my story isn't really one to take morals from, excpet maybe gratefullness, but none the less its still a nice story.

lets call it "the shoe box baby."
well this baby was born premature, (i think it was 3 months) anyways, because he was so small, he had to sleep in a shoe box. anyway, eventually this baby grew up into a man, who went to jihad against the soviets in Afganistan. So obviosuly when you're in the wilderness you dont have that much to eat. One day, allah decreed that he return home. After arriving home, one day he saw his mum baking cookies. he picked up a crumb, and said to his mum, "mum, do you know how much we treaured this during out time over there."
anyways, that all the stiry is. im not a very good story teller, (as you all noticed) but i thought i'd share it with you.

One evening a young woman went alone to walk barefoot by the ocean after the sun had set. She stopped in her path and turned so she could see the footsteps she had left in the sand. But they had already been washed away by the waves. When she turned to continue her walk, she was startled by the presence of an old woman wrapped in a blanket who out of nowhere appeared sitting by a fire, slowly paging through the leaves of a leather covered book.


She walked up to the woman and asked. "Where did you come from? I didn't see you here a moment ago. And how did you start this fire so quickly?"

Her questions went unanswered but were instead met with a reply in a serene voice, "Sit with me, child. I have something to show you."


As the young woman sat down beside the fire, the mysterious stranger handed her the book. She curiously turned the pages one by one and was amazed to discover they contained the story of her whole life from the early days of childhood to the present. She then came to the page telling of her encounter.


with the old woman by the fire during her walk on the beach, but upon turning to the next page, she found it empty. She frantically began to turn the rest of the pages in the book only to find that they, too, were all empty. In bewilderment, she looked to the old woman and pleaded with her to explain.


"Does this mean my life ends this night?"

"No, my child. It means tonight your life begins."

At that moment the old woman took the book into her own hands and began to tear out each of the pages with words, throwing them one by one into the fire until all that was left were blank pages.


She handed the book of empty pages to the young woman.


"You see," she said, "just as the waves washed away your footsteps in the sand, your past is forever gone, never to return.


The only moment you ever truly possess is here and now. Each new moment is the beginning of the rest of your life and is to be lived to the fullest, for you will not have a chance to live that moment a second time. Most important of all, each new day brings an opportunity to love--one that may never come to you again.


"As for your future, you are free to shape it as you wish, for it has not yet been written."


Then, as mysteriously as she had appeared, the old woman stood to walk away and disappeared into the darkness of the night.



Moral:

"Your Life is in Your Hand.. Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever".

My teeny tiny story isn't inspirational or anything, but this is just something that happened to me which made me think. Well everyday i take the same bus to a certain place which costs me 2.40 pounds, one day when i asked for a ticket it cost only 2.00 pounds, waking up early and fasting, it didn't occur to me i had the wrong ticket. I was so worried but ended up stopping at my usual place anyway. I told the bus driver and it turned out the ticket i had was only for accross the road, and it is 40p cheaper! So now i take this bus accross the road everyday. Anyway the point of my ridiculous story is: that mistake of mine was a blessing really cause i have saved sooo much money!

[quote=Tazkiyahtulnafs;25880]my mom only had one eye..
i hated the fact that i had to be stuck with a retard for a mother.
i hated her... she was such an embarressment..
my mom ran a small shop at a flea market.
she collected little weeds and such to sell... anything for the money we needed
she was such an embarressment.

Thank-you for sharing this with us.....I cried out of both eyes.

Even Though When I Whine, the Blessing is Mine.

Today, upon a bus, I saw a girl with golden hair and wished I was just as fair.
When she rose to leave, I saw her hobble down the aisle. She had one leg and used a crutch.
But as she passed, a smile. Oh, God, forgive me when I whine. I have 2 legs, the blessing is mine.

I stopped to buy some candy. The boy who sold it had such charm. I spoke with him, he seemed so glad. If I were late, it would do no harm. As I left he said to me, "I thank you, you've been so kind. It's nice to talk with people like you. You see I'm blind.
Oh God, forgive me when I whine. I have 2 eyes, the blessing is mine.

Later whilst walking down the street, I saw a child with eyes of blue. Hestood and watched the others play. He did not know what to do. I stopped a moment and said, "why not join the others". He looked without a word and I knew he could'nt hear.
Oh God, forgive me when I whine. I have 2 hearing ears, the blessing is mine.

