Thursday, September 24, 2009



INTRODUCTION


At this point, you are not alone in the room where you are reading this book. Even at times when you think you are alone you have never really been alone. Allah's appointed angels are constantly monitoring and inscribing everything that you do. The moment you say a word they write it down. Your every step, every thought, everything that you do, including obligations which have been postponed, are all recorded without omission.

These angels do not discriminate between minor or major actions. Even when you are asleep they are constantly with you. They fulfil their obligations without error. They are never forgetful or erroneous, they carry out their task faultlessly. By the same token, your appointed angels of death are also waiting. What are they waiting for? For your predestined time to be fulfilled. When your appointed time of death reaches you, it is they who will take delivery of your soul.

As well as these, there are other witnesses which we have not yet mentioned, the ones you do not think about, these are your secret witnesses; your hands and skin. On the Day of Judgment, all these witnesses will congregate, and with Allah's permission they will speak and give their testimony about you. If you happen to be one of those who did not fear Allah, or if you were not a cautious person they will, testify against you.

Humanity has been created to worship Allah and is constantly being tested. A person's temporal existence on average is about sixty years, it is not much time before one is eventually brought before Allah to give account for every second of one's life. When everyone learns of what they have earned on Earth through the evidence provided by these witnesses, Allah will then decide on the kind of eternal life appropriate for them. If a person possesses good deeds he will be given his Book in his right hand and that person will be eternally saved. However, if he is among those whose Books are given in their left hands, he will then say:

… If only I had not been given my Book and had not known about my Reckoning! If only death had really been the end! My wealth has been of no use to me. My power has vanished. (Surat al-Haqqa: 25-29)

From here on he will be apprehended, dragged facedown and taken to Hell, never to be released.

The reason behind this terrible end, is that people never imagined that their every action would be recorded and would one day be revealed and accounted for, hence they passed their lives carelessly without fearing Allah or His warnings. A person such as this who does not possess a definite form of belief in the Hereafter, in the Day of Judgment or in a terrorizing place of punishment for wrong actions and careless behavior, like Hell, will not mind ignoring Allah's boundaries.

This is why fear of Allah is a very strong indicator of faith in Allah and an important indicator of what to expect in the eternal Hereafter. The only way to safety is founded upon fearful awareness of Allah and scrupulous caution.

The Day of Judgment is a fearsome reality to be reflected upon with awe so that it becomes impossible to remain unaffected by it. However, this fear is only applicable to people of faith and is a particular type of fear because Allah has described what will happen on the Day of Judgment in numerous Qur'anic verses; the scribes, witnesses and the enormous congregation of people. This is an absolute certainty, which is unconditionally accepted by true believers who are fearful of facing such a terrifying ordeal.

Everything you do is immediately recorded, even as you are reading this book. You are fast approaching the day when you will be called by Allah to account for your actions. So we hope to be amongst those who have earned Allah's pleasure through fearful awareness of Him:

... Take provision; but the best provision is taqwa of Allah. So have taqwa of Me, people of intelligence! (Surat al-Baqara: 197)

(Taqwa means consciousness, awe or fear of Allah, which inspires a person to be on guard against wrong action and eager for actions which please Him. In this book, it will be translated as "fearing Allah" or "guarding against evil" or "righteousness" according to the context.)

Love of Allah -Harun Yahya




Assalamualaikum

SubhanAllah I was just reading an article by Harun Yahya this morning in regards to Love of Allah:)

LOVE IS A GREAT BLESSING FOR BELIEVERS, WHILE LOVELESSNESS IS A TORMENT FOR NON-BELIEVERS

Profound faith in Allah, fear of Allah and a deep love of Allah represent the most important source of life for Muslims. It is only with this love that a person can attain physical and psychological strength and heave a healthy and well-balanced spirit. Love of Allah bestows strength and hope in all respects. A person enjoys an endless physical and psychological robustness and vivacity. They spend every moment in the hope of meeting Allah, our Lord, and that they will pass into the Hereafter Allah tells them of and that He will bless them with Paradise. The love of Allah in a believer gives an enormous determination and will. It opens his mind and enables the believer to think in a manner pleasing to Allah. It teaches him to look at and analyze everything with wisdom. It is also instrumental in people enjoying physical good health. With perfection of spirit, the human body also becomes healthier and more resistant. The soul has a direct impact on the body. The joy of faith in the soul, love of Allah and profundity of faith have a very positive effect on a person’s skin, physical resistance, laugh, tone of voice and many other physical traits.

