Hello fate! We meet atlast

We all look at this world and our lives with a certain lens. It's basically a paradigm which enables our mind to form perceptions and thoughts. It ultimately forms our sense of reality. I've been wearing a lens of "choice". This lens shows me that we are free to choose whatever our mind tells us to. I've always been fascinated by the concept of choice because it makes me believe that I am in total control of my life and that I can steer my life in any direction I want. I also believe that the power of choice is more paramount than thousands of atom bomb because all such bombs in the entire world are created by choice and not by accident. Like any other love story, my such story with "choices" took off in an incredible manner but then we finally met our much heard nemesis..........fate.

Fate has many forms but my first conscious encounter with it came recently in the form of death. While I was driving my car in the middle of night at high speed, suddenly a man appeared from no where and evasively tried to cross the road with his child before I could pass through. His plan seemed satisfactory.....the choice was made.......but fate had other ideas. As soon as I laid my eyes upon him crossing the road, I tried my best to avoid any misfortune but to no avail. Regretfully the person panicked and he landed himself right in the middle of my car and after couple of hours, the accident insured his demise. His child escaped unharmed.

Taking many factors into consideration for hindsight, I truly believe that it was an act of fate. He died in the exact way it was decided. I would have exercised many other choices if that incident didn't took place but  it turned my world upside down and I was thrown at the mercy of gloom and sorrow. Knowing that because of me that man's family was emotionally and financially torn apart and fearing that my happy days may be over gave me at least 48 hours of mental torture. 

Regarding my condition and situation, I believed then and I believe now that ALLAH gave me that test for which I had the ability to clear. Also the crisis could have been a million times worse for me but ALLAH my savior was there to protect me like he always has been my entire life. 

After the incident I've come to understand that fate will always try to meddle with our lives from time to time. It may slow us down and distract us from our mission but now I understand the words of Stephen Covey that "fate may influence us but it cannot determine us". Fate brought death infront of me but whether to run away after the accident or to take him immediately to hospital which i did was a matter of "choice". Our religion,culture,ethics and principles have laid down the correct choices for us to make and if fate tries to endanger those right choices, never let it do so and never falter! I also believe that our entire lives is all about the choices we make in every context and it is these choices that will define our legacy in this world and after.

Endnotes

1. A settlement is established with the deceased family and a case launched at police station is closed permanently.
2. May ALLAH provide heaven to the departed and may ALLAH permanently heal the emotional and financial wounds of his family as soon as possible.
3. I thank all my relatives and friends who supported me in my troubled times and may ALLAH also heal all your wounds. My Special gratitude to Sameer tariq, Hina khan, Farah munawar and Hina shaukat. My misery would have been 4-fold without your company.

      

A Message through Universe to Ashes!

Note: It is advisable that my readers first read my previous post (10 amazing theories about the amazing universe) in order to make my argument in this post seem more relevant.

There comes a time in our lives when we have a sudden change (like a U-turn) of heart, mind or sometimes a complete change of soul. I had my moment that changed not one but all three dimensions.

The above picture known as Hubble Ultra-Deep Field is a small portion of the Universe taken by Hubble telescope and is the deepest image of space ever taken (Wikipedia).

For some this picture may just depict millions of galaxies swimming in space and that's all but for me this picture started a whole new era of perceiving things.....started the genesis! You see I have always wondered the purpose of creating the universe. I have always wondered why did ALLAH create such a MASSIVE! universe with such PRECISION! I mean if you come to think of it, all we need is just our planet earth, moon and the sun to survive. And couple of stars too cause the iron in our body comes from star explosion known as supernova. So that's all we humans need from outside our planet to live out our lives. We may choose to indulge ourselves in getting amazed by the magnificent universe or study it's nature to understand the laws of our planet but practically we don't need to concern ourselves with what's happening outside our planet's domain cause it won't make a difference to our routine lives unless it's that day when it all ends. I never really understood the purpose of universe until recently. Of all the unknown reasons clinging to my ignorance regarding the purpose of the universe, I have been able to decipher one of them and that too in the form of a message........a message to ashes!

If there is a message hidden inside the universe then lets talk about the universe itself. I have already posted 10 miraculous points about the universe in my earlier post but I still wouldn't mind writing same points over and over again as anything and everything about ALLAH's universe never seizes to amaze me. Universe is a place where millions of galaxies exist, stars are formed and exploded, galaxies are merged in a systematic way and then there are blackholes ripping apart entire galaxies. The diameter of the universe is said to be of 93 billion light years and just for one second think about the power it took to create all those gigantic planets, stars, blackholes and other matter in between the mentioned space. And now let me tell you something you already know. A blackhole which is 10 billion times the mass of our sun is not ALLAH's greatest creation, 100 billion galaxies existing only in the observable universe is not ALLAH's greatest creation, 400 billion stars existing only in our solar system alone are not ALLAH's greatest creation......not even all the majestic living and non living things that we see here on earth....but rather it is YOU AND I who are ALLAH's greatest creation.Yes! ALLAH has declared humans his greatest creation.We are amazed by the universe but actually we should be amazed at ourselves. This also means that we are the best creations created by the powers of ALLAH and I cannot write more on ALLAH's power cause that would by far transcend the limits of this post. If all this doesn't make you feel amazing then how about if I tell you that ALLAH loves you more than 70 mothers. If still that doesn't electrify your soul then how about if I tell you that we all are the UMMAH of PROPHET MUHAMMAD (P.B.U.H). He was,is and always will be the wisest of us all and his love too for us is everlasting. He too never thought and did anything other than beneficial for us.So tell me now, doesn't all of this make your feel...............INVINCIBLE!

