brick of iman. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Turn your melodrama into a mellow-drama. In a certain respect, this strategy is just another way of saying, "Don't sweat the small stuff." Many people live life as if life were a melodrama--"an extravagantly theatrical play in which action and plot predominate." In dramatic fashion, we blow things out of proportion, and make a big deal out of little things. We forget that life isn't as bad as we're making it out to be. We also forget that when we're blowing things out of proportion, we are the one's doing the blowing.
I've found that simply reminding myself that life doesn't have to be a soap opera is a powerful method of calming down. Almost always, this takes the edge off my seriousness and helps me laugh at myself. Often, this simple reminder enables me to change the channel to a more peaceful station. My melodrama is transformed into a "mellow-drama."
If you ever watched a soap opera, you've seen how the characters will take little things so seriously as to ruin their lives over them--someone says something to offend them, looks at them wrong. Their response is usually, "Oh my gosh. How could this happen to me?" Then they exacerbate the problem by talking to others about "how awful it is." They turn life into an emergency--a melodrama. The next time you feel stressed out, experiment this strategy--remind yourself that life isn't an emergency and turn your melodrama into a mellow-drama. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.
And it will be said to those who were conscientious, "What did your Lord send down?" They will say, "Good." For those who have done good in this world there is good. And the home of the hereafter is even better still. How excellent is the home of the conscientious. [16: 30]
Hadith of the Day:
Verily, the best of all good-doing is for one to do good to those who were beloved by his father. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
It is Jihad which lays down the last brick of iman. [Abu Bakr radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Turn your melodrama into a mellow-drama. In a certain respect, this strategy is just another way of saying, "Don't sweat the small stuff." Many people live life as if life were a melodrama--"an extravagantly theatrical play in which action and plot predominate." In dramatic fashion, we blow things out of proportion, and make a big deal out of little things. We forget that life isn't as bad as we're making it out to be. We also forget that when we're blowing things out of proportion, we are the one's doing the blowing.
I've found that simply reminding myself that life doesn't have to be a soap opera is a powerful method of calming down. Almost always, this takes the edge off my seriousness and helps me laugh at myself. Often, this simple reminder enables me to change the channel to a more peaceful station. My melodrama is transformed into a "mellow-drama."
If you ever watched a soap opera, you've seen how the characters will take little things so seriously as to ruin their lives over them--someone says something to offend them, looks at them wrong. Their response is usually, "Oh my gosh. How could this happen to me?" Then they exacerbate the problem by talking to others about "how awful it is." They turn life into an emergency--a melodrama. The next time you feel stressed out, experiment this strategy--remind yourself that life isn't an emergency and turn your melodrama into a mellow-drama. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.
Saturday, February 25, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 479
Ayahs of the Day:
Those opposing their own souls when the angels take them; they will propose peace--'We did no wrong'--but God is well aware of what you have been doing. "So enter the gates of hell, to abide therein. And wretched indeed is the abode of the arrogant." [16: 28,29]
Hadith of the Day:
The good that can be done for the parents after their death is by praying for them, asking forgiveness for them, fulfilling their obligations by honoring their friends, and maintaining family ties that would not exist but for them. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
For those who put in order what is between them and God, God will put in order what is between them and other people. And those who put in order their task for the Hereafter, God puts in order their business in this world. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Be grateful when you are feeling good and graceful when you are feeling bad. The happiest person on earth isn't always happy. In fact, the happiest people all have their fair share of low moods, problems, disappointments, and heartache. Often the difference between a person who is happy and someone who is unhappy isn't how often they get low, or even how low they drop, but instead, it's what they do with their low moods. How do they relate to their changing feelings?
When you observe peaceful, relaxed people, you find that when they are feeling good, they are very grateful. They understand that both positive and negative feelings come and go, and that there will come a time when they won't be feeling so good. To happy people, this is okay, it's the way of things. They accept the inevitability of passing feelings. So, when they are feeling depressed, angry, or stressed out, they relate to these feelings with the same openness and wisdom. Rather than fight their feelings and panic simply because they are feeling bad, they accept their feelings, knowing that this too shall pass. This allows them to come gently and gracefully out of negative feeling states into more positive states of mind.
The next time you are feeling bad, rather than fight it, try to relax. See if, instead of panicking, you can be graceful and calm. Know that if you don't fight your negative feelings, if you are graceful, they will pass away just as surely as the sun sets in the evening. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
If enough of us shied away from conflict and confrontation, just imagine how much war we could eliminate. The total being called human being cannot function harmoniously when the components are in conflict.
Those opposing their own souls when the angels take them; they will propose peace--'We did no wrong'--but God is well aware of what you have been doing. "So enter the gates of hell, to abide therein. And wretched indeed is the abode of the arrogant." [16: 28,29]
Hadith of the Day:
The good that can be done for the parents after their death is by praying for them, asking forgiveness for them, fulfilling their obligations by honoring their friends, and maintaining family ties that would not exist but for them. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
For those who put in order what is between them and God, God will put in order what is between them and other people. And those who put in order their task for the Hereafter, God puts in order their business in this world. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Be grateful when you are feeling good and graceful when you are feeling bad. The happiest person on earth isn't always happy. In fact, the happiest people all have their fair share of low moods, problems, disappointments, and heartache. Often the difference between a person who is happy and someone who is unhappy isn't how often they get low, or even how low they drop, but instead, it's what they do with their low moods. How do they relate to their changing feelings?
When you observe peaceful, relaxed people, you find that when they are feeling good, they are very grateful. They understand that both positive and negative feelings come and go, and that there will come a time when they won't be feeling so good. To happy people, this is okay, it's the way of things. They accept the inevitability of passing feelings. So, when they are feeling depressed, angry, or stressed out, they relate to these feelings with the same openness and wisdom. Rather than fight their feelings and panic simply because they are feeling bad, they accept their feelings, knowing that this too shall pass. This allows them to come gently and gracefully out of negative feeling states into more positive states of mind.
The next time you are feeling bad, rather than fight it, try to relax. See if, instead of panicking, you can be graceful and calm. Know that if you don't fight your negative feelings, if you are graceful, they will pass away just as surely as the sun sets in the evening. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
If enough of us shied away from conflict and confrontation, just imagine how much war we could eliminate. The total being called human being cannot function harmoniously when the components are in conflict.
Friday, February 24, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 478
Ayah of the Day:
Then on the day of resurrection God will humiliate them, saying, "Where are the partners attributed to Me, about which you used to contend?" Those who have been given knowledge will say, "The shame today, and the misery, is on the atheists. [16: 27]
Hadith of the Day:
No one can be given a blessing better and greater than patience. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
In the Divine court lineage has no place. Rather it is the righteousness of the action which is the ultimate arbiter. [Owais Qarni]
Guidance of the Day:
Breath before you speak. This simple strategy has had remarkable results for virtually everyone who has tried it. The almost immediate results include increased patience, added perspective, and, as a side benefit, more gratitude and respect for others. The strategy itself is remarkably simple. It involves nothing more than pausing--breathing--after the person to who you are speaking is finished.
You will get used to the power and beauty of breathing, and you will come to appreciate it as well. It will bring you closer to, and earn you more respect from, virtually everyone you come in contact with. You'll find that being listened to is one of the rarest and most treasured gifts you can offer. All it takes is intention and practice. You will sense a feeling of relief coming from the person to whom you are speaking--a much calmer, less rushed feeling between the two of you. No need to worry that you won't get your turn to speak--you will. In fact, it will be more rewarding to speak because the person you are speaking to will pick up on your respect and patience and will begin to do the same. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Your reputation is in the hands of others. That's what a reputation is. You can't control that. The only thing you can control is your character.
Then on the day of resurrection God will humiliate them, saying, "Where are the partners attributed to Me, about which you used to contend?" Those who have been given knowledge will say, "The shame today, and the misery, is on the atheists. [16: 27]
Hadith of the Day:
No one can be given a blessing better and greater than patience. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
In the Divine court lineage has no place. Rather it is the righteousness of the action which is the ultimate arbiter. [Owais Qarni]
Guidance of the Day:
Breath before you speak. This simple strategy has had remarkable results for virtually everyone who has tried it. The almost immediate results include increased patience, added perspective, and, as a side benefit, more gratitude and respect for others. The strategy itself is remarkably simple. It involves nothing more than pausing--breathing--after the person to who you are speaking is finished.
You will get used to the power and beauty of breathing, and you will come to appreciate it as well. It will bring you closer to, and earn you more respect from, virtually everyone you come in contact with. You'll find that being listened to is one of the rarest and most treasured gifts you can offer. All it takes is intention and practice. You will sense a feeling of relief coming from the person to whom you are speaking--a much calmer, less rushed feeling between the two of you. No need to worry that you won't get your turn to speak--you will. In fact, it will be more rewarding to speak because the person you are speaking to will pick up on your respect and patience and will begin to do the same. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Your reputation is in the hands of others. That's what a reputation is. You can't control that. The only thing you can control is your character.
LESSON OF THE DAY 478
Ayah of the Day:
Then on the day of resurrection God will humiliate them, saying, "Where are the partners attributed to Me, about which you used to contend?" Those who have been given knowledge will say, "The shame today, and the misery, is on the atheists. [16: 27]
Hadith of the Day:
No one can be given a blessing better and greater than patience. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
In the Divine court lineage has no place. Rather it is the righteousness of the action which is the ultimate arbiter. [Owais Qarni]
Guidance of the Day:
Breath before you speak. This simple strategy has had remarkable results for virtually everyone who has tried it. The almost immediate results include increased patience, added perspective, and, as a side benefit, more gratitude and respect for others. The strategy itself is remarkably simple. It involves nothing more than pausing--breathing--after the person to who you are speaking is finished.
You will get used to the power and beauty of breathing, and you will come to appreciate it as well. It will bring you closer to, and earn you more respect from, virtually everyone you come in contact with. You'll find that being listened to is one of the rarest and most treasured gifts you can offer. All it takes is intention and practice. You will sense a feeling of relief coming from the person to whom you are speaking--a much calmer, less rushed feeling between the two of you. No need to worry that you won't get your turn to speak--you will. In fact, it will be more rewarding to speak because the person you are speaking to will pick up on your respect and patience and will begin to do the same. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Your reputation is in the hands of others. That's what a reputation is. You can't control that. The only thing you can control is your character.
Then on the day of resurrection God will humiliate them, saying, "Where are the partners attributed to Me, about which you used to contend?" Those who have been given knowledge will say, "The shame today, and the misery, is on the atheists. [16: 27]
Hadith of the Day:
No one can be given a blessing better and greater than patience. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
In the Divine court lineage has no place. Rather it is the righteousness of the action which is the ultimate arbiter. [Owais Qarni]
Guidance of the Day:
Breath before you speak. This simple strategy has had remarkable results for virtually everyone who has tried it. The almost immediate results include increased patience, added perspective, and, as a side benefit, more gratitude and respect for others. The strategy itself is remarkably simple. It involves nothing more than pausing--breathing--after the person to who you are speaking is finished.
