Some Useful Tips for Skin!

Long back I read a book named 'Fast Fixes and Simple Solutions by the editors of FD &A' at my cousins place when I went for vacation. I noted down some of the tips and tricks to apply and share. Hope you all find it useful.

1. Amaze your face with baking soda. Just toss some of it and oatmeal in your blender, then scrub away!                    
2. Erase brown spots on your face with lemons. Just cut a lemon in half and squeeze the juice into a bowl. With a cotton ball, swab some lemon juice onto your brown spots for 15-20 minutes thrice a day. Rinse your face after each session. Stick to this routine, and you should notice your brown spots fading within a month.
3. Brighten your complexion with salt! Mix equal parts salt and olive oil and gently massage your face and throat for 5 minutes. Then wash your face with your favorite cleanser and your skin will have a radiant, golden glow!
4. Put half a teaspoon of honey and half a cup of sliced cucumber in the blender and puree' until you get a fine mixture. Spread the mixture on your face and leave it there for about half an hour before rinsing. Your skin will look great! 
5. Spread some whole-egg mayonnaise on your face and leave it there for 20 minutes. Then wipe it off with cool water. This is good with dry skin. 
6. Apply a beaten egg-white on your face, as the egg-white dries your face will tighten. Especially the saggy area under your eyes. 
7. For treating baggy, puffy eyes you can use raw potato. Put a teaspoon of salt in a pint of hot water, soak some pads in them and place then over the puffy eyes. The salt water will wash away puffy eyes.
8. For great looking skin soak your face in a bowl of cold water. Drink lots of water for healthy skin and body. 

Envy yes or no?

We all are different in some aspect or the other. No body, even the twin siblings are alike. What others possess are things which either they have got by birth or they have worked for it. Some other things they have got is purely due to the fact that it was meant for them. When people envy others for their assets which are purely natural they are being very unrealistic. Nobody has chosen to be fair or beautiful. It is simply that they are born like that. All humans are different in looks, physique and temperaments naturally. Why should one envy things that were neither in their control nor in our control to have them. 

Other things like the material things also are distributed by God to different people differently. Some rich are generous, others are miserly and still others grow even more greedy day by day.

Whenever we find that someone has something that we like and wish to have it we should first wish good for him or her. We should pray for that person that he or she has blessings in that. When we have this kind of attitude the little spark of envy is cooled down and now we have some peace of mind to think ahead. We can now see what is that makes us wish it to be ours. Are we not better in many other ways? If not, then we should pray to God to bestow us the goodness that we have seen with the other person. Somethings are not in our control but some other can be achieved by working in that direction. We must have a positive mindset in that. We must not envy, rather be realistic and see what we can do about it. If someone's knowledge makes us feel so we can acquire knowledge for our own benefit and not in competition with someone. Envy is a negative emotion. We must not let it enter our hearts otherwise it can ruin all the peace inside. We should know ourselves well so that we can see our own strengths and weaknesses. We all can not be on the same platform and situation. What we can do others might not be able to do. What others can do we might not be able to do it howsoever we might try, because this is something innate. 

Therefore, envying has no solution for the one who is wishing for some good that he sees in another. WE SHOULD NOT ENVY ANYONE FOR ANYTHING THAT HE OR SHE HAS. 

Make-believe World

    

