A NEW YEAR: FRIENDSHIP & NISYAAN

It was the New Year but at this time, I do not remember which year was starting. My life has become divided into: when Tariq was alive and afterwards, but in this case I do not remember which period does this memory belong to, it feels like it may have been before Tariq died.

It was a beautiful New Year Day and I went to Vs house. We were new friends relatively speaking. She had invited me to go on a boat ride with her family and a couple I had known for a while. Feeling quite self-conscious as none of my family accompanied me I accepted her invitation.

We drove to the river with her family, and the couple. The sun was out, the water was blue and the birds were busy fishing. At the ramp the boat rolled out and we cruised upriver. I felt mesmerized by the feeling of easy friendship. The heady mixture of the sun, the water and good friends put me in a state of “living in the now”, and not thinking of anything other than the friends, the water and the mild winter sun. Sandwiches never tasted as good as they did that day. V’s hospitality was generous, smooth and sincere.

We landed at a spot by the river and took a walk. She came off the boat with grace with her husband, talking chatting and smiling in her usual charming way, complimenting V on the sandwiches.

We walked along the river but much too soon the weakening of the warmth of the sun signaled that it was time to return to the boat. She smiled and chatted with V and me and talked about all sorts of fun things.

Today as I enter the mosque I see her being seated by the combined effort of her son and her husband in a chair for Jumma prayers. She is mute, her face fixed in a semi smile, her gait stiff, I note that she has lost half her body mass. Her mind has given up and disappeared along an irretrievable secret passage along with her speech, which is accessible to no one.

Today as I approach New Year, I think of that sunny morning, that I took for granted, a gorgeous boat trip that I sulked about because I was going without my husband and my family. A glorious morning where I forgot everything. An afternoon, where she and I walked with V, cracked jokes and remembered good times together.

Today time has fast-forwarded for each of us, Tariq is dead, She has Alzheimer’s and V has embraced hijab. Each one of us is battling our own private demons, in our own way.

In the final analysis the most beautiful essence that has outlasted all adversity is my deepening friendship with V, and my deep thankfulness to Allah Subhanawataala for giving me that beautiful sunny morning on the river where there was no past, no future and only the present.

I know now, remembering that beautiful sunny New Year morning never to take anything for granted ever.

Prophet Muhammad PBUH taught us to cherish every moment in the present. The past is history and no one knows what will happen tomorrow. That sunny New Year day was an epitome of this teaching of our Prophet PBUH, where as we glided on the water, neither the past nor the future existed for us.

I will never take for granted even a single ray of sunshine (inshallah)  and try to remember to be grateful for all that Allah Subhanawataala continues to give me and refrain from even thinking of complaining about what he does not.

This New Year my goal is to remember what Allah Subhanawataala is gently reminding me in Surah Baqarah:
2:152 
 Then do ye remember Me; I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and reject not Faith.

What are your New Year Resolutions?

What are you grateful for ?

WALL TO WALL OPPRESSION……

A Glimpse of freedon over the wall

Heavy supplies, gnarled hands

age is no barrier for the desire of freedom

carrying for the family and neighbors

marching for bread....children and adults

Never forgetting the animals

And now many of those alive and well in these pictures are dead in Gaza leaving behind grief stricken hearts all over the world……

HOW TO BECOME A MUSLIM MACHO MAN (MMM) – PART ONE

Start every thing with Bismillah

Use the tried and true guides to strong roots and wings:

Review the original guides, make notes and follow the examples and the actions of the Best Man in History: Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him.

Review the tafseer of the Quran daily

Know the traditions of the Prophet (PBUH) from original texts

Listen and learn from the Lives of the Prophets

Avoid disobediences of Allah, look for subtle and overt signs

Use the guides to Perfect your salaat and instill it with spirituality

Eat, drink and seek preventions & cures from the Prophet's medicine

Become familiar with the masculine strengths of the PROPHET(PBUH)

WHO IS WORTHY OF ZAKAT? 9:60

009.060 
YUSUFALI: Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer the (funds); for those whose hearts have been (recently) reconciled (to Truth); for those in bondage and in debt; in the cause of Allah; and for the wayfarer: (thus is it) ordained by Allah, and Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom.

WHY DO WE GET TOGETHER FOR TAFSEER?

Women studying tafseer: Photo courtesy of Flickr: Quran pool

Once a week we put away our personal and professional obligations to get together to study tafseer of the Quran.

For each woman attending this tafseer Halaqa requires significant amount of preplanning and self discipline.

Some sisters have commented that they can listen to the tafseer online at home, others have said that they have already read the surah and its tafseer that we are reviewing, and have thus excused themselves from participating. Others have dunya reasons.

I have wondered at the reasons why we meet, other than to bond with each others as sisters in Islam?

