🔲 Stress in life comes from becoming "suspicious about God.”
🔲 If you want to enjoy life, the way is to control your mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (11)
➖Religion is not just a #program to control and correct our behaviors. One of the most important programs that religion pursues is for us to be able to #control our inner mental behavior, avoid what is forbidden in our minds and welcome that which is good.
➖Religion has set the main goal of its educational program, i.e. "prayer," as being able to control one’s mind. The purpose of prayer’s spiritual training is for one to be able to control his mind, because "paying attention" is the basis of prayer. Religion cares about our attention very much, so it has given us a program for 5 times a day (i.e. the obligatory daily prayers). This is while we do not have a daily program for many other good deeds - such as giving the obligatory charities like Khums, Zakat, etc. God says, “Be steadfast in prayer to have My name always in your mind.” [Qur’an 20:14] Imam Baqir (as) said, “The amount that you are attentive in your prayer is what will be accepted from you.” [Kafi, vol. 3, p. 299]
➖One of the worst sins is to be #suspicious about God, and this is something that happens in a person’s mind. Do you know how many times a day we commit this sin? All our stress and worries are due to our minds having become suspicious about God.
➖Controlling our tongue - which religion places so much emphasis on - is one of the most important ways to control our mind. Talking is the easiest action. As soon as something comes to one’s mind, one can immediately say it and let this thought out. Therefore, if you control your tongue, you are actually controlling your mind. It is as if you have restrained your mind!
➖One who has control over his mind will understand things better. A manager must have this trait. #Management starts with our thinking. A manager must look correctly and consider the outcome of actions. Imam Ali (as) said, “The wisest person is the one who considers the outcome more.” [Ghurar al-Hikam, vol. 1, p. 217]
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 If you want to enjoy life, the way is to control your mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (11)
➖Religion is not just a #program to control and correct our behaviors. One of the most important programs that religion pursues is for us to be able to #control our inner mental behavior, avoid what is forbidden in our minds and welcome that which is good.
➖Religion has set the main goal of its educational program, i.e. "prayer," as being able to control one’s mind. The purpose of prayer’s spiritual training is for one to be able to control his mind, because "paying attention" is the basis of prayer. Religion cares about our attention very much, so it has given us a program for 5 times a day (i.e. the obligatory daily prayers). This is while we do not have a daily program for many other good deeds - such as giving the obligatory charities like Khums, Zakat, etc. God says, “Be steadfast in prayer to have My name always in your mind.” [Qur’an 20:14] Imam Baqir (as) said, “The amount that you are attentive in your prayer is what will be accepted from you.” [Kafi, vol. 3, p. 299]
➖One of the worst sins is to be #suspicious about God, and this is something that happens in a person’s mind. Do you know how many times a day we commit this sin? All our stress and worries are due to our minds having become suspicious about God.
➖Controlling our tongue - which religion places so much emphasis on - is one of the most important ways to control our mind. Talking is the easiest action. As soon as something comes to one’s mind, one can immediately say it and let this thought out. Therefore, if you control your tongue, you are actually controlling your mind. It is as if you have restrained your mind!
➖One who has control over his mind will understand things better. A manager must have this trait. #Management starts with our thinking. A manager must look correctly and consider the outcome of actions. Imam Ali (as) said, “The wisest person is the one who considers the outcome more.” [Ghurar al-Hikam, vol. 1, p. 217]
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 Try to have "good thoughts.”
🔲 One of the effects of reciting the Qur'an is that good thoughts come to your mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (12)
➖Sometimes good #thoughts come to a person’s mind that lead to happiness, like a good wish that keeps going around in one’s mind. These are valuable to God, and sometimes He determines our destinies based on these #positive thoughts. For example, a person tells himself, "God protects me." It had been destined for him to be affected by a tragedy, but God removes that tragedy because of his positive thinking.
➖On the Day of Judgment, they do not give anyone the opportunity to do good deeds. However, there is one action that works there too, and that is "thinking positively about God." It is narrated that a person is being taken to Hell. He turns around, looks and says, “God, I did not think You would punish me.” God says, “Because of his positive thinking, I have forgiven My servant.” [Fiqh al-Reza (as), p. 361]
➖Lady Maryam’s [Mary’s] (as) mother said, “My Lord, surely I vow to Thee what is in my womb, to be devoted (to Thy service).” [Qur’an 3:35] Since she thought of dedicating her child to God, her child became Maryam.
➖One of the good things that happens in the #mind is "correct regret" or "condemnation of one’s own self," which according to the traditions is better than 40 years of worshiping. [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 73] For example, you say, "Woe to me! How far I am from God." In appearances, you haven’t done anything special. You have just blamed yourself and reviewed some good thoughts in your mind.
➖Try to think good thoughts. One of the effects of reciting the Qur'an is that good thoughts come to your mind. Before reciting say, "I seek refuge with God from the cursed Satan” so that good thoughts may come to your mind.
➖The Commander of the Faithful, Ali (as), said, “When a believer recites the Qur’an, he becomes eager for God’s rewards.” [Nahj al-Balaghah, sermon no. 193] God values what comes to our mind. In fact, we should recite the Qur’an so that good thoughts may come to our mind.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 One of the effects of reciting the Qur'an is that good thoughts come to your mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (12)
➖Sometimes good #thoughts come to a person’s mind that lead to happiness, like a good wish that keeps going around in one’s mind. These are valuable to God, and sometimes He determines our destinies based on these #positive thoughts. For example, a person tells himself, "God protects me." It had been destined for him to be affected by a tragedy, but God removes that tragedy because of his positive thinking.
➖On the Day of Judgment, they do not give anyone the opportunity to do good deeds. However, there is one action that works there too, and that is "thinking positively about God." It is narrated that a person is being taken to Hell. He turns around, looks and says, “God, I did not think You would punish me.” God says, “Because of his positive thinking, I have forgiven My servant.” [Fiqh al-Reza (as), p. 361]
➖Lady Maryam’s [Mary’s] (as) mother said, “My Lord, surely I vow to Thee what is in my womb, to be devoted (to Thy service).” [Qur’an 3:35] Since she thought of dedicating her child to God, her child became Maryam.
➖One of the good things that happens in the #mind is "correct regret" or "condemnation of one’s own self," which according to the traditions is better than 40 years of worshiping. [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 73] For example, you say, "Woe to me! How far I am from God." In appearances, you haven’t done anything special. You have just blamed yourself and reviewed some good thoughts in your mind.
➖Try to think good thoughts. One of the effects of reciting the Qur'an is that good thoughts come to your mind. Before reciting say, "I seek refuge with God from the cursed Satan” so that good thoughts may come to your mind.
➖The Commander of the Faithful, Ali (as), said, “When a believer recites the Qur’an, he becomes eager for God’s rewards.” [Nahj al-Balaghah, sermon no. 193] God values what comes to our mind. In fact, we should recite the Qur’an so that good thoughts may come to our mind.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 If a person can’t control his mind, it means he has committed many mental sins!
🔲 It is necessary to admit this to yourself so that you will understand you have a certain defect.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (13)
➖Some destructive sins such as "hypocrisy" and "arrogance,” which cause one’s deeds to be ruined, take place in a person’s mind. If these thoughts come to a person’s mind, for example, "I am a good person," all his actions will be influenced by it.
➖Another sin of the mind is being suspicious about God. This means a person doubts about God, not in beliefs, but about God’s behavior with us! For example, a person does not believe God is very kind and he questions doubtfully, "Is God really taking care of me?”
➖If a person can’t control his mind, it means he has committed many mental sins! Satan tempts a person too. So if a person does not have the strength to control his mind in the face of Satan’s temptations (and is not accustomed to seeking refuge with God), bad and negative thoughts will flood his mind.
➖Besides Satan’s deceptions, there is also another factor which if not controlled can lead to negative thoughts. Human beings have been created such that they are often anxious and frightened. Fear causes them to be cautious and protective. On the other hand, if people weren’t afraid at all, the discussions about Hell in the Qur'an would not affect them. One who has not edified himself, will not use his fear to avoid Hell. Rather, he will use it for worldly affairs and negative thoughts will flood his mind.
➖Many bad intentions and thoughts are not a sin unless they are acted upon. Even though they are only in one’s mind, they have a destructive spiritual effect and destroy a human being’s spirit. Therefore, we must specifically ask for forgiveness for sins of the mind. Imam Baqir (as) said, “I swear to God, a person will not be saved from a sin unless he admits [to himself] that he has done it.” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 426]
➖You must say, "God, I have this weakness in my mind. Forgive this." Of course, God is gracious and merciful, but it is necessary to admit to this sin so that you yourself also understand you have this certain defect.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 It is necessary to admit this to yourself so that you will understand you have a certain defect.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (13)
➖Some destructive sins such as "hypocrisy" and "arrogance,” which cause one’s deeds to be ruined, take place in a person’s mind. If these thoughts come to a person’s mind, for example, "I am a good person," all his actions will be influenced by it.
