LESSON OF THE DAY 1193

Ayahs of the Day:

As for those whose record is placed in the left hand, he will say, "Oh, if only I hadn't been handed my record, and never knew what my account was. Oh, if only that had been the end! My property had been of no avail to me, my power has passed away from me." "Seize him and bind him, and let him burn in the blaze. Then make him walk in a chain seventy cubits long." [69: 25 to 32]

Hadith of the Day:

Truly one end of the Qur'an is in the total power of Allah Most High, and the other end is in your hands. Hold firm to it with great care so that you will not go astray, neither will you perish. [Tabarani]

Wise Quote of the Day:

It is an obligation for every Muslim to know what to do, how to behave, how to lead his life, even if he does not know or consider why. [Imam Birgivi]

Guidance of the Day:

Greet with the salam all Muslims, whether you know them or not. If you greet someone and he does not return your greeting do not think ill of him, but rather say to yourself: 'He may not have heard, or perhaps he answered and I did not hear.' When you enter your house greet your family with the salam, and when you enter a mosque or an empty house say: 'As-salamu alayna wa-ala ibadi' llahis salihin. (Peace be on us and on the virtuous servants of God.)

Visit the sick, attend funerals, and visit your brothers in Islam. Think well of all Muslims, and beware of thinking ill of any of them. The Prophet, may blessings and peace be upon him, has said: 'Two traits are unsurpassed by any other good: thinking well of God, and thinking well of His servants. And two traits are unsurpassed by any other evil: thinking ill of God, and thinking ill of His servants. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

Blessed is the man who is too busy to worry in the daytime and too sleepy to worry at night. Make no mistake about it, responsibilities toward other human beings are the greatest blessings God can send us. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Pearls of wisdom 229

1. If anyone knows God, everything becomes of little importance for him.

2. If anyone asserts the unity of God, he associates nothing with Him.

3. If anyone has faith in God, he is safe from everything.

4. If anyone is resigned to God, rarely does he disobey Him.

5. If he does disobey Him, he begs of Him to be excused. If he begs of Him to be excused, his excuse is accepted.

6. If anyone has faith in the Divine apportionment (qisma), he should not dispute the Divine wisdom.

7. Love is a fundamental principle for enabling one to understand. So, if anyone loves God, he has from Him an understanding of everything.

8. There are two virtues that facilitate the way to God: mystical knowledge and love. Your love for material things renders you blind and deaf.

9. If you desire to defeat the adversary -- Satan, then you must have faith, trust, and sincere servant ship, and seek refuge with God from his incitements.

10. Whenever He hinders you from obtaining what you desire and makes you resort to what He desires, it is a sign of His love for you. [Above quotes by Shaykh Abul Hasan al Shadhili]

LESSON OF THE DAY 1192

Ayahs of the Day:

So be patient, with graceful patience. For they see it distant while we see it near: the day when the sky will be like molten brass, and the mountains will be like particolored wool, and a friend won't ask after a friend, even though they see them. The sinner will wish he could bail himself out of the agony of that day by sacrificing his children, and his wife, and his brother, and his family sheltering him, and everyone on earth, in order to save him. [70: 5 to 14]

Hadith of the Day:

Whoever follows the Qur'an as a guide will be led to Paradise. Whoever leaves it behind and does not follow it, it leaves him to Hell. [Ibn Hibban]

Wise Quote of the Day:

The wealthiest person is the one who has abundance of taqwa. [Dhunnun al Misri]

Guidance of the Day:

To think well of Muslims is to regard nothing they do or say as evil when it can be interpreted otherwise. If you cannot find a good interpretation, in the case of sins, for example, then reproach them for committing them, and believe that their faith will eventually drive them to refrain and repent of them.

Thinking ill of Muslims is to regard as evil those acts and words of theirs which are in appearance good. For example, you may see a Muslim who frequently prays, gives charity, and recites the Qur'an, and you think that he is only doing this so that people may see him, and that his aim is wealth and social position. This corrupt form of thinking occurs only to those who are inwardly vile, and is an attribute of the hypocrites. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

Faith is a bridge across the gulf of death. Faith is a verification by the heart; confession by the tongue; action by the limbs. Faith is the proper name of religious experience, a passionate intuition, and a practical attitude of the will. Faith is obedience, nothing else.

