Unite The Muslims

Question “Sheik Effendi, when we behold the glory of the rising sun and the endless sky full of stars, we feel and know thereby that the Creator is and that He is very Great. But sometimes in the life of a person there occurs very sad and terrible events : people whom we love die – parents, brothers, friends. When tragedy comes into our lives, how can we keep our faith in Gods Mercy, how can we feel that He cares about what is happening to each and every one of us?”

Now our distinguished guest has asked a very important question that every single person in the world must be asking in his heart.

His eyes have been opened to the Infinite Gory of the Creator by the wonders He Almighty has created for that purpose. Therefore, he is praising the Creator and he is saying that these wondrous sings in the cosmos, and the perfection and harmony of the intricate movements of heavenly bodies, of the balance of nature etc, may cause a person to awaken to the Majesty of the Creator, Sustainer and Guide of All Creation.

He recognizes, as do all believers, that the Lords Endless Mercy pervades the Universe, for without it neither we nor any other creature could exist and take its sustenance. He sees that we are swimming in Allah’s Mercy Oceans. But he asks, as do so many people, how to reconcile our belief in Allah’s Mercy with the bitterness and horror we feel at the death of loved ones and other seemingly merciless events in the world. He is asking how we can deal with the doubts that creep into our minds in respect to that mercy, how to deal with that voice that says to us : “If Allah is so merciful, how can He allow such events to happen?”

Yesterday we spoke of the creation of Adam, and we said that, according to tradition, the descendants of Adam have been granted the most honourable station possible among creatures of this world: the rank of deputies of their Creator.

Every creature may ask to be in possession of such a high rank, but Allah Almighty cautioned them all, asking: “Who among you is prepared to pay the price and carry the burden of that most honoured rank. Who can carry that heaviest of ranks on their shoulders?” Yes, all creation was shown the nature of that rank, and its responsibilities. As Allah Almighty states in the Holy Qur’an:

“Verily, We offered that trust to the heavens, the earth and the mountains; and they refused to accept it, and they feared it, But man, he took it upon himself to bear it. Surely he was sinful, very foolish.”

And He Almighty revealed to creation all that was involved in that trust; so that no creature could plead he had been burdened beyond what he himself had accepted. The result was, that when faced with such a choice, all of creation refused to take it upon themselves, saying that that were afraid in the face of such an awesome challenge. But man said: “I can carry it. I am ready to make the necessary sacrifices, I am ready to pay the price.”

Here then, is your answer. If you lay claim to that honour, if you value the nobility of your rank as “Crown of Creation”, if you consider that which sets you apart, from dogs and monkeys to be worth preserving, worth sacrificing for, then you must be prepared to agree with your Lords decrees; that is the price you pay for that most honourable rank. You must not reject what He wills in directing the course of life in his Creation . He does as He Wills, and it is for us to be patient in matters that are beyond our sphere of influence ( like the inevitability of death ), for the sake of our Lords love, as He has given His Love to the Descendants of Adam above all creatures.

Look, our Lord asked the Prophet Abraham, Peace be upon him, to slaughter his son for the love of his Lord. In this story is a lesson for all of us. He Almighty ordered Abraham: “Slaughter your son for Me. The price of My Love is even more than the sacrifice of love that you harbour for your son. Give that love (which is now for your son) to Me also: by slaughtering him, give it to Me.”

Then Abraham made ready to obey his Lord, despite Shaitan’s repeated attempts to dissuade him. Thus ( by proving his readiness to carry out his Lords order) Abraham proved his steadfastness in obeying the divine command. But the Lord, who is not in need of the blood of our sacrifices, but accepts the sincerity with which they are offered, prevented the knife from cutting. He almighty ordered the knife: “Don’t cut!” Then Abraham tried to cut his sons throat, but the knife wouldn’t cut, would not even make a scratch, though he had sharpened it himself with the greatest care. Repeatedly he drew the knife across the delicate throat of his son, but with no result. At last Abraham threw down the knife, and in order to show Abraham the power if his Will, He Almighty made that knife cut through a big rock like a knife cuts through cheese. The an Angel appeared to the astonished Abraham, saying: “Oh Abraham, don’t think that your knife is dull! You have proved your sincerity, now take this ram and slaughter it….”

He Almighty has given His Divine Love to the descendants of Adam, and we have responded to our Lord, saying: “We are true unto You, oh our Lord.” Then He Almighty said : “I am going to try you, to examine all of you to see who is true in his claim of loving Me.” Who can withstand such a trial as Abraham? But in all of our lives there are also trials, and by being patient in the face of them we gain our Lords endless love.

One of the most famous of Islam’s saints was the King of the land of Balkh, Ibrahim bin Adham. He abandoned his kingship for his Lords sake and went away to live on what he earned by performing tasks of menial labour, and devoted his spare time, and all his heart, to his Lords worship.

When he abdicated his throne, and went away he left behind him a pregnant wife. After twelve years the boy and his wife had born began to inquire after his father. The boy set out in search of his father, and successfully traced his movements until he finally came across him in Mecca. Ibrahim bin Adham knew that the boy was his son the first time he laid eyes upon his noble face. He said : “You are my son.”

The boy said “You are my father.” Then Ibrahim prayed to his Lord: “Oh my Lord, You know best that, up until now, all of my love has been exclusively for You. Now I see that some of my love is going to this boy. Oh my Lord, all I want in this life is that my heart be purely for You: therefore I implore You to please transform this love in my heart for the boy to be love for You.”

Then Allah Almighty took the soul of that boy to his Divine Presence. The love that the boy had for his father was transformed into Divine Love so that he went to the Divine Presence totally pure.; and the love that Ibrahim bin Adham had for the boy also penetrated to the realm of Divine Love. Merged into the Divine Love Oceans of his saintly heart.

Allah Almighty is “Al-Ghayyur” or “The Jealous God”. He calls us to merge all the love we feel into His Divine Love; to take the love we feel for our loved ones and transform it into a love that will penetrate into the realm of Divine Love. This is the meaning of His requiring a “pure heart” (qalbun – salim) from His servants, for all that you love in those dear ones, is but the attraction of a ray of the attributes of your Lord which you see in them, which shines through the familiarity between you and them and reaches your heart.

Those loved ones will die, and so will you; but if that love reaches to the ultimate recipient of all Love, then the goal of human love has been attained, and it is acceptable and lovely in the Divine Presence. But if we fail to surrender to our Lords decree of mortality for all His creatures, and hate Him for putting us in a temporary existence of passing images, states and feelings, life becomes a bitter pill too bitter to swallow. In such a case life itself becomes a sorrow ocean, as He Almighty calls all of His servants, one by one, back to His Divine Presence and away from us and this world.

He is our Lord, the sole Sustainers of our existence. He has rights over us and tries us to see who will be true and hold to the love of their Lord. Therefore, all manner of events may occur: lovely people may die, young people may die, brothers, sisters, wives and husbands may die, will die, must die. Everyone you love will die. Then He looks to see what you will do: can you transform your love and make a tragedy a cause of increasing your love for your Lord? So few people understand this, and that is why they can’t see the Divine Wisdom in sorrowful events. They don’t recognise that our Lord is beckoning us to Love Him wholly and exclusively; therefore they suffer.

Everything He Almighty has given to the Descendants of Adam is temporary, not worthy of that ultimate love. You must give your love to the One who is always in existence – from pre eternity to post – eternity.

“Glorified is the ever – living (Lord), for whom there is no Death”

Therefore, you must awake to these realities and not ever think that events represent the decrees of a merciless Lord. No! For in these apparently merciless events is contained boundless mercy, as our Lord rewards us in accordance with the severity of our trials: the recompense is more and more of His Love.

At any time sorrowful and unliked events may (and will) descend upon you. Your Lord makes them a means of approach to Him that He may pour out everlasting Love Oceans on His beloved servants.

This is a very important point, and a very heavy one. We must comprehend these wisdoms and their import, but such a realization will evade us as long as we are thinking that these are just some words. That Divine Love must be tasted. As much as I may repeat the words: “Honey, honey, honey…..” or describe the characteristics and flavour of honey, you are not going to taste it, not going to be satisfied. These realities must be tasted, and unless you have reached that point you cannot understand more than these words.

- 01.07.1983

A

True love of Prophet (AS)

Sheykh Abdul Kerim Effendi – Sohbet – General Zikr – 15h Safar 1431 – 1/30/2010 from Yursil on Vimeo.

A few months back, I wrote about a chili recipe I cooked during my week of “maternity leave.” I spent that time cooking, cleaning, and looking after my elder two children while my wife recovered and took care of our new daughter, Taymiyyah.

Before her birth, I was pretty much a “hands-off” dad – diapers, babysitting, feeding, and cleaning up after them was taken care of primarily by my wife.  And since they didn’t like leaving her side, it was easy for me to say, “See, if I take them, they’ll just cry, so you keep them.” About the only time I’d take them was when the signs of a nervous breakdown were apparent on my wife’s face.

I had an epiphany of sorts after walking a week in her shoes – I was practically placing her in a position of involuntary slavery. It was simply too much, with a 4 year old, a 2 year old, and now a newborn. After some thought, I realized my contribution as a husband and father had been inadequate, and change was in order – here are a few I made:

1.  Time Blocks

Each part of my daily schedule is sliced and allocated for certain categories of my life, so activities related to that time block happen there and there only. In the evening after maghrib (maybe after asr as days become longer), I now have a block of time allocated to spend with my kids (they always want to play PS3 or rough house). I’ve also told my wife to take this time off to do her own thing, whether that’s being alone or hanging out with us.

From what she’s told me as well as the feedback she’s received from other sisters, many of them are starved for personal time away from the kids. My suggestion for brothers is to work out a scheduled time for this to happen with their wives, rather than waiting for them to meltdown.

2.  Diaper Changing and Other Chores

I have a confession. I hate changing diapers, but I can handle it, and most other chores. As I mentioned earlier, I used to leave all the cleaning for my wife (though I was one of those rare guys raised by his mom to know how to clean the whole home) as well as the diaper changing, but I’ve since changed my ways. I help out with everything as time allows, including the diaper changing.

I know, I know, I’m outing a lot of us saying this, but do we take one part of the religion and leave another? Or more accurately, do we emphasize on some of the sunan and leave others? I definitely was. The Prophet was in the service of his family, and none of us can claim we were more busy than him.

3.  Family Outings

Another area I was able to improve was family outings. I previously left it to my wife to feed the kids and would only get involved if I thought the next words out of her mouth would be, “HULK SMASH KIDS AND HUSBAND!” Same thing with events at the masjid or classes with gender segregation – leave ‘em to mom.

