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Gratitude: Making Sense of Life
‘I discovered that with gratitude, comes abundance which further increased my gratefulness to Allah.’
Life is a myriad of blessings and abundance that comes from the One and Only God, Allah. We might often overlook these blessings due to distractions. We compare ourselves to others, we question the trials and tribulations that we face – the ‘why me?’ question. We even question Allah’s decree to us.
We forget to be grateful to Him yet He constantly showers us with His Immense Mercy.
Coupled with thematic artworks of the day and night event, this book captures the author’s personal reflection on honing the act of gratitude as a way of life. Each metaphorical chapter serves as a reminder that from Allah we come, and to Him we return; in every situation, whether the best or the worst.
Life is a myriad of blessings and abundance that comes from the One and Only God, Allah. We might often overlook these blessings due to distractions. We compare ourselves to others, we question the trials and tribulations that we face – the ‘why me?’ question. We even question Allah’s decree to us.
We forget to be grateful to Him yet He constantly showers us with His Immense Mercy.
Coupled with thematic artworks of the day and night event, this book captures the author’s personal reflection on honing the act of gratitude as a way of life. Each metaphorical chapter serves as a reminder that from Allah we come, and to Him we return; in every situation, whether the best or the worst.
- GenresNonfictionSelf Help
184 pages, Paperback
First published May 24, 2023
8 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
July 17, 2023
Seseorang boleh memiliki segalanya dan masih berasa seperti mereka tidak mempunyai apa-apa. Seseorang juga boleh tidak mempunyai apa-apa namun tetap gembira dengan apa yang mereka ada. Apakah yang menyumbang kepada dua situasi ini?
A simple yet magic word, gratitude. Perasaan berterima kasih dengan segala yang kita punya dan fokus dalam apa yang baik dalam kehidupan kita. Tidak memandang kepada perkara negatif atau yang kita tiada secara keterlaluan sehingga menjadikan kita hilang rasa cukup dengan apa yang ada.
"Being grateful and how they impact your life and your heart. It is time for you to witness how gratitude can help you make sense of your life, by Allah's grace."
Buku ini penuh dengan kata-kata nasihat daripada penulis mengenai gratitude berdasarkan refleksi peribadinya. Penulis bercerita mengenai kesihatan dirinya dan bagaimana hidup beliau lebih daripada sekadar penyakit. Bagaimana kita yang tidak punya segalanya harus berterima kasih dan sedar bahawa segala yang kita ada adalah yang terbaik buat kita.
There are too many take-home messages from this book. Nevertheless, these two messages hit me differently; I can relate much.
"Never take anyone for granted because they can be taken away or separated from us when we least expect it, in the most unimaginable ways."
My stepmother, Mama, had been hospitalized when I was reading this book, and Mama passed away last Friday, July 14. Never we thought that Mama was leaving us in such a short time. Allah loves Mama more, and we trust Allah's plan is the best. Semoga arwah Mama ditempatkan dikalangan orang yang beriman. Ameen. Al Fatihah.
"Use our time well. Never waste a single moment by procrastinating and being lazy. We need to be "stingy with our time; it is priceless. It is our life."
We think we have time, but actually, we don't. Time waits for none, and it moves on so quickly. We don't realize until the situation compels us.
Gratitude: Making Sense of Life merupakan sebuah naskhah yang datang tepat pada masanya. Terima kasih penulis kerana berkongsi rasa dan memberikan ruang pada kita untuk mempelajari satu perkara yang penting dalam memberi makna kehidupan 🤍
instagram.com/siriusiqa
A simple yet magic word, gratitude. Perasaan berterima kasih dengan segala yang kita punya dan fokus dalam apa yang baik dalam kehidupan kita. Tidak memandang kepada perkara negatif atau yang kita tiada secara keterlaluan sehingga menjadikan kita hilang rasa cukup dengan apa yang ada.