A I was reflecting on this question, I happened to come across this hadith from Sahih Muslim and would like to share it with you:

Translation of Sahih Muslim, Book: 35
KITAB AL-DHIKR 
(BOOK PERTAINING TO THE REMEMBRANCE OF ALLAH, SUPPLICATION, REPENTANCE AND SEEKING OF FORGIVENESS)

Chapter 8: MERITS OF THE ASSEMBLIES IN, WHICH ALLAH IS REMEMBERED

Book 35, Number 6505:
Abu Huraira reported Allah’s Apostle (may peace be upon him) as saying:
Allah has mobile (squads) of angels, who have no other work (to attend to but) to follow the assemblies of Dhikr and when they find such assemblies in which there is Dhikr (of Allah) they sit in them and some of them surround the others with their wings till the space between them and the sky of the world is fully covered.
When they disperse (after the assembly of Dhikr is adjourned) they go upward to the heaven and Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them although He is best informed about them:

Where have you come from?
They say: We come from Thine servants upon the earth who had been glorifying Thee (reciting Subhan Allah), uttering Thine Greatness (saying Allah o-Akbar) and uttering Thine Oneness (La ilaha ill Allah) and praising Thee (uttering al-Hamdu Lillah) and begging of Thee.

He would say: What do they beg of Me?
They would say: They beg of Thee the Paradise of Thine.

He (God) would say: Have they seen My Paradise?
They said: No, our Lord.

He would say: (What it would be then) if they were to see Mine Paradise?
They (the angels) said: They seek Thine protection.

He (the Lord) would say: Against what do they seek protection of Mine?
They (the angels) would say: Our Lord, from the Hell-Fire.

He (the Lord) would say: Have they seen My Fire?
They would say: No.

He (the Lord) would say: What it would be if they were to see My Fire?

They would say: They beg of Thee forgiveness.

He would say: I grant pardon to them, and confer upon them what they ask for and grant them protection against which they seek protection.

They (the angels) would again say: Our Lord, there is one amongst them such and such simple servant who happened to pass by (that assembly) and sat there along with them (who had been participating in that assembly).
He (the Lord) would say: I also grant him pardon, for they are a people the seat-fellows of whom are in no way unfortunate.

Dua: May Allah Subhanawataala accept our tafseer meetings and grant each one of us jannah tul Firdous.

WHAT COLOR ARE YOU?

Have you ever described someone by the way they look? By the height, color of their skin and eyes? Often would be the answer of the majority. Have you ever thought of describing someone without using the above attributes? Difficult isn’t it?

WHAT DOES MY COLOR MEAN

God (Allah the Almighty) gives us the reason why he made people from different parts of the world different in their skin color and their physical attributes:
He (Subhanawataala) says in the Quran: 49.013
O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honored of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things).

RESPONSE TO COLOR
However when people of one color are not used to seeing people of another color, they are wary and suspicious when they come across someone of a different color. The onlooker then has to draw upon their personal or celluloid experience to determine the significance of this person of a different skin color than them.

Allah Subhanawataala says in the Quran:
030.022: And among His Signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the variations in your languages and your colors: verily in that are Signs for those who know.

FEAR OF NOVELTY
If the onlooker is afraid of the other person or has in the past heard or experienced something negative of similar people, he judges him to hold all the characteristics of the person they had experience with.

CREED, CASTE AND COLOR
Sometimes religions and cultures endow people of certain color or lineage as inferior, an example of this being the Shudras or “untouchables of India who if born in the home of an untouchable are forever confined to their caste and forbidden to rise above the untouchable state by economic or educational means.
Many people who are from the castes of untouchables either convert to Christianity or Islam to escape this lifelong noose of the caste system, and others migrate to foreign lands away from India where people may be unaware of their untouchable status.

THE HISTORY OF COLOR IN AMERICA
America has a history of having slaves that were black in color and thus given that status, some people still fall back on the past and try to look down on the American blacks of African origin.

WHAT DOES ISLAM SAY ABOUT COLOR

Islam, the religion of Submission to one God, removes all power from individuals by revealing to them their finite weaknesses.  All human beings are born and all human beings die and they have no power over the process. All power lies in One God who is our Creator.

WHO IS THE BEST AMONGST US?
Islam levels the playing field for all human beings. God Almighty says that all humans are created equal and “the best of them are the ones who are most righteous and have “taqwa”
Taqwa is a complex word and is defined as having love, respect, fear, and obedience for God the Almighty.

WHAT IS THE BASIS OF A COLOR BLIND SOCIETY
Islam is a religion that promotes a color blind society; its basis is three fold:
*    Harmony in society, by modulating individual behavior so that an individual’s personal bad habits do not harm society.
*    Personal spirituality and connection with God Almighty through prayer at designated times and protocol. Prayer being the primary source of strength and serenity in a person at any given time.
*    The concept of the Hereafter and the Day of Judgment where each person is individually accountable for all of ones actions in life. The final judge being God Almighty

WHAT IS THE OUTCOME OF A COLOR BLIND SOCIETY?
A society based on this threefold leads to harmony internally in each individual thus relieving stress, as well as externally, thus discouraging personal and global oppression and injustice.