These days, I look for opportunities to help out. If the kids are clinging too much to my wife, I’ll make the effort to entice or convince them away from her so they’ll stay with me. When my son is eating (my eldest daughter eats on her own now), I’ll feed him and allow my wife to eat first.

About the only time I’ll leave the kids with my wife is if I’m in a masjid in which the presence of children elicits drama queen-like responses from the community.  In masjids where kids are not only tolerated, but welcomed (even if they walk around during salah), I’m happy to take my kids.

Concluding Thoughts

That’s the direction I’m heading in my own journey of fatherhood/ husbandhood.  It’s not a straightforward topic, but I thought I’d share some strategies I’ve used successfully to relieve the daily stresses my wife faces with the children. I’m under the impression this is an issue for many married sisters, so if it is, please chime in and offer your own thoughts. And any brothers who know better in this, please offer your strategies as well =)

My friend asked me to send him a certain audio file, and since I uploaded it and sent it to him, I thought i’d put the link for it here, for others who are interested.

This is known as Hisn al-Amaan min ash-Shaytaan, al-Jaan, al-Insaan

The Fortress of Security from the Shaytaan, Jinn, and Humans.

By al-arif billah ta’ala, shaykh Abdul Ghani b. shaykh Saleh al-Ja’fari. Recited beautifully by a qaari’.

It includes the Husoon al-Ja’fariyya (Shaykh Saleh al-Ja’fari’s selection of Qur’anic ayas of protection that are read as part of the wird every morning and evening), and other parts of shaykh Saleh al-Ja’fari’s wird, as well as other du’as from other sources and ahzaab, and ahadith.

It can be downloaded from here (www.sendspace.com/file/h88cey).

1 hr : 35 mins long.

*****

Also I have been informed by a shaykh in the Tariqa that there is a general idhn for anyone to benefit from this Hisn.

*****

Some time ago, I gave a series of lectures on Taharah (cleanliness) to the sisters in my community. A number of questions were raised from the discussion. It was nice and a very open talk since the one giving the lecture was a female herself. The sisters felt quite comfortable asking questions, in detail, that they normally feel shy about.

One of the matters that we discussed was about the exact nature of female wet dreams. I realized that this issue is not only complicated for sisters but also a much neglected subject. This is why, I decided to have a full entry on this topic, for a number of reasons:

1. This matter is not as simple and clearly distinguishable for sisters as it is for brothers, so it must be thoroughly explained.
2. There are a number of lectures given from shayukh to the brothers, in detail; however, rarely do we ever hear any Shariah explanation for sisters, in detail.
3. Mothers feel shy talking to their daughters about it. In which case, if the young daughter experiences a wet dream, she may not know the Shariah ruling on it or how to purify herself afterward.

Hence, I decided to contribute this piece, along with the help of a professional Gynecologist, Dr. Fatimah Lalani and Shaykh Yasir Qadhi, so it may help and benefit all the sisters who read this.

Wet dreams are as normal for women as they are for men. Although, the frequency may be lower compared to men, nonetheless, the occurrence of wet dreams among women does not indicate any abnormality.

Umm Salamah said: “Umm Sulaym came to the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu alihi wasalam, and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, Allah is not too shy to tell us the truth. Does a woman have to do ghusl if she has a wet dream?’ The Prophet said: ‘Yes, if she sees water (a discharge).’ Umm Salamah covered her face and said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, can a woman have an erotic dream?’ He said, ‘Yes, may your hands be rubbed with dust. How else would her child resemble her?’” (Bukhari)

Therefore, if a girl/woman sees a wet dream, it does not mean that she is sexually perverted, lewd or immodest in any sense. It is out of her control, especially for younger girls who may be experiencing many hormonal changes in their bodies. In fact, the Shariah itself recognizes wet dreams as a sign of puberty.

“And when the children among you come to puberty (al-hilm)…” [al-Noor 24:59]

The same term, al-hilm, is used for both puberty and wet dreams, marking wet dreams an indication of puberty.

Besides, Allah azzawajal created wet dreams as an outlet for men and women to release their sexual energy. It happens as a result of human nature which Allah azzawajal has created Himself and no blame can be put on a person. Moreover, since wet dreams happen during sleep, while a person has no control over himself/herself, the Shariah frees a person from any blame.

The Messenger of Allah, sallallahu alihi wasalam, said: “The Pen has been lifted from three: from the one who is sleeping until he wakes up, from the child until he reaches the age of puberty, and from one who is insane until he comes to his senses.” (Tirmidhi)

Also, keep in mind that the Prophet, sallallahu alihi wasalam, did not reprimand the woman who had a wet dream, neither did he declare it “abnormal” for women. Rather, he made it quite clear that women can have wet dreams just like men do and there is no oddity or incongruity with it.

Aisha (ra) said: The Messenger of Allaah, sallallahu alihi wasalam, was asked about a man who notices some wetness but does not remember having a wet dream. He said, “He should do ghusl.” He was asked about a man who thinks that he had an erotic dream but does not see any wetness. He said, “He does not have to do ghusl.” Umm Salamah said, “O Messenger of Allah, does a woman have to do ghusl if she sees something like that?” He said, “Yes, women are the twin halves of men.” (Tirmidhi, Abu Dawood)

And so, I want to remind the parents and the husbands to educate themselves on this subject before making any hurtful or psychologically damaging remarks to their womenfolk. This matter is as normal among women as it is among men.

Having said this, I want to encourage mothers to inform and educate their daughters about such dreams. Do not underestimate what others are capable of teaching your daughter, including her friends (inside or outside the schools, Muslims or non-Muslims) or even teachers. Even if they do not attend the “sex-Ed” class at the school, I can assure you that they will be taught by their fellow students. Most of my teen students learned about these issues from their classmates during 3rd and 4th grade. That was about ten years ago and over the time; our society has only become more corrupted.

It is best that a daughter hears and learns this information directly from her own mother rather than from someone else educating her in school or in the streets. A mother’s education is sincere, pure, and free of any vulgarity. Besides, a Muslim mother can/should always point out the Islamic recognition of the normality of our body functions and the Shariah rulings about it.

Do not wait until your daughter asks you, because she may never ask you. This is a step that a mother has to initiate and be the first to “break the ice.” My suggestion is to explain exactly what happens during a wet dream, next give her the biological/hormonal cause, and then explain to her the Islamic ruling about it. Make your daughter feel comfortable, do not pass any embarrassing comments, put a smile on your face but be precise.

Also, do not wait until her menstrual cycle starts. It is better to educate her once the signs of puberty start appearing in her. During my discussion with Dr. Lalani, I asked her if a girl could have wet dreams before she has her first menstrual cycle. And she replied:

“Yes I suppose it is possible. Puberty is a continuum and can begin around age 9-10, starting with development of breasts, pubic and underarm hair, a growth spurt, and then menses. Throughout this time you have hormonal changes, so I suppose you could have a wet dream, prior to onset of menses.”

It led to my other question: Can wet dreams in itself mark the onset of a girl’s puberty (balagha) making her accountable for her religious obligations like fasting and hijab? Of course as any fiqhi matter, this too, had ikhtilaf (difference of opinions). I do not intend to defend one opinion or the other, but I will briefly mention both opinions.

Those scholars, who support the opinion that wet dreams are an indication of a girl reaching the age of puberty, base their opinion on the signs of male puberty and do not make any distinction between the two genders; they include menstruation as an additional sign for females.

However, the other opinion is inferred from a number of ahadith that state that the rulings are to be established at time of menstruation, like the hadith of the Prophet sallallahu alihi wasalam:

“Allah does not accept the prayer of a menstruating woman [i.e who has gotten her menstruation] unless she wears a veil [khimar]“. [Abu Dawood, at-Tirmizi]

And like the narration in Sahih Muslim in which the Prophet sallallahu alihi wasalam indicated that a man’s prayer is cut off when a woman who has gotten her menstruation passes in front of him. In this hadith, the sign of a baligha (a woman who has reached puberty) was indicated by her menstruation, wAllahu ta’ala ‘alam.

To conclude, since the female wet dream may or may not be accompanied by a discharge, contrary to that of men, I posed a few questions to the shuyukh based on the discussion I had with other women and I received following answers from Sh. Yasir Qadhi:

These answers are by Sh. Yasir Qadhi:

To be honest we rarely find such DETAILED discussion in fiqh books, most likely because men are not as familiar with this topic as they should be.  However, based on the hadith of the Prophet, sallallahu alihi wasalam, I would say that:

Question: If a woman sees a sexual dream but is confused whether she had an orgasm or not, what should she do? (Please keep in mind that female genital area is always wet, and they do not necessarily always have extra discharge upon orgasm, so the matter is not as easy to discriminate as for men)

Answer: The ‘asl (original) is that she has not had a wet dream, so until there is yaqin (certainty) she does not have to take a bath. Therefore, if she does not remember an orgasm, and her private area is not extra wet, she doesn’t have to do ghusl (bath).

Question: If she sees extra vaginal discharge but is sure that she didn’t have any dream of sexual nature at all?

Answer: Vaginal discharge does not necessitate ghusl, no problems here.

Question: If she sees extra vaginal discharge and is confused about the dream (i.e. vaguely recalls something but is not sure either), again keeping in mind that extra vaginal discharge could be completely hormonal or due to the normal menstrual cycle?

Answer: She must have yaqin (certainty) or at least a very strong presumption that she’s had a wet dream (which includes an orgasm).

If sisters have any further questions, please feel free to post them here.

A poem by shaykh Saleh al-Ja’fari,

with my translation and commentary.

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And with the blessings of the name of Allah we begin…. Bism Allah ar-Rahmaan ar-Raheem.

And the awliya are the subul of ar-Rahmaan

Their imdaad comes from the mine of the Furqaan

Allah ta’ala said in the noble Qur’an: “And those who strive in Us, We will guide them to our subul” (29:69).

Subul is plural of sabeel: a path or way, or a means or medium.

Shaykh Saleh al-Ja’fari said in explaining this aya: And the people of Allah are the subul of Allah in the land of Allah. They take one to the light of Allah, the Seal of the Prophets, salla Allahu alayhi wa Alihi wa sallam. “Allah guides whoever He wills to His light” (24:35).

Their imdaad (meaning: what they receive, and in turn, give to others) is from the mine of the Furqan (meaning: The Criterion, another name for the noble Qur’an).

That is because the Qur’an is an endless ocean containing the stories of those who came before, information of what will happen later, and guidance for the present. It is thus a mine from which they can extract the jewels of guidance and the pearls of meanings and secrets, and with them they can guide others and purify them.

However, on another level, the “mine” is referring to the Prophet Muhammad, salla Allahu alayhi wa Alihi wa sallam, whose heart is the mine of the Qur’an.

