FROM THE SPIRITUAL TREE
There is a tree beside my house. I call it the 'Spiritual Tree'. I derive spiritual inspiration from it. A tree is an ever-growing being that was initially a seed possessing the potential of becoming a full-grown tree. A seed takes food from the universe around it and then grows into a tree. The same is true with spirituality, the desire for which is intrinsic to, and an integral part of, the very nature of, every human being. To realize this spirituality, Man must derive spiritual food from the universe around him. A tree converts carbon-dioxide into oxygen; a spiritual person is one who can take positive lessons from negative situations. From this perspective, a tree is an embodiment of a spiritual personality. —Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
GIFT FROM THE LORD OF THE WORLDS
THE Prophet Muhammad began his mission in Makkah in 610 CE. Then, the time came when the chieftains of Makkah compelled him to leave the city. At that time, the Prophet said to his Companions: “I was ordered to migrate to a town which will swallow other towns. It is called Yathrib, and that is Madinah”. (Sahih al-Bukhari)
What is said in this Hadith is not about the superiority of the Prophet or of the city of Madinah. Rather, it refers to a general law of God. When a person faces one-sided oppression or when something is wrongly taken away from him, such a person becomes eligible for God’s special assistance. God gives him much more than what other people have wrongly taken away from him.
A person who displays positive behaviour in the midst of negative experiences becomes eligible for God's special gift.
This special gift of God is given to the person who develops the eligibility for this gift. In these conditions of oppression, he must remain patient and non-complaining till the final limit. Under no circumstances should his sight turn away from God. He should pray for those who oppress him, and as for himself, he must always remain hopeful of succour from God.
When a person displays this kind of positive approach, it is no ordinary matter. It leads to the creation of a new sort of character within him, a character that is imbued with a desire for the well-being of his oppressors, that remains firmly established in positivity despite negative experiences, and that leaves all one’s affairs to God. Such a person’s heart is, under all circumstances, filled with spirituality. He does not react to his circumstances, but, rather, entrusts all his affairs to God to manage. It is this sort of person who is given that special gift from God that is mentioned in the above-quoted Hadith.
