Thought Dominion

Short article inspired by Omar Sulayman, a recent friday khutbah, and a friend. Don't think about the size of the sin. Think about the One who you're disobeying. Allah always observes you. How dare you do in front of Him what you'd be ashamed to reveal to others? Is your Lord the lowest of your observers? How dare you disobey the One who gave you the hands and eyes you sin with? Are you not grateful? Are you not afraid He will take your life right now and punish you with a torment you can't even imagine? As humans, it's expected to slip up and indulge in sin occasionally. Maybe even frequently. But we must regret sinning everytime we do so. The sin must cause pain in your soul. Allah can forgive serial murderers if they repent. But your "minor sin" may cause eternal torment for you if you do not regret it. The video I based most of this article on:  https://youtu.be/i7g1t0AC72c

The essence of man is forgetfulness. No matter how great or important a memory is, it will slowly disappear even in healthy people. Unless the person is reminded. The antidote of forgetfulness is reminders. That is why we keep albums and photos. That is why we review before finals. That is why we use sticky notes for daily tasks. That is why it is so important to do ibadah, especially the five daily prayers and reading Quran. Ultimately, man also forgets about Allah. All of mankind acknowledged Allah as their Lord before this world, but the majority have forgotten. Even Muslims forget from time to time. Sin and discontent result from this forgetfulness: sin comes when man forgets Allah is watching, and discontent results from forgetting Allah's promise of eternal happiness in the next life. Thus, we constantly need to remind ourselves that Allah is indeed the Lord of everything, that He is watching, that He will judge us. Regular dhikr and ibadah are very effective...

Ojek. The Indonesian term for "motorcycle taxis". Now upgraded to "ojek online". Download an app, press a button, and your two-wheeled taxi is here to take you anywhere you wish! One of the more subtle benefits is being able to relax on the road. Driving a motorcycle is physically and mentally straining, having to constantly scan the road and manuever through traffic. On an ojek, I only have to not fall off. I even close my eyes frequently, limiting my awareness and trusting the driver to do his job. In any case, he's in complete control of the vehicle I'm on, so no use scanning the road as if I were driving. Thus, I do not get tired on the road, which helps me to be healthy and productive. Now, why do we not trust our lives to Allah? Most stressed people are worried about what they can't control. They think of the negative possibilities that could result, even when they can't do anything. But is it not better to have faith that our ...

A worrying mindset nowadays is how people are satisfied with the bare minimum in their religion. Just praying 5 times a day and such. I've already covered in my previous article why we should never feel safe with our current deeds, so here I will talk about two more positive aspects: effort and gratitude.  Firstly, no one's scale of deeds is enough to enter Jannah without Allah's Mercy. Rather, it is effort that really counts. Allah says many times that the shortcomings of the believers will be forgiven and their efforts appreciated.  On the one hand, this shows that a believer who tries his best will be granted Allah's Mercy, even if his or her actual deeds may not seem much. On the other hand, this is a warning to not slack off. One with many opportunities to do good may be questioned and perhaps punished if he doesn't take them.  Only Allah can properly judge efforts between people. However, we know what our capacity is. So strive to please ...

"He prays 5 times a day in the mosque." "She wears a very modest Islamic dress and headscarf". "He never backbites or lies." Never be satisfied with the deeds you do or the sins you don't!  It could also be your deeds are diminished or not even accepted due to a critical mistake, showing off, or arrogance. It may be that you aren't avoiding the sin completely. Like laughing at a derogatory joke, or being silent when you should've revealed the truth. And are you completely sin-free? If you pat yourself on the back thinking you're religious, you risk incurring Allah's Wrath! Do you really believe your deeds are enough? Do you think yourself alim just because you seem better than those around you? Know that our deeds will be judged by Allah, not by those people! Fear you will be asked why you never sought knowledge. Fear you will be asked why you didn't apply your knowledge. Fear you will be asked...

Humans need timeouts. That's what entertainment is for: to reenergize and become happier through an enjoyable activity. For a good mood makes you more  active and helpful. So if some entertainment makes you lazy, it's not a good mood booster. What is this kind of entertainment except a complete waste of time? This problem arises when the entertainment becomes addictive, such that we become depressed outside of it. This is more prevalent nowadays with the plethora of choices to "kill time". Addictive entertainment isn't limited to a single type: it could be a tv series, console game, or social media. Even sports and reading can, in excess, cause one to neglect and/or hate their duties. Just a side note: hobbies are a special form of entertainment which develop oneself. A good example is reading, particularly of deep topics or with complex vocabulary. Sports are also healthy hobbies. Thus, try to take up hobbies as entertainment rather than consumin...

There are a number of reasons why I chose to delay my Master's degree. Amongst them are applying for better universities and degrees, searching out my passion/talents at work, and building my experience and analytic skills. But a huge reason is my fear of being substandard in my religion and personality. I fear the return of my previous bad habits, like hours wasted daily on entertainment and not having much taqwa. I also feel I lacked in good habits too: almost never did tahajjud, had a minimal connection to quran, and didn't follow daily/weekly routines regularly. It's not unlikely that Allah will be quite displeased with my throwing away my potential if I continue like that. Now in Indonesia, having just left ramadhan and with my parents around, I remember Allah a lot more. I constantly lower my eyes, waste little time on entertainment, and regularly (somewhat) read and memorize the Quran. My daily routine has become much more regular, and I've returned ...