Humans have not grown up. They are not mature. They have not yet used their full potential. We can see how technology has shot up. How we started from wired phone sets and now we have not just wire-less but even switch-less phone and other gadgets that work just by touch. This is not all. Technology is going further day by day. No stopping. Each new day some or the other upgrade in versions and applications is presented to the buyers. What amazes me is that eventually everything leads humans more toward a false, make-believe world and not much growth in his mentality and nobility! 
We all know what kind of games, applications and add-ons are available for the users. You are not growing out of the world of fake characters, feelings and accomplishments. Your kids are not learning values from you directly. This is so because even you are busy smashing fruits, throwing trash and eggs and building a farm; of course this is all unreal. You do nothing to gain points outside of it. In fact, we all are losing on this! Collecting so many gold coins, running frantically to save oneself from those ugly beasts and what not. 
Man doesn't want to grow up. He doesn't want to take responsibilities. He wants fun. He wants to live in an imaginary world of fantasy and fun, victory and accomplishments, strength and points, skills and intelligence and all that makes him believe falsely that he is in charge. He gets the feeling that he is smart, intelligent and able. All this is not so in real life. Those who live in a make-believe world are escaping from the realities of life. They are turning a deaf ear to the call of duty. 
Make-believe world is made by man himself to keep himself away from realities. He does not want to own responsibilities and just wants to be innocent and ignorant of the fact that he is answerable for his actions.
The kind of movies, cartoons and ads that we come across, the kind of children's story books and novels that are there all are examples of how we are dwelling in a fake, false and fantasy world.
The fact that we like all that, engage in all that, waste our time, energies and intellect on that is proof enough that we have turned a blind eye to the reality of life. The fact of life is that there is some Supreme power that has Created this World for a Purpose. The fact that we are here not for enjoyment, fun or frolic rather for a limited time period as a test. The fact that we will be rewarded immensely for our efforts, our intentions and our actions if they are done sincerely in line with the Truth. The rewards we will get are far far more pleasurable, enjoyable, lovely and breathtakingly beautiful than those which we have created in our movies and paintings. We can not imagine the work of the Creator because of our limited capacities. 
Those who deny the Presence of a Supreme Power are ignorant of their own being and existence. Those who remain as if they do not know while they are aware and believe in the Power of God are deceiving themselves. Man has himself made false things and is happy in there. He has created that which has no proof of existence and he endorses it like anything, but, he is not ready to believe in the Unseen. He is not ready to believe in the Power that is present all around as the clear signs. He is not moved by the miracles of birth, death, rain, vegetation, night and day but he is impressed by the way sci-fi movies baffle the viewers!
Make-believe world is made by man himself and it is made to distract him from the reality which is out there, because if he ponders on that then it will 'make him believe' the existence of The All Powerful God.

Notes from Life...

People tell you not to talk about death, its depressing.
Why not?
When will we get the time to talk about it and think about it then?
After death?? 

We have to think about death in our life only. It does not bring depression. It brings the wisdom.

Hatred spoils everything positive about you.

The best thing about life is you have to live it whether you like it or not.
The most difficult thing about relationships is, you have to keep them whether you like them or not.
The saddest thing about losing someone is, you have to accept it whether you think you can do it or not. 

Life will go on. You will not have to make much effort.
Losses will heal as the time passes.

The thing that needs your wisdom, your grace and your maturity is...
to keep the relationships going, to nurture them, to value them, to honor them, to heal them and not to let go of them. 

Relationships are made of a material which can never break, however hard someone might try. The blood relations are the most valued of them. Never break with your relations. Keep them. Those who have lost their loved ones know what this means.


When you keep yourself busy in productive and constructive things, you get no time for negative and destructive thoughts.
Keep busy in good things which are not only beneficial for you here but in the Hereafter as well.

Freedom of speech has led to the confinement of wisdom!

You haven't seen me, yet you know me. You haven't met me yet you know something about me. Personality is not just the appearance or the presence of a person. It is felt even when the person is not present before you. It is evident even when you have never met the person. How many of us have met the personalities from the past? We have come to know them through their work, their contributions, through their thoughts which they expressed in some way. Having a look at the person's likes and dislikes, his thoughts, his inclinations and interests does not need his 'face' or physical presence to be there. Your work speaks for you.

Sometimes the world looks so vague, so dull...
when you look at the faces of people around you, you can not read their true expressions....
then....
suddenly
it dawns upon you that 'you are not wearing your spectacles!' 

Smile is like a switch which lights up your face; but most of us believe in saving electricity!

Genuine people are forgiven easily by others.

When people do not understand your views do not feel bad;
after all, how many people understand 'quantum theory'!

Movies, music and party can keep us awake all night through...because they are disturbing to the nerves...they do not give them chance to relax.
Reading Quran, praying and sitting in gatherings of remembrance make us feel sleepy...
the reason: they sooth our hearts and mind, they relax our nerves and give us peace

Part of a whole...

Men and women belong to the same species, the homo sapiens. They have not originated separately to have competition with each other for their survival or to prove their worth. Just like every other thing in the universe has its partner so has man, in the form of a woman!

