Abdullah's Lesson

A family from Sha'am were once having trouble with their young son, Abdullah. He never wanted to recite the Quran, only play outside. He also had a tendency to forget Salat and get into trouble. All of this caused the parents tremendous concern.

One day they heard that an inspiring Sheikh would be coming to their town. So they brought their son to meet him. The Sheikh listened to the parents story and responded to them very roughly. "I'll have a few words with him and set him straight. Leave him to me. I'll teach how to behave." The parents, taken aback by his stern demeanor, yet assured by his confidence, let him take their son into a private room.

The Sheikh sat down on the floor and gently called the boy to come over. He held out his arms and motioned for Abdullah to come nearer. Then he pulled him close and held him against his heart for a long time. They then went out together. Not revealing his special method of influencing, the Sheikh again spoke roughly to the parents. "I had a word with him. He'll shape up now!"

Abdullah did indeed change and became a well-known hafiz and teacher. He always told his students that he first learned about Islam from a sheikh, who taught him the Quran from the heart.

Why, why

pain sometimes
reminds
us
we are
alive

love for the
sake of
Allah
reminds us
why

(m>s)

Allah (swt) made you the master over the light within, not the slave. Just because it burns inside like a Jinn wildfire doesn’t mean you must obey.

Pillars in a Pot

I am but a clay pot
For the nafs I borrow
I carry my Quran
Deep within my heart
I turn my face towards qibla
I whisper bismillah
While Thul-Jalali wal-Ikram
Lays tomorrows foundation
As I press my head
Down
Into the earth
I push that nafs
Outward
Into the collective ummah
Into the same ruh
That declares shahadah
That offers salat
That gives of themselves
That abstains from want
And that returns to the Ka'ba
Submitting to
Al-Hameed.

Choose

Isn't this the whole meaning of life in this dunya: To choose between being a slave to the secular world and believing that your life comes from those mundane forces--

Or to become a slave to Allah (swt) and to believe that all your needs and all your concerns come only from Al-Khabir.

To my dearest

To Allah, my Most Gracious, my Most Merciful.

Thank you, Allah for allowing me, a simple believer to speak to you of the troubles of my heart. Oh Allah, I am so distracted by the things of this dunya that I forget that you are there controlling all the events. I’m so busy with work and daily obligations that there is little time to consider the purpose of the world. If only I could feel your nearness, it would mean so much to me.

I know the Prophet (saws) taught us that we can make everything; even our sleep a devotion to you, but this is something I feel far from. It’s almost as if it’s so easy to become close to you that I therefore push You away instead. Help me, Allah to turn around my life and make it real. Enable me to connect everything I do to You.

Everywhere I look I am able to see Your glory --when I take notice; but there are times that I still lack the focus and faith I should have from seeing Your wonders. Help me to appreciate the things I have been blessed with and the happenings of my life. Allow me to reflect before performing my duties to You.

Thank you, Allah for Your patience with me. Thank you for all the times that I was far from You and nonetheless, you drew me near to You even though I was unworthy.

I love you,

/Signed:Nuh/

Words on a page

Worlds
Souls
Divinity

Searches
Serves
Unites

Uplift
Connect
Submit

Salat or not?

Brother Abdul-Malik Sabiq was once visiting Medina, the town where the Prophet (saws) lived for so many years and is buried. He wanted to go to al-Masjid al-Nabawi to offer salat.

He turned to his wife and asked, "What do you think? Should we go just as tourists? We haven't prayed since arriving in Saudi Arabia, nor done any acts of goodness. We can hardly send greetings to the Prophet properly, much less offer salat or seek hikma!"

For some 15 minutes Abdul-Malik stalled, lost in thought, searching for a strategy that would allow him to approach al-Masjid al-Nabawi and the Prophet's gravesite.

Finally he exclaimed, "Is it not true that simple believer's --both unlearned and sinful people come here to pour out our hearts to Allah (swt) and send peace and blessing on our Nabi? If so, then we also shall go and pour out our hearts like them."

