Dec 4, 2009

Hardships as a blessing...

“In our view, a person does not have an understanding of the religion until he thinks of a hardship as being a blessing, and a comfort and luxury as being a hardship.”
- Sufyan ath-Thawri

Leia Mais

Nov 24, 2009

Love of Allah


The love of the Beloved
must be unconditionally returned.

If you claim love
yet oppose the Beloved,
then your love is but a pretence.
You love the enemies of your Beloved
and still seek love in return.

You fight the beloved of your Beloved.
Is this Love or the following of shaytaan?
True devotion is nothing
but total submission
of body and soul
to One Love.

We have seen humans claim to submit,
yet their loyalties are many.

They put their trust here, and their hope there,
and their love is without consequence.


Found in Ibn al-Qayyim's Al-Walaa wal-Baraa.

Leia Mais

Nov 16, 2009

First 10 Days of Dhul-Hijjah


The first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah are the most beloved to Allah.

The Prophet testified to that. He said: “There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allah than these ten days.” (Bukhaari)


WHAT ACTIVITIES IN THESE 10 DAYS WILL BRING THE REWARD OF JANNAH?


Obviously, Hajj is one of the best deeds that one can do during these ten days. However, for those of us who were not invited to His House this year, there are still many, good deeds that one can do and earn the Pleasure of Allah.


Some of these are:


1) Fast all nine days and especially, the Day of Arafah

The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “Anyone who fasts for one day for Allah’s pleasure, Allah will keep his face away from the (Hell) fire for (a distance covered by a journey of) seventy years.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) used to fast on the ninth day of Dhul-Hijjah and he said: “Fasting the Day of Arafah (ninth Dhul-hijjah) is an expiation for (all the sins of) the previous year and an expiation for (all the sins of) the coming year.” (Muslim)


2) Do a LOT of Dhikr and Takbeer

The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “There are no days on which good deeds are greater or more beloved to Allah than on these ten days”, so recite much Tahleel (saying Laa ilaaha ill-Allaah), Takbeer (saying Allahu akbar) and Tahmeed (saying al-hamdu Lillaah).” (Ahmad -Saheeh)

Ibn Umar and Abu Hurayrah used to go out in the marketplace during the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah, reciting Takbeer, and the people would recite Takbeer when they heard them. (Bukhaari)

Takbeer at this time is a Sunnah. So recite it in the masjid, in your home, on the street and every place where it is permitted to remember Allah.

Revive the Sunnah that have been virtually forgotten and earn great rewards for doing so.

The Prophet said: “Whoever revives an aspect of my Sunnah that is forgotten after my death, he will have a reward equivalent to that of the people who follow him, without it detracting in the least from their reward.” (Tirmidhi- a hasan hadeeth)


3) Stand in Night Prayers: (Tahajjud, Qiyyam al Layl)

Remember the virtues of spending the night in prayer, and its sweetness in Ramadan?

Why not revive this beautiful act of worship during these nights as well?

Remember, how in the last third of every night, Allah Almighty calls out to us, His servants: Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to his invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him? (Bukhaari, Muslim)

Why do we miss this golden opportunity? So, seize the chance and expose yourself to His Divine Generosity and Mercy, ask Him to forgive you and guide you and set things right. He will surely listen.


4) Make Sincere Repentance.

One of the most important action during these ten days is to repent sincerely to Allah and to give up all kinds of disobedience and sin right away because we do not know when we will die and thus become unable to repent, and also because one evil deed leads to another.

But what does repentance mean?

It means that you come back to Allah and give up all the deeds, open and secret, that He dislikes…. that you regret whatever you did in the past, giving it up immediately and be determined never ever, to return to it, and resolve to adhere firmly to the Truth by doing whatever Allah loves.

“But as for him who repented, believed and did righteous deeds, then he will be among those who are successful.” [Al-Qasas 28:67]


5) Come back to the Qur’an

It is time now to dust off your copy of the Qur’an and return to its refuge. Make it a daily habit, using these 10 days the beginning of a strong and beautiful relationship with it. Read it with meaning, reflect on it, understand it, and then implement it in your daily life. Remember that reading one letter of the Qur’an earns you ten rewards.

In this way, reading Surat Al-Fatihah, which doesn’t take more than two minutes, will give you more than one thousand rewards!

This is on ordinary days, so what about these magnificent days! Certainly the reward will be far greater, Insha’Allah.


6) Increase ALL the types of good deeds.

