if Al Quran says one thing and your inner compass says another...
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Peace Wakas,
The question doesn't make sense to me. How can avoid following one's inner compass? When it points toward the Quran, one follows the Quran. When it doesn't, one don't. I don't think it's possible to bypass or circumvent one's own self. Do you?
Nadeem
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peace all,
The question
if Al Quran says one thing and your inner compass says another... what do you do?
Sorry to be short and slightly vague, but sometimes its necessary.
Is the "inner compass" always right? If so, how come there are evil people? Or people responding in very different ways to similar situations?
If I am righteous and always remember God, I'll follow the quraan, otherwise I'll follow my inner compass. That's why "rememberance of God is greater" even than salaat.
The inner compass, in my understanding, is a natural instinct. Natural instincts are not always right.
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Follow the inner compass and twist the meanings of the Quran accordingly ??
If that's what you wish to do, you will be judged accordfingly...
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Is the "inner compass" always right? If so, how come there are evil people? Or people responding in very different ways to similar situations?
If I am righteous and always remember God, I'll follow the quraan, otherwise I'll follow my inner compass. That's why "rememberance of God is greater" even than salaat.
The inner compass, in my understanding, is a natural instinct. Natural instincts are not always right.
peace all,
inner compass as I feel, is somewhere really deep inside, like natural instinct. I came to islam by following that. Without it I wouldn't be a muslim. And I believe everybody has that and it is kind of giving us a sense to what is right what wrong. At least my inner compass and the Quran are saying the same thing.About evil people they also have it and they feel it when they do something wrong. It's just that they prefer to ignore this. Even if they tell you that they believe what they do is right, deep inside they know that they don't...
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The question doesn't make sense to me. How can avoid following one's inner compass? When it points toward the Quran, one follows the Quran. When it doesn't, one don't. I don't think it's possible to bypass or circumvent one's own self. Do you?
Nadeem
Peace nadeem, if this was not possible, it would mean that we are not able to correct our bad habits or behaviour...then, what use of us being here?
Wakas, great question indeed. But no time to go into depth about it now.
Just an idea, we are all sinners, sometimes we manage do be stronger that the "devil" in us, sometimes we're not strong enough (yet?). Main thing imo is not to hurt others willingly, not to be hypocritical about what we do. Another verse urges us to be truthful in the course of justice, even for ourselves and relatives - and this justice is imo not the legal system only... Peace lk -
The question doesn't make sense to me. How can avoid following one's inner compass? When it points toward the Quran, one follows the Quran. When it doesn't, one don't. I don't think it's possible to bypass or circumvent one's own self. Do you?
Keep in mind people like George Bush, Hitler, Stalin etc... also followed their 'inner compass'. Point being, It can be corrupted.
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There seems to be some diversity as to what constitutes one's inner compass.
I'll take my own definition to be what I would do if I followed my best estimation of what I should morally do. That is, to follow my moral instincts, as against, if there were such case, my perception of what I may read in a given circumstance in the Quran.
My own experience is that such cases are not frequent if they exist. What exist are situations where you don't know which or how to evaluate the ingredients of the situation so that you can assimilate it to a concrete ruling or situation given in the Quran. That is, there are more than one or many aspects to weight and each aspect has its own indication which may preclude the indication for another aspect. And that is the most common situation. It is really rare that you have to choose between A and B. So in fact you do have to follow your inner compass. Only if you have the time you may have to look or you may want to look and examine and try to forecast what the result of your actions will be, provided always that in fact you want the best moral outcome.
One of the ayas mentioned here as to not wanting what you want yourself but what you are ordered, as I understand it, may be dealing not so much with choosing this or that, as with accepting God's will when it is tough on you and you did not expect it or welcomed it, that is, accepting what God wants to happen to you, even if you don't like it, even you do not feel capable of living with it, or of overcoming the odds. May be in those cases your inner (or rather inmmediate) compass would be to run away, but you cannot run away of what is, of what actually happens, so in fact you SUBMIT, and accept what you cannot change, so that even if you cannot change it, you can accept it, acknowledge it and thank God for it as a most precious gift and ask God to give you strength and wisdom to learn form that experience that you don't want to go through what He has determined that you should learn, and TRUST and thank God always and constantly because He has provided mot perfectly for you.
Adn I agree with Tarikh. Try our best and not be crippled by too much brooding over things which may be ... well... too theoretical perhaps.
Salaam
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So establish yourself to the system of monotheism. It is the inclination that God has nurtured the people on. There is no changing in God's creation. Such is the pure system, but most people do not know. 3030
Wakas ~ i would say wait, and pray on it. when conflicted or despairing in conflict, i take time out for an extra salat, and go back to the Quran.
Turn to Him, and be aware of Him, and honor the Connection, and do not be of those who set up partners. 3031
i do not know if this helps... insha'Allah.
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Well, we can't really trust our "inner compass." I mean, what is that, anyway? There are always things that seem right intuitively but are wrong, or vice versa.
