online quran academy O you who believe! Eat of the good things that we have offered you, and give thanks to Allah if you worship Him alone.” (Qur’an 2:172)
So remember me. I will remember you. Be grateful to Me and never be ungrateful to Me.” (2:152)
Gratitude or thankfulness is a recurring theme in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Gratitude can improve our mental health and our relationship with Allah (swt) as well as with people. Read on to find out what the Qur’an and Sunnah teach about gratitude.
The purpose of life is to show gratitude to Allah
When Allah brought you out of the womb, you were without knowledge online quran academy. But He gave you eyes and ears and a heart, so that you might give thanks to Him.” (16:78)
“Was there a long time when man was not even spoken of. It was I who created man out of a mixture of spermatozoa, so that I might test him. So we gave him hearing and sight. Indeed, We have guided him on the right path and he will prove to be grateful or ungrateful.” ( 76:1-3).
When we are thankful, God gives us more.
If you are thankful, God will give you more ……” (14:7)
Soon I will reward those who are thankful.” (3:145)
Sheitan’s goal is to make us ungrateful
[Satan says: “Since you have led me astray, I will surely sit in your straight path and wait for them. Then I will come to them from before them and behind them, from their right and from their left, and you will find that most of them are ungrateful to you.” (7:16-17)
God is pleased with our thankfulness
If you are ungrateful, God does not need you, but He is not pleased with the ingratitude of His worshipers. If you are thankful, He is pleased with your thankfulness ……” (39:7)
Whoever desires to be rewarded in this world will be rewarded in this world, and whoever desires to be rewarded in the life to come will be rewarded in the life to come. Soon I will reward those who are thankful.” (3:145)
The Prophet Suleiman (pbuh) used to give thanks
One of those who knew the Scriptures (Genie) said: “I will go and take (the Scriptures).” I will bring it (the throne of the Queen of Sheba) to you in the twinkling of an eye.” As soon as Solomon saw the throne set before him, he said: “This is my Lord’s mercy, that He may test whether I am grateful or ungrateful; and he who is grateful is grateful only for his soul, and he who is ungrateful, surely my Lord is ungrateful and generous.” (27:40)
Expressing gratitude to people, especially to elders, is very important in Islam
We oblige man to acknowledge the rights of his parents. His mother gave birth to him weak in the womb and his weaning lasted for two years. You have me and your parents to thank for that. Everything will be returned to me.” (31:14)
Whoever does not love man, does not love God.” (Hadith Abu Dawud)
Whoever does you a good or kind deed, repay him in the same way. But if you do not find anything to repay him with, then continue to pray to Allah for him until you think you have repaid him.” (Hadith Ahmad)
We have many reasons to be grateful
If you count the merits of Allah, you will never be able to count them ……” (14:34)
“Whoever among you wakes up with a solid fortune, good health, and food for the day, it is as if the whole world had been given to him.” (Hadith Tirmidhi)
The Prophet’s advice to always be grateful
It is human nature to forget God’s merits, but Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) warned against this and advised us when we begin to feel ungrateful online quran academy..
If any one of you sees another who is superior to him in wealth and creation, let him look at those who are inferior to him”. It is more fitting to do so, and do not despise God’s kindness to you.” (Sahih Bukhari, Muslim Hadith)
Gratitude is the driving force behind the Prophet’s worship of Allah
Ayesha (ra) said that the Prophet (buh) prayed at night until his feet swelled. He asked: “Messenger of Allah, Allah has forgiven you for your past and future sins, why are you still doing this?” The Prophet replied: “Should I not be a grateful servant (to God)?” (Sahih Bukhari)
The Quran Approach to Decision Making
We live in a time of vulnerability and uncertainty. While the situation was tense during the Covid-19 pandemic, one of the things it allowed us to do was to step back and reflect deeply on where our lives were headed. Now that Ramadan is upon us, there is no better time to reset our spiritual compass, unpack ourselves and discuss with our hearts the most important decisions we need to make online quran academy.
Chances are you’ve faced some difficult decisions in your life. Some you may regret and others you still struggle with. Whether it’s choosing a career path or deciding between two job opportunities, choosing a marriage partner or moving to a new city. Some decisions have more impact than others, and they are not always easy to make. Decision-making is a skill that needs to be developed, just like any other skill.
I know exactly how you feel
Because I’ve been in your situation before. You feel stuck at a crossroads, struggling with determination and the path forward. Your brain is evaluating your options, your heart is telling you what you want, and your soul is trying to tell you something else, but you’re having a hard time understanding it online quran academy.
You may also face times when you worry that your choices don’t align with what Allah wants you to do. We all believe that we have a set path in life and that making the wrong choice will lead us down the wrong path.
What you don’t know or haven’t learned is that from an Islamic perspective, decision-making goes far beyond conventional advice. In fact, it is so profound that it will save you 5-10 years of trial and error.
My goal is to teach you three key principles from the Qur’an that have helped me make more rational decisions in my life. I can only imagine what I would be like now if I had the right guidance and support at the beginning of my journey.
Principle 1 The seat of the mind is the heart.
Imam Nawawi said.
The seat of the mind is the heart (al-`aql fi al-qalb) and not the head
Most of us are in the same predicament where our minds tell us to make one choice and our hearts tell us to make another. We operate at this level because our minds are not in sync with our hearts and vice versa. Think about the decision-making process you go through when deciding on a marriage partner. Your mind says this person meets all the requirements, but your heart says you don’t want this person. What decision do you make? Do you use your mind or your heart to decide?
We all face this common question when trying to reconcile our minds and hearts. But what does the Qur’an say about this?
They have hearts they do not understand …… . (7:179)
In the Quran, Allah uses the word heart more than 132 times to describe those who understand or do not understand. This leads us to believe that the heart is the main decision-making organ of our body. However, many scholars mention that the location of our thoughts is our heart, which means that using the mind or heart to make decisions is not a rational practice. Our decision making must be balanced.
Principle #2 Use Your Mind in Your Heart
There are several specific groups of people mentioned in the Quran. If you belong to a particular group, you deserve a special reward and a special mercy from Allah. One of these groups is what the Qur’an calls the Ulul Albab or the wise people.
Principle 3: Follow your heart
Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, in the alternation of night and day, there are signs of the Ulul Albab. (3:190)
Allah has given each of us a brain to use as we wish
The Ulul Albab are those who not only have minds, but also have the gift of knowing how to use them properly. In the previous principle we mentioned the importance of using the balance of the mind and the heart, but now we are talking about the intellect; does this mean that we should use our minds more?
Wrong. Intellectually sound people do not use their mental intellect, but their emotional intellect. In fact, the word Albab is closely related to the word Lubb, which is a level of the heart mentioned in the Qur’an. This region of the heart was often used by the Prophets in making decisions.
How did Musa (AS) decide
what to do when he confronted the magicians or when the army chased him and he had to pass through the Red Sea?
How did the Prophet Yusuf (AS) handle several difficult situations in the well, in the palace, and when dealing with his family?
How did the Prophet Muhammad (saws) decide to move from Mecca to Medina?
It is important to understand this principle when it comes to making major decisions in life. I used to be an over-thinker and constantly let my mind wander when faced with a challenge or goal, never reaching deep inside to find out what my heart was thinking about the situation. Note; there is an important lesson here. I’m talking about what’s in my heart, not what I feel Online Quran Class.
