THE REWARD FOR GOOD DEEDS? 14:18

Humanitarian from Pakistan known for her care of orphans

Surah Ibrahim ayah 18

18              مَّثَلُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِرَبِّهِمْ  أَعْمَالُهُمْ كَرَمَادٍ اشْتَدَّتْ بِهِ الرِّيحُ فِي يَوْمٍ عَاصِفٍ  لَّا يَقْدِرُونَ مِمَّا كَسَبُوا عَلَى شَيْءٍ  ذَ‌لِكَ هُوَ الضَّلَالُ الْبَعِيدُ

Transliteration 18:   Mathalu allatheena kafaroo birabbihim aAAmaluhum karamadin ishtaddat bihi alrreehu fee yawmin AAasifin la yaqdiroona mimma kasaboo AAala shayin thalika huwa alddalalu albaAAeedu

Yusuf Ali 18 The parable of those who reject their Lord is that their works are as ashes, on which the wind blows furiously on a tempestuous day: No power have they over aught that they have earned: that is the straying far, far (from the goal).

The following is my understanding of this ayah after listening to Dr.Farhat Hashmi’s tafseer, all mistakes are from me and every thing good and correct is from Allah Subhanawataala.

GOOD DEEDS: WITH OR WITHOUT TAWHEED?

Why do we do good deeds? There are so many people in the world Muslim and non-Muslim doing beautiful work for humanity, green activism, social work, and standing up for the rights of others.

Why are they doing it?

The answer to that question actually lies in depths of their hearts. Analytically speaking a person does a good deed for three overt reasons:

1. For himself or herself, meaning doing it makes him or her” feel good” that feeling of goodness can be teased out into subcategories of he feels satisfied and vindicated that what he felt was right has been accomplished, his desire to do good has been successfully accomplished.                             In this his intention is to please himself i.e. His or her Nafs, which then means that the sorts of rewards that would satisfy him would be a feeling of self aggrandizement, and a development of a holier than thou attitude, examples of this are found in CEOs of large companies who excel in their work, human rights workers who lie down in the streets and stop traffic and people who picket for a cause.These good acts satisfy their egos, their Nafs and self satisfaction sets in.
2. The second reason is to do good deeds to show others and thus reap rewards from others, excelling in social work, community service and collecting accolades from people, and being elevated to a higher status. If I was to guess, Gandhi and Sister Teresa belong to the first two groups, but only Allah knows the state of the hearts.
3. The only intention for doing good is neither to show other people, nor to satisfy ones own Nafs is to do it for the sake of Allah and only Allah alone. The precursor of this is emaan and the action of doing good deeds is one of the component of emaan.

WHAT IS THE DEFINATION OF EMAAN?

Unflinching belief of Tawheed in the heart

Declaration of Tawheed by the tongue

Confirmation of Tawheed by ones action.

What is tawheed?

Continuous sincere affirmation of the Oneness of God.

The act of good deed done with the intention of purely pleasing our Creator falls under the third subgroup of emaan.

THE SOURCES FOR REAPING REWARDS

Thus the reward reaped will be from three different sources dependant on the intention with which we performed the good deed.

If we performed the good deed because we “felt” it was the right thing to do and it felt good to support that cause then we seek the reward from feeding our Nafs with more of it and it spills into the second group sometimes when we get accolades from others for doing it.

If we perform the good deed to bring the attention of the world or a loved one towards us and get into the good books of someone then we should expect rewards from those whose attention we sought and those for whose attention we performed the good deed

Allah Subhanawataala states in this ayah that those who have done good works for others will feel deep regret)” hasarat” on the Day of Judgment because there will be no reward for them on the Day of Judgment. One gets reward from the person for who one performs the task, not someone else.

We need to do some serious soul searching for each action that we do. Is it the confirmation of our Tawheed or is for the other two reasons mentioned above and then be ready to be accountable on the Day of Judgment.

Allah knows Best!

DO I HAVE TO FOLLOW THE SUNNAH?

Growing up in Pakistan, as a child, Sunnah was something a mullah, uneducated villagers and servants practiced. They did so by hitching up their shalwaars and sporting beards. And women wore burqas, and did not make eye contact.

(I  noticed recently from the fashions in Pakistan that the women wear hitched up pajamas showing their ankles and men wear droopy pants that cover theirs)

In beginning to studying the tafseer of the Quran and the life of the Prophet peace be upon him, I realize, that I have barely touched the tip of the iceberg of what is the Sunnah leave alone attempt to practice it in its entirety. I will need a long lifetime and dedicated study to do so.

The question was asked by a sister in a halaqa which set my mind searching:

“Prophet Muhammad used to go to Hajj on a camel, why don’t we do that? Isn’t it a Sunnah?