➖Another sin of the mind is being suspicious about God. This means a person doubts about God, not in beliefs, but about God’s behavior with us! For example, a person does not believe God is very kind and he questions doubtfully, "Is God really taking care of me?”
➖If a person can’t control his mind, it means he has committed many mental sins! Satan tempts a person too. So if a person does not have the strength to control his mind in the face of Satan’s temptations (and is not accustomed to seeking refuge with God), bad and negative thoughts will flood his mind.
➖Besides Satan’s deceptions, there is also another factor which if not controlled can lead to negative thoughts. Human beings have been created such that they are often anxious and frightened. Fear causes them to be cautious and protective. On the other hand, if people weren’t afraid at all, the discussions about Hell in the Qur'an would not affect them. One who has not edified himself, will not use his fear to avoid Hell. Rather, he will use it for worldly affairs and negative thoughts will flood his mind.
➖Many bad intentions and thoughts are not a sin unless they are acted upon. Even though they are only in one’s mind, they have a destructive spiritual effect and destroy a human being’s spirit. Therefore, we must specifically ask for forgiveness for sins of the mind. Imam Baqir (as) said, “I swear to God, a person will not be saved from a sin unless he admits [to himself] that he has done it.” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 426]
➖You must say, "God, I have this weakness in my mind. Forgive this." Of course, God is gracious and merciful, but it is necessary to admit to this sin so that you yourself also understand you have this certain defect.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 Do not focus on the world of others.
🔲 One who keeps thinking about other people’s blessings will become jealous and ungrateful.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (14)
➖The Messenger (s) liked others to think good thoughts and not think bad thoughts. [Makarim al-Akhlaq, p. 350] When doing things, don’t say it’s impossible. Say, “It’s possible, God willing.”
➖In addition to spiritual issues, controlling our mind also affects the normal affairs of our lives. Often, the events in our lives are due to our own preoccupations and thoughts. One of Imam Sadiq’s (as) companions said, “I wanted to go to Imam (as). I was wearing new clothes, which I liked very much. On the way, the camel I was riding on made sudden movements and my clothes were torn. I went to the Imam and told him the story. He said, ‘When you wear new clothes say, “There is no god except Allah. Muhammad is the Messenger of God” so that you may be safe from harms. And when you like a worldly thing, don’t think about it very much.’” [Kafi, vol. 6, p. 459]
➖Start controlling your mind so you can distance yourself from the world. The Qur'an says, “And do not stretch your eyes after that with which We have provided different classes of them.” [20:131] So don’t think about these things. If people keep thinking about other people’s blessings, they will become jealous and ungrateful.
➖The Qur'an says, “…so that you will not be saddened for whatever does not come to you, nor be overjoyed in what has come to you.” [57:23] When you gain something, think good thoughts. Talk about God and say, “This is a favor from my Lord.” [Qur’an 27:40] Then talk to God. Say, "God, I will use this in Your way." Be busy with God.
➖Controlling our mind is also effective in social relationships. Imam Sadiq (as) said, “When you expect someone to help you, do not think negatively about him because this will reach him.” [Kafi, vol. 6, p. 459] Physics has proven mental waves are transmitted. So, we should not be suspicious or think negatively about others. We should also want good for others. This is one of the important factors for a person’s life to have a good ending.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 One who keeps thinking about other people’s blessings will become jealous and ungrateful.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (14)
➖The Messenger (s) liked others to think good thoughts and not think bad thoughts. [Makarim al-Akhlaq, p. 350] When doing things, don’t say it’s impossible. Say, “It’s possible, God willing.”
➖In addition to spiritual issues, controlling our mind also affects the normal affairs of our lives. Often, the events in our lives are due to our own preoccupations and thoughts. One of Imam Sadiq’s (as) companions said, “I wanted to go to Imam (as). I was wearing new clothes, which I liked very much. On the way, the camel I was riding on made sudden movements and my clothes were torn. I went to the Imam and told him the story. He said, ‘When you wear new clothes say, “There is no god except Allah. Muhammad is the Messenger of God” so that you may be safe from harms. And when you like a worldly thing, don’t think about it very much.’” [Kafi, vol. 6, p. 459]
➖Start controlling your mind so you can distance yourself from the world. The Qur'an says, “And do not stretch your eyes after that with which We have provided different classes of them.” [20:131] So don’t think about these things. If people keep thinking about other people’s blessings, they will become jealous and ungrateful.
➖The Qur'an says, “…so that you will not be saddened for whatever does not come to you, nor be overjoyed in what has come to you.” [57:23] When you gain something, think good thoughts. Talk about God and say, “This is a favor from my Lord.” [Qur’an 27:40] Then talk to God. Say, "God, I will use this in Your way." Be busy with God.
➖Controlling our mind is also effective in social relationships. Imam Sadiq (as) said, “When you expect someone to help you, do not think negatively about him because this will reach him.” [Kafi, vol. 6, p. 459] Physics has proven mental waves are transmitted. So, we should not be suspicious or think negatively about others. We should also want good for others. This is one of the important factors for a person’s life to have a good ending.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 One of the best ways to control our mind is "neglect.”
🔲 Distract your attention from "things you shouldn’t think about.”
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (15)
➖One of the best ways to control our mind is "neglect." Unfortunately, we involuntarily neglect God. Let's try to deliberately ignore this world [and its temptations] instead!
➖It is difficult to focus, especially on things that are transcendental and unseen. But it is easy to distract ourselves or neglect something. So one can distract himself from things he shouldn’t think about. This is an important exercise for controlling our mind. Say, "What are the things I shouldn’t think about?”
➖Ayatollah Bahjat (r) said, “The cure for hypocrisy is to be hypocritical. That is, be hypocritical before God!” Say, “O God, why should I show myself to others. I will show myself to You!” You like to be dear to others. So go to God, be hypocritical before Him and try to be dear to Him.
➖In the same way, the cure for negligence is being negligent. Whenever thoughts of this world come to your mind, push them aside. Ayatollah Bahjat (r) said, "Push aside the bad thoughts that come to your mind involuntarily. If they come again, shun them again!" Whenever you see your mind is going toward something [it shouldn’t], stop it.
➖Sometimes God does not give a material or spiritual blessing to His servant simply because he doesn’t have the capacity. The principle of a person having the capacity is related to the mind. That is, when a blessing is given to a person, his mind should not go toward wrong thoughts, both in times of tragedies and in times of blessings. The Qur'an says, “As for the human being, when his Lord tests him, honors him, and grants him bounty, he says, ‘God has honored me.’ However, when his Lord tests him by a measured amount of sustenance, he says, ‘God has disgraced me.’" [89: 15-16]
➖The traditions say sometimes God does not let His servant worship Him so that he won’t become proud. [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 60] Being pious in thought has no cost for you. You don’t need to give your life or your money. You only have to control your mind! Praying is the best way to practice controlling your mind.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 Distract your attention from "things you shouldn’t think about.”
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (15)
➖One of the best ways to control our mind is "neglect." Unfortunately, we involuntarily neglect God. Let's try to deliberately ignore this world [and its temptations] instead!
➖It is difficult to focus, especially on things that are transcendental and unseen. But it is easy to distract ourselves or neglect something. So one can distract himself from things he shouldn’t think about. This is an important exercise for controlling our mind. Say, "What are the things I shouldn’t think about?”
➖Ayatollah Bahjat (r) said, “The cure for hypocrisy is to be hypocritical. That is, be hypocritical before God!” Say, “O God, why should I show myself to others. I will show myself to You!” You like to be dear to others. So go to God, be hypocritical before Him and try to be dear to Him.
➖In the same way, the cure for negligence is being negligent. Whenever thoughts of this world come to your mind, push them aside. Ayatollah Bahjat (r) said, "Push aside the bad thoughts that come to your mind involuntarily. If they come again, shun them again!" Whenever you see your mind is going toward something [it shouldn’t], stop it.
