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  NazminA

  07/05/2020

  This book has been sitting on my bookshelf for about two years but I just haven't had a chance to read it. You've now prompted me to make a start so I will report back once I have gotten through it! :)

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  Shameem

  11/04/2020

  It’s a tricky one this review, but I will concentrate on the positives I took away. I found the 40 rules of love inspiring but also thought provoking. It allowed me to look beyond the words and search for the true meaning not just in the 40 rules of love but in life, in my existence. Before reading this book, I was aware of how deep the devotion for the One can go and that I am nowhere near that. I have always thought of myself as a spiritual person. I feel now reading this book, and doing a bit of research in Sufism my way of devotion has changed to a more mindful and contemplating one. It’s difficult to explain in words. I feel my spirituality is sometimes beyond what I can imagine, and what my words can describe. One thing I found interesting is that, in order to feel this deep devotion, one has to let go of worldly things. I believe this to be true, but how practical is this? Can we as a human race ever achieve this, or by asking this question I am avoiding / delaying this process. Is this not a barrier I am placing myself?? Something to ponder on, I guess. *“Every true love and friendship is a story of unexpected transformation. If we are the same person before and after we loved, that means we haven’t loved enough.” *40 Rules of Love Now consider this rule, today we say a lot of ‘I’m not changing for no one’ ‘accept me as I am’ …… but true love / friendship is beyond that. Of course, love changes you, it’s naïve to think otherwise. As life progresses you change, grow, mature like most natural things in life. So for the love of the One, yes change must be present. *"You can study God through everything and everyone in the universe, because God is not confined in a mosque, synagogue or church. But if you are still in need of knowing where exactly His abode is, there is only one place to look for Him: in the heart of a true lover.” *40 Rules of Love I find this rule very poignant. I can relate most of my life to this. I have felt lost in my faith, I have rebelled and I have also considered no faith. During this whole process, the one place I forgot to look is deep inside me. It saddens me that I lost so many years searching for Allah, and He was inside my heart all this time. I have a direct link to Him. The closest I have ever been is in Sujood and how much I value this now. All the opportunities to get close to Him I lost. Growing up there was a lot of talk around who is the better Muslim, which sect is greater, who prays the most. I have also seen many people perform the outwardly duties of a good Muslim. But the true goal is to allow one’s way of life, thoughts, actions, and existence to evolve around the One. To be truly mindful in prayer and dhikr. What am I reciting? what does it mean? not just surface level words, but deeper, much much deeper. Somewhere I haven’t reached yet. I will forever remain in this journey and as long as I keep steadfast I’m happy with that. *“Each and every reader comprehends the Holy Qur’an on a different level of tandem with the depth of his understanding. There are four levels of insight. The first level is the outer meaning and it is the one that the majority of the people are content with. Next is the Batin – the inner level. Third, there is the inner of the inner. And the fourth level is so deep it cannot be put into words and is therefore bound to remain indescribable.” *40 Rules of Love

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