Pearls of wisdom 228

1.There are two evils, having which, an abundance of good works is seldom profitable -- discontent with God's decree and wronging God's servants.

2. May God be your aim and death your desire with every step, and indulge not in a long future hope.

3. Real asceticism (zuhd) is emptying the heart of whatever is other than the Lord.

4. Real knowledge of what is good implies dwelling in it.

5. Real knowledge of what is evil implies departure from it.

6. Real prostration (sujud) is yielding of the heart to the ordinance (ahkam) of the Lord.

7. Real vanishing of passion (hawa) from the heart implies fondness for meeting with God in every breath without man's choosing a certain situation in which to be.

8. The perfect man is not one who lives in himself, but the one through who others live.

9. There is no great sin greater than love of the world, and remaining in a state of ignorance with contentment.

10. Love of the world is the apex of all inequity, and remaining in ignorance is the root of every act of disobedience. [Above quotes by Shaykh Abul Hasan al Shadhili]

LESSON OF THE DAY 1191

Ayahs of the Day:

Then he whose record is placed in his right hand will say, "Here, read my record -- I considered my self destined to face my reckoning." And he will be in an agreeable life, in lofty gardens where fruits are near at hand: "Eat and drink with pleasure, for you have earned it in days gone by." [69: 19 to 24]

Hadith of the Day:

Worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you do not see Him, certainly He sees you. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:

Do not be confused by ignorance; turn toward and not away from Allah. Have faith in Him and refrain from transgression. He bestows prosperity, and decrees poverty. Fear Him alone and none other, adhere to Him that you may prevail. [Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani]

Guidance of the Day:

Never frighten or alarm a Muslim; never mock, ridicule, or despise him, for these are part of ominous and blameworthy behavior. The Prophet, may blessings and peace be upon him, has said: 'It is sufficient evil for a man that he should despise his brother Muslim. Be humble, for humility is the attribute of believers. Beware of pride, for God does not like the proud.

Those who humble themselves are raised up by God, and those who are proud are abased by Him. Signs of humility include a liking for obscurity, a dislike for fame, to accept truth whether it be from a man of high or low birth, to love the poor, associate with them and keep their company, to fulfil the rights people have upon you as completely as you can, thank those of them who fulfil their duties to you, and excuse those who are remiss. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

Do not manage as if you had ten thousand years before you. Look you, death stands at your elbow; make the most of your minute, and be good for something while it is in your power. Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present. The future belongs to those who live intensely in the present. We know nothing about tomorrow; our business is to be good and happy today.

Interview With Productivemuslimah.com

(Originally posted at productivemuslimah.com)

1. How did you manage to be focused on your goal?

A. First and foremost I thank Allah Most High from the bottom of my heart for everything. Even though it seems like we did something or we are doing something it is only through Allah's grace that we are able to do the things that we do. Secondly the only way to achieve something is to have a goal and seek Allah's help and work towards achieving it until we get it. That seems to be the only reasonable approach to be focused. We need to have the firm belief that 'with Allah's help nothing is difficult, and without His help nothing is easy.'

2. What are the different ways that can be used to motivate our sisters to memorize the Qur'an?

A. First we need to fall in love with our Creator. This can be achieved through realizing all the blessings He has bestowed on us, the greatest of which is Imaan -- the key to Jannah. He didn't just create us, He also gave us a beautiful manual through which we are guided and we can lead a safe, secure, and peaceful life in this world of corruption and confusion. When Allah's love becomes intense, it will be expressed through our connection with His Book. We will never have enough of it. We will recite it with love and reverence for this best possible gift for mankind, then we will also learn to focus on understanding it, we will then inshaAllah live our lives in accordance with its teachings.

When we are constantly living with the Qur'an in our daily lives we have made a very strong connection with our Lord. We also know that this is the only book when we read one word of it there are ten hasanat for every letter, how is it then, that we will not want to recite it more and more, when this happens the next stage will follow -- we will have an urge to at least memorize some of it, that will inshaAllah lead us to memorizing all of it. We will do it because we want to and not because we have to.

