Gratitude...

Recently I've activated my Facebook account, which I've deactivated and activated a number of times, so that I could stalk on my favourite person's FB wall. ; p

On her wall, I read some postings about being grateful. There's also a video about keeping a gratitude journal. I read the comments posted on her posting and I asked myself do I want to have one? After much thinking, I said to myself "NO!". Now, does that mean I'm being negative?

The idea of having a gratitude journal is not something new. In one of the YouTube videos I've watched in 2012, Oprah talked about her own gratitude journal which she had started sixteen years earlier. She said she started by writing down five things she was grateful for and believed that acknowledging these things made her more receptive to all the goodness in her life. You can watch the YouTube video in the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzFiKRpsz8c

Well, in the first place, there's nothing wrong in keeping a gratitude journal. Indeed, it is a good idea to remind you some of the blessings God has bestowed in your daily life. Of course, you can't write every single thing you should be grateful for because you have countless blessings in life. Do you thank God by writing down 3 or 5 good things that happen in your daily life?

Why not we look at what Islam teaches us? It is my humble opinion that the idea of having this journal is limiting the deep sense of gratitude to God that we should all have in our lives. I believe there's more to it. If this is the first time you want to give it a try in training yourself to be a positive thinker, perhaps this idea of keeping a gratitude journal will work for you. I'm not a very pious person and with my limited knowledge, I know this is not something I should be commenting on. However. this is another perspective of how you can practise gratitude.

Below is the text of a Friday sermon by Majlis Agama Islam Singapura:

Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura

Friday Sermon

05 February 2016 / 26 Rabiulakhir 1437H

Understanding The True Meaning Of Gratitude

Dear brothers, we often catch ourselves saying “Alhamdulillah”. We do so as it reminds us of the concept of gratitude, and to always be grateful to Allah, The Giver. Unfortunately, at times, because of how easily we utter “Alhamdulillah” to the point that it has become habitual, we may start taking for granted the underlying concept of gratitude and its importance in lifting our spirit and developing our potential.

It is this trait that drove Rasulullah s.a.w. to wake up in the wee hours of the night and stand in prayer until his legs were swollen. And it is gratitude that gave Prophet Muhammad the strength and determination to diligently offer tahajjud prayers. In a hadith reported by Imam Muslim, Saidatina Aishah r.a. said: “The Prophet (s.a.w.) used to stand (in the prayer) or pray till both his feet or legs swelled. I asked him: “Ya Rasulullah. Why are you doing this when all your past and future sins have been forgiven?” Rasulullah then responded with an answer that should move the hardest of hearts. He said, “Should I not be a thankful slave then?”

Jemaah, let us reflect upon this hadith. Rasulullah s.a.w. has been promised Paradise and all of the privileges in the Hereafter by Allah. In other words, the Prophet s.a.w. has been promised eternal success. If we were to go by human logic, when one has been guaranteed Paradise, one can rest and relax as one does not need to worry about one’s position in the Hereafter. Hence, it is only natural for Saidatina Aishah to ask such a question.

But if we were to look at those who have acquired a special status in the sight of Allah, we would learn that their acts of worship were not done because they felt they were compelled to do so. It was also not because of their desire to earn a special place. Because if that was what they were aiming for, they would surely stop striving once they were guaranteed Paradise. However, the reason they performed their acts of worship is out of gratitude for all of the blessings that Allah has bestowed upon them. The more blessings they were given, the stronger their determination and spirit to be in worship of Allah, to bring themselves closer to The Creator. And it is such attitude that we have to instil in ourselves, for example, when we rise to perform our Friday prayers. We do so not simply because it is obligatory upon us to perform our Friday prayers, but we prostate to Allah out of gratitude; to thank Him for blessing us with health, family, iman, and sustenance. Dear jemaah, when was the last time we prostrated and said earnestly: “Ya Allah, thank you for all the blessings You have bestowed upon me!”

Beloved Jemaah,

Al-Imam Al-Ghazali in his book “Ihya Ulumuddin” gave a very interesting analogy about the three levels of gratitude. He wrote that a grateful person is similar to one who joins the king’s entourage, and the king then gives him a horse.

