The history of Hajj Hajj was the last of the five pillars to be made an obligation, around the year 7 or 8AH. In the year 9AH, Abu Bakr led the Hajj, and in the tenth year, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ made his final Hajj with the whole Ummah, which at the time was around…
Righteousness is not in turning your faces towards the East or the West. Rather, the righteous are those who believe in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Books, and the prophets; who give wealth, despite (their) love for it, to relatives, orphans, the poor, travellers, those who ask (for help), and for freeing captives;…
Alhamdulilah we are blessed that we could witness Ramadan. Many people departed from this world to the akhirah, some passed away just before it started and some will not make it to the end. We are fortunate therefore, that we have been given the opportunity to fast, to pray and to recite the Quran. Life…
Ayahs 142-144 of Surat al-Baqarah, at the start of the second juz, talk about the change in the qibla from Jerusalem to the Kaba. The original qibla The angel Jibril came down and taught the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ how to perform salah in the second year after the revelation. This was before the five daily…
Spread good news In ayah 119 of Surat al-Baqarah, Allah says ‘Surely, We have sent you with the truth, as a bearer of good tidings, and a warner, and you will not be asked about the people of Hell.’ Allah is referring to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, one of whose names is al-Bashir, the one…
Allah challenges Bani Israil In ayah 94 of Surat al-Baqarah, Allah challenges Bani Israil, after they repeatedly betrayed their Messenger, Musa (peace be upon him) and reneged on their covenants with Him. Feeling a sense of superiority, they claim that Jannah is exclusively for them, and Allah asks them, ‘If the Home of the Hereafter…
Tonight we recited the central story of Surat al-Baqarah – the story of the cow, from which the surah takes its name. The story of the cow We know from historical narrations that a very rich man from Bani Israil was killed one night by his nephew, who was his only heir. In the morning,…
Surat al-Baqarah contains so much wisdom that it’s difficult to know where to start talking about it! As well as being the longest surah, it also contains the longest ayah in the Quran (Ayat ad-Dayn, which is about debt) and the best ayah, which is the Ayat al-Kursi. Bani Israil There are 115 ayahs about…
We are lucky to be witnessing Ramadan and to be able to pray in a mosque where we have a roof above our heads. The people of Gaza have no place to pray; food to eat; water to drink. Inshallah Allah will give them relief soon. We are starting with Surat al-Baqarah. Of course, this…
Ramadan is the month of patience and the month of resilience. The Battle of Badr, the first battle, took place in Ramadan. The Prophet (peace be upon him) encouraged his companions to endure challenges with patience and strength. We all face our own challenges and as an Ummah we are witnessing an extremely challenging time…
In Surat Tawbah, Allah summarised the story of the Battle of Tabouk, which took place in the ninth year after the migration. The Prophet (peace be upon him) mobilised an army of 30,000 soldiers which was the largest Muslim military campaign in his lifetime against the formidable Roman army, who were 100,000 troops. The believers…
The fortunate amongst us will live to receive Ramadan – due to illness or death. We ask Allah to enable us to receive Ramadan with good health and high imaan. Every year we have Ramadan, so what is the best way to receive it. This year I want to reflect on the state of our…
The name As-Samad has only been mentioned once in the Quran. Other names of Allah Almighty have been repeated as many as 20, 30 and even 50 times, but interestingly, As-Samad only appears once, in Surat al-Ikhlas, which is among the shortest surahs in the Quran. It begins: قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ١ Say He…
During salah the norm is to direct your gaze towards the place of prostration while standing, your feet when bowing and your nose while prostrating and on the ground while sitting. There is a hadith in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) advised keep your eyes open during salah and this is how the…
الَّذِينَ يُبَلِّغُونَ رِسَالَاتِ اللَّهِ وَيَخْشَوْنَهُ وَلَا يَخْشَوْنَ أَحَدًا إِلَّا اللَّهَ ۗ وَكَفَىٰ بِاللَّهِ حَسِيبًا Those who deliver the messages of Allah, and fear Him, and fear no one except Allah. Allah suffices as a Reckoner. (33:39) In this ayah Allah is explaining the importance of delivering the truth. Nothing should prevent you from delivering the…