If we are unable to go to Hajj this year, we should occupy ourselves in the worship of Allah; pray extra prayers (Nafil) recite the Qur’an. Make dhikr of Allah, send salaams on the Prophet, make du’a, give charity, honour your parents, uphold ties of kinship, enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil, and add other good deeds and acts of worship during these days.

“So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it; And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it.”

[Al-Zalzalah 99:7-8]


7) Get the reward of Hajj wherever you are:

You may be unable to do Hajj this year, and you may feel sad. However, you can get the reward of it right where you are. The Prophet said: “Whoever prays Fajr Prayer in congregation, and then sits and remembers Allah until the sun rises, then (after a while) prays two rakas, he will gain a reward equal to that of making perfect Hajj and Umrah.” [He repeated the word "perfect" thrice.] (At-Tirmidhi)


8) Slaughter an animal and distribute the meat.

Ibn Umar said: The Prophet lived in Madeenah for 10 years and every year he slaughtered an animal.” (Ahmad-Saheeh by al-Albaani)


9) Attend ‘Eid prayers

But remember that ‘Eid prayer is a form of worship and we should avoid unIslamic behaviour (especially) in dress and in etiquette during these times.


10) Thank Allah.

One of the best forms of worshipping Allah subhaanahu wa taala is to thank Him, deeply, sincerely and continuously.

Alhamdulillah, there is much to be gained in these coming days. Hasten to do good deeds and striving hard in worship.

“And worship your Lord until there comes unto you the certainty (death).”

[Al-Hijr 15:99]

Leia Mais

Nov 9, 2009

The Soul of the Son of Adam


Ibn Qayyim wrote in his highly esteemed book, Al Fawa’id:

“How perfect is Allah! In the soul of man is the pride of Iblis, the jealousy of Qabil, the insolence of the people of ‘Ad, the tyranny of Thamud, the temerity of Namrud, the arrogance of Pharoah, the wrongdoing of Qarun, the trickeries of the people of Sabt, the rebelliousness of Al-Walid, the ignorance of Abu Jahl, and the impudence of Haman.

The soul of man also has many characteristics of beasts. He has the avarice of a crow, the gluttony of a dog, the display of a peacock, the filth of the hog, the malice of the camel, the predatory nature of the lion, the venom of the snake, the frivolity of the ape, the greed of the ant, and the deception of the fox.”

The rigid training of the soul exercises these conditions; however, if one allows any of these traits to linger and prevail, one then becomes akin to the ones cursed by Allah and akin to the beasts possessing lowly characteristics. A person who allows these traits to dominate his soul is not that commodity in the contract described by Allah (The Exalted).

“Verily, Allah has purchased of the believers their lives.” (Qur’an 9:111)

Such a commodity (soul) must be refined by Faith and purified by repentance and attentiveness in worship. the commodity must also be protected from defects or from being destroyed so as to allow the buyer to accept it.

Source: Gems & Jewels by Abdul-Malik Mujahid
Taken from: http://thefitrah.wordpress.com/

Leia Mais

Oct 27, 2009

Perfume seller or blacksmith?

A wonderful reminder...

RasulAllah (salAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam) said: The example of a good companion and a bad one is the bearer of musk and the worker on the fires (i.e. blacksmith). A bearer of musk would give you some from him, or you might enjoy the fragrance of his musk. The worker on the fires, on the other hand, might spoil your clothes with sparks from his bellows, or you get a bad smell from him."
[sahih al-Bukhari, vol 3, #314 and Muslim]

Who are the top five people you hang out with? List them. Now look at their qualities and you'll notice that you are a product of the sum of them. Do they have the outstanding qualities that you seek? If not, then it's time to find some bearers of musk that you can truly smell great from.


...Alhamdulillah, I've got a couple o' musk bearers of my own. Ya'll know who you are <3 JazakAllahu khayrun for everything!

Taken from the iPod Application, "Daily Hadith".

Leia Mais

Oct 18, 2009

Beautiful Excerpt from 'Inner Dimensions of Islamic Worship' - by Al Ghazali



When the time for prayer is at hand,
I make a proper ablution,
go to the spot where I attend to pray
and sit there until all my limbs and organs are in a collected state.

Then I stand up to perform my prayer,
placing the Ka'bah between my brows,
the bridge over Hell beneath my feet,
Paradise to my right
and Hell to my left,
and the Angel of Death behind me,
thinking all the while that this is my final prayer.
Then I stand between hope and fear.

I carefully pronounce "Allahu Akbar!"
Then I recite the Qur'an harmoniously,
bow in humility
and prostrate myself submissively.
I then sit back on my left haunch,
spreading out the left foot,
raising my right foot on the toes.
I follow this with sincerity.
Then I wonder
whether or not
my prayer
has been accepted.