You will get used to the power and beauty of breathing, and you will come to appreciate it as well. It will bring you closer to, and earn you more respect from, virtually everyone you come in contact with. You'll find that being listened to is one of the rarest and most treasured gifts you can offer. All it takes is intention and practice. You will sense a feeling of relief coming from the person to whom you are speaking--a much calmer, less rushed feeling between the two of you. No need to worry that you won't get your turn to speak--you will. In fact, it will be more rewarding to speak because the person you are speaking to will pick up on your respect and patience and will begin to do the same. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Your reputation is in the hands of others. That's what a reputation is. You can't control that. The only thing you can control is your character.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 477
Ayah of the Day:
Those before them had schemed, but God took their structures from their foundations and the roof collapsed on them from over head; and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive. [16: 26]
Hadith of the Day:
The greatest sins are to associate partners with Allah, to disobey one's parents and to bear false witness. [Bukhar & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Trust in God! Laugh in misfortune's face; it too will laugh.
As it laughs, it will diminish; it will be changed and transformed. [Said Nursi Badiuzzaman]
Guidance of the Day:
Understand the statement, "wherever you go, there you are," the significance of this statement is that it can teach you to stop constantly wishing you were somewhere else. We tend to believe that if we were somewhere else--on vacation, with other partner, in a different carrier, a different home, a different circumstance--somehow we would be happier and more content. We wouldn't!
The truth is, if you have destructive mental habits--if you get annoyed and bothered easily, if you feel angry and frustrated a great deal of the time, or if you are constantly wishing things were different, these identical tendencies will follow you, wherever you go. And the reverse is also true. If you are a generally happy person who rarely gets annoyed and bothered, then you can move from place to place, from person to person, with very little negative impact.
Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around. As you focus more on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you would rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present. Then, as you move around, try new things, and meet new people, you carry that sense of inner peace with you. It's absolutely true that "Wherever you go, there you are." [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'hfazni mim bayni yadayya wa min khalfi, wa an yamini, wa an shimali, wa min fawqi wa min tahti. (O'Allah! Protect me from (the evil that comes from) in front of me, behind my back, my right, my left, and from above me and from below me).
Food for Thought:
Your body is a garage where you park your soul. Life is never boring, but some people choose to be bored...Boredom is a choice.
Those before them had schemed, but God took their structures from their foundations and the roof collapsed on them from over head; and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive. [16: 26]
Hadith of the Day:
The greatest sins are to associate partners with Allah, to disobey one's parents and to bear false witness. [Bukhar & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Trust in God! Laugh in misfortune's face; it too will laugh.
As it laughs, it will diminish; it will be changed and transformed. [Said Nursi Badiuzzaman]
Guidance of the Day:
Understand the statement, "wherever you go, there you are," the significance of this statement is that it can teach you to stop constantly wishing you were somewhere else. We tend to believe that if we were somewhere else--on vacation, with other partner, in a different carrier, a different home, a different circumstance--somehow we would be happier and more content. We wouldn't!
The truth is, if you have destructive mental habits--if you get annoyed and bothered easily, if you feel angry and frustrated a great deal of the time, or if you are constantly wishing things were different, these identical tendencies will follow you, wherever you go. And the reverse is also true. If you are a generally happy person who rarely gets annoyed and bothered, then you can move from place to place, from person to person, with very little negative impact.
Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around. As you focus more on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you would rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present. Then, as you move around, try new things, and meet new people, you carry that sense of inner peace with you. It's absolutely true that "Wherever you go, there you are." [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'hfazni mim bayni yadayya wa min khalfi, wa an yamini, wa an shimali, wa min fawqi wa min tahti. (O'Allah! Protect me from (the evil that comes from) in front of me, behind my back, my right, my left, and from above me and from below me).
Food for Thought:
Your body is a garage where you park your soul. Life is never boring, but some people choose to be bored...Boredom is a choice.
LESSON OF THE DAY 477
Ayah of the Day:
Those before them had schemed, but God took their structures from their foundations and the roof collapsed on them from over head; and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive. [16: 26]
Hadith of the Day:
The greatest sins are to associate partners with Allah, to disobey one's parents and to bear false witness. [Bukhar & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Trust in God! Laugh in misfortune's face; it too will laugh.
As it laughs, it will diminish; it will be changed and transformed. [Said Nursi Badiuzzaman]
Guidance of the Day:
Understand the statement, "wherever you go, there you are," the significance of this statement is that it can teach you to stop constantly wishing you were somewhere else. We tend to believe that if we were somewhere else--on vacation, with other partner, in a different carrier, a different home, a different circumstance--somehow we would be happier and more content. We wouldn't!
The truth is, if you have destructive mental habits--if you get annoyed and bothered easily, if you feel angry and frustrated a great deal of the time, or if you are constantly wishing things were different, these identical tendencies will follow you, wherever you go. And the reverse is also true. If you are a generally happy person who rarely gets annoyed and bothered, then you can move from place to place, from person to person, with very little negative impact.
Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around. As you focus more on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you would rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present. Then, as you move around, try new things, and meet new people, you carry that sense of inner peace with you. It's absolutely true that "Wherever you go, there you are." [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'hfazni mim bayni yadayya wa min khalfi, wa an yamini, wa an shimali, wa min fawqi wa min tahti. (O'Allah! Protect me from (the evil that comes from) in front of me, behind my back, my right, my left, and from above me and from below me).
Food for Thought:
Your body is a garage where you park your soul. Life is never boring, but some people choose to be bored...Boredom is a choice.
Those before them had schemed, but God took their structures from their foundations and the roof collapsed on them from over head; and the punishment came to them from where they did not perceive. [16: 26]
Hadith of the Day:
The greatest sins are to associate partners with Allah, to disobey one's parents and to bear false witness. [Bukhar & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Trust in God! Laugh in misfortune's face; it too will laugh.
As it laughs, it will diminish; it will be changed and transformed. [Said Nursi Badiuzzaman]
Guidance of the Day:
Understand the statement, "wherever you go, there you are," the significance of this statement is that it can teach you to stop constantly wishing you were somewhere else. We tend to believe that if we were somewhere else--on vacation, with other partner, in a different carrier, a different home, a different circumstance--somehow we would be happier and more content. We wouldn't!
The truth is, if you have destructive mental habits--if you get annoyed and bothered easily, if you feel angry and frustrated a great deal of the time, or if you are constantly wishing things were different, these identical tendencies will follow you, wherever you go. And the reverse is also true. If you are a generally happy person who rarely gets annoyed and bothered, then you can move from place to place, from person to person, with very little negative impact.
Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around. As you focus more on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you would rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present. Then, as you move around, try new things, and meet new people, you carry that sense of inner peace with you. It's absolutely true that "Wherever you go, there you are." [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'hfazni mim bayni yadayya wa min khalfi, wa an yamini, wa an shimali, wa min fawqi wa min tahti. (O'Allah! Protect me from (the evil that comes from) in front of me, behind my back, my right, my left, and from above me and from below me).
Food for Thought:
Your body is a garage where you park your soul. Life is never boring, but some people choose to be bored...Boredom is a choice.
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 476
Ayahs of the Day:
When it is said to them, "What has your Lord sent down?" They say, "Fables of the ancients." Let them bear their burdens in their entirety on the day of resurrection, and some of the burdens of those they misled without knowledge. Is not miserable what they will bear. [16: 24,25]
Hadith of the Day:
The only way a child can repay his/her father or mother is to buy his/her parent's freedom if he/she finds either of them in bondage. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The bitterness of this world is the sweetness of the Hereafter, and the sweetness of this world is the bitterness of the Hereafter. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
See the glass as already broken (and everything else too). The essence of this teaching is that all of life is in a constant stage of change. Everything has a beginning and everything has an end. Every tree begins with a seed and will eventually transform back into earth. Every rock is formed and every rock will vanish. In our modern world, this means that every car, every machine, every piece of clothing is created and all will wear out and crumble; it's only a matter of when. Our bodies are born and they will die. A glass is created and will eventually break.
There is a peace to be found in this teaching. When you expect something to break, you're not surprised or disappointed when it does. Instead of becoming immobilized when something is destroyed, you feel grateful for the time you have had. The easiest place to start is with the simplest things, a glass of water for example. Pull out your favorite drinking glass. Take a moment to look at and appreciate its beauty and all it does for you. Now, imagine that same glass as already broken, shattered all over the floor. Try to maintain the perspective that, in time, everything disintegrates and returns to its original form
Obviously, no one wants their favorite drinking glass, or anything else, to be broken. This philosophy is not a prescription for becoming passive or apathetic, but for making peace with the way things are. When your drinking glass does break, this philosophy allows you to maintain your perspective. Rather than thinking. "Oh my God," you'll find yourself thinking, "Ah, there it goes." Play with this awareness and you'll find yourself not only keeping your cool but appreciating life as never before. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Life is an attitude. It's what you choose to believe, always. Nothing out there is bad unless you believe that it is.
When it is said to them, "What has your Lord sent down?" They say, "Fables of the ancients." Let them bear their burdens in their entirety on the day of resurrection, and some of the burdens of those they misled without knowledge. Is not miserable what they will bear. [16: 24,25]
Hadith of the Day:
The only way a child can repay his/her father or mother is to buy his/her parent's freedom if he/she finds either of them in bondage. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The bitterness of this world is the sweetness of the Hereafter, and the sweetness of this world is the bitterness of the Hereafter. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
See the glass as already broken (and everything else too). The essence of this teaching is that all of life is in a constant stage of change. Everything has a beginning and everything has an end. Every tree begins with a seed and will eventually transform back into earth. Every rock is formed and every rock will vanish. In our modern world, this means that every car, every machine, every piece of clothing is created and all will wear out and crumble; it's only a matter of when. Our bodies are born and they will die. A glass is created and will eventually break.
There is a peace to be found in this teaching. When you expect something to break, you're not surprised or disappointed when it does. Instead of becoming immobilized when something is destroyed, you feel grateful for the time you have had. The easiest place to start is with the simplest things, a glass of water for example. Pull out your favorite drinking glass. Take a moment to look at and appreciate its beauty and all it does for you. Now, imagine that same glass as already broken, shattered all over the floor. Try to maintain the perspective that, in time, everything disintegrates and returns to its original form
Obviously, no one wants their favorite drinking glass, or anything else, to be broken. This philosophy is not a prescription for becoming passive or apathetic, but for making peace with the way things are. When your drinking glass does break, this philosophy allows you to maintain your perspective. Rather than thinking. "Oh my God," you'll find yourself thinking, "Ah, there it goes." Play with this awareness and you'll find yourself not only keeping your cool but appreciating life as never before. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Life is an attitude. It's what you choose to believe, always. Nothing out there is bad unless you believe that it is.
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 475
Ayahs of the Day:
Your God is One God: as for those who do not believe in the hereafter, their hearts refuse to acknowledge, arrogant as they are. There is no doubt that God knows what they conceal and what they reveal; God does not love the arrogant. [16: 22,23]
Hadith of the Day:
The best of you are those who are slow to anger and swift to cool down. Beware of anger, for it is a live coal on the heart of the descendants of Adam. [Tirmidhi]
Wise Quote of the Day:
To the conscious gaze each leaf is a book telling of Divine knowledge. In everything a window opens on to knowledge of God. [Sa'di Shirazi]
Guidance of the Day:
Search for the grain of truth in other opinions. If you enjoy learning as well as making other people happy, you'll love this idea. Almost everyone feels that their own opinions are good ones, otherwise they wouldn't be sharing them with you. One of the destructive things that many of us do, however, is compare someone else's opinion to our own. And, when it doesn't fall in line with our belief, we either dismiss it or find fault with it. We feel smug, the other person feels diminished, and we learn nothing.
Almost every opinion has some merit, especially if we are looking for merit, rather than looking for errors. The next time someone offers you an opinion, rather than judge or criticize it, see if you can find a grain of truth in what the person is saying. If you think about it, when you judge someone else or their opinion, it really doesn't say anything about the other person, but it says quite a bit about your need to be judgmental.
