Finding Barakah by Ditching the Hustle

A lesson in true balance

﷽

Photo by Garrhet Sampson on Unsplash

Juggling Priorities

Juggling wasn't even the word for it. I was a one-woman circus act, phone permanently welded to my ear. "Yes, Brenda, report's on your desk by lunch, no sweat," I barked into the receiver, dodging a rogue sock that launched itself back at me from the laundry basket, having missed my target. "But seriously, have you ever tried to fold a fitted sheet? It's like a weekly wrestling match"

Just as I envisioned Brenda chuckling on the other end, my phone blared the Adhan, the Muslim call to prayer. A quick glance at the clock confirmed my worst fears – prayer time and spreadsheets nightmare were colliding. "Brenda," I sighed, "gotta put you on hold for a sec. Duty calls..."

I tripped over the fitted sheet as I tried to put on my prayer garment, and almost fell headfirst onto my folded up prayer rug. I took a deep sigh, ready to offer my salah when I heard Brenda chiming back in, "...and FYI, those TPS reports are due by Friday, not next Tuesday."

A groan escaped my lips. In my mind, the TPS reports began to multiply like an echo cascading down an endless hallway. "Subhanallah, I get it," I muttered under my breath.

Taking a deep breath, I finished my prayer, head throbbing with the combined stress of spreadsheets and spirituality. Back to Brenda, profuse apologies tumbled out of my mouth. "May God bless you for your patience," I pleaded. "Now, about those reports..."

By the evening, my apartment resembled a battlefield I'd somehow managed to win. Dishes gleamed, reports were (mostly) conquered, and the fitted sheet, while not exactly hotel-worthy, sat there looking vaguely defeated. Collapsing onto the couch, phone clutched in my hand, I surveyed the scene with a tired sense of accomplishment.

Just then, a notification popped up: "Reminder: Fajr prayer at 4:37 am." I sighed. Some days, being a multitasking Muslimah felt like a full-time job.

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Heart Awakens: A Reflection on Priorities

This daily tightrope walk wasn't sustainable. My once peaceful prayers were turning into rushed recitations, stolen moments between conference calls and laundry duty. The connection I craved with Allah felt like a distant memory. And the fact that I thought I was balancing things frightened me. It was a wake-up call.

It hit me that by trying to balance, I was forgetting who the Owner of Time is, namely Allah.

Being a multitasking Muslimah felt like a badge of honor, until it chipped away at the very core of my faith.

The "Subhanallah, I get it," I muttered earlier popped back into my head. In fact, it had been popping back up in my head all day long. It kept buzzing around like an annoying mosquito, and I wanted to just forget it, but how could I? Subhanallah, or All Glory to Allah, those words would not, could not be brushed off. But now, with the sunset and Isha salah done, I couldn’t escape the whisperings of my heart.

I closed my eyes and saw myself precariously walking a tightrope, bobbling from side to side and each time falling off. Below me, the raging fires of the pits of Jahannam (Hell). I held back tears; it didn’t take much effort since exhaustion wore me like a cheap dress. My eyes began to close and my phone slipped out of my hand as I drifted off into sleep. Suddenly I awoke, my heart pounding, and I blurted out: “You can’t balance your religious obligations! You must prioritize them.”

Embracing Barakah: A Call to Prioritize

Photo by Gaining Visuals on Unsplash

Determined to make salah my priority instead of fooling myself into thinking balance was the key; heck no! prioritize salah and balance will follow, I hatched a plan.

Inspiration struck and I color-coded my Google calendar with my salah times, a visual commitment to reclaiming those sacred moments using a quick and easy tutorial, click here for tutorial. I set a five-minute pre-Adhan notification – a gentle nudge to ensure I was in a state of wudu, ready to have that beautiful conversation with my Creator.

Every urge to rush, every internal time crunch, was met with a silent reminder: "Allah is the best Disposer of affairs" (Quran 3:173). The world can wait; these moments with Allah swt are infinitely more important.”

