Understanding Salat — Page 22
Understanding S al A t 22 engine, how can they believe in the divinity of Allah Almighty? Until this is so, can such an individual call themselves ‘one who is ever inclined to God,’ in the true sense when reciting the words, “I have turned my face towards Him Who created the heavens and the earth. ” If a person reinforces their words through action and turns towards God, then undoubtedly such a one is a Muslim; they are a believer and Han ī f [one who is ever inclined to God]. ( Malf uza t (English), vol. 1, pp. 163) In the words ‘I have turned my full attention’ ( َ هْت ُ وَجْهِي َّ وَج ), the emphasis is on turning our attention towards Allah. In the word ۡفًا ي ِ حَن (being ever inclined), the emphasis is on turning our hearts towards Allah. Turning our attention to someone simply requires control of our thoughts. We can change our thoughts much more easily than we can change our hearts. If we fall in love with someone, then nobody can change the way we feel; even we can’t change it. There is something in their beauty that has infatuated us. We can easily change our thoughts and focus our minds on something, but we cannot change our hearts. If someone is forced to marry someone they don’t want to marry, they can’t force themselves to fall in love with that person. We can force our mind to focus on something, but we cannot force our heart to love someone we don’t. If our heart is inclined away from Allah Almighty, then