In teasing out the information for my own use, I have come to the following conclusion. if it is incorrect, please correct me.

Dua:  May Allah Subhanawataala forgive me and correct my mistakes through increased ilm and expert compassionate mentors:

From my understanding of what I have read: Sunnah means

“The actions and methods of doing things as was done by our beloved Prophet Muhammad pbuh

The question is what are these “things”?

In my mind from my review, I understand that there are three types of sunnahs:

1. Sunnahs of Ibadah
2. Sunnahs of daily living and interaction with people, business transactions, social interactions, personal life, principles of character and behavior.
3. Sunnahs of logistics, use of conveyance, e.g. camels, horses etc for conveyance,  material used for buildings, use of stones to make fire etc.

1. SUNNAH OF IBADAH

The first Sunnah i.e. the Sunnah of Ibadah is an absolute Sunnah, it came directly from God to Prophet Muhammad and he transmitted it to us to teach it to all future generations.

This includes the obligatory fulfillment of the pillars of Islam, the method of the nafila prayers, and fasts and the essence of comportment while doing so. Changing or modulating these Sunnahs amounts to “innovation” or “inventing “ Deen, which is prohibited and comes under “Bidah”.

Allah Subhanawataala says in the Quran that” Obey Allah and His Rasool”

These sunnahs are clearly delineated with well-referenced lines of isnad, i.e. documentation by linear references of scholars whose work and character has been well researched for authenticity and honesty.

On a side note I  realize how gullible and unquestioning we are in that we will firmly believe in an email or a you tube clip as a fact but have no idea where it originated and who is the author leave alone the authenticity and character of the author.  Sometimes even if one asks for the author or origin we are not aware of the source. Yet the very same otherwise gullible people question the well-researched “Sahih “ i.e. authentic Sunnah by reputable scholars.

2. THE SUNNAH OF DAILY LIVING

The Sunnah of daily living is an example of Prophetic behavior:  Hazrat Aisha RA described Prophet Muhammad as “the living Quran”.

Thus if one cannot read or understand the Quran due to some learning deficiency we can follow Prophet Muhammad pbuh’s behavior and we would end up living as Allah Subhanawataala has commanded in the Quran for us to do so. We will become closer to What Allah Subhanawataala likes.  Therefore the Sahabah followed it to a T.

FREEDOM OF CHOICE

Here we have a choice, we can either want to be liked and loved by Allah Subhanawataala by obeying the Rasool and following his manner, etiquette and way of life or we can choose to go with our Nafs and indulge in the desires dictated by it. (I am not saying making that choice is easy though it may appear to be so untill it is applied to our personal lives. I have not reached the point of always choosing the pleasure of Allah, but I will inshallah! Please make dua for me).

THE LIVING GUIDEBOOK FOR EMOTIONS AND ACTIONS

Allah Subhanawataala has given us a guiding light in this world with the example of a man who eats, breathes sleeps just like us, he is not super human, nor is he an angel.

He, like us, has emotions of grief, love, happiness, sadness and disappointment and by observing his reaction to these emotions and emulating them we can find peace and comfort.

LIFE IN SCRUTINY

We have been awarded a living guidebook from Allah in the person of Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him. His life and movements even his personal habits have been documented in great detail by several authentic scholars, and to this day he remains the most well described man in the history of the world. Perhaps no other human being would stand up to such scrutiny.

RESOLUTION OF ISSUES TO FIND PEACE & HARMONY

We can use his example to resolve issues, respond to feelings of despondency or ecstasy and power or powerlessness; in a manner that we know is pleasing to Allah. We know this because this is how it was done by His  (Subhanawataaala’s) beloved Messenger Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him.

Thus by responding to challenges as he (pbuh) did we remain within the circle of approval with Allah Subhanawataala.

HOW TO DO IT?

In order to respond to adversarial circumstances in the manner that Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him did, we have to develop a character like him. If we eat, sleep, pray and behave like him then when we are faced with a major challenge in life, we will by default respond to it like him. Only because we have absorbed those attributes of strength and consistency within us and will thus be able to absorb the shock and yet survive in a graceful and thankful manner.

HOW TO PLEASE ALLAH?

The more we emulate Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him,  the more we please Allah. The proof is in the answer to: Did  he (pbuh) not please Allah with his behavior?  We know that for a fact because Allah Subhanawataala validates that in the Quran, by saying “Obey Allah and his Rasool”

3. THE SUNNAH OF LOGISTICS

The third type of Sunnah is logistics of materials of the “asbaab” or means. This could also be called Seerah rather than Sunnah but it does fall under “things” that Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him, used.

