The Final Day

THE MINOR
RESURRECTION

( What happens After Death)
In the Light of the Qur’an and Sunnah
By ‘Umar S. al-Ashqar
Section-The Grave (3) Examples of Lessons pg.107-109

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem
( In the Name of Allah, The Most Gracious The Most Merciful)

Imaam Qurtubi( raheemahullah-May Allah Subhanahu Wata’ala have mercy upon him) gave the following advice in his Tadhkirah:

“ Where is the wealth that you have gathered and prepared for hardship and terror? There is no money in your hand when you are dying. The wealth and pride that you enjoyed have been replaced with humiliation and poverty. What has become of you, O’ prisoner of your burdens, O’ you who have been taken away from your family and your home?

What was it that concealed the right path from you, and caused you to have no interest in making provision for your long journey and time of difficulty? Did you not know, O’ you who were deceived by this world, that this journey to the Day of intense horror was inevitable, when the time spent in gossip would be to no avail? That is the Day when you are standing before the Sovereign, the Judge, and the blows struck by your hands, the places where your feet took you, the words uttered by your tongue, the actions of all your limbs and faculties, will be counted against you. If Allah has mercy upon you, you will go to Paradise, otherwise you will go to the Fire of Hell.

O’ negligent one who ignores these matters, how long will this negligence last? How long will you delay? Do you think that the issue is insignificant? Do you think that the matter is easy? Do you think that your situation will help you when it is time for you to depart? Or that your wealth will save you when your actions condemn you? Or that your regret will help you when your feet are slipping? Or that your friends will show you any sympathy when you are gathered (for judgement)? No, by Allah, you are wrong in your thinking, and you will inevitably come to know the reality. You are not content with enough, you never have your fill of that which is haraam(i.e. Unlawful), you do not listen to lectures, you are not deterred by warnings. You persist in following your desires and you go about your life without guidance. You are happy with the things that you have accumulated but you do not think of what lies ahead. O’ you who are sleeping unaware, wandering without guidance, for how long will the neglect last? Do you think that you will be left alone and let off, and that you will not be brought to account tomorrow? Or do you think that death can be bribed? Or do you think that death distinguishes between a lion and a gazelle? No, by Allah, wealth and sons can never ward off death from you. Nothing can benefit those who will be forgiven except righteous deeds. So good news to those who listen and understand, who pays heed, and that man will have nothing except that for which he strives, and he will see what he has striven for. So wake up from this negligence, and make righteous deeds the provision with which you equip yourselves. Do not wish to attain the statues of the righteous when you are weighed down with burdens (of sin), doing immoral deeds, when Allah is watching you even when you are alone. Do not be so deceived by hopes and wishes that you neglect to strive. One poet said:

‘ Take provision from this life to help yourself in the Hereafter.

Strive for the sake of Allah and do good deeds.

Do not accumulate too much in this world,

For that accumulation will eventually diminish.

Would you like to accompany people

Who have provision when you do not?”

(Tadhkirat al-Qurtubi, 91)


Allah Subhanahu Wata’ala says in Surah(Chapter) Al Hadid ( The Iron)(20)

Know ye (all) that the life of this world is but playand amusement pomp and mutual boasting andmultiplying (in rivalry) among yourselves richesand children: Here is a similitude: How rain and the growth which it brings forth delight (the hearts of) the tillers; soon it withers; thou wilt see it grow yellow; then it becomes dry and crumbles away. But in the Hereafter is a Penalty severe (for the devotees of wrong) and Forgiveness from Allah and (His) Good Pleasure (for the devotees of Allah). And what is the life of this world but goods and chattels of deception?

Insha’Allah We will need to keep our focus upon the true reality of this world; and not be fooled by the glimmer and beauty that it displays, enticing us to fall in love with it. How could one have such love for the world when it contains “chattels of deception” and is only temporary. On the contrary the Ackhira ( hereafter) is forever lasting; comfort for the believers, and punishment for the disbelievers. So wouldn’t one who realizes this take advantage of what will lead him/her closer to piety with Allah Subhanahu Wata’ala instead of what will lead him/her farther away to the path of punishment?? We seek refuge in Allah Subhanahu Wata’ala from achieving this massive and destructive loss. Ameen !