"Being grateful and how they impact your life and your heart. It is time for you to witness how gratitude can help you make sense of your life, by Allah's grace."
Buku ini penuh dengan kata-kata nasihat daripada penulis mengenai gratitude berdasarkan refleksi peribadinya. Penulis bercerita mengenai kesihatan dirinya dan bagaimana hidup beliau lebih daripada sekadar penyakit. Bagaimana kita yang tidak punya segalanya harus berterima kasih dan sedar bahawa segala yang kita ada adalah yang terbaik buat kita.
There are too many take-home messages from this book. Nevertheless, these two messages hit me differently; I can relate much.
"Never take anyone for granted because they can be taken away or separated from us when we least expect it, in the most unimaginable ways."
My stepmother, Mama, had been hospitalized when I was reading this book, and Mama passed away last Friday, July 14. Never we thought that Mama was leaving us in such a short time. Allah loves Mama more, and we trust Allah's plan is the best. Semoga arwah Mama ditempatkan dikalangan orang yang beriman. Ameen. Al Fatihah.
"Use our time well. Never waste a single moment by procrastinating and being lazy. We need to be "stingy with our time; it is priceless. It is our life."
We think we have time, but actually, we don't. Time waits for none, and it moves on so quickly. We don't realize until the situation compels us.
Gratitude: Making Sense of Life merupakan sebuah naskhah yang datang tepat pada masanya. Terima kasih penulis kerana berkongsi rasa dan memberikan ruang pada kita untuk mempelajari satu perkara yang penting dalam memberi makna kehidupan 🤍
instagram.com/siriusiqa
June 6, 2023
I read this in one seating and best believe, as someone who really does not read a lot of self-help books, this one was actually not bad per say; and it felt like the author was talking to us readers in a sense that made me rethink back a lot of things that have passed in my life.
Gratitude felt like the author is making sense of something that is so trivial ; which is just, accepting sometimes that there are things that are meant to be and that God has ways in making us humans go through things in a certain way in this life to make us stronger and more so- closer to him. The book was short and concise, and I liked that the author had wrote her experiences in ways that didn't feel condescending , in fact, she wrote it in such a matter-of-fact way, that it made me change back some ways that I look at things and changed my perspectives in some views in life.
I think one of the biggest things that made me liked the book was the fact that I could relate to the author's tribulation in sickness. Whilst mine is in a totally different way than hers, it felt like I was actually seen and heard the first time. Its so hard to be grateful and not angry to God when something bad happens to you. You'll blame fate to try to make yourself feel better, and I liked that , the author just gave an ayat in the Quran and showed how , in sickness and in health, God is always there with us. Its just the matter of us to want to find it or not that actually matters.
I feel that this book is like a reminder to us, especially if you're a Muslim that is picking up this book, that there are times that being human means being angry with everyone including God, but is also reflecting back that everything happens for a reason, and that there's so much more to life than just being angry. Acceptance is hard, and yet, if we practice gratitude, not just to the people around us, but most importantly, our own self, we will get the sense of gratification that we seek in this world and in the here after.
Quite an interesting read that I finished in one seating. It showed me that there's more to the world than just your anger and your frustrations. There's joy of your family, the love that you didn't think you deserved, and mostly, of yourself that is still alive. And that, is what I feel that matters most.
Personal Ratings : 4.25🌟
“You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore before you decide to be happy”
Gratitude felt like the author is making sense of something that is so trivial ; which is just, accepting sometimes that there are things that are meant to be and that God has ways in making us humans go through things in a certain way in this life to make us stronger and more so- closer to him. The book was short and concise, and I liked that the author had wrote her experiences in ways that didn't feel condescending , in fact, she wrote it in such a matter-of-fact way, that it made me change back some ways that I look at things and changed my perspectives in some views in life.
