#2 DDN - The Power of Knowing Yourself
#2, 22nd October 2024, The Divine Duty Newsletter
Assalamu Alaikum!
Welcome to Issue #2 of the Divine Duty Newsletter.
Last month, we published our very first newsletter.
Here’s this month’s edition. Once a month, I’ll be sending you a newsletter full of timeless ideas and insights you can use in life and work, insha’allah.
They are going to have a different focus every time but all loosely centred around the core themes of lifelong learning, critical thinking and fulfilling your purpose and potential. This month’s issue is all about the power of knowing yourself.
Before you read, you should check out the free scorecard which tell you how on track your current life is with your true purpose. 1500+ Muslims have taken this so far! (link)
In today’s newsletter, the theme is Knowing Yourself and we will go over:
Quaint Quotes - My favourite often obscure quotes, relevant to the theme
Deep in Thought - A Deep Dive into ‘Knowing Yourself’ and what it represents
Fascinating Frameworks - Models or frameworks that can aid our understanding
Actionable Insights - How can you start putting these new ideas into action?
Resources to Review - Some of the best resources on this issue’s theme…
And much more…
Now nothing is nearer to you than yourself, and if you don't know yourself how can you know anything else? - Imam Ghazali
Exactly.
“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” — Aristotle
Almost every philosophy or civilisation has this as a universal concept.
“The most difficult thing in life is to know yourself.” — Thales
It’s not easy, especially in a world of noise and distraction. You have to face reality, dive deep into yourself and extract the key elements, then piece them together. Connect the dots. It’s absolutely worth it when you do - everything else begins to make sense - life then happens through you instead of to you.
"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained, you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy, nor yourself, you will lose in every battle." - Sun Tzu, philosopher, military general and strategist
Knowing yourself is half the battle. But once you have that knowledge, you are equipped to face the other battles in life. Without it, you are completely lost.
You might have wondered why some of us become good teachers, some excel at business, others are inclined towards philanthropy while some have the God-gifted ability to connect and comfort people.
Each characteristic or blend of characteristics is unique to the individual. Just like businesses have a USP - we all have one too.
That is because we have all been given a spark by Allah. Each one of us, according to our distinctive nature, have been bestowed with unique abilities that connect to our specific purpose to fulfil.
“Today you are You, That is truer than true. There is no one alive, Who is Youer than You.” - Dr Seuss
Many of us think we know ourselves but in reality, we are merely aware of the superficial stuff. My favourite colour, the movie I like, the food I could eat my entire life without getting bored.
This is not even close to knowing yourself. To truly know yourself, you have to look into the patterns and behaviours that drive your everyday actions.
Knowing yourself entails being aware of the things which make you exclusively you.
Here’s a deeper look into this concept. (link)
Your fingerprint is 100% unique and cannot be imitated. No one has the same, not even identical twins. Embrace your uniqueness, don’t try and imitate. No one can be a better you than yourself. Write down everything that makes you unique.
If someone offered you £100 billion for both of your eyes would you take it? Most people would say no - we recognise the gift of sight. Well, what about your other gifts? What do you have / have you experienced that others do NOT have?
“Be aware of your own worth, use all of your power to achieve it. create an ocean from a dewdrop. Do not beg for light from the moon, obtain it from the spark within you.” Allama Iqbal
This framework is from Phase 2 of the Know Your Purpose program and goes into all the elements to dive deep and discover about oneself, so we can truly uncover our ‘divine spark’ - because herein lie the clues to your overall purpose.
The Alchemy of Happiness (book), Imam Ghazali (link)
One of the best books for understanding yourself and finding true happiness by connecting with God. Ghazali writes in a way that's easy to follow and explains why knowing your soul is the key to being happy.
The Golden Key to Discovering Yourself (book), M. Salim Khan (link)
A wonderful introduction to the world of temperaments. Once you understand temperaments - you’ll understand people and your relationships will improve!
The Feel Fulfilled Forever Formula Guide (link)
This is a 95 page guide I put together to help people to start the journey towards feeling more fulfilled in life and work. It contains exercises and thought experiments to help you contemplate on where your fulfilment truly lies. Check it out here.
If you’d like to work with me, you can book a call here (link)
Interested in our rich heritage and a brighter future? Check out the Second Golden Age newsletter (link)
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Join our FREE community of like-minded lifelong learners (link)
Interested in finding your purpose? Here’s some free training (link)
You, the people will decide
I pray that Allah puts barakah in your journey to knowing yourself better, ameen!
Please let me know what you think of this format and give me suggestions for themes for future issues. I promise to read every single email insha’allah!
With Love,
Faisal
I am going to share this newsletter with others InShaaAllah.