Write up by: brother Ibrahim

Jazahullahu Khairan Katheera

~~~****~~~~

"My Lord! Grant me the power and ability that I may be grateful for Your Favour which You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and that I may do righteous good deeds, such as please You, and make my off-spring good. Truly, I have turned to You in repentance, and truly, I am one of the Muslims (submitting to Your Will)."

(45:15)

Got married alhamdulilah. Need lot of prayers. will keep on writing inshaAllah whenever I can. I hope it is continually read till then and is beneficial always. Allah be with us all. aameen.

Below are some of the teaching techniques of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) that he used in order to make others understand concepts either formally or informally. I found them really interesting. You will too.

Humanity's Teacher

Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) Teaching Techniques. By Muhammad Al-Shareef

There are 21 techniques mentioned in these lectures, but I m going to put them one by one at random as I learn myself. This is the latest one that I have learnt from it, this one is not just a simple technique but you sure need some insight to use it. Lets see how our Prophet (pbuh) did that.

PROPHET (PBUH) ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS BEFORE THEY ARE ASKED

The way to do it is while explaining something to the other person, you think in what ways this explanation can confuse the person, or what queries it can bring up. Therefore recognizing those, you answer the questions in their minds even before they are actually asked.

An example is the questions coming to children's mind when they read about the verses about the strict punishment for the disbelievers in the Hereafter. Now because it is a fact that the public schools indoctrinate the kids, they dont find it easy to accept, thinking in their mind that if someone was born into a non-Muslim family its not their fault, so in the end they are all going to paradise.

So when explaining that matter you will keep in mind the questions popping in their minds, keeping in mind the way they are programmed to think, and explain to them that those verses are about the arrogant people who reject the truth harshly when they are presented it.

And that those are tough verses but that does not mean that those verses are no needed, there are actually people who learn Islam through those very verses.

Therefore it is about understanding the issues that will come up in their minds, understanding their thinking process and the way it is programmed.

For example the Hadith:

The Prophet pbuh said that the Satan would come to a person and tell them who created this, and who created that and finally he will bring the person to ask, ‘Who created Allah?’ and then he said that whoever has this happen to them should recite surah Al-Ikhlas and shoud spit three times on the left side and say Auzubillahi Minash Shaitaan ir Rajeem.

Now no one actually came to the Prophet pbuh and asked but he said that this MAY happen to someone. So the issue wasn’t actually presented to him but he mentioned it and gave a solution, knowing that such thoughts could definitely arise in ones mind.

A Message!

By Ibrahim S.

Assalaamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatullaahi Wa Barakaatu Brothers and Sisters in Islaam

(I hope that the sister who is in charge of this site and the readers who read these articles will forgive me for writing such a long blog. I felt that this is a very important message for the Ummah to read so it took the length of 3 pages to write. May Allaah reward you all for your patience and time, aameen!)

O Muslims! I heard the Seerah ( Biography) Of Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam presented by Imaam Anwar Al-Awlaki (May Allaah preserve him) from his work “The Makkan Period”; and in this wonderful, beautiful and compassionate study, the Imaam brings to us powerful messages for all of us to think tremendously about; regarding the importance of studying Our Beloved Prophet’s sallallahu alayhi wa sallam biography, and knowing that the Enemies of Islaam are trying to cut off our history’s roots in order for us to lose our true Muslim identity. Here is an excerpt taken from the Imaam’s work, “The Makkan Period” starting from track 6, 3:27 CD #1 the Imaam says,

( Quote )

“Brothers and Sisters. There is a Global Culture that is being forced down the throats of everyone on the face of the earth. This global culture is protected and promoted. Thomas Freedman, is a famous writer in the U.S., he writes for the New York Times. He says, “The hidden hand of the market cannot survive without a hidden fist. Mcdonalds will never flourish without Mcdonald Douglas, the designer of the F-15s. In other words, we’re not really dealing with a global culture that is benign or compassionate. This is a culture that gives you no choice. You either accept Mcdonalds otherwise Mcdonald Douglas will send their F-15s above your head. It’s a very intolerate culture that cannot co-exist with anything else. It uproots any other culture from the face of the earth. It just cuts the roots of it.”

And you have a quote here by Alexander Sulizitsen who is a famous Russian historian writer, he says,

“To destroy a people you must first sever their roots.”

Imaam Anwar continues by saying,

“So its really a destruction of the people of the earth because every other culture is being demolished. So this is not a global culture that will co-exist with others, it will replace others. And the only ideology that is standing up to this global culture is Islaam. But still as Muslims and especially Muslims living in the west, we are suffering from a serious identity crisis. I mean, you will find that even though the brother or sister would be practicing Islaam but, the Identity itself, the Islamic identity itself is lost. I mean, the person would have more in common with a rock star or a soccer player than they would have with a Companion of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). You would find that our youth know more about pop stars than they know about the Sahabah(i.e. Companions) of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. In fact even, sometimes even more than the Anbiya ( i.e.The Prophets). How many of our youth know the names of all of the Anbiya of Allaah?? How many of our youth know the names of the Sahabah radia Allaahu anhum? But ask the same person to name the soccer players on their favorite team or their best basketball players and they’ll go down the list! So there is serious identity crisis that is going on among Muslims. And the way we can counter that, the way we can develop a Muslim identity,

#1. By having a strong study of Islaamic History. Which is made up of the lives of the Prophets of Allaah, the life of Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, the lives of the Sahabah radia Allaahu anhum and then learning in general the Muslim history after that. So that’s #1. You develop an Identity by having an attachment with history. Because History is our umbilical cord, that is our lifeline, we are an extention of an Ummah. We’re not separated, we’re not severed from our roots. We are a part of a Glorious Ummah that we need to study about.

#2. By being part of the World Wide Muslim Ummah. Our Local identity should not override our Muslim Identity. So my identification with Britain, or America, or Pakistan or Kuwait, or any other country, should not override my Islamic Identity. See this nation-state concept is something that Islaam came to abolish. We have our loyalty to Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala and to our Religion. And we are a part of a World Wide Ummah. Therefore we need to study, we need to learn about our Muslim brethren all over the world. What happens in Falesteen should concern everybody who is a British Muslim. What happens in Kashmir should concern every American Muslim. What happens in every corner of the Muslim World should concern me as if it is happening within my own house.

(My Note (Ibrahim))- Narrated An Numan bin Bashir Allah's Apostle said, "You see the believers as regards their being merciful among themselves and showing love among themselves and being kind, resembling one body, so that, if any part of the body is not well then the whole body shares the sleeplessness (insomnia) and fever with it." (Sahih Al-Bukhari 8.40) [End Note]

So these are the 2 important elements in building an identity. #1. Having a deep understanding of your history. And #2 being a part of the Ummah and caring about the Ummah. And again this saying of Alexander Sulizitsen,

“To destroy a people you must first sever their roots”

We don’t want our roots to be severed, we want our roots to be deep.
(End Quote from the Lecture)

O Muslims ! Please ponder over the Imaam’s words because they are a reality. Do not let your nafs(self) tell you otherwise. I will leave you with a hadeeth from the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam a poem and a short supplication in relation to the issue mentioned in the lecture insha’Allaah.

“The Nations are about to gather upon you (inviting each other to kill you and plunder your lands), just as people who are dining call one another to their Qis’ah (a tray that can accommodate ten).” Someone said, “At that time, will we be few in number?” He sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said,” Rather, you will be many at that time, but you will be like the scum of a flood(i.e. all the foam and filth that it carries). And Allaah will indeed remove from the breasts of your enemy the awe they have for you, and He Subhanahu Wata’ala will indeed cast into your hearts Wahn (Literally, weakness).” A questioner asked, “ O Messenger of Allaah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and what is the Wahn?” He sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, “The love of the world and hatred of death.” (Related by Abu Dawud and others; Refer to al-Sahihah (958)

O, when will the Ummah wake up from the delusion

When the Mountain erupts, the people become attentive and full of righteouness

But when it remains still and unspoken

The vultures linger

The people practice unrighteousness and sleep well till they become lifeless, loving the duniya(the world)

Forgetting the great Bounty that was bestowed upon them

So what is left but a carcass?

Allaahu Akbar, Allahu a’azzu min khalqihi jammee’an, Allaahu a’azzu mimmaa akhaafu wa ahtharu, a’uthu billaahil-lathee laa ilaaha illa Huwa, al-mumsik is-samaawaatis sab’I an yaqa’ na ‘alal-ardhi illa bi’ith-nihi, min sharri ‘abdikha[name of person], wa junoodihi wa atbaa’ihi, minal-jinni wal-insi, Allaahumma kun lee jaaran min sharrihim, jalla thanaa’uka wa ‘azza jaaruka, wa tabaarakasmuka, wa laa illaaha ghairuka.

