Thursday 24 November 2011

Ways to improve your relationship with QURAN‏

 

7 ways to improve your relationship with ALQURAN

O my Lord, indeed my people have taken this Qur’an as a thing (abandoned)” [al-Furqan 25: 30], {وَقَالَ الرَّسُولُ يَا رَبِّ إِنَّ قَوْمِي اتَّخَذُوا هَـٰذَا الْقُرْآنَ مَهْجُورًا ﴿٣٠﴾}, Transliteration: Wa Qāla Ar-Rasūlu Yā Rabbi 'Inna Qawmī Attakhadhū Hādhā Al-Qur'āna Mahjūrāan

Are you one of those people who rarely touch the Qur’an? Or do you read daily, but don’t find it is having the impact on you that it should? Whatever the case may be, these are some simple tips that can help you connect with the Qur’an.



1. Before you touch it, check your heart. The key to really benefiting from the Qur’an is to check your heart first, before you even touch Allah’s Book. Ask yourself, honestly, why you are reading it? Is it to just get some information and to let it drift away from you later? Remember that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was described by his wife as a “walking Qur’an”; in other words, he didn’t just read and recite the Qur’an, he lived it.



2. Do your Wudu (ablution). Doing your Wudu is good physical and mental preparation to remind you that you’re not reading just another book. You are about to interact with God, so being clean should be a priority when communicating with Him.



3. Read at least 5 minutes every day. Too often, we think we should read Qur’an for at least one whole hour. If you aren’t in the habit of reading regularly, this is too much. Start off with just five minutes daily. If you took care of step one, Insha Allah (God willing), you will notice that those five minutes will become 10, then half an hour, then an hour, and maybe even more!



4. Make sure you understand what you’ve read. Five minutes of reading the Qur’an in Arabic is good, but you need to understand what you’re reading. Make sure you have a good translation of the Qur’an in the language you understand best. Always try to read the translation of what you’ve read that day.





5. Remember, the Qur’an is more interactive than a CD. In an age of “interactive” CD-ROMs and computer programs, a number of people think books are passive and boring. But the Qur’an is not like that. Remember that when you read the Qur’an, you are interacting with Allah. He is talking to you, so pay attention.





6. Don’t just read; listen too. There are now many audio cassettes and CDs of the Qur’an, a number of them with translations as well. This is great to put on your Walkman or your car’s CD or stereo as you drive to and from work. Use this in addition to your daily Qur’an reading, not as a replacement for it.





7. Make Dua (supplication). Ask Allah to guide you when you read the Qur’an. Your aim is to sincerely, for the love of Allah, interact with Him by reading, understanding and applying His blessed words. Making Dua to Allah for help and guidance will be your best tool for doing this.

The Metaphysical laws in the Qur'an

 

Remembering the Metaphysical laws in the Qur'an

Fatima Barkatullah





We can do something about what is happening to our Muslim brothers and sisters. Boycott Israeli products (look at every product you buy and boycott it if it comes from Israel). Encourage our men to go to the demonstrations. Make sincere du'a to Allah for our situation. How pathetic we feel and how little we can really do in the here and now to impact the situation.



Let's look to the future, to changing the state of the Ummah completely. The Jihad for justice starts in our homes.



I believe that the greatest and most powerful contribution we can make as mothers is this:



Bring up your children to be Mu'mineen, who take the laws of Allah seriously, who are attached to the life of the Prophet sallaAllahu alaihi wa sallam (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Sunnah.



Teach your children history and the lessons of history.



Teach them not just about the physical laws that Newton elucidated so well, but the Metaphysical laws that the Qur'an elucidates so perfectly.



A few days ago we went through the story of the battle of Badr and I taught my children about the Sunnah of Allah, that if He wills he can make a small group of people overpower a huge number of people...I taught them that no one knows the army of Allah but He. 300 men who were less well armed beat 1000 well-armed men that day - I want them to remember that forever. It can mean so many things in their lives: that the little kid can overcome the big bully, that when the odds are stacked against you, if you have Iman (faith), you can win...that quality is more important than quantity...that if Allah is on your side, you have nothing and no one to fear...



The metaphysical laws that are the Sunnah of Allah are mentioned throughout the Qur'an.



The law that:



After hardship will come ease.



That Allah obliterates Riba (as we have recently seen) and make Sadaqah profitable

That if you thank Allah, he will give you more...all of these and many more have been mentioned in the Qur'an.



That the Jews and Christians will never be pleased with you until you follow their religion and way of life.



That if you are conscious of Allah, He will give you a way out and provide for you from means that you never imagined.



These are all laws that we can observe and that are talked about in the Qur'an.

If they grow up with Yaqeen (true belief and conviction) in these metaphysical laws, they will be the bravest of men, because the apparent will not deter them...what is visible to the eye will not scare them...they will not be risk averse, rather they will leap off the most dangerous mountain, knowing that they will only be hurt if Allah wills it, they will jump into that deepest ocean, believing that if they are doing so for the sake of Allah then Allah will grant them victory over the waves. They will not be fooled by what seems to be reality because they will be aware that anything is possible if you have Allah on your side.



That is what this Ummah needs. A generation of people who have so much Iman in the sunan of Allah that they will take risks, they will dare to do what no one's done before, they will be willing to go against the grain, unapologetic, firm in their resolve.





The problems of the Ummah did not appear overnight and they will not disappear overnight. But we, the mothers of the Ummah can set that change in motion...we must set that change in motion.

A party in Paradise, A party in Hellfire

 

Lecture By Shaykh Nabeel Al-Awdhi











In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

The Companions of our Prophet Muhammed (SAW) used to gather to remember death so that they would benefit their souls by increasing in fear of Allah and strive to gain His pleasure. If this was the case of the Sahaabah and they were the best of generations, the most pious and God-fearing of this ummah, then what about us? Surely, it means that we need to engage in the remembrance of Allah (SWT) even more. After all, we are in far more need of this act of worship than they were.



Let us begin at the end of a man's life, in his last moments. He is lying on his death bed and his family is at his side. His father is calling for the doctor. His wife asks him: "To whom are you leaving us?". The man's little daughter asks him, "Why do you not answer me?", and his small boy cries but nobody responds to him. This is the situation Allah, The Most Perfect and the Most High, has informed us about:

"Nay, when the soul reaches the throat, and it is said: "Who will cure him now?". The dying person concludes that this is the time for departing. The leg joins the other leg." [Al-Qiyaamah: 75:26-29]



{كَلَّا إِذَا بَلَغَتِ التَّرَاقِيَ ﴿٢٦﴾ وَقِيلَ مَنْ ۜ رَاقٍ ﴿٢٧﴾ وَظَنَّ أَنَّهُ الْفِرَاقُ ﴿٢٨﴾ وَالْتَفَّتِ السَّاقُ بِالسَّاقِ ﴿٢٩﴾}

Transliteration: Kalla itha balaghati alttaraqiya (26) Waqeela man raqin (27) Wathanna annahu alfiraqu (28) Wailtaffati alssaqu bialssaqi (29)





They place him in his shroud, his leg joins his other leg. Then he is carried upon the shoulders and taken to a dark hole. If he was a transgressing criminal he cries out: "Woe to it! Where are you taking it?"

"The drive that day will be to your Lord" [Al-Qiyaamah 75: 30 ]



{إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ الْمَسَاقُ}

Transliteration: Ila rabbika yawmaithin almasaqu



Then he is lowered into this ditch and dirt is thrown upon him until he is sealed in it. If he was a criminal, Allah - The Most Perfect and The Most High - says:

"So he neither believed nor did he pray. Rather he belied and turned away" [Al-Qiyaamah 75:31-32 ]



{فَلَا صَدَّقَ وَلَا صَلَّىٰ ﴿٣١﴾ وَلَـٰكِن كَذَّبَ وَتَوَلَّىٰ ﴿٣٢﴾}



Transliteration: Fala saddaqa wala salla (31) Walakin kaththaba watawalla (32)



This transgressor will remain in his grave alone, there will be no one to sit with him and no one to keep him company. He will feel the heat of the fire, smell its foul odor, and be tortured therein. This man's grave will squeeze in upon him so much so that the bones of his rib cage will cross each other. Despite all this punishment and all this torture and pain, he will hope that the hour will never be established. For this man knows that the hour is far worse and of he will be in greater loss on that Day.