Leia Mais

Oct 15, 2009

If you make intense supplication
and the timing of the answer is delayed,
do not despair of it.
His reply to you is guaranteed;
but in the way He chooses,
not the way you choose,
and at the moment He desires,
not the moment you desire.
- Ibn Ata'illah Iskandari
[Al-hikam al-'Ata'iyyah]

Leia Mais

Oct 14, 2009

“… is such a person not nourished night and day by his Beloved?”

There is an interesting section of 'Zad al-Ma'ad' (2/33) where Ibn al-Qayyim talks about sawm al-wisal, which is that the Prophet would sometimes fast an entire 24-hour day without breaking his fast. When asked by the Companions why he had forbidden them from doing so while he himself would practice it, he replied: "I am not like anyone of you. During the night, my Lord provides me with food and drink."

Ibn al-Qayyim mentions that there are two interpretations to what the Prophet meant when he said this. The first is that he is literally provided with food and drink, and the second is that he is being nourished spiritually by Allah. The stronger of the two interpretations is the second, because if the Prophet was being provided with actual food and drink, he would no longer be fasting at all, let alone continuously.

He then proceeded with a beautiful exposition of how it is that the servant can be nourished by Allah without eating or drinking anything. Although Ibn al-Qayyim wrote this in regards to the Prophet's continuous fasting, it is something that can actually apply to any fasting person, such as ourselves:

"...and those who have even the slightest bit of experience and longing know how little the body needs much physical nourishment when it is instead provided with the nourishment of the heart and soul, let alone when it comes to the one who is joyous, happy, and victorious because he has reached the One he has sought out, and whose eye is cooled by his Beloved, and feels blessed with His closeness, and is pleased with Him and the bounties and gifts of his Beloved.

And His protection showers him at all times, and his Beloved is constantly tending to his affairs, being as Generous as can be with complete Love towards him - is this not the greatest nourishment for the one who loves his Lord? So, how would it be when love of the Beloved - than Whom nothing is more exalted, and nothing is greater in might, and nothing is greater in beauty, and nothing is more complete, and nothing is greater in kindness - when love of Him fills the heart, and love of him takes over all regions of his heart and limbs, and love of Him is as firmly established as can be?

And this is his condition with the One he loves... So, is such a person not nourished night and day by his Beloved?"

May Allah make us amongst those nourished by the Love of Allah!

Taken from: http://muslimmatters.org/2007/09/21/ibn-al-qayyim-is-such-a-person-not-nourished-night-and-day-by-his-beloved/

Leia Mais

Oct 13, 2009

“Someone who turns away in prayer, either with his eyes or his heart, is like a man whom the king summons and seats before him: just when the king starts to call out his name and addresses him, the man turns from him right and left, and his heart turns away. And since his heart is not present, he understands nothing of what the king says to him. What should this man expect from the king in return? At the very least, should he not expect to leave the palace – rejected, cast out and beneath consideration?

This worshipper is in no wise equal to the one whose heart is present, turned in prayer towards God and so aware of the Grandeur of the One before whom he stands that his heart is filled with awe, his head inclines and he would be ashamed before his Lord to face anyone else, or turn away.

About these two prayers, as Hassan bin ‘Atiya said: ‘Two men may offer prayer shoulder to shoulder, and yet between their two prayers lies a gulf as [vast] as that separating Heaven from earth. This is because one of them has his heart turned towards God, while the other is forgetful and heedless.’

Extract: The Invocation of God; Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya; page 26.

Leia Mais

Sep 28, 2009

Back + New Template

Assalamu'alaykum wa Rahmatullah!

Insha'Allah this reaches you all in good health.

Wow! I haven't posted for a zillion years. I've been quite busy with school and life in general but alhamdulillah I am back and ready to post!

For those of you who have been following my blog, you've probably noticed that my blog background image had expired. I'm not going to lie, I had noticed but I was too lazy to sign in and change my blog template. When it was brought to my attention again yesterday, I figured it was about time I came back and fixed it. The current template is temporary (I don't really like it!) until I find another one that suits me and the blog :)

For today, I have an excerpt from Ibn al-Qayyim's Madarij al-Salikin. SubhanAllah, it's so true!

The divine decree related to the believer is always a bounty, even if it is in the form of withholding (something that is desired), and it is a blessing, even if it appears to be a trial, and an affliction that has befallen him is in reality a cure, even though it appears to be a disease!