This realization led me to prioritize my salah over the hustle and bustle of daily life. And initially a bit worried as to how I would make it work, I remembered that I am not in control of the outcome. I just need to show up, make my plan and set a firm intention, then leave the rest to Allah. Each time I get a bit worried I remember Surah Ya-sin: 82 which reminds me that when Allah wills something to be, He simply says, “"Be!" And it is!”

The only true balance with our religious duties is to prioritize them. We have example of the Prophet Mohammad (saw):

حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَرْعَرَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ، عَنِ الْحَكَمِ بْنِ عُتَيْبَةَ، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، عَنِ الأَسْوَدِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ، سَأَلْتُ عَائِشَةَ ـ رضى الله عنها ـ مَا كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَصْنَعُ فِي الْبَيْتِ قَالَتْ كَانَ فِي مِهْنَةِ أَهْلِهِ، فَإِذَا سَمِعَ الأَذَانَ خَرَجَ‏.‏

Narrated Al-Aswad bin Yazid: I asked `Aisha "What did the Prophet (ﷺ) use to do at home?" She said, "He used to work for his family, and when he heard the Adhan (call for the prayer), he would go out."

Sahih al-Bukhari 5363

The Prophet (saw) prioritized his Salah and we can too by following his sunnah.

From prioritizing my Salah, I moved to prioritizing my relationship with the Quran. But that's a journey for another day, a topic I'll explore in our next newsletter, where I'll share how developing a daily relationship with the Quran helped me to establish healthier boundaries, inshaAllah.

Coaching Question

Let’s help one another with becoming more mindful in salah. Share your tips in the comments section for the following coaching question:

Reflecting on your last Salah, what is one small but impactful change you can make to your daily routine to ensure you feel present and connected with Allah during prayer?

Photo by Courtney Hedger on Unsplash

Thank you to everyone who voted in last week’s poll. I heard you, and upcoming articles will feature developing healthy boundaries as a form of self-care.

I need your support to help Sunday Serenity grow to 1,000 subscribers by the end of this year, inshaAllah. If you're not a Substack subscriber yet, join and subscribe to my newsletter. Also, you can support Sunday Serenity by sharing it with others. Sharing is super easy—just click on the share icon or forward the email. Your support means the world to me. Thank you again for reading Sunday Serenity, for your love and support, and for allowing me to be part of your journey towards a more serene and joyful you.

May Allah swt gather us all in Jannatul Firdaus. Ameen.

Much love,

Nour

Cultivating Calm with "A Mindful Salah"

Remembering those days when my prayer felt like a chore, rushed through in a blur between work emails and laundry duty, I stumbled upon a YouTube series that completely transformed my perspective on Salah – "A Mindful Salah" by Sh. Ammar AlShukry.

This series isn't just about the mechanics of prayer; it is about reclaiming that sacred space of connection with Allah swt.

Each episode feels like a gentle nudge, a reminder that salah is a gift, a moment to truly be present and connect with your Creator.

Sh. Ammar's guidance resonated deeply – focusing on the meaning behind each movement, taking a deep breath before entering prayer, and visualizing myself standing before Allah (SWT) are just a few of the practices that helped me cultivate a sense of calm amidst the daily chaos.

And guess what? The impact has gone beyond those precious prayer minutes. The mindfulness I have nurtured during Salah started to spill over into other areas of my life. I found myself approaching tasks with more focus, reacting to stressful situations with greater patience, and appreciating the simple moments of beauty around me.

Look, I'm not saying I've achieved complete kushoo yet. There are still days when my mind wanders during prayer. But "A Mindful Salah" series gave me the tools I needed to gently bring myself back to the present moment.

So, if you're looking to deepen your connection with Allah (SWT) and cultivate a kushoo, I highly recommend checking out "A Mindful Salah." It might just be the missing piece you've been searching for!

Click here for the series playlist