The man hears 'As-Saakhah' from within his grave, and what is 'As-Saakhah'? It is the second blowing of the trumpet. This is when all that is in the graves shall be raised and resurrected.



So the criminal will cry: "Woe to us, who has woken us from our resting place?" It will be said: "This is what the Ever-Merciful promised and the messengers where truthful" [Yasin 36:52]



{قَالُوا يَا وَيْلَنَا مَن بَعَثَنَا مِن مَّرْقَدِنَا ۜ ۗ هَـٰذَا مَا وَعَدَ الرَّحْمَـٰنُ وَصَدَقَ الْمُرْسَلُونَ}



Transliteration: Qaloo ya waylana man baAAathana min marqadina hatha ma waAAada alrrahmanu wasadaqa almursaloona



The earth will be torn away from above him. This man will see the heavens being cleft asunder, the stars falling and being scattered, the oceans in their greatness bursting forth, burning, the graves will at that time bring forth their contents. Every person shall know what he has sent forth of good and bad deeds at that moment. [Al-Infitaar 82:1-5]



{إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انفَطَرَتْ ﴿١﴾ وَإِذَا الْكَوَاكِبُ انتَثَرَتْ ﴿٢﴾ وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ ﴿٣﴾ وَإِذَا الْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ ﴿٤﴾ عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَّا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ ﴿٥﴾ }



Transliteration: Itha alssamao infatarat (1) Waitha alkawakibu intatharat (2) Waitha albiharu fujjirat (3) Waitha alqubooru buAAthirat (4) AAalimat nafsun ma qaddamat waakhkharat (5)



Then he will be raised up and driven to the crowding place: 'Al-Mahshar'. That day, the mother who is nursing her child will become careless of it, the mother who is carrying her child will drop her load. That day, mankind will appear as if they are drunk yet they are not drunk. Indeed the punishment of your Lord is great. [Al-Hajj 22:1-2]



{يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ زَلْزَلَةَ السَّاعَةِ شَيْءٌ عَظِيمٌ ﴿١﴾ يَوْمَ تَرَوْنَهَا تَذْهَلُ كُلُّ مُرْضِعَةٍ عَمَّا أَرْضَعَتْ وَتَضَعُ كُلُّ ذَاتِ حَمْلٍ حَمْلَهَا وَتَرَى النَّاسَ سُكَارَىٰ وَمَا هُم بِسُكَارَىٰ وَلَـٰكِنَّ عَذَابَ اللَّـهِ شَدِيدٌ ﴿٢﴾ }



Transliteration: Ya ayyuha alnnasu ittaqoo rabbakum inna zalzalata alssaAAati shayon AAatheemun (1) Yawma tarawnaha tathhalu kullu murdiAAatin AAamma ardaAAat watadaAAu kullu thati hamlin hamlaha watara alnnasa sukara wama hum bisukara walakinna AAathaba Allahi shadeedun (2)



The mother will come to her son and say: "Oh my son, my breast was a container for you, my womb was a container for you. Oh my son I seek from you a hasanah (merit) that I may approach Allah with. My son, do not be greedy towards me". In the world this son would have sacrificed his life, rather many lives for merely the happiness of his mother so how does he treat her now? He responds to her plea: "Get away from me! Leave me! Indeed I am in need of this merit more than you."



"So when 'As-Saakhah' comes. That day a man will flee from his brother, from his mother and his father, from his wife and his children. That day every man shall have enough to make him careless of others." [Al-Abasa 80:33-37]



{فَإِذَا جَاءَتِ الصَّاخَّةُ ﴿٣٣﴾ يَوْمَ يَفِرُّ الْمَرْءُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ ﴿٣٤﴾ وَأُمِّهِ وَأَبِيهِ ﴿٣٥﴾ وَصَاحِبَتِهِ وَبَنِيهِ ﴿٣٦﴾ لِكُلِّ امْرِئٍ مِّنْهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ شَأْنٌ يُغْنِيهِ ﴿٣٧﴾ }



Faitha jaati alssakhkhatu (33) Yawma yafirru almaro min akheehi (34) Waommihi waabeehi (35) Wasahibatihi wabaneehi (36) Likulli imriin minhum yawmaithin shanun yughneehi (37)



So mankind will wait in this crowding place for 50,000 years, after which Allah, The Most Perfect and The Most High, will come to judge them. So He will call the criminal and say to him, "Oh so and so, did I not give you of the cold water to drink? did I not give you a healthy body? Did I not give you many bounties? What have you done with all that which I bestowed upon you?"



So the man replies, "I have done nothing my Lord."



So he lies to his Lord on that day. Allah says: "Where are the witnesses!". So the Angels come and bear witness that this criminal did not pray in those moments of prayer, he drank, fornicated, lied, cursed and insulted. He turned away from belief and was proud and arrogant. So the criminal says to his Lord, "I do not acceptaccept a wintness except one from myself."



His Lord replies to him, "And you have that?"



"The day when we shall seal their mouths, their hands will speak to us and their legs will bear witness to that which they used to earn" [Yasin 36:65]



{الْيَوْمَ نَخْتِمُ عَلَىٰ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ وَتُكَلِّمُنَا أَيْدِيهِمْ وَتَشْهَدُ أَرْجُلُهُم بِمَا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُونَ}



Transliteration: Alyawma nakhtimu AAala afwahihim watukallimuna aydeehim watashhadu arjuluhum bima kanoo yaksiboona



So he turns to his skin and says to it: it was only for you that I was arguing.



"Nay, when the earth is shaken a true shaking and your Lord comes with the Angels in rows. That day the Fire will be brought near. That day man will remember but how will that remembrance avail him? He will say, 'Woe to me! Would that I had put forth something for this life.' " [Al-Fajr 89:21-24]



{كَلَّا إِذَا دُكَّتِ الْأَرْضُ دَكًّا دَكًّا ﴿٢١﴾ وَجَاءَ رَبُّكَ وَالْمَلَكُ صَفًّا صَفًّا ﴿٢٢﴾ وَجِيءَ يَوْمَئِذٍ بِجَهَنَّمَ ۚ يَوْمَئِذٍ يَتَذَكَّرُ الْإِنسَانُ وَأَنَّىٰ لَهُ الذِّكْرَىٰ ﴿٢٣﴾ يَقُولُ يَا لَيْتَنِي قَدَّمْتُ لِحَيَاتِي}

Transliteration: Kalla itha dukkati alardu dakkan dakkan (21) Wajaa rabbuka waalmalaku saffan saffan (22) Wajeea yawmaithin bijahannama yawmaithin yatathakkaru alinsanu waanna lahu alththikra (23) Yaqoolu ya laytanee qaddamtu lihayatee (24)





This man then remembers. This criminal remembers that when he heard the call for prayer and he did not respond to it. He remembers when he woke and the sun had already risen yet he had not prayed al-fajr. This man remembers when he abused this one, when he slandered that one, when he earned that unlawful wealth, when he struck this one and killed that one. This criminal remembers every sin with which he disobeyed Allah with. That day all his remorse and regret amounts to nothing.



Then Allah will say, "Seize him and fetter him. Then throw him into the blazing fire. Then put a chain which is 70 cubits long through him. Indeed he did not used to believe in Allah, The Most Perfect,The Most High."



The Angels will then drag him upon his face into the fire. As he enters it he will see his friends from the world already present.



"Every time a nation enters it curses it sister nation" [Al-A'araaf 7:38].

{
كُلَّمَا دَخَلَتْ أُمَّةٌ لَّعَنَتْ أُخْتَهَا}



Transliteration: kullama dakhalat ommatun laAAanat okhtaha





So he is greeted with curses and given a wretched abode in which to abide. The fire encompasses him from all sides roasting, burning his skin completely,

"Whenever their skins have been done (burnt away) we replace them with new skins so that they may taste of the punishment" [An-Nisaa 4: 56].



{كُلَّمَا نَضِجَتْ جُلُودُهُم بَدَّلْنَاهُمْ جُلُودًا غَيْرَهَا لِيَذُوقُوا الْعَذَابَ}



Transliteration: kullama nadijat julooduhum baddalnahum juloodan ghayraha liyathooqoo alAAathaba



Their food in the fire is Ad-Daree' (a thorny plant).