The common physical feature of people who do not live by love of Allah and the variety of love that stems from it, is that they look ill even if they are not actually sick. Through the instructions from the soul, the body assumes a sickly, feeble state, commonly described as listlessness. The gait of such people is a significant indicator of this. Instead of walking in a vivacious, joyful manner, they walk stooped over and give the impression of being worn out. They speak with a poor and unpleasant tone of voice, instead of a joyful, easy, pleasing one.

But someone who joyfully lives by the love of Allah has a very different gait, tone of voice and facial expression. Through their love of Allah, their every movement, and their tone of voice and expression are always conscious, intelligent and careful. People who love Allah also look at the things He creates with love, affection and attention. Those with the deficiency that stems from this lack of love in their souls may be physically alive, but present a very different physical and psychological appearance.

While Muslims live by this alertness of consciousness, they must constantly ask Allah for the ability to love even more, rather than making do with what they already have. Someone with a healthy conscience and love of Allah has a huge capacity for loving the things Allah creates. Believers’ quests for love are directly correlated to the depth of their faith. The greater the depth and joy of their faith in Allah, the greater their power of love. This is not something a person can obtain through his or her own endeavors. Allah gives this emotion to every believer, every true Muslim. He inspires this beauty in their hearts. But of course one must constantly pray to be given this blessing and ask Allah for it with a powerful intensity. Because Muslims need to love Allah ever more, in an ever more joyous and genuine manner. There are no limits to their love of the beauties created by Allah. Although they love Allah much more than anyone or anything else, this is not enough, and they constantly pray to Him to be able to love even more. As their love of Allah grows, so does their love of other Muslims and all the delights created by Allah. The love of a blessing felt by someone with a profound love of Allah in his heart is very different to the love felt by someone with no such love. They may see the same thing when they look at a blessing, but the effect that Allah creates in their souls is an entirely different one.

True Muslims must use “the power of love,” one of the greatest blessings Allah bestows and must eliminate all the obstacles to their living by that love for Allah’s approval. One of the main obstacles is spiritual sloth, failing to employ one’s will in this regard. It is the failure to make proper use of this opportunity given by Allah.

For example, let us imagine someone has a tin of paint in front of him. Obviously, extracting the paint using his fingers is not the best way of going about it. The best use of his time and the paint in the tin is to pour it out in quantity and thus get the job done as quickly as possible.

The way Muslims use their souls in loving the manifestations of Allah, their words, honesty and general behavior, reveal this love in the most perfect way.

CONCLUSION

True and genuine love is one of the greatest blessings in this world and the Hereafter, one that Allah gives to Muslims alone. For those who do not seek Allah’s approval or live by the moral values of the Qur’an, true love is the loss of a blessing they can never attain. Many people may try to imitate true love and give the impression they live by it. But our Lord, Almighty Allah, the Creator of all, reveals in the Qur’an the certain truth that He will never bestow this love on those with no love of Allah and no faith, but solely on those who believe:

“As for those who believe and do right actions, the All-Merciful will bestow His love on them.” (Surah Maryam, 96)

Trust in Allah (swt)



Trusting Allah
By Shariffa Carlo

At some point in our lives, we have all had our trust betrayed. There exist few of us who trust anyone implicitly. The same goes for principles or philosophies. We have trusted them, only to be disappointed. In the same light, we have followed religious scholars, only to find that they too have betrayed us - either by being undereducated or imperfect. Maybe that is why it is so hard for us to let go of ourselves and truly trust Allah. When we start to analyze a command, we find in it things we can not explain or fully understand, so we stop doing it or do the thing which was forbidden to us, because the opposite does not make sense to us. Let me put that in more specific terms: We know that at the 120th day of life, Allah writes for us our sustenance (risq).

