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The Parable of the Pebble

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The Parable of the Pebble
UmmWafi
04/06/04 at 23:00:12
[slm]

Knowledge allows one to grow, allows one to see what one has failed to see before and allows one to appreciate that one has failed to appreciate before.  Knowledge also allows one to understand better and to comprehend the subtleties of Life that one was once oblivious too.

In my mad and tumbling world as a child, I would often run around at the playground barefooted, uncaring of the pitfalls of a rusted nail or coarse sand or broken glasses or other sharp objects that mayhap pose serious harm to my little active feet.  I run around unconcerned.  The world was this huge place of opportunities and nooks and corners for me to escape into my childish realm of fantasies.

In my busy days as a youth, I tread the grounds with care, not wishing to soil those precious pairs of fashionable shoes I thought enhance my physical beauty.  How frivolous those days were of acting grown-up, of trying make-up, of wistfully pressing my nose on the window panes of an exclusive boutique. My biggest concerns were grounded on the here and now, on dunya, on me. I tread the world heavily, confident that everything was for the taking.  When I found a pebble stuck on the sole of my foot, lodged between it and the instep of my shoes, my reaction was annoyance that such a little thing can have the ability to disrupt my peace.  Carelessly I pick the little pest out and flung it away, sparing no second thought to the pebble and its relationship to me.

Now, I walk on God's earth carefully, fearing to take heavy steps for I dread to think of what earth might think of me. "Here goes a person who has no idea of indebtedness to Allah SWT for if she does, she would be afraid to tiptoe forward for fear that her every step would lead her to sin.  Instead she stomps me hard as if she has right over me." No...that is not how I want earth to witness for me in the Hereafter. Now, if I should find a pebble lodged underneath my foot, I think of that little hardened dot of sand and stone and its relationship to me. I think of the pain such little thing is capable of wielding and I reflect on the pain my words and actions can wield.  I think of how much an inconvenience it can cause in my otherwise uninterrupted stride and I think of how my careless self can wreak damage to others.  I walk slower now, more careful, so that should a pebble get lodged underneath my foot, I shall not allow it to cause me that great a harm, for a hard step can allow a pebble to leave an indelible mark on the sole of one's feet. I think...if such a small thing can cause pain, how then will it be for a complex being like me ?

I resolve...to be careful.  To myself, to others..to just be careful. To be an instrument of hurt..that is like being a small object underneath somebody's foot.

Wassalam.
04/07/04 at 06:44:04
UmmWafi
Re: The Parable of the Pebble
rkhan
04/07/04 at 02:57:12
[slm]

Subhaanallah! Very insightful....as always..

Reminds me of the tafseer for the Qur'aanic ayat "wa laa tamshi fil ardhe marhan" And walk not on the earth with conceit and arrogance [Surah Isra verse37]

I once read this bk on body language by Desmond Morris and I incessantly watch ppl -- it's amazing how sometimes they way one unconsciously holds oneself gives away so much about the personality.......

JUst a non sequitur, but what I like abt the internet is that here one gets to meet minds...not masks. I'm glad I came here to the board and met up with such an awesome bunch of bros and sisters .
Re: The Parable of the Pebble
al-ajnabia
04/07/04 at 11:48:58
[slm]
if it werent for pebbles, how would we learn to watch how we step?
I think how we deal with the things that are beneath our notice when they come to our attention says more about us than any dealing we have with those we consider equal to us.
When we we watch our steps to avoid those be-danged pebbles, think of the countless little dilegent ants with their tiny struggles and turmoils who arent tyranised by the falling of our mighty feet.


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