"No food will they have except Ad-Daree'. It neither nourishes nor removes hunger" [Al-Ghaashiyah 88:6-7]



{لَّيْسَ لَهُمْ طَعَامٌ إِلَّا مِن ضَرِيعٍ ﴿٦﴾ لَّا يُسْمِنُ وَلَا يُغْنِي مِن جُوعٍ ﴿٧﴾}



Transliteration: Laysa lahum taAAamun illa min dareeAAin (6) La yusminu wala yughnee min jooAAin (7)



When they eat it they choke due to the thorns. So when they are choking they ask to be rescued with water, so they are rescued with an intensely boiling water which grills their faces when they approach it. When they drink from the water, due to its heat, it cuts their intestines and causes them an increased pain.



They eat from Az-Zaquum. They eat a bitter fruit which cannot be tasted.



"Indeed the tree of Zaquum will be the food of the sinners. Like boiling oil, it will boil in the belies, like the boiling of scalding water. It will be said : Drag, sieze him and drag him into the midst of the blazing fire. Then pour upon his head the torment of boiling water. Taste! You were pretending to be the Mighty the Generous" [Ad-Dukhaan 44:43-49]







{إِنَّ شَجَرَتَ الزَّقُّومِ ﴿٤٣﴾ طَعَامُ الْأَثِيمِ ﴿٤٤﴾ كَالْمُهْلِ يَغْلِي فِي الْبُطُونِ ﴿٤٥﴾ كَغَلْيِ الْحَمِيمِ ﴿٤٦﴾ خُذُوهُ فَاعْتِلُوهُ إِلَىٰ سَوَاءِ الْجَحِيمِ ﴿٤٧﴾ ثُمَّ صُبُّوا فَوْقَ رَأْسِهِ مِنْ عَذَابِ الْحَمِيمِ ﴿٤٨﴾ ذُقْ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْكَرِيمُ ﴿٤٩﴾}



Transliteration: Inna shajarata alzzaqqoomi (43) TaAAamu alatheemi (44) Kaalmuhli yaghlee fee albutooni (45) Kaghalyi alhameemi (46) Khuthoohu faiAAtiloohu ila sawai aljaheemi (47) Thumma subboo fawqa rasihi min AAathabi alhameemi (48) Thuq innaka anta alAAazeezu alkareemu (49)



Due to this intense pain, suffering and anguish they are experiencing they call upon the guardian of hell-fire,

"They call, Oh Maalik let your Lord destroy us" After many years he responds to them with two words "You are staying" [Az-Zukhruf 43:77].

{
وَنَادَوْا يَا مَالِكُ لِيَقْضِ عَلَيْنَا رَبُّكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنَّكُم مَّاكِثُونَ}



Transliteration: Wanadaw ya maliku liyaqdi AAalayna rabbuka qala innakum makithoona





After all of this, they have one last chance and they call upon their Lord, "Oh our Lord we were indeed astray! Oh our Lord we were indeed misguided, we did fall short. Return us to the world so that we can do good instead of that which we used to do."



Allah replies to them, "Rot in it and do not speak to me. After this they do not speak nor do they utter."



They are then called from afar, "Oh dwellers of the fire, do you know what this is?" They reply, "Yes that is death in the form of a ram." Death is then slaughtered in a place between Al-Jannah an An-Naar. It is said to the dwellers of the fire, ever-lasting life without death.



As for the other group, the ones who obeyed their Lord in this world, let us describe briefly their fate:



When he is placed into his grave it is widened and made spacious for him. He smells the sweet fragrance of Al-jannah and feels some of its comforts. He sleeps in his grave like a bride on her wedding night who no-one shall awaken except her beloved. When the cry comes he is gathered to the crowding place and waits there for 50,000 years. This time passes as if it were the time between Zohar and Asr. Then the Lord of the worlds comes to make judgment, so He calls His slave saying, "Oh my slave, do you not remember that sin, do you not remember this sin." So the slave replies, "My Lord I have perished!" So Allah replies to him, "I hid it in the world for you and this day I forgive it."



“This good man is handed his book in his right hand. Due to his happiness he runs to the people and says "Take it; read my book. Indeed I used to think I would meet my accounting." So he will be in a content life” [Al-Haaqah: 19-21]



{فَأَمَّا مَنْ أُوتِيَ كِتَابَهُ بِيَمِينِهِ فَيَقُولُ هَاؤُمُ اقْرَءُوا كِتَابِيَهْ ﴿١٩﴾ إِنِّي ظَنَنتُ أَنِّي مُلَاقٍ حِسَابِيَهْ ﴿٢٠﴾ فَهُوَ فِي عِيشَةٍ رَّاضِيَةٍ ﴿٢١﴾}



Transliteration: Faamma man ootiya kitabahu biyameenihi fayaqoolu haomu iqraoo kitabiyah (19) Innee thanantu annee mulaqin hisabiyah (20) Fahuwa fee AAeeshatin radiyatin (21)



Then he will be crowded from a group of al-jannah.



The Jannah has eight gates and between each gate is a distance that would take 40 years to traverse. There comes a day when the gates are crowded. So as this slave of Allah enters Al-Jannah he is greeted with salaam (peace). He sees before him 4 rivers:



"... In it are rivers of water, the taste and smell of which are not changed. Rivers of milk of which the taste never changes, rivers of wine delicious to those wo drink and rivers of clear and pure honey ..." [Muhammad 47:15]



{فِيهَا أَنْهَارٌ مِّن مَّاءٍ غَيْرِ آسِنٍ وَأَنْهَارٌ مِّن لَّبَنٍ لَّمْ يَتَغَيَّرْ طَعْمُهُ وَأَنْهَارٌ مِّنْ خَمْرٍ لَّذَّةٍ لِّلشَّارِبِينَ وَأَنْهَارٌ مِّنْ عَسَلٍ مُّصَفًّى}



Transliteration: feeha anharun min main ghayri asinin waanharun min labanin lam yataghayyar taAAmuhu waanharun min khamrin laththatin lilshsharibeena waanharun min AAasalin musaffan



He has therein a house and he knows this house as he knows his dwelling in this life. His house is made from bricks of gold and silver. In it he has wives from the Hoorul-'een.



"And Hooron 'een, like untouched, unseen, precious pearls. A reward for what they used to do." [Al-Waaqiah 56:22-24]



{وَحُورٌ عِينٌ ﴿٢٢﴾ كَأَمْثَالِ اللُّؤْلُؤِ الْمَكْنُونِ ﴿٢٣﴾ جَزَاءً بِمَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ ﴿٢٤﴾}



Transliteration: Wahoorun AAeenun (22) Kaamthali allului almaknooni (23) Jazaan bima kanoo yaAAmaloona (24)





"Indeed we have created them a special creation, made them virgins, loving only their husbands of equal age." [Al-Waaqiah 56:35-37]



{إِنَّا أَنشَأْنَاهُنَّ إِنشَاءً ﴿٣٥﴾ فَجَعَلْنَاهُنَّ أَبْكَارًا ﴿٣٦﴾ عُرُبًا أَتْرَابًا ﴿٣٧﴾}



Transliteration: Inna anshanahunna inshaan (35) FajaAAalnahunna abkaran (36) AAuruban atraban (37)



Every time they cohabit with their husbands they return to being virgins.



Outside this house he has a tent, in it he has wives. When he goes to one of them, the other does not see him.



In Al-Jannaah the righteous slave has everything he desires, wishes and wants. He neither feels extreme heat nor the bitter cold:



"They will see there neither the excessive heat of the sun nor the bitter cold." [Al-Insaan 76:13].



{لَا يَرَوْنَ فِيهَا شَمْسًا وَلَا زَمْهَرِيرًا}



Transliteration: la yarawna feeha shamsan wala zamhareeran



There is not a tree in Al-Jannaah except its trunk is made of gold. When he requires its fruit he does not need to get up from his place, since it comes to him:



"The bunches of fruit thereof hang low, within reach" [Al-Insaan 76:14].



{وَدَانِيَةً عَلَيْهِمْ ظِلَالُهَا وَذُلِّلَتْ قُطُوفُهَا تَذْلِيلًا}



Transliteration: Wadaniyatan AAalayhim thilaluha wathullilat qutoofuha tathleelan



"They are served by youthful boys who never age. If you were to see them you would think them scattered pearls" [Al-Insaan 76:19]

{
وَيَطُوفُ عَلَيْهِمْ وِلْدَانٌ مُّخَلَّدُونَ إِذَا رَأَيْتَهُمْ حَسِبْتَهُمْ لُؤْلُؤًا مَّنثُورًا}



Transliteration: Wayatoofu AAalayhim wildanun mukhalladoona itha raaytahum hasibtahum luluan manthooran





So he resides therein, tranquil and at ease. No pain, no ill feeling and no foul speech. Life without death, lasting with no end.



