This blog was originally published as a post on my Instagram account @NadiazArtistry and can be accessed at this link.

"A little more Yusuf, a little less Zulaiqa" is poetry I wrote that is the inspiration behind my original painting with the same title." I have always been inspired by the Life of Prophet Yusuf as he lived a life of piety and always remembered God while enduring every hardship , every temptation. Because I believe that life is nothing but a test of our "Nafs/Self" and "Sabr /patience" to get past the whispers of Satan (or our Lower self ).

Here is the complete poem:

Be a little more Yusuf and a little less Zulaiqa

Crave a little less fortune, fame and lust A little more purity, piety and trust

 

Trust. In the promise of something better

Trust. in the love of someone greater

 

And for when you feel a little less Yusuf, and a little more Zulaiqa

Because there will be days when you feel a little less Yusuf and a little more Zulaiqa

Repeat the Mantra:

 

"Let thy Lord be my Refuge"

"Let my Lord be my Refuge"

 

Bereft your Nafs from temporal temptations

And fill it up with prayers of redemption.

 

Trust. In the promise of everlasting paradise

Where there is no more pain, and no more sacrifice.

 

The place with gardens of pleasure

Where rivers flow Gold and Silver

 

A place where your tired eyes and heavy shoulders may rest

Where you will be welcomed, treasured and blessed

 

Be a little more Yusuf , A little less Zulaiqa

And repeat the mantra:

 

"Let thy Lord be my Refuge"

"Let my Lord be my Refuge"