Journey to Jannah (insha'Allah)

Poem on Jannah by Ammar AlShukry

2011-08-28T19:03:00.002-05:00

2011-08-28T00:48:00.002-05:00

2010-09-25T15:08:00.000-05:00

Anas (RAA) reported that the Prophet (SAAW) said “Indeed Allah has
His own special people from amongst humans.’ It was said: ‘Who are
they O Messenger of Allah?’ He said: ‘The Companions of Qur’an are
the special people of Allah and His chosen ones.” (Saheeh: an-Nasaa’ee and
Ibn Maajah).

Jummah Mubarak!

2010-08-20T17:57:00.001-05:00

Surah: Al-Kahf
Qari': Abdulhadi Kanakri

Fajr Prayer-don't miss it!

2010-08-20T17:54:00.002-05:00

Finally a perfect answer to the question "Aren't you hot?!" (in my Islamic attire)

2010-08-19T22:35:00.003-05:00

Surah: Tawba Aya: 81

فَرِحَ الْمُخَلَّفُونَ بِمَقْعَدِهِمْ خِلاَفَ رَسُولِ اللّهِ وَكَرِهُواْ أَن يُجَاهِدُواْ بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنفُسِهِمْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللّهِ وَقَالُواْ
(لاَ تَنفِرُواْ فِي الْحَرِّ قُلْ نَارُ جَهَنَّمَ أَشَدُّ حَرًّا لَّوْ كَانُوا يَفْقَهُونَ (9:81

Those who were left behind (in the Tabuk expedition) rejoiced in their inaction behind the back of the Messenger of Allah: they hated to strive and fight, with their goods and their persons, in the cause of Allah: they said, "Go not forth in the heat." Say, "The fire of Hell is fiercer in heat." If only they could understand!

Why Allah (swt) hasn't answered your duas

2010-08-16T21:46:00.002-05:00

It is reported that Ibrâhîm b. Adham (d162H) – Allâh have mercy on him – once passed through the market of Basrah. People gathered around him and asked: O Abû Ishâq, Allâh the Exalted says in his Book. ‘Call on me, I will answer your prayers’, but we have been calling on Him for a long time and He does not answer our prayers. [Ibrâhîm] replied, “O people of Basrah, your hearts have died in respect to ten things:

First, you know Allâh but you do not give Him His rights;

Second, you have read Allâh’s Book but you do not act by it;

Third, you claim to love Allâh’s Messenger – Allâh’s peace and blessings be upon him – yet you abandon his Sunnah;

Fourth, you claim to be enemies to Shaytân but you conform to [his ways];

Fifth, you say you love Paradise yet you do not work for it;

Sixth, you say you fear The Fire yet you put yourselves closer to it [by sinning];

Seventh, you say death is true but you do not prepare for it;

Eighth, you busy yourselves with the faults of others and disregard your own;

Ninth, you consume the favors of your Lord but are not grateful for them; and

Tenth, you bury your dead but take no lesson from them.”

Abû Nu’aym, Hilyah Al-Awliyâ’ 8: 15, 16.
Taken from http://www.sayingsofthesalaf.net

Be a stranger to this world

2010-08-14T03:54:00.002-05:00

Narrated Mujahid: 'Abdullah bin 'Umar said, "Allah's Apostle took hold of my shoulder and said, 'Be in this world as if you were a stranger or a traveler." The sub-narrator added: Ibn 'Umar used to say, "If you survive till the evening, do not expect to be alive in the morning, and if you survive till the morning, do not expect to be alive in the evening, and take from your health for your sickness, and (take) from your life for your death."

Sins go away

2010-07-01T09:52:00.000-05:00

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once went out when the leaves were falling from the trees. He took hold of a branch and said:- "Verily, when a servant of God prays seeking only His pleasure, his sins fall away just as the leaves have fallen from this tree." [Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 199]

Make my heart firm

2010-06-30T03:12:00.000-05:00

Steadfastness on Deen

Hadhrat Shuhra Bin Jausab (RA) says, “I asked Umm-e-Salma (RA), ‘What was Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alayhi Wassallam)’s most often read/repeated du’a in his house?’” She replied that Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) used to read:
يا مقلب القلوب ثبت قلبي علي دينك

Transliteration: “Ya muqallibal quloob thabbit qalbi ‘ala deenik.”

Translation: “Oh Controller of hearts! Make my heart firm on Your Deen.”

(Jawaahir ul Bukhari, pg. 571)

One who continuously makes this du’a will remain steadfast on the Deen, with the result that he will die with Imaan.

and this is why we make wudu properly...