These are not mere stories that we tell to amuse ourselves or scare one another, rather they are the destinies of the ones who obey Allah and those who disobey. Allah calls His slaves to repentance many times in every day so avail these opportunities. Repentance has only three conditions, that you be sincere to Allah, that you leave the sin and that you make a firm resolve that you never return to the sin.



So be the children of the Hereafter and not the children of this life; a party in Paradise and a party in the Hell-fire.

Preventing the G-B Relationship

 

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful



Amatullah Islam





Preventing the G-B Relationship



Zina (fornication) has become a commonplace occurrence within the Muslim Youth community, and the Muslim girls and boys have sadly fallen prey to the snares of Western society. You may wonder how such a situation can occur when most Muslim parents virtually put their children under 'lock and key'. The answer is that although most parents are strict where their children are concerned, they do not take the time to talk and explain to them about the seriousness of Zina. Instead, they give a Fatwa of "no boyfriend" when their daughters reach puberty. Such an action is like ordering a two year old child not to touch the power point. What do you think the child will do?



The following article highlights ways in which we can teach our children to shun this corrupt act.



In Islam, there is no such thing as a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship. You are either married or you are not. This is what we have to ingrain into our children at the early stage. We should not wait for them to come to us when they are teenagers to ask about girlfriend-boyfriend relationship. At this late stage, even if we forbid them to have such a relationship, how certain are we that they will obey us if they are smitten by someone? Hence, it is important that we teach our children that the only time a girl or boy can have a relationship with a non-Mahram (non-Mahram is someone whom they can marry) is when they are married! Furthermore, if a girl or boy enters into a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship then he/she is entering into a pre-marital relationship.



At the teenage level, we should not be shy to teach them the severity of pre-marital relationship. We need to make them understand that those pre-marital relationships are like the extra-marital relationships, or what is commonly known as adultery or 'an affair'. It ruins the community by corrupting the people. It unleashes base desires that, once allowed free-reign, will destroy families. We can quote to them the examples of illegitimate and abandoned children, broken homes, abortions, sexual diseases - the list goes on. We should also point out to them the punishment for sexual relationships outside of marriage: Ibn Masoud (r.a.a) related that Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) said,

«لا يحل دم امرئ مسلم ، يشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وأني رسول الله ، إلا بإحدى ثلاث :النفس بالنفس، والثيب الزاني ، والمفارق لدينه التارك للجماعة»

«The blood of a Muslim may not be legally spilt other than in one of three instances: the married person who commits adultery, a life for a life, and one who forsakes his religion and abandons the community» [Bukhari and Muslim]. In other words,

«والثيب يجلد ويرجم » «the married person who commits adultery is to be whipped and stoned» [Muslim]



But, what about the unmarried person who has sexual relationships? Rest assured that this person will not go unpunished - «البكر يجلد وينفى» «he or she is to be whipped and banished» [Muslim]. Even in the Hereafter, the punishment is severe: the Prophet (s.a.w) saw adulterers, men and women, in a baking oven in Hellfire [Bukhari].



At this stage your teenage child may say that girlfriend-boyfriend relationships need not go as far as the sexual act; that they can control themselves and simply enjoy each other company. To counter this, you say that it is a fact when a girl and a boy are alone together, their sexual desires awaken and before they know it, they will be doing things that are not permissible between unmarried people. The reason for this is because Shaytaan will be the third person with them and he will whisper and tempt them with the forbidden. This is why Islam shuns all avenues leading to corruption of the mind, body and soul.



Something else we must teach them is to restrain their desires. We can do so by giving them examples of the rewards for doing so, such as the person who controls his lust will be among people who Allah bestows mercy upon: Abu Hurairah (r.a.a) narrated that Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) said:

«سبعة يظلهم الله يوم القيامة في ظله يوم لا ظل إلا ظله : إمام عادل ، وشاب نشأ في عبادة الله ،ورجل ذكر الله في خلاء ففاضت عيناه ،ورجل قلبه معلق في المسجد ، ورجلان تحابا في الله، و رجل دعته امرأة ذات منصب و جمال إلى نفسها فقال : إني أخاف الله ،ورجل تصدق بصدقة فأخفاها حتى لا تعلم شماله ما صنعت يمينه»

«that among the seven persons whom Allah will shade in His Shade on the Day (of Judgment) when there is no shade except His Shade, is a man who is tempted by a beautiful woman and refuses to respond for fear of Allah.» [Bukhari]



Below are more points on how to help your child, at an early age, to be chaste so that when he/she is older, he/she can avoid getting into a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship. First, you must talk and explain to them these things when they are young, then when they are older; you make sure that it is put into practice.





You must teach him or her to:





1. Not to freely mix with the opposite sex.



2. Not to look at the opposite sex. This is done by lowering or averting their eyes as Allah tells us: "Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and to protect their private parts. That is purer for them. Verily Allah is All-Aware of what they do. And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and protect their private parts..." [An-Noor 24:30-31], {قُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَغُضُّوا مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِمْ وَيَحْفَظُوا فُرُوجَهُمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ أَزْكَىٰ لَهُمْ ۗ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا يَصْنَعُونَ ﴿٣٠﴾ وَقُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنَاتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ …﴿٣١﴾}, Transliteration: Qul Lilmu'uminīna Yaghuđđū Min 'Abşārihim Wa Yaĥfažū Furūjahum Dhālika 'Azká Lahum 'Inna Allāha Khabīrun Bimā Yaşna`ūna(30) Wa Qul Lilmu'umināti Yaghđuđna Min 'Abşārihinna Wa Yaĥfažna Furūjahunna…(31)

Furthermore, Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) said,

«لا تتبع النظرة النظرة، فإن لك الأولى ، وليس لك الآخرة»
« ...do not let a second look follow the first. The first look is allowed to you but not the second.» [Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi]. What this means is that the first look is by accident. If this happens then do not take a second look.

Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) also said

«العينان تزنيان و زناهما النظر »

«That the eyes also commit adultery by looking at someone with lust. » [Albany, At-Tirmidhi]



3. For girls, teach them not to make their voices seductive or sweet in front of non-Mahrams. This is done by lowering the voice and not flirting. As Allah tells the wives of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) "...do not be too pleasant of speech, lest one in whose heart there is a disease should feel desire for you..." [Al-Ahzab 33:32], {...فَلَا تَخْضَعْنَ بِالْقَوْلِ فَيَطْمَعَ الَّذِي فِي قَلْبِهِ مَرَضٌ…}, Transliteration: Falā Takhđa`na Bil-Qawli Fayaţma`a Al-Ladhī Fī Qalbihi Marađun



4. Last but not least, teach them to wear appropriate clothing so as not to draw attention to themselves. That is, girls should wear Hijabs and loose clothing while boys should also wear loose clothing, not the tight jeans or pants with t-shirt tucked in. It is sad that, often, parents allow their children to wear the so called fashion clothing which, in most cases, do not meet the requirement of acceptable Islamic dress code. What is even sadder is to see Muslim mothers covering themselves properly walking with their uncovered teenage daughters and sons.



It is important that we start teaching our children the need to feel modesty, especially around the opposite sex. Regarding shyness, we should use the Prophet (s.a.w) as an example:

«كان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أشد حياء من العذراء في خدرها»

Abu Said Al Khudri (r.a.a) reported that « the Prophet (s.a.w) was more shy than a virgin in her own room.» [Bukhari] If we instill this into them at an early age then, Insha' Allah, whenever they are near the vicinity of the opposite sex, they will feel shy and, therefore, will not act inappropriately. It is also important that we keep the communication channels open with our children so that we can talk and explain to them things, and they can ask us questions, without any party feeling embarrassed. Then, when they are older, and with help from us, they will begin to understand why it is that there cannot be a thing called 'the girlfriend-boyfriend relationship'.



In the next issue, Insha' Allah, we will discuss the ways in which parents can deal with the situation when they have discovered that their daughter or son is in a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship.

The Girlfriend - Boyfriend Relationship - Part 2

 

How to deal with a G-B Relationship?



In the last article I talked about taking preventative measures to ensure that when your child is older, he or she will not be caught in a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship. However, if your child is already a teenager or those methods did not work, and you are now facing this dilemma, there is still hope of rectifying it.



