Thoughts Of A Traveller

We demand A fair trial for Babar Ahmad

2011-10-11T09:42:00.004+01:00

Last night I received an email from a beautiful sister highlighting an urgent cause a cry for our attention and therefore Ive felt compelled to share it in anyway I can! Please do put yourself in Babar Ahmads shoes and try for a moment to imagine how he must be feeling knowing there are millions of Muslims out there in the very country he has been imprisoned in for 7 years without trial and with less than 1 month remaining his petition is still so far off from reaching it's target! This could be you or your blood brother, father, son wouldn't you then reach out to everyone to help? Anyways let's get on to the message...

Sometimes we receive emails about something and we don’t bother to read it to the end. This is one email that NEEDS to be read to the very end. It not only needs to be read, it needs YOU the reader to place yourself in the shoes of someone. It NEEDS you to ‘live’ his reality, to smell what he smells, to touch what he is able to touch, to see what he sees and to imagine his future in the way that he does.

Are you ready to completely switch off from what is surrounding you and give your complete attention and heart for JUST 3 MINUTES! For the sake of Allah please do, as it could seriously be a source of ajr (reward) for you and could make the difference to someone’s life.

Before you think, this email is asking for money – IT ISN’T! I simply want you to be this person for 3 minutes in your life…

You’re happily married, you have a wonderful close family mashaAllah. You have a good job and you love your Islam. Life is good Alhamdulillah and you are one of those few individuals who goes out of your way to help others purely to seek the pleasure of Allah. You sleep soundly, you have the choice to eat what tickles your fancy and you can choose whether you bask in the beautiful sunshine or you spend a day listening to a wonderful lecture. You are free – you can choose – life is sweet.

In a matter of seconds, your happy life is ripped away from you. Now your reality is very different: you have lost your spouse, you can no longer enjoy being with your family, your heart aches and longs to be close to your loved ones – but it is impossible. And so you only rely on your dreams at night to bring back what you yearn to be your reality: spending Eid together, walking through the park, praying with fellow Muslims, enjoying a bite to eat with friends.

This is the reality of one individual.

You know what’s really sad about this situation? This individual spent his life trying to help others. Those who knew him had such respect for him as he was one who tried to ease the pain and difficulty of others. The time has come where the Muslim Community can NOW help him to turn his dreams of freedom into a reality.

Yes, I’m talking about Babar Ahmad who has been imprisoned without trial for over 7 years and I want you to read til the end of this email as there is a message from him in the last few days which cut deep as I’m sure it will make you cry in both admiration for his strength and pain at his situation.

Thousands of emails have gone around about him, asking people to sign the petition. Sadly with only one month to go, there have only been 20,000 signatures. 80,000 more are needed.

It saddens me that with only one month to go, we the Muslim Community have not exerted enough effort to reach the number of signatures needed which will enable Babar Ahmed’s case to be discussed by parliament.

What faces Babar Ahmad should he be extradited to the US?

·         He will face the rest of his natural life in a Supermax Prison
·         He will be in solitary confinement for 22-23 hours per day
·         Regular body searches
·         Regular ‘extractions’ where fully kitted officers in riot gear ‘remove’ the prisoner by surprise and do a cell search which often results in serious physical damage to the prisoner
·         One call per month to a family or friend

As one senior Supermax officer put it, “Do we have an obligation to take care of them? Yes. But do I have an obligation to provide him touching, feeling contact with another human being? I would say no. He has earned his way to [supermax] and he’s earned just the opposite. He’s earned the need for me to keep him apart from other people.”

Babar Ahmad has not done anything to deserve being sent to such a place and you can be a part of the campaign to have him tried here in the United Kingdom.

I have faith in the Muslim Community as I have seen wonderful things happen in such a short space of time. We can do this and we owe it to our brother to support him in this cause.

So, what can we do:

·         Sign the petition and don’t forget to activate the link that is sent to your email address.
·         Get every member in your household and extended family to sign it.
·         If everyone could try to get at least 10 others to sign than we could actually reach the target of 100,000 signatures by 10th NOVEMBER 2011.
·         Spread the word, forward this email on.

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/885

We all have excuses, but I wonder what excuse we will give to Allah when He (Swt) asks what we did to help a brother on our very own doorstep. What excuse will you give for not taking 2 minutes out of your time to simply sign a government e-petition.

I try to imagine how Babar must be feeling right now, only one month left and only 20,000 signatures from his brothers and sisters. I would have lost much hope but this is what he said to one of his sisters recently:

‘Whatever you do, never give up, because the only thing worse than failure is the failure to try’. Babar Ahmad, October 2011

The question is not whether you should sign the petition, the question is what is stopping you from doing it and from getting others to do it??? Don’t be a Muslim who merely shows his Islam though speech. ACT TODAY.

Revisit the above steps as to how you can help and before Shaytaan makes you think about something else – SIGN, SPREAD THE WORD AND GET THOSE ADDITIONAL 10 PEOPLE TO SIGN TOO.

May Allah reward you for reading this far. You never know what something like this could do for an individual’s life and future. More importantly – what it could do for your akhirah when everyone will do anything to go back to the life of this world to do the best deed they could do…

Wasalamu alaikum

And just a few things to clarify in case you’re thinking:

1.       I am worried about giving my name and address to this

Addresses and email addresses are not published or accessible by any member of the public, 20,000 people have already signed this petition. Why would the Government spend time and resources chasing up on each of those 20,000 people in the middle of a recession when they have so many bigger issues to worry about-just because they signed a recognised and legitimate Government petition, acting within the law?

2) What difference would it make anyway? What's the point?

It took one woman to cause a revolution in Egypt, billions of tiny drops of water come together to form the ocean...there is always a point-even if it is just the fact that we can say to Allah (SWT) on the Day of Judgement "We saw a brother in need, we did this to try to help him."

3) We don't want to ask this "non-Muslim" or non-shariah government for anything, we should just make dua and not do this petition.

That would have been fair enough if this was an Islamic state. The bottom line is that there is no third option-Trial in UK or trial in the USA. No one has asked Babar what kind of trial he would like. Once you are arrested and locked up, you are bound by the laws of the authorities that locked you up in the first place-whether you like it or not.

4) I want to sign it but I have had so much on, I have been too busy to get to it.

This petition expires on 10th November 2011-then that opportunity to sign will be over.Imagine the feeling of sadness and regret if we miss out our target of 100,000 by just a small handful of signatures-that could have been if people didn't procrastinate. Or worse still, seeing the news that Babar Ahmad has been put on a plane to the US.

Asking is how we learn!

2011-10-04T12:54:00.002+01:00

Today whilst watching a kids programme 'Chuggington' with my son I was reminded of a valuable lesson... 'asking is how we learn' the story had 2 trains learning how to be an animal tour guide from an older train. One of the younger trains was full of questions eager to learn where as the other was over excited and wanted to be a tour guide before they had even started lol! The senior train explained 'asking is how you learn' and this really is such an important lesson for us all to remember in all aspects of life from asking for directions to the jurisprudence of our deen.

When it comes to our deen we are on a continuous journey to better ourselves to learn more in order to please Allah more so if we don't ask those that may know then how are we supposed to excel in our deen?
Many a time questions may arise when we feel shy to ask perhaps female issues or personal relationship issues but let us not let these types of questions get in the way of our learning. The women of the Ansar would ask the Prophet (saw) about how to clean themselves after menstruation and sexual intercourse.
These are matters that normally women especially in those days would be shy to ask a man about. But shyness did not prevent them from finding out how they should clean themselves and this is why A'isha said: How good are the women of Ansar (helpers) that their shyness does not prevent them from learning religion.
Other times we may feel shy due to us feeling that the question may be too simple or basic... But don't let this stop you either as inshallah by knowing the answer you may get closer to Allah and may stop doing something haram and instead start earning the pleasure of Allah! So who cares if a question may seem basic if knowing the answer gets you 1 step closer to Jannah? And on this note a reminder to myself and to everyone else if a fellow sister or brother asks us a question and to us it seems basic then don't become arrogant and think what a silly question... Firstly thank Allah if you know the answer that He alone has blessed you with the knowledge to answer and make dua that Allah accept it from you as inshallah for you it can also be a great reward teaching someone else something just imagine each time they use that knowledge you will also gain reward each time. I remember someone one complaining how they were frustrated at how they had been asked 'silly questions' with regards to the deen and these questions were regarding the prayer on what was acceptable to wear. I thought subhanAllah someone who didn't know but wanted to make sure their Salah was as good and as perfect as they could make it came to ask you regarding it and in return they may have gotten the answer but also a slice of arrogance too. May Allah protect us all from this Ameen.

So remember seek the company of those who know and don't feel shy and at the same time don't feel arrogant in asking and when asked questions!

Wow who would have thought by watching 'Chuggington' one could remember such an important lesson!

Watch this Space!!!

2011-09-26T11:59:00.003+01:00

Ok so I've been away for errrrrm years!!! Wow it doesn't even feel that long although it does feel long if that makes sense!
Anywhoooss... Since I last blogged so much has happened I've had a new addition to our family who is now 19 months old his name is Isa Abdullah and I also have another addition on the way masha'Allah!!!

The cyber world has also dramatically advanced too and my blog seems somewhat prehistoric to say the least and so I've ordered myself 'Blogging for Dummies' hopefully it should arrive within a few days and I'll be back with a revamped up to date blog insha'Allah!

Until then keep smiling and keep the faith!

Peace Out and Watch this space!!!

Itching to blog....but

2008-11-07T20:05:00.002Z

My fingers are itching to blog but a certain Master Yaqub wont allow it so Ill have to save my urge for when hes sound asleep. But here is a preview...firstly alhamdulillah Miriam Ali is safe at home!

Now the preview to my urge! The world has gone Mad about Obama and to put it point blank... They need to prepare themselves for a huge let down. I hope that Im wrong here I really do but Muslims in particular have put so much hope in the 1st black president who as I heard someone on a programme describe 'is simply black on the outside' why I dont understand... perhaps its his great campaign tactics or perhaps it is because anything is better than Bush... but is someone who is recruiting hard core Zionists as his dedicated little helpers really any better??? hmmmm food for thought! I shall be back with more on this soon insha'Allah!

Miriam Ali - Can You Help???

2008-11-02T21:33:00.002Z

Police are appealing for help in locating this Whitley woman who has been reported missing.

Miriam Ali, 25, was last seen by her family at her home in Redruth Gardens on Monday, September 29. Her last known whereabouts is believed to be the town centre and she was last seen wearing a long black hijab and black shoes.

Missing person co-ordinator PC Bob Phillips said: “We are concerned about Miriam’s welfare as it is out of

character for her not to stay in contact with her family. I appeal for anyone who may know of her whereabouts to contact me urgently.”

Police searched her family home on Friday looking for clues.

Miriam is Asian, of medium build, 5ft 4in, and has long black hair.

She also has a stud in her nose and a mole on her left cheek.

Anyone who knows where she is should contact police on 08458 505 505 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Dissapointment

2008-10-03T23:31:00.002+01:00

“Disappointment to a noble soul is what cold water is to burning metal; it strengthens, tempers, intensifies, but never destroys it.”
Eliza Tabor

Farewell My Beloved

2008-09-29T23:02:00.001+01:00

It seems just like yesterday that the moon was sighted and your light shone upon us all.
Wasn’t it just yesterday that the nights seemed to be more peaceful and calm, so welcoming with open arms imploring me to awake from my sleep and benefit from the glorious mercy of my Lord?
Others celebrate with joy rightly so as the blessed day of Eid has arrived yet I feel some what solemn, sad because my beloved has left me yet again for another long year.
My body and soul had become accustomed to your fulfilling, blessed and spiritually cleansing days and my heart longed and continues to long for your ever so tranquil, mysterious and blissful nights.
I know not when the night of power was but I am certain it has left us behind and will not return for another long year.
Confusion arises at whether the moon has been sighted or not and at first I am disturbed by the so called early sighting of the crescent but then my heart rests and says… it may bring the return of my beloved one day closer so Alhamdulillah for what may be a blessing in disguise.
Farewell my beloved for your return I pray I am alive and here to welcome you with a humble heart and the sincere devotion you deserve ameen.

Umber Alam
(Umm Yaqub)

Nafsi Nafsi!

2008-09-29T04:14:00.001+01:00

When ever I call my sister the first thing I ask about are the well being of my beloved nephew and niece, how are they? Are they well? What are they doing? Etc. Even when I am not on the phone to her I often think of them and wonder how they are infact many times a day do I verbally speak about them to my own son.

So when it comes to my own son of course he is always on my mind. As I close my eyes when falling asleep his warm body is there close to mine, each time I wake up at night which is only so I can quickly glance at him I check if he is ok. When my eyes open in the morning I quickly look over at him to see how he is. Even if he goes to the local Tesco’s with my husband for a short while I yearn his return and love to see him as he comes in through the front door. For all these reasons my mind is terrified and can hardly comprehend how Horrific the day must be when Allah (SWT) says in the Qur’an:

فَإِذَا نُفِخَ فِي الصُّورِ فَلَا أَنْسَابَ بَيْنَهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ وَلَا يَتَسَاءَلُونَ

Then when the Trumpet is blown, there will be no more relationships between them that day, nor will one ask after another!

(Surah Al-Muminun:101)

Imagine that Day when you no longer care about those who you love the only thing on your mind will be ‘Nafsi Nafsi’ ‘Myself Myself’. I think of this as I look at my child and I can not help but cry. Oh my son, my dear beloved son, the light of my eyes how can it be that one Day if you call out to me asking for help I shall run from you being unable to help you? Is it because the truth is you have never loved your child, your husband, brother, sister, mother, father? No the love we have for them is sincere it is true, it is only due to the Horrors of that Day and the reality of that Day that will make us seem as if we are mad. Its difficult for me to understand that this can be true but I know that the Words of Allah (SWT) are true and Allah (SWT) does not lie if Allah (SWT) has told us that this will happen then with out a doubt it will happen.

Have we really thought about this Day enough? More importantly have we prepared for this day and do we fear it? The day when fear alone shall make the hair of a child turn grey Subhana’Allah!

Having children is such a blessing in so many ways. One of the many blessings I found is that it really brings the reality of the Day of Judgment close to home. The ayah above I have read many times before and have thought wow subhana’Allah (SWT) that must be really scary but its only now that I have my own child that I am so terrified of that day when If he calls out to me crying, screaming, in state of panic that I shall run away from caring only for myself, may Allah (SWT) protect us all from this and make us and our children from those who are pious and forgiven by Him Ameen.

Even whilst I was pregnant with him subhana’Allah how much care did I go through to look after myself only because I was carrying him in my womb, then he was born even until this day I feed him his milk allowing him to suckle when he wants giving him comfort. So then again when I read the following ayah the words of Allah (SWT) again it hits home:

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ زَلْزَلَةَ السَّاعَةِ شَيْءٌ عَظِيمٌ

يَوْمَ تَرَوْنَهَا تَذْهَلُ كُلُّ مُرْضِعَةٍ عَمَّا أَرْضَعَتْ وَتَضَعُ كُلُّ ذَاتِ حَمْلٍ حَمْلَهَا وَتَرَى النَّاسَ سُكَارَىٰ وَمَا هُمْ بِسُكَارَىٰ وَلَٰكِنَّ عَذَابَ اللَّهِ شَدِيدٌ
O mankind! fear your Lord! For the convulsion of the Hour (of Judgment) will be a thing terrible!
The Day ye shall see it, every mother giving suck shall forget her suckling-babe, and every pregnant female shall drop her load (unformed): thou shalt see mankind as in a drunken riot, yet not drunk: but dreadful will be the Wrath of Allah.

(Surah Hajj:1-2)

Subhana’Allah my mind can hardly understand the words: ‘every mother giving suck shall forget her suckling babe and every pregnant female shall drop her load’

The thing I tell myself is that, this is not something that may happen, these are the Words of Allah and this Day will come and these things will happen with out a doubt and then I ask myself have I prepared for this am I ready and then I tremble and my eyes swell up with tears as I know the truth is I am far from being ready for such a horrific day.

Allah is telling us: ‘Oh Mankind fear your Lord ! For the convulsion of the Hour (of Judgment) will be a thing terrible!
However what use is this fear if it doesn’t make us repent and yearn to do good? We need to be motivated by this fear to do good, fast often, make tawbah more, give in charity, read and contemplate over the words of Allah, busy yourself in the worship of Allah and make dua make dua make dua as it is the weapon of the believer.

We should fear this Day and no that it will happen without a doubt but also know that we have a Merciful and Forgiving Lord who does not want to punish us rather He loves to forgive us so let us turn to Him and beg for guidance and forgiveness.

The prophet Muhammad (saw) told us that Allah is more merciful to us than a mother is to her child. Subhana’Allah so lets not waste any more time and let us ask Allah to allow us to be under His shade of Mercy and Forgiveness.

Let us seriously prepare for this Day, the Day when we know the horrors of it will be enough to turn the hair of a child grey Allahu Akbar.

Tonight is the 29^th night of Ramadan Allah knows best but perhaps it is the Night of Power Laylatul Qadr. So I turn to my Lord and beg him:

اَللهُمَّ إنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّيْ
Allahumma innaka ‘affuwwun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa’fu ‘anni’ ”
O Allāh You are The One Who pardons greatly, and loves to pardon, so pardon me.

Ill end off with this know that this Day will lead us to either Paradise or the Hellfire our final abode is one of these 2 places without a doubt we will end up in one of them a place of eternal bliss or an abode of torture, blazing fire and sorrow and regret. Let us turn to Allah and prepare before it is too late.

I Envy

2008-09-25T17:01:00.002+01:00

I envy the sand that met his feet
I’m jealous of honey he tasted sweet
Of birds that hovered above his head
Of spiders who spun their sacred web
To save him from his enemies
I envy clouds formed from the seas
That gave him cover from the heat
Of a sun whose light could not compete
With his, whose face did shine so bright
That all was clear in blinding night
I envy sightless trees that gazed
Upon his form completely dazed
Not knowing if the sun had risen
But felt themselves in unison
With those who prayed, and fasted too
Simply because he told them to
With truth and kindness, charity
From God who gave such clarity
His mercy comes in one He sent
To mold our hearts more heaven bent
I envy all there at his side
Who watched the turning of the tide
As truth prevailed and falsehood fled
And hope restored life to the dead
Men and Women through him found grace
To seek together God’s noble face
I envy the cup that gave him drink
His thoughts that helped us all to think
To be one thought that passed his mind
Inspiring him to act so kind
For me this world is not one jot
If I could simply be a thought
From him to God throughout the ages
As revelation came in stages
I pity all who think it odd
To hear him say there is one God
Or he was sent by God to men
To hone their spirits’ acumen
It’s pride that blinds us from the sight
That helps good men to see his light
He taught us all to be God’s slaves
And he will be the one who saves
Humanity from sinful pride
Muhammad has God on his side
So on this day be blessed and sing
For he was born to grace our Spring
With lilies, flowers, life’s rebirth
In a dome of green like his on earth
... In Honour of the Beloved Prophet Muhammad (saw),

Shaykh Hamzah Yusuf Hanson

I am here

2008-09-23T21:05:00.002+01:00

Each moment contains
a hundred messages from
God: To every cry of
"Oh Lord," He answers
a hundred times,
"I am here"

... Mevlana Rumi

Leave Sleep for Prayer

2008-09-23T16:21:00.000+01:00

"And during part of the night forsake sleep by prayer, beyond what is already incumbent upon thee; maybe thy Lord will raise thee to a position of praise and glory" ... al-Isra' 17:79

Forgiveness

2008-09-23T15:59:00.005+01:00

On the authority of Anas (may Allah be pleased with him), who said:

I heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) say: Allah the Almighty said:

'O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great at it.'

It was related by at-Tirmidhi (also by Ahmad ibn Hanbal). Its chain of authorities is sound.

A speech at the UN Assembly

2008-09-23T15:40:00.001+01:00

An ingenious example of speech and politics occurred recently in the United Nations Assembly and made the world community smile. A representative from Palestinian began:'
Before beginning my talk I want to tell you something about Moses. When he struck the rock and it brought forth water, he thought, 'What a good opportunity to have a bath! 'He removed his clothes, put them aside on the rock and entered the water. When he got out and wanted to dress, his clothes had vanished. An Israeli had stolen them.'
The Israeli representative jumped up furiously and shouted,
'What are you talking about? The Israeli weren't there then.
'The Palestinian representative smiled and said
'And now that we have made that clear, I will begin myspeech.'

Dont miss this chance!

2008-09-22T21:54:00.002+01:00

The opportunity of Laylatul Qadr is here Inshallah. Life is about people that take advantage of their opportunities to win the love of Allah, and this is indeed one of those chances.
Abu Dah Daah was one of those who found an opportunity and won that which is greater than the heavens and the earth. An adult companion of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) cultivated his garden next to the property of an orphan. The orphan claimed that a specific palm tree was on his property and thus belonged to him. The companion rejected the claim and off to the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) went the orphan boy to complain. With his justness, the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) measured the two gardens and found that the palm tree did indeed belong to the companion. The orphan erupted crying. Seeing this, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) offered the companion, 'would you give him the palm tree and to you is a palm tree in Jannah?' However, the companion in his disbelief that an orphan would complain to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) missed the opportunity and went away angry. But someone else saw the opportunity, Abu Dah Daah (may Allah be pleased with him) . He went to the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and asked, 'Ya Rasul Allah, if I buy the tree from him and give it to the orphan shall I have that tree in Jannah?' The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) replied, 'Yes.' Abu Dah Daah chased after the companion and asked, 'Would you sell that tree to me for my entire garden?' The companion answered, 'Take it for there is no good in a tree that I was complained to the Prophet about.' Immediately, Abu Dah Daah went home and found his wife and children playing in the garden. 'Leave the garden!' shouted Abu Dah Daah, 'we've sold it to Allah! We've sold it to Allah!' Some of his children had dates in their hand and he snatched the dates from them and threw them back into the garden. 'We've sold it to Allah!' When Abu Dah Daah was later martyred in the battle of Uhud, Rasul Allah (Peace be upon him) stood over his slain body and remarked, 'How many shady palm trees does Abu Dah Daah now have in paradise?' What did Abu Dah Daah lose? Dates? Bushes? Dirt? What did he gain? He gained a Jannah whose expanse is the heavens and the earth. Abu Dah Daah did not miss his opportunity, and I pray to Allah that we do not miss our opportunity of standing to Allah on Laylatul Qadr.

How to visit the time of The Prophet Muhammad (saw) and the Sahabah?

2008-09-18T14:00:00.010+01:00

Many of us wish we could have lived with the Prophet (saw) and that we could have lived among the greatest community to ever exist... The Sahabah (may Allah be pleased with them all).

We know some of their stories we read the seerah of the Prophet (saw) and we long to be in that time.

Recently myself and my husband have been going though the Seerah of one of the greatest Sahabah Umar Ibn Al Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him ameen) by Imam Anwar Al Awlaki (may Allah preserve him ameen).

Words can not express how wonderful an experience this is for me. Although I may sound surprised I shouldnt really as I have listened to many lectures by Imam Anwar and each time Im blown away by not only his style of delivering the lecture but the wonderful amoun of detail he goes into.

Listening to this particular set has realy allowed me to feel as if I too am walking the streets of Makkah and Madinah with the Sahabah as if I am witnessing how Umar (ra) arrived at the door of Dar Al Arkam to declare his faith in Allah, as if I climbed up the mountain after the battle of Uhud with the prophet (saw) and the sahabah to the point that when the Imam spoke about the death of the Prophet (saw) and when he narrated the words of Abu Bakr Siddiq (ra) I felt as if the prophet (saw) had just passed away and I was left with tears streaming down my face.

There is so much to be learnt from the lives of the Sahabah they were after all the best of generations. And I have never come across anyone who has told the story of the life of Umar(ra) so well masha'Allah.

My advice to anyone and everyone who reads this post is to go right now and get these cds and listen for yourself. Also available by Imam Anwar are The life of Muhammad Makkan period and Madinah period part 1, Abu Bakr (ra), The Here After, Lives of the prophets and various other single lectures.

Last 10 Nights!

2008-09-18T14:00:00.004+01:00

The last 10 nights of Ramadhan are fast approaching us... Oh my how this blessed month has already flown by so quickly.

Here is a short but beautiful dua to memorise which can be used in sujood, after our prayers... when are sitting at our office desks with 2 seconds to spare basically when ever we have time insha'Allah also after the month of Ramadhan we should continue to stick onto the good habits we adopt in this blessed month so of course carry on using the dua through out the year insha'Allah.

So its time for us all to humble ourselves before our Lord and get our heads onto the floor and beg for His Mercy, Guidance and Forgiveness.

Aishah (radhiya Allahu Ta’ala anha), reported that she said:

“O Messenger of Allāh! What if I knew which nightLailatul-Qadr was, then what should I say in it?”

He said ‘Say:

اَللهُمَّ إنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّيْ.

Allahumma innaka ‘affuwwun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa’fu ‘anni’ ”

O Allāh You are The One Who pardons greatly, and loves to pardon, so pardon me.

(Tirmīdhī)

Forever Grateful! Alhamdulillah!

2008-09-16T10:12:00.007+01:00

I recently had a wonderful to trip to Uganda in Africa. Apart from really enjoying myself there with family etc I really had an eye opener to the world.

Here in the west well in the UK anyways we spend so much time moaning and complaining about what we dont have and we even moan about what we do have. We need this and that etc and I could go on. Then we see people who have really been blessed and they have so much but they are not really happy... on a day to day basis you dont see them smiling in their every day lives, laughing and joking, speaking pleasently to one another etc... perhaps Im being slightly harsh but whenI saw the simple and poor people in Africa this is what it seems like.

The people in the villages and even on the outskirts of Kampala are so poor they do not even have the basic hygiene facilities we all take for granted, their children grow up on the road sides in torn clothing which barely covers their bodies and they take their afternoon naps curled up in he dirt on the bare floor. But when you see them... its amazing as they look so happy subhana'Allah! Full of smiles for each other and full of smiles for me the complete strange driving past. Its strange as although I could clearly see the state they were living in complete poverty I mean one little girl I stopped to talk to when she went to call her mother from the house I saw that the tiny hut they had for a home did not even have a front door to close it was just the frame of a door but no actual door, even though I saw this with my own eyes I felt a deep longing to want to live along side them, to join into their simple but happy lives, I wanted to be part of them.

