The journey of reconnecting with our faith can feel like falling in love sometimes.
Everything is sweet in the beginning and there is a high that boosts us to be the best version of ourselves.
We chase after perfection in our solah, in our Quran recitation, and in our sadaqah – thinking it’s the only way for Allah to accept our deeds.
Until the chase exhausts us and we find ourselves in a slump.
Suddenly we find ourselves at this intersection between powering through on our spiritual journey despite experiencing a type of spiritual burnout and giving up altogether thinking we’re not the chosen ones.
Does being a good Muslim mean we never feel like we’re tired or we’ve failed? Is this journey only for the pious and selected few who are sin-free and have a strong hold of their faith?
In this book, Ameera Aslam tenderly shares her own journey of finding mercy after hopelessness. Of getting back up after falling on her path to find Allah.
This book is an invitation for us, to let us know that in being a good abd’ for Allah, it is possible to move from operating in fear, shame, and punishment to joy, hope, and gratitude.
I always write about how life is full of surprises, the ups and downs and we should learn to be grateful for everything.
However when it comes to religion, we have to remember to keep trying to do our best. Despite our feelings, our moods and circumstances.
Menjaga istiqamah bukanlah perkara yang mudah. Kerana kita manusia biasa yang imannya turun dan naik; tapi itu bukan alasan untuk kita tinggalkan perintah Allah.
Bila berbicara soal Istiqamah, perkara utama adalah soal kualiti bukan kuantiti semata-mata.
"perfection is not expected from us, only our best efforts." - but improvement is expected from us.
This is a very wonderful book.
It reminding me about when I first started to improve myself and learning about tahajjud and changing my sleeping patterns from the so called night person to a normal human being 😉. The feeling of connection I experienced then, gave me so much joy but as it becomes part of my routine I sometimes get lost because I no longer find that excitement compared to the first time I was doing it. Yes, I miss that "feel".
Bila kita dah hilang rasa itu, mudah sebenarnya untuk kita tinggalkan perkara yang dah jadi amalan kita kalau kita tak sentiasa semak niat dan terus belajar untuk memperbaiki diri kita.
Dan aspek ibadah dalam hidup kita sangat luas, yang penting kita jaga asasnya iaitu perkara fardu ain dan carilah dimana kekuatan kita untuk perkara fardu kifayah. Yang kita terus cuba buat yang terbaik sehingga nanti sampai masa kita dijemput pulang.
p/s: kalau poet yang tulis buku, even self help book can sound very poetic 😘.
'When I was frightened about death and thought being a "good Muslim" would save me, I had mistaken Being A Good Muslim to be the destination instead of the journey.'
'... being steadfast wasn't about doing a certain thing, but the attitude of never giving up on one's self and one's relationship with Allah.'
'Whether I feel connected to Allah or not during prayer is inconsequential to it being obligatory. It dope not mean I don't pray when I don't "feel" it."
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When You Think You're Falling; I love how raw the feelings that being conveyed in this book. The author wasn't timid in sharing her journey -- the ups and downs she was in her faith and God consciousness, in the effort to being closer to the creator -- making it even more relatable than ever.
The thing I love the most from this book is how it has shifted my view on how to look at practising istiqamah, it has indeed shed a new light in my eyes.
We are all afraid of FAILURE right...falling down to the ground, losing hopes and did not ever dare to dream again! And yess...shaytaan succeeded!
But we have His Mercy to keep us going!
The author shared her personal experiences in becoming a better person. She went through a lot in life in attempt to become a good person. And of course, the journey might not be an easy one.
Some that I wanna highlight from this reading :
1. In order for us to change from bad to good, we can't do this alone. We need a strong support system surround us so that we may not give up in the middle of our journey. Because we will be facing a lot of challenges, exhaustion, bitterness and a lot more coming along the journey.
2. Remember our destination. When we decided that we wanna change for the better, keep in our mind the reason why are we doing this. Where do this changes bring us to.
3. Istiqamah. The hardest part of our journey. Even the small actions count. But, only with one condition where we must be steadfast. It is a fundamental requirement that keeps us on track. And that's what Allah SWT keep His eyes on to us.
"The most beloved of deeds to Allah are those that are the most consistent, even if it small". (Sahih al-Bukhari 6464)
“Was I not deserving Allah’s love and forgiveness? Were Jannah’s doors closed for me?”
If you’ve ever felt like this👆🏻, this book is for you.
This book gives me hope when I feel like giving up on trying to be a better Muslim. It reminds me that we need to believe in Allah’s mercy because He rewards us based on our efforts. It doesn’t mean that we need to do everything perfectly to be rewarded or loved by Allah.
I also love how the author shares her own struggles to be a good Muslim and her experiences of spiritual burnout. She shares her stories through her journey of self-discovery and understanding Allah’s love and mercy.
I don’t have anything to criticize about this book because I LEARNED A LOT from it.
I learned about Allah’s mercy. I learned about how Allah never leaves us alone. I learned about the real definition of istiqamah. I learned about never giving up to be a better Muslim. I also learned practical tips on how to achieve this.
Menyebut istiqamah itu mudah, merealisasikan hingga ke akhir hayat itu merupakan satu cabaran. Untuk terus semangat melakukan sesuatu itu secara berterusan memang sukar. Tidak dinafikan. Terkadang di tengah jalan kita sudah merasa lelah. Kita sudah merasa putus asa. Namun, tetaplah meletakkan Tuhan pada hati, semoga istiqamah itu kekal kita gapai hingga akhir hayat.
Buku ini membawa kita mengenal apa itu istiqamah dan bagaimana mahu memastikan kita dapat mengekalkan istiqamah itu sehingga ke noktah kehidupan. Hidup ini terkadang memang sukar untuk ditempuh, namun itu bukan halangan untuk kita berputus asa. Berbaliklah pada Tuhan Yang Satu.
Untuk mereka yang masih bertahan untuk istiqamah, ini buku untuk anda mengenali seni mempertahan istiqamah dalam suatu perbuatan. Tahniah penulis untuk buku ini.
Love this book. It changed how I view Istiqamah, better. Istiqamah does not mean we have to be perfect, nor our imaan should be like ascending graph without falling at all. Istiqamah also mean we will have some days that's not our best, setbacks or falling short, but regardless we did not give up to strive again and again for Allah's forgiveness and mercy.
Persistently pursuing heaven no matter how many times we have sinned. I like how the author put this new perspective (for me) to look at the act of istiqamah. Refreshing and hopeful in my spiritual journey and pursuit.
Looking forward to more Ameera Aslam's books in future.
Such a comforting read for souls who are yearning to always have more, more closeness to Allah, more ibadah achieved, more knowledge gained, and more milestones reached but always finding themselves "falling short" or falling back into negative habits. Thank you dear author, for being vulnerable and real in your writing. Reading these made me reflect on my intentions, rethink my assumptions about my self and my deen, and refocus on my goals and the things that truely matter: istiqamah in both mind and action.
As our Iman fluctuates, the feeling of loneliness managed to conquer the heart and to give up felt really easy. It helps to calm the heart knowing that we’re not alone in this struggle. To be reminded on Allah’s mercy does help to feel better rather than continuously being reminded of the punishments.
Thank you author for the comfort feeling that I’m not struggling alone in this world.
I love some sections where the author writes out her insecurities or concerns about the religion that I have similarly felt but had a hard time expressing. Even though an amount of the book was "just okay" (a lot of it are stuff I've seen before but are still good reminders), those sections really had me wishing for more, so I'm looking forward to more personal stuff from her on it.