Allaah is the Greatest, Mightier than all His creation. He is Mightier than what I fear and dread. I seek refuge in Allaah, Who there is none worthy of worship but Him. He is the One Who holds the seven heavens from falling upon the earth except by His Command. [ I seek refuge in you Allaah] from the evil of your slave[Shayton] and his helpers, his followers and his supporters from among the jinn and mankind. Oh Allaah, be my support against their evil. Glorious are Your praises and mighty is Your patronage. Blessed is Your Name, there is no true God but You!

(Al-Bukhari, Al-Adab Al-Mufrad (no. 708). Al Albani graded it Authentic in Sahih Al-Al Mufrad (no. 546).
Aameen!

HUMANITY'S TEACHER

Today after long I am actually writng a blog myself, and inshaAllah you will know some techniques that our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) used in order to teach people and to make them understand concepts that they needed to learn.

The lesson comes from a series of lectures that I downloaded from Audio Islam and are titled 'Humanity's Teacher' by Muhammad AlShareef. I have listened to four parts and loved them. I took notes of it and here you will see an overview of what I learnt. At the same time I also highly recommend you to benefit from them by yourself, alhamdulilah the teacher has tried his best himself to practice those techniques in his lesson. So you listen to them part by part, you will enjoy as much as i did inshaaAllah. Best thing is, they are not long and boring but brief and to the point (probably very unlike what this blog is going to make them into :p )

Should I start? Wait! the teacher has given us a very valuable tip before starting. Do you take small notes while reading a book, magazine etc.? I never do, just so that my book stays clean and 'unblemished'. But what l have learnt to do now is that it is important that we make small notes, put special marks etc. while reading and we come across things that really strike us, or that we need to remember later.

So always take notes, this may save you from re reading the whole stuff all over again, because you will definitely not remember it all just as you read it first time and understood WHILE you were reading.

Those notes can be written in small points at the side margins of the text, can be symbols like stars, etc, or can be small abbreviations like APOI (Amazing Piece of Information), or Gem where you think you have read something you should treasure forever, or is a lesson for your whole life. It can be anything, any symbol that you can come up with. These were as examples given by this teacher.

You will find it amazing the next time when you are going to go through the same book, and then build up your understanding further from those points, or you can prepare a lecture, article etc. quickly from that.

But, the teacher reminds us, not to forget using our memory at the same time, do not completely rely on your notes, do excercise your memory. (we know there were people and still are who read books and keep all in their head, they have whole books memorized).

We come now to our beloved Prophet's (peace be upon him) techniques for teaching.

Technique no. 1.

TO NOT BORE THE LISTENER

It is narrated that when the Prophet (peace be upon him) spoke, you could count his words on fingers. That is why many times we can just memorize the hadiths automatically, because of the shortness, directness and clarity of his words.

When the Prophet pbuh spoke it was never a marathon lecture, going on for hours and hours.

In the book of Prophet's (pbuh) saying [Sahih al-Bukhari] there is even a chapter titled 'Being moderate when teaching'.

We know from those hadiths, how when everytime the Prophet (pbuh) spoke it was a special occasion.

Same was practiced later by his companions. Ibn Masood (ra) used to teach only on Thursdays, and people wished that it was everyday. Prophet (pbuh) and also his companions took extra care in trying not to make people burdened by their speech or lessons etc.

That was the Prophet's (pbuh) way. How do we tell if someone's bored; well we all know, you may see the other person is sleepy, trying to stop yawning, reading something else, looking away, looking at the clock, or just simply looking bored by what you are saying.

The lecture or the lesson/ talk should not be a boring, consistant thing. There can be a lot done to make it interesting, e.g by making it paired with something special, like having a powerpoint presentation relevant to the topic, or some other special event.

One more thing as suggested by this teacher is to not to have repeat letures, becaue that way people always think of missing one where they can take another later. So one can make it as a special talk that is going to be only once, and if someone has missed, its like thay have missed the train. This keeps the people's interest.

More I m going place later inshaAllah, in the meantime you also have 'Humanity's Teacher'. I also would love to have your comments on this, especially if anyone of you who teaches and particularly teaching little kids and would like to share on this.

_____________________________________

Technorati Tags: Islam , Prophet Muhammad , Teaching

PS i hope that you have been benefitting from brother Ibrahim's articles, he will be writing more here inshaAllah, may Allah reward him, aameen.

"Spend and I Shall Spend On You"

Al-Kareem, Ar Raheem
The Most Generous, The Most Merciful

by Ibrahim S.

Assalaamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatullaahi Wa Barakaatu Brothers and Sisters.

Surely all praise is for Allaah. We praise Him and seek His assistance. We seek His forgiveness and we seek refuge in Him from the evil of our own souls and from the wickedness of our deeds. Whomever He guides shall never go astray, and whomever He allows to stray shall never find guidance.

I bear witness that no one has the right to be worshipped but Allaah, alone, Who has no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and His Messenger. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him and upon his family and his Companions and upon those who follow them in piety until the Day of Judgment. To Proceed;

I hope that this short lesson reaches all of you in the best of health and Emaan(Faith). I opened the book called Al-Hadith Al Qudsiyyah and within this book are Ahadeeth(plural for Hadeeth i.e. sayings of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) Qudsi which hold great virtue. This particular hadeeth that I will quote shows us the great Mercy which Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala provides His creatures with. At the same time, there are lessons for ourselves to gain and that is to learn to be grateful for the great favors Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala has bestowed upon all of us. In an authentic hadeeth collected by Imaam Bukhari it states,

Abu Harayra radia Allaahu anhu narrated from the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam that Allaah said:

O son of Adam, spend and I shall spend on you!

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:

Allaah’s Hand is full; spending does not diminish it. He bestows as generously as a rain cloud, both day and night. Then he said: Do you realize how much Allaah has spent since He created the Heaven and earth, when His Throne was on the water and His Hand held the Scale? The spending has not diminished what was in His Hand.

{Bukhari, Al-Hadith Al Qudsiyyah Chapter 15 pg.86 Hadeeth # 46:}


The wording that I would like to emphasize is when Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala says,


“O son of Adam, spend and I shall spend on you!”


- Look at how generous Allaah is to His creation. “ O son of Adam spend,,” – Spend on what has been bestowed on you on yourself, your families, jihaad, the poor, the orphan, the building of Islamic schools, Masjids etc in a honorable manner. Then Allaah says “..and I shall spend on you!” – Glory be to Allaah! If you spend for the Sake of Allaah, He will spend on you. It will return to you multiplied for your own benefit. Look at Allaah’s Help and Support. He provides the Sustenance (rizq) for the person in the first place in order to spend on others while at the same time He is returning the reward to the spender.

Allaahu Akbar(Allaah is the Greatest)! just look at this phrase from the reverse to really see what I am trying to explain. Allaah says, “..and I shall spend on you!” ……then….. “ O son of Adam spend,,”………Allaah the Most Exalted has already spent on the spender by allowing the spender to spend in order for you to give to others with the plan of rewarding you for your effort. Is this not the work of One Who is The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful?? Doing good deeds will help all of us out in the long run if they are full of sincerity(Ikhlas) and done according to the Sunnah of Rasulullaah(sallallahi alayhi wa sallam)


Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala says in Soorah(Chapter) Al-Jathiyah(The Kneeling) ayat(verse) 15,

“Whosoever does a good deed, it is for himself, and whosoever does evil, it is against (himself). Then your Lord you will be made to return.”

Ibn Kathir, May Allah have mercy upon him,( A leading Scholar in Qur’anic explanation i.e. Tafseer) says about this verse,

“meaning, you will all return to Allaah on the Day of Resurrection, when you and your actions will be displayed before Him. Then, He will recompense you for your deeds, good for good and evil for evil.”{Vol 9. pg. 24}

We know that we must strive our utmost to Please Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala. He has given us hearing, vision, smell, taste, touch, intelligence, life; yet we are still ungrateful to Our Lord. Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala says in Soorah(Chapter Al-Mulk(Dominion) verse 23,

“Say it is He Who has created you, and endowed you with hearing (ears) and seeing(eyes), and hearts. Little thanks you give."

Will we not remember the hadeeth collected by Imaam Bukhari which shows the dedication that we lack but was, and is a true example of love for Rabbil Alameen(Allaah) through the beautiful example of Our Beloved Nabi(Prophet), sallallahu alayhi wa sallam?

Narrated Al Mughira

The Prophet used to offer night prayers till his feet became swollen. Somebody said to him, "Allaah has forgiven you, your faults of the past and those to follow." On that, he said, "Shouldn't I be a thankful slave (of Allaah)?"{Sahih Bukhari Vol 6. 360}

