The Desert Within

Another day dawns with the rising of the sun

A day of remembrance and prayer has begun

The day-night cycle continues once again

Alternating constantly, this cycle will remain

The rising of the sun, what an awesome sight,

greeting the Earth with both warmth and light

and as the Sun displays its strength and might

we bid farewell to the darkness and night

But on the Earth exists the harshest of land

Devoid of water, it is an ocean of sand

These barren deserts offer no respite or shade

Its brutality and hardship, you cannot evade.

Not much can survive in this infertile land

What were mountains are now mounds of sand

Humbled to nothing, the winds blow them around

These 'eternal' mountains are no longer found

This wind and sand paints a desolate scene

Shades of brown and yellow, lacking all green

Waves of shifting sand and rippling designs

This ruthless wilderness only harshness it defines

When the rain descends, the desert it transformed

From that unforgiving wasteland, it is reformed

It is now bursting with both greenery and life

With water, plants and creatures, the desert is rife

The rain them stops and gradually things return

And for the next rainfall, the desert does yearns

Only a few signs of rainfall are left behind

And a sprinkle of oasis are there to remind

We are like the deserts in many a respect

And share much in common, if we reflect

Many matters of our existence we don't control

This is in Allah's hands, the creator of the soul

Like the desert is subject to the climate ordained

Our life's provisions are set and maintained

So we live by things that have been assigned

We live within boundaries that are pre-defined.

Our hearts are barren where little does survive

Only through His mercy, does our heart revive

Guidance and forgiveness, from Allah comes down

Like the rainfall reviving whats barren and brown

Our hearts return to the remembrance of our Lord

Pride and selfishness we no longer hoard

And all such vices are cleansed from our hearts

And all the harshness from the soul departs.



But when we stops being humble and sincere

And from Salah and remembrance, we stay clear

Our heart gradually returns to a decadent state.

And we return again, full of selfishness and hate

But a voice still remains, yearning for the good

For more rain to return - maybe as a Flood?

But unfortunately our lives take on a new form

A barren falsehood that become the norm

The oasis remains a sign - a voice from within

But this is drowned out by lies and spin

As we are distracted by the lure of the world

into the depth of ignorance we are hurled

When we consider our own youth and might

We disregard Truth and the path that's right

We become arrogant and believe in the lie

We think we are eternal and will never die

Like the mountains before would firmly stand

Their mighty stature is rendered to sand

We will ultimately expire, that is a must

And we will be rendered to a pile of dust

Like the desert adapts to its barren ways

And all is restored to its normal dry days

The heart also hardens and dies once more

And with the next 'rainfall' it will restore



The heart longs for another rainfall

As it wants to submit to Allah' call

Unlike the desert we can always be blessed

To please Allah, we must never rest

Allah is the most Merciful and kind

And eternal bliss you will ultimately find

When you turn to him with a heart sincere

And your goal in life will be crystal clear

To the merciful one, we send all our praise

And all signs of rebellion we try and erase

Submit to His will, our body and mind

And through this act, salvation we'll find

Allah's guidance and mercy shines bright

We bid farewell to the darkness and night

Only will Allah's light, we will stand upright

As life-death cycle goes on, without respite

Author: Zahid bin Ghulam Rasul