Just to clarify: she's stopped praying taraweeh prayers - which are sunnah.. not fardh prayers..
By loss of spirituality I don;t mean a loss of iman! Doesn't everyone have ups and downs when it comes to spirituality? I don't mean you stop practicing altogether, or you leave your fardh prayers or anything drastic. I'm talking about a loss of the level of closeness that you felt with God previously.. Which you then push yourself to get to again. I'm suprised if you don't relate to what I'm talking about, everyone I've ever talked to mentions these sorts of ups and downs
It's not half as dramatic as it seems to be perceived here.. Jolie, it's not a sudden and dramatic change and NomiCA It's not a horrific experience. She really enjoyed her time there - we were just discussing how the time there seems to have changed her a little
Perhaps it was indeed weakness of her part.. But I'm not inclined to think it would be due to that totally. I think the experience and the environment she was in affected her heart - hardened it in a way. So she just doesn't feel like pushing herself that extra bit further like she used to We're not talking about fardh here! She still prays five times a day!
I see. Thanks for the clarification. I for some reason thought you were talking about namaaz because you mentioned worship etc. Khair if this decline in spirituality isn't interfering with her faraiz as a muslim, there's nothing to worry about. She just needs time I guess so let her be because spirituality isn't something that we can build for her, it comes from within.
And yes you're right, we all go through ups and downs, sometimes when we see the injustice all around us, sometimes when we lose a loved one. We're only weak humans, may Allah swt strengthen our imaan, Ameen.
Backbiting is a universal desi phenomenon and it is only as much prevalent in resident Pakistanis as it is in non-resident. I have no idea why she said what she said as I don’t see anywhere in Pakistan where being religious is ridiculed.
She may not be that spiritual to begin with and princes, you might be forcing her in the first place.
Please ask her not to come here ever again, we don’t want a spiritual soul being robbed of her spirituality :(. What do we Pakistanis know about Islam or spirtuality .
Weird! I don't see that much spirituality in pak tbh, a lot relatives/friends out there do not even fast. Let alone pray.
But spirituality is an individual thing, it cannot be changed by where you are, rather is a internal struggle to better yourself. If I'm not spiritual I feel less grounded - perhaps you need recite some wonderful stories to her to help her - I used read stories from the Quran - once even to a non-Muslim friend so much so that he was intrigued to find out more.
Faith is something that does not die it may grow bright or dim but no one can kindle the flame that Allah thallah placed in our hearts.
Everybody goes through the spiritual highs and lows. But like BBQ said Faraiz should never under any circumstances be neglected.
Now what your friend went through isn't something out of the blue but it isn't because of the country or the people around her as much as her ownself. At our own homes we have a fixed routine of doing various chores and we specifically manage to find time for prayers, taraweeh, reciting Quran.
A holiday or visit to some other city/country always means that the routine would be quite upside down for that time since now the person is dependent on some other people. More over when we are visiting relatives or friends we also have ill timed parties, get-togethers and late night hangouts. So during that time it kind of gets difficult to find time for Nafli ibadat and zikr esp when one is enjoying themselves. So her routine changed.
Also in Pakistan the concept of women going to mosques for Taraweeh is very rare. Most women offer their prayers at home later in the night and like Niks too said the circumstances are different. It doesn't mean they aren't spiritual or were ridiculing someone who was.
To the OP: why is it that during a close family member's shadi days when all the cousins/siblings/family are together one finds it more of an effort to take out time to pray (esp when they aren't the Fardh namaz)? :)
Why blame the country and its people when your level of spirituality is something between you and your creator? It has its ups and lows, same thing happened with your friend. I don't think the country/people had anything to do with it!
Don't pelt me with the rotten tomatoes before ya hear me out okay.
I think it's true, yes it's a huge generalisation and not true for every Pakistani and yes people do pray in Pakistan but every time I went I always felt spirituality was dead.
If you live in Pakistan and actually enjoy praying and are quite spiritual you're automatically a mullah and not 'modren' enough. If you don't walk around baring everything you're oppressed and from a lower class.
I wore a hijab for 3 maybe more years before going and felt so pressured by everyone that I actually took it off, now that's obviously due to weakness on my own part but people there thought I was paindu and a mullah if I wore a hijab. Constantly being told how pointless and molvi like the idea was pressured me into it, I was young and easily influenced and it's an experience that'll always stay with me.
Materialism and the huge social divide and the fact that if you aren't mindlessly following European/American trends you're not educated or high class enough really did put me off. I love the country and the people but I think losing true religious values is a fault and it's better for people to address it than brush it under the carpet because hey at least they have adhan.
Maybe it was just the people that I came across, but that's how I saw it.
gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping , **and she was like yeh probably, after spending every single day gossiping and backbiting... **gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping gossiping .
does anyone else see the irony in this little girl's post? what is your concern with that lady's life? why are you spilling her personal life infront of a group of strangers? Why are you so nosy? whose the gossiper now?
^ I don't see it. She was discussing how our imaan fluctuates every now and then and she used her friend's example. She didn't mean to put down Pakistan.
you are being too judgemental. Nowhere in the OP's post does it seem she's just gossiping. All she wanted to know was opinions on various people about external influences of ones spirituality. I don't see anything wrong in that
"Spirituality and faith is a personal thing, I wouldn't fault anyone for having it waver in their lifetime...but then they shouldn't blame others for it."
I thought spirituality was supposed to be one's personal thing not some thing for which I need an environment.
I don't think my spirituality would be effected even if i start living in a church. I wouldn't also care if others are not going for taraweeh.. its their own actions that will count. Not judging her but from as much known, I think she herself didn't have much in the first place & reverted to a style she more adopted with.
.