For example we have to get to Muzdalifa from Arafat in a fixed time period, then we have to come up with a logistical means to do so. The only fixed point in this equation is the time as to when we have to reach Muzdalifa, not “how”

Thus using camel, cars, airplanes or futuristic conveyances do not interfere with the Sunnahs that will develop our character, our strength and our faith.

As long as the means used are halal and are obtained with halal earnings we are within the realm of the Sunnah.

THE ORDER OF IMPLEMENTING THE SUNNAH IN MY LIFE

My efforts are to first learn and practice the sunnahs of ibadah, and here and there add the Sunnah of daily living (such as eating and sleeping habits) , progressively immersing myself in these as these facilitate my ibadah.

Inshallah this will give me strength to go to the next and higher levelof “obeying Allah and His Rasool“

This is how I understand the Sunnah.

Please feel free to comment, add with references or refute with references.

Allah knows best!

IN THE FIRE DUE TO OBSTINANCY OR IGNORANCE?…….……….Surah Ra’ad 13:43

Obstinate denial leaves us alone without Allah: courtesy flickr.com

وَيَقُولُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ لَستَ مُرسَلاً قُل فَى بِٱللَّهِ شَهِيدَا بَينِى وَبَينَم وَمَن عِندَهُ  عِلمُ ٱلكِتَـبِ (٤٣

The Unbelievers say: “No messengers art thou.” Say: “Enough for a witness between me and you is Allah, and such as have knowledge of the Book.” (43)

TAFSEER BY DR. FARHAT HASHMI 13:43

Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him is commanded by Allah to say to those who deny that he is Allah; s Messenger that “ Allah’s witness is enough for me and he who has the ilm (knowledge) of the book”

Who has the ilm (knowledge) of the book? What is the book that is being referred here?

Thus if the Book being Luh- e- Mahfooz then it is Allah who has the knowledge and is being referred here. If the book is Torah and Injeel then the reference is to the Ulema of these Books and if the book is the Quran then the reference is to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Thus the people in the above categories are witness to Prophet Muhammad’s Prophet hood.

In Surah Al Imran ayah 18 Allah Subhanawataala says:

There is no god but He: that is the witness of Allah His angels and those endued with knowledge, standing firm on justice. There is no god but He, the Exalted in Power, the Wise. (18) The Religion before Allah is Islam (submission to His will): nor did the people of the Book dissent there from except through envy of each other, after knowledge had come to them. But if any deny the Signs of Allah, Allah is swift in calling to account. (19)

The people of knowledge know who is Allah’s Messengers. No one who has knowledge of the book would deny that Prophet Muhammad pbuh is the Messenger of God.

People can deny the Messenger only on the basis of ignorance or their obstinate ego.

MY TAKE:

Obstinacy is the brother of arrogance. It is that characteristic which prevents us from softening our heart towards something that we know from the inner precincts of our heart to be true. but one  denies it because of arrogance ( A disease of the heart)  and the whispered encouragement of the Shaytaan to dig our heels in and oppose it.

Thus we sometimes end up denying the truth while knowing it with our inner being to be the truth.  (May Allah Subhanawataala protect us from this trait).

DISEASES OF THE BODY AND DISOBEDIENCE OF GOD: PORK

workers at a Danish pig processing plant:http://www.foodprocessing-technology.com/projects/danish_crown/danish_crown5.html

“This is unprecedented in terms of any kind of illness that has been associated with occupational exposure”

Daniel Lachance MD, Research Faculty, Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic.

BACKGROUND

The eating of the flesh and blood of swine is forbidden as a clear commandment in the Quran.

Surah Baqarah: 002.173 He hath only forbidden you dead meat, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that on which any other name hath been invoked besides that of Allah. But if one is forced by necessity, without wilful disobedience, nor transgressing due limits,- then is he guiltless. For Allah is Oft-forgiving Most Merciful.

Surah Al Anaam :006.145 Say: “I find not in the message received by me by inspiration any (meat) forbidden to be eaten by one who wishes to eat it, unless it be dead meat, or blood poured forth, or the flesh of swine,- for it is an abomination - or, what is impious, (meat) on which a name has been invoked, other than Allah’s”. But (even so), if a person is forced by necessity, without wilful disobedience, nor transgressing due limits,- thy Lord is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.

016.115 YUSUFALI: He has only forbidden you dead meat, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and any (food) over which the name of other than Allah has been invoked. But if one is forced by necessity, without wilful disobedience, nor transgressing due limits,- then Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

If the creation of Allah would not eat pork it would not imbibe, inhale and ingest the flesh and blood of the pig, thus not only protecting themselves but also those who prepare the meat for consumption.

THE TRUE & SAD STORY OF PAIN

The pivot of this true story comes from the heartland of America where in two pork processing plants a mysterious illness exploded amongst its workers, disabling them with pain.