Allah ta’ala says: “Did We not expand thy breast? (94:1)

Imam Sahl at-Tustari said: “Did We not widen your breast through the light of Apostleship (nur ar-Risaalah) and so make it a mine for the spiritual realities (haqaa’iq)?”

Allah ta’ala says: “So it is those who believe him, honor and help him, and follow the light which has been sent down with him, who will succeed.” (7:157)

Imam Sahl at-Tustari said: “The light is the Qur’an whose mine is the heart of Muhammad, salla Allahu alayhi wa Alihi wa sallam.”

And so the awliya receive their knowledge of the Qur’an and its meanings from the heart of the Prophet Muhammad salla Allahu alayhi wa Alihi wa sallam, which is the mine of the Qur’an and the fountain of knowledge and imaan.

They make the nafs despise its desires

If you see them you remember Allah

• It's bidaa to say Mawlid is bidaa. #
• "Mawlid is Bida" @ Islamic Center of Basking Ridge – another disappointing 'khutba'. #
• you don't know poverty until you see Indo-pak poverty. children running around nude, looking to get water from the fresh rain in puddles. #

A couple of weeks back, I highlighted an episode of the public radio series Inside Islam that examined the relationship of Islam & Science. The next episode in the program is scheduled to air this week on a topic that’s perhaps less academic, but likely more personally relevant – The Art of Quranic Recitation. A hat tip to the crew over at UW-Madison, where the show broadcasts from, for choosing to discuss a facet of Islam that’s 1) not rooted in political controversy, 2) rarely, if ever, acknowledged through any Western medium, and 3) so rich, both spiritually and intellectually.

As with all their episodes, Inside Islam invites their listeners to participate in the conversation. Click on the above link to the upcoming show to comment on the emotive experience of Quranic recitation – it may even end up on the air!

Staying on the Islam & media theme, a new documentary, Veiled Voices, about the lives of Muslim women religious leaders will broadcast nationally on this Monday, March 8, 2010 for International Women’s Day.

Here is an excerpt from the promo:

Women across the Middle East are trying to reclaim their role as leaders in Islam. Veiled Voices goes in-depth into the world of three Muslim women religious leaders, who say women were always meant to be powerful within the religion. Filmed over the course of two years in Lebanon, Syria and Egypt, Veiled Voices reveals a world rarely documented, exploring both the public and private lives of these luminary women.

Ghina Hammoud (Lebanon) faces a personal challenge in gaining legitimacy as a leader as a divorced woman, since divorce is controversial in conservative communities throughout Lebanon. Dr. Su’ad Saleh (Egypt), widely considered the most influential female religious leader in Egypt, leads this fight through her weekly television show, “Women’s Fatawa,” a “telephone call-in show” in Egypt. Huda al-Habash (Syria) teaches women in Damascus, and lectures all over the Middle East, helping people “move…from ignorance to knowledge.” Each triumphs over difficult challenges as they carve out a space to lead – both in Islam and in their communities.

So…What are your favorite reciters and recitations? (Yes, we’ve discussed this before on MM, but if there was ever a topic worthy of a retread, it’s this one!) Know any other upcoming media events dealing with Islam and Muslims?

*As always, this remains an OPEN thread, so feel free to share whatever is on your mind*

Disampaikan oleh Al-Sayyid Syaikh Muhyiddin Abdul Qadir Al-Jailani
Di Madrasah al-Ma’murah, Ahad, 10 Syawal 545H
(Rujukan : Fathur-Rabbani)

Wahai kaumku…!

Capailah olehmu pintu kehidupan itu selagi ia masih terbuka untukmu, kerana tidak lama lagi pintu itu akan tertutup buatmu. Lakukanlah kebaikan, selama kamu masih mampu melakukannya. Segeralah mencapai pintu taubat dan masuklah kamu ke dalamnya, selama ia masih terbuka buatmu. Capailah pintu doa kerana pintu itu masih terbuka untukmu. Bersegeralah kamu mencapainya, berdesak-desakan dengan saudara-saudaramu yang soleh, kerana pintu itu terbuka untukmu.

Wahai kaumku…!

Bangunkanlah semula apa yang sudah kamu robohkan. Cucilah apa yang telah kamu kenakan najis. Perbaikilah apa yang telah kamu rosakkan dan jernihkanlah apa yang telah kamu keruhkan. Kembalikanlah apa yang sudah kamu ambil dan kembalikanlah kepada Tuhanmu apa yang telah engkau larikan daripada-Nya tanpa izin-Nya.

Wahai hamba…!

Tiada sesuatu pun di sini kecuali al-Khaliq. Jika engkau bersama al-Khaliq maka engkau adalah hamba-Nya, dan jika kamu bersama makhluk-Nya, maka kamu adalah hamba mereka, hingga engkau dapat membuang ketandusan dan kegersangan di hatimu serta mencerai-beraikan semuanya dari hatimu. Apakah kamu tidak tahu, bahawa orang yang mencari Allah akan berpisah dengan semuanya itu. Sudah cukup jelas, bahawa segala sesuatu dari makhluk adalah hijab antaranya dengan Khaliq.

Wahai hamba…!

Janganlah kamu bermalas-malas, kerana selamanya kemalasan itu akan membuatmu terhalang dan akan menimbulkan penyesalan di dalam hatimu. Oleh itu perbaikilah pekerjaanmu, sementara Allah telah berbuat baik kepadamu, di dunia mahupun di akhirat.

Abu Muhammad al-’Ajami Rahimahullah sentiasa berdoa dengan ucapan: “Ya Allah, jadikanlah kami orang-orang yang baik.” Seakan-akan ia bermaksud mengatakan: “Ya Allah, jadikanlah kami sebagai orang yang memperbaiki apa yang telah kami lakukan.” Tetapi lafaz itu tidak sampai beliau ucapkan.

Barangsiapa yang pernah merasakannya, maka ia akan mengetahuinya. Pergaulan yang baik dengan makhluk dan berteman dengan mereka dalam batas-batas syariah dan keredaan-Nya adalah pergaulan yang diberkati. Sebaliknya, jika hal itu dilakukan dengan melanggar batas-batas syariah dan tiada keredaan-Nya, maka janganlah lakukan itu, kerana tiada kehormatan untuk mereka. Penerimaan dan penolakan terhadap suatu ketaatan merupakan suatu petanda bagi kaum sufi dan orang-orang yang menjauhi kemaksiatan.

Wahai hamba…!

Tegakkanlah perangkap doamu dan kembalilah kepada keredaan. Janganlah engkau berdoa dengan lidahmu, sementara hatimu berpaling daripada Allah al-Haq. Pada hari akhirat kelak, semua manusia akan teringat akan apa yang telah dilakukannya di dunia, sama ada kebaikan atau keburukannya. Penyesalan ketika itu tiada bermanfaat sama sekali, demikian juga dengan ingatan itu. Bahkan tidak bermanfaat juga baginya mengingat hari kematiannya, ingat akan tanah pertanian dan persemaiannya dan masa menuai bagi manusia. Semuanya itu tidak bermanfaat lagi.

Jika kematian datang kepadamu, maka engkau akan terjaga (sedar akan segala perbuatan dan tindakan yang dilakukan selama hidup di dunia). Bagaimanapun terjaga pada waktu itu tidak berguna lagi bagimu.

“Ya Allah..! Bangkitkanlah kami daripada ketiduran orang-orang yang terlupa terhadap-Mu dan orang-orang yang tidak mengerti tentang Engkau…”

Wahai hamba…!

Persahabatanmu dengan keburukan akan menjadikan kamu orang-orang yang berprasangka buruk terhadap kebaikan. Berjalanlah kamu di bawah naungan Kitabullah dan sunnah Rasul-Nya, nescaya kamu akan berbahagia.

Wahai kaumku…!

Malulah engkau kepada Allah dengan sebenar-sebenar malu. Janganlah kamu melalaikan masa-masamu, janganlah kamu menyia-nyiakannya, janganlah kamu menyibukkan dirimu dengan mengumpulkan sesuatu yang tidak dapat engkau makan, mengangan-angankan sesuatu yang tidak akan dapat engkau capai, membangun sesuatu yang tidak mungkin engkau diami. Kerana semuanya itu akan menghalangimu daripada maqam Tuhanmu. Ingatan kepada Allah selalu terhunjam di dalam hati orang-orang yang arif, sehingga mereka lupa akan segala sesuatu yang pernah diingatinya sebelum itu.

Apabila hal itu dapat kamu laksanakan dengan sempurna, maka syurgalah tempat tinggalmu, iaitu syurga yang dipilih dan syurga yang dijanjikan. Syurga yang dipilih di dunia ialah reda kepada qada’ Allah, dekatnya hati kepada Allah, bermunajat kepada-Nya, menyingkap tabir yang ada di antaranya dengan Allah. Ini akan menjadikan pemilik hati itu sebagai berteman dengan teman Allah di dalam kesunyiannya, tanpa perincian dan tanpa perumpamaan.

Allah swt berfirman :

“Tiada sesuatu juapun yang menyerupai-Nya, dan Dia adalah Maha Mendengar lagi Maha Melihat.” (al-Syura : 11)

Adapun yang dijanjikan, ialah segala sesuatu yang sudah dijanjikan oleh Allah Ta’ala kepada orang-orang yang beriman dan melihat kepada Dzat Allah Yang Maha Agung, tanpa hijab. Tidak disangsikan lagi, bahawa semua kebaikan adalah di sisi Allah, manakala keburukan itu berada di sisi makhluk. Kebaikan adalah dalam menghadap kepada-Nya sedangkan keburukan adalah berpaling daripada-Nya. Setiap amalan yang kamu harapkan ganjarannya, maka ia adalah milikmu. Manakala semua amal yang kamu lakukan demi Allah dan untuk Allah, maka amal itu adalah untuk-Nya.

Apabila engkau beramal dengan mengharapkan imbalannya maka balasan untukmu ada pada makhluk, dan apabila kamu beramal kerana Dzatnya, maka balasan untukmu adalah kedekatanmu kepada-Nya dan melihat-Nya.

Kemudian, janganlah engkau mengharapkan imbalan amalmu secara keseluruhan. Segala sesuatu yang ada di akhirat, di dunia dan selain daripada Allah, bersandar kepada-Nya. Janganlah engkau mencari kenikmatan itu kepadamu. Carilah jiran, sebelum kamu mencari rumah yang hendak engkau diami. Dia Yang Ada sebelum adanya segala sesuatu. Dialah Yang Mengadakan segala sesuatu, dan Dialah Yang Ada setelah segala sesuatu.

