This beautiful quote from Rumi needs a moment from us to pause and reflect on. “Live life as if everything is rigged in your favor.”
It’s the ultimate expression on positivity and hope, the utterly unshakeable belief that whatever happens, has happened or will happen is the best thing that could ever have taken place. It emphatically drives home the point that the One Who wrote everything, wrote for me only that which is good for me. Scratch that — not just good for me but IDEAL, THE BEST for me.
A little pondering over this quote brings about a complete change in mindset. Let me give you an example. Let me give you an everyday example, something that you and I can easily relate to. Say you planned to go the mall, do groceries and maybe pick up a sweater you needed. But right before you leave, you get a long but important phone call (which you take against your better judgment) and then as soon as you are ready to leave your baby needs a diaper change. Then you roll your eyes and do what needs doing and then as you’re about to leave, the maintenance guys hit the doorbell for a long due plumbing job, or the neighbour drops by to share her lovely Aloo ki bhujiya with you. Long story short — the grocery doesn’t happen, the sweater isn’t bought and now it’s time for baby to nap. So the obvious reaction to this would be frustration and annoyance and a sinking feeling along the line of “I’ll never get anything done!”
On the other hand if you act like this was all rigged so you could live your absolute best life — you could think to yourself: “Thank God for that phone call! I’ve been running away from that for ages. Box ticked, needed to speak to so and so. Whew. And baby hadn’t gone since the morning, what if she’d needed a diaper change right in the middle of groceries? Oh and thank God for the leaky toilet that is now fixed — it really was getting on my nerves. And I hadn’t seen my neighbour in so long. I had no idea her mom is going through cancer. I can be there for her. Also, do I really NEED that sweater? What’s wrong with the olive green thing from two years back? And yes, I’m ordering the groceries online!”
Just a small change in how we think and suddenly we’re not frustrated anymore.
This aligns so beautifully with a hadith from our beloved Prophet Muhammed (SAWS)
عَجَبًا لِأَمْرِ الْمُؤْمِنِ إِنَّ أَمْرَهُ كُلَّهُ خَيْرٌ وَلَيْسَ ذَاكَ لِأَحَدٍ إِلَّا لِلْمُؤْمِنِ إِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ سَرَّاءُ شَكَرَ فَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَهُ وَإِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ ضَرَّاءُ صَبَرَ فَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَهُ
Wondrous is the affair of the believer for there is good for him in every matter and this is not the case with anyone except the believer. If he is happy, then he thanks Allah and thus there is good for him, and if he is harmed, then he shows patience and thus there is good for him.
Source: Sahih Muslim 2999, Grade: Sahih
As always, my beloved Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said it best. Most concise, most complete speech ever, alayhis salaat u wassalam.
As I sign off, just a quick note to say winters are approaching. Temps are cooling down and all I want is a pen and a book and some tea/coffee and endless hours to walk, write, meditate and just — be.
Watch this space. It feels like the blog and I are rekindling our relationship.