The British scientist Paul Dirac, who proposed that matter is created in pairs, was awarded the Nobel Prize for physics in 1933.

Men and women, thus, are part of a whole and not some separate entities that can exist independently without each other with no need whatsoever fulfilling from each other. 

This is completely a natural thing that man and woman are created to strive for some purpose. Their existence and togetherness is not just for the sake of happiness at the physical or mental level, rather they are created to serve a greater purpose. 

They have not been left unguided and shown ways to live a healthy life with standards and values which dictate their being from the most intelligent of the living creatures.

When you read about animals and go through the information regarding each animal you find that among the most dangerous land animals they name the lion. Every other animal has many other predators from animal kingdom but the most dangerous animal has only one predator which is 'man'!

Man is not stronger than the lion, yet he is able to overpower it. This is because of his intelligence!

Man and woman complete each other. They make a family, which gives rise to societies and nations. The reason for giving guidelines and a higher purpose to man is to make him rise to the level which he deserves, and not to let him bow down to the level of animal instincts and desires and behave just like all the other living creatures. 

He is not born to feed, sleep, mate, have fun and die. He is unlike the other created beings. The woman is his partner. She has her roles to play. She has very important responsibilities on her part which only she can handle and a man can not. No comparison can be made. Man has been made physically, mentally and emotionally different from a woman. When there is role reversal and both of them leave their respective responsibilities and start wavering here and there the whole society is collapsed. 

When the parts of a whole are not in place the whole picture gets distorted. The parts individually do not mean much. They still need to connect somewhere or the other. The whole still need to be repaired for the parts to function well. 

Women should understand that they are created as 'women'. They are differently created from 'men'. This is natural. This is something that they did not choose. This is something that their Creator chose for them. Being a woman is no less in any way. It is just being a woman, being 'you'. You can be special the way you are! You do not need to change yourself to look or act like some one else to feel special or to prove something.

Men should know that women are created for them to respect, treat kindly and take care of them in the form of mothers, wives and daughters, and all those whom they are related to in any way. They should not see them as weak or unimportant so they can treat them in any manner they like. 

They are responsible for taking care of their mothers, sisters, wives and daughters and all the women in general with decent behavior and kindness.

Men and women must understand that they are not there to compete with each other rather they are there to complete and complement each other in the desirable ways. 

The makeup of the whole society is based on the ways in which these two act, react and interact with each other. 

Marriage is the best solution for the society to keep functioning in a purer and more secure way. 

A man is responsible for a woman and a woman is responsible for a man when both of them marry. Their roles differ according to the capabilities that have been given to them by the Creator. 

Let no man disrespect a woman and let no woman disregard her dignity as a woman. 

Trust

An eight years old, playful child is not yet responsible by nature. He might do some duties now and then but still the child in him shows up more often. This happens more when he is the youngest in the house. This little fellow comes back from school puts his uniform, bag and shoes in their respective places and washes himself up, eats food and so on. He remembers what important things he has to do for tomorrow's school. But, sometimes, the playfulness and carefree nature which children possess make them forget these things. They play all day long. When you remind them they can do their homework. You remind them to arrange their books and keep them in the bag according to the time table for the next day. They respond in the positive manner and delay the act. When you do not remind them deliberately and see what they do you find that the day has finished, they are tired and now they have gone to sleep. You put their books in the bag. You see if their pencil box is equipped with all the necessary things. You do everything that you had initially asked them and expected them to do and go to sleep.

The child goes to school the next day without even remembering the fact that he had forgotten to place his books and other things. 

After he comes back, when you ask him about it, you get a very calm and loving answer which can make you feel great and surprised at the same time. The child says that he knew you would do the work for him if he forgot! He knew that when he would open his bag in the school he would find all his books and stationery in place. He does not say any big or philosophical words. He would just say, "Mummy, I knew you would have kept it."

Look at this. Look at the 'trust'. No other word for it. Look at the kind of feeling it is. 

Our Creator loves us more than a mother. So to say, seventy times more than the love of a mother! How a mother loves everyone knows. How a Creator loves only those will come to know who Trust Him.

Have Trust in the Creator. He will Straighten all your affairs, make all your tasks easy, listen to all your prayers and give you success in both the Worlds. You just need to Trust Him. 