Masses of workers complained of headaches, pain in the neck, back and burning pain in the feet. Usually workers in meat processing plants are at the lowest rung of the socioeconomic ladder, and many times these are migrant workers with no health care.

However there are some advantages of having an epidemic in Minnesota because the researchers from Mayo clinic came to the assistance of the Minnesota Health department and the Federal Centers for Disease control and unraveled this painful and disabling disease associated with pig processing.

THE MODERATE VIEW

Sometimes Muslims are scoffed at for refusing to eat pork as it is touted as “clean and safe to eat “according to the non Muslim media. Colleagues with a smirk and a patronizing manner have informed me time and again that it was only forbidden because in olden times it carried worms in its flesh, which are bred out in the pig lots of the Heartland of America.

Moderating and changing the commandments of Allah is on the agenda of “Moderate Islamists”. Its proponents want to moderate Islamic principles to adjust and fit the satiety of our Nafs (self, desires). They are pressured by the surrounding media which sells the products for an extravagant and sometimes decadent and hedonistic way of life.

These can appears very seductive to one who is not well heeled in the words of God Almighty and who wishes desperately to fit in. He or she thus works feverishly to intellectually rationalize a reason to bypass the way of life designated by Him (God Almighty) for all His creatures.

SEARCHING FOR REASONS FOR THE PAIN

Almost three years ago when the majority of the Pig Processing Plant workers fell ill, no one paid attention to them, until perhaps they reached a critical mass with an absentee rate which interfered with the smooth running of the Plants involved.

It took three years for the Medical researchers from Mayo Clinic to figure out what was going on…….and here is what they found after three years of agonizing pain in these men and women from the pig processing plant:

THE REASON

“The Mayo doctors who are following the illness of these Pig processing plant workers have identified the condition as an inflammatory neuropathy, which they labeled specifically as an autoimmune sensory-predominant polyradiculoneuropathy”

TRANSLATION

When translated into normal language it means that the nerves of these workers when exposed to the pig products reacted in such a manner that they no longer could discern between what was their own tissue and what was a foreign invader.

Thus the body’s defense forces attacked its own nerves with a vehemence creating destruction (inflammation) in its wake resulting in pain in the owner of the body which became a battlefield with all of its ramifications.

THE SYMPTOMS:

“This illness was giving the workers ongoing neuromuscular symptoms including pain, fatigue, and weakness and tingling in their extremities” Mayo Clinic Researchers

REASON FOR NEUROLOGICAL SYMPTOMS

“The workers illness has been blamed on exposure to aerosolized pig brain tissue in the processing plants. This set off an immune response that attacked their nervous system, particularly the nerve roots exiting the spinal cord and nerve endings in the hands and feet, confirmed by neurophysiologic testing”.**

PROVIDING PROTECTION FROM OUR HARAAM (FORBIDDEN) DESIRES

This article is quoted not to scare people away from eating pork, nor is it to justify the truth of Allah’s word in the Quran.

It is to illustrate the limitation of our intellect, and to understand and admit that the Quran was revealed for all times and to believe that when Allah Subhanawataala says in the Quran, that I only forbid you from those things which are harmful for you, to believe Him by submitting to Him. The word Islam means “Submission, which results in peace”.

SUMMARY

Just as the body of these workers when exposed to a haraam thing, reacted by destroying its own self and becoming unable to discern between what is good and bad for the body, there are things in life that we cannot predict will harm us. Sometimes they are used for a time and may result in irreversible damage.

Thus by obeying the commandments of Allah Subhanawataala, we not only protect ourselves but all those people who are exposed to the processing of those goods and products (pork, alcohol, gambling etc) which are harmful to society at large, whether they participate in it directly or by default.

WHAT DOES ISLAM PROMOTE?

Islam is a religion and a way of life that promotes good health, social responsibility and preventive measures for addictive and harmful lifestyles. Most of all it protects us from the excesses of our own self (Nafs/desires).

Allah knows best.

** These findings were presented by the Mayo Clinic researchers at the American Academy of Neurology Meeting in Seattle in April of 2009.

