Everything that has gentleness within it is beautified, and whatever lacks it is spoiled. When you meet someone, giving them a bright smile and a kind word, you are displaying a characteristic of the truly successful man, a characteristic that even a bee exhibits. When a bee lands on a flower (doing so for a practical purpose) it does not destroy it, because Allah rewards gentleness with that which He does give for harshness. There are certain people whose personalities are like magnets, attracting everyone who is nearby, simply because they are loved for their gentle talk, their good manners, and their noble deeds.

Winning the friendship of others is an art that is mastered by those that are noble and pious; a circle of people constantly surrounds them. Their mere presence in a gathering is a blessing, and when they are absent they are missed and asked about.

These people have a code of conduct entitled:

“Repel [evil] with one which is better, then verily! He, between whom and you there was enmity, [will become] as though he was a close friend.” Surah Fussilat – Ayah 34.

They suck out malice from others with their sincerity, forgiveness, and gentleness. They forget evil that was enacted upon them and preserve the memory of kindnesses received. Biting, harsh words may be aimed at them, but such words pass by their ears without entering and continue on their path without ever returning. They are in a state of calmness. People in general, and Muslims in particular, are safe from suffering any harm at their hands. The Prophet Sallalahu Alayhi Wasalam said:

“The Muslim is the person whose tongue and hand do not harm others. And the Believer is he whom others trust, about their blood and wealth.”

He further said:

“Verily, Allah ordered me to keep relations with those that cut me off; to forgive the one who does an injustice with me, and to give to those who withhold from me.”

The noble Qur’an put it:

“Those who repress anger, and who pardon men: verily, Allah loves the good-doers.” Surah Al-Imran – Ayah 34.

Give to such people glad tidings of a reward close at hand in terms of peace and tranquillity. Also give glad tidings to them of a great reward in the Hereafter, of gardens and rivers, wherein they will be in close proximity to their forgiving Lord.

“In a seat of truth [Paradise], near the omnipotent King [Allah].” Surah Al-Qamar – Ayah 55.


There is one activity worthy of mention here, because it gives both pleasure and removes dark clouds that may hang over you; namely, for you to travel through the lands and observe the open book of creation, appreciating all of its wonders. During your journeys, you can see gardens of splendour and beautiful green meadows. Leave your home and contemplate that which surrounds you. Climb mountains, traverse valleys, ascend trees, and drink sweet, pure spring water. Thereupon, you will find your soul to be free like the bird that sings and swims in the sky in perfect rapture. Leave your home and remove the black blindfold from your eyes, and then travel through the spacious lands of Allah, remembering and glorifying Him.

To isolate yourself to the confines of your own room, while passing the hours away with lethal idleness, is a certain path to self-destruction. Your room is not the only place in the world, and you are not the sole inhabitant of it. Then why do you surrender yourself to misery and solitude? Call out with your eyes, ears and heart:

“March forth, whether you are light or heavy.” Surah At-Taubah – Ayah 41.

Come, recite the Qur’an beside a mountain brook or among the birds as they sing. Travelling through the land is an activity which doctors recommend, especially for those who are feeling downcast, constricted by the narrowness of their own rooms. Therefore go forth and find delight in travelling.

“And they think deeply about the creation of the heavens and the earth: Our Lord! You have not created [all] this without purpose, glory to You!” Surah Al-Imran – Ayah 191.



Those who have nothing to do with their lives are the same people who spend most of their time spreading rumours and falsehood, mainly because their minds are devoid of beneficial thoughts.

“They are content to be with those [the women] who sit behind [at home]. Their hearts are sealed up [from right guidance] so they understand not.” Surah At-Taubah – Ayah 87.

When you find yourself to be idle, prepare for depression and despair, because idleness allows your mind to wander in the past, the present, and the future, with all of their difficulties. Therefore, my sincere advice to both you and me is to perform fruitful acts instead of being idle, for idleness is a slow and hidden form of suicide.

Idleness is like the slow torture that is inflicted upon prisoners in China: they are placed under a tap, from which a drop of water falls only after every hour. During the period of waiting for the next drop many of them lose their mind and are driven to insanity.

Being inactive means being negligent of one’s duties. Idleness is an expert thief and your mind is the victim of this perpetrator.

Therefore get up now and say a prayer or read a book; praise your Lord, study, write, organize your library, fix something in your house, or benefit others so that you can put an end to your inactivity. I say this only because I sincerely wish for your betterment.

Destroy boredom by working. When you apply this simple precept alone, the doctors of the world guarantee that you have travelled fifty percent of the way toward happiness. Look at farmers, carpenters, and bread-makers, and observe how, when they are working, recite words as melodious as the singing of birds, because they are content. Afterwards observe yourself and how you toss and turn on your bed while wiping away your tears, always miserable, always torturing yourself.