Most parents react with extremity upon discovering that their daughter is in a girlfriend-boyfriend situation: they lock her in her room and forbid her to see the boy again. What would be the reaction from the girl when she is faced with this? She would rebel. That is, she would do the opposite of what the parents say and, in extreme cases, run away from home. If this is not how parents want it to end, they must tread lightly. Do everything with a light touch because teenagers respond better to it. At any signs of heavy handedness, teenagers rebel!



The first step in any bridge-building is to talk. Calmly talk to your daughter to understand why she is having a boyfriend.



What led to this?



There are many reasons why girls seek out boys. The first culprit that parents point the accusing finger at; is the girl's raging hormones. This may be true in some girls but not all. There are girls who have raging hormones but who can control themselves, and then there are girls who do not have raging hormones but who still pursue the opposite sex.



Therefore, what are some other possible reasons for the girl's behavior?



Peer pressure is one. When all her friends and school mates have boyfriends, she feels compelled to follow suit. If she does not have a boyfriend of her own then she feels left out because she cannot fit in with their after school activities and cannot join in their conversations. What makes it worse is that everyone will see her as a "geek".



Another reason is if she is undertaking a popularity contest. She competes with other girls in attaining as many boyfriends as she can to see who will be the popularity queen. These contests also occur because it is seen that only popular girls have boyfriends.



Boredom often drives a girl into the arms of a boy. She sees her life as monotonous and so searches for thrill and excitement with the boy.



Or perhaps her self-esteem is low, so she depends on him to make her feel desirable and wanted.



Yet another reason is that she needs to be loved. She seeks her parents love but cannot access it; therefore, she seeks it elsewhere. Similar to this is if she is seeking her parents’ attention. She defies them in seeking a boyfriend so that she can have their attention. Any attention to her is better than no attention. The difference between the need for love and the need for attention is that the former does it passively. If she cannot get it from her parents then she goes elsewhere, whereas the latter demands it from her parents.



There could be other reasons or the reasons could be a combination of the above. However, whatever the reason or reasons may be, parents need to identify and understand it. This is easier than it sounds as parents have a tendency of triggering their daughters to clam up.



How to approach them



When parents talk, care needs to be taken so as not to become accusative ("You did this to...") and judgmental ("You are so..."), otherwise it will end up like a police interrogation ("Why did you...?"). This only adds to their daughter's defiance. Also, to keep her self-esteem intact, avoid using "should", "don't" and all other negative words.



Talking effectively also means to know when to listen. This includes not only hearing but understanding. To understand what has been said, parents need to clarify it ("Do you mean...?"), acknowledge it ("You feel... because...") and empathize with it ("You sound really..."). When the teenager feels that her parents understand her, she will be encouraged to confide in them and explain why she does things and how she feels about it. And as I said earlier, by understanding, parents will get the full picture and will then know which appropriate action to take. Also, if parents want to be listened to by their children, they need to model good listening skills. Children tend to do as parents do rather than as parents say. So now is always a good time to start practicing these skills.



Insecurity



Looking closer at the above reasons, parents will see that the underlying factor is that the girl feels insecure about herself. Her self-esteem is low and so she relies on the boy to make her feel good about herself. The root of falling into the trap of peer-pressures, popularity contests, the need to be wanted and loved, and to have attention, is insecurity. If this is the case then give her the love and attention that she needs. Show and tell her that you love her despite her "bad" behaviors, and yet you will not tolerate them. Teach her how to feel good about herself and her religion. Build her self-esteem by acknowledging her good behaviors and achievements or her attempts to achieve (and not focusing on failures). Assign her challenging tasks and stimulating activities. This also applies to the bored daughter. Take her to teenage Islamic gatherings and camps. Encourage her to make new Muslim friends. As to the one with raging hormones who cannot control herself, ask her if she would like to marry (but do not force it upon her).



Certainly, remind her that it is the girlfriend-boyfriend relationship that cannot be approved and teach her (again) about Islam's position with regards to this. Lastly, provide Muslim role models for her. Stories about those women who guard their chastity and piety are rewarded for doing so. Maryam, mother of Prophet Eesa (a.s), is one great example.



Don't forget about the boys



Having taken care of the daughter, I will now focus attention on the son. It is ironical that parents react as if there is a death in the family when their daughter engages in a girlfriend-boyfriend relationship. But when it is the son who is in a similar or worst position, the same parents are complaisant. Feel that the boy needs to have experience and enjoy himself first before he can settle down and marry. It is as if the daughter alone carries the honor of the family.



Honor needs to be distributed evenly among the family if it is to be kept intact. This means the father, mother, son and daughter must each guard their own honor. If the father or mother loses his or her honor then they are providing the role model for their children. And if the son loses his honor and goes unpunished then the daughter will see this as a hypocritical act and consequently rebels. For any mediating action to work on the daughter, parents must be consistent on their son as well. Look to the reasons why girls pursue boys then parents will see that those are the same ones that propel boys into the arms of girls.


Have You Ever Tasted Jannah?

 

By Muhammad Alshareef





In Saheeh Muslim, Ibn Masood narrates from RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam the warming story of the last man to escape Hellfire:

«His crawl away from Hellfire is filled with his face sliping into the dirt, a tremoring walk, and a fire that licks him until he finally escapes.



When he is past it, he looks back, horrified, and announces with the loudest voice, “All praise is due to Allah Who saved me from you.” Then he says, most proud, “Verily I have been rewarded with something that no one from the beginning to the end of creation has been blessed with.”



At that moment, a tree catches his eye – a tree that was commanded to be raised for him. He quickly raises his hands, “O Allah! Allow me to draw near to that tree so that I can cool off under its shade and drink from its water.”



Then Allah ta’aala calls him, “O son of Adam! I fear that if I grant you what you ask, you shall ask for more.”



“Nay, O Allah!” pleads the man and he testifies that he shall ask no more.



As the man basks in the glory of the tree, another tree is raised, one more bounteous and lush than the first. The man pleads, “O Allah! Allow me to draw near to that tree so that I can cool off under its shade and drink from its water.



Allah then says, “Did you not promise me that you would ask no more? Perhaps if I give it to you, you shall ask for yet even more.”



The man testifies that he will not, and is permitted that tree.



Just then a tree is raised near the doors of Jannah, one bigger and lusher than all the rest and the man’s heart sinks.



“O Allah, that tree, that tree. I’ll ask for nothing else.”



“Did you not promise you would ask for nothing more?”



“After that tree, yaa Allah, nothing more!”



He is permitted to draw nearer to the tree and there, as he nears the doors of Jannah, he hears the sounds of its inhabitants and he leaps, “O Allah! Enter me into Jannah!”



“O son of Adam!” Allah announces, “What shall satisfy you and finish your pleading?”



Then Allah offers, “Will it please you if I give you all the treasures and bounty of the entire world and then double it!”



The man’s smile shuts off and his eyes lock up. “My Lord, You’re the Lord of the universe…Are You mocking me?”





Ibn Masood started laughing. He said to his students, “Ask me why I’m laughing. I’m laughing because RasulAllah laughed when he told us this. And he also asked us, ‘Do you know what makes me laugh? I’m laughing for Allah’s laughter when the man said, ‘You are the lord of the universe…are you mocking me?’”