Allaahu Akbar ! ( Allaah is the Greatest). Indeed Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is and will be the best worshipper to Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala ever. I will conclude with a question for all of us to really ponder upon, and that is, are we trying our best to be grateful to Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala after all He has done for us; after all He has planned for us!? Truly the comfort in the dark wombs of our mothers was not scheduled by us but by One Who is Most Kind, Most Merciful! Shouldn’t we be more thankful to our Rabb(Lord)?

Soorah 100 Adiyat(Those that Run)verse 6, Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala says

“Truly Man is to his Lord ungrateful”

May Allaah Subhanahu Wata’ala forgive us all for our shortcomings and help us to be better, more thoughtful of the favors which He Subhanahu Wata’ala has bestowed upon us in order for us to attain success ameen!


Allaahuma maa asbaha bee min ni’matin aw bi-ahadin min khalqika faminka wahdaka laa shareeka laka, falakal-hamduwa lakash-shukru.

Oh Allaah, whatever blessing has been received by me or anyone of Your creation (1) is from You alone, You have no partner. All praise is for you and thanks is to you.(2))

Astagfirullaaha wa atoobu ilaihi.

I seek the forgiveness of Allaah and repent to Him(Recite one hundred times in Arabic during the day.)( 3)


___________________________________
Supplications taken from the Book Hisnul Muslim -Fortress of the Muslim

( 1.) When you say this in the evening, you should say: Allaahummamaa amsa bee…”Oh Allaah, as I….enter this evening…..”

(2.)”Whoever recites this in the morning, has completed his obligation to thank Allaah for that day; and whoever said it in the evening, has completed his obligation for that night,”{Abu Dawud 4/318, An-Nasa’i ‘Amal Al-Yawm wal-Lailah (no.8, Ibn As-Sunni (no.41), Ibn Hibban (no. 2361). Its chain of transmission is good (Hasan), Ibn Baz, p.24}

(3.) Al Bukhari, cf. Al-Asqalani, Fath Al-Bari 11/101, Muslim 4/2075

"And there are some among men who take for themselves objects of worship other than ALLAH, loving them as they should love ALLAH. But believers are stronger in their love for ALLAH. And if those who transgress could now see the time when they shall see the punishment, they would realize that all power belongs to ALLAH and that ALLAH is severe in punishing.

Quraan: 2:165

From Darkness To Light

[As promised here is the account of brother Ibrahim's conversion to Islam in his own words. May Allah reward him for sharing it with all of us, aameen. There are sure lessons in it for us to learn and see the strange ways in which Allah guides people to the right way].

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem

(In the Name of Allah, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful)

Intro:

While I was attending Phoenix College a question came to my mind and it was, “Why Am I a Christian?” Now, please understand this, I am not a Nationalist, or racist, so just bare with me. I have always known that Christianity has been forced upon my people (i.e. African slaves who have evolved to be African Americans) before coming to the “Land of the Free” from watching documentaries, movies, etc so why am I following this way? This was something that I just started seriously thinking about.

My father once said to me, “ How can Christians say that they are Christians while after going to Sunday Church and asking God for forgiveness for their sins, then come back the next day and treat our people they way they did?” So with this I understood that I was a christian only because it was taught to me since I was little. No proof was there to look at for me to be convinced that this was the truth. This act was merely me following my forefathers blindly.

“Nay! They say: “We found our fathers following a certain way and religion, and we guide ourselves by their footsteps.”

(Chapter Az-Zukhruf verse 22)


Keep in mind, my father (May Allaah SWT guide him, ameen) does not have a religion that he follows but he believes that God exists; yet I was still sent to “Sunday School” as a child. Maybe this had to do with the choice from my mother (May Allaah SWT guide her ameen), who is a catholic. Also keep in mind that I wasn’t too much of a “practicing” christian, nor was I studious in it. I basically just stuck with the “Jesus loves me” and “Jesus died for my sins” concept and tried my best to be a good person.

Abu Hurairah (ra) reported Prophet Muhammad (peace and prayers be upon him as saying,

“Every child is born on the fitrah (i.e.Muslim) and it is his parents who make him a christian or a jew....”

(Al-Muwatta 16.53)

Anyway, when my father mentioned that statement to me, I had nothing to say in return.

Now, just from this, doubt set in about the religion of Christianity. I also read some information regarding the Creed of Nicea. Roman Emperor Constantine and his members got together and decided on their own that Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) was divine, yet Jesus (peace be upon him) never said this himself.

For me, I didn’t think that Jesus (peace be upon him) was God. I have always thought that they were separate. Honestly, they say one must pray through Jesus (peace be upon him) to get to the Father, but I did this only a few times in my life. 95% of the time, I prayed directly to God. Moreover, this was some scriptural confusion that only led to me doubting this religion even more, to the point I started feeling stressed out.

As I sat in the deep thoughts of confusion regarding Christianity the pains of my heart suffered dramatically. My nerves ready to burst, stress dominating my mind. Belief should not consist of any doubt. It is 100% confidence that what one believes in is correct.

This was not the feeling that I had any more. Depression set in. Fear set in! The Whispers of Shaiton (Satan) attacked me from left and right. I would say to myself, “What if I die not believing that Jesus died for my sins? Would God be pleased with me?!” Tears began to fall like rivers down my face heavily. The pain from confusion broke me apart! Who did I take my problem to? My father!? No! My Mother!? No! My brother, sister (May Allaah SWT guide them all, ameen)! No! I took this weighty problem of my soul to The One Who created it. God! I made a very sincere supplication to Him saying,


“O, God! I am so confused and I don’t know what to do! I seek Your help! Guide me to what You want me to follow. I will not listen to the words of men. I Put my trust in You and only You.”


Crash: Turning Point


Later on that week, I was running late for basketball practice at Phoenix College, so I tried getting on the freeway to speed things up. I’m on it, driving about 60mph in the carpool lane (even though I was the only one in the car) and there were 2 cars ahead of me. All of a sudden I noticed the car in front of me slammed on its breaks! So I slammed on mine! I slid all the way to the car in front of me but not hitting it. Phew! Then another shock occurred.

A car appeared out of no where like a sniper’s bullet on my rear side, driving about 45 to 50mph. BOOM! I’m hit! The car in front of me is hit! I’m feeling ok, no one was seriously injured, to my knowledge. They say that whiplash pain usually comes the next day after such an event takes place. Unfortunately, I didn’t make it for basketball practice that day due to the accident. Also when I woke up the next day to attend practice, I felt pain in my lower back.

I went to the trainer because the pain was intense and annoying. The trainer would lay me on my stomach and feel on my back (i.e. spine) down to my tailbone area to see what places caused discomfort to me. I told the trainer what spots bothered me. Every morning I had to come in, lay on my stomach with a heating pad on it; try to practice, then after that come back and have an electric pulse massager connected to my back to relieve me of some pain, ice my back, then go to class. Unfortunately, some bad news was told to me.

The trainer said that I have a “bruised vertebrae in my tailbone area.” A specialist agreed with the trainer and he (i.e. the specialist) added that I had a “rotated pelvis” as well. Ouch! Rehab was a must for me, but God had other plans for me.

Now being on campus I went to the College Library where I would use the internet. Now keep in mind, at this time I was still thinking about my ancestry, so guess what? That led me to take an interest in a sect of Islaam called “The Nation of Islam”. My barber (in the past) was from N.O.I. and he mentioned The Qur’aan to me. He was telling me how our people worshipped Allaah before coming into slavery, and how Allaah sent Elijah Muhammad to teach us about Islaam in America.

“Muhammad(peace and blessings be upon him) is not the father of any of your men, but he is the Messenger of Allaah and the last(end) of the Prophets. And Allaah is Ever All-Awar of everything”

(Chapter Al-Ahzab verse 40)


So I decided to check this group out using yahoo searches. In this sect they teach a lot about how “special” African American people are. I saw so much emphasis. “The black man is the original man” and that “white people are the devils.” This is what I was reading in their book by Elijah Muhammad “Message to the Blackman”.

This book would build the spirit of a black male or female without doubt, but at the same time it promotes Nationalism, Racism, and Shirk (adding partners to Allaah) to the utmost degree. I read that they believe that a “Big Headed Scientist” created the white race (1)! This was complete nonsense and it didn’t make sense to me. Good thing God led me to someone who knew about this sect plus more.

“O mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another. Verily, the most honorable of you with Allaah is that(believer) who has At-Taqwa{i.e. He is one of the pious.}Verily, Allaah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.”

(Chapter Al-Hujurat verse 13)

Turning Point # 2

“ ..He whom Allaah guides, he is the rightly guided….”

(Chapter The Cave, verse 17)

One day I was coming to the campus after hanging out with a friend and as we were walking my friend started talking with some guy out of no where. He wore a white dress shirt with slacks and I didn’t really pay him too much attention until he said, “I am a muslim.” I don’t know what my friend said to him to make him say that but it definitely caught my attention. I asked him about Islaam. He said, “Meet me back here tomorrow. I will bring you some Information.”

Am I Blind Following?

That day came, we met at the same place, and he gave me da’wah (i.e. calling me to Islaam). He understood that I was christian influenced, so he brought some information regarding Jesus (peace be upon him) and contradictions in the bible. He asked me,

