We live in what my teacher used to call the “duniya”-the world where the elements; earth, fire, water, air, and ether are constantly at odds with one another; fighting, trying always to overcome each other.

These same elements make up our bodies.

Around us we see war, past wars, incumbent wars, and we wonder why history repeats itself in such vicious cycles. Do we never learn?

Bawa Muhaiyaddeen used to say that this is simply the way of the world but that the true struggle, the true jihad, in the original meaning of the word at the time of Muhammed (pbuh), was the struggle inside us between light and dark or good and evil and that if we performed the jihad correctly there would be no outer war.

It’s interesting to note that two of the greatest triumphs in history of man over immensely powerful immoral authority were embodied by Gandhi and  Mandela, both poor and vulnerable at the time of their victories.

Something to think about.