Narrated Anas bin Malik: The Prophet said, "Allah puts an angel in charge of the uterus and the angel says, 'O Lord, (it is) semen! O Lord, (it is now ) a clot! O Lord, (it is now) a piece of flesh.' And then, if Allah wishes to complete its creation, the angel asks, 'O Lord, (will it be) a male or a female? A wretched (an evil doer) or a blessed (doer of good)? How much will his provisions be? What will his age be?' So all that is written while the creature is still in the mother's womb." Sahih Bukhari: Volume 8, Book 77, Number 594:

We know that Allah has planned out our jobs and our income. Yet, we may shave our beard or take off the hijab when we go for an interview because we are afraid that we will not get a particular job. There is a huge contradiction in our beliefs here. If we know that what is for us is for us, then why are we going against Allah's orders to achieve the objective. The reason is simple. We are not trusting Allah.

This is a sad fact. Even though we know that Allah is our Lord and Protector, we have a hard time letting go and allowing ourselves to trust that He will protect us. I doubt we do this intentionally, it is shaytan, whispering to us, "The people will not understand, so shave the beard, maybe later you can grow it again" or "There is no way someone will hire you with that thing on your head, take it off."

We make excuses, like, my deen is in my heart, not what I show, even though we have been told:

Narrated 'Umar bin Al-Khattab: People were (sometimes) judged by the revealing of a Divine Inspiration during the lifetime of Allah's Apostle but now there is no longer any more (new revelation). Now we judge you by the deeds you practice publicly, so we will trust and favor the one who does good deeds in front of us, and we will not call him to account about what he is really doing in secret, for Allah will judge him for that; but we will not trust or believe the one who presents to us with an evil deed even if he claims that his intentions were good. Sahih Bukhari: Volume 3, Book 48, Number 809:

Even, we may leave our prayers until after they have expired because we fear being watched or something happening to us while we are praying. There is no trust that Allah will protect us, give us our risq or take care of us. We have to learn to truly trust Allah. Allah says,

When two parties from among you had determined that they should show cowardice and Allah was the guardian of them both, and in Allah should the believers trust. 3:122

And

If Allah helps you, none can overcome you: If He forsakes you, who is there, after that, that can help you? In Allah, then, Let believers put their trust. 3:160

It does not matter what you do, obey or disobey, the result will be that you will receive what Allah has ordained for you. You can not add to it or subtract from it. What you do is either benefit yourself with the blessings of obedience or harm yourself with the fruits of your disobedience. We have been told that what is for us can't miss us and what is not for us can't hit us.

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As: I heard Allah's Apostle (peace_be_upon_him) as saying: Allah ordained the measures (of quality) of the creation fifty thousand years before He created the heavens and the earth, as His Throne was upon water. Sahih Muslim: Book 32, Number 6416:

We have to learn to trust that Allah will take care of us when we obey Him and that He will withdrawal His Great Mercy when we disobey. Every morning the bird goes out to seek the provision Allah has given him, and every night he comes home with it. Allah has promised us our provision.

Umar Ibin Al Khattab narrated that he heard Allah's Messenger say, "If you were to trust in Allah genuinely, He would give you provision as He does for the birds which go out hungry in the morning and come back full in the evening. Tirmidhi and Ibin Majah (sahih).

Also, we need to stop thinking that having done a good where things did not work out as we expected would have turned out differently if we had done the wrong thing instead. Let us say one of us goes to an interview in hijab and then is denied the job. To assume that it was because of the hijab is wrong. We have to remember that this person can not keep Allah's Qadr from us. This interviewer can not stop what Allah wants to happen from happening.

Ibin Abass narrated that one day he was riding behind Allah's Messenger and he said, "Young man, if you are mindful of Allah, He will be mindful of you, and if you are mindful of Allah, you will find Him before you. When you ask for anything, ask it from Allah, and if you seek help, seek help in Allah. Know that if the people were to unite to do you some benefit, they could benefit you only what Allah has recorded for you, and if they were to unite to do you some injury, they could injure you only with what Allah has recorded for you. The pens are withdrawn and the pages are dry. Ahmad and Tirmidhi (sahih).