Trust -- Allahu alam

Believers have two distinct attitudes towards Allah (swt), There is hope, and there is trust.

Hope is something to cling on to, some prayerful aspiration. The falling man, they say, will grasp at anything to save his life.

Trust in Allah (swt) occurs even when there is nothing in which to hope. The book is closed. The sword is drawn over the neck. By all laws of the physical cosmos there is no way out.

But Al-Fattaah; who runs the show, knows best.

Harisa Trto's Tears

Nizret and Emir, amongst
The silent dead of Prijedor.
Tortured and starved to death
Before the sweet liberation of
Bosnia's concentration camps.

Killed only because they were Muslims.
Pardon?

Killed only because they were Muslims!
That doesn't happen.

Mourned because they were Muslims;
Just two in the one hundred thousand.

Trusting in Allah

Were it not for the grace and mercy of Allah on you, and that Allah is full of kindness and mercy, ye would be ruined indeed. (1)

We have a light fixture next to our front door that offers shade and stability and as a result is attractive to birds. Every spring without fail, a bird tries to build its nest on that light. Because I know that any nest that is built there is bound to fall, I always break up the nests just as the birds begin to make them. After several attempts, they move to a large Canadian maple tree in our garden, and there safely build their home far from any danger.

Like those unknowing feathered friends, we too, oftentimes find that our dreams and plans are frustrated and lead to failure. We cannot help but wonder why Allah (swt) allows the earthly nests that we struggle so hard and work to build to fall apart and crumble before us. But the fact is that we cannot see as Allah (swt) does; if we too could judge events from the perspective of eternity, we would come to understand that Allah (swt) seeks for us a higher destiny, and a place of true peace and provision for our deepest needs.

Verily Man is in loss, except such as have Faith, and do righteous deeds, and (join together) in the mutual teaching of Truth, and of Patience and Constancy. (2)

Think of the dark passages of the early ummah -- outcast, two emigrations to foreign lands, a settlement in city of Yathrib, and then finally a return journey to Mecca and the victory of Islam.

How wonderful it would be if we could each learn to trust Allah (swt) in those times when we too experience the dark passages that enter our lives. How reassured we would be if we never questioned the wisdom and goodness of Allah (swt), even at those times when we find him disturbing the nests that we try to build.

Allah's Messenger (saws) used to say:"O Allah, it is unto Thee that I surrender myself. I affirm my faith in Thee and repose my trust in Thee and turn to Thee in repentance and with Thy help fought my adversaries. O Allah, I seek refuge in Thee with Thine Power; there is no god but Thou, lest Thou leadest me astray. Thou art ever-living that dieth not, while the Jinn and mankind die." (3)

When we come to accept the providential care of Allah (swt) with childlike simplicity we soon discover that the barriers we encounter in our lives, can in retrospect, come to be numbered among our greatest blessings.

I will end this two pence in a khutbah with a dua'a:

"O my Lord, do not let our hearts deviate from the Truth now that we have been guided; but grant us Mercy from Your very Presence, for You are the Giver of bounties without measure."

Rabbana la tuzigh quloobanaa, ba’da ith haday tanaa, wa hablanaa milla dunka Rahma. Innaka antal Wah-haab.

Ameen


Footnotes
1) 24:20
2) 103:2,3
3) Muslim: Book 035, Number 6561

Celebrate!

If you have faith that Allah (swt) will help you, then why is distress and unease written all across your face? If you have iman, celebrate!

Eventually

Pour out your heart before Al-Mujeeb

The essence of dua'a entails
the straightforward, simple
understanding of the words.

Let the
words
themselves give you the
energy to
pray
with all your
might.

Beyond you

Early peoples looked at the world about them with a sense of awe. Then they began to make sense of whatever they could. But the awe persisted. Eventually, they came to believe they could understand everything, that whatever does not make sense is simply not true -- it does not exist. That's when the sense of the awesome died.

Truth is something you find when you submit yourself to it. Truth is often something you would rather reject, something that refuses to be understood. Truth comes from somewhere beyond your grasp, beyond you.