Allah then tells him, “I am not mocking you, rather I am capable of doing whatever I so wish.” Allahu Akbar!» [Reported by Muslim]

«آخر من يدخل الجنة رجل. فهو يمشي مرة ويكبو مرة. وتسفعه النار مرة. فإذا ما جاوزها التفت إليها. فقال: تبارك الذي نجاني منك. لقد أعطاني الله شيئا ما أعطاه أحدا من الأولين والآخرين. فترفع له شجرة. فيقول: أي رب! أدنني من هذه الشجرة فلأستظل بظلها وأشرب من مائها. فيقول الله عز وجل: يا ابن آدم! لعلي إن أعطيتكها سألتني غيرها. فيقول: لا. يا رب! ويعاهده أن لا يسأله غيرها. وربه يعذره. لأنه يرى ما لا صبر له عليه. فيدنيه منها. فيستظل بظلها ويشرب من مائها. ثم ترفع له شجرة هي أحسن من الأولى. فيقول: أي رب! أدنني من هذه لأشرب من مائها وأستظل بظلها. لا أسألك غيرها. فيقول: يا ابن آدم! ألم تعاهدني أن لا تسألني غيرها ؟فيقول: لعلي إن أدنيتك منها تسألني غيرها ؟فيعاهده أن لا يسأله غيرها. وربه يعذره. لأنه يرى ما لا صبر له عليه فيدنيه منها. فيستظل بظلها ويشرب من مائها. ثم ترفع له شجرة عند باب الجنة هي أحسن من الأوليين. فيقول: أي رب! أدنني من هذه لأستظل بظلها وأشرب من مائها. لا أسألك غيرها. فيقول: يا ابن آدم! ألم تعاهدني أن لا تسألني غيرها؟ قال: بلى. يا رب! هذه لا أسألك غيرها. وربه يعذره لأنه يرى ما لا صبر له عليها. فيدنيه منها. فإذا أدناه منها، فيسمع أصوات أهل الجنة، فيقول: أي رب! أدخلنيها. فيقول: يا ابن آدم! ما يصريني منك؟ أيرضيك أن أعطيك الدنيا ومثلها معها ؟قال: يا رب! أتستهزئ مني وأنت رب العالمين ". فضحك ابن مسعود فقال: ألا تسألوني مم أضحك؟ فقالوا: مم تضحك؟ قال: هكذا ضحك رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم. فقالوا: مم تضحك يا رسول الله ؟قال " من ضحك رب العالمين حين قال: أتستهزئ مني وأنت رب العالمين؟ فيقول: إني لا أستهزئ منك، ولكني على ما أشاء قادر".»

Turn to almost every page of the Qur’an and you’ll find mention of Jannah. Jannah…have you ever seen it? Have you ever smelt it? Have you ever touched it? Have you ever tasted it?



RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam taught us that in Jannah there is that “which no eye has witnessed, no ear has heard, and that which has never been imagined by any human.” Recite the verse if you wish:

And no soul knows what has been hidden for them of comfort of the eye (satisfaction) as reward for what they used to do [As-Sajdah: 17].

{فَلَا تَعْلَمُ نَفْسٌ مَّا أُخْفِيَ لَهُم مِّن قُرَّةِ أَعْيُنٍ جَزَاءً بِمَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ}

Transletration: Fala taAAlamu nafsun ma okhfiya lahum min qurrati aAAyunin jazaan bima kanoo yaAAmaloona



Many Muslims tasted the eman of Jannah, and Bilal radi Allahu anhu was one of them. His slave master, Umayyah, would drag Bilal out to the grilling desert at noontime – the fiercest moment of the day. Umayyah would press Bilal to the scalding ground and place a boulder on top of his chest to increase the torture. As his back would melt away Bilal would say nothing but, “Ahad! Ahad! – One! Only One.”



Later in his life, when companions would see Bilal’s scarred back, tears would well in their eyes and they would ask him how he survived the punishment. Listen to his answer: “The pain of punishment mixed with the sweetness of eman. I tasted both and the sweetness of eman overcame everything until I felt no more pain.”



Today, let us sample Jannah, as offered to us in the Qur’an and Sunnah.





The Gates of Jannah



Imagine yourself present on the day when the gates of Jannah will be opened with all of the splendor that lies beyond it. Allah tells us in the Qur’an about when the muttaqoon are escorted to the gates of Jannah by the most handsome of Angels:



“And those who feared their Lord will be led to the Garden in crowds, until – behold – they arrive there. Its gates will be opened and its keepers will say, “Peace be upon you! You have done well, so enter (Jannah) and live in it eternally.” [Az-Zumar: 73]

{وَسِيقَ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا رَبَّهُمْ إِلَى الْجَنَّةِ زُمَرًا حَتَّى إِذَا جَاءُوهَا وَفُتِحَتْ أَبْوَابُهَا وَقَالَ لَهُمْ خَزَنَتُهَا سَلَامٌ عَلَيْكُمْ طِبْتُمْ فَادْخُلُوهَا خَالِدِينَ}

Transliteration: Waseeqa allatheena ittaqaw rabbahum ila aljannati zumaran hatta itha jaooha wafutihat abwabuha waqala lahum khazanatuha salamun AAalaykum tibtum faodkhulooha khalideena



RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam spoke to the Sahaabaa about the gates of Jannah. He mentioned the gate of prayers, the gate of jihaad, the gate of siyaam, and the gate of charity.



Abu Bakr asked with the desire that took him to where he reached in eman, “Will anyone be called from all gates?”



RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said, “Yes, and I hope that you will be one of them.”





The Shade in Jannah



Imagine yourself in Jannah’s cooling shade – water springs surrounding you, and fruits dipping in hands reach.

Allah tells us:

“Indeed, the muttaqoon will be amid shades and springs / And fruits from whatever they desire / Eat and drink to your hearts content for what you used to do (in the dunya) / Such we certainly reward the doers of good” [Al-Mursalaat: 41-44].

{إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي ظِلَالٍ وَعُيُونٍ ﴿٤١﴾ وَفَوَاكِهَ مِمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ ﴿٤٢﴾ كُلُوا وَاشْرَبُوا هَنِيئًا بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ ﴿٤٣﴾ إِنَّا كَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ ﴿٤٤﴾}

Transliteration: Inna almuttaqeena fee thilalin waAAuyoonin (41) Wafawakiha mimma yashtahoona (42) Kuloo waishraboo haneean bima kuntum taAAmaloona (43) Inna kathalika najzee almuhsineena (44)





The Ambience in Jannah



Imagine yourself in Jannah. Jannah doesn’t have any gossip; no, “Did you hear about brother so and so,” or “Did see what sister so and so is wearing.” Your face is shining with joy and you’re so glad that you woke up for Fajr all those days, glad you paid your zakah, glad you wore hijab all those summer days. This is what the atmosphere is like in Jannah:



“Faces that day will be joyful (radiant) / Satisfied with the effort they put (in the dunya) / In an elevated garden / Where they shall hear no unsuitable speech”. [Al-Ghaashiyah: 8-11]

{وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ نَّاعِمَةٌ ﴿٨﴾ لِّسَعْيِهَا رَاضِيَةٌ ﴿٩﴾ فِي جَنَّةٍ عَالِيَةٍ ﴿١٠﴾ لَّا تَسْمَعُ فِيهَا لَاغِيَةً ﴿١١}

Transliteration: Wujoohun yawmaithin naAAimatun (8) LisaAAyiha radiyatun (9) Fee jannatin AAaliyatin (10) La tasmaAAu feeha laghiyatan (11)





Jannah: The Greatest Gift



In Masjid An-Nabawee I had been reciting the Qur’an to Shaykh Muhammad Ahmad Ma’bad for over a year. Finally when the time of the Khatm Al-Quran came, I brought a recorder to the halaqah and told him that I wanted to record the Khatm and the du’a for my mother who was in Canada.



When he made du’a he prayed for my parents saying, “O Allah! Bless Muhammad’s parents with crowns of noor (light) on the Day of Repayment!”



A month later in Canada, when I was handing out gifts, I pulled out this tape for my mother. She took it and listened to the entire thing. When my mother heard this du’a, she sat crying. She told me, “This is the greatest gift I could have gotten.”



Truly, Jannah is the greatest gift one can get. As Allah subhaanahu wa ta 'aala says:



“Indeed Jannah is the greatest attainment!”









PART II



Regarding the inhabitants of Jannah:

“You can tell in their faces the radiance of the blessing.” [Al Mutaffifin: 24]

{تَعْرِفُ فِي وُجُوهِهِمْ نَضْرَةَ النَّعِيمِ }

Transliteration: TaAArifu fee wujoohihim nadrata alnnaAAeemi



The inhabitants of Jannah shall be in:

“Gardens and rivers.”



The inhabitants of Jannah are:

“Most pleased with what Allah gave them from His bounty.”

{فَرِحِينَ بِمَا آتَاهُمُ اللَّـهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ }

Transliteration: Fariheena bima atahumu Allahu min fadlihi



Dear brothers and sisters, Jannah is the fruit of a seed planted in this dunya; it is the retirement package that you save up in all your years of work.



There once lived a pious man who was enslaved to a wicked master. The righteous slave wanted to teach his master a lesson that he would not forget; a lesson that would make him change his ways.



The master told him one day to plant wheat. The slave took the opportunity and went and collected seeds of barley and planted them instead. As the season drew near, the master was enraged to see that after all this work and time, the slave had planted the wrong seed. In his thrashing rage, he scolded the slave saying, “Why did you do this?”



