Let's Talk...
Listening… Speaking… Reading… Writing… Do you see what these skills have in common? Yes, yes, I hear you saying that they are the traits that distinguish humans from other creatures. What is the status of these skills in your life? Do you practice them? Do you exercise them? Do you periodically revive them? Or have they been abandoned and left to rust?
In truth, I am drawn to discussing and paying attention to “sunnahs,” and by “sunnahs” here I mean those fixed laws that Allah, the Exalted, has embedded in the universe, in life, and in human beings. The wisdom of our Lord, the Exalted, dictates that this universe operates according to fixed, unchanging laws and principles: “You will never find in the Sunnah of Allah any change, and you will never find in the Sunnah of Allah any alteration” (Quran 35:43). Whoever follows them succeeds, and whoever opposes them fails; they show no favoritism, whether to a Muslim or a non-Muslim. For example, someone who does not know how to swim in the sea will drown, while someone who is proficient in swimming will survive, regardless of their religion or belief. Oppression, for instance, is a cause of the downfall of nations, while justice is the foundation of their prosperity and survival: “Indeed, Allah establishes the just state, even if it is disbelieving, and He destroys the oppressive state, even if it is believing.” This is a fixed law throughout human history.
Walking in step with these sunnahs is among the most beautiful concepts that achieve quality of life, happiness, and leadership. With us now is this particular sunnah, which we shed light on here: marginalization and neglect as the path to decline and weakness. For example, neglecting your foot muscles by sitting for long periods without movement leads to their weakening, and possibly their death. Or parking your car and leaving it idle and stationary for a long time without moving it leads to its deterioration and breakdown, even if its engine is new and excellent. This is one of the cosmic sunnahs: neglect and marginalization are paths to destruction and retreat.
Your human skills—speaking, listening, reading, and writing, which distinguish you—if you neglect and marginalize them, and fail to activate them, then according to this sunnah, their path will be toward fading, atrophy, and diminishment. Similarly, isolating oneself, avoiding social interaction, and refraining from practicing skills such as speaking, listening, and writing, while failing to exercise your brain muscles for a long and extended period, will cause these skills to wither and age. This is especially true for those who retire and stop their daily routine of going to work, returning home, and engaging in community life, believing that they have fulfilled their role and are done. They have completed their years of service, raised their children, and so on. They think the time has come to withdraw and “rest.” They are tempted by self-isolation, believing that this will protect them from people’s harm. Unfortunately, this culture is beginning to invade us. Here, the alarm bell rings, and a death sentence is passed on their human skills. The spirit is destroyed, and our friend adopts a posture of stagnation, “turning off his brain.”
The danger also lies in the fact that if a person buries and extinguishes his intellect, he then hands over the reins of leadership to his desires, which move his heart and limbs. He becomes consumed by the desires for food, drink, and material consumption. He cares only about eating and drinking, and wasting time on unproductive activities, immersing himself in desires and heedlessness: “They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Those are like livestock; rather, they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless” (Quran 7:179).
When human maturity and the human intellect develop, so that one advances in perception and understanding, this was not sudden or random. Rather, it was cumulative and gradual, achieved through activating and exercising one’s skills and abilities by facing challenges, confronting situations, engaging in conversations and dialogues, and attempting to interact with them. In contrast, a state of stagnation and isolation leads to decline in the spirit, intellect, and skills, and naturally, a decline in the quality of life. Indeed, it is a decline in life itself.
Saudah Ahmad Ghanem Al-Dibous