2010-06-22T14:22:00.001-05:00

Sahih al-Bukhari
كتاب العلم (The Book of Knowledge)
-------------------------------------------
Narrated Abu Huraira:
Once the Prophet (salAllahu 'alayhi wasallam) remained behind us in a journey. He joined us while we were performing ablution for the prayer which was over-due. We were just passing wet hands over our feet (and not washing them properly) so the Prophet (salAllahu 'alayhi wasallam) addressed us in a loud voice and said twice or thrice: "Save your heels from the fire."

Scary Stuff

2010-06-22T14:16:00.000-05:00

Sahih al-Bukhari
أبواب التهجد (The Book of the Night Prayer)
---------------------------------------------------
Narrated Samura bin Jundab:
The Prophet (salAllahu 'alayhi wasallam) said in his narration of a dream that he saw, "He whose head was being crushed with a stone was one who learnt the Quran but never acted on it, and slept ignoring the compulsory prayers."

Best Friend

2010-06-22T03:37:00.001-05:00

A friend once told me this.

There was Shaykh who was asked how he developed his eman in the akhira and he said that he saw many funerals. A man would die, his children would follow him to his grave, pray...and leave. His wealth was left behind. All that was with him were his deeds. So the Shaykh said, "I have made my best friend my good deeds, to keep me company in my grave"

Convert story

2010-02-13T04:40:00.001-06:00

http://www.menacam.com/avustralyali-bir-gencin-islami-bulma-oykusu-video-t40310.html?s=dc2284f44c6ea99b085b820022a58307&s=5c039e1f328cae0fc0f3f51ed9807cfe&

2010-02-12T14:15:00.005-06:00

Sheikh Hatim al-'Asum was asked how he reached the level of reliance upon Allah (SWT).

He said, "Easy, I became convinced in four things and these four things penetrated my heart. They are:

1. I am convinced that no one else will eat the provision Allah has decreed for me, so I am content.

2. I am convinced that no one else is going to do good works except me, so I am busy doing them myself.

3. I am certain DEATH shall come unexpectedly, so I am busying myself in expectation of it.

4. I am certain I shall never escape the sight of Allah, so I am shy to disobey Him while He is watching."

A House in Paradise!

2009-01-13T07:54:00.006-06:00

Prophet Mohammad(pbuh) said, "Allah will build a house in Paradise for whoever is diligent in observing 12 sunnah rakaat (as follows):
4 rakaat before and 2 after the Dhuhr Prayer,
2 after the Maghrib,
2 after the Isha Prayer,
and 2 before the Fajr Prayer."

[Reported by Tirmidhi and others]

SubhanAllah! People work so hard here on earth for their houses, yet it's so easy to get one in Paradise insha'Allah. I haven't been strict about my sunnah, but after hearing this, I definitely want to work harder at maintaining all of it.

Of course, there are other incentives to doing your sunnah prayers:

1. Earning Allah's love:

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: Allah (mighty and sublime be He) said:
Whosoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me, I shall be at war with him. My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory (extra prayers-sunnah prayer) works so that I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. I do not hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate about [seizing] the soul of My faithful servant: he hates death and I hate hurting him.

It was related by al-Bukhari.

2. Fewer sins and better status: “Multiply your prostrations (prayer). Every prostration to Allah raises your status one degree and removes one of your sins.” Related by Thauban (R.A.)

Now tell me, who wouldn't want all these great things?

70 Ways to Earn Rewards from Allah (SWT)

2009-01-13T02:12:00.004-06:00

http://www.scribd.com/doc/8924010/70-Ways-to-Earn-Reward-From-Allah

This is an excellent compilation of things a Muslim can do to better himself, help others around him, and earn good deeds to get him closer to Allah (SWT)! May Allah reward those who took the time to compile these.

Assistance on the Day of Judgement

2009-01-13T02:04:00.002-06:00

These are some things that will help a believer on The Day of Judgement insha'Allah:

1st: The belief in Allah, declaring the Shahada-this weighs very heavily on the scales of the day of resurrection. So never underestimate thikr. Any free moment we have, we should mention them. -We honestly have so much free time on our hands, even if it's for a matter of minutes or seconds. Think about the time you're waiting for that stop light to turn green, while waiting for the commercials to end on tv, waiting for sleep to come, time we waste just browsing the internet..etc, etc

In an authentic hadith reported by Imam Ahmad and At-Tirmithi that messenger of Allah said: "Allah will select a man of my nation among all his creation in the day of judgment, and he shows him ninety-nine files. Each file as long as eye's sight then Allah says to him: "Do you object any thing of this?" "Did the registrars of the deeds miswrote", the man says: "No Lord", Allah then says to him: Do you have any excuse, the man says: "No lord" Allah says: "Yes, you have a good deed. A card emerges written on it: I witness that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger, Allah says to him: Bring your weight (meaning the bad deeds) the man says: O lord, what can this card do with these books. Allah says: "You will not be oppressed, then the books are placed in one side of the scale and the card in the other side of the scale, and the card would out weight the books. The prophet said: The name of Allah would out weight any thing."

