Allahu Akbar

Sometimes it happens that we are blessed with wisdom from places we least expect. The only thing required is a welcoming heart; open to the idea of broadening our horizons to appreciate the beauty of this world in all its amazing hues. For me, one such moment, was when a friend asked me regarding a verse of the glorious Quran that inspired me the most.

Answers to such questions are always hard. Well… the truth is that every single verse is a handhold to climb up the ladder of life. However, words which I believe, resound the deepest with me in my 27 years of existence are of Surah Taghabun, “no calamity befalls save by leave of Allah. And he who believes in Allah He guides his heart. And Allah is the Knower of all things.” The conversation which ensued took me back 18 years. In retrospect, I realized that this seemingly casual conversation had stamped upon my heart the true meaning of the words “Allahu Akbar” and had given me the key to live life to its fullest. You see, without us realizing it, Allah’s greatness glimmers through every pain and pleasure we feel. If you take a moment to reflect on your personal narrative, you would, like me, be humbled by the sheer extent of His love and mercy for you. For your ease, I title the following account of my life, lessons learnt through sorrow and suffering, and pray that you find these reflections just as beneficial as I did Insha’ Allah.

“No calamity befalls save by leave of Allah.”

Whatever comes our way comes with the purpose of preparing us for our futures. Yet, due to the limited scope of our understanding, such beliefs do not make any sense till we finally undergo a trial and eventually realize that (Alhamdulillah) Allah strengthened us by the endurance of our trial or He humbled us by our gratitude of His favors to prepare us for a particular moment in life. Such realizations are fruits of an unwavering faith in the belief that whatever happens to us happens according to Allah’s plans for us; and whatever He plans for us, He plans out of His love for us. For the essence of all trials is to trust Allah’s love which ultimately governs our individual destinies and the fate of the entire creation.

I saw this faith in my parents; when, in a childhood accident a bomb explosion signaled my birth into the seemingly lightless world of the sightless. With His decree, aged 8, I began a new life, sans sight and sans hands. During the relentless torrent of our subsequent challenges, my parents and I discovered that every decree of The Most Loving, The Most Merciful and the Most Wise has His love, mercy and wisdom stamped upon it. Especially, when you’re going through a rough patch in life, everything seems to be burnt and broken; words usually only echo the hollowness and emptiness that surrounds us. We tend to forget with minds muddled by miseries and hearts blinded by suffering that our trials are not devoid of His generosity, only that we are incapable or perhaps not fully prepared to understand them in their entirety.

Eventually however, as experience taught me personally, that one cannot but marvel at His Love and Compassion. Faith is rewarded, at all costs, and is perhaps the biggest blessing of all.

“And he who believes in Allah, He guides his heart”

My parents and I began a life traversing through confusion and fear. They had no clue what life would mean with a child with a double disability.

My concerns, of course, mainly focused on friends and games; I won’t be playing the same games as other children my age. I know it seems mundane now, but allow me apprehensions of a feisty 8-year-old who had lived and played and been naughty like a regular kid.

My parents’ apprehensions were rooted in the reality of our collective predicament. Their blessed hearts were burdened by the notion of normalcy that their child could no longer experience. Academics, Social interaction, Dependency, Marriage??? A million “what ifs” crowded their thoughts, and such uncertainties are overwhelming. Nevertheless, Allah became my Guide and with His grace I resumed my academic journey in a mainstream Institute. Consequently, today I am a motivational speaker, a volunteer social worker, a blogger/writer with a website of my own, a postgraduate student of English literature, and above all a Hafith of Quran. He has graciously bestowed upon me these blessings to crown the efforts of my family and friends. Indeed, He is Ashakur, The Most Appreciative!

Yet, all such successes and achievements are merely visible manifestations of His grace and guidance. A more profound gift is always a deepening and a strengthening of your own intimate bond with Him. If by the barrage of your troubles you find shelter in your increasing awareness of Allah’s all-healing love for you, then no matter how hard the trial is, all pains will dissolve in the pleasure of such knowledge. There have been times in my life when I quite literally felt Him holding my hands and guiding me in the darkness of my blindness, out of the bleakness of my heart. “Allah is the ally of those who believe. He guides them out of the darkness’s into the light.” Whether pain or pleasure, everything in life is bound to fade into nothingness except Allah’s love and mercy for you. To have found your belief in Him through the suffering of your trials is undoubtedly actual guidance. For it gives you the knowledge that, should we choose to believe, everything we experience is designed to bring us closer to Allah who is the only truth in the fictitious reality of this world and the perpetual certainty of the next.

“And Allah is the knower of all things”

Finally, a request for the reader, to reflect on something I have realized through the myriad of painful experiences of my life. When I speak of absolute faith and reliance on Allah, I am questioned by many. How?

Simply stated, we all have our own journeys to Him. Yet, something that empowers us to face all challenges is honesty to ourselves in seeking His guidance. Trust me; if you are truthful to yourself in seeking answers from Him, you will hear Him in every moment of your search. For He is The All Knowing and knows us inside out. He knows our sufferings and our weaknesses. Therefore, we are commanded to constantly remind ourselves that He is the greatest, by saying Allahu Akbar. In every utterance of these two words listen to yourself with an open heart and hear Him in your soul. Insha’ Allah.