Once you have acknowledged that yes, this is the unavoidable truth, then you must engage every bit of your intellect to understand, to study it. But begin with awe, with peace, with all your senses open to that which creation is telling you.

Friday afternoon in the grocer

"Shalom aleichem", said the Muslim.
"Wa alaykum as-salam", said the Jew.

"Shopping for shabbos?", asked the Muslim.
"Yes, my wife needs a couple things
-- last minute", replied the Jew.

"Just getting back from prayer?", asked the Jew.
"Yes, alhamdulillah." replied the Muslim.

The Muslim went on --
"My wife asked me to get a couple things."

"Shabbat shalom", said Nuh.
"Be well my friend", said Noach.

And they parted in peace.



***True story based on occurance on 20 Rajab, 1428
***True story based on occurance on 3 August, 2007
***True story based on occurance on 19 Av, 5767

(simply untitled)

pray like
a
small
child

Illuminated darkness

Even if you fail to overcome the darkness entirely, even if you are still rolling in the filth with the shaytan --you can still find Allah (swt) in the struggle itself. After all, He is not only An-Noor. He is Ad-Daarr as well.

Pay it forward

As salaam alaikum.

I am way out of my comfort zone! I'll send a handmade something to the next three people who leave a comment on this post asking to be part of this exchange insha'Allah. In return you have to 'pay it forward' by making the same promise on your blog.

Jabir (ra) reported that he heard Messenger of Allah (saws) saying, "Every good deed is charity".
[Al-Bukhari].

Note: Please e-mail me your contact information so I can get your mailing address.

Go play nice

There is no excuse
for intentionally hurting
someone who is
close to

you.

This especially holds true for

Al-Khaaliq

Where providence rests

There is no person, no thing, no occupation upon which your lifework or your providence rests.

There is only the flow of blessing from Allah (swt).

The flow may conceal itself in tangible means, in job opportunities, in people, in common markets, in well-connected associates --but all these are only conduits, not the source. Grasp any one of them and it may break up in your hands.

Grasp instead for the source, Al-Muqeet.

Allah (swt) is watching

Surely as for those who love that scandal should circulate respecting those who believe, they shall have a grievous chastisement in this world and the hereafter; and Allah knows, while you do not know. (1)

In a reflection I wrote a few months ago I said that as believers we should look at masjid attendance as a gift from Allah (swt) rather than as an onerous duty and obligation. Gathering together as 'ummah' is an opportunity for us to encourage and support each other. That reflection was aimed at those whose attendance at jumah or eid prayers is sporadic and unfocused. But I fear that another admonition is in order, this one for those of us who go to the masjid more regularly, for we, too, need to examine our motives.

All too many of us go to masjid and find fault, or to catch up on the gossip, or to criticize others. Before we are too harsh on our brothers and sisters in Islam, we need to stop and look at ourselves.

The Prophet (saws) said, "A Muslim is the brother of a Muslim. He neither oppresses him nor humiliates him nor looks down upon him. The piety is here, and while saying so he pointed towards his chest thrice. It is a serious evil for a Muslim that he should look down upon his brother Muslim. All things of a Muslim are inviolable for his brother in faith: his blood, his wealth and his honour." (2)

I once had worked very hard on a talk that I hoped would be especially meaningful to those who heard it. After I had finished, many people expressed their appreciation of my effort. But in talking with one brother who was a chronic faultfinder and complainer, he proceeded to point out that in my arabic I had mispronounced a number words! When I asked him if he had gotten anything else from the talk except the mistakes, he was forced to admit that he did not even know the topic!

No one in masjid is perfect; not the imam, the muezzin, or anyone who stands to offer salat for that matter. We all make mistakes. A spirit of faultfinding does not edify anyone; it only produces discouragement and strife. More likely than not, those who are always looking to find fault will be successful. But they need to be honest enough to admit that they go to masjid not to encourage others, or offer salat in congregation, they go instead to whisper and criticize, and that will be their only reward.