Keep doing your part and leave all that is not in your control. Trust Him. He will take care of everything for you.

When I too pass away...

When my childhood was gone, I missed its innocence.
When my schooldays were gone, I missed the freshness of those days. 
When my days with my parents were over, I missed the days of gratifying attention and affection in the air. 
When my parents passed away, I lost the best opportunity to gain Paradise. 
When the days pass on, I miss each day, I lose each day...or gain something from it, to have with me. To take something from all my past days to cherish. To take along with me something even when I too pass away! 

Islam is beautiful!

There are many reasons to the tarnished and blemished image of Islam. This is well known and needs no further discussion. 

The thing is why any faith would be misunderstood or tarnished in the first place?

 The answer is the people who do not approve of the teachings do so. I am here not talking of Islam alone. You can take any religion for that matter. There have been enemies of Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism and other religions too. The point here is, who would come up against any religion so far as tarnishing it or spoiling its image. Not to be surprised by the fact that even the followers of that same religion do this themselves, whether deliberately or out of lack of knowledge.

The modern man of today thinks that he is born to live freely. He should not be told to this or that. He should be doing what he likes. He should be left free. No sanctions, no laws nothing. He should enjoy free speech, free expression, free sex, free education (what kind!), free chat, free games, free coke and free....the list is endless.

So, when he has this mentality, he is not ready to accept the codes of conduct, the morality, the laws to abide by, the divine commandments and all. He thinks all this is too much for him. He has one life and he wants it to be free. To live it to the fullest. This mentality is normally of those who are unaware of the reality of life. They do not know how they were born, who gave them life, what is the purpose of creating life, this earth and all that is in it, and what happens when on dies. When they do not bother to know all this they just live in the moment. So they just want to say, "Life is to Enjoy". No harm in enjoying life if you know where you are heading to.

But the irony is that they want to live freely themselves and do not spare the other creatures! In the name of research they bombard into the dense forests and disturb the natural habitat of those peace loving animals who want to live their lives their way! They dive deep into the oceans, again in the name of research, and create so much discomfort to the otherwise calm world of the poor fish who have not caused any disturbance in their 'free living' by any chance! 

Okay, fine, we take your word for 'research' for once...but tell us what is the significance of all this running from pillar to post when you are not able to find out the Creator of all that Exists?

Here comes the beauty of Islam! It lets you stay in harmony with nature. Do not harm animals unnecessarily. It is natural that some animals are created for your benefit, others for your ride, others for the natural life cycle. You are told to enjoy life, keeping the balance. You are given the free-will to act according to your choice between good and bad. You are the created beings. You all die one by one. Who gives you birth and causes you to die? You have no control over that. Where your control ends the Controller and Master is there for your guidance. Islam does not leave you wandering here and there. It teaches you values, conduct and the ways to build a structured and strong society based on purity and bonds of family units. Not only this, Islam has guidelines for business matters that build up an economically strong nation.

Islam is beautiful if applied completely and beautifully in life. But those who want personal whims and desires to play the part will blemish the beauty of its teachings. 

But then, truth shines out of the density of lies.

Personalities...differences!

Sitting in the first class lounge of an International Airport, your legs stretched out on the sofa, your head resting on the cushion at the back with closed eyes, you wait for your next flight. Suddenly, your calm is shattered by somebody's loud talk on the phone. You are still in the same position but unable to feel the comfort. You can hear each an every word the person is uttering. He is  talking emphatically to someone over some business matter. He occasionally shouts and uses some bad words too. It seems the matter is never going to end. You sit up straight and start reading some magazine. You take a look at that man. He is very well dressed, seemingly on a good position in a company. His talks also show how he thinks about himself as influential and authoritative.

Now, as you read, a couple comes in next to your area just in front of you. They are in their fifties. They have grey hair, but look very graceful. The wife is wearing a cotton sari and the husband is in blue jeans and black t-shirt. Both of them sit down and start doing their work. The wife takes some magazine and starts reading. The husband starts working on his laptop. Soon they stop the work and say something to each other, smile, and leave for the mess where the buffet is laid down for the passengers in the lounge. They come back chatting in low tone and smiling to each other. Eating casually, they continue their work and chat. Then, the husband again leaves for the buffet and comes back with two tea cups. His wife smiles and takes her cup. Then for sometime again they are busy. Now, the husband stands up to walk for a while and then disappears in the mess again. He comes back to his wife with something in his hand. He calls his wife and tells her to guess what he has brought. She is surprised and confused. He opens his hands and tells her that he brought her favorite chocolates for her! She laughs so beautifully! Now both of them see the time and decide they need to go as it is time for their flight. 