Unfortunately, due to the ignorance of the worshipper, and his transgressions, he does not consider anything to be a gift or a blessing or a cure unless he can enjoy it immediately, and it is in accordance with his nature. If he were only given a little bit of understanding, then he would have counted being withheld from as a blessing, and the sickness as a mercy, and he would relish the trouble that befalls him more than he relishes his ease, and he would enjoy poverty more than he enjoys richness, and he would be more thankful when he is blessed with little than when he is blessed with a lot.

Imam ibn al Qayyim rahimahullah :

Madarij al-Salikin 2/215-216


Leia Mais

Apr 7, 2009

Lives of the Prophets: Nuh (Noah)

Assalamu'alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu!

Insha'Allah this reaches you all in a good state of Iman and Ehsan.

I apologize for the delay in posting the parts of this series. It's crunch time for me with respect to school work so I'll be really busy for the next couple of months. But I will try my hardest to update as much as possible. Please keep me in your du'as :}.

-----------

...a new messenger

Nuh was the first "messenger" of Allah. Nuh is also one of the five greatest prophets mentioned in the Quran including: Mohammad, Moosa (Moses), Isa (Jesus), and Ibrahim (Abraham).

Very much like all the other prophets and messengers, Nuh came with the same message.

"And indeed we sent Noah to his people, and he said I have come as a plain warner that you worship none but Allah."


He came with the message of monotheism; to guide people out of the darkness, and to worship one god, the god.

...unwanted

"Oh my Lord, verily I have called my people night and day. Then verily, I called them openly. Then I called to them in public and in private. But all my calling added nothing, but to their flight from the truth.

Noah tried all methods of preaching and bringing people to their Lord, night and day. He tried every way possible. But the more he tried the more his people ran away from Allah.
"And verily, every time I call unto them that you might forgive them. They press their ears and cover themselves in garments. And persistent in their refusal, magnify themselves in pride."


Whenever he would speak to them about Allah and call them to the right path, they would ignore him, and mock him and be rude and arrogant to him. Yet he did not give up. He was patient with them for 950 years.

...virtues of forgiveness

"So I said to them, 'ask forgiveness from your Lord, verily, he's all forgiving.'"

Noah is telling them about the benefits of forgiveness.
"And he would send rain to you in abundance. And give you increase in your wealth and children. And bestow on you gardens and bestow on you rivers."


This is the result of repentance. Not only will Allah forgive us but he will reward us with his blessings. So we must keep that in mind to never give up hope, if you commit a sin, and we all commit sins, it's never too late to repent. And be sure that Allah will forgive you if you're sincere in your repentance. Even if we feel that we have not committed any sins, we must ask Allah for forgiveness for the sins we committed unknowingly. Even the greatest of the people, Mohammad, peace and blessings be upon him, used to ask Allah for forgiveness night and day. So who are we to not worry about our sins?

...the end of dispute

Nuh had been preaching for 950 years, and he did not give up. He persisted even though he was alone. The people of Nuh, though, gave up.
"Oh Noah,you have disputed with us and you prolonged this dispute with us. Now bring upon us what you threaten us with, if you are truthful."

They want it to end. They say to Noah that he's been trying to argue with them for too long, and they want proof that what he is saying is correct. They want him to bring them the punishment of Allah for being disbelievers as a proof.
"If you seize not, you will surely be among those stoned to death."

Now they are threatening him. They want him to stop or they will throw stones at him till he dies. So Nuh starts to make a prayer against them.
"My Lord, they have disobeyed me, and followed the ones whose wealth and children gave them no increase or loss."

"And it was inspired to Nuh, 'none of your people will believe except those who have already believed"


Nuh continues his prayer,
"O Allah, leave none of the non believers on the face of the earth. If you leave them, they will mislead your servants and they will beget none but wicked disbelievers."


Nuh is praying to Allah to destroy all non believers because if they survive they will lure the believers back into being non believers, and cause a great deal of trouble.

Allah's commandment came,
"And construct a ship, under our eyes, and with our inspiration. And address me not on behalf of those who did wrong, they are surely to be drowned."


...Noah's ark

Noah started building the ark, then and there. The people would mock him for building a ship where there is no water, on top of a hill.
"If you mock at us, so do we mock at you likewise, for your mocking. And you will know who it is on whom will come a torment that will cover him with disgrace and on whom will come a lasting torment."


They would mock him day by day as he constructed the ship that Allah had commanded him to construct. He was patient, and he told them, you can mock at me but the punishment of Allah will fall upon you soon.

"And it was till then came our command. The springs of earth started gushing water. And rain started falling from the sky."

Allah commanded Nuh to take his family and the believers, and take with him a pair of all animals. Nuh hopped on board.