An extract from “Don’t be sad” by Shaikh Aidh Al Qarni

Huma Ahmad (New York)

As I stood there in front of the room lecturing on "The Soul's Journey After Death", I could not help but think that what I was doing was futile. Half of the people in that room were going to walk out with the same beliefs as they came in with; that this was all something like a fairy tale. The other half would listen, nod and go back out doing the same things they were doing before.

There is something inherently wrong with our generation. I say this as being one of them.

We listen to lectures on Islam like they are stories of old. We're not quite sure if Islam is completely correct. Because if we did, would we continue doing the things we do? Where is our aqeedah? Where is our certainty in truth? Where is our fundamental belief? For example, we're not quite sure what will happen after we die, but we'll take the Islamic explanation because it's there. Why don't we believe that what will happen to us after we die is the truth? The truth is the way we should look at it, like it is something that will definitely occur, like any other fact of life, any other undeniable scientific law or simple equation.

Some facts: We will be tested. We will die. Our soul will be taken. Our soul will be placed back in our bodies and be questioned. We will undergo punishment of the grave. We will be resurrected. We will be asked. We will be punished.

My soul questioned if any of this reached the 30 college age students in front of me.

I decided to give two examples from my own experience. One a friend that I grew up with and went to Islamic weekend school with. One day senior year in high school, she just started getting sick. Just like that she became so ill. She passed away a year later from ovarian cancer. We were 19. Can you imagine? 19 years old. She was engaged and had just gotten married. She was just one of us.

A second example; some of you might have known her, Basma. She was the daughter of Imam Siraj Wahaj in New York City. She went to MYNA conferences and camps with us. She was active. She was one of the best Muslims I've ever met. One of those kinds of Muslims you meet and you can't stop smiling when you talk to them. She was pregnant and gave birth on a Thursday I remember to a beautiful baby girl. A week later, just days after, she didn't feel right and went back into the hospital and died soon after from internal bleeding. Unthinkable, the community of New York was stunned. She was only 20 years old. She was gone and a beautiful baby girl in her place. They named her Maryum.

These are examples I give that occurred to me in my life. I'm sure no one is immune and have felt the pain of loss in their own lives.

Can you imagine, I said to the 30 pairs of eyes staring at me, they were 19 and 20 years old. They were just like us. I'm sure they never thought it would happen to them either.

I think every night before we go to sleep we should think about what we did that day.

"I woke up, I went to school, I saw someone committing a sin. I discussed it with others. Someone new was at the MSA meeting I didn't bother to talk to them or be friendly. I made a remark that I knew hurt someone. I missed Asr because I didn't want to be late for class."

We need to think about these things. What if we don't wake up the next morning? Allah tells us that He takes the souls at night and keeps the ones that aren't to be returned. What if we don't wake up? What if we are hurtled to the next step; we wake up and our soul is being taken out of our bodies, taken up to the heavens and taken back down into the body. We are buried, the dirt slowly covering us. We are made to sit up, are questioned. What will we say? We receive punishment of the grave. We are resurrected. We are asked about every single tiny small thing that we did.

What will we say? I wanted to forget the time I did this, the time I said that. Countless countless sins before me. So many in just that past day that I didn't think about? What to do?

Allah gives us another chance when we wake up the next morning. Here is a new day. You can now make up for what you did the day before. You can run out and ask forgiveness for all those you wronged. You can try to make up for it, improve. Another bright beautiful day.

We need to stop being complacent. We are too comfortable. What is wrong with us that we live in delusion? We think about our lives and are comfortable. "Oh I am doing enough. I'll get to heaven eventually. I'm Muslim that's enough." Why aren't we scared? Why do we think we will go to heaven? We are nothing compared to the people of past. We commit sin after sin and our hearts feel nothing. What is wrong us that we do not feel discomfort, pain when we commit a sin, before we do it, not even a twinge?

Sometimes Allah might send a hardship upon people to bring them to the right way. Hardship brings many people back to Islam. Sometimes Allah might keep people poor because He knows what would happen if they had money. Shouldn't we be scared? If we disobey Allah, He might send something to teach us. Perhaps that would be better. Perhaps we should pray that Allah send us something to remind us, to scare us.

I remind myself first, before anyone.

We need to wake up. We need to know that what is coming is true beyond any doubt. We will die. We will be resurrected. We will pay for each and every sin we committed.

One day we won't wake up the next morning, and oh the regret we will feel on that day...the regret.

http://www.sunnahonline.com/ilm/poetry/khalaf/0031.htm