Hendaklah engkau sentiasa ingat akan mati dan bersikap sabar atas segala bencana, serta bertawakallah kamu kepada Allah dalam semua keadaan. Jika ketiga-tiga tahap ini telah engkau laksanakan dengan sempurna, maka pada suatu ketika, akan datanglah malaikat kepadamu dengan mengingatkan kematian yang menjelang dan ketika itu berhasillah kezuhudanmu. Dengan kesabaran, engkau akan memperolehi segala sesuatu yang engkau harapkan dari Allah s.w.t, dan dengan ketawakalan, akan keluarlah segala sesuatu dari hatimu, sehingga ia hanya terkait dengan Allah semata-mata. Singkirkanlah dari hatimu dunia, akhirat dan segala sesuatu selain daripada Allah. Dengan demikian, akan datang kepadamu kesegaran dan ketenangan dari segala penjuru serta pemeliharaan dan perlindungan dari enam penjuru mata angin, sehingga tiada ruang bagi makhluk untuk mencederakan engkau. Tertutuplah daripadamu semua arah dan terkuncilah daripadamu semua pintu. Sehingga engkau tergolong kepada orang yang disebutkan oleh Allah dalam firman-Nya yang berbunyi:

“Sesungguhnya hamba-hamba-Ku, kamu tidak dapat berkuasa atas mereka…” (Al-Isra’ : 65)

Bagaimana mungkin makhluk akan dapat menguasai orang-orang yang mengesakan Allah, yang ikhlas, yang tidak menunjuk-nunjukkan amalnya kepada makhluk, yang berbicara tentang tujuan akhir, bukan pada permulaannya. Semua permulaan itu adalah bisu dan semua penghujung itu adalah pemahaman. Orang yang ikhlas itu kerajaannya ada di dalam hatinya dan kekuasaannya ada di dalam batinnya tanpa memandang kepada kenyataan zahiriyah.

Adalah suatu hal yang jarang terjadi, seseorang yang mampu menghimpunkan kerajaan zahir dan batin. Jadilah kamu menjadi orang yang menyembunyikan semua sikap dan perilakumu, janganlah berhenti, hingga engkau mampu menyempurnakannya dan hatimu sentiasa berhubungan dengan Allah.

Jika engkau telah menyempurnakannya, maka ketika itu engkau tidak lagi akan peduli kepada sebarang halangan dan rintangan. Bagaimana kamu akan mempedulikannya, sedangkan kedudukan engkau telah mantap dan kukuh. Berdirilah engkau ditempatmu, sementara Dia akan memelihara dan melindungimu, maka manusia atau makhluk-makhluk lain akan menjadi dinding penghalang di hadapanmu.

Hinaan dan pujian ketika ini tiada beza bagi kamu, demikian juga dengan penerimaan atau penolakan mereka. Engkau akan menjadi orang yang membangun dan yang merobohkan mereka. Kamu bertindak terhadap mereka dengan seizin Khaliq, al-Haq Pencipta mereka.

Maka Dia akan memberimu jalan pemecahan dan penyelesaian serta membuang semua petaka di dalam hatimu dan memberikan tanda-tanda ke dalam batinmu. Tiada pembicaraan apapun sehingga engkau cukup mafhum dengan semuanya ini. Jika tidak, maka jadilah kamu orang yang berakal, janganlah berbuat bodoh. Kamu adalah bagaikan orang buta, oleh itu carilah orang yang akan menuntunmu, kamu adalah orang bodoh, maka carilah orang yang akan mengajarimu. Jika engkau telah menemuinya maka hendaklah engkau berpegang kepadanya, terimalah semua pendapat dan buah fikirannya dan terimalah dalil-dalil yang diberikannya secara baik. Jika engkau telah mendapatkannya, maka duduklah engkau di sana bersamanya hingga engkau mampu memantapkan pengetahuanmu berkenaan hal itu.

Pada ketika itu akan terlindunglah daripadamu segala kejahatan. Engkau menjadi pengikut kefakiran dan kemiskinan. Kesimpulan daripada semuanya ini ialah menjaga rahsia Allah dan berakhlak kepada manusia dengan akhlak yang baik.

Dari manakah kamu mencari kebenaran dan keredaan Allah selain daripada-Nya! Apakah kamu tidak mendengar firman-Nya yang berbunyi:

“Di antara kamu, ada orang yang menghendaki dunia dan di antara kamu (juga) ada orang yang menghendaki akhirat.” (Ali-Imran : 152)

Sementara dalam ayat lain pula, Allah berfirman, yang bermaksud:

“Mereka menghendaki atau menginginkan keredaan-Nya.” (Al-Kahfi : 28)

Sesungguhnya kebahagiaan dan keberuntungan akan menjadi bahagianmu, dan datang kepadamu tangan-tangan mujaddid (pembaharu) yang akan membersihkan kamu daripada sentuhan tangan-tangan makhluk, serta akan membawamu menghampiri pintu gerbang taqarrub kepada Allah. Allah berfirman, yang berbunyi:

“Di sana, pertolongan itu hanya datang dari Allah Yang Haq.” (Al-Kahfi : 44)

Apabila engkau telah sampai ke tahap ini, maka dunia dan akhirat akan datang kepadamu sebagai pelayan, tanpa adanya kesusahan. Capailah pintu al-Haq dan tetaplah engkau berdiri di sana. Apabila engkau tetap di sana, maka akan nyatalah bagimu beberapa seruan atau bisikan, sehingga engkau akan mengetahui dan membezakan antara bisikan nafsu, bisikan hawa, bisikan hati, bisikan iblis dan bisikan malaikat. Inilah yang dikatakan dengan bisikan yang benar dan bisikan yang batil.

Pelajarilah satu demi satu bisikan-bisikan tersebut, sehingga engkau mengetahui tanda-tandanya. Apabila engkau telah sampai ke tahap ini, maka akan datang bisikan (ilham) dari Allah untuk membimbingmu berkenaan dengan kesopanan, keteguhan, tegak dan dudukmu, gerak dan diammu serta perintah dan larangan buatmu.

Wahai kaumku…!

Janganlah kamu mencari tambahan dan pengurangan, awalan dan akhiran, kerana takdir itu telah menyelebungi diri masing-masing dengan sempadan-sempadan atau batas-batas tertentu. Tiada seorangpun di antara kamu, kecuali ia mempunyai catatan atau ketentuan daripada kudrat ini.

Allah telah berlepas tangan daripada segala sesuatu yang telah ditetapkan-Nya sebelumnya. Bagaimanapun, akan datang bagi segala sesuatu itu hukum-hukum yang ditutup oleh perintah-perintah, dalam bentuk larangan dan kewajipan. Oleh yang demikian, tidaklah halal bagi seseorang untuk mengemukakan hujah atau alasan hukum atau ketetapan yang telah lalu. Allah Ta’ala berfirman:

“Dia (Allah) tidak ditanya tentang apa yang diperbuat-Nya tetapi merekalah yang akan ditanyai.” (Al-Anbiya’ : 23)

Wahai kaumku…!

Beramallah kamu dengan amalan zahiriyah, amalan yang nyata bagaikan dakwat hitam di atas kertas yang putih, sehingga membawamu kepada mengamalkan amalan batin dalam urusan ini. Jika kamu mengamalkan amalan zahiriyah, maka ia akan mendatangkan kefahaman bagimu terhadap perkara-perkara batiniyah, kemudian ia meresap ke dalam jiwamu dan mempengaruhi lisanmu, kemudian ia meresap ke dalam lisanmu dan kamu sampaikan ia kepada manusia. Demikianlah alirannya terus menerus secara berulang-ulang, untuk kemaslahatan dan kemanfaatan manusia sejagat.

Wahai…!

Alangkah beruntungnya kamu jika kamu mengikuti al-Haq dan mencintai-Nya. Sebaliknya, alangkah celakanya kamu, jika kamu hanya mengakui bahawa kamu mencintai Allah. Tahukah kamu bahawa untuk mencintai Allah itu diperlukan beberapa syarat yang mesti dipenuhi…? Sebahagian daripada syarat-syarat cinta kepada-Nya itu ialah mentaati-Nya, serta tidak merasa tenang di sisi selain daripada-Nya, merasa tenteram bersama-Nya serta tidak merasa keberatan untuk tetap bersama-Nya. Apabila cinta kepada Allah itu benar-benar telah mantap dan terhunjam dalam ke hati hamba-Nya, maka hamba itu akan merasa tenteram bersama-Nya, dan membenci segala sesuatu yang boleh melalaikan hati dan jiwa daripada-Nya.

Oleh itu bertaubatlah kamu dari pengakuanmu yang bohong itu, kerana semuanya itu tidak mungkin diperolehi dengan khayalan, angan-angan, dusta, munafik atau dengan sikap kepura-puraan. Bertaubatlah kamu dan tetaplah kamu dalam taubatmu itu. Ketaubatanmu tidak sama dengan bagaimana engkau mengukuhkan taubat itu. Demikian juga dengan penipuan yang engkau lakukan, tidaklah sama dengan perbuatan yang engkau anggap dapat mengukuhkan pembohongan itu, serta apa-apa yang menjadi buah penipuan tersebut.

Tetaplah engkau untuk sentiasa reda dengan Allah, dalam keadaan derita atau sengsara, dalam keadaan miskin atau kaya, dalam keadaan kesusahan atau kesenangan, dalam keadaan sihat atau sakit, dalam keadaan baik atau buruk, ketika memperolehi yang engkau kehendaki atau tidak. Tiada ubat yang sesuai untukmu, selain daripada menyerahkan diri sepenuhnya kepada Allah Al-Haq. Jika Dia menetapkan sesuatu yang merugikan kamu, janganlah kamu merasa benci kepada-Nya, jangan pula kamu menjauhkan diri daripada-Nya serta jangan pula kamu mengadukan hal yang menimpa dirimu itu kepada selain-Nya. Kerana semuanya itu akan menambah ujian dan cubaan terhadap dirimu.

Oleh itu hendaknya engkau tenang berada dihadapan-Nya. Lihatlah apa yang dilakukan-Nya terhadap kamu dan untuk kamu, maka berbahagialah kamu dengan perubahan dan penukaran yang dilakukan terhadapmu itu. Jika kamu bersama-Nya dengan jalan seperti ini, maka sudah pasti Dia akan menukar kegelisahanmu dengan ketenangan, dan jiwamu akan tenteram dalam mentauhidkan-Nya.

Ya Allah!

Jadikanlah kami bersama orang-orang yang berada di sisi-Mu dan bersama-Mu. Ya Tuhan kami, berilah kami kebaikan di dunia dan kebaikan di akhirat, serta peliharalah kami daripada seksaan api neraka.

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By Abu Muslim Kamran Khan

In the name of Allah, all praise is due to Allah, we seek his help and we seek his forgiveness. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet [salAllahu alayhi wa salam], the anbiya, the shuhadaa and all those that follow him until the Day of Judgment.

