“If you want to strengthen your faith, you will need to soften inside. For your faith to be rock solid, your heart needs to be as soft as a feather. Through an illness, an accident, a loss, or a fright, one way or another, we are all faced with incidents that teach us how to […]
“This life is a transient one, and this world is nothing but a sketchy imitation of Reality. Only children would mistake a toy for the real thing. And yet human beings either become infatuated with the toy or disrespectfully break it and throw it away. In this life, stay away from all kinds of extremities, […]
“No matter what happens in your life, no matter how unsettling things may seem, do not fall into despair. Even if all doors remain closed, God will open a new path just for you. Be grateful! It is easy to be grateful when everything is fine. A Sufi is grateful not only for what he […]
“Patience does not mean to passively endure. It means to be farsighted enough to trust the end result of a process. What does patience mean? It means to look at the thorn and see the rose, to look at the night and see the dawn. Impatience means to be so shortsighted as to be unable […]
“East, west, south, or north makes little difference. No matter what your destination, just be sure to make every journey a journey within. If you travel within, you will travel the whole wide world and beyond.” — Elif Shafak, “The Forty Rules of Love”
“Try not to resist the changes that come your way. Instead, let life live through you. And do not worry that your life is turning upside down. How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come?” — Elif Shafak, “The Forty Rules of Love”
“Fret not where the road will take you. Instead, concentrate on the first step. That is the hardest part and that is what you are responsible for. Once you take that step, let everything do what it naturally does and the rest will follow. Do not go with the flow. Be the flow.” — Elif […]
“It is easy to love a perfect God, unblemished and infallible as He is. It is far more difficult to love fellow human beings with all their imperfections and defects. Remember, one can only know what one is capable of loving. There is no wisdom without love. Unless we learn to love God’s creation, we […]
“While everyone in this world is striving to get somewhere and become someone, only to leave it all behind after death, you aim for the supreme stage of nothingness. Live this life as light and empty as the number zero. We are no different from a pot. It is not the decorations outside but the […]
“You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore. You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days. Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God. But let there be spaces in your togetherness, And let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one […]
“*The most important factor to bear in mind when we try to understand a relationship is the sad fact that people lie. They lie to themselves, to their family and friends, to their spouse and beloved, and often even to their God! They often see themselves, as well as the relationship they are in, through […]
“We must understand that evolution is achieved through conflict. Criticism, dispute, differences in opinions and ideas are catalysts. The essence of harmony does not mean the blissful ideal we imagine to exist in the ‘perfect relationship.’ Bliss is not growth. It comes at times, as a result of struggle. Harmony can coexist with the contradiction […]