My advice to those who want to memorize but feel that they don't have the time, is to get started even if it is just two lines a day and be consistent with it. Allah will give them the barakah and they will be amazed on how much they are able to achieve just through being consistent with whatever little they are able to memorize. The key is doing with sincerity and consistency. Being on wudu (the believer's weapon against Satan) all the time is a tremendous blessing -- through this we have a special connection with Allah Most High, and we are not an easy target for Satan; and also we are able to reach out for the Qur'an whenever we have any free time -- this will inshaAllah speed up the process of memorization. 

3. How did you manage your time?

A. When we work towards a goal -- for believers the goal is seeking Allah's pleasure in every moment of our lives, when we are focused on achieving this goal, that is when everything falls into place, time management becomes easy, we are able to keep track of time, we will realize that there is no room for haraam (prohibited) and makruh (disliked) in our lives, there is only mubah (permissible) in our lives, through this we are also able to sort out important from unimportant, and that is the key to having the barakah (increase) in our time. We need to value our free time and make the most of it -- time is our life, when we waste time we waste our lives. Realization of the importance of time is very important -- we should always remember that this is one of the first things we will be asked about on the Day of Judgment. 

4. What makes one a Productive Muslimah? (traits/ character)

A. A productive muslimah is one who takes pride in being a muslimah, she is focused on preaching Islam through her own practice. She loves Allah, her focus in life is Allah's pleasure, and she loves to do things that bring her closer to her Creator and Sustainer. Her main concern is her success in the Akhirah (Hereafter), thus she makes the most of this world as a means to achieve that success.

Her Imaan is reflected through her outward which is complete submission to Sharia (Divine law). She is honest, trustworthy, and hardworking. She is not seeking out her rights from others, but she is always focused on fulfilling the rights of others upon her. She lives a simple life taking care of her needs and not going after her wants. She has a heart free of love for this world, free of love of leadership, free of bad opinions about others, free of grudges, malice, rancor, greed, envy and all other evil traits. Her tongue is not engaged in haraam or vain talk, she thinks before she speaks, she controls her anger. She is a humble person, her goal is to be a better person every day of her life; she doesn't hesitate to admit when she is wrong and is quick in correcting her wrongs/faults when she sees them. She is neither stingy nor a spendthrift, but she loves to spend generously for those things which will bring her closer to her Creator.

Her heart is clean and pure, filled with love and reverence for her Creator; love, compassion, kindness, and forgiveness for the creation. She is full of gratitude for every single blessing, especially for the spiritual blessings, she is always striving to progress spiritually. She has complete trust and reliance in Allah, when she goes through difficult/disliked situation she knows there is good in it for her -- both in this world and the next. She loves to be in the company of Saliheen (righteous slaves of Allah). She strives to keep her promises and commitments. She is soft spoken but firm in her words and works. She always strives to be a part of solution and not a part of problem. She shows beautiful patience during difficult times, for she realizes things could have been worse, and that these are tests from Allah Who can be called upon and He will answer the duas, and she also has the certainty that 'with every difficulty there is relief' (94: 6). She is a living proof of what a muslimah should be, and all this with the utmost sincerity to please her Almighty Lord.

5. Final words of advise to ProductiveMuslimah fans.

A. My advice to myself and to everyone is to rejoice in being a Muslim/Muslimah, that we be true Muslims in deeds not just in words -- as we know the literal meaning of Muslim is 'one who submits to Allah's will and His commands.' We shouldn't take things for granted, We should take everything with gratitude, for Allah promises us increase for the things that we show gratitude for. We also need to reflect upon the meaning of gratitude which is to use Allah's blessings (which include our time, health, sight, hearing, speech, all the latest technology and all other countless blessings) only for the things He is pleased with.

Our gratitude should be even more for the spiritual favors, the best way to show gratitude for them is to know that these are gifts from Allah Most High for which we have no words to express our thanks. We need to be focused on our goal which is our Akhirah, to achieve our goal we need to be in the company of those who have achieved this focus or are working for it -- as we know that the company one keeps has the greatest impact on a person's life.

