salaams
i sent the following email to ppl on my mailing list a while back and got some interesting responses...wud b interesting to see wot u guys think
A few days ago a friend and I were walking thru town, when he asked me
to identify ppl who I thought were happy. My instant reaction was...how
do u define happiness?
Anywayz, I identified about 10ppl out of a possible 100 that we
passed, leading us 2 the conclusion that there aren't many happy ppl
around. Of course, our little 'happiness experiment' is not without
flaws and it led us to many questions.
Is happiness something that needs to be taught to a person? Is
happiness inbred? How do we define happiness? Can it be defined? What
makes us happy? The questions are endless...
Sooo, I thought about it and figured, why not ask ppl about it. So
with the help of my contact list, I'm trying to embark on a lil
experiment of my own. I'd like to find out what makes ppl happy and
how we as individuals can be happier ppl, so that hopefully if we know
what makes others happy, we can all contribute to some kind of greater
happiness in the world. A bit too ambitious and idealistic you might
say, maybe you're right...but we'll never know till we try.
So if you feel like sharing your thoughts, criticism, ideas or secrets
of happiness with me, I'm all ears...even if it's just filling in d list
below and sending in back to me
happiness is when u know that you just did prostration to allah
happiness is when u make duaa to allah n u know he's listening to u
happiness is when u read the kuraan n u cry out of fear of allah
happiness is when u obey allah's orders n u say "oh allah i love u"
happiness is just being a muslim
wasalaam
happiness is granted to those who submit whole heartedly to Allahs will.
Happiness is those who dont go spendin der time regrettin wats been decreed.
Happiness is bestowed upon the pure hearted.
They may say there happy but if u look in between the lines its full of trivial issues.
happiness is given to all who Allah swt wills even non-muslims., but the inner peace may be missing and that may cause the happiness to oneday fade.
For example imagine to agnostics gettin married, they live happily for 30 years, they hav children and everything, then the womans beauty fades, the man becomes weak etc..... they divorce (story of my neighbours). I have witnessed many such issues which is why i think happiness is for the pure hearted as stated above ^^
Last edited by IbnAbdulHakim; 03-26-2006 at 07:45 PM.
-
My tears testify that i have a heart
yet i feel me and shaytan never part
-
Happiness is when you know the one you love, loves you in return.
[Love, as in your;
- Creator
- Spouse
- Friend
- Child
etc.]
I know its kinda simple, but when a human recieves care from another, they feel happy and get some sort of calmness within their hearts - because they feel that someone else is thinking about them, and loves them in return.
This ayah/verse(s) in the qur'an match the description really well. The first ayah is aimed at having love for your Creator (Allaah Almighty).
"Those who believe, and whose hearts find satisfaction in the remembrance of Allah: for without doubt in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest. (Qur'an 13:28)
This ayah shows how remembrance of Allaah Almighty brings calmness into the hearts of mankind.
Allaah Almighty also says in the Qur'an:
“Then remember Me; I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and do not reject Me” (al-Baqarah 2:152).
This makes a muslim feel happy, and secure that if one remembers his/her Creator (Allaah), then Allaah will remember him/her too. Which will re-assure the believer that if one remembers Allaah, then Allaah will remember that person back.
So if a person is in need of help, if they remember Allaah, the person will feel that they are not alone - because Allaah Almighty has remembered them back. It's a feeling of security, and you feel that you're not alone. Which strenghtens the believer, and makes them feel happy instead of stressed out.
This next ayah, describing the love between the two spouses.
And among His signs is this, that He has created for you mates from among yourselves, that you may dwell in tranquillity with them; and He has put love and mercy between you. Verily in that are signs for those who reflect. (30:21)
Both ayah are showing how calmness, tranquility within ones heart makes a person feel secure.
When a person is loved by their parents, they feel secure. But gradually - people grow out of that. And soon their adults, but they still want to feel loved. This is why they are inclined to have a spouse, to feel secure and loved - which is a source for their happiness.
Our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) has stated that: "Women are the twin halves of men." (Bukhari).
Therefore, the same way twins are always inclined to be close to each other - the same way both partners are inclined to be together. And if they were lost, throughout their whole life - they may try to find their missing half. Without their other half, they would feel lonely, which would bring sadness and a feeling of loss.
[And due to the society in the west, where insecure relationships are so widespread, their is hardly any tranquility and calmness within the relationships. Instead, both parties may be afraid that they will lose the other - because with the kufar society, they will try their best to make as much out of this life as possible, which means having as much enjoyment (even if they have to give up their partner in the process.) This is why there is so much heartbreak within the dating game, and a decrease in marriages.]
Allaah Almighty also says in the Qur'an:
They (your wives) are your garment and you are a garment for them. (Qur'an 2:187)
Just as a garment hides our nakedness, so do husband and wife, by entering into the relationship of marriage, secure each other's chastity. The garment gives comfort to the body; so does the husband find comfort in his wife's company and she in his. "The garment is the grace, the beauty, the embellishment of the body, so too are wives to their husbands as their husbands are to them." A good woman, by marrying a man, helps him keep to the path of rectitude in his life. It is for this reason that marriage was considered by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as a most virtuous act. He said: "When a man marries, he has completed one half of his religion."
I think i've dragged it on abit too much now.