Muslim scholars say that the number of Nuh's followers ranges between 7 and 80. The maximum number of people who believed in Islam over the 950 years that Nuh's had been preaching was 80. Nuh had tremendous amount of patience, he kept on going until they gave up.

...the flood

"The ship sailed with him, amidst waves like mountains."


Imagine waves high as mountains. Tsunami would not be the appropriate term to describe these waves because tsunamis are much smaller. We're talking waves as high as 1000 or 2000 feet. How did Noah's ship survive these large waves? Even the biggest U.S. aircraft carier cannot sustain these waves. It was not the ship that saved Noah and his people from the flood. It was the mercy of Allah. Noah just built the ark to fulfill Allah's command. It is the will of Allah that saves us from tragedies.

Nuh is on his ark and he sees his son trying to survive.
"Oh my son, embark with us and don't be with the non believers."
"I will seek refuge in a mountain that will save me from this water."
"There's nothing that can save you on this day except the mercy of Allah."

"...And waves separated them and he drowned."


Nuh's son drowned, right in front of his own eyes, because he chose to disbelieve. It was a very tragic scene. But again, it was the tremendous patience and faith in Allah that kept Nuh firm on the commandment of Allah.

...a new beginning for the family
"Rain stopped from the sky and Allah commanded the earth to swallow the water."


The ark landed on a mountain called Judi. When everything settled. Nuh asked Allah, inquiring about his son, because Allah said 'your family will be saved'.
"Oh my Lord, verily my son is of my family, and certainly your promise is true and you are the most just."


Often times we give words certain meanings but Islam gives it a new definition. For example "family". Allah says, "Oh Nuh, surely he is not of your family. Verily, his work is unrighteous." Upon hearing that, Nuh realizes that by family Allah meant the believers. Us believers are like a one big family. We must look out for each other and take care of them when they are in need. It is an essential part of Islam to care about the well being of others.

Nuh asked Allah for forgiveness due to his ignorance,
"Oh my Lord, I seek refuge in your from asking you that of which I have no knowledge. And unless you forgive me and have mercy on me, I will indeed be of the losers."


And in the next verse Allah says to Mohammad, peace and blessings be with him.
"This is the news of the unseen which we reveal to you. Niether you not your people knew it before. Be patient! Verily, those who fear Allah will be successful."


---

Nuh won. After 950 years! And he wouldn't have won if he didn't have patience.

I pray to Allah to give us all patience to deal with our problems and issues. And make us among the best of people; the people of heaven.

Surely all that's good in this essay is from Allah, and all error is from my own self.

I apologize to you if I have said anything to offend you. And I ask Allah for forgiveness if I have said anything incorrect.

Leia Mais

Mar 17, 2009

Lives of the Prophets: Sheeth and Idris (Enoch)

Sheeth, peace be upon him, was of the prophets who was not mentioned in the Quran. We only know of him through one hadith, of prophet Mohammed, peace and blessings be upon him.

"Allah has revealed 104 scrolls, 50 of them on Sheeth."

Some of the Islamic scholars have mentioned that Sheeth was one of the sons of Adam, and Adam gave him the responsibility to carry out the message when he was passing away.

Other than that, we have no knowledge of who he was, what he did, or anything.

---

Idris (Enoch) peace be upon him, is believed to have come before Nuh (Noah) and after Adam. Allah mentions about him in the Quran:
"And remember in the book Idris. He was truthful and he was a prophet. And we (Allah) elevated him to a high level."
From these verses we know that he was a great prophet, who Allah had elevated to a high level, meaning his status in society and in front of Allah.

And that is all we know of Idris, peace be upon him.

Leia Mais

Feb 4, 2009

Lives of the Prophets: Adam

Assalamu'alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu!

Insha'Allah, you are all in a state of good health and Iman.

For the next couple of posts, I will be sharing the work of a very talented brother. TabarkAllah, his knowledge and writing skills leave me speechless and waiting for more. Insha'Allah, keep him in your dua's :)

I would like to share with you the stories of the great Prophets, may they be in peace.

Allah relates the best of stories in the Quran through Mohammad, may he be in peace, to us. Why? Not for our entertainment. Allah wants us to know these stories so that we may reflect and ponder; so we learn from them, from the mistakes of their people, so we don't fall in the same ditch as their people did. By analyzing their lives, we can get guidance from them, since they were the most guided people. If we do not know about someone, how can we love him/her? And if we do not love the prophets, how can we be good Muslims? We cannot appreciate someone if we do not know what they did, and what kind of calamities they faced.