You see, the man who was so gentleman-like took you by surprise only because of the way he behaved. This couple created such a beautiful atmosphere of calm, sweetness, love and companionship that you just could not get your mind off. What was the magic? It was just the little things. The smiles, the gestures, the space, the understanding, the sweet little surprises...these things make big changes, the big picture, the big difference...in life!!

How 'Muslim' are we?!

We are Muslims Alhamdulillah but most of us do not realize that being a Muslim requires a nicely disciplined life. It is not made difficult for us rather easier for us to be 'true Muslims'. Our Lord, Allah does not want His creatures to be harsh on themselves. He asks them to simply follow the duties which He has revealed in the Quran through His last Messenger Muhammad (Peace be upon him).

Let us first see what the words 'Islam' and 'Muslim' convey to us because these are the words which state our Faith and identity. Islam is a way of life in which there is total submission to Allah's will. This way of life has been shown to us in our Prophet's life (Peace be upon him). 

Allah has shown to us how we should live in this world and prepare for the Hereafter, through His messenger. Muhammad (Peace be upon him) was a human being like us and he followed whatever his Lord ordered him to do. He was indeed the most blessed human being. He showed us how a Muslim should live and prepare for life after death. 

A 'Muslim' is, thus, a person who follows #Islam, a way of life in which he submits himself fully to Allah's Will. A 'Muslim' is, thus, someone who obeys and performs all his duties sincerely toward his Lord. A 'Muslim' believes in Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him) and follows his footsteps to please Allah the Almighty.

The most basic duties that are a must for a Muslim include praying 5 times a day, fasting in the month of Ramadan, paying the poor's due and performing Haj once. Those Muslims who are capable of doing these duties by all means and still do not do because of carelessness or any other unacceptable excuse are answerable to Allah.

Reciting the Noble Quran is also among the important requirements in fulfilling these duties properly. The Quran has the explanation for each and every aspect of our life and the traditions and life account of our Prophet shed light on the various matters that need further elaborations on any matter for deeper understanding.

We should understand that if a person only prays regularly and reads the Quran with meaning, trying to understand what it says, the other things automatically come into his life. This is because if one comes to know the teachings of the Quran all the duties will be understood by him.

It is said that the prayer forms the pillar of Islam. Pillar means that which holds up or supports a structure; so prayers are a must if one wants to hold up his Faith. If prayers are neglected then what can be said about one's Faith or Islam?

Thus, we as 'Muslims' must ponder over our lives as 'Muslims'. We should think about our daily routine. We must at least start by guarding our prayers first. In the Quran it is mentioned several times to guard the prayers. The 'must-do' things in our daily life should be the 5 daily prayers and reading the Noble Quran. Just reading it is rewarding but if we are reading it with meaning it is much better as we will come to know what it is telling us.

Today, most of us have made ourselves too busy with our worldly affairs. Job, business, home-affairs, friendships, world-news, relationships etc, are also important but we should not indulge too much into them-and that too at the cost of our prayers!

We seek the knowledge from every source we can get our hands on but do not reach out to the most handy source of the Highest and Deepest Knowledge which is there with us all the time. The Quran is called the Wisdom, the guide, the Book...Allah is All Knowing and Most Wise...so His Words will indeed be full of wisdom, truth and knowledge...even if we get a little from it we will feel fresh!

Why do we forget that we are from our Lord and to Him is our return...sooner or later...but certain.

How can we forget our origin and end and live so irresponsibly?

Once we die, this world and its affairs will be of no use to us unless we have done some good deeds that will help us in our life after death. 

How can we forget in our daily lives, the One, Who has created us?

He does not need anything from us. We need Him all the time.

He is All Powerful and Most Merciful. 

He does not ask us to shun the worldly affairs and worship Him sitting in one corner. 

Why has He sent us in this world then? 

