Discovering God

exactly at the same time the phase of comfort of the afterlife will begin. When I had this experience, the latent spiritual feelings hidden in nature were awakened. A material event had transformed into a spiritual event. These words came to my lips: “May God do the same for me when the time comes for me to leave the world.” Then it should be a moment when all of a sudden it is akin to leaving a period of affliction and entering into a period of comfort. Spirituality is indeed an intellectual journey, a journey which takes one from materialism to a world of meaning. This journey takes place at the internal level. Others are not apparently able to see or understand this journey, but the traveller feels it deeply. Spirituality makes one a human being. The person whose life is devoid of spirituality, is no different from the animals. What is Introspection? According to a tradition, the second Caliph Umar Faruq observed: “Reckon yourself before being reckoned, measure yourself before being measured.” (Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, Narration No. 34459) This adage enshrines a very important principle for self-reform. If a person adheres to this principle, it will ensure his reformation and his purification.