One day, after work, I just walked to a small nearby park which had some trees and grass and some local residents sitting or walking their dogs.


After just spending about 30 minutes being there (and eating the meal that I packed), I noticed that I felt a little different compared to how I feel other days after work. I felt a little more energized, and I felt happier. And I felt calmer also.


I live in an urban area, so I don't get that much exposure to trees and green spaces. So, being closer to trees and some animals felt good to me.


But, I was still quite surprised that being there for such a short amount of time would make that much of a difference in how I felt ...


So, I got curious to know what was actually going on between my body and the earth. I was thinking to myself, 'What is the science behind it? How are the trees impacting my mood and my body? Is the effect just a psychological thing or is there something more going on?'


Here are some interesting things that I learned, and it's an article which delves into the science of how being closer to a natural environment (even if it's a city park) has quite surprising effects on our gut microbiome:

https://seed.com/cultured/nature-and-the-microbiome/ 


Another very fascinating thing that I learned is that trees and plants release a natural compound called phytoncides (pronounced fight-on-sides), and these produce beneficial physiological effects within us when we breath it in.


The phytoncides strengthen our immune system, lowers our cortisol and blood pressure, calms and balances our nervous system (which makes us feel calmer), improves our respiratory health, and can even reduce inflammation (see the articles below):

https://leannespencer.co.uk/phytoncides/ 

https://revealnature.co.uk/2024/08/01/understanding-phytoncides-natures-elixir/ 

https://www.npr.org/2023/08/22/1195337204/a-guide-to-forest-bathing 


After learning about these things, and after experiencing myself the positive changes in my mind, body, and my mood as well, insha'Allah, I've started making it a habit to spend some time in a park for about 2 times a week, from around 30 to 45 minutes each day.


I've been going to another park (different from the one that I mentioned in the beginning) which has a lot more trees, plants, plenty of grass, and a pond as well, and it's free to all visitors. I do feel that my body and mind are getting a good boost by just immersing myself in a more natural environment.


And, alhamdulillah, I feel that Allah has caused me to gain this kind of knowledge and be able to find such places where I can heal and revitalize myself every now and then. And yet, there are a lot of other ways that the earth and the natural elements around us serve us, and I've been using some of these natural 'biohacks' on myself. And it feels pretty good, alhamdulillah.


It's very simple, too: just breathing the air naturally, getting a moderate amount of sunlight, and even just walking barefoot on the grass can lead to surprising health benefits (which is very interesting and I'll be discussing the science behind that in my next reflection, insha'Allah).


So, insha'Allah, on the theme 'Nature's Medicine,' I'll be sharing more of my knowledge on just some of the myriad of healing and medicinal properties that Allah SWT has endowed upon the earth and how they impact us in ways that we never even knew about before.


And all of it is linked to the verse where Allah says:


‎أَلَمْ تَرَوْا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ سَخَّرَ لَكُم مَّا فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَأَسْبَغَ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعَمَهُۥ ظَٰهِرَةً وَبَاطِنَةً وَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَن يُجَٰدِلُ فِى ٱللَّهِ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ وَلَا هُدًى وَلَا كِتَٰبٍ مُّنِيرٍ


'Have you not seen that Allah has subjected to you whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the Earth and has abundantly showered you with His favors, both seen and unseen? Yet there are some who argue about Allah in ignorance without knowledge, guidance, or an illuminating Scripture.' (31:20)


But, unfortunately, many of us are not even using these favors of Allah enough to benefit ourselves, which are always available and free to use. On the contrary, people are cutting down more trees, corrupting the earth, and insulating themselves indoors.


#NaturesMedicine

Special things are meant to be used.

I used to watch the TV show 'Hoarders' because I was fascinated by how people held on so tightly to the things they perceived as valuable.

I saw this on a smaller scale growing up. My family had fancy dishware, fine china, that was reserved only for special occasions and would otherwise stay in a display cabinet, collecting dust.
They were called the 'good plates.'

Some years ago, I realized I was doing the same thing with pretty notebooks and journals that I deemed too pretty to write in. As if whatever I put inside wouldn’t match the beauty of the exterior.
I told myself I’d use them when I had something worth writing.
I kept putting the good in the future.