Their buildings are barely what we would call buildings... small tiny huts, their shops are hardly the Tesco's, or Asda's with neatly and cleanely displayed fruits yet their little homes look so welcoming and their stalls look so fresh and appetising. I kept asking myself... 'Can these people really be so happy? and IF so how and why?'

I then asked my husband who grew up in Uganda 'These poor people are they happy?' 'Yes' he replied, 'Because their lives are simple'. Thats is that was the secret. Its because they dont have such a huge standard to live by they dont have this idea in their heads that need this and that to be happy etc. They work hard, enough to live by and are happy with that alhamdulillah.

These people make the most our of everything... look at their bus stops when they do have them most of the time they dont have even that but when they do its so simple, so humbling.

They make use out of everything... from making shoes out of a disgarded foot ball or tire as its been punctured, to turning a wire hanger into a small model motor bike or car. Even a small ditch on the road side is turned into a car wash! These people dont sit around moaning that they have no means to work they turn what we may call rubbish into work.

Its amazing how much one can learn from what we call 'The 3rd World'. So many lessons of basic humanity we can learn from them if only we opened our eyes.

Having said all of this, at the same time... you do see how much in need these people are and many a time whilst driving past these people I could not help but cry. One time I small boy in torn up clothes who was filled with dust and dirt looked up and saw me slowly driving past, his face beamed with happiness as he waved me goodbye... this made me cry why I dont know.

Another time something which deeply affected me was a small girl I saw. She must have been about 5 years old. Again her clothes were torn, her hair was matted, her body full of dust and she was struggling as she walked down the street as she was carrying a dirty heavy container filled with water. It was one of the most heart breaking things I have ever seen in my life, why not only because of the effort she was goign through to take water home, not only because she was so young, not only because the state she was in but also because even though she was going through all of this effort carrying this container which was easily the same weight as he frail body but also because... at the bottom of this container there was a hole where the water was leaking out from. How far she had to travel I dont know how many time a day she had to do this I dont know but what I Do know is that a child her age should not be doing that. It was so sad to see this. Her face was full of struggle it actually looked like an old women yet when I stopped her to offer her something and when her face beamed into a smile through all the dirt it actually glowed and I saw the child in her the baby in her and I cried and thought to myself... never again do I have the right to moan or complain about what I dont have let alone moan about what I do have and never again do I have the right to moan about how much house work I have. It was a huge reminder of how grateful we all need to be of the countless blessings we have been given. Alhamdulillah!

I choose Heaven at my feet!

2008-09-15T10:24:00.003+01:00

Well firstly I welcome all of you and myself back to my lonely blog! For my old visitors you can see Ive given it a facelift of some sort.

Anyways for ages Ive always wanted to read an article, story or even a comment which expresses clearly and simply the issue of men and women in Islam and finally just the other day I received one in my inbox which I thought to share here.

Woman's Reflection on Leading Prayer: Yasmin Mogahed

'Given my privilege as a woman, I only degrade Myself by trying to be something I'm not--and in all honesty--don't want to be: a man. As women, we will never reach true liberation until we stop trying to mimic men, and value the beauty in our own God-given distinctiveness.'
On March 18, 2005 Amina Wadud led the first female-led Jumuah (Friday)prayer. On that day women took a huge step towards being more like men. But, did we come closer to actualizing our God given liberation?I Don't think so.
What we so often forget is that God has honored the woman by giving her value in relation to God not in relation to men. But as western feminism erases God from the scene, there are no standard left but men. As a result the western feminist is forced to find her value in relation to a man. And in so doing she has accepted a faulty assumption. She has accepted that man is the standard, and thus a woman can never be a full human being until she becomes just like a man-the standard.
When a man cut his hair short, she wanted to cut her hair short. When a man joined the army, she wanted to join the army. She wanted these things for no other reason than because the 'standard' had it. What she didn't recognize was that God dignifies both men and women in their distinctiveness-not their sameness. And on March 18, Muslim women made the very same mistake.
For 1400 years there has been a consensus of the scholars that men are to lead prayer. As a Muslim woman, why does this matter? The one who leads prayer is not spiritually superior in any way. Something is not better just because a man does it. And leading prayer is not better,just because it's leading. Had it been the role of women or had it been more divine, why wouldn't the Prophet have asked Ayesha or Khadija, or Fatima-the greatest women of all time-to lead?
These women were promised heaven-and yet they never lead prayer.
But now for the first time in 1400 years, we look at a man leadingprayer and we think, 'That's not fair.' We think so although God hasgiven no special privilege to the one who leads. The imam is no higher in the eyes of God than the one who prays behind.
On the other hand, only a woman can be a mother. And God has given special privilege to a mother. The Prophet taught us that heaven liesat the feet of mothers. But no matter what a man does he can never be a mother. So why is that not unfair?
When asked who is most deserving of our kind treatment? The Prophet replied 'your mother' three times before saying 'your father' only once.
And yet even when God honors us with something uniquely feminine, we are too busy trying to find our worth in reference to men, to value it-or even notice. We too have accepted men as the standard; so anything uniquely feminine is, by definition, inferior. Being sensitive is an insult, becoming a mother-a degradation.
In the battle between stoic rationality (considered masculine) and self-less compassion (considered feminine), rationality reigns supreme.
As soon as we accept that everything a man has and does is better, all that follows is just a knee jerk reaction: if men have it-we want ittoo. If men pray in the front rows, we assume this is better, so we want to pray in the front rows too. If men lead prayer, we assume the imam is closer to God, so we want to lead prayer too. Somewhere along the line we've accepted the notion that having a position of worldly leadership is some indication of one's position with God.
A Muslim woman does not need to degrade herself in this way. She has God as a standard. She has God to give her value; she doesn't need aman.
In fact, in our crusade to follow men, we, as women, never even stopped to examine the possibility that what we have is better for us.In some cases we even gave up what was higher only to be like men.
Fifty years ago, society told us that men were superior because they left the home to work in factories. We were mothers. And yet, we were told that it was women's liberation to abandon the raising of another human being in order to work on a machine. We accepted that working in a factory was superior to raising the Foundation of society -just because a man did it.
Then after working, we were expected to be superhuman-the perfect mother, the perfect wife, the perfect homemaker -and have the perfect career. And while there is nothing wrong, by definition, with a woman having a career, we soon came to realize what we had sacrificed by blindly mimicking men. We watched as our children became strangers and soon recognized the privilege we'd given up.
And so only now-given the choice-women in the West are choosing to stay home to raise their children.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, only 31percent of mothers with babies, and 18 percent of mothers with two or more children, are working full-time. And of those working mothers, a survey conducted by Parenting Magazine in 2000, found that 93% of them say they would rather be home with their kids, but are compelled to work due to 'financial obligations'. These 'obligations' are imposed on women by the gender sameness of the modern West, and removed fromwomen by the gender distinctiveness of Islam.
It took women in the West almost a century of experimentation to realize a privilege given to Muslim women 1400 years ago.
Given my privilege as a woman, I only degrade myself by trying to be something I'm not--and in all honesty--don't want to be: a man. As women, we will never reach true liberation until we stop trying to mimic men, and value the beauty in our own God-given distinctiveness.
If given a choice between stoic justice and compassion, I choose compassion. And if given a choice between worldly leadership and heaven at my feet - I choose Heaven.

Face to Faith

2007-11-27T18:51:00.000Z

Hunger can bring out the worst in us. In a wonderful scene in Shakespeare’s 'As You Like It', a desperate and hungry Orlando comes upon Duke Senior and his exiled court in the forest, who are about to start dinner. Assuming the law of the jungle presides in Arden, Orlando brandishes his sword and demands food upon pain of death. Duke Senior rebukes him for his lack of civility, and wisely adds: “Your gentleness shall force, more than your force move us to gentleness.” Orlando responds: “I almost die for food, and let me have it.” Unfazed, the duke says: “Sit down and feed, and welcome to our table.” Orlando is shamed by the duke's gallantry and explains that hunger had bred violence in him.

Almost four centuries later another bard, Bob Marley, melodically reminded us: “Them belly full, but we hungry/A hungry mob is an angry mob.” We all know the primal nature of hunger; we have experienced the irritability that comes from missing breakfast or skipping our cup of morning coffee or tea. We hyperbolically talk of “starving” when a mealtime draws near. Our food trysts are now frequent every day in what sociologists refer to as “repeated food contacts” and farmers simply call grazing. At the drop of a hat, we indulge in lattes and biscotti. Many people no longer eat three “square” meals but rather graze all day, with Starbucks troughs sprouting up everywhere to ensure none suffer the pangs of hunger or the pain of caffeine withdrawal. In the lands of plenty in the west, we tend to forget that the abundance and easy accessibility of food was not always so and is not as widespread even now.

Few of us who have the luxury of reading the daily paper over a cup of coffee and a piece of toast slathered with rich butter and marmalade have ever gone hungry intentionally, unless we succumbed to some ridiculous crash diet. But there was a time in the west when Lent, which commemorates Christ's 40-day fast in the desert, meant fasting all day and eating one meal at night. As time passed that tradition devolved into a semi-fast and now means merely giving up something one really likes, such as chocolate.

Even our portions of food and drink are much greater than what our grandparents had. In the midst of this cornucopia of consumption, millions of Muslims voluntarily abstain from food, drink and sex during daylight hours in the month of Ramadan. They watch their co-workers eat and drink throughout the day, and occasionally have to apologise for not joining in due to their religious observance. Fasting for a month makes them aware of hunger as a palpable physical sensation, not a remote occurrence they read about in the newspaper. When the UN tells us that almost a billion people suffer from hunger and malnutrition and 25,000 people a day die from hunger, a faster appreciates these statistics in ways that remain distant to others.

But fasting is not just about giving up food and drink. It's about tending to “the better angels of our nature”. The Prophet Muhammad said, “If one is not willing to give up bad behaviour during his fast, God has no need for him to give up his food and drink.” Muslims are encouraged during this time to be better people, to treat others with more deference. If enticed to argue, the faster is advised to respond: “I am fasting.”

There are many ways to be hungry. One can hunger for love, or fame or social justice, but hunger for food seems to curb all other cravings. In being aware of others' hunger, we contribute to a more empathic world. Perhaps, if, like Duke Senior, we responded to the cries of the myriad desperate Orlandos foraging in the forests of famine out there with hospitality and help, they might be coaxed into civility themselves. Certainly, hunger can bring out the worst in us. But it can also bring out the best.

SHAYKH HAMZA YUSUF *

* The Guardian, Saturday October 13, 2007.

Taken from: http://web.mac.com/jawziyyah/The_Jawziyyah_Institute/Blog/Entries/2007/10/14_Face_to_Faith.html

How to take a holiday in Pakistan

2007-11-15T12:49:00.000Z

How to take a holiday in Pakistan
By Hugh Sykes BBC News, Pakistan

Suicide bombs, battles in tribal areas, and states of emergency tend to put off casual tourists. But the impression such events convey can often be misleading and unrepresentative of a country as a whole.

A few days ago I was sitting in a cafe sipping best Italian espresso and reading a news magazine.
The front page was full of furious faces and clenched fists under the headline, The Most Dangerous Nation in the World isn't Iraq, it's Pakistan.

Hugh Sykes journey took him to the Chitral Valley in north west Pakistan
The cafe was in a smart bookshop in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad.
I sighed and turned to the article inside. It was a revealing analysis of some penetration of a few places in Pakistan by the Taleban and al-Qaeda. I pondered the magnifying-glass effect of dramatic news coverage. The suicide bomb attack on Benazir Bhutto's homecoming parade in Karachi in October, which killed an estimated 140 people, and the assault on a Taleban pocket in the Swat valley, a tourist destination, took place while I was in Pakistan. But neither event had a noticeable effect on the general sense of security and stability where I was in Islamabad or on the road.

The notion that Pakistan is more dangerous than Iraq is absurd.

Until recently suicide bombs, murder, and kidnapping were routine in Iraq. And there is no way I would do there what I have just done in Pakistan: take a holiday.
Never alone. I hired a car in Islamabad and headed out onto the partially completed M2 motorway that will eventually connect Lahore (near the Indian border) with Peshawar (the last city on the road to the Khyber Pass and Afghanistan). But motorways are boring, so I left the M2 and re-joined the ancient Grand Trunk Road, which links most of the main towns of northern Pakistan.

For much of the route it is lined with eucalyptus trees, their almost-autumn leaves and silvery bark shining in the clear October sun as I drove along.
Driving in Pakistan is fast and sometimes chaotic, but not competitive.
They even hoot politely. And one great danger at home you hardly ever have to contend with in Pakistan is drunk drivers and people with concentration blurred by hangovers.

My destinations were Chitral, an isolated valley in the far-north-west on the Afghan border and Gilgit, close to China and Tajikistan. The round-trip was more than 1,200 miles (nearly 2,000km) and included mountain passes almost half as high as Everest. And although I was driving alone, I was hardly ever on my own. There is public transport but not a lot. So, people walk long distances along these high stony roads and if a car passes, they hold out a hand hoping for a lift.

One morning, 12-year-old Kashif sat with me for a while. He had been expecting to walk for more than an hour to the nearest town, to buy a new pair of shoes. He showed me the pair he was wearing. The right shoe's upper was half split away from the sole. Kashif spoke almost perfect English, good enough to warn me as we turned a tight bend, "Be careful, uncle, road badly damaged round next corner from earthquake." Earthquake damage from 2005, still unrepaired.

I spent the night at a hotel next to the old fort at Mastuj, near the snowy Hindu Kush peak Tirich Mir which is 7,690m high (25,200 feet).

The hotel consists of small timber and stone cabins set in a wood of walnut trees and poplars and a plane tree reputed to be 200 years old.
I woke to autumn colours every bit as wondrous as anything I have seen in Kew Gardens or New England.

My next hitch-hiking companion was Mohammed, an English Literature student at Peshawar University.
"So you study Shakespeare?" I asked.
"Yes, and Wordsworth."
And John Donne, I wondered?
"Ah, John Donne," he raptured.
"John Donne... the poetry of love."
I do not know any Donne by heart but when I attempted Shakespeare's Seven Ages of Man from As You Like It, Mohammed completed every line as we bumped along the dusty road.

Mohammed, an English Literature student at Peshawar University

Parts of Pakistan are deeply conservative, devoutly Muslim places, and I was not signalled for lifts by many women. But there were some. A mother and grandmother, sitting in the back, their heads covered but not their faces and one-year-old Anis and his father Samir in the front with me. He protested when I took a photograph of the two women but they did not object and posed happily as they waited for the flash. When I delivered them to the Gilgit hospital where the little boy had an appointment with a heart specialist, his father was so pleased and grateful he gave me a bear hug, and a massive smile that erased his earlier stern objections to taking a picture.
I gave lifts to more than 20 people, learned how to say "no problem" in Urdu (Koi Batnahi), and had to hold back tears when two children said thank you for their lift and offered me money to help pay for the petrol.

Prayers for all the forgotten children in War Zones!

2007-11-05T14:03:00.000Z

With the build up to guy fawkes it seems as if everyone has loads of fire works to spare well at least in my area as for days every evening there has been constant loud booms and bangs coming from all directions!

Yaqub who is now 4 and a half months old didnt take too kindly to all the banging especially as he has a cold at the moment so each time he managed to dose off he was starteled by a loud boom and would wake up a little scared! He would of course be quickly comforted by either me or his baba with a cuddle and a reassurance that he was not alone and that everything was going to be ok!

It was at this time I suddenly remembered all the millions of children all around the world whose childhood sounds are nothing but booms and bangs but unfortuantely there are many differences here the sounds they hear are not the sounds of loud colourful joyous fireworks rather or guns, bombs, followed by screaming! Another difference is that many of these children cry and weep in fear of these noises only to have nobody come running to comfort and hold them and to wipe their tears away as their parents have been killed or are too weak, or lost to comfort them. These are the forgotten children of the world why? Not because we dont know they are out there but because no one is there to hold them and to tell them its going to be ok, they dont have someone running to them saying 'its ok mama loves you baba loves you' for them its all loud bangs bombs and them smell of blood and death on their door steps.

The very least we can do for these forgotten children is to remember them in our prayers and ask Allah to help them in their time of need! Remember all children are innocent and are victims of the ugly game of adult warfare!

'Oh Allah I beg you to have Mercy upon all the innocent people especially the children of the world Ameen. Do not let fear enter their hearts, do not allow them to cry to empty hollow walls where they get no response or comfort Ameen. Do not allow them to be captives of evil oppressors Ameen. Grant them a childhood of happiness, love, tranquilty Ameen. Grant them a playground safe to play in not one filled with hidden bombs, dead bodies and spilt blood Ameen. Ya Allah grant them comforting arms to hold them Ya Allah grant them loving arms to hold them Ya Allah grant them gentle hands to wipe away their tears Ameen Thuma Ameen'

Al - Jumu'a

2007-09-28T21:52:00.000+01:00

You who believe! When you are called to the prayer on the day of Jumu'a, hasten to the rememberance of Allah and abandon trade. That is better for you if you only knew.

Then when the prayer is finished spread through the earth and seek Allah's bounty and remember Allah much so that hopefully you will be successful.

Quran - (62:9-10)

(Translation: Abdalhaqq and Aisha Bewley)

Jummah - Yay!

2007-09-28T16:01:00.000+01:00

Jummah has arrived again so firstly Jummah Mubarak to you all! Many of us take Jummah for granted its just another day of the week like Monday, Wednesday, Saturday etc! But this is the wrong way for us to look at it!

Jummah is a day of celebrations its a blessed day for us all and alhamdulillah we are blessed it with it once a week again one of the countless mercies we have from Allah! We need to give Jummah the full credit it deserves! We have so many ahadith about the blessings and virtues of Jummah a couple of which I shall share here insha'Allah!

"Whoever dies on the day of al-Jumuah or on its eve will be protected from the torment of the grave." (Ahmed)

The Prophet (saw) said, "A person who has a bath on Friday, cleanses himself fully, uses oil and perfume; then goes to the mosque early in the afternoon and takes his place quietly without pushing or disturbing people; then he prays (optional prayer as much as he was able to pray); then sits quietly listening to the Khutbah, he will be forgiven his sins between this Jumah and the next Jumah." (Bukhari).

Abu Hurairah (ra) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said, "On Friday the Angels stand oust the door of the mosque and write down the names of the people in the order in which they enter the mosque for Friday prayer. The first group of people who enter the mosque get the reward equivalent to that of sacrificing a camel, the people who enter the mosque after them get the reward equivalent to that of sacrificing a cow. The people who enter the mosque after them get the reward equivalent to that of sacrificing a ram and the people who follow on likewise get this reward of a Chicken, egg and so on there is a gradation of rewards for the people as they enter. The angels keep writing the names of the people as they enter the mosque until the Imam sits down to give Khutbah. Then the angels collect their registers and sit and listen to the Khutbah." (Bukhari, Muslim).

Many of us dont realise the importance of Jummah and each one come and goes just like that! It is a day of celebration for all of us and we should treat it so!

Today I was speaking to my husband and we decided a few things we will insha'Allah try to do every week on Jummah to make it special from all the other days! We want Yaqub to grow up insha'Allah knowing how important and special this day is as for him insha'Allah a he will one day be going to pray his Jummah Salat in the masjid so its important for him to know from now that it really is a special day, a day of celebration and treats! Here is our plan of action if any one has any suggestions please feel free to leave comments and share with me and everyone else! The day shall really start on Thursday evening where the house shall be cleaned nicely ready for Friday morning where I shall burn some lovely bukhur to start this blessed day! Every Jummah me, my husband and Yaqub shall make a special effort to dress up, not like in wedding outfits or anything lol just to really make an effort to be clean, neat and tidy wearing something that is not just every day like scruffy jeans or a tracky but something a little smarter! Each Friday for dinner we shall have some type of roast maybe chicken or lamb with all the trimmings, roast potatoes, gravy, vegies etc and something really scrummy for desert too mmmmm! Also Jummah shall also be referred to as Jummah of course we shall teach Yaqub the days of the week and insha'Allah he will know that Friday is Jummah but we shall try to call it Jummah this again differenciates it from the other days of the week!

The idea is to try and create a buzz of excitment on Jummah insha'Allah!

We should also read as much Salawat on our beloved Prophet Muhammad (saw) each Jummah too! This of course we should do anyways but make an extra special effort on Jummah insha'Allah!

Check out Yaqubs smart outfit he wore for this weeks Jummah! May Allah always instill the love of this blessed day in his and all of our hearts ameen!

Being Closed Minded Is Like A Foreign Language!

2007-09-27T21:53:00.000+01:00

Being closed minded is like a foreign language... hmmm what a strange phrase yet it is very true and let me explain how!

On Tuesday I was taking Yaqub to the baby clinic and when I came outside my house my neighbours elderly aunty was standing there with our neighbours 1 year old son! Our neighbours are from Mauritious and I know that their aunty only speaks creo or so I thought! Each time I have seen her I have only ever said Salam as I thought there was no other way to talk to her! So on Tuesday I was leaving to go to the clinic when I stopped to go and see the neighbours son Jamal! I was bending down talking to him when the aunty started talking to me and of course I did not understand what she was saying as it was a foreign language and so although I could hear her I could not understand her! Then after she had finished and I was about to walk away I realised I had caught the last 2 words and then realised hang on a minute I understood that and then realised she was speaking Urdu not creo!!! I had thought she only spoke creo so had mentally told myself that I could not understand what she was saying where as in actual fact she was speaking Urdu which I do understand!

Now you may wonder how this relates to be closed minded! Well its very simple! When we are closed minded we can not allow ourselves to see the views of others even though in actual facts we may understand and agree with their views and ideas but we do not allow ourselves to do so! By being closed minded we have convinced ourselves that I can not understand any other way just like one might believe they can not understand someone speaking a foreign language!!!

This idea can be linked to Islam! It is so so so sad to see 1 Islam, 1 Quran, 1 Sunnah Billions of Muslims and so many divisions!!! Islam is so complete that it has room for all subhana'Allah! And if only we all stopped (by we I mean all the groups within Islam) and listened to each other we may find that we are not so different after all we are one brotherhood one sisterhood One Ummah!

The same can be linked to Islam, Judaism and Christianity... if we only stopped being so closed minded and opened up to each other we would see the similarities we have and we could work on that and go forward!

I am currently reading The Road To Makkah by Muhammad Asad and he begins by telling a friend of his that perhaps one of the reasons why the West has so much against Islam is the fact that it shares so many morals with it! A very intesresting point... I remember a very good friend of mine who is a convert/revert to Islam saying that her father had said to her.... 'I agree with the morals and teachings of Islam but when you put the name Islam on it I dont want to know'! Why are we so afraid to open our minds and see what is around us!

So the lesson to be learnt here is to open up our minds ask Allah to always guide us and look for the truth where ever it may be! Dont be closed minded and see everything around you as a foreign language!

Famine Vs Dieting!!!

2007-09-26T13:04:00.000+01:00

Hmmm an interesting title! It occured to me yesterday how strange this concept is! In some parts of the world we have humans who are paying hundereds of £ or $ some times even thousands to lose weight be it by eating less, buying low fat recipie books, joining the gym, getting a personal trainer and even having surgery to remove unwanted fat from their bodies! On the other hand we have humans across the world who are dying of hunger and thirst who when they eat a few mouthfulls wonder if those are the last mouthfulls that shall ever enter their mouths and bodies as they know not where their next meal (if you can call it that) will come from or if it will come at all! And then when food or water is found they eat and drink not knowing where it has been if it is clean and if eating it will do them more harm than good!

Just yesterday I was saying to myself I need to gain more self control when it comes to eating yummy scrummy foods and then just like that while I was walking between the door way of my kitchen and passage it hit me Subhana'Allah here I am praying for self control on eating all this food I have available to me and others are praying and begging God for just a few mouthfulls to feed themselves and their dying children!

Let us not forget those who are less fortunate than ourselves those who spend days in constant involuntary fasting, those who are forced to hear their children cry night and day out of hunger and thirst and all the while knowing they can do nothing about it and let us all thank God for everything He has given us for the Mercy He has bestowed upon us and for the favours He continues to shower upon us let us remember Him and praise Him often as He is Most Deserving!

Ramadan Dates!

2007-09-22T14:40:00.000+01:00

Ramadan is associated with so many marvelous things the first thing that springs to mind is of course fasting and The Holy Qur'an! It truly is a blessed month with so much to gain from! Its a month of the Quran, fasting, its the month of the individual meaning its a time when we dedicate time and effort working on ourselves on our character trying to better ourselves not just for the month but for good!

The other day my husband told me a really beautiful comment made by one of the brothers he works with! He had written a message to the muslims in their company regarding Ramadan and had said something along the lines of this

'let the other people at work know that your fasting not by the fact that your not eating food but by the good change in your behaviours and the improvments in your characters!

Subhana'Allah what a beautiful phrase and its so true Ramadan is not just about not eating its a month of spirituality and purification!

Another thing that Ramadan is associated with is particular types of food! We all in our homes and families probably have particular dishes which are usually only made in Ramadan or become a daily thing in Ramadan!
One thing I associate with Ramadan are dates! Not just any type of dates but dates stuffed with whipped up double cream and topped with a crunchy almond! So I thought Id share it here incase anyone wishes to try it mmmmm they are so tasty!

Ingredients:
Dates (not the type squished up in a packet)
Thick Double Cream or Whipping Cream
Almonds

Method:
Pour the Cream into a bowl and wisk it up. I recommend an electric wisker or you could be there for long time! Keep wisking until the cream thickens up and is no longer runny! (test it by putting some on a spoon and turning the spoon upside down if the cream does NOT fall off then its ready!)
Slit the along the middle (long ways) and remove the seed. Now with a teaspoon carefully take some cream and holding open the date place the cream in the date!
Put an almond on the top and its finished!

Result:

Yummy dates!

Ill post some photos up soon of what they should look like!

Mouse Trap!