2nd: Good manners (believe it or not)-Abu Darda' reported that the Prophet of Allah (PBUH), said, "Nothing is weightier on the Scale of Deeds than one's good manners." (examples: truthfulness, respect for others, piousness for parents, chastity.. all these, and much more, will help us enter Jannah insha'Allah)

Abu Huraira, (R.A.), said that the Prophet of Allah, (PBUH), said, "If one has good manners, one may attain the same level of merit as those who spend their nights in prayer." (SubhanAllah)

Remember: Surat Al An'am, Aya 160: "Whoever brings a good deed (Islamic Monotheism and deeds of obedience to Allah and His Messenger ) shall have ten times the like thereof to his credit, and whoever brings an evil deed (polytheism, disbelief, hypocrisy, and deeds of disobedience to Allah and His Messenger ) shall have only the recompense of the like thereof, and they will not be wronged."

3rd: Abu Hurairah (R.A.) reported: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, “There are two statements that are light for the tongue to remember, heavy in the Scales and are dear to the Merciful: `Subhan-Allahi wa bihamdihi, Subhan-Allahil-Athim [Glory be to Allah and His is the praise, (and) Allah, the Greatest is free from imperfection)'.'' [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Furthermore: Rassulullah (pbuh) 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. (Bukhari)

BEWARE: Some people do good deeds, but their deeds have little weight on the day of judgement, don't be one of them!

Almura’oon (those who did their deeds just to show off), will be the first people to be chastised on the Day of Judgment.

Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) warned us agaist this type of behavior:

Imam Muslim reported that the prophet (S.A.W.) say: "The first person whose case will be adjudicated on the Day of Judgment, will be a martyr. He will be called and shown all the bounties which have been granted to him. He will recognize them (He will admit that he did have them) and then will be asked: what use did you make of the bounties? He will say: I carried on Jihad (fighting) in the cause till I was martyred, Allah will tell him: You are lying: you fought so that you might be known as brave man: And in fact you were known as such. It will be decided that he should be dragged on his face and thrown into Hell. Next will be brought a man who had acquired knowledge and had studied the Qur’an. He will be shown the favors bestowed on him and will recognize them and will be asked: How did you use them? He will say. 'I acquired Knowledge and taught it to others and read the Qur’an for The Pleasure. He will be told: 'you are a liar. Your acquired knowledge only to be called a learned person and you read the Qur’an so that you might be called a Qari (reader), and so you were called. As per divine judgment he will also be dragged on his face and thrown into Hell. Then he will also be dragged on his face and thrown into Hell. Then another man will be brought forward on whom Allah the most High will have granted him all kind of wealth and property in abundance. He will also be shown the favors bestowed upon him, which he will recognize. He will also be shown the favors bestowed upon him, Which he will recognize. He will be asked: 'How did you use them'? He will say: I spent them in all the ways they approve; and I spent them in all these ways so as to win the pleasure. He will be told: you are lying; you did all that you might be called a generous person and you were called as such. It will then he ordered that he may be dragged to Hell."

In conclusion as Omar (R.A.) used to say: "Judge yourself before you are judged and weigh your deeds before they are weighed for you"

Sources:
1.islamchat.com (Sister Khadeja's teachings)
2.http://lotaenterprises.wordpress.com/2006/08/10/reviving-an-abandoned-sunnah-subhanallahi-wa-bihamdihi/#comment-6936
3.http://islam1.org/iar/imam/archives/1988/10/21/how_the_judgment_is_established_in_the_day_of_judgment.php

Al Hasan Al Basri

2009-01-05T06:07:00.001-06:00

"Son of Adam, you are no more than a few days. Whenever a day passes, a part of you has gone."

Al-Hasan Al-Basri.

Month of Muharram

2009-01-05T03:32:00.000-06:00

Assalam Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatu, I got this as a reminder-would like to remind you guys also :)

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Alhamdulillah, we are now in the blessed month of Muharram and the new Islamic Year (1430 A.H.)! Insh’Allah, don’t forget to fast the 9th of Muharram (Tues, Jan 6 2009) and the Day of Ashura (Wed, Jan 7 2009).
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By Mufti Taqi Usmani

Facts About Muharram

-Muharram is one of the four sacred Months out of twelve. The other being Dhul-Qa’dah, Dhul-Hijjah,and Rajab.
-These four months have been sacred since the creation of universe - as told by Allah Subhana Watala in the Quran.
-After Ramadan, fasting in the month of Muharram is most rewardable.
-Muharram is a sacred month NOT because the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (saw) was martyred in this month. It is sacred because Allah made it sacred along with three other months and told us about it in the Quran.

