Monthly Archives: November 2014

The middle course

Thus we have made you [true believers], a just [and the best] nation. (Qur’an 2: 143)

Happiness is found between two extremes: excess and negligence. The middle course is the divinely prescribed way that saves us from the clear falsehood of two extremes – for instance, the extremes of Judaism and Christianity. Jews had with them knowledge, but they discarded action; Christians worshipped excessively, but they abandoned the divine knowledge that was revealed to them. Islam came with both knowledge and action; it cared for the body and for the soul; and it recognized both revelation and the mind, with each given its rightful place. Read more…

Seek out sustenance but don’t be covetous

All glory and praise is for the Creator and Provider. He gives sustenance to the worm in the ground, the fish beneath water, the bird in the air, the ant in the dark, and the snake within the crevice of a rock.

Ibn al-Jawzi mentioned something he witnessed that was wonderful yet strange. A blind snake lived on a branch at the top of a tree. A bird would come to it with food in its mouth. It would chirp a signal to the snake, which in return would open its mouth and allow the bird to insert the food. All praise and glory belongs to Allah, Who made this one to help the other.

[Nor a bird that] lies with its two wings, but are communities like you. (Qur’an 6: 38) Read more…

An indication of one’s prosperity is the ability to gain people’s love, respect and sympathy. Prophet Ibraheern (Abraham) said:

And grant me an honorable mention in later generations. (Qur ‘an 26: 84)

Allah said of Moosa (Moses):

And I endued you with love from me… (Qur’an 20: 39)

The following two ahaadeeth (hadiths) are both authentic: “You are Allah’s witnesses on this earth.”

“Jibraeel calls to the inhabitants of the heavens: Indeed, Allah loves so and so, so loves him. The inhabitants of heaven then love him and an acceptance of him permeates the earth.”

Read more…

Your value is determined by your faith and character

He was poor and wan and weak. He wore a torn garment with many patches on it. He was barefoot and hungry. Along with his having an obscure lineage, he possessed neither status nor wealth nor family. Without a roof to shelter him, he would sleep in the mosque and drink from public fountains. His pillow was his own arm and his mattress was the uneven, rough ground beneath him. But he always remembered his Lord and he was constantly reciting the verses of Allah’s Book. He would not be absent from the first row in prayer or from the front lines of battle. One day he met the Messenger of Allah (bpuh), who upon seeing him, called him by his name, “O’ Julaybeeb, will you not marry?” “And who would give me their daughter?” was his meek reply. He (may Allah be pleased with him) passed by two others who asked the same question, to which he gave a similar reply. The Messenger of Allah (bpuh) said to him, “O’ Jualaybeeb, go to so and so, the Ansari, and say to him, `The Messenger of Allah sends his greetings of peace to you and he requests you to marry me your daughter.’ This particular Ansari was from a noble and esteemed household. When Julaybeeb carried out the Prophet’s order, the Ansari replied, “And peace is upon the Messenger of Allah. O’ Julaybeeb, how can I marry you my daughter when you have neither wealth nor status?” His wife heard of the news, and she exclaimed in astonishment, “Julaybeeb! He who has neither wealth nor status!” But their believing daughter heard the words of Julaybeeb, words that to her, contained the message of the Messenger of Allah. She said to her parents, “Do you turn down the request of the Messenger of Allah? By Allah, no!” Forthwith, the blessed wedding took place. When their first night came, a caller was in the streets announcing a forthcoming battle. Julaybeeb responded without delay and set out for the battleground. With his own hands, he managed to kill seven disbelievers, and then he himself became martyred. He embraced death pleased with Allah and His Messenger, and pleased with the morals for which he sacrificed his own life. After the battle, the Messenger of Allah was asking about those who were martyred. The people began to inform him of those who died, but they forgot to mention Julaybeeb because of his obscurity. Nevertheless, the Messenger of Allah (bpuh) remembered him, and he said, “But I have lost Julaybeeb.” He (bpuh) then found Julaybeeb’s corpse, the face of which was covered in dust. He shook off the dust from his face and said, “You killed seven and then you were killed! You are from me and I am from you…” And the Messenger of Allah (bpuh) repeated the second part of that statement three times. This medal of distinction from the Messenger of Allah (bpuh) is by itself an ample reward and prize. Read more…