2007-09-21T21:58:00.000+01:00

Its always a concern for us all as individuals when something is worrying us as individuals when we ourselves are facing problems etc however how many of us spend the same amount of time worrying about others in the same way trying our best to find a solution... I know myself I am guilty of this and was reminded this just a moment ago when reading an interesting story about a little mouse I received in an email!

Its so easy for us all to look at the problems of others and think...'oh thats a shame but it doesnt affect me so its not that big of a deal'! This really is the wrong way to look at things... as brothers and sisters in humanity we have a duty to look out for one another, for our families, friends, neighbours and all of our fellow human beings!

As Muslims also we should know the importance of caring for one another from the saying of the Prophet (saw):

“The Ummah is like one body; if one part of it hurts, the rest of the body is overcome with pain.”

Let us not all become desensitized to the pains and sufferings of not only our fellow Muslims but also of all our fellow human beings!

Like I mentioned earlier I have a nice story of a little mouse to share with you all!

A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered.......he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap. Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning :There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said,"Mr.Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it. "The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house! "The pig sympathized, but said, I am so very sorry, Mr.Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers. "The mouse turned to the cow and said "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house! "The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose."

So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone. That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed tosee what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was avenomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital. After treatmentshe returned home with a fever. Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farm yard for the soup's main ingredient. But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig. The farmer's wife did not get well and later died. So, many people came for the funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them. The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness.
So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember.......when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.

REMEMBER.......OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER - EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD IN ANOTHERPERSON'S TAPESTRY.

Im Back! Ramadan Kareem!

2007-09-21T12:46:00.000+01:00

Salaam and Hello to Everyone!

Wow Ive been away for agesssss but so much has happened since! Firslty a very BIG and Belated RAMADAN KAREEM to everyone!

Ok now since Ive been away lets see what has happened! Well I moved home not just moved but had major DIY to do in the place before we really could put up furniture etc! Alhamdulillah by the Grace and Mercy of Allah we are settled and very happy here in our beautiful new home!
More major and more imprortant than that is the Great News which happened at 1:13pm on Saturday 16th June 2007!
By the Grace and Mercy of Allah the Almighty I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy who we named Yaqub Bilal Alam Masha'Allah! He is very much 100% gorgeous and totally irrestitable masha'Allah! I cant begin to explain what a terrific and moving experience motherhood is! It really is a Mercy that so much love endlessly pours out of you for this child you actually feel your heart flutter when they gaze into your eyes and smile, you can spend endless hours watching them sleep just gazing intently at their small chest moving up and down, waking up over and over and over again at night just to make sure your precious one is ok even though they made no sound of complaint.... Subhana'Allah its amazing and I shall be sharing more of these experiences as time goes on insha'Allah!

Yaqub is now 3 months old masha'Allah I shall post 2 pictures up one of him when he was first born literally when he maybe 10 mins old (see pic above)and the other from just a few days ago! (see bellow)Please keep us in your prayers!

The story of 2 pots!

2007-04-08T17:15:00.000+01:00

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck.

One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream.

"I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."

The old woman smiled,

"Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?" "That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them." "For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

This too my dear will pass away!

2007-03-30T10:48:00.000+01:00

I had a very hectic day today
Seems nothing I did went my way.
I fretted and stewed and worried,
Rushed here and there, always hurried.

Then I recalled what my granny would say,
"This too, my dear, will pass away."
Finally evening came and I was alone
With a little time to call my own.

I breathed a sigh into the air,
For now it seemed I hadn't a care.
But in my memory, I heard granny say,
"This too, my dear, will pass away."

So, I snuggled in for a good nights rest
Vowing tomorrow just to do my best
For when troubles come they never stay
And good times seem to hurry away.
Granny was right when she would say,
"This too, my dear, will pass away."

Enjoy the good times while they're here
And face the bad times without fear
For nothing on earth lasts forever
Each moment of life we must savor.
Live life and love while you may,
For this too, my dear, will pass away.

Dr Juma

2007-03-29T21:24:00.000+01:00

Anyone looking for a new Dr Surgey should most deff check this Dr Juma out he seems qualified in all fields and by the look of his surgery he seems to be going for the homeopathic natural treatments!!!! The list of treatments he has advertised are as follows as... Ill type some of them up as I dont think the picture is big enough for you all to read them...

- Bewitched Pple
- Swollen Body
- Insanity
- Madness
- Women with pregnancy problems
- Demand Debts
- Misunderstandings with people
- Court Cases
- Casino Specialist
- Bad Luck
- Customer Attraction
- ETC (thats his comment not mine)

Seems like he is a Dr, Lawyer, Social Advisor, psychic all in one wow!

A Butterfly's Lesson

2007-03-23T10:19:00.000Z

One day, a small opening appeared on a cocoon; a man sat and watched for the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.
Then, it seems to stop making any progress.
It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could not go any further.
So the man decided to help the butterfly: he took a pair of scissors and opened the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged easily.
But it had a withered body, it was tiny and shrivelled wings.
The man continued to watch because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would open, enlarge and expand, to be able to support the butterfly’s body, and become firm.
Neither happened!
In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a withered body and shrivelled wings. It never was able to fly.
What the man, in his kindness and his goodwill did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening, were God’s way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings, so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our life.
If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. Never been able to fly.
I asked for Strength...
And God gave me difficulties to make me strong.
Iasked for Wisdom...
And God gave me Problems to solve.
I asked for prosperity...
And God gave me a Brain and Brawn to work.
I asked for Courage…..
And God gave me obstacles to overcome.
I asked for Love...
And God gave me Troubled people to help.
I asked for Favors...
And God gave me Opportunities.
“I received nothing I wanted...
But I received everything I needed."

FORGET FASHION THIS IS FREEDOM!

2007-02-21T12:04:00.000Z

Forget fashion, this is freedom (The Daily Telegraph: 31/12/2003)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2003/12/31/wscarf131.xml

The Muslim veil has become a hot political issue in France - but Stella White cannot see what the fuss is about. A Catholic from Kent, she explains the joys of the complete cover-up.
To liberated Westerners, the hijab, or veil, is a stain on womankind. It symbolises the crushing of the female spirit and is the mark of slavery, transforming a woman into a passive lump who is only allowed out of the house to buy her husband's dinner.
When faced with this piece-of-cloth-on-legs, English women will often meet the eyes peeking out of the hijab with an expression of pity and sadness. For them, the veil represents a living death. This might also be the feeling of the French authorities, who have decided to ban the hijab in schools, believing that no young girl should have to carry the burden of repression on her tender head.
Yet for many, including myself, the veil is not an instrument of coercion, but a means of liberation. Personally, I have never felt so free as I do when I am wearing it.
Before you presume that I am regurgitating propaganda from a culture that has brainwashed me, I should point out that I am a Catholic, not a Muslim. I am not from the mysterious East, but am a 32-year-old woman from boring Kent. Nor am I a prude: my life has included spells as an exotic dancer, kissogram and glamour model. Three of my best friends are strippers. I have had relationships with Muslim men, but none of them ever demanded I wear the hijab; in fact, they found my behaviour slightly embarrassing. There is nobody in my past that has coerced me to wear a veil. I do so simply because I love it.
I relish the privacy; the barrier that the hijab creates between myself and the harsh, frenetic world, especially in London. I find a great peace behind the veil: I don't feel invaded by nosy passers-by; the traffic, noise and crowds seem less overwhelming. I can retreat into my own safe world even as I walk and, on a practical level, I feel completely secure from unwanted advances.
The hijab is also a financial security system. Like most pedestrians in London, I can't afford to give money to every homeless person I see, but feel stressed and guilty when I walk past them. In my hijab, my conscience can hide. I also feel fairly safe from muggers. Thieves glance at me and probably think, "illegal immigrant; not worth the effort", presuming that my big carrier bags contain only weird, knobbly vegetables for my 16 children.
In my hijab, shopping is also cheaper. A small minority of Muslim traders operate a two-tier pricing system with the "one of us" price being considerably lower than the price for Westerners. If I want a bargain, I make sure I am "hijabbed-up".
The most amazing effect of wearing the veil is that you automatically seem to become a member of the Muslim community and are accorded all of the privileges and dignity of a Muslim woman. When I walk into a Muslim shop, a man will say to me, gently, "Salaam aleikum [peace be upon you]. How can I help you, madam?" On the bus, Muslim men from Africa, the Middle East or the Far East will move aside for me and say, "After you, sister."
The offices, bars and clubs of London are full of English girls in short skirts and strappy sandals, many of them looking for love. Women who wear the hijab, often despised by the West, actually feel sorry for these Western women who have to harm themselves with crippling high heels, skin-choking make-up and obsessive dieting in order to find a man.
My Iranian friend Mona is a successful businesswoman who goes out every day looking impeccable, with painted nails, stilettos, sharp suits and perfect make-up. "It was just so much easier when I was in Iran," she says. "You'd get up at nine, throw on your big black hooded dress and jump in the car. Now, I have to spend two or three hours getting done up every morning."
Too often, the hijab is dismissed as the preserve of Muslim fundamentalists. But in the Christian tradition, St Paul ordered women to cover their heads and, until the Sixties, no woman would be seen in an English church without a hat and gloves. Many English women wore hats out in the street or headscarves tied under their chin. Hindu and Sikh women are still expected to cover their heads loosely for their honour, or izzat, and Orthodox Jewish women have traditionally worn wigs over their real hair to conceal it from men who are not their husbands. Yet, among all these cultural groups, only Muslim women seem to have been described as weak or oppressed on account of their headgear.
Two of the most unlikely bedfellows are the woman who wears a hijab and the militant feminist. When women in the early Seventies began cropping their hair short, and wearing dungarees and comfortable shoes, they were rejecting the idea of suffering for fashion and were refusing to take part in the desperate ritual to attract spoilt, fussy males. Similarly, a woman in a hijab can retain her identity without being a slave to finicky Western notions of beauty.
A particularly sad article appeared in a popular women's magazine last week, entitled: "How to hate your body less." I showed it to my Arab friend Malika, who shook her head and said: "In my culture, men are so grateful when they marry a woman that they see her as a gorgeous princess, whatever shape or size she is."
Within the hijab, Muslim women know their power and their value. One Muslim man told me: "My wife is like a beautiful diamond. Would you leave a precious diamond to get scratched or stolen in the street? No, you would wrap it in velvet. And that is how the hijab protects my wife, who is more precious to me than any jewel."
Of course, if anybody tried to remove my veil or force me to wear it, I would react violently. I am privileged to live in a country in which I can wear whatever I want to. Not all women are so lucky. Personally, I have found in the hijab a kind of guardian angel. My mother, on the other hand, claims that I wear it because I can't be bothered to brush my hair.

Mus'ab Bin Umair

2007-02-04T10:01:00.000Z

I read this beautiful story of one of the companions of the Prophet (pbuh) and thought to share it with you all. Dont look and read it and say ahhhh that was so nice rather let us all read it and then take a close look at our own lives and see if we can find room to improve and strive in our deen Im sure we can! Lets see if we can think of ways to get closer to Allah and His beloved (saw) and if that means sacrificing some of the pleasures of this world then remember this life is only temporary and will soon come to an end!

Mus'ab Bin Umair

Big city, bright lights. Cars flash in fast lanes. Young Muslims are getting ready to hit the “night scene”. Branded shoes and designer clothes in place, clutching the latest mobile gizmos and sporting the trendiest watches, their perfume smells --- more than anything else – of money.

You can see them “hanging out” in groups, lolling in the bright lights of a megamall, lingering aimlessly in hypershops, buying a knick knack to drive away the boredom; even if it’s just for a second.

You can see them sipping cappucino at a Starbucks café …watching people go by, sharing a joke and laughing raucously; vacant eyes straying over to huge tv screens for the latest football score.

You can see them racing cars dangerously late into the night, music blasting from the stereos, startling passersby while they laugh in their faces. A standard sight.

Each time I see this all-too familiar scene, I find myself thinking of someone.
Someone who lies buried in the blood-wet earth of ‘Uhud, feet covered by scented grass and his body covered only by a square woollen sheet that was not even sufficient to cover him completely. Someone who was his mother’s pampered son, he wore the best clothes his rich mother’s money could buy, his perfume scented the streets he walked through. The talk of Makkan matrons and maidens in their plush salons, the toast of his peers in the city’s clubs, the most flamboyant young man of the Quraysh, who left a life of pleasuring the Self to gain the pleasure of Allaah: Mus’ab bin Umair bin Hashim bin Abd Munaf who was also known as Mus’ab al Khair.

Mus’ab was only a youth when he heard of the new Prophet who had arisen among the Quraysh and his Message of monotheism; Makkah talked of very little else in those days. His curiosity piqued by all the talk, Mus’ab decided to approach the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam on his own to determine the truth of his Message.

One night, instead of joining his friends in their customary revelry, Mus’ab made his way to the house of Al-Arqaam Ibn Al-Arqaam which came to be known as Daar al Arqaam among the Muslims. It was here that the Prophet met with the growing band of Muslims, away from the eyes of the Quraysh. It was here that the Companions talked over the future of their faith, heard and recited newly revealed portions of the Qur’aan and prayed behind the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wassallam to Allaah.

That night, Mus'ab sat down among the gathering of the faithful and heard the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wassallam recite verses of the Qur’aan. From that moment on he forgot for ever his life of luxury and indolence, in the ecstasy of discovering the key to eternal life. Mus’ab’s path to the faith was not easy – his mother, Khunnas bint Maalik, a strong willed woman infamous for her sharp temper and sharper tongue – was his chief opponent. In order to avoid an unpleasant confrontation with his mother, Mus’ab initially avoided telling her about his new faith. However, people found him frequenting Daar Al-Arqaam more than his usual haunts and saw him coming under the influence of the Prophet sall Allaahu ‘alayhi wasallam. It wasn’t long before news of his conversion reached his mother.

Reacting with the imperiousness of her nature, her pride in her lineage and her age-old allegiance to the gods, she commanded Mus’ab to return and repent to the gods he had abandoned in his “foolishness”; and when he refused, she had him shackled and imprisoned in a corner of the house. Somehow, news of the first emigration of some Muslims to Abyssinia reached Mus’ab in his incarceration and his heart longed to join his brothers in the faith. Using his ingenuity, he managed to delude his mother and his guards and escaped to Abyssinia with other emigrants.

Later, he returned to Makkah with them for a short while and emigrated a second time, this time as the Prophet [SAW]’s chosen envoy to the new centre of faith: Yathrib. When Mus’ab returned from Abyssinia, his mother sought to imprison him yet again. But this time he vowed that if she attempted that, he would kill all those who came to her aid to lock him up. She knew the intensity of his determination better than anyone else and so she bade him a final farewell, crying bitterly: Go away, I am no longer your mother.
At this, Mus’ab went close to her and said: O Mother, I am advising you and my heart is with you, please bear witness that there is no God but Allaah and that Muhammad is His servant and messenger.
Enraged, she swore: By the stars, I will never enter your religion, to degrade mystatus and weaken my senses! But Mus’ab entered Islaam in the spirit of the Qur’aan when it says: udkhuloo fi silme kaafah [enter into Islaam completely]. He forsook every semblance of satisfaction of the Self for the sake of Allaah – his dress was tattered, his food was simple, the bare earth was his bed.

One day he went out to meet some Muslims while they were sitting around the Prophet sall Allaahu alayhi wassallam, and when they saw him they lowered their heads and shed silent tears at the sight of the pampered youth of their memory , moving about in wornout patches held together by thorns, which barely covered him.

After Mus’ab moved away from the gathering, the Prophet sall Allaahu alayhi wassallam recalled:
I saw Mus’ab, and there was no youth in Makkah more petted by his parents than he. Then he abandoned all that for the love of Allaah and His Prophet. Recognizing Mus’ab’s noble manners and patience, the Prophet [SAW] commissioned him to instruct the people of Yathrib who had pledged their allegiance to the Prophet at ‘Aqabah, to call others to Islaam and to prepare the city for the eventual migration of the Prophet [SAW]. At that time, there were among the Companions men of sterling character and nerves of steel, men who were older and more experienced in the ways of the world; yet he [SAW] chose Mus’ab as his representative. And Mus’ab proved worthy of the Prophet’s choice many times over, dealing with detractors with patience and sagacity. Mus’ab entered Yathrib as a guest of Sa’ad ibn Zurarah of the Khazraj tribe. Together they went approached the citizens of Yathrib, explaining the message of Monotheism and reciting the Qur’aan.

Once Musa’ab and Sa’ad were sitting near a well in an orchard of Banee Zafar, when they were approached by Usayd ibn Khudayr brandishing a spear in obvious rage. Sa’ad whispered to Mus’ab: This is a chieftain of his people. May Allaah place the truth in his heart.
Mus’ab replied calmly: If he sits down, I will speak to him.
Usayd was angry at the success of Mus’ab’s mission and shouted angrily: Why have you both come to us to corrupt the weak among us? Keep away from us if you want to stay alive.

At this, Musa’ab smiled and said softly: Won't you sit down and listen? If you are pleased and satisfied with our mission, accept it; and if you dislike it we will stop telling you what you dislike and leave. Sticking his spear into the ground, Usayd sat down to hear them out. As Musa’ab began telling him about Islaam and reciting portions of the Qur’aan to Usayd’s expression changed. The first words he uttered were : How beautiful are these words and how true! What does a person do if he wants to enter this religion?

Mus’ab explained: Have a bath, purify yourself and your clothes. Then utter the testimony of Truth (shahadah), and perform prayers. Usayd testified that there is no god but Allaah and that Muhammad is His Messenger, prayed two rakaats of salaah and was followed by another influential man: Sa’ad ibn Muaadh. By the time the Prophet [SAW] emigrated, there was not a single household in Yathrib in which Mus’ab had not endeared himself and the Message of Islaam. In the subsequent pilgrimage, he led a company of 70 people went from Yathrib to pledge allegiance to the Prophet. In a famous incident after the victory at Badr, the Muslims captured some Makkans and sought to ransom them. Mus’ab was passing by the ranks of prisoners and stopped when saw his brother, Abu Azeez ibn Umayr among them. However, instead of interceding on his behalf, he instructed his brother’s captor to bind him securely and to extract a large ransom for the prisoner, because “his mother is a very rich woman” When the brother sought to remind Mus’ab of his relationship, Mus’ab replied: I only recognize brotherhood of the faith, this man is my brother, not you!

At ‘Uhud, the Prophet sall Allaahu alayhi wassallam chose Mus’ab to bear the battle standard. In the melee that followed the archers descent from the hill where they were stationed, in violation of the Prophet [SAW]’s orders, the Makkans fought back fiercely. Taken unawares by the cavalry of the Quraysh attacking from the rear, the Muslim ranks scattered. Intent on harming the Prophet [SAW], the Makkans searched for him while he was being guarded only by a handful of companions. Suddenly, someone shouted that the Prophet [SAW] was no more. It was at this juncture that Mus’ab’s glorious life reached a fitting culmination: Ibrahim ibn Muhammad related from his father, who said: Mus’ab ibn ‘Umair carried the standard on the Day of Uhud. When the Muslims were scattered, he stood fast until he met Ibn Qaami'ah who was a knight. He struck him on his right hand and cut it off, but Mus'ab said:
And Muhammad is but a Messenger. Messengers have passed away before him . He carried the standard with his left hand and leaned on it, when his left hand was cut off, he leaned on the standard and held it with his upper arms to his chest, all the while saying: And Muhammad is but a Messenger. Messengers have passed away before him. Then a third soldier struck Mus’ab with his spear, and the spear went through him. (picture of Uhud above)

After the battle, the Prophet and his companions came to the plain of ‘Uhud to bury the martyrs, some of whose bodies had been mutilated by the marauding women of the Qur’aysh. Pausing when he saw Mus'ab, the Prophet [SAW] recited: Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah. Then he [SAW] looked at the remains of his companions in the battlefield and said: The Prophet of Allaah witnesses that you are martyrs to Allaah on the Day of Resurrection.

There wasn’t enough material to serve as a shroud for Mus’ab. Khabbaab ibn Al-Arat narrated: We emigrated with the Prophet for Allaah’s cause, so our reward became due with Allaah. Some of us passed away without enjoying anything in this life of his reward, and of them was Mus'ab ibn 'Umair, who was martyred on the Day of Uhud. He did not leave behind anything except a sheet of shredded woollen cloth. If we covered his feet with it, his head was uncovered, and ifwe covered his feet with it, his head was uncovered. The Prophet [SAW] said to us: Cover his head with it and put lemon grass over his feet. It was this memory of Mus’ab in his martyr’s grave, that caused companions like Abdur Rahmaan ibn ‘Awf to cry in fear of having no share in the Hereafter, because they had been granted a life of plenty and ease right here in this world. Once his servant brought him a meal to break his fast and ibn ‘Awf burst into tears, remembering Mus’ab who had passed away without tasting the good of this world, to the certainty of eternal pleasure in the Hereafter.

As night falls, I think of the shadows lengthening across ‘Uhud where the martyrs lie buried, when visitors drive off leaving the plain quiet, dark and peaceful. I think of the graves of the shuhadaa, resplendent with the dazzling light of the truly fortunate: those who are pleasing to Allaah and are pleased with Him.

In the neon dazzle of malls, where countless young Muslims strive daily in the trivial pursuit of pleasure, we would do well to bear the memory of Mus’ab radiyy Allaahu anhu in mind. It may keep us from getting lost in the light.

Patience is Beautiful!

2007-01-31T11:33:00.000Z

Im sure have all heard the saying 'Patience is beautiful' but how many of us have actually thought about that saying? Well the other day I really thought about it and let me explain why!

About 2 weeks ago I had a bad car accident where a woman who said she was confused drove straight into the side of my car bashing my whole door in so much so that I can no longer open it from the outside. As you can imagine that really shook me up... here I am driving nicely down the road and suddenly whammmm a woman driving in the opposite direction suddenly decides she wants to turn her car around and smacks straight into the side of mine. From the corner of my eyes I suddenly see this van drive straight into me and my little pegeot.

Anyways Allah is so kind that we all came out unhurt and alhamdulillah most importantly I went to the hopital to check up with the midwife and to see if baby inside was still ok and Alhamdulillah turns out its a tough little cookie as it was fine with the Mercy and Care of Allah alhamdulillah! My little nephew in the back of the car was also ok alhamdulillah and for some reason found the whole incident quite amusing he must have thought it was like bumper cars or something!

Anyways back to why Patience is beautiful. My insurance company have given me a hired car to use while my car is being fixed up. Now anyone who knows me should know that although alhamdulillah I can drive and I love cars I dont actually like to drive them much especially new ones I am not used to.

The insurance company gave me a brand new Ford Focus which is literally brand new having done only 30 miles. Although my husband is over the moon and loves being the experienced driver that he is masha'Allah I was not so.

Firstly I was already nervous from the crash and still a bit shaken up let alone having to get used to a new car where I have to get used to a new clutch, biting point etc. Anyways the other day I braved it up and decided to drive it around a bit to get used to it. Its a much wider and bigger car than my little old banger and as its new its very smooth so it feels like the car is in control of you rather than you being in control of the car. lol. With my pegeot everything was quite stiff which may not be normal but its the only car Ive ever really driven so thats all im used to and when you drive it as its stiff you feel as if you are in control etc.

So here I am driving this new car up a hill when I stop at a traffic light and lo and behold my car stalls. I think to myself 'Oh no great now im gonna roll back and hit the car benind or if not that im gonna hold everyone one up in my lane and annoy everyone'. I look in my mirror and see that the woman behind me is not bothered as she has just stopped in the road to let passengers out of her car so she doesnt mind that im not moving and she doesnt mind that there are people behind her also. I remember thinking 'Oh phewww at least she looks pleasant hopefully she will bare with my new driving' ...... How wrong could I have been????? As soon as she had let the pple out of her car she obviously wanted to get going which is only natural.
I had my hazzard lights on to show that there was somthing wrong and that im not just stopped for fun enjoying holding everyone up. So I re-started my car again and managed to stall again. Anyways this lady who looked quite pleasant as she was waiting behind me now decided to switch lanes (fare enough even I would have) and drive on. However while doing so she slowed down to look at me scowling and cursing pulling the most im sorry to say most horrific face which actually looked quite frightening as if she was a demon from a horror movie. I thought about it after as the look on her face was so ugly that it really made me think...What had changed from the pleasant looking lady to this hideous monster driving past????.... the answer is Patience she had lost her patience and had become ugly! Im not trying to be nasty to her im just being honest and it was a great lesson for myself teaching me that patience really is beautiful in so many ways and this is one of them. So next time im about to lose my cool I shall remember the look on her face and insha'Allah think twice before turning into the monster she did!

So for those of you who are behing a driver who may be slowing you down remember that it may not be their fault as im sure they dont like to be stuck in the middle of the road any more than you do and instead make dua that Allah makes it easy for them to continue their journey insha'Allah by doing so may the beauty of patience shine from your faces ameen!

Imran Through My Eyes - By Brother Farzad.

2007-01-31T08:40:00.000Z

I received a touching email which made the tears flow from my eyes today from brother Farzad who was a friend of Imrans (may Allah have Mercy on his soul ameen) for a great many years. He had written a short piece on brother Imran title ... Imran Through My Eyes and wanted to share it with you all. I hope this post helps those of you who never knew Imran try and imagine the wonderful and kind person he was and for those of you who did know him no doubt it will bring tears to your eyes and the memories come back.

IMRAN THOUGH MY EYES BY BROTHER FARZAD

I met Imran whiles at Green Hill College he was our Ameer for the Islamic society within the college. As time went by I realized that this brother has great leadership qualities within him and those who followed him were pleased with his decision in all that was good.

He organized, facilitated, supported and sacrificed his time and effort in trying to establish the Islamic Society at the college. He organized jumah prayers, Islamic seminars, weekly study circles and many other things for the sake of Allah. Often I used to see him working on the college computers designing posters, leaflets or preparing him self for a lecture whilst others were browsing the internet downloading music, nasheeds, chatting on msn……… things that either harmed them individually or benefited them individually but with Imran he always had something else in his mind something better something that would benefit others.