There is this word which is tossed around alot and always has been in my entire life and the word is "Impossible". People have always told me that certain things in life are impossible because of certain conditions, environment, lack of resources and influential contacts etc etc. I have always bought this notion.........BUT NOT ANYMORE!!!! You want to know what impossible really is. It's everything that is  happening out there in universe. Even the sun/moon coming up each and every single day and that too at same time and at the same spot. All this has been happening for almost 4 billion years!!!!! Try imagining the powers of ALLAH for doing this for such a long time. No wonder why pessimism is disliked in Islam cause when you have ALLAH as your creator then how the hell can a person be pessimistic in life. My friends everything that is happening in our universe is impossible......but its not......and this is what the universe and the sky tells us every single moment. There are other billion suns like our sun out there doing the same task each and every day.........take another look at the picture above and try telling yourself that somethings are impossible.

The way I see things now is that there are two kinds of rules in this world. One is man's made rule for e.g office timings of 9 to 5, an academic degree required for a job, an influential contact to get into politics etc. Then there is the other rule.................ALLAH's rule.........and that rule is.....................there are no rules!.........that if you truly believe in ALLAH, then you better believe in anything and everything.........and that my friend is the message through universe. That nothing is impossible for those who believe in ALLAH. It doesn't matter if you're weak or not ,because if you want to be world's greatest sports person, doctor, teacher, salesman, scientist, politician, ruler, student etc then GO AHEAD AND SEIZE EVERY SINGLE DAY!!!! and don't let anyone ever tell you what's possible and what's not because people don't get to decide it .......only ALLAH gets to do so. You don't need substantial financial resources or influential contacts to fulfill your destiny......All you will ever need is ALLAH and nothing else. This is one elusive equation that for some it takes only a minute to realize and for some unfortunate one's..........even a lifetime is not enough.

All I need is ALLAH......sigh......there was a time when we Muslims used to truly believe this. There was a time when we Muslims used to make non-believers believe it too. It was the same time when we believed in compassion, love, knowledge, wisdom, honesty, chivalry, purity, science, ethics, morals, respect, hard work, intelligence. We used to live like kings! But now we don't have the top universities in the world. We don't have the top companies in the world. We don't even have the toughest army or the most advanced arsenal...........we are simply reduced to ashes. One of the factors I say all of this is because out of 58 Muslim countries, hardly just one can perhaps claim to be a developed nation. So I just want to ask all my countrymen and all my Muslim bothers and sisters in this world one question and one question only..........IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE WHO CAN MAKE US BELIEVE IT AGAIN?...........Is there anyone who can inspire us to reclaim our lost glory.........sigh.........is there anyone?.........................

Rise and rise again..........until lambs become lions!

Young & Stupid

Some things are inevitable.........and being young and stupid is one of them. It's one mysterious point in time which comes and goes with free will and not a force on earth can stand in it's way. It didn't matter which background you belonged to, what religion you held on to, what part of the world you hailed from, how badly/wisely you were raised cause still it came for you like it came for me and we weren't able to recognize it till the storm was over. Some enjoy it. Some survive it. Some escape it. Others endure it. But the rest are consumed by it for a long period in it. 

It's roots start to grow in adolescence and the first thing it does is to cage the rational mind and unleash all unfulfilled senses of gratification. All one thinks is to find gratification in one form or the other. Kind of like an animal prowling for its prey.......perhaps. Such a state of heart and mind gives no credence whatsoever to principles,values,empathy,ethics,morals,responsibility and no matter how hard anyone tries to make you understand all this, you just won't give a @#$&. It would feel like that the world is just build to make you happy and when things won't go according to plan than you'll point fingers anywhere but at yourself.

Its a disease that cannot be cured. But perhaps it shouldn't be either. After all there are no greater lessons learned than from mistakes and mishaps..........if one has the rational mind and wisdom to apply. But eventually most of us do learn the beauty of hindsight sooner or later. So if you are going through such a time then just ignore this post cause it may all seem gibberish and I also wish you happy hunting but if you have experienced it then look for damage control for the one's you care about and who are the current host of this vicious parasite so that a quick and smooth transition can take place towards being mature and prudent.

  

Playground For Good and Evil

I read somewhere that humans on an average go through approximately 60,000 thoughts daily which I guess includes both conscious and subconscious. Our thoughts matter alot to ourselves and sometimes to the entire world. They are arguably the most true and pure reality of a person's personality and identity. They make us who we are. We all have good and evil thoughts and I guess at the end of the day that's what makes us human. To capitalize on the good one's and wrestle with the evil one's. I consider our thoughts to be the "initiative". Some of these initiatives translate into actions while some wither away. But my sole argument is that we should always monitor our thoughts and not let them go haywire inside our minds. We should establish a conscious radar in our minds which should be an autonomous body. The radar should be encrypted with rules of the game for e.g if you decide never to think of unethical/evil plotting against someone and when you subconsciously/consciously initiate such a sequence then immediately sound the alarm and seize all such unwanted activities. If we don't monitor and control such pernicious thoughts then the difference between humans and animals will start to shrink. There should be some thoughts forbidden to ponder on once one is logically convinced about the detrimental effects they can cause. I'm of the view that evil thoughts gain momentum when revisited and can lead to undesirable action by clouding the rational approach. I feel when one visualizes evil thoughts in one's mind then that person is feeding the devil. They can make the cursed one stronger and the host weaker.