Also,

Narrated AbuHurayrah: Allah's Apostle (peace_be_upon_him) said: A strong believer is better and is more lovable to Allah than a weak believer, and there is good in everyone, (but) cherish that which gives you benefit (in the Hereafter) and seek help from Allah and do not lose heart, and if anything (in the form of trouble) comes to you, don't say: If I had not done that, it would not have happened so and so, but say: Allah did that what He had ordained to do and your "if" opens the (gate for the Satan. Sahih Muslim: Book 32, Number 6441.

Also, we need to accept that not getting the job was indeed best for us.

Suhaib reported that Allah's Messenger said, "It is remarkable that everything turns out well for a believer while that applies only to a believer. If happiness befalls him, he gives thanks, and it turns out well for him, and if misfortune befalls him, he shows endurance (patience) and it turns out well for him. Sahih Muslim.

We need to stop thinking that the key to the truth is only what we can understand or what we know. There is a point when we have to submit, be Muslims and say, labaik Allahuma Labaik. We have to obey without fighting it because we know that there is Justice and Mercy in it, even though we can not see it right now. When the verse of hijab was revealed, the ansar women went and immediately covered themselves.

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin: Safiyyah, daughter of Shaybah, said that Aisha mentioned the women of Ansar, praised them and said good words about them. She then said: When Surat an-Nur came down, they took the curtains, tore them and made head covers (veils) of them. Sunan Abu Dawood: Book 32, Number 4089:

They did not analyze it, or think about how this is an oppression for women or a humiliation or anything of this sort, they obeyed. When the verse forbidding alcohol was revealed, the companions literally spat it out of their mouths. No arguing, no questioning. They trusted that Allah Knows Best. We need to stop worshipping our minds so much and start worshipping Allah more. We need to stop trusting our minds so much and trust Allah more.

Trusting in Allah means that when we hear a command, we obey it. We recognize that we are limited and that Allah has no limits. He Knows what we do not know. We do not try to explain away the commands of Allah by saying that it is for another time or another people. We don not say that what Allah has commanded for us is oppressive. We accept and obey. This is faith and trust.

Narrated Imran ibn Husayn: The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) said: Seventy thousand people of my Ummah would be admitted into Paradise without rendering any account. They (the companions) said: Who would be those (fortunate persons)? He (the Prophet) said: Those who do not cauterise and practise charm, but repose trust in their Lord, Sahih Muslim: Book 1, Number 0422.

There is much reward in trusting Allah, paradise. There is sin in distrusting Him. We need to stop relying on our desires our minds our version of logic and realize that Allah is the one who Knows while we know not. Allah is the Wise, and His judgements are wise by default. Allah is the Just and His verdicts are Just by default. We can not see everything in every issue as Allah can, so why do we insist on believing that our minds can be trusted before or instead of Allah?

I pray to You, O Allah, to make us trust you and only you. May you make us of the Trusting and keep us from trusting or worshipping our minds before you. Ameen.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Finding Faith in the Depths of Darkness



Originally uploaded by © Ali Shokri / www.alishokri.com
Finding Faith in
the Depths of Darkness
By Sheikh Salman Baruti

"Whoever works righteousness,
man or woman, and has faith, verily
to him will we give a new life,
a life that is good and pure
and we will bestow on such their reward
according to the best of their actions."
XVI:97, Holy Koran.

Noor (Sufism)

Noor (Sufism)

Noor is the link which binds being to knowledge in Sufism. The word itself means light. Each particle of light that is reflected of the "mirror of the heart" projects spiritual knowledge according to distinctive types of colors.