But in a world like this where most people feel that they have no-one to rely on, and that if they trust someone - they'll lose that trust.
Whereas feeling loved makes a person feel secure, and that security is a source for a persons happiness. So happiness is when one feels that there is someone there who cares...
wa Allaahu ta'aala a'lam. (and Allaah Almighty knows best.)
shukran for the responses thus far...very insightful, gives u sumthing to ponder about.
fi sabilillah was talking about a sense of security, and this same friend and i were chatting about it the other day, and how 2 of Allah's attributes viz Rahmann and Raheem, stem from the same root, being 'ruhm' which means womb. not gonna go in2 detail for fear of being chastised for not sticking 2 d topic...but just wanna quickly mention how we had that sense of security in our mothers wombs...and this has been carried out into the world, since the day we were born...for surely, we are living in the womb of life!
to take it one step further, as rumi once said...the day you were born a ladder was set up to help you escape from this world...and since we're using the whole analogy of the womb, we should look at the ladder as the umbilical cord...am i making sense? wouldn't mind taking this discussion further if the need arises
shukran for the responses thus far...very insightful, gives u sumthing to ponder about.
fi sabilillah was talking about a sense of security, and this same friend and i were chatting about it the other day, and how 2 of Allah's attributes viz Rahmann and Raheem, stem from the same root, being 'ruhm' which means womb. not gonna go in2 detail for fear of being chastised for not sticking 2 d topic...but just wanna quickly mention how we had that sense of security in our mothers wombs...and this has been carried out into the world, since the day we were born...for surely, we are living in the womb of life!
to take it one step further, as rumi once said...the day you were born a ladder was set up to help you escape from this world...and since we're using the whole analogy of the womb, we should look at the ladder as the umbilical cord...am i making sense? wouldn't mind taking this discussion further if the need arises
Mashallah good thread ........
all replies present good definition
happiness is inner satisfaction whether you are in good or bad situation
once prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was sitting amongst his companioins , he smiled and asked:
"Will you not ask why i smile?"
they responded : "what made you smile , O Messanger of Allah?"
He replied : I am amazed at the believer situation ! His situation is always good ! if something occurs to him that he likes , he praises Allah ,and that is good for him . If something occurs to him that he dislikes , he perseveres , and that is good for him . no ones's situation is always good -except a believer's." (recorded by Ahmad and others . Verified to be authentic by Al-Albaani , as-Sahihah no .147)
Mashallah good thread ........
all replies present good definition
happiness is inner satisfaction whether you are in good or bad situation
once prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was sitting amongst his companioins , he smiled and asked:
"Will you not ask why i smile?"
they responded : "what made you smile , O Messanger of Allah?"
He replied : I am amazed at the believer situation ! His situation is always good ! if something occurs to him that he likes , he praises Allah ,and that is good for him . If something occurs to him that he dislikes , he perseveres , and that is good for him . no ones's situation is always good -except a believer's." (recorded by Ahmad and others . Verified to be authentic by Al-Albaani , as-Sahihah no .147)
salaams
fi sabillilah bro, here's a paraphrased version...so apologies if it doesn't make all that much sense...don't have time 2 do a better job on it...coz need 2 catch a plane soon and haven't even packed!!!! so will carry on wif this in 2 weeks, inshallah
The Arabic words Rahmaan and Raheem are intense in their meaning and I wont be able to do it justice to give you their meaning. However, the root word for both these words is the word “ruhm” which means womb. And that is how these words remind us of life. We were created in the womb, protected, nurtured, grown there. Now that is obvious, but we often forget that after we experience that miracle of birth, we go from that small womb to another bigger womb: that of life as we know it. Here too we are protected, nurtured, grown, and by the same Hand that looked after us while we were in the physical womb. That is the Hand of Rahmaan and Raheem. That is the Hand of God. An interesting concept, isn’t it?
And so if we take our analogy of us growing in the womb further into life, we will notice a few other things. In the womb, we start from almost nothing, a cell, a number of cells, to a clot, to an embryo until our body is fleshed and we come into being. All of this happens in stages, each stage building on the last. Each stage measured, calculated and meticulously designed. Life as we know it, is also similar. We start off in this world pretty much helpless, at the mercy of our parents, till we grow physically; start learning and thinking for ourselves. We then get an education, skill, knowledge, a job/function in society. We then think of creating our own families and as it is said in the cartoon the Lion King, the circle of life. A circle is nothing but a set of points which take us from one stage to another, building on the last. Each point is a threshold of another stage. All of this sounds rather arbitrary but if you will look back on your life you’ll see how you’ve grown in that womb of life.
the manifestation of that womb that has made you who you are. As Muslims, we believe that life has a purpose. All these stages and growth is only the means to an end. And the end in my mind is to firstly find, choose your purpose and then to fulfil it. That’s what makes us truly human. The last stage for me in this process has been to learn all about life through external means: education, family, work.
i leave you with 3 thoughts:
That we should all realise and be aware of the womb of life we find ourselves in
That we should be utterly (and naturally) grateful for the womb and for us existing in it.
That we should choose a purpose in our journey of life and try to fulfil it with all our being. There is no greater form of gratitude for Life.
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happiness is granted to those who submit whole heartedly to Allahs will.
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