Do not lose

Allah answers the prayer of the disbeliever who is in distress; so how much more can the Muslim expect who doesn’t associate partners with Him? Mahatma Gandhi, perhaps second in popularity in India only to the Buddha, was on the verge of slipping were it not for his dependence on the strength of prayer. And how do I know this? Because, he himself said, “If I didn’t pray, I would have gone mad a long time ago. This was the effect of prayer, and Gandhi was not even a Muslim. Unquestionably, his falsehood was great, but what kept him going was that he was on a path. Read more…

Invocation for sneezing

When you sneeze , then say:

Alhamdu lillaah

All praises and thanks are to Allah.

Your companion should say :

Yarhamukallaah

May Allah have mercy upon you .

When someone says Yarhamukallaah to you then you should say:

Yahdeekumul-laahu wa yuslihu baalakum.

May Allah guide you and set your affairs in order.

Reference: Al-Bukhari 7/125.

The blessing of knowledge

And Allah taught you that which you knew not. And Ever-Great is the Grace of Allah unto you [O’ Muhammad].1 (Qur’an 1: 113) Ignorance kills one’s conscience and soul.

 Admonish you, lest you be one of the ignorant.   (Qur’an 11: 46) 

Knowledge is a light that leads to wisdom. It is life for one’s soul and fuel for one’s character.

1s he who was dead [without Faith by ignorance and disbelief] and we gave him life [by knowledge and Faith] and set. For him a light [of Belief] whereby he can walk amongst men, like him who is in the darkness [of disbelief, polytheism and hypocrisy] from which he can never come out?}  (Qur’an 6: 122)

Happiness and high-spiritedness come with enlightenment, because through knowledge, one may fulfill his goals and discover what was previously hidden from him. The soul, by its very nature, longs for the acquisition of new knowledge to stimulate it and the mind.

Ignorance is boredom and grief, because the ignorant person leads a life that never offers anything new or mind provoking. Yesterday is like today, which in turn is like tomorrow.
If you desire happiness, and then seek out knowledge and enlightenment, and you will find that anxiety, depression, and grief will leave you.

And say: My Lord! Increase me in knowledge’.  (Qur’an 20: 114) 

Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created [all that exists]?   (Qur ‘an 96: 1) 

The Prophet (Blessings and Peace be upon him) said:

‘If Allah wishes good for someone, He gives him an understanding of the Religion.”

Therefore if someone is ignorant, let him not be proud of either his wealth or his status in society: his life is lacking in meaning and his achievements are woefully incomplete. Read more…

Blessings in disguise

And indeed we have destroyed towns [populations] round about you. (Qur’an 46:27)

There is the tragic example of the Barmak family, a family that lived a life of opulence, comfort, and extravagance. Their end, however, has served as a lesson and example for all Arabs who came after them. Haroon ar-Rasheed, the ruler during their period, ordered an unexpected attack on the Barmak family and on their possessions. Allah’s decree came to pass over them in the morning at the hands of the closest person to them: he destroyed their homes, took possession of their slaves, and shed their blood. Their loved ones and children wept at their disgrace. There is none worthy of worship except Allah; those who know the story should especially appreciate the transitory nature of power and wealth in this world:

Then take admonition, O’ you with eyes [to see]. (Qur’an 59: 2) Read more…

Dissatisfaction is the door to doubt

Dissatisfaction opens the door that leads to doubt in Allah: in His Decree, in His Wisdom, and in His Knowledge. Rarely is the complainer free from these accompanying doubts that mix within his heart and permeate his being. If he were to delve deep into his self with honest introspection, he would find his faith to be infirm and questionable. Contentment and faith are like brothers that accompany one another; meanwhile, doubt and discontentment have a similar fraternal relationship. Tirmidhi related that the Prophet (bpuh) said: Read more…