It becomes an obsession.
I remember travelling home with my dad from MRSM on a rainy day. My dad's the quiet type. More thinking. Not much talking. Reliable, but you won't be happy if you expect a loud and exciting time with him. But he talks a lot with me.
He was giving me one of his "talks". I don't remember what he talked about prior to what I'm going to tell you, but for the sake of reaching the understanding of what I want to share with you, I figure there's no harm in sacrificing the details.
The part of the talk that stayed with me until this day is a metaphor he described.
It goes like this:
If you're running a race against a young healthy person, you could finish the race in 25 minutes and still lose.
If you're running against an old person, you could finish the race in an hour and still win it.
The point to bring across is: the run shouldn't be about winning or losing a race in comparison with another, because what makes the winning or losing can be very subjective. It could be a motivation, yes, but not the aim.
It's about keeping track of your records and making sure your run today is faster than the day before, which in turn was faster than the day before that.
Here, the aim you want to reach plays a leading role.
Because if you aim to beat an old man in a race, you'll live your days in a way, that you'd have just enough to beat an old man.
But if you aim to be the fastest person in the world, then, training to beat an average youth is just a step you have to go through.
And now, we come to this. Obsession.
It is known than humans can obsess and become a madman, crazy over a whole lot of things: money, fame, women, grades, human approval, attention, romance and intimacy, grades, etc.
The obsession towards an aim propels you to spend each second of your waking moments thinking about it: devising, planning, plotting, working, calculating, whatever possible to be done while going about your day....Nay, even the world around you shall be part of your massive plan in reaching the aim!
Your life shall be lived to reach it, your soul shall be offered to it!
You shall be known as Majnun (the crazy one) as you lose yourself in the madness of the obsession!
....that you have not been called Majnun yet...
simply means you are not obsessed enough...that is, if you've shown any obsession... at all.
But, what happens when the obsession is directed towards a faulty aim? An aim, capable of changes, capable of weakness? An aim, hailed from creations?
And not the Creator Himself?
Know, that
No aim is greater than He, the Creator Himself.
No obsession is greater than that towards Him.
No journey is more fitting of sacrificing your time, your possessions, your soul than one to reach Him.
Creations can disappoint you. The Creator does not.
Creations may overlook your sacrifices, may leave your obsession towards them unreciprocated. But, the Creator offers you Jannah in return.
How I wish I were a Majnun...a Majnun for the One I should love the most!
Alas, what am I obsessing over, instead? What fills my mind day and night?
Oh, how I wish I were a Majnun...a Majnun for the One who loves me the most!
Then, the idea of meeting You would be so sweet, instead of bringing such a fright!
I remember travelling home with my dad from MRSM on a rainy day. My dad's the quiet type. More thinking. Not much talking. Reliable, but you won't be happy if you expect a loud and exciting time with him. But he talks a lot with me.
He was giving me one of his "talks". I don't remember what he talked about prior to what I'm going to tell you, but for the sake of reaching the understanding of what I want to share with you, I figure there's no harm in sacrificing the details.
The part of the talk that stayed with me until this day is a metaphor he described.
It goes like this:
If you're running a race against a young healthy person, you could finish the race in 25 minutes and still lose.
If you're running against an old person, you could finish the race in an hour and still win it.
The point to bring across is: the run shouldn't be about winning or losing a race in comparison with another, because what makes the winning or losing can be very subjective. It could be a motivation, yes, but not the aim.
It's about keeping track of your records and making sure your run today is faster than the day before, which in turn was faster than the day before that.
Here, the aim you want to reach plays a leading role.
Because if you aim to beat an old man in a race, you'll live your days in a way, that you'd have just enough to beat an old man.
But if you aim to be the fastest person in the world, then, training to beat an average youth is just a step you have to go through.
And now, we come to this. Obsession.
It is known than humans can obsess and become a madman, crazy over a whole lot of things: money, fame, women, grades, human approval, attention, romance and intimacy, grades, etc.
The obsession towards an aim propels you to spend each second of your waking moments thinking about it: devising, planning, plotting, working, calculating, whatever possible to be done while going about your day....Nay, even the world around you shall be part of your massive plan in reaching the aim!
Your life shall be lived to reach it, your soul shall be offered to it!
You shall be known as Majnun (the crazy one) as you lose yourself in the madness of the obsession!
....that you have not been called Majnun yet...
simply means you are not obsessed enough...that is, if you've shown any obsession... at all.
"So remind [O Muhammad], for you are not, by the favor of your Lord, a soothsayer or a madman." At-Tur:29
But, what happens when the obsession is directed towards a faulty aim? An aim, capable of changes, capable of weakness? An aim, hailed from creations?
And not the Creator Himself?
Know, that
No aim is greater than He, the Creator Himself.
No obsession is greater than that towards Him.
No journey is more fitting of sacrificing your time, your possessions, your soul than one to reach Him.
Creations can disappoint you. The Creator does not.
Creations may overlook your sacrifices, may leave your obsession towards them unreciprocated. But, the Creator offers you Jannah in return.
How I wish I were a Majnun...a Majnun for the One I should love the most!
Alas, what am I obsessing over, instead? What fills my mind day and night?
Oh, how I wish I were a Majnun...a Majnun for the One who loves me the most!
Then, the idea of meeting You would be so sweet, instead of bringing such a fright!
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