➖Sometimes God does not give a material or spiritual blessing to His servant simply because he doesn’t have the capacity. The principle of a person having the capacity is related to the mind. That is, when a blessing is given to a person, his mind should not go toward wrong thoughts, both in times of tragedies and in times of blessings. The Qur'an says, “As for the human being, when his Lord tests him, honors him, and grants him bounty, he says, ‘God has honored me.’ However, when his Lord tests him by a measured amount of sustenance, he says, ‘God has disgraced me.’" [89: 15-16]
➖The traditions say sometimes God does not let His servant worship Him so that he won’t become proud. [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 60] Being pious in thought has no cost for you. You don’t need to give your life or your money. You only have to control your mind! Praying is the best way to practice controlling your mind.
✅ @PanahianEN
🔲 Have the ability to "not think"!
🔲 Do not let negative thoughts enter your mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (16)
➖Some people lead your mind into a sludge of negative thoughts. You try to not think about some false things, but they keep you busy with those thoughts. Do not sit with such people at all! It is said in the traditions, “Sit with people who remind you of God and goodness.” [Kafi, vol. 1, p. 39]
➖Have the ability to "not think" and don’t let negative thoughts enter your mind. For example, Imam Sadiq (as) said, “Do not think about poverty." [Tuhaf al-Aqul, p. 211] The Qur'an says, “Satan swears that you will become poor.” [Qur’an 2:268] Of course, poverty is not just about financial wealth. Satan scares us in all areas. Do not be afraid and say, “I have God!”
➖According to the traditions, one technique for dealing with negative thoughts is the following. If you wanted something from the world but you were unable to gain it, think that you never wanted it! [Kashf al-Ghumma, vol. 1, p. 572] For example, if you wanted to buy a car or a house and you were unable to do so, remove this thought from your mind. Only think that, "I wanted to, but it didn’t happen." Otherwise, thinking about it will hurt you.
➖The Holy Prophet (s) told Abuzar, “Do not think about the night in the morning. And at night do not think about tomorrow.” [Amali Tusi, p. 526] Tonight do not think about tomorrow. Think about tonight. Have the talent of being able to not think!
➖God says, “Do not be envious of what We have given to some people… These things are a trial for them.” [Qur’an 20:131] About this verse, the Holy Prophet (s) said, "If a person does not find peace with divine words of comfort, his sorrow at not gaining worldly things will destroy him." [Tafsir Qumi, vol. 2, p. 66]
➖Try to not think negative thoughts at all. If you succeed in removing all negative thoughts from your mind, a new level of thoughts will come to your mind. If you again do not let negative thoughts enter your mind, again a new level of thoughts will come to you. And this will continue.
@PanahianEN
🔲 Do not let negative thoughts enter your mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (16)
➖Some people lead your mind into a sludge of negative thoughts. You try to not think about some false things, but they keep you busy with those thoughts. Do not sit with such people at all! It is said in the traditions, “Sit with people who remind you of God and goodness.” [Kafi, vol. 1, p. 39]
➖Have the ability to "not think" and don’t let negative thoughts enter your mind. For example, Imam Sadiq (as) said, “Do not think about poverty." [Tuhaf al-Aqul, p. 211] The Qur'an says, “Satan swears that you will become poor.” [Qur’an 2:268] Of course, poverty is not just about financial wealth. Satan scares us in all areas. Do not be afraid and say, “I have God!”
➖According to the traditions, one technique for dealing with negative thoughts is the following. If you wanted something from the world but you were unable to gain it, think that you never wanted it! [Kashf al-Ghumma, vol. 1, p. 572] For example, if you wanted to buy a car or a house and you were unable to do so, remove this thought from your mind. Only think that, "I wanted to, but it didn’t happen." Otherwise, thinking about it will hurt you.
➖The Holy Prophet (s) told Abuzar, “Do not think about the night in the morning. And at night do not think about tomorrow.” [Amali Tusi, p. 526] Tonight do not think about tomorrow. Think about tonight. Have the talent of being able to not think!
➖God says, “Do not be envious of what We have given to some people… These things are a trial for them.” [Qur’an 20:131] About this verse, the Holy Prophet (s) said, "If a person does not find peace with divine words of comfort, his sorrow at not gaining worldly things will destroy him." [Tafsir Qumi, vol. 2, p. 66]
➖Try to not think negative thoughts at all. If you succeed in removing all negative thoughts from your mind, a new level of thoughts will come to your mind. If you again do not let negative thoughts enter your mind, again a new level of thoughts will come to you. And this will continue.
@PanahianEN
🔲 Training our mind has two aspects: Distracting our mind from bad thoughts and paying attention to good thoughts
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (17)
➖A person’s mental power starts here, "To be able to not think about something if you do not want to, and to focus your mind on what you want." This is the greatest source of power in a human being’s soul and the first steps people take toward growth and perfection.
➖Of course, there are some introductions to gaining mental power such as having a correct lifestyle and having or not having certain behaviors. For example, a person should not look at or listen to just anything he sees or hears. That is, he should not listen to everything for his mind to then become busy with these things.
➖Islam has set its main program, prayer, for us to practice controlling our mind. The essence of prayer is, "What we should or shouldn’t think about.”
➖What subjects shouldn’t we think about? All bad thoughts about the past and the future! The mind must be restrained from bad thoughts about the future that bring worry and bad thoughts about the past that bring regret. You must have the power to think about the present. Psychologists see this as being the prelude to saving a person from many mental problems. Even when a believer wants to seek forgiveness (i.e. talk about his sins and review his bad past), he should do so only with God. He should not think of his past misfortunes while thinking he’s alone and without remembering God because this will cause him to lose hope.
➖If you do not have the power to control your mind, due to good traits such as "perfectionism" and "fear of danger," your mind will automatically turn to negative matters. On the one hand, because you are a perfectionist, your shortcomings bother you. On the other hand, because you want to save yourself from dangers and the world around you is full of dangers, you become scared and worried.
➖If a person’s mind is not trained, it will often think about negative things. You have to train your mind. One aspect of this is distracting your mind from bad thoughts. Another aspect is paying attention to good thoughts.
@PanahianEN
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (17)
➖A person’s mental power starts here, "To be able to not think about something if you do not want to, and to focus your mind on what you want." This is the greatest source of power in a human being’s soul and the first steps people take toward growth and perfection.
➖Of course, there are some introductions to gaining mental power such as having a correct lifestyle and having or not having certain behaviors. For example, a person should not look at or listen to just anything he sees or hears. That is, he should not listen to everything for his mind to then become busy with these things.
➖Islam has set its main program, prayer, for us to practice controlling our mind. The essence of prayer is, "What we should or shouldn’t think about.”
➖What subjects shouldn’t we think about? All bad thoughts about the past and the future! The mind must be restrained from bad thoughts about the future that bring worry and bad thoughts about the past that bring regret. You must have the power to think about the present. Psychologists see this as being the prelude to saving a person from many mental problems. Even when a believer wants to seek forgiveness (i.e. talk about his sins and review his bad past), he should do so only with God. He should not think of his past misfortunes while thinking he’s alone and without remembering God because this will cause him to lose hope.
➖If you do not have the power to control your mind, due to good traits such as "perfectionism" and "fear of danger," your mind will automatically turn to negative matters. On the one hand, because you are a perfectionist, your shortcomings bother you. On the other hand, because you want to save yourself from dangers and the world around you is full of dangers, you become scared and worried.
➖If a person’s mind is not trained, it will often think about negative things. You have to train your mind. One aspect of this is distracting your mind from bad thoughts. Another aspect is paying attention to good thoughts.
@PanahianEN
🔲 How can we direct our mind toward good thoughts?
🔲 It's hard to focus on remembering God, but it's easy to "remember God again and again”!
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (18)
➖In order to train our mind, we must do two actions: distract the mind from bad thoughts [which was explained previously] and direct the mind toward good thoughts. The top of good thoughts is thinking about God Himself!
➖With all His greatness, God has made Himself a means to train us since He loves us very much! When He wants to give us strength of mind, He says, “Think about Me, My power, My knowledge, My kindness, and this fact that everything is in My hands…”
➖If people were not capable of paying attention to good matters - especially to God - God would not have commanded them to remember Him very much. “Remember Allah, remembering frequently.” [Qur’an 33:41] He would not have said, “And whoever turns away from My reminder, his shall be a straitened life.” [Qur’an 20:124] Thus, we are definitely able to remember Him.
➖Start paying attention to God a little at a time. First, remember God for a moment. When your mind becomes distracted, bring it back again. Continue doing this and increase the number of times. That is, increase the number of times of "remembering God" in your life in order to increase the amount you remember God.
➖It is difficult to focus on remembering God, but it is easy to "remember God again and again." Therefore, they have recommended that we hold rosary beads. Just as the rosary thread does not allow the beads to scatter, so does saying God’s names with the rosary beads not allow your mind to scatter. For example, you may say His names ten times without paying attention. But then you remember and pay attention the eleventh time.