One of the greatest benefits of giving charity for the sake of Allah is that not only does it benefit us while we are alive but it is also able to benefit us after we pass away in the form of sadaqah jaariyah. Death will come to us all, when our time has arrived and the angel of death has taken our souls, our chance to do good deeds and work towards paradise will have also ended. We will not be able to pray any more prayers, perform one more Hajj, fast another Ramadan, read any more Quran and so on and so forth. With that, our good deeds will have ended also, with the exception of three:

The Prophet [salAllahu alayhi wa salam] said:”When a man dies, nothing lives on after him, except for three things: sadaqah jariyah (continuing charity), knowledge which can benefit others, or virtuous offspring who will pray for him.”

Allah has blessed us with the ability to continue accumulating rewards even while we are buried under the ground. One of the ways we are able to do so, as mentioned in the hadeeth is via continuing charity. This can come in many forms but it is ultimately something that has a long term effect and which people benefit from even after you have left the dunya. Ongoing charity is the waqf (Islamic endowment) which may take many forms. The definition of a waqf is that the origin is “frozen” and the fruits are donated for the sake of Allah.

Imam Al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his explanation of Saheeh Muslim:

Regarding this hadeeth, the scholars say the meaning of this hadeeth is that the deeds of the deceased come to an end when he dies, and the renewal of reward ceases for him, except in these three cases, because he is the cause of them: his son is counted among his earnings, as is the knowledge that he leaves behind through teaching or writing, and ongoing charity, i.e., a waqf (Islamic endowment)

Charity which benefits others after death not only brings happiness to yourself but also happiness to those who are benefiting. How many a people have built masajid which people are still praying in until this day? How many a people have helped build an Islamic school in which children are still learning in until this day? How many people have built a well in a poor country from which people are still drinking to this day? Even if you are not in this world to see the benefits, you will reap them in the akhirah inshaAllah.

A specific example is to establish a masjid or Islamic school or donate towards one. For all those people that pray there you will get the reward inshaAllah, for all those children that study there you will get the reward inshaAllah, for all the good that comes from them, you will get the reward inshaAllah.

Helping to build a masjid has a special reward in addition to being an ongoing charity. Whoever builds a masjid will have the reward promised for that. This is what is narrated in the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “Whoever builds a masjid for the sake of Allah, even if it is like the nest of a sand grouse, Allah will build for him a house in Paradise.” [Narrated by Ahmad, 2157]. The hadeeth gives an example of building the smallest thing possible.

Sadaqah jaariyah is not just limited to schools and masajid. There is so much potential for reward which is ongoing. We can see from the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (salAllahu alayhi wa salam) ideas and examples of this special type of charity. Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:

“The good deeds that will reach a believer after his death are: knowledge which he learned and then spread; a righteous son whom he leaves behind; a copy of the Quran that he leaves as a legacy; a mosque that he built; a house that he built for wayfarers; a canal that he dug; or charity that he gave during his lifetime when he was in good health. These deeds will reach him after his death.” [Ibn Majah/242]

There are many instances from the sahaba (may Allah be pleased with them) where they would give charity freely and give sadaqah jaariyah specifically.

As was narrated by al-Bukhaari (2737) and Muslim (1633) from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) was given a share of land at Khaybar. He came to the Messenger of Allah (salAllahu alayhi wa salam) and asked him what he should do with it. He said: “O Messenger of Allah, I have been given a share of land at Khaybar and I have never been given any wealth that is more precious to me than it. What do you command me to do with it?” He said: “If you wish, you can ‘freeze’ it and give it in charity.” So ‘Umar gave it in charity and stipulated that it was not to be sold, given as a gift or inherited, and he gave it in charity to the poor, relatives and slaves, for the sake of Allah and for wayfarers and guests; there was no sin on the one appointed to look after it if he ate from it on a reasonable basis, and fed others without storing anything for the future.”

The sahaba (may Allah be pleased with them) used to give that which was loved to them for the sake of Allah. We can see from this that the sahaba (may Allah be pleased with them) used to not only recite the Quran but also to follow it like it should be followed. The Quran was their guide in life, when they heard; they obeyed. They would learn the ayat of Allah and implement those ayat in their daily lives. Allah (azza wa jal) says in Surah Ale Imran, ayah 92:

“By no means shall you attain piety, unless you spend (in Allah’s Cause) of that which you love; and whatever of good you spend, Allah knows it well.”

Sometimes you may not see the results instantly. But Allah provides from avenues which you never thought were possible. He may be saving the reward for a time when you need it the most. Look at the mercy and love Allah has for his slaves; perhaps you spend in Allah’s cause during a time when you have the means while seeking the reward only from Allah and in turn, Allah spends on you during a time when you do not have the means.

The similitude of a person who gives sadaqah jaariyah is like the one who has planted a date palm in his garden. During his lifetime he is able to enjoy eating from the dates and sharing it with others, thus seeing the fruits of his labour (no pun intended). But when he passes away, the tree is donated to the community on his behalf and people can still enjoy eating from the tree and Allah will keep rewarding him every time someone eats from it.

Ibn Hazm (rahimullah) said in al-Muhalla (8/151): “Ongoing charity is that which continues to bring reward even after death.”

Whatever a person gives in charity of his wealth is his true wealth that will abide for him and benefit him. You are not losing out by giving your money in charity but in fact you are losing out by not giving your money in charity for the sake of Allah.

Al-Tirmidhi (2470) narrated that a sheep was slaughtered at the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and given in charity except for its shoulder. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asked ‘A’ishah, “What is left of it?” She said: “Nothing is left except the shoulder.” He (salAllahu alayhi wa salam) said: “All of it will remain except its shoulder.”

This means that whatever a person eats is that which is gone and no longer remains, but that which he gives in charity is what will remain for him with Allah and he will benefit from it on the Day of Resurrection. This hadeeth is a reference to the verse in which Allah says in Surah Nahl, ayah 96:

“Whatever is with you, will be exhausted, and whatever is with Allah (of good deeds) will remain”

So long as the waqf is still in existence, the reward for its founder will be ongoing. So hasten to give charity and strive to make your charity ongoing, so that you may benefit from it after death. If we do not leave charity that is ongoing even after death then what else will benefit us after our death? Charity for the sake of Allah is an investment, not only for this world but for the hereafter as well. It is a chance for us to get the both of best worlds.

From the International Union of Muslim Women:

Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’oon. Our beloved sister, Aminah Assilmi passed away this morning in an automobile accident.

We pray that Allah (SWT) will shower His mercy on this sister and grant her the highest level of Paradise – Jannat Ul-Firdous – and give her family patience in this difficult time. Ameen.

Sister Aminah Assilmi, Director of the International Union of Muslim Women, Author, Advocate of Women’s Rights, and Renowned Speaker died early this morning while returning from a speaking engagement in New York .

Sister Aminah and her son, were in single car accident just outside of Newport Tennessee where she had been living for just over a year.  The car accident happened just after 3am and it appears that Aminah was killed instantly.  Her son Mohammad was taken to a hospital in Knoxville.

Aminah had some health issues, but still maintained a rigorous schedule of speaking engagements to many communities around the country and around the world.  She was instrumental in getting the Eid stamp issued in 2001 and had been planning to start a campaign to have the stamp reissued with a new design in time for its 10 year anniversary.  She was also trying to build a Center for Muslim Women’s Studies that would serve as a place where converts could learn about Islam and the basics including how to pray etc., as a retreat, and as a summer camp for Muslim children.

Funeral arrangements are being arranged through:

Click Funeral Home
109 Walnut Street
Lenoir City , TN 37771
(865) 986-8013
Fax: (865) 986-4738

Aminah was 65 and is survived by her daughter Amber, and sons, Whitney and Mohammad as well as several grandchildren.

Any donations to offset final expenses or to continue her work with IUMW can go through the International Union of Muslim Women through the website at IUMW.org.

Remembrances can be sent to IUMW@yahoo.com, some of these may be published on the website.

From Dr. Waleed Basyouni:

Ina lillaahi ma akhadha wa ina lillaahi ma a3dha wa kulloo shayin 3ndahoo bi miqdar.

“To Allah belongs what He takes and to Him belongs what He gives. And there is a set time by Him for everything.”

On Thursday March 4, 2010 sister Aminah Assilmi, the da’eeah and one of the most active caller of Allah in North America, her long journey in this life came to an end. Sister Aminah was coming back from NY, after an event with her son, and died in a car accident. My Allah forgive her, shower her with His Mercy, accept her good deeds, and give her son a speedy recovery. What a great reminder to all of us, that a lady in her old age and after surviving 5 cancers died upon the one thing she dedicated her whole life for, dawah. This is a sign of good ending, insha’Allah. Plus, dying in the night of Jumuah is another sign of a good ending. Her Janazah will be held on Saturday in Tennessee.

A few years back she performed Hajj in the same group with me and I came to see one of the most active, sincere and energetic persons in dawah. She was a sweet good natured “big sister” for all of us.

On behalf of the AlMaghrib family, I send my condolences to her family and I ask Allah to support them and give them patience.

From CAIR:

Aminah Assilmi was a national Muslim community activist, scholar and leader who died earlier today in a car accident outside of Newport, Tenn. She was returning with her son from a speaking engagement in New York. Her son, who was injured in the accident, was taken to a hospital in Knoxville.

“To God we belong and to Him we return,” said CAIR National Board Chairman State Senator Larry Shaw (NC). “We ask God to shower His mercy on Sister Aminah and to grant her loved ones strength and patience in this time of sorrow.”

Sister Aminah, who was 65, served as the Director of the International Union of Muslim Women. She was an internationally-respected author, an advocate for women’s rights and a renowned speaker on Islam.

Despite health issues, Sister Aminah maintained a rigorous schedule of speaking engagements around the nation and the world. She was instrumental in the U.S. Postal Service’s 2001 issuing of the “Eid” stamp, which marks the two main Muslim holidays. Her current project included a Center for Muslim Women’s Studies that would serve as a resource center for new Muslims and as a summer camp for Muslim children.

Donations are being accepted to offset burial expenses. For more information, visit the web site of the International Union of Muslim Women, http://www.IUMW.org. Any surplus donations will go to continue her work. The International Union of Muslim Women is a nonprofit, 501 c(3) organization.

Remembrances can be sent to IUMW@yahoo.com. Some of these may be published on the web site.

For additional information, contact Nadiah Beekun at (775) 762-4905 or e-mail nadiah@usa.com.

By Aarij A (Cross-posted from the True & Good Words blog)

Bismillah.