“The Christians say that the bible is the Word of God, so should there be any contradictions (i.e. errors) in it?"

I said, “No, of course not.” So he showed them to me.(2) He also showed me scientific evidences which COULD NOT BE KNOWN by a man 1500 years ago while modern scientists have just learn about these discoveries about 100 years ago!(3) For example, Embryology and knowledge of the Oceans (Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean sea) etc.

“Do they not then consider the Qur’aan carefully? Had it been from other than Allaah, they would have found therein many a contradiction.”

(Chapter An-Nisaa verse 82)

“O mankind! If you are in doubt about the Resurrection, then verily We have created you(i.e. Adam) from dust, then from a Nutfah (mixed drops of male and female sexual discharge i.e. the offspring of Adam), then from a clot(a piece of thick coagulated blood) then from a little lump of flesh, some formed and some unformed(as in the case of miscarriage)- that We may make(it) clear to you(i.e. to show you Our power and Ability to do what We will.)…..”

(Chapter Hajj verse 5)

“And it is He Who has let free the two seas (kinds of water): this is palatable and sweet, and that is salt and bitter; and He has set a barrier and a complete partition between them.”

(Chapter Al-Furqan verse53)

Now after this great, influential conversation built upon proofs by this muslim man, I found myself motivated and enthusiastically coming to Phoenix College only to read Al Qur’aan in the library where I would spend most of my time. I could not stop reading this Great Book. Class time would come up, yet I didn’t feel the need to go to that class because I was reading Al Qur’aan or I would show up late.

That muslim brother ended up leading me to Islaam, Walhumdulillaah (and All praise be to Allaah). I took my shahadah(testification of faith) just 3 weeks since hearing about Islaam through this muslim man after being a so called Christian for 18 and a half years. This led to me becoming a muslim on Friday, Jummu’ah prayer.

When I received my first Qur’aan, I would spend most of my time in my room, in seclusion, reading until I fell asleep. I would then wake up about 5-6am just to continue reading it. I recognized my priorities have changed. I was seeking an athletic full scholarship to a University with my talent with basketball.

I was being recruited by the University of Miami, Eastern Michigan, and other schools but this was put to an end with my injury. Now I am seeking to get closer to Allaah SWT and His Messenger(peace and prayers be upon him) by following The Qur’aan and The Authentic Sunnah(way) of Prophet Muhammad(peace and prayers be upon him) and the way of his Sahabah (i.e. Companions){May Allaah SWT be pleased with them all}

“.. Whoever disbelieves in Taghut(i.e. false deities, idols, stones, sun, stars, angles, human beings, rulers, etc) and believes in Allaah, then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that will never break. And Allaah is All-Hearer, All-Knowing.”

(Chapter Al-Baqarah verse 256)


Remember when I asked Him sincerely…,

“O, God! I am so confused and I don’t know what to do! I seek Your help! Guide me to what You want me to follow. I will not listen to the words of men. I Put my trust in You and only You.”

Allaah Glory and Praise be to Him says,

“… I respond to the supplicant when he calls on Me(without any mediator or intercessor). So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.”

(Chapter Al-Baqarah verse 186)


Thus,

“Allaah is the Wali(Protector or Guardian) of those who believe. He brings them out from darkness into Light. But as for those who disbelieve, their Auliya(supporters and helpers) are Taghut{False deities and false leaders}, they bring them out from light into darkness. Those are the dwellers of the Fire, and they will abide therein forever.”

Foot Notes.

1. (N.O.I) http://www.seventhfam.com/temple/books/black_man/blkindex2.htm
2. (Contradictions)http://www.islamway.com/english/images/library/contradictions.htm
3. (Miracle of the Oceans) http://www.55a.net/eng/6.htm
4. (Miracle of Embryology) http://www.islam101.com/science/embryo.html

Jewels of Wisdom

from the Shaykh Mahmoud Sulaimon

by Ibrahim S.*

Shaykh Mahmoud(May Allah preserve him) once informed me about his studies of the madhab of Imam Ash-Shafi’i(raheemahullaah) at Al-Azhar University in Egypt and how he became Hafiz ul Qur’an( A Memorizer of the Qur’aan) at the age of 9 and he studied books on Shafi’i fiqh(which are thick in volume) for 7 years; I once asked him, “ Shaykh, do you still study?” He said, “ Yes I study. I sometimes study from 11pm till Fajr Time.” I then asked, “ What do you study?” He said, “ Hadith, fiqh, tafseer(etc).” Yet he will not say “ Yes I am a learned one.”

Shaykh Mahmoud is very humble, known for his knowledge and piety who speaks as if he is in pain. He noticed that now a days people(i.e. the laymen) would read books(small ones at that) then think that they are part of the Ulema(Scholars) Of the Ummah(Nation) of Rasulullah(peace and blessings be upon him). I have noticed this as well and I, myself had to avert this thought. Most of these people(including myself) don’t even know the Arabic language. Subhan’Allah( Glory be to Allah). Allah says in Surah #39 Az-Zumar( The Groups) verse 9,

“Say: Are those who know equal to those who know not? It is only those men of understanding who will remember.”

The shaykh informed me of great jewels that would make a woman who loves this duniya(world) jealous because of their shine, glimmer and attractive beauty which throws humbleness upon a sincere heart when heard. When he noticed my zeal for seeking beneficial ilm(In Islam) and seeing the state of the arrogant ones he gave me some jewels to dwell upon. He said,

“ Ibrahim, if you want to learn Islam, first learn humbleness.”

“A man can have a lot of knowledge yet he lacks wisdom, therefore he can be a sword to the community.”

“Be humble. Walk like an Old man. The Malikah(angels) look at an arrogant person who thinks he knows everything( and/or thinks himself to be better than others) to be as small as an ant; and if the man is humble they(i.e.The Angels) enjoy being around him.”

“ You won’t know everything in Islam…”
( Someone will always know something that you didn’t know)

“Allah does not like the arrogant ones. The only reason why one has been given knowledge is because Allah gave it to him. It was not acquired by himself.”

(May Allah The Exalted have Mercy on Brother Faiz. Once he pointed out to me a while ago regarding Qarun(one of Fir’aun’s{Pharoah} advisors when he said after Allah gave him an abundance of wealth, “ This has been given to me only because of the knowledge I possess...” Allah put an end to his arrogance in the land, “ So We caused the earth to swallow him and his dwelling place..”(Surah{Chapter}#28, Al-Qasas-The Narration- ayat(verses) 78 and 81)

Subhan’Allah! These are gems that cannot be priced and never neglected by anyone; especially by the students of Knowledge and the laymen. May Allah bless Shaykh Mahmoud and increase him in beneficial knowledge and grant him Jannah Firdaows for his efforts ameen.


Insha’Allah (God-Willing) I will support the Shaykh with excerpts taken from the book “ The Heirs of the Prophets” by Imam Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali(May Allah have mercy upon him) section: “Paths leading to Sacred Knowledge”translated by Zaid Shakir(May Allah reward him) page 10-11. The Prophet(peace and blessings be upon him) is related to have said in a sound hadith,

“Allah does not withdraw knowledge by extracting it from the hearts of the men, rather He takes away the religious scholars. When no religious scholar remains, people take the ignorant as their leaders; these ignorant ones are questioned and give religious verdicts without knowledge. They are astray and lead others astray.”

{Bukhari, hadith no. 100, 7307}

Tirmdhi relates from Jubayr ibn Nufayr(May Allah be pleased with him), on the authority of Abu Darda:

“We were with the Prophet(peace and blessings be upon him) and he said, “ There {will be} a time when knowledge will be snatced from the people until they will be unable to benefit from it.” Ziyad ibn Lubayd said, “ O Messenger of Allah, how will Allah seize knowledge from us when we recite the Qur’an.” I swear by Allah, we recite it and teach it to our women and children!” He said, “ May your mother be bereaved of you, Ziyad. I used to consider you one of the learned people of Madinah! The Torah and the Gospel are with the Jews and the Christians, yet do they benefit from them in any way?”

{Tirmdhi no. 2653}

Jubayr Ibn Nufayr said:

“I met ‘Ubada ibn al-Samit and said to him, “ Will you not listen to what Abu Darda’ is saying?” I then informed him of what he said concerning the loss of knowledge. He said, “ Abu Darda’ has spoken truthfully. If you wish I will inform you of the FIRST KNOWLEDGE to be removed from people. It is HUMILITY(Khushu’). You will enter the central masjid and hardly find a single humble person!”

Nasa’i relates a similar hadith from Jubayr ibn Nufayr, on the authority of ‘Awf ibn Malik(May Allah be pleased with him), from the Prophet(peace and blessings be upon him). He says in this hadith,

“The Prophet(peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned the straying of the Jews and the Christians despite their possessing scriptures. {Al-Nasa’i , al- Sunan al-Kubra(Beirut: Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-‘Arabi), 8:211; al-Musnad, 6-26-27; al Hakim, al-Mustadrak(Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyya, 1990), 1:99-100}

Jubayr ibn Nufayr also related:

“ I met Shaddad ibn Aws and I informed him of the hadith of ‘Awf ibn Malik, and he said, “ He has spoken the truth. Shall I not inform you about the first occurrence of the lifting of knowledge? Humility will be lifted to the point you will not see a single humble person.”

Imam Ahmad(May Allah have mercy on him) relates in a hadith in which Ziyad ibn Lubayd(May Allah be pleased with him) mentioned something, whereupon the Prophet(peace and blessings be upon him) said,

“ That will be in the time when knowledge is gone”
{Imam Ahmad, al-Musnad, 4: 218-19; Ibn Majah, hadith no. 4048}

“ All of these narrations relate that the departure of knowledge resides in the failure to act on it. The Companions( May Allah be pleased with all of them) explained that the reason for this is the passing of inner knowledge from the hearts- with inner knowledge referring to humility. In this vein, Hudhayfa(May Allah be pleased with him) relates,

“Surely, humility will be the first knowledge to be lifted.”
{ Related with a similar wording in al-Hilya, 1: 281; al Zuhud, 2 : 135.}