With feet to take me where I go.
With eyes to see the sunset's glow.
With ears to hear what I know.
Oh God, forgive me when I whine.
I've been blessed indeed, so God please help me forget to whine.

Blessing of Giving.

A student was walking one day with his professor. As they went along they saw lying in the path a pair of old shoes, which belonged to an old man who was working in a field nearby. His work for that day was nearly done.

The student turned to the professor saying: "Let us play a trick on the man: we will hide his shoes and conceal ourselves behind those bushes and wait to see his response when he cannot find them".

"My young friend" answered the professor, "we should never amuse ourselves at the expense of the poor. You are rich and may give yourself a much greater pleasure by the means of this poor man. Put a coin in each shoe and then we will hide and watch how this affects him".

So it was and they hid behind some bushes. The poor man finished his work and came to the path where he had left his coat and shoes. While putting his coat on he slipped his foot into one of his shoes. Feeling something hard he stooped down to feel what it was and he found a coin.

Astonishment and wonder were upon his face. He gazed at the coin, turned it around and around looking at it again and again. He then looked all around but could see no one. He put the money in his pocket and proceeded to put the other shoe on; but his surprise was doubled on finding the other coin.

His feelings overcame him; he fell upon his knees, looked up to heaven and uttered aloud a fervent thanksgiving in which he spoke of his wife, sick and helpless and his children without bread whom this timely bounty from some unknown hand would save from perishing.

The student stood there deeply affected and tears filled his eyes. "Now" said the professor £are you not much better pleased than if you had played your trick?"

The youth replied, "You have taught me a lesson which I will never forget. I feel now the truth of these words, which I never understood before: "It is more blessed to give than to receive".

Any charity you give or a charitable pledge you fulfil, God is fully aware thereof....Quran 2:270

Kind words and compassion are better than a charity that is followed by insult. God is Rich, Clement. Quran 2:263

Bismillah-Ir-Rahman-Ir-Raheem

AsalamuAlaykum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh,

An emperor was coming out of his palace for his morning walk when he met a beggar. He asked the beggar, “What do you want?”
The beggar laughed and said, “You are asking me as though you can fulfill my desire!”

The king was offended. He said, “Of course I can fulfill your desire. What is it? Just tell me.”

And the beggar said, “Think twice before you promise anything.”
“I will fulfill anything you ask. I am a very powerful emperor, what can you possibly desire that I can not give to you?”

The beggar said, “It is a very simple desire. You see this begging bowl? Can you fill it with something?”

The emperor said, “Of course!” He called one of his viziers and told him, “Fill this mans begging bowl with money.” The vizier went and got some money and poured it into the bowl, and it disappeared. And he poured more and more, and the moment he would pour it, it would disappear. And the begging bowl remained always empty.

The whole palace gathered. By and by the rumor went throughout the whole capital, and a huge crowd gathered. The prestige of the emperor was at stake. He said to his viziers, “If the whole kingdom is lost, I am ready to lose it, but I cannot be defeated by this beggar.”

Diamonds and pearls and emeralds, his treasuries were becoming empty.The begging bowl seemed to be bottomless. Everything that was put into it — everything! — immediately disappeared, went out of existence. Finally it was the evening, and the people were standing there in utter silence. The king dropped at the feet of the beggar and admitted his defeat. he said, “Just tell me one thing. You are victorious - but before you leave, just fulfill my curiosity. What is the begging bowl made of?”

The beggar laughed and said, “It is made up of the human mind. There is no secret. It is simple made up of human desire.”

This understanding transforms life. Go into one desire — what is the mechanism of it? First there is a great excitement, great thrill, adventure. you feel a great kick. Something is going to happen, you are on the verge of it. And then you have the car, you have the yacht, you have the house, you have the woman, and suddenly all is meaningless again.

What happens? Your mind has dematerialised it. The car is standing in the drive, but there is no excitement anymore. The excitement was only in getting it. You became so drunk with the desire that you forgot your inner nothingness. Now the desire is fulfilled, the car in the drive, the woman in your bed, the money in your bank account - again excitement disappears. Again the emptiness is there, ready to eat you up. Again you have to create another desire to escape this yawning abyss.

That’s how one moves from one desire to another desire. That’s how one remains a beggar. Your whole life proves it again and again — every desire frustrates. And when the goal is achieved, you will need another desire.

The day you understand that desire as such is going to fail comes the turning point in your life.

The other journey is inwards. move inwards, come back home.

