SPIRIT OF ISLAM JUNE 2O18

15 Spirit of Islam Issue 66 June 2018 FOCUSED THINKING Prevent Distraction T HE Quran is a religious book, all the teachings of which are based on religion and spirituality. But there are no watertight compartments in life. Every kind of religious teaching has some secular or worldly aspect to it. This applies also to the Quran. For example, fasting is a religious teaching of the Quran but, at the same time, fasting has a secular aspect in that it is good for one’s physical health. This is likewise true of tawhid —the most important teaching of the Quran—meaning the oneness of God. There is no god but the one God. The following Quranic verse most aptly expresses this: Say, ‘He is God, the One, God, the Self-sufficient One. He does not give birth, nor was He born, and there is nothing like Him.’ (112: 1-4) Obviously, this is a religious tenet, but it also has its secular aspect, that is, focused thinking. When a believer adopts the belief that God is only one, he develops the habit of concentration. Concentration is the ability to direct all your effort and attention to a single point. Belief in tawhid develops a well-integrated, focused personality. Such a personality hinges upon a single focused mind. In the first instance, focused thinking takes on the hue of a religious belief but, according to the law of nature, it underlies and conditions the temperament of the believer to the point where it spreads and affects all the other aspects of his personality. Thus tawhid leads to focused thinking, and focused thinking prevents the individual from becoming the victim of a fragmented mind. This kind of thinking makes one an integrated personality. Focused thinking saves one from mental confusion. It helps one to concentrate all efforts on a single point, thus saving one from all kinds of distractions and from developing what is called a ‘grasshopper’ mind. It further develops concentration, enabling one to differentiate between relevant and the irrelevant, between the real and the relative. It leads to concerted effort, ensuring that one will not waste time and energy. Being focused in one’s thinking means that journey will follow