The righteous slave said, “I had hoped that the barley seeds would come out as wheat.”



The master said, “How can you plant barley seeds and expect it to come out as wheat?”



The slave stopped and said quietly, “How can you disobey Allah and expect for His bounteous mercy? How can you openly challenge his deen and hope for Jannah.”



The master was stunned and silent. He understood. “You have taught me something today that I had never realized. You are free for the sake of Allah.”



A poet once wrote:

There is no home for a man after death



Except that which he used to build before he died.



If he built it with bricks of good deeds,



Then the architecture shall come out beautiful.



And if he built it with evil,



Its architect will fall into ruin.



Dear brothers and sisters, do you know what the greatest blessing for the inhabitants of Jannah is? Don’t let any laziness in Salah block you from being here. Don’t let anything anything stand between you and this blessing. RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam told us:

«When the inhabitants of Jannah enter Jannah, Allah will ask them all, ‘Is there anything more that I can give you?’ They will say, ‘Have you not illuminated our faces? Have you not entered us into Jannah? Have you not saved us from Hellfire?’

Then Allah will uncover the veil (and all shall see Allah). After that moment there would be nothing more beloved to them than seeing their Lord"» [Reported by Muslim].


«إذا دخل أهل الجنة الجنة، قال يقول الله تبارك وتعالى: تريدون شيئا أزيدكم؟ فيقولون: ألم تبيض وجوهنا؟ ألم تدخلنا الجنة وتنجنا من النار. قال فيكشف الحجاب. فما أعطوا شيئا أحب إليهم من النظر إلى ربهم عز وجل

Let’s go home today driving towards Jannah!

Jealousy and Modesty

 

Praised be to Allah the god of the worlds, and pray to Allah prophet Mohammed, all his family, and companions, then:



From the charms of our religion the taking care of nobility of characters, the prophet-peace be upon him-said: "Verily I have been but sent to perfect the most noble of manners." [validated by Alabani]

«إنما بعثت لأتمم صالح الأخلاق»



And when the prophet-peace be upon him-was sent, he confirmed the ignorance era good manners, and canceled their bad manners, and rectified what need rectifying.



And from the good manners of the ignorance era: the jealousy of the man on his unmarriageable ones, but some of them were going too far that they surpassed the limits. Some buried their daughters’ alive; fearing monstrosity. Therefore, the legislator prohibited this, rectified and improved the jealousy part and made it from the paths of the faith, the prophet-peace be upon him-said: "No one more jealous than Allah" [Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim]

«لا شيء أغير من الله»



And the prophet -peace and blessings be upon him- said: "Verily Allah gets jealous and the believer gets jealous and the jealousy of Allah is to see a believer doing unlawful acts" [Narrated by Muslim]

«إن الله يغار، وإن المؤمن يغار، وغيرة الله أن يأتي المؤمن ما حرم عليه»

And he -peace and blessings be upon him- said when the sun eclipsed: "O community of Muhammad! ByAllah, there is no-one more jealous than Allah..." [Narrated by Bukhari]

«يا أمة محمد, ما أحدٌ أغير من اللهِ... »



And the prophet said-peace be upon him-" Allah likes some of the jealousy” [Classified Hasan by Albani]

«إن من الغَيْرة ما يحبُّ الله...»

and when Saâd son of Ôbada-may Allah pleased with him-if I saw a man with my woman I would have hit him with the unfoliated part of my sword, the prophet-peace be upon him- said: “do you wonder from Saad's jealousy, I am more jealous than Saâd, And Allah is more jealous” [Narrated by Bukhari] (unfoliated: to hit him with the edge of the sword not with its side, at which the one who hits with edge intends to kill while the one who hits with the side indent disciplining)

« لو رأيت رجلا مع امرأتي لضربته بالسيف غير مصفح ، فبلغ ذلك النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال (أتعجبون من غيرة سعد، لأنا أغير منه، و الله أغير منى) »



And the companions-may Allah pleased with them- endowed with this prophetic manner and kept on it, its matter the same as the essentials of the faith and its paths, so it wasn't strange that some of them were killed or kill in order to preserve this issue. Ibn Hashem recited that a woman from the Arabs came with some earning (what is brought to the markets to be sold there) and she sold it in the market of Kaynokaâ (one of the tribes of the Jewish) and she sat at a jeweler there, and they insisted on her to show her face but she refused, so the jeweler came to the edge of her cloth and tied it to her seat -without her notice- so when she stood up she was exposed, so they laughed on her, and she yielded, then a man from the Muslims leaped on the jeweler and killed him-and he was Jewish-so the Jewish people pressured on that Muslim and killed him, so the prophet-peace be upon him-walked to them, and surrounded them until they followed his judgment, so he evacuated them to Al Sham.



In this way the ancestors continued, and the Muslims never left or even neglect this manner even at the week times that the Islamic nation passed by, like while when the crusaders were occupying some of the Islamic countries in Al Sham and their occupation continued for about two centuries, it was a time that some may think that they are staying until the landing of Issa the son of Mary, at this time the historians recorded that the Muslims were scorning them and looking to them as cuckolds, at which the one of them may be walking with his wife in the road and she meets a friend, so he stands away to let his wife speaks with her friend as she wants.



Some examples of the nonfeasance of the jealousy:



-In our countries-May Allah fill it with obedience-we are still better than the others in this issue, although some are exceptions.



-You can see some of them in his car, and his wife gets outs from the car and takes too long in a conversation and he should have been with her.



-And you see one of them, his wife in solitude with foreign men; with the driver in the car, or with the seller in a shop, or with the physician in the clinic, or somewhere else, and he sees nothing wrong with that, and the prophet-peace be upon him said-"whenever a man combines with a women apart, the devil shall be their third" [validated by Albani]

«ألا لا يخلون رجل بامرأة إلا كان ثالثهما الشيطان»



-And also the man leaves his woman or the women in his custodianship going out with transparent, describing, or short clothes.



-Also the getting out of the man with his wife and his unmarriageable ones in the public crowds, at which his women may associate with men, or she is exposed to their regards.



-Also another example, the man leaves his woman to travel without any of her unmarriageable persons, the messenger of Allah-peace be upon him-said: "No man combines with a women in solitude unless she is with one of her unmarriageable ones, and no woman travels unless she is with one of her unmarriageable ones. So a man stands up and said: Messenger of Allah "my woman gets out on pilgrimage, and I was requested in so and so of invasions, so he said: Go and pilgrimage with your woman" [Narrated by Muslim]

«لا يخلون رجل بامرأة إلا ومعها ذو محرم. ولا تسافر المرأة إلا مع ذي محرم فقام رجل فقال: يا رسول الله ! إن امرأتي خرجت حاجة. وإني اكتتبت في غزوة كذا وكذا. قال: انطلق فحج مع امرأتك»



This is a militant in the sake of Allah, the prophet-peace open him-ordered him to leave the holy war to accompany his wife, that went in a holy travel which is pilgrimage, and with the purist and most pious people, and even she has already gone, the prophet-peace be upon him-said "go and pilgrimage with your woman".

«انطلق فَحُج مع امرأتك»



The reasons of the proceeding:



What has been mentioned from examples is a reality happening and seen, although the common behavior is the preservation of jealousy. So what is the reason of what is happening from some people in the absence of jealousy and modesty? Now, let’s speak about the rank of the modesty and its stature in Islam.



Modesty:



The modesty is one the paths of faith, as it came in the speech of the prophet-peace be upon him-, so whenever his modesty decreases his faith decreases, and in the two valid books the prophet-peace be upon him- said "The modesty only brings good" [Bukhari and Muslim]

«الحياءُ لا يأتي إلا بخير»



And in a recitation of Muslim "All the modesty is good"

«الحياء خير كله. قال: أنه قال: الحياء كله خير»



and it is recited about Salman the Persian-May Allah be pleased with him-that he said:
If Allah wanted to doom someone he takes from him the modesty, so when the modesty is taken you find him only as an abominable disgusting one"



And the poet said:



I swear by Allah that there is no good in life nor the world if the modesty is gone

As long as the one has modesty he is good and the steam remains as long its cover is still.



And another said:



I see the one with no modesty nor honesty as if he is naked among the people.



And the slightness of the modesty at the woman has particular reasons, like:



1-The leniency of the upbringing of it, and habit ever remains:

If you rectify the branches it became right, and it never soften if it is wood.



