musaafir-e dasht

On waking up this morning, I found the following text on my cell. It was sent by a student who is now working at a private university. I liked it because it served as an important reminder. Students too can be very good teachers at times :) We have to be very conscious of the journey we embark on by the choice of Allah Almighty, because very often the splendour of the station itself becomes the destination. Think about it! - Abdul Basit 

“Everyone wants to make enough money to live comfortably, but what does this mean? Should one aim to make millions? Or is this a questionable aim for a moral life? Should one aim at a profession in order to achieve high status? ... The big question: What kind of work will contribute to my becoming a whole person and also contribute to my community...?” - Nel Noddings, Critical Lessons: What Our Schools Might Teach but Do Not (2006) Not an unfamiliar scenario: An adult asks a small child, ‘What are you going to be when you grow up?’ The child looks at his interlocutor confusedly. He is immediately given his options, ‘Engineer, doctor, pilot…’ and the clichéd list would go on to bog the child down with the weighty responsibility of either ‘becoming’ any of these or remain a ‘good-for-nothing’ all his life. If only we could control our formative influences, life would be so much better! If only… Dreams and Desires ‘Dreaming Big’ is the slogan of the modern day world. We ‘...

Imagine: you listlessly go and sit in the company of a pious friend of Allah (SWT). You have no idea what awaits you. You simply go and sit with adab  waiting for the Shaykh to speak. You yourself do not know what is it that you seek. No specific questions. Just utter confusion caused by the rust that corrodes the heart... The Shaykh begins to speak and the first thing he says strikes a chord. You are jerked out of your listless state because that is exactly what you unconsciously wanted to hear in those moments. Those specific answers to unspecified questions... Blessed, indeed, are those moments. It is nothing but Allah's Mercy that He clarifies things for us and brings us back to the focus, to Him! Had this not been the case, we would always be continuing with our lives listlessly... 

There is no better way to start your day than rising up early, offering fajr prayers on time (in the Mosque congregation, especially for males), reciting some Qur’an unhurriedly with reflection, doing some exercise/jogging and eating a healthy breakfast – even if its Sunday Morning! The key to all of this, of course, is going to bed early! -  Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari I realised the truth in this statement today. May Allah SWT help all of us follow a routine that pleases Him SWT. This inconsiderable surely needs to review her daily routine!

For the past eight years, December Fourth has been an important date because of a personal reason. Incidentally, it seems to have become even more significant because of today; I conducted my last exam at the university. The turning point in life had come earlier but today my stint as a teacher finally came to an end. I surely did not want this day to go undocumented. I have mixed feelings. In fact, the day was filled with mixed feelings... The weather has become a wee bit chilly in Karachi so I woke up in Fajr welcoming the change. Hastened to the university at around 8 am and reached the exam room at 9.05 am. The exam started at 9.13 am and then I was all to myself. I spent three hours reminiscing about my life at this university, first as a student and then as a teacher. Memories came flooding. I consciously made an effort to think about all the teachers and my friends who had touched my life in innumerable ways. People I can never pay back. I thought about Asma. I ...