The best things in life aren’t things.
Materialism is defined in the dictionary as a preoccupation with or an emphasis on material objects, comforts and considerations with a disinterest in or a rejection of spiritual, intellectual or cultural values.

As human beings we are creatures of the eye and therefore it is natural for us to see things that we like and immediately want it. We want what looks good to us. There is nothing wrong with creating and wanting nice things but we as humans have turned this natural inclination into a form of worship and this is sadly only getting worse from generation to generation.

We are constantly taught by society that the more you have, the more you are worth, the better you look, the happier you will be. This is not only taught to us by the world around us but is also reinforced by the media. So girls go out to buy bags with letters on them to show that they are not worth less or worthless. Guys go out to buy cars, designer shoes, belts and jeans just to impress. We don’t care about the condition of our souls, the states of our minds or the errors in our ways because nothing else matters as long as we get the latest gadget that we will care about for only a few days.

We have the ability to change the world and the technology to do it too yet we use our innovation to further increase the already good quality life of the ‘haves’ instead of helping out and improving the quality of life of the ‘have nots’. Nearly half of the world’s population — more than 3 billion people — live on a stipend. More than 1.3 billion live in extreme poverty — yet we are buying things we do not need because we are obsessed with materialistic things instead of appreciating the essentials that we have!

This constant want for more and more things isn’t healthy. Studies have shown that as people become more materialistic, their wellbeing (good relationships, independence, sense of purpose and more) diminishes. This is because people are driven by the desire to consume rather than experience. People would rather buy the latest phone instead of travel and experience the world, children would much rather be glued to their iPad, laptop or games console than play outside. The sad truth is that we are wasting our lives in this consumerist, materialistic world we live in. We continue to do and buy meaningless things because whoever loves materialistic things never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income.
But it is possible that our emerging generation could be the generation to change this, if we all wake up and see that none of the stuff that we accumulate will matter in a few years but the memories that you create, the people that you meet, the experiences you have and the impact you have on the world for good are everlasting.

The very recent turmoil that has gripped our entire country which had garnered the attention from around the globe and which even had war-ravaged countries praying for us, yes it is a very difficult time indeed, but let it at least serve as an eye-opener to us that in the end it is not only “things” that matter. Indeed, we need the basics and the necessities to survive and yes we are spoilt and are too used to certain luxuries, its fine, but let us not allow it to rule our lives, because when materialistic things rule your life, remember, it will ruin your life!

There are hundreds of people in our very own country that do not have the basic necessities of bread and milk, some due to abject poverty and now many more due to the looting and stealing; look around you, look at your life and ask yourself, “how much do you have that you don’t actually need?”

These days of Hajj are a perfect time when we can start to learn to live more humbly and simply, all in the name of trying to please Allah.