^^ that was soo nice Jazakallah Khair for sharing

BarakAllah fiki, I was thinking where this went.

Peace.

Mashaa Allaah some beautiful stories here.

sometimes it feels that the thorns overcrowd the rose.
sometimes it feels that the time spent throwing into the bowl is worth it.



Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullaahi Wa Barakatuh

taken from another forum

I met Uwais Al-Qarni.
I ignored him in the beginning of our meeting, but carried his shoes at the end!!


Our beloved brother Shaykh ibn ‘Abd Al-Ghani narrates the following story in the Arabic forum.

He [May Allah Preserve him] writes:

“The story of Uwais Al-Qarni was mentioned in Sahih Muslim as well as in other books. Now even though he was from the Tabi’een and did not see the Messenger [Salah Allahu Alaihi wa salam], the Messenger [Salah Allahu Alaihi wa salam] had advised ‘Umar ibn Al-Khatab [Radiya Allahu ‘Anhu] that if he meets [Uwais] then he, ‘Umar, should ask [Uwais] to ask Allah to forgive him and to make supplication for him.

Thus ‘Umar [May Allah be pleased with him], during his Caliphate, used to ask all the delegates coming from Yemen: ‘Is Uwais among you?’, until finally during one of the years he met him. He found him a man not among the nobles of his people; nobody cares much for him, even those accompanying him, sidelined. So ‘Umar told him about the advice Prophet Muhammad gave him and asked Uwais to ask Allah the Exalted to forgive him. When ‘Umar discovered that Uwais was headed to Al-Kuffa he offered to write a letter to his assistant over there, so that he treats him with hospitality. However, Uwais refused and requested that ‘Umar doesn’t do that. He explained his request that he would love to live as an unknown among the people (the story is summarized and mentioned from memory).

Now, I do not claim that I met that Noble Tabi’ee himself; rather I met a man from his school. A man following in the same footsteps of Uwais, and here is my story with him.

During one of the Fridays of Ramadan, I left my house to give the Friday Khutbah in one of the Masjids of Al-Jam’iyah Al-Shar’eyah in Cairo. While riding my car my clear white Thawb (dress worn by men in Arab countries) got stained with a black spot. That really upset me. I asked myself, ‘How could I stand in front of the people giving the Khutbah when this spot had stained my elegant dress?’ I left the car and headed towards the Masjid. During my walk I passed by a store that had a big mirror at its entrance. I stood in front of it fixing my clothes and making sure my head covering is placed properly. I then continued to the Masjid.

I reached the Masjid, but the issue of the stain was still bothering me. The entrance of the Masjid had a few beggars standing there. They usually stand there during this blessed month, each of them with a story that he uses to gain the sympathy of the people going to pray. I didn’t give them much attention and entered the Masjid. I climbed the Minbar quickly, hoping that no one would get a chance to see the black spot that stained my dress in the car.

I delivered the Khutbah, and then we prayed. After prayers, I leaned my back at a pillar that was next to the Qiblah, and I stretched my legs to relax.

Now Egyptians usually go and shake the hands of the Imam after the prayers making supplications for him. I started shaking their hands while being seated in the same manner, and replied to their supplications by nodding my head up and down. I was really exhausted at this time because of the hot weather and the fasting.

At that point, I noticed a blind man crossing the lines with extreme difficulty, asking to reach the Shaykh (referring to me). Nobody was paying attention to his request, rather some of them were waving their hands in an annoyed manner since the blind man used to [unintentionally] come in contact with them while crossing the lines. The caretaker of the Masjid took his hand and brought him to me. I looked at him, and saw that his clothe were worn-out. He had the appearance of a person that if he greets others they would not reply back to him, and if he speaks no one would care about what he said. My first impression was that he was one of the beggars I saw at the entrance of the Masjid.

The man reached where I was seated; he greeted me and I replied back to him while still being seated in the same manner I described earlier, relaxing and stretching my legs.

I waited for him to start by telling me how miserable his life is, like beggars usually do, but he didn’t.

Rather he started by praising the topic of my Khutbah!! I though to myself: ‘A new method of begging! Start by showing that you understood what was mentioned in the Khutbah so that my heart would soften?!’.

Then he said: “But I have some remarks about your Khutbah, so I hope you do not mind listening to them”.

I said in amazement, while still sitting in the same manner: “Remarks on my Khutbah!! and you are the one that will point them out?!”

He replied: “Yes”.

I said: “In what aspects of the Khutbah?”