The fact that our Lord has sent us to this world itself makes it understood that we have to perform our worldly affairs and duties toward others and our own self along with our duties toward Allah. The whole point is we have to remember Him in all our affairs. The point is to live life according to His Commands. The Mission is to Please Him alone.

We can surely do these simultaneously and easily as well just as our Prophet (peace be upon him) did. We can give a try and keep trying as much as we are capable. Allah only sees our intention and trying He does not burden us beyond our strength.

It is not as hard as it seems.

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) set for us and example of a Muslim's life-a true Muslim's life. 

We can try our best to adhere to his sunnah and perform all our obligatory duties to Allah consciously and sincerely...especially the prayers.

Praying, reading the Quran, greeting people cheerfully, doing little acts of kindness, doing good deeds, exchanging gifts, helping the poor relatives and others, controlling anger, eating and drinking wisely, following the manners of sitting, meeting people and many more daily activities which will earn us the reward of following the sunnah and pleasing Allah at the same time.

It is certain that we will soon come to enjoy this purely ' Muslim' life and leave our kids as the future 'Muslims',once we make it our habit that all our actions, deeds and words and all our targets in life will ultimately focus on making our Lord the Supreme happy and they be in accordance with the teachings of Quran and Sunnah. 

May Allah help us in our endeavors and have mercy on us. aameen.

The Bicycle of Life!

Life is like a cycle. When it is new we do well even on rough roads and enjoy the bumpy rides! As it grows old, it gets punctures, scratches and dents. And then, a time comes when we sell it off or just dump it somewhere if its totally crushed! 

The selling value of life does not decrease with the scratches it got...it is valuable until it is dumped away!

Nothing is worthless, not even an old bicycle. You can always get it repaired and use it or sell it away. But the thing is how you handle it all the time it was with you. 

Some people love their cycles or bikes so much that they take every care to clean them and make them look good and be in a good working condition. 

I have seen people who are so touchy about their vehicles. And it pays them so well. The way they handle their vehicles; they get it back in good ways. The bike or any other vehicle when taken care of in a better manner gives a good service and stays with you longer.

Same goes for life.

Take good care of life. Do not ignore what can make it last longer and show up in a better state. People often become careless when life is all good to them and they extract senselessly out of it and do not think that this process of living is not static. It goes on. 

We grow. We don't just grow but we grow older and weaker. We lose strength, energy and youth. We start losing our stamina and zest. We lose the zing and enthusiasm. We lose health. When we have time we just spend it here and there. When we lose it we realize there is nothing to be done now. Health, time, leisure and life are to be treasured before they start leaving us. 

Tires get punctured, paint gets faded, handles loosen, screws rust, chains slip off, pedals break and the seat is torn apart. The cycle will break soon one day. 

Repair your life before it is beyond repair. 

Insight! Understanding! Action!

This world is similar to a stage. We all are performers. We all have been allotted roles. Our life is our script and whatever we choose to speak is our dialogue. There is freedom to some extent. The performers can choose to act with their insights and understanding of the situation they are in. But they are not permanent performers. There is a limited time for this stage performance. Once the time limit is over some performers leave the stage forever, never given another chance to perform.  Each one of us is being judged according to our performance on the stage. One day we all will be called on a Final Day where a big gathering will be present. Then the Master of this stage will judge us. We will be applauded, appreciated and rewarded for our performance if it is worth anything. Our scripts then will be in the form of books, handed over to us in our right or left hands. Those who will receive their books in the right hands will be rewarded abundantly. They will be very happy as they will be given the highest award of appreciation. Those who get their books in the left hand will be sorrowful. They will ask for another chance but it will be refused.

This life is the only chance for us to perform. Let us try and give the best act. Nobody can be perfect but there is not harm in setting high standards for a better performance. Actors try out in many takes and retakes and then they give the perfect scene. We do not even have to 'act' here. We are told to be real, honest and insightful.

In the acting arena they call out, ‘Lights, Camera, Action.’ Here we are being told to use our ‘Insight’, ‘Understanding’, and then ‘Action’.

Light here is the ‘insight’ of Truth.

Understanding is the realization that our Creator has the ‘Camera’ on us all the time.

Action is our deeds that we do daily in this life.

Let’s put our best into this once in a lifetime chance to perform on stage!