If you practice this simple strategy to find the grain of truth in other positions, some wonderful things will begin to happen: You'll begin to understand those who you interact with, others will be drawn to your accepting and loving energy, your learning curve will be enhanced, and, perhaps most important, you'll feel much better about yourself. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Did you ever notice how difficult it is to argue with someone who is not obsessed with being right.
Your God is One God: as for those who do not believe in the hereafter, their hearts refuse to acknowledge, arrogant as they are. There is no doubt that God knows what they conceal and what they reveal; God does not love the arrogant. [16: 22,23]
Hadith of the Day:
The best of you are those who are slow to anger and swift to cool down. Beware of anger, for it is a live coal on the heart of the descendants of Adam. [Tirmidhi]
Wise Quote of the Day:
To the conscious gaze each leaf is a book telling of Divine knowledge. In everything a window opens on to knowledge of God. [Sa'di Shirazi]
Guidance of the Day:
Search for the grain of truth in other opinions. If you enjoy learning as well as making other people happy, you'll love this idea. Almost everyone feels that their own opinions are good ones, otherwise they wouldn't be sharing them with you. One of the destructive things that many of us do, however, is compare someone else's opinion to our own. And, when it doesn't fall in line with our belief, we either dismiss it or find fault with it. We feel smug, the other person feels diminished, and we learn nothing.
Almost every opinion has some merit, especially if we are looking for merit, rather than looking for errors. The next time someone offers you an opinion, rather than judge or criticize it, see if you can find a grain of truth in what the person is saying. If you think about it, when you judge someone else or their opinion, it really doesn't say anything about the other person, but it says quite a bit about your need to be judgmental.
If you practice this simple strategy to find the grain of truth in other positions, some wonderful things will begin to happen: You'll begin to understand those who you interact with, others will be drawn to your accepting and loving energy, your learning curve will be enhanced, and, perhaps most important, you'll feel much better about yourself. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Did you ever notice how difficult it is to argue with someone who is not obsessed with being right.
Monday, February 20, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 474
Ayahs of the Day:
And God knows what you keep secret and what you reveal. As for those to whom others pray besides God, they do not create anything, and are themselves created, inert, void of life; and they do not know when they'll be resurrected. [16: 19,20,21]
Hadith of the Day:
Be a little reserved in your love for your friend, for someday he may become your enemy. And a little reserved in your hatred for your enemy, for someday he may become your friend. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Know that it is not your family and friends, but rather your deen which truly looks after you. [Hasan radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Just for fun, agree with the criticism directed toward you, then watch it go away. So often we are immobilized by the slightest criticism. We treat it like an emergency, and defend ourselves as if we were in a battle. In truth, however, criticism is nothing more than an observation by another person about us, our actions, or the way we think about something, that doesn't match the vision we have of ourselves. Big deal!
When we react to criticism with a knee-jerk, defensive response it hurts. We feel attacked, and we have a need to defend or to offer a countercriticism. We fill our minds with angry or hurtful thoughts directed at ourselves or at the person who is being critical. All this reaction takes an enormous amount of mental energy. An incredibly useful exercise is to agree with criticism directed toward you. I am not talking about turning into a doormat or ruining your self-esteem by believing all negativity that comes in your direction. I'm only suggesting that there are many times when simply agreeing with criticism defuses the situation, satisfies a person's need to express a point of view, offers you a chance to learn something about yourself by seeing a grain of truth in another position, and, perhaps most important, provides you an opportunity to remain calm.
Reacting to criticism never makes the criticism go away. In fact, negative reactions to criticism often convince the person doing the criticizing that they are accurate in their assessment of you. Give this strategy a try. I think you'll discover that agreeing with an occasional criticism has more value than it costs. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
When you are immobilized by what anybody else thinks of you, what you are saying is that your opinion of me is more important than my own opinion of myself.
And God knows what you keep secret and what you reveal. As for those to whom others pray besides God, they do not create anything, and are themselves created, inert, void of life; and they do not know when they'll be resurrected. [16: 19,20,21]
Hadith of the Day:
Be a little reserved in your love for your friend, for someday he may become your enemy. And a little reserved in your hatred for your enemy, for someday he may become your friend. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Know that it is not your family and friends, but rather your deen which truly looks after you. [Hasan radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Just for fun, agree with the criticism directed toward you, then watch it go away. So often we are immobilized by the slightest criticism. We treat it like an emergency, and defend ourselves as if we were in a battle. In truth, however, criticism is nothing more than an observation by another person about us, our actions, or the way we think about something, that doesn't match the vision we have of ourselves. Big deal!
When we react to criticism with a knee-jerk, defensive response it hurts. We feel attacked, and we have a need to defend or to offer a countercriticism. We fill our minds with angry or hurtful thoughts directed at ourselves or at the person who is being critical. All this reaction takes an enormous amount of mental energy. An incredibly useful exercise is to agree with criticism directed toward you. I am not talking about turning into a doormat or ruining your self-esteem by believing all negativity that comes in your direction. I'm only suggesting that there are many times when simply agreeing with criticism defuses the situation, satisfies a person's need to express a point of view, offers you a chance to learn something about yourself by seeing a grain of truth in another position, and, perhaps most important, provides you an opportunity to remain calm.
Reacting to criticism never makes the criticism go away. In fact, negative reactions to criticism often convince the person doing the criticizing that they are accurate in their assessment of you. Give this strategy a try. I think you'll discover that agreeing with an occasional criticism has more value than it costs. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
When you are immobilized by what anybody else thinks of you, what you are saying is that your opinion of me is more important than my own opinion of myself.
Sunday, February 19, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 473
Ayahs of the Day:
So is one who creates like one who does not create? Will you not then take a lesson? Even if you tried to calculate the favor of God, you will never compute it. God is most forgiving, most merciful. [16: 17,18]
Hadith of the Day:
Among the well-known wisdom of the prophets is the saying, 'If you have no shame, then do as you please. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The tranquility of both worlds lies in the understanding of these two words: generosity towards friends, forbearance towards enemies. [Hafiz Shirazi]
Guidance of the Day:
Resist the urge to criticize. When we judge or criticize another person, it says nothing about that person; it merely says something about our own need to be critical.
If you attend a gathering and listen to all the criticism that is typically levied against others, and then go home and consider how much good all that criticism actually does to make our world a better place, you'll probably come up with the same answer that I do: Zero! It does no good. But that's not all. Being critical not only solves nothing; it contributes to the anger and distrust in our world. After all, none of us likes to be criticized. Our reaction to criticism is usually to become defensive and/or withdrawn.
A person who feels attacked is likely to do one of two things: he will either retreat in fear or shame, or he'll attack or lash out in anger. How many times have you criticized someone and had them respond by saying, "Thankyou so much for pointing out my flaws. I really appreciate it"? Criticism, like swearing, is actually nothing more than a bad habit. It's something we get used to doing; we are familiar with how it feels. It keeps us busy and gives us something to talk about.
If, however, you take a moment to observe how you actually feel immediately after you criticize someone, you'll notice that you will feel a little deflated and shamed, almost like you're the one who has been attacked. The reason this is true is that when we criticize, it's a statement to the world and to ourselves, "I have a need to be critical." This isn't something we are usually proud to admit. The solution is to catch yourself in the act of being critical. Notice how often you do it and how bad it makes you feel. Hopefully, more often than not, we can turn our criticism into tolerance and respect. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
You can't go around being what everyone expects you to be, living your life through other people's rules and be happy and have inner peace.
So is one who creates like one who does not create? Will you not then take a lesson? Even if you tried to calculate the favor of God, you will never compute it. God is most forgiving, most merciful. [16: 17,18]
Hadith of the Day:
Among the well-known wisdom of the prophets is the saying, 'If you have no shame, then do as you please. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The tranquility of both worlds lies in the understanding of these two words: generosity towards friends, forbearance towards enemies. [Hafiz Shirazi]
Guidance of the Day:
Resist the urge to criticize. When we judge or criticize another person, it says nothing about that person; it merely says something about our own need to be critical.
If you attend a gathering and listen to all the criticism that is typically levied against others, and then go home and consider how much good all that criticism actually does to make our world a better place, you'll probably come up with the same answer that I do: Zero! It does no good. But that's not all. Being critical not only solves nothing; it contributes to the anger and distrust in our world. After all, none of us likes to be criticized. Our reaction to criticism is usually to become defensive and/or withdrawn.
A person who feels attacked is likely to do one of two things: he will either retreat in fear or shame, or he'll attack or lash out in anger. How many times have you criticized someone and had them respond by saying, "Thankyou so much for pointing out my flaws. I really appreciate it"? Criticism, like swearing, is actually nothing more than a bad habit. It's something we get used to doing; we are familiar with how it feels. It keeps us busy and gives us something to talk about.
If, however, you take a moment to observe how you actually feel immediately after you criticize someone, you'll notice that you will feel a little deflated and shamed, almost like you're the one who has been attacked. The reason this is true is that when we criticize, it's a statement to the world and to ourselves, "I have a need to be critical." This isn't something we are usually proud to admit. The solution is to catch yourself in the act of being critical. Notice how often you do it and how bad it makes you feel. Hopefully, more often than not, we can turn our criticism into tolerance and respect. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
You can't go around being what everyone expects you to be, living your life through other people's rules and be happy and have inner peace.
Saturday, February 18, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 472
Ayahs of the Day:
And God put mountains on the earth, lest it shake with you; and rivers and roads, that you may find your way; and landmarks. And they also find their way by the stars. [16: 15,16]
Hadith of the Day:
The worst of all people are those who cause others to fear their obscenities. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
In reality zakah exists upon everything, and the zakah to be taken from the intellect is that forbearance be shown when the fool speaks. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Remember that everything has God's fingerprints on it. Everything that God has created is potentially holy. Our task as humans is to find that holiness in what appear to be unholy situations. When we learn to do this, we will have learned to nurture our souls. It's easy to see God's beauty in a beautiful sunrise, a snow caped mountain, the smile of a healthy child, or in ocean waves crashing on a sandy beach. But we can learn to find the holiness in seemingly ugly circumstances--difficult life lessons, a family tragedy, or a struggle for life?
When our life is filled with a desire to see the holiness in everyday things, something magical begins to happen. A feeling of peace emerges. We begin to see nurturing aspects of daily living that were probably hidden to us. When we remember that everything has God's fingerprints on it, that alone makes it special. If we remember this spiritual fact while we are dealing with a difficult person or struggling to pay our bills, it broadens our perspective. It helps us to remember that God also created the person you are dealing with or that, despite your struggle to pay your bills, you are truly blessed to have all that you do.
Somewhere, in the back of your mind, try to remember that everything had God's fingerprints on it. The fact that we can't see the beauty in something doesn't suggest that it's not there. Rather, it suggests that we are not looking carefully enough or with a broad enough perspective to see it. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
You can never get enough of what you want.
And God put mountains on the earth, lest it shake with you; and rivers and roads, that you may find your way; and landmarks. And they also find their way by the stars. [16: 15,16]
Hadith of the Day:
The worst of all people are those who cause others to fear their obscenities. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
In reality zakah exists upon everything, and the zakah to be taken from the intellect is that forbearance be shown when the fool speaks. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Remember that everything has God's fingerprints on it. Everything that God has created is potentially holy. Our task as humans is to find that holiness in what appear to be unholy situations. When we learn to do this, we will have learned to nurture our souls. It's easy to see God's beauty in a beautiful sunrise, a snow caped mountain, the smile of a healthy child, or in ocean waves crashing on a sandy beach. But we can learn to find the holiness in seemingly ugly circumstances--difficult life lessons, a family tragedy, or a struggle for life?