Noor is the spiritual light of a person. It emanates primarily from the forehead, but can bloom from the whole body. A person's spirituality can be judged by the noor emanating from him. Noor is descended from the heavens, reaching the KabatuAllah in Makkah. From there it is distributed to all the Masaajid. There it manifests in those that are spiritually inclined.
from WIKI

Five Daily Salaah


Taggerty River
Originally uploaded by nathankaso
“Five daily Salah, is like a river flowing in front of your door and your washing yourself in it five times a day” (Hadith-i Shareef, Sahih Muslim)

Quran and Tasbih



Originally uploaded by ~ A l . N a w a r
Remembrance Of Allah (hadith)
Zikr (Remembrance Of) Allah

Allah's Apostle (Sal-allahu-aleihi-wassallam) said: If anyone extols Allah (Subhan Allah) after every prayer thirty-three times, and praises Allah (Al Hamd-u-Lillah) thirty-three times, and declares His Greatness (Ahhah-u-Akbar) thirty-three times, ninety-nine times in all, and say to complete a hundred: "There is no god but Allah, having no partner with Him, to Him belongs sovereignty and to Him to praise due, and He is Potent over everything," his sins will be forgiven even if these are as abundant as the foam of the sea.

Narrated by Abu Hurairah (Razi Allah Ta'lah Anhu); Muslim transmitted it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Allah's Apostle said, "Whoever says: 'La ilaha illal-lah wahdahu la sharika lahu, lahu-l-mulk wa lahu-l-hamd wa huwa 'ala kulli shai'in qadir,' one hundred times will get the same reward as given for manumitting ten slaves; and one hundred good deeds will be written in his accounts, and one hundred sins will be deducted from his accounts, and it (his saying) will be a shield for him from Satan on that day till night, and nobody will be able to do a better deed except the one who does more than he."

Narrated by Abu Hurairah (Razi Allah Ta'lah Anhu); Sahih Bukhari transmitted it. Vol 8:#412 of Sahih Bukhari.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Allah's Messenger (Sal-allahu-aleihi-wassallam) said that if any Muslim said three times evening and morning, "I am pleased with Allah as Lord, with Islam as religion, and with Muhammad as Prophet," Allah would certainly please him on the Day of Resurrection.

Narrated by Thawban (Razi Allah Ta'lah Anhu); Tirmidhi and Ahmad transmitted it. Hadith No. 2399 of Mishkat al-Masabih.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Allah's Apostle said, "Whoever says, 'Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi,' one hundred times a day, will be forgiven all his sins even if they were as much as the foam of the sea."


Narrated by Abu Hurairah (Razi Allah Ta'lah Anhu); Sahih Bukhari transmitted it. Vol 8:#414 of Sahih Bukhari.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The people said, "O Allah's Apostle! The rich people have got the highest degrees of prestige and the permanent pleasures (in this life and the life to come in the Hereafter)." He said, "How is that?" They said, "The rich pray as we pray, and strive in Allah's Cause as we do, and spend from their surplus wealth in charity, while we have no wealth (to spend likewise)." He said, "Shall I not tell you a thing, by doing which, you will catch up with those who are ahead of you and supersede those who will come after you; and nobody will be able to do such a good deed as you do except the one who does the same (deed as you do). That deed is to recite 'Subhan Allah ten times, and 'Al-Hamdulillah ten times, and 'Allahu Akbar' ten times after every prayer."

Narrated by Abu Hurairah (Razi Allah Ta'lah Anhu); Sahih Bukhari transmitted it. Vol 8:#341 of Sahih Bukhari.

..............

If you have any, do post it....Truly in the rememberence of Allah, does the heart find peace....as stated in many verses...
__________________

Friday, September 18, 2009

Breathtaking views


Red Heart
Originally uploaded by Katarina 2353
The Prophet (pbuh) said, "There is a tree in Paradise (which is so big and huge that) if a rider travels in its shade for one hundred years, he would not be able to cross it."

wash away our worries

wash away our worries

every day and in every way we all have worries, some large and some small and just when you think you have overcome one........there is another right around the corner. So, just as the tide comes in and goes out, one day at a time.........take one worry at a time, we can't hold back the tide, but we can control the flood.........this pearl of wisdom was brought to you from Stocks of Whitstable! Whitstable is the Oyster capital of the world!

