“Please help me keep my promise”
Someone once said to me “never give up on me” – and I promised I won’t. The same person also told me that when one goes to heaven they are allowed to take 7 persons along with them. Being, more sure than I am of my ending up in heaven, the person said “please take me with you”. I don’t know what I said being shocked at the assumption that I would be going to heaven at all. But in my heart I promised that if by the Grace, Will and absolute Mercy of Allah-SWT I did end up there, I would for sure add the person to the top of my list of 7... If only it were that simple though!
As life and learning move along, apparently this is true, that if someone has graciously managed to earn the access to heaven through Allah-SWT immense Mercy, they will be allowed to take some fortunate ones along with them. It made me think. I have never done anything good ever, with the intention of earning an entry to heaven. Somehow that has never crossed my mind. Infact I don’t even know most of the details of heaven or hell. I have a strangely limited memory bank and somehow it never really retains details of these topics. I just want Allah-SWT’s Love and I want HIM-SWT to be happy with me.
Heaven – is just something you get to live in when Allah-SWT is happy with you so that you can be near HIM-SWT ... the point is not to live in Heaven though, the point is to be near HIM-SWT. HE-SWT likes to keep those near HIM-SWT in the afterlife, the ones who wanted to be near HIM-SWT in this life too. It’s pretty uncomplicated you know.
So when I’m asked to take someone to heaven, with the assumption that I am going there to begin with. What I hear is: “could you please take me closer to Allah-SWT” ... and what I see is: ‘a heart craving Allah-SWT’s love’ ... and what I can do is: ‘show them the only way I know how’.
And the only way I know how is through zikr-Allah done under the guidance and attention of my Spiritual Teacher and Guide, Hadhrat Ameer Muhammad Akram Awan (if I could, I would add endless adjectives to show my respect and love for him I would, for if it wasn’t for him and his guidance I was oblivious of Allah-SWT’s Love and out to condemn myself to hell in this life and the hereafter).
I have come to realise that I have this inherent need to help others and an even deeper one to keep promises. Every time I think of this promise I feel helpless and I feel my hands tied, because there is a little loop-hole and a little prerequisite required for the fulfilment of this promise on both sides.
My side- I need to try my utmost to seek Allah-SWT’s Mercy and Grace for His-SWT Love and Approval. I need to put in my best to correct myself and attempt to become the kind of person my Allah-SWT would like me to be. To seek HIS-SWT Forgiveness and try my level best to never return to those acts of defiance again. I know I’ll never be perfect, never even be close to perfection. But at least my Allah-SWT will know that I tried ... and that I tried so hard. Then it doesn’t matter how badly I failed, I know my Allah-SWT will continue to love me anyway, and allow me to pass irrespectively. This is my end of the deal, to Allah-SWT, to me and to my friend (whom I made the promise).
Friend’s side – need to make at least an ounce of an effort to keep alive at least a remote spark of light in his/her spiritual heart, because that is the bare minimum prerequisite for a person to be allowed into heaven. And since the purification of the heart is an ongoing continuous process, just like cleansing one’s body, zikr-Allah is the easiest way, I know how, to maintain it. Just like one cannot take a bath once a month and assume that the body is cleansed for the month, or brush their teeth once and think that’s enough for the 24 hours, zikr-Allah too has to be done at least twice a day to achieve a bare minimum state of purification of the spiritual heart.
So all I’m trying to say here is: “Please help me keep my promise”
I’m trying my level best to keep my promise, but you have to help me a little by keeping your end of the deal!
Basic method of Meditation for calling out to Allah-SWT (zikr-Allah) (to be done for atleast 5-10 min twice a day, the longer you do this the better it is for you, in the morning and evening):
1. Sit in a comfortable relaxed position.
2. Close your eyes.
3. Concentrate on your breathing.
4. Inhale deeply and exhale with deliberate force.
5. When you inhale recite the word ‘Allah’ in your heart.
6. Visualize the word ‘Allah’, descending on you in the form of light and penetrating into your soul, going straight into your heart (Qalb).
7. When you exhale, recite the word ‘Hoo’ in your heart.
8. Visualize the light that seeped into your heart now coming out of your heart and flowing out with your breath, only to come back and strike at your heart again.
9. Continue this exercise until you feel that you want to stop.
10. Now you may stop the deliberate breathing, and come back to your natural pace.
11. Continue the exercise for a few minutes in shallow, passive normal breathing.
No comments:
Post a Comment