The Trustworthy of this Nation

Asalaamu Aliakum

Abu Ubaidah Ibn Al-Jarrah

Who was this companion who was the first to be called the Commander of the Commanders, who was tall and slim man with gaunt face? Who was this strong trustworthy man whom the right hand of the Prophet(Peace be upon him) held and said, "In every nation there exists a man worthy of all trust and the trustworthy of this nation is Abu Ubaidah Ibn Al-Jarrah."

Abu Ubaidah Ibn Al-Jarrah(Radi Yallahu 'Anhu) embraced Islam at the hands of Abu Bakr(Radi Yallahu 'Anhu) during the early periods of Islam. He was among the companions that went to Abyssinia during the second emigration and made an oath of allegiance to the Messenger of Allah(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam) and dedicated his life in the way of Allah. He was ready to endure whatever this way required of self-sacrifice and self-denial. From the time he shook hands with the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam)  as a sign of pledge, he looked upon himself and his life as something that Allah had entrusted to him to seek His pleasure and abandon every desire or fear that might distract away from Him. Abu Ubaidah's trustworthiness towards his responsibilities was one of his most outstanding traits. For instance, in the Battle of Uhud, he realized from the way the battle was conducted that the disbelievers' first priority was to kill the great Messenger(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam). To them, achieving victory was of secondary importance compared to killing the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam) . Therefore, Abu Ubaidah decided to stay very close to where the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam) was. He thrusts his sword into the army of paganism that craved to put out the light of Allah once and for all. Whenever the fierce fight led him far away from the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam), he fought ferociously while his eyes were fixed on where the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam) stood and watching him with great concern. When the fight reached the height of ferocity, a group of disbelievers closed in upon Abu Ubaidah. Still his eyes were fixed on the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam)  like a hawk. Abu Ubaidah lost self-control when he saw an arrow hit the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam); yet he recollected himself and thrust his sword into those who closed in upon him as if his sword were a magic one. Finally, he was able to disperse them. However, he saw blood running down the face of the Messenger(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam) and upon seeing this, Abu Ubaidah says, "How can they succeed after they tinged with blood the face of their Prophet who invites them to the way of Allah?" Abu Bakr next narrates what Abu Ubaidah does:

"The Prophet was wounded, and two of the rings of the Prophet's mail penetrated his cheeks. As soon as I realized what had happened, I rushed to him. A man ran swiftly in the same direction and exclaimed, "Dear Allah, accept this deed as a sign of obedience." Then we both reached the Prophet(Salallahu 'Alayhi WaSalam), but Abu Ubaidah was there before me, so he pleaded with me, "Please, by Allah Abu Bakr let me pull them out of the Prophets' cheeks," so I let him. Abu Ubaidah held one of the rings with his front teeth and pulled it out along with his upper front teeth. Then he pulled out the second along with his lower front teeth. Thus, he lost his teeth.

"If I were to make a wish, I would have wished a house full of men just like Abu Ubaidah."-Umar Ibn Khattab.

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THE MOST HANDSOME AND YOUTHFUL

Asalaamu Aliakum 

Mus3ab Ibn Umair 

He was a young man who had all the pleasures of life. He came from a wealthy family who pampered him more then any other youth was pampered in Mecca. He had the finest clothes, the best fragrance, and always stood out; specially to the ladies. Who wouldn't want to be in his place? Unlike the people of Mecca, Mus3ab was a young man who was open minded and willing to accept the truth if it came his way. From the time the people of Mecca woke up till they slept, a man by the name of Muhammed(saw) was their subject. Words were spreading like dust carried by the wind. But as attentive and wise Mus3ab was, he couldn't help but be captivated about what he was hearing about the Messenger of Allah(saw) and how he was sent as glad tidings to mankind and a warner to them. Without a second thought Mus3ab started opening his ears hoping to hear where this Messenger is. He heard that the Messenger of Allah(saw)was meeting his companions at Daar Al-Arqam. He wasted no time. As he was approaching the Messenger of Allah(saw), Mus3ab heard the recitation of the Quran. And it was this very recitation that touched the depth of his soul, which convinced him to take the testification of Islam that would change his life COMPLETELY!!! 

His mother Khunaas Bint Malik, was a woman who intimidated everyone including Mus3ab;therefore, he kept his Islam hidden. But the streets of Mecca held no secrets. His mother heard the news. She was convinced that she would not let her son change her religion nor the religion of her forefathers; thereby, in hopes to change Mus3abs' new religion, she imprisoned him in a rough corner at her home. Forbidding him from food and all the luxuries he had privilege to before Islam. During his imprisonment, Mus3ab heard that some of the companions were migrating to Absynnia;therefore, he managed to escape from his mother and her guards and migrate with the companions of Muhammed(saw). He stayed in Abyssinia for awhile and returned back to Mecca. When he returned, his mother again tried to imprison him but this time he was not having it. He stated to his mother that he would kill every guard she sends his way if she tries to lock him up. Seeing his determination and hearing the firmness in his words; she gave up but didn't GIVE IN to Islam rather she bade him good bye. 

