Does familiarity breed contempt or fruitfulness?

Self development With Umm 'Umar

Bettering ourselves in the spiritual, social, and self-care spheres

Spiritual

VERSES TO REFRESH OUR SOULS

رَبَّنَا وَٱجْعَلْنَا مُسْلِمَيْنِ لَكَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِنَآ أُمَّةً مُّسْلِمَةً لَّكَ وَأَرِنَا مَنَاسِكَنَا وَتُبْ عَلَيْنَآ ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ ٱلتَّوَّابُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

‘Our Lord! Make us both submissive servants to You (alone), and (raise) from our progeny a community submissive (and preaching virtue and submissiveness) to You, and show us our ways of worship and turn to us with mercy, for only You are the Oft-Returning (with compassion), the Ever Merciful.

(Surah Baqarah, Aayah 128)

This duaa of Ibraheem AS, highlights the importance of duaa for our family members. As Muhammad SAW taught us by means of His hadeeth, that every man/woman is a shepherd responsible for his/her flock, part of fulfilling this responsibility is making duaa for the betterment of our families.

This month, let us make duaa for our families and all the people who mean the most to us.

Social

FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT FRUITFULNESS

So often, we forget the beauty of the ones closest to us. We are so zoomed in on them that we fail to see the bigger picture of their personalities. As I read in a saying, we are blinded by the light of those close to us, and only those further away can truly appreciate the brightness and how far reaching their light is.

Familiarity shows us the raw, unpolished aspects of a person. It may very easily sow contempt. However, this shouldn't be the case. With familiarity comes knowledge of a person. And knowledge is power. Knowing the little things about people can be the basis of bonds. Knowing the approaches of people could facilitate more fruitful relationships, and minimize misunderstandings. Knowing the temperaments of people could nurture the ability to balance personality traits for maximum success as a group.

This month, let us act like strangers to those close to us, and see how we would behave had they been a stranger, and let this be a lesson to us, not to let familiarity make us lose appreciation for people.

Self-care

LISTEN TO YOURSELF

We often ignore the letters our bodies write to us. We leave the lament of our home and our encasing in this world unread because we are distracted by so many things.

We must respect the vessel we are given to carry out our purpose in: our bodies. We must hear the call of ourselves asking for wholesomeness. We must give our bodies the sleep and health and care it deserves.

We push ourselves to the maximum, ignoring the need for regular cyclical sleep. We eat junk on the go, ignoring the body's call for wholesome nutrition. We disrespect ourselves and then complain about the symptoms we experience. We are not fair to the very body we cannot separate from our sense of self.

This month, let us consciously listen to our bodies.