The Sailing Vessel

Our knowledge is like a vessel, the more knowledge we acquire, the larger, more beautiful it becomes. But a vessel without a sail will only float to wherever the waves takes it, if not sink. The sail is our practise of the knowledge we have. Only with it our knowledge is proven useful, only then WE who wields the  knowledge have served. A ship without a sail may look pretty, it may draw people to admire it's beauty and elegance, everyone would adore it's craftsmanship, only to realize it cannot sail the seas. A piece of display, nothing more.

Intelligence is not how much you know, but how much have you done with what you have known. Nowadays we 'grade' people by pieces of papers, certificates, or merely letters on our assessment. We look up to one stream, down on another. Like how doctors are better than engineers-- here's a better comparison, a doctor and a kindergarten teacher. I don't need to say which  is better for you to understand the situation. A doctor cannot build the machines they use, an engineer cannot use the machines they built efficiently. So who's smarter? Neither. Who's dumber, then? Both of them aren't any dumber than the other. The dumb is the one who refuses to put themselves to good use, the dumber is the one who refuses to learn. Or maybe they're both on the same level. Eitherways, two wrongs doesn't make a right.

In Islam, we are encouraged to strive in anything we aspire. So long as we put it to good use, to benefit others as it would benefit us, and most importantly, brings us closer to the Creator. If we were to measure one's intelligence by the book, know this;
Muhammad (pbuh) was illiterate, but he wasn't dumb. Is he not noble?
We all know his stories; a shepherd, a businessman, a politician, a family man, a man of faith. And he was great at all of that, he is our idol. But he was illiterate, he did not go to school, he was no mathematician, nor was he a scientist, but he is the prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Being illiterate did not put him down in the eyes of man, and in the eyes of God, not one bit. So why should we judge a person in such a way?
That if he cannot read, he is dumb?
That if he cannot count, he is stupid?
That if he cannot lead, he is lost?

Have we forgotten who we once were? Why have turned so arrogant? We weren't born smart. When we started, we couldn't even walk, speak, or even chew food. So where does the line split?
We were given opportunities to get to where we are, they weren't.
Instead of feeling pride, we should be grateful that we had been given a chance.
Think, if they had been given the same opportunity as we did, they might have grown up to be greater than us. Be thankful, say 'Alhamdulillah', and put yourself on the right track, starting today. With gratitude, then comes understanding, then comes the helping hand.
Help our struggling brothers and sisters, help build a better ummah.

And  don't feel dumb if you fail your exams in school, it's not the end of the world. The end is when you've stopped trying. You never know what fruit tomorrow will bear, right?

"whosoever gives, will gain more than what he had given." Allah's promise to us, so what have we got to lose?

So will you be an archaic vessel that is graceful on display but utterly useless, or will you brave the thundering seas majestically? Being smart is a choice.

Trying to make a change, from the inside.

Hafidz Iddin