بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalaamu alaykum
"Whoever possesses three characteristics shall taste the sweetness of faith: that Allah and His Messenger be more beloved by him than all else, that he love someone purely for the sake of Allah, and that he hate returning to disbelief as he hates being caste into a fire." (Bukhari)
All the 1000-1500 Companions of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, may Allah be pleased with them all, who gave the pledge of allegiance to the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, possessed all three characteristics. This was a pledge of allegiance for death. This is selfless love.
Narrated Yazid bin Ubaid: Salama said, "I gave the Pledge of allegiance (Al−Ridwan) to Allah's Messenger and then I moved to the shade of a tree. When the number of people around the Prophet diminished, he said, 'O Ibn Al−Akwa! Will you not give to me the pledge of Allegiance?' I replied, 'O Allah's Messenger! I have already given to you the pledge of Allegiance.' He said, 'Do it again.' So I gave the pledge of allegiance for the second time." I asked 'O Abu Muslim! For what did you give the pledge of Allegiance on that day?" He replied, "We gave the pledge of Allegiance for death."
Allah praised the Companions and rewarded them: "Certainly Allah was well pleased with the believers when they swore allegiance to you under the tree, and He knew what was in their hearts, so He sent down tranquility on them and rewarded them with a near victory." Qur'an Al-Fath 48:18
"Nobody who pledged allegiance under the tree shall enter the Fire." (Tirmidhi)
"And (as for) the foremost, the first of the Muhajirs and the Ansars, and those who followed them in goodness, Allah is well pleased with them and they are well pleased with Him, and He has prepared for them gardens beneath which rivers flow, to abide in them for ever; that is the mighty achievement." (Qur'an At-Tawba 9:100)
We must love the Companions for their love of Allah, the Messenger, Allah bless him and grant him peace, and their love of Islam we enjoy today. Behind selfless love and hate lies concern, sacrifice and genuineness. The companions are great examples of what selfless love truly mean. Perhaps we cannot achieve selfless love 100% but we can certainly practice concern, sacrifice, genuineness and sincerity and as we realize our slavehood and the heart becomes more attached to our Lord, it will descend from our minds to our hearts. InshaAllah.
May Allah grant us a place in the highest Paradise among the righteous Companions. Ameen.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Enjoining Patience
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamua alaykum
Dear Friends
I pray that you are well.
Reflect on these verses (Qur'an Al-Asr 103:1-3)
I swear by the time,
Surely Man is in the way of loss
Save those who believe, and do righteous deeds, and counsel each other unto the truth, and counsel each other to patience.
Imam Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said, "If nothing of the Qur'an was revealed to people except this surah it would have sufficed them." It has been narrated that the companions of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, would not part company until one of them recited this surah to the other.
Time is our capital and our life is a transaction. Time will outstrip us because our life in this world is temporary and each moment that pass by is a moment closer to the end of our life in this world.
Each of us has a capital which we must use to make a profit. If we fail to do so we lose our capital--this is a clear loss. If we don't understand what time represents, then we cannot profit from it. If we understand the significance of time, our attitude to life would be very different. We would struggle to make sure every moment of our time is spent in a way that will give us maximum profit in the next life. Wherever we are with Allah, there is a closer rank and higher station, so we don't stop striving. We should not be satisfied with a minimum. However pure our prayer is, for example, there is always a purer prayer that we can aimed for. "I just need to scrape in into Paradise" should not be part of our vocabulary. So lay out a plan of action to reach a higher rank. We will still be rewarded for our plans even if we didn't get to execute our plans.
Patience is a key to all these. Patience enable us to put up with the difficult and unexpected in life. Putting up with these difficulties without complaining and without losing hope is of the highest ranks of patience and has a tremendous reward.
We need each other to remind us to be patient. Each of us has that responsibility as part and parcel of doing righteous deeds and perfecting ourselves to reach that high "profitable" rank with Allah. This surah emphasizes that social responsibility a lot as well as the urgency of time and the need to do good as many good deeds as you can. The good deeds in Islam are the truths of Islam. Enjoining to truth includes putting up with things you don't like. So the single most important good deed is to enjoin people to patience because patience is what people need the most when enjoining people to the truth and when striving oneself to nearness to Allah.
And Allah knows best.
May Allah give us blessings in our time, and what little we do is much with Him out of His Grace. Ameen.
Please don't forget us in your night prayers. JazakAllahu khairan.
Wassalaam
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamua alaykum
Dear Friends
I pray that you are well.
Reflect on these verses (Qur'an Al-Asr 103:1-3)
I swear by the time,
Surely Man is in the way of loss
Save those who believe, and do righteous deeds, and counsel each other unto the truth, and counsel each other to patience.
Imam Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said, "If nothing of the Qur'an was revealed to people except this surah it would have sufficed them." It has been narrated that the companions of the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, would not part company until one of them recited this surah to the other.
