23. Theory Versus Practice
There seems to be a misunderstanding or in fact a problem with many of us. We attend lectures and talks, we attend classes of the Qur'an, and when the speaker talks about the importance of Akhlaq (morals) and the fact that we should remove bad morals from our system, we nod our head to show our agreement and appreciation of the speaker.
However, when we get out from that place and enter the next part of the life that day (family, work, friends' gathering, etc.) we seem to forget all this advice and our agreement with it.
In fact the word 'forget' is an exaggeration. It even seems that we tend to isolate our thoughts and feelings in the
religious talks like the above from the rest of our life. We somehow feel that these talks are very good but practically we do not treat them like anything that might be relevant to our every day lives.
We hear about the importance of throwing away anger. We appreciate it when we hear it. However as soon as we get into the car we target others with our anger. We hear about the fact that a person who is in the path of Tazkiyah should not allow himself to be easily offended, we nod our head in confirmation when we hear this, but in a matter of a few minutes after hearing it we get easily offended by some innocent statements from a friend.
In other words, we theoretically appreciate the advice, but practically behave as if we never heard it. A person who is interested in Tazkiyah always practices what he/she theoretically appreciates.
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However, when we get out from that place and enter the next part of the life that day (family, work, friends' gathering, etc.) we seem to forget all this advice and our agreement with it.
In fact the word 'forget' is an exaggeration. It even seems that we tend to isolate our thoughts and feelings in the
religious talks like the above from the rest of our life. We somehow feel that these talks are very good but practically we do not treat them like anything that might be relevant to our every day lives.
We hear about the importance of throwing away anger. We appreciate it when we hear it. However as soon as we get into the car we target others with our anger. We hear about the fact that a person who is in the path of Tazkiyah should not allow himself to be easily offended, we nod our head in confirmation when we hear this, but in a matter of a few minutes after hearing it we get easily offended by some innocent statements from a friend.
In other words, we theoretically appreciate the advice, but practically behave as if we never heard it. A person who is interested in Tazkiyah always practices what he/she theoretically appreciates.
(back to the Tazkiyah points)
(click for the next Tazkiyah point)