So the moral of this post is to keep thoughts clean and constructive if one desires for a purged soul. Certain thoughts can lead to a person's total failure in all dimensions while some can surge him/her to the ultimate level. Never forget that your thoughts are constantly evaluated by the supreme being. Indeed our thoughts are the playground for both good and evil.

We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves - Buddha

When the Stars of Innovation and Creativity got Aligned for a Magical Period in Time

"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do" -Apple

There are legends. There are legacies. But there can be only one Steve Jobs. Most of you may know him from the creator of Ipad, Ipod or Iphone. But the fact is that the man actually revolutionized seven industries: personal computing, animated movies, music, phones, tablets, retail stores and digital publishing. He will therefore be forever remembered with the likes of Thomas Edison, Henry Ford and Walt Disney.

This post is to list down all the important management lessons derived from his timeline which I read in HBR and to contribute my share of homage to Steve Jobs. One of the best thing I learned about him was that he used to think that normal rules didn't apply to him. I know such thought can be a ferocious weapon if gotten into wrong hands but Jobs used it wisely. Jobs's mentor (Mike) advised him three principles in life which were empathy, focus and impute. Impute in management means to establish a person's personal experience or emotion with the product. Following are his most important lessons extracted from his life :-

1. Focus

2. Simplify

3. Take responsibility 

4. When behind, Leapfrog

5. Put products before profits

6. Don't be a slave to focus groups

7. Impute

8. Push for perfection

9. Tolerate only "A" players

10. Engage face-to-face

11. Know both the big picture and the details

12. Combine the humanities with the science
13. Stay hungry, stay foolish


Once Jobs in his adolescence was building a fence in his backward with his father. His father told him to take as much care with the back of the fence as to do with the front. Jobs said "Nobody will know about the back of fence". His father replied "But you will know". A true craftsman is more concerned with the passion of perfection rather than saving resources for personal benefits. So go for perfection and everything else will follow themselves.

Job's 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech

Endnotes

1. Reference from Harvard Business Review. Walter Isaacson brought forth these important lessons from Job's life and is the writer of biographies of Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein.

2. I'd recommend to get a copy of HBR (april edition) to read the full article.

Almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. - Steve Jobs

Rise above Fear and Face your Demons!

Of all the grim creatures in the world, why did Bruce Wayne chose a bat to personify himself in fighting crime? Strangely enough it is the same creature that had haunted him through out his young life. This nightmare began the day young bruce was attacked by bats when he fell in a tunnel and then the torture got unbearable and relentless each passing day. The haunting memories constantly degenerated his soul. He had to get rid of these torments. He had to break free. To become a free man. To bask in the glory with immortals. So what did he do to overcome his deepest fear?...................he became his own deepest fear.

Just like Bruce, we all have our demons from the past. These conniving beasts take many shapes for e.g car accident, place, event, death, tragedy, injustice, subjugation, molestation and for some people..............abandonment of that one person. One moment you are a free person, and the next you are thrown to the mercy of horrific beasts, to thier indulgence. These demons don't physically rip you apart. That would be way too lenient. But rather they emotionally torture you your entire life and maintain a prison for your mind. Some can't even recognize their torture and are left to believe that perhaps this is what life's all about. To live in fear. To be devoured. To be perished into nothingness.

Go ahead and start blaming all those who contributed to your enslavement. No use in regretting what is done. Perhaps done for a reason oblivious to you. It doesn't matter who did what to you. What matters is what do you do to yourself. I read somewhere that nobody can hurt you without your consent. I'm here to tell you that nobody lives in fear without his/her consent. Because the day you travel to your darkest death valley where your demons reside, you won't find ugly looking monsters.................you'll find yourself. The truth is that there are no demons. It's just you. It was your decision to cage yourself. You are the creator. You are the annihilator.

Some people go AWOL and get themselves submerged to the mundane affairs of life. Well how's that working out for you people? In order to master your fear, there is no other option but to face them head on. To look in your fear's dark dark eyes. To take all the pain, melancholy and gloom it gave you and use it against it. To unleash yourself and give them a taste of their own medicine. And then finally to embrace and become one with them. I know you're too scared to do it. Too insecure or perhaps too weak. But are you? You must understand that regardless of your circumstances, you still have and always will possess the greatest power THE ALMIGHTY ever gave you.........the power of choice. Learn to use it and don't choose to live in fear. Choose to be free. To ascend and then transcend. And trust me when I tell you that it's the only kind of life worth living.

The day you'll master your illusive demons, you'll know what relief is.........what life is. Like someone took the weight of the world off your shoulders. It's the day you won't stop giving mock smiles to your fears. The day you'll realize that this is only the beginning. The day you'll realize your true strength. They day you'll realize that there is a much higher purpose at stake. And hopefully it's the day you'll start doing........what needs to be done.

Go visit your fears and rise above it

Endnote

1. I know all of what I've written is much easy to write than to practically do it and that it will take hell more to overcome fear . But I can only show you the door, you're the one who has to walk through it.

