WHERE THE CHANGE BEGINS
Bismillah Al-Rahman Al-Raheem,
Dearest brothers & sisters,
Al-Salamu Alaykum wa Rahmat Allah wa Barakatuh,
At a time when the world feels immersed in deeper chaos, we find ourselves distracted by land, ethnicity, cultural beliefs, power, division and suffering. Yet the nature of this world is material—a world of fasaad. If not distracted by entertainment, we are distracted by war.
In times of war, we feel it more intensely. We sit helplessly, at the “mercy” of a world governed by power and greed. We are left speculating, consumed by conspiracy theories, staring at the news and waiting for the next incident, whether on the television or on our phones.
This first affects our own wellbeing, then the wellbeing of our families, friends, and most of all, our children, who inherit the state we normalize.
What is the benefit of this? Why do we not realize that sitting endlessly before the news does nothing but further disturb our inner state? Yes, we should not be ignorant of what is taking place in the world. At the same time, we must remember the capabilities of technology today and remain aware of how easily information can be misrepresented and manipulated across media. We can quickly fall into loops, endlessly trying to uncover the “true story” in a world that is not even grounded in Truth.
Where will we find certainty amidst illusion? Where do we search for Truth when we have disconnected from the Source of Truth?
If we continue living in the same mental patterns we have adopted from the world, nothing will ever change.
(إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا۟ مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ ۗ وَإِذَآ أَرَادَ ٱللهُ بِقَوْمٍ سُوٓءًۭا فَلَا مَرَدَّ لَهُۥ ۚ وَمَا لَهُم مِّن دُونِهِۦ مِن وَالٍۢ)
Verily, Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change their own inner selves. And when Allah wills to afflict a people with misfortune, there can be no turning it back, nor will they find, besides HIM, any protector.
[Ar-Ra’d:11]
As we sit and watch the state of the world helplessly from the comforts of our couches, there is something much deeper humanity can do, especially if we want our children to grow up in a world different from the one we are witnessing today.
It is alarming to realize that the condition of the world reflects the mental condition of its people. While we sit on our sofas judging, feeling helpless, scared, and distraught, we are once again distracted from the deeper reality.
Allah ﷻ is clear in the Holy Quran: HE does not change the condition of a people until they change what is within their own Nafs. Brothers and sisters, this is urgent. The condition of humanity is directly affected by the condition of our inner selves. Only when we change the patterns of our own Nafs will the condition of a people change.
Look within. What does the condition lean toward? Fear? Worry? Overthinking? Authority? Reactivity? Judgement? Annoyance? Attachment? Greed? Anger? Hatred? Revenge?
That is the condition that reflects outward into the world.
Each of us has a role to play. We do not need to stand on battlefields to participate. We should absolutely support those who suffer materially when we are able to, but the true battle is not with what appears to be the enemy on the other side. The real struggle is with our own Nafs, and how we shift its condition to impact the greater whole.
We say we feel helpless. But the truth is, the help the world needs begins within us when we align with Allah ﷻ. Even from the comfort of that same sofa. Switch off the external and switch on the internal. The impact of this inner work is not small; it is essential to the healing of humanity.
We can send a thousand prayers, and we should. But the prayer that transforms fate is the prayer of the one whose will, thought, and Nafs are aligned with the Will of Allah ﷻ. Such a Duaa transcends beyond the boundaries of the Heavens and Earth and reaches Allah ﷻ.
If we want to make the world a better place, we must make ourselves a better place first. A place where we feel at peace, where we feel safe, and where clarity remains steady within us. Allah ﷻ clearly states in the Ayah that there is nowhere to turn except to HIM. To truly reach Allah ﷻ, to experience the true meaning of sukoon, to wholeheartedly know what it means to be in the care of Allah ﷻ, and to impact the condition of the world, there is no other way but to know your own Rooh.
When one knows the Soul, two distinct patterns become clear: one aligned with what Allah ﷻ loves, and one that steers away from it. The perception of the Soul is not one based on theories, assumptions, opinions, or claims; it is a direct seeing—Reality as it is, without a thread of doubt. And when we see clearly, we recognize how our own mental activity feeds the very condition of the circumstances we complain about.