Introduction

For students of Arabic, there are a lot of wonderful dictionaries and resources available online and in-print. However, the wrong dictionary at certain stages of learning could lead to a lot of frustration, unnecessary expenditure of time and even ultimately a loss of motivation to study Arabic.

Thus, here is a list of dictionaries and resources in English that students of Qur’an and Arabic can use in their studies. For each resource, the following aspects are expanded upon:

• where is it available from,
• what are some of its main features (not exhaustive by any means),
• some pros and cons,
• a personal review (if applicable), and
• a final verdict.

The pros and cons, personal review and final verdict should help a student decide which dictionary is appropriate for them, insha Allah. The resources are categorized in two ways:

1. Arabic-English/English-Arabic dictionaries and resources,
2. Qur’an-Exclusive dictionaries and resources.

This categorization should further help a student decide which resource is most suited for their educational needs. The list is in no particular order. At the end of the article, there is a small concluding note as well, insha Allah.

Reading Time: 20-30 minutes.

Intended Audience: Students/Budding students of Qur’an and Arabic, preferably those with a little background.

Arabic-English/English-Arabic Dictionaries and Resources

Executive Overview

AlMawrid Dictionary

Available from:

Available in PDF. Available for purchase at Amazon. Software available from Amazon and the electronic version also from Amazon.

Features:

The Mawrid has words that are arranged alphabetically, instead of by root words (which is more traditional). Moreover, unlike many Arabic-English dictionaries, the Mawrid also offers a synonym in Arabic for each Arabic word. The Mawrid, unlike most dictionaries, comes in print, in a software package and in a very handy electronic device that is easy to carry around.

The Mawrid comes in two types: Arabic-English only and in Arabic-English/English-Arabic, which makes it supremely useful for a student who is learning how to speak and write in Arabic.

Pros:

1) Ease of Usage. It requires very basic knowledge of grammar to benefit from it. For example, for Arabic verbs, if you don’t know the root of the verb or you don’t know the form of the verb, you can still utilize this dictionary as long as you can figure out the past tense of the verb. So there is some basic grammar required, but not a lot.

2) Arabic Synonyms. These help a student quickly build up a very strong vocabulary.

3) Electronic Version. Easily one of the most useful tools for a student of the language. The time to search words is drastically reduced when using the electronic version, which makes reading Arabic texts much easier and faster.

Cons:

1) Missing Information. The Mawrid does not provide the masdar of a verb, the forms of the verbs, the present tense of 3-letter verbs and the plural of nouns.

Personal Review:

I have used the Mawrid extensively and have found it to be one of the best dictionaries. It helped me increase my vocabulary, helped save my time when I was looking up words quickly and it explained many words beautifully and concisely.

Verdict:

Essential for beginners, excellent for intermediate students but not too much value for advanced students/researchers. A dictionary that should be in every one’s library.

Hans Wehr

Available from:

Available in PDF. Available for purchase at Amazon.

Features:

Hans Wehr arranges its entries by root word, giving many applicable meanings, commonly used phrases, usage of verbs with prepositions, how verbs effect the objects (مفعول به) (if applicable) and how the meaning changes with different forms of a verb (numbered II-X). Moreover, it provides the meanings of the masadir of verbs, meanings of many of the derivatives from verbs (المشتقات) and also the present tense of 3-letter verbs. All of these are done in a code that is explained in the preface of the dictionary. Furthermore, Hans Wehr provides a transliteration for most words which helps in pronunciation.

The Hans-Wehr does not come in English-Arabic, only in Arabic-English.

Pros:

1) Thoroughness. The dictionary is very thorough and comprehensive, providing a wide range of meanings, usages, associated phrases in a very succinct manner.

2) Completeness. You can find relatively complete information about the basics of a verb (present, masdar, different forms, usages) and plurals for nouns. This makes it very beneficial for anyone who delves deeper into the language for studying the Qur’an or the ahadith.

Cons:

1) Difficult Usage. Hans Wehr requires some intermediate knowledge of grammar to fully benefit and utilize it. Thus, it can be intimidating and time-consuming for beginners who do not have too much mastery over grammar.

2) Notation. There is a lot of notation in the dictionary that takes a lot of time and reading of the preface to get used to. This is another hurdle for the beginner, but once you get used to it, the notation is very useful.

Personal Review:

I have used the Hans Wehr a lot and still use it as my first reference whenever I research a word. It is not something to use when you want to quickly look up a word, rather Hans Wehr is useful when you have some time to read the entire entry concerning the word, its usages, phrases, etc.

Verdict:

A little background in grammar is necessary to fully benefit from this work. A challenging book for beginners, essential for intermediate and advanced students. Another dictionary that should be in every one’s library, in my opinion.

Sakhr

Available from:

Available online at: http://dictionary.sakhr.com/

Features:

Very similar to the Mawrid, but completely online. Sakhr allows words to be searched alphabetically (as well as by root words). Like the Mawrid, it offers an Arabic synonym for each word. Also like the Mawrid, there is an English-Arabic version available online as well. Unlike the Mawrid, it distributes the search results by verb, noun, verbal noun (masdar), etc. which makes it very helpful.

Pros:

1) Ease of Usage. Exactly like the Mawrid, basic grammar knowledge is required to benefit from this resource. For example, as long as you can find the past tense of a verb, you can search for it.

2) Arabic Synonyms.

Cons:

1) Poor Translations. Unlike the Mawrid, the English translations are sometimes confusing and inaccurate.

2) Missing Information. Like the Mawrid, the masdar of a verb, the forms of the verbs, the present tense of 3-letter verbs and the plural of nouns is not provided with each entry.

3) Typing in Arabic. You must know how to type in Arabic to benefit from this. There are a variety of Arabic (online and for install) available, so this should not be too much of a deterrent.

Personal Review:

I have used Sakhr for quickly looking up words until I installed VerbAce (see below). It is still my go-to resource to look up words quickly when I don’t have VerbAce available. I have found it to be extremely useful and easy, despite its shortcomings.

Verdict:

Excellent resource for beginners and intermediate students. A worthy bookmark.

VerbAce Pro

Available from:

Available for trial download here. More details here.

Features:

VerbAce Pro is a dictionary which comes as a computer software (i.e it has to be installed on your computer) that provides Arabic-English/English-Arabic translations. It enables searching by root words, searching by whole words, searching by verbs in their present/command tense and provides exact matches and partial matches.

The exact matches for verbs include basic information like form, present tense (in notation) for 3-letter verbs, synonyms in Arabic and usage with different prepositions. The nouns are provided with the plurals as well. The search results are nicely separated by verb/noun.

A very impressive feature is a hover-over translation for Arabic and English words, which makes reading Arabic articles incredibly easy and fun.

Pros:

1) Ease of Usage. Very easy and intuitive to use. The amount of knowledge of grammar you need to fully benefit from VerbAce is roughly equivalent to the amount you need for the Mawrid. However, since you can search verbs in their different tenses and many times with attached pronouns, VerbAce benefits those beginners who cannot benefit from Sakhr and the Mawrid yet. Moreover, the hover-over translation is absolutely incredible.

2) Arabic Synonyms. Helps build up the vocabulary.

3) Completeness. Unlike the Mawrid and Sakhr, VerbAce provides much more complete information about verbs and nouns. It also provides commonly used phrases (mostly contemporary) which clarify the meanings further.

4) Accuracy. The search engine of VerbAce is far superior than Sakhr or that of the electronic Mawrid. It returns results faster and much more accurately.

5) Speed. The results are displayed very speedily, yet accurately.

Cons:

1) Masdar. The VerbAce does not, sadly, give the masdar for verbs.

2) Typing in Arabic. VerbAce comes with a built-in keyboard so this should not be too much of a problem.

3) License. The software is licensed and the trial is for 14-days only.

Personal Review:

I installed VerbAce recently and I have found it to be supremely useful. Since its install, I have stopped using the Mawrid and Sakhr, which were two resources I used extensively in the past. VerbAce, in my opinion, is a very complete package and offers quality at a fast speed.

Verdict:

Essential for beginners and intermediates, useful for advanced students (due to its speed and accuracy). The hover-over translate sets it apart from all online dictionaries. A must have for all students.

Google Translate and Dictionary

Available from:

Google Translate and the related dictionary.

Features:

A very simple interface for English-Arabic/Arabic-English translations. It is surprisingly accurate and amazingly fast. Some of the words are listed in the dictionary, which is useful on occasion. The Arabic words can be typed in transliteration, which is quite impressive.

Pros:

1) Speed. It is amazingly fast and the interface is very sleek.

2) Ease of Usage. There is literally no knowledge of grammar required to use this tool making it supremely easy. This, naturally, limits the benefit.

Cons:

1) Inaccurate. Words are still inaccurately translated (even though Google keeps improving the tool).

2) Limited Information. The translation is a very basic translation with no grammatical explanations (exception being some entries in the dictionary, and even these are basic).

Personal Review:

Google Translate is surprisingly good. It’s not a bad idea to use it in conjunction with Sakhr. I was recently reading an article about making tayyammum (wudu without water) and the Shaikh mentioned a word that I could not find on VerbAce or Sakhr. The word? بوية (Paint)! So Google Translate has its uses, even though they are limited.

Verdict:

Handy resource for beginners when used in conjunction with Sakhr/VerbAce. Too limited for intermediate or advanced students.

Arabic-English Lexicon (Lane)

Available from:

Fully online here. Can be downloaded from StudyQuran or ordered on a DVD from StudyQuran.

Features:

The granddaddy of all Arabic-English dictionaries, a short introduction for the dictionary is presented:

The most scholarly dictionary of the Arabic language available. This work is the product of over thirty years of unrelenting labour. It is a work of such unique greatness that, since its first appearance almost 150 years ago, it has remained to this day supreme in the field of Arabic lexicography. No scholar or group of scholars has produced anything to supplant it. As it originally appeared and was later reproduced, the Lexicon consisted of eight large, cumbersome volumes, which made it difficult to use. Now, for the first time, the Islamic Texts Society has, with no loss whatsoever of clarity or legibility, brought together the eight large volumes into two compact volumes; it is now possible to keep the Lexicon on the work desk and refer to it with ease.

To get a glimpse at the detail that this work provides, take a glimpse at this page.

Pros:

1) Thoroughness. The dictionary covers a huge amount of details that cannot be matched by other dictionaries in English.

2) Completeness. Not only does it provide the necessary Sarf-related elements, it also provides references to other dictionaries.

Cons:

1) Extremely advanced. It is certainly not meant for beginners.

2) Humongous. The dictionary comes in 8 huge volumes. Not something that you can’t travel with.

3) Notation. The notation used in this dictionary is like calculus. It is extremely involved and verbose.

