What does God look like?

“Have you seen God?” Who likes to see God, sense Him, and live with Him? Where is God so that I can see Him, find Him, smell Him, and fall in love with Him? No one says to believe in a God Who can’t be seen. No one says to fall in love with a God Who can’t be seen. Is it possible to fall in love with such a God? What should I love? Whoever wants to see God, he can only see Him in one situation. Look at God as the examiner in your life.
There is no need for you to see an object or imagine Him in your imagination. Just pay attention to this fact that God is testing you. As soon as a problem occurs, ask God, “God, is it a test?” Talk to Him! He is talking to you through the language of testing. I swear to God you’ll understand His behaviour. You’ll understand His smiling and frowning. You will understand His pouting and reconciliation. You’ll understand from which of your actions He has become happy. You’ll understand why He loves you. You’ll understand how much He loves you. Then, when you start praying, you’ll understand to Whom you are talking! There is Someone in front of you!
God says, “You don’t need to see Me. I work with you. Understand that whatever happens to you from morning until night is Me talking to you in the language of incidents.” As soon as someone is kind to you, say, “God, You wanted someone to be kind to me?”
If you look, you’ll understand the reason. In the beginning you won’t. You’ll say, “God, You wanted someone to be kind to me? Why? I don’t understand. But You tested me!” When someone frowns at you, say, “God, You wanted someone to frown at me? Had I become rude? Was I arrogant?” He’ll easily talk to you. He’ll talk to you even better than your friends do. He’ll become your companion. You’ll start loving Him.
Actually, I didn’t ask you a question. And, you didn’t say anything about it. I don’t know how I’m talking, or I should say who I’m talking to. My friends, answer a question. Do you believe that each incident, which happens around us from morning until night, is accidental? Yes? Please, everyone answer. Does everyone say no? Is it accidental? Were they all designed by God? “Yes!” All of them? Do you believe that? Why were they designed? To have fun? For us to circle around ourselves? Are all of them tests, or not? “Yes!” What good answers you give!
Now, another question. Do we look at all of the incidents, which happen from morning until night, as tests? Good! May I be sacrificed for you. You’re seeing it yourself. Then he says, “Sir, what should I do to pay attention to God in praying?” “My dear, you can’t pay attention to God.”
He says, “I’m constantly distracted.” Have you ever seen God? Have you lived with Him for even two days? They have even stated the number in the traditions. If you live like this for forty days, everything around you will talk to you. The ground and the sky will talk to you!
Living with God means that you understand the language of God’s tests. Look what He wants from you at each moment. Look! What does He want from you now? He brings up an incident. Suddenly your wife gets upset and grumbles. Look at God and ask, “Is my capacity supposed to be tested?” Your friend invites you to sin. Look at God, “God, is it a test? I can’t tolerate it.” Cry right then. Say, “God, I swear to Husayn (‘a) I can’t tolerate it. Don’t send these friends. Send other friends. Send friends who take me to Medina and Karbala.” Say this a few times. The next week one of your friends will come and tell you, “I’m going to Karbala. Will you come with me?” Look at God and say, “God, how quickly You hear me!”
Have you ever seen God? Have you lived with Him for two days? They have even stated the number in the traditions. If you live like this for forty days, everything around you will talk to you. The ground and the sky will talk to you!

The Effect of a Mother’s Intention on Her Child’s Destiny

Along with a good deed, making an intention is in some ways more necessary and more important. We are not able to do many deeds. If we make the intention for these deeds in our mind and heart and review those good intentions, we will gain many blessings for deeds, which we may not be able to do at all.
Sometimes, a person does a precise action for a moment based on an intention, and he changes his destiny. Sometimes, a mother makes an intention once in a gathering for a moment. A deep spiritual request comes into her heart, and her whole life is influenced by it.
Some families have had three or four martyrs who defended the holy shrine of Hazrat Zaynab. What pure hearts they had at that time! God doesn't accept a sacrifice from everyone. I don't know what a pure heart Hazrat Umm al-Banin had, or what intentions she made. God doesn’t give such a son to a person, just like that. The other martyrs of Karbala wished to be like him. What had Hazrat Umm al-Banin done with her intentions? What has she done?
Whatever you see about the greatness of the sacred being of Aba al-Fazl al-Abbas is due to the intention of his mother, Umm al-Banin. I mean, she served Imam Husayn (‘a) constantly and said, “I like to serve him in a way that...” But, still she wasn’t satisfied with herself. God said, “Ok mother, it is accepted.” I want to say, “Umm al-Banin, your Abbas was very useful for Husayn, more than others. He was so useful that when Husayn saw Abbas in that situation, he said, ‘Now, my back has broken.’ Now, I am defeated.”

God loves me; otherwise, He would not have created me.