I think one of the biggest things that made me liked the book was the fact that I could relate to the author's tribulation in sickness. Whilst mine is in a totally different way than hers, it felt like I was actually seen and heard the first time. Its so hard to be grateful and not angry to God when something bad happens to you. You'll blame fate to try to make yourself feel better, and I liked that , the author just gave an ayat in the Quran and showed how , in sickness and in health, God is always there with us. Its just the matter of us to want to find it or not that actually matters.
I feel that this book is like a reminder to us, especially if you're a Muslim that is picking up this book, that there are times that being human means being angry with everyone including God, but is also reflecting back that everything happens for a reason, and that there's so much more to life than just being angry. Acceptance is hard, and yet, if we practice gratitude, not just to the people around us, but most importantly, our own self, we will get the sense of gratification that we seek in this world and in the here after.
Quite an interesting read that I finished in one seating. It showed me that there's more to the world than just your anger and your frustrations. There's joy of your family, the love that you didn't think you deserved, and mostly, of yourself that is still alive. And that, is what I feel that matters most.
Personal Ratings : 4.25🌟
July 21, 2023
Gratitude: Making Sense of Life stressed on being grateful in your life. Being grateful towards Allah SWT. Being grateful for Allah blessings regardless of our gratefulness or lack thereof.
Not just that, the author also reminded us human to be kind to others and to be sincere and thank people. In addition, the author also shared about how we need to be patient for everything that happened regardless it’s good or bad. And being grateful towards Allah SWT is vital.
I never knew that I needed this book at this point. I love every chapter and all the things the author shared about gratitude. Maybe it’s not easy to share her experiences but I thank Allah and thank the author that she shares them with all of us and I learned a lot of good things from this book.
Sometimes, we all need reminders and advices from others. Sometimes we forget to be grateful to Him ye He constantly showers us with His Immence Mercy.
I highly recommended this book to everyone. I read this when I was feeling down and it helped me a lot to stay positive and trust that Allah has planned everything for me. He knows best.
Thank you, Puteh Press for sending Gratitude: Making Sense of Life for me to review.
Not just that, the author also reminded us human to be kind to others and to be sincere and thank people. In addition, the author also shared about how we need to be patient for everything that happened regardless it’s good or bad. And being grateful towards Allah SWT is vital.
I never knew that I needed this book at this point. I love every chapter and all the things the author shared about gratitude. Maybe it’s not easy to share her experiences but I thank Allah and thank the author that she shares them with all of us and I learned a lot of good things from this book.
Sometimes, we all need reminders and advices from others. Sometimes we forget to be grateful to Him ye He constantly showers us with His Immence Mercy.
I highly recommended this book to everyone. I read this when I was feeling down and it helped me a lot to stay positive and trust that Allah has planned everything for me. He knows best.
Thank you, Puteh Press for sending Gratitude: Making Sense of Life for me to review.
August 11, 2024
“When we make gratitude a part of our life, it becomes more meaningful and an abundance and rewards await us. Gratitude help us learn to embrace our life instead of always trying to escape it. Gratitude is what balances our hopes and fears.”
💭 It reminds me to feel grateful and actually say that I’m grateful for the things that I have, that Allah had blessed me with. Even though I’ve been through one of the worst phase in my life, thinking back about it, when Allah tested us with something until the point we felt crushed and crumbled, he must’ve really loved us. He wanted to mold us into something stronger.
💭 I love the reminders in chapter 8, “Islam is not just a religion it is a way of living a complete programme for humankind to live harmoniously with themselves and others, including the environment and ecosystem. Islam advocates balance and moderations in all affairs of men.“ Basically, this chapter reminds us not to waste resources, live selfishly and in extravagant. History has told us Rasulullah would mend his sandals and patch his garments on his own. If Rasulullah can live such a humble life, why not us? His humbleness and gratefulness towards Allah should be the best exemplary to us.
💭 This book is smartly written with each chapters perfectly curated with Qur’an verses, hadith, stunning illustrations and also words of reflections to ponder upon.
