It’s You Against the Ocean’s Waves And Tide
As a muslim in my late teen years, there are so many temptations around me, sometimes it’s the fashion trend of wearing the hijab while showing the neck, putting a full face of makeup, befriending and dating the opposite gender and many more that are becoming normalized day by day around me and within the Arab and Muslim communities.
When seeing people who look like me and are of the same religion adopting the West’s culture and slowly straying away from Islam’s rules and teachings, it becomes hard for me not to want to change and be like them– the temptation becomes harder to resist. Sometimes when I’m too close to give in to this temptation, I remember that this is part of the test. The temptation is the test, and resisting it every time is the correct answer.
To strengthen my resolve against following the wrongdoings of others, I like to imagine everyone standing on a shore, and our assignment is to stay standing there. And as we’re standing on this shore, waves are bound to come and crash into us; the weak would allow the waves to take them to the ocean or even drown them, some would fall or stumble but would stand back quickly, the strong might be shaken but are able to keep the balance and stay standing, the strongest wouldn’t even budge in the face of the crashing waves.
These waves are bound to leave eventually, no matter what, and those left standing will be the ones who won in the face of this fitna– this test. The test that comes in the form of waves, it comes and goes; some tests are harder, harsher while others are a small wave that won’t affect most individuals.
The test isn’t always in the form waves. Sometimes the low tides make individuals crave the feel of the water touching their feet (another test many don’t acknowledge), giving them courage to walk deeper until they feel the water on their toes; but going this deep usually ends in them drowning or taken away to an isolated island when the water’s levels start rising again.
Some people decide that they’re skilled enough to swim beside the shore for a little bit and get out of the water agian when they’re done so that they can still get a full score on their assignment. They think they’re getting the best of both worlds. But little did they know that this small swim could last longer than the assignment’s time, giving them a failing grade; or just like the previous batch, the individuals might drown or be taken to the isolated island.
The isolated Island where everyone who left the specified shore meets and enjoys the worldly pleasures, ultimately forgetting about the assignment until it’s too late. But just like any rule that has it’s exceptions this one does too, some people feel the emptiness in their heart and are reminded by the assigned shore; they swim and swim till they find it again, finally; they put their belongings and start the test again with a resolved mind, one that is ready to stay standing no matter what.
This image helps me to resist the urge to bend my rules and believes to fit in what society is becoming. When everyone around is dating or going to certain places (as Muslims we shouldn’t go to) and I feel like I’m the only one missing out, I like to think that this is another wave– a stronger one but one nonetheless, one that will come and pass by eventually so all I need to do is be strong and ignore it till it goes back to the ocean.
Other times, I miss being part of a fandom, listening to songs or watching dramas and movies, and my mind wanders to the low tides, reminding me that going back to these habits lead me to many other bad ones, usually even a bigger sin– and at some point I might not be able to swim back when the water rises again.
We all know that everything will end at some point. That the waves will leave, more will come but eventually everything will be quiet. The key, here, the most important catch is our ability to withstand whatever wave that comes our way, our ability to resist the need of water on our feet. We all stumble, fall, shake but in the end, as the wave goes back to the ocean, we should be standing on the shore alongside every truth we believe in.
Some waves are stronger than others, some days I feel weaker than the rest, sometimes seeing the people swimming and enjoying their time makes me want to join them; but I keep reminding myself that I should stay on the shore, that this will make me succeed in this life and the one after, no matter how tempting everything else is.
Stand by your truth and believes; the wave will always leave no matter how long it takes, but in the end the question will remain:
Did you withstand it or allow it to take you with it?
Standing on the shore is never easy but the reward is definitely worth it, so keep going no matter now hard or lonely it is!
Thank you for reading! Let me know what you think in the comments!
