Today my focus is obedience. Obedience is ta’a in Arabic. In Islam, we have the concept of obedience to Allah Almighty, obedience to His messenger, and obedience to those who are in charge, as Allah Almighty stated in the Quran in many verses. For instance, Allah Almighty says in Surat al Imran: ‘Say “Obey Allah…
Islam is not theoretical, it’s practical. Our obligations are towards Allah Almighty and towards the people with whom we inhabit the world. Our relationships with people begin with our immediate families. Our immediate families are composed of those with whom we are related by blood. There are many verses in the Quran and hadith about…
Honour and dignity Allah Almighty mentioned in the Quran, We have dignified or honoured the children of Adam. (17:70) This is the only ayah in the Quran which has the word ‘karramna’ (honoured). Allah Almighty has therefore given dignity and honour to the children of Adam, all of them. This honour is a given from…
The concept of freedom In our old literature, we don’t find the word freedom as a stand-alone topic. It’s a new expression. The word hurriyya (freedom or liberty) is not a word you even find in the Quran. There’s no ayah that talks about ‘hurriyya’. However you will find the concept. Is it one of…
The General Principles series This is the third in the series on General Principles of Islam- which every Muslim should know. This series started when one of my students in my Arabic class said, ‘You have mentioned the main principles of Islam many times, but what are they? Where can I read about them?’ I…
Main principles in Islam: Tranquility (part 4) Indeed in the remembrance of Allah, hearts find tranquility. (13:28) Engage the heart Tranquility descends on the heart when it’s pure, and to purify it we need to engage it in dhikr (remembrance) of Allah. Not from lip service dhikr. If you are reciting dhikr quickly, you won’t…
Main principles in Islam: Know Allah (part 3) What does it mean to know Allah, love Allah, and call on Allah? What does remembering Him entail? Obligation to know Allah Knowing Allah is an obligation for every human. We know this but we need to dig deeper for it to impact our lives. In his…