Frequently we used to speak about the situation of the Muslims within and outside college and he would always reply saying “Farzad we are not doing enough” I always sensed a feeling of guilt and responsibility that he carried within himself for the Muslims and the situation that they are facing.

After successfully establishing the Islamic Society his humble heart appointed brother Marwan as his successor vowing to help and support him as much as he can.

I never saw Imran greeting me or anyone else except with a smile. He was soft in his speech, gentle in his dealings with Muslims and non Muslims, his character was a Sunnah his manners were a Sunnah ……….. … Sadness fills the heart when I think about him with a sense of loss that I cannot explain but feel. I can’t say any more apart from begging you oh Allah to have mercy on his gentle soul.

The last time I met Imran was roughly two months ago in Harrow at an Islamic seminar in Byron Hall……….. I shook his hand and hugged him not knowing that it would be our last greeting, he smiled at me not knowing that it was his last smile, I asked about his family whom he always spoke very highly off specially his dearest mother (whom only Allah knows the pain in her heart). Before we departed I said to him: “I will see you soon Imran” he replied “Inshallah” not knowing what lay ahead.

The day I read the text about his death my whole body froze staring at my phone unsure if it was true. Then when the news of his death was confirmed I remember weeping as if my own brother has passed away. Crying and begging Allah to have mercy on Imran. That night I could not sleep most of the night thinking about Imran over and over and over again.

When Allah loves a servant of his he calls Jibrael a.s and says: I love So-and-so, therefore love him. He (the Prophet pbuh) said: So Jibrael loves him. Then he (Jibrael) calls out in heaven, saying: Allah loves So-and-so, therefore love him. And the inhabitants of heaven love him. He (the Prophet pbuh) said: Then acceptance is established for him on earth. Muslim, Bukhari, Malik and at-Tirmidhi.

May Allah unite and raise Imrans soul with the prophets, the pious, the truthful and the martyrs. He benefited many in this life may he benefit from their deeds in the next life. Ameen.

Dua for Our Brother Imran Saithna

2007-01-26T08:38:00.000Z

Yesterday evening I spent much time thinking of our brother and how it was his first night in the grave and how he faced the questioning angels subhana'Allah. Deep in my heart I made dua for him and as today being a the first whole day of his life in the grave I make sincere dua to Allah to give him ease in his grave ameen.
A few of us who knew him sat together and remembered some of the important lessons we learnt from him and all of us recalled how he was constantly concerned about being good to others and helping others and learning from others some advice which we should all follow insha'Allah!

'May Allah have Mercy on him, Forgive him, and comfort him in his grave and grant him the company of beautiful angels who will insure his time in barzakh is filled with light which goes beyond the horizon and may his soul be met by angels who stand in total amazment and envy at the love and welcome he will receive from Allah and Jannah. May Allah provide him with such company that he will not fear anything any more, may he feel at rest and ease, may he enjoy the company of the riteous and benefit from the sweet smells of Jannah. May he receive the warm welcome of our Rabb Allah and may he truly be happy now and at bliss in the company of his beloved creator. May his meeting with Allah be a great pleasure for Allah and for Imran Ameen.'

Brother Imran Saithna!

2007-01-25T11:37:00.000Z

Today is the Janaza, Funeral of someone who should be an inspiration for us all! A young, devoted Muslim who was dedicated in helping others, caring for others, feeling for others when it seemed no one else would, someone who put everyone else first and if there was room his needs at the end his name is Imran Saithna!

He was known, admired and loved my many infact almost everyone who met could not help but have a likening for him as he would always greet everyone, the young, the old, Muslims and non Muslims with a warm greeting and a gentle smile.

He is one of those people who you can truly say spent a good amount of time of his youth although he has also died in his youth late 20s in the way of Islam and pleasing Allah!

Many will remember him from days in a college in London called Harrow College where he fought almost single handedly to aquire a prayer room for the muslims students, and how he worled hard on buiding up the Islamic Society there. Others will remember him for numerous events he helped organise, others still will remember him for working on the Muslim Youth Helpline, others far away in Kashmir will remember him for flying out there after the devasatating earthquake so that he could help those in need... others will remember him for many things which I could go on and on about.... he will be missed as a brother, a friend, a carer for humanity a doer of good and mostly he will be missed as a son.

He was one of those people that would help others and even after leaving them they would stay on his mind eating his brain trying to find the best solution for their problems. He was such an empathatic person that seeing others in pain or distress would leave him distressed and concerned for weeks after until he knew they were ok. A clear demonstration of this is his visit to Kashmir when even after he returned here he would constantly think about those he had left behind.

He recently went on Hajj and only arrived back here weeks before death came upon him I pray that Allah accepted his hajj and grants him among the highest place in Jannah ameen.

Today is his Janaza infact as I type this up the his funeral prayer is due to take place in roughly half an hour and due to circumstances I was unable to attend although I wish so much I could have.

Many of you read this many not have known him but I ask you all to pray for him and his family who have suffered a great loss!

Imran himself had his own blog which I must say is far more inspirational and interesting that this one here. I recommend you all to go through it there is plenty of material on it to keep you busy for time to come.

Infact in his first ever post he wrote he mentions how that maybe one day after he has gone his blog may prove to be an inspiration for others SUBHANALLAH. I have no doubt that it will do exactly that... I have pasted his first post below...

Monday, July 14, 2003

I begin in the Name of Allah the Most Beneficent the Most Merciful
I guess i am starting this blog on the recommendation of a good friend, with the intention of keeping a journal of the things that touch me and affect my life. Who knows that maybe once i am gone, it will be a source of inspiration for those i leave behind, insha'Allah

GEM aka Ibn Abdul Qayum

http://www.my-life-in-my-words.blogspot.com/

Im sure there are many people who could on about how this young brother affected their lives. He also loved to write poetry an example of which ill end off with and many of which you can find on his blog.

Please remember our dear brother in all of your duas ameen.

Ruba’iyat XIX

I’ll take the blows upon my chin
I’ll rise, I’ll fight and I will win
I will be happy someday soon
I will leave behind this life of sin.

Smiling as I whistle and loosely croon
Living the beat of my new found tune
Tasting the elixir of the other side
A life with only patience hewn.

Remembering all the times I cried
Ashamed of all the lies I lied
I see a new dawn rising now
The beautiful sun my final bride.
Before my fate I humbly bow
The new fields afore I dutifully plough
Sowing my seeds to reap tomorrow
Word by word I renew my vow.

(by Imran Saithna (Allah have Mercy on him))

Baby!

2007-01-24T13:25:00.000Z

My wonderful wonderful friend Waranga wrote this poem from her heart for me and Im ever so touched! I shall always treasure it insha'Allah and when baby is old enough shall share it with him/her and let them know it came from their aunty Waranga!

Jazaka'Allahu Khayr Waranga for your lovely poem which really touched my heart masha'Allah

BABY

From the expression of love comes a gift beyond the scales,
bewildered by the small taste of mercy,
which leaves it's softness almost forever,
Unaware, for so many day's, you were'nt here,
encased diamond, wrapped in my comfort,
The energy, so unique in it's effect,
takes months to settle, otherwise no rest would be mine,
Entering a foreign land which I've been crowned in,
Surprise me again!
I'm learning your language though it contains no words which describe
it's meaning,
so I'll wait for you to explain in your special way.

Why Why Why..hmmm Or Is It Just ME?

2007-01-23T11:28:00.000Z

I know I have been away for ages the funny thing is almost every day if not every other day I come on to this blog as if expecting there to be a new post on it lol then I realise 'Ah yes im the one who should be posting'!

Ive been busy doing all sorts of different things and to be honest have been a bit lazy when it has come to blogging mostly as there is nothing Ive felt passionate enough to write about!

One more thing, bit of good news I have yet to share is that Im am actualy expecting now Alhamdululillah! Yup thats right All Praise is due to the Almighty who has allowed me and blessed me with carrying a little bundle of joy and I am now 21 weeks pregnan and 1 day masha'Allah! I ask you all to keep us in your prayers and thoughts and ask you all to pray that this baby will be healthy ameen!

Subhana'Allah funny what babies can do to you how they change your mood so quickly! I had started writing this blog a few moments ago feeling quite upset, frustrated and irritated enough to come and share my thoughts with my few but lovely readers and I side tracked to the baby news and now alhamdulillah I dont feel so bad it makes me wonder if I should go on about my origional post over after all!?! Although I think I should as I know ill just be back later to do it for now I think ill end of here since Ive already managed to calm myself down and feel so much better!

So the title of this blog Why Why Why..hmmm Or Is It Just ME? will have to wait to be published shortly!

What have we prepared for it?

2006-12-14T10:02:00.000Z

This is a topic that many of us choose to ignore... maybe its because we do not want to face up to the fact that all the pleasures and temporary enjoyments and dealings of this world are sure to come to an end sooner than we may expect or plan! The important thing to remember is that the only guarantee we have in life is that we will for sure die and meet our Lord and we will be made to answer for every word we have spoken every action we have done or not done! This time could come sooner than we think... we have evidence of it all around us every second of the day with babies, children, teenagers, young and old even those still in their mothers wombs dying yet with all of this we do not take heed we do not learn! Read the story and ponder and think on what direction you yourself are going on and remember its not too late yet to make a change, improvments but when the time comes when you take yoru last breath thats when your time literally has run out!

Her cheeks were worn and sunken, and her skin hugged her bones. That didn't stop her because you could never catch her not reciting Qur'an. She was always vigil in her personal prayer room that our father had set up for her. Bowing, prostrating, raising her hands in prayer, was the way she was from dawn to sunset and back again; boredom was for other people.
As for me, I craved nothing more than fashion magazines and novels. I treated myself to videos until the trips to the rental place became my trademark. It’s a saying that when something becomes habit, people tend to distinguish you by it. I was negligent in my responsibilities and my salah was characterized by laziness.
One night, after a long three hours of watching, I turned the video off. The adhan rose softly in the quiet night. I slipped peacefully into my blanket.
Her voice called me from her prayer room.
"Yes? Would you like anything Noorah?" I asked.
With a sharp needle she popped my plans.
"Don't sleep before you pray Fajr!"
Agghh! “There's still an hour before Fajr. That was only the first adhan,” I said.
With those loving pinches of hers, she called me closer. She was like that even before the fierce sickness shook her spirit and shut her in bed.
"Hanan, can you come sit beside me."
I could never refuse any of her requests; you could touch the purity and sincerity in her. "Yes, Noorah?"
"Please sit here."
"Alright, I’m sitting. What's on your mind?"
With the sweetest mono voice she began reciting:
Every soul shall taste death and you will merely be repaid your earnings on the Day of Resurrection.
She stopped thoughtfully. Then she asked, "Do you believe in death?"
"Of course I do,” I replied.
"Do you believe that you shall be responsible for whatever you do, regardless of how small or large?"
"I do, but Allah is Forgiving and Merciful, and I’ve got a long life waiting for me."
"Stop it Hanan! Are you not afraid of death and its abruptness? Take a look at Hind. She was younger than you but she died in a car accident. Death is age-blind and your age could never be a measure of when you shall die."
The darkness of the room filled my skin with fear. "I'm scared of the dark and now you made me scared of death. How am I supposed to go to sleep now? Noorah, I thought you promised you'd go with us on vacation during the summer break."
Her voice broke and her heart quivered.
"I might be going on a long trip this year Hanan, but somewhere else. All of our lives are in Allah’s hands and we all belong to Him."
My eyes welled and the tears slipped down both cheeks. I pondered my sisters grizzly sickness. The doctors had informed my father in private that there was not much hope Noorah was going to outlive the disease. She wasn't told, so I wondered who hinted to her. Or was it that she could sense the truth?
"What are you thinking about Hanan?" Her voice was sharp. "Do you think I am just saying this because I am sick? I hope not. In fact, I may live longer than people who are not sick. How long are you going to live Hanan? Perhaps twenty years? Maybe forty? Then what?" Through the dark she reached for my hand and squeezed gently. "There's no difference between us; we're all going to leave this world to live in Paradise or agonize in Hell. Listen to the words of Allah:
Anyone who is pushed away from the Fire and shown into Jannah will have triumphed.
I left my sister's room dazed, her words ringing in my ears:
“May Allah guide you Hanan - don't forget your prayer.”
I heard pounding on my door at eight o'clock in the morning. I don't usually wake up at this time. There was crying and confusion. O Allah, what happened?
Noorah’s condition became critical after Fajr; they took her to the hospital immediately.
Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'oon.
There wasn't going to be any trips this summer. It was written that I would spend the summer at home.
It felt like an eternity had gone by when it was one o'clock in the afternoon. Mother phoned the hospital.
"Yes. You can come and see her now." Dad's voice had changed, and mother could sense something had gone deathly wrong. We left immediately.
Where was that avenue I used to travel and thought was so short? Why was it so very long now? Where was the cherished crowd and traffic that would give me a chance to gaze left and right? Everyone, just move out of our way!
Mother was shaking her head in her hands crying as she made du'a for her Noorah. We arrived at the hospital’s main entrance. One man was moaning, while another was involved in an accident. A third man’s eyes were iced. You couldn’t tell if he was dead or alive.
Noorah was in intensive care. We skipped stairs to her floor. The nurse approached us. "Let me take you to her."
As we walked down the aisles the nurse went on expressing how sweet of a girl Noorah was. She somewhat reassured Mother that Noorah’s condition had gotten better than what it was in the morning. "Sorry. No more than one visitor at a time,” the nurse said.
This was the intensive care unit. Past the flurry white robes, through the small window in the door, I caught my sister’s eyes. Mother was standing beside her. After about two minutes, mother came out unable to control her crying. "You may enter and say salaam to her on the condition that you do not speak too long," they told me. "Two minutes should be enough."
"How are you Noorah? You were fine last night sister, what happened?"
We held hands; she squeezed harmlessly. "Even now, alhamdulillah, I'm doing fine."
"Alhamdulillah...but...your hands are so cold."
I sat on her bedside and rested my fingers on her knee. She jerked it away. "Sorry, did I hurt you?"
"No, it is just that I remembered Allah's words.”
Waltafatul saaqu bil saaq (One leg will be wrapped to the other leg [in the death shroud]).
"Hanan pray for me. I may be meeting the first day of the Hereafter very soon. It’s a long journey and I haven't prepared enough good deeds in my suitcase."
A tear escaped my eye and ran down my cheek at her words. I cried and she joined me. The room blurred away and left us two sisters to cry together. Rivulets of tears splashed down on my sister’s palm, which I held with both hands. Dad was now becoming more worried about me. I've never cried like that before.
At home and upstairs in my room, I watched the sun pass away with a sorrowful day. Silence mingled in our corridors. One after another, my cousins came in my room. The visitors were many and all the voices from downstairs stirred together. Only one thing was clear at that point – Noorah had died!
I stopped distinguishing who came and who went. I couldn't remember what they said. O Allah, where was I? What was going on? I couldn't even cry anymore.
Later that week they told me what had happened. Dad had taken my hand to say goodbye to my sister for the last time. I had kissed Noorah's head.
I remember only one thing while seeing her spread on that bed – the bed that she was going to die on. I remembered the verse she recited:
One leg will be wrapped to the other leg (in the death shroud).
And I knew too well the truth of the next verse:
The drive on that day will be to your Lord (Allah)!
I tiptoed into her prayer room that night. Staring at the quiet dressers and silenced mirrors, I treasured the person that had shared my mother's stomach with me. Noorah was my twin sister.
I remembered who I had swapped sorrows with, who comforted my rainy days. I remembered who prayed for my guidance and who spent so many tears for many long nights telling me about death and accountability. May Allah save us all.
Tonight is Noorah's first night that she shall spend in her tomb. O Allah, have mercy on her and illumine her grave. This was her Qur'an and her prayer mat. And this was the spring, rose-colored dress that she told me she would hide until she got married; the dress she wanted to keep just for her husband.
I remembered my sister and cried over all the days that I had lost. I prayed to Allah to have mercy on me, accept me and forgive me. I prayed to Allah to keep her firm in her grave as she always liked to mention in her supplications.
At that moment, I stopped. I asked myself what if it was I who had died. Where would I be moving on to? Fear pressed me and the tears began all over again.
“Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar…” The first adhan rose softly from the masjid. It sounded so beautiful this time. I felt calm and relaxed as I repeated the mu’adhin’s call. I wrapped the shawl around my shoulders and stood to pray Fajr. I prayed as if it was my last prayer, a farewell prayer, just like Noorah had done yesterday. It had been her last Fajr.
Now, and in sha Allah for the rest of my life, if I awake in the morning I do not count on being alive by evening, and in the evening I do not count on being alive by morning. We are all going on Noorah's journey. What have we prepared for it?

A trip to the Country!

2006-12-14T09:57:00.000Z

Yet again another thought provoking story! Enjoy!

One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country ...
... with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people can be. They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family. On their return from their trip, the father asked his son,
"How was the trip?"
"It was great, Dad."
"Did you see how poor people can be?" the father asked.
"Oh Yeah" said the son.
"So what did you learn from the trip?" asked the father.
The son answered, "I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon. We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them."
With this the boy's father was speechless.
Then his son added, "Thanks, dad for showing me how poor we are."

No Charge for Love!

2006-12-12T15:54:00.000Z

This story is so heart warming it bought tears to my eyes... Waranga the little boy in the story is called Khalifa just for you.... enjoy! Its good to remember when purchasing something let us not always think what we will gain from it but rather how we can help or be of benefit to others!

A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell.
He painted a sign advertising for 4 pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the eyes of little boy called Khalifah.
"Mister," he said, "I want to buy one of your puppies."
"Well," said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck, "These puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money."
The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer. "I've got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?"
"Sure," said the farmer. And with that he let out a whistle. "Here, Dolly!" he called. Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran
Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His eyes danced with delight.
As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse.. Slowly another little ball appeared, this one noticeably smaller. Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner, the little pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up....
"I want that one," little Khalifah said, pointing to the runt. The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would."
With that little Khalifah stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see sir, I don't run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands."
With tears in his eyes, farmer reached down and picked up the little pup. Holding it carefully handed it to the little boy.
"How much?" asked the little Khalifah.
"No charge," answered the farmer, "There's no charge for love".

The Donkey!

2006-12-12T10:31:00.000Z

Nice story with a good lesson to be learnt!

One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do.Finally he decided that since the animal was old, it wasn't worth retrieving it.

He invited neighbors to come over and help him just fill in the hole. They all
grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realised
what was happening it cried even more.
Then, to everyone's amazement he went quiet.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well and was astonished.
With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey would shake it off and take
a step up. As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel, he stepped up further.
Eventually the donkey stepped out of the well and trotted off!

Life is going to shovel dirt on you. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and step out. Each of our troubles is a stepping-stoneand we can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping--never giving up! Shake it off and take that step up.
Remember the five simple rules to being happy:
Free your heart from hatred.
Forgive.Free your mind from worries - most never happen.
Live simply and appreciate what you have.
Give more.
Expect less.

The Finger Prayer!

2006-12-08T07:36:00.000Z

I recevived this by email from a lovely friend of mine and thought it was quite nice so I felt like sharing it with anyone who happens to stroll across this blog! Please remember me in your duas!

The 5 finger prayer

1. Your thumb is nearest to you.
So begin your prayers by praying for those closest to you. They are the easiest to remember. Pray for your loved ones – family, friends – and pray for those that have gone before us. Ask Allah to guide your family and loved ones onto the straight path and pray for their forgiveness.

2. The next finger is the pointing finger.
Pray for those who teach, instruct and heal. Pray for the Shaykhs and Ulama around the world – they need the support and wisdom in pointing others in the right direction. Keep them in your prayers and ask Allah to guide you on the straight path.

3. The next finger is the tallest finger.
This reminds us of our leaders. These are the people who have made Islam what it is. Pray for blessings upon our beloved Prophet Sallalahu alayhi wa salam, His Companions and His Family. Pray for the Caliphs of then and now. These people shape our nations and guide public opinion. They need Allahs guidance.

4. The fourth finger is the ring finger.
This is the weakest finger on the hand. It should remind us to pray for those who are weak, in trouble or in pain. They need your prayers day and night. You cannot pray too much for them. Pray for all our brothers and sisters around the world and keep a special part of your Dua for the orphans worldwide. May Allah protect them.

5. And lastly comes our little finger, the smallest finger of all.
This is where we should place ourselves in relation to Allah and others. This little finger should remind you to pray for yourself. By the time you have prayed for everyone else, your own needs will be put into proper perspective and you will be able to pray for yourself more effectively.

When you look at the palm of your hand, you see your fingers coming out… think of your palm as the Ummah, don't forget the Ummah in your Dua's and pray for Jannah for all. Pray for the forgiveness of all the ummah. Our Lord is Most Forgiving Most Merciful.

Be Gentle With Others part 2!

2006-12-05T13:22:00.000Z

Well as promised I said Id blog about my own example of being gentle with others so here goes...
I work in an Islamic Book Shop and out side on our shop window for a time we had some notices up saying how we should work for peace and that our bookshop was open for all etc!

Anyways one day a rather angry lady came in and barged up to my counter accusingly saying to me....'Id just like to say one thing to you... you have notices up raving on about peace and how muslims are peaceful people then how come your trying to ban christmas thats awful, its terrible I dont try and ban your festivals so how can you really be peaceful and how can your religion really be such a peacful religion???'

I remember thinking a few things...'errrm woah there calm down, I didnt try and ban christmas and Islam is peaceful'. But I took a few seconds and looked at this lady who looked very distressed and thought to myself now shouting back saying... What are you on about I didnt ban anything and yes Islam is peaceful was not going to get us anywhere so instead I calmy said... 'Ban Christmas who wants to ban christmas?' She replied... 'All Muslims do its in the paper I just read its and I think thats just awful how rude and mean is that' I said to her... 'Do you have this Newspaper? I can understand why your so upset as thats not a nice thing for anyone to do'. Suddenly she stopped and looked at me and I rememeber her head going slightly back as if she needed a to focus her glance on me. She then said she would go and get the paper and bring it to me. A few moments later she returned.... Showing me the Newspaper where there was an article of how some Muslims wanted to ban christmas celebrations etc. I looked at her and said... 'Im sorry but I dont want to ban christmas and I can understand how awful you must feel as if people tried to ban me celebrating Eid which is the Islamic festival I too would be very upset!' I then went on and said 'As Muslims we should not be banning any festival here anyway'. She was so taken aback with my response and said 'So you dont agree with this?' I said 'No I dont agree with it'. She then thanked me and said 'Im so happy you understand and I wish you all the best' She asked me my name and then said she would pop in and visit every time she went by. How her attitude had changed from an angry, accusing woman from when she first entered to a calm, polite, happy and friendly soul when she left.

What really touched me though was a week or 2 before the following Eid she came in and said to me 'Oh Im so glad I found you here you do remember me dont you? I just wanted to wish you a happy Eid in advance incase I dont come in next week' Allahu Akbar! Now from being angry about her festival being attacked she was now coming to wish me a happy Eid!

Then again Hajj was coming up and she was passing by and she came in and said 'Its your pligramage soon isnt it? Are you going?' I replied... 'No but I wish I could' she then smiled and said to me 'Insha'Allah you will go, I pray that you do go soon'. Again I was so shocked by her change of attitude. I remember thinking to myself and still do... I wonder if id handled it differently and been equally as angry back how things would be with this lady now?

I also make dua for Allah to open her heart to Islam ameen!

So everyone please be gentle with others even when they are mean ,rude, nasty to you stop and try and think what has made them behave like this and as a Muslim I need to respond in this best possible way. By the way please dont think im so wonderful all the time... so please remember to make dua for me to for Allah to increase me in patience and allow me to be gentle with others ameen!

Be Gentle with others!

2006-12-01T11:25:00.000Z

This is yet again another lovely story from the time of the prophet (saw)! It holds a great lesson in it for us! Many of us today are quick to scold others for mistakes they make without thinking, without using wisdom and without having patience! Doing so rather than helping them correct themselves we just push them further away and make them feel, upset, angry and even resentful to the harsh advice we hae offered them! Sometimes we need to sit back and listen to them even if it sounds rude and impolite and then take the time to think 'what could have made them behave in this way'. Even if we cant think why... deal with them with patience no matter how hard or how wrong they may seem or how unfairly treated you may feel! I have my own example to share with you which I shall do so in a new post as this post is for you to learn from the best of teachers Muhammad ibn Abdallah the final Messenger and Prophet of Allah (saw)!

So read and on and please think of the lessons to be learnt and insha'Allah use them in future! My won story shall follow in a post or 2!

A Bedouin came to RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam and told him,
“Give me from what Allah gave you, not from the wealth of your mother nor from the wealth of your father.”

The Sahaabaa were furious at the man and stepped forward to discipline him for what he said.

RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam commanded everyone to leave him.
Then by the hand, RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam took the Bedouin home, opened his door and said,

“Take what you wish and leave what you wish.”
The man did so and after he was done, RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam asked him,

“Have I honored you?”
“Yes, by Allah,” said the Bedouin. “Ash hadu an laa ilaaha illAllah, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadar RasulAllah.”

When the Sahaabaa heard of how the man changed, RasulAllah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam taught them:
“Verily, the example of myself, you, and this Bedouin is that of a man who had his camel run away. The townspeople tried capturing the camel for him by running and shouting after the camel, only driving it further away. The man shouted, ‘Leave me and my camel; I know my camel better.’ Then he took some grass in his hand, ruffled it in front of the camel, until it came willingly. By Allah, had I left you to this Bedouin, you would have hit him, hurt him and he would have left without Islam and eventually have entered Hellfire.”

The Power of Non Violence!

2006-12-01T10:50:00.000Z

This a really nice powerful story with good morals! For those of you who may have heard it before it will be a nice reminder and for all your first timers it will be a great lesson insha'Allah!

