• By : Baba Hilal
اللهم اني أعوذبك من الفتن ، ما ظهر منها و ما بطن
O Allah! I seek Your refuge from trials and tribulations , those that are apparent and those that are hidden
(Sahi Muslim 2867)
Praise be to Allah subhanahu wa tà ala. Who is the creator of the whole universe and Who made the earth as an abode for peace, for the whole mankind. It is HE who bestowed us innumerable auspicious blessings , among one of them is an easy to carry smart phone. With the advent of modern technology, the mobile phone is becoming more and more sophisticated. Its ingenuity has become so popular that even the common man is cognizant of its benefits. But yesterday the power of self-introspection combust, i meditate and questioned to my mind what about its inexpedience .
Whenever i go to bed or wake up the last and the first thing remains or comes in my mind is my 6 inch FHD super AMOLED screen. I interacted with friends and relatives they disigned the same issue of sticking to screens, i keenly observe children and youth around me, all were sailing on the same boat of addiction means phones are getting smarter and operaters stupid, as we know that all the things exist in this world have their advantages and disadvantages. Same as the mobile phone has some advantages and also disadvantages for youth in society.
Lets put advantages aside i would like to highlight bad effects of using mobile phones associated with negative outcomes and responsibilities of youth Smartphone addiction, sometimes colloquially known as “nomophobia” (fear of being without a mobile phone), is often fueled by an Internet overuse problem or Internet addiction disorder, Compulsive web surfing, watching videos, playing games, or checking news feeds can lead to lower productivity at work or school and isolate you for hours at a time.
Compulsive use of the Internet and smartphone apps can cause you to neglect other aspects of your life, from real-world relationships to hobbies and social pursuits.
According to reports most of the people are replacing face-to-face conversations with cyber ones. Clinical psychologist Lisa Merlo says, “Some patients pretend to talk on the phone or fiddle with apps to avoid eye contact or other interactions at a party.
Furthermore, 70% check their phones in the morning within an hour of getting up.
56% check their phones before going to bed
51% constantly check their phones during vacation. 44% reported they would feel very anxious and irritable if they did not interact with their phones within a week.
Psychologist Nancy Colier has argued that people have lost sight of what is truly important to them in life. She says that people have become “disconnected from what really matters, from what makes us feel nourished and grounded as human beings. People’s addiction to technology has deterred neurological and relationship development because tech is being introduced to people at a very young age.
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People have become so addicted to their phones that they are almost dependent on them. Humans are not meant to be constantly staring at a screen as time is needed to relax their eyes and more importantly their minds.We’re wired and tired all the time. The constant stream of messages and information from a smartphone can overwhelm the brain and make it impossible to focus attention on any one thing for more than a few minutes without feeling compelled to move on to something else.
The persistent buzz, ping or beep of your smartphone can distract you from important tasks, slow your work, and interrupt those quiet moments that are so crucial to creativity and problem solving. Instead of ever being alone with our thoughts, we’re now always online and connected. Excessive smartphone use can disrupt your sleep, which can have a serious impact on your overall mental health. It can impact your memory, affect your ability to think clearly, and reduce your cognitive and learning skills.
Narrated Usama bin Zaid :
Once the Prophet peace be upon him stood over one of the high building’s of Madinah and then said ( to the people) , “Do you see what i see?” They said, ” No.” He said, “I see afflictions falling among your houses as rain drop fall”
(Sahi al Bukhari 7060)
Muhammad peace be upon him said i see so many tribulations falling on your homes. Now it’s worth thinking about tribulations that are raining down on our homes like raindrops. As Sheikh Saleh Al Fawzan hafidahullah said :
“During the initial years of Islam the fitnah (trials/temptations) would have no effect, except upon those who were present for it or went towards it . And nowadays the fitnah comes to you whilst you are in your homes or upon your bed”. You know today we have smart phones plus cheap unlimited internet connection without any check, it’s so fast and accessible with one gentle click you can vandalize your dunya as well as ruin your imaan. And it’s a common misconception among youth to find the aspect of fun , meme, entertainment and laughter in everything otherwise we lost the most authoritative thing that is focus. Now its becoming the youth’s temperament which is itself tribulation , if you see on today’s world of internet what do we have mostly memes, inappropriate images , pornography , netflix, other web series without any stopping que and so much content against religion. Its time to refrain from all these cheap things mentioned above and lets be wise in operating the smart phone and it dynamic complexity.There are several distinct dimensions in which our youth must equip itself.
Today’s youth should be the “Youth with a mission” – a mission to contribute for Islam. A youth can contribute to Islam by giving his time, talent and money.The youth should work with an objective of making Islam prevalent over all the other ways of life.The youth is the stage of life when the individual should grasp virtuous knowledge about Islam and make effective utilization of the time and talent given by Allah (SWT). And this is only possible by shunning mediocrity and emptying the mind from nasty mobile addiction because when the mind is emptied, something is bound to enter.
The mind cannot long remain a vacuum, immediately start filling your mind with creative and healthy thoughts. May Almighty Allah (SWT) bless and redeem us from nomophobia.
Author is Pursuing Masters in Clinical biochemistry at Kashmir University. He can be reached at babahilal91@gmail.com