LESSON OF THE DAY 1190

Ayahs of the Day:

Then when the trumpet is sounded once, and the earth is picked up, mountains and all, and they are demolished, crushed all at once, on that day the inevitable will come to pass: the sky will be split apart, for it will be fragile that day; and the angels will be by its sides, while eight will bear the throne of your Lord above them that day. On that day you will be exposed; no secrets of yours will be hidden. [69: 13 to 18]

Hadith of the Day:

As long as you do not love me (pbuh) more than anything else, your faith is not complete. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:

He who desires honor in this world should not make his needs known to anyone in creation, nor should he seek out the faults of any other. [Bishr al-Hafi]

Guidance of the Day:

Speak truthfully and honor your commitments and your promises, for breaching commitments and breaking promises are signs of hypocrisy. Be wary of argumentation and wrangling, for they cast rancor into the breasts of men, alienate hearts, and lead to enmity and hatred. If anyone argues against you and has right on his side, accept what he says, for truth must always be followed. If, on the other hand, he is wrong, then leave him, for he is ignorant.

Renounce all joking; if very occasionally you do joke to assuage a Muslim's heart, then speak only the truth. Respect Muslims, especially people of merit such as the scholar, the righteous, the nobleman, and the one whose hair has greyed in Islam. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

Be you to others kind and true,

As you'd have others be to you;

And neither do nor say to men

Whatever you would not take again.

Pearls of wisdom 227

1. Between God and His servant are just two veils, all other veils become manifest from these two -- health and wealth.

2. If you want to attain the spirit and achieve laughing good fortune, then laugh like a rose whether you see gentleness or cruelty.

3. When the listener is thirsty and seeking, the preacher becomes eloquent even if he is dumb.

4. You have eaten bread to prevent loss of weight over and over. This is the same bread, why are you not bored?

5. Pleasure drives from hunger, not from new sweetmeats; hunger makes barley bread better than sugar.

6. So your boredom is from lack of hunger and indigestion, not from the repetition of words.

7. The heart is the antechamber of the eye; for certainly everything that reaches the heart will enter into the eye and become a form.

8. Spring is the gentleness of the Almighty Magistrate, while autumn is God's threat and intimidation.

9. He afflicts upon us fear and hunger and deprives us of wealth and body, all for the sake of making manifest the spirit's true coin.

10. When contraction comes to you, oh spiritual traveler, it is in your best interest. Let not your heart burn in grief -- for after suffering shows its face, its opposite, happiness and splendor will appear. [Mawlana Rumi]

LESSON OF THE DAY 1189

Ayahs of the Day:

For those who are conscientious, there are gardens of happiness in the presence of their Lord. Shall We then treat the acquiescent like the rebellious? What is wrong with you? How do you judge? Do you have a scripture you study wherein you are assured of what you choose? Or do you have a covenant binding on Us until the day of resurrection assuring you of what you decide? [68: 34 to 39]

Hadith of the Day:

Allah Most High says: "My love is obliged to those who love each other for My sake, who sit with each other for My sake, and who give to each other generously for My sake." [al-Muwatta]

Wise Quote of the Day:

Abstinence is better than seeking a remedy.

Scratching the abrasion only makes it worse.

Fasting is the foremost principle of medicine.

Fast, and behold the strength of the spirit. [Mawlana Rumi]

Guidance of the Day:

When someone praises you, you must feel dislike for his praises within your heart. If he has praised you for something you truly possess say: 'Praise belongs to God Who has revealed the good things and concealed the ugly ones.' And if he praises you for something which you do not possess, say as one of our predecessors said: 'O God! Do not call me to account for what they say, forgive me what they do not know, and make me better than they think.'

In your case do not praise anyone unless you know that your praises will incite him to more good works or unless he is a superior man whose superiority is not well known and you wish to make it so, this being on condition that you are safe from lying and he is safe from conceit. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

A diamond is a chunk of coal that made good under pressure. A clay pot sitting in the sun will always be a clay pot. It has to go through the white heat of the furnace to become porcelain. Times of general calamity and confusion have ever been productive of the greatest minds. The purist ore is produced from the hottest furnace, and the brightest thunderbolt is elicited from the darkest storms.

Pearls of wisdom 226

1. Oh lover of the King! Know that your way is to seek the pleasure of that Generous Lord.

2. Those who seek to acquire the virtues of Muhammad (sws) die like Abu Bakr and Omar (ra).

3. When the sun goes down, what remains but black night. When the intellect departs from the head, what remains but foolishness.

4. Oh intellect, everyone's troubles stem from your departure, wherever you turn your back are found error and war, wherever you show your face is seen passionate love.

5. Intellect is good and desirable to the extent it brings you to the King's door -- once you have reached His door, then divorce the intellect, when you reach Him, entrust yourself to Him!