THE SHIRT: LOSS OF A SON 12: 11-18

Surah Yusuf 12:11-18
قَالُواْ يَـأَبَانَا مَا لَكَ لَا تَأمَنَّا عَلَى يُوسُفَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ  لَنَـصِحُونَ (١١) أَرسِلهُ مَعَنَا غَدًا يَرتَع وَيَلعَب وَإِنَّا لَهُ  لَحَـفِظُونَ (١٢) قَالَ إِنِّى لَيَحزُنُنِىٓ أَن تَذهَبُواْ بِهِ وَأَخَافُ أَن يَألَهُ ٱلذِّئبُ وَأَنتُم عَنهُ غَـفِلُونَ (١٣) قَالُواْ لَن أَلَهُ ٱلذِّئبُ وَنَحنُ عُصبَةٌ إِنَّآ إِذًا لَّخَـسِرُونَ (١٤) فَلَمَّا ذَهَبُواْ بِهِ وَأَجمَعُوٓاْ أَن يَجعَلُوهُ فِى غَيَـبَتِ ٱلجُبِّ وَأَوحَينَآ إِلَيهِ لَتُنَبِّئَنَّهُم بِأَمرِهِم هَـذَا وَهُم لَا يَشعُرُونَ (١٥) وَجَآءُوٓ أَبَاهُم عِشَآءً يَبكُونَ (١٦) قَالُواْ يَـأَبَانَآ إِنَّا ذَهَبنَا نَستَبِقُ وَتَرَنَا يُوسُفَ عِندَ مَتَـعِنَا فَأَلَهُ ٱلذِّئبُ وَمَآ أَنتَ بِمُؤمِنٍ لَّنَا وَلَو نَّا صَـدِقِينَ (١٧) وَجَآءُو عَلَى قَمِيصِهِ بِدَمٍ كَذِبٍ قَالَ بَل سَوَّلَت لَكُم أَنفُسُكُم أَمرًا فَصَبرٌ جَمِيلٌ وَٱللَّهُ ٱلمُستَعَانُ عَلَى مَا تَصِفُونَ (١٨)
Transliteration:
11    Qaloo ya abana ma laka la tamanna AAala yoosufa wainna lahu lanasihoona
12    Arsilhu maAAana ghadan yartaAA wayalAAab wainna lahu lahafithoona
13    Qala innee layahzununee an thathhaboo bihi waakhafu an yakulahu alththibu waantum AAanhu ghafiloona
14    Qaloo lain akalahu alththibu wanahnu AAusbatun inna ithan lakhasiroona
15    Falamma thahaboo bihi waajmaAAoo an yajAAaloohu fee ghayabati aljubbi waawhayna ilayhi latunabiannahum biamrihim hatha wahum la yashAAuroona
16    Wajaoo abahum AAishaan yabkoona
17    Qaloo ya abana inna thahabna nastabiqu watarakna yoosufa AAinda mataAAina faakalahu alththibu wama anta bimuminin lana walaw kunna sadiqeena
18    Wajaoo AAala qameesihi bidamin kathibin qala bal sawwalat lakum anfusukum amran fasabrun jameelun waAllahu almustaAAanu AAala ma tasifoona

Translation (Pickthall)
They said: O our father! Why wilt thou not trust us with Joseph, when lo! we are good friends to him? (11) Send him with us to-morrow that he may enjoy himself and play. And lo! we shall take good care of him. (12) He said: Lo! in truth it saddens me that ye should take him with you, and I fear lest the wolf devour him while ye are heedless of him. (13) They said: If the wolf should devour him when we are (so strong) a band, then surely we should have already perished. (14) Then, when they led him off, and were of one mind that they should place him in the depth of the pit, We inspired in him: Thou wilt tell them of this deed of theirs when they know (thee) not. (15) And they came weeping to their father in the evening. (16) Saying: O our father! We went racing one with another, and left Joseph by our things, and the wolf devoured him, and thou believest not our saying even when we speak the truth. (17) And they came with false blood on his shirt. He said: Nay, but your minds have beguiled you into something. (My course is) comely patience. And Allah it is Whose help is to be sought in that (predicament) which ye describe. (18)

TAFSEEER excerpted from Taleem ul Quran by Dr. Farhat Hashmi (with my take in italics from the retreat on Surah Yusuf with HY)

This is a 4000-year-old story…………a story of which Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) had no knowledge. The Meccans. Both the Quraish and the Jews were bent on disproving prophet Muhammad’s Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)Prophet hood. Thus he was asked about Yusuf AS of which he had no knowledge. It is then that Allah Subhanawataala revealed this surah with the complete story of Yusuf in its entirety.

Here is how the story goes………………..

Yaqub (AS) was approached by his sons (the eleven brothers of Yusuf)……………..they started their conversation by making him feel guilty that he does not trust them with Yusuf.

They reminded him that they are a large, strong group, and nothing can overcome them. They asked him to let Yusuf go with them on a picnic and that they would guard him and bring him back safe and sound.  They of course had no intention of bringing him back period. Thus this falls into the earliest history of a premeditated crime.

What does a father do………….when one sibling is pitted against the other and is bent on mischief.