O you who believe! be careful of your duty to Allah and believe in His Messenger: He will give you two portions of His mercy, and make for you a light with which you will walk, and forgive you, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful (57.28)

I will end this two pence in a khutbah with a dua'a:

"O my Lord, do not let our hearts deviate from the Truth now that we have been guided; but grant us Mercy from Your very Presence, for You are the Giver of bounties without measure."

Rabbana la tuzigh quloobanaa, ba’da ith haday tanaa, wa hablanaa milla dunka Rahma. Innaka antal Wah-haab.

Ameen


Footnotes
1) 24.19
2) Bukhari: 32, Number 6219
3) 57.28

Scratchings

Believers, oh! Believers
though long in the
shade.

Our star shall shine
bright when the proudest
fade.

Submission

The Prophet (saws) taught that from every thing a person hears or sees in this dunya he must find a teaching in how humanity should serve Malik Al-Mulk. In truth, this is the whole meaning of submission to Allah (swt).

Haiku

Believe in your Lord!
We have heard a voice calling,
And we have believed.

Salat in the Markets

One day in the masjid, Imam Abdul Syed Malam watched sadly as a group of his Muslim brothers prayed. When they were finished, he approached them with an enthusiastic, "Salaam alaikum!"

They looked startled to hear their imam pronounce the greeting traditionally given when first meeting another Muslim. "But Sheikh," they said, "you already offered us Salaam!"

The Imam continued to shake hands with them, as though they had just arrived at the masjid. He said, "From your faces it was obvious that your thoughts were in the stock market on Wall Street or the options market in Chicago. None of you were actually here while you offered salat, so I was delighted to welcome you back once you stopped."

Breathe

It is all Qadr, when things don’t go your way, breathe easy. Even if it’s your slip-up and you deserve everything you’re getting, trust in Allah (swt) that it is all for the best, and stay calm.

When As-Saboor sees how faithful your trust is...

He will make it for the good.

Haiku

They will cry Malik
Keeper of Hell, let your Lord
make an end of us


(Bukhari: Volume 6, Book 60, Number 344)

Be really real

There is but one way to bring people closer to Islam, whether it be your spouse, your child, your friend, or a complete stranger. It is not with admonishment, not with arguments, not with witty debate --but by drawing them in with the love of Allah (swt) and by showing your real faith with real action.

Shadow Boxing

1.

To fight the Shaytan
we must begin by
connecting
ourselves more to

Allah

throughout our day.


2.

Let us try to catch ourselves
before we fall into the
trap of Jinn.

There is but one place to take refuge.

In Al-Qahhar.


3.

By surrounding ourselves with

Quranic thoughts.

In the constant joy of appreciating
all that we have from our
Al-Wali.

Mind your tongue

And We bestowed of Our Mercy on them, and We granted them lofty honour on the tongue of truth. (1)

As a boy growing up in Canada, I often heard the words of this khutbah’s title from my mother. It was wise advice indeed! The tongue is probably responsible for more harm and hurt than any other part of the body. Although it is small and seemingly weak, it often causes incalculable pain and destruction. It is for this reason that I still need to heed my mothers’ advice before I speak.

Almost seven years ago, I was assigned to help a person who had undergone surgery on their throat, and who had been told to remain silent for 4 weeks. With a large financial planning practice to serve this seemed impossible, but he understood that he had no other choice than to obey his surgeon’s order.

In our office, he would softly blow a whistle to call in his administrator and would use a note pad to write instructions or to ask questions and make requests. When people came to see him, he responded to them in writing. Finally, the process of healing ended, and he was again able to speak. As I was about to leave and continue with my own work, we were able to chat about his experience.

His observations were revealing. “I don’t think I will ever raise my voice like I used to,” he told me. And when I asked him about his note writing he said, “I was surprised to see how many slips of paper with words written hastily or in anger and impatience I crumpled up and threw away before anyone could see them. Seeing my words kept me from saying many of them.”