Time is our capital and our life is a transaction. Time will outstrip us because our life in this world is temporary and each moment that pass by is a moment closer to the end of our life in this world.
Each of us has a capital which we must use to make a profit. If we fail to do so we lose our capital--this is a clear loss. If we don't understand what time represents, then we cannot profit from it. If we understand the significance of time, our attitude to life would be very different. We would struggle to make sure every moment of our time is spent in a way that will give us maximum profit in the next life. Wherever we are with Allah, there is a closer rank and higher station, so we don't stop striving. We should not be satisfied with a minimum. However pure our prayer is, for example, there is always a purer prayer that we can aimed for. "I just need to scrape in into Paradise" should not be part of our vocabulary. So lay out a plan of action to reach a higher rank. We will still be rewarded for our plans even if we didn't get to execute our plans.
Patience is a key to all these. Patience enable us to put up with the difficult and unexpected in life. Putting up with these difficulties without complaining and without losing hope is of the highest ranks of patience and has a tremendous reward.
We need each other to remind us to be patient. Each of us has that responsibility as part and parcel of doing righteous deeds and perfecting ourselves to reach that high "profitable" rank with Allah. This surah emphasizes that social responsibility a lot as well as the urgency of time and the need to do good as many good deeds as you can. The good deeds in Islam are the truths of Islam. Enjoining to truth includes putting up with things you don't like. So the single most important good deed is to enjoin people to patience because patience is what people need the most when enjoining people to the truth and when striving oneself to nearness to Allah.
And Allah knows best.
May Allah give us blessings in our time, and what little we do is much with Him out of His Grace. Ameen.
Please don't forget us in your night prayers. JazakAllahu khairan.
Wassalaam
Hadith Qudsi on gatherings of remembering of Allah
BismillahiRahmanirRahim
Assalaamu alaykum
I pray that you are well.
On the authority of Abu Harayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace), who said:
Allah (glorified and exalted be He) has supernumerary angels who rove about seeking out gatherings in which Allah's name is being invoked: they sit with them and fold their wings round each other, filling that which is between them and between the lowest heaven. When the people in the gathering depart, the angels ascend and rise up to heaven. He, Allah bless him and give him peace said: Then Allah (mighty and sublime be He) asks them - though He is most knowing about them: From where have you come? And they say: We have come from some servants of Yours on Earth: they were glorifying You (SubhanAllah), exalting you (Allahu akbar), witnessing that there is no god but You (La ilaha illa llah), praising You (Al-Hamdu lillah), and asking [favors] of You. He says: And what do they ask of Me? They say: They ask of You Your Paradise. He says: And have they seen My Paradise? They say: No, O Lord. He says: And how would it be were they to have seen My Paradise! They say: And they ask protection of You. He says: From what do they ask protection of Me? They say: From Your Hell-fire, O Lord. He says: And have they seen My Hell-fire? They say: NO. He says: And how would it be were they to have seen My Hell-fire! They say: And they ask for Your forgiveness. He (the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace) said: Then He says: I have forgiven them and I have bestowed upon them what they have asked for,and I have granted them sanctuary from that from which they asked protection. He (the Prophet, Allah bless him and gran him peace) said: They say: O Lord, among then is So-and-so, a much sinning servant, who was merely passing by and sat down with them. He (the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: And He says: And to him [too] I have given forgiveness: he who sits with such people shall not suffer.
It was related by Muslim (also by al-Bukhari, at-Tirmidhi, and an-Nasa'i).
Assalaamu alaykum
I pray that you are well.
On the authority of Abu Harayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace), who said:
Allah (glorified and exalted be He) has supernumerary angels who rove about seeking out gatherings in which Allah's name is being invoked: they sit with them and fold their wings round each other, filling that which is between them and between the lowest heaven. When the people in the gathering depart, the angels ascend and rise up to heaven. He, Allah bless him and give him peace said: Then Allah (mighty and sublime be He) asks them - though He is most knowing about them: From where have you come? And they say: We have come from some servants of Yours on Earth: they were glorifying You (SubhanAllah), exalting you (Allahu akbar), witnessing that there is no god but You (La ilaha illa llah), praising You (Al-Hamdu lillah), and asking [favors] of You. He says: And what do they ask of Me? They say: They ask of You Your Paradise. He says: And have they seen My Paradise? They say: No, O Lord. He says: And how would it be were they to have seen My Paradise! They say: And they ask protection of You. He says: From what do they ask protection of Me? They say: From Your Hell-fire, O Lord. He says: And have they seen My Hell-fire? They say: NO. He says: And how would it be were they to have seen My Hell-fire! They say: And they ask for Your forgiveness. He (the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace) said: Then He says: I have forgiven them and I have bestowed upon them what they have asked for,and I have granted them sanctuary from that from which they asked protection. He (the Prophet, Allah bless him and gran him peace) said: They say: O Lord, among then is So-and-so, a much sinning servant, who was merely passing by and sat down with them. He (the Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: And He says: And to him [too] I have given forgiveness: he who sits with such people shall not suffer.
