intellect may always remain sharp, & with that, aging with time, gracefully would require inner calm and experience that guided the shape of the stable personality in an aged person.
what is one of the intellectual qualities which you would like to have in yourself, when you will grow older?
I think the most imoprtant quality a person should have is being able to recognise and tell the difference between falsehood and truth, being able to follow it and fearing Allah as a result.
And Allah has created you, then He causes you to die, and of you is he who is brought back to the worst part of life, so that after having knowledge he does not know anything; surely Allah is Knowing, Powerful
[16: 70]
And whomsoever We cause to live long, We reduce (him) to an abject state in constitution; do they not then understand?
[36: 68]
Something is ticking at the back of mind right about a hadith which I cannot recall fully but said something like "Allah starts your life as a baby, then you are strong adult and then you become baby again (i.e. old, meaning you depend on others just like you did when you were a baby)"
Aging is a fact which everyone has to face. As for me bring a child again and being older, I am not sure if I will live till that time. I cannot make a dua to Allah to extend my lifespan because that will not happen and never will. The dua that I would rather make is ask Allah to forgive me and admit me in Jannah. So it really doesn't bother me whether I become old or not.
I think the one quality I would like to have is acceptance. If I can accept that I am aging, I will be more likely to be more graceful about it. The people who are not at ease are those who cannot accept that they will or have aged.
If have my intellectual capabilities and memories and a satisfaction that I have achieved something (however little) then I will be at peace.
intellect may always remain sharp, & with that, aging with time, gracefully would require inner calm and experience that guided the shape of the stable personality in an aged person.
what is one of the intellectual qualities which you would like to have in yourself, when you will grow older?
share if you like.
Dushwari
openness/open to new possibilities, points of views
for many ppl they get too set in their ways, views, approaches as they get older and thats no fun, not only do those ppl cease to be interesting for the most part, but they also miss out on so much
^
Indeed i shall when i get married!!! I shall treat him wonderfully that he shall be soo gratefull and thank the almighty for a wifey like moi...amen!
I cannot make a dua to Allah to extend my lifespan because that will not happen and never will. The dua that I would rather make is ask Allah to forgive me and admit me in Jannah.
Aging gracefully for me is a multi-dimensional task. To be fully satisfied with the life i've lived would be to have no debt, to have been pious and keeping regular prayers and observe before speaking, to be worry-free and blessed with a family, and be a blessing for my family. So when i die, i die the best death, surrounded by loved ones, as a man who fears his Lord Almighty and last words still be of seeking forgiveness from Allah....that's aging gracefully for me. To have left in a way that when i was around people laughed, now that i'm gone people cry when they think of me/miss me...
It is debateable that an intellectual can remain calm, with experience. With consideration of the global vision, an intellectual can be more frustrated with experience and aging. I am not sure that an intellectual can get the inner calm with acknowledgement that he has limited resources and he can not change black into white by simple words. If inner calm stands just to know and understand the situation than it can be achieved by any average person who just able to compromise.
but the intellect that comes with experrince and knowledge is incomplete if it is not laced with reality. knowing one has limited resources and that he cant change everything would not be a reason of frustration if the person realizes that there is only so much they can do, so they what they can and dont stress about what is beyond their control and thus have inner calm that they are doing what they realistically can. I think in that case Inner calm comes from knowing that they are doign what they realisticaly can, and that it may e a drop in the bucket but qatra qatra mil kat darya banta hai.