THINK BEFORE YOU ACT

THINK BEFORE YOU ACT,

UNDERSTAND THE FACT

BY JAVED ZAHEER, FREE EXPRESSION AWARD WINNER

            TORONTO:  Yes, think before you act and understand the fact. Thinking, realization and understanding create awareness and awakening and always help. They help one to understand the reality, worth and purpose of life, intention, action, struggle, education, respect, love and care.

            They help one to become a good human being, a good individual, a good member of the family, community and society, a good citizen and a true leader. They help one to understand, find and choose the right direction and path of success, progress and happiness and protect from failures, mistakes, mishaps, accidents, harms, destruction and hell. 

            Our Creator, The Almighty, loves, understands and knows us very well. He is always there to help us and responds to all those who really call and need Him.  Examples are His commands, messages, messengers, believers and peoples mentioned in all the original holy books, scrolls and scriptures.

            These are all messages, signs and lessons for us to think, realize and understand The Almighty, purpose of our creation, duties and responsibilities---To help and protect ourselves and others. History, researches and discoveries help us in knowing and understanding them.  

Through distortions, propagandas and conspiracies, attempts are made by the corrupt, cunning and sinister elements with vested interests to distract, confuse, mislead, control, rule and harm the people. 

 Unfortunately, despite all the commands, messages, signs, helps, researches, discoveries, facts, truth, love and guidance most human beings, because of their ungrateful nature, keep disappointing The Almighty and His greatness is that He still keeps loving, helping, supporting, protecting and showering His blessings on them. He neither disappoints nor let all those down who look towards Him for help, guidance and protection. This is His quality.

Apart from the ungrateful nature of human beings, what harms them the most? Yes, The Devil Inside. Yes, it is indeed The Devil Inside which distracts, disturbs and destroys us the most. It makes us bad, cunning, corrupt, crook, criminal, killer, murderer, terrorist, shrewd, liar, exploiter, opportunist, extremist and so on.

            We have to always remain fully alert to protect ourselves and others from both The Devil Inside us and The Devils Outside. The fight with both Devils continues till our last breath. It is for us to identify and understand the evil influences, ideas and actions of ourselves and others in order to escape them or fight against them.

            The Devil Inside and The Devils Outside never spare anyone, not even the prophets, saints and true believers. The Devil Inside, which remains with us all the time and till the last breath, is the most cunning and dangerous one because it keeps working on us 24/7 to weaken, corrupt and harm us. This way he makes way for, supports and helps The Devils Outside in doing their job of harming and destroying us easier.

            The Devil, supported by his army of followers and supporters including incompetent leadership and officials and definitely corrupt, crook and cunning rulers, leaders, policymakers, judges, bureaucrats, businessmen, officials and people, is taking revenge against human beings. Because of the punishment he got and the respect and position he lost, The Devil is extremely unhappy, jealous and angry. At any cost, he wants to harm and destroy people.

            The Devils indeed are the committed enemies of mankind. They are all around us and come from right, left, front and back to influence, harm and destroy us. It is really hard for us to fight or escape them. They definitely lead us to the path of distraction, destruction and hell. We can fight them only with the help, support, protection and blessing of The Almighty and His believers.

            We must stop complaining that The Almighty is not listening to us, not responding, supporting and helping us because this thinking and impression is totally and completely wrong. The fact is that He is always with those who look towards Him for help and support. He never disappoints or ditches them.  

            Whenever help is needed and asked for, He responds. Can Jews, Christians and Muslims deny this? How the prophets including Abraham, David, Moses, Jesus, Lut, Noah and Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Them) and their people were helped when they looked towards The Almighty for help and support.

            What is the Wrath of God and why it came? The Devil is not destroyed because it is his commitment and job to trick, fool and harm the people but those who support or follow him knowingly and despite warnings are punished and destroyed by the Wrath of The Almighty.

            Not The Devil, the losers and sufferers are always the people who are influenced by him and follow and support him. This is what The Almighty tells us in His messages in the original holy books, scrolls and scriptures including Bible, Torah and Quran and through His messengers and believers. He keeps warning us against the Devils---Both Inside and Outside ones.

            We understand and accept this reality very well but unfortunately don’t implement it as taught, instructed and guided by The Almighty. Yes, unfortunately, we are badly influenced by the Devils, who make distortions to suit the evil interests and to fool and trick us. Indeed, by remaining far from The Almighty and close to the Devil, most of us are successfully fooled, tricked and harmed. We must accept this fact.

            But we cannot surrender before the Devils. It is our duty and responsibility to remain alert and to keep protecting ourselves and others from Devils. For this we have to look towards The Almighty for guidance, help and support. That is the only way out. If we don’t we will get distracted, lost and trapped by the Devils.

            Through all the prophets, right from Prophet Adam till Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Them), The Almighty sent a common message to the people: La Ilaha Ill Allahu (There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah). All believers of The Almighty, including Jews, Christians and Muslims, know and understand this and there is no dispute about this. The Almighty is the Creator and was not created. This is why we only worship Him.