When our life is filled with a desire to see the holiness in everyday things, something magical begins to happen. A feeling of peace emerges. We begin to see nurturing aspects of daily living that were probably hidden to us. When we remember that everything has God's fingerprints on it, that alone makes it special. If we remember this spiritual fact while we are dealing with a difficult person or struggling to pay our bills, it broadens our perspective. It helps us to remember that God also created the person you are dealing with or that, despite your struggle to pay your bills, you are truly blessed to have all that you do.
Somewhere, in the back of your mind, try to remember that everything had God's fingerprints on it. The fact that we can't see the beauty in something doesn't suggest that it's not there. Rather, it suggests that we are not looking carefully enough or with a broad enough perspective to see it. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
You can never get enough of what you want.
Friday, February 17, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 471
Ayah of the Day:
And it is God who has subjected the sea, that you may eat fresh flesh from it, and extract from it ornaments for you to wear. and you see the ships ploughing the waves thereupon, that you may seek of God's bounty, and that you may be grateful. [16: 14]
Hadith of the Day:
Among the most evil of people are the two-faced; those who approach this group with one face and that group with another. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The world is not a commodity worth arguing over. [Hafiz Shirazi]
Guidance of the Day:
Let's take a moment to discuss separate realities. If you have traveled to foreign countries or seen depiction's of them in movies, you are aware of vast differences among cultures. The principle of separate realities says that the differences among individuals is every bit as vast. Just as we wouldn't expect people of different cultures to see or do things as we would (in fact, we'd be disappointed if they did), this principle tells us that the individual differences in our ways of seeing the world prohibit this as well. It's not a matter of merely tolerating differences but of truly understanding and honoring the fact that it literally can't be any other way.
I have seen an understanding of this principle change lives. It can virtually eliminate quarrels. When we expect to see things differently, when we take it as a given that others will do things differently and react differently to the same stimuli, the compassion we have for ourselves and for others rises dramatically. The moment we expect otherwise, the potential for conflict exists. I encourage you to consider deeply and respect the fact that we are all very different. When you do, the love you feel for others as well as the appreciation you have for your own uniqueness will increase. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
One of the cardinal rules of joyful living is that judging others takes a great deal of energy and, without exception, pulls you away from where you want to be.
And it is God who has subjected the sea, that you may eat fresh flesh from it, and extract from it ornaments for you to wear. and you see the ships ploughing the waves thereupon, that you may seek of God's bounty, and that you may be grateful. [16: 14]
Hadith of the Day:
Among the most evil of people are the two-faced; those who approach this group with one face and that group with another. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The world is not a commodity worth arguing over. [Hafiz Shirazi]
Guidance of the Day:
Let's take a moment to discuss separate realities. If you have traveled to foreign countries or seen depiction's of them in movies, you are aware of vast differences among cultures. The principle of separate realities says that the differences among individuals is every bit as vast. Just as we wouldn't expect people of different cultures to see or do things as we would (in fact, we'd be disappointed if they did), this principle tells us that the individual differences in our ways of seeing the world prohibit this as well. It's not a matter of merely tolerating differences but of truly understanding and honoring the fact that it literally can't be any other way.
I have seen an understanding of this principle change lives. It can virtually eliminate quarrels. When we expect to see things differently, when we take it as a given that others will do things differently and react differently to the same stimuli, the compassion we have for ourselves and for others rises dramatically. The moment we expect otherwise, the potential for conflict exists. I encourage you to consider deeply and respect the fact that we are all very different. When you do, the love you feel for others as well as the appreciation you have for your own uniqueness will increase. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
One of the cardinal rules of joyful living is that judging others takes a great deal of energy and, without exception, pulls you away from where you want to be.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 470
Ayah of the Day:
And everything God has scattered over the earth for you is different in color and form; surely in that is a sign for people who are mindful. [16: 13]
Hadith of the Day:
When you seek something, proceed with deliberation until, finally, Allah shows a way through or a way out. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The eye of contentment is too dim to perceive faults, it is the eye of anger that exhibits all vice. [Ali Mawardi]
Guidance of the Day:
Avoiding weatherproofing: The idea of weatherproofing as it pertains to peaceful living is a metaphor to explain one of our most neurotic, ungrateful tendencies. Essentially, weatherproofing means that you are on the careful lookout for what needs to be fixed or repaired. It's finding the cracks and flaws of life, and either trying to fix them, or at least point out to others. Not only this tendency alienate you from people, it makes you feel bad, too. It encourages you to think about what's wrong with everything and everyone--what you don't like. So, rather than appreciating our relationships and our lives, weatherproofing encourages us to end up thinking that life isn't all it's cracked up to be. Nothing is ever good enough the way it is. The point is, you've begun what inevitably turns into a way of life--looking for and thinking about what you don't like about someone, or something that isn't quite right.
Obviously, an occasional comment, constructive criticism, or helpful guidance isn't cause for alarm. However, occasional harmless comments have an insidious tendency to become a way of looking at life. When you are weatherproofing another human being, it says nothing about them--but it does define you as someone who needs to be critical. Whether you have the tendency to weatherproof your relationships, certain aspects of your life, or both, what you need to do is write off weatherproofing as a bad idea. As the habit creeps into your thinking, catch yourself and seal your lips. The less often you weatherproof your partner or your friends, the more you'll notice how super your life really is. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Send out love and harmony, put your mind and body in a peaceful place, and then allow the universe to work in the perfect way that it knows how.
And everything God has scattered over the earth for you is different in color and form; surely in that is a sign for people who are mindful. [16: 13]
Hadith of the Day:
When you seek something, proceed with deliberation until, finally, Allah shows a way through or a way out. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The eye of contentment is too dim to perceive faults, it is the eye of anger that exhibits all vice. [Ali Mawardi]
Guidance of the Day:
Avoiding weatherproofing: The idea of weatherproofing as it pertains to peaceful living is a metaphor to explain one of our most neurotic, ungrateful tendencies. Essentially, weatherproofing means that you are on the careful lookout for what needs to be fixed or repaired. It's finding the cracks and flaws of life, and either trying to fix them, or at least point out to others. Not only this tendency alienate you from people, it makes you feel bad, too. It encourages you to think about what's wrong with everything and everyone--what you don't like. So, rather than appreciating our relationships and our lives, weatherproofing encourages us to end up thinking that life isn't all it's cracked up to be. Nothing is ever good enough the way it is. The point is, you've begun what inevitably turns into a way of life--looking for and thinking about what you don't like about someone, or something that isn't quite right.
Obviously, an occasional comment, constructive criticism, or helpful guidance isn't cause for alarm. However, occasional harmless comments have an insidious tendency to become a way of looking at life. When you are weatherproofing another human being, it says nothing about them--but it does define you as someone who needs to be critical. Whether you have the tendency to weatherproof your relationships, certain aspects of your life, or both, what you need to do is write off weatherproofing as a bad idea. As the habit creeps into your thinking, catch yourself and seal your lips. The less often you weatherproof your partner or your friends, the more you'll notice how super your life really is. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Send out love and harmony, put your mind and body in a peaceful place, and then allow the universe to work in the perfect way that it knows how.
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 469
Ayah of the Day:
And God has subjected the night to you, and the day; and the sun and the moon. And the stars are subject, by the Divine order. Surely in that are signs for people who discern. [16: 12]
Hadith of the Day:
Do not say , "I feel rotten." Instead, say, "I do not feel well." [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise quote of the Day:
May you have patience, for patience is to faith as the head is to the body; there is no good in a body without its head, and none in faith without patience. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Practice humility. Humility and inner peace go hand in hand. The less compelled you are to try to prove yourself to others, the easier it is to feel peaceful inside. Proving yourself is a dangerous trap. It takes an enormous amount of energy to be continually pointing out your accomplishments, bragging, or trying to convince others of your worth as a human being. Bragging actually dilutes the positive feelings you receive from an accomplishment or something you are proud of. To make matters worse, the more you try to prove yourself, the more others will avoid you, talk behind your back about your insecure need to brag, and perhaps even resent you.
Ironically, however, the less you care about seeking approval, the more approval you get. People are drawn to those with a quiet, inner confidence, people who don't need to make themselves look good, be "right" all the time, or steal the glory. Most people love a person who doesn't need to brag. a person who shares from his or her heart and not from his or her ego. The way to develop genuine humility is to practice. It's nice because you'll get immediate inner feedback in the way of calm, easy feelings. The next time you have the opportunity to brag, resist the temptation. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'stur awraati wa aamin raw'aati. (O Allah! Cover my shameful things and assuage my fears).
Food for thought:
Practice being in the world, but not of the world--learn to ignore how things outside of you are going, and know that higher awareness is truly a disappearing act.
And God has subjected the night to you, and the day; and the sun and the moon. And the stars are subject, by the Divine order. Surely in that are signs for people who discern. [16: 12]
Hadith of the Day:
Do not say , "I feel rotten." Instead, say, "I do not feel well." [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise quote of the Day:
May you have patience, for patience is to faith as the head is to the body; there is no good in a body without its head, and none in faith without patience. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Practice humility. Humility and inner peace go hand in hand. The less compelled you are to try to prove yourself to others, the easier it is to feel peaceful inside. Proving yourself is a dangerous trap. It takes an enormous amount of energy to be continually pointing out your accomplishments, bragging, or trying to convince others of your worth as a human being. Bragging actually dilutes the positive feelings you receive from an accomplishment or something you are proud of. To make matters worse, the more you try to prove yourself, the more others will avoid you, talk behind your back about your insecure need to brag, and perhaps even resent you.
Ironically, however, the less you care about seeking approval, the more approval you get. People are drawn to those with a quiet, inner confidence, people who don't need to make themselves look good, be "right" all the time, or steal the glory. Most people love a person who doesn't need to brag. a person who shares from his or her heart and not from his or her ego. The way to develop genuine humility is to practice. It's nice because you'll get immediate inner feedback in the way of calm, easy feelings. The next time you have the opportunity to brag, resist the temptation. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'stur awraati wa aamin raw'aati. (O Allah! Cover my shameful things and assuage my fears).
Food for thought:
Practice being in the world, but not of the world--learn to ignore how things outside of you are going, and know that higher awareness is truly a disappearing act.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 468
Ayahs of the Day:
God is the one who sends you down water from the sky, from which there is drink, and vegetation for grazing. God produces grain for you thereby, and olives, and date palms, and grapes, and all kinds of fruit. Surely in that is a sign for people who reflect. [16: 10,11]
Hadith of the Day:
Good character, good understanding, and moderation constitute one part of the twenty-four parts of prophethood. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The greatness of the believer is in his God-consciousness, and his pride should be in his obedience and his courage lies in his display of good character under all circumstances. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
You are given opportunities to choose between being kind and being right. You have chances to point out to someone their mistakes, things they could or should have done differently, ways they can improve. You have chances to "correct" people, privately as well as in front of others. What all these opportunities amount to are chances to make someone else feel bad, and yourself feel bad in the process.
Without getting too psychoanalytical about it, the reason we are tempted to put others down, correct them, or show them how we're right and they're wrong is that our ego mistakenly believes that if we point out how someone else is wrong, we must be right, and therefore we will feel better. In actuality, however, if you pay attention to the way you feel after you put someone down, you'll notice that you feel worse than before the put-down. Your heart, the compassionate part of you, knows that it's impossible to feel better at the expense of someone else.
