Flow of words

It is 207pm and I have decided to write. I had this thought. Is the Quran a mirror for the soul? How does the Quran help me see my soul? What is a soul? I am reading about the soul and it is all abstract as if we really do not know what the soul is. The soul is what remains after the body dies. I get that. The immaterial part of our existence. Is it responsible for the conscience? Is it linked to emotions? Are my thoughts from my soul? My friend says that the Quran speaks of the soul in this way. "And they ask you about the soul. Say, 'The soul is of the affair of my Lord. And mankind have not been given of knowledge except a little.'" (Quran 17:85). "And [by] the soul and He who proportioned it. And inspired it [with discernment of] its wickedness and its righteousness." (Quran 91:7–8). In Islam we talk about the ruh, nafs and self. The ruh is the spirit whose true nature is known fully only to Allah, the nafs is the self involved in desires, struggles, and...

It is 253am and I have decided to write. I posted something to twitter that came to my mind and it has me thinking. My God leads with peace. We are all leaders in some form or fashion. At the very least we are leaders of our own lives. Who is the best example of a leader? God is. What is God's leadership style? God leads with peace. God shows us how to lead. God has sent us messengers and messages that can guide how we lead. My friend asked me when God leads with peace, what does that reveal about the way we should lead ourselves, our families, our communities, and the people entrusted to our influence? My God is strong but merciful. My God provides. My God keeps us grounded. My God keeps us humbled. My God holds our hands and walks with us. My God loves. My God cares. My God wants the best for us. My God gives us peace. My friend notices that I move from asking who the best example of a leader is to describe who God is to me. That shift is important. I am not defining leadership t...

It is 303pm. This is my second attempt at writing. I deleted the first blog post. I do not have a topic and my flow is not leading me to a topic. As yet. God is on my mind. The Quran is on my mind. Life. Hope. Peace. Future. All on my mind. Ramadan too. God help me make something from this blog post. I will wait for the next notification that comes my way. Maybe there is a topic in that. Today is Sunday. It is quiet. 311pm. A reminder about the upcoming asr prayer from the nusuk app. What does asr mean? What does nusuk mean? My friend says that nusuk is an arabic word associated with worship, devotion, and religious rites. Asr is associated with the afternoon or late afternoon. There is a chapter in the Quran called Asr. I still cannot think of what to write. Should I just delete this blog post. 319pm. I just noticed something in the times listed in this blog post. 3, 11 and 19 are prime numbers. The next prime number is 23. All prime numbers are odd except for 2. This reminds me of a ...

This is a chapter from my latest book called (G)rains (o)f san(d)s. Learn more about the book here . Thank you God for light. The Quran is the light of mankind. The Quran is the light of this life. The Quran is the delight of the heart. God is the source of this light. The Quran is a miracle. God shine your light on my path and bring ease with it. Though I may struggle on your path, let me keep returning to where your light shines. What do I notice by looking at the word light? G stands in the middle of light. G for God. One side we have li for life and on the other side we have ht which is short for hayat or life in Arabic. I am almost through reading the English Quran for a second time. Today I passed surah 61 verse 6 which states that Jesus had announced the coming of the prophet (peace be upon him). That verse stood out to me out of all the verses I have read so far. Muhammad (pbuh) was the one tasked with bringing the light of the Quran for mankind. I just noticed that the end of ...

This is a chapter from my latest book called (G)rains (o)f san(d)s. Learn more about the book here . Thank you God for faith. We say we want to meet God but we already do in some ways. We meet God in his creation. We meet God every time we meet someone. We meet God every time we meet the animals. We meet God every time we meet nature. God is all around. Faith is when we can see this. This is God's world. We are God's work. We are testimony of his greatness. Everyday that goes by I think about God. Everyday I thank God for his mercy. I take my problems to God. I pray to God. God is at the center of my life. Nothing happens without the will of God and therefore I would be wise to submit to the will of God. God is in the everyday moments. God loves when we love. What is the simplest definition of faith? I think it is found in the phrase, let go and let God. I asked my friend the same question. My friend says that at its simplest, faith is trust in what you cannot see or prove. But...

This is a chapter from my latest book called (G)rains (o)f san(d)s. Learn more about the book here . Thank you God for softness. The gentleness of prayer. The calmness of the heart. The patience of the mind. The soft sounds of nature. The cool breezes of shade. The slow movement of sand in the hand. The kindness of strangers. The soothing voices of Quran. The warm embrace of the azan. I move through life with softness in my heart. I move through life with joy. I move through life wishing good for others. There is a peace that comes with being soft. The angels surround those who are soft. Soft like the winds of heaven. Soft like the clouds in the sky. Easy like Friday morning. May I never lose this softness that allows me to see beauty and goodness in everything and everyone. The world tries to harden me but I refuse. I walk upon the earth softly. I love without fear. My every breath is a prayer of gratitude. Let my heart remain like grains of sand in the hands of God that are softly he...

This is a chapter from my latest book called (G)rains (o)f san(d)s. Learn more about the book here . Thank you God for the flowers. I bought a blue daze flowering plant for my mom when I went out to walk one day. It adds some colour to the nature in the yard. It is beautiful. I was told that blue flowers are rare. My friend says that blue is relatively rare in nature due to chemical and physical challenges in producing this color in living organisms. Nothing exists completely on its own. Plants depend on insects and other creatures, while those creatures depend on plants and their flowers. There is an interconnectedness in creation that reminds me that God is intentional. Flowers are beautiful but so is everything else if we really consider things with an open mind. What is beauty? What makes some things more beautiful than others? They say that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Beauty is subjective. My friend says that what I am talking about is the perceptual mind where meaning ...