I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can improve my behavior by having more taqwa. When I have taqwa, I feel that Allah (SWT) is watching me. I also remember that my classmates are my brothers and sisters\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Allah is watching me. It sounds like a title of a children\u2019s theme song. However, we as adults certainly need to be reminded of this. In the end, our actions, big or small, done publicly or privately, will be judged. I decided to ask more young students what they understood from the word \u201ctaqwa\u201d and this is what I got:<\/p>\n
Our words will be judged. Our actions will be judged. Our decisions will be judged. Every single little thing we say or do will be judged, for we cannot hide anything from Allah (SWT). He tells us so many times in the Quran to have taqwa. When we have taqwa, we do not make a single act or say a single word until we are sure that it will not displease Allah (SWT). Having taqwa is an important attribute for us, as Muslims, in this world. By having taqwa, we not only become better people, but we begin to lead by example and spread Islam throughout the world.<\/p>\n
These days, there are so many negative stereotypes, and the best way to shatter these stereotypes and show the world that Muslims are really not bad people is to have taqwa, because taqwa is, essentially, the remembrance of Allah (SWT)\u2019s instructions and the obedience of these instructions. Allah (SWT) tells us in the Quran not only to have taqwa, but to do good deeds, to care for our neighbors, to donate to the poor, and more. Go into the city one day with a few of your friends and display some taqwa: donate to the poor and the needy begging for money in the street, and donate generously\u2026 Not only is this showing taqwa but we also are spreading Islam and performing da\u2019wa.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Taqwa. It\u2019s a big topic. We are taught to look for it as the most important attribute in a spouse. I remember my mother saying something to the effect, \u201cIf he has taqwa, he will take care of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
But how does one build and nurture one\u2019s taqwa? Is it a sort of magical feeling that comes with testifying one\u2019s faith as a Muslim? We need to work at developing taqwa. There are always temptations; we can fall vulnerable and be weak. Making dhikr, keeping up with our salat, reading Qur\u2019an and making du\u2019aa \u2026 these all cultivate taqwa. If we start to slip in these areas, we start falling and our taqwa suffers.<\/p>\n
I remember being at a Muslim youth conference so many years ago where a participant addressing the topic of \u201cimaan\u201d presented the analogy of the wheelbarrow. We have moments when we push that wheelbarrow up that hill and sometimes we slip and the wheelbarrow slides down. It\u2019s not magic. We have to work at pushing that wheelbarrow up. Getting help to push that wheelbarrow up is nothing to be ashamed of either. Sowing the seeds of taqwa is hard work and we can\u2019t always do it alone.<\/p>\n
Mayce Ibraheem<\/p>\n
Mayce Ibraheem lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two sons.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can improve my behavior by having more taqwa. When I have taqwa, I feel that Allah (SWT) is watching me. I also remember that my classmates are my brothers and sisters\u2026\u201d […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1529,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,22],"tags":[1263],"class_list":["post-639","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spirituality","category-self-development","tag-taqwa"],"yoast_head":"\n
The Seeds of Taqwa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Seeds of Taqwa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Grow Mama Grow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-02-22T21:08:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Marwa Aly\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Marwa Aly\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/\",\"name\":\"The Seeds of Taqwa\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2010-02-22T21:08:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2010-02-22T21:08:05+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#\/schema\/person\/702b47279d997bac4ea05b48491f17d0\"},\"description\":\"I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Seeds of Taqwa\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/\",\"name\":\"Grow Mama Grow\",\"description\":\"A Community for Muslim Mothers\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#\/schema\/person\/702b47279d997bac4ea05b48491f17d0\",\"name\":\"Marwa Aly\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ecd7e423e61a613435f08714fcd80d4?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ecd7e423e61a613435f08714fcd80d4?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Marwa Aly\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/author\/growmama\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Seeds of Taqwa","description":"I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Seeds of Taqwa","og_description":"I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/","og_site_name":"Grow Mama Grow","article_published_time":"2010-02-22T21:08:05+00:00","author":"Marwa Aly","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Marwa Aly","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/","name":"The Seeds of Taqwa","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#website"},"datePublished":"2010-02-22T21:08:05+00:00","dateModified":"2010-02-22T21:08:05+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#\/schema\/person\/702b47279d997bac4ea05b48491f17d0"},"description":"I recently came across an elementary student\u2019s written reflections on how to improve her behavior. She wrote something to the effect: \u201cI think I can","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/spirituality\/the-seeds-of-taqwa\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Seeds of Taqwa"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/","name":"Grow Mama Grow","description":"A Community for Muslim Mothers","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#\/schema\/person\/702b47279d997bac4ea05b48491f17d0","name":"Marwa Aly","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ecd7e423e61a613435f08714fcd80d4?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ecd7e423e61a613435f08714fcd80d4?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Marwa Aly"},"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/author\/growmama\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/639","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1529"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=639"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/639\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=639"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=639"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/growmama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=639"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}