Desert


Desert
Originally uploaded by Photonut (Mr. Dave)

Beautiful flowers

Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) said
"You shall not enter Paradise until you believe; and you will not bellieve until you love one another. Shall I not guide you to a thing? Which when done , will make you love one another: Spread the greeting of Salam among you"- (Muslim)


Hellow Yellow!
Originally uploaded by Photonut (Mr. Dave)

Death




Hadith: "When the believer is about to depart from this world and go forward
into the Next World, angels with faces as bright as the sun descend
from the heavens and sit around him in throngs stretching as far as
the eye can see. Then the Angel of Death comes and sits at his head
and says, "Good soul, come out to forgiveness and pleasure from
Allah!" Then his soul emerges like a drop of water flows from a
water-skin and the angel takes hold of it. When he has grasped it,
the other angels do not leave it in his hand even for the twinkling
of an eye. They take it and place it in a perfumed shroud and
fragrance issues from it like the sweetest scent of musk found on the
face of the earth.'

"Then they bear it upwards and whenever they take it past a company
of angels, they ask, 'Who is this good soul?' and the angels with the
soul reply, 'So-and-so the son of so-and-so,' using the best names by
which people used to call him in this world. They bring him to the
lowest heaven and ask for the gate to be opened for him. It is
opened for him and angels who are near Allah from each of the heavens
accompany him to the subsequent heaven until he reaches to the heaven
where Allah the Great is. Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, says,
'Register the book of My slave in 'Illiyun and take him back to
earth. I created them from it and I return them to it and I will
bring them forth from it again.'

"His soul is then returned to his body and two angels come to him.
They make him sit up and say to him, 'Who is your Lord?' He replies,
'My Lord is Allah.' They ask him, 'What is your religion?' He
replies, 'My religion is Islam.' They ask him, 'Who is this man who
was sent among you?' He replies, 'The Messenger of Allah.' They ask
him, 'How did you come to know these things?.' He replies, 'I read
the Book of Allah, believed it, and declared it to be true.' Then a
Voice from on high declares, 'My slave has spoken the truth, so
spread out carpets from the Garden for him and open a gate of the
Garden for him!'

"Then some of its fragrance and perfume comes to him, his grave is
expanded for him as far as the eye can see, and a man with beautiful
garments and a fragrant scent comes to him and says, 'Rejoice in what
delights you for this is the day which you were promised.' He asks,
'Who are you? Yours is a face which presages good.' He replies, 'I
am your good actions.' Then he says, 'O Lord, let the Last Hour come
soon so that I may rejoin my family and my property!'

"When an unbeliever is about to depart from this world and go forward
into the Next World, angels with black faces descend from the heavens
carrying rough hair-cloth and sit around him in throngs stretching as
far as the eye can see. Then the Angel of Death comes and sits at his
head and says, 'Foul soul, come out to the wrath and anger of Allah!'
Then his soul divides up in his body and it is dragged out like a
skewer is pulled out of wet wool. Then the angel takes hold of it.
When he has grasped it, the other angels do not leave it in his hand
even for the twinkling of an eye. They take it and wrap it in the
rough haircloth and a stench comes out of it like the worst stench of
a corpse on the face of the earth.'

"Then they take it up and whenever they take it past a company of
angels, they ask, 'Who is this foul soul?' and the angels with the
soul reply, 'So-and-so the son of so-and-so,' using the worst names
by which people used to call him in this world. They bring him to
the lowest heaven and ask for the gate to be opened for him. It does
not get opened.'

"The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,
then recited, 'The gates of heaven will not be opened to them nor
will they enter the Garden until the camel passes through the eye of
the needle.' (7:40) Then Allah the Mighty and Majestic, will say,
'Register his book in Sijjin in the lowest earth.' Then his soul is
flung down. The Prophet then recited, 'Whoever associates anything
with Allah, it is as though he has fallen from heaven and the birds
snatch him away or the wind sweeps him headlong into a place far
away.' (22:31)

"Then his soul is returned to his body and two angels come and say to
him, 'Who is your Lord?' He replies, 'Alas, alas, I do not know!'
Then a voice calls from on high, 'My slave has lied, so spread out
carpets from the Fire for him and open a gate of the Fire for him!'
then a hot blast from it comes to him, his grave is made so narrow
for him that his ribs are pressed together, and a man with a hideous
face and clothing and a foul odour comes to him and says, 'Grieve on
account of what has brought you disgrace for this is the day which
you were promised.' He asks, 'Who are you? Yours is a face which
presages evil.' He replies, 'I am your bad actions.' Then he says, 'O
Lord, do not let the Last Hour come!'"