6. Make yourself a simpleton and follow the saint; you will find salvation only by being a simpleton.

7. Whoever tastes religion's sweetness -- how should he enjoy the world's honey.

8. For the sake of your own soul, seek well-being from saints.

9. The only way to flee from suffering is to seek refuge from one's ego with God.

10. Happy is the spirit awakened from slumber by His chastisement! Rejoice in it, it counts as a blessing. [Mawlana Rumi]

LESSON OF THE DAY 1188

Ayahs of the Day:

By the pen, and what they write, you (O Prophet) are not, by the grace of your Lord, insane: in fact, there is an unending reward for you, and you do indeed have a strong character. So you will see and they will see which of you is demented. It is your Lord who knows best who has strayed from the path, and knows best who is guided. [68: 1 to 7]

Hadith of the Day:

Allah the Almighty has said: "The most enviable of my friends is a believer with little property who finds pleasure in prayer, who performs the worship of his Lord, well, who obeys Him in secret, who is obscure among men, who is not pointed out by people, and whose provision is base sufficiency with which he is content." [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:

The spiritual warrior is the one who breaks an idol, and the idol of each person is his ego. [Al-Qushayri]

Guidance of the Day:

You must be of good counsel to all Muslims. The highest point of this is that you conceal nothing from them which if made known would result in good or preserve from something evil. The Prophet has said, may blessings and peace be upon him: 'Religion is good counsel.' Part of this is to support a Muslim in his absence as you would in his presence, and not to give him more verbal signs of affection than you have for him in your heart. It is also part of this that the correct course does not lie in that which he is inclined to do, you should tell him so.

The absence of good counsel is indicated by the presence of envy of the favors God has given other Muslims. The origin of such envy is that you find it intolerable that God has granted one of His servants a good thing, whether of religion or of the world. The utmost limit of envy is to wish that he be deprived of it. It has been handed down that 'envy consumes good deeds just as fire consumes dry wood.' The envious man is objecting to God's management of His Dominion, as if he were saying: 'O Lord! You have put Your favors where they do not belong.' [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

Believe that life is worth living and your belief will create the fact. The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it. People living deeply have no fear of death. There is no wealth but life. Wars and elections are too small to matter in the long run, the daily work that goes on-----it adds up.

Pearls of wisdom 225

1. Hunger will make all unpleasant things pleasant -- but without it, all pleasant things are rejected.

2. When love of God has doubled in your heart, without doubt God has love for you -- you have never heard one hand clapping without the other.

3. You are not less than the earth. Men change the earth by moving and turning it with shovels, then it yields crops. When they abandon it, it becomes hard.

4. How should the infant know the effect of his cries upon hearts? So weep, even if you do not know the result! The everlasting gardens of rivers of Paradise will be born from your tears.

5. Whether you are pure or impure, flee not. For nearness to Him increases purity.

6. Act so that your seeking may increase. He who plants a great deal may hope for a bountiful harvest.

7. God will give you what you seek. Where your aspiration lies, that you will become, for, "the bird flies with its wings, but the believer flies with his aspiration."

8. Love (of the Creator) is the water of life -- drink it down with heart and soul.

9. Love is that flame when it blazes up, burns away everything except the Beloved.

10. Your sensuality is copper, and the light of Love is the elixir -- Love's light transmutes the copper of your existence into gold. [Mawlana Rumi]

LESSON OF THE DAY 1187

Ayahs of the Day:

Say, "Do you see whether God destroys me or those with me or has mercy on us, who will shelter the disbelievers from agony?" Say, "God is the Benevolent One, in whom we believe and whom we trust, so you will know who it is that is in evident error." Say, "Do you see if your water happens to run off underground, then who will provide you with flowing water?" [67: 28,29,30]

Hadith of the Day:

No one has superiority over another except by piety and good action. [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:

Knowing full well that you have many faults, you actively seek out the faults of others. [Ibrahim al-Adham]

Guidance of the Day:

Beware of injustice, for it will be darkness on the Day of Rising, especially injustice to others, which is never left alone by God. The Prophet, may blessings and peace be upon him, has said: 'The bankrupt in my nation is one who comes on the Day of Rising with numerous good deeds, but who has struck someone, insulted someone else, and taken the money of still another, when his good deeds are exhausted, some of their evil deeds are taken and added to his, after which he is cast into Fire'.