HOW TO USE COLOR?
Color, according to the tenets of Islam is just an attribute to describe someone so that he is recognizable in a crowd. It neither connotes a level of intelligence nor an attribute of superiority nor inferiority.

HOW TO ATTAIN EQUALITY IN COLOR?
Every one is born a Muslim with a pure fitra (inner core of purity) and is equal in the eyes of Allah at birth. Each individual determines his excellence, by what he writes in his book of life by his actions.
Each person’s book will be read on the Day of Judgment where upon deciding his status in the Hereafter.

THE GREAT EQUALIZER
Islam is a great equalizer, not only for the people of color, but gender and nations also. The belief in One God gives strength and serenity individually and collectively, creating a harmonious society.

SUMMARY
Color is never to be used as anything other than a way to recognize people as a group from a certain geographical place.

For further information on Islam and Color contact your local Mosque

I wrote this as an experiment, to see if this would convey the islamic spirit of “color”

photo courtesy of flickr: I dont remember the exact url:(

LONELINESS AND ITS CURE…….

Abu Nu’aym (Rahimahullah) narrates in Al-Hilyah that Mu’aadh bin Jabal (Radia Allahu ‘Anhu) Said:

“Knowledge is a comforting friend in times of loneliness, it is the best companion during travels, and it is the inner friend who speaks to you in your privacy. Knowledge is the discerning proof of what is right and what is wrong, and it is the positive force that will help you surmount the trials of comfort, as well as those of hardships. Knowledge is your most powerful sword against your enemy, and finally, it is your most dignifying raiment in the company of your close companions.

Through knowledge, Allah, blessed be His Name, raises some people in rank, and He makes them leaders in righteousness and models in morality. The vestige of their faith is avidly sought, their deeds are emulated perceptively, and people will seek and sanction their opinions solicitously and unequivocally. The heavenly angels seek their company and anoint them with their wings, every fresh or withered life they pass by implore Almighty Allah to forgive them their sins, even the fish in the oceans, the beasts of the lands and every bird of prey and migratory bird pray and solicit the mercy of Almighty Allah on their behalf.

This is because knowledge revives the dead hearts and drives them out of darkness into light, and because knowledge is the light of the inner eyes that cures one’s blindness and restores his inner sight”

Here Knowledge means Knowledge of Deen which brings us closer to our Creator.

I AM FEARFUL……..9:51

LIFE 101 FROM SURAH TAWBAH

009.051 
YUSUFALI: Say: “Nothing will happen to us except what Allah has decreed for us: He is our protector”: and on Allah let the Believers put their trust.

A Reminder to myself: NO HARM OR GOOD CAN COME TO US EXCEPT FROM ALLAH, SO FEAR NO ONE EXCEPT HIM AND ASK FROM NO ONE EXCEPT HIM.

Recite Ayatel Kursi when fearful of anyone or anything, and Allah Subhanawataala accepts our submission, inshallah.

NAILA………….

GUEST ARTICLE

WOMEN in Islam by Dr. Kaukab Siddique
[This item is based on Ibn Asakir's Tarikh ud-damishq.]
One of the most charismatic women in the first Islamic generation after the sahaba was Naila, the daughter of Farafsa. She became famous when in the year 28 of the Hijra she married Usman ibn Affan, r.a., the third rightly guided Caliph of Islam. She was from a Christian family in Kufa but was educated in Islam by the greatest woman of Islam, Ayesha Siddiqa, r.a., from whom Naila learned Hadith. She also narrated Hadith from her illustrious husband, ‘Usman, r.a. [Again this is evidence that Hadith was narrated in the FIRST century of Islam, not in the THIRD as the munkareene hadith contend.]

In the year 35 hijri, Naila witnessed the tragic murder of her husband Usman, r.a. This great sahabi [companion] of the Prophet, pbuh., was the victim of sectarians who later came to be known as “Shi’as.”  These murderers were so cold-blooded, they cut down Usman, r.a., while he was reading the very Qur’an which he had compiled. [The blood of Usman, r.a., trickled down to this verse of the Qur'an he was holding: "...Allah will suffice thee as against them, and He is All-Hearing, All-Knowing." [2:137]

Naila grappled with the assailants but they were determined to kill the elderly Caliph. One of the assailants tore off Naila’s outer garment. At this an African slave whom Usman, r.a., had freed could not bear to see the emerging tragedy and rushed forward and killed the assailant who had grabbed Naila, only to pay with his own life. Then another assassin’s sword came down on Usman, r.a. Naila stopped it with her left hand and her fingers were cut off. The Caliph was martyred thus putting an end to the ideal era of Islamic excellence.