2-The over association of woman with the foreigners, and the over talking with them.



3-The association with people with low modesty, or the repeating of their viewing, either resulting from traveling abroad or seeing them in the markets and parks, or watching them in the episodes, or something like that, because the good and bad manners is achieved by association.



4-And it might be from the most important reasons: the over getting out of the woman from her home, the great and almighty Allah said: "And abide in your houses" [al-Ahzab 33:33]

{وَقَرْنَ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ}

Transliteration: Wa Qarna Fī Buyūtikunna



And El Tabarany recited with a good bond that the prophet-peace be upon him-said "The woman is a private part, and if she gone out from her home the devil raises his glance to her, and she is never nearer to her God than the deepest part of her house" [validated by Albani] [the devil raises his glance upon her and covet in her].

«المرأة عورة، وإنها إذا خرجت من بيتها استشرفها الشيطان، وإنها لا تكون أقرب إلى الله منها في قعر بيتها»



And the prophet-peace be upon him-said "Don't prevent your women from the mosques, and their homes better for them"[validated by Albani]

«لا تمنعوا نساءكم المساجد، وبيوتُهُن خيرٌ لهن»



AlDomuaty the memorizing-may Allah have mercy on him-said:
" EbnKhozuma and a group of scientists declared that her praying in home better than the mosque, even if the mosque was the mosque of Makka or Almadina or Jerusalem".



-And the reasonable and the sagacious one should realize that what some of the Islamic countries has reached from degeneration and change didn't happen in one time, but began usually with silly begins till the situation reaches what we see now, so pay attention.



Finally, you Muslim, verify your testimony that Mohamed is a messenger of Allah, so that you believe him in what he said, and obey him in what he ordered, and don't commit what he prohibited and restrained, and don't you ever be inconsistent with his order in the sake of your fancy or in conformity with anyone, the great and almighty Allah said "So let those beware who dissent from the Prophet’s order, lest fitnah strike them or a painful punishment." [An-Nur 24:63]

{فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَن تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ}

Transliteration: Lā Taj`alū Du`ā'a Ar-Rasūli Baynakum Kadu`ā'i Ba`đikum Ba`đāan Qad Ya`lamu Allāhu Al-Ladhīna Yatasallalūna Minkum Liwādhāan Falyaĥdhari Al-Ladhīna Yukhālifūna `An 'Amrihi 'An Tuşībahum Fitnatun 'Aw Yuşībahum `Adhābun 'Alīmun

The most liked deeds to Allah

 

In the Name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful



Praise be only to Allah, and peace and blessings on the last Prophet, and so:



From the most liked deeds to Allah the Exalted:



1- The generous Hanifia (Islam): according to the Prophet's (pbuh) speech: "The most loved religion to Allah is the generous Islam (Hanifia)" [Narrated by Ahmad and declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«أحب الأديان إلى الله الحنيفية السمحة»



2- Praying, kindness to parents, and Jihad (fighting): according to the the Prophet (pbuh) speech: "The most liked deeds by Allah are Prayer at its proper time, Kindness to the parents, and Jihad in the cause of Allah." [Corrected by Al Albani]

«أحب الأعمال إلى الله: الصلاة لوقتها، ثم برُ الوالدين، ثم الجهاد في سبيل الله»



3- Faith, maintain ties of kinship, enjoining the right and forbidding the wrong, according to the Prophet (pbuh): "The most liked deeds to Allah is Faith in Allah, then maintaining the ties of kinship, then enjoining the right and forbidding the wrong." [declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«أحب الأعمال إلى الله إيمان بالله ، ثم صلة الرحم ، ثم الأمر بالمعروف و النهي عن المنكر»



4- Persistence on the duties, according to the Prophet's (pbuh) speech: "The most beloved deeds to Allah's the most regular and constant even though it were little" [Narrated by Al Bukhari]

«أحب الأعمال أدومها إلى الله وإن قل»



5- Remembrance of Allah, according to the Prophet's (pbuh) speech: "The best deeds to Allah is that you die and your tongue is wet with the remembrance of Allah") [declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«قلت أي الأعمال أحب إلى الله قال: أن تموت ولسانك رطب من ذكر الله. »



6- The mosques, as the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The dearest parts on the face of the earth near Allah are its mosques, and the most hated parts near Allah are its markets" [Narrated by Muslim]

«أحب البلاد إلى الله مساجدها، وأبغض البلاد إلى الله أسواقها»



7-
A word of justice in front of a cruel (inequitable) king, as the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most liked Jihad in Allah's cause to Allah is a justice word said to a cruel king" [declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«أحب الجهاد إلى الله كلمة الحق تقال لإمام جائر»



8-
Saying the truth, as the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most liked speech to Allah is the most truthful" [Narrated by Al Bukhari]

«أحب الحديث إلي أصدقه»



9-
Fast as Dawud, depending on the Prophet's (pbuh) speech: "The best fasting with Allah is that of the Prophet Dawud (pbuh), he observed fast one day and leave off the other. And the best prayer with Allah is that of Dawud (pbuh) for he would sleep half of the night and stand for prayer for the third of it and then would sleep sixth part of it." [Narrated by Al Bukhari]

«أحب الصيام إلى الله صيام داود: كان يصوم يوما ويفطر يوما، وأحب الصلاة إلى الله صلاة داود: كان ينام نصف الليل ويقوم ثلثه، وينام سدسه»



10- Having a lot of people eating from the food, as the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most liked food to Allah is the one that many people eat from it" [declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«أحب الطعام إلى الله ما كثرت عليه الأيدي»



11- Saying "Sobhan Allah wa Behamdih", as the Prophet said: "The most loved expression by Allah is Subhan Allah wa bihamdih (Allah is free from imperfection and his is the praise)" [Narrated by Muslim]

«...إن أحب الكلام إلى الله، سبحان الله وبحمده»



12- Saying Sobhan Allah, Al Hamdo Lellah, La Ilaha Ila Allah, and Allaho Akbar, depending on what the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The dearest words to Allah are four: Subhan Allah (Hallowed be Allah), Al Hamdulillah (praise be to Allah), Wa la ilaha illa Allah (there is no God but Allah), Allah-O-Akbar (God is the greatest)." [Narrated by Muslim]

«أحب الكلام إلى الله أربع: سبحان الله، والحمد لله، ولا إله إلا الله، والله أكبر...»



13- Having good Morals (temper), as the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most liked servants of Allah to Allah who have the best temper"[declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«أحب عباد الله إلى الله أحسنهم خلقا»



14- Naming after Abdullah and Abdul Rahman, depending on what the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The dearest names to Allah the Almighty are 'Abdullah and 'Abd al- Rahman" [Corrected by Al-Albani]

«أحب الأسماء إلى الله عز وجل عبد الله وعبد الرحمن»



15- Helping people, make the Muslims happy (glad), revealing sorrow, paying the debt for the people who are in debt, feeding the starving (hungry), as the Prophet (pbuh) said: "The most loved people to Allah are the most beneficial, the most loved deeds to Allah the Exalted are making a Muslim happy, revealing his sorrow, paying his debt, or revealing his hunger, and I'd prefer to help my Muslim brother who is in need of something than staying in the mosque for praying (I'tikaf) for a month, and who stopped his anger God will cover his private parts, and who absorbed his rage (and if he wants to leave it he would do it), God will fill his heart with satisfaction on the Day of Resurrection, and who walked with his Muslim brother in a need till he attained it God will attain (strengthen) his feet on the day when all the feet will fall (slip), and the bad morals decays the deed as when the vinegar decomposes the honey"[declared Hasan by Al-Albani]

«أحب الناس إلى الله أنفعهم، وأحب الأعمال إلى الله عز وجل سرور تدخله على مسلم، أو تكشف عنه كربة، أو تقضي عنه دينا، أو تطرد عنه جوعا، ولأن أمشي مع أخي المسلم في حاجة أحب إلي من أن أعتكف في المسجد شهرا، ومن كف غضبه، ستر الله عورته، ومن كظم غيظا، ولو شاء أن يمضيه أمضاه، ملأ الله قلبه رضى يوم القيامة، ومن مشى مع أخيه المسلم في حاجته حتى يثبتها له أثبت الله تعالى قدمه يوم تزل الأقدام، وإن سوء الخلق ليفسد العمل كما يفسد الخل العسل»