For hoarders, they feared regret, thinking that one day they would need what they gave away and not have it.
For my family, they feared loss, thinking that if they used the expensive dishes, one might break and ruin the set.
So they kept them tucked away, waiting for a day special enough that never came.
For me, I feared tainting the beauty, thinking I’d ruin the notebook with messy handwriting or a cracked spine.
So I kept them on the shelf, looking brand new and pretty until I finally decided to stop putting the good in the future.

Because holding on to material things in this way, no matter the reason, is ingratitude.
Special things are meant to be used. 
Experienced. 
Appreciated. 
Because you can only appreciate something by using it for what it was created for.
And when you use these things, you are also saying thank you to the One who gave them to you.
Loving the Giver more than the gift.

Who’s to say that a meal provided by Ar-Razzaq isn’t special enough for the good plates on any given day He gave us?
Who’s to say that the experiences Allah ﷻ gives me aren’t worth recording on premium paper in a beautiful journal?
'So which of the favors of your Lord will you deny?' (55:13)

We subconsciously do this with our hearts.
We hold on to vulnerability and suppress emotions. Especially if we’ve been hurt before, we close off parts of our hearts that were meant to be used.
'And it is He who produced for you hearing and vision and hearts; little are you grateful.' (23:78)
'For indeed, it is not the eyes that are blinded, but blinded are the hearts which are within the chests.' (22:46)

Your heart is special, and it’s meant to be used.
To feel with. To see with. To think with. To connect with. To purify.
To love for the sake of Allah ﷻ.

If you’re waiting for a particular day to do or use something special, remember that today is special too. Because you’ll never see it again. Alhamdulillah.

Beautiful reflection. 

I wanted to add to your list: clothes that we hoard for when we (for maybe just me!) lose weight, books - for the day I get time to read them, fancy shoes-that only come out once a year for weddings and so on!

May Allah bless you and all the readers/contributors with unlimited contentment, ease, happiness and safeguard you and your loved ones from all evil.

Ameen.

انسان جب غور کرتا ہے تو کچھ ایسی باتیں سمجھ آ جاتی ہیں جن کو پہلے اس نے کبھی اس طرح سے دیکھا ہی نہیں ہوتا۔ میں بچپن سے اس آیت کو سنتا آ رہا ہوں اور ظاہری چیزوں کو ہی مثلاً پھلوں کو، اچھے کھانوں کو، میٹھے پانی کو، اور ایسی ہی چیزوں کو اللہ کی نعمت سمجھتا تھا۔ اور بنا کسی شک کے یہ اللہ کی بہت بڑی نعمتیں ہیں، لیکن اللہ کی ایسی نعمتیں بھی ہیں جن کو اکثر لوگ نہیں سمجھ پاتے۔

کبھی ایسا ہوتا ہے کہ جب انسان اللہ کو بھول کر دنیا کے کاموں میں لگا ہوتا ہے، اللہ اس کو کوئی ایسی پریشانی، ایسا غم دے دیتا ہے جو انسان کو اللہ کے قریب کر دیتا ہے۔ تو یہ اللہ کی بہت بڑی نعمت، بہت بڑا انعام ہوتا ہے انسان پر۔

اور جب اللہ کسی کو دین کی فکر دیتا ہے تو ایسے کام، جو دین کی روح سے صحیح نہیں ہوتے، جب انسان چھوڑ دیتا ہے تو شیطان بار بار اس کے دل میں ایسے وسوسے ڈالتا ہے کہ 'اس کام سے تمہاری عزت تھی، اب کم ہو جائے گی۔ اس سے تمہارا مقام تھا، اس سے تمہیں رزق ملتا تھا' اور انسان کو کافی زیادہ پریشان کرتا ہے۔ لیکن انسان کو یہ سوچنا چاہیے کہ اللہ نے ایسے کاموں سے نجات دے کر اپنی کتنی بڑی نعمت، اپنا کتنا بڑا انعام کیا ہے جن کاموں سے اس کی آخرت برباد ہو رہی تھی۔

تو ایسی بیماری، ایسا غم، ایسی تکلیف جو انسان کو رب کے قریب کر دے، وہ رب کی بہت بڑی نعمت، اس کا بہت بڑا انعام ہے۔

