Why Can't I See the Angels? : Children's Questions to a Sufi Saint

by Muhaiyaddeen, M. R. Bawa

• ISBN13: 9780914390633
• ISBN10: 0914390635
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-01-01
• Publisher: Fellowship Pr

Summary

A Sufi holy man answers children's questions and offers wisdom on such topics as creation, death, good and evil, faith, prayer, and the essence of God.

Table of Contents

Editor's Note	vii
Introduction	ix
SESSION 1 (May 1, 1978)
Talk to a child mourning his pet squirrel.	3	(8)
SESSION 2 (March 2, 1981)
Advice to a young boy on how to conduct his life.	11	(6)
SESSION 3 (June 29, 1982)
Is there an animal heaven?	17	(4)
SESSION 4 (November 10, 1982)
A young child asks about where he came from and about death.	21	(10)
SESSION 5 (April 23, 1983)
What is the proper conduct between boys and girls ten years to eighteen years old?	31	(1)
I am ten years old and am wondering if it is proper to wear make-up.	32	(1)
What is wrong with dancing? Does that include ballet, tap, and dancing one does by oneself?	33	(3)
If we can't go dancing or play with boys, what can we do for fun?	36	(1)
How do we handle what our friends think about our Arabic names? People don't understand why we don't just go to a church or a synagogue like other people. How do we explain to them about the Fellowship?	37	(1)
If Adam and Eve had obeyed God, would the whole world still be a garden of Eden?	38	(1)
What does heaven look like?	39	(1)
If you go to hell, what feels the pain if you don't have your body?	39	(1)
Why did we choose to come here when we were already part of God to begin with?	40	(1)
Are there other people in outer space?	41	(2)
What should I tell my friends who told me God is just pretend? What should I tell them?	43	(1)
What does Bawa mean when he says God was never born and can never die? How did God come to exist then?	44	(2)
What type of Fellowship work can the children do to feel a part of it?	46	(7)
SESSION 6 (October 8, 1983)
How did Bawa get so wise?	53	(1)
If God has no beginning or end, how did He get here?	53	(2)
At what age do you think boys and girls should date, and at what age can boys and girls leave home?	55	(1)
Is rock and roll bad for you?	55	(1)
How does the heart move? And why can't you see the angels?	56	(1)
Why did God make satan if He wanted us to be good?	57	(1)
How can God be in everybody's heart if He is only one?	57	(1)
How do you know what people are thinking?	58	(1)
How can I go to Mecca?	59	(1)
Why has God chosen for satan to be evil?	60	(5)
SESSION 7 (November 13, 1983)
Can Bawa give me a special prayer to say?	65	(4)
SESSION 8 (April 18, 1984)
Why is the world always hard?	69	(1)
Why can't we see the angels on our shoulders?	69	(4)
SESSION 9 (November 10, 1984)
What should I say when somebody asks me what religion I am?	73	(1)
How does God take you to heaven or hell?	74	(1)
How did God make the first person alive?	75	(4)
SESSION 10 (November 17, 1984)
What happened to Adam when satan spat on him?	79	(2)
When babies die, do they go to heaven or hell?	81	(1)
How do you get to God?	81	(2)
If you see God, do you see Him with your own eyes?	83	(1)
How do you destroy satan?	84	(1)
How did God destroy satan? Can God destroy satan with His fire?	84	(1)
What happens to satan when he gets destroyed?	84	(1)
What happens when you die?	85	(1)
How do you get to hell or heaven?	85	(1)
Does satan take you to hell?	86	(5)
SESSION 11 (December 15, 1984)
Listen my grandchildren.	91	(4)
Is it good to give salams (greetings of peace) to people in passing?	95	(1)
How did satan create demons?	95	(5)
How does God create angels?	100	(1)
If God is One, how could He be in everyone's heart?	100	(1)
How was God made?	101	(4)
SESSION 12 (January 5, 1985)
Why did God make the planets if no one lives on them?	105	(4)
SESSION 13 (March 15, 1985)
When you do the same bad thing again and ask for forgiveness, will God forgive you again?	109	(1)
When I hear bad words, I try to get them out of my mind, but they don't really go out sometimes, so what should I do?	110	(1)
We know that God will always exist forever, but will satan always exist forever?	110	(1)
When Bawa feels better can I sit on his lap?	111	(1)
Satan used to be good, so how could he be so bad now?	112	(1)
Why did God create satan?	113	(4)
SESSION 14 (March 7, 1986)
How do I find God?	117	(4)
SESSION 15 (May 4, 1986)
How come God made satan?	121	(1)
How come Satan is bad?	122	(1)
Did God create heaven?	122	(2)
If satan was not here, would God be here?	124	(1)
Does God tell Bawa what to say, or does he just know?	124	(5)
SESSION 16 (May 8, 1986)
Why did Judas think that Jesus was bad?	129	(4)
SESSION 17 (May 25, 1986)
After a person dies and goes to hell, is it still possible for them to repent and go to heaven?	133	(4)
SESSION 18 (May 29, 1986)
How do you chase away fear?	137	(1)
How come God made people?	137	(1)
How do you chase away scary dreams?	138	(1)
How can we get our son up for early morning prayer?	139	(1)
How did God create the world?	140	(5)
SESSION 19 (June 2, 1986)
If there were no God, who would create us?	145	(4)
SESSION 20 (June 2, 1986)
How do you get over laziness?	149	(1)
What would it look like if God did not make anything?	149	(2)
Why did we come to this world, if the world of the soul was so good?	151	(4)
SESSION 21 (June 21, 1986)
Is there any benefit in studying Arabic?	155	(2)
If someone teases you for not eating meat, what should you do?	157	(2)
What prayer should I recite before a test?	159	(1)
How does day change into night?	160	(1)
Could Bawa comment on children who just sit during early morning prayer but don't recite anything.	160	(3)
Every time I want a toy, is that blocking my surrender to God?	163	(1)
How do I show my son that the treasures of God are more fulfilling than the things he wants in this world?	164	(5)
SESSION 22 (October 18, 1986)
In Maya Veeram, why do you call it the ABCD world?	169	(2)
Reflections	171	(10)
Glossary	181	(12)
Questions by Topic	193	(10)
Index	203