What comes to mind when you think of that word?
Well, a few days ago, I was blessed with the opportunity to attend a short lecture with my husband, at a nearby university, given by Shiekh Muiz Al-Bukhary. Before the talk began however, I desperately wanted to leave. I felt claustrophobic. The hall was loud, windowless, and to say I felt like a stranger amongst the ocean waves of students going back and forth, was an understatement.
But it was too late. I’d already been sandwiched amongst a group of girls, and there were only a few minutes before the talk would begin. So, I took a deep breath, braced myself, and tried to focus on what would come next.
With the lighting dimmed, the chattering began to die down. Silence engulfed the hall, and suddenly felt a little more at ease. I could breathe again.
Though I was quite anxious at first, I began to enjoy myself as the talk progressed. The speaker was quite funny, and I found myself laughing and almost near tears at a few parts of the talk.
The theme of the talk was about: The Legacy Of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh).
What I particularly enjoyed about the talk was how incredibly relevant the reminders were to our daily lives. Some of the things I picked up on was:
- The recurring theme of how important good character is:
eg: – Having Husn Al-Dhann (Arabic word for: good suspect) of others
Husn al-Dhann (Arabic: حسن الظن) is a very beautiful Islamic teaching.
It means in other words:
- Avoiding suspicion as much as humanly possible
- Giving the benefit of the doubt.
- Thinking good and positively, despite what it might look/sound/feel like.
- Not jumping to conclusions, or making assumptions.
- How important it is to keep seeking knowledge, to educate ourselves, and how we should read more often! The first word revealed to the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) after all was Iqra (which means read, in Arabic).(little fun fact: The Sheikh himself, admitted to being a bookworm! How cool is that?)
- Based on what we know, of the legacy of the greatest man to have ever set foot on Earth, (the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with him), what kind of legacy do we want to leave behind? What kind of attributes do we want to be remembered by?
All of which, made me think:
What type of person do I want to grow to become this year In’Sha’Allah,
& in the years to come?
-Do I rush to think the best of others, or am I of the judgemental kind?
-Am I reading enough things that will benefit me, in the long run?
-What kind of legacy, do I want to leave behind.
These questions aren’t just mine to ponder over,
They’re yours now,
Ours to figure out.
Maybe we’ll figure it out together,
Maybe you’ll find your answers first,
But one thing is for certain,
If you don’t question things,
If you don’t read,
If you don’t seek, or search,
If you don’t think deeply about it,
You may never know.