Sunday, April 29, 2007

Its a Joyous Day



Take time to appreciate Allah's beautiful creation.

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Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Following in the Prophet's footsteps.



Do it for the sake of Allah!

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Thursday, April 19, 2007

Natural Islam

" .. Being close to nature, respecting what it is, and observing and meditating on what it shows us, offers us, or takes [back] from us requirements of a faith that, in its quest, attempts to feed, deepen and renew itself. Nature is the primary guide and intimate companion of faith. Thus, God decided to expose His Prophet, from his earliest childhood, to the natural lessons of creation, concieved as a school where the mind gradually apprehends signs and meanings. Far removed from the formalism of soulless religious rituals, this sort of education, in and through its closeness to nature, fosters a relationship to the divine based on contemplation adn depth that will later make it possible, in a second phase of spiritual education, to understand the meaning, form and objectives of religious ritual. Cut of from nature in our towns and cities, we nowadays seem to have forgotten the meaning of this message to such an extent that we dangerously invert the order of requirements and believe that leaning about the techniques and forms of religion is sufficient to grasp and understand their meaning and objectives, This delusion has serious consequences, since it leads to draininng religious teaching if its spiritual substance, which actually ought to be its heart. . . "

The Messenger
The Meanings of the Life of Muhammad
Tariq Ramadhan


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Saturday, April 14, 2007

beauty recitation



Mashallah.. beautiful recitation of Surah Ahzab by a boy.

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Tuesday, April 10, 2007

The bonds of Brother and Sisterhood


Abu Hamzah Anas bin Malik, radiyallahu 'anhu, reported that the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, said:

"None of you truly believes (in Allah and in His religion) until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself"



In the Musnad of Imam Ahmad, the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, said:

"The servant does not reach the reality of faith until he loves for others what he loves for himself."



In Sahih Muslim from Abdullah ibn Amr Al-Ass, the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, said:

"…..Whoever wishes to be delivered from the fire and enter the garden should die with faith in Allah and the Last Day and should treat the people as he wishes to be treated by them…"
[Sahih Muslim; Book 020, Number 4546]



These three hadiths carry similar meanings that is to love for other Muslims what one loves for oneself. They lay down a very significant principle of behaviour of Muslims with each other. A true Islamic community is when it is built upon love and compassion for its members. Every member should care for and help one another. They should treat others in ways they want to be treated.

It is a community with no barriers among the races, colour, or group or ranks in implementing this Islamic concept of brotherhood and love. All these barriers need to be removed for this concept to be realized. Other more harmful barriers such as jealousy, selfishness and envy must too be gotten rid of in order to succeed as a community
.
Loving goodness for others is part of loving them. We love good things for them as much as we love those things for ourselves. We treat them the way we want them to treat us. Subhannallah this is one key concept which we are all begining to forget slowly. To treat each other how we would like to be treated. To forgive each other in the same manner we would want to be forgiven. To accept each other in the same manner we would want to be accepted. To respect each other in the same manner we'd want to be respected. Part of good treatment of others are excusing them and giving them fair chances. If someone makes a mistake, we should find excuses for them and not jump to conclusions. There are many possibilities or ways for us to excuse for each other, thus enabling us to live peacefully and avoid confrontations.

The Beloved Rasool said "I was only sent to perfect noble character" .. and indeed we can see through the ways and mannerisms as muslims we should strive to have and the manner in which we should conduct ourselves with our brethren, that when we begin to forget how to behave, our communities fall into destruction.

When we deal with other Muslims in the community, we should deal in the best manner. Mercy and compassion should exist in our treatment of others.

May Allah help us all to Love each other purely for His sake. May Allah help us all to love for each other in the same manner as we love for ourselves. May Allah aid us all in being selfless and helping others without them even having to come to us to ask. May Allah make it easy for us to forgive each other, and to get rid of our baseless immoral egos. May Allah help the Muslim Ummah rise up and remember why our Beloved Prophet came and remember who we are and where we are going. Ameen!

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Sunday, April 08, 2007

The Blessed Bith [milad un Nabi pt 3]

I realise im a lil late with this...but its so beautiful... subhannallah... that time does not bear any significance on when to blog this breathtaking description of our Beloved's birth.