Luckily, the opposite is true--when your goal is to build people up, to make them feel better, to share in their joy, you too reap the rewards of their positive feelings. The next time you have the chance to correct someone, even if their facts are a little off, resist the temptation. Instead, ask yourself, "What do I really want out of this interaction?" Chances are, what you want is a peaceful interaction where all parties leave feeling good. Each time you resist "being right," and instead choose kindness, you'll notice a peaceful feeling within.
Don't confuse this strategy with being a wimp, or not standing up for what you believe in. I'm not suggesting that it's not okay for you to be right--only that if you insist on being right, there is often a price to pay--your inner peace. In order to be a person filled with equanimity, you must choose kindness over being right, most of the time. The best place to start is with the next person you speak to. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
The secret of abundance is to stop focusing on what you do not have, and shift your consciousness to an appreciation for all that you are and all that you do have.
God is the one who sends you down water from the sky, from which there is drink, and vegetation for grazing. God produces grain for you thereby, and olives, and date palms, and grapes, and all kinds of fruit. Surely in that is a sign for people who reflect. [16: 10,11]
Hadith of the Day:
Good character, good understanding, and moderation constitute one part of the twenty-four parts of prophethood. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The greatness of the believer is in his God-consciousness, and his pride should be in his obedience and his courage lies in his display of good character under all circumstances. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
You are given opportunities to choose between being kind and being right. You have chances to point out to someone their mistakes, things they could or should have done differently, ways they can improve. You have chances to "correct" people, privately as well as in front of others. What all these opportunities amount to are chances to make someone else feel bad, and yourself feel bad in the process.
Without getting too psychoanalytical about it, the reason we are tempted to put others down, correct them, or show them how we're right and they're wrong is that our ego mistakenly believes that if we point out how someone else is wrong, we must be right, and therefore we will feel better. In actuality, however, if you pay attention to the way you feel after you put someone down, you'll notice that you feel worse than before the put-down. Your heart, the compassionate part of you, knows that it's impossible to feel better at the expense of someone else.
Luckily, the opposite is true--when your goal is to build people up, to make them feel better, to share in their joy, you too reap the rewards of their positive feelings. The next time you have the chance to correct someone, even if their facts are a little off, resist the temptation. Instead, ask yourself, "What do I really want out of this interaction?" Chances are, what you want is a peaceful interaction where all parties leave feeling good. Each time you resist "being right," and instead choose kindness, you'll notice a peaceful feeling within.
Don't confuse this strategy with being a wimp, or not standing up for what you believe in. I'm not suggesting that it's not okay for you to be right--only that if you insist on being right, there is often a price to pay--your inner peace. In order to be a person filled with equanimity, you must choose kindness over being right, most of the time. The best place to start is with the next person you speak to. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
The secret of abundance is to stop focusing on what you do not have, and shift your consciousness to an appreciation for all that you are and all that you do have.
Monday, February 13, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 467
Ayahs of the Day:
And God created horses, and mules, and donkeys, for you to ride, and for adornment; and God creates what you don't know. The aim of the path is up to God; but there is the deviant from it, though God would surely have guided you all, were that the Divine will. [16: 8,9]
Hadith of the Day:
When Allah wills to take a servant (up to Himself) at some place, He creates a reason for the servant to go there. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Never rely on another's piety until you have seen how they carry themselves in anger. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
For many people, one of the most frustrating aspects of life is not being able to understand other people's behavior. We see them as "guilty" instead of "innocent." It's tempting to focus on people's seemingly irrational behavior--their comments, actions, mean-spirited acts, selfish behavior--and get extremely frustrated. If we focus on behavior too much, it can seem like other people are making us miserable.
It's true that other people do weird things (who doesn't?), but we are the one's getting upset, so we are the one's who need to change. It doesn't mean accepting, ignoring, or advocating violence or any deviant behavior, but trying to be less bothered by the actions of people. Seeing the innocence is a powerful tool for transformation that means when someone is acting in a way that we don't like, the best strategy for dealing with that person is to distance ourselves from the behavior; to "look beyond it," so that we can see the innocence in where the behavior is coming from. Very often, this slight shift in our thinking immediately puts us into a state of compassion.
Underneath even the most annoying behavior is a frustrated person who is crying out for compassion. The next time (and hopefully from now on), when someone acts in a strange way, look for the innocence in his/her behavior. If you're compassionate, it won't be hard to see. When you see the innocence, the same things that have frustrated you no longer do. And, when you're not frustrated by the actions of others, it's a lot easier to stay focused on the beauty of life. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
The measure of your life will not be in what you accumulate, but in what you give away.
And God created horses, and mules, and donkeys, for you to ride, and for adornment; and God creates what you don't know. The aim of the path is up to God; but there is the deviant from it, though God would surely have guided you all, were that the Divine will. [16: 8,9]
Hadith of the Day:
When Allah wills to take a servant (up to Himself) at some place, He creates a reason for the servant to go there. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Never rely on another's piety until you have seen how they carry themselves in anger. [Omar radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
For many people, one of the most frustrating aspects of life is not being able to understand other people's behavior. We see them as "guilty" instead of "innocent." It's tempting to focus on people's seemingly irrational behavior--their comments, actions, mean-spirited acts, selfish behavior--and get extremely frustrated. If we focus on behavior too much, it can seem like other people are making us miserable.
It's true that other people do weird things (who doesn't?), but we are the one's getting upset, so we are the one's who need to change. It doesn't mean accepting, ignoring, or advocating violence or any deviant behavior, but trying to be less bothered by the actions of people. Seeing the innocence is a powerful tool for transformation that means when someone is acting in a way that we don't like, the best strategy for dealing with that person is to distance ourselves from the behavior; to "look beyond it," so that we can see the innocence in where the behavior is coming from. Very often, this slight shift in our thinking immediately puts us into a state of compassion.
Underneath even the most annoying behavior is a frustrated person who is crying out for compassion. The next time (and hopefully from now on), when someone acts in a strange way, look for the innocence in his/her behavior. If you're compassionate, it won't be hard to see. When you see the innocence, the same things that have frustrated you no longer do. And, when you're not frustrated by the actions of others, it's a lot easier to stay focused on the beauty of life. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
The measure of your life will not be in what you accumulate, but in what you give away.
Friday, February 10, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 466
Ayahs of the Day:
And God created the cattle, wherein are warmth and advantages for you, and from which you eat. And you find beauty in them when you drive them home in the evening and when you lead them to pasture in the morning. And they carry your burdens to territory you would not have reached without troubling your selves. Your Lord is indeed Compassionate, Merciful. [16: 5,6,7]
Hadith of the Day:
It is best to give charity when you are healthy, wary of going broke, and hoping to get rich. Do not wait until your soul is ready to come up through your throat to say, 'Give so and so such and such, and so and so such and such. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Hope will incline you to servitude and worship, whereas fear will push you away from sin and inequity. [Abul Qasim Nasrabadi]
Guidance of the Day:
One of the most unavoidable life lessons is having to deal with the disapproval of others. Praise and blame are all the same in a fancy way of the old cliche that you'll never be able to please all the people all the time. The truth is, everyone has their own set of ideas with which to evaluate life, and our ideas don't always match those of other people. For some reason, however, most of us struggle against this inevitable fact. We get angry, hurt, or otherwise frustrated when people reject our ideas, tell us no, or give us some other form of disapproval.
The sooner we accept the inevitable dilemma of not being able to win the approval of everyone we meet, the easier our lives will become. When you expect to be dished out your share of disapproval instead of struggling against this fact, you'll develop a helpful perspective to assist your life journey. Rather than feeling rejected by disapproval, you can remind yourself, "here it is again. That's okay." You can learn to be pleasantly surprised, even grateful when you receive the approval you're hoping for.
Even in a landslide election victory in which a candidate secures 55 percent of vote, he or she is left with 45 percent of the population that wishes someone else were the winner. Pretty humbling, isn't it? Our approval rating from family, friends, and the people we work with isn't likely to be much higher. There are many days when we experience both praise and blame. This back and forth, good and bad, approval and disapproval is a part of everyone's life. We always prefer approval over disapproval. It feels better and it's certainly easier to deal with. The more content we become, however, the less we depend on it for our sense of well-being. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
When you think positive, happy, loving thoughts, there's a different chemistry that goes into your body than when you think depressing, negative anguished thoughts. The way you decide to think has a dramatic effect on your chemistry and on your physiology.
And God created the cattle, wherein are warmth and advantages for you, and from which you eat. And you find beauty in them when you drive them home in the evening and when you lead them to pasture in the morning. And they carry your burdens to territory you would not have reached without troubling your selves. Your Lord is indeed Compassionate, Merciful. [16: 5,6,7]
Hadith of the Day:
It is best to give charity when you are healthy, wary of going broke, and hoping to get rich. Do not wait until your soul is ready to come up through your throat to say, 'Give so and so such and such, and so and so such and such. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Hope will incline you to servitude and worship, whereas fear will push you away from sin and inequity. [Abul Qasim Nasrabadi]
Guidance of the Day:
One of the most unavoidable life lessons is having to deal with the disapproval of others. Praise and blame are all the same in a fancy way of the old cliche that you'll never be able to please all the people all the time. The truth is, everyone has their own set of ideas with which to evaluate life, and our ideas don't always match those of other people. For some reason, however, most of us struggle against this inevitable fact. We get angry, hurt, or otherwise frustrated when people reject our ideas, tell us no, or give us some other form of disapproval.
The sooner we accept the inevitable dilemma of not being able to win the approval of everyone we meet, the easier our lives will become. When you expect to be dished out your share of disapproval instead of struggling against this fact, you'll develop a helpful perspective to assist your life journey. Rather than feeling rejected by disapproval, you can remind yourself, "here it is again. That's okay." You can learn to be pleasantly surprised, even grateful when you receive the approval you're hoping for.
Even in a landslide election victory in which a candidate secures 55 percent of vote, he or she is left with 45 percent of the population that wishes someone else were the winner. Pretty humbling, isn't it? Our approval rating from family, friends, and the people we work with isn't likely to be much higher. There are many days when we experience both praise and blame. This back and forth, good and bad, approval and disapproval is a part of everyone's life. We always prefer approval over disapproval. It feels better and it's certainly easier to deal with. The more content we become, however, the less we depend on it for our sense of well-being. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
When you think positive, happy, loving thoughts, there's a different chemistry that goes into your body than when you think depressing, negative anguished thoughts. The way you decide to think has a dramatic effect on your chemistry and on your physiology.
Thursday, February 09, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 465
Ayahs of the Day:
God created the heavens and the earth rightly; God is exalted above the associations they attribute. God created the human being from a drop; and lo he is an open antagonist! [16: 3,4]
Hadith of the Day:
Cursing a believer is like killing him/her. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Spiritual journeying is with two wings; that is through having firm belief in the truths of faith and carrying out the religious obligations. If there is defect in these two wings, the way cannot be traversed. [Imam Rabbani]
Guidance of the Day:
Life is only a test. When you look at life and its many challenges as a test, or series of tests, you begin to see each issue you face as an opportunity to grow, a chance to roll with the punches. Whether you're being bombarded with problems, responsibilities, even unsurmountable hurdles, when looked at it as a test, you always have a chance to succeed, in the sense of rising above that which is challenging you. If, on the other hand, you see each new issue you face as a serious battle that must be won in order to survive, you're probably in for a very rocky journey. The only time you're likely to be happy is when everything is working out just right. And we all know how often that happens.