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If we don’t feel good, God will get upset. In the same way that it is forbidden for a person to harm himself, if a person feels bad, God will get upset. If a person is trying to be spiritual and has the intention to get close to God, he should be very careful about this. We shouldn’t just look for big sins to repent for. No, when we feel bad we should know this is as if we owe God.
It’s as if we have gotten a negative grade before God. If we try to see what we can do to feel better, we’ll see that one cannot feel good other than with God Himself. “O the One Whose name is medicine [for our pains] and remembering Him is a healing.” [Iqbal al-A’mal, vol. 2, p. 706] What should we do with His name to be healed? We should remember Him.
If you want to use His name, you should repeat it. Remember Him. This means His name should flow through your heart, tongue and mind. It’s ok if you repeat His names with your tongue. But your mind and heart are very important too. It’s fine if you aren’t able to bring this into your heart. At least bring it into your mind. Remembering God should at least take place in our mind. In this way, a person will feel better. We won’t feel good any other way. “The remembrance of God certainly brings comfort to all hearts.” [Qur’an 13:28] Your heart is at rest only by remembering God.
Which of His names? Ayatollah Bahjat said to use any of God’s names that you like. Now I ask you which of God names? Each of you may say a different name. Now I will suggest one to you. Mr. Dulabi [a famous mystic] used to say that repeating with the tongue is important. Repeat this very much and indoctrinate it in yourself. Say, “God loves me; otherwise, He wouldn’t have created me. God loves me.” No other remembering can make one feel good and calm the way this does. The cursed Satan tries to prevent this every moment in different ways. He is a psychologist! He tries to block us from this way of remembering God every moment in different ways.
“O the One Whose name is medicine [for our pains] and remembering Him is a healing.” [Iqbal al-A’mal, vol. 2, p. 706] Remember Him. This means His name should flow through your heart, tongue and mind. In this way, a person will feel better.

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Based on the book "How to Pray a Good Prayer" by Ali Reza Panahian

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Underdeveloped in Faith

Have you seen what God gives some families in order to test them? A child who is underdeveloped. This child ruins everything, and his mother says that’s fine. The guests get exasperated. But his father says, “That’s the way he is.”
O Ibn al-Hasan, is it possible for you to say about my sins, “That’s how he is. I’ll tolerate him”? He is underdeveloped in faith. He is underdeveloped in wisdom. Tolerate me. Don’t banish me. Keep me. O the one who tolerates his children and says, “He’s my child.”
If people love the Household of the Prophet (‘a) and believe in them, I swear to God that any bad points they have, like a family who has an underdeveloped child and keeps him, the Imams will keep them. Sometimes the Imams don’t banish even their drunkard children. They say, “Don’t come in the room. Let him stay in the yard, or in the other room. Don’t send him away.” They’ll give him his food too.
Imam Sadiq (‘a) was asked, “Can I call your follower who drinks alcohol a transgressor?” The Imam (‘a) replied, “No you can’t! He is not a transgressor.” He himself is clean because he believes in us. But, his action is transgression.” The man asked, “So, what about his sins?” The Imam (‘a) replied, “We will purify him before he enters the Hereafter.” If nothing else, with afflictions. Or, maybe they will purify him with the food from Imam Husayn’s (‘a) mourning ceremonies. You don’t know!

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This book attempts to answer the question "Why does God command?" from the perspective of the effects God’s commands have on one’s personal training and morals. While answering this question, he also explains some of the deep, educational concepts of Islam in a simple language. The valuable effect this book has is that it leaves the reader with a delightful, glorious, pleasant image of the concept of "God's commands," which has an automatic impact on one’s spiritual development.

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One way of seeking comfort is seeking mental comfort.

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One way of seeking comfort is seeking mental comfort. [A person says,] “I want to be comfortable, no one tell me anything and everyone be friends with me.” What if you are all alone? Will you be sad? Practice not getting upset when people tell you something. These are the moments when you are moving forward. These are the moments when you are moving and going forward.
«یا حَسْرَةً عَلَى الْعِبادِ ما یَأْتِیهِمْ مِنْ رَسُولٍ إِلَّا کانُوا بِهِ یَسْتَهْزِؤُنَ»
“Woe to the servants! Whenever a Messenger came to them, they mocked him.” [Qur’an 36:30] Hasn’t anyone ever said anything bad to you? You’ve never been made fun of?! How do you pray that no one ever ridicules you?! You participate in religious meetings in a way that no one teases you. You do everything in hiding. What are you doing?! People haven’t insulted you either!
[One may say,] “It’s because I behave correctly.” “So you behave more correctly than Imam Ali (as)?! They said many bad things to him! Maybe you’re trying to keep both sides happy! What are you doing?!”
One way of seeking comfort is seeking mental comfort. “I want to be comfortable, everyone be friends with me.” Practice not getting upset when people tell you something. Practice. These are the moments when you are moving forward. These are the moments when you are moving and going forward.

Congratulations on the anniversary of the birth of the Holy #ProphetMuhammad (s) and #ImamSadiq (as) to all!


“Certainly a Messenger has come to you from among yourselves; grievous to him is your falling into distress...” [Qur’an 9:128]
Anything that bothers you is hard for him.
Can we understand this?
”…excessively solicitous respecting you…”
You’ve never seen someone excessively solicitous about you?
Poor you! This is how the world is.
This world makes a person disappointed.
You say, “The Prophet (s) is solicitous about you.” They say, “How?”
"Yes my dear, you haven’t seen anyone deeply concerned about you."
The Prophet (s) sees the file of our deeds every day, or several times a week [according to traditions].
Why does the Holy Prophet (s) look at the file of our deeds?
Because he doesn’t have anything to do and is just curious?!
We shouldn’t say that, God forbid.
Or is it some kind of administrative task?
“See these files.” “Ok.”
Why do they take the file of our deeds to the Prophet of God (s)?
Is it for any reason other than that he is solicitous about us?
Each week he says, “Let’s see what he/she’s done this time.
Bring his file. Bring that one too.”
Friends, do some good deeds so that the Prophet (s) will become happy about what you’ve done.
He’ll say, “Ah! Wow, I’m so happy.”
He’ll thank you and become very happy!
Do good deeds to make the Prophet (s) happy.
Say, “O Prophet of God (s), you were and are concerned about me!
Have you become happy? I have become a little better.
I was careful about my deeds and made you a little happy.”
Be happy when you make the Prophet (s) happy.


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