This life in the grave or Interspace is the next part of our
journey. An 'interspace' is something that separates two things:
heaven and earth, this world and the Next World or the period between
death and resurrection. The bliss or punishment of the Interpsace is
not the same as that of the Herafter, but rather something that
happens between the two worlds.

In death, the body remains in the ground while the soul is in the
interspace or Barzakh between the two worlds. However, the two are
still connected and so the bliss or punishment happens to both of
them. When Allah desires bliss or punishment for the soul, He
connects it to the body. This is dependent on the will of Allah and
dependent on a person's own actions. The soul is diffused in more
than one place at the same time. The proof of this is that the
prophet (saw) saw Musa (as) on the night of the Night Journey
standing in prayer in his grave and he also saw him in the sixth and
seventh heavens.

During this life in the grave part of our journey the souls are
divided into two groups: one group is punished and the other group is
in bliss. Usually when we think of the 'grave', it is a word that
inspires fear. We are pained, but not aware of the delight it can
contain. Indeed, the bliss of the Grave is better than any delight
that this world can offer.

The liberated souls of those who are in bliss visit each other and
discuss what happened in the world they have left and the people of
that world. Allah says, "Whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger, they
are with those whom Allah has blessed, the prophets, the sincere, the
martyrs and the righteous. Very excellent companions they are!"
(4:69)


As the hadiths narrate, if the soul was a believing one, a door onto
the fire is opened and the soul is shown it's place in the Fire had
they disobeyed Allah. Then that door is locked and another door onto
the Garden is opened and they are shown their place there. This door
will remain open until the Day of Rising. Some of the sweetness and
fragrance of the Garden reaches them and their grave is made
spacious. The believer sleeps in peace just as if they were in one
of the meadows of the Garden. Their narrow grave expands and
stretches for the soul as far as the eye can see.


This spaciousness, light and greenery in which the believer remains
from the time of his death until the Day of Rising is not the same as
we know in our world. If a living person were to open a grave, they
would not find any expanse, light or greenness there. They would not
find an open door through which they could see the Garden. They do
not see bliss or torment. It is only the dead person who is aware of
these things and sees them. Allah, through His wisdom, has the power
to veil this from the living. The proof that this is so is shown by
the fact that there are other creatures like the Jinn who live with
us on the earth. They converse in raised voices among us but we do
not see or hear them. There were angels who fought with the
believers (at Badr) and struck down the unbelievers and shouted at
them, but the Muslims did not see or hear them. Jibril came to the
prophet (saw) in the midst of the people and they did not see or hear
them.

If however the soul was a disbelieving one, a door to the Garden is
opened for the unbeliever and they are told to look at what their
place would have been in the Garden had they obeyed Allah. Then it
is locked and another door is opened and they are told to look at
their place in the fire. It stays open and the blast of hot air from
it continues to reach them until the Day of Rising. The earth
presses in on them and they are crushed to the point that their ribs
split apart.

If a righteous person were to be buried in a fiery furnace, their
portion of bliss would still reach their soul and body and Allah
would make the fire cool and peaceful for them. For the wrongdoer,
the cool air becomes fire and hot wind. The elements and the matter
of the universe obey their Lord, Originator and Creator. None of them
are able to do anything except what He wills and everything obeys His
will in humble submission to His decree.

This part of our journey in our graves is still mostly unknown
territory. Outwardly the grave is stillness and quiet while inwardly
it contains secrets and terrors which an ordinary person cannot
percieve. It is a strange fact that animals are able to hear the
punishment in the grave while human beings as a general rule cannot.
The prophet (saw) said, "They are punished and the animals hear it."

Various forms of punishment rain down on a person in the grave
according to the type of wrong actions they committed. There are
hadiths of the prophet (saw) about the Night Journey which contain
descriptions of the many types of punishment he saw in the interspace
between the two worlds.

There are those who are driven like cattle and forced to eat herbage
more bitter than aloes and the bitter fruit of Zaqqum and driven on
to the hot stones of Jahannam because they did not purify their
property by paying Zakat.