2. Dying bruce's father final words to bruce were and I quote "Don't be afraid".

Our fears have haunted us for far too long......time has come to haunt them back.

   

illusion of Justifications

Why are there bad people on God's green earth? Why do they do what they do? Don't they feel any remorse or pity? Have they no decency or empathy? Such people most of the times bypass the moral criteria and fall in the deep rabbit hole of logical fallacy. Nobody wants to admit that he/she is a bad person and that it's alright to commit diabolical acts. So in order to commit an unethical act, what most people do this that they acquire a sort of proxy to channel their justification cause without justification, it becomes very difficult to commit an unethical act for a sane person. Consider the following faulty justifications :- 

1. Displacement of responsibility is that process when one blames his/her unethical behavior on the other for e.g " I took the bribe because my boss said to do so".

2. Diffusion of responsibility is that process when a person commits unethical act and no one is being held responsible for e.g "We all take bribe, that's the way we do business here"

3. Advantageous comparison is that process when one compare's his unethical act to someone's whose level of unethical behavior is greater for e.g"I only do drugs while my friends do drugs, alcohol ,gambling and fornication".
4.Self-advantages comparison is that process when one justifies his evil act by committing good one's also for e.g "I know it was bad of me to hit a person with my car and run away but am not such a bad person as I give donations and help the needy one's also"

5. Attribution of blame is that process when one blames his/her unethical act because of someone else's behavior for e.g " My co-worker called me some abusive words so that's why I repeatedly beat him with an inch of his life".

6. Euphemistic labeling is that process of using sugar-coated words in order to justify their heinous crimes for e.g Terrorist sounds bad but freedom fighter is much more justifiable.
7. The "nobody's perfect" acquittal is that trap in which one justifies by saying that some unethical acts are ok since nobody's perfect for e.g "I know I cheated but everyone have their weaknesses and nobody's perfect". It's true that nobody's perfect but make an effort to eliminate your weaknesses and don't just sit on your arse like a spoiled brat and do nothing about it.
8. Masquerade of Greater Good is that deception which can be exploited by moral people even. In this process one commits evil/unethical acts and claims to do so for greater good for e.g" Since that leader is a corrupt and atrocious person therefore it deems prudent to have him assassinated so that the public can be spared."

Not always justification is required to commit unethical acts as I commit such an act of piracy (will post about it) and have no justification for it. Also there are those short-sighted people who don't perceive their immoral acts as immoral and continue to do so for the sake of short-term pleasure against long-term deterioration.

Endnote

1. Reference from "Effective Leadership (3rd edition)" by "lussier/Achua". Points 4, 7 & 8 are self generated.
2. Do share if you have more justification points to add.
3. I mostly fall for point 7.

There can never be any justifiable justification for immoral acts

All that I've seen Mean's nothing To me Without You

I have seen the rise and fall of ocean waves, lovers unable to look away from each other, black clouds with cool breeze, utterance of first word by toddler, giant rainbow after long awaited rainfall, a child helping an elderly to cross the road, persistence of circle of life, blossom of red roses, time healing wounds, ants walking with discipline, philosopher submerged in deep deep thoughts, dolphins moving along a ship, children enjoying merry-go-round, man getting down on his knees and proposing, best friends hugging each other, a stranger sacrificing his life for the other, the sun rising, a very poor disabled man thankful towards life, shooting of a star, students celebrating their graduation, twilight forming on a beautiful day, corrupt people pleading guilty even if they could have escaped, eagles soar above the sky, mother embracing her child, people fulfilling their purpose in life, forgiveness, passion, prudence, jubilation, enlightenment, protection, awesomeness, perseverance, glamour, aesthetics...................but all that I've seen mean's nothing to me without you.

Inspired by this song

Endnote

1.This post is purely fiction and has no dedication. 

The Prophecy of Mohammad Amir

Note: If you are completely aware of Amir's background and want this post to be brief then you can start from second paragraph.



Muhammad Amir belonged to a very humble background and from birth lacked many luxuries of life. But despite his hardships, Allah did provide him with a exceptional cricketing talent with the ball and cricket is a game in Pakistan the beats with the heartbeats of the entire nation. So Amir with the use of his talents landed himself in U-19 cricket team and then later joined the Pakistan's national team and thus embarked on a journey that most of us would only dream of. Most cricketers take some years to blossom but not Amir. His career sky rocketed with magnificent bowling performance against top quality world teams. Just at the age of 17, he achieved direct comparison with Wasim Akram (arguably the world's best fast bowler). His ingenious display on the field at such a young age amplified his fan base and also the media was full of fervor about him. His life became more than a dream come true but like always all good things come to an end. We all do ridiculous things when we are young and Amir was no exception to it. He brought corruption to the game by deliberately under performing in a match and accepting corrupt payments for doing it. But unfortunately for him, his treachery couldn't go unnoticed as one undercover journalist exposed his disloyalty to the whole world. So Amir's dream run had ended and not only he got banned for 5 years but also he had to serve time for his foolishness. And hence marked the Rise and Fall of Muhammad Amir.