Now I will also quote from “Reliance of the Traveller by Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri, a Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law” page 806, section t3.17 A Pure Heart,


“ Do not seek exaltation on earth, but have humility in whatever degree Allah has raised you to. For Allah has brought you forth from earth, your mother, and it is unseemly to exalt yourself above her. As the Hadith says, “Allah has charged Himself to raise nothing in this world, save that He will lower it again.” So If you are such a thing, you may expect to be lowered by Allah.”


May Allah The Exalted aid us in striving to be like those who have good manners(akhlaq), character, humbleness and among those who hate pride and arrogance ameen.

_______________________________________

*Brother Ibrahim converted to Islam two and a half years ago, when he was 19, and since then has spent most of his time and energy in learning Islam and trying to practice it. InshaAllah I will also post the story of his conversion written by himself. May Allah keep him on the straight path always, aameen. May Allah guide us all and make it easy for us to stay strong in our faith, and be pleased with us, aameen.

Modesty

The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said,

"Faith (Belief) consists of more than sixty branches (i.e. parts). And Haya (Modesty) is a part of faith."

[Sahih al Bukari: Vol 1:#8]

and

"Modesty and inability to speak are two branches of faith, but obscenity and eloquence are two branches of hypocrisy."

[Mishkat: 4796]

Does Allah Love Me?

I read something beautiful on an Islamic Q & A site last night, somebody asked how do we know when Allah (the God) loves us and is pleased with us, what are the signs? Obviously it caught my attention and i went on reading, it is great to know there are some signs that we can look for to know if Allah is pleased with us or not. I think i should put it here just as it is, it is already a brief answer.

Praise be to Allaah.

Among the signs that the Lord is pleased with His slave is that He guides him to do good deeds and avoid haraam things. This is confirmed by the words of Allaah:

“While as for those who accept guidance, He increases their guidance and bestows on them their piety” [Muhammad 47:17]

“As for those who strive hard in Us (Our Cause), We will surely guide them to Our paths (i.e. Allaah’s religion — Islamic Monotheism)” [al-‘Ankaboot 29:69]

But if a person is hindered from doing good deeds and avoiding haraam things – we seek refuge with Allaah – then that is a sign that Allaah is not pleased with him. Allaah has also explained in His Book that the sign of His being pleased with His slave and of His guidance is that He opens his heart to true guidance and true faith.

And the sign of misguidance and being far from the Straight Path is distress and constriction in the heart. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And whomsoever Allaah wills to guide, He opens his heart to Islam; and whomsoever He wills to send astray, He makes his heart closed and constricted, as if he is climbing up to the sky. Thus Allaah puts the wrath on those who believe not”
[al-An’aam 6:125]

Ibn 'Abbaas said, commenting on this verse: “And whomsoever Allaah wills to guide…”: He opens his heart to Tawheed and belief therein.
Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 2/175

Another sign of Allaah’s love for His slave and His being pleased with him is that He makes him beloved to His slaves. Al-Bukhaari (3209) and Muslim (2637) narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:

“When Allaah loves a person, He calls out to Jibreel: ‘Allaah loves So and so,’ so Jibreel loves him. Then Jibreel calls out to the people of heaven, ‘Allaah loves So and so, so love him.’ So the people of heaven love him and he finds acceptance on earth.”

Al-Nawawi said: “and he finds acceptance on earth” means that people love him and are pleased to see him, so their hearts incline towards him. It says in another report: “and he finds love on earth.”

And Allaah knows best.

Source: Islamqa

A small extract from the last sermon of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)

"Do not do injustice to yourselves. Remember, one day you will appear before Allah and answer about your deeds. So beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.

"O People! No prophet or apostle will come after me and no new faith will be born. O People! Reason and understand well the words that I convey to you. I leave behind me two things, the Qur'an and my Sunnah (i.e. sayings, deeds and approvals), and if you follow these you will never go astray.

"All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly".

Time At Hand

Yesterday I revised Surah al Ghashiyah (88) from the Quraan, (made a few mistakes, which are corrected now alhamdulilah). Its a beautiful chapter, a small one with very short verses, but which you could ponder upon forever and learn so much from.

The begining part talks of two groups of people on the Last Day, according to their deeds, ones with humiliated, downcast faces and others with bright, joyful ones. But the thing that cast terror in my heart is the two lines in which Allah says how both the groups strove really hard in this life, but one of them only got tiredness out of it, while the other is seen so lively and their freshness is obvious from their countenances.

"Has there come to you the news of the overwhelming calamity ?

Some faces on that day will be downcast;

Labouring, weary.

They shall enter a blazing Fire,

And will be made to drink from a boiling spring.

They will have no food save that of dry, bitter and thorny herbage,

Which will neither nourish nor satisfy hunger.

And some faces on that day will be joyful;

Well-pleased with their past striving,

In a lofty Garden."

(Al-Ghashiyah 88:1-10)

Obviously there was a difference in the striving of the two, the striving of the first group got them nothing but regrets and weariness on the Day of Judgement, because their striving was in acts of disobedience to Allah.

Also at times we may not actually be disobeying Allah but doing good deeds with wrong intentions, and not to please Allah, those kind of deeds will also be of no value and would just come out to be as disappointments over time wasted.

Other times it could be none of these but doing things that bring no benefit either of this world or the hereafter, just 'killing' the precious time that we are given to invest in, so that at the end it is profitable. Just as the Prophet (peace be upon him) likened this world to tillage for the hereafter, and we are here to sow the seeds of good deeds, work by plowing so we can raise crops to be harvested later.

And seeing our rewards at the end will make our faces light up with joy, as we all know how pleasing it is to see something accomplished after we have taken great pains for it. On the other hand, we also know the pain of having regrets and hopelessness for not using the time and resources properly and being empty handed at the end, and having no time and chance for changing things to good.

Get Some in Your Heart, If Not All

Ibn `Abbas (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said,

"He who does not memorize any part from the Qur'an he is like the ruined house.''

[At-Tirmidhi]

Commentary: This Hadith means that the heart of that Muslim is devoid of grace of spiritualism and Grace of Allah who does not remember by heart any portion of the Qur'an, in the same way as a deserted house is deprived of inhabitants and Blessings of Allah. What we learn from this is that every Muslim must remember some portion of the Qur'an so that he is safe from the admonition mentioned in this Hadith.

Chapter: The Excellence of Reciting the Quraan

From the Book: Riyadus-Saliheen (The Garden of the Righteous)

Ya Allah Forgive Me

All praises are for you Allah, how I hope that you are there.

For sinful though I know I am, your displeasure I can not bear.

Never, till this moment, did I realize how much I've strayed.

Never, till now, was I more conscious

of all those times when I should have prayed.

For sins are like heavy baggage, that one carries through Life,

Why didn't I realize sooner, that Earth is but a place of sport?

Ya Allah ! Forgive me. Save me from the fire of Hell.

Ya Allah ! Protect me.

From myself for my soul is weak.

Let me not falter ever, for Jan'ah is the abode I seek.

Ya, Allah! Please help me.

For I don't understand and thus, I fear.

What happened to all those moments when

I never doubted that you were near ?

My actions once were guided, by my faith which, once, was strong.

Ya Allah! please guide me .

What happened, what went wrong ?

Each footstep that I used to take,

I took with you ever near my side.

The Quran was my faithful companion, Rasoolallah my beloved guide.

How I yearn for those bygone days Allah,

for I know that the day comes near

When we'll each receive our just rewards,

and Truth will stand sparkling clear.

Life is like a spider's web Allah.

We get caught in its tricky snare

So thoroughly are we disillusioned, time for saalat we can not spare.

I sit here and I wonder, Ya Allah!

Why did I fall so low ? What happened to my faith Allah?

Where did my Iman go?

In this earthly life of ours, so often does sin seem right.

Falsehood seems to be the truth,

as if days are confused with night.

Man is an imperfect creature.

And thus, Man shall always wrong.

For the road to Jan'ah is rocky, and the journey seems awfully long.

Ya Allah ! Our creator, we are all just peices of clay.

Please help us with our steps in life, and let us not lose our way.

All praises are for you Allah,

I know that you are near.

I know that you have read my heart, and my words I know you hear.

[Anonymous]

In the name of ALLAH, the Gracious, the Merciful

Whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth glorifies ALLAH. HIS is the Kingdom and HIS is the praise, and HE has power over all things.

It is HE Who has created you, but some of you are disbelievers and some of you are believers. And ALLAH sees what you do.

HE created the heavens and the earth with an eternal purpose and HE gave you shape and made your shapes beautiful, and to HIM is the ultimate return.

[The Holy Quraan 64:1-3]

DO NOT BE SAD

1. Know that if you do not live within the scope of today, your thoughts will be scattered, your affairs will become confused, and your worrying will increase. This is the meaning of the hadith: "When you are in the morning, do not expect to see the evening, and when you are in the evening, do not expect to see the morning."

2. Forget the past and all that it contained. Being absorbed in things that are gone is sheer lunacy.