Whether we join in at the office coffee break, talk on the telephone, or just chat with our friends, let us always be mindful of the admonition of the Quran which counsels that "it is not right of us to speak of this: Glory to Allah!.” (2) If a juicy piece of gossip or an unkind remark or observation comes to mind, let us ask Allah (swt) to help us see the harm it could do and to watch our words accordingly. Then we might more clearly reflect the words of the Prophet (saws) who when asked "who is the best Muslim"? replied, "He is the one from whom Muslims are safe from the evil of his tongue and hands." (3)

I will end this two pence in a khutbah with a dua'a:

"O my Lord, do not let our hearts deviate from the Truth now that we have been guided; but grant us Mercy from Your very Presence, for You are the Giver of bounties without measure."

Rabbana la tuzigh quloobanaa, ba’da ith haday tanaa, wa hablanaa milla dunka Rahma. Innaka antal Wah-haab.

Ameen


Footnotes
1) 19.50
2) 24.16
3) Muslim

Not of this world

The Glorious Quran is not of this world --there is no end to the beauty of its verse; it stands as the gate that leads from this dunya to the next.

As believers, insha'Allah we must always reacquaint ourselves with creation's beauty and unite ourselves with remembrance of the holiness still to come. To do this we should sanctify our lives in the world on the path laid by the Quran.

The profound answer

A sheikh in Mecca had three students, and asked them a question:
"If you had one hour before death came to you, what would you do in that one hour?"

The first one --who loved to read and study answered the question:
"I would spend that hour reciting the Quran."

The second one closed his eyes, then answered the question:
"I would spend that hour in salat making dua'a."

The third one looked at the sheikh, then answered the question:
"I would spend that hour with my wife and children."

The sheikh looked at his students, stroked his beard, and smiled;
"Subhan'Allah, each of you has given a deep and profound answer."

But the students turned to the sheikh and asked him the question:
"What would you do, in your last hour?"

"Me?" He asked. "I would spend that hour, doing what I'd been doing."

The sheikh looked at the students, stroked his beard and smiled:
"Doing what I had been doing, for all of life is a blessing."

A nice sunburn

You are everything complete
and my very own.

Even my children
in a way sing their song
with small hafiz voices
under the sunbeam of
Your summer's rising heat.

And between generations there is
this mystical sequence of murky enigma
that frees us from this dunya
and times turning, churning
rat-race.

Open your door

Gardens of Eternity, whose doors will ever be open to them

The Quran isn’t just a book with all the problems of the world and your life solved in a moments recitation. It is a mysterious treasure open only to those who seek to open her doors one by one.

The only way to dwell in its light is to immerse ones entire self therein.

A Loving Grief

She believed
while the people disbelieved.

She trusted
while the people belied.

She comforted.
She helped
in person and with wealth
when all others would

not.

Oh Khadijah, I give you
glad tidings of a palace of jewels
with no noise and toil.

Allahu alam

At times you see that control of your life has been taken out of your hands and is undergoing a heavenly adjustment. When this happens, Allahu alam! Just do your best at what you must to do --and stay out of way of Al-Wakeel.

Enigma

richer is one hour of
repentance
and
sadaqah
in this dunya than all of life
of the
world
to
come

and richer still is one
hour's
calm
of spirit
in the world to come
than all
of life
of
this dunya

Be aglow

Despondency, mistrust and cynicism damage the joy-filled blessings of Allah (swt).

The Prophet stated that, "Allah said: 'I have prepared for My pious worshipers such things as no eye has ever seen, no ear has ever heard of, and nobody has ever thought of. All that is reserved, besides which, all that you have seen, is nothing'."

With this promise in mind, if we are aglow with peace and warmth, then this dunya shines upon us in its full glory.

But if it we flounder in despondency and mistrust, then we can only receive the limited light that squeezes through a incapacious pathway.

'No soul knows what is kept hidden in reserve for them in of joy as a reward for what they used to do.'

