Skip to main content

Editorial (Issue 141): Being Genuine

| The Fountain | Issue 141 (May - Jun 2021)

This article has been viewed 2931 times

Editorial (Issue 141): Being Genuine

Virtually every action that a person undertakes is affected by his intentions. Whether they be mundane and routine or grandiose and life-changing, our true, heart-felt goals influence us on a massive scale. By following this logic, it remains imperative that we work to refine and hone our intentions by checking ourselves and our true goals in life on a regular basis.

As the popular adage goes, “knowledge is power.” Truly, it is one of the most malleable assets available to us. Knowledge can lift us out of poverty, prevent us from making mistakes, and enable us to undertake new careers and passions. On the flip side, it can be used to sow hardship and destruction in society through the applications of horrible methods and devices. Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen argues that a genuine and sincere love of knowledge must be cultivated by society if we are to collectively move forward. He also argues that it is the responsibility of higher-ups to encourage citizens to pursue knowledge, and to make it more accessible by utilizing the power that they possess for good. The pursuit of knowledge for genuine, well-meaning purposes is in everybody’s best interest.

Pushing the boundaries of one’s comfort zone is a daring task that often requires much grit and perseverance. However, it is an endeavor that is almost always worth pursuing. These boundaries are more akin to confines and cell walls than strictly comfortable padding, and they only serve to hold us back and prevent growth. New experiences can open us up to a wealth of newfound power and can allow us to learn more about ourselves. However, it remains up to our intentions for us to realize if these experiences will affect us for better or worse.

Those with pure intentions that regularly engage in good deeds are not free from suffering, often to the dismay of themselves and others. It is argued that these people do not deserve hardship because of the benefits that they bring to society and that therefore there is some injustice in the world on a metaphysical level. Muslim and Jewish traditions address this very issue and do not shy away from hardship. In fact, it is often believed that suffering is often an opportunity to test and refine one’s intentions even further so that one comes out even better in the end. 


More Coverage

“Breath-Taking”

Think of a kitchen. This kitchen has a blender for blending, an oven for cooking, a fridge for cooling, utensils for eating, a dishwasher for cleaning, pans for frying, jars for storing, peelers for peeling, etc. It has a full line of tools, gadge...

Absorption (Jam’) - 2

Absorption can never mean the unity of being—the unity (union) of God and the universe or God’s being identical with the universe—in the sense that pantheists claim, nor is distinguishing totally its opposite. The One Who is the Eternal (beyond al...

The Hater and the Madman

The hater, my son the hater – enraged by his latest drug of choice – stood on his stepstool in the town square and yelled at us. His topic today was the same as yesterday’s; the words didn’t matter. He hated.  I made the same mistake I made so ma...

In the Presence of the All-Compassionate

O the Most Merciful of the Merciful! You are the One who spreads these vast universes like a book before each of us. You are the One who makes our consciences sense their secrets, and again it is You who makes our consciences a shore to the realm...