He appealed to them, and said, “ it fills my heart with sadness at the thought of Yusuf going away and I feel anxiety that something might happen to him like a wolf might devour him while you are busy……”

He watched as the brothers in a backhanded fashion accused him of not trusting them with Yusuf. They said that they were going for a picnic and did he not think that they were enough in number and strength to take care of one child and that being their own brother……?

The air was rife with treachery…….a murder had been planned and had been changed to abduction and disappearance.

The Nafs of the boys was riding rampant and its predatory tentacles had overcome their good sense. The whisperings of Shaitaan fanning their envy and jealousy for their younger sib.The mischief crystallized into a deliberate plan to get rid of their younger brother whom they believed to be the apple of their father’s eyes.

A parent can feel when something is amiss in his children. And so did Yaqub AS. He felt that the brothers were up to no good and yet………he submitted to Allah’s Divine Decree by making his fatherly anxiety and premonition yield to the will of God.

He let Yusuf go with them………..

Night had fallen. They came back with his shirt, stained with blood, which they said belonged to Yusuf…………The pain and anguish that he had spoken about when he was hesitant about sending Yusuf with them now filled his heart and overflowed through his eyes. Not a word of anger or complaint to anyone including Allah Subhanawataala escaped his lips………all he said was “ I will bear this sorrow with Sabr Jameel and only ask Allah for help” (a sabr that is beautified with perfection of the act).

The shirt……..covered with blood a reminder that Yusuf was lost, somewhere in the vast unending desert.  His dear sweet, handsome, agreeable, lovable, child Yusuf was lost and there was not a thing he could do except be patient, trust in God and seek His help. Sabr jameel! There was no end point to his anguish, but he had vowed to have Sabr Jameel and only ask Allah for help, but his anguish flowed from his heart to his eyes.

The shirt……….was the only thing left of Yusuf to remind him that he was gone, irrevocably. Somewhere in the back of his mind or from his instincts as a Nabi he knew that his lovely child was not dead……..and yet he was gone, lost in the vast desert and it is said that he cried his heart out till he became blind. A father blinded with grief.

The sorrows of a parent for a child…. dead or lost are unfathomable………it is only the mercy of Allah and trust in Him and Sabr, that keeps one sane and patient in the face of the incessant waves of sorrow that threaten to engulf and drown one into the fathomless sea of grief.

The shirt………….Yusuf’s (AS) shirt is symbolic through out this saga as it continues.

Yaqub (AS) grief and his promise of Sabr Jameel and asking only God for help, brings to us the human example of a grief stricken parent given strength to bear endless sadness.

Most of all it raises the bar for the level of trust in God that we can have and that of Sabr to Sabr Jameel.

Dedicated…………in memory of Nabeel

ARRIVING AT THE RETREAT FOR TAZKIYAH NAFS………….

I am at the airport and they are here to pick me up along with the other retreaters. This time, I am not stressed, I know that whatever arrangements Allah SWT has planned for me to get there will happen.
As the car ascends the mountains, in a caravan, packed with the retreaters I feel the tension ebb away from me…………I literally feel that I am going to be deposited at the beginner’s point of the hike to The Path of the Seekers of Allah.

How presumptuous of me……….nevertheless my heart lifts as I go deeper and deeper into the mountains and only the blocking of my ears tells me that I have also made a literal ascent of the body and not only of the heart and soul.

Why do I feel elated?  Is it because this is the third time and I know what to expect or is it because I have dropped all presuppositions and allowed myself to float like a leaf in the river of faith, allowing it to take me wherever the Divine hand guides it.

I no longer try to steer my path, nor try and change behavior of my companions, I make a mental note that it is myself that I will need to adjust. Why am I here for the third time, I know the answer to that……I am a slow learner.

This time I have no need to talk, to get to know others, nor do I feel responsible to keep a conversation going. I enjoy the permission that I have been given, to remain silent.

When I reach our room in the lodge, I do one thing different that I have learned from my travel companion V. I unpack daily essentials and organize them in the appropriate places. I make sure that I have the right things available for the right activities without having to search for them, and I head to the basement or the musallah.

As I step on the last stair that always creaks the loudest when there is a latecomer for salaah, I feel I am home. The room smells musty like a home that has missed its dwellers. The crisply clean green carpet welcomes me; I am told at another time that the Christian camp owners especially fixed this carpet and this room for the Muslim retreaters.

I think of King Nagashi. Did he not help the Muslims in time of dire need and then did his heart not turn towards the ultimate submission to the one God………..I wonder at the red haired man who runs the camp, he sits in one of the salaahs with his feet folded like a Muslim who has spent his life on the musallah and I wonder about his heart…………… And so begins the introduction of the retreat which holds the map to the hiking trail for the Seeker of the Almighty………..

Protecting others from your Nafs………

When a muslim sage was once asked about his habit of withdrawing to the hills in seclusion by himself:

” Why do you pull away and go into the hills?”

