Ramadan Day 4- Experiencing Mercy For Oneself

“And surely, I am indeed forgiving to him who repents, believes (in My Oneness, and associates none in worship with Me) and does righteous good deeds, and then remains constant in doing them.” Qur’an 20:82

Remember that feeling of going without water and food all day, then sitting down and taking that first bite, the morsel that sustains your spirit, brings you back to life.  When you take the sip of water that drives back the thirst that has been unhinging your senses.  That feeling is really important, not just the spirituality behind it or the secular connection of being able to experience the feeling of hunger and starvation, but rather, the expression of “MERCY”.

You can’t begin to understand what mercy is unless you can relate to having compassion and mercy extended to you.  That feeling of breaking your fast with food, is god’s mercy in having provided us with sustenance.  The most important way to understand and practice mercy in day to day life, I believe, is by actually being merciful to yourself.

That means having the ability to forgive yourself, being compassionate toward yourself, having mercy for yourself.  I don’t want to say you should push yourself to excel etc.  But rather recognizing that your not perfect, that you working to better yourself is a process and that God is going to be the final judge.  By understanding this a person can move forward in their spiritual development without feeling the need to be held back by one’s own shame. Asking forgiveness from those who were harmed and making amends to those who have been injured are part of mercy toward one’s self.