Jinn was at the mall with his mother. They together had carry-away ice cream as they strolled around the mall. Jinn was an amazing kid of 4 years, watching everything around him with curiosity. He looked amazed as he watched his mother throw the empty ice cream cups in a nearby dustbin, His mother observed it and both exchanged a smile. His mother explained to him, “It is not good manners to litter things around. It is good practice to keep our surroundings clean”.

A few days later Jinn was at the market with his mother. They bought some vegetables and fruits. For being a good boy, his mother always rewards him with goodies. Today he got a packet of tomato-oats wafers. They both finished eating it. His mother took the packet and kept it in her bag. Looking at Jinn, his mother could catch up with the questions arising in his mind. She smiled and said,” We don’t have a dust bin here for this so I will put it in our dust bin at our house!”.

Jinn was still not convinced. He kept following his mother through the evening and observed his mother’s every action. He finally saw that while emptying her bag, his mother threw the empty wafer packet in the dustbin. It was now clear to Jinn. He asked his mother, “Why would you throw it in the dustbin when our helpers can sweep it later?”. For that, his mother replied, “Of course Jinn, without our helpers, we won’t have the privilege to walk on clean streets and roads. Our homes might stink with the stench of undispatched garbage. They make our life a little easier as they help us out with catering to the need for cleanliness..”.

Jinn was listening with attention. His mother continued, “Also, by self-help, we reduce our anxiety and depression, reduce our stress, minimize frustration and anger. Thus we can be happy for helping ourselves”. Jinn was stunned hearing all this. His mother continued, “Self-help allows us to develop the skills and discipline to meet all our goals.” Jinn learned on self-help and was satisfied with this statement and he decided to involve himself in the process of consciously improving himself in all aspects of life. He decided to be disciplined in his actions and thought.

Moral of the story: Cleanliness is Godliness. Self-help is the best help.

Those who are pure and wholesome are close to God.