➖Imam Ali (as) said, “Remembering is the key of fondness” [Ghurar al-Hikam, p. 37] Fondness brings the deepest affection. Imam Ali (as) said, “By remembering God continuously one can be rescued from negligence.” [Ghurar al-Hikam, p. 300]
The Almighty God says, “Whenever I see a servant is remembering Me in his heart most of the time, I manage his life Myself and I am his companion.” [Uddah al-Dai, p. 249]
@PanahianEN
🔲 It's hard to focus on remembering God, but it's easy to "remember God again and again”!
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (18)
➖In order to train our mind, we must do two actions: distract the mind from bad thoughts [which was explained previously] and direct the mind toward good thoughts. The top of good thoughts is thinking about God Himself!
➖With all His greatness, God has made Himself a means to train us since He loves us very much! When He wants to give us strength of mind, He says, “Think about Me, My power, My knowledge, My kindness, and this fact that everything is in My hands…”
➖If people were not capable of paying attention to good matters - especially to God - God would not have commanded them to remember Him very much. “Remember Allah, remembering frequently.” [Qur’an 33:41] He would not have said, “And whoever turns away from My reminder, his shall be a straitened life.” [Qur’an 20:124] Thus, we are definitely able to remember Him.
➖Start paying attention to God a little at a time. First, remember God for a moment. When your mind becomes distracted, bring it back again. Continue doing this and increase the number of times. That is, increase the number of times of "remembering God" in your life in order to increase the amount you remember God.
➖It is difficult to focus on remembering God, but it is easy to "remember God again and again." Therefore, they have recommended that we hold rosary beads. Just as the rosary thread does not allow the beads to scatter, so does saying God’s names with the rosary beads not allow your mind to scatter. For example, you may say His names ten times without paying attention. But then you remember and pay attention the eleventh time.
➖Imam Ali (as) said, “Remembering is the key of fondness” [Ghurar al-Hikam, p. 37] Fondness brings the deepest affection. Imam Ali (as) said, “By remembering God continuously one can be rescued from negligence.” [Ghurar al-Hikam, p. 300]
The Almighty God says, “Whenever I see a servant is remembering Me in his heart most of the time, I manage his life Myself and I am his companion.” [Uddah al-Dai, p. 249]
@PanahianEN
🔲 What tools has God given us for us to be able to control our minds?
🔲 One of the benefits of fear is that it helps us to focus our thinking.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (19)
➖Today, causes of scattered thoughts and not being able to control one’s mind have increased in the world. The media with all its various kinds of entertainment keep a human being’s mind occupied at all times. So, we need to be able to control our mind.
➖A person who can’t control his mind, automatically thinks negative thoughts. He will suffer from many mental and emotional problems. But, these diseases and weaknesses are so widespread among people that they are not considered to be bad! Some people have so many negative thoughts that you have to distract them and say, "You are thinking again! Look here!" to stop them.
➖Psychologists try to create a strength in people using different tools and techniques so that a person can control his/her mind. But, they do not have the true means for people to be able to do so. They do not know of something so great and magnificent that it can attract a human being’s attention to this extent!
➖But in the Qur'an and our religious culture, we have matters that we can pay careful attention to in order to increase our ability to control our mind. These are subjects such as: God, Resurrection Day, Heaven, Hell, etc.
➖Thinking about Hell has this effect that it can strongly attract our attention and give us the will to control our mind. It has been said about the believers, “A believer is not corrected except by fear.” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 71] This is because one of the properties of fear is that it brings concentration.
➖Another subject to pay attention to is the intense love that the Imams (as) have for us. The Imam of the Time, Imam Mahdi (aj), loves us very much, even more than our parents! Why does the Imam look at the file of our deeds every week and if he sees a sin, he asks for our forgiveness? It is because he is truly concerned about us.
➖The easiest subject to pay attention to is "Imam Husayn (as)," because he attracts our attention to himself. Of course, Imam Husayn (as) has made a great expenditure for us to be able to deeply pay attention to him.
@PanahianEN
🔲 One of the benefits of fear is that it helps us to focus our thinking.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (19)
➖Today, causes of scattered thoughts and not being able to control one’s mind have increased in the world. The media with all its various kinds of entertainment keep a human being’s mind occupied at all times. So, we need to be able to control our mind.
➖A person who can’t control his mind, automatically thinks negative thoughts. He will suffer from many mental and emotional problems. But, these diseases and weaknesses are so widespread among people that they are not considered to be bad! Some people have so many negative thoughts that you have to distract them and say, "You are thinking again! Look here!" to stop them.
➖Psychologists try to create a strength in people using different tools and techniques so that a person can control his/her mind. But, they do not have the true means for people to be able to do so. They do not know of something so great and magnificent that it can attract a human being’s attention to this extent!
➖But in the Qur'an and our religious culture, we have matters that we can pay careful attention to in order to increase our ability to control our mind. These are subjects such as: God, Resurrection Day, Heaven, Hell, etc.
➖Thinking about Hell has this effect that it can strongly attract our attention and give us the will to control our mind. It has been said about the believers, “A believer is not corrected except by fear.” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 71] This is because one of the properties of fear is that it brings concentration.
➖Another subject to pay attention to is the intense love that the Imams (as) have for us. The Imam of the Time, Imam Mahdi (aj), loves us very much, even more than our parents! Why does the Imam look at the file of our deeds every week and if he sees a sin, he asks for our forgiveness? It is because he is truly concerned about us.
➖The easiest subject to pay attention to is "Imam Husayn (as)," because he attracts our attention to himself. Of course, Imam Husayn (as) has made a great expenditure for us to be able to deeply pay attention to him.
@PanahianEN
🔲 The best place to practice neglecting extraneous thoughts is in prayer.
🔲The hardship of death is due to our attention being detached from the things we love in this world.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (20)
➖One aspect of controlling our mind is to be able to divert our mind from things that we naturally pay attention to. Of course, this is very difficult, because there are many subjects that attract a person’s attention.
➖The best place to practice neglecting extraneous thoughts is in prayer. It has been narrated, "When you start praying, ignore the thoughts that come to your mind. Put aside worldly thoughts and false imaginations." When such an order is given, it means that it is possible for one to get rid of these extraneous thoughts. [Mustadrak al-Wasa’il, vol. 4, p. 113]
➖People are selfish. When they are in pain or a tragedy befalls them, they do not think of anything else! Therefore, it has been said that we should be careful that Satan does not take our faith at the time of death, because that moment is the peak of a person’s distress.
➖When a person is dying, Satan tempts him and says, "Look, God is taking your life. God is doing this!" Satan wants to make him irreligious at the moment of death. He wants to create a feeling of enmity toward God.
➖Interests, which you pay attention to in the world and think that it doesn’t matter, will come to your mind at the time of death and become big and important for you. Thus, you will feel that you cannot be separated from them!
➖The hardship of death is due to our attention being detached from the things we love in this world. It is a horrible moment. However, those who mourn for Imam Husayn (as) have a great asset in this difficult moment. There is a subject that whenever they think of it, they forget themselves. That subject is Imam Husayn (as).
@PanahianEN
🔲The hardship of death is due to our attention being detached from the things we love in this world.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (20)
➖One aspect of controlling our mind is to be able to divert our mind from things that we naturally pay attention to. Of course, this is very difficult, because there are many subjects that attract a person’s attention.
➖The best place to practice neglecting extraneous thoughts is in prayer. It has been narrated, "When you start praying, ignore the thoughts that come to your mind. Put aside worldly thoughts and false imaginations." When such an order is given, it means that it is possible for one to get rid of these extraneous thoughts. [Mustadrak al-Wasa’il, vol. 4, p. 113]
➖People are selfish. When they are in pain or a tragedy befalls them, they do not think of anything else! Therefore, it has been said that we should be careful that Satan does not take our faith at the time of death, because that moment is the peak of a person’s distress.
➖When a person is dying, Satan tempts him and says, "Look, God is taking your life. God is doing this!" Satan wants to make him irreligious at the moment of death. He wants to create a feeling of enmity toward God.
➖Interests, which you pay attention to in the world and think that it doesn’t matter, will come to your mind at the time of death and become big and important for you. Thus, you will feel that you cannot be separated from them!
➖The hardship of death is due to our attention being detached from the things we love in this world. It is a horrible moment. However, those who mourn for Imam Husayn (as) have a great asset in this difficult moment. There is a subject that whenever they think of it, they forget themselves. That subject is Imam Husayn (as).
