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»