No More Depression!

We get nervous, anxious, fatigued, lethargic, tensed, angry, sad, depressed, unhappy, moody. All are negative emotions that stem from the feeling of disliking and rejecting anything that goes wrong as per our mindset. Or when the things don't happen as per our desire or we don't like the happenings or we don't get what we aspire for.

All the above manifestations of our negative emotions are discussed in Psychology under the topic of *mental health*.

Lack of mental well-being damages our health and social life. It can lead to reduced appetite, gastrointestinal disturbances, suicidal thoughts and fights with nears and dears ones. The list of problems and damage goes on and on.

Two-three decades ago,  the terminology of mental health was not known to the common man because people did not suffer from such neuroticism or exaggerated emotions. When people mentioned mental health or lack of it, what they meant was generally schizophrenia or madness. 

But now the neurotic ailments like depression and anxiety have become so common that even kids as early as five years old are tensed and depressed.

*Why????*

Because we have been continually programmed to believe that "we can win", "we are as we think", "we create our own world", "our thoughts can change our reality", " you can get all that you aspire" etc.

Please tell me who created you? Who created nature, natural sceneries, natural phenomena?? Who created the wind, the heat, the beautiful moon, the love birds, the colourful fishes, beauty, goodess etc.

Furthermore, who created love, affection, kindness, and care even in the hearts of carnivores.

If you get the answers to my questions, you will be the happiest person in the world. 

Very simple fact but made complicated.

Know and teach your children, students, and everyone that we are very tiny, weak and fragile creatures in this universe. Like a drop in the ocean, or an atom in the universe.

The one who created each and every thing creates the happenings and incidents. We can try to avail for ourselves the good and avert the bad,  and we must try, but we must know that we may not always succeed. 

We are not the creator of anything or even ourselves. The universe belongs to The One who created it. It is His kingdom. It is His sovereignty. His power is over all hearts, minds and emotions. We don't have absolute power over ourselves, let alone others. 

Hence, we must ask Him to give us peace, comfort and happiness. If something goes wrong, we accept it because it happens with His Divine Wisdom.

When we develop the habit of accepting and adjusting the matters that are beyond our capacity and ask His help, we will be at peace and will get rid of all the mental problems.

This is what the last Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) taught us. He proclaimed daily, morning and evening.

رَضِيتُ باللهِ رَبَّاً، وَبِالْإِسْلَامِ دِيناً، وَبِمُحَمَّدٍ صَلَى اللهُ عَلِيهِ وَسَلَّمَ نَبِيَّاً

I am perfectly content with Allah as my Lord, with Islam as my religion and with Muhammad (SallaAllahu ‘alayhi wasallam) as my Prophet.

And this is the fallacy of the western world, where in their zeal to achieve self-determination they tend to dismiss the agency or hand of God. And if these self-efficacy beliefs are pushed to the extreme, making a person feel that 'I can be whatever I believe', it can infuse him with a misleading sense of control and omnipotence which is actually deceptive, and overwhelming in the long run. Such a misplaced and undeserved sense of power and control can give rise to existential anxieties and distress leading to chronic neurotic tendencies.

Islam is the only religion or belief system that can balance the unrealistic optimism of self-efficacy beliefs, and the fatalistic gloom of determinism.

Sheikh Abdus Salam al-Madani 

Ameer 

Jamiat Ahle Hadith (Chennai)

President 

Ulema e Ahle Hadith (Telangana)