Personal Review:

N/A. I have not used this dictionary for any work, but I have glanced through it. The main reason for that is the notation that has put me off. Nevertheless, I hope to utilize it in the future since it is a gem.

Verdict:

A treasure for the advanced students.

Glossary of Madinah Books

Available from:

Available on Google Books and in PDF.

Features:

This is a complete glossary of the famous books of Arabic instruction (Durûs al-Lughaħ al-‘Arabiyya ħ li-Ghair al-Nâtiqîna Bihâ) popularly known as the Madinah Books. The glossary is very similar to Hans Wehr in organization and presentation, except it is much smaller and only comprises of the words in the Madinah books. Thus, it is a stepping stone to Hans Wehr and other advanced dictionaries for the students who study the Madinah books curriculum.

Pros:

1) Ease of Usage. The glossary is fairly straightforward to use for a student of the Madinah books, despite being similar in organization to Hans Wehr.

2) (Relative) Completeness. The glossary only contains the words used in the books, and for those words, the complete Sarf-related elements are presented using a similar notation to Hans Wehr. The notation is introduced in layman’s terms in the preface by the author.

3) Additional Examples. The glossary gives additional examples and usages of words that are not in the books, strenghtening the understanding of the student.

Cons:

1) Limited. Only limited to the Madinah books.

Personal Review:

I used this glossary when I studying the curriculum and found it to be an essential companion, especially in later parts of book 2 and all of book 3.

Verdict:

A must-have for students of the Madinah books. A perfect first-step before taking on more advanced dictionaries like Hans Wehr.

Qur’an-Exclusive Dictionaries and Resources

Project Root List

Available from:

Completely online, courtesy StudyQuran. Just click on a letter (at the very top) to begin.

Features:

This project aims to organize all the words in the Qur’an by their root letters. For each root word, the meanings, the occurrences in the Qur’an and grammatical notes about derivatives from the root word are mentioned. Each entry has a link to Lane’s Arabic-English Lexicon for more details. Moreover, each entry is click-able and all occurrences in the Qur’an containing the root word are subsequently displayed.

Pros:

1) Examples. Examples of occurrences in the Qur’an are mentioned, which makes it very useful for referencing.

2) Organized. The organization of this resource makes it very easy to research usages of words and their meanings in the Qur’an.

3) Link to Lane. Since each entry has a link to Lane’s Lexicon, it is a great time-saver. Rather than going through pages after pages in Lane’s to find the desired word, only the necessary pages can be browsed through quickly.

Cons:

1) Incomplete. The project is still not complete yet. There are volunteers working on the completion of the project.

2) Inconsistent. Since the project is a collaboration by a bunch of volunteers, it is inconsistent in its formatting on occasion. However, it still is very usable.

Personal Review:

The project is a great resource for students of the Qur’an. The organization by root words, the examples of usage in the Qur’an and some explanatory notes make it a very useful resource. It’s a pretty good idea to just read the dictionary because you end up learning a lot about words you thought you knew.

Verdict:

A little advanced for beginners, but a great resource for intermediate and advanced students.

Vocabulary of the Holy Qur’an (Dr. Nadwi)

Available from:

For purchase from Islamic Bookstore. If someone has a PDF or online version, please add it to the comments.

Features:

This is a dictionary of all the words of the Qur’an. The organization is by root words. If the word is a noun, its occurrence in the Qur’an and its plural is mentioned (most of the time). If the word is a verb, then only its Qur’anic usages are mentioned and explained, along with the basic tasreef (grammatical distribution) of the verb and examples from Qur’an. Since the author (Dr Nadwi) is a scholar of the Shariah, there are some notes on tafsir as well that are very intriguing.

At the end of the book, there is an index of root words that help a beginner in identifying the root words.

Pros:

1) Focused. The dictionary is concise, to the point and very succinct. Moreover, it is focused on usages of words in Qur’an and not their general usage, which makes it perfect for those beginning their studies in Qur’an and an useful reference for more advanced students.

2) Explanations. The grammatical explanations are very helpful and small tafsir notes greatly help in understanding.

Cons:

1) Basic. Due to its intended audience, there is a lack of depth in explanation of difficult words.

Personal Review:

This was the first dictionary I ever used and I greatly benefited from it. Despite knowing almost no grammar, I benefited immensely from the dictionary and the explanations. I like this dictionary so much that I included it in the list despite not having an online copy available (unlike all the other entries in this article).

Verdict:

A must-have, essential resource for beginners, a useful resource for intermediate and advanced students.

Dictionary of the Holy Qur’an

Available from:

In PDF here. For purchase from Islamic Bookstore.

Features:

The dictionary is organized traditionally and detailed explanations of each word and its derivatives is given. For verbs, the basic grammatical distribution is given. In addition, a fabulous comparison between similar words and their usages is provided, along with examples from the Qur’an.

Pros:

1) Deep and Concise. The dictionary is concise, yet very deep in its analysis. The comparisons between words and the examples of usages from the Qur’an are very profound.

2) Notation. The notation used in the dictionary is very intuitive, clear and non-confusing.

3) Straightforward. The English used in this dictionary is very easy and straightforward.

Cons:

1) Ahmadi. This book is written by an Ahmadi scholar. The Ahmadi’s are by consensus not Muslims, so tread with caution. Nonetheless, it is an excellent resource on the Qur’an.

Personal Review:

N/A. I have not used this dictionary. It was recommended to me recently and I read portions of it for the purpose of including it in the article. Insha Allah, I hope to utilize it in the future.

Verdict:

A great resource for all types of students. The beginners can benefit from its simple, straightforward style. The more advanced students can benefit from the word analysis, word comparisons and examples from the Qur’an.

Conclusion

This list is not exhaustive by any means. There are other resources available that have not been included either due to the unfamiliarity of the author or unavailability online. If you are familiar with any other useful resource online, please contribute it in the comments below, insha Allah.

Moreover, for advancing one’s understanding, a student must use Arabic-Arabic dictionaries as well. The Arabic-Arabic dictionaries are an ocean that require a lot of time to get used to. A superb resource for Arabic-Arabic dictionaries online is Al-Baheth Al-Arabiy.

Lastly, A question often asked is, “What is the best dictionary to use when studying fiqh?” The answer to this is that many Islamic sciences have specialized terms that aren’t generally mentioned in dictionaries.

For example, the word انحراف (inhiraaf) means declination, deviation, skewness, inclination, skew. However, in tajweed, it is a characteristic of certain letters. So, often a dictionary does not provide a suitable definition to terms that are specific for Islamic sciences.

Thus, a student must either: 1) ask a qualified person in that science for an explanation, or 2) refer to an advanced Arabic-Arabic dictionary like Lisaanul Arab, where Islamic science-specific words are often explained. WAllahu alam (and Allah knows best).

trueword.wordpress.com

Setting the record straight.

–

Dimitri Ehrlich: I know that your music is based on the Sufi tradition, but what is your personal religious affiliation, if any? Do you meditate or pray?

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: I am not Sufi, but I spent a lot of time since my childhood with the Sufis, and I deeply studied them. Sufi music, especially, is a kind of prayer. If you sing in this manner, you will become closer to God, very close. That’s basically what I do.

What is your inner, mental experience when you are singing? What do you think about, or don’t you direct your mind in any specific way?

When I sing traditional spiritual songs, I always concentrate on who it is that I’m singing about. For instance, if I am inspired by the Holy Prophet, I concentrate on the Prophet. In my mind, there are many things, but when I sing, I sing for God, and for Holy Prophets, for Sufi saints. When I sing, their personalities are in my mind. I feel like I am in front of them. I feel their personalities, and I pray. I feel like I am in another world when I sing. I am not in the material world while I am singing these traditional Holy messages. I’m totally in another world. I am withdrawn from my materialistic senses; I am totally in my spiritual senses. And I am intoxicated by the Holy Prophet, God, and other Sufi saints.

Is there a different sort of prayer or meditative mode associated with songs concerned with Allah, Mohammed, and the Sufi saints, respectively?

When I sing for God, I feel myself in accord with God, and the house of God, Mecca, is right in front of me. And I worship. When I sing for Mohammed, peace be upon him, our Prophet, I feel like I am sitting right next to his tomb, Medina, and paying him respect and admitting to myself that I accept his message. When I sing about the Sufi saints, I feel like the saints are in front of me, and as a student, I am accepting their teachings. And I repeat again and again that I accept it, that I am really their follower.

I know that Sufism is essentially a mystical sect of Islam, but are there also strains of other religious thought involved with the liturgy or philosophy of Sufism?

Every religion has its own way of describing God. For instance, Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Sikhs-they all have their own way of following God. Sufism basically describes God and teaches how to come closer to God. So basically, I follow the Islamic form of Sufism to find my way to God.

I know that when you were sixteen you had a visionary dream in which your father, a great qawwali singer who had recently died, came to you and told you that you had been given his musical gift and should devote your life to qawwali. Since that dream, how has your understanding of your music changed?

Since the age of sixteen, when I started singing, I have had the same message to deliver to people about Sufism. But some changes have come accordingly as I grew and my experiences grew. Of course you really go to greater depths as time passes, more and more and more, and you grow and grow with the songs.

So how would you define your message?

My message is the message of humanity, love and peace. The goal of this message that I bring to people is to bring them toward brotherhood, to bring them closer to each other, without hatred, without any concern for race, religion or color. I try to bring people, through spirituality, to a position in which they’ll be more honest with each other, and live a truer life, less concerned with the materialistic world where they cannot find themselves. I try to bring them to a place where they can at least recognize themselves.

Other than your musical practice, which clearly has a very powerful spiritual dimension, do you have any formal religious practice?

I pray five times a day. And I pray before I eat, giving thanks to my God for the opportunity to eat this food. And after eating, I pray and give thanks again. And after all of my practices of my music, I always pray and give thanks to my God and say, God, I am your slave, and thanks to you I have this opportunity to give my message to the world.

For many performers, the gulf between the ecstatic experience of being in the spotlight and the “coming down” that inevitably accompanies going offstage draws them into drug addiction and other self-destructive behavior. Obviously you’ve avoided that pitfall, but do you ever feel any kind of emotional depression from coming down from the high of being on stage?

During the time I am singing traditional qawwali songs, I feel that I am in a prayer position in front of God. When I finish my prayers, whether is it my singing or the formal prayers I do, I feel deeply peaceful. I feel that I have had some success in accomplishing the mission that God has given to me. I have no difficulty making a transition from that frame of mind to my normal daily activities because prayer is a routine part of my life and I do it all the time.

In Buddhist psychology, there is a vast pharmacopia of different meditative antidotes that can be applied to various mental afflictions. So, for example, there are certain practices you can do if you are very angry, and different meditations if you are greedy, or jealous, or hateful or whatever. Do you have any kinds of specific prayers that are designed to deal with specific problems, such as anger, jealousy and greed?

