In the 15th century, the German theologian Thomas Kempis wrote in his work ‘The Imitation of Christ,’ ‘Man proposes, but God disposes.’ In simpler terms, this means that humans may plan one way, but events unfold differently. The Holy Quran corroborates this, stating, ‘Indeed, Allah is the best of planners’ (Surah Al-Anfal: 30 and Al-Imran: 54).
Essentially, no matter how we plan, we cannot fathom the divine plan. While we may not know the future, we can cultivate self-belief. In our modern world, marked by incessant mental stress, global unrest, and countless personal challenges, it often feels as though humanity is rehearsing hell on earth. In such times, it is beneficial to pause, reflect, and ask ourselves: how can we continue to live with such immense stress? Problems seem endless.
The situation is such that some days are good and some days are bad; but there is also a saying. The saying is – According to many wise people, stress or mental pressure in modern life is the driving force of our work; in other words, mental pressure is the grindstone. And that grindstone grinds out the juice of work from within us. Since young people are the architects of dreams, they have a long life ahead of them. That is why they have more anxiety and restlessness in the rules of life. For this reason, a survey conducted some time ago found that one-third of young students are suffering from excessive fear and anxiety. But we must remember that even famous thinkers have been crushed by intense mental pressure at various stages of life.
In this situation, the most important thing is to know oneself first. With true self-realization, a ‘safety valve’ is created for intense mental pressure, like a pressure cooker. It saves us from terrible danger. Regarding anxiety, Winston Churchill said, ‘When I look back on all the worries I have had in my life, I realize that most of them never happened.’ While this is true, it is also true that people fall into many dangers that they never imagine. The famous poet Khalil Gibran, however, believed, ‘Our worries do not come from thinking about the future, but from trying to control it.’ In this regard, the most significant statement has been made by Harry Potter’s creator, J.K. Rowling. She clearly states, ‘It is impossible to live without failing at something.’
Therefore, failure is an inevitable part of life. It also has its value. When it seems like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel, we must understand that this is completely delusional. Because we never know our ‘future’. Whatever and however we think, it never happens that way. It hasn’t happened in the past, and it won’t happen in the future.
So there is definitely light at the end of the tunnel. The only question is how long is the tunnel and whether you are getting tired or scared of crossing that long tunnel. The easiest way to think in this case is: there is no need to think about the path of the tunnel, just keep moving forward with the belief that sooner or later the light will come, and in the end, it is seen that there is light at the end of the tunnel. So as the best creatures of creation, we must have faith in ourselves.
