Of Tranquility

You may have come across friends who have, for lack of a better choice of word, out-of-this-world experiences who are pious and more devoted in their services to God more than you and me combined. In this week alone, I came across two such persons.

Allah, The Almighty said in the Holy Qur'an:

"It is He Who sent down tranquillity into the hearts of the Believers, that they may add faith to their faith;- for to Allah belong the Forces of the heavens and the earth; and Allah is Full of Knowledge and Wisdom" [al-Fath 48:4].

"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]

Faith is about getting to that state of "rest" or "tranquility" as mentioned in the verses above. Only in a state tranquility is one enabled to increase his faith in his Lord. Such "tranquility" is a state where one has submitted oneself completely to his Lord, without question. It is the state of one's heart who has surrendered to his being in this life - well-pleased with himself and well-pleased with his Creator.

And only hearts who has reached this stage received Allah's personal invitation to enter his blessed Paradise as a reward for His Creations who have understood his position in all creations.

This is the spiritual state which Islam brings us. Depending on each individual's journey in their own lives, all that they do must aim towards this destination: be it through his prayers, his recitation of the Holy Qur'an, his zikr, his recitation of maulid or ratib etc, or, none at all.

These practices, whichever one subscribes, must lead towards a heart that is more at peace than his previous state before. Being "not in control" of yourselves is not the aim of spirituality, nor of Faith.

Wallahu'alam.