Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “The first matter that the slave will be brought to account for on the Day of Judgment is the prayer. If it is sound, then the rest of his deeds will be sound. And if it…
The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “When one of you enters the mosque, let him not sit down until he has prayed two rak‘ahs.” (Bukhari and Muslim) The sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was therefore to greet the mosque by praying 2 rakahs before sitting down. What…
‘Race with one another towards forgiveness from your Lord and towards a paradise which is as wide as the heavens and the earth. It has been prepared for those mindful of Allah.’ [3:133] In this ayah of Surat Ale ‘Imran, Allah uses the word saari’ – meaning to race or rush. Allah is opening this…
Ayahs 103-105 of Surat Ale ‘Imran are very important verses about unity within the ummah. Allah mentions three main points: ‘Hold fast together to the rope of Allah and do not be divided. Remember Allah’s favour upon you when you were enemies, then He united your hearts, so you—by His grace—became brothers.’ [3:103] He is…
From ayah 69 of Surat Ale ‘Imran onwards, Allah talks about the phenomenon of People of the Book who knew the truth about the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, but refused to accept it. Allah had sent signs in the Torah and Injeel that another prophet was coming, but they hid these signs because they did not…
Surat Ale ‘Imran is the story of the family of Imran, the father of Maryam (peace be upon them). He was a dedicated rabbi in his community, and his wife was very pious, so both were at the top of their community in terms of religion. The provision of Maryam Imran’s wife, Hannah, made dua…
Source of protection: Surat al-Baqarah and Surat Ale ‘Imran ‘Recite the two bright ones, al-Baqarah and Surat Ale ‘Imran, for on the Day of Resurrection they will come as two clouds or two shades.’ [Muslim] In this hadith, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ referred to Surat al-Baqarah and Surat Ale Imran as the zahrawan, two bright…
Both receiving and paying interest (riba) are a major sin, as riba is strictly prohibited in Islam and Allah has declared war against those who deal with riba. Ask your bank not to deposit interest in your account. However, if this is not possible, take out the interest and give it in charity to a…
By the grace of Allah, the first ten days of Ramadan have passed and we are nearing the middle of the month. Scholars used to divide the month into three thirds. As we approach 17th Ramadan, we recall that it is a special date in our history, as it is an anniversary of the Battle…
What is the ruling for the one who has a sensation that they have emitted drops of urine during their salah? Firstly, salah is invalidated by the emission of urine, whether it is one drop or more because it breaks your wudu and nullifies your salah. If you are praying and emit drops of urine,…
If a non- Muslim visits you during Ramadan would it be permissible to offer them food during fasting hours in Ramadan? Can you share dates in your office among non-Muslims while you yourself are fasting? Or should you avoid this because it is encouraging people to ignore Allah’s command to fast during Ramadan? In Surat…
Charity – expect your reward from Allah alone In Surat al Baqarah, Allah talks about infaq – spending, giving for Allah’s sake. When you give in charity, you only expect reward from Allah. Giving for Allah’s sake means you give for free – you don’t give because you are expecting anything back. When you give…
Allah dedicates two and a half pages of Surat al-Baqarah to the verses of infaaq, spending, ayahs 261-274. In fact, in the whole Quran, there are more ayahs encouraging people to spend in the way of Allah than commanding people to pray. This is because it’s very difficult for people to give away their money….
‘Take due care of all the prayers, and the middle prayer), and stand before Allah in total devotion.’ [2:238] Salah was revealed gradually In this ayah, Allah is teaching the believers how to pray. Of course, the angel Jibril came down and taught the conditions, and the timings. Each salah was taught over two days:…
Limits on divorce Three pages of Surat al-Baqarah are devoted to the rules of divorce, or talaq. In Jahiliyya times, divorce was very common, but it was misused a lot, because there were no limits. Islam came to set boundaries, hudood. In Islam, divorce is permissible but it has conditions to prevent it being misused…