3. Do not be preoccupied with the future. Because the future is in the world of the unseen, do not let it bother you until it comes.

4. Do not be shaken by criticism; instead, be firm. Know that the level of people's criticism increases in proportion to your worth.

5. Faith in Allah and good deeds are the means of the good and happy life.

6.Whoever desires peace, tranquility, and comfort shall find it all in the remembrance of Allah.

7.One should know with certainty that everything is according to a divine decree.

8.Do not expect gratitude from anybody.

9. Train yourself to be ready and be prepared for the worst eventuality.

10. Perhaps what has happened is in your best interest (though you may not comprehend how that is so).

11.Everything that is decreed for the Muslim is best for him.

12.Enumerate the blessings (of Allah) and be thankful.

13. Whatever you have, are better than many others.

14. From one hour to the next comes relief.

15. In times of hardship, one turns to supplication and prayer.

16. Calamities should positively reshape your outlook and strengthen your heart.

17. Indeed, with each difficulty there is relief.

18. Do not let the trifles cause of your destruction.

19.Indeed, your Lord is Oft-Forgiving.

20. Do not be angry... Do not be angry... Do not be angry.

21.Life is bread, water, and shade, so do not be perturbed by a lack of any other material thing.

22. Remember the verse: "And in the heaven is your provision, and that which you are promised". (Qur'an 51:22)

23. Most evil that is supposed to happen never occurs.

24. Look at those who are afflicted and be thankful.

25.When Allah loves a people, He causes them to endure trials.

26. You should constantly repeat those supplications that the Prophet taught us to say during times of hardship.

27. Work hard and seriously in that which is fruitful, and cast off idleness.

28.Abandon spreading rumors and receiving rumors. Upon hearing them do not believe them.

29. Your malice and your striving to seek revenge is much more harmful to your health than it is to your antagonist.

30.The hardship that befalls you is expiation for your sins.

_______________________________

Recommended Book:

Don't Be Sad Buy Today @ AL-Basheer.com

There befalls not any calamity either in the earth or in your own persons, but it is recorded in a Book before WE bring it into being - surely, that is easy for ALLAH .

That you may not grieve over what is lost to you nor exult because of that which HE has bestowed upon you. And ALLAH loves not any conceited boaster.

[Al-Hadid 57:22-23]

Looking to God for Guidance

[Yesterday I was reading a sister's story about her conversion to Islam from Christianity, and I found in her story an amazingly inspiring part that I want to share, It came just when I needed it most]

Some religious people get angry when I say that God guides me, and claim it is impossible. First of all, the Quran begins by stating that we should go to God for guidance. Secondly, just because they (the angry person) have never had this experience, does not mean it does not exist.

It does happen, and I will be happy to try to explain how to get started, as far as I understand it.


1. First of all, remember, that God knows every iota of our intentions. So, we must begin with utterly pure intentions. You cannot want God's guidance for some reason or power, ego, etc. It must be for wholly unselfish reasons. God recognizes the impure heart, no matter how successfully someone might try to disguise it among the general public.


2. You must let go of all the things that you try and control in your life and recognize that God is in control. I think so often God is trying to guide us towards what he wants us to do, however, we are too busy, trying to make things go the way that we want, that we are not able to hear Him. A good way to let go of our control, so that we can hear God, is to visualize a barge floating down a river in front of you. Imagine placing everything you have in your life on that barge as it floats away from you, to God.

Image you have no say or input as to what happens to these things, situations, people, etc., and honestly saying to God that you fully accept and embrace whatever it is He decides to do with all of the things in our life. Even if it is the opposite of what you desire - that is a very hard part. Imagine if He decides that everything is best for you, if it is the opposite, of what you are trying to achieve. This is where you have to truly trust God one hundred percent.

3. Next, you must be still and recognize God and all of His attributes.

4. Next, you must be silent and still and just "be" with God.

5. You must not expect anything to happen, because it is the grace of God when He guides you. However, if you do this daily, my experience is eventually something happens. Sometimes it happens during the prayer, but other times it occurs while you are in the ordinary situations.

6. The thing that happens is that you will sense a strong direction of guidance. You have to learn to distinguish between your own ideas and Gods. The way that I usually know that it is God, is that His guidance is usually the opposite of what I want to do. For instance, since I am not a good person, there are certain people that I do not like, and would not mind if they disappeared from this earth. Sometimes, I will sense God telling me to go to them and comfort them. It is a struggle because sometimes my only desire is to go up and kick them. I remember once I sensed God asking me to pray blessings for my least favorite person on the planet. I could not believe it. I was arguing with God saying, "come on God? Blessings? Can I just pray that he gets in a car accident and suffers pain and becomes very sorry for being so evil." (I told you that I am bad, didn't I?) Anyway, needless to say, He did not find that acceptable, so I pray the way He requested. When I have a strong sense that I need to do something good that I do not want to do, and this action falls in line with all the teachings of Allah, it is usually God's guidance.

7. The way that I confirm that it was God's guidance is that something significant and Godly happens as a result. For instance, the day I prayed blessings for my least favorite person, he made a dramatic turn around in his behavior toward me from that time forward.

8. Again, the key, is all in the honesty of intention. Your intention must be to behave in a pious way, serve Allah and His purposes with no desire for personal gain. Again, I have many interesting stories about this, but I want to limit the length of this.

In the end she asks for prayers for herself, especially due to the hardships she has been facing after converting, please make prayers for her and for me, they are highly needed.

And here is the link to her full story

An Image of the Prophet Muhammad

P E A C E B E U P O N H I M

Here is a very precise lifelike image of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) by somebody who saw him for the first time and didnt know him before at all. Its not an image of him drawn on canvas depicting some artist's imagination, but a vivid description by a lady called Umm e Ma'bad.

She was an old Arab lady, very hospitable and kind and the Prophet was travelling from Makkah to Madinah with his companion Abu Bakr (ra) and two others, and was thirsty. When they stopped by her house she offered her hospitality.

Later when her husband came home and she told him about the travellers. He became very keen to hear more from her about the young man she was describing, as he thought he had heard about him before.

This is what she told him about the manners and looks of the Prophet Muhammad [peace be upon him], of all what she saw.

Pious in habit; smart in appearance; appealing in etiquette; proportionate in physique; luxurious in hair; handsome in countenance.

Eyes black and wide; hair long and full; voice deep and rich; neck long and strong; forehead wide and brilliant; eyes filled with modesty; eyebrows thin and long; hair black and slightly curled; with a silent dignity that makes a place in the heart.

Appears very attractive from afar; but is ever more so handsome from close; sweet, enchanting, manner of speaking; speaks clearly, without excess or deficiency of words - as if pearls have been joined into a necklace.

Medium in height, so that appears neither short nor too tall - like the fresh stem of a fresh tree; impressive and magnetic presence; cynosure of his companions; he speaks, and they listen with intent silence; he orders, and they hurry to obey; stately, regal, neither reticent nor talkative!"

On hearing this, her husband exclaimed," This was the man from Quraysh that I have been hearing about. If I ever have the opportunity, I will join his followers."

That is how the Prohpet was, and there are a lot many authentic accounts by his companions about the way he looked and acted. He was of the finest manners.

A companion of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) described him by saying:

Anyone who saw him suddenly stood in awe of him, and anyone who made his acquaintance loved him. Those who described him said they had never seen anyone like him before or since." [Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 1524]

But why is this that in Islam any depiction or drawings or statues of the Prophet Muhammad [pbuh], and for that matter any prophet or God, are not allowed?


One simple reason is that, all those drawn images would be mere imaginations of the people who draw them, and not real representation as those noble personalities were [And even more so for God].


Second and the more important reason is that, becaue of the reverence for those personalities, and honor and love given to them, it has the danger of people eventually ending up worshipping their images or statues, i.e practicing idolatory, the very same thing that all those prophets were sent to banish, i.e worshipping false dieties besides God.


In Islam only God is worthy of worship, and He sent the prophets, from Adam till Jesus and Muhammad [peace be upon them all], so as to be taken as perfect role models by the people. And this is what they are given honor for.


More on What the Prophet looked like ,

Manners of the Prophet [Beautiful Flash presentations]


&
The Teacher [A beautiful islamic song in praise of the Prophet pbuh]


Also: Why we Muslims are angry

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Tags: Islam , Prophet Muhammad , Muslim

Who is Prophet Muhammad?

PEACE BE UPON HIM

About the Prophet Muhammad



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Tags: Islam , Prophet Muhammad , Muslim

Muslim Response

