The bitter pill There are still many lessons in this surah. There is a long catalogue of troubles and trials that befell Yusuf (peace be upon him). Our perception is that these are all negative – from being thrown in the well to being falsely accused and imprisoned. Yet all these bitter events and challenges…
Temptations The trials and tests Yusuf (peace be upon him) endured during his life as a child and afterwards are well known to us. She in whose house he was living tried to seduce him. She shut the doors, and said, “I am yours.” He said, “God forbid! He is my Lord. He has given…
The story of Yusuf The story of Yusuf (peace be upon him) is very important in the Quran. In particular, Allah Almighty called it ‘ahsanal qasas’ – the best story. We relate to you, [O Muhammad], the best of stories in what We have revealed to you of this Qur’an although you were, before it,…
Allah Almighty says, O my people, let not your hostility towards me cause you to suffer what was suffered by the people of Noah, or the people of Hud, or the people of Saleh. The people of Lot are not far away from you.’ Hud:89 Reflecting on these verses, Shu’aib (peace be upon him) found…
Allah Almighty says; The notables who disbelieved among his people said, ‘We see in you nothing but a man like us, and we see that only the worst among us have followed you, those of immature judgment. And we see that you have no advantage over us. In fact, we think you are liars.’ Hud:27…
Possessing books As a student of knowledge, we should try own as many books as we need for they are our tools of learning. However, we should not get into the trap of collecting books or creating a library of books without reading them. Every book we buy, it should be read at least once,…
When you start your journey to seek knowledge what books should your read when taking your first steps to get the necessary knowledge? I often get asked this question and these are the top 10 books I would suggest that everyone serious about knowledge should read: Aqeedah – Al-Fiqh Al-Akbar by Abu Hanifa. Tahawiyyah by…
Never a wasted moment Imam Abu al-Wafa Ali Ibn Aqil ibn Ahmad al-Baghdadi (431-513AH/ 1040–1119AD) He is a top scholar in the Hanbali school and of his time. The summary of his long biography, he used to say: It is not permitted for me to waste any second of my life. It is a gift…
What is Tajweed? The word Tajweed linguistically means proficiency or doing something well. It comes from the same root letters as the word Jayyid, which means good. In order to recite the Quran correctly, it is not sufficient to be fluent in reading Arabic, but one has to be familiar with each letter of the…
Allah Almighty says; As for those who believe and do good deeds, and humble themselves before their Lord—these are the inhabitants of Paradise, where they will abide forever. Hud: 23 The word ‘akhbatu’ (humble) is unique – it appears on only two occasions, once in Surah Hud (al-ladhina akhbatu) and once in Surah Hajj, (wa…
Had your Lord willed, all the people on earth would have believed in Him, without exception. So will you compel people to become believers? Yunus: 99 The ayah is asking: Are you going to force people to be believers? Allah Almighty has given the choice to people to believe or not, as in Surah Baqarah:…
Allah Almighty says; Unquestionably, [for] the awliya’ (those close to Allah) there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve Those who believed and were fearing Allah For them are good tidings in the worldly life and in the Hereafter. No change is there in the words of Allah. That is what is…
Prophet Yunus (peace be upon him) was locked down in the belly of the whale and we too have been stuck in lockdown, but insha’Allah, Allah will release us soon. Like Yunus, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) had been warning his people but they were not listening: Some of them appear to be…
Allah Almighty says ; “Indeed, those who do not expect the meeting with Us and are satisfied with the life of this world and feel secure therein and those who are heedless of Our signs. For those their refuge will be the fire because of what they used to earn.” Yunus 7-8 In these verses…
The Inspiring Companions Series It was narrated from Abdullah bin Abi Talha, from his father, that: The Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) came one day with a cheerful expression on his face, and we said: ‘We see you looking cheerful’. He said: ‘The Angel Jibril came to me and said: ‘O Muhammad, your…