In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

"And make provision, for surely the provision is piety, and be careful (of your duty) to Me, O men of understanding."

- Qur'an {2:197}

Taqwa (piety), by definition, is evasion. In technical use, it is twofold - staying away from what is bad and going towards what is good. That is, as defined by Imam Ja'far (pbuh), "that God finds you where He commanded you to be, and He not find you where He forbade you." The basis to achieving this is in Baqarah {2:256}: "Therefore, whoever disbelieves in the Ṭāghūt and believes in Allah he indeed has laid hold on the firmest handle." Therefore, keeping away from the evil should be priority, as it translates to readiness for the good. Similarly, this is why staying in the state of ablution is recommended, for it means readiness to worship.

This is the provision we need in this journey called life.

The aforementioned is pertinent, for today's sermon will be about practical spirituality.

What is spirituality? How to attain it? Why give it the adjective "practical?"

- Except from Sermon One text. visit smillingsheikh.wordpress.com for full lecture text.