            In first Kalima, it is read as La Ilaha Ill Allahu Muhammadur-Rasool Allah (There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah).  So The Almighty has closed the doors for all those who would have tricked, fooled and confused the Muslims and led them to worship Muhammad (PBUH). If you hear carefully the Call for Prayers (Azan), you will find these words and messages. Such is the importance of this Kalima.

            In Sura #112 (Al-Ikhlas) of Quran, The Almighty clearly defines Himself and says:

            “Say: He is Allah, the One! (1) Allah, the eternally Besought of all! (2) He begetteth not nor was begotten. (3) And there is none comparable unto Him. (4)” (Translation by Pickthal).

            In Sura # 1 (Al-Fatiha), The Almighty has shown us how to seek His guidance and what path to follow:

            “Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, (2) The Beneficent, the Merciful. (3) Owner of the Day of Judgment, (4) Thee (alone) we worship; Thee (alone) we ask for help. (5) Show us the straight path, (6) The path of those whom Thou hast favoured. Not (the path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who go astray. (7)” (Translation by Pickthal).       

             In Sura # 103 (Al-Asr), The Almighty tells us about people who were favoured:

            “By the declining day, (1) Lo! man is a state of loss, (2) Save those who believe and do good works, and exhort one another to truth and exhort one another to endurance. (3) (Translation by Pickthal).

             All these divine messages and commands connect Jews, Christians and Muslims into one bond and relationship and put them under one category and group---The Believers of The Almighty. The Believers are indeed the Blessed Ones and The Almighty has clearly told us who the Believers are. So the Christians, Jews and Muslims are standing under one umbrella and sailing in the same boat. They are a family and brothers.  

            All the original holy books, scriptures and scrolls of The Almighty just belong to Him. If we try to prove one book right and the other wrong then we would be insulting the books and The Almighty. Only the fools and Devils dare do this.

            Instead of fighting and killing each other and becoming enemies of each other, we must understand the essence of Divine Messages and unite on a single platform.  In real sense, we are all brothers, we are all Muslims, Christians and Jews. This is because we accept and respect The Almighty, His original holy books, prophets, messengers and believers.

            Our real enemies are Devils and their supporters and followers. They are the ones who go astray and earn anger of The Almighty. We have to protect ourselves from such evils and  disbelievers.

            This is why it is extremely important for us to search for and promote and support good people and true leadership otherwise we will keep suffering. We have to do this at all levels including family, relations, community, society and mainstream.

            We must not just waste our time, energy, efforts, money and votes on wrong people and wrong parties. Select, elect, promote and support only those who are good, sincere, and honest and are dedicated and committed to help, protect, support and serve people in the true sense.

            If we join the Group of Blessed and True Ones then only we will get attention and help of The Almighty otherwise we must remain prepared for destruction. The Devils are anxiously waiting for us to commit mistakes and sin and get trapped so that they can make our lives miserable and send us to hell.

            Irrespective of how much mistakes or sin we commit, we must always consider it our moral, social and religious duty and responsibility to create understanding and awareness so that we can guide, help and protect ourselves and others.

            I know, accept and admit that I am a sinner and a bad Muslim. The more I try to be close to The Almighty the more The Devil Inside tries to distract, disturb and screw me. He makes me commit many mistakes and sin. I know, understand and realize this very well, feel very bad and always try to fight back, escape the influences and protect myself.

            The very good thing is that The Almighty always helps me in helping myself and others. I know and understand very well that despite my best efforts to fight the influences of the Devil I will keep committing mistakes and sins but because of help of The Almighty I always try not to harm anyone or commit crimes. This is where The Almighty helps me the most. This is how the Devil is disappointed, frustrated and defeated.

            I am very fortunate to be blessed with good friends, company and people. They always stand by me whenever needed and help me in the best possible ways. I thank The Almighty for this precious gift and feel proud to have such good friends, company and people with me.

            Let us all, particularly Christians, Jews and Muslims, sincerely help and support each other in trying to join and remain in the same category and group of The Believers & Blessed Ones (Those mentioned in Sura # 1 (Al-Fatiha) and Sura # 103 (Al-Asr) of the Holy Quran).

            It is indeed a very difficult task with great challenges but with the help and support of The Almighty it is never impossible. May The Almighty accept our prayers and appeal for forgiveness and help us all in our quests, struggles and efforts for the just causes and purposes.  

            ---Javed Zaheer (JAZA/JAYZEE/JZEE), Free Expression Award Winner, Desi Idol Recognition Award Winner, Member/Honorary Director of NEPMCC, Veteran Active Member (VAM) of Toronto Press Club, Ex-Member of The National Club and The Ontario Club, Honorary Editor of English Weekly `Pakistan Abroad’, ex-Chief Editor (Honorary) of English Weekly `The Ambassador’, ex-Senior Sub-Editor of English Daily DAWN, Pakistan, Chairman, CANOPI, and Director, Canpak Camber of Commerce, is contributing purely on Voluntary and Honorary Basis in order to serve all people and communities. Contact: (416)696-0981/jazamedia@hotmail.com. To read more JZ’s exclusive articles, please visit the following websites: www.letstree.com (Pressing needs section), nepmcc.ca  and nationalethnicpress.com  (Home Pages & Editorial Sections. Scan years from 2004 to 2011.