He replied:

” I have a fierce dog…..which I am afraid will hurt others. That dog is my Nafs!”

(A quote taken from the retreat on Tazkiyah Nafs 08 by Sheikh Mokhtar Magroubi)

PURIFICATION OF THE HEART: KHALWAH

There are four practical aspects of cleansing the heart the first one being:
KHALWAH: To decrease intermingling we are offered the concept of Khalwah as a practical method to begin the journey to cleanse our hearts in order to find the path to Allah.

Khalwah is defined as “being with one self”

Khalwah is beneficial for the one who secludes himself in Khalwah as well as for the people he or she is secluded from.

The Holy Quran, the Hadith, and the examples of the lives of all the known Prophets of Allah illustrate this habit. Allah SWT rewarded Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him, with the embrace of Gabriel (AS) who brought him His (SWT) message after he (PBUH) had sought khalwah in the Cave of Hira for a long and consistent period.

Khalwah has a purpose: For the Khalwee it is to detach from people, relationships, virtual or actual, habit of reliance on others, in order to evaluate oneself in the light of our Deen and the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah.

Khalwah is getting off the treadmill of life’s activities to evaluate the health of ones mind, body in it s service to the Qalb (heart).

In Khalwah one cuts the cable for incoming data (temporarily for a specific period) and explores and evaluates what has been saved on the hard drive of the brain. After one has sorted the trash from the treasures on this hard drive, one then purges the corrupted and irrelevant data along with the trash. After restoring the integrity of the hard drive and making space for new data one then puts in this new data through salaat and sawm and seeks the help of Allah via Istighfaar and Dhikr e Elahi.

Khalwah or being along without the purpose and focus of cleansing ones inner self and subjugating the lower Nafs and without closing the doors to incoming data generated by the nafs may further cloud the lens of the heart;

Thus being in Khalwah with the Internet, TV, movies or other methods in which one is still in contact with all the possible venues of the disobedience of Allah defeats the purpose.

While in Khalwah one evaluates:
1.    The status of our level of subjugation by our lower Nafs.
2.    Our past mistakes or disobediences to Allah SWT
3.    The extent to which ones heart is clouded due to the excess of the above two forces.
One then, while still in a state of Khalwah sets about to cleanse the heart with removal of all thoughts, actions, past and present from ones daily living. One then plans for the life outside khalwah to be modulated in a manner that it embodies the purpose of continuing to cleanse the heart.

Khalwah is not just a one time happening in the life of the student who is learning the basics of the purification of the Heart for the purpose to see and follow the path of happiness to Allah with his heart.

It is an ongoing process in which from time to time the Khalwee plans a period of khalwah to take stock of life events and directions and to reorient his or her life in the right direction.

Khalwah can be as brief as the salaat and the ensuing Dhikr afterwards occurring five times a day, or as long as a retreat somewhere, or even just a day at home cutting of all incoming data.

Khalwah is a circle of safety in which when we place ourselves we not only protect ourselves from being covered with the grime of disobedience, but in doing so we may also protect others from our base Nafs which may be on the loose.

In summary Khalwah is being with ourselves to clean out our insides and start a rejuvenating program to walk the path of Happiness to Allah guided by the cleansed lens of our pure Heart. It involves keeping the wild horse of our lower Nafs strictly in control and pointed in the direction of Siraat e Mustaqeem, while we are seeking guidance from Allah SWT

Khalwah is a practical process that is needed by every student or Moreed who wishes, yearns and struggles to stay on the path that will eventually lead him to Allah (SWT) giving him or her bursts of immeasurable happiness enroute and at his or her destination.

(Excerpted from the lectures of Sheikh Magroubi at the retreat on Tazkiyah e Nafs 08, for details CDS are available on Purification of the Heart at www. Zawiyah.net)

PURIFYING YOUR HEART: Introducing the Process

Maintaining the purity and clarity of the Heart is a lifelong struggle the reward of which in this dunya is the ability of the Qalb to see and guide us to traverse the path of Happiness towards Allah SWT.

As long as we breathe, we human beings are social creatures and have the need of other humans, the desire to communicate, to eat, to rest and re energize and to continue our journey towards Akhirah.

However to steadfastly remain on the path of Happiness one has to take on the role of a student perhaps one who is a student for life, who yearns, wills, and struggles to travel on the path of Happiness towards Allah SWT, also called a Moreed.

If we wish to find happiness in this world and in the next, we know that it comes from the proximity of Allah SWT and being on His path. I have brief lightning glimpses of it so I feel I can attest to it, and I know I want more of it.

We also know that in order to be on this path we need to provide our guide i.e. our Qalb: the seeing eye, a clear field of vision by removing all the coverings, veils, cobwebs, and distractions from its line of vision.