Because of this music and because of this message which we have in our hearts and our minds all the time, it is extremely rare to feel anger toward anybody. This is the basic medication that controls us, preventing us from getting angry and keeps us happy.

What did you learn from your father, other than the specific musical training that you got as a singer of qawwali?

From my parents I learned my religion, how to live and follow Islamic rules. When I was young I went to the mosque and read the Koran and learned all the Islamic rules. From my teachers I got a basic education in science, mathematics, geography, English, Urdu, all the common subjects. And from Sufis I learned about Sufism. I try to learn and integrate the teachings from these three sources-from the saints, from school, and from my father. Of course when I was a child, before I turned sixteen, I was just a regular young person. I got angry, I argued, I lived like a boy. But since I saw the dream and became a follower of Sufism, and began singing the traditional qawwali, it really gave me peace in my heart. Since then my life has been totally changed. Since then I control everything that comes to my brain and to my heart.

Let’s talk a little about motivation. For some pop musicians, there is a desire for success that is equal to or even greater than the desire for excellence. Your music is so transcendentally spiritual, I wonder whether you ever think about making money and being a star as a motive behind what you do.

When I started singing, of course, I had in my mind the desire for success. I was always thinking that the people should listen to me, that the crowd should pay me respect as the artist. Of course, I wanted applause and felt that the singer should get some reward in the shape of appreciation from the public. But as time went by, I found myself in a situation where all I wanted was to give a lesson, the purpose of which was to give more happiness to people. My sleeping, my waking, my talking, my eating, everything in my life, the music is always with me in my mind. I’m always thinking about new tunes, new discoveries, and new music.

Dimitri Ehrlich writes for Interview, The New York Times, and other publications. His band, Dimitri and the Supreme 5000, released its debut album last year. He is currently writing a book about music and spirituality.

Guest post by Tamim Popalzai

Please do make sure to first read Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

This is the final part of this series.

Part III – Consideration & Courage

Start Video #7 – 4:15

Click here to view the embedded video.

And now we have control.  A person of character is a person of control.  Ability to control our desires.  Ability to control our rages.  Ability to control and to abstain and to hold back, that is so much needed.  Many times we want to lash out at people.  Many times we want to express ourselves in a negative way.

So the Prophet (saws) would teach us, laysal qawi`u bil sur`a.  He asked people who is the strong person amongst you or what is your definition of strength.  So people said, a strong man is a person who is able to wrestle people down. So the Prophet (saws) said, laysal qawi`u bil sur`a, that strength is not determined by the ability to wrestle people down.  He said, innamal qawi`u man yamliku nafsahu endal ghadab, truly the strong person is the one who is able to get a hold of himself when he is most angry.  That is real strength.  That is power.  He said if you are able to do this you are a strong person.  Sometimes we have urges.  Sometimes we have needs.  We look into it, you want to steal but there is that conscience and that control and that power to say, “no I will not do this I will hold back.”  So this idea of control, you are in charge of your desires and not having your desires being in charge over you, which is not acceptable.  So there is this concept of control.

And then the final one, we said, conscience, compassion, consideration, courage, and control,  and the last one is confidence.

The last C is confidence.  Confidence in what?  Many times doing what is right, we cannot see the results immediately and sometimes we doubt it.  So we say, be confident.  You need to do the right thing all the time, whether you reap the value, whether you reap the benefit, whether you see the result is irrelevant.  Do what is right.  Be confident that what is right needs to be done all the time, no exceptions.

And then if you see the result, alhamdulillah and if you don’t see the result then it was actually to begin with doing the right thing that was most important.  So be confident and that is why the people who do the right because the right is right are never disappointed.

Let me demonstrate with a story.  They said that one time this man was given a surprise bonus by his boss at work.  The company had decided to give a $1000 bonus to the staff.  And when people receive an unexpected windfall of money it feels good.  You go there and you have your own plans, I will do this and I will buy this.  So this man gets the $1000 in his hands and he is thinking to himself I am going to buy this and my wife is going to be very happy with this and I am going to buy my children this and buy them that.  So he is dreaming about how to spend the $1000.

On the way (home), he was approached by a woman, she was holding a young baby in her hands and she was crying, and said, “sir, my baby is dying.  I need help, I cannot afford to buy any medication for my baby.  My baby is dying.”  And the man was so moved by this woman and by this scene of the baby about to die, that he put his hands in his pocket, and he gave her the $1000.  He went home and he told the story to his family, “you know the boss gave my $1000 today and on the way I found out that there was this woman and she came to me and she begged me and her baby was dying, so I gave her this money.”  So the family looked at him and said, “Father, you have been fooled.  Somebody has fooled you.” They were laughing at him (the father).  The children said, “Father, idiot, you have been fooled, this women played a trick on you, you’ve been had.”  So he grew very upset by the reaction of his family.  And as they were watching the news, they heard the story that a woman was caught today by the police scheming people out of money. She was holding a baby saying that the baby is dying when the baby was not dying and this woman had been fooling people.  So the family looked at him (the father) and said to him, “See, we told you, you have been fooled, the woman has fooled you.”  And the father looked at them and he said, “this is the best news I have heard.” His family said, “What are you talking about, someone just stole $1000 from you and you are telling us that this is the best news you have heard.”  He said, “don’t you get it, the baby is not dying.”  He said this is what really matters, the baby is not dying.

Start Video #8 – 2:41

Click here to view the embedded video.

He said, “I gave the $1000 because I didn’t want the baby to die and if I’ve received the news that the baby is not dying, then this is the best news that I have heard in the day.”

See brothers and sisters, we can speak so much Islam this and Islam that, but the beauty of Islam is when Islam is implemented.  We can say all the nice things that we want, but by the end of the day, it is not what we say, but wallahi it really is about what we do.

Let me conclude by this story because believe it or not, any time, any day, we are constantly giving people clues about who we are.  We are constantly displaying what kind of character we hold.  So one day, a man was driving this very nice car, maybe some of you have heard of this story before, it’s a very beautiful story.  He parked his car and when he came out, he found this young boy walking around his car, he was admiring the car, what a beautiful car and he was talking to the car, “Whoa, this is really beautiful, this is really nice” and he was touching the car, look at the lights, look at this, etc.. So the man, the owner of the car, came up and said, “You like it son?” and he said, I love it, this is the most beautiful car I have ever seen.  So the old man said, my brother gave it to me as a gift, so the young boy immediately said, “Sir, I wish I can be like your brother.”  The boy said, “I wish I can be like your brother.” He did not say I wish I could have a brother like you, isn’t that what we would say.  We would all have said, “I wish I had a brother like you” but what does he choose to say, “I wish I was like your brother.”  That is what we call a beautiful display of character.

Character is important brothers and sisters.  Must have conscience, compassion, consideration, control, confidence, and courage.  Hatha, wallahu a`lam, wa salllallahu ala nabeeyina Muhammad wa salaamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuh.

End of Part 1 – IV.

Translation:

O Master of the Universe,
How sweet is your magnificence!

Your threshold is the Sacred Land,
Your face is the Quran!
We have understood the secret of your face,
That even Allah makes recitation of your face!

In the Universes, you are the highest after Allah,
Everything in this Universe is coming from you,
We read the Quran, the guide of our Belief,
The Quran reads you, O my Master!

O Seal of the Prophets,
You are the Sultan of the Messengers,
Your face is the most beautiful,
May the universes be sacrifice for you.

O Master of the beggars, protect us!
Be generous on us, O Sultan!
Take away the difficulty of our pains,
It is easy for you.

You are the groom of the Miraj,
You have reached to the Home of the Creator,
You are the Beloved of the Greatest One,
You are the guest of the Divine Throne.

How amazing is your threshold,
O Master of the Two Worlds,
Your presence, O Chosen One,
Is the Proof of Faith.

While some have failed to abide by true love to him (sallaAllahu alayhe wasallam) this lunar month, by celebrating that which he did not command to be celebrated, they have forgotten that this great Prophet was one who, “Whenever he saw clouds or wind, his color would change.”This came to mind the other day, when the sky darkened and rain poured for a few short minutes in this dry land, much to our pleasure. But Rasulullah, sallaAllahu alayhe wasallam, was questioned by his own wife; “Messenger of Allah! When people see clouds they look delighted hoping that they would bring them rain, but when you see clouds, your face shows worry.’ He said to me: ‘Aishah! How can I be sure that it does not carry punishment? Some people were punished with wind. Others saw the punishment approaching, yet they said that it was rain-bearing clouds.’” (Related by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, Ahmad and Abu Dawud.)

For us, in recent days,  we have seen the signs in their various creations. Earthquakes, floods, storms, tsunamis, and an eclipse.

Say, “He is the [one] Able to send upon you affliction from above you or from beneath your feet or to confuse you [so you become] sects and make you taste the violence of one another.” Look how We diversify the signs that they might understand. (al-An’aam 6:65)

In a few seconds, hundreds of thousands are killed. Homes are destroyed. Families are separated. Surely, this does not happen by chance.

“And We send not the signs except as a warning.” (al-Israa 17:59)

In these signs, there is a reminder, there is mercy; mercy from Allah, who is asking us to seek His forgiveness, for what our deeds have earned us.

Such should be the first response, for it is the best form of aid; serving as aid for our own souls and protecting our societies as a whole.

Corruption has appeared throughout the land and sea by [reason of] what the hands of people have earned so He may let them taste part of [the consequence of] what they have done that perhaps they will return [to righteousness. (al-Rum 30:41)

"And Allah would not have wronged them, but it was they who were wronging themselves." (al-Ankabut 29:40)

So in the midst of our busy lives, when we often forget to reflect as we survey the headlines bearing words describing the signs of Allah, this a call to myself before all to turn to the Creator admitting our wrong;

"There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers." (al-Anbiyaa 21:87)

Through seeking forgiveness, Allah withholds his punishments and through it, the doors of sustenance are opened. It is for both; those who fear the harm of rain and those who desire it for their rain-thirsty lands.
For this repentance to be complete, we must cease from the wrong, regret it, be sincerely determined not to repeat the wrong and if we have transgressed the rights of others, then returning such rights is due or in some cases to seek their forgiveness.

When repentance is sincere, then Allah has promised;

"Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.” (al-Zumar 39:53)

So as fear of Allah’s wrath filled the heart of our beloved (sallaAllahu alayhe wasallam) so much that his face changed in color, although His Creator told him; “But Allah would not punish them while you, [O Muhammad], are among them.” Then, our hearts are more in need of fear, whilst not abandoning hope as we recite the remainder of the same verse; “and Allah would not punish them while they seek forgiveness.” (al-Anfal 8:33)