💭 It reminds me to feel grateful and actually say that I’m grateful for the things that I have, that Allah had blessed me with. Even though I’ve been through one of the worst phase in my life, thinking back about it, when Allah tested us with something until the point we felt crushed and crumbled, he must’ve really loved us. He wanted to mold us into something stronger.
💭 I love the reminders in chapter 8, “Islam is not just a religion it is a way of living a complete programme for humankind to live harmoniously with themselves and others, including the environment and ecosystem. Islam advocates balance and moderations in all affairs of men.“ Basically, this chapter reminds us not to waste resources, live selfishly and in extravagant. History has told us Rasulullah would mend his sandals and patch his garments on his own. If Rasulullah can live such a humble life, why not us? His humbleness and gratefulness towards Allah should be the best exemplary to us.
💭 This book is smartly written with each chapters perfectly curated with Qur’an verses, hadith, stunning illustrations and also words of reflections to ponder upon.
March 21, 2024
I bought this book out of pure interest and immense admiration for the author’s passion in discussing the meaning of gratitude in depths after attending a book tour in which her book was featured. It has been a year since a tragedy had occurred in my life when it happened and in a sense, I was still grappling with gratitude as a whole.
Some days I express my gratitudes in ways that I could despite it being only a small gesture or even the barest of minimum such as a text to let the people around me knew that I appreciate them for being in my life. After all that had happened, upon retrospect, indeed I had been ungrateful of my blessings. And yet some days I wonder if I had forced that feeling of gratitude upon myself to take away the pain—some sort of reverse psychology (?) thing I am enforcing to my own self? Or was it truly pure gratitude that I was feeling, expressing?
This book talks of that and more. I especially love how aside from discussing on gratitude as a whole, the author too shared verses from the Holy Quran, phrases from Prophet Muhammad PBUH, and hadith (sahih) that accompanied the subtopics as well as how comforting it is to be reminded that gratitude too is a way to serve Him as a muslim to which we are blessed with His love and His never ending grace. Gratitude is more than just thanking Him for all of His blessings upon us. It is through our daily routine, our good deeds. He bless upon us rizq and sharing it with others too is a form of gratitude. Being grateful is more easy than one might think and yet also still is a complicated task for oneself to be. It takes commitment, self-awareness and realisation for one to truly feel that wave of gratitude upon all of His blessings, even the challenges He may have given us now and in the future.
It is important that we rely to Allah S.W.T and our religion in order to be the best muslim we can be. Although I am still working on being a better muslim myself (baby steps people!), He is the often forgiving. Although time is of the essence, we have plenty of time to return back to Him. To repent. To be more grateful of His blessings upon us in which he gave to us daily despite us humans forgetting Him as we indulge in dunya and its pleasures. And this is something in which you can read further in this book if you get your hands on it.
During the book tour, Ummu Ahmadain’s passion and wisdom that was imparted regarding gratitude mirrored her writing perfectly well. She spoke a teacher’s voice both in the book and in real life. Speaking from her own personal trials and tribulations in this life, she is sharing lessons in which we often tend to forget or be oblivious of as we go about our day. Our happiness and pleasures can be taken away in a blink of an eye if He wills it. Our lifetime’s made to serve Him. To devote ourselves to Him despite the hardships as He is the one who can bring us the peace we so deeply desire. I have never thought of it this way before as a science major myself but the author said something about wondering of the creation of foetus/human being is the first step into understanding His blessings and afterwards gratitude will then be implemented. It’s such a basic concept and yet indeed no other analogy fits better than this, than beginning of it all.