@PanahianEN
🔲 I can’t pay attention to God because there are too many things in the world that cause me to become neglectful!
🔲 The question is, “Can’t I even pay attention to God’s Kindness?”
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (21)
➖God can’t be seen. If we only pay attention to what can be seen and don’t have the ability to control our mind, we can only remember God in fleeting, rare, special moments.
➖It is hard to do pay attention to a God that can’t be seen, especially for a long period. God’s rewards or punishments aren’t given to us quickly. One of the ways to control our mind is thinking. One should spend a part of his life thinking about God. [Al-Khisal, vol. 2, p. 525]
➖Among God’s different names, paying attention to His Mercy can give us the ability to pay attention to Him for a longer period. This is because kindness is sweet for us and compatible with our nature. Furthermore, God likes us to pay attention to His Kindness.
➖If one says, “I can’t pay attention to God since there are many things that cause me to become neglectful,” we will say, “You can’t pay attention to God’s Kindness either?! Paying attention to God’s Kindness is easy and you need His Kindness in each moment. Even if you don’t pay attention to God’s Mercy, can’t you pay attention to Imam Husayn (as)?! Don’t live without Imam Husayn (as). Imam Husayn (as) means God’s Kindness.”
➖Why is it recommended so much to say, “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful” when starting to do anything? Because we truly need to pay attention to God’s Kindness. This sentence reminds us of God’s Kindness two times, once with the word “Beneficent” and once with the word “Merciful.”
➖If we neglect God’s Kindness, we’ll become wretched! The Qur’an says, “And whoever turns himself away from the remembrance of the Merciful, We appoint a Satan so he becomes his companion.” [43:36]
➖Let’s agree to constantly remember God being Merciful and Kind. Let’s start each of our movements and actions by saying, “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful.” The Household of the Prophet (as) has given us this general guidance to start everything with saying, “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful.”
@PanahianEN
🔲 The question is, “Can’t I even pay attention to God’s Kindness?”
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (21)
➖God can’t be seen. If we only pay attention to what can be seen and don’t have the ability to control our mind, we can only remember God in fleeting, rare, special moments.
➖It is hard to do pay attention to a God that can’t be seen, especially for a long period. God’s rewards or punishments aren’t given to us quickly. One of the ways to control our mind is thinking. One should spend a part of his life thinking about God. [Al-Khisal, vol. 2, p. 525]
➖Among God’s different names, paying attention to His Mercy can give us the ability to pay attention to Him for a longer period. This is because kindness is sweet for us and compatible with our nature. Furthermore, God likes us to pay attention to His Kindness.
➖If one says, “I can’t pay attention to God since there are many things that cause me to become neglectful,” we will say, “You can’t pay attention to God’s Kindness either?! Paying attention to God’s Kindness is easy and you need His Kindness in each moment. Even if you don’t pay attention to God’s Mercy, can’t you pay attention to Imam Husayn (as)?! Don’t live without Imam Husayn (as). Imam Husayn (as) means God’s Kindness.”
➖Why is it recommended so much to say, “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful” when starting to do anything? Because we truly need to pay attention to God’s Kindness. This sentence reminds us of God’s Kindness two times, once with the word “Beneficent” and once with the word “Merciful.”
➖If we neglect God’s Kindness, we’ll become wretched! The Qur’an says, “And whoever turns himself away from the remembrance of the Merciful, We appoint a Satan so he becomes his companion.” [43:36]
➖Let’s agree to constantly remember God being Merciful and Kind. Let’s start each of our movements and actions by saying, “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful.” The Household of the Prophet (as) has given us this general guidance to start everything with saying, “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful.”
@PanahianEN
🔲 Being thankful is a kind of practice in controlling our mind and thinking positively.
🔲 When you remember God’s blessings, you are thanking Him.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (22)
➖One of the most important mental abilities is being able to set a "point of view" for oneself and getting used to looking at everything from that angle, just as we can get used to a special way of talking, eating or dressing. If one becomes accustomed to having a correct outlook, he can control his mind.
➖If people abandon their mind, they will start thinking negative thoughts. If we do not want to keep thinking about the things we don’t have or to regret the past and to worry about the future, we must practice "thanking God" as religion has told us.
➖Being thankful, which is highly rewarded, helps to change our perspective. Let’s accustom ourselves to always seeing the half-full glass. Focus on what you have and think about how it was possible that God hadn’t given you these things.
➖Many talk about thinking positively in the world today, which is welcomed warmly too. But there is some deception in this, because they eliminate the role of God and what He has destined for His servants. Even a leaf does not fall without God's permission, so how will my situation change without God's permission?!
➖Being thankful to God is a practice in controlling the mind and accustoming it to positive thinking. It is very difficult to distract our mind from evils and negative thoughts, but it is easier to turn our mind to positive thoughts. According to the traditions, when you remember God’s blessings you are thanking Him. [Wasa'il al-Shi'ah, vol. 7, p. 40]
➖If we practice and accustom our mind to this positive, thankful outlook, we will grow even in doing our everyday actions. According to the traditions, a grateful believer eats and drinks, but he is rewarded as a person who is struggling on the way of God while fasting and even more! [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 94; Mahasin, vol. 2, p. 435] It is said that the reward for being thankful is more than for being patient. [Mishkat al-Anwar, p. 258] The most commandments in the Qur'an about remembering are about God’s blessings. [Qur’an, 35:3]
@PanahianEN
🔲 When you remember God’s blessings, you are thanking Him.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (22)
➖One of the most important mental abilities is being able to set a "point of view" for oneself and getting used to looking at everything from that angle, just as we can get used to a special way of talking, eating or dressing. If one becomes accustomed to having a correct outlook, he can control his mind.
➖If people abandon their mind, they will start thinking negative thoughts. If we do not want to keep thinking about the things we don’t have or to regret the past and to worry about the future, we must practice "thanking God" as religion has told us.
➖Being thankful, which is highly rewarded, helps to change our perspective. Let’s accustom ourselves to always seeing the half-full glass. Focus on what you have and think about how it was possible that God hadn’t given you these things.
➖Many talk about thinking positively in the world today, which is welcomed warmly too. But there is some deception in this, because they eliminate the role of God and what He has destined for His servants. Even a leaf does not fall without God's permission, so how will my situation change without God's permission?!
➖Being thankful to God is a practice in controlling the mind and accustoming it to positive thinking. It is very difficult to distract our mind from evils and negative thoughts, but it is easier to turn our mind to positive thoughts. According to the traditions, when you remember God’s blessings you are thanking Him. [Wasa'il al-Shi'ah, vol. 7, p. 40]
➖If we practice and accustom our mind to this positive, thankful outlook, we will grow even in doing our everyday actions. According to the traditions, a grateful believer eats and drinks, but he is rewarded as a person who is struggling on the way of God while fasting and even more! [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 94; Mahasin, vol. 2, p. 435] It is said that the reward for being thankful is more than for being patient. [Mishkat al-Anwar, p. 258] The most commandments in the Qur'an about remembering are about God’s blessings. [Qur’an, 35:3]
@PanahianEN
🔲 To always be in a good mood, keep looking at your blessings!
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (23)
➖ Imam Sadiq (as) said, “A person who pays attention with his heart to his blessings will deserve more blessings even before thanking God with his tongue.” [Tuhaf al-Uqul, vol. 1, p. 357] If one is used to looking at things in this way, he will be thankful and always look at things in a positive way. Many of the sorrows and shortcomings in our lives are instruments for God to show His affection. Be thankful for all of these, look at them in a positive light and see what happens in your life.
➖ Imam Baqir (as) said, “God wants people to do two things: acknowledge the blessings they’ve received so that God will increase their blessings and confess to their sins so that God will forgive them.” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 426] Acknowledging our blessings is not complicated and does not require an inner feeling. Just see the blessings and pay attention to them.
➖ The Imams (as) taught techniques for us to control our minds in order to deeply pay attention to our blessings. For example, when a person remembers a blessing, he should prostrate to thank God. [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 98] This increases a person’s attention.
➖ Gratefulness is higher than patience. [Amali Saduq, p. 613] When you have a good time and say from the depth of your heart "Thank God," this is more valued than patience in tragedies! God is happy when His servant uses blessings, enjoys and thanks Him.
➖ If you always look at your blessings, they will increase and you will always feel good. If you want to practice remembering God's blessings very much, don’t pay attention to some things. For example, do not look at what God has given others. (This is a kind of controlling our mind.)