The first level of gratitude, which is the level felt by many, is happiness because he has received a horse that can be used as a mode of transportation, or because it is simply an extremely valuable gift. This means that even if the horse was not from the king – even if it was given by someone else or if it was found in the middle of the desert – his level of happiness will still be the same. This is an example of gratitude of the common man, where his gratitude and happiness is determined by the gift or the blessing, and not by the giver.

The second level, is felt by those who were happy to have received the horse not because of the gift itself; rather, it is because of whom the gift was from. To them, this shows that they have been given attention by the giver (in this case, the king). This level is closer to the true meaning of gratitude. This is when we remain grateful no matter the gift – or even the trial – that Allah has given to us, as it is an indication that Allah still loves us and that He has us in His sight. This is hence an indication that we learned to focus our gratitude and thankfulness to the giver, and not the gift itself. An example is when we love someone. No matter the gift that we receive, we feel happy to accept it not because of the gift itself, but because we feel appreciated by the giver.

The third level, as explained by Imam Al-Ghazali, refers to one who truly understood the meaning of gratitude. He is the one who continues to serve the king even after receiving the horse, just so that he can get closer to him. Even when the gift is withdrawn from him, as long as he is allowed to remain close to the king, he is far contented as that is his only desire. And this, my dear jemaah, is the true essence of gratitude. The more blessed we are, the more we see it as a motivation and drive for us to strive towards closeness to Allah s.w.t.

So that was it, my dear jemaah; a short introduction on the value of gratitude which we will continue to discuss for the rest of this month. May Allah make us among those who are grateful of Him, because of Him. And may Allah place us among the dwellers of Paradise who are always praising Him. Amin Ya Rabbal ‘Alamin.

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I feel, practising gratitude is more important than writing down three or five things you are grateful for in your daily life. Witnessing people whom I love and care for fighting terminal disease impacted me emotionally. Whenever I was able to do simple things which they couldn't, it hurt me deep inside, but at the same time I was also overwhelmed with the feeling of  gratitude for the ni'mah that Allah has bestowed upon me. Alhamdulillah. Let us practise dzikir. Thank Allah. 

There was a time in my life I was not able to prostrate for a year because I had an accident and fractured my spine (unstable compression fracture). It was a serious injury and I spent months at home. I could have been paralysed if the nerves were affected but Alhamdulillah, He knows the best.  The first two weeks, I was depressed because I was totally bedridden. I had to learn how to walk, simple thing which we all take for granted. The weeks at the hospital seemed long and I wonder how I could still be positive with all the negative feedback I got from the Doctor. I remember he even told me that it would be impossible for me to bend my body, what's more to prostrate again as it would only make my spine condition to be worse. I remember watching others praying and prostrating and I would pray to Allah in tears to be given the ni'mah as His servant, to be able to prostrate again. The first time I was able to prostrate again, a year after the accident, is the moment I can never forget. I felt so grateful and close to Allah. It was a long sujood. We have to be grateful in our prayer.

Be grateful for the foods and drinks that Allah has given us in abundance. We should not waste our food and eat good halal food. I realise it is a trend for some of us to take food more than we usually eat when we have buffet lunch/ dinner and then not being able to finish it. Perhaps, it's time for us to stop doing that. Instead of writing down that we're thankful for the delicious foods that God has given us, we should show that we're truly grateful by not wasting any food. 

Muhasabah, or meditate daily before we go to bed. The reflections of the day's events will make us appreciate all the good things Allah has given us. The sense of gratitude will naturally develop in us and help us to be a better person. InsyaAllah.

We should also give charity and practise kindness. It can just be exchange of smiles and kind words to lift up one's spirit or perhaps a warm hug. I believe there are many out there who are kind and doing great wonderful things in the name of humanity. If we are thankful for what we have and we share what we have with others, InsyaAllah, Allah will give us more.

No matter what happens, even when we feel everything is going wrong, we have to thank Allah and always try to be closer to Him. This reminds me of the second ayah in Surah Al Mulk, "(He)Who created death and life to test you (as to) which of you is best in deed- and He is the Exalted in Might, the Forgiving." Life is a period of the test by God and death means the time allotted for the test has come to an end. If we remember that always, things are surely going to be different in our lives.

MLPML