There are those who have to eat foul putrid meat because they
fornicated. Some of them have bellies as big as houses and whenever
one of them gets up, they are knocked down and say, "O Allah, do not
let the Hour come!" They are in the path of the people of Pharaoh who
come and trample them while they can do nothing but scream. These are
people who devoured usury.

Some of them are screaming with their mouths gaping open while they
devour hot coals which come out of their anuses. These are people
who consumed the property of orphans.

Some of them cut pieces from their own sides and eat their own
flesh. They are the slanderers and those about whom the prophet
(saw) said, "We saw people cutting flesh from their sides and eating
it. It was said, "As you used to consume the flesh of your brother!"
I asked, "Who are they?" and I was told, "Those of your community who
slandered." Some of them have brass nails with which they scratch
their faces and chests. They are those who were backbiters and
maligned peoples honour.

Part of the hadith of the Night Journey is as follows: "Some people
were cracking open their heads with a stone. Every time they did
this, their heads were restored to what they were like in the first
place. This went on and on without stopping. I said, "Jibril, who
are they?" Jibril replied, "They are the people who turned away from
the prayer."

All of this shows that the Punishment of the Grave is true beyond any
doubt.

"Race to forgiveness from your Lord, and a Garden whose breadth is
like the breadth of the Heaven and the Earth" (57:21)

The intelligent are those who protect themselves against the evil of
this punishment before it is too late. They know with certainty that
sooner or later this day will come and maybe without any warning.
When it does, they will leave behind everything and move to another
world. Only there will they feel regret, but regret then will not
do them any good. In that place, only good actions will be of any
use. They alone will be useful currency on that Critical day. Only
with them will a person be able to purchase a magnificent mansion in
the Garden with all the luxuries and blessings it contains, an
everlasting mansion, not one which will disappear as things do in
this world. The intelligent person is the one who acts for this world
as if they were going to live forever and acts for the Next World as
if they were going to die tomorrow.

The Grave is an embrace from which neither believer or unbeliever can
escape. Our souls stay in the Barzakh and visit the grave regularly
for rewards or punishments. Afterwards, our journey continues and
the believer is relieved of its pressure while the unbeliever remains
in punishment.


Sheikh Abo Muhammed Samir Faid

Thursday, September 17, 2009

eid card



Sorry to disturb you, It's your friend Ramadan here;
Just wanted to thank-you for entertaining me last month,
but as i have departed with tears,
I beg that you are entertaining my brother Shawwal & the rest of the months as you did me.
Please do not fold away your Musaala and pack away your Quran,
Keep your heart firm on Imaan.

I will be back next year... but will you?

Saturday, September 5, 2009

All the beauties from Allah (swt) SubhanAllah






Sufi Wisdom







Wisdom


I saw these pictures and a wisdom crossed my mind, which says:

I learned that no one else will take my sustenance that Allah (swt) has sent for me, and my heart become confident and assured smile. (by anonymous)


Assalamualaikum

Creating a thread dedicated to all sufi wisdoms InshaALlah.

Once a very poor man came to Imam Jafar bin Muhammad as Sadiq and told him that in spite of his best efforts, there was no improvement in his financial matters and he remained poor and deprived. The Imam advised him to recite a du’a after Ishaa prayers regularly.

O Allah, verily I do not know wherefrom I will get my sustenance. Indeed to look for it I lay myself open to possible risks which threaten my heart. I go round in its search to (many) cities. There I (wander) as its seeker. Truly, I do not know whether it is in the plain, or on the mountain, or in the earth, or in the sky, or under the earth or in the sea. From where and through whom it will reach me? At all events, I know, its system (of production and distribution) is in Your power (because) You are, as creator, know all about its (availability, quantity and quality). Through Your grace and mercy it is distributed. O my sustainer give me abundant sustenance, make easy for me its seeking, let its source be near me and let me not in vain run after the sustenance You have not selected for me, because You do not want to punish me whereas I am always in need of Your mercy. Give generously Your superabundant bounties to Your servant, (because) verily You are the owner of limitless gifts.