In short, the reason I decided to share the stories with you is so we can love and respect them more and learn from their lives.
-------------
Lives of The Prophets: Adam (as)


...prelude


How did all of this happen? How did it start?

"In the beginning, there was Allah. Nothing before him. His throne was on water. He wrote down in the tablet everything. And then he created the heavens and the earth."

"The first thing Allah created was the pen, and he ordered it to write, and it wrote everything that will happen until the day of resurrection."

These are a couple of ahadith (sayings) of Prophet Mohammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. Both signifying the events that took place before the creation of heavens and the earth. Before the heavens and the earth was created, Allah had already planned and written down in the preserved tablet what will happen in the heavens and the earth.

Our fate is sealed. Often times we worry about our wealth; we worry about tomorrow; paranoid; how will we make it in the future, we think.

"Allah wrote down the sustenance of the creation 50,000 years before he created the heavens and the earth."

Prophet Mohammad, peace and blessings be upon him, is telling us to not worry about our wealth, our income, our sustenance, because it has already been prescribed for us long before we came into this world. And we will get our share one way or another. Why must we worry ourselves to death about that which is not in our control? It makes very little sense.

...two other beings

Before Adam was created, there was already 2 creations living in heavens and the earth. Namely (1)angels, and (2)jinns.

1. Angels are created from light. They are very different from humans, unlike the jinns. Angels do not have the ability to choose from right and wrong. They can only do good, and are unaware of evil. They are the all-righteous beings, with very little intellectual abilities.

2. Jinns are created from fire. They are very much like humans. They can choose between right and wrong. Because jinns are created from fire, they are often referred to as "energy beings". Which means that they are not bound by this 3-dimensional world. They exist among us within our world, but we cannot see them because they do not have a physical appearance. However, they can take form of 3-dimensional objects, both animate and inanimate (among various other extraordinary things they can do).

2a. Iblis is a special character in the story of Adam. I decided to mention him separate from angels and jinns, because he was a jinn, who was so pious that Allah had elevated him to the level of the angels and he used to live in the heavens with the angels.

These 2 creations had been living in the heavens and earth for eons. Then Allah created Adam.

...Adam moulded out of clay

Adam, unlike the other 2 energy-beings, was created from earth. He was created from dirt that ALlah picked up from different parts of the world, Allah mixed it with water and it became mud, then it was left to dry to become clay. Adam was honoured such that Allah moulded his form with his own hands. He was moulded in his adult form as he was, and he didn't go through the process that all other human beings have to go through. The process of a single cell, creating tissues and organs, forming an embryo, then a fetus and then finally a baby.

[Just as a side note, I would like to take a moment to elaborate on this point and the significance of Adam being created in his adult form. The fact that Adam was created in his adult form clearly opposes the theory of evolution. Theory of evolution states that all things, objects and living beings were created from a single cell which evolved into the form that it is in today. That is, man was an ape-like creature before it was finally evolved into a human. Whereas Allah crealy says in the Quran that he created Adam with his own hands in his adult form.

I would also like to mention that although Islam opposes the theory of evolution, it doesn't discard all aspects of it; it approves of some, and disproves of some. For example, the theory of evolution states that species have the ability to adapt to the environment, and can change drastically over time, and Islam hsa no argument against that. Species can adapt to the environment because Allah has given them the ability to do so.

There are many other examples of how Islam proves and disproves the theory of evolution, but we will get into that at another time in another journal.]

...superiority over angels

Allah, the most glorious, told the angels that he will place on the world humans. The angels replied, "will you place therein those who will cause mischief and shed blood therein, while we glorify you with praises and thanks?" Allah told them, "I know what you know not."

Allah blew the soul into Adam's hollow clay body, and brought him to life. Adam sneezed, and said "All praises be to Allah". Allah said, "The mercy of Allah be upon you". The first thing he received as soon as he was brought to life was the mercy of Allah, the all-merciful.

Allah told Adam to go to the angels and say "peace be with you all", so he did. And the angels replied, "peace be with you too, and the mercy and blessings of Allah". Allah said to Adam, "this is your greeting and the greeting of your descendants". Allah has taught us the greeting, "peace be with you" from the beginning through our forefather Adam, and this is the greeting that we must use when we meet each other. We must spread peace among one another before we say anything else.

...Iblis' rebellion

When Adam was created, Allah told everyone in the heavens to bow down to Adam. So they all did, except for Iblis. He was driven by pride to rebel against the will of Allah. He said that he will not bow down to Adam because he is superior to Adam. He said, "You created me from fire, and you created him from clay". Thus Iblis was cast down from heaven and was labeled a disbeliever.

