Wednesday, June 26

Lose + Learn

There are lessons which we can teach by being present and actually teaching, but there are also lessons which cannot be learned unless our presence are missed.

Although the first one is commonly done, I think the second one is something we rarely practice, but it leaves a very deep impact on them, and for me, we need both to really be a learner thoroughly.

For example, take ar-Rasul s.a.w. and Abu Bakr r.a. when ar-Rasul was alive, Abu Bakr learnt a lot from him, but there are things which Abu Bakr could only learn after ar-Rasul wafat.

Abu Bakr learned how to lead the Muslims only after ar-Rasul's gone; Abu Bakr who was famous for being soft and shy, learned how to be firm when many Muslims turn their back to Islam after ar-Rasul's death, even Umar r.a. who was known for his harshness and ganasness, was surprised by the firmness of Abu Bakr. And that couldn't be taught in ar-Rasul's presence, it's learned when ar-Rasul's presence was missed.

Often I heard people who lost their phones/smartphones took some time before they get a new one and during that period of 'phone-less', they learned so much, and sometimes they realize that they are more to life than the life they had before.

There's a Korean gameshow called Human Condition, I don't know if there's any of you who watched it but I would recommend that show if you want good entertainment (not just gelak2 tengok Runningman and get nothing). Why I said so? Because in the gameshow, they (the guys from the Gag Concert) will live normally but together in a house without something which is a necessary to us now, for a week. Like for example, there's this one week, they have to live without their handphones, and you could see how they suffers and actually learned a lot from it. Another week they had to live without cash, another week without television/entertainment, another week they had to produce zero waste. etc etc.

We learned soooo much when we are at loss, and that's part of tarbiyyah that we have to go through in order to prepare us to really succeed in the future.

I always remember the verses in surah ad-Dhuha;

"By the morning brightness,
And the night when it covers with darkness,

Your Lord has neither leave you nor hated you,
And surely what comes after is better for you than the present,
And soon will your Lord give you so that you shall be well pleased,

Did He not find you an orphan and give you shelter?
And find you unaware and guided you?
And find you poor and made self-sufficient.

Therefore, treat not the orphan with oppression,
And repulse not the beggar;

And as for the favor of your Lord, do announce"

*try putting yourself in the surah and relate, and the last verse, do try to mention, say it out, share what Allah's given to you with others. :)

For Allah teach ar-Rasul (and us as well) a lot by putting us in a state of loss, for only then we can only be found. When we are unaware then only we know what it means to be guided, and when we are poor then we are fully grateful when we are sufficient.

And this is also true for relationships, as much as we learn from someone who's present, we'll learn a lot more when their presence are missed. :)