Facts about Ashurah - The 10th of Muharram

-Fasting on the 10th Muharram i.e. Ashura was obligatory on the Muslims before the fasts of Ramadan were made obligatory.
-Fasting on the 10th of Muharram expiates the sins of the previous year.
-Musa (as) and the Bani Israel were saved from the Pharaoh by the parting of the sea on 10th Muharram.
-Prophet Musa (as) as a sign of gratitute to Allah used to fast on the day of Ashura and Jews did the same.
-Prophet Muhammad (saw) on hearing the fast of Musa (as) also ordered the Muslims to fast on this day and himself did the same.
-Prophet Muhammad (saw) decided to fast on 9th Muharram as well to differentiate from the Jews but he passed away before he could do so.

Misconceptions about Ashura

-This is the day Prophet Adam (as) was created
-This is the day when Allah accepted the repentance of Adam (as)
-This is the day when Ibrahim (as) was born.
-This is the day the Qayamat (doomsday) will occur. (From hadiths we know Qayamat will occur on a friday, but does not specify which month)
Whoever baths of Ashura will never get ill.
-Muharram is an evil or unlucky month (due to the battle of Karbala)
-Marriages should not be held in Muharram.

All of the above are misconceptions based on unauthentic traditions. This misconception can be easily removed by the fact that on the exact same day Husain (ra) was martyred, years ago Prophet Musa as and his followers were saved from Pharaoh, which is why Prophet Muhammad saw observed the fast on Ashura and ordered the Muslims to do the same. The day can not be lucky or unlucky at the same time.

Historical Facts about Muharram

-Companion Umar Farooq (ra) succumbed to his injuries and attained Martyrdom on the 1st of Muharram, 23 AH (After Hijri)
-Grandson of Prophet Muhammad (saw) Hussain ibn Ali (ra) along with most of his family members was martyred in the desert of Kerbala in Iraq on the 10th of Muharram.

Authentic Ibadaat (Worship) of Muharram

-Fasting in Muharram (any day)
-Fasting on 10th Muharram and combining it with the fast of 9th Muharram to distinguish from the Jews.

Innovations and things to avoid in Muharram

-Preparing special dishes meals in Muharram.
-Holding lamentation and mourning ceremonies in the memory of martyrdom of Sayyidna Husain (ra)
-Cursing the companions.
-Wearing black clothes and starving and refusing to drink in memory of Husain (ra)
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Source: http://www.albalagh.net
Related: http://mustaqeem.wordpress.com/2008/01/16/whats-so-special-about-muharram/
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Wake up and Worship!

2009-01-05T02:14:00.007-06:00

Last Friday was the first time I heard a live online lecture. The title was "Wake up and Worship" by brother Abu Ahmad from Australia. It was so eye opening. I truly felt WOKEN UP! I wanted to get up and memorize quran, delete all my music, and worship 'til the end of time. Here are my notes on the lecture:

Each one of us has a duty. Those of us living in the states, or somewhere else, somewhere full of sin-what are we doing? Are we preaching our religion? Are we gaining new Islamic knowledge? If not, we might as well take ourselves back to a Islamic country. It's the New Year, but not OUR new year! We muslims go by the Hijri Calendar. We shouldn't be celebrating. We shouldn't be having a ball. Our brothers and sisters are being murdered in Gaza. We should be praying for them. We should be asking ourselves these questions: are we struggling for our country like them? Are we struggling for our religion?
The Hereafter is our main goal in left. If we want to enter Jannah, we must work HARD! We should educate ourselves-the Quran/Sunnah being of most importance. After learning them, we should implement. “Be certain that there is only one God –fa3lam ana la illaha la illah ilalAllah." These will keep us on the straight path. These are the only things that will keep us out of the hell fire.
Start with day things-like thikr after salah. Do everything in halal. Stop cussing-ask yourself, would I do this if prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was right beside me? If not, then don't do it! Don't question Islam. We do not know the hikma (wisdom) from Allah. It doesn't matter who loves you, the only love you should care about is your love for Allah. Do not fear anything, but Allah! Anything as in dont' fear poverty, your superiors, people around you, lack of food, anything!-because Allah is always there.

Every person has a qareen (that little thing that sways you to do wrong). Learn more and contemplate about the creations to stop it.

My notes definitely do not do this lecture any justice, but I wrote them remind myself and others of the lecturer's teachings. Tune in on Friday's at 4:30 Eastern Time at Islamchat.com.