If a horseback rider pressures his\nride and rushes to reach his destination faster, his ride will not make it\nalong the way. Such a rider will be left\nfar away from his destination with an ill ride. \nThis is our life story. The path\nahead of us is the path of servitude, and the ride which Allah (SWT) has loaned\nus is our bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It has been narrated from Imam Sadiq\n(PBUH): \u201cA Muslim had a Christian neighbor, which they would stay in\ncontact. He gradually invited the\nChristian to accept Islam, and eventually he did. The Christian converted to Islam and learned\nthe manners of praying and ablution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The first night as a Muslim he was\nsleeping when he was awakened by a knock at the door. Startled he got up to see who it was. It was his Muslim neighbor. The convert\nopened the door and asked if everything was all right. The Muslim man said,\n\u201cHaven\u2019t you converted to Islam? A Muslim must awake in the late evening to\nattend the mosque and recite the Nafela\n(recommended) Prayers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The new Muslim made his ablution and\naccompanied his friend to the mosque. They recited the Nafela prayers, and the\nnew Muslim said, \u201cwell let\u2019s leave then.\u201d The Muslim neighbor said, \u201cno we must\nawait the Fajr prayer.\u201d They waited and then prayed the Fajr prayer. The\nneighbor said, \u201cwell are we done?\u201d The neighbor replied: \u201cIt is better that a\nperson stays in the mosque until the sun rises, as this matter can increase a\nperson\u2019s wealth.\u201d The poor man sat there with his friend until the sun came up.\nThe older Muslim pulled on the former Christian\u2019s garment to urge him to stay\nand recite Quran until the Noon prayer, to recite the prayer in congregation.\nHe said, \u201cDon\u2019t you know that a Muslim in the mosque is as a fish in water, in\nthat it does not feel tired from swimming in the water.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the Noon and Afternoon prayer,\nthe older Muslim urged the former Christian to stay until the night prayer.\nThey finally left after the Isha (night) prayer. The poor new Muslim went back\nto his house and slept. He was still tired from the previous day when he heard\na knock on his door. He went to the door and heard his neighbor say, \u201cLet\u2019s go\nto the mosque.\u201d The former Christian said, \u201cDear friend, this religion of yours\nneeds an idle working person. I have work to do and cannot live with your\nreligion. I will return to my own religion!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Imam Sadiq (PBUH) said, \u201cThe same man\nwho made this Christian Muslim, made him an unbeliever!\u201d(1)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are so many people who when it\ncomes to religion and worship, they make themselves suffer with the thought to\nreach their destination faster. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
They sleep much less than they can\nhandle; they do extra fasting and praying, and end up missing their obligations\nsuch as studying, research, work, and income. The religion has not ordered as such,\nfaith has asked for moderation in all areas. In other words, we should not\nleave the recommended acts entirely, nor should we become so engaged with them\nthat we miss out on our life responsibilities. Every person must act\naccordingly to their manner of living, and perform that which he can from the\nrecommended acts in a way that it does not prevent him from his obligations in\nlife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Along these lines Imam Ali (PBUH) has\nsaid, \u201cAct in moderation in worship and in life.\u201d(2)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(The above is\nselection taken from \u201cThe Final Messenger, the Endless Mercy\u201d by Ayatollah\nSayyed Muhammad Zia Abadi (with minor changes))<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Roshd Website congratulates all\nMuslims, especially you dear friend, on the 17th of Rabi\u2019ul Awwal, the birth\nanniversary of Imam Sadiq (PBUH), the fountain of knowledge, and the\nmanifestation of divine commandments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Footnotes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1. Wasa\u2019il\nal-Shia, Kitab al-Amr bi al-Ma\u2019rouf, Baab 14, Hadith 3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2. Bihar\nal-Anwaar, vol. 42, p. 203<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
If a horseback rider pressures his ride and rushes to reach his destination faster, his ride will not make it along the way. Such a rider will be left far away from his destination with an ill ride. This is our life story. The path ahead of us is the path of servitude, and the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28248],"tags":[18520,19,21555,20151,18204,22,21556,17976,18418,18207,21554,21553],"class_list":["post-4403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-occasional-letters","tag-2013-01-29","tag-christian","tag-horseback","tag-imam-sadiq","tag-muslim","tag-muslims","tag-neighbor","tag-night","tag-occasion-letters","tag-prayer","tag-rider","tag-the-path-of-moderation"],"yoast_head":"\n