Pearls of Wisdom - October 17th, 2008

Put aside your pride, Set down your arrogance, And remember your grave. - Ali (ra)

Pride and arrogance are evil qualities that we might possibly be able to get away with in this life. But, once we die, there's nothing left that we can do. Once death overtakes us, then it's too late to set aside our pride and to put down our arrogance. So, let's set aside our pride and put down our arrogance now, today, while we are still breathing, and let's remember our grave often, because that's where we're going to go soon, and only Allah knows how long we'll stay there.

Pearls of Wisdom - October 16th, 2008

"If you are aware of your humility, then you are arrogant." - Ibn Ata'Allah

I think this is a great quote. To feel that you even possess such a noble quality is a feeling of arrogance. We should let humility be a natural part of our demeanor, without even thinking about it. I'm sure many of us are humble, but whenever we do something humble, we get this good feeling we just did something that was humble. We shouldn't even have this feeling if we truly possess humility. May Allah make us amongst those who are truly humble.

Rasulullah (saw) said: Allah has revealed to me that you must be humble, so that no one oppresses another and boasts over another. [Abu Dawud]

True Friends

"A friend cannot be considered a friend until he is tested in three occasions: in a time of need, behind your back, and after your death." - Ali (ra)

Judging by this quote, how many true friends do we really have? How many friends would really help us in a time of genuine need? When we aren't present, do our friends speak good of us, or do they say things about us that they wouldn't want us to hear? And of course, would our friends remember us and make Dua for us after we die? Nowadays, true friends are hard to find.

But, even if we don't have many true friends, nothing should stop us from being true friends for others.

Please leave a comment, Jazak'Allah!