Amir served some time in England from his original sentence and then returned back to Pakistan. At home the nation was celebrating Pakistan's Asia cup win but not Amir. Infact Amir felt absolutely gutted knowing that he could have been a part of the winning team. Knowing that he could have been the hero of the day like before and win the cup for Pakistan and it's people. Amir's disappointment made him vulnerable and weak and what do weak people do?......they succumb to the tyranny of  alcohol and drugs. Amir purchased the stuff and took it to the corner of the street. Just when he was about to shove the illegal substance down his throat to relieve himself of the agony, the believer arrived at the scene of crime and engaged himself with Amir by following conversation:-

The believer said "Who would have thought that you'd stoop so low". Amir replied angrily "who are YOU?". Believer remained calm and said "No my friend the question is who are YOU". Perturbed Amir replied "what do you want?". Believer said "Wrong again! the question is what do YOU want? Amir replied "Don't tell me that you care what I do and do not want". Now believer replied furiously "YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT I DON'T CARE. I don't care about your pathetic life. You wan't to know what I care? I care about those kids whose hopes and dreams YOU KILLED. Those kids had no money or any other resource in life to excel. But all they needed was you. You were the symbol against all odds. You gave them the belief to achieve great heights in life but then took it all away. You gave them the belief that it doesn't matter if you belong to a rich family or not, that anyone can achieve anything by dedication and faith in ALLAH". Believer continued with a mocking tone "And do you know what has changed with these kids after what you did?". The believer sighed, sat close to Amir and said with soft voice "Nothing!..........These kids still believe in you with their bruised and broken hearts. Yet you choose to relax yourself with this garbage and those kids choose to pray to ALLAH for the return of their hero. The believer stood up and said "I don't know what grave a sin you committed but if you feel you've lived out your life and want nothing more out of it then go out there and live your life for the people and kids who still believe in you. Give them back their hopes and dreams. Give them back the will to go on. And in the midst of all this, try considering to rise from the ashes. It's one pleasure that has no equal match and can lead to immortality and sometimes leads a person to become............A Legend!". And then the believer departed amicably.   

Amir was reduced to tears of aggravation. He sold his soul to the devil once before but not again and so he took the stuff he purchased and threw it hard in the nearby river. The nation went home after celebrating the victory but Amir went straight to nets and from that day onwards, he never looked back.
Even though it was long wait for Amir to get a chance to reclaim his lost glory but he was willing to pay the price. He shattered his dreams........but he wasn't going to let his fans suffer the same fate. He decided to start from scratch ,rehabilitate himself and work hard so that he could one day return to the Pakistan team as the new sultan of swing. He wasn't sure if he could achieve all this but he was damn sure that not a soul on earth could stop him from trying. And hence marked the Fall and Rise of Muhammad Amir.



To be continued/risen................................................By Muhammad Amir himself

The prophecy is upon him

Endnotes
1. The part after Pakistan's Asia cup win in second paragraph is fictional but not before it.
2. The believer's identity will be revealed in my coming soon post.

Soon cricket fields will be illuminated by the craftsmanship of Amir

10 Amazing theories about the Amazing Universe

My fascination for the Universe runs deeper than the depths of the universe itself and the more I learn about it, the more it mesmerizes me. I would love to sketch the beauty of the universe with my own words but I fear that will result in a futile attempt so I'll let the facts/theories speak for themselves :-

1. Approximately 400 billion stars exist in our galaxy alone.

2. The thing that amazes scientists is not what resides in the light but what hides in the dark. 4% of our universe comprises of matter, 24% or dark matter and 72% or dark energy.

3. Currently 4 galaxies are merging with each other far away and can result in a single massive galaxy 10 times bigger than ours.

4. Shapley is a cluster of galaxies which is 400 light years long and it would take trillion of years for our fastest satellite to pass through it.

5. Milky way extends to 100,000 light years and the CD galaxy is 60 times bigger than ours.

6. If the rate of expansion of the universe right after the Big Bang had changed by 1 part in a quintillion (1,000,000,000,000,000,000 = 1 quintillion) then nothing would have ever existed. To illustrate just how small this number (one part in a quintillion ) is, imagine all the grains of sand in the world's beaches (the number would probably be 1 quintillion) .So in this analogy if all that sand represented the rate of expansion then how many grains of sand would be needed to wreck the universe?......Just 1 grain ----- What Precision !!!

7. Diameter of the universe is 93 billion light years and extending.

8. There are 100 billion galaxies in the observable universe.

9. The largest known super massive black hole is 10 billion times the mass of sun (300,000 earths = sun)

And lastly something to be dazzled at yourself .........

10. The iron in our body (less than 1% probably) comes from supernova (explosion of stars). Which essentially means that a small portion of our body is made of stars !!!

These 10 points are the merest piece of information about our awesome creator and the universe is the source of my faith and hope in ALLAH which I will discuss in my next post.

Endnotes

1. Source of data is The Universe documentary by History Channel (1 & 2 season).

2. Albeit it cannot be argued that all most every information about the universe should be treated as theories and not facts since these are not precise calculations. But these figures do give an idea about the mystical nature of the universe. 

One more shot at my Greatest Desire

Yesterday I received one more shot at my greatest desire when I got a call from Lums (Lahore University of Management Sciences) for MBA interview session on coming tuesday which is the last hurdle in getting admitted. I have been interviewed twice in previous two years and this year is my third attempt as this chance is presented only once a year. 

