بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ

To be honest, I don't really get what's beautiful about oxen/bison/cattle/etc. Even the big hairy kind with horns, they look kinda cool I guess, but ultimately they're literally just cattle :l

If I had to choose between that and the Shore or the Autumn Road, I would for sure take one of the latter. Perhaps that the Autumn Road leads to my Shore?  I like the sound of that, iA.

In other semi-related musings, I wanted to discourse a bit on love, to sort of tie it in with Allah in a way that makes it less a weight and more of the upward breeze that it can be.

 It is the strongest, most powerful emotion that exists. I think in its purest form, it approaches the pinnacle of all ideals, because within it become encompassed notions of selflessness, generosity, compassion, justice, balance, and the like. It is a motivation and fuel that can outlast any star. Probably also true is that if it is not refined, it can become the most potent of poisons.

Someone once told me, how crazy it was that we didn't realize how much of a blessing love was until it was gone. While this is true, there are a few other things I have found true as well. 

First, it can never truly die, because if one has ever held it, or touched it, then the only possible result is it becomes part of the self. Even if the self were to wither away, love would remain in some form, like a fossil in amber. I know this from experience. Love simply endures, always. 

Second, and most importantly, it should always be remembered that we were never the ones to bring love about, it was not a human doing, but instead something our Rabb gave to His slaves. Part of love's purpose is to make us want to turn back to Him, and not really because we fear to lose it, but! - so that we show Him gratitude and appreciation for what we've been given. If any human being had known love, but did not turn back to Allah, did not show shukr for it, then without a doubt, absolutely, that love would have become a source of loss and torment. So long as life remains in the breast, then one has still the chance to return to Allah: this is the crux of every true hope.

bi ithniAllah, I will never cease to love. I have found it to be the only fuel that has persisted throughout my life. Just with one condition: the only way it can be kept from destroying me is if I remember Allah with it, remember Him from it, remember Him for it. I would seek its preservation, its khair, and eventually, its most perfect manifestation. There has never been any other road for the idealist, dreamer, and lover.