Dr. Arun Gandhi, grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and founder of the M.K.Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence, in his June 9 lecture at the>University of Puerto Rico, shared the following story

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was 16 years old and living with my parents at the institute my grandfather had founded 18 miles outside of Durban, South Africa, in the middle of the sugarplantations. We were deep in the country and had no neighbors, so my two sisters and I would always look forward to going to town to visit friends or go to the movies. One day, my father asked me to drive him to town for an all-day conference, and I jumped at the chance. Since I was going to town, my mother gave me a list of groceries she needed and, since I had all day in town, my father asked me to take care of several pending chores, such as getting the car serviced. When I dropped my father off that morning, he said, "I will meet you here at 5:00 p.m., and we will go home together." After hurriedly completing my chores, I went straight to the nearest movie theatre. I got so engrossed in a John Wayne double-feature that I forgot the time. It was 5:30 before I remembered. By the time I ran to the garage and got the car and hurried to where my father was waiting for me, it was almost 6:00. He anxiously asked me, "Why were you late?"
I was so ashamed of telling him I was watching a John Wayne western movie that I said, "The car wasn't ready, so I had to wait," not realizing that he had already called the garage.

When he caught me in the lie, he said: "There's something wrong in the way I brought you up that didn't give you the confidence to tell me the truth. In order to figure out
where I went wrong with you, I'm going to walk home 18 miles and think about it." So, dressed in his suit and dress shoes, he began to walk home in the dark on mostly unpaved, unlit roads.

I couldn't leave him, so for five-and-a-half hours I drove behind him, watching my father go through this agony for a stupid lie that I uttered. I decided then and there that I was never going to lie again. I often think about that episode and wonder, if he had punished me the way we punish our children, whether I would have learned a lesson at all. I don't think so. I would have suffered the punishment and gone on doing the same thing. But this single non-violent action was so powerful that it is still as if it happened yesterday.

That is the power of non violence!

The Story of an African King and His Friend!

2006-11-28T09:04:00.000Z

The Story of an African King and His Friend

A story is told about a King in Africa who had a close friend that he grew up with. The friend had a habit of looking at every situation that ever occurred in his life (positive or negative) by remarking,
"This is good, Allah Almighty knows best"
One day the King and his friend were out on a hunting expedition. The friend would load and prepare the guns for the King. The friend had apparently done something wrong in preparing one of the guns, for after taking the gun from his friend, the King fired it and his thumb was blown off.Examining the situation the friend remarked as usual,
"This is good! Allah Almighty knows best."
To which the King replied,
"No, this is NOT good!" and ordered his soldiers to put his friend into jail. About a year later, the King was hunting in an area that he should have known to stay clear of. Cannibals captured the King and took him to their village. They tied his hands, stacked some wood, set up a stake and bound him to the stake.As they came near to set fire to the wood, they noticed that the King was missing a thumb. Being superstitious, they never ate anyone who was less than whole. So after untying the King, they chased him out of the village.When the King reached his Palace, he was reminded of the event that had taken his thumb and felt remorse for his treatment of his friend. He went immediately to the jail to speak with his friend.
"You were right" the King said, "It was good that my thumb was blown off."
And he proceeded to tell the friend all that had just happened.
"I am very sorry for sending you to jail for so long. It was bad for me to do this.
"No," his friend replied, "this is good…Allah Almighty knows best""What do you mean, `this is good'! How could it be good that I sent my friend to jail for a year?"
The King's friend replied:
"Remember that the Almighty knows best and if I had NOT been in jail, I would have been with you on that hunting trip."

"He knows what is before them and what is behind them: And to Allah go back all questions (for decision)"Qur'an: Surah Al Hajj 22:76

Do Not Judge Things or Events by its Immediate Outcome!Although the decisions of Allah Ta'alah may seem harsh to us, they are full of wisdom.

What goes around come around!

2006-11-18T12:16:00.000Z

He almost didn't see the old lady, stranded on the side of the road. But even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front of her Mercedes and got out. His Pontiac was still sputtering when he approached her. Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so ... was he going to hurt her ? He didn't look safe; he looked poor and hungry. He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt. It was that chill which only fear can put in you. He said,
"I'm here to help you, ma'am. Why don't you wait in the car where it's warm ? By the way, my name is Khalifa."
Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Khalifa crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt. As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from Babylon and was only just passing through. She couldn't thank him enough for coming to her aid. Khalifa just smiled as he closed her trunk.. She asked him how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened had he not stopped.
Khalifa never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were plenty who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way. He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed, and Khalifa added, "And pray for me."
He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight. A few miles down the road the lady saw a small cafe. She went in to grab a bite to eat, and take the chill off before she made the last leg of her trip home. It was a dingy looking restaurant. Outside were two old gas pumps. The whole scene was unfamiliar to her. The cash register was like the telephone of an out-of-work actor - it didn't ring much. The waitress came over and brought a clean towel to wipe her wet hair. She had a sweet smile, one that even being on her feet for the whole day couldn't erase. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant, but she never let the strain and aches change her attitude. The old lady wondered how someone who had so little could be so giving to a stranger. Then she remembered Khalifa. After the lady finished her meal, and the waitress went to get change for her hundred dinar bill, the lady slipped right out the door. She was gone by the time the waitress came back. The waitress wondered where the lady could be. Then she noticed something written on the napkin under which were four hundred dinar bills. There were tears in her eyes when she read what the lady wrote:
"You don't owe me anything. I have been there too. Somebody once helped me out, the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let this chain of love end with you."
Well, there were tables to clear, sugar bowls to fill, and people to serve, but the waitress made it through another day. That night when she got home from work and climbed into bed, she was thinking about the money and what the lady had written. How could the lady have known how much she and her husband needed it? With the baby due next month, it was going to be hard. She knew how worried her husband was, and as he lay sleeping next to her, she gave him a soft kiss and whispered soft and low,
"Everything is going to be all right. I love you, Khalifa."
Holy Quran says: "But he who gives to others more out of his own will then it is better for his own self..." (2:184) There is an old saying "What goes around comes around."

2 Wolves

2006-11-03T14:13:00.000Z

In a story from Native American folklore, a grandfather explains to his young grandson the inner struggle between good and evil.

"A battle goes on inside us all," the grandfather begins. "It is a battle between two wolves. One wolf is the embodiment of everything evil, like hate, anger, jealousy, resentment, greed, arrogance, lying, and selfishness. The other wolf is the embodiment of everything good, like love, joy, peace, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, empathy, generosity, compassion, truth, and faith."

The grandson thinks about those words and then asks, "Which wolf wins?"

The grandfather replies, "The one you feed."

Mohammadu Maccido

2006-11-01T15:49:00.000Z

Salaam all,
I knew this wonderful man personally since before I was born meaning he was a close family friend to my family before I was born. He was one of the most gentlest, kindest, loving and peacful persons I had ever come across! I ask Allah to have mercy upon him and his family ameen. Please all make dua for him!

Muslim leader killed in crash was voice of calm in Nigeria

SOKOTO, Nigeria (AP) -- Mohammadu Maccido, the spiritual leader to tens of millions of Nigerian Muslims, was an important voice of moderation and calm in Africa's most-populous nation.
Maccido, the 19th sultan of Sokoto, was among 96 people killed Sunday when a Nigerian ADC airliner crashed shortly after takeoff in the capital, Abuja. Thousands of people trooped to Maccido's palace in the northwestern city of Sokoto, where his body was buried Sunday. He was 58.
President Olusegun Obasanjo, a Christian, was among those mourning the spiritual leader. "He lived for peace, worked for peace and died for peace," Obasanjo said.
Nigeria's 130 million people are roughly split between a predominantly Muslim north and Christian or animist south.
The sultan approves dates for the start and end of Muslim fasts and speaks on issues of religious policy in Nigeria, which gained independence from Britain in 1960.
Maccido was a direct descendant of the Islamic scholar Uthman Dan Fodio, who founded the Sokoto Caliphate that became one the largest pre-colonial states in Africa. Dan Fodio launched a campaign from Sokoto in 1804 that spread Islam across much of the northern half of Nigeria and parts of neighboring Niger, Cameroon and Benin.
Under colonial rule, the British worked as allies with the sultans, who have retained religious and political influence over Nigerian Muslims, who number at least 65 million.
The sultanate council usually meets within days to select a successor from among Dan Fodio's descendants, palace officials said, but no date has been set in this case. The choice will have to be approved by the elected governor of Sokoto state, Attahiru Bafarawa.
The new leader will emerge from the same tradition-bound and tightly knit class as the last, and is likely to be similar to Maccido in outlook. Because the new sultan will be a descendant of Dan Fodio, he will likely command the respect and influence wielded by Maccido.
Maccido often spoke in favor of peace in Nigeria, even as the country witnessed some of its worst bouts of sectarian violence.
Thousands were killed as the imposition of strict Islamic law by 12 predominantly Islamic states in the north increased friction with Christians and other non-Muslims. Through the tensions, which flared with the end of strict military rule in 1999, Maccido urged peace among all religious groups.
When immunization of children against polio was boycotted by large numbers in northern Nigeria in 2003 over baseless allegations by radical Muslim preachers that it was a ploy to sterilize people and spread AIDS, Maccido came out in support of the vaccine.
Vaccination programs resumed in 2004, but the boycott set back global eradication efforts, causing a polio outbreak that spread the disease across Africa and into the Middle East.
Maccido's official titles included leader of the faithful and head of the National Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs. He became the sultan in 1996, after his predecessor, Ibrahim Dasuki, was deposed by the then-military ruler Gen. Sani Abacha.
Maccido is survived by one wife -- one of three he married -- and many children. One of his sons, Mohammed, and a grandson also died in the crash.

Talk to Allah!

2006-10-06T12:06:00.000+01:00

Salaam and Hello Howdy all!

Its been a while I know and most prob the few random readers I had have prob long forgotten about my humble little blog and my monkey lol... not to worry!

Its Ramadan so im sure everyone has been busy trying to the make the most of it insha'allah. I myself know that I already wish I had done soooo much more khayr no use getting depressed ill just try harder from now insha'allah!

I had decided not to blog during Ramadan but I came across this and it reminded me how Great Allahs Mercy is and how Great His understanding His Love, His compassion is for His slaves even those of us who sin outrightly BUT then return to Him! Subhana'Allah this story is about a man who was sinning for 40 years imagine that most of us may not have even reached 40 yet or perhaps recently passed it or at the very least its prob at least most of our lives!

In that time of 40 years Allah hid his sins and then forgave him when he repented and even when a prophet of Allah asked about Him Allah refused to reveal who he was Allahu Akbar!

Its Ramadan now the month of Mercy of course Allah is ready to forive us all year round but this month is like no other the blessings it contains are unimaginable Allahs Mercy and Forgiveness are waiting to be handed out so I implore all of you please please please during this month especially turn to Allah and ask Him for forgivenss of those sins you have comitted your whole life the sins you comitted that you know about and the sins you may not even know about please beg Him forgiveness and insha'Allah God Willing Allah will forgive you and you will have a clean slate! That piece of advice was my Eid present to all of you!

Read the story and perhaps share your comments about the Mercy of Allah! Have you ever begged Allah for forgiveness and felt warm or peacful inside, has talking to Allah ever let you feel closer to Him insha'allah if you have not tried these things I ask you to do so especially during the night. Just sit there and raise your hands and talk to Allah in any language you like... speak to Him, tell Him whats on your mind although He already knows and ask Him for help and guidance and for His forgiveness and honestly you will feel a weight lifted off your shoulders!

It was narrated that in the days that Musa (Alahi salaam) wandered with Bani Israel in the desert an intense drought befell them. Together, they raised their hands towards the heavens praying for the blessed rain to come. Then, to the astonishment of Musa (Alahi salaam) and all those watching, the few scattered clouds that were in the sky vanished, the heat poured down, and the drought intensified.
It was revealed to Musa that there was a sinner amongst the tribe of Bani Israel whom had disobeyed Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala) for more than forty years of his life.
“Let him separate himself from the congregation,” Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala) told Musa (Alahi salaam).
“Only then shall I shower you all with rain.” Musa (Alahi salaam) then called out to the throngs of humanity,
“There is a person amongst us who has disobeyed Allah for forty years. Let him separate himself from the congregation and only then shall we be rescued from the drought.”
That man, waited, looking left and right, hoping that someone else would step forward, but no one did. Sweat poured forth from his brow and he knew that he was the one. The man knew that if he stayed amongst the congregation all would die of thirst and that if he stepped forward he would be humiliated for all eternity. He raised his hands with a sincerity he had never known before, with a humility he had never tasted, and as tears poured down on both cheeks he said: “O Allah, have mercy on me! O Allah, hide my sins! O Allah, forgive me!”
As Musa (Alahi salaam) and the people of Bani Israel awaited for the sinner to step forward, the clouds hugged the sky and the rain poured. Musa (Alahi salaam) asked Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala),
“O Allah, you blessed us with rain even though the sinner did not come forward.” And Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala) replied,
“O Musa, it is for the repentance of that very person that I blessed all of Bani Israel with water.” Musa (Alahi salaam), wanting to know who this blessed man was, asked, “Show him to me O Allah!” Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala) replied,
“O Musa, I hid his sins for forty years, do you think that after his repentance I shall expose him?”

Subhana'Allah how great is the Mercy of Allah... many of us think "Oh but Ive done such and such whats the point of me praying, wearing hijab, going to the masjid Id be a hypocrite"... my dear friends those are just the whispers of shaitan telling you not to get closer to Allah. Learn from the example above and turn to Allah and insha'Allah He will honour you just as he honoured the man who had sinned for 40 years!

The Story of The Visit Of Satan The Accursed!

2006-09-19T13:42:00.000+01:00

I know its been a long while sinc I last posted. Ive been so busy doing lots of things and honestly could not think of anything interesting to blog about until I came across this long long hadith! Subhana'Allah its amazing and is an excellent preparation for Ramadan which is right round the corner! I ask you all to remember me in your Ramadan duas and to remember my family and all the Muslims around the world! I probably wont be blogging much if at all during Ramamdan and hopefully you all will be too busy to read it anyways!

I know this one is super long but its excellent and I urge you all not only to read it but to contemplete over it and pass it on! The sources of it can be found on the following link...http://beautifulislam.net/articles/visit_of_satan.htm

The Story of the Visit of Satan, the Accursed

One day a congregation was gathered at the home of one of the Ansar around the Prophet (saw). [According to Hazrat Anas it was Abu Ayyub]

In the middle of a wonderful discourse an ugly voice from the outside was heard saying,

"O the ones inside, (or , "O Messenger of Allah!") would you permit me to enter? I have business with you!"
All looked at the Prophet (saw), who said to the ones present, "Do you recognize the owner of this voice?"
The Companions answered, "Allah and His Messenger know best."
The Prophet (saw) said, "It is Satan the Accursed."
On hearing that, Hazrat Umar (ra), who was present, pulling his sword, asked, "O Messenger of Allah, permit me to go and cut off his head!" ["Let me smash his skull and free the people from his trouble!"]
The Prophet (saw) replied, "No Umar, don't you know that you cannot kill him? He has permission to exist until Qiyaamah."

Then he added, "Open the door and admit him, as he did not come on his own but on Allah's orders. [Or, "There is always an underlying reason for things.] Otherwise, he would not have come here. Listen to what he says, and try to understand."

Then Rawi (ra), one of the Companions, relates the tale:

They opened the door and he appeared ion front of us as an old man, cross-eyed [or blind in one eye] and scant of beard, with only six or seven long hairs hanging from his chin. He had a very big head, his crossed eyes close to the top of his head, high on his forehead, with big thick hanging lips like those of a water buffalo. He saluted the Prophet and the Companions, to which the Prophet (saw) responded, 'O Accursed, the salaam and salutations belong to Allah Most high.' Then he said, 'I heard you are here on business. What is it?' Satan said, 'I did not wish to come here, I was forced to - an angel came to me from your Lord, Who honors whom He wishes, and said, "Allah Most High orders you to Muhammad, but you will go to him in humility and abasement, and be submissive and tractable. You will tell him how you seduce and mislead humankind. You are going to answer all his questions truthfully, without a single lie." And Allah said that if I lied to you He would turn me into ashes and blow me away in the wind, and my enemies would laugh at me. I come with such orders, O Muhammad.'

Then the Prophet asked the Devil, 'Tell me, who in the creation do you hate most?'
The Devil answered,

'You O Muhammad! ['And all the Prophets'] There is no one in the whole creation that I hate more. There is none other like you.'
The Messenger of Allah (saw) [confirmed that the Devil was his own, and all the Prophets' (as) greatest foe]. He asked, 'Whom else do you detest besides me?'
Satan said, 'The young ones who have given up their pleasures and themselves for Allah's sake; the men of knowledge who act upon their knowledge and who decline all that is doubtful; the ones who are clean. So clean that they wash thrice that which they wish to cleanse. Then the patient poor, who neither ask from others the things they need, nor complain. Then the thankful rich, who give alms lawfully and spend lawfully. [Hazrat Anas lists fourteen enemies after the Prophets (as): the knowledgeable who act on what they know; readers of the Qur'an who pattern themselves on it; those who call to prayer for Allah's sake; the satisfied poor; the compassionate; the generous; those who perform the morning prayer on time; advisors and reformers; abstainers from unlawful food and sexual relations; those who are always in ablution; the modest; those who place their trust in Allah; benefiters of the poor; the devout busy in Allah's service.]
Then the Prophet (saw) asked, 'What happens to you, O Accursed One, when my people do their prayers?'
'I shake and tremble as if stricken with malaria because I see your people raised in blessing and power each time they prostrate.'
'What happens to you, O Accursed, when my people fast?'
'I have my hands and feet tied until they break their fast.'
'What happens when they all meet on the Hajj at the house of their Lord?'
'I lose my wits, I go mad'
'What happens to you when they recite the Holy Qur'an?'
'I melt, like lead turning to hot liquid in the fire.'
'And when they pay alms?'
'I am torn to pieces, as if the generous donor took a saw and sawed me into four pieces. Because there are four beatitudes which the donor receives - the blessing of abundance, love and respect from Allah's creatures, a shield from hellfire, and relief from distress and troubles.'
Then the Messenger of Allah (saw) asked the Devil what he thought of his beloved Companions. About Hazrat Abu Bakr (ra) he said, 'I hate him. Even before Islam he refused to obey, nay! Even to hear me. How can he now listen to me?' About Hazrat Umar ibn Al-Kattab (ra) he said, 'I run away whenever I see him!' About Hazrat Uthman ibn Affan (ra) he said, 'I am ashamed in front of him. Even the angels of mercy are ashamed in front of him.' And about Hazrat Ali ibn Abu Talib (ra) he said, 'O if I could just be safe from him, if he would just let me be, I would let him be. But he will not leave me alone!'
Having heard the answers of the accursed Satan the Prophet (saw) thanked Allah and said, 'Praise be to Allah Who has blessed my people with such felicity and cursed you with such negativity until that appointed time.'
When the Devil heard that, he said, 'Alas, alas for you, what felicity for your people? How can you feel there is safety for them as long as I exist? I enter their very veins, their very flesh, and they cannot even suspect, let alone see or feel me. I swear by Allah Who has given me time until Qiyaamah that I will seduce them all, the intelligent and the simple-minded, the learned as well as the ignorant, the devout as well as the sinner. None will be safe from me except the true servants of Allah.'
The Prophet (saw) asked, 'Who are the true servants of Allah, according to you?'
The Devil said, 'You know well, O Muhammad, that whomsoever loves his money and his property Allah does not count among his servants. Whenever I see someone who does not say "mine" and "me" , who does not love either money or flattery, I know he is truly a servant of Allah and I run away from him. As long as one loves money, property, flattery, he obeys me, he is my servant. I need many servants and I have many servants. I am not alone. I have 70,000 children, each of them with his assigned duties. Each of my 70,000 children has 70,000 satans serving him, all assigned to different posts. Many are with the young people and older women, and with the theologians and preachers and shaykhs. There are almost no differences of opinion between your young people and my devils, and your children play happily with my children. And some of the devout and some of the pious get along very well with my people! My devils lead the imagination of the pious from one height to another. Arrogant, they leave the sincerity of their devotions. Soon they fight with each other, and they don't even know what is happening to them. Then I whisper to them, "Disbelieve!", but when they disbelieve, I say, "I am free of you. Surely I fear Allah, the Lord of the Worlds." (Surah al-Hashr, ayat 16).'
Then the accursed Devil told how he profited from habits of man which he liked. About lying he said, 'Do you know, O Muhammad, that lying is from me and that I am the first liar? Whoever lies is my best friend; whoever swears to the truth of his lies is my beloved. You know, O Muhammad that I swore by Allah and lied to Adam and Eve. I swore to them both, "Surely I am a sincere advisor to you." (Surah al-Araf, ayat 21) I also love rejection and gossip. They are my delightful fruits. I detest loving families. If they think of rejecting each other, separating from each other, and talk about divorce, even if just once, the marriage bond in Allah's view is dissolved. The wife will be unlawful to the husband. When they sleep together, they will be adulterers. If they have a child he will be a bastard. I love all that.
'O Muhammad, let me tell you about my friends who abandon prayers or delay them. When it is time for prayer I make them imagine that there is still time, that they are busy. They should enjoy what they are doing, they can always pray later! I hope they will die before doing their next prayer, and some of them do. Even when they do their prayers late, their devotions are thrown in their faces. If I cannot succeed myself, I send them a human satan who will prevent them from their devotions. If I don't succeed again, I enter into their prayers. I tell them, "Look to the right, look to the left! Think of the past, plan your future!" And when they do I caress their cheeks and kiss their foreheads and take the peace from their hearts. You know, O Muhammad, that the prayers of those whose attention is outside of them or who are imagining things which do not belong in the presence of Allah are also rejected and thrown in their faces. And if I am not successful in that, I order them to do their prayers fast, and they
look like hens picking at grain. If I still don't succeed, I follow them to the congregational prayers and put bridles on their heads. I pull, and lift their heads from the prostration before the imam, and I push their heads down before the imam touches his head to the ground, and I am overjoyed to remember that Allah will turn those unruly heads into donkeys' heads on the Day of Judgment. If I am still not successful, I try at least to make them crack their fingers while they are making prayers. Then they will be among those who make my tasbih instead of Allah's tasbih. Or at least I will blow into their noses and make them yawn, and if they open their mouths a little devil will enter into them through their mouths and increase their love and ambition for this world. The one who loves and is ambitious for this world becomes my soldier; he obeys me and does as he is ordered.
'O Muhammad, if I have told a single lie, may scorpions bite me, and ask from Allah that he turn me into ashes. O Muhammad, do not be sure of your people. I have already converted a sixth of them, who have left their religion.'
Then the Messenger of Allah (saw) asked, 'O Accursed One, with whom do you most like to spend your time?'
'The usurer.'
'And your best friend?'
'The adulterer.'
'With whom do you share your bed?'
'The drunkard.'
'Who are your guests?'
'The thieves.'
'Who are your representatives?'
'The magicians and soothsayers.'
'What pleases you most?'
'Divorce'
'Whom do you love most?'
'Those who abandon their Friday prayers.'
[Hazrat Anas (ra) gives eight friends of Satan: tyrants and oppressors; the arrogant; servile scholars who hide the truth for the benefit of tyrants; dishonest tradesmen; drinkers of alcohol; dealers in fraud; slanderers; those who stir up trouble among friends.]
Then the Prophet (saw) asked, 'What breaks your heart, O Accursed One?'
'The determination and the firm footsteps of those who march against the enemies of Allah for Allah's sake.'
'What gives you pain?'
'The repentance of the penitent.'
'What makes you grimace?'
'The alms given in secret.'
'What makes your eyes blind?'
'The tahajjud prayer in the middle of the night.'
'What makes you bow your head?'
'Prayer done in congregation.'
The Prophet (saw) continued asking: 'O Satan, according to you, who are the happiest among people?'
'The ones who purposefully abandon their prayers.'
'And the best among people?'
'The miser.'
'What prevents you from doing your job?'
'The gathering of men of knowledge and their discourses.'
'How do you eat your food?'
'With my left hand and the tips of my fingers.'
'When the sun is hot, where do you seek shade?'
'Under people's dirty fingernails.'
Then the Messenger of Allah (saw) asked, 'What did you ask from my Lord on the day you were rejected from His presence?'
'I had ten requests which were accorded.'
'What were they, O Accursed One?'
'I asked Allah to make me a partner in the properties and children of the children of Adam. He gave that to me, and He said, "And incite whom thou canst with thy voice, and collect against them thy horse and thy foot, and share with them in wealth and children, and promise them. And the Devil promises them only to deceive." (Surah Bani Isra'il, ayat 64). I eat from the meat of animals killed without the basmalah and from the food bought by money gained through interest, injustice, and tyranny. I am the shareholder of the property whose owner does not take refuge in Allah from me. I am part father of the child which comes from intercourse performed without the basmalah. I am the traveling companion of the one who rides a vehicle which is going to an unlawful destination.
'I asked Allah to give me a house, and He gave me the public baths. I asked Allah to give me a temple, and He gave me the marketplaces as my temple. I asked Allah to give me a book. He gave me the books of poetry as my book. I asked for a call to prayer, and He gave me the dancing music. I asked for someone to share my bed, and He gave me the drunkard. I asked Allah for helpers. Allah gave me those who believe in free will. I asked Allah to give me brothers and sisters, and Allah gave me the squanderers who spend their money on evil things. Allah said, "Surely the squanderers are the Devil's brethren" (Surah Bani Isra'il, ayat 27). Then I asked Allah to be able to see the children of Adam while they are unable to see me, and He accorded that to me. I wished that the very veins of the children of Adam be my routes, and it was given to me. So I flow in their veins as I wish and enter their flesh. All these were given to me, and I am proud of what I have received. And let me add, O Muhammad, that there are more with me than there are with you, and until Qiyaamah there will be more with me than there are with you.'
Then the Prophet(saw) said, 'If you had not proven what you said with the verses of Allah's Book, it would have been hard for me to confirm what you say.'
The Devil continued, 'Do you know, O Muhammad, that I have a son whose name is Atam (in Arabic, the first third of the night)? He pisses in the ear of the people who go to sleep without performing their night prayers. His urine puts them to sleep, otherwise no one could have gone to bed without finishing their prayers. Then I have a son whose name is Mutaqadi (in Arabic, one who presses for payment). His duty is to publicize the prayers, the devotions, the good deeds which are done in secret for Allah's sake, because Allah promises to reward the good deed done secretly a hundred fold. When deeds are publicized and receive credit and praise from the creatures of Allah, Allah takes away ninety-nine of the promised one hundred rewards. Then I have a son whose name is Kuhayl (kohl). His duty is to put kohl on the eyes of those in the presence of wise men or preachers. The ones whose eyes he has touched start falling asleep. They are thus prevented from hearing the words of Allah or receiving any benefit from them.'
The Devil talked about women. He said, 'Whenever a woman leaves her seat a devil sits in her place. On the lap of every woman sits a satan who makes her desirable to whoever looks at her. Then he orders the woman to open and show her arms, her legs, and her breasts, and with his claws tears her veil of shame and decency.'
Then the Devil started to complain. He said, 'O Muhammad, in spite of all this I have no strength to take away the faith of the faithful. I only take away their faith when they throw it away. If I were able, there would be no one on the face of this world who could say LA ILAHA ILLALLAH, MUHAMMAD RASULULLAH, "There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his Messenger." I would not leave a single one to pray or fast. All I can do is to give the children of Adam imaginations, illusions and delusions, make the ugly appear beautiful, the wrong, right, and the bad, good. Neither do you have the power to give faith. You are only a proof of the truth, because I know that if you were given the power to give true faith you would not leave a single non-believer on the face of this world. The fortunate one who is a believer is fortunate in his mother's womb, and the rebellious sinner is a rebel in his mother's womb. As you are the guide of the fortunate, I am only the cause of sin of the ones who are destined to sin. Allah is He Who renders one fortunate and another rebellious.' Then he recited form Surah Hud, '"And if thy Lord has mercy, and for this did He create them. And the word of thy Lord is fulfilled. I shall fill Hell with jinn and men altogether." (Surah Hud, ayat 118-119).' He recited from Surah Ahzab, ayat 38: '"And the command of Allah is a decree that is made absolute."'
Then the Mercy upon the Universe told the Devil, 'O Father of All Bitterness, I wonder if it is at all possible for you to repent and return to your Lord. I promise I would intercede for you.'
The Accursed One answered, 'O Messenger of Allah, it is Allah's justice. The ink on the pen which wrote the judgment is dry. What will happen will happen until Qiyaamah. The One Who made you the master of all the Prophets, the speaker for the inhabitants of Paradise, the One Who chose you to be the beloved amongst all his creation, chose me to be the master of sinners and the speaker for the inhabitants of Hell. He is Allah, devoid of all lack. O Muhammad, this which I have told you is my last word to you, and I have told nothing but the truth.'"
"All praise is due to Allah the Lord of all the worlds which existed before and which will exist after, visible and invisible. And Allah's blessings upon our beloved master, the Beloved of Allah, Mercy upon the Universe, and upon his household and progeny and companions and friends who are loved by him, and upon the ones who love him." - Tosun al-muhibb al-Jerrahi

FINGER LICKING GOOD!!! MMMM!

