Do you remember the first time you were told about Allah [God]? I do. I must have been 4 years old when my father told me who Allah is. I remember looking at him in awe and being amazed by this discovery. But it almost felt like I was RE-introduced to a long lost friend who I forgot about. He said Allah is the Lord of the heavens and the earth, He created everything. I said WOW, really?! Who is this Allah? Is He like a human? Is He a man or a woman?! The beauty of tawheed (Monotheism) and having Muslim parents was that all of those questions were answered in a way that made sense to human nature. Allah (God) is not a man/woman. He cannot be Likened to His creation. He does not eat or sleep. He is all Powerful. He is all-Knowing. He is beyond our imagination. I remember that week I was going crazy over finding out who this Allah is. My little 4 year old mind was on a quest to discovering my Creator. One day I was sitting with my family watching an Islamic Arabic soap opera and there was a scene with clouds. An old mans face emerged from the clouds and spoke in a deep voice. I jumped up and asked HUH! IS THIS ALLAH????!!!! My family had a good laugh at my inquiry, and my father explained to me, while laughing, that Allah is not a man or a woman. He is beyond His creation. He cannot be seen with the naked eye in this life. I paused in disappointment and embarrassment. A few days later, I was sitting with my aunt and brothers and I randomly asked if Allah had physical hands or other limbs like humans. My aunt scolded me and said Dont ask such a thing, that is inappropriate. Allah is not like a human and cannot be likened to a human being. We just say Allahu alam (Allah knows best) and leave it at that. Sometime later, my father also told me about a place called Paradise (Jannah), for the righteous. I was in utter amazement and wanted to know more. The only question I asked my father was Would we get all the ice cream we ever want?!! My father replied Yes, ofcourse. Anything you could imagine! And then the love of Islam entered my heart. I was still too young to understand certain things, but I knew that I wanted to please Allah and I wanted to meet Allah, and I wanted to get into Paradise. It has been a love story ever since. A successive chain of events, and incidents in my life that have made me feel the impact of Allahs presence in such a real way, to a point where I believe in His presence and existence, more than I believe in the existence of this very computer screen right in front of my eyes. Whether it be a powerful verse in the Quran that manages to patch a wound in my soul, or a verse that just so happens to address a question that I had that day. Or a prayer that is answered in such a perfect way. Or the story of a convert to Islam. Or the sunrise in the morning that makes me pause at the beauty of His creation. Or the Mercy that is shown between a mother to her child. These things, and much more, remind me that Allah is near, and he sustains us like the beat of our hearts. I remember making a dua (supplication) to Allah in the 8th grade on my way home from school. I asked Allah to make me beautiful on the inside. To help me develop as a person and to make me internally rich. Little did I know that what would come about from that dua were trials - internal and external - that were meant to help me develop, just like the process of a diamond which develops under pressure. Its still an everyday journey, until my last breath on this earth. But Allah is so merciful. For He provides us with the tools to success. He provides us with the life jacket to keep us afloat. He provides us with the medicine to heal. He provides us with antidotes for our spiritual illnesses. And Allah wants to lighten for you [your difficulties]; and mankind was created weak. [Quran, 4:28] But often times I forget. Often times, I disappoint Allah. Many times I look for cure in the wrong places. I search for happiness from the wrong sources. But Allah is sometimes like a silent teacher who allows his student time to figure it out on their own. For once I exhaust all measures to stress myself out and to neglect Allah, I am left alone, on my knees, and then I my heart reminds me... Hes been here all along... And We have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him, and We are closer to him than [his] jugular vein. [Quran, 50:16] So flee unto Allah. [Quran, 51:50] For He is the refuge from the storm. And then by His mercy, He allows me to pick up the pieces and continue along. I remember that I had the honour to tell my little sister who Allah is when she was four. We were sitting and watching the clouds one day. I asked her to look at the clouds and their beauty. I told her Allah, created those clouds and He created you and me, and everything else in this universe. My sisters curiosity and introspective nature made her ask a lot of questions over those next few years about big things like death, the afterlife, heaven and hell. Like why are we here, and whats the purpose of our existence. It is such a blessing to have Islam and to have the Quran and sunnah, for I shudder to think how I would have answered those questions had I not known the answers myself, or had the guidance from what Allah sent us. Alhumdulilah for the blessing of Islam. Oh Turner of hearts, keep our hearts steadfast on your deen (religion). Bless our parents and have mercy on them for conveying to us al-Islam. Over-look their faults and ours. Forgive us for the sins that we commit day in and day out. Guide us to the straight path. Protect us from Your wrath. Grant us Jannatul Firdous. Allow for us to have the blessing of seeing You in Jannah. Allow for us to leave this earth while testifying that there is no deity of worship but You, and that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is Your messenger. Allahumma ameen.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 05:31:01 +0000
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