On the real...
I've been thinking about something for a while as we move through this program. I wonder, for the fellows who do believe in the Prophet Muhammad, pbuh**, do you see what we are doing as an extension of the work that he did during his time? Think about that for a minute...
I definitely do. I imagine what his opinion would be of what I am doing and if he were alive this day and age, living my shoes, would he be doing the same thing? And I really want for that to be the case. That would be the ultimate test of whether what we are doing is up to par or not. AND THEN this line of thought led me down:
M
E
M
O
R
Y
LANE.
Flasbacks of what ideas I had in high school and the beginning of my college career returned to me, how I had such negative feelings towards the Prophet, pbuh. I was embarrassed to talk about him because what I had known of him was really negative. I thought he, pbuh, was a womanizer and that he helped cause women to be oppressed. I looked around me and all of the oppression of women; I attributed it to him. Why did I think this? Some of you can guess-- just look at the stories that our media and news tells us about Islam and the Prophet, pbuh. Think of the Islamophobes (including some of my school teachers) and people who are ignorant of Islam and what they often promote about him. All the crap had invaded me and corrupted the image of a person who I actually had completely misunderstood. It took a while but I came around. One of the biggest gamechangers for me when it came to how I thought about the Prophet, pbuh, was when I heard this story. The Prophet, pbuh, was crying and God sent the angel Gabriel to ask why Muhammad, pbuh, was crying (although God, of course knew) and Muhammad pbuh explained that it was for those of us who were going to come and live after him. He'd cry out of fear and in compassion for us and what we would face. God informed the Prophet pbuh that he could intercede for us on the Day of Judgement.
This shocked me. What forethought and concern this man had to have for me and all of you? This is what he spent his time doing? Seriously? IT takes SO MUCH for me to cry about my family and friends-- people I love and see everyday of my life but I RARELY will shed one tear for a person I don't know especially for someone who will live 1500 years after I die. Learning this shook me and it was just the beginning of a journey to better understanding and eventually having mad love for our beloved Prophet, pbuh. That's why I hope that the work we are doing in this fellowship is in line with what he would want for all of us.
I know some of you don't really dig on him or could care less for him, pbuh, but I hope that changes. Let me know if you want to work on changing that :)
** this stands for "peace be upon him." It's part of the Muslim tradition to wish peace and blessings upon our Final Prophet when his name is mentioned.