2006-09-04T19:31:00.000+01:00

FINGER LICKING GOOD!

I need urgent help! Those of you who know me will know that Ive been married now for comning up to 5 months masha'Allah wow!!!! Anyways in say those last 4 and half months I have experimented cooking for my husband and alhamdulillah all the dishes Ive made from your Chicken Korma to Jamaican Jerk Chicken as well as the pineapple deserts and freshly baked cakes have alhamdulillah turned out good!!! I was just starting to think hmm ok my cooking is kind of alright and my husband seemed pleased alhamdulillah!

Anyways last week my husband decided that he wanted to do some cooking for me so I gladly accepted... He first cooked so daal (lentils) which although may sound plain actually tasted soooo good and it was a really tasty dish... I was secretly glad that I had not attempted to cook it so far as I knew his would have been way better than mine...then the real blow came yesterday!!!
My husband decided he was going to cook me some lamb chops! I thought hmm ok!
Im not joking those chops were the best ever chops I have ever tasted in my whole entire life...I really understood what the meaning of 'Finger licking good' is.... those chops!

Masha'Allah I have discovered that he is a fantastic cook way better that me... all the dishes Ive cooked in the last 4 and half months all put together are nothing compared to the chops he cooked... I can not explain the flavour the marinade which he made himself was sooooo good and the meat just melted in your mouth wow! Alhamdulillah it was excellent! My plate was left way cleaner than this one in the picture... im telling you his chops would tempt even a vegetarian (no offence to anyone).

Now you all are probably thinking 'Stupid girl whats she panicking about?' Well let me explain... for the last say 4 and a half months I had led myself to believe that I was quite a good cook really I had and then one fine day.... BAM my whole cooking world was shook when my husband decided to show me his cooking skills... oh yeah I forgot to mention the rice he made to go with the chops was perfect each grain given its own right not sticky just perfect masha'Allah... Yes so as I was saying my problem is that after last nights chops I no longer think I am able to cook again not when I know such a fine chef is going to be eating it so I need help from everyone... I need magical recipies... you know all your best cooking secrets so that once again my empty pot gains confidence... and Im serious please all of you have pity on little old me and send me your cooking secrets everything welcome!

AMERICAN WOMANHOOD!

2006-09-02T21:57:00.000+01:00

The Debauchery of American Womanhood
By Henry Makow, Ph.D.

I received this as an email a while ago and then again yesterday its very interesting so I thought to share it with you all. I dont know anything about the author but the article is good read on... The Debauchery of American Womanhood By Henry Makow, PHD.

On my wall, I have a picture of a Muslim woman shrouded in a burka.Beside it is a picture of an American beauty contestant, wearing nothing but a bikini.

One woman is totally hidden from the public; the other is totallyexposed. These two extremes say a great deal about the clash of so-called "civilizations."

The role of woman is at the heart of any culture. Apart from stealing Arab oil, the impending war in the Middle East is about stripping Arabs of their religion and culture, exchanging the burka for a bikini.

I am not an expert on the condition of Muslim women and I love feminine beauty too much to advocate the burka here. But I am defending some of the values that the burka represents for me.

For me, the burka represents a woman's consecration to her husband andfamily. Only they see her.

It affirms the privacy, exclusivity and importance of the domestic sphere.

The Muslim woman's focus is her home, the "nest" where her children are born and reared. She is the "home" maker, the taproot that sustains the spiritual life of the family, nurturing and training her children, providing refuge and support to her husband.

In contrast, the bikinied American beauty queen struts practically naked in front of millions on TV. A feminist, she belongs to herself.In practice, paradoxically, she is public property. She belongs to noone and everyone. She shops her body to the highest bidder. She is auctioning herself all of the time.

In America, the cultural measure of a woman's value is her sex appeal.(As this asset depreciates quickly, she is neurotically obsessed with appearance and plagued by weight problems.)

As an adolescent, her role model is Britney Spears, a singer whose act approximates a strip tease. From Britney, she learns that she will beloved only if she gives sex. Thus, she learns to "hook up" rather than to demand patient courtship and true love. As a result, dozens of males know herbefore her husband does. She loses her innocence, which is a part ofher charm. She becomes hardened and calculating. Unable to love, she is unfit to receive her husband's seed.

The feminine personality is founded on the emotional relationship between mother and baby. It is based on nurturing and self-sacrifice.Masculine nature is founded on the relationship between hunter and prey. It is based on aggression and reason.

Feminism teaches woman that feminine nature has resulted in"oppression" and that she should convert to male behavior instead. The result: a confused and aggressive woman with a large chip on her shoulder, unfit to become a wife or mother.

This, of course, is the goal of the social engineers at the NWO:undermine sexual identity and destroy the family, create social and personal dysfunction, and reduce population. In the "brave new world,"women are not supposed to be "nest" makers, or progenitors of the race. They are meant to be neutered autonomous creatures that indulge in sex forphysical pleasure, not for love or procreation.

At his press conference on Sunday, Donald Rumsfeld said that Iranian women and youth were restive under the rule of the Mullahs. He impliedthat the US would soon liberate them. To Britney Spears? To low-rise"see-my-thong"pants? To the mutual masturbation that passes for sexuality in America?

Parenthood is the pinnacle of human development. It is the stage when we finally graduate from self-indulgence and become God's surrogates:creating and nurturing new life. The New World Order does not want usto reach this level of maturity. Pornography is the substitute formarriage. We are to remain stunted: single, sex-starved andself-obsessed.

We are not meant to have a permanent "private" life. We are to remain lonely and isolated, dependent on consumer products for our identity,in a state of perpetual courtship.

This is especially destructive for woman. Her sexual attraction is a function of her fertility. As fertility declines, so does her sexappeal. If a woman devotes her prime years to becoming "independent,"she is not likely to find a permanent mate.

Her long-term personal fulfillment and happiness lies in making marriage and family her first priority.

Feminism is another cruel New World Order hoax that has debauched American women and despoiled Western civilization. It has ruined millions of lives and represents a lethal threat to Islam.

I am not advocating the burka but rather some of the values that it represents, specifically a woman's consecration to her future husbandand family, and the modesty and dignity this entails.

The Trust!

2006-08-31T17:07:00.000+01:00

Subhana'Allah this ayah of the Qur'an to me seems so powerful! I am not a scholar of tafseer but its one of those ayahs when you read it you stop and think woah! I wish I had the ability to do so with every ayah I read insha'Allah with time ill get there! I was wondering if anyone has read any tafseer on this ayah in particular? Im going to look it up later when I get a chance insh'Allah... The Heavens and the Earth and the Mountains refused the 'trust' but we have taken it on!! What could this trust be?? Is it the message of Islam... if so are we taking care of it as a trustee should do. I mean do we take care of our own Islam meaning to we live, breath and do our every day practises in accordance to the Quran and Sunnah, do we aid our families in doing so, do we help spread the true message of Islam to our communities by being role model Muslims??? When asked about the character of the Prophet (saw), Aisha (ra) replied it was the Qur'an meaning he acted upon the commands of Allah and refrained from what Allah had forbidded... the Qur'an is a text for us to live our lives by.... the prophet (saw) acted that out as an example to us all at his time and for all times! If this ayah is referring to the message of Allah the final message of Allah our creator to Mankind Al Islam and then we are the trustees lets take care of it as we should do as the prophet (saw) did. Lets worship our creator in all ways from the moment we wake till we go to sleep. We can do this in sooo many ways... praising Allah, being good to people, when we see something in creation which astounds us remember it came from Allah and so praise Him, when we receive something nice remember its by the Will of Allah and its a blessing from Him so praise Him, when we accomplish anything good remember we only did so by the permission from Allah as He is the One who allowed us to do so praise Allah as He is most deserving... when you fall into sin remember its only Allah who can forgive so turn to Him alone and sincerely repent verily Allah loves to forgive His slaves!
Subhana'Allah!

Baby Its All Good!

2006-08-29T22:39:00.000+01:00

I came across this poem and thought to share it with you all! Its a nice addition to all the posts on hijab ive recently been putting up quite nicely! Maybe some of you have read it before even so its a nice read so enjoy...

Baby, it's all good!

Author unknown

What do you see when you look at me?

Do you see someone limited, or someone free?

All some people can do is just look and stare

Simply because they can't see my hair

Others think I am controlled and uneducated

They think that I am limited and un-liberated

They are so thankful that they are not me

Because they would like to remain 'free'

Well free isn't exactly the word I would've used

Describing women who are cheated on and abused

They think that I do not have opinions or voice

They think that being hooded isn't my choice

They think that the hood makes me look caged

That my husband or dad are totally outraged

All they can do is look at me in fear

And in my eye there is a tear

Not because I have been stared at or made fun of

But because people are ignoring the One up above

On the day of judgment they will be the fools

Because they were too ashamed to play by their own rules

Maybe the guys won't think I am a cutie

But at least I am filled with more inner beauty

See I have declined from being a guy's toy

Because I won't let myself be controlled by a boy

Real men are able to appreciate my mind

And aren't busy looking at my behind

Hooded girls are the ones really helping the Muslim cause

The role that we play definitely deserves applause

I will be recognized because I am smart and bright

And because some people are inspired by my sight

The smart ones are attracted by my tranquility

In the back of their mind they wish they were me

We have the strength to do what we think is right

Even if it means putting up a life long fight

You see we are not controlled by a mini skirt and tight shirt

We are given only respect, and never treated like dirt

So you see, we are the ones that are free and liberated

We are not the ones that are sexually terrorized and violated

We are the ones that are free and pure

We're free of STD's that have no cure
So when people ask you how you feel about the hood Just sum it up by saying, 'Baby its all good'

VA VA VOOM with renault!

2006-08-29T19:43:00.000+01:00

Just a quick note for those people who are deluding themselves into thinking that any other F1 team apart from Renault will win this year! Allah willing it will be Alonso with Renault winning as they are after all the best!

Fitrah of a Child!

2006-08-29T16:08:00.000+01:00

I have not posted for a while... Ive been trying to concentrate on preparing for Ramadan as its not too far away... I cant wait... insha'Allah Ill see if I can come up with some interesting posts on Ramadan! My little baby nephew is not too well either he has a terrible throat infection and was rushed to hospital the other night as his temp hit 102!!! Make dua he gets better soon insha'Allah!

Anyways the other day I had gone to a shop to buy some hijabs... its a really cool shop which is divided in half... half sells hijabs, jilbabs, thowbs, prayer hats, bukhur all Islamic stuff and the other half sells normal high street clothing such as jeans, tea shirts etc!
Anyways I was in there buying a few hijabs and some bukhur when this lady came in with her daughter... They were from Brazil! The lady was very very friendly. She was dressed in a very small skirt and a half bikini top which was so revealing that it literally barely covered anything at all. Anyways she had popped in and was trying on some of the dimonte jewellry the shop sells. She came and asked me and the sister who works there if it looked nice. Anyways in the mean time her little daughter who was about 6 years old had also been browsing the shop... she came up to her mum and asked if she could have something she wanted for so long... she then produced a small packet which contained an all in one childs hijab... ALLAHU AKBAR!
The lady then explained that her daughter has been asking for one for so long as she wants to cover her head Subhana'Allah I could not believe my ears! Despite the example she was being set this child whose face was shining as most kids do her natural instinct her fitrah was telling her that the hjjab was the correct way to go! Her mother had no problem at all and agreed to getting her the hijab... the sister who was working in the shop was also touched and gave the hijab as a gift to the little girl who was sooo delighted that she poured and showered kisses and hugs to us in the shop!
May Allah guide her and her family and us all to the truth ameen!

Being Merciful to Animals!

2006-08-23T09:19:00.000+01:00

I came across this picture and subhana'Allah I was so upset and thought of the different sayings of the prophet (pbuh) about the importance of being kind to animals... this poor donkey is so over loaded and reminded me of the hadith about the camel who complained to the prophet (pbuh) this also shows a miracle of the prophet (pbuh):

Once the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, was passing by a farm in Madinah when he came across a camel. The camel approached the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, as if it was telling him something. The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, asked about the owner of of the camel and called upon him and told him, “Your camel is complaining that you overburden him with work, and gives him too little to eat.” [Narrated by Abu Daud, Al-Hakim, Imam Ahmad, and others and it is an authentic hadith]

Imagine if the prophet (saw) was here today what would this donkey say about his/her owner? Perhaps they will complain to Allah who knows Allah knows best... IF any of us do have pets we really need to take a lesson from this and make sure we look after them properly, treat them with kindness and mercy, feed them give them water. They are a responsibilty on us from Allah and we will be asked about them so its of utmost importance that we look after them properly!

We should also remember that we should not harm those animals which are in the wild for example birds in a tree.

Once while the prophet (saw) was with his companions he found a bird making a greaving sound. The Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, immediately said: “Who has frightened this bird by taking its offspring?” Then he commanded: “Return back her offspring.” In another hadith the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, warned Muslims not to harm animals. He said: “A lady was put into the hellfire because of a cat. She tied up the cat and did not give her anything to eat nor did she allow it to look for food.”

From these ahadith we can see how important it is for us to look after animals and have mercy on them as it could literally lead us to paradise or hell! Dont be like the person who owns the donkey above rather be like someone who owns this little cat which is so well looked after, loved and fed (I know because its my sisters cat)

The Mercy of Allah in Regard to Forgiveness

2006-08-19T23:54:00.000+01:00

Im glad that those of you who read the last post on death appreciated it and insha'Allah will keep it in your minds and remember the important lesson of sabr and realisation that we will all return to Allah only He knows when and He has more right over us than anyone on this Earth. I also mentioned how important it is for us to prepare for death. This can be done in so many ways...Of course by fulfilling the 5 pillars, then you have the chance to gain more reward by doing extra optional fasts, extra prayers, giving charity subhana'Allah so much can be done this list is endless! However many of us forget (now im not trying to give you guys the easy way out please still do try and do extra fasts, prayers etc) many of us forget one of the most essential and simplist ways of pleasing Allah by doing an act which is loved by Him which shows our complete dependancy on Him which shows how we have realised out wrong doings... yes its by simply asking for forgiveness. At the end of the day we are not angels we are human beings so we are not perfect and do make mistakes... the trick is NOT TO FALL IN DESPAIR and to remember the Mercy and Forgiveness of your Lord Allah which has no bounds! I happen to also have some proof of the divine Mercy of Allah which is from a hadith Qudsi.
"O son of Adam, as long as you call upon Me and put your hope in Me, I have forgiven you for what you have done and I do not mind. O son of Adam, if your sins were to reach the clouds of the sky and then you would seek My forgiveness, I would forgive you. O son of Adam, if you were to come to Me with sins that are close to filling the earth and then you would meet Me without ascribing any partners with Me, I would certainly bring to you forgiveness close to filling it."
In this Hadithi Qudsi, Allah gives hope to mankind reminding and encouraging us to turn to Him in repentance. It displays the quality and attribute of Allahs mercy. No doubt its is Allah who is ar-Rahman, the Most Compassionate, and ar-Raheem, the Most Merciful. Allah is reminding us all of the greatness of His forgiveness and mercy so that no one would despair due to the amount of sins he may have committed Subhana'Allah how great is that! This is supported by the following verse of the Holy Quran:
Say: O My servants who have transgressed against their own souls, despair not of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Truly, He is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surah az-Zumar 39:53)
This hadith teaches us the importance of realizing Allahs mercy, having faith and hope in Him especially when making dua, calling to Allah alone for forgiveness, and the importance of repentance in the life and faith of a believer. Its is an excellent way to prepare for death as would not we all love to meet Allah and He greets us with His Mercy and Forgiveness? Many a time we listen to lectures where we are told about rules we must do and alhamdulillah this is very beneficial and I hope that myself and all others are able to learn more about the rulings of Islam. But let us not forget the Mercy of Allah the Forgiveness of Allah do not fall into despair and instead remember that sincerely asking for Allahs forgiveness is a great way to prepare for death and be sure that Allah hears all our sincere duas and accepts them! Please remember me in your duas and ask Allah to forgive me His slave who is continous awe of Him ameen!

Finding Contentment after the Death of a Loved One

2006-08-18T12:35:00.000+01:00

Death is one of those things that will affect each and everyone of us at some point in our lives and one day only Allah knows when it will also happen to us, it is the only guarantee we have in life so the wisest of us would be the ones who prepare for it. We spend alot of time preparing for so many different things and we are also right in doing so as only a fool would expect to eat for example a roast dinner but then sit on a chair all day doing no preparation expecting it to be there. So preparing for things is of utmost importance... preparing for death is of the greatest importance as it WILL happen to us all its only a matter of time and when the clock stops ticking for us I pray for Allah to have Mercy upon us and forgive us our sins ameen!

For those of who have lost loved ones, that could be parents, children friends, relatives even pets we know how much it hurts, how much our hearts yearn for them but let us also remember in our grief this wise hadith found in The Muwattaw of Imam Malik.

Hadith - Al-Muwatta 16.43

Yahya related to me from Malik from Yahya ibn Said that al-Qasim ibn Muhammad said,

"One of my wives died and Muhammad ibn Kab al Quradhi came to console me about her. He told me of one among the Bani Israil who was a diligent, worshipping, knowing and understanding man who had a wife that he admired and loved, and she died. He grieved over her intensely and lamented her until he withdrew into a house and locked himself in, hidden from everyone, and no-one visited him.
A woman heard about him and went to him, saying, 'I need him to give me an opinion. Nothing will satisfy me except what he says about it.' Everyone went away, but she stuck to his door and said, 'I must see him.' Someone said to him, 'There is a woman who wishes to ask your opinion about something,' and she insisted, 'I will only talk to him about it.' When everyone had gone away, and she still had not left his door, he said, 'Let her in.' So she went in and saw him and said, 'I have come to ask your opinion about something.' He said, 'What is it?'
She said, 'I borrowed a piece of jewellery from a neighbour of mine, and I have worn it and used it for a long time. Then they sent to me for it. Should I let them have it back?' He said, 'Yes, by Allah.' She said, 'I have had it for a long time.' He said, 'It is more correct for you to return it to them, since they have lent it to you for such a long time.'
She said, 'Yes. May Allah have mercy on you. Do you then grieve over what Allah has lent you and then taken from you, when He has a greater right to it than you?' Then he saw the situation he was in, and Allah helped him by her words."

Allahu Akbar so for anyone who has lost a loved on or for those of you who may do so in the future only Allah knows when remember that the loved one has returned to the who has more right over them than any of us and we should thank Allah for the time He allowed us with them!

Thought of the Day!

2006-08-17T12:20:00.000+01:00

I was reading an interesting aritcle by Gai Eaton and although the whole article was very interesting I thought to share this comment with you all... lol who you all are is very few as is evident with the almost non existent comments lol but its cool for anyone who feels to be enlightened read the words of wisdon ahead.... Gai Eaton on anger...bismillah....

'Anger is a form of drunkenness. Alcohol is prohibited because it makes us drunk but we often forget that there are many forms of drunkenness and they all have something in common. The drunkenness of anger is just as misleading as the drunkenness of alcohol. It is just as liable to upset judgement, to make us incapable of effective action, because effective action relies on sober judgement. In practice, those who are seized by such anger, lose logic and rationality. They become ineffectual and less effective in achieving their ends.'

Free women or Slaves to Society?

2006-08-16T10:34:00.000+01:00

This is a slight continuation from the post about hijab. The more I think about it the more bizare it seems to me that its the practising Muslim women who are seen as oppressed and dress the way they solely because its the wish of oppressive men...hmmm! I think comments like this coming from the much developed, sophisticated and open minded Western society is an issue which is much closer to home than some people choose to admit or think.

In Islam yes woman should cover and be modest but this is the same for men as well although they are not required to cover their heads and entire bodies they also legally in Islam must cover at least between their navel and knees and any more they choose to do it better for them. Their are valid reasons for this as men and women are made differently and are attracted to different things... insha'Allah maybe I could go into more detail about this on another post. But the point is this is not the desire of men for the women to cover or vice versa its the decree of our Creator Allah who has commanded for men and women to dress in a certain way. So its not the desire or command of men forcing women to cover its the command of God and the acceptance of women to choose or not to choose to obey!

However can the same be said for women who feel compelled to dress the way they do in society today? What makes some women wear shorter skirts when they are being interviewed by a man, what is the reason behind so many young and old women falling critically ill due to starving themselves to the point of being placed in a rehabilitaion centre solely to fit into the man/male made society that skinny is the way to be? Why is it that in so many music videos its the women who are portrayed as prostitutes barely clothed degrading themselves? Who is it that makes them believe this is they to look beautiful and to earn respect? Its certainly not our creator Almighty God, I think we all know the answer is Man! I could go on and on about the problems this has caused in society today but I think we all know too well how many marriages this has affected, how many young girls have been raped, how many children have been abused, how many women have been murdered all because this sick pornographic image has polluted the minds of people in the society we live in today!

I did some research on this issue and found some interesting comments of people who may I add are not Muslims on this matter. By far the most interesting comment was from the famous Rap Star LL Cool J who has also come to realise the danger this nudety and showing women as strippers etc is posing for the youth today...

'Rapper LL COOL J is urging his peers to stop degrading women in their music videos, because he fears they are setting a bad example to the younger generation.

He says, "I think that there's more room in the videos for women to be portrayed in a better way, like, classy. "I don't think that every woman has to be a stripper in every video.

"When you have three daughters and you're sitting there watching the video channel and every girl that's on there is like a stripper... I don't think that we have to tell them that this is all there is for you to do in order for you to make it."

Notice how LL Cool J mentioned 'degrading women' he also has realised that this image women are portrayed in degrading to them.

I feel for the women who are slaves to the men in this society who are slaves to fashion who have let themselves believe that in order to succeed they must give up their rights to be respected to be modest to be like a precious pearl rather they have given in to being like a piece of meat in a market on display for every person to see!

The more I think about it the more obvious to me it seems that its the men in the western society who are using women as their slaves for their own personal pleasure and gain! Look at the TV commercials where cars are advertised where you hardly see the latest car as the whole advert it focused on barely covered backsides of women???

Years ago I knew a girl who so badly wanted to become a model she went from agency to agency and did get signed up for small deals here and there. Then one day she told me how unhappy she was the price she had to pay...the things she had to do with the men who were in charge in order to be given the small chance of hitting the top... depression hit her so hard, she lost alot of her friends for many different reasons one of which was and im quoting her words 'I was made to feel so dirty by my manager who blackmailed me into sleeping with him that the only way I felt I could possibly feel clean was if I was with someone who was away from this business'... this was her response for having an affair with her best friends fiance!

Now many people say... yes but some women like to be seen they like to show their bodies they like to be the attention of men my question to all of that is WHY? Yes this may be true but its because they have been made to believe that this is how to be loved, to be wanted, to be needed, to be popular, to be succesful! Any man who claims to be in love with one of these models, strippers, actresses ask him how he would feel if his daughter, wife, sister, mother were to do the same would he still admire it!

Women are precious they are the core of human development, they should have an honoured state, their role should be elevated, they should be respected by men not degraded and used as sex slaves, advertising tools in this sick society!

So again I say Alhamdulillah that I am a Muslim in which Islam has given me so many rights where I truely feel respected, am made to feel like a protected precious jewel and rose by my husband and where my religion has shown me that to be loved to be beautiful to be respected is to be modest, to be truely free to be able to use my brain rather than my body to achieve! I chose to wear hijab myself and the only regret I have is that Oh how I wish I had understood Islam and the hijab much sooner and started wearing it many years before I did!

