PORTRAIT: SHAYKH HAMZA YUSUFBelow I share with you some, very few, notes from Shaykh Hamza Yusuf I had written down a while back; may they be of benefit.
- The body is designed for 10,000 steps a day, it cures depression. Umrah is 10,000 steps.
- This is a journey of love, to become one with God. Discover and experience Divine Presence, seeking it internally and not externally.
- Education of a muslim: education of the heart, purification of the heart, losing the ego: me! me! me! Purification of the self from cynicism and learning knowledge of humility, knowledge of purity.
- Feelings don’t come from achieving goals.
- Surrender the false self, return to your fitra (original pure form), to get there is through: self-knowledge.
- Islam is a continual path, purification of the self from negativity, awakening, growth, transcendence while being in the physical world. Islam is a state of full submission and surrender.
- Live to Give: by elevating the lives of others your life reaches its highest dimension.
- The Ocean. Majority of creation is hidden from us.
- The Dream World. The more you attune yourself to the spiritual realm the more vivid your dreams become.
- Your brain and your heart are your most powerful organs – never let anyone control them.
- Part of modern culture is to remove shame or modesty from people, and the characteristic of Islam is modesty. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: Modesty brings nothing but goodness
- It is only through emptying of the self that one can truly begin one’s spiritual journey.
- Eat, drink and be married. Are you happy yet? How many drugs do we need to realize drugs isn’t making us happy? How many sexual encounters is it going to take to make you realize sexual encounters are not gonna make you happy? Humans are stupid. Animals are smarter, when they see something harmful they runaway unlike humans who want to check out the harm. We are attracted by harmful things, but if you are not ruled by your genitals, stomach or emotions then you are one in control of him or herself. In Arabic it is called ‘Akl’, your reasoning to control the lower urges.
Peace xo