I am still a human after all, bound to make mistakes upon mistakes in which He has written my path for me since the very beginning of time. But with all my might, I shall try my best to be grateful of every little thing in my life. If some days I forget, I pray to Him that He guides me back to the right path. To Him. Serving Him as a humble servant in many humanly possible ways I could in both my ibadah and in my daily routine. This book has made me ponder of so much that had happened in my life. Giving me a fresh new perspective in situations where I thought the pain shall never subside. Then again, He knows all and He knows best. Whatever it is that happens in my life be it of the past and the present, I put my trust in Him always 🤍
To my fellow readers especially my muslim brothers and sisters, do pick this book up at your own leisure. Read it, digest it, interpret it as you will. It is an essential read in rediscovering the meaning of life through the simple act of gratitude—something we meek humans tend to overlook at times. Time to refresh and broaden our perspective and understanding of it more deeply 💌
Some days I express my gratitudes in ways that I could despite it being only a small gesture or even the barest of minimum such as a text to let the people around me knew that I appreciate them for being in my life. After all that had happened, upon retrospect, indeed I had been ungrateful of my blessings. And yet some days I wonder if I had forced that feeling of gratitude upon myself to take away the pain—some sort of reverse psychology (?) thing I am enforcing to my own self? Or was it truly pure gratitude that I was feeling, expressing?
This book talks of that and more. I especially love how aside from discussing on gratitude as a whole, the author too shared verses from the Holy Quran, phrases from Prophet Muhammad PBUH, and hadith (sahih) that accompanied the subtopics as well as how comforting it is to be reminded that gratitude too is a way to serve Him as a muslim to which we are blessed with His love and His never ending grace. Gratitude is more than just thanking Him for all of His blessings upon us. It is through our daily routine, our good deeds. He bless upon us rizq and sharing it with others too is a form of gratitude. Being grateful is more easy than one might think and yet also still is a complicated task for oneself to be. It takes commitment, self-awareness and realisation for one to truly feel that wave of gratitude upon all of His blessings, even the challenges He may have given us now and in the future.
It is important that we rely to Allah S.W.T and our religion in order to be the best muslim we can be. Although I am still working on being a better muslim myself (baby steps people!), He is the often forgiving. Although time is of the essence, we have plenty of time to return back to Him. To repent. To be more grateful of His blessings upon us in which he gave to us daily despite us humans forgetting Him as we indulge in dunya and its pleasures. And this is something in which you can read further in this book if you get your hands on it.
During the book tour, Ummu Ahmadain’s passion and wisdom that was imparted regarding gratitude mirrored her writing perfectly well. She spoke a teacher’s voice both in the book and in real life. Speaking from her own personal trials and tribulations in this life, she is sharing lessons in which we often tend to forget or be oblivious of as we go about our day. Our happiness and pleasures can be taken away in a blink of an eye if He wills it. Our lifetime’s made to serve Him. To devote ourselves to Him despite the hardships as He is the one who can bring us the peace we so deeply desire. I have never thought of it this way before as a science major myself but the author said something about wondering of the creation of foetus/human being is the first step into understanding His blessings and afterwards gratitude will then be implemented. It’s such a basic concept and yet indeed no other analogy fits better than this, than beginning of it all.
I am still a human after all, bound to make mistakes upon mistakes in which He has written my path for me since the very beginning of time. But with all my might, I shall try my best to be grateful of every little thing in my life. If some days I forget, I pray to Him that He guides me back to the right path. To Him. Serving Him as a humble servant in many humanly possible ways I could in both my ibadah and in my daily routine. This book has made me ponder of so much that had happened in my life. Giving me a fresh new perspective in situations where I thought the pain shall never subside. Then again, He knows all and He knows best. Whatever it is that happens in my life be it of the past and the present, I put my trust in Him always 🤍
To my fellow readers especially my muslim brothers and sisters, do pick this book up at your own leisure. Read it, digest it, interpret it as you will. It is an essential read in rediscovering the meaning of life through the simple act of gratitude—something we meek humans tend to overlook at times. Time to refresh and broaden our perspective and understanding of it more deeply 💌
February 5, 2025
Someone was labelling me as 'cikgu bipolar'. In fact, we never come across in terms of work or anything else and what made her calling me that, I really have no idea. Of course, I was sad, and this one kakak advised me "Just ignore her, it doesn't affect you right. People can call or labelling others as they like. Allah knows. We just do our jobs and be kind. That's it!".