We must follow reason and knowledge, not our feelings, or the Quran (in case what it says or what we think it says is not true).
What I'm trying to say is, there's a difference between what we KNOW is right/wrong and what we FEEL is right/wrong.
Wakas, you gave the example of someone who feels and knows that stealing is wrong. Well, if he just FELT it was wrong, then he may be avoiding his inner compass, but for all that he knows, he may not be doing anything bad at all. Someone may FEEL that not going to Church every Sunday is wrong...
But if he KNOWS that it's wrong, then he knows that he's doing something wrong (which is a problem), and if he reads somewhere (let's say the Quran) that stealing is NOT wrong (yes I know the quran doesnt actually say that), then he should follow what he knows is the truth rather than what a book says. -
I think "Inner Compass"might mean diff things to diff people... anyway, i feel that at times there can be a conflict between your inner compass and that which your mind perceives as what the Quran is telling you to do. The reason for this is usually if you study the Quran and ascertain that you are to do something but cannot rationalize or logically justify it , so it seems like a mindless ritual, or it seems that there is no point in doing this act. This is the time when your inner compass might show some resistance. But in my opnioin, the point here is to be humble and leave God as the disposer of your affairs. So one should accept what the Quran is saying and carry it out as a result of the belief that our knowledge, logic and reason are extremely limited in front of God and that God is most wise, most just. This is why God stresses that one should approaach in humility. A key concept in submission to God. Yet one should still not totally ignore your inner compass and keep searching for an answer or logical justification and praying to God to show us the truth and guide us, for sometimes it is through our inner compass that God gives us a message/inspiration/guides us. The reason we cannot always just follow our inner compass is because it is corruptable, sometimes that inner compass makes bad things seem very alluring and point us in that direction, so we don't know if the inner compass is the devil speaking or God.
Therefore, I only accept and follow that which I have verified for myself in the Quran, and if this verification is in conflict with my 'inner compass', then I keep searching for an answer to verify my inner compass, ... and I try to stay true to myself and keep up good intentions and not let myself slip into fooling myself or trying to see a reflection of my own desires. When you don't know arabic, the degree/extent you have gone to verify the concept also plays a role. Tricky bussiness I tell you, but not so bad if you leave God as the disposer of your affairs and keep persisting in patience and constancy.
Hope some of this makes sense, i like to ramble on... i also like led zepplin.
peace. -
Inner compase, i think he means your own desire and stuff.
Evidently not. More like the deeper inner compass, a person's desire is very shallow and more or less all of us have to quash it at some point.
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Peace,
Therefore it's so important to learn to know yourself both inside and out and then uphold a balance between your mind,body and soul. When we are not in balance it's more likely that we miss the train so to speak. Beacuse we cannot hear the inner voice and therefore it pass away as it never existed.
Sometimes we are not aware how we actually are like. Maybe I speak in a too loud voice and easily become agressive in my discussions but are not aware of it myself. If I try to find out what I can do better in my contact with people and how I present myself, I can gain insight and perhaps I will not miss the train next time.
And I have also learn that to be selfish aren't always that bad it can actually protect you from harm. We are often afraid to scare away friends and to hurt their feelings and therefore we often go against our own will and understandings.
I can take an example, If I meet a male friend and we go for shopping and we suddenly feel both tired and hungry so we decide to order some food for take away and we went home and eat. Then afterwards I want to go home. But my friend insist that we haven't have tea yet, so I say well Ok I stay a bit longer for tea(notice how I act upon my friends desire for me to stay). After the tea I went to the bathroom and prepare myself for going home. Then I cannot find my friend and I yell Where are you? He is laying in his bed and taking a nap, he says please stay and take a nap you too, I know you are sleepy after the dinner and all shopping we have done today. And here my inner compass not working because I go against my own will and join him in bed because I feel really sleepy and i don't want to let my friend down like this because it was he who pay for the food and such so i feel i must be thankful and obey his will even if I know it's not right for me to sleep next to him in his bed.
This example is so classical and it's so easy to ignore your own good will in the case of not letting a friend down. When we are strong enough to be frank and a bit selfish we can avoid someone take charge of ourselves.
Peace
Maria -
I will take Quran only for answers to my questions, not always try find answers to Quranic verses. so dont worry about it.
exactly...
always trust it, because there might be something you think it's not ok, but when God increases your knowledge, you end up realizing how much sense that verse had in it.today i understand many verses i couldnt understand due to the level of ignorance i was in.
peace
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I think the inner compass is the frequency on which God broadcasts God's radio beacon. If you are sensitive enough to hear it, you will go on the straight path. It is always there, but it is up to you to pick it up. You have to practice sensitivity. You also have to be aware of feelings and from where they come... maybe they are from guidance or they are from social programming, so you need to be alert, openminded and aware. One may also not understand the quran correctly, so one need to be aware of this situation. In the end I think the most important thing is to have a desire for the truth and for all things that will bring good benefit and positivity to yourself and this world.
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Peace Zulf,
I agree with your understanding. There is a great benefit in adhere to sensitivity peace
Maria
