How to rid oneself of flaws
All religions and universal morals (a term for atheists) are aimed at improving human nature. Islam pays major and particular attention to this aspect, and the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace and blessings be upon him) saying that “...he was sent to perfect good moral character” is the best illustration of that.
The religion of Islam consists of three parts and Ihsan (sincerity) is one of them. And the best way to practice ihsan is to study the science of tasawwuf (sufism). In fact it is tasawwuf that is aimed at correcting and improving our thoughts, and therefore our actions. This subject matter has been covered in many books, sermons, newspaper articles. Sometimes disputes arise and different parties argue whether the religion of Islam has reached the ideal in this fundamental aspect, and what is really going on with righteousness and virtues of the believers. The great minds of Islam wrote a lot and still are writing and teaching the people how to achieve success and become a person the Creator is pleased with.
The latest shining example of such teaching is the book of the venerable Sheikh Ahmad-Afandi “The Virtues of the Righteous”. It is truly a good guide for everyone.
We cannot say that we do not know the problems which are within us, nor can we complain that we do not know how to correct our flaws. The condition of a person depends on his attitude towards himself. We will definitely achieve results if we try and do our best. It is like a hardworking athlete who trains daily. Even if he does not become a champion, he will certainly be healthy, strong, vigorous and fit. And of course, a mentor is one who helps him to achieve success as rapidly as it possible.
One must benefit from every sermon he heard. They say that there was a righteous person who quickly left a meeting of scientists when he heard the words that “one needs to do what concerns him and leave that which does not concern him”. “I’ll better go and practice it!” – said the wise man. Similarly we should follow the advices we are given and perfect our moral qualities one after another. Let us remember the story of a person who used to sin by deceiving people, stealing and drinking alcohol. Once he turned to the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) for help and received the advice not to deceive. Following the advice of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), he subsequently overcame other flaws too.
On the pages of our newspaper there are a lot of necessary tips and teachings for those who are trying to work hard to improve themselves. Each of us probably has his own story about how goodness returns to the one who makes it, as well as the evil he commits.
No one denies the need for self-improvement, but for some reason we underestimate the importance of this aspect, or merely think that we still have a lot of time to get better. That may very well be true. But it is better for an athlete to do his best while he is young, for then he is more ikely to succeed. There is no one without flaws (except for saints) and, therefore, the intention to correct those flaws should be instilled in us. It is both easy and difficult at the same time, but we cannot say that it is impossible. We are able to improve ourselves by trusting in the Almighty, making efforts and relying on our friends.
AZIZ MICHIGISHEV
