There's no God but Allah

Beautiful Nasheed by Sheikh Mishary Rashed. Listen to it. Feel it.

Brownies?

Two teenagers asked their father if they could go to the theater to watch a movie that all their friends had seen. After reading some reviews about the movie on the Internet, he denied their request. 

"Ah dad, why not?" they complained. "It's rated PG-13, and we're both older than thirteen!" 

Dad replied: "Because that movie contains nudity and portrays immorality as being normal and acceptable behavior." 

"But dad, those are just very small parts of the movie! That's what our friends who've seen it have told us. The movie is two hours long and those scenes are just a few minutes of the total film! It's based 
on a true story and good triumphs over evil, and there are other redeeming themes like courage and self-sacrifice. Even the movie review websites say that!" 

"My answer is 'no,' and that is my final answer. You are welcome to stay home tonight, invite some of your friends over, and watch one of the good videos we have in our home collection. But you will not go 
and watch that film. End of discussion." 

The two teenagers walked dejectedly into the family room and slumped down on the couch. As they sulked, they were surprised to hear the sounds of their father preparing something in the kitchen. They soon recognized the wonderful aroma of brownies baking in the oven, and one of the teenagers said to the other, "Dad must be feeling guilty, and now he's going to try to make it up to us with some fresh brownies. 
Maybe we can soften him with lots of praise when he brings them out to us and persuade him to let us go to that movie after all." 

The teens were not disappointed. Soon their father appeared with a plate of warm brownies, which he offered to his kids. They each took one. Then their father said, "before you eat, I want to tell you 
something: I love you both so much." The teenagers smiled at each other with knowing glances. Dad was softening. "That is why I've made these brownies with the very best ingredients. I've made them from scratch. Most of the ingredients are even organic; the best organic flour, the best free-range eggs, the best organic sugar, premium vanilla and chocolate." The brownies looked mouth-watering, and the teens began to become a little impatient with their dad's long speech.

"But I want to be perfectly honest with you. There is one ingredient I added that is not usually found in brownies. I got that ingredient from our own back yard. But you needn't worry, because I only added 
the tiniest bit of that ingredient to your brownies. The amount of the portion is practically insignificant. So go ahead, take a bite and let me know what you think? 

"Dad, would you mind telling us what that mystery ingredient is before we eat?" 

"Why? The portion I added was so small, just a teaspoonful. You won't even taste it." 

"Come on, dad; just tell us what that ingredient is?" 

"Don't worry! It is organic, just like the other ingredients." 

"Dad!" 

"Well, OK, if you insist. That secret ingredient is organic ... dog poop." 

Both teens instantly dropped their brownies back on the plate and began inspecting their fingers with horror. 

"Dad! Why did you do that? You've tortured us by making us smell those brownies cooking for the last half hour, and now you tell us that you added dog poop! We can't eat these brownies!" 

"Why not? The amount of dog poop is very small compared to the rest of the ingredients. It won't hurt you. It's been cooked right along with the other ingredients. You won't even taste it. It has the same 
consistency as the brownies. Go ahead and eat!" 

"No, Dad ... Never!" 

"And that is the same reason I won't allow you to go watch that movie. You won't tolerate a little dog poop in your brownies, so why should you tolerate a little immorality in your movies? We pray that Allah 
(SWT) will not lead us unto temptation, so how can we in good conscience entertain ourselves with something that will imprint a sinful image in our minds that will lead us into temptation long after 
we first see it?" 

Remember, we become de-sensitized a little bit at a time; it is the small and minimal sins that we forget the most.


<sent to me by e-mail and thought it was worth sharing>

Go to Abyssinia

Go to Abyssinia, the land of a righteous king, where no man is wronged..

A very significant and intense moment of our early Islamic history

All of Shyness is Good

عن عمران بن حصين رضي الله عنهما قال قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه و سلم : [ الحياء لا يأتي إلا بخير ] متفق عليه
وفي رواية لمسلم : [ الحياء خير كله ] أو قال : [ الحياء كله خير ]


Imran bin Husain (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "Shyness does not bring anything except good.''
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].In a narration of Muslim: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "All of shyness is good.''

Commentary: This Hadith enlightens us on the excellence of modesty, which serves the good purpose of preventing man from the disobedience of Allah and from immoral and evil pursuits. Evidently, it has a salutary impact on society. Besides, it keeps man free from sins, and, consequently, he will stand blameless with Allah. From this standpoint, modesty is certainly a thorough good.

Journey of a Muslimah: Beautiful Article

I came across a very beautiful article written by sister Aishah Nofal. Click here to read it on her blog Journey of a Muslimah.

Enjoy!

Should I Not Be a Grateful Slave

Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) said: The Prophet (PBUH) would stand (in prayer) so long that the skin of his feet would crack. I asked him, "Why do you do this while your past and future sins have been forgiven?'' He said, "Should I not be a grateful slave of Allah?''
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

عن عائشة رضي الله عنها أن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم كان يقوم من الليل حتى تتفطر قدماه . فقلت له : لم تصنع هذا يا رسول الله وقد غفر الله لك ما تقدم من ذنبك وما تأخر ؟ قال : [ أفلا أحب أن أكون عبدا شكورا ] 

متفق عليه

7 Tips for Improving your Relationship with the Qur'an

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


Source: islamway

Ten Sicknesses of the Heart

1. You believe in the existance of Allah Ta'ala, but you do not fulfil his commands.

2. You say you love the Holy Prophet Mohammed (Sallallahu 'alahi wasallam), but you do not follow his sunnah (ie, his example).