Aslam o alaikum 
Notice how the scent from a rose never fades away even if you pluck them or keep them in books for years, but human created rose scented perfumes fade away so easily after a day or 2.
That's the difference in Allah's creation and mankind's things that we make from knowledge given by Allah. Allah's creation is perfect and long-lasting just like the scent of a rose, but mankind's creation is inspiration from nature one way or the other such as perfumes or artificial roses, those may look pretty, but they don't carry the softness and uniqueness of a natural rose.
Allah's creation is permanent and much better, try smelling a fallen rose petal it'll smell the same way it smelt on the flower bud. Meanwhile, the things we create are temporary they'll break easily, e.g. a broken perfume bottle is of no use the scent will fade away soon, and you'll have a financial loss as well. 
Subhan Allah that's Allah's creation and humans can never compete or even come near to what Allah made even if we use billions of technology 🌹
If that's the case with just a simple rose petal, how can humans ever think about making something like Quran or even a single verse like والعصر. 
May Allah not make us from the ungrateful and those who commit shirk and cross Allah's boundaries, Ameen

Masha'Allah a profound and a beautiful contrast between Allah's creation and the things that humans create. Jazakallah khair for sharing this. 

Most people may not realise but 'Forgetfulness' is a blessing ❤️ in disguise. We forget things that were once was so dear that even a thought of losing it was enough to destroy every happiness in our life. 

Pain doesn't heal fully but it reduces we are able to manage it as we tend to forget much while dealing with life's new struggles everyday but that is how life is bitter &amp; sweet.

Alhamdulillah Ala Kulli haal✨

May Allah ease all our affairs in this world &amp; the hereafter🤲

Walking home at night with a drizzle of rain , made me realize how much I missed this. 
Walking in rain is one of things that can rejuvenate our Iman if we take advantage of it, by making dua to Allah swt. 

And the first verse that came to mind was this, what favors of my Lord, do I deny? Which favors do I constantly forget? 

Ya Rab , just like how You give life to the soil by descending upon it rain , 
Give life to my heart and soul through these verses of Yours.
Make them to be like springs in my heart , even if they are surrounded in darkness by constantly forgetting You. 

Ya Rab make Iman , beloved to me, more than my life.
Make disobeying You, disliking to me more than I dislike my death. 

If I am to die , then make that, beloved to me through the hope of Your mercy 
And if I am to live , than make that, beloved to me through the hope of pleasing You.

People have Empathy only for the Sufferings that they can see physically 🤕 that's why most people's sufferings around us go Unnoticed ... 

But atleast those whose sufferings go unnoticed don't have to deal with the physical ones Alhamdulillahi Ala Kulli Haal ❤️ 

Everyone is going through a different test even though  we may not be able to see it or understand. Our incapability doesn't mean it doesn't matters much. Be kind 🫂 

And Allah knows whom to test with what &amp; He knows better ✨Every pain is Rewarded &amp; is a blessing in disguise!

Jazakallah khair for sharing this very heartfelt and a deep and empathetic reflection, masha'Allah.

When you go on a scavenger hunt, you're given a list of things to find because in order to find something, you have to know what you’re looking for.

And that’s exactly why we struggle with tawakkul when it comes to our rizq. Because with our duas we create a list of things we want to have. A house. A job. A spouse. A number in our bank account. And once we’ve decided what it’s supposed to look like, we begin to look for those specific things.

But the issue with that is we’re expected to seek our provision during the day (78:11) but not in the literal sense.
Our seeking isn’t just physical. It’s through sabr and salah (2:45) and through our efforts and Allah’s provision. (56:63-64)

Allah ﷻ never told us to find it with our eyes. 

Allah ﷻ says:
'There is no moving creature on earth whose provision is not guaranteed by Allah. And He knows where it lives and where it is laid to rest.' (11:6)

Why would Allah ﷻ say it’s His responsibility to provide for us and then say He knows where to find us?
Because we are not meant to chase or hustle or stress about our provision.
It already knows where to find you.

The Prophet ﷺ said:
'If the son of Adam were to run from his rizq like he runs from death, it would surely reach him.'
(Musnad Ahmad, 8491 – Hasan)

Your rizq comes to you.

You just need to be open-handed, open-hearted, and open-minded enough to receive it from places you never thought to look and in ways you never could’ve anticipated. (65:3)

Which is why you can’t be attached to it. You can’t love it. You can’t give it power.
It’s just a means to an end.

You can either be a treasure hunter or an explorer.
(And yes, I may or may not have recently watched the Dora the Explorer movie 🫣 lol)

When you search for something, it creates a tunnel vision that makes it difficult to see outside of, causing you to miss the real treasure that’s right in front of you.

