Finding Jennah
I have spent a lot of my life trying to reconcile between hardship and ease. On the one hand, we are told again and again that the straight path is not easy and requires struggle and sacrifice. But on the other hand, as humans we always desire ease. What I have come to realize is that the path will always have challenges, tests and trials. There will be hardships and there will be storms. But, if Allah wills, you can be given ease *within* the hardship. The one who finds refuge in Allah, remains dry—even during the most powerful storm. Outside, it may be raining, but inside the refuge of...
Read MoreLeaving Mecca
This was the hardest talk I’ve ever had to give… Leaving Mecca By: Yasmin Mogahed When I was 17 years old, I had a dream. I dreamt that I was sitting inside a masjid and a little girl walked up to ask me a question. She asked me: “Why do people have to leave each other?” Ultimately, the question was about the nature of the dunya as a place of fleeting moments and temporary attachments…as a place where people are with you today, and leave or die tomorrow. But this reality hurts our very being because it goes against our nature. We, as humans, are made to seek, love, and...
Read MoreLooking For God
This is a piece I wrote while in the airplane… Looking for God By: Yasmin Mogahed I’ve been looking for God my whole life. I just didn’t know it. When we study those things that we all seek—in life, in a companion, in everything—we’ll find that both the believer and the atheist are actually just seeking God. See, God is the designer. Whether you’re an atheist or a believer, God is the designer of your needs, your affinities, your inclinations. And He has designed these inner drives to fit the natural order: tawheed (to seek, recognize and submit to one single...
Read MoreThat is Loyalty
When they slept, He was awake. When they broke, He held you up. When every means failed, He saved you. When all the creation left you, He remained. He always remains. Never forget when the storms pushed you to your knees and there was no one else who could help you, He carried you. When you were broken and you swore this time it couldn’t be fixed—never forget who fixed it. Never forget what He saved you from. Never forget how He put you back together. That moment when you felt helpless and alone, never forget who never left. To forget this is the greatest heedlessness. No matter who or...
Read MoreRemoving the Intruder: On Treating Love Addictions
Removing the Intruder: On Treating Love Addictions By: Yasmin Mogahed Every created thing yearns to fulfill its’ purpose. The eyes yearn to see. The ears yearn to hear. The stomach yearns to eat. The heart yearns to love. And inside every one of us is a created thing. It is a gigantic mass. It is a mass of affection, loyalty, and devotion. And it was created with a purpose. It was created to be given. But it was made to be given in a very specific way, to a very specific place. What we chose to do—or not do—with this heavy mass, determines our state in this life and the next. The drive...
Read MoreThe Lens of the Heart
If you’re facing a difficult situation or decision, be careful not to try to see with the eyes. To move only by what is seen of the outer world is the greatest deception and cause for ruin and misguidance. Close your physical eyes. And ask Allah to move your heart. It is only by the heart that you will *really* see. It is only with the heart that you will be able to see through the illusions created by pain or pleasure or fear. It is only with the lens of the heart that you will see through the creation and all created circumstance. It is only with the lens of the heart that you will...
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