Therefor, if you ever wrong anyone, hasten to emerge from the situation by submitting to punishment if it is a legal offence, asking to be absolved if it is a matter of honor, and returning what you have taken if it is a financial injustice. If you find yourself altogether unable to make reparations for some of your injustices, then seek refuge in God with sincerity, urgency, and an acknowledgement of your powerlessness, that He may get your adversary to accept you; also pray in abundance and ask for forgiveness for those whom you have wronged. Defend the lives, honor, and wealth of Muslims as you defend your own, whether they be present or not. The one who supports a Muslim will be supported by God, and the one who deserts a Muslim will be deserted by Him. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

It's not what you'd do with a million,

If riches should ever be your lot,

But what are you doing at present

With the dollar and a quarter you've got?

Pearls of wisdom 224

1. Purify yourself from the attributes of self, so that you may see your own pure essence!

2. Self-existence brings terrible drunkenness, it removes intellect from the head and modesty from the heart.

3. When we come into the midst, He goes to the side; when we go beside ourselves, He comes into the midst.

4. All eyes and ears are shut, except for the eyes and ears of those who have escaped from themselves.

5. If man desires existence, he must seek it in his own non-existence.

6. When the body dies in self-discipline, that is life; the suffering of the body is the subsistence of the spirit.

7. Kill the cow of your ego as soon as you can, so that your hidden spirit may come to life and awareness.

8. Once the ego has been transformed, the sword---------the body is held in the hand of the Bountiful Lord's craftsmanship.

9. When you have become selfless, you are secure in whatever you do.

10. Strive in the hope of a Living One Who does not become inanimate after a day or two. [Mawlana Rumi]

LESSON OF THE DAY 1186

Ayahs of the Day:

Say, "God is the one who created you and gave you hearing and seeing and intelligence; little do you give thanks." Say, "God is the one who multiplied you on earth, and to whom you will be gathered." They say, "When is this promise to be, if you are telling the truth?" Say, "That knowledge is with God alone; I am just a plain warner." Then when they see it imminent, the faces of those who scoffed will be troubled as they are told, "This is what you were calling for." [67: 23 to27]

Hadith of the Day:

Sadaqa appeases the Lord's anger and averts an evil death. [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:

Even after burying your own parents you take no lesson; knowing with certainty that death is inevitable, you chose to remain heedless of it. [Ibrahim al Adham]

Guidance of the Day:

Effect reconciliation between the hearts of the believers, and cause them to love each other by bringing to light their virtues and concealing their vices. Restore good relations between them, for such a thing is more meritorious than supererogatory prayers and fasts, especially when effected between a father and his son, or a man and his relatives.

Beware of sowing discord through slander, backbiting or anything else such as will result in antagonism and aversion; for this is considered an immense sin by God. Slander is to report the words of one person to another with the intention of creating discord between them. Backbiting is to say things about a person, in his absence, which he would have resented had he been present, with defamatory intent, whether this defamation be verbal, written, or indicated. [Al-Haddad, The Book of Assistance]

Food for Thought:

When we are unable to find tranquility within ourselves, it is useless to seek it elsewhere. If you don't find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else. If there is to be any peace it will come through being, not having. Forgiving those who hurt us is the key to personal peace.

Pears of Wisdom 223

1. Separation from Him is a well, remembrance of Him is a rope.

2. His name is the Spirit of spirits. His invocation the Ruby of the mines.

3. His love is the Soul; He is both our Refuge and our Hope.

4. Man's spiritual aspiration (himmah) must be high, but he must never forget that God has given him his aspiration.

5. Think neither of acceptance nor rejection. But keep His commands and prohibitions constantly in view.

6. When you travel this road until your legs are exhausted and fall down flat, until you have no more strength to move forward, then God's grace will take you in its arms.

7. Everyone sees the Unseen in proportion to the clarity of his heart, and that depends upon how much he has polished it.

8. Become accustomed to God, for when your appointed time arrives, you will be parted unwillingly from these paintings of the Devil.

9. Stretch not your legs on this sweet carpet of earth, for it is a borrowed bed------fear the time when they will come to roll it up.

10. Make a journey from self to Self, for by such a journey the earth becomes a mine of gold. [Spiritual teachings of Mawlana Rumi]