Little By Little

Peace, one and all…

In Surah al-Furqan, the 25th chapter of the Quran we read the following words:

‘Have you seen [O Prophet] the one who has taken their own desires as their god? Will you then be a keeper over them?’ (Quran 25:43)

This verse occurs in the midst of a longer passage recalling the destruction of numerous ancient communities that refused to turn away from the wrong path, stubbornly clinging to their harmful ways. The Quran then turns to the Meccan establishment, connecting their transgressive behaviours to those of these earlier communities. The question the Quran is seemingly asking here is: will you also persist in your wrongdoing? Can you not see the end of such a path?

The Quran then speaks directly to the Prophet (as). Have you seen those who take their desires as their god, who allow their least whim and fancy override every other consideration, regardless of the harm it causes? Are you their keeper, their wakil? The Divine alone is our one true Guardian.

As I read this ayah on my way to work a few days ago that this is me. Right here. Right now. How often have I allowed my own agenda to come before others, to come before that moment’s most appropriate action? The Quran is speaking to me, in the deep places of my heart. If I want the Prophet’s guardianship, then I must strive against my egoic self. The nafs is a slippery customer and so the work is hard but necessary. It brought this heart relief to read the following verses:

‘Do you not see how your Lord lengthens the shade? If He had willed, He could have made it stand still – We made the sun its indicator – but We gradually draw it towards Us, little by little’ (Quran 25:45-46)

It is only by God’s light that we are able to perceive our dark half. It is only Divine mercy that allows us to act, even as we become slowly more aware of our complicity in our own problems. My own beloved teacher has repeatedly said over the years that we should ‘heal our problems with love’. The Quran says here: ‘We gradually draw it towards Us, little by little’. And so, it seems, the cure for own self-fixation is to quietly and continually turn up, to practice being present before and with our Lord. Little by little divine grace melts the ice around our hearts and brings us home.

And our last prayer is in praise of God, Sustainer of all the Worlds.

 

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