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Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| Trying too hard? |
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| lala |
| 04/08/04 at 12:12:18 |
| [slm] It seems that some in my family think either 1. I'm trying to hard to be 'muslim' 2. acting like I'm some 'really religious person' ..et .et. I guess them seeing changes in me raises the red flag in their heads. I doubt they are taking me seriosly. But really, does wanting to take part in conferences and relgious teach-ins make me out to be 'trying too hard' ? OR doesn't it jsut mean that I want to expand my knowledge on Islam and want to better myself? Thats how I saw it...but is that trying to hard? SHould I just be reliant on the Qu'ran, hadith and other books ? And forget trying to listen to scholars and going to talks etc? Someone mentioned to me that no speaker is going to give me 'faith' etc etc. And you know, they are right. No speaker can give you something so individual. SO how does such events help a person? I think I'm just confused and a bit upset right now... Thanks for reading:) salaam |
| 04/08/04 at 12:13:08 |
| lala |
| Re: Trying too hard? |
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| Trustworthy |
| 04/08/04 at 12:36:32 |
| [slm]... Hey....part of being a Muslim is to never stop educating yourself. It's always a learning process. I was born Muslim ad I still don't know all the hadiths and qur'an. I've known 7 year olds who has memorized the entire Qur'an and even then they still don't know the whole of Islam. That struggle is endless. When you think you know it all, Allah will test you. When I finally woke and realized what was imporatnt, my religion, my family was also in shock but I feel that my mom knew I'd come around some day just didn't expect it so soon. I was 12 then. Now I'm way older, no one understands my need to keep learning except for the Imam. Everyone else thinks I'm trying too hard as well, even my Muslim freinds. As much or as little as I know, give me a megaphone and I'll shout Islam to anyone who wants to or does not want to hear about it. I say, we're not trying too hard. I beleive, we aren't trying hard enough. Jannah is not free and to get the best part of it, is to pay more for it. Don't settle for a piece of cheesecake, take the whole thing. Give me the recipe even. You know what I'm saying? Ma-assalamah..... |
| Re: Trying too hard? |
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| Nadeem |
| 04/08/04 at 13:22:43 |
| [slm] Hear, hear, sister Trustworthy, well said. [] Sister lala, I feel what you're saying. I think I described in another post in Al-Manar or somewhere that when I first "woke up" to Islam (even though I was born Muslim) the changes, subtle as they were, provoked somewhat negative reaction from people, most notably other Muslims. I think the thing is, most people dont like change. When you (I mean in the general sense) change, albeit for the good, people feel unsettled. They're worried that they'll "lose" you. They're worried that you'll become "fanatic". They're worried that you changing will affect their world, and perhaps thats what they're most worried about. The only noticeable change I made at that time was to start praying (I mean regularly, not just Eid and odd Fridays). The reactions were mixed, but some of my Muslim friends, started making fun by calling me "Hajji" (I havent been on Hajj or Umrah, but Inshallah one day) or Mullah (I'm like this one, I dont even have a beard! ;-)). Maybe it's lack of knowledge and fear. Maybe they lack knowledge about Islam so they say stuff like that, and they fear what will happen if you practise and then start telling them about it. Islamic talks are useful. You learn new things. You interact with other Muslims, and again this is another useful learning tool. (I haven't actually been on a proper one yet, though. But not because I think there's anything wrong with them). With regards to your "should I just stick to the Quran and Hadith?" question: Most muslims would agree the Quran is the number one reference. Why? Because it is the direct word of Allah. The Sunnah, second? Why? Because it is the words (we hope, if there is reliable hadiths) of Allah's Messenger [saw]. Talks are usually done by people who've studied these two sources and others. It makes sense to go the talks if we are going to gain the extra knowledge of these people that perhaps we didnt know before. They say such-and-such and we think "really? hmmm, thats interesting, I think I'll go check that out". Most people's fear, about people who go to talks, is fanaticism. Especially in the current climate. When everyone piles into a hall to see their favourite rock band or whatever, how come that isnt fanaticism? When people go to a lecture about the philosophy of Plato or Socrates or whoever how come that isnt fanaticism? Maybe because most people know what a rock concer is like. They know Plato et al, were some old time Greek dudes talking about abstract concepts. Do they know about Islam though? For most its an unknown. Or a misknown (is that even a word? :P). Anyway, the point is, most of us are sensible people. We can tell in most instances if someone is propagating fanatical views. We can use our innate sense of right and wrong to gauge whether the talk is of an extreme nature. "Seek knowledge, even as far as China" Isn't that what the Prophet [saw] said to his companions. Dont feel bad. Seek the knowledge sister. Please forgive me if I've made any mistakes in the above. [wlm] |
| Re: Trying too hard? |
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| Emerald |
| 04/08/04 at 23:54:05 |
| So what if they think you are trying too hard. That's the way it should be.You want knowledge and faith, you gotta go seek it even if it's at the ends of the earth. I think it's very admirable that you do go out to conferences, etc. Some people just don't care. They think just being Muslim is enough. I also think it's important to listen to scholars because without them some things just don't make sense especially if we don't know how to interpret them. Even if we did, it allows us to use our judgement wisely like in differences in schools of thought. I've learned a lesson in life and that is NEVER let people bring you down. You do what you think is right for you and your deen! |
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