This is how we end the journey, by going back to the beginning of it and realizing that the journey is circular and intertwined; and every thing that we discussed is not actually layer, one step after the other, but all of these steps are interconnected…

When Allah blesses people’s lives, they achieve so much in such a little time because there is blessing in their times. If you look at the lives of the companions around the Prophet Muhammad and how much they achieve in twenty years, they changed the course of history and they built a civilization that is unique in human history.

In this step of the journey, we would like to raise our ranks one step by being humble. Allah Almighty had given warnings in the Quran about something that is called Al Kibr, or pride, when you have the false pride, not the positive side of pride…

In this stage of the journey, Allah will manage your providence (rizq); He will manage what He gives you because He would like to give you what is enough for you, not what will make you go wrong.

People’s praise could be very dangerous because they could affect your intention. If your intention is to be raised and liked and so forth, then this would impact your niyyah (intend) when you do something good. And perhaps when people start to praise you…

What’s the first thing that comes to mind and the first step of anything I do in the morning? Do I wake up in the morning and pray? Or do I wake up in the morning and I am just busy with the world; am I running after what I’d like to do in the world?

When you worship Allah (SWT) what is the quality? Are you bored while you are worshiping Allah (SWT)? Or are you achieving the higher quality of worship, which is to establish the worship, not just to do the prayer? He (SWT) has ways of making us raise…

If the blessing is taking me away from Allah, then it is not a blessing. It’s something I consider a bounty but is not a bounty; it’s something that is harmful to me. And if the harm is taking me closer to Allah, then it is not a harm, it is actually a gift.

If you thank Allah Almighty, then you tie the bounties and the blessings to you firmly. Thanking Allah is not limited to saying ‘Alhamdulillah’, or ‘I thank you God’. Thanking Allah is most importantly by working good deeds, by action.

This is an inspiration behind this word of wisdom. You see a lot in today’s world, unfortunately in the corporate world and corporate culture, where people are kind of enslaved because they work somewhere.