Every New Year brings us the feeling of a new beginning. Apparently, there is no diametric difference between December 31 and January 1, but there must be something very mystical deep down in our souls and hearts exhorting our minds to make a resolution for every New Year.
When a complete year winds down, we begin to make certain resolutions to enhance our health, wealth and prosperity.
Some common resolutions are losing weight, giving up smoking cigarettes and consuming alcohol, sticking to a time-table etc. But what the adherents of all faiths and creeds often miss out is the New Year’s spiritual resolutions.
So what is the true concept of spiritual resolutions? Merely commitments of praying, fasting, alms giving or reciting the verses of religious scriptures?
No, spiritual resolution is neither as easygoing as all this nor too difficult and elusive as for those who consider spirituality as something beyond their grasp and comprehension.
The spiritual resolution to start a New Year should be to make a firm and unshakeable commitment to treat the sickness of the psyche.
Mystics give paramount importance to the cure of the disorders that imperil the nafs (self). Prophet Muhammad always exhorted his companions to focus on the self-purification declaring it the most essential aspects of the faith in Islam.
Spiritual sickness is far graver than the physical illness, to the extent that if it is left uncured, its poisonous tentacles dramatically spread from an individual to the whole society.
Even modern psychology has stressed the need for the spiritual cure of psychological disorders. Although modern scientific researchers have equipped us with renewed awareness of this spiritual need, we tend to overlook it when it comes to our resolutions and priorities in personal life.
One can find this introspection completely missing in our technologically advanced society. As a result, we witness that the effects of spiritual sickness prevailing in our society continue to disturb modern life shattering the peace of mind.
The outcome of this growing spiritual disability is that today we have been let down by the evil forces of anger, wrath, pride, lust, envy, greed, sloth, jealousy and all other devilish tendencies.
Consequently, our world is transforming from a God-gifted safe haven into a hell of wars, violence, insecurity, dishonesty, selfishness, depression and all chaos. This is because we have ignored the pressing need of the purification of heart by treating the spiritual illness.
Prophet Muhammad said: “there is a small flesh in the body, if it is clean the whole body will be sound and if it is not, the whole body will be contaminated. That is the heart.” Let us all try and gear up for the purification of our hearts first of all in this year.
Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi is an alim (classical Islamic scholar) and a Delhi-based writer. He can be contacted at: grdehlavi@gmail.com
