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Monthly Archives: May 2023


27
May 2023
Sincerity vs insincerity is like a mountain vs dust

Ibrahim (peace be upon him) taught us to show humility when he and his son, Ismail (peace be upon him) were building the Ka’bah and ask Allah for acceptance of our deeds no matter how big or small, when he made the dua: Rabbana taqabbal minna inaka Antas Samee’ul Aleem رَبَّنَا تَقَبَّلْ مِنَّآ ۖ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلْعَلِيمُ Our Lord, accept from us. Indeed You are the Hearing, the Knowing. Therefore ask Allah for acceptance and sincerity. Then inshallah you will find your deeds weighing heavy in your account in the akhirah. When you......

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25
May 2023
What are the four fard elements of wudu?

The obligations are mentioned in the Quran. Mulla Ali begins by listing the obliagation (fard) aspects of wudu:1. Wash your whole face from the hairline above your forehead to the chin and from ear to ear. This does not include the neck or ears. The mouth and nose are not considered fard in the Hanafi school, but are considered fard in the Shafi school. 2. Wash both your hands up to and including the elbows. 3. Wipe over the head. 4. Wash both feet up to and including the ankles. Washing between......

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19
May 2023
Mulla Ali's Introduction to his book and the contentious issue of mursal hadith

Mulla Ali now moves on to the topic of debate among the schools, which is hadith al mursal. He refers to ‘our’ scholars (ulemauna) meaning the scholars of the Hanafi school and makes the statement that Hanafi scholars adhere to the Sunnah more than the other schools. This statement reflects what was happening at that time. 400 years on, it is still the case that the Hanafi school is accused by other schools for not using proper hadith and that their rulings are based on weak rulings or qiyas (analogy). In other......

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16
May 2023
Can the deceased hear the speech of the living?

There is a difference of opinion among scholars regarding whether the deceased can hear the living. Some of them said that they hear the speech of the living, and some of them denied that. Here are the evidences from both camps. Scholars who say the deceased can hear the living 1. There are two Sahih hadith that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said about the deceased – “He hears the sound of their shoes when they leave.” 2.  The Prophet (peace be upon him) spoke to the pagan enemies who were......

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15
May 2023
is it permissible to bury muslims in non-muslim graveyards?

t is not permissible for Muslims to bury a Muslim in the cemetery of non Muslim, because this is the practice of the people of Islam from the time of the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him and the Rightly Guided Caliphs and after them continues to separate the graves of Muslims from the graves of the non Muslims , and not to bury a Muslim with a polytheist, and this was a practical consensus Ijma’....

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13
May 2023
A fresh look at fiqh - why I have chosen Mulla Ali al Qari's book, Fath Bab al Inaya

Fiqh is a heavy topic for many people but it can also be fascinating. I have chosen to take you through this journey to give you a fresh look at this topic by going through some carefully selected excerpts from Mulla Ali al Qari’s renowned work, “Fath Bab al Inaya Sharh Kitab al-Nuqaya,” a 10th Century commentary on a Hanafi book. My journey with this book The decision to choose this particular book holds a deep personal significance and cherished memories from the past. In the 1988s I had the privilege to......

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13
May 2023
Allah's test does not end until we understand what we need to improve and fix it

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: وعن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال‏:‏ قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏:‏ ‏ “‏ ما يزال البلاء بالمؤمن والمؤمنة في نفسه وولده ة وماله حتى يلقى الله تعالى وما عليه خطيئة‏”‏ ‏(‏‏(‏رواه الترمذي وقال حديث حسن صحيح‏)‏‏)‏ ‏.‏ The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, “A Muslim, male or female, continues to remain under trial in respect of his life, property and offspring until he faces Allah, the Exalted, with no sin record.” In this hadith the Prophet (peace be......

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10
May 2023
Can we use feminine pronouns for Allah?

Discussions around the use of pronouns to refer to Allah have been a topic of recent debate. One point of contention is whether it is appropriate to use feminine pronouns (she/her) when referring to Allah. This debate never existed before as the gender of Allah was never in question. Changing pronouns is a recent phenomenon based on the deconstruction of what constitutes gender as well as a push by feminists to address discrimination against women over centuries. We need to separate political and social tussles from theology and the concept of the......

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10
May 2023
Keeping motivated beyond Ramadan

You end Ramadan with a clean slate, a new page. Be careful what you write on that new page. What do you want to see on it? Make a list of what you want to achieve as you do at New Year’s. This is your post Ramadan resolution if you want. What do you want to achieve after Ramadan? Maintain and improve the good deeds which you have done. Control your anger beyond Ramadan. Control your faculties - eyes, ears, tongue and limbs, after Ramadan. This will affect heavily what will be......

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07
May 2023
Is it permissible to quote weak hadith?

The majority of the scholars say one cannot quote weak hadiths however, some say that one cannot pass a general statement based on only weak narrations. They say if the weak narration is on at-Targheeb and at-Tarheeb: i.e. encouraging people to do something good or discouraging them from sin, then it can be used as long as it is in line with the Quran and the general Sunnah. ...

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05
May 2023
Do not be divided

Allah Almighty says in the Quran: وَمَا كَانَ النَّاسُ إِلَّا أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً فَاخْتَلَفُوا ۚ وَلَوْلَا كَلِمَةٌ سَبَقَتْ مِن رَّبِّكَ لَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ فِيمَا فِيهِ يَخْتَلِفُونَ  ‘Mankind was a single community; then they differed. Were it not for a prior decree from your Lord, the matters over which they had disputed would have been settled.’ In this ayah, Allah is addressing the issue of differences in the Ummah. In the commentary of Ibn ‘Abbas’ (may Allah be pleased with him) on this ayah, he pointed out that there were 10 centuries between Adam......

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03
May 2023
Who are the Revivers of the Religion for each generation?

Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَبْعَثُ لِهَذِهِ الأُمَّةِ عَلَى رَأْسِ كُلِّ مِائَةِ سَنَةٍ مَنْ يُجَدِّدُ لَهَا دِينَهَا ‏”‏ Allah will raise for this community at the end of every hundred years the one who will renovate its religion for it.(Abu Dawud) We do not have their names, but the following are considered by some to be the Revivers of the Religion: First Century (after the prophetic period) (August 3, 718)Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz (682–720) Second Century (August 10, 815)Muhammad ibn Idris......

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03
May 2023
The compilers of collections of 40 hadith

Imam Nawawi in his introduction to his famous Forty Hadith mentions the great scholars who inspired him, and were the brainchild behind compiling the 40 narrations (which were in fact 42). He said: “And many scholars compiled in this topic countless books” Amongst the first who compiled them are: Abdullah bin Mubarak (118-181 AH) is mentioned as an authority. A lot of the names of the scholars are based on where they lived or if they followed a particular trade. For instance, Abdullah bin Mubarak is known as the son of the......

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