Lums MBA programme is my greatest desire cause I have never strived for or acquired quality education but recently I have developed this inquisitive behaviour which demands hungers for advanced business/management knowledge, upbeat communication skills and eyebrows raising critical reasoning. I want my thought process to be streamlined in a way that will enable me to look at things from a broader and holistic perspective. I want my arguments to be utterly logically and persuasive enough to be easily understood and acknowledged. In short, the learning provided at Lums is unprecedented to any other business institution in Pakistan and I want a piece of this hardcore action going on in there.

Truth be told cause practically I have a very low chance of getting in. Honestly I haven't done anything even close to extraordinary in my entire life e.g academics, sports, extra curricular activities etc. I have never participated in any workshop or debates and have a very low work experience. I guess the only reason they consider me each year is because I scored 93 percentile (not percentage) in entry test. I'm pretty sure every other candidate will be alot better than me by having more test scores, professional experience and exceptional academics record.

But I wont step into that room with low on confidence and motivation cause that's not how I roll. I may be the weakest candidate but sometimes our greatest strength lies in our greatest weakness. I may have the weakest credentials but my past is water under the bridge and today I'm a man with belief in my heart and ruthless aggression in my soul. I may possess the weakest communication and analytical skills but I'll try to muster something with want I have (like always) with full confidence and smile on my face.

Allah decides the outcome of everything but we decide the choice of our actions. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters to me is whether I gave my best shot or not. And if they are going to reject me again then I'm not going down without a fierce fight and will be back next year again for..................one more shot at my greatest desire.

Endnotes

1. Even though I will try each year to get admitted but after this year, I will consider to accept the admission acceptance letter (if offered) as my priorities may change since I am at a crucial stage of my career.
2. Each year I learn from my mistakes and try not to repeat them in order to make the attempt better than before. An improved version of me walks in that room each year (or so I think).
3. Call it my strength or my weakness but I never back down from the challenges I pick regardless of how monstrous it may be..........................never

Sometimes the fulfilment of destiny doesn't fascinate me but the road to it does 

The Real Test of Faith

Consider the following entanglement :

For instance, one may hold strong feelings that bribery is wrong and believe in adhering to the principles and ethics of islam. However, what decision would one make if one has been made her/his company's senior manager in a country where payments to clear goods through customs are routinely made. That person has a son with major physical and learning disabilities who needs special exercise equipment and learning aids not available in the country. The special exercise equipment and learning aids, along with the rest of that manager's household shipment, are being held in customs because customs officials want a payment for their release. Does one hold the child's needs hostage to one's values and principles of islam or does one make the payments needed to get the household shipment containing the equipment and learning aids released by the customs officials?

To be honest a major part of me would never want to be in such a situation but a small part does. I don't want to in such a predicament because i am afraid i might loose my faith in ALLAH and make the payment (bribe). But a small part of me desires to be in such a condition in order to prove to ALLAH my faith in him by not making that payment and be patient.

We really don't find it difficult to have faith in ALLAH during our discussion, salats, dinner, at work etc. We believe in him when things are running smooth. But what happens when our faith is put to test? Why do we relinquish our faith for a moment to let things work in our benefit and when our evil act is completed, we waste no time in regaining back our faith? Is such faith any good if we keep it in smooth times and discard it during testing one's?

All I want to say is that we should never loose faith in ALLAH especially in dire straits.We should not forget the fact that ALLAH governs our hearts and minds. So the best thing (i think) the above mentioned person can do is not to make that payment. Also sitting idle and just praying isn't advisable either. He/she should first complain to the head of department. If that doesn't work then go to justice department of the respective country. Have faith in ALLAH, work immensely hard and leave no stone unturned but do it all under the law of the land. At the end of the day ALLAH will do justice........he always does and always will.
So the next time you sit in your examination, make a business deal, witness unethical or unislamic activity ,presented with bribe or even feel the urge to commit a evil act which in your heart you know is a evil act then remember to be steadfast enough to remind yourself.....................in whom your faith lies.

Endnotes

1. The entanglement was copied from a journal (Designing and Delivering Business Ethics Teaching and Learning by Ronald R. Sims Edward L. Felton, Jr.) with slight editing.
2. It's natural and inevitable for humans to make mistakes. Sometimes we will pass the test and sometimes fail it. But when we fail it, we should atleast built some gradual strength to challenge it next time. It's not like one fails the same test all year long without challenging it. It shouldn't work that way.
3. The author would like to remind himself that he too should remember in whom his faith lies during vulnerable times. 

Autocracy of Assumptions

Think of a number and I'll tell you exactly what you'll think.........and no I won't be making crazy long calculations in order to approach a close approximate. So before you go any further think of a number and check the endnotes for the answer............so am I right or am I right? :)




