Life is a series of dots, each one representing an event, each one representing a special moment. Memories are made up of these dots, be they blissful, heartbreaking, or both.
Special is the one capable of connecting some of these dots. Like when a child barely capable of holding a pencil accomplishes the feat, connecting two or three dots results in pure joy.
What then of the select few who are able to make complete pictures from these dots and glean true meanings of life? Ya Allah!
Here, then, is my humble tale of connecting a few dots in my life. Maybe one day I shall be able to make something from these various connections dispersed throughout my life that resemble a picture.
But for now, I simply get giddy when I connect a few lonesome dots.
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It all began with a harmless donation of 200riyals (~$50).
My friend from Madina was on a quick weekend trip to Riyadh and hadn’t brought sufficient pocket money. I suggested he take the 200riyals for his immediate needs and upon his return to Madina, he could donate it to his Sheikh, who looks after the needs of over 50 destitute families in Jeddah. With that condition, he happily accepted.
Fast forward a couple hours.
My wife had gone out to a local mall where unfortunately her purse was stolen. Seems like a group of young abaya-clad girls rushed into the store where my wife was shopping, causing a commotion of sorts, and rushed back out, in the process conveniently taking her purse as it hung off the back of the stroller.
Needless to say, everything was lost.
Included in the damage was my wife’s phone, which had a pre-paid balance of 1,300riyals. While we immediately cancelled the credit cards and ATM cards, we weren’t able to cancel the phone SIM chip. The SIM card wasn’t under my name, so I was told to come in-person to the local STC (Saudi Telecom Company) office. Unfortunately it was 8pm and they would only open up the next day at 4pm.
My immediate response was to write off the 1,300riyals as, I figured, any small-time pick-pocket surely knows how to transfer the balance to another phone number. Either that, or they would use the bulk of the balance to make international calls and what not.
So you can imagine my pleasant surprise when I walked into the STC office the following day and found the balance untouched. They quickly issued a new SIM chip with the 1,300riyal balance.
1,300riyals were miraculously rescued from the debris of the purse-snatching fiasco.
Or so I thought.
“Or who is there that can provide you with Sustenance if He were to withhold His provision?” (67:21)
The Prophet (saw) stated “…and the Rizq is fixed. Nothing will take place before its due time, and nothing will be deferred beyond when it is due.”
The following day, I went to my HR department to request new health insurance cards for my wife and 4 kids. 200riyals a pop they told me. Stunned, I asked why in the world is it so expensive to print some cheap plastic cards?
Fraud was the answer. Many employees report lost or stolen cards while passing them on to relatives or friends who use the cards to avail medical services they are not entitled to (most hospitals don’t ask for picture IDs – I bet they knowingly turn a blind eye, preferring the guaranteed insurance money over turning away a fraudulent patient).
So, I had to pony up 1,000riyals for the insurance cards. Oh well - you gotta do what you gotta do.
I then went to the two banks to have them re-issue the ATM cards. They told me that the charge for it would be 50riyals. A bit pricey for a small plastic card, but clearly more reasonable than the insurance card. So I didn’t argue too much.
And that’s when it struck me and a few dots seemed to connect.
With the combination of the insurance cards, ATM cards, and the donation, that 1,300riyals was simply not meant to be in my pocket. My sustenance (rizq) has been predetermined and this amount was going to leave my hands one way or another.
Just as it is said that your rizq will run after you like death (and so, the teaching goes, there is no point in running after it), it can be equally stated that it will run away from you in a similarly guaranteed fashion.
Today, I stand before you as living proof of that.
WAW
5 days ago
5 comments:
As Salaamu Alaikum:
Mabrook! Insight is a gift that few people actually benefit from.
Reminds me of how Allah swt says "signs for those who reflect." How many of us walk around and let life happen to us without ever wondering what it is that we are supposed to learn?
The concept of pre-ordained Rizq is one of the most empowering concepts that Allah has made clear to us.
Sustenance is something most people will over-worry about throughout their lives, often distracting them from their true purpose. It's an amazing secret Allah has blessed us with; it's part of the liberation from the enslavement of a system which has been and continues to indoctrinate us.
Nice "real-life" example Naeem. I have always thought it would be cool to have little skits or programmes about these concepts based on real life events to drill home the message and remind people. Maybe when there's a true Muslim state we'll get programmes/commercials based around these critical concepts, as opposed to a bombardment of loans commercials saying "Money problems? We'll lend you what you need at a fixed interest of x%", which can be translated as "Need to buy some luxury items you don't even need, but think you need because you're constantly told you need them and everybody else is buying them!? We'll help you, but after that we'll own you for while, or most likely forever".
"The concept of pre-ordained Rizq"
I've never heard of this.
Is there somewhere I can read about this? It sounds interesting.
-The Muslim Kid-
AA-
@Safiyyah, so true about so many of us sleepwalking through life, never attempting to make sense of the bigger picture.
@Islamasaurus, excellent comment. I seriously believe that this concept isn't discussed enough. The source of soo much misery in this world is the lack of trust in Allah's sustenance/rizq.
If we could simply internalize the FACT that our rizq is determined, not one penny more or one penny less, that would ease so much stress and uncertainty that clouds our lives.
@MK, I'm sure if you googled it, you'd find countless articles, but for starters, here is a nice post on the topic. Pay no mind to the author (HizbTahrir), the post is spot on wrt Islamic concept of rizq.
Thank you Brother Naeem for providing us with this potent reminder of how Allah (SWT) sustains us all. This also reminds me of the hadith where the Rasul (SAWS) states that Believers are blessed both ways. When they are provided and they remember it is from Allah, they are grateful to Him and are thus rewarded for their gratefulness. When however they are faced with difficulties they remain patient and Allah rewards them even more. I also remember hearing a story about the great scholar Abu Hanifa and how he found out he lost two ships carrying his goods and just for a second he closed his eyes but then enjoined his followers the virtues of Sabr during such difficulties. May Allah thus reward you for gaining wisdom from this incident IA.
And you're right if more of us within the Ummah was to realize the truth behind the fact that our Sustenance has already been determined we would not be practicing Wahn or love of Dunya and fear of Death.
On a related note, I am in the process of writing up a paper about how oftentimes parents exert too much control over their children's lives to the point of pushing their kids to pursue degrees and careers that they may not want to necessarily ( I write both about how both Muslim and nonMuslim parents behave in this regard). If only more of us could understand the reality of Rizk we wouldn't be placing undue burdens upon our children.
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