3. You Read The Qur'an but you do not put it into practice.


4. You enjoy all the benefits from Allah Ta'ala, but you are not grateful to him.


5. You acknowledge Shaytan as your enemy, but you do not go against him.


6. You want to enter paradise, but you do not work for it.


7. You do not want to be thrown into hell-fire, but you do not try to get away (ie, do good deeds).


8. You believe that every living-thing will face death, but you do not prepare for it.

9. You gossip and find faults in others, but you forgot your own faults and mistakes.

10. You bury the dead, but you do not take a lesson from it.

Source: http://english.islamway.com

To PERFECT the Most Noble of Manners

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

«إنما بعثت لأتمم مكارم الأخلاق»

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


[Do not be confused when someone tells you that we have inherited some habits from the pre-Islamic era. It is ok as long as it is confirmed by Islam]

The Believer Gets Jealous

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

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

[To Be The Happiest of All People]: Make Good Deeds & Serve People

Do not stay alone and isolated. Isolation is a source of misery. All the depression and tension disappear when you fuse with your family and the people, and offer some of your services. Work of two weeks in the service of others has been prescribed as a treatment of depression.

From Dr. 'Aed AlQarny's "Don't Be Sad"

[To Be The Happiest of All People]: Accept Yourself

It is very important to decide to be satisfied with yourself, and be confident with your actions, and to ignore the (hurtful) criticism that is given to you, as long as you know you are following the right path... for happiness escapes when doubt and guilt take over.

From Dr. 'Aed AlQarny's "Don't Be Sad"

[Ghiba] Backbiting: The Plague and the Cure.

بــــسم اللــه الرحــــمن الرحــــيم

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Some people have taken a habit of backbiting others for 30 or maybe 50 years. Let’s remember what backbiting exactly means. Prophet Muhammad [Peace Be Upon Him] tells us that Ghiba is speaking about your brother of what he dislikes.

•    Save by one who hath been wronged

This is especially vivid when the backbiter thinks that he/she has the right to backbite someone who has caused him any hurt, whether it’s a father, brother, son, husband, wife, neighbour or employer. When someone is wronged, this usually leaves him/her with bitterness within, which usually comes out in the form of the backbiting. Say you were wronged, religion allows you to complain to a judge, a scholar or to whom the case might be important so that each one should be rewarded or punished fairly. Allah said:

{لاَّ يُحِبُّ اللَّهُ الْجَهْرَ بِالسُّوَءِ مِنَ الْقَوْلِ إِلاَّ مَن ظُلِمَ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ سَمِيعاً عَلِيماً} [سورة النساء: آية 148]

{Allah loveth not the utterance of harsh speech save by one who hath been wronged. Allah is ever Hearer, Knower.}

         However, some people do it without even being asked to. They make others seem like the embodiment of evil. So, to make it clear, religion allows you to complain to someone who can give you your rights back, not just anyone and everyone. Second, even if you were harmed, say the truth and only the truth about the person who harmed you. Do not exaggerate.

•   Wrapped Ghiba: Backbiting in Disguise

There’s a kind of backbiting that many people fail to see. It’s a ‘wrapped’ form of Ghiba. For example, you are sitting with a group of people and a man who claims to be pious is mentioned. So one of the people sitting says: “May Allah forgive us and him. It’s better to keep quiet.” As a listener what do you perceive? That the man mentioned is terrible! He did not technically use his tongue in saying something bad about him. That is why this is ‘wrapped’ Ghiba. Also, some people use gestures. When, for instance, someone is asked about a scholar’s knowledge and he says nothing but makes a mocking facial gesture. This makes the listener understand that the scholar is totally ignorant.

•    Backbiting a country?!

Imagine that I can back-bite a whole city or a whole country! Saying: “All Egyptians are ……” or “All Kuwaitis are ……” Imagine if on the Judgment Day, each one of all the countries I back-bit took one deed from you, will I have any left? It’s forbidden to speak ill of one person. How about millions of people?! This requires Tawba.

•       The Cure: Tawba... but how?

Tawba needs all four of the following:

1.   To abstain from doing the sin.

2.   To sincerely regret doing it in the past.

3.   To be determined not to get back to it.

4.   To give the ones harmed by your sin their rights back.

Assume that we’re talking about a divorced wife. She kept on back-biting her husband for 10 or 30 years until she made everyone see him as the devil himself or even worse. How will she repent? She shall not find difficulty with the first three as much as the fourth. It will be extremely difficult for her to apologise for him. What should she do? She should pray for him whenever she remembers or mentions him. It's as if Allah (SWT) is charging the consequences.

When we want to repent from Ghiba we say:

اللهم ما بينك و بيني فاغفره لي. و ما بيني و بين الناس فتحمل تبعاته عني.

Oh Allah, what's between You and me, forgive me for it. And what's between me and people, charge the consequences for me.

May Allah help us hold our tongues and forgive us all,

Dr Omar AbdelKafy