So to anyone out there who reads this if your a women learn the real meaning of freedom and respect just give it a try see how comfortable you feel walking past those perverted builders when your modestly covered.
To any men who read this give the women in your life the respect they deserve, the honour which is their right and let them live in dignity and treat them like a precious stone/jewel like a beautiful rose!

I have not meant or intended to offend anyone in the above post so please forgive me if I have!

The Power Of Subarussss!

2006-08-15T12:39:00.000+01:00

Its been a few days since my last post I was having trouble getting anything loaded up plus one of my best friends got married so was busy in party mode lol!
I mentioned how me and my husband had gone to Europe for a last minute road trip and had a wickeddd time masha'Allah! What I didnt mention was the high light of out trip on the way home! When we were queing for the Euro tunnel on the way home 4 beautiful Subarus kitted in rally gear pulled up all roaring like Lions .... Simba!!!! As I clicked away trying to get a few good shots they drove ahead of us into the train. The funniest thing was as soon as the 4th one drove in all the alarms went off as they could not take the force and power of these super cool engines of these super cool cars. Luckily we managed to squeeze in behind them before they had to stop any more cars entering while they figured out what to do... obviously they had not experienced this before and my husband said they will prob have to revise their handbooks of loading cars now for cases like this. Anyways we did not get delayed too much and they decided that when leaving the subarus would have to start their engines one by one and leave one by one so they did not set of any more alarms! We found this so cool especially as all 4 Subarus were fit into 1 carriage!
Have a look at the pics I did try to get a pic with all 4 in but only managed to get like 3.5 lol! For those of you who like cars will surely like this post and for those fo you who dont will be bored but look and admire these pics and soon enough you will become petrol heads like the rest of us!

Hijab...degrading or an honour for women?

2006-08-09T10:38:00.000+01:00

This is something which is discussed time and time and time again... Muslim women... are they oppressed? Do they wear the hijab, the veil because their fathers or their husbands made them? I myself chose to start wearing the hijab with out any encouragment, force from my father and at the time I was not even married so there was no husband to force me into doing so. It was something I had decided to do myself after learning more about my religion and how the hijab rather than being a sign of oppression is actually a symbol of dignity, honour and suprising for some is actually a true sense of freedom!Before wearing hijab and im sure others can sympathise with me here I would cringe and hesitate if I was passing by a building site with builders in progress especially if I was on my way to visit friends therefore dressed up slightly. Id feel like a piece of meat while walking past hearing the filth coming out of their mouths... they did not like me as a person, they did not respect me for who I was they were just disgusting perveted men who thought they had the freedom to gape and stare shouting out filthy comments at the cost of mine and other womens feelings, feedom and honour. I remember when the real sense of freedom came to me and I truly understood what it meant. While I was at uni I sometimes used to walk to the station at the same time every day. Like most other students Id be in my jeans and a nice top at the time I would spend time in the mornings doing my make up fixing my hair etc...Every morning while I was walking to the station at a particular point the same mini bus would drive past carrying disabled people...and although the passengers were innocent unfortunately the driver certainly was not. Every day he would slow down as he passed and would shout out things Id rather not remember. I remember every day trying to hurry so as to miss him on the road but would fail and Id cringe every time he drove past. Anyways some time past and uni had finished and I had started to wear the hijab alhamdulillah. One morning I was up early and off somewhere so again I was walking to the station and low and behold I saw the same mini bus with the same driver coming down the road... my heart started to thump and I started to cringe thinking 'oh no I really dont want to hear his uncomfortable comments'... however he simply drove past not slowing down, not shouting any comments! What had happened? ... take a guess... yes the Hijab had happened and suddenly I felt the real sense of freedom, I felt a huge sense of relief and dignity I felt honoured to be a Muslim woman protected by this simple piece of cloth alhamdulillah! I will never forget that day and when ever I hear people say... Hijab is a sign of oppression, Muslim women are oppressed I remember that day and think... if only you knew its so the opposite... as hijab is the true sense of liberation, freedom and honour for women Allahu Akbar!

Failing Cat school!

2006-08-09T09:59:00.000+01:00

This is one little cat which wont be passing cat school this year... when told to catch the mouse hmmmm slightly confused but so adorable! I am constantly amazed by Allahs creation!

Breakfast in London, Lunch in Brussels, Dinner in Paris?

2006-08-08T16:25:00.000+01:00

I have not posted for a while been busy sorting different things out and honestly did not have anything too interesting to wrhe ite about.
Last week however me and my husband decided to do a mini road trip to France and spend the day in Paris and 1 night there. Im telling you being spontaneous can be soo much fun! Anyways we had our breakfast at about 6am and hit of straight away to Folkstone where we would take our car into the train and end up in Calais. Subhana'Allah after only 35 mins we arrived at Calais and it was still the morning of the same day!!! Our plan was to drive to the motor way hotel we had booked with on the outer part of Paris. But when we saw the road signs saying Beligium my husband decided that maybe we could do beligium for the afternoon and return to France for dinner. Masha'Allah we had an excellent time it was so much fun and I was suprsied to see how many Muslim women in hijab there were masha'Allah they were everywhere! We finally went back to France drove to Paris and checked into the hotel then caught the metro into central Paris where we visited Champs-Elysees and had dinner there. Can you believe by the time we took the metro back to the hotel it was just past 11pm now although we were sooooo tired we could not believe how much we accomplished in one day! Already there seemed to be much Barakah in the time and the next day proved exactly the same! I do have some photos of his trip which I need to load up onto the computer and ill post them soon insha'Allah.

The next day we returned to the Champs-Elysees as my husband very very generously bought me a 6 month supply of Sephora make up lol! We then took our time wondering in and out of the shops mostly the Car show rooms which had fantastic models of dream cars which are not even on the road known as 'Concept Cars'. We then headed down for the Muslim part of Paris where we found some lovely halal coffee shops and restaurants, we also visited Paris Mosque which is huge and stunning Allahu Akbar! They are doing work on it but when its finished it will be even more breath taking then it is at the moment. Pictures to Follow!

So what can you do in a day... Breakfast in London... Lunch in Brussels and Dinner in Paris!

Do our sins affect us?

2006-07-27T21:19:00.000+01:00

Thalaba Ibn AbdulRahman

Before reading this heart warming story which will most probably bring tears to your eyes first stop and honestly ask yourself a few questions. How often do you sin...im not talking about major or minor in particular just any type of sins? If its a major sin then yes hopefully you would have recognised it and some of us may even recognise when we commit minor sins too but the question is 'How does recognising these sins we commit left right and centre every single day of our lives affect us???' Do we stop upon recognition and feel remorse and turn to Allah for forgiveness? Or are we too busy to even recognise the sin let alone repent to Allah. Perhaps its the case of 'Oh yeah shouldnt have done that oh well life goes on'. Some of us may commit sins and not even think that they are worth thinking about as perhaps we didnt even mean to do them. Lets take a look at how one young Sahabah (companion of the prophet peace be upon him) felt when he committed a sin which im sure most of us but not all of you insha'Allah may not have recognised it as a sin and just felt embarrassed, and possibly utter 'Oh Astaghfirallah' without really paying attention in seeking Allahs forgiveness. Im not trying to have a go at anyone except maybe myself as Im one of those who is guilty of falling short in recognising my own sins and repenting sincerely to Allah. May Allah increase me and us all in recognising our sins, giving us the ability to repent sincerely and may He forgive us ameen.

Thalaba Ibn AbdulRahman

Thalaba Ibn AbdulRahman was a young man at the age of 16. He always ran errands (short trips taken to perform specified tasks) for the prophet pbuh. One day while walking though the city of Medina, he passed by a house with an open door. Out of curiosity he took a glance inside. In this glance, he saw a light curtain being blown away from a bathroom entrance were a woman was bathing. He immediately lowered his gaze. With an extreme feeling of guilt and hypocrisy his mind ran. Thinking to himself, “How could I be of the companions, one that is close to the prophet pbuh, one who runs his errands and be so horrible as to disrespect peoples privacy?”.. He feared that Allah would reveal to the prophet pbuh evidence of his hypocrisy. His guilt denied him to ever show his face to the prophet pbuh. So he ran away.
Days went by and the prophet kept asking the other companions if they had seen Thalaba. No one had seen him. With the prophet’s worry about Thalaba he sent a few of the companions to look for him everywhere, among them were Omar Ibn Al Khattab and Salman Al Farisiy. They looked everywhere in Medina, and on the out skirts of Madina, until they came about a set of mountains between Mecca and Medina where some nomads where herding sheep.
The companions asked the nomads if they had seen a young man with Thalaba’s characteristics. They told the companions about a weeping boy. He had been here for 40 days. He came down from the mountains once a day weeping and drank the milk they would offer him. Then he went back up the mountains weeping, crying, always asking for Allah for forgiveness, and saying words of repentance. So the companions waited until he came down and watched him. He had lost weight. His countenance reflected sorrow as he drank the milk that was mixed with his tears. The companions insisted that they take him back to the prophet pbuh but he refused and asked them if Allah had revealed verses saying he was a hypocrite. They told him that they had no knowledge of any such verses.
He was taken back to Medina where the prophet pbuh went to see him. He asked again if Allah had put him among the hypocrites or revealed that he was. The prophet pbuh assured him that there were no such verses. He laid out Thalaba’s tired, weak body and placed Thalaba’s head on his lap. He said, “Oh prophet of Allah remove the head of a sinner away from you.” The prophet pbuh comforted him until he told the prophet pbuh I feel as though ants are walking between my flesh and bones. The prophet told him it was death and his time had come. He witnessed while Thalaba’s head was on his lap, Thalaba proclaim “There is no god worthy of worship other than Allah, and that Mohamed pbuh is the messenger of Allah.” The prophet pbuh washed Thalaba and carried him to the grave. It is narrated that on their way to bury Thalaba, the prophet pbuh walked on his tippy toes as though he were in a crowd. When Omar asked about this, the prophet pbuh explained that he was being crowded with the angels.

The Radical Middle Way!

2006-07-20T11:50:00.000+01:00

Below is a small extract from a speech given by Shaykh Habib Ali Jifri you can read the whole speech on The Radical Middle Way website see link on my links!

'Do not be afraid in this country. You are a part of it. Feel that you have a responsibility towards improving it and remedying its ailments. Be open about your attendance at masjid and take an active part in the Muslim community. If you see good, follow it through, and if you see wrong, be the first to reject it. If someone wants to do harm to the country in the name of Islam, we are the first to reject him. If you find a shortcoming in yourself, then stand in the middle of the night, offering two rakaahs, weeping before Allah. Then you shall see the outpouring of His Divine Aid, empowering you to overcome yourself. By this, you will truly see wonders.'
Shaykh Habib Ali Jifri

What a View!

2006-07-20T09:58:00.000+01:00

Im always continuosly astounded by the beauty of Allahs creation Allahu Akbar! Imagine having a view like this! SO simple but peaceful such beauty masha'Allah. It may not be a mansion or an expensive villa but doesnt it offer what a home should a sense of tranquility and calm masha'Allah! This isnt my home (I wish) infact it was a picture I found on someone elses blog but I was so struck by it that I thought to share it with you all! It reminds me of a beautiful Island called Lamu which is off Kenya which I visited with my husband a couple of months back. Ill try dig out some Lamu Photos and post them up with a short link of the lovely time we had there (not including a cockroach which insisted on tormenting me the whole night following me around) ewww! Forget that and just admire this picture! Now take a deep breath doesnt your day feel better already!

Preparing for someone special!

2006-07-19T13:52:00.000+01:00

Just for a moment sit back and relax! Ok now get your imagination caps on! Think of who to you the most important guest could be and they were going to visit your home... best friend, husband/wife after a long trip of not seeing him/her, inlaws, the queen lol, your favourite scholar who you look up to, your future wife/husband I dont know but someone very very important!
Imagine the preparation you would go through in order to make it as perfect as possible right! The cleaning, polishing, airing out the rooms, perhaps depending on your circumstances you may even actually go and buy a few new things like cups, home decorations etc. Now would you tell them to come over at a time when you knew that all the preparations had not been completed? No not at all you wouldnt as you would want everything to be perfect so you would call them when everything had been done.
The house is now sparkling, smelling so good, food is absolutely mouth watering, the best plates have been taken out the table is set looking too good to touch, you even have an amazing exotic desert everything is like its fit for royalty. What does this say how you feel for this person... you care alot about them, you love them! You would not go through all of this for someone you didnt love and didnt care for right?

Well just think a preparation greater than this took place for you, for me, for us all for mankind for our arrival and who was our host? We had the best host Allah (swt). Before placing mankind on earth Allah had prepared it in such perfection made it so beautiful, provided us with all the provisions we would need to survive and live comfortably. The greenery, the delicious foods, animals, the earth Allah prepared it for us. Did you know that water originates from stars? So even the substance that we can not live with out water has gone through such preparation... When a star explodes a reaction takes place creating the water so next time you have a drink of water take a good look as its actually billions of years old Allahu Akbar!
Now of course all this preparation is nothing for Allah it didnt tire him out, He didnt need rest after it, it did not diminish His limitless powers in any shape or form so the lessen we take from this is that Allah loves us, Allah loves mankind, before placing us on earth He made sure we had our needs. We should be so greatful to Him just as we would be greatful to anyone who invites us to their homes we even take a box of chocolates or flowers when invited somewhere to show our appreciation for them inviting us but what about Allah? Allah doesnt need offerings from us such as chocolates or flowers but we should always verbally praise Him, thank Him, turn to Him alone, make sujood (prostration) to Him and you know what is so great is that by doing all these acts of thanking Allah it doesnt benefit Him in anyway in fact in only benefits us as it increases Allahs love and blessings for us Allahu Akbar! And just as (well I hope so anyways) just as we would not abuse the home of someone who had invited us to their house we should not abuse this earth which Allah has blessed us with. We should respect it, respect each other take care of each other and the earth by planting trees, recycling, not wasting, not littering and so many more ways. So all of you who have read this take a moment to think and contemplate and thank Allah (God) for all you have for blessing you for loving you and prostrate to Him as He is the only one deserving of it!

This one is for you Waranga!

2006-07-18T15:49:00.000+01:00

Now who can honestly say they have a more modern means of transport than this? Ive also heard its low on fuel consumption... all it takes is a batch of hay! Watch when this model comes popular how suddenly the price of hay rises! This is the transport in Morocco! Enjoy!

TRIBUTE TO ELEEN MY SWEET FAIRY FRIEND!

2006-07-18T11:09:00.000+01:00

Eleen no way have I forgotten you in fact I miss you dearly! For those of you who dont know Eleen she is a wonderful wonderful wonderful person very good friend of mine like my sister from South Africa... thats pronounced Sooouth Africa! Right Eleen?
Since you went back ive missed you alot and still remember our long talks and discussions our time we spent drinking good coffee while talking about so many interesting things... I was actually remembering just the other day how we weeded my garden porch with forks as in cutlery forks remember it was hard work but alot of fun! How are you? Email me your number again! And come back to London I miss you!
We still have to climb a mountain I say lets make it Kilimanjaro or Tabletop mountain! There is Kili on the left and tabletop on the right!
Everyone here is fine! Let me know hows it all goes down there! ooooo khan dat?
MWAH!

ANY GOOD NEWS???

2006-07-18T10:02:00.000+01:00

The dreaded question... 'Soooo Any Good News?' Now some of you are probably thinking errrm ok whats the problem has she finally lost the plot? And Im sure others who are married are thinking 'Ahaa I know what she is talking about'.
Before getting married the dreaded question was ...'Soooo are you considering anyone or getting married???' Im sure we have all been through that and if not then all I can say is your very lucky!
Anyways I recently got married 3 months ago and by the Grace and Mercy of God am very happy! I wrongly thought 'Yesssss now no more awkward questions' WRONG!!!!!!!
It seems that the new dreaded question post marriage is now 'Sooooo Any Good News?' This of course is quite commonly accompanied by a meaningful stare at your tummy and occasionally with a quick prod at the tummy to see if your concealing anything!

Family asking is cool they are looking forward to a new nephew/niece/granchild/cousin etc but I dont know its still slightly embarassing!
When close friends ask its also not too bad but personally Id prefer not to be asked and rather for people to wait to be told. The worst thing is though when people you dont really know come and ask... I work in a bookshop and now it seems that since getting married its licenced people friends, customers some who I know well some who I hardly know to openly come up to me and pose the dreaded question either that or im just getting fat lol so people cant help but wonder!
I could be wrong but Im sure thats its quite well known that when people are actually expecting a little bundle of joy they dont actually like to broadcast it for a good few months I think at least 2-3 months and when they are good and ready to let people know they will themselves offer the good news!
Prematurly asking puts them in a difficult situation as if they are expecting and they dont want to tell you yet they cant exactly lie and say no! But at the same time they dont want to tell you either so people plssssssssssssss have more consideration for your friends and random people you dont really know and dont ask rather wait to be told!
Now some of you are thinking 'okkkk shes lost the plot and is letting off steam' ... to that I say...'Phewww Yes I think I am letting of steam lol' and the final trigger for this was the other day in the bookshop when a customer who I hardly know at all bounced in and leant over the counter peering hard at my stomach with hand reached out and finger ready for a good old poke said ...'SOOOOOO any good news?' Now what I would have liked to have said was 'Errrrm nope not yet BUT if there was and I actually wanted you to know about it I think you would have known about it dont you think?' But that would be rude so instead I politely said 'no'.
I know people just want the best for you and are excited for you but pleaseeeee just be patient and wait to be told rather than ask!
Now for those of you who actually know me incase your wondering and want to ask but are now too scared to ask the answer truthfully and honestly is... 'No im not but please keep me in your prayers and if and when I am ill let you know myself when im good and ready but at this moment in time honestly nope there is no good news'!
Phew!!!! Im done! Any comments welcome!

The Day We Lost Our Masjid

2006-07-11T15:32:00.000+01:00

The Day We Lost Our Masjid

Muhammad Alshareef

Do you know the last public place where the Messenger of Allah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam was seen? He was seen in the Masjid. About 3 days before he passed away, Abu Bakr radi Allahu anhu was leading the prayer and the Masjid was full with an ummah of men and women prepared to illuminate the world with their jihaad and da’wah. The Prophet’s house opened up to the Masjid; there was a curtain separating his room and the prayer hall. He opened the curtain, saw the congregation, and saw his khalifah, Abu Bakr radi Allahu anhu, leading the prayer. The Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam smiled like the moon. The companions saw him while they were in prayer, and from their happiness, almost lost control of the prayer. The Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam then drew his curtain, and three days later returned to his Lord subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala.

During the life of the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam, there was a woman who used to sweep the Masjid with her hands, picking up the dirt and disposing of it. In the sight of the community her status was not that high, but in the sight of Allah and her Messenger sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam, she held a different rank. She passed away one night and the Companions, not wanting to disturb the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam, washed and buried her without informing him. The next day, the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam recognized her absence and inquired about her. They told him about her demise and how they had not wanted to disturb him. The Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam was not happy at the action they took. He went to her grave and prayed for her there.

What is a masjid? Many have misunderstood the role that the masjid plays in the development of the community. In some countries, it is a place where the tribal Imam is buried and worshipped. In other countries, it is a place that only prayers may be performed therein; absolutely nothing else will be tolerated. And in yet other countries, not even prayers are performed in it, so-much-so the country may finally decide to convert it into a museum or a church.

Dear brothers and sisters in Islam and to my dearest friends, I would like to introduce you to our friend, the masjid:

In the literal term, masjid means a place of prostration. However, in the technical sense, a masjid is any clean place on earth, as the Messenger of Allah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“The earth was made for me a Masjid [i.e. a place to pray], pure” (Bukhari).
However, a specific place was attributed to the word masjid (the place where the 5 daily prayers are held). This was done in order to distinguish the masjid from the musallah (the place where Eid prayers are held and so forth, so that the rules of the masjid do not apply to it).
Masjid is a word derived from sujood, or prostration. The masjid, or place of prostration, was named such due the honorable position the sujood holds in salah. Thus, it was not called marka’ derived from ruku’.
The first house of Allah ever built on earth was the Ka’bah. Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala says:
Verily, the first House [of worship] appointed for mankind was that at Bakkah [Makkah], full of blessing, and a guidance for Al-Aalameen (A’le-Imran 3/96).
And Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala commanded us to honor and enliven the masjid with His remembrance:
In houses [masajid], which Allah has ordered to be raised, in them His name is glorified in the mornings, and in the evenings (An-Noor 24/36).
Ibn Abbaas, Mujahid, and Al-Hasan commented: “The ‘houses’ are those masajid that were dedicated to the worship of Allah. And verily, the masajid light up the earth for the inhabitants of the heavens, just as stars light up the heavens for the inhabitants of the earth.”
Everyone wants to build a retirement home to be proud of, so listen to this offer. The Messenger of Allah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“Whoever builds a masjid, seeking the pleasure of Allah, Allah shall build a house for him in Paradise” (Bukhari).
He sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam also said:
“The most beloved places to Allah on earth are the masajid, and the most hated places to Allah on earth are the markets” (Muslim).
The masjid has played a variety of roles in our history. Here is a short tour of some of the roles that the masjid has played:
Children: The masjid was a place where the children would accompany their parents and grow up under the shade of its walls. Abu Qataadah narrated:
“The Messenger of Allah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam used to pray and carry Umamah, the daughter of Zaynab. When he would fall into prostration, he would rest her aside. And when he stood up again, he would again pick her up” (Bukhari).
Education: The masjid was the nucleus of education. Throughout history, the masjid was the university that graduated scholars and imams. To name only a few, we have Masjid of Al-Azhar, Masjid Al-Umawee in Syria, and Masjid Az-Zaytoonah in Tunis.
The Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“No gathering gathers in a house from the houses of Allah, reciting the book of Allah and teaching it to one another, except that serenity befalls them, mercy envelops them, the angels surround them and Allah mentions them to [the inhabitants of the heavens]” (Muslim).
Organization: The masjid is where hundreds of Muslims come; all in straight rows; all following the lead of Allahu Akbar; all beginning when the imam begins; all ending when the imam ends.
Shelter for the weak and traveling: In Masjid An-Nabawi, we know that there was a platform, known as the Suffah. The poor and the strangers would find shelter there, and the Messenger of Allah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam would grant them shares of the collected charity.
Socializing: The masjid is where the Muslims would meet one another. When someone missed a prayer, he was inquired about and followed up on. Relationships were reared, brotherhood was built.
Think tank: When important issues came up, the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam would gather the Companions in the masjid and consult them on the matter.
Charity: The charity would be collected and distributed from the masjid. It was in the masjid that the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“Give, if only with a half a date.”
Jihaad: It was from the masjid that battalions were organized and set off for jihaad. During the crusades, many masajid became the podium for inciting the feelings of the Muslims to fight off the transgression.
Serenity: Whenever the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam felt sad he would go and pray. And he sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam would say to Bilal, “Relax us with [the prayer] O Bilal.”
PART II: The Rights of the MasjidThe masjid is the house of Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala, and it has rights like anything else. Amongst these rights are the following:
First: When someone enters the masjid, they should pray 2 raka’ before sitting down. The Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“If any of you enters the masjid, let him not sit down until he prays 2 raka’.”
Second: No business should take place in the masjid. The Messenger of Allah sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“Whoever sells in the masjid, say to them, ‘May Allah not grant success in your sale.’”
Third: The masjid must be kept clean and fresh smelling. The Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam said:
“Whoever eats from this tree [i.e. garlic] should not attend our place of prayer.”
Fourth: Advice should be given to fellow Muslims. When the Prophet sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam would see someone not praying correctly he would advise them to repeat their prayer and teach them how to pray.
Fifth: Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala should be remembered much during one’s stay in the masjid. As Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala says:
O ye who believe, remember Allah with much remembrance. (Al-Ahzab 33/42).
And finally, Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala tells us of the kind of people that are recognized as the people of the masjid.
In it are men that love to purify themselves, and Allah loves those who make themselves pure (At-Tauba 9/108).
May Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala give us the blessing of being amongst those that establish the masjid and are included amongst those whom Allah subhaanahu wa ta ‘aala loves.

Stand in Opposition to terrorism!

2006-07-07T16:51:00.000+01:00

Today marks a 1 year anniversary of the evil and sadistic tradgedy which took place last year shattering the lives of many innocent people. An attack which shook London and caused much pain to many families who lost loved ones in a devilish act which I dont believe can have any justification let alone in Islam! Those who proclaim that acts such as July 7th 2005 or September 11th 2001 are heroic acts of Islam have perverted, distorted teachings inside them which are not part of Islam. These are acts of evil, they are barbaric acts and crimes against humanity which need to be eliminated!

Below is an article ive taken edited and added to from the jimas website. The full unedited version can be seen at http://www.jimas.org/tragedy4.htm#prophet.

All British Muslims and non-Muslims should stand together in opposition to terrorism and to help in safeguarding our society and country from people who are acting outside the values of religion and law.

Islam shares with Christianity not only the nobility of the 10 biblical commandments but completely agrees with the understanding behind the so-called 7 cardinal sins. A Muslim cannot but treat human beings with dignity and respect due to God's statements in the Quran and the Prophet's kind behaviour towards all, in light of the inherent dignity of mankind espoused by Islam. There are many examples in the Quran and the prophetic traditions that one can study in this respect to verify this.

To pronounce the central creed of Islam (shahada) is to act before God with respect for His creation, because faith (iman) is actually a public trust (amana). Relations between human beings are based on respect, trustworthiness and, above all, on an absolute faithfulness to the agreements, contracts or treaties which have been explicitly or tacitly made.

Fulfil (every) engagement, for (every) engagement, will be enquired into.[Surah al-Isra 17:34]
Those who faithfully observe their trusts and their covenants;[Surah al-Muminun 23:8]
This is true to the point that if Muslims are unfairly treated or persecuted in a country with which another Muslim community has signed an agreement, it is impossible for the latter to intervene for respect of the contract comes first. This is clearly stated in the Qur’an.
But if they seek your aid in religion, it is your duty to help them,except against a people with whom you have a treaty of mutual alliance.And (remember) Allah sees all that you do.[Surah al-Anfal 8:72]

The Quran says, "God forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your)faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them; for God loveth those who are just." It is one of the functions of Islamic law to protect the privileged status of minorities, and this is why non-Muslim places of worship have flourished all over the Islamic world.