➖ Imam Sadiq (as) said, “If one looks at the blessings that have been given to others very much, his sorrow will become prolonged and his sadness will never go away. Such a person will consider his own blessings to be little. As a result, he won’t thank God very much. So always look at people who have less than you. Then you can be more thankful and will deserve to receive more blessings.” [Usul Sitta Ashar, p. 209]
@PanahianEN
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (23)
➖ Imam Sadiq (as) said, “A person who pays attention with his heart to his blessings will deserve more blessings even before thanking God with his tongue.” [Tuhaf al-Uqul, vol. 1, p. 357] If one is used to looking at things in this way, he will be thankful and always look at things in a positive way. Many of the sorrows and shortcomings in our lives are instruments for God to show His affection. Be thankful for all of these, look at them in a positive light and see what happens in your life.
➖ Imam Baqir (as) said, “God wants people to do two things: acknowledge the blessings they’ve received so that God will increase their blessings and confess to their sins so that God will forgive them.” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 426] Acknowledging our blessings is not complicated and does not require an inner feeling. Just see the blessings and pay attention to them.
➖ The Imams (as) taught techniques for us to control our minds in order to deeply pay attention to our blessings. For example, when a person remembers a blessing, he should prostrate to thank God. [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 98] This increases a person’s attention.
➖ Gratefulness is higher than patience. [Amali Saduq, p. 613] When you have a good time and say from the depth of your heart "Thank God," this is more valued than patience in tragedies! God is happy when His servant uses blessings, enjoys and thanks Him.
➖ If you always look at your blessings, they will increase and you will always feel good. If you want to practice remembering God's blessings very much, don’t pay attention to some things. For example, do not look at what God has given others. (This is a kind of controlling our mind.)
➖ Imam Sadiq (as) said, “If one looks at the blessings that have been given to others very much, his sorrow will become prolonged and his sadness will never go away. Such a person will consider his own blessings to be little. As a result, he won’t thank God very much. So always look at people who have less than you. Then you can be more thankful and will deserve to receive more blessings.” [Usul Sitta Ashar, p. 209]
@PanahianEN
🔲 The most important aspect of a human being’s strength is the ability to control one’s thoughts.
🔲 If a human being’s mind is perturbed, his spiritual balance will also be disturbed.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (24)
➖The most important aspect of your strength is the ability to control your mind, so that no one can easily disturb your attention or unsettle your mental balance by giving misinformation or even by giving correct information at the wrong time. If a person’s mind is perturbed, his heart will be disturbed too.
➖Human beings can gain mental strength through religiosity and spirituality. True religiosity strengthens one’s "ability to concentrate" and the "ability to distract oneself from things one shouldn’t think about."
➖Ayatollah HaqShenas was told he had an incurable disease. He was asked about this and said, “God has blessed me with the strength to be able to not think about things I don’t want to think about.”
➖One great mental action is paying attention to God’s power. When we do this, our expectation of others will be greatly reduced, spite we may feel toward others will decrease and we will behave better. When we think our sustenance is in the hands of others or that the main cause of our problems is other people, we become irreligious. All of these are due to us not paying attention to God’s power.
➖The traditions say when you ask God for something, you shouldn’t have hope in anyone except God. (Kafi, vol. 2, p. 148) This is in fact a mental activity. A person can create this disconnection from others in his mind for at least a moment.
➖If we don’t practice and pay attention to this matter ourselves, this disconnection will be brought about in us with sufferings, because God has said, “I swear by My honor and glory, I will cut off the hope of My servants from others than Myself!” (Kafi, vol. 2, p. 66)
➖We have been taught by the Immaculate Ones (as) that when we worship God we should say this is our last worship act. Or when we bury someone, we should imagine ourselves in that person's place. When we return home, thank God for giving us another chance to live! These are all mental activities for creating this disconnection.
@PanahianEN
🔲 If a human being’s mind is perturbed, his spiritual balance will also be disturbed.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (24)
➖The most important aspect of your strength is the ability to control your mind, so that no one can easily disturb your attention or unsettle your mental balance by giving misinformation or even by giving correct information at the wrong time. If a person’s mind is perturbed, his heart will be disturbed too.
➖Human beings can gain mental strength through religiosity and spirituality. True religiosity strengthens one’s "ability to concentrate" and the "ability to distract oneself from things one shouldn’t think about."
➖Ayatollah HaqShenas was told he had an incurable disease. He was asked about this and said, “God has blessed me with the strength to be able to not think about things I don’t want to think about.”
➖One great mental action is paying attention to God’s power. When we do this, our expectation of others will be greatly reduced, spite we may feel toward others will decrease and we will behave better. When we think our sustenance is in the hands of others or that the main cause of our problems is other people, we become irreligious. All of these are due to us not paying attention to God’s power.
➖The traditions say when you ask God for something, you shouldn’t have hope in anyone except God. (Kafi, vol. 2, p. 148) This is in fact a mental activity. A person can create this disconnection from others in his mind for at least a moment.
➖If we don’t practice and pay attention to this matter ourselves, this disconnection will be brought about in us with sufferings, because God has said, “I swear by My honor and glory, I will cut off the hope of My servants from others than Myself!” (Kafi, vol. 2, p. 66)
➖We have been taught by the Immaculate Ones (as) that when we worship God we should say this is our last worship act. Or when we bury someone, we should imagine ourselves in that person's place. When we return home, thank God for giving us another chance to live! These are all mental activities for creating this disconnection.
@PanahianEN
🔲 The topic of mind control is a key, strategic topic in the world today.
🔲 Satan can only whisper thoughts into a person’s mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (25)
➖ In the world today, the topic of controlling the mind is a key topic for psychologists, economists and political administrators, as well as administrators in spiritual and educational matters. As important as this issue is in schools and educational systems, it is just as important to politicians, the great powers of the world, businesspersons and economists too. All these groups are concerned with "How to influence and control a human being’s mind.”
➖ Sometimes movies want to tell us how they can influence the minds of people and turn them into soldiers to act in a way to advance their goals! The enemies of humanity use the most complex knowledge in this direction and even affect the minds of the people of a certain country in order to make changes in the elections there!
➖ Why is controlling our mind important? One reason is that the enemies of humankind always want to influence the minds, thoughts, and perspectives of human beings. Satan, as the first enemy of human beings, is only able to penetrate into one’s mind. Satan openly showed his enmity to Prophet Adam (as) from the beginning. When he wanted to hide his enmity, he asked God to allow him to penetrate into the minds of human beings. God gave him this permission and the tools he needed. [Tafsir Qumi, vol. 1, p. 42]
➖ Explanations in the Qur'an show that Satan can only affect people’s minds, he has virtually nothing to do with us and he cannot enter our hearts. Some thoughts that come to a person’s mind are Satan’s temptations. Human beings are usually passive about what happens in their minds and allow themselves to be influenced by Satan. But God has emphasized that Satan is our enemy.
➖ So controlling our mind is a very important subject today - both for the enemies of humanity and its friends - and it has been important since the beginning of creation. One must be vigilant about his mind and not allow himself to be negatively affected. He should even work to bring good thoughts to his mind.
@PanahianEN
🔲 Satan can only whisper thoughts into a person’s mind.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (25)
➖ In the world today, the topic of controlling the mind is a key topic for psychologists, economists and political administrators, as well as administrators in spiritual and educational matters. As important as this issue is in schools and educational systems, it is just as important to politicians, the great powers of the world, businesspersons and economists too. All these groups are concerned with "How to influence and control a human being’s mind.”
➖ Sometimes movies want to tell us how they can influence the minds of people and turn them into soldiers to act in a way to advance their goals! The enemies of humanity use the most complex knowledge in this direction and even affect the minds of the people of a certain country in order to make changes in the elections there!
➖ Why is controlling our mind important? One reason is that the enemies of humankind always want to influence the minds, thoughts, and perspectives of human beings. Satan, as the first enemy of human beings, is only able to penetrate into one’s mind. Satan openly showed his enmity to Prophet Adam (as) from the beginning. When he wanted to hide his enmity, he asked God to allow him to penetrate into the minds of human beings. God gave him this permission and the tools he needed. [Tafsir Qumi, vol. 1, p. 42]
➖ Explanations in the Qur'an show that Satan can only affect people’s minds, he has virtually nothing to do with us and he cannot enter our hearts. Some thoughts that come to a person’s mind are Satan’s temptations. Human beings are usually passive about what happens in their minds and allow themselves to be influenced by Satan. But God has emphasized that Satan is our enemy.