They say from rags to riches, but for Mus3ab it was riches to rags. He no longer was the young man with luxuries. He ate one day and the next day he didn't. He went from a young man whose appearance was like gardens of flowers and much fragrance to a man with worn out garments. This was not the young man the companions were use to seeing. So one day as he approached one of the gatherings of the Prophet(saw) they lowered there heads and shed tears upon seeing his condition. While everyone saw the tremendous change in his appearance, Prophet Muhammmed(saw) saw something else in Mus3ab. He saw a youth with great wisdom; hence,he made him the first envoy to Madinah. His mission was to instruct the Ansaar who believed in the Prophet(saw)and who had pledged their allegiance to him at Aqabah, to call others to Islam, and to prepare Madinah for the day of the great Hijrah. 

When Mus3ab came to Madinah only 12 people were Muslims, but with the dawah of Mus3ab and with the help of Allah the number increased to 70 which included prominent Sahabas such as; Sa'ad Ibn Mu3ad and Sa'ad Ibn Ubaadah. As the number of Muslims increased in Madinah and Prophet(saw) made Hijrah, the Quraish of Mecca were furious. So the battle of Badr began and Muslims were at victory. Then came the battle of Uhud. It was at this battle that Mus3ab Ibn Umair does a tremendous act which once again depicts the love, dedication, and sacrifice he was willing to make for Muhammed(saw) and Islam. The Muslims began to mobilize themselves and the Prophet(saw) stood in their midst to sort out among them and chose Mus3ab to bear the standard. Then the battle began. The fighting was furious. Blood was shedding every where, but Muslims were close to victory because the mushrikeen began to withdraw. However, because of confusion among some of the companions, they moved from their designated positions. The mushrikeen sought this as an advantage so they attacked some of the Muslims at mountain top. As Mus3ab sees all the horror and confusion in the battle field, his only thought was to protect the Prophet(saw). So he shouts like a roaring lion "Allahu Akbar" in hopes of driving the mushrikeens attention towards him instead of the Prophet(saw). He achieves his goal,so the mushrikeen began to rush towards him. He jumped left and right fighting and killing the enemy. Mus3ab became his own army in defending the Messenger(saw). But the enemies were multiplying on him. They wanted to finish him off so that they could get to the Prophet(saw). This last scene is the scene in which Ibn Sa'd tells us, "Mus3ab Ibn Umair carried the standard on the Day of Uhud. When the Muslims scattered, he stood fast until he met Ibn Qumaah who was a knight. He(Ibn Qummah) struck him on his right hand and cut if off, while Mus3ab was reciting,"and Muhammed is but a Messenger. Messengers have passed away before him(3:144)"...(Ibn Qummah) struck his(Mus3abs) left hand and cut it off, and so he leaned on the standard and held it with his upper arms to his chest, all of this while saying, "and Muhammed is but a Messenger. Messengers have passed away before him(3:144)" Then a third one struck him with his spear, and the spear went through him...Mus3ab fell"! 

After the bitter battle, they found the corpse of the young martyr lying with his face in the dust. Maybe his face was in the dust because he feared to look while harm fell on the Prophet(saw). Or perhaps, he was shy when he fell as a martyr, because he couldn't make sure of the safety of the Prophet(saw). As the Prophet(saw) gazed at the young martyr, tears dripped from his eyes. And he read the verse: 

"Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with Allah(33:23)." 

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Step One Towards Allah

Asalaamu Aliakum

So Alhamdulilah last week we were able to discuss ways to overcome the shaydaan and also the benefits of repenting. In order for a believer to maintain the ability to fight shaydaan and continue to repent, one must have CONNECTION with ALLAH. How do we acquire this connection? Yes, you guessed it. SALAH(PRAYER)! 

When speaking linguistically, salah derived from the word “Silah” meaning connection. If you buy a house phone and you do not activate it by calling the service provider then you cannot CONNECT with anyone. Same analogy for Salah. If we do not perform the salah we do not have a connection with Allah. Also salah builds a strong defense against evil:

Allah says:

   

    "...And establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do. 29:45

Throughout our day we are constantly busy with school, work, family and friends. All of this are important and are essential to human life; however, how about the number ONE priority in which Allah has given us? Did you know subhanaAllah if it wasn't for the Mercy of Allah we would not even have time to spend with family and friends because we would be too busy praying 50 times a day! Allahu Akbar, let me remind you the story of how our salah went from 50 times a day to only 5 times a day. 

