SPIRIT OF ISLAM MAY 2O18

35 Spirit of Islam Issue 65 May 2018 LESSONS FROM NATURE Building a Positive Personality N ATURE is a storehouse of learning for those who wish to learn. If we do not take it for granted and learn to look at it consciously as our teacher we will benefit tremendously from the silent language that it speaks. What does a tree’s eloquent silence tell us? It conveys to us that after autumn, there is spring. The tree creates no noise, no problems, and no unwanted situations. It gives shade, a pleasant sight, oxygen, beautiful flowers and fruits. It provides a place for birds which adds to the beauty of the world. The tree is a message to man to adopt the same culture and to become a fitting ornament of the garden of the universe. What does a river convey? In the river, fresh water is being added to the existing water at every moment. This everyday phenomenon is responsible for the freshness of the river water. In the absence of this continuous flow of newly-added water, the river will lose its freshness; it will not be able to maintain its health-giving, nay life- giving properties. Man should adopt the same culture in terms of adding knowledge and wisdom at every moment of his life. This will prevent him from continuing to follow the wrong ways generation after generation which are obstacles to development and progress. Ants coming up on a heap of sugar and a heap of salt would take the sugar and ignore the salt. For the human who observes this, the silent message is to ignore what is undesirable and adopt what is desirable. It is the honeybee’s culture to fly out from its hive every day and reach places where flowers are available for it. It extracts nectar from the flower and returns to its abode. It pays no heed to anything else. Where there are flowers, there are also thorns; but the honeybee does not waste its time by complaining about the thorns. It simply concentrates on the flower and extracts what it wants. The symbolic lesson for man from this is, “Live like a honeybee”. Extract what is good for you and leave what is unwanted. Do not waste your time in complaints and protests. We have to develop in our personality what may be called the capacity for conversion; and who could be a better example of it than a cow. If we learn to look at nature consciously as a teacher, we will benefit tremendously from the silent language that it speaks.