[This is basically in response to a comment posted by Omar, a Christian reader in response to my previous post 'What Makes Me a Muslim'. Wanted it to be read by more people, so I make it as a post, its about how Muslims feel in these circumstances and also some advice for the Muslims.]

Omar, thanks for ur precious comment.

Yes true, this is what the Prophet (peace be upon him) has taught and also he himself wouldn’t have acted in ways many Muslims are, on the contrary his life is full of instances where he responded with kindness even to the people doing worst against him, which consequently led most of them to Islam due to his own beautiful character.

Now there are more than a billion Muslims, all kinds of them, whether they practice Islam fully or not, whether they completely practice the control taught by the Prophet pbuh or not, but all of them take it very PERSONAL when it comes to the Prophet Muhammad, because of his greatness, and our closeness to him.

All the Muslims aren’t going to act in the same way as the Prophet pbuh would have, even though taught so. Many would be naturally violent over this and we can’t stop the reaction. There will be Muslims protesting peacefully and in an organized manner to make an impact, and there will be others who will do otherwise.

And in no way is it right to promote violence and bloodshed, but the ppl who have set it all ablaze by creating those insulting images, should be ready to face all sorts of reactions from all kinds of Muslim that there are. Its a deep deep hurt to each and every Muslim. It is a fact that we are ready to sacrifice our lives for him.

How come the cartoonists and the people with them were not aware at all how more than a billion people on this globe honor the Prophet and that they would be infuriating them by insulting him? Before, it was the desecration of the Quraan and now our Prophet and we know it will go on.

But all that said, now it’s the responsibility of those Muslims who understand how we should react properly, and as you said, our religious scholars should direct them to appropriate and peaceful ways.

We are very rightful in this protest and we must sound it off over the disgrace of our Noble Prophet, who is sent for all mankind. BUT..

But Muslims must remember to do it in an organized way, dont forget patience. And it is important to do it that way not because we fear the western criticism over that, but because that is how we should be, and because Islam stops from such violent protest.

THINK over it and find guidance in Islam itself as to what way it teaches us to act in such situations.

LOOK into your own lives, you are rightfully rising up against it, but are your own lives an example of the same man who you claim your love with, and take him as a role model for yourselves?

Also it is another chance to show the world how beautiful and honorable is the man they have scoffed, and they dont know.

Please read the article at the following link for a variety of ideas how you can respond to this. Read it and go down for a list of ways you can support your Prophet.

More Good Reads: Wondering how the Prophet might have responded to the cartoons..

Freedom and Responsiblity

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Tags: Islam , Prophet Muhammad , Muslim , cartoons

What Makes Me a Muslim

If I have to tell the world what makes me a Muslim, I will use the very same words that one of the companions of the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) used when he was asked the same thing by the King of Abyssinia, Negus.

It is a compelling description of what Islam really is, and what the true message of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is for ALL mankind, as a Messenger of God. And the world should also know why any attempt to disgrace our Noble Prophet is so sickening and exasperating, and why we regard him the most after God and respect him in a way no one else is. You will know once you read it:

"We were a people in a state of ignorance and immorality, worshipping idols and eating the flesh of dead animals, committing all sorts of abomination and shameful deeds, breaking the ties of kinship, treating guests badly and the strong amongst us exploited the weak.

"We remained in this state until God sent us a Prophet, one of our own people whose lineage, truthfulness, trustworthiness and integrity were well-known to us.

"He called us to worship God alone and to renounce the stones and the idols which we and our acncestors used to worhip besides God.

"He commmanded us to speak the truth, to honour our promises, to be kind to our relations, to be helpful to our neighbours, to cease all forbidden acts, so abstain from bloodshed, to avoid obscenities and false witness, not to appropriate an orphan's property not slander chaste women.

"He ordered us to worship God alone and not to associate anything with Him, to uphold Prayer, to give Zakat and fast in the month of Ramadan.

"We believed in him and what he brought to us from God and we follow him in what he has asked us to do and we keep away from what he forbade us from doing.

"Thereupon O King, our people attacked us to make us renounce our religion and take us back to the old immorality and the worship of idols.

"They oppressed us, made life intolerable for us and obstructed us from observing our religion. So we left for your country, choosing you before anyone else, desiring your protection and hoping to live in justice and peace in your midst."

These are the words of Jafar ibn Abi Taalib who was among the first who became Muslim when the Prophet (peace be upon him) gave out the message in Makkah. And well, King Negus also accepted this message and became a Muslim, (after also asking what Muslims thought of Jesus (peace be upon him).

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was sent as a mercy to all mankind, and this was his message, that's the reason his companions stood for it, and always defended it. And this is what makes me a Muslim.

Technorati Tags: Islam , Prophet Muhammad , Muslim

Fasting Today?

It is 9th Muharram of the Islamic calendar today. So plz dont forget to fast today and tomorrow as it is recommended by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to Madinah and saw the Jews fasting on the day of ‘Ashoora’ [10th Muharram].

He said, “What is this?”

They said, “This is a good day, this is the day when Allaah saved the Children of Israel from their enemy and Moosa fasted on this day.”

He said, “We are closer to Moosa than you.” [Sahih al-Bukhari]

So he fasted on this day and told the people to fast.

It is best to fast not just on the day of Aashoora but also adding a day before or after it fasting. As the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, 'If I am (still) here next year, then certainly I shall fast the ninth (day of Muharram).' [Muslim]

We fast on this day out of respect for it, and it is Sunnah not obligatory. But the reward is GREAT. Again in the Prophet's words, (peace be upon him).

“Fasting the day of ‘Arafah I hope Allaah will expiate thereby for the year before it and the year after it, and fasting the day of ‘Ashoora’ I hope Allaah will expiate thereby for the year that came before it.” [Muslim]

That is, forgiveness from all the (minor) sins commited during the year before it inshaAllah. And the thing to remember is that all the major sins will still need repenting.

Have a great day, May Allah forgive us all of our sins, and make us do deeds that He loves, aameen.

Don't go, read some more here :)

Linking Up With God

"And when My servants ask you (O Muhammad) about Me, tell them I am very close to them. I answer the prayer of every supplicant when he calls on Me . Therefore they should respond to me and believe in Me, so that they may be rightly guided". 2:186

A heart touching verse from the Quraan, where God is so lovingly telling each one of us, you can call on Me directly and I reply, you dont need anyone in the middle in order for your call to be conveyed to Me. You are never alone, and I listen to you direct whenever you call out for help and I respond and I guide.

Allah said elsewhere `I am as My servant thinks of Me, and I am with him whenever he invokes Me.' [Hadith Qudsi]


This is how each human being has a very direct link with God, a God-man relationship on one to one basis, without the need of having any middleman. It is a relationship of love and fear, and the fear is that of having God get angry because of our bad deeds. But as we confess to Him, feel guilty and vow never to repeat those things again (and sincerity of the heart is the key) we are forgiven and become as pure as a newborn.


“Whoso does evil or wrongs his own soul, then seeks pardon of Allah, will find Allah Forgiving, Merciful.” 4:110


This is the relationship that all the prophets were sent to establish between the people on the earth and their Creator in the heavens. To help them understand God and to remove all the misconceptions they kept forming about the nature of God.


As like in the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the people of Makkah were worshipping stone idols, even though being the followers of prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) this was all far from making any sense. When asked why they worship and pray to these stone statues who cant even move or respond, their response used to be that we worship the one true God but these idols are our way to him, as these statues are those of the people who were righteous and closer to God, while we are imperfect. This was their self justification without having any proof to support their notions.


But Islam again established the right idea about linking with God, based on absolute belief in Him and His ordained way of life. You want to talk to him, you feel bad, you are hurt, or may be guilty for doing something really wrong, just raise your hands and ask him humbly and sincerily to help you and forgive you. You will find him ever Merciful.


God doesnot expect perfection from us, He accepts us as we are. Aren't we created by Him? He knows our sinful nature, BUT He wants us to keep making ourselves better and keep turning back to Him because that is the test.


Who has created death and life that HE might try you -which of you is best in deeds; and HE is the Mighty, the Most Forgiving. 67: 2


And this is how close God is to us:


And assuredly, WE have created man and WE know what his mind whispers to him, and WE are nearer to him than even his jugular vein. 50: 17.


So never get tired of praying to God and seeking His forgiveness. We can only find peace by being close to God and making a conscious effort towards that. Doing all the stuff we do daily in our busy lives, stay linked with God. Keep calling on Him as He says 'I am near'.