➖ So controlling our mind is a very important subject today - both for the enemies of humanity and its friends - and it has been important since the beginning of creation. One must be vigilant about his mind and not allow himself to be negatively affected. He should even work to bring good thoughts to his mind.
@PanahianEN
🔲 Religion’s main purpose isn’t controlling our behaviors and carnal desires.
🔲 Religion’s main mission is to change our inner behavior, our mind and thinking.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (26)
➖ There are two types of human behaviors: physical behavior such as walking and talking, plus internal or spiritual behavior that has a higher value. We should not degrade religion by saying it just wants to control our physical behaviors.
➖The rules for what is obligatory or forbidden in religion are more related to behavior. This is not because religion’s main mission is in this area. These rules are so that we will observe the minimum requirements. Why is there a Hell? It is for us to avoid some things in order to go toward God. I cannot convince myself that I have a religion that just tells me not to go to Hell!
➖Religion wants to change our hearts for us to discover our love and dependence on God. It wants us to be pious in our thoughts and not just stop us from doing wrong actions! Religion wants us to fall in love with God, a love beyond all the loves we have ever experienced. We can never understand even a particle of the love that made Lady Fatima (as) tremble in her prayers.
➖Imam Sajjad (as) told God in a prayer, “Help me to become negligent about carnal desires by remembering You.” [Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 91, p. 127] By remembering God, we can control our mind. A mind that keeps jumping here and there is destructive for a human being.
➖Curiosity is good for a scientist who wants to discover a substance or wishes to invent something. But curiosity is like poison for a person who squanders his time to see what catches his eye in the internet! That he may see unlawful scenes isn’t good, but the main problem is he won’t have any control over his mind.
➖Browsing in the internet or social media just to spend time is an insult to humanity! One may say, "Let's join this group because it has many interesting things!" But let's look at the issue from this angle. If we spend our lives on things that others have made to keep us busy, what will be left of our minds and humanity?
@PanahianEN
🔲 Religion’s main mission is to change our inner behavior, our mind and thinking.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (26)
➖ There are two types of human behaviors: physical behavior such as walking and talking, plus internal or spiritual behavior that has a higher value. We should not degrade religion by saying it just wants to control our physical behaviors.
➖The rules for what is obligatory or forbidden in religion are more related to behavior. This is not because religion’s main mission is in this area. These rules are so that we will observe the minimum requirements. Why is there a Hell? It is for us to avoid some things in order to go toward God. I cannot convince myself that I have a religion that just tells me not to go to Hell!
➖Religion wants to change our hearts for us to discover our love and dependence on God. It wants us to be pious in our thoughts and not just stop us from doing wrong actions! Religion wants us to fall in love with God, a love beyond all the loves we have ever experienced. We can never understand even a particle of the love that made Lady Fatima (as) tremble in her prayers.
➖Imam Sajjad (as) told God in a prayer, “Help me to become negligent about carnal desires by remembering You.” [Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 91, p. 127] By remembering God, we can control our mind. A mind that keeps jumping here and there is destructive for a human being.
➖Curiosity is good for a scientist who wants to discover a substance or wishes to invent something. But curiosity is like poison for a person who squanders his time to see what catches his eye in the internet! That he may see unlawful scenes isn’t good, but the main problem is he won’t have any control over his mind.
➖Browsing in the internet or social media just to spend time is an insult to humanity! One may say, "Let's join this group because it has many interesting things!" But let's look at the issue from this angle. If we spend our lives on things that others have made to keep us busy, what will be left of our minds and humanity?
@PanahianEN
❤30
🔲 Dhikr isn’t just repeating God’s names.
🔲 Remembering God causes everything to be in its own place.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (27)
➖Dhikr [remembering God] means paying attention to God in our mind and isn’t just repeating His names. If one holds rosary beads and says "Glory be to God..." without paying attention, he is just repeating but not remembering. Of course, repeating His names has some good effects, but when we pay careful attention while remembering God we are thinking about Him.
➖A minimal remembering is paying attention to God mentally, and the maximum is when one’s heart is shaken too, like when a lover thinks about his beloved, "Indeed the believers are those whose hearts quake at the mention of Allah." [Qur’an 8:2]
➖Life and its ups and downs cause us to forget God. If one doesn’t remember God, He will make his life straitened, “And whoever turns away from My remembrance, his life shall surely be straitened.” [Qur’an 20:124]
➖Turning away from God’s remembrance doesn’t refer to forgetting God. It’s when we are reminded of God by some means but think about other things instead. Such turning away makes our lives difficult. Not that one loses everything, no. One has a job, gets paid, sleeps, etc., but accompanied by misery and a hard life!
➖Remembering God causes everything to be in its own place. But forgetting God causes life to become hard and straitened. For example, you make several calls for something you need to do, but no one answers. Your work won’t go smoothly. But if your life isn’t straitened, your problem will be solved with the first call.
➖Another point is that good, divine inspirations come to our mind at times that we are sure are good. If we value these, they become clearer. Don’t ignore good inspirations that come to you. Some people mistakenly think they are being inspired! I don’t mean such things. I mean good inspirations, when you yourself understand it’s a good deed. Like after prayer when you suddenly feel like praying another prayer or a supplication. You have time and don’t have to do a more important task. This is clearly a good inspiration. Pay attention to it.
@PanahianEN
🔲 Remembering God causes everything to be in its own place.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (27)
➖Dhikr [remembering God] means paying attention to God in our mind and isn’t just repeating His names. If one holds rosary beads and says "Glory be to God..." without paying attention, he is just repeating but not remembering. Of course, repeating His names has some good effects, but when we pay careful attention while remembering God we are thinking about Him.
➖A minimal remembering is paying attention to God mentally, and the maximum is when one’s heart is shaken too, like when a lover thinks about his beloved, "Indeed the believers are those whose hearts quake at the mention of Allah." [Qur’an 8:2]
➖Life and its ups and downs cause us to forget God. If one doesn’t remember God, He will make his life straitened, “And whoever turns away from My remembrance, his life shall surely be straitened.” [Qur’an 20:124]
➖Turning away from God’s remembrance doesn’t refer to forgetting God. It’s when we are reminded of God by some means but think about other things instead. Such turning away makes our lives difficult. Not that one loses everything, no. One has a job, gets paid, sleeps, etc., but accompanied by misery and a hard life!
➖Remembering God causes everything to be in its own place. But forgetting God causes life to become hard and straitened. For example, you make several calls for something you need to do, but no one answers. Your work won’t go smoothly. But if your life isn’t straitened, your problem will be solved with the first call.
➖Another point is that good, divine inspirations come to our mind at times that we are sure are good. If we value these, they become clearer. Don’t ignore good inspirations that come to you. Some people mistakenly think they are being inspired! I don’t mean such things. I mean good inspirations, when you yourself understand it’s a good deed. Like after prayer when you suddenly feel like praying another prayer or a supplication. You have time and don’t have to do a more important task. This is clearly a good inspiration. Pay attention to it.
@PanahianEN
❤23
🔲 Some basic solutions for increasing our ability to control our mind
🔲 Many of our worship acts help to strengthen our ability to think and concentrate
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (28)
➖ Two important indicators for evaluating our ability to control our mind are: 1. being able to keep our mind focused on a subject 2. when something distracts us, being able to change our thinking and bring our mind back to the subject we wanted to think about.
➖How can we gain this ability to focus? It is difficult to pay attention to sublime subjects such as "remembering God" during prayer. But we can have a program for spending time and thinking about certain good topics, such as God’s blessings, God’s kindness or any other topic that stimulates our thinking and is to our benefit and enjoyable to think about.
➖We can help ourselves to think by reading the biographies of the Friends of God, history books, supplications narrated from the Household of the Prophet (as), or above all, recite the Qur'an and think about it.
➖Another way to increase our ability to focus is to participate in the meetings where God is spoken about and everyone is thinking about this same subject. Many such worship acts are actually ways for us to gain the ability to control our mind.
➖Another thing we should do and is interesting too, is self-evaluation! This is so important that it’s been said, “One who does not evaluate his actions every day is not one of us (the Household of the Prophet).” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 453]
➖We can get used to concentrating on a certain topic with a program such as self-evaluation, which must be done daily. This focusing our attention without using any external tools or factors is very useful.
➖Continuity in any program - especially in programs concerning the mind – is very important. It is so important that it has been said if you set a program for yourself but aren’t able to do it on time, be sure to do it later. [Usul Tis’a Ashar, p. 237]
➖If during these regular, daily programs you’ve set for yourself you are able to focus and use your mind correctly, you will be able to focus on a topic or stop thinking about it when you need to do so at other times.