As an experiment, see if you can apply this idea to something you are forced to deal with. Perhaps you have a difficult teenager or a demanding boss. See if you can redefine the issue you face from being a "problem" to being a test. Rather than struggling with your issue, see if there is something you can learn from it. Ask yourself, "Why is this issue in my life? What would it mean and what would be involved to rise above it? could I possibly look at this issue any differently? Can I see it as a test of some kind?"
If you give this strategy a try you may be surprised at your changed responses. Our real challenge is to see our struggle as a test. Seeing the issues as a test will ultimately help us to cope with biggest personal frustrations. It will become far more acceptable to us to accept things as they are. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma inni a'udhubika mina'l-jubni, wa'l bukhl, wa a'udhubika min ghalabati'd-dayni wa qahri'r-rijal. (O Allah! I seek Your protection from cowardice and avarice, and I seek Your protection from the stress of debts and the tyranny of men).
Food for Thought:
We came here because the earth is abundant and alive--a rich, rich field of lessons for us to learn. Even when people tell you there isn't any hope, there is. There is always hope, purpose, and a new magical lesson.
God created the heavens and the earth rightly; God is exalted above the associations they attribute. God created the human being from a drop; and lo he is an open antagonist! [16: 3,4]
Hadith of the Day:
Cursing a believer is like killing him/her. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Spiritual journeying is with two wings; that is through having firm belief in the truths of faith and carrying out the religious obligations. If there is defect in these two wings, the way cannot be traversed. [Imam Rabbani]
Guidance of the Day:
Life is only a test. When you look at life and its many challenges as a test, or series of tests, you begin to see each issue you face as an opportunity to grow, a chance to roll with the punches. Whether you're being bombarded with problems, responsibilities, even unsurmountable hurdles, when looked at it as a test, you always have a chance to succeed, in the sense of rising above that which is challenging you. If, on the other hand, you see each new issue you face as a serious battle that must be won in order to survive, you're probably in for a very rocky journey. The only time you're likely to be happy is when everything is working out just right. And we all know how often that happens.
As an experiment, see if you can apply this idea to something you are forced to deal with. Perhaps you have a difficult teenager or a demanding boss. See if you can redefine the issue you face from being a "problem" to being a test. Rather than struggling with your issue, see if there is something you can learn from it. Ask yourself, "Why is this issue in my life? What would it mean and what would be involved to rise above it? could I possibly look at this issue any differently? Can I see it as a test of some kind?"
If you give this strategy a try you may be surprised at your changed responses. Our real challenge is to see our struggle as a test. Seeing the issues as a test will ultimately help us to cope with biggest personal frustrations. It will become far more acceptable to us to accept things as they are. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma inni a'udhubika mina'l-jubni, wa'l bukhl, wa a'udhubika min ghalabati'd-dayni wa qahri'r-rijal. (O Allah! I seek Your protection from cowardice and avarice, and I seek Your protection from the stress of debts and the tyranny of men).
Food for Thought:
We came here because the earth is abundant and alive--a rich, rich field of lessons for us to learn. Even when people tell you there isn't any hope, there is. There is always hope, purpose, and a new magical lesson.
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 464
Ayahs of the Day:
The order of God is coming; do not try to hasten it. Glory to God, exalted above their associations. God sends down angels with the spirit from the Divine order to any servant, at will: "Warn that there is no deity but Me; so be mindful of Me." [16: 1,2]
Hadith of the Day:
Whoever sees a Muslim's imperfection and then conceals it is like one who gives new life to a female infant buried in the desert. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Intimate knowledge of the Divine is gained by following the Sunna, intimate closeness is achieved by fulfilling the obligations, and intimate love is experienced by adorning oneself with the nawafil. [Abul Qasim Nasrabadi]
Guidance of the Day:
Become aware of your moods and don't allow yourself to be fooled by the low ones. Your own moods can be extremely deceptive. They can, and probably do, trick you into believing your life is far worse than it really is. When you're in a good mood, life looks great. You have perspective common sense, and wisdom. In good moods, things don't feel so hard, problems seem less formidable and easier to solve. When you're in a good mood relationships seem to flow and communication is easy. If you are criticized you take it in stride. On the contrary, when you're in a bad mood, life looks unbearable serious and difficult. You have very little perspective. You take things personally and often misinterpret those around you, as impute malignant motives into their actions.
Here's the catch: People don't realize their moods are always on the run. They think instead that their lives have suddenly become worse in the past day, or even the last hour. Such quick and drastic contrasts may seem absurd, even funny--but we're all like that. In low moods we lose our perspective and everything seems urgent. We completely forget that when we are in a good mood, everything seems so much better. We experience the identical circumstances. When we are low rather than blaming our mood as would be appropriate, we instead tend to feel that our whole life is wrong. It's almost as if we actually believe that our lives have fallen apart in the past hour or two.
The truth is, life is never as bad as it seems when you're in a low mood. Rather than staying stuck in a bad temper, convinced you are seeing life realistically, you can learn to question your judgment. remind yourself, "Of course I'm feeling defensive (or angry, frustrated, stressed, depressed); I'm in a bad mood. I always feel negative when I'm low." When you are in an ill mood, learn to pass it off as simply that: an unavoidable human condition that will pass with time, if you leave it alone. A low mood is not the time to analyze your life. To do so is emotional suicide. If you have a legitimate problem, it will still be there when your state of mind improves. The trick is to be grateful for our good moods and graceful in our low moods--not taking them too seriously. The next time you feel low, for whatever reason, remind yourself, "This too shall pass." It will. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Yesterday is a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision, but today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope.I never saw anyone as just as the world. As long as you pursue the world it will pursue you, but when you turn away from it and seek God, it will leave you alone and its glamor shall no longer fascinate you. [Al Hujwiri]
The order of God is coming; do not try to hasten it. Glory to God, exalted above their associations. God sends down angels with the spirit from the Divine order to any servant, at will: "Warn that there is no deity but Me; so be mindful of Me." [16: 1,2]
Hadith of the Day:
Whoever sees a Muslim's imperfection and then conceals it is like one who gives new life to a female infant buried in the desert. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Intimate knowledge of the Divine is gained by following the Sunna, intimate closeness is achieved by fulfilling the obligations, and intimate love is experienced by adorning oneself with the nawafil. [Abul Qasim Nasrabadi]
Guidance of the Day:
Become aware of your moods and don't allow yourself to be fooled by the low ones. Your own moods can be extremely deceptive. They can, and probably do, trick you into believing your life is far worse than it really is. When you're in a good mood, life looks great. You have perspective common sense, and wisdom. In good moods, things don't feel so hard, problems seem less formidable and easier to solve. When you're in a good mood relationships seem to flow and communication is easy. If you are criticized you take it in stride. On the contrary, when you're in a bad mood, life looks unbearable serious and difficult. You have very little perspective. You take things personally and often misinterpret those around you, as impute malignant motives into their actions.
Here's the catch: People don't realize their moods are always on the run. They think instead that their lives have suddenly become worse in the past day, or even the last hour. Such quick and drastic contrasts may seem absurd, even funny--but we're all like that. In low moods we lose our perspective and everything seems urgent. We completely forget that when we are in a good mood, everything seems so much better. We experience the identical circumstances. When we are low rather than blaming our mood as would be appropriate, we instead tend to feel that our whole life is wrong. It's almost as if we actually believe that our lives have fallen apart in the past hour or two.
The truth is, life is never as bad as it seems when you're in a low mood. Rather than staying stuck in a bad temper, convinced you are seeing life realistically, you can learn to question your judgment. remind yourself, "Of course I'm feeling defensive (or angry, frustrated, stressed, depressed); I'm in a bad mood. I always feel negative when I'm low." When you are in an ill mood, learn to pass it off as simply that: an unavoidable human condition that will pass with time, if you leave it alone. A low mood is not the time to analyze your life. To do so is emotional suicide. If you have a legitimate problem, it will still be there when your state of mind improves. The trick is to be grateful for our good moods and graceful in our low moods--not taking them too seriously. The next time you feel low, for whatever reason, remind yourself, "This too shall pass." It will. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Yesterday is a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision, but today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope.I never saw anyone as just as the world. As long as you pursue the world it will pursue you, but when you turn away from it and seek God, it will leave you alone and its glamor shall no longer fascinate you. [Al Hujwiri]
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 463
Ayahs of the Day:
And We were aware that your chest is cramped by what they say. So celebrate praises of your Lord, and be among those who bow. And serve your Lord until the inevitable comes to you. [15: 97, 98, 99]
You will surely be tried in respect to your possessions and your selves. And you will certainly hear much that will grieve you, from those who received the Book before you (i.e. Jews and christians) and from pagan idolators. But if you persevere patiently and guard against evil, then that will be a determining factor in all affairs. [3: 186]
Hadith of the Day:
Verily, Allah does not like people who are obscene and who spread obscenities. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Those who love the beloved of Allah (awliyas) are counted by Allah as being from them. [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
"Choose your battles wisely" is a popular phrase in parenting but is equally important in living a contented life. It suggests that the life is filled with opportunities to choose between making a big deal out of something or simply letting it go. If you choose your battles wisely you'll be far more effective in winning those that are truly important. Certainly there will be times when you'll want or need to argue, confront, or even fight for something you believe in. Many people, however, argue, confront, and fight over practically anything, turning their lives into a series of battles over relatively "small stuff." There is so much frustration in living this type of life that you lose track of what is truly relevant.
The tiniest disagreement or glitch in your plans can be made into a big deal if your goal (conscious or unconscious) is to have everything workout in your favor. This is nothing more than a prescription for unhappiness and frustration. The truth is, life is rarely exactly the way we want it to be, and other people often don't act as we would like them to. There are always going to be people who disagree with you, people who do things differently, and things that don't work out. If you fight against this principle of life, you'll spend most of your life fighting battles.
A more peaceful way to live is to decide consciously which battles are worth fighting and which are better left alone. If your primary goal isn't to have everything work out perfectly but instead to live a relatively stress-free life, you'll find that most battles pull you away from your most tranquil feelings. Is it really important that you prove that you are right and he/she is wrong, or that you confront someone simply because it appears as though he or she has made a minor mistake? Does a small scratch on your car really warrant a suit in small claims court? These and thousands of other small things are what many people spend their lives fighting about. Take a look at your own list, you might want to reevaluate your priorities.
If you don't want to "sweat the small stuff," it's critical that you choose you battles wisely. If you do, there will come a day when you'll rarely feel the need to do battle at all. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
What is the worth of anything but for the happiness it brings? In humility and giving up of egotism is a pleasurable reward by which a person is saved from the heavy burden of trying to make himself liked.
And We were aware that your chest is cramped by what they say. So celebrate praises of your Lord, and be among those who bow. And serve your Lord until the inevitable comes to you. [15: 97, 98, 99]
You will surely be tried in respect to your possessions and your selves. And you will certainly hear much that will grieve you, from those who received the Book before you (i.e. Jews and christians) and from pagan idolators. But if you persevere patiently and guard against evil, then that will be a determining factor in all affairs. [3: 186]
Hadith of the Day:
Verily, Allah does not like people who are obscene and who spread obscenities. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Those who love the beloved of Allah (awliyas) are counted by Allah as being from them. [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
"Choose your battles wisely" is a popular phrase in parenting but is equally important in living a contented life. It suggests that the life is filled with opportunities to choose between making a big deal out of something or simply letting it go. If you choose your battles wisely you'll be far more effective in winning those that are truly important. Certainly there will be times when you'll want or need to argue, confront, or even fight for something you believe in. Many people, however, argue, confront, and fight over practically anything, turning their lives into a series of battles over relatively "small stuff." There is so much frustration in living this type of life that you lose track of what is truly relevant.