This aspiration for Happiness can be obtained in spurts by Dhikr and immersing oneself in worship, but as soon as one lifts ones head the feeling is gone unless………….we make our heart our Qalb our guide and keep the wild animal of our Nafs in tight control.

Guidelines for the above have been shown to us by the states, in which our Prophet Muhammad peace and blessings be upon him, lived his life.

To steadfastly remain on the path to Happiness towards Allah SWT, the Moreed or student has to make four commitments that involve the basic acts of living. These are:
1.    To intermingle less with other humans than what is desired
2.    To speak less then what one wants
3.    To eat less than what perceives is optimal
4.    And to sleep less than what one thinks one needs to.
At the very thought of restricting these four basic activities, my Nafs rears and snorts like a wild horse, and the dance to tame my Nafs while guiding myself to the path of Happiness using my heart begins……..and that dance is called Life 101.
I am in a state of surprise and anticipation, how does one do less of everything basic and still survive and be happy? Isn’t one of the joys listed of life as eating, sleeping and socializing? ………. Isn’t that what every magazine, TV and advertisement blare on the top of its media voice?

And yet Prophet Muhammad PBUH attained that level of peace, and happiness that each one of us is searching for and the richest and most “popular” person on the planet does not have it.
I re orient myself and I am now avidly attentive as to what comes next in the Purification of my heart.

We break for Dhuhr with my tongue silent and my head whirling with the ramifications of what has been proposed, I look around and my fellow retreatees are in a similar mode.

This afternoon, I feel a lot of duas are going to be lifted up to Allah SWT to make us understand this journey and could He SWT perhaps make it easy for us? Or am I asking Him SWT to make it easy for my Nafs? No one speaks as we step into our rooms to purify our bodies, cleanse our minds and be ready to present ourselves to our Creator.

(Excerpts from the retreat on Tazkiyah Nafs 08 with Sheikh Mokhtar Magroubi)

Have you identified what behaviorisms come from the Nafs?

MY HEART (QALB) AND MY NAFS THE WILD HORSE……….

I have learnt a lot in the first session of the retreat on Tazkiyah tun Nafs. Some of which I was aware of because of my mother’s actions and some because of a previous retreat. Yet I find my head spinning with the intensity of the significance of this information on my life.
Here are some facts to share…………
The essence of you and me lies in our Qalb or roughly and inadequately translated as The Heart, but it does not mean just the physical heart.

Hadith:
“ Verily Allah SWT has amongst the inhabitants of the earth, vessels that carry Him (SWT). The carriers of your Lord are the Hearts of the righteous ebad”

The freedom of choice that Allah SWT has given us is in the form of four types of Nafs or roughly and inadequately translated as ‘Ego’ this being different than the Freudian ego.
1. Bahemi (eats, sleeps, copulates and is only concerned with the sensual and sexual)
2. Predatory (self explanatory)
3. Shaitaani (devilish)
4. Malaiky or Angelic

The first three also called the base or lower Nafs, if used with temperance and kept under control fulfill the acts of daily living allowing the gentlest of the Nafs i.e. to connect with Allah SWT.
Allah SWT has given the rein s for the control of this wild horse, i.e. our base Nafs to us. We can give our base Nafs a free rein with consequences that affect our Qalb or heart. Our Qalb is the compass and guide to the Path of Happiness towards Allah SWT.

The heart or the Qalb is a vessel by which we can be guided to the path of Allah, which is the Path to Happiness and eventually to gain the proximity of Allah SWT.
We are all in search of Happiness, are we not? Yet through trial and error, I have accepted what the scholars of Deen and men and women of thought have known over the ages: that True Happiness comes from being in the proximity of Allah SWT.
It is only when I had to seek Him (SWT) because of my own needs that I realized this fact.

To search for Happiness, I now know that I have to travel on the path towards Allah; of course, I need guides, instructions, and strength both mental and physical to do so.

In our bodies Allah SWT has placed a vessel, which is the Seeing Eye for our spiritual soul. It guides us to the path o f Allah and thus to Happiness.
This vessel is our Heart or Qalb.

The Qalb, unlike any other part within a human being is the lens through which we can eventually behold Allah SWT.

It is thus essential that that we safeguard its clarity on our journey on the path to Happiness towards Allah SWT seeking his presence and proximity at all times.

The Qalb or heart is also my compass, which senses the direction of the Path that I am seeking for Happiness, and thus must be unhampered by coverings, spots, darkness, dirt, and distractions to be successful in its quest.

How do I keep my Qalb clear of all impurities such that it can guide me accurately to the proximity of my Lord? That is the question that I hope to find answers to as the retreat progresses……………