Thursday 24 December 2009

Remember Me

Transcend the value of metaphor as it illuminates the path not the final goal

As I walked through the valley of the shadow of death
The wind howled warm against my neck
I feel fright as the shadows closed in
The hairs on my neck grew tall and thin
They too quaked in their roots
Along with me in my designer shoes
And that is when I had to choose
Who was my friend who was my enemy
And how I would shape my destiny

With my two friends I embarked on a journey out of the dark
Murshid one
The silent one
Behind my back
Murshid two
In clear view
I looked I searched and then I grasped
Murshid one from behind my bank
Placed it in front
Dark side by side with the light
And finally focused on the true goal in sight

Hikmah

There was this beautiful woman, who wanted to get married, but she wanted a
very pious husband, so she said that she?ll marry the man who recites the
whole Quran every single day, fasts for the whole year and stays awake and
worships Allah all throughout the night.

She was a very beautiful woman, and a lot of suitors wanted to marry her,
but they knew they couldn?t fulfill the conditions she set. Until this one
man stepped forward and said he could fulfill them. So the Imam got both of
them married.

After the first night of the marriage, the wife sees that the husband
doesn?t recite the whole of the Quran, nor does he fast, nor does he stay
awake in the worship of Allah, she decided to let it roll on for a few
weeks to see if there were any changes, there weren?t, so she filed a
complaint and asked for a divorce.

They are both taken in front of the judge, and the judge asked, ?What were
the conditions of the marriage?? the man replied ?They were for me to
recite the whole Quran daily, keep fast for the whole year and to worship
Allah all throughout the night.?

The Judge asked, ? did you fulfill them? The man calmly answered, ??yes.?

The judge answers, ?you lie, your wife has said that you don?t, that?s why
she?s asking for a divorce?.

But the man insisted that he had fulfilled the conditions, so the judge
asked, ?did you recite the full Quran every day?? The man answered yes. The
Judge, baffled asked, ?how? How can you do that?? The man coolly answered,
?I recite Surah Ikhlas three times a day and according to Prophet Muhammad
(saw), reciting Surah Ikhlas three times is equivalent to reciting the
whole Quran.?
The Judge was intrigued, so he asked, ?how did you fast the whole year??
The man answered, ? I fasted for the whole month of Ramadan, then kept
another six fasts in the month of Shawwal, according to Prophet Muhammad
(saw), keeping all of the fast of Ramadan then keeping six fasts in the
month of Shawwal, is as if you have fasted for the whole year.?

The Judge remained silent, he couldn?t give a reply saying the man was
wrong, so finally he asked, ? how did you stay awake all night and worship
Allah, when your wife saw you sleeping?? The Judge thought the man wouldn?t
be able to answer this one, but the man, cool as a cucumber answered, ?I
prayed Salatul Isha with jamaat, then the next day prayed Salatul Fajr with
jamaat, according to Prophet Muhammad (saw), the one who prays Salatul Isha
and Salatul Fajr with jamaat, it is as if he had stayed up all night worshipping Allah.?

The Judge sat there looking at the man; the final verdict was about to be
released?

He said to the man and his wife, ??go, just go, there is nothing wrong with
this marriage??

Moral of the Story- Islam is not hard, it?s great < ?And We have indeed made the Qur?an easy to understand and remember; then is there any one who will remember (or receive admonition)??----Surah: Al-Qamar (54): Ayah # 17

Christmas

Islam and Christmas

Quite a number of Muslims today believe that taking part in Christmas celebrations is a harmless pastime and a legitimate source of happiness for children and adults alike. Indeed the Christmas season has been aggressively promoted in every aspect of business, in schools and in every public place. Little wonder that many of those targeted so persistently succumb to temptation. In addition to the commercial side of Christmas, are certain religious aspects to be noted.

The celebration is intended by Chris-tians as a remembrance of the birth of Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) who is considered by many of them as God incarnate or the second person in a trinity, and thus they celebrate the birth of "divinity."The word itself is an abbreviated form of "Christ Mass," i.e., sacrament in commemoration of Christ.

Although taken by Christians to be the birthday of Jesus, the actual date of celebration, December 25th, cannot be traced back any further than the fourth century after Christ. Ironically, this day is also considered to be the birthday of the Hindu god, Krishna, as well as Mithra, the Greek god of light. It also coincides with the an-nual Tree Festival which had long been celebrated in Northern Europe before the Christian era.

The Christmas tree is the most obvious aspect of that pagan celebration which was incorporated along with its date of obser-vance, December 25th, into church rites. The evergreen tree, because it keeps its green needles throughout the winter months, was believed by pre-Christian pagans to have special powers of protection against the forces of nature and evil spirits.

