A
routine which I have developed is to listen to different recitations of the
Quran while travelling on the bus. As I use the bus almost every day, it has
become a tradition in my day to try to listen but to also reflect actively upon
what is being said by Allah (swt). As I was listening today, a certain series
of verses caught my attention and I felt compelled to listen to them
repeatedly. While the Quran is not a simple book by any measure, it contains
many chapters which have simple but incredibly profound messages. Thus, any
believer is urged by the Creator to try to ponder upon these verses and to
allow them to penetrate and permeate the heart. As content as one may feel,
true satisfaction and tranquility is only felt when the heart is in synch with
the remembrance of the one who causes it to beat. I thank Allah that He has
equipped me with the requisite tools required in order to achieve a sense of
serenity that cannot be attained through any material or commercial avenue.
As
I listened to Surah Najm today, I felt a chill as the chapter concluded. After
describing Allah and the many virtues that He adorned humanity with, Allah asks
a profound question which can shake one to the core of their very existence. He
(swt) says “Do you then wonder at this recital? And will you laugh and not weep”?
I feel that it is almost impossible to hear the symphonic and beautiful recitation
of the Quran and not feel emotionally compelled to become a better person and
engage in a process of reformation. As I heard these verses, I felt an internal
desire to look at myself and see how I would answer these questions if I was in
front of my Lord right now. I stopped the recitation and repeated these verses
multiple times over. After finishing, I remembered a hadith which my father had
taught me early on. I was a child who would always find time to joke around and
would rarely be seen in a studious or serious mind frame. As I was joking
around in a Quran class taught by my dad, he looked and told us that the
Prophet (pbuh) told his companions that if they knew what he knew, certainly
they would laugh less and cry more! Life is incredibly short and the
opportunity to reflect and be emotionally synched with the words of our Lord is
valuable!
Yes
Oh Allah, the majesty of your book astounds my heart and makes me want to be
with You. Yes Oh Allah, the magnificent eloquence of your message makes me want
to serve You. My Lord, I desire nothing more than to be able to immerse myself
in tears in sheer awe of Your stupendous message. Oh Allah, I am astounded by
the grace you have shown a sinner like myself who often rebels against You.
Allah, I want nothing more than to be in love with Your remembrance and to find
the tranquility, to find the sakina which my heart yearns for…in YOU!
أَفَمِنْ هَٰذَا الْحَدِيثِ تَعْجَبُونَ
وَتَضْحَكُونَ وَلَا تَبْكُونَ
وَتَضْحَكُونَ وَلَا تَبْكُونَ
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