The reason you picked an integer is because you assumed that a number is always a integer whereas a number can be a decimal, fraction or a square root. Besides mathematics i'd like to share an experience. I was sitting inside a class and I wanted to slide the window in order to open it but when I saw that the window had a rubber fixed to the bottom with 2 screws, I didn't even bother to make any attempt of opening it because I assumed that if something is fixed to the bottom with screws then it can't be moved. But after a while another person came in the class and easily opened the window by sliding it. What I found out was that by the looks of it, the screws looked tightly screwed to the bottom but in reality the screws were loose enough for anybody to open the window. All one needed to do was to make an attempt to open it.
Now consider a hypothetical situation. Suppose you hear me listening bollywood songs for couple of seconds in my car. You might assume that since I listen to bollywood songs and write against it ,hence I am a hypocrite. But there can be several other explanations to it e.g I might be in the process of changing the radio channel, my friend is listening to that song and he is not letting me change it or I might think am listening to a Pakistani band.
We all receive alot of information in everyday life and we have to built some assumptions when making decisions. I guess it's all right to assume things without concrete evidence in trivial matters (like above) but it is the big issues in our lives that are supposed to be articulated by concrete logic and evidence along with credible source. We should not let our assumptions meddle in big matters of our lives. The biggest problem with assumptions is that we form these in early stages of our lives and  in later stages we mostly carry the same assumptions but in different contexts aswell.
The whole point is that seeing isn't always believing and every context should be studied differently and separately. It's important to distinguish between facts and assumptions during decision making because we sometimes subconsciously consider them one and the same. The more one assumes, the further he/she is likely to drift away from the truth. It is also advisable that we should put our heads down and start extracting all the assumptions lurking in our minds and challenge the one's that seem dubious cause it is these dubious assumptions that sometimes maintain a prison for our minds.





Endnote
1. The number is integer.
2. Not all assumptions are questionable. One needs to figure out which are and which aren't.



Coming Soon : Revival of the Believer (Inspired by The Belief)

Understanding Pain

Just for the sake of argument, suppose one day you win a lottery of millions of dollar. On the very day the love of your life calls you up and says that he/she can’t think of anything else but to grow old with you. Also the top employer of the world insists you to be a part of their company and offer you senior management position. Your family and friends get ecstatic about your position and are honestly full of praise for you. In a nutshell everything gets perfect. Infact it even gets better and better every day for eternity. You also become a big kurt cobain fan. Now given your situation, if you were maintaining a daily journal then my best bet is that it would look something like this:-

Day 1 

WOW! What a day!!!! , Easily the best day of my life. My friends and family were totally cool with me. My workplace is awesome and everyone cooperates with me. My wife can't stand to be two feet away from me and so can't I. My pockets are running deep and next week I’ll be going on a Eurotrip!!!!! :) The best part about the trip is that my boss has no issue with me taking a long absence. Infact he wants me to have a time of my life :)

Day 10 

I've seen so much about Eurotrip in movies but this is even better than I thought!!!!! The food tastes spectacular and cinemas are so much amusing!!!!!!! I don't know the name of the hotel but if there ever is a 17 star hotel than this would be it. Man! and I thought Day 1 was the best day of my life!!!!!

6 Months 

I SIMPLY CAN'T BELIEVE IT!!!!!!! Out of 6 months, I have spent 2 months vacationing with my family and friends and my boss is totally cool with it. On top of this, I have been awarded the employee of the month!!!! I JUST LOVE MY LIFE!!!!!!!! :)

1 Year 

Vegas is unbelievable! I can never get used to the glamour and attraction to this place. On the other hand it may sound crazy but it feels like that the thing am getting used to is happiness....hhmmmm......anyways my birthday is coming up and my friends and coworkers are arranging a party for me back home so ill be heading back soon.

3 Years 

Work was fantastic as usual and got another pay raise. Wife is great as always with me. Paradoxically I've never had a single fight with her in 3 years and unfortunately she doesn't seem to get into one for a long time to come. Wait a minute.......I wonder why I wrote unfortunately ?.......hhhmmmmm........anyways my boss is sending me to another trip to Switzerland so i guess that will be exciting.

8 Years 

Even though I just came back from Paradise island, Bahamas (which is my 7th trip here) along with my friends and family.......... something doesn't seem right.......I mean things are all so perfect all the time......sadly I can't even remember the last time I was in any predicament.........I guess the problem is that there still isn’t enough happiness in my life......or not enough enjoyment or perhaps pleasure....................or maybe there just isn't enough PAIN!!!!!!!

10 Years 

It’s better to burn out than to fade away.................................

Like I learned and wrote before, excess of everything is bad and indeed happiness is no exception to it. We mostly try to get the perfect job, spouse, friends, salary etc not knowing what exactly are we asking for. Essentially the point am trying to make is that to strive for perfection in life is not a bad idea but if you can't attain it than it's ok.

Now we all know too much pain is very dreadful aswell so if it’s not a friend than it’s neither a foe. We all have our predicaments and problems in life but that doesn't mean we should cry over it all the time and relapse into reactive mode. Both pain and pleasure are complements to each other and we need them both to function properly. Besides more pain gives you more opportunity to be happy in future. Also we feel happiness only because of pain and vice versa. 

To sum it up, ALLAH has given us the perfect system to execute our choices and fulfill our purpose in life. So the next time you suffer from financial pressure, loose loved ones, shown contempt at workplace, fail in exam or sports , suffer from health issue's etc, you can let pain have the best of you for couple of days max  but then remember to RISE UP to tell yourself with a smile that.................the show must go on...............

Endnotes

1. This blog is not applicable on everyone. Any ifs and buts applied to it can be taken up on the comments section.

2. Those of you who are not familiar with the phrase "It’s better to burn out than to fade away", it was written in kurt cobain's suicidal note.

3. Without purpose, objective or goal in life, pain can cause upheaval and also there can be a danger of ending up into a limbo.