It was then Iblis made a promise to Allah that he will lead astray as many humans as possible just to prove to Allah that man is a weak creation. He prayed to Allah to let him live till the last day, and Allah granted his wish, fulfilled his prayer.

[Another side note... prayer is very important and holds a great deal of value in the eyes of Allah. Allah tells us to ask from him, and it is guaranteed that he will give it to us. All we have to do is ask. If we do not ask for whatever reason, whether we are lazy to pray, or we feel that we are not in need of anything, how can Allah give us. Sometimes we feel that Allah does not answer our prayers, that is wrong. Because Allah has guaranteed us that he will answer our prayers. If not in this life, then in the next life (which is better for us). Allah even answered the prayers of Iblis even after his rebellion. So what makes us think our prayers are not being heard?]

...the covenant

"And remember when your Lord brought forth the children of Adam, and made them testify themselves saying, 'am I not your Lord?' and they said, 'yes, we testify'. Thus you should not say on the day of resurrection, 'verily, we have been unaware'"

When our souls were created, before we were sent down on Earth in our bodily form, we had made an agreement with Allah. We witnessed for ourselves that we believe in Allah alone. Thus every child is born a Muslim, but it's his surroundings that change him into who he grows up to be.

...along comes Eve

Allah created Eve, out of Adam. When they both were created, Allah sent them off to live in the heavens, where they had everything to themselves, except for one tree.
"O Adam, live you and your mate in heaven. And eat from it where ever you want. But do not touch this tree."

The command was simple: do whatever you please, but stay away from 'this tree'. So how can such a great person commit a mistake of eating from that tree then? It was an innocent mistake on Adam's part, if we look at it. He didn't know any better. It was his first experience with the "devil" and he didn't know what would happen. And he didn't just bluntly ate from that tree just to disobey Allah. Iblis tricked him into eating from this tree. Shall I tell you about a tree that will give you infinite life, eternity. And will give you greatest kingdom that will never end?"
Iblis lured him into committing this sin by telling him lies about eternal life and power and wealth. He knows our weak points, and that's where he attacks us from. We must remember to never give into our desires when it comes to religion because it is the devil trying to lure us into committing sins. This experience was a lesson for all of us to learn from.

...home sweet home

Allah told Adam and Eve to get down to Earth. And told them that this dwelling place will be for you for a short period of time. Our forefather, Adam, was from heaven, and that's where we belong. We need to realize that. We must not get too attached to this world. We belong in heaven, and we must not give it up for this temporary world.

And Adam was told by Allah words (prayers to say) and he forgave him. Verily he is the one who forgives.
"Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves. If you forgive us not and bestow not upon us your mercy. We shall certainly be of the losers."

A great prayer that we all need to learn and memorize and use. We have all committed sins, and we all seek forgiveness! May Allah guide us all to the straight path. May he accept us and our good deeds, and forgive us of our sins.

Last but not least, I would like to apologize if I have offended anyone in anyway.

May Allah (swt) reward us all with Jannat-ul-Firdaws. Allahuma ameen.

Ma'asalaama (:

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Jan 7, 2009

I'm Back!

Assalamu'alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu,

My most sincere apologies to do those who frequent my blog often. I've been so busy these past few months, I'm surprised I had time to breathe! But alhamdulillah, I'm back and I will make it up insha'Allah with a series of articles on Purification of the Soul.

Purification of the Soul - Sincerity

Compiled from the works of Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali, Ibn Al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya, and Abu Hamid al-Ghazali.

Sincerity is the freeing of one's intentions from all
impurities in order to come nearer to Allah. It is to
ensure that the intentions behind all acts of worship and
obedience to Allah are exclusively for His pleasure. It is the
perpetual contemplation of the Creator, to the extent that one
forgets the creation.

Sincerity is a condition for Allah's acceptance of good
deeds performed in accordance with the sunnah of the
Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. Allah has
commanded this in the Qur'an:

"And they have been commanded to worship only
Allah, being sincere towards Him in their deen
and true. (98:5)"


Abu Umama has related that a man once came to the
Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and
said, "What of a man who joined us in the fighting, his
intention being for fame and booty?" The Prophet said, "He
recieves nothing." The man repeated the question three times and
each time the Prophet said, "He receives nothing". Then he said,
"Allah only accepts actions that are intended purely for His
pleasure."(1)

Abu Sa'id al-Khudri related that the Prophet (saw) said
in his khutba during the farewell pilgrimage, "Allah
will bless whoever hears these words and whoever understands
them, for it may be that those who pass on this knowledge are
not those who will understand it the best. There are three
things concerning which the heart of a believer should feel no
enmity or malice: devoting one's actions to Allah, giving
counsel to the Imams of the Muslims, and being loyal to the
majority."(2)

What is meant here is that these three things strengthen
the heart, and whoever distinguishes himself in them
will have a heart purified from all manner of deceit, corruption
and evil.