Weeks later, after her hand had healed, Naila, along with a large number of other virtuous women went to the mosque and addressed the people to shame them about their lack of resistance to the sectarians. She spoke at length and with amazing eloquence which mesmerized the crowd, reminding them of the high esteem in which the Prophet, pbuh, held Usman, r.a.

All the classical historians of Islam accept Naila’s narrative of the murder of Usman, r.a. At that time, Muslims did not think that ONE WOMAN’ AS A WITNESS cannot be accepted.

Also famous is the letter which Naila wrote to Ameer Muawiyya, r.a., reminding him of verse 9 of Suraal-Hujurat and chiding him for having failed to send timely help to Caliph Usman, r.a. The way she begins that letter is remarkable, with a calm assumption of equality: “From Naila, the daughter of al-Farafsa, to Muawiyya the son of Abu Sufian”.

THE MOST MISQUOTED AYAHS OF THE QURAN SINCE THE EPISODE OF 911 IN AMERICA:

Christians submit to Saladin

THESE AYAHS (9:5-6) need to be read and understood in the context they were revealed, not taken out and misused for purposes that are detrimental to society and humanity at large.

Islam is a way of life that if practiced as commanded by God in His words in the Quran and followed by example of His Prophet as He instructed him to follow, it brings harmony within us and around us.

Islam neither enforces peace nor war. Both factors are within us as human beings, we have been given a freedom of choice as to which factor we want to enhance. However if we follow the way of life as outlined in the Quran and practiced by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as an individual and as a society it does bring peace and harmony to both.

Islam as a way of life brings emotional and physical order in life, reminding us five time a day at the minimum that God Almighty in His infinite mercy helps us and is in charge of everything, if we want something we must ask him and if he gives us something we must show gratitude.

Islam instills in us via the word of God Almighty that we are accountable for each and every deliberate action and that we will be answerable to Him (God Almighty) on the Day of Judgment.

Islam also gives us the awareness that people are not bad but can be lured by the whisperings of the Shaitan. If human beings are not reminded of Allah Subhanawataala several times a day (salaat) as having power over all things we may be lured into a false feeling of having absolute power, or another human being having absolute power resulting in anger and emotions and acts of vengeance.

Islam also unites us as human beings and every created thing in the Universe when we acknowledge that in our salaat several times a day by submitting to one God (Allah).

Islam neither teaches us to hate anyone based on their caste, creed or color, nor does it teach us to be arrogant of our power or riche.  Allah SWT reminds us repeatedly by his words in the Quran that all things on earth and in our life are temporary and that our final home is in Jannah and our final behavior will be judged based on our following His (SWT) words in the Quran and the Sunnah in intent and action.

Islam gives us pause while fighting because anger and the feeling of intoxication of power are weapons of Shaitan. These can blind us to our final goal and deviate us from the path of humanity (Insaniat: being human or insaan).

Islam is a Morse code for a personal or collective life in harmony, it can be deciphered by reading understanding and reflecting on the Quran and following in the footsteps of Prophet Muhammad PBUH.

Allah Subhanawataala (God Almighty) created us, he knows us well, and He (SWT) has not commanded us to do anything that is harmful for us. He tells us repeatedly in the Quran that He has commanded us to refrain from only those things that are harmful for us.

Allah Subhanawataala loves us as His creatures, we have a special place as humans in that He (SWT) has given us freedom of will and freedom of action with a guidebook of consequences awaiting each act good or evil at the end of our time.

Thus by giving the message of Allah Subhanawataala’to anyone who is not a believer is to bring him or her a garden of flowers and sunshine for time immemorial.

It is not to force people to believe but to open the door to the garden and let them look, feel and savor the beauty and then invite them in. It is up to them and Allah Subhanawataala whether they enter or slam the door and maybe even the face of the door holder. We will have thus done our duty to Allah Subhanwataala.

Giving the message to each human being does not connote a race to see who is most successful in winning over more people or controlling more people by making them think like one’s own self. Self-aggrandizement or a feeling of superiority while doing so defeats the purpose, intent and humility of the invitation.

If the real intent is to give the message of the oneness of Allah, that He neither begets nor is begotten and has power over all things… then, we have completed what He has asked us to do.

It is essential to remind myself and you that the outcome is not up to me or you, the credit is not up to us, all we have done is our duty and offered the others a bouquet of flowers, what they do with it is their prerogative and the guidance of Allah.

Allah knows best.

Dua: May Allah Subhanawataala forgive me my mistakes and guide me, such that my brain and pen only think and write what He has deemed as just and right.

Photo courtesy of: http://pages.usherbrooke.ca/croisades/big_images/_images_en.htm