
Friday Qur’an Reflections: What it Means to Be ‘Spiritual’
17 Jul 2020“O believers, obey Allah and His messengers and do not turn away from Him when you hear (His commands).” [8:20] “Do not be like those who have heard (the Messengers commands) but do not pay any attention to them.” [8:21]
It seems as though everything I come across these days relates to these verses. It has made me realize that growing closer to Him is truly that simple.
It’s easy to fall into a routine with worship and following the commands of Allah. We fast, we pray, we follow certain dietary restrictions, etc. without a second thought. Yet, when it comes to God’s commandments that are harder to follow or “controversial” we find ourselves disregarding them either completely, or not carrying them out properly as we should — hijab is a good example of this (women and men).
We have normalized a new definition of hijab that, quite frankly, does not align with the commandments of Allah. I know it’s difficult, whatever it is you’re finding difficulty in, but it is doable because He is our aid. A few verses after the ones mentioned Allah says, “Know that Allah is between a man and his heart and that before Him you will all be brought together.” [8:24]
Sometimes we think being spiritual and gaining closeness to Allah is by sitting out in nature and reading du’aa and although that is spiritually uplifting, true spirituality is one that penetrates our souls to the very core.
Real spirituality is what is the most difficult and raw, what is the most gruelling, the most tiring; that is the most effective and nothing is better than following His commandments first. May Allah make us of those who follow His commandments sincerely.