A servant can only free himself from shaytan through
sincere devotion, for Allah tells us in the Quran that
Iblis said to Him:

"Except those of Your servants who are sincere.
(38:83)"


It has been related that a rigtheous man used to say, "O
self, be devout and you will be pure." When any wordly
fortune, in which the self finds comfort and towards which the
heart inclines, intrudes upon our worship, then it impairs the
purity of our efforts and ruins our sincerity. Man is
preoccupied with his good fortune and immersed in his desires
and appetites; rarely are his actions or acts of worship free of
temporary objectives and desires of this kind. For this reason
it has been said that whoever secures a single moment of pure
devotion to Allah in his life will survive, for devotion is rare
and precious, and cleansing the heart of its impurities is an
exacting undertaking.

In fact, devotion is the purifying of the heart from all
impurities, whether few or many, so that the intention of
drawing nearer to Allah is freed from all other motives, except
that of seeking His pleasure. This can only come from a lover
of Allah, who is so absorbed in contemplation of the next world
that there remains in his heart no place for the love of this
world. Such a person must be devote and pure in all his actions,
even in eating, drinking and answering the calls of nature.
With rare exceptions, anyone who is not like this will find the
door of devotion closed in his face.

The everyday actions of a person who is overwhelmed by
his or her love for Allah and the akhira are
characterised by his love and they are, in fact, pure devotion.
In the same way, anyone whose soul is overwhelmed by love for
and preoccupation with this world, or status and authority, will
be so overwhelmed by these things that no act of worship, be it
prayer or fasting, will be acceptable, except in very rare
cases.

The remedy for love of this world is to break the
worldly desires of the self, ending its greed for this
world and purifying it in preparation for the next world. This
will then become the state of the heart and sincere devotion
will become easier to attain. There are a great many actions
where a man acts, thinking they are purely intended for Allah's
pleasure, but he is deluded, for he fails to see the defects in
them.

It has been related that a man was used to praying in
the first row in the mosque. One day he was late for the
prayer, so he prayed in the second row. Feeling embarrassment
when people saw him in the second row, he realised that the
pleasure and satisfaction of the heart that he used to gain from
praying in the first row were due to his seeing people seeing
him there and admiring him for it. This is a subtle and
intangible condition and actions are rarely safe from it. Apart
from those whom Allah has assisted, few are aware of such
delicate matters. Those who do not realise it only come to see
their good deeds appearing as bad ones on the Day of
Resurrection; they are the ones referred to in Allah's words:

"And something will come to them from Allah
which they
had never anticipated, for the evil of their
deeds will become apparent to them. (39:47-48)"

And also:

"Say: Shall We tell you who will lose most in
respect of their
deeds? Those whose efforts were astray in the
life of this world, while they thought that
they were doing good works. (18:103-104)"

Yaqub said: "A devout person is someone who conceals
things that are good, in the same way that he conceals
things that are bad."

As-Sousi said: "True devotion is to lose the faculty of
being conscious of your devotion; for someone who
identifies devotion in his devotion is a person whose devotion
is in need of devotion." To contemplate devotion is to admire
it, and admiration is an afflication; and that which is pure is
whatever is free of all afflictions. This means that one's deeds
should be purified from any self-admiration concerning the
actions they entail.

Ayyub said: "It is much harder for the people of action
to purify their intentions than it is to execute any of
their actions."

Some people have said: "To be devout for a short while
is to survive for ever, but devotion is rare."

Suhail was asked: "What is the most difficult thing for
the self? He said: "Devotion, when the self does not
have the good fortune of being endowed with it."

Al-Fudayl said: "Forsaking action for the sake of other
people is to seek their admiration. To act for the sake
of their admiration is to associate others with Allah. Devotion
is when Allah frees you from both of these states.

Insha'Allah, keep our Palestinian brothers and sisters in your du'as.

Ma'asalaama (:

Notes: 1. Sahih, an-Nisa'i, Kitab al-Jihad, 6/25; al Hafidh ibn
Hajar, Fath al-Qadir, 6/28. 2. Sahih, Ibn Ma'jah; also Ibn
Hibban, Marwarid adh-Dham'an, p.47, on the authority of Zaid ibn
Thabit.


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