Every thought has a frequency, and those frequencies create ripples.
If humanity feels helpless everywhere else, let it unite here. The power behind what is manifested before us, the circumstances we see in the world, will shift. The inner work each of us does internally has an effect; it shifts the collective whole.
We should be aware and understand how to steer our Nafs away from lower tendencies and into a state that empowers humanity.
Do not think your inner work is ineffective.
Imam Ali (RAA) Says, “Do you think you are a small entity, while within you is enfolded the entire universe?”
Mawlana Rumi (RA) Says, “You are the whole universe in ecstatic motion.”
And Allah ﷻ Says:
حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا۟ مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ…
…Until they change their own inner selves.
The ability to change the condition of the world exists within each of us.
The world is not run by material forces. No matter how much materialism is imposed on us, the Holy Books are constantly pointing us beyond it. Before anything appears in form, it exists in Ghayb—the Hidden realm, the inner. Yet we have neglected this inner dimension, and so we find ourselves in this condition.
Not every form of support must be material. What stops us is believing that it must be. Allah ﷻ HIMSELF Says that changing what we focus on within, changes the condition of a people.
The mind tends to define us by form—flesh and bone. If this is how we see ourselves, we will remain extremely limited in our impact. But Allah ﷻ’s creation is not confined to the physical; it is not bound by time and space. When we shift how we identify ourselves, we move from individual thinking to Collective Consciousness, and it is through the Soul that true change occurs.
If our practice revolves only around bodily movements and material thoughts, it becomes empty. Physical forms are like shells—hollow. The body is just the outer form; it is not the essence. The Soul is the reality upon which our whole existence stands. That is what we must connect to. The Nafs must be directed toward it. That is Taqwa.
The Nafs fluctuates between two patterns: Rahmani—aligned with what Allah ﷻ loves—and Shaytani—aligned with what distances us from HIM. Rahmani thoughts bring humility, compassion, gratitude, generosity, and trust; they cultivate a Collective Pattern. Shaytani thoughts feed the ego, fear, grief, greed, envy, and division, keeping one confined to an individualistic pattern.
Al-Sheikh Khawaja Shamsuddin Azeemi (RA) reminds us:
“The real reason for mental conflict and breakdown in the human race is that the reflection of the Prophets’ (AS) way of thinking is diminishing, and man’s own self-conceived assumptions have deprived him of true awareness.
When the Prophets (AS) thought about something, they did not establish a direct relationship between themselves and that thing.
Their way of thinking was always that Allah Almighty is the Owner of the universe and all things, HE is our Master.
Our relationship with anything is not direct; rather, every relationship is a means to recognize Allah ﷻ.
Because humanity today is devoid of the Prophets (AS)’s way of thinking and is overwhelmed by self-conceived assumptions, belief in matter dominates, while belief in the Creator of matter is weak.
If we wish to achieve closeness with Allah ﷻ, we must do what Allah ﷻ does.
Allah ﷻ is constantly engaged in the service of HIS creation and protects them, yet seeks no reward in return.
Every task should be performed with full effort and struggle, but the results should be left to Allah ﷻ.”
This is the way forward.
With my deepest prayers and love—and what some may call a naïve wish to see humanity united in its best state—let us turn inward and reflect with honesty amongst ourselves. Where does the Nafs lean? If it is 50/50, we are already in better state. But if it leans even slightly more toward the material than the Soul, toward worldly life instead of being oriented toward Allah ﷻ, even by 1%, then we must acknowledge where the deviation truly begins. In the same way, a population may remain steady at balance, but the moment even 1% tips beyond it, the condition of the people begins to decline.
I pray we have the courage to examine our inner selves and to do the inner work, so that we may truly make a difference, first to ourselves, our families, our communities, our nation, and humanity as a whole.
With prayers of peace, love, and light to the ends of the Earth & Beyond,
Allah Al-Hafidh,
Noora Azeemi
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To learn more about the nature of the Soul, read the series Into The Beloved