The development of love is often hindered by different obstacles in life. The first obstacle is ourselves. We begin our life with selfishness, and all that we want is for self; and if there is a tendency to love, it is for one's own happiness, and one's own joy. When the question comes, 'How much do you love me, and how much do I love you?' it has come to be a trading in love. 'I love you but you do not love me' is as much as to say, 'I have bid so much, and I expect a return of love.' This is trading in love, and trade cannot lead anywhere, because it makes one think of the self, and love is beyond that. To love is to give; it is not to take at all. The true lover never speaks of what he has done for his beloved, for he loves for love's sake, not for the sake of of a return. If a person begins to love and makes it a love fed by the love of his beloved, then he seeks an impossible thing. If a person keeps waiting for the love of the beloved, he is bound to find that nature cannot grant that desire, unless both are traders in love. Then each takes the best of the other; each may think he loves, but neither truly loves.
Love teaches the lover patience, forbearance, gentleness, because he thinks, 'My beloved will be displeased; I will be as gentle as possible in my action and in my movements'. These thoughts are a correction to the lover. With every such thought that passes in the life of the lover he corrects himself. Hope is the only thing in life which keeps us alive, because it feeds on love. Patience is fed by love. We can never have patience with anybody without love. How valuable is patience! As it is said in the Qur'an, 'Allah loves the patient.'
Another hindrance to love is its dependence on the beauty of the ideal, be it physical beauty, beauty of thought, of character or of personality. Whatever beauty it may be, whenever love depends for its continuance or for its existence upon the beauty of its object, it must some day fail.
- Hazrat Inayat Khan in an Eastern Rose Garden
O son, remember this one valuable piece of advice from Shaykh Abdul Qadir al-Jilani:
"You must give your attention and interest to
anyone who loves you for your sake,
and avoid anyone who loves you for his own."
Salam aleykom wa rahmatullah,
ReplyDeletebeautiful article and very true.
Wa'alaykumsalam warahmatullah
ReplyDeleteDear Shakuka,
Yes Hazrat Inayat Khan is so sharp on this point. Ladies especially must take heed of the advice given by Ghawth al-Azam. This is posted so that I could come back to it when love matters cloud the mind. May we remain guided on the Straight Path.
Ameen