The Invisible Ladders
In the world there are invisible ladders,
In the world there are invisible ladders,
leading step by step to the summit of heaven.
There is a different ladder for every group,
a different heaven for every path.
Each one is ignorant of the other's condition in this wide kingdom which
has no end or beginning.
This one is amazed at that one and wonders why he is happy,
while that one is astonished at this one and asks why he is amazed.
God's earth is spacious!: Every tree springs up from a certain soil.
The leaves and boughs sing thanks to God:
"What a fine, broad kingdom."
The nightingales hover around the fruiting blossom,
calling: "Give us some of what you drink."
This discourse has no end.
... Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi
6 comments:
Salam,
I especially liked that idea of different "ladders" for every group... and I'm sure while each group is under a leader, each individual has a different ladder within the ladder, eventhough under the same leader...
Reading the entries in this blog inspires me endlessly...
Thank you for taking the time to do this.
May Allah s.w.t Bless your efforts and may He move you to continue doing this, no matter what happens...
Wallahu a'alam..
Wassalam.
Indeed, the Mercy of Allah is sometimes forgotten by man in discharging their duties on earth.
My analogy is thus: everyone aims to reach Orchard Road. But the mode of reaching there may differ from one to another. Some may prefer taking the taxi, the bus, the MRT, by walking etc.
But the point in Islam is this: that our focus is to reach Orchard Road, and to that end, we are continuously making progress, albeit in small ways, towards reaching there.
On the Day of Account, we are measured by those efforts towards reaching there, despite not having reached Orchard Road.
SubhanAllah!
Salam,
First of all, I sincerely wish to thank you for your kind words. It has indeed motivate me to persevere and I depend on the prayers of those who find this Blog useful.
But most of all, Alhamdulillah! Such beautiful praises belongs to Him.
I was just mulling over what you said earlier and since I will begin my Tawhid class this week, a relevant verse from the Holy Qur'an came to mind - particularly the last sentence from the verse:
“Then We revealed the Book to you with Truth, confirming whatever of the Book was revealed before, and protecting and guarding over it. Judge, then, in the affairs of men in accordance with the Law that Allah has revealed, and do not follow their desires in disregard of the Truth which has come to you. For each of you, We have appointed a Law and a way of Life” … al-Ma’idah 5:48
Salam,
Thank you for sharing the Qur'anic verse...
Upon rereading your response, I am moved to reply, too...
I like that you concretized the discussion using the analogy of a known destination.
Instead of concretizing, instead, I would just like to discuss within another abstract dimension.
In our life, we seek His Redha... manifested in different forms in different servants (going back to different Laws and ways of life)… His Redha is then the destination, yes? All our efforts, big and small, are then geared towards this. And on Judgement Day, we pray that our efforts reach that destination: His Redha - without which, there is no point to be in Jannah as we would not want our King to have us as guests but He is not happy with us.
Therefore, efforts are important but the decision to choose the destination is also important as some destinations are not only worthy to journey to but it is imperative that we get there.
Wallahu a’alam.
Just a thought, sir, inspired by your reply.
Wallahu a’alam.
Wassalam.
Salam,
I agree with you: In the end, it is His Redha that we seek. In fact, only when He is pleased (redha) with us, He will do what He deems fit with us. Then we can understand how a prostitute was given Paradise because all other human logic fails us. That is because Allah was pleased with the actions of that prostitute. Masya-Allah!
You will see the significance in the surah below:
"O soul whose heart is in (a state of) tranquility! "Come back thou to thy Lord,- well pleased (thyself), and well-pleasing unto Him! Enter thou amongst My bondmen! Enter thou My Garden!" [al-Fajar 89:27-30]
"Well-pleased and well-pleasing unto Him!" - that is the key for our return to Him. Wallahu'alam.
Just wanted to share with you my personal experience during Hajj at the time of Arafah. I had this long wish-list, but when the blessed moment came (about an hour before maghrib and all came out from their tents to do our doas because that is when Allah is closest to Earth and will forgive everyone), the whole atmosphere and reality of Arafah moved me so much that I was trembling in tears crying like a baby and could not even remember my own wish-list.
While standing in the blessed plains of Arafah that day with the rest of the 3 million pilgrims, I was left with only one doa' that took my whole strength to muster in that emotional state: "O Allah! Be pleased with me, all that I do, and all that I am." Amin.
Wallahu 'alam.
uwaa..ustaz, you made me cry too from reading ur story..
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