@PanahianEN
🔲 Many of our worship acts help to strengthen our ability to think and concentrate
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (28)
➖ Two important indicators for evaluating our ability to control our mind are: 1. being able to keep our mind focused on a subject 2. when something distracts us, being able to change our thinking and bring our mind back to the subject we wanted to think about.
➖How can we gain this ability to focus? It is difficult to pay attention to sublime subjects such as "remembering God" during prayer. But we can have a program for spending time and thinking about certain good topics, such as God’s blessings, God’s kindness or any other topic that stimulates our thinking and is to our benefit and enjoyable to think about.
➖We can help ourselves to think by reading the biographies of the Friends of God, history books, supplications narrated from the Household of the Prophet (as), or above all, recite the Qur'an and think about it.
➖Another way to increase our ability to focus is to participate in the meetings where God is spoken about and everyone is thinking about this same subject. Many such worship acts are actually ways for us to gain the ability to control our mind.
➖Another thing we should do and is interesting too, is self-evaluation! This is so important that it’s been said, “One who does not evaluate his actions every day is not one of us (the Household of the Prophet).” [Kafi, vol. 2, p. 453]
➖We can get used to concentrating on a certain topic with a program such as self-evaluation, which must be done daily. This focusing our attention without using any external tools or factors is very useful.
➖Continuity in any program - especially in programs concerning the mind – is very important. It is so important that it has been said if you set a program for yourself but aren’t able to do it on time, be sure to do it later. [Usul Tis’a Ashar, p. 237]
➖If during these regular, daily programs you’ve set for yourself you are able to focus and use your mind correctly, you will be able to focus on a topic or stop thinking about it when you need to do so at other times.
@PanahianEN
❤23
🔲 If you haven’t set boundaries for what things you shouldn’t think about, you will become a weak person.
🔲 What are some things we mustn’t think about?
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (29)
➖ One way to increase our ability to pay attention and control our mind is to decide not to think about certain subjects. If these subjects come to our mind, we should put them aside. A person who does not have any limits for his mental activities will become a weak person. Let’s not spend time thinking about just anything that occurs to us. Let’s not think about some things, talk about them, or become fixed on them.
➖ Some examples:
1. Do not think about what God has given others.
The Qur'an says to not pry into and pay attention to what God has given others in this world. [20:131] For example, if God has given someone a better car, don’t think about it.
2. Do not think too much about the things you like and are interested in.
Imam Sadiq (as) said that if you like something and wish to have it, do not think about it or remind yourself about it too much or it will bother you. [Kafi, vol. 6, p. 459]
3. Regretting about the past is forbidden!
You should not think about the things that have happened in the past that cause one to regret and feel sad when you think about them. One should not think negatively about the past.
4. Worrying and thinking negatively about the future is forbidden!
In worrying about the future, some say something is a “bad omen.” Some first see the downside of every plan and they keep saying, "No, it isn’t possible!" God dislikes this mentality. The Prophet told us to never say that something is a “bad omen.” [Mustadrak al-Wasail, vol. 8, p. 120]
5. Thinking negatively or being suspicious about others is forbidden!
Some people think negatively about others, but the Qur'an states some suspicions are actually a sin. Imam Ali (as) said if you expect someone to be kind and do good to you, do not even think bad thoughts about him in your heart. [Kashf al-Ghummah, vol. 2, p. 242] For example, do not say, "Why doesn’t he help me?" Think positively and say, “He probably doesn’t have the time or the money to help me now.”
@PanahianEN
🔲 What are some things we mustn’t think about?
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (29)
➖ One way to increase our ability to pay attention and control our mind is to decide not to think about certain subjects. If these subjects come to our mind, we should put them aside. A person who does not have any limits for his mental activities will become a weak person. Let’s not spend time thinking about just anything that occurs to us. Let’s not think about some things, talk about them, or become fixed on them.
➖ Some examples:
1. Do not think about what God has given others.
The Qur'an says to not pry into and pay attention to what God has given others in this world. [20:131] For example, if God has given someone a better car, don’t think about it.
2. Do not think too much about the things you like and are interested in.
Imam Sadiq (as) said that if you like something and wish to have it, do not think about it or remind yourself about it too much or it will bother you. [Kafi, vol. 6, p. 459]
3. Regretting about the past is forbidden!
You should not think about the things that have happened in the past that cause one to regret and feel sad when you think about them. One should not think negatively about the past.
4. Worrying and thinking negatively about the future is forbidden!
In worrying about the future, some say something is a “bad omen.” Some first see the downside of every plan and they keep saying, "No, it isn’t possible!" God dislikes this mentality. The Prophet told us to never say that something is a “bad omen.” [Mustadrak al-Wasail, vol. 8, p. 120]
5. Thinking negatively or being suspicious about others is forbidden!
Some people think negatively about others, but the Qur'an states some suspicions are actually a sin. Imam Ali (as) said if you expect someone to be kind and do good to you, do not even think bad thoughts about him in your heart. [Kashf al-Ghummah, vol. 2, p. 242] For example, do not say, "Why doesn’t he help me?" Think positively and say, “He probably doesn’t have the time or the money to help me now.”
@PanahianEN
❤41
🔲 Seeking help from God to be able to control our mind is a fundamental principle.
🔲 No one can save himself on his own, and no one goes to Hell on his own.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (30)
➖A very basic principle on the path of human growth and development is that, "We are never alone on this path." There are two aspects to this not being alone:
➖The first is the existence of our invisible enemy, Satan. We never become bad on our own, because Satan plays a role in all our evilness. Satan's temptations take place in a person’s mind. Satan and his troops constantly try to attract us to think about things we shouldn’t think about.
➖The Qur’an quotes Satan as saying, “Then I will certainly come to them from before them, from behind them, from their right side and from their left side. And Thou shalt not find most of them thankful.” [7:17]
➖More important than the existence of an enemy is the companionship and help we receive from God on the path of personal development. It is meaningless for a person to say he wants to do a good deed alone (without God's help). Even for calculating our own deeds and asking for forgiveness, we need His help.
➖ Getting help from God in controlling our mind is a basic principle. An example in the Qur’an is, "When you recite the Qur’an, seek refuge in God from the mischief of Satan.” [16:98]
➖Let’s seek help from God and flee from Satan toward God. These are two basic steps to a person’s growth. No one becomes good alone (without God's help) and no one becomes bad alone (without Satan). No one can edify and save himself on his own, and no one will go to Hell on his own. If one hopes to be saved, this is only possible with God’s help. And if one goes to Hell, this is due to God’s wrath. It means that God has abandoned him and not helped him anymore. So we should not think we are alone on the path of growth!
➖About seeking help from God, there are surprising supplications from the Household of the Prophet (as). The Commander of the Faithful (as) said, "Your attention to God is first from God, then from you toward God.” [Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 2,091] In order to remember God, God must first remember you.
@PanahianEN
🔲 No one can save himself on his own, and no one goes to Hell on his own.
👉🏼 #ControllingMyMind (30)
➖A very basic principle on the path of human growth and development is that, "We are never alone on this path." There are two aspects to this not being alone:
➖The first is the existence of our invisible enemy, Satan. We never become bad on our own, because Satan plays a role in all our evilness. Satan's temptations take place in a person’s mind. Satan and his troops constantly try to attract us to think about things we shouldn’t think about.
➖The Qur’an quotes Satan as saying, “Then I will certainly come to them from before them, from behind them, from their right side and from their left side. And Thou shalt not find most of them thankful.” [7:17]
➖More important than the existence of an enemy is the companionship and help we receive from God on the path of personal development. It is meaningless for a person to say he wants to do a good deed alone (without God's help). Even for calculating our own deeds and asking for forgiveness, we need His help.
➖ Getting help from God in controlling our mind is a basic principle. An example in the Qur’an is, "When you recite the Qur’an, seek refuge in God from the mischief of Satan.” [16:98]
➖Let’s seek help from God and flee from Satan toward God. These are two basic steps to a person’s growth. No one becomes good alone (without God's help) and no one becomes bad alone (without Satan). No one can edify and save himself on his own, and no one will go to Hell on his own. If one hopes to be saved, this is only possible with God’s help. And if one goes to Hell, this is due to God’s wrath. It means that God has abandoned him and not helped him anymore. So we should not think we are alone on the path of growth!
➖About seeking help from God, there are surprising supplications from the Household of the Prophet (as). The Commander of the Faithful (as) said, "Your attention to God is first from God, then from you toward God.” [Ghurar al-Hikam, no. 2,091] In order to remember God, God must first remember you.
@PanahianEN
❤19