I read a news article a while ago which I wanted to briefly discuss. It reported on a celebrity who discussed an abusive relationship she was once in. Firstly, there is no doubt Islam takes this behaviour very seriously and it is crystal that it contradicts its teachings. For example, the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, never harmed a person unless it was in self-defence. This is advised in a Hadith found in Sahih Muslim, number 6050. So those who claim to follow him should behave in the same manner.
Moving on to the main point of this blog which is that this news report reminds people of the famous yet, incorrect concept and belief that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. Meaning, the lives of others always seem to appear better than a person’s own life. For example, normal people often observe celebrities and mistakenly believe their life is better. In the majority of cases this concept is far from the truth as people who appear to be in a better situation may well be facing difficulties which would make others wish not to trade places with them, such as the celebrity mentioned in this news article. An outsider will only observe things from one point of view. But if they could see the whole story they would realise everyone faces problems and no one has the perfect life, irrespective of what they own or how famous they are. Often this misconception is caused by the media. But people fail to remember that the aim of the media is to paint a certain picture of the lives of celebrities which looks appealing to read about. In most cases, if they only reported facts without sugar coating them the majority of their customers would turn away from them.
Muslims must avoid this false belief as it is a tool of the Devil who uses it to drive people towards ingratitude over what they possess. This is why the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, advised in a Hadith found in Jami At Tirmidhi, number 2513, that a muslim should always observe people who possess less worldly things than them instead of those who possess more. This attitude will prevent one becoming ungrateful to Allah, the Exalted. Whenever a muslim feels ungrateful they should shift their focus to the countless people who are living in severe poverty and facing much greater hardships than them. The grass is not greener on the other side of the fence; it is in fact green enough on one’s own side. Chapter 2 Al Baqarah, verse 216:
“…But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you…”
PodNews: Grass is Greener on Other Side: https://youtu.be/gCVTPop62gY
PodNews: Grass is Greener on Other Side: https://fb.watch/3QVDTCBoKT/
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