From Abu Hurairah RA, he said: Rasulullah SAW said: "Islam was strange when it began and will one day be strange again; Blessed are the ghuraba' (those strange people)". [H.R.Muslim]
I hadn't really thought about the meaning of this hadith, SubhanAllah. I meant to find out what "ghuraba" meant, but shaytaan got the better of me i suppose. However, in the last year or so, i have been feeling disconnected with my environment; with people i have known for ages - sometimes, i feel i have no one who I can talk to. This is not a constant feeling, it comes and goes. But when I'm focusing and contemplating about intentions, actions and assessing relationships - i feel alone. I'm afraid of expressing my thoughts for I may come off too rigid and I, myself don't fulfill my own standards. Then a couple of nights ago, while feeling this loneliness - it hit me. Its like, to other people, I'm a strange being now - that's what "ghuraba" means! I'm not claiming that I've reached some elevated status in my actions- not in the least because Allah knows my faults and sins. I suppose though, this feeling of being out of place is what the hadith refers to. This strangeness stems from being in an environment so far away from the principles of deen that anyone remotely on it; seems alien. This comforted me in a way, as i don't fear the feeling anymore. Also i recently read that an intelligent person is he who can change his own nature and thinking and through using his skills and perseverance, influence the thinking of others. That's a very high bar for me to reach but I definitely intend to try.