The tiniest disagreement or glitch in your plans can be made into a big deal if your goal (conscious or unconscious) is to have everything workout in your favor. This is nothing more than a prescription for unhappiness and frustration. The truth is, life is rarely exactly the way we want it to be, and other people often don't act as we would like them to. There are always going to be people who disagree with you, people who do things differently, and things that don't work out. If you fight against this principle of life, you'll spend most of your life fighting battles.
A more peaceful way to live is to decide consciously which battles are worth fighting and which are better left alone. If your primary goal isn't to have everything work out perfectly but instead to live a relatively stress-free life, you'll find that most battles pull you away from your most tranquil feelings. Is it really important that you prove that you are right and he/she is wrong, or that you confront someone simply because it appears as though he or she has made a minor mistake? Does a small scratch on your car really warrant a suit in small claims court? These and thousands of other small things are what many people spend their lives fighting about. Take a look at your own list, you might want to reevaluate your priorities.
If you don't want to "sweat the small stuff," it's critical that you choose you battles wisely. If you do, there will come a day when you'll rarely feel the need to do battle at all. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
What is the worth of anything but for the happiness it brings? In humility and giving up of egotism is a pleasurable reward by which a person is saved from the heavy burden of trying to make himself liked.
Monday, February 06, 2006
LESSON OFTHE DAY 462
Ayahs of the Day:
So openly expound what you have been directed, and turn away from the polytheists: We are enough for you against those who ridicule--those who put another god with the God. But they will come to know. [15: 94,95,96]
Hadith of the Day:
Our Lord descends to the nearest heaven every night, until there remains only a third of it, and says: "Who will call upon Me so that I may answer them? Who will petition Me so that I may bestow upon them? Who will seek forgiveness so that I may forgive them?" [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
When asked about what you do not know, do not be ashamed to say you do not know; and when you do not know something, do not be embarrassed to learn it; [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Seek first to understand. Essentially, "seek first to understand" implies that you become more interested in understanding others and less in having other people understand you. It means mastering the idea that if you want quality, fulfilling communication that is nourishing to you and others, understanding others must come first. When you understand where people are coming from, what they are trying to say, what's important to them, and so forth, being understood flows naturally; it falls into place with virtually no effort.
When you reverse this process, however (which is what most of us do most of the time), you are putting the cart before the horse. When you try to be understood before you understand, the effort you exert will be felt by you and the person or people you are trying to reach. Communication will break down, and you may end up with a battle of two egos.
Seeking first to understand isn't about who's right or wrong; it is a philosophy of effective communication. When you practice this method you'll notice that the people you communicate with will feel listened to, heard, and understood. This will translate into better, more loving relationship. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Each day we are faced with opportunities to help others, to forgive them, to have compassion for them, to be tolerant of them. Do we seize these opportunities, or do we let them slip by?
So openly expound what you have been directed, and turn away from the polytheists: We are enough for you against those who ridicule--those who put another god with the God. But they will come to know. [15: 94,95,96]
Hadith of the Day:
Our Lord descends to the nearest heaven every night, until there remains only a third of it, and says: "Who will call upon Me so that I may answer them? Who will petition Me so that I may bestow upon them? Who will seek forgiveness so that I may forgive them?" [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
When asked about what you do not know, do not be ashamed to say you do not know; and when you do not know something, do not be embarrassed to learn it; [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Seek first to understand. Essentially, "seek first to understand" implies that you become more interested in understanding others and less in having other people understand you. It means mastering the idea that if you want quality, fulfilling communication that is nourishing to you and others, understanding others must come first. When you understand where people are coming from, what they are trying to say, what's important to them, and so forth, being understood flows naturally; it falls into place with virtually no effort.
When you reverse this process, however (which is what most of us do most of the time), you are putting the cart before the horse. When you try to be understood before you understand, the effort you exert will be felt by you and the person or people you are trying to reach. Communication will break down, and you may end up with a battle of two egos.
Seeking first to understand isn't about who's right or wrong; it is a philosophy of effective communication. When you practice this method you'll notice that the people you communicate with will feel listened to, heard, and understood. This will translate into better, more loving relationship. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Each day we are faced with opportunities to help others, to forgive them, to have compassion for them, to be tolerant of them. Do we seize these opportunities, or do we let them slip by?
Sunday, February 05, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 461
Ayahs of the Day:
And say, "I am the open warner, " such as We sent down upon those who divide, those who have made the Recital into separate parts.So, by your Lord, We will question them all about what they have been doing. [15: 89 to 93]
Hadith of the Day:
Ask Allah for ease in this world and the next. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Everything is known through its opposite. Thus it is, that the one seeking sincerity (ikhlas), cannot know its fruits unless he is aware of the bitter fruits of ostentation (riya). [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
Spend a moment everyday thinking of someone to thank. This simple strategy, which may take only a few seconds to complete, has long been one of the most important habits one can ever engage in. Try to remember to start the day thinking of someone to thank. Gratitude, and inner peace go hand in hand. The more genuinely grateful one is for the gift of life, the more peaceful one feels. Gratitude, then, is worthy of little practice.
You probably have many people in your life to feel grateful for: friends, family members, people from your past, teachers, spiritual leaders, people from work, someone who gave you a break, as well as countless others. You may want to thank the Higher Power for the gift of life itself, or for the beauty of nature. As you think of people to be grateful for, remember that it can be anyone--someone who allowed you to merge into traffic, someone who held the door open for you, or a physician who saved your life. The point is to gear your attention toward gratitude, preferably first thing in the morning.
It's easy to allow our mind to slip into various forms of negativity. When we do, the first thing that leaves us is our sense of gratitude. We begin to take the people in our life for granted, and that love that we often feel is replaced with resentment and frustration. What this exercise reminds us to do is to focus on the good in our life. Invariably as we think of one person to feel gratitude for, the image of another person pops into our head, then another and another. Pretty soon we're thinking of other things to be grateful for--our health, our children, our home, our career, our freedom, and on and on it goes.
It may seem like an awfully simple suggestion, but it really works! If you wake up in the morning with gratitude on your mind, it's pretty difficult, in fact almost impossible, to feel anything but peace. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
In pride and conceit is a heavy burden, for the proud man wants respect from everyone. And since he is despised because he wants it, he suffers constant torment. Respect is given, it may not be sought.
And say, "I am the open warner, " such as We sent down upon those who divide, those who have made the Recital into separate parts.So, by your Lord, We will question them all about what they have been doing. [15: 89 to 93]
Hadith of the Day:
Ask Allah for ease in this world and the next. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Everything is known through its opposite. Thus it is, that the one seeking sincerity (ikhlas), cannot know its fruits unless he is aware of the bitter fruits of ostentation (riya). [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
Spend a moment everyday thinking of someone to thank. This simple strategy, which may take only a few seconds to complete, has long been one of the most important habits one can ever engage in. Try to remember to start the day thinking of someone to thank. Gratitude, and inner peace go hand in hand. The more genuinely grateful one is for the gift of life, the more peaceful one feels. Gratitude, then, is worthy of little practice.
You probably have many people in your life to feel grateful for: friends, family members, people from your past, teachers, spiritual leaders, people from work, someone who gave you a break, as well as countless others. You may want to thank the Higher Power for the gift of life itself, or for the beauty of nature. As you think of people to be grateful for, remember that it can be anyone--someone who allowed you to merge into traffic, someone who held the door open for you, or a physician who saved your life. The point is to gear your attention toward gratitude, preferably first thing in the morning.
It's easy to allow our mind to slip into various forms of negativity. When we do, the first thing that leaves us is our sense of gratitude. We begin to take the people in our life for granted, and that love that we often feel is replaced with resentment and frustration. What this exercise reminds us to do is to focus on the good in our life. Invariably as we think of one person to feel gratitude for, the image of another person pops into our head, then another and another. Pretty soon we're thinking of other things to be grateful for--our health, our children, our home, our career, our freedom, and on and on it goes.
It may seem like an awfully simple suggestion, but it really works! If you wake up in the morning with gratitude on your mind, it's pretty difficult, in fact almost impossible, to feel anything but peace. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
In pride and conceit is a heavy burden, for the proud man wants respect from everyone. And since he is despised because he wants it, he suffers constant torment. Respect is given, it may not be sought.
Saturday, February 04, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 460
Ayahs of the Day:
And We have given you seven verses for repetition, and the great Recital. Don't stretch your eyes to what We have bestowed on some classes of them; but be liberal to the believers. [15: 87,88]
Hadith of the Day:
Complete prosperity is going to Paradise and salvation from the Fire. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The matters to do with this world are like pieces of glass doomed to be broken, while the lasting matters of the Hereafter have the value of flawless diamonds. [Badiuzzamzn Said Nursi]
Guidance of the Day:
Imagine yourself at your own funeral. This strategy is a little scary for some people but universally effective at reminding us of what's most important in our lives. When we look back on our lives, how many of us are going to be pleased at how uptight we were? Almost universally, when people look back on their lives while on their deathbed, they wish that their priorities had been quite different. With few exceptions, people wish they hadn't "sweated the small stuff" so much. Instead, they wish they had spent more time with the people and activities that they truly loved and less time worrying about aspects of life that, upon deeper examination, really don't matter all that much.
Imagining yourself at your own funeral allows you to look back at your life while you still have the chance to make some important changes. While it can be a little scary or painful, it's a good idea to consider your own death and, in the process, your life. Doing so will remind you of the kind of person you want to be and the priorities that are most important to you. You'll probably get a wake-up call that can be an excellent source of change. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Contentment is an unfailing treasure. It is a treasure of good living and ease of life, while greed is a mine of loss and abasement.
And We have given you seven verses for repetition, and the great Recital. Don't stretch your eyes to what We have bestowed on some classes of them; but be liberal to the believers. [15: 87,88]
Hadith of the Day:
Complete prosperity is going to Paradise and salvation from the Fire. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The matters to do with this world are like pieces of glass doomed to be broken, while the lasting matters of the Hereafter have the value of flawless diamonds. [Badiuzzamzn Said Nursi]
Guidance of the Day:
Imagine yourself at your own funeral. This strategy is a little scary for some people but universally effective at reminding us of what's most important in our lives. When we look back on our lives, how many of us are going to be pleased at how uptight we were? Almost universally, when people look back on their lives while on their deathbed, they wish that their priorities had been quite different. With few exceptions, people wish they hadn't "sweated the small stuff" so much. Instead, they wish they had spent more time with the people and activities that they truly loved and less time worrying about aspects of life that, upon deeper examination, really don't matter all that much.
Imagining yourself at your own funeral allows you to look back at your life while you still have the chance to make some important changes. While it can be a little scary or painful, it's a good idea to consider your own death and, in the process, your life. Doing so will remind you of the kind of person you want to be and the priorities that are most important to you. You'll probably get a wake-up call that can be an excellent source of change. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Contentment is an unfailing treasure. It is a treasure of good living and ease of life, while greed is a mine of loss and abasement.
Friday, February 03, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 459
Ayahs of the Day:
And We only created the heavens and the earth and everything in between them for justice; and since the end of time is sure to come, then forgive with gracious forgiveness. It is your Lord who is the Absolute Creator, the Omniscient One. [15: 85,86]
Hadith of the Day:
The wind is from the spirit of Allah and comes either with mercy or punishment. So do not curse it, but rather ask Allah for its good and seek refuge in Him from its evil. [Bukhari]
Wise quote of the Day:
Wisdom takes root in the heart only when dunya and its trappings have been uprooted from it. [Abu Ali Daqaq]
Guidance of the Day:
Surrender to the fact that life isn't fair. It's a bummer, it's absolutely true. Ironically, recognizing this sobering fact can be a very liberating insight. One of the mistakes many of us make is that we feel sorry for ourselves, or for others, thinking that life should be fair, or that someday it will be. It's not and it won't. When we make this mistake we tend to spend a lot of time wallowing and/or complaining about what's wrong with life.
One of the nice things about surrendering to the fact that life isn't fair is that it keeps us from feeling sorry for our selves by encouraging us to do the very best we can with what we have. We know it's not "life's job" to make everything perfect, it's our own challenge. Surrendering to this fact also keeps us from feeling sorry for others because we are reminded that everyone is dealt a different hand, and everyone has unique strengths and challenges.
The fact that life isn't fair doesn't mean we shouldn't do everything in our power to improve our own lives or the world as a whole. To the contrary, it suggests that we should. When we don't recognize or admit that life isn't fair, we tend to feel pity for others and ourselves. Pity, ofcourse, is a self defeating emotion that does nothing for anyone, except to make everyone feel worse than they already do. When we do recognize that life isn't fair, however, we feel compassion for others and for ourselves. And compassion is a heartfelt emotion that delivers loving-kindness to everyone it touches. The next time you find yourself thinking about the injustices of the world, try reminding yourself of this basic fact. You may be surprised that it can nudge you out of self-pity and into helpful action. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Whether it be an argument with your spouse, child, or boss, a mistake, a lost opportunity, a work related rejection, or a sprained ankle, ask yourself the question, "Will this matter a year from now?" Chances are a year from now you aren't going to care. It will be one more irrelevant detail in your life!
And We only created the heavens and the earth and everything in between them for justice; and since the end of time is sure to come, then forgive with gracious forgiveness. It is your Lord who is the Absolute Creator, the Omniscient One. [15: 85,86]
Hadith of the Day:
The wind is from the spirit of Allah and comes either with mercy or punishment. So do not curse it, but rather ask Allah for its good and seek refuge in Him from its evil. [Bukhari]
Wise quote of the Day:
Wisdom takes root in the heart only when dunya and its trappings have been uprooted from it. [Abu Ali Daqaq]
Guidance of the Day:
Surrender to the fact that life isn't fair. It's a bummer, it's absolutely true. Ironically, recognizing this sobering fact can be a very liberating insight. One of the mistakes many of us make is that we feel sorry for ourselves, or for others, thinking that life should be fair, or that someday it will be. It's not and it won't. When we make this mistake we tend to spend a lot of time wallowing and/or complaining about what's wrong with life.
One of the nice things about surrendering to the fact that life isn't fair is that it keeps us from feeling sorry for our selves by encouraging us to do the very best we can with what we have. We know it's not "life's job" to make everything perfect, it's our own challenge. Surrendering to this fact also keeps us from feeling sorry for others because we are reminded that everyone is dealt a different hand, and everyone has unique strengths and challenges.
The fact that life isn't fair doesn't mean we shouldn't do everything in our power to improve our own lives or the world as a whole. To the contrary, it suggests that we should. When we don't recognize or admit that life isn't fair, we tend to feel pity for others and ourselves. Pity, ofcourse, is a self defeating emotion that does nothing for anyone, except to make everyone feel worse than they already do. When we do recognize that life isn't fair, however, we feel compassion for others and for ourselves. And compassion is a heartfelt emotion that delivers loving-kindness to everyone it touches. The next time you find yourself thinking about the injustices of the world, try reminding yourself of this basic fact. You may be surprised that it can nudge you out of self-pity and into helpful action. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Whether it be an argument with your spouse, child, or boss, a mistake, a lost opportunity, a work related rejection, or a sprained ankle, ask yourself the question, "Will this matter a year from now?" Chances are a year from now you aren't going to care. It will be one more irrelevant detail in your life!
Thursday, February 02, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 458
Ayah of the Day:
And We only created the heavens and the earth and everything in between them for justice; and since the end of time is sure to come, then forgive with gracious forgiveness. [15: 85]
Hadith of the Day:
The noblest act of worship is to make dua. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The greatest I'tikaf that one can observe is that the Divine Commands and prohibitions never leave his sight. [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
Be the first one to act loving and reach out. So many of us hold on to little resentments that may have stemmed from an argument, a misunderstanding, the way we are raised, or some other painful event. Stubbornly, we wait for someone else to reach out to us--believing this is the only way we can forgive or rekindle a friendship or family relationship. Although, as is usually the case when someone takes the chance and reaches out, everyone wins.
Whenever we hold on to anger, we turn "small stuff" into really "big stuff" in our minds. We start to believe that our position are more important than our happiness. They are not. If you want to be a more peaceful person you must understand that being right is almost never more important than allowing yourself to be happy. The way to be happy is to let go, and reach out. Let other people be right.
This doesn't mean that you're wrong. Everything will be fine. You'll experience the peace of letting go, as well as the joy of letting others be right. You'll also notice that, as you reach out and let others be "right," they will become less defensive and more loving toward you. They might even reach back. But, if for some reason they don't, that's okay too. You'll have the inner satisfaction of knowing that you have done your part to create a more loving world and certainly you'll be more peaceful yourself. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma inni as'aluka'l-afwa wa'l-afiyata wa'l-mu'afati'd-daa'imata fi dini wa dunyaya wa ahli wa maali. (O Allah! I seek of Your pardon, well-being, and constant safety in my religion, worldly life, family and possessions) ameen.
Food for Thought:
There is no excess or wastefulness in good and benevolence--so long as they are for the deserving, so too there is no good at all in wastefulness and immoderateness.
And We only created the heavens and the earth and everything in between them for justice; and since the end of time is sure to come, then forgive with gracious forgiveness. [15: 85]
Hadith of the Day:
The noblest act of worship is to make dua. [Bukhari]
Wise Quote of the Day:
The greatest I'tikaf that one can observe is that the Divine Commands and prohibitions never leave his sight. [Abu Othman Sa'ad]
Guidance of the Day:
Be the first one to act loving and reach out. So many of us hold on to little resentments that may have stemmed from an argument, a misunderstanding, the way we are raised, or some other painful event. Stubbornly, we wait for someone else to reach out to us--believing this is the only way we can forgive or rekindle a friendship or family relationship. Although, as is usually the case when someone takes the chance and reaches out, everyone wins.
Whenever we hold on to anger, we turn "small stuff" into really "big stuff" in our minds. We start to believe that our position are more important than our happiness. They are not. If you want to be a more peaceful person you must understand that being right is almost never more important than allowing yourself to be happy. The way to be happy is to let go, and reach out. Let other people be right.
This doesn't mean that you're wrong. Everything will be fine. You'll experience the peace of letting go, as well as the joy of letting others be right. You'll also notice that, as you reach out and let others be "right," they will become less defensive and more loving toward you. They might even reach back. But, if for some reason they don't, that's okay too. You'll have the inner satisfaction of knowing that you have done your part to create a more loving world and certainly you'll be more peaceful yourself. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma inni as'aluka'l-afwa wa'l-afiyata wa'l-mu'afati'd-daa'imata fi dini wa dunyaya wa ahli wa maali. (O Allah! I seek of Your pardon, well-being, and constant safety in my religion, worldly life, family and possessions) ameen.
Food for Thought:
There is no excess or wastefulness in good and benevolence--so long as they are for the deserving, so too there is no good at all in wastefulness and immoderateness.
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
LESSON OF THE DAY 457
Ayahs of the Day:
The society of the city of stone repudiated the messengers too: We gave them Our signs, but they turned away from them. They used to carve secure buildings in the mountains, but the blast overtook them one morning, and all they had acquired was of no avail to them. [15: 80 to 84]
Hadith of the Day:
Your prayers will be answered if you do not pray for what is sinful, for the severance of family relations, or grow impatient and say, 'I prayed, but my prayers were not answered.' In these cases, your prayers are wasted. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Those who are drowning in this-worldly find that even their friendships evaporate with the most petty things. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Create "Patience Practice Periods." Patience is a quality of heart which can be greatly enhanced with deliberate practice. An effective way to deepen the patience is to create actual practice periods. Life itself becomes a classroom, and the curriculum is patience. You can start with as little as five minutes and build up your capacity for patience, over time. Start by saying to yourself, "Okay, for the next five minutes I won't allow myself to be bothered by anything. I'll be patient." What you'll discover is truly amazing.
Your intention to be patient, especially if you know it's only for a short while, immediately strengthens your capacity for patience. Patience is one of those special qualities where success feeds on itself. Once you reach little milestones--five minutes of successful patience--you will begin to see that you do, indeed, have the capacity to be patient, even for longer periods of time. Over time, you may even become a patient person.
Being patient allows me to keep my perspective. I can remember, even in the midst of a difficult situation, that what's before me--my present challenge--isn't "life or death" but simply a minor obstacle that must be dealt with. Without patience, the same scenario can become a major emergency complete with yelling, frustration, hurt feelings, and high blood pressure. It's really not worth all that. Whether you're needing to deal with children, your boss, or a difficult person or situation--if you don't want to "sweat the small stuff," improving your patience level is a great way to start. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Consistency is better than burning yourself out, and leaving the endeavor altogether.
The society of the city of stone repudiated the messengers too: We gave them Our signs, but they turned away from them. They used to carve secure buildings in the mountains, but the blast overtook them one morning, and all they had acquired was of no avail to them. [15: 80 to 84]
Hadith of the Day:
Your prayers will be answered if you do not pray for what is sinful, for the severance of family relations, or grow impatient and say, 'I prayed, but my prayers were not answered.' In these cases, your prayers are wasted. [Bukhari & Muslim]
Wise Quote of the Day:
Those who are drowning in this-worldly find that even their friendships evaporate with the most petty things. [Ali radi Allah anhu]
Guidance of the Day:
Create "Patience Practice Periods." Patience is a quality of heart which can be greatly enhanced with deliberate practice. An effective way to deepen the patience is to create actual practice periods. Life itself becomes a classroom, and the curriculum is patience. You can start with as little as five minutes and build up your capacity for patience, over time. Start by saying to yourself, "Okay, for the next five minutes I won't allow myself to be bothered by anything. I'll be patient." What you'll discover is truly amazing.
Your intention to be patient, especially if you know it's only for a short while, immediately strengthens your capacity for patience. Patience is one of those special qualities where success feeds on itself. Once you reach little milestones--five minutes of successful patience--you will begin to see that you do, indeed, have the capacity to be patient, even for longer periods of time. Over time, you may even become a patient person.
Being patient allows me to keep my perspective. I can remember, even in the midst of a difficult situation, that what's before me--my present challenge--isn't "life or death" but simply a minor obstacle that must be dealt with. Without patience, the same scenario can become a major emergency complete with yelling, frustration, hurt feelings, and high blood pressure. It's really not worth all that. Whether you're needing to deal with children, your boss, or a difficult person or situation--if you don't want to "sweat the small stuff," improving your patience level is a great way to start. [Don't Sweat The Small Stuff]
Food for Thought:
Consistency is better than burning yourself out, and leaving the endeavor altogether.
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