Up next: The Curse of Bollywood

Top 15 lessons learned in life

Following are some lessons I've learned in life till now :-

1. There is perfect logic behind everything Islam tells us to do. If one can't see it doesn't mean it's not there.

2. Get married or stay single, anything else will prove to be detrimental in time.

3. Excess of everything is bad.

4. We are slave to our hearts and minds but there are ways to transcend.

5. Currently i dont know the purpose of life but what i do know is that its not getting educational degree's, accumulating wealth, marrying a perfect spouse and then doing it all over again for your children. It's just a part of it but we are born with a much higher purpose.

6. Cheating in schools, colleges etc will only do you harm. The purpose of education is to stimulate your brain and invigorate your thinking process and cheating kills both of them. Unfortunately we all come to realize/understand the drawbacks of cheating in the later stages of life and some never do.

7. Better not to judge people cause there is a big ocean inside their hearts and minds and you may be looking at it from the shore. You may look alot but not enough.

8. Pain is neither a friend nor a foe (i'll explain this in my next blog).

9. You may come to hate what you love today with the passage of time (even though everything else may remain constant) but it doesn't have to be that way.

10. There are no limits to your most powerful weapon........choice.

11. Think about the things you have and not have not's. There will always be some/alot have not's in your life but understand this that it is for your own good.

12. One of devil's strategy is to give you short term gratification against long term deterioration.

13. Its better that your deepest desire remains unfulfilled otherwise you may loose the flavor of your life.

14. Sometimes its ok to not know the right answers if you know the right questions.

and my personal favorite........

15. Its better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you're not.

Endnotes

1. Listing is not based on priority.

2. My lessons learned don't necessarily mean lessons implemented but i try to.

The Belief

Once there was a firm believer of ALLAH. That believer had suffered almost all the hardships in life. His family died in a car crash, livelihood wasn’t easy going by any means, struggled maintaining a fair income and was treated as an outcast by the society. The loss of his family was the most excruciating moment of his life. But despite all the thorns injected by life, his belief stood in unwavering resolve. He worshipped ALLAH whole heartedly and thanked him for everything he could imagine to thank. At the end of the day, the believer knew one thing for sure and that Allah is the greatest judge and he will make things right one day. But days went on with hardships getting insurmountable everyday and the only pity life could render him was death. So he died and no grief was shed on his death.

When the believer opened his eyes, he was standing between two gigantic doors opposite in direction with nothing else in vicinity. Just as he stood there overwhelmed, the devil approached him in a disguised figure and said “You spent your entire life believing in the one who doesn’t exist. The door to your right is hell and to your left is heaven. If you choose to relinquish your belief then you will be pardoned and sent to heaven but if you don’t then you know the price of alternative”. The believer stood there in shock as numbness started to creep inside. Just when it looked like he would break apart, the door of heaven opened. Upon seeing beyond that door, he was drawn towards it and the numbness feeling started to rush back. The word beauty had no match to what he saw. Also his beloved family approached the door beckoning him towards them with a smile. As the believer got nearer to heaven and his family, a surge of happiness after a long time started to develop inside him. He knew that his life of hardships was over. Finally a life of comfort, happiness, love, pleasure, joy with immortality became possible. Everything a human may ever desire was just couple of steps away. Everything…………except ALLAH. And on that very thought he stopped. Unknowingly the believer briskly walked multiple steps towards heaven but now even a single step looked like climbing Mount Everest. The devil was immensely perturbed by this and quickly rushed towards him and asked “you are just couple of steps away from everything a man desires. So why have you stopped?” The believer humbly replied by following words:

"It is true that what is ahead of me is what I have longed for my entire life. All my dreams and wishes are within my reach. My pursuit of happiness is about to end but the thing is that it has never been about me. You tell me that ALLAH doesn’t exist then why do I feel him in my heart, mind ,blood and soul. You tell me that ALLAH doesn’t exist then why was it that only the mere thought of him gave me the strength to overcome all the pain and sorrows in life and keep going on. You tell me that ALLAH doesn’t exist then why is that I feel that only he is the one capable of creating me, people, earth, planets, stars, universe and the unknown (Just then the believer turned around and started walking in opposite direction and his family also turned back happily). I know behind the heaven door lay all my desires but they all will remain insatiable without ALLAH. My life was tough but Allah was always there for me and now I am here for him. Real or not, ALLAH is the only one I still believe in and always will. Not only because I want to but also because he deserves so (Now the believer stood couple of footsteps from the door of hell). Anything and everything is about ALLAH and always will be and if the price of believing in him is hell then it’s a price I shall gladly pay. I have believed in him anywhere and everywhere so OPEN THE DOOR! and take me to the depths of abyss for it is the one place I have yet to test my belief"

Upon hearing these words the devil was filled with anguish and faded away into nothingness. Just then the door flew open and this time there were no words ever invented to describe what the believer saw. There he was, The Great One, The Almighty, THE KING OF KINGS………..ALLAH. The believer saw him and fell to his knees with bent head and tears gushing out. ALLAH saw the believer and said “WELL DONE”.

Endnotes

1. The sole motivation behind this fiction is to glorify ALLAH.

2. ALLAH was going to reward the believer with heaven no matter what door he would have chosen. ALLAH always knew his choice for ALLAH knows everything.

3. The believer was rewarded with a high rank in heaven with his family.

The believer's real desire wasn't money,house,education,perfect spouse, peace of mind........but to be united with ALLAH..........what are your desires?