Religion is a journey to Allah Ghazali defines religion (deen) as travelling to Allah. Hence Arabs have a saying as safaru yusfiru an akhlaq ar rijaal – travel (safar) reveals and exposes people’s character. If you give testimony, in order to establish how well you actually know someone, you are asked if have you travelled…
Cold booty- Al-ghanimatul baridah وَعَنْ عَامِرِ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: « الْغَنِيمَةُ الْبَارِدَةُ: الصَّوْمُ فِي الشِّتَاءِ » . رَوَاهُ أَحْمَدُ وَالتِّرْمِذِيُّ. حديث مرسل. ‘Amir b. Mas’ud reported God’s messenger as saying: “Fasting in winter is booty gained without trouble (easy reward).” [Ahmad and Tirmidhi][i] What attracted me to this…
What to avoid as a guest In Imam Ghazali’s Kitaab Al-Arba’in Fi Usul ad-Din, The 40 Principles of the Religion, he has a chapter on kesab, (earning) and on doubtful earnings. In this he explores the mentality of those who refuse to eat anything as they are suspicious of its origins and whether it is…
Allah Almighty entrusted us with His amanah (trusts). In Surat al Ahzab, He described the amanah, which He offered to the heavens, earth and mountains to carry, but the only being which agreed to carry it was mankind. ﴿٧٢﴾ إِنَّا عَرَضْنَا الْأَمَانَةَ عَلَى السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَالْجِبَالِ فَأَبَيْنَ أَنْ يَحْمِلْنَهَا وَأَشْفَقْنَ مِنْهَا وَحَمَلَهَا الْإِنْسَانُ ۖ…
In Surat al Baqarah, Allah Almighty said: And when they meet those who believe, they say: “We believe,” but when they are alone with their Shayatin (devils – polytheists, hypocrites, etc.), they say: “Truly, we are with you; verily, we were but mocking.” (2:14) Enemies are a part of life Allah Almighty told the Prophet…
What are the virtues for us of Bait al Maqdis (Jerusalem) Surat al Isra in the Quran is named after the journey which the Prophet (peace be on him) took from Makkah to Jerusalem before he ascended the skies to heaven on a special creature, called Buraq, where he received the command to perform salah…
The dua and formula for when you are troubled The Dua for 7 The Prophet (peace be on him) used to make this dua: اللّهُـمَّ اغْفِـرْ لي ، وَارْحَمْـني ، وَاهْدِنـي ، وَاجْبُرْنـي ، وَعافِنـي، وَارْزُقْنـي، وَارْفَعْـني. رواه أبو داود والترمذي. صحيح Allahumma’ghfir li, war’ḥamni, wahdini, wajburni, wa `afini, warzuqni, warfa`ni. O Allah forgive me,…
In a particularly beautiful ayah in the Quran, which appears in Surat al Dhariyat, Allah Almighty says: ﴿٥٠﴾ فَفِرُّوا إِلَى اللَّهِ ۖ إِنِّي لَكُمْ مِنْهُ نَذِيرٌ مُبِينٌ. سورة الذاريات. So flee towards Allah. I am to you from Him a clear warner (51:50) Nothing is certain This concise ayah reflects our current reality. Nothing is…
عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” إِنَّ مِنَ الشَّجَرِ شَجَرَةً لاَ يَسْقُطُ وَرَقُهَا، وَإِنَّهَا مَثَلُ الْمُسْلِمِ، فَحَدِّثُونِي مَا هِيَ ”. فَوَقَعَ النَّاسُ فِي شَجَرِ الْبَوَادِي. قَالَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ وَوَقَعَ فِي نَفْسِي أَنَّهَا النَّخْلَةُ، فَاسْتَحْيَيْتُ ثُمَّ قَالُوا حَدِّثْنَا مَا هِيَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ ” هِيَ النَّخْلَةُ ”.البخاري Ibn Umar…
The changeable nature of hearts Shahr bin Hawshab said: I said to Umm Salamah: O Mother of the Believers! What was the supplication that the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) said most frequently when he was with you? She said: The supplication he said most frequently was: يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوبِ ثَبِّتْ قَلْبِي عَلَى…
If you are undertaking a project or making a decision many factors come into your mind. What is the best way to decide if doing an action is the right thing to do or not? Ibn Qayyim This model is based on Ibn Qayyim’s methodology in his book Ighathatu al Lahfan. It gives us a…
Anas (may Allah be please with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be on him) said: By Him in whose hand is my soul, a servant of Allah does not believe perfectly till he loves for his brother what he loves for himself. This is a very important and well-known hadith. What the Prophet (peace…
Mughira ibn Shu’ba (may Allah be please with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The Prophet (peace be on him) said, “Allah has forbidden you to be undutiful to your mothers, to withhold (what you should give) or demand (what you do not deserve), and to bury your daughters alive. And…
Jubayr ibn Mut’im (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) says: The one who severs the ties of kinship will not enter into jannah. (Bukhari and Muslim) Severing ties of kinship is a very serious matter. You are not admitted to jannah if you cut off relations with…
The time for acceptance of dua is between the adhan and iqama, after salah, and in the last third of the night, so preferably make this dua during those blessed times. We ask Allah to accept our supplications. Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim alhamdulillahi Rabbil Alameen. Was Salaatu Was Salaam ala Rasulillah. Begin with istighfar: استغفر الله…