THE POWER OF DESTINY

‘Almighty Allah guides the one who directs himself towards Him.’ —Jalaluddin Rumi (ra)

We are masters of our fate and destiny, as long as we have absolute faith in Almighty Allah, a strong will

and determination, He will not deny any believer success.

No matter what happens to us in life, we have the capacity to choose our response or reaction. The greatest of Almighty Allah’s laws is to search for the positive in every circumstance.

Material or spiritual successes in life begin in the 5.5-kilogram mass sitting between our shoulders—the brain.

We must control our thoughts every second of every minute of every day because our outer world reflects the state of our inner world. The greatest battles of life are fought daily in the silent chambers of the soul.

We are living in two worlds at the same time: the world within and the world without. The two worlds must work in perfect coordination, not infringing in any way the one upon the other. Focus on where you want to go. Insha’Allah, faith in Almighty Allah will take you in the direction you want. By controlling our thoughts and the way we respond to events in our life, we begin to control our destiny. There is a bright side to even the darkest circumstances if we have the courage to look for it.

The Noble Qur’an teaches us that negative experiences do not exist, only opportunities to grow, learn and advance along the road to self-mastery. Our noble Messenger Muhammad (S) said: ‘Struggle is the meaning of life.’ From struggle comes strength; even pain can be a wonderful teacher. To transcend pain we must first experience it. In Surah al-Baqarah, Almighty Allah calls upon us to be unwavering in times of difficulties and pain: ‘Be firm and patient in pain or suffering and adversity, and throughout all periods of panic, such are the Allah-fearing (Believers)’ ([2]:117). In Surah as-Saff, Almighty Allah promises guidance to those who believe, have faith and strive in His cause: ‘Believe in Allah and His messenger and strive in the cause of Allah, with your property and persons; that will be best for you if ye knew’ ([61]:11).

Almighty Allah explains what is best for us, and calls upon us to be determined in pursuing our goals in life. In times of adversity, pain, hardships and in the face of danger, we must be steadfast and patiently persevere. These are necessary qualities for our internal and external development. We must be strong individuals with solid unyielding characters;

THE POWER OF DESTINY 

come what may. Under such conditions the faithful believers never lose hope or confidence in Almighty Allah. All the pain and sacrifices will never be in vain. Almighty Allah will bless us, when He knows in His wisdom that we are ready for success.

Almighty Allah promises mercy and blessings to those who strive in His Way; believers will arrive at eternal bliss to fulfil their destiny.

There are no mistakes in life, only lessons. How can we know or understand the joy of being on the summit of a mountain unless we have visited the lowest valley? To appreciate the good we must know the bad. Every event offers lessons to fuel our inner and outer growth.

When we consistently apply these principles in our daily life, we condition our minds to translate every event into a positive empowering one; we banish worry and fear forever.

Stop being a prisoner of the past; instead be an architect of the future. Don’t allow the past to take up too much precious time and don’t waste energy talking about the past; use it as an experience when needed.

Negative thoughts of the past re-enforce guilt, pride, resentment, anger, regret or self-pity. Holding on to the past accelerates the body’s ageing process. Free yourself from the past and enter the future without inhibitions.

Motive in life is important. If our motives are wrong, nothing can be right. It makes no difference whether you are a mailman, electrician, plumber or businessman. If your motive is to serve your fellow man, you can be as confident of the law of Almighty Allah manifesting itself as you can be sure of gravitational force in play. You will succeed.

Investing in ourselves is the single most powerful investment we can ever make in our lives. Knowing what we want is the springboard to our miracles. We are like a magnet, we attract what we think.

We are instruments of our own actions. We must realize that we are responsible for our own performance and destiny. Our mental development is critical to our personal, spiritual, physical and material wellbeing.

We should spend time on serious reading; thinking analytically, pondering and focusing on expanding the mind; this is vital to the renewal of our attitude and behaviour. Through reading we become exposed to the minds of great Muslims.

Start off with a goal to read a book a month, then a book every two weeks, eventually one book a week. This will change our thinking. ‘The person who doesn’t read is no better than a person who cannot read.’—Anonymous.

In Surah al-Mu’minoon, Almighty Allah reminds us to ponder and learn something new. He states: ‘Do they not ponder over the word of Allah or has anything new come to them?’ ([23]:68).

Experience the power of this moment and the fullness of being. Feel your presence. Do not wait to start living; set

THE POWER OF DESTINY 

goals and strive to achieve them. Do not lose the power of now, we are here and now; do not allow the mind to dwell in the past or wait for prosperity in the future.

Be master of your own destiny; enjoy and experience life now.

Shaykh Abdel-Khalid Ghujdwani (ra) said: ‘Your journey is towards your homeland. Remember you are travelling from the world of appearances to the world of reality.’

Dr Mir Valiuddin (ra) said: ‘Alas! He who does not strive hard, can never secure a treasure.’

In Surah al-Hajj, Almighty Allah assures the believer: ‘O ye who believe! Bow down, prostrate yourselves and adore your Lord and do good; that ye may prosper and strive in His cause as ye ought to strive (with sincerity and discipline) and hold fast to Allah! He is your Protector—the best to protect and the best to help! Almighty Allah only helps those who help themselves’ ([22]:77–78).