Nada Badra

“Make a ritual ablution before each prayer, beginning every action with "In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful." First wash your hands, intending to pull them away from the affairs of this world. Then wash your mouth, remember and reciting God's name, purifying it in order to utter His Name. Wash your nose wishing to inhale the perfumes of the Divine. Wash your face feeling shame, and intending to wipe from it arrogance and hypocrisy. Wash your forearms trusting God to make you do what is good. Wet the top of your head feeling humility and wash your ears (in preparation) to hear the address of your Lord. Wash from your feet the dirt of the world so that you don't stain the sands of Paradise. Then thank and praise the Lord, and send prayers of peace and blessing upon our Master, who brought the canons of Islam and taught them to us.

After you leave the place of your ablution without turning your back to it, perform two cycles of prayer out of hope and thankfulness for His making you clean.

Next, stand in the place where you are going to make your prayers as if between the two hands of your Lord. Imagine, without forms and lines, that you are facing the Ka'bah, and that there is no one else on the face of this earth but you. Bring yourself to express your servanthood physically. Choose the verses you are going to recite, understanding their meanings within you. With the verses that start with "Say..." feel that you are talking to your Lord as He wishes you to do: let every word contain praise. Allow time between the sentences, contemplating what our Master, the Messenger of God, gave us, trying to keep it in your heart. Believing that your destiny is written on your forehead, place it humbly on the floor in prostration. When you finish and give salutations to your right and to your left, keep your eyes on yourself and your connection with your Lord, for you are saluting the One under whose power you are and who is within you...”
― Ibn Arabi

“فكيف يدَّعي العاقلُ أنه قد عَلِمَ ربّه من جهةِ "الدليل" وأنَّ الباري معلومٌ له، ولو نظر إلى المفعولات الصناعية، والطبيعية، والتكوينية، والإنبعاثية، والإبداعية، ورأى جهل كل واحد منها بفاعله، لَعَلِمَ أن الله تعالى لا يُعْلَمْ بالدليل أبداً، لكن يُعْلَمْ أنه موجود، وأنَّ العالم مُفتقِرْ إليه افتقاراً "ذاتياً" لا محيصَ له عنه البتّة. قال الله تعالى: "يا أيها الناس أنتم الفقراء إلى الله والله هو الغني الحميد". فمن أراد أن يعرِف لُبَاب التوحيد فلينظر في الآيات الواردة في التوحيد من الكتاب العزيز الذي وحَّد بها نفسه، فلا أحد أعْرَف من الشيء بنفسه. فلتنظُر بما وصفَ نفسه، وتسأل الله تعالى أن يُفْهِمَكَ ذلك، فستقف على علم إلهي لا يبلغ إليه عقل بفكره أبد الآباد.”
― محيي الدين بن عربي

“The moon will never lie to anyone. Be like the moon. No one hates the moon or wants to kill it. The moon does not take antidepressants and never gets sent to prison. The moon never shot a guy in the face and ran away. The moon has been around a long time and has never tried to rip anyone off. The moon does not care who you want to touch or what color you are. The moon treats everyone the same. The moon never tries to get in on the guest list or use your name to impress others. Be like the moon. When others insult or belittle in an attempt to elevate themselves, the moon sits passively and watches, never lowering itself to anything that weak. The moon is beautiful and bright. It needs no makeup to look beautiful. The moon never shoves clouds out of its way so it can be seen. The moon needs not fame or money to be powerful. The moon never asks you to go to war to defend it. Be like the moon.”
― Henry Rollins, Solipsist

“I feel unspeakably lonely. And I feel - drained. It is a blank state of mind and soul I cannot describe to you as I think it would not make any difference. Also it is a very private feeling I have - that of melting into a perpetual nervous breakdown. I am often questioning myself what I further want to do, who I further wish to be; which parts of me, exactly, are still functioning properly. No answers, darling. At all.”
― Anne Sexton, Anne Sexton: A Self-Portrait in Letters