Thus, in more aspects than one, the holiday is deeply rooted in the worship of different forms of creation rather than the Creator Himself. A Muslim cannot possibly approve of such beliefs or the practices which stem from them. Anyone with a minimal knowledge of Islam would surely reject kufr (disbelief) and shirk (association of partners with Allaah) in every form.

Only through ignorance or unawareness could one continue to participate in activities that reflect the acceptance of both.

Muslims must be firm in refusal of all which is contrary to the concept of "Laa ilaaha illallaaha (there is none deserving of subservience except Allaah alone)."

Consideration for others is well and good on the condition that Islamic principles are not compromised.

Allah (subhaanahu wa ta’aalaa) says: “If you obey most of those upon the earth, they will lead you away from the way of Allaah.” [An’aam 6:116]. And He commands: “Follow what has been revealed to you from your Lord and do not follow any patrons other than Him.” [A’raaf 7:3]

Whether taken from the materialistic or the religious standpoint, Christmas can have no place in the Muslim's heart nor in his home.

www.calltoislam.com

Ruling on celebrating Christmas
http://www.islam-qa.com/en/ref/947/christmas

‘Aashooraa’ 10th day of Muharram

Assalamualikum,

As many of you know, this Saturday and Sunday (26th and 27th Dec) will be the 9th and 10th of Muharram. Muharram is the month with which the Muslims begin their lunar Hijrah Calendar.

The Prophet (SAW) has said: "The best fasts after the fasts of Ramadan are those of the month of Muharram."
Although Muharram is a sanctified month as a whole, the 10th day of Muharram is the most sacred among all its days. The day is named 'Ashoora'.

The Prophet (SAW) said, “Fasting the day of Ashoora (is of great merits), I hope that Allah will accept it as an expiation for (the sins committed in) the previous year” (Muslim).

It is more advisable that the fast of Ashoora should be preceded by another fast. It means that one should fast two days: the 9th and 10th of Muharram, which would be Saturday the 26th and Sunday the 27th of December 2009.


‘Aashooraa’ in History
Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) came to Madeenah and saw the Jews fasting on the day of ‘Aashooraa’. He said, ‘What is this?’ They said, ‘This is a righteous day, it is the day when Allaah saved the Children of Israel from their enemies, (when Allah split the sea so Moosa and his people could cross, but Fira'un was drowned) so Moosa fasted on this day.’ He said, ‘We have more right to Moosa than you,’ so he fasted on that day and commanded [the Muslims] to fast on that day.” (Reported by al-Bukhaari, 1865).


The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “For fasting the day of ‘Aashooraa’, I hope that Allaah will accept it as expiation for the year that went before.” (Reported by Muslim, 1976). This is from the bounty of Allaah towards us: for fasting one day He gives us expiation for the sins of a whole year. And Allaah is the Owner of Great Bounty.


It is mustahabb (encouraged) to fast Taasoo’aa’ with ‘Aashooraa’
‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with them both) said: “When the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) fasted on ‘Aashooraa’ and commanded the Muslims to fast as well, they said, ‘O Messenger of Allaah, it is a day that is venerated by the Jews and Christians.’ The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, ‘If I live to see the next year, in sha Allaah, we will fast on the ninth day too.’ But it so happened that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) passed away before the next year came.” (Reported by Muslim, 1916).
Al-Shaafa'i and his companions, Ahmad, Ishaaq and others said: “It is mustahabb to fast on both the ninth and tenth days, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) fasted on the tenth, and intended to fast on the ninth.”
On this basis it may be said that there are varying degrees of fasting ‘Aashooraa’, the least of which is to fast only on the tenth and the best of which is to fast the ninth as well. The more one fasts in Muharram, the better it is.


The reason why it is mustahabb to fast on Taasoo’aa’
Al-Nawawi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “The scholars – our companions and others – mentioned several reasons why it is mustahabb to fast on Taasoo’aa’:
1. the intention behind it is to be different from the Jews, who only venerate the tenth day. This opinion was reported from Ibn ‘Abbaas…
2. the intention is to add another day’s fast to ‘Aashooraa’. This is akin to the prohibition on fasting a Friday by itself, as was mentioned by al-Khattaabi and others.
3. To be on the safe side and make sure that one fasts on the tenth, in case there is some error in sighting the crescent moon at the beginning of Muharram and the ninth is in fact the tenth.”
The strongest of these reasons is being different from the People of the Book. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: “The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) forbade imitating the People of the Book in many ahaadeeth, for example, his words concerning ‘Aashooraa’:
‘If I live until the next year, I will certainly fast on the ninth day.’” (al-Fataawa al-Kubra, part 6, Sadd al-Dharaa’i’ al-Mufdiyah ila’l-Mahaarim )


I encourage everyone that is able to, to fast on these two days insh’Allah. It is a time to ask Allah swt for forgiveness for all the sins committed in the past year. I would also like to take this opportunity to ask you too, to forgive me for my mistakes, my faults and my shortcomings over the past year (and more!).