"It was in the forenoon of a Monday that our Master, the noble Messenger, was born. His migration from Mecca, his arrival in Medina, his final revelation, his ascension ad the conquest of Mecca, all happened on a Monday. It was on a Monday also that he left to honor the world of eternity.


The birth of our Master, the noble Messenger, occurred on the forenoon of Monday, 12th of Rabī'u-l'Awwal, which coincided with the 20th or 21st of April. That is why April rains have always been blessed, refreshing and a cause of prosperity. On the eve of our Master's birth, the Ka'ba split in two. The Quraysh were terrified by this occurrence and offered many explanations of it. Some of them suggested that it was due to the fact that the venerable Āmina's father had gone to the eternal world that night. For Wahb ibn 'Abd Manāf, the maternal grandfather of the venerable Messenger, was a revered figure among the Arabs. News of his death was spreading in Mecca on the eve of the Prophet's birth.

While Quraysh were involved in these discussions, they heard a voice from inside the Ka'ba saying: "O tribe of Quraysh, the Ka'ba has not been made the cause of anyone's death. However, Muhammad ibn 'Abdullāh, the light of this world, the glory of the Hereafter, the lamp of Paradise, is about to emerge from his mother's womb. He is a most noble Messenger who will cleanse the Ka'ba, which the polytheists have polluted with their idols, false gods and blasphemous transgressions. Cleansing it of their errors and abuses, he will restore my beauty to its former radiance and fill me with the light of faith. He will make me the direction towards which men turn in prayer and his community will come from distant places to make annual pilgrimages to me, the Ka'ba." Thus, the Ka'ba itself spoke to the Quraysh who heard its voice say: "There is the honor on account of which I split in two."
On the eve of our Master's birth, Allah gave this command to His angels: "On the Morning when My beloved is born, you are to open all the gates of heaven, make Paradise beautiful, open all levels of Paradise and the gates of its eight gardens!"

That day the sun shone brighter than on other days. Its brilliant radiance lit up the entire world so that all the people on earth might rejoice in the awareness of the noble coming of the Primal Light, the venerable Muhammad Mustafā.

The venerable Āmina says: "I was about to give birth to give birth to my Muhammad. There was no one with me, neither man nor woman. My father-in-law, 'Abd al-Muttalib, had gone to circumambulate the Ka'ba. Something strange and fearful appeared to me. I heard a voice and was afraid, then a white bird appeared and stroked my breast. My fear departed from me. I felt no trace of pain, grief, discomfort or fear. I was given a cup of white sherbet. When I drank that sherbet my heart was filled with a splendid radiance. I had attained a blissful happiness. Then I saw a group of girls, tall willowy and extremely beautiful, who were strangers to Mecca. They were not the daughters of 'Abd Manāf, although they did resemble them. They surrounded me and as I was thinking to myself, 'there was no one in the house, where can these beings have come from,' one of them said to me: 'I am Eve, wife of the venerable Adam'; another smiled as she said: 'I am Sarah, the venerable Abraham's wife'; a third also smiled as she said: 'I am Mary, mother of the venerable Jesus'; a fourth said affectionately, 'I am Pharaoh's wife, Āsiya, who believed in the venerable Moses. The rest are houries of Paradise.' They said: 'We have come to offer our respect and praise to the noble Prophet who is about to appear.' With every moment the noise and commotion became greater and more intense, yet all fear had left me. A white silk curtain was lowered from Heaven to earth. This mighty curtain veiled me from the jinn. Birds came in flocks; their beaks were of green emerald and their wings rubies. They approached me until their beaks and wings touched my breast. It was as if they were kissing me. Then they circled around me. The Exalted One raised the veil from my eyes and showed me the whole universe. I saw the entire world, east and west. They brought three noble banners, planting one of them in the east, one in the west and the third upon the Ka'ba. I saw men in heaven. They moved through space carrying bejeweled bowls and jugs and golden vessels. At that moment, my Muhammad was easily and painlessly born. [Allah bless our Master Muhammad and Muhammad's family and companions, and give them peace.] I looked and saw that his eyes were anointed with collyrium, that his umbilical cord was cut and that he was already circumcised. Wrapped in a white shawl, he place his blessed head to the ground in prostration, raised his index finger of his blessed right hand and offered a prayer of supplication to God, Glorious and Exalted is He."

- Irshad, Wisdom of a Sufi Master; Sheikh Muzaffer Ozak al-Jerrahi

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