And I found this book hit me real hard when there's a question : How do we tell ourselves to be grateful towards people who make us feel angry and frustrated?"
What was the first thing that came to my mind - People did bad thing to us, do we still have to be kind?
Back to the question above, BY SHOWING THEM MERCY. This is must be insane right. According to our level of our mind, it's crazy you know. But...but...take a moment to ponder upon all the beautiful names of Allah such as ar-rahman, ar-rahim. We all do know the meaning. Don't we ever think that regardless of how bad we are, how many sins we have committed, He still bestowed upon us His Mercy.
Hence, what we need to do? Yes, BE GRATEFUL!
The author emphasize that being grateful isn't just by saying 'thank you', it's all about embracing a right mindset on how to being content, practice patience and trust in His plan. The author's experience in dealing with her serious illness at that certain time really reflected the way she practice gratitude. For a normal mindset, it must be disappointing right. We're all aim for a healthy body and lifestyle. For a beautiful mindset, there must be a wisdom why Allah tested us with such a situation that we, to our logical thing, couldn't bear it! Yet, He knows everything!
Her writing is simple yet it gives us a huge impact and change the way we think towards our everyday life. It's profound and the message is accessible to a wide audience. The structured reflections and uplifting tone make it an easy yet impactful read, perfect for those who enjoy self-improvement books with a spiritual essence.
Final thoughts, the author provided us with a practical guide on how to embrace gratitude in each and every aspect of life, even when it comes to the smallest of thing. And for those who seek comfort and motivation in challenging times, this is your book!
And I found this book hit me real hard when there's a question : How do we tell ourselves to be grateful towards people who make us feel angry and frustrated?"
What was the first thing that came to my mind - People did bad thing to us, do we still have to be kind?
Back to the question above, BY SHOWING THEM MERCY. This is must be insane right. According to our level of our mind, it's crazy you know. But...but...take a moment to ponder upon all the beautiful names of Allah such as ar-rahman, ar-rahim. We all do know the meaning. Don't we ever think that regardless of how bad we are, how many sins we have committed, He still bestowed upon us His Mercy.
Hence, what we need to do? Yes, BE GRATEFUL!
The author emphasize that being grateful isn't just by saying 'thank you', it's all about embracing a right mindset on how to being content, practice patience and trust in His plan. The author's experience in dealing with her serious illness at that certain time really reflected the way she practice gratitude. For a normal mindset, it must be disappointing right. We're all aim for a healthy body and lifestyle. For a beautiful mindset, there must be a wisdom why Allah tested us with such a situation that we, to our logical thing, couldn't bear it! Yet, He knows everything!
Her writing is simple yet it gives us a huge impact and change the way we think towards our everyday life. It's profound and the message is accessible to a wide audience. The structured reflections and uplifting tone make it an easy yet impactful read, perfect for those who enjoy self-improvement books with a spiritual essence.
Final thoughts, the author provided us with a practical guide on how to embrace gratitude in each and every aspect of life, even when it comes to the smallest of thing. And for those who seek comfort and motivation in challenging times, this is your book!
August 14, 2023
Rating sebenar : 4.5/5.0 ⭐️
Banyak benda yang saya baru belajar dan tahu melalui buku ini. Dan baru saya sedar saya mengambil remeh tentang masa yang Allah dah berikan kepada saya, betapa banyak masa saya yang telah terbuang dengan sia-sia. An eye opening book.
Banyak benda yang saya baru belajar dan tahu melalui buku ini. Dan baru saya sedar saya mengambil remeh tentang masa yang Allah dah berikan kepada saya, betapa banyak masa saya yang telah terbuang dengan sia-sia. An eye opening book.
June 29, 2023
Inspiring. Motivational.
September 27, 2023
Great reminder to always be grateful and to live life according to the teachings of Islam
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews