Assalam o alaikum
(Unfortunately I was lost for way too long. I just recently visited this blog again and found this in the drafts. I had written this in 2014. Subhan Allah. I had forgotten about it. Added a few bits and posting it now in 2017. I remember feeling so moved by this lecture when I was listening to it. Ya Rabbi keep my heart open to Hidayah and keep me steadfast on Your Deen. Ameen)
It has been ages since I last posted or actually wrote something. I had all these topics running through my mind. And well that is where they stayed. This is what shaytan does. Whenever you want to do something good and you plan on it , he tries his level best to keep you away from it. But those spells of laziness and procrastination are far gone. I am back again and hoping to write something that all of us can benefit from. In sha Allah. (If Allah wills) :)
But first I would like to share this beautiful quote with you. To remind you that no matter how many times you plan on doing good and fail , no matter how many times you feel like shaytan is winning, don't give up. Ever. The day that you do is the day shaytan wins. His failure lies in your will to keep doing good no matter what..
Moving on. My Tafseer and Arabic teacher just returned from Umrah this week. Now this one thing I can confidently say on the behalf of all Muslims: All of us would want to go for Umrah and Hajj at least once in our lives. We all have this longing in our heart to be that close to Allah (swt), walk on the same grounds that the Prophet (pbuh) did, to stand on that Holy ground and literally feel Allah's mercy showering upon us.
She shared some very helpful tips about preparing for Umrah or Hajj. And no. Not the preparation that you start when you finally know you have the ticket in your hands.And you turn in to a busy bee, collecting money, buying the necessary items, informing your relatives and reading literature on ways to perform it from here and there. This preparation that I am about to tell you is one that we must be constantly doing. I hope you find this as helpful as I did. My hands were itching to share them with you.
There are three levels of preparation:
1- Financial
2- Physical
3- Spiritual..
To begin with, our first and foremost worry is of course money. We ask Allah for financial help so that we can fulfil the requirements for Visa's and passports and all that. What we dont realize is that there are so many steps of preparation before that. Money comes way later down the ladder. First you must show Allah (swt) that you really are willing to go. You are willing to be chosen for this ultimate blessing. That you are ready and prepared and now all you need is for Allah to help you make that journey. Normally we make these preps in the order 1, 2 and 3. Not knowing that it is actually the complete opposite. Still confused?
3- Spritual
This preparation revolves around our heart. Hence includes keeping a heart that is pure and devoid of any evil of any sort. For example, you don't have to ask people to forgive you only after your tickets are confirmed. You must always keep it that way. Allah does not reside in any such hearts. Get rid of jealousy, hatred, selfishness, pride and all such evils that blacken the heart. No it is not easy. But we can try cant we? We can show Allah (swt) that we are very much willing to be called, to be chosen among so many others. Allah (swt) looks at our efforts rather than the result. He knows we are not perfect. So just give it a try. For His sake. Clean your heart of impurities. Make Allah chose you. Starting today. Starting now. (In sha Allah)
(Unfortunately I was lost for way too long. I just recently visited this blog again and found this in the drafts. I had written this in 2014. Subhan Allah. I had forgotten about it. Added a few bits and posting it now in 2017. I remember feeling so moved by this lecture when I was listening to it. Ya Rabbi keep my heart open to Hidayah and keep me steadfast on Your Deen. Ameen)
It has been ages since I last posted or actually wrote something. I had all these topics running through my mind. And well that is where they stayed. This is what shaytan does. Whenever you want to do something good and you plan on it , he tries his level best to keep you away from it. But those spells of laziness and procrastination are far gone. I am back again and hoping to write something that all of us can benefit from. In sha Allah. (If Allah wills) :)
But first I would like to share this beautiful quote with you. To remind you that no matter how many times you plan on doing good and fail , no matter how many times you feel like shaytan is winning, don't give up. Ever. The day that you do is the day shaytan wins. His failure lies in your will to keep doing good no matter what..
“In spite of your sins, do good…in spite of your weaknesses, do good…in spite of your shortcomings, do good…for indeed Allah does not withhold His Mercy and Forgiveness from you until you neglect and give up doing good.” – Ahmad al-Shuqayri (KSA)
Moving on. My Tafseer and Arabic teacher just returned from Umrah this week. Now this one thing I can confidently say on the behalf of all Muslims: All of us would want to go for Umrah and Hajj at least once in our lives. We all have this longing in our heart to be that close to Allah (swt), walk on the same grounds that the Prophet (pbuh) did, to stand on that Holy ground and literally feel Allah's mercy showering upon us.
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| Image source: Google Images |
She shared some very helpful tips about preparing for Umrah or Hajj. And no. Not the preparation that you start when you finally know you have the ticket in your hands.And you turn in to a busy bee, collecting money, buying the necessary items, informing your relatives and reading literature on ways to perform it from here and there. This preparation that I am about to tell you is one that we must be constantly doing. I hope you find this as helpful as I did. My hands were itching to share them with you.
There are three levels of preparation:
1- Financial
2- Physical
3- Spiritual..
To begin with, our first and foremost worry is of course money. We ask Allah for financial help so that we can fulfil the requirements for Visa's and passports and all that. What we dont realize is that there are so many steps of preparation before that. Money comes way later down the ladder. First you must show Allah (swt) that you really are willing to go. You are willing to be chosen for this ultimate blessing. That you are ready and prepared and now all you need is for Allah to help you make that journey. Normally we make these preps in the order 1, 2 and 3. Not knowing that it is actually the complete opposite. Still confused?
3- Spritual
This preparation revolves around our heart. Hence includes keeping a heart that is pure and devoid of any evil of any sort. For example, you don't have to ask people to forgive you only after your tickets are confirmed. You must always keep it that way. Allah does not reside in any such hearts. Get rid of jealousy, hatred, selfishness, pride and all such evils that blacken the heart. No it is not easy. But we can try cant we? We can show Allah (swt) that we are very much willing to be called, to be chosen among so many others. Allah (swt) looks at our efforts rather than the result. He knows we are not perfect. So just give it a try. For His sake. Clean your heart of impurities. Make Allah chose you. Starting today. Starting now. (In sha Allah)
و اصبروا إن الله مع الصابرين
“…and be patient. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.” [al-Anfal 8:46].
2-Physical
We are all aware that Umrah and Hajj is not a bed of roses. It is not for the weak. It requires a lot of strength. A lot of walking. Now here is the interesting part. My teacher gave us this tip to gain Ajar for every step that we take when we walk. Our actions depend on our intentions (Niyyat) , right?, Allah (swt) knows our hearts better than us. So every time that we walk to the park or the market why dont we make the intention of preparing for hajj and umrah? Every step that you take would be written down as your preparation. Even regular exercise to keep oneself fit and gain stamina can be intended to be a physical preparation for Hajj Insha Allah.
1- Financial
According to my teacher once we have truly prepared ourselves spiritually and physically, Allah will sort out our financial worries Himself. You would be surprised to find yourself in a position to manage all the expenses associated with the journey.
May Allah grant us and our families, the opportunity to perform Hajj and Umrah multiple times in our lifetimes. Ameen
1- Financial
According to my teacher once we have truly prepared ourselves spiritually and physically, Allah will sort out our financial worries Himself. You would be surprised to find yourself in a position to manage all the expenses associated with the journey.
May Allah grant us and our families, the opportunity to perform Hajj and Umrah multiple times in our lifetimes. Ameen
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