Optimisim and Bismillah Ar-Rahman Ar-Rahim

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate

When actions have barakah (commonly translated as blessing) in them, their consequences are beyond imagination. Allah says that there is a name of Allah that has been empowered with barakah, i.e. meaning if you invoke that Name of Allah and do something, then what you do will have barakah in it.

We are taught to start an action with بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم (In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate). There is no surprise that at the heart of بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم is Ar-Rahman (The Overwhelmingly Merciful). We start every deed with بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم hoping, optimistically, that Allah will put barakah in that action, that means the good that will come out for ourselves and for others will be beyond expectation.

What actions Allah put barakah, Allah decides. What Allah doesn't put barakah, Allah decides. We are dependent on Him and our dependence shows whenever we say بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم. Because we believe in بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم, we should never underestimate the value of our good deeds that we do for Allah. The world around us may look horrible, that it has all those problems -- the economic problems, powerlessness, political problems, education problems, ignorance, division, corruption, deviation, and all of those combined, but as a matter of faith, we can't be pessimistic because Allah gives us barakah.

When I say that Name and begin a good deed, only Allah knows how far the good Allah will bring out of this deed. That is the attitude of a Muslim. When the sahabah understood this, they never underestimated the value of their efforts. Even if nobody was accepting Islam, they still kept going because their efforts have barakah and they don't have to see it with their eyes to know barakah is there.

تَبَـٰرَكَ ٱسْمُ رَبِّكَ ذِى ٱلْجَلَـٰلِ وَٱلْإِكْرَامِ ﴿٧٨

Blessed is the name of your Lord, Owner of Majesty and Honor. (78) [Quran, Ar-Rahman 55:78]

May Allah put barakah in our lives and our works. Ameen.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wasallam.

And Allah knows best and is Most Wise, and He alone grants success, and to Him is the final return of all.

Wassalaam