Live In Moderation

Unrelated image. Sunset I captured from my room today

 

I had a chat with Luqman the other day,

“I don’t think it’s wrong to have big dreams. I want to have a luxury car, a big house, etc.” I said. 

“However, Islam has taught us to live in moderation. You definitely need a car—a functional one, but a luxurious one? “I don’t believe so.” He was opposed.

“What if I don’t want to live a moderate lifestyle?” “What if I want more than I have?” I argued.

“Perhaps you should be more thankful for what you have.” “As humans, we will never be satisfied with what we have,” he debated.

The talk continued. I was obstinate and clung to my opinions.

Luqman said “Maybe you should do some reflection on what you just said.”.  

I was too tired to argue any further because it was already 1 a.m. Yes, the time difference is difficult. However, it protects Luqman from my “stupid” attack.

Then we ended the call.

The next day, I did what he told me. Yes, I did some research, mainly because I wanted to counter his argument.

Then I led to an article about how Islam values moderation.

Essentially, we are advised to avoid extremes in everything—worship, belonging, prosperity, and so on.

But, when I think about it, having a luxury car or an enormous house isn’t necessarily a bad thing. What’s wrong is that once you get those luxuries, you tend to change and become ungrateful and self-centered.

Having a fortune might be frightening.

It is crucial in life to maintain the proper amount of equilibrium between one’s requirements and desires.

The thought of desiring more can be suffocating. It’s going to be stressful. You will never be satisfied with what you have. That is undeniably correct.

After all of that contemplation, I came to an agreement. It all comes down to how happy you are with your life, regardless of how much money you have or how much property you possess.

All I want is peace of mind and happiness in my life, which means I need to start counting my blessings.

p/s: I still want to own a car and a home. Perhaps not a Mercedes or an Audi. Perhaps a Toyota would suffice to transport me. And probably not a big 10-bedroom mansion. Perhaps a four-bedroom house is adequate for us two.