The Danger of Arrogance

And when it is said unto him: Be careful of thy duty to Allah, pride taketh him to sin. Hell will settle his account, an evil resting-place. (1)

A few months ago my grandmother decided to have a fourty-five year old pine tree in her front yard removed. At the recommendation of a neighbour, she hired a tree removal company to remove the tree and grind the stump. On the appointed day, the crew arrived with all its equipment and began to bring the tree down. As I watched them working, I was amazed by their skill and expertise. In short order, they had removed the side branches, felled the trunk, cut it into pieces, and carted it away. Shortly thereafter, another two men arrived with a stump grinder, and in two hours the area where the tree once grew was ready to be seeded with grass.

Less than a month later, I noticed a brief article in our community newspaper about that same tree company. They were hired to remove an old diseased maple tree. They felled the tree all right, but it fell in the wrong direction and hitting the house, collapsed its roof.

I assume that those workmen, perhaps the very ones who had worked at my grandmothers house, had approached that job quite confidently. They had years of experience, after all, and had completed countless similar assignments with no difficulty. But this time was different. They demonstrated that even seasoned professionals are capable of making a mistake. Overconfidence breeds carelessness, and oftentimes even the smallest miscalculation can cause unforeseen consequences.

The same is true in the life of believers. We have not been given any guarantee of immunity to the subtle snares of temptation. Complacency can lead us in the most subtle ways down a path that we would not have otherwise taken had we been more vigilant. More often than not, we slip away from the faithful life by inches rather than by miles, and so are entirely unaware of how far we may have strayed.

Each of us needs to take a personal inventory with regularity and all earnestness if we want to maintain a close walk with Allah (swt). We can count on His promises to the faithful, but we too must do our part. This is precisely what The Prophet (saws) was warning about when he pointed out the dangers of overconfidence and self-righteousness. He said, "The main source of disbelief is in the east. Pride and arrogance are characteristics of the owners of horses and camels, and those bedouins who are busy with their camels and pay no attention to Religion; while modesty and gentleness are the characteristics of the owners of sheep." (2)

Let us always be mindful of that prophetic advice.

So he watered their flock for them. Then he turned aside into the shade, and said: My Lord! I am needy of whatever good Thou sendest down for me. (3)

I will end this two pence in a khutbah with a dua'a:

"O my Lord, do not let our hearts deviate from the Truth now that we have been guided; but grant us Mercy from Your very Presence, for You are the Giver of bounties without measure."

Rabbana la tuzigh quloobanaa, ba’da ith haday tanaa, wa hablanaa milla dunka Rahma. Innaka antal Wah-haab.

Ameen


Footnotes
(1) 2.206
(2) Bukhari: Volume 4, Book 54, Number 520
(3) 28.24

Transformation of the Garden

رجل

We must uproot the weeds and
Clear the debris from our garden.
We must subjugate the darkness
And negativity which obscures
Thul-Jalali wal-Ikram.


امرأة

Perhaps more importantly, we
Must tend to the garden's various
Plants, nurture them and ensure
That they Blossom fully.

We must cultivate and bring out
The latent inner qualities and
potentials of all aspects of
this dunya.


خلق

Both of these roles are necessary in
transforming our physical world into
a garden. They reflect the roles of
man and woman.

What do you see?

Until you can see the honourable within a believer, you are unable to help him.

Love for the sake of Allah (swt)

Once, the son of a believer strayed from Islam and became an atheist. Distressed by this capital offence the father ran to the local imam Jabir Al-Jamaal, urgently seeking counsel for what to do. The Sheikh told the father, "Love him for the sake of Allah (swt)."

The man did so and after a brief time his son abandoned his disbelief and returned to Islam.

Jabir Al-Jamaal did not shun those who had strayed from the straight path. He tried to bring them close to him and to Allah (swt). He could see a spark of faith where others saw only kufr and infidelity. The sheikh knew that love for the sake of Allah (swt) could raise even the dead to life.

The Masjid

You move through the crowd...

Many are in white thoubs and kufis,
Others in executive suits,
Some in shortsleeves, jeans and
Adidas or other garb.

There are old and young,
Down to small boys with their gentle
Laughs and distracting cries.

Every single person present
has brought his own history
-- his own unique story
of what drew him here to

The masjid