In the midst of Ramadhan 2014, Islamic Centre Goa organized a spiritual night “Towards Spirituality – in the best of the nights” on 19th July .
The night was an effort to rekindle the spiritual aspect of man buried under the desire for the material world. The over emphasis on the material comforts of life has suppressed the inner desire of the soul to be at peace. The fast paced life gives no room to contemplate over the realities of life and on many occasions leads to depressed souls struggling to cope with complex human life realities. As the dreams of the material world lay shattered the inner strength to cope too eludes the man.
Ramadhan the month in the lunar calendar is the opportune time to quench the thirst of the soul with devotions that grow and leads one to higher levels of spirituality. The body that seeks and demands the attention all through out the life needs to be restrained and spiritual fodder needs to be provided to the soul to strengthen it.
Towards Sprituality – in the best of the nights was an effort to rekindle the natural desire for inner peace and tranquility in the midst of fulfilling the demands of the body. The treasure trove of spirituality in the blessed month of Ramadhan was explored by the all who attended the event.
Br. Altaf Shah opened the gates for spirituality in the opening session by indicating towards the peace and tranquility in the nature around us and by questioning the forgetfulness of mankind that has led him to untold miseries he asked men to stand up and take stock of the reality. He said men have the potential to live in peace and harmony with His Creator, with himself, with fellow human and the nature around provided he realizes his status in life.
Later Ml. Abdul Mobeen Asari introduced the source and the fountain of spirituality. He said in knowing the Creator through His attributes does one be in a position to comprehend the greatness of the Creator the sustainer of the worlds. And the more a person understands and relates to his Creator does one grow in spirituality. If not all spiritual exercise would only turn into ritual void of all spirit. He said the 99 different attributes mentioned in he Quran about the Creator helps one to acknowledge Him as our Master and Sustainer. This understanding he said develops the right frame of mind to approach life which in turns allows a person to balance his life between material and spiritual.
Miss Ambrin Beig President GIO Goa shed light on the importance of communication with the Creator through supplication and invocations called Dua. She said through daily supplications a person attains calmness and maturity in his behaviour and builds in him confidence to deal with realities of Life. Though a small act but it helps an individual to stay plugged to the source of peace God Almighty.
Before Iftaar ( breaking of the fast) a collective supplication session was organized. Ml. Abdul Mobeen invoked God Almighty to enlighten the mankind with wisdom and tranquility. He implored the Almighty for peace to reign across the world. He prayed for the sick and the poor , for the rich as well the needy. His supplications embraced the entire humanity and collective “Aameen” reverberated the environment as the time for iftaar approached.
After Iftaar the session started with isha and the special Ramadhan prayers called “tarawih”. The Gist of the Prayers was explained by Br. Ateeq-ur-rehman .
In the late night devotions the contemplations over the divine recitations started close to midnight and lasted until 1 am. The Recitation of Divine verses of the Holy Quran in the darkness of the night whilst the whole world was asleep created a touching scene and the diviners in search of peace were at ease.
Prof Sayed Abdullah shed light and enlightened the gathering with the divine philosophy of life as stated in the Holy Quran. He reminded the gathering that this life is a test of the ability of man to avoid the temptations whispered into the hearts of man by the satan and remain steadfast in the obedience of God Almighty. He said man is the vicegerent of God on earth and as such is a trustee and not the owner.
In the early morning the assembly of diviners gathered for the “Tahajuud” prayers and self introspection session conducted by Jb Abdul Khuddus Sahab. The session ended with the discourse on the life after death by br. Asif Hussain who said that “death is a birth right denied to none”. Death he said was around the corner for each one of us. The timing of the death is unscheduled and a surprise. The fountain of wisdom and enlightenment is the remembrance of death constantly and preparing for the accountability in the hereafter.
The delegates were impressed and stated that the night was a rebirth in life with mysteries of life unlocked and the radiance of divinely inspired spirituality touching their lives.
