Dear Everybody,

Assalamu alikum,

Again, it’s been a long long while since I last talked to you.

It’s been quite an eventful year for the world and for me on the personal level. On the global level, we’ve all been taken by the Coronavirus pandemic and its hazardous impact on the world which left us all anxious, worried, baffled and to a great extent spiritually devastated trying to figure out what to do or how to keep ourselves safe with the least risk possible.

Whenever you feel your spirit is ailing, you need to get back to the core… The core of yourself, faith, spirit … Your centre or so to speak.

The Covid-19 has definitely carries a lesson to us all. It has a lesson for each one of us that’s matching an area in his life that needs altering. CoronaVirus is a message to us that we missed through many divine lessons sent us throughout our life.

But first let me differentiate between the three words; Divine Sign, Message and a lesson.

CoronaVirus As A Divine Sign

A divine sign is an incident event or change that befalls one and is meant to say something or ring a bell. CoronaVirus by all means is not an accidental event or a coincidence. It’s a Serious Divine Sign, for it is sent not just to a person, a group or people, a tribe or a community.. It is sent to the World.

CoronaVirus Message

As for the message, is the intended reason of a particular event, incident or happening. In other words, the message meant behind each divine sign Allah sends us. CoronaVirus indeed came with a message to the world nations and people. I will not decide for a particular message for it surely didn’t come with one single message for all, but millions and millions or messages suiting the diversity of people’s lives and the areas that need enhancement therein. CoronaVirus message can be the some parts of the world are in need for more cleanness and hygiene measures. Or it can be there’s a need for social distancing from time to time. Or it can be there’s room for change in our daily life routine that we need to try. For example, we need to take more care of our health, our intake of vitamins and what boosts our immunity. It can as well be a message saying that working from home was never a bad idea and that online learning can be a good exercise for children, parents and teachers that carries more areas of learning and enhancement for the mind and one’s personal skills.

It’s message as well can be the universe can always go beyond human beings expectations, what they take for granted, human’s scientific breakthroughs and arrogance. It can be a message that we need to return to Allah, implore and ask him to uplift such turmoil and sooth our anxiety.

CoronaVirus As A Lesson

As for the lesson, a lesson is how you decipher any divine sign and how you choose to receive and deal with it. For many the CoronaVirus Lesson that they learned is to never take anything for granted and never stop asking for God’s aid and protection. For others. CoronaVirus message is to keep a little bit away from people and be more with your family, too much communication is not good. And for others, the lesson was to resort to a more healthy life routine and food diet to keep their immunity system sound and healthy. For many people, including myself. CoronaVIrus as taught me a serious lesson of Yaqeen, or certainty in the will and power of Allah, which helped me calm my worried mind and heart whenever the number of infections go skyrocketing. It forced me to come up with an exercise that suits my spirit to connect to Almighty God, extract strength from Him and remind myself of His immense power and thus ability or protect me and save me and my loved ones from this quagmire and stay calm and assured that all will be well.

My letter to you today is to simply tell you that it’s your choice to deal with the CoronaVirus in a good or a bad manner. It’s your choice to suffer from it or make the best out of it. To suffer from staying at home or extract the treasure this experience has for you.

It’s your choice .. your call. And yes, CoronaVirus could be a good Divine Sign you need to catch well.

Stay blessed.. Stay safe…

Maha Youssuf

The Muslim Tribune Editor

June 11, 2021