Tariq Ramadan – Ramadan Chronicles #13 Doubt, Despair

Tariq Ramadan
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The speaker discusses the importance of recognizing one's spiritual journey and not denying one's beliefs. They stress the need to open up with one's heart and not let one's values dictate their actions. The speaker also emphasizes the importance of finding the right answers and not denying one's beliefs.

AI: Summary ©

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			Among the
		
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			faculties or or the emotions or the feelings
		
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			that we may have, there is something which
		
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			is part of our being. It's always there
		
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			in our life. It's coming and going, and
		
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			it's something that we have to struggle with
		
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			at different levels, and this is doubting.
		
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			Doubting God or even doubting oneself.
		
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			It happens sometimes in our spiritual journey that,
		
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			we look at the universe,
		
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			things are happening in our life, and we
		
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			are doubting
		
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			God, saying, is there a God? Is there
		
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			a a presence? Is this,
		
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			life,
		
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			does it have
		
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			a a a meaning? And we are doubting.
		
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			And this doubt is nothing that we can
		
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			just say, oh, no. It doesn't happen or
		
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			because our faith is weak. No. That's not
		
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			the case. This is something which happened,
		
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			with all,
		
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			human beings. It's the way you are going
		
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			to struggle with this and to try to
		
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			get a deeper understanding
		
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			or disconnection,
		
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			to god which is essential.
		
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			Ibrahim, alaihis salam, experienced something which was quite
		
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			interesting in the way he was calling for
		
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			signs.
		
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			Oh god. And he's asking when Abraham
		
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			asked his lord,
		
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			show me how to give,
		
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			life again to,
		
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			to the beings, to to to to how
		
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			you bring to life to to to to
		
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			life again, anything which has to be a
		
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			living
		
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			existence and a living being.
		
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			And god is asking,
		
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			don't you believe?
		
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			Are you doubting? I say,
		
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			Oh, no. I believe that it's just for
		
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			my heart to be at peace, to give
		
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			this tranquility
		
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			to my heart. So the point here in
		
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			this is
		
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			Abraham
		
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			asking for signs because there he is not
		
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			at peace. So this tension
		
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			that you can have some times when you
		
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			are experiencing a spiritual,
		
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			journey, a spiritual a spiritual path that you
		
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			are following, is something that you can experience.
		
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			And this is where you need not to
		
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			isolate yourself
		
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			into the rational questions. You have to open
		
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			up with your heart and to look at
		
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			the signs in the horizons
		
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			and in yourself.
		
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			So this communication,
		
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			this dialogue between your mind and your heart
		
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			is also a way for you
		
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			not to be,
		
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			encapsulate
		
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			or captured or imprisoned
		
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			into your mind. And then, also, what you
		
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			can experience is doubting yourself, and this could
		
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			happen. You look at yourself. You have since
		
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			you don't do what is right, and you
		
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			are sometimes
		
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			not consistent with your values, and you feel
		
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			that,
		
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			you might not you are very weak, and
		
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			you might not,
		
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			get any reward with your life. And this
		
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			is where,
		
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			you find in the Quran.
		
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			Oh, you who have,
		
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			behaved against your own interest,
		
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			don't doubt, don't
		
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			despair
		
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			from,
		
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			god's mercy. God is forgiving
		
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			all,
		
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			the sins. So except to
		
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			a shirkil Akbar, which is believing that there
		
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			is one god,
		
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			beside god, this is not accepted. All the
		
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			other,
		
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			sins could be,
		
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			and are going to be,
		
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			forgiven if you go through this struggle.
		
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			That's a very important,
		
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			understanding
		
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			that when you struggle doubting god and you
		
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			try to get this,
		
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			an iman, which is a man, this space
		
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			of security in your heart, and then with
		
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			your own self to rely on him.
		
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			Do you to to go through doubting,
		
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			oneself or doubting god could be a natural
		
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			way to go beyond, to a spiritual struggle,
		
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			to try to go beyond this and not
		
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			to let it go, not just to the
		
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			nights here, but to try to find the
		
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			right answer.
		
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			This is the spiritual journey. It's about struggle.
		
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			It's about confidence. It's about consistency.
		
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			Remember, don't forget to tell the people you
		
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			love that you love them. Life is fragile.