But when you explore something without the intention to find anything other than the pleasure of Allah ﷻ and His signs, you end up finding what you didn’t think to look for because you didn’t know you needed it.

Tawakkul requires you to slow down and pay attention to what’s happening around you.
To look closer. Deeper.
To see the opportunities and possibilities Al-Fattah facilitates.
To feel the presence of Al-Malik in the way He governs.
To notice the effortless attention to detail of Al-Lateef in even the little things that seem meaningless.
To witness the precision of Al-Khaliq in all creation.

Seeing how Allah ﷻ  interacts with His creations, even outside of human beings, instills a sakinah within you, if you allow yourself to see that you are always provided for.
That whether you feel it or not, you are living in abundance.
Because everything in the heavens and everything in the earth belongs to Allah ﷻ  so when you have Allah ﷻ , what don’t you have?

'So which of the favors of your Lord will you [both] deny?' (55:13)
'Or do they possess the treasuries of your Lord, the Almighty, the Bestower?' (38:9)

Beautiful! Need to incorporate Dora in our lives for sure.

I love the way you explained our tunnel vision-it is actually quite limiting now that I think about it. Maybe that's why I get mesmerised when I look at the sky as it is so vast and never ending, and also when standing on top of a hill/mountain, you appreciate the vastness. In the same vein, if we were to zoom out of our lives and daily to do lists, we would be able to appreciate the khair that Allah has surrounded us with. ALHAMDULLILAH !!!!!

May Allah grant us all a clear understanding, honest attachment to Him only, squash our egos and become more grateful.

Ameen.

بسم اللہ الرحمن الرحیم
الصلوۃ والسلام علیک یا رسول اللہ

زندگی اتنی تیزی سے چل رہی ہے کہ ہم شکر ادا کرنا بھول گئے ہیں. اللہ تبارک تعالیٰ نے 31 بار ایک سورہ مبارک میں ایک ہی بات دُہرائی ہے اور اس کا مقصد ہمارے اندر شکر کے جذبے کو اُجاگر کرنا ہے.

صرف چند منٹ کے لئے اپنی نعمتوں کو گننا شروع کیجئے..!!
سب سے پہلے تو ہمارے جسمانی اعضاء ہی آجاتے ہیں. آنکھ، ناک، کان ،ہاتھ، پاؤں وغیرہ. جن میں سانس سب سے بڑی نعمت ہے. ہم گنتے گنتے تھک جائیں گے لیکن یقین مانیں ہم اُس کی نعمتوں کا شمار نہیں کر سکتے. 

 اللہ تعالیٰ کی ہر  نعمت کا  تہہ دل سے شکر ادا کریں جو اُس نے ہمیں  عطا فرمائیں. ہزاروں لوگ اِس دنیا میں ایسے ہیں جو اُس سب سے محروم ہیں جو ہمارے پاس ہے. 

جب ہماری زندگی میں شکر نہیں ہوتا تو اسکی جگہ ناشکری جنم لیتی ہے اور اس ناشکری کی وجہ سے نعمتیں نظر آنا بند ہو جاتی ہیں اور گلے شکوے زیادہ ہو جاتے ہیں، نا اُمیدی  بڑھنے لگتی ہے. لیکن شکر کی عادت کی وجہ سے پریشانی بھی پریشانی محسوس نہیں ہوتی.. کیونکہ اللہ تھام کر رکھتا ہےاپنے شکر گزار بندوں کو اور صبر جیسی صفت بھی پیدا کرتا ہے.
شکر ادا کرنا سیکھیئے، آپ کی ساری پریشانیاں، بے سکونیاں، مشکلات سب ختم ہو جائے گا ان شاءاللہ.

سوچیئے ، اور شکر ادا کیجئیے

جزاک الله سسٹر شکر کے اس خوبصورت احساس کو اجاگر کرنے کے لئے۔ اللہ آپ کے علم میں اضافہ فرمائے

Your love freed me God,
It freed me from the shackles of fear, uncertainty and loss,
It opened my heart to the possibility of hope, trust and renewal,
It rebuilt me into a better version of myself,
It allowed me to reclaim my purpose, 
To serve you,
To love you,
To serve humanity,
And to shine the light of your love to the world.

Thank you God for freeing me, for loving me, for giving me blessing after blessing , and for holding me through every circumstance with your Eternal Grace. 

R. Hamdi​
 JazakAllah! This is a great reflection. I love your reflection.May Allah bless you with great ultimate success. 😊