And the tears continue to flow....

O' Maula! O' Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin (RA) where are you? Why did you leave us Maula? We mumineen across the globe were eagerly waiting to celebrate your milad mubarak in a few weeks! What my eyes are seeing today, my heart denies to believe and my mind refuses to accept or register.

My eyes that had always seen Aliqadar maula(tus) holding the Miyana  of Aqa Burhanuddin(RA) , saw him holding his Janaza today. The eyes that had witnessed the grand and majestic procession of 100th milad mubarak, and they had seen thousands of mumineen on the streets of Mumbai with joy written on each face, those eyes today witnessed the funeral of Aqa Maula, and thousands of mumineen on the same Mumbai streets, with grief stricken faces. The eyes that for years had seen Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin(RA) doing sajda near his beloved father's qabr mubarak, today saw Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin(TUS) offering sajda near his father's qabr mubarak with same khushu and khudu. The eyes that had several times observed Aliqadar Maula(tus) kissing the hands and feet of Burhanuddin Maula(RA), saw him kissing his qabr today. Alas! How can these eyes stop shedding tears after witnessing such heart wrenching scenes, and how can the inward eye not flash images from past and not compare them.

My heart and tongue that had always uttered the priceless words 'inni wallahe uhibboka ya maulaya' in Maula's hazrat, uttered the same words near his qabr mubarak. The feelings of over whelming love and devotion that had always flowed from heart in his presence, flowed today near his qabr, but this time feelings of immense grief were mixed with love.

The feet that  for years had been trained to stand in queues and carried me to Maula's hazrat innumerable times, carried me to Raudat tahera today, near his qabr. But this time the spring in my steps was missing, instead each step weighed a ton!

My hands that had been lucky enough to get the sharaf of Maula's salaam and talaqqi several times, are holding the flower petals from his qabr today.

My ears that had always listened Maula's sweet voice, are listening his aza today. His affectionate words of "ae mara pyaara pyaara farzando" keep echoing in my ears.

Each fiber of my being misses him and mourns his loss. As soon as i open my eyes in the morning and look at his huge frame, the sad realization hits me. But then i look at the photo of his mansoos, Aliqadar Maula (TUS) , and his presence gives me the strength to go on. He is our greatest solace. May Allah grant Syedna Mufaddal saifuddin (TUS) a long and healthy life till Qayamat. Ameen.

The D word

A dear friend got divorced recently. It was sad and unfortunate. I had been a witness to their courtship days, their fairy tale wedding and the years that had followed. So it was sad and hard to swallow. But having said that, I had also seen the divorce coming long before it actually happened. Now the reason i am writing this post is not to discuss  their divorce, but society's reaction to a divorce! I fail to understand the stigma attached to a divorce. When the religion and the law both permit a couple to go their separate ways if they choose, then who are we to judge and dissect their personal life? Why can't we accept their decision without wagging our tongues? Why all the tsk tsk and the snide comments?

Since this person is a close friend of mine, i have been a target of endless questions from people who barely even know him! Behind the cloak of sympathy, they want to know all the details. What caused the divorce, who will look after the kids, how will he manage the house, blah,blah... When i tell those people to mind their own business, they give me those suspicious looks. They take me for devil's advocate. As if I care! Sometimes i feel like telling them that if you are so interested, why don't you apply for a governess or a maid in his house! (He can do with one!) 

It perplexes me that why is so much negativity attached to a divorce? It is a sad turn of events, no doubt, and certainly no one celebrates a divorce. But why can't we be a little more accommodating as a society? Why can't we accept divorce as a way of life? Why do we need to tag a divorced person with negativity? Why does a divorce seemingly overshadow all the positive qualities of that person? 

The most common comment I hear is that they should have compromised for the sake of their children. I just want to ask everyone a question that when a couple gets divorced, do they decide it overnight? Certainly not! Love may happen at first sight, but divorces do not happen overnight! They as parents must have thought a thousand times about their kids and how their decision is going to affect them. They must have lost a lot of sleep over this. And if they still feel that they should go their separate ways, then we have no right to question their integrity as parents and their loyalty towards their kids. Whatever may be their reasons, it is not for us to judge their decision!

I end the post with a couple of funny images to cheer my friend up! :)