It was related by Muslim (also by al-Bukhari, at-Tirmidhi, and an-Nasa'i).
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Don't wait
BismillahirRahmanirRahim
In the Name of Allah, Most Beneficent, Most Merciful
Assalaamu alaykum
We often times do not value what we have until we are deprived of it. But when the angel of death come upon us, it would be too late for anything. We can't go back. Sicknesses and death are human weaknesses which we have no power to escape.
Abdullah bin `Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said, "Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) 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." (Bukhari)
A man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked, "O Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)! Which charity is the most superior in reward?" He replied, "The charity which you practice while you are healthy, niggardly and afraid of poverty and wish to become wealthy. Do not delay it to the time of approaching death and then say, 'Give so much to such and such, and so much to such and such.' And it has already belonged to such and such (as it is too late)." (Bukhari)
And Allah knows best.
May Allah bless your day. Ameen.
In the Name of Allah, Most Beneficent, Most Merciful
Assalaamu alaykum
We often times do not value what we have until we are deprived of it. But when the angel of death come upon us, it would be too late for anything. We can't go back. Sicknesses and death are human weaknesses which we have no power to escape.
Abdullah bin `Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) said, "Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) 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." (Bukhari)
A man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked, "O Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)! Which charity is the most superior in reward?" He replied, "The charity which you practice while you are healthy, niggardly and afraid of poverty and wish to become wealthy. Do not delay it to the time of approaching death and then say, 'Give so much to such and such, and so much to such and such.' And it has already belonged to such and such (as it is too late)." (Bukhari)
And Allah knows best.
May Allah bless your day. Ameen.
The thing inside two gates
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
Assalaamu alaykum
I pray that you are well.
How many people we know who we just love to be around them, we look forward to see them time and time again. They have many kind words to say about people and they always make du'a for you, they uplift you, their tongues are moist with remembrance of Allah. How many people we know who we stay away from. These are the people who are so negative about the world and they discourage you in so many ways, their tongues are moist with gossips and impolite or harsh words.
The tongue can be the most dangerous thing for us and the most beneficial thing for us. This small, yet amazing creation, is our ambassador. It can do beautiful things for us and it can do evil for us. It is a very important element in our lives and our personality. It is a weapon more powerful than the guns. A person will say a word and Allah is pleased with him until the Day of Judgment and a person will say one word and Allah is angry with him until the Day of Judgment. Ibn Qayyum said Allah created us so that, the normal situation is that we don't talk. We need to initiate the talk unlike the ear, we don't initiate the hearing and we hear everything unless we block our ears. Allah made guards for the tongue which He did not make it with other senses. We have direct access to smell and touch. But Allah created 2 gates--teeth and lips--which need to be opened before we can talk. So we have time to think either to bring forth beautiful words or ugly words before we open the gates.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Let one who believes in God and the next world speak good or remain silent." There is nothing we say that the two angels who Allah have appointed to accompany us all the time not write it down. Keep the tongue inside if there is nothing good to say. There is nothing to control the tongue other than the fear of Allah.
And Allah knows best.
May Allah grant us beautiful speech. Ameen.
Assalaamu alaykum
I pray that you are well.
How many people we know who we just love to be around them, we look forward to see them time and time again. They have many kind words to say about people and they always make du'a for you, they uplift you, their tongues are moist with remembrance of Allah. How many people we know who we stay away from. These are the people who are so negative about the world and they discourage you in so many ways, their tongues are moist with gossips and impolite or harsh words.
The tongue can be the most dangerous thing for us and the most beneficial thing for us. This small, yet amazing creation, is our ambassador. It can do beautiful things for us and it can do evil for us. It is a very important element in our lives and our personality. It is a weapon more powerful than the guns. A person will say a word and Allah is pleased with him until the Day of Judgment and a person will say one word and Allah is angry with him until the Day of Judgment. Ibn Qayyum said Allah created us so that, the normal situation is that we don't talk. We need to initiate the talk unlike the ear, we don't initiate the hearing and we hear everything unless we block our ears. Allah made guards for the tongue which He did not make it with other senses. We have direct access to smell and touch. But Allah created 2 gates--teeth and lips--which need to be opened before we can talk. So we have time to think either to bring forth beautiful words or ugly words before we open the gates.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Let one who believes in God and the next world speak good or remain silent." There is nothing we say that the two angels who Allah have appointed to accompany us all the time not write it down. Keep the tongue inside if there is nothing good to say. There is nothing to control the tongue other than the fear of Allah.
And Allah knows best.
May Allah grant us beautiful speech. Ameen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)