History provides many examples of Muslim tolerance towards other faiths: when the caliph Omar entered Jerusalem in the year 634, Islam granted freedom of worship to all religious communities in the city. Islamic law also permits non-Muslim minorities to set up their own courts, which implement family laws drawn up by the minorities themselves.

As a Muslim who has been born and lived my whole life in London UK I am truly thankful and feel blessed that Ive been able to live in a society which has allowed me to practise and learn about my religion freely. A society which is so multicultural whichin general accepts people of all colours, shapes and sizes. I strongly believe that all Muslims should be working hard to spread thr true message of Islam which is a way of live teaching us to respect all people of all faiths and to establish a society of respect, peace and tranquility. It is the least we can offer a country which has offered a place for Muslims to practise their religion.

Within our free society in Britain of welfare rights, universal suffrage, equality before the law, freedom of expression and religions, people of different faiths are not only able to discover the teachings particular to them but to foster and promulgate the values inherent in them in a pluralistic, multicultural environment. Muslims can establish organisations, teach and promote their faith both with ease and a large degree of respect and make autonomous representation. Many otherwise non-practising Muslims rediscover Islam and become committed to it at various levels in our country at different periods of their age due to the supportive conditions that prevails in this land. Our country affords that in principle, as a matter of free choice. Muslims may face some difficulty in needing to avoid involvement in activities which contradict their religion, but in the UK, the majority of such activities which are morally incorrect in Islam are not imposed on Muslims but are rather legally allowed, e.g., pre-marital sex or drinking alcohol.

William Booth, the son of a builder, born in Nottingham in 1829 converted to Christianity at the young age of fifteen and became a revivalist preacher. Booth developed strong views on the role of church ministers believing they should be "loosing the chains of injustice, freeing the captive and oppressed, sharing food and home, clothing the naked, and carrying out family responsibilities."

Each of these social aims have great significance in Islam and carry high merits before God. They are deeply encouraged by both Allah and His messenger Muhammad (may the peace & blessings of God be upon him) that should form the bulwark of any Islamic presence in a society. One needs to only take a cursory look at the rights of neighbours and treatment of neighbours encouraged in Islam to convince oneself of this. In Islam, absolutely no distinction is made between a Muslim and a non-Muslim neighbour.

The Church of England were at first extremely hostile to Booth's activities. Lord Shaftesbury, a leading politician and evangelist, described William Booth as the "Anti-Christ". One of the main complaints against Booth was his "elevation of women to man's status". Members of the Salvation Army were imprisoned for open-air preaching and their support for the Temperance Society made them the target for gangs of men who became known as the Skeleton Army.
Muslims can similarly expect misunderstanding and criticism from their own faith communities but need to take heart from the blessed Messenger Muhammad (may the peace & blessings of God be upon him) who taught us through sacrifice and selfless perseverence how to reach out to one another and most significantly, also to the wider community, in justice, toleration, admiration of good qualities and unstinted benevolence. He weathered the storm of criticism and opposition with magnanimity and gracious patience. If Christianity in modern times can produce the likes of William Booth then every Muslim should check their heart and see if we are at least as good as him if not better, being as we claim to be the true worshippers of Allah in His Oneness.
William Booth was a Christian activist who saw his twin objectives as the saving of lost souls and righting the social injustices of his time. He never lost his zeal for the Gospel, his love of his Lord or his heartfelt compassion for the poor. These qualities should be the aim and aspiration of all Muslims - zeal for the Truth, love of God and genuine help for the poor. This is an extract from his last public address given on May 9th 1912:

While women weep as they do now, I’ll fight; while little children go hungry as they do now, I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight; while there is a drunkard left, while there is a poor lost girl on the streets, while there remains one dark soul without the light of God, I’ll fight – I’ll fight to the very end. Three months after that speech, on 20th August 1912, William Booth was ‘promoted to Glory’. To a sincere Muslim who has a modicum of knowledge of Islam, these words are not only inspirational but echoes the Islamic ethos of being human.

We need to develop more examples of British Muslims like Abdullah William Henry Quilliam(1856-1932). He accepted Islam while travelling in Morocco in 1889 and studied the religion at the University of Fez. Back in England he established a Mosque, a publishing House, a library, a Debating Society, a School and an Orphanage in Liverpool. He faced local and national hostility due to anti-Muslim sentiment and later when war broke-out. However, he lived up to the true values of Islam without resorting to what Allah and His Messenger forbade or hate.
It is not through accident that the Arabic word rahma, meaning mercy or the capacity to forgive, comes from the word rahm meaning a womb. Islamic law draws the radical conclusion, that God Himself can only forgive offences against Himself. ‘For transgressions between man and God, repentance atones. But for transgressions between man and his fellow man, repentance does not atone until he has obtained forgiveness from his fellow man.’
The sin of harming a neighbour is compounded and far more serious, let alone killing or not preventing a neighbour's death when one is able to do so.

Thus it is imperative that Muslims in Britain do their utmost to cooperate with responsible bodies in the UK to uproot terrorism and especially such as from those who seek to connect it to Islam.

Our history also records the contributions of the Unitarians who believed that social evils were humanly created, not God inflicted, and therefore could be remedied by human efforts.

In the the late 18th and early 19th century, Unitarians were closely identified with the campaign for social and political reform. Unitarians such as Joseph Priestley, Jeremy Bentham, Harriet Martineau, James Martineau and John Stuart Mill were all advocates of universal suffrage. Other leading radicals of the period such as Tom Paine and Thomas Muir were described by their critics as Unitarians. After the publication of Paine's Rights of Man, religious radicals in London formed the Unitarian Society to promote the cause of parliamentary reform.
In the 19th century Unitarians were very active in the movements for factory reform, public health, prison reform, temperance, women's rights and the abolition of slavery. Every single aspect mentioned should naturally appeal to a true Muslim who seeks virtue in life and not vice because of the clear prescriptions of Islam. Unitarian reformers included Edwin Chadwick, Florence Nightingale, Jenkin Lloyd Jones and Charles Booth.

Islam stands for uncompromising pure monotheism. If the Unitarians of our country can rightfully boast of such achievements and contributions how much more Muslims should aim to excel in similar endeavours.

How to get motivated?

It is extremely easy to be rightly motivated if one draws on the unadulterated teachings of the noble Quran and the way of the Prophet Muhammad (may the peace & blessings of God be upon him). Evidence abounds regarding monotheistic persons before the advent of Muhammad (may the peace & blessings of God be upon him) who stood up for social justice and against malpractice in society.

Muslims need to reflect on the monsters within and how we intend to contribute to our country and society better than our unitarian forbears in the UK.

Muslim clerics in Britain must not only speak out against terrorism in this difficult time but do their best to educate those who listen to them against extremism and distortion of their faith. We must disassociate ourselves from any organisation or individual, Muslim or otherwise, which carries out criminal acts in the name of Islam and help make Britain a better country for all who live in it - free from the turmoils of violence, crime and worst of all, religious extremism.

FROM THE PROPHET

Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said,
“Do not kill any old person, any child or any woman.” [Abu Dawud]
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said,
“Do not kill the monks in monasteries.” [Ahmad]
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said,
“Do not kill the people who are sitting in places of worship.” [Ahmad]
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) once saw a dead woman and said,
“She was not fighting. How then did she get to be killed?”
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said, “Punishment by fire does not behove anyone except the Master of the Fire.” [Abu Dawud]
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said,
“Do not attack a wounded person.”
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) forbade killing anyone who is in captivity or tied. Aby Ayyub al-Ansari who narrated this said, “I vow by the name of Allah in whose Hand is my life, that I will not slaughter even a chicken after tying it with a string.”
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) has prohibited the believers from loot and plunder. The Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said, “The loot is no more lawful than carrion.” [Abu Dawud]
Abu Bakr the first caliph used to say to the soldiers,
“Do not destroy the villages and towns. Do not spoil the cultivated fields and gardens. Do not slaughter the cattle.” In fact he would tell them not to even use the milk of milch cattle without the permission of the owners.
Muhammad the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) has prohibited Muslims from mutilating corpses of the enemies. In the battle of Ahzab the unbelievers presented 10,000 dinars to the Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) and requested the dead body of their fallen warrior. The Messenger of Allah (may the Peace & Blessings of God be upon him) said, “I do not sell dead bodies. You can take away the corpse of your fallen comrade.”

Wise Guy!

2006-07-06T10:37:00.000+01:00

Now this little pooch really knows how to take a nap without being disturbed just find a bed you blend into so you wont be noticed! Subhana'Allah the creation of Allah is so great and diverse, I mean you get so many different types of animals and creatures and insects and plants and trees and bactieria and even more categories than that which I dont even know of and then within those catergories you have different types which all have different characteristics its amazing... for example this dog here the way it looks and behaves will be totally differentfrom lets say... a German Shephard but they are both dogs! The same is with trees some flourish all year round while others dont... just for a while ponder on the creation of God and you will be truly amazed at how He has made all of this in such perfection and hopefully it will compel those of us who think about the creation to decalre the greatness of God!

Daddi can I have £10 please?

2006-07-05T16:01:00.000+01:00

Dont let the short story underneath relate to any of you. You may not have children but perhaps you have parents, sisters, brothers, a husband, a wife, loved ones where this may apply. Sometimes we take those closest to us for granted and dont give them the love, time and respect they deserve. We often forget to express how we feel towards them instead only vent out our frustrations and anger on them. Try to spend quality time with you family and loved ones and dont let work, studying, meetings, circles take over your whole life! Family have rights over you too!

Daddi Can you give me £10 ?

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5 year old son waiting for him at the door.

"Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
"Yeah, sure, what is it?" replied the man.
"Daddy, how much money do you make an hour?"
"That's none of your business! What makes you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily.
"I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?" pleaded the little boy.
"If you must know, I make £20.00 an hour."
"Oh, " the little boy replied, head bowed. Looking up, he said, "Daddy, may I borrow £10.00 please?"
The father was furious. "If the only reason you want to know how much money I make is just so you can borrow some to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you're being so selfish. I work long, hard hours everyday and don't have time for such childish games."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even madder about the little boy's questioning. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money. After an hour or so , the man had calmed down, and started to think he may have been a little hard on his son. May be there was something he really needed to buy with that £10.00 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door. "Are you asleep son?" he asked.
"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.
"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier," said the man. "It's been a long day and I took my aggravation out on you. Here's that £10.00 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, beaming. "Oh, thank you daddy!" he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow, he pulled out some more money he had obviously been collecting. The man, seeing that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, then looked up at the man.
"Why did you want more money if you already had some?" the father grumbled.
"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied. "Daddy, I have £20.00 now... Can I buy an hour of your time?"

Due to Popular Demand!

2006-07-05T15:03:00.000+01:00

Due to popular demand I have posted a 2006 picture of the F1 renault... this was taken in March 2006 in Bahrain where Alonso went on to win the race.
Such a beautiful car! Look at that nose cone perfection at its best!

Weekly Country Profile:Uganda contin...

2006-07-05T13:35:00.000+01:00

Continuing with this weeks country profile Uganda... found some cool and stunning pictures which are simply breath taking....
Some of the National Parks Humble Muslimah who left a comment on the last post are as follows:

Uganda which is also known as The Pearl Of Africa really is amazing and you can see for yourselves why its given such a name... remember that pictures never do justice to the real thing.

If you go to Merchason Falls you get to see stunning scenary see pic.
Also while your there you will hopefully get to see the amazing wild life such as the lions and lionesses. Chances are though you will see the lionesses as the lions being the males will be lazing about back with the rest of the lions chilling while the lionesses do all the work!

Then if you go to visit Bwindi National park you should get to see Gorillas see above! Its not often that you will be able to see such wildlife roaming around its the chance of a life time!

The pearl of Africa is packed with all sorts of stunning place to visit! Apart from the stunning wild life Uganda also has its up and coming capital Kampala which is packed with vibrant people who are so welcoming and has delicious fruits and I saw pineapples the size of errrmmm maybe one and a half footballs which tasted so juicy! See kampala in picture!

I miss Uganda now and want to go back!

2006-07-05T10:37:00.000+01:00

The King and the Poor Man

There was a king who decided to take a tour of his country. As he passed by different places, everyone rushed to see him. However, while passing by a certain place, he noticed a poor old man who did not pay any attention to the king's arrival and remained engaged in his own activities. The king went up to this poor man and asked why he did not join the people to see him. The poor man replied, "Before you, there was another king who once passed by this place. Everyone gathered to see him as well. But, few days later he died and was buried in a place nearby. A poor man also died during that time and was buried near the king's grave. After some time, a strong flood passed through that area causing the graves to overturn. The bones of the poor man became mixed up with those of the king's. We could not differentiate between them any longer as to which bones belong to the king and which ones belong to the poor man. After seeing this, it does not matter to me anymore as to who is a king and who is a beggar. In the end, our home is the same.”

To Kill A Mocking Tongue!

2006-07-05T10:07:00.000+01:00

Yesterday I was trying to find a picture of a famous footballer I had seen a few weeks ago on the internet. The reason I was looking for it as it was a very funny picture as it was taken at a strange angle while the player was in the middle of a game. My initial plan was to post it with a funny comment. However thankfully I was advised by someone that this may fall under backbiting and at the very least would certainly not be of good character. As a muslim we have been taught on numerous occasions not to make fun of others, not to immitate others, riddicule others, insult or offend others. So part of the character of a Muslim is NOT to make fun or to laugh at and mock others which unfortunately is a terrible disease that has spread through out the Muslim community globally and Im addressing this to myself 1st. Anyways I came across a really nice article by Muhammad Al Shareef which I thought Id share with you. Ive edited it making it slightly shorter as I know how busy you all are prob sneaking on to this blog in a quick tea break from work or in my case while my nephew who I look after is fast asleep in his morning nap!
May Allah guide us all away from mocking others ameen.

note:
sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam is arabic for- Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him and it is said after the name of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)

radi Allahu 'anhu is arabic for- May God be pleased with him and its usually said after the names of one of the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him)

To Kill A Mocking Tongue!

Al-Ma'roor ibn Suwayd narrates that he once saw Abu Dharr – radi Allaahu ‘anhu – wearing a beautiful shawl. His slave standing next to him was wearing a shawl exactly like it, warm and beautiful.
Ma'roor said to Abu Dharr, “Perhaps you could take the shawl of your servant and give him another (less expensive) one.”
“Never,” said Abu Dharr, “for I once had a servant whose mother was not Arab and I cussed him and his mother. That servant went to the Messenger of Allah – (sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam) – complaining of the words I had said.
“When Rasul Allaah – (pbuh)– saw me he commented, ‘O Abu Dharr, you are a man who still has Jahilliyyah (Pre-Islamic Ignorance) in him.'”
Because of these painful words, Abu Dharr – may Allah be pleased with him - would always dress his servants in the exact same garments that he would wear.

Dear brothers and sisters in Islam, family and friends, God is disobeyed most with our tongues. There is a sin that sweeps amongst us, a sin that many take lightly, a sin that is laughed at, a sin that could very well pull someone to Hellfire: It is the sin of insulting others.

Read carefully this following verse. It is a commandment of Allah that begins with a call to those who claim to have Eemaan. Allah ta'ala says in the Qur'an (49/11):
O you who believe let not one group of people make fun of another, perhaps the (one's being made fun of) are better then them. And let not women make fun of other women perhaps the (woman being made fun of) is better then them. And do not insult one another and do not call each other by (offensive) nicknames. Wretched is the name (i.e. mention) of disobedience after (one's) faith. And whoever does not repent – then it is those who are the Dhaalimoon (the wrongdoers). Perhaps the one that is being made fun of is more beloved to Allah.

Subhaan Allah, let us remember this if we ever try to make fun of someone, perhaps Allah loves them and does not love us. Didn't the Mushrikeen make fun of Rasul Allah – sal Allaahu alayhi wa sallam – and we know Allah loved him and not them. Didn't the Munaafiqeen make fun of the Sahaabah – and we know Allah loved the Sahaabah and not them.

Abu Moosa – radi Allaahu ‘anhu – said: I asked Allah's Messenger, ‘Who out of the Muslims is the best?' He replied, “Those whom the other Muslims are safe from his tongue and hands.” – Agreed Upon
The mockingbird, native to the western hemisphere, has a very interesting name. The mockingbird gets its name from its ability to mimic the sounds of other animals. It combines song notes of it's own with sounds from other birds, doing so in almost a mocking way. It is an endangered species, and we hope - in sha Allah – that the mocking it got its name after will become endangered in our communities too.
Al-Hasan Al-Basree – rahimahullaah – said, “Whoever does not guard the slips of their tongue has not understood their Deen.”

In conclusion, the questions that begs to be asked is:

What is the cure for this disease of the tongue?

There are many different cures but we shall just go over a few to start with insha'Allah.

1: We should know that it is a major sin. In fact, a person may make a single statement – not paying any heed to it – by which he may slip in to Hellfire.

2: We should distance ourselves from those long useless gatherings where nothing is done for hours except laughing and chatting. Of course laughing and spending time with family and friends is beneficial and is good to do in fact the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) would also joke with his companions although there was never a lie even in his joking. The point is not to over do it therefore forgetting to also spend time together discussing benefical points remembering Allah and teaching each other something new. But to remember when ever a gathering is based on insulting others then its better to politely leave if you feel that you are unable to steer the discussion onto something which is pleasing to Allah

3: If you feel yourself that you just have to insult someone, ask Allah to protect you from the Shaytaan and this satanic act. As Allah ta'ala says (7/200): And if an evil suggestion comes to you from Satan, then seek refuge in Allah. Indeed, He is Hearing and Knowing.

4: And of course, if anyone of us should fall into this sin, we should be swift in turning back to Allah in Towbah. Say Astaghfirullaah wa ‘atoobo ilayh, O Allah I ask You to forgive me and I return to You.

Allah ta'ala says in the Qur'an (49/11): And whoever does not repent – then it is those who are the Dhaalimoon (the wrongdoers).

Finally, if there is one thing that you remember from this post let it be this following commandment of Allaah ta'ala, memorize it and teach it to at least one other person:

'O you who believe let not one group of people make fun of another.'

Justice!

2006-07-05T08:50:00.000+01:00

For those of you who dont know about the Babar Ahmad case please check out the following website for full details... www.freebabarahmad.com Below is a brief out line of who Babar Ahmad is but the website will update you on all the details of how a family have been robbed of their beloved son, brother, uncle, cousin, friend and husband! Its a real life case of injustice which must come to an end! For those of you who are unable to attend the demo listed at the end please raise your hands and make a prayer for Babar Ahmad and his family!

Who Is Babar Ahmad ?

An introduction to who he is: his background and his personality
Babar Ahmad is a British Citizen who was born in London in 1974. He grew up and went to school in South London, where he had been living until his arrest on 5th August 2004.
Family BackgroundBabar's parents came from Pakistan in the early sixties. His father is now a retired Civil Servant who gave over 20 years of service to the Crown. His mother, a qualified Science teacher, has a Master's degree. Babar has three other siblings. Babar and all his siblings went to good schools and obtained professional degrees. One of his siblings is a qualified medical doctor. The family have always paid their taxes and served the community as law-abiding British citizens.

EducationBabar went to a reputable public school where he obtained outstanding results at both GCSE and A-level. He was popular at school; well liked by teachers and fellow pupils. Like any other British boy, he thoroughly enjoyed all sports, especially football and cricket. His school reports would always highlight that he was helpful, well-behaved and popular. He went to university in London where he obtained a Master's Degree with Honours in Engineering. Since graduating he has held a stable job in Information Technology Support at Imperial College, London.

PersonalityBabar has always respected and followed the law of the land where he has spent his whole life. Where others have cut corners and tried to evade the law, Babar has been quick to remind them. He has never even got a parking ticket. He has a real love of children. His kind and considerate nature endear him to all. No matter how busy he may be he always finds time to speak to and play with his nieces and nephews. Babar has a very caring personality. Whenever a member of the family would be ill, he would stay up to attend to them. His youngest sister recalls that whenever she was unwell, he would sleep on the floor of her bedroom in case she needed anything in the night.

His kind nature is not only limited to people, but to animals too. The family once had a pet cat. Babar looked after the cat like a baby. Once the cat fell sick so in an attempt to cheer it up, Babar went to the local pet shop and spent £20 on toys and treats! Babar would feel upset when he would see anyone in need or distress. Whenever anyone had a problem, no matter how small, he always did his best to help find a solution.

Like the rest of the family he was deeply affected and saddened by the events of 9/11. A relative, who the family have always been close to, was on the 106th floor of the North Tower and lost her life on that tragic day. Babar and his family shared the pain and anguish with her family in their desperate search for news of her well-being. Much of the media continues to promote the ideology of guilty until proven innocent in cases such as Babar's. He is nothing like the evil, cold-hearted terrorist that the media and others have made him out to be. All those who have met, lived and worked with him unanimously agree that he is quite the opposite.

BABAR’S LAST CHANCE

THE HIGH COURT DEMO

Date: TUESDAY 11TH JULY 2006

Time: 12:15 pm- 2pm

Place:
Royal Courts of Justice - the High Court,
Strand,
London WC2A 2LL

Nearest Tube Stations: Temple, Chancery Lane, Charing Cross, Holborn

Babar Ahmad’s appeal against extradition to the United States will begin on Tuesday 11th July 2006.

If he loses this appeal he could be on the plane to America to face gross Human Rights abuses within WEEKS

Join the demo to tell the Government and the world that enough is enough. British citizens will no longer tolerate second-class treatment.

Bring out the evidence in Britain and give Babar a fair trial here, or release him immediately

Confirmed Speakers so far:
Moazzam Begg (Ex-Guantanamo detainee)
Yvonne Ridley (Islam Channel presenter of Agenda programme)
Asim Qureshi (CagePrisoners.com)

Book a day or an afternoon off or even an extended lunch break to attend.

THIS COULD BE OUR LAST CHANCE TO STOP HIS EXTRADITION

NO TO DETENTION WITHOUT CHARGE
NO TO UK-US EXTRADITION TREATY 2003
For further information please email: info@freebabarahmad.com or telephone 07963537779

www.freebabarahmad.com

Ugandan Police!

2006-07-04T21:58:00.000+01:00

Hmmmm I came across this picture which is apparently a police station in Uganda.... I bet the people feel real safe! Maybe its a sign of how peaceful the people there are... well at least I hope so!

Weekly Country Profile:Uganda

2006-07-04T15:45:00.000+01:00

Weekly Country Profile : Uganda

For those of you who dont know my husband was born in Kenya and bought up in Uganda. So I recently visited both places and by the Grace of Allah had the time of my life. Both Kenya and Uganda are such beautiful countries which have so much to offer. The people are very friendly and welcoming with their common phrase everywhere you go 'eeh your welcome' which is always accompanied by a sweet smile its enough to brighten up anyones day! Remember the prophet (pbuh) said smiling is a charity so thats gotta be a good thing.
This week ill try posting facts and pictures within Uganda and perhpas next week will move onto Kenya. Feel free to add any African experiences you guys may have had.
One thing for sure is next time im in that part of the world I hope to climb the famous Mount Kilimanjaro! It looks absolutely breath taking and is a sign of the greatness of The Creator!

Country profile: Uganda

Since the late 1980s Uganda has rebounded from the abyss of civil war and economic catastrophe to become relatively peaceful, stable and prosperous.
But the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in the north remain blighted by one of Africa's most brutal rebellions.
In the 1970s and 1980s Uganda was notorious for its human rights abuses, first during the military dictatorship of Idi Amin from 1971-79 and then after the return to power of Milton Obote, who had been ousted by Amin.
During this time up to half a million people were killed in state-sponsored violence.

2006-07-04T13:21:00.000+01:00

Whats happening in London?
Ive heard there is a great exhibition going on in The British Museam on Modern Middle Eastern Art. Its apparently got a beautiful selection of Quranic calligraphy aswell. For those of you who can go its on until September and should be a culture enritching exprience!

Sometimes as Londeners we neglect and miss out on wonderful exhibitions such as this one. London really does have alot to offer and if only we lived the life of a tourist for at least a week im sure we would view London in a compltely different light! Ive lived here all my life and really feel so happy and lucky to have grown up in such a multicultural society which has so much to offer!

Oh yes the best part of this art exhibition...... ITS FREEEEE!

Word into Art:Artists of the Modern Middle East18 May – 3 September 2006Room 35Admission free

Word into Art: Artists of the Modern Middle East is an exhibition based largely on the collections of the British Museum complemented by a number of loans. It demonstrates the imaginative ways in which artists across the Middle East and North Africa are using the power of the written word in their art today.

The exhibition includes wonderful examples of calligraphy transforming writing into art, books of poetry, and works which reflect current issues facing the modern Middle East.

Opening timesDaily 10.00–17.30Open late Thursday & Friday until 20.30
An accompanying book is available from the Museum shops and online at http://www.britishmuseum.co.uk/(£16.99 hardback, £11.99 paperback).

What a Beauty!

2006-07-04T12:25:00.000+01:00

For those of you who follow F1 and for those of you who dont im sure you will all admit what a beautiful car this is!
This is the world champion Alonso drivign for Renault. Yup I know he lost in the USA last weekend to ferrari but as I said to my husband I reckon that was him training himself in not becoming too arrogant for tha ammount of wins he gets!
Anyways this car is blue and is absolutely beautiful so for any of you who were wondering what to gift to get me this is a bigggg clue!

Talk about over load!

2006-07-04T11:31:00.000+01:00

I came across this picture of how NOT to treat your pets!
Looking at the dude on the side im not sure if he has worked out why his donkey isnt moving. And I dont think its the donkey which is the stubborn one.
Looking at photos like this reminds me of the story of how the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had said that a woman was promised the hellfire for being cruel to her pet cat by not feeding it and not allowing it to be free to get its own food so it died.
For those of us who have pets or are planning to get one remember they are a trust upon us from Allah and they have rights over us to be looked after and provided for... by doing so alot of reward can be earnt but by not doing so as from the hadith of the Prophet (pbuh) a great punishment awaits!