He said: “In the Language, Hadith, and Tafseer”.

After that I honestly, stared at his face in astonishment, and said: “And to what extend is your knowledge in these sciences?”

He introduced himself to me, he was a graduate of Dar Al-‘Uloom and specialized in Islamic Sharee’ah. He had completed several papers/studies on Tafseer, and he studied along side several known scholars.

I looked at the people around me in the Masjid and they nodded their heads, affirming what the man was saying.

At that point I sat straight, and crossed my legs, and said to the man: “And what are these remarks you had, my dear respected sir”.

He said: “As for the language, you have used some words of the ‘Amiyah (slang) and that ruins the nobility and sublimity of the Khutbah” (he kept speaking to me about the importance of the Khatib using the proper language, with words that increased my love to our beautiful language).

“As for the Hadith, you quoted some traditions and mentioned the source of some, but didn’t do that for the rest. Also how can you quote a tradition and refer it to Abu Dawud, while it is in Bukhari don’t you know that this is something that relegates the status of the speaker”. (Then he kept speaking to me about the methods and manners of the scholars of hadith, which increased my love for the Science of Hadith).

“As for the Tafseer, you mentioned some statements of those who interpret the Quran by their opinion, so beware when speaking about the Book of Allah and do not be like a night-time woodcutter (lumberjack)”. (Then he kept speaking to me about the different methodologies used by the people of Tafseer, which increased my love to the science of Tafseer).

By that time, people had dispersed from around us.

As he was about to stand, I stood [quickly] and took his hand. I then rushed and got him his shoes, and assisted him in putting it on. He kept asking me not to. I took by his hand to take him to his home, but he swore to me not to.

At that point, I saw that we were behind a wall where no one can see us, so I took out a sum of money from my pocket, and I politely requested that he accepts it from me. Here, he got mad and raised his voice a little scolding me roughly. I apologized to him, and he accepted my apology, and said: “You might have felt sorry for me, when you saw the way I am dressed”. I said: “Yes, and I hope you can forgive me for not thinking highly of you the first time I saw you”, so he forgave me.

I told him: “Please, comfort me, how do you live and with whom?” He said: “I will answer you briefly. I have a small income, but Allah has blessed it with His Grace, and it suffices me from the disgrace of asking [others]”. I asked: “With whom do you live?” He replied: “By myself, my children and wife have already beaten me to the Hereafter” and then he said: “I want nothing from this Dunia, and my relationship with it is not that good. All I need is a dress to cover my body and a meal that would silence my hunger, and apart from that I do not need anything”.

So I fell on his hand to kiss it, and I shook his hand and walked away for a few steps. Then I looked back at where he was heading. I saw that the people are giving him no notice as he held his stick, which he used to feel the road in front of him.

As for me, I walked thinking about myself, and how upset I was when my clean white dress got stained. As I walked, cars would slow down so that I can cross [the street], and people passing would come by to shake my hands and ask me for supplications.

They were all deceived by my looks and appearance.

I remembered the statement of Prophet Muhammad [Salah Allah ‘Alaihi wa Salam], when he was between his companions and a man passed by who had the appearance of a wealthy man. So he [Salah Allah ‘Alaihi wa Salam] asked: “What do you say about that [man]?” They said: “O Prophet of Allah, he is the kind of person that when he speaks we would listen, and if he asks for our daughter’s hand in marriage we won’t oppose, and if he intercedes for someone we would accept his intercession”. Then a man who appeared poor and needy passed by, so he [Salah Allah ‘Alaihi wa Salam] asked: “And what do you say about that man?” They said: “He is the sort of person, that if he speaks we won’t listen to what he has to say, and if he requests our daughter’s hand in marriage we would oppose his request, and if he intercedes for someone we would not accept his intercession”. Then he [Salah Allah ‘Alaihi wa Salam] said: “That [poor] man is better (worth more) than all the earth filled with that other man”, Aw Kama Qaal Salah Allah ‘Alaihi wa Salam".

Original Arabic:

http://www.ahlalhdeeth.com/vb/showthread.php?t=113941

Note: the translation takes from the beauty of the story, but I hope that it was not totally lost.

May Allah greatly reward the Shaykh for this story

i just love the story of uwais al qarni. jazakallah khayr for sharing

mashallah, that story of uwais al qarni was amazing
it really made me think for a while... subhanallah
wassalam

Mashallah that was a nice story ( Uwais al qarni )
It lets you think indeed.