Habib Ali Jifri is currently in Damascus and will be giving a series of lectures over the next two weeks. Hamdullah I attended last night and insha’Allah Allah will make it easy for my to attend the rest. I’ll be sure to blog a few gems.
Last night was an introduction. It was about how we should long for Allah and not for the dunya. The cause of all problems in this world is a desire for the dunya. People will never be happy with what they have. The dunya is like a black hole. No matter how much goes in, it will want more. As people want more, they will be willing to take that which does not truly belong to them. Then thefts, wars, etc. begin to happen. Happiness comes from knowing Allah.
The second lecture last night was about the invitiation to Allah. The invitation comes in three ways: fear, reward, and love. One might fear Allah and then worship Him. One might desire a reward and then worship Allah. The final one is knowing that Allah loves his servants and swooning as a result and then worshipping Allah. In order to preserve this invitation, one must make thikr, think about Allah, and keep the company of the righteous. Answering the invitation is done with obedience.
May Allah forgive me for not giving the words of Habib Ali their true right.
Wisdoms and Witticisms 
i dont disagree with you, but i have a couple of concerns. firstly, you make being alive sound awfully morbid! if the dunya really is a black hole, that sounds like youre discouraging people from making an effort to live a decent life. people have always wanted what they couldnt have…human nature? i dont think Allah (SWT) wants us to be miserable on our short stay on Earth. so is this life not worth documenting? cant we still take pictures in the present but have our intentions geared for the future? maybe.
He does not. Let me try to explain better. Seeking happiness through the dunya does not yield happiness. The reason for this is that indulging in the dunya only increases desire the dunya. Likewise with Allah but Allah is infinite whereas the dunya is finite. As for living comfortably in the Dunya, we can. However, we must take it out of our hearts.
that i would have to disagree with. i look for happiness everyday in the dunya, i think its hard to ignore all of the intricate creations surrounding us and not feel some degree of happiness, thus derived from the dunya. i know you’re a generally optimistic person so i think you should express that 🙂