Prophet Muhammed(saw) said:

     

      "...the prayers were enjoined on me. They were fifty prayers a day. When I returned, I passed by Moses, who asked (me): 'What have you been ordered to do?' I replied: 'I have been ordered to offer fifty prayers a day.' Moses said: 'Your followers cannot bear fifty prayers a day, and by Allah I have tested people before you, and I have tried my level best with Bani Israel (in vain). Go back to your Lord and ask for reduction to lessen your followers' burden.' So I went back, and Allah reduced ten prayers for me. Then again I came to Moses, but he repeated the same as he had said before. Then again I went back to Allah, and He reduced ten more prayers. When I came back to Moses he said the same. I went back to Allah, and He ordered me to observe ten prayers a day. When I came back to Moses, he repeated the same advice, so I went back to Allah and was ordered to observe five prayers a day.When I came back to Moses, he said: 'What have you been ordered?' I replied: 'I have been ordered to observe five prayers a day.' He said: 'Your followers cannot bear five prayers a day, and no doubt, I have got an experience of the people before you, and I have tried my level best with Bani Israel, so go back to your Lord and ask for reduction to lessen your followers' burden.' I said: 'I have requested so much of my Lord that I feel ashamed, but I am satisfied now and surrender to Allah's Order.' When I left, I heard a voice saying: 'I have passed My order and have lessened the burden of My worshippers."'

SubhanaAllah! Look at this. Allah is Al-3leem: The-All knower. He knows the present, past and future, so He already knew that He would lessen the prayer to 5 times a day. But why did Allah start from 50? To emphasize Ya Ikhwaan that we were not created BUT TO WORSHIP HIM. And that only through His Mercy He has lessened what would have been a burden upon us.  

Allah says: 

      "And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me."-51:56

So Ya Ikhwaan we should not have our priorities mixed up. Perform salah to maintain connection with Allah and to prevent you from evil and thank Him for this great blessing of only praying 5 times a day so that we may also have time with families and friends. 

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For The Sinner Like Me

Asalaamu Aliakum

Bismil’laah, all praise goes to Allah, we thank him for giving us the opportunity to convey this reminder and we hope that we benefit from it.

Allah said:

      "By the soul and (by) Him who made it perfect, and then inspired it to understand what is wrong and what is right for it. Truly, successful is the one who purifies (his soul)." 91:7-9 

The believer always has to live between fear and hope. Always fearing Allah’s punishment but also having hope in his forgiveness. By fearing Allah a believer is more cautious of his actions, because he fears the hell fire, and having hope in Allah encourages the believer to always repent to Allah, no matter how much sin the person did or does. This balance between fear and hope will Inshaa Allah (with the will of Allah) keep us on the straight path. The path that we ask Allah to keep us on 17 times a day. 

Allah said:

     "Tell My servants that I am indeed the Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful. 15:49
     "And that My Penalty will be indeed the most grievous Penalty."15:50

Overcoming The Whispers Of Shaydan

As human beings we all have Fitra (natural inclination to do good) and our Fitra points out the good from the bad. One example is how when we were young we had this natural instinct that stealing and lying was wrong without someone telling us. As we grew up, we still had that Fitra inside us, but because Shaydan never gave us the chance to think we acted without thinking about our actions.
In order to make the right choice, we need to first give ourselves some time to think so that we can make the right decisions, because we can only repent when we realize our mistakes (with the help of Allah). Therefore, to overcome the whisper of shaydan we have to stop, think, make a firm decision to go back to Allah, start practicing the law of Allah and finally associate ourselves with righteous people. 

      When one is on the road to repentance shaydan whispers many things to his ears to discourage him. He might whisper such things like, "You have committed too many sins, "It’s too late to go back now," and his favorite, "You are young you still have time."Firstly, let's understand that sinning is part of human nature. The Prophet (saw) said, "Every person commits sins and the best sinners are those who repent." Many fall in the traps of the Devil; as a result closing the door to Allah’s mercy after sinning.Once a man came to the mosque of the Prophet (saw) complaining about his sins. The man was so overtaken by guilt and saddened by his state that the Prophet (saw) said to him, "Say this: O Allah, your forgiveness is greater than my sins and my hope in Your mercy is greater to me than my [evil] actions." The man said this and the Prophet (saw) said to him, "Say it again." The man repeated it, then the Prophet (saw) said to him, "Say it again." The man did it and the Prophet (saw) said to him, "Arise for, indeed, Allah has forgiven you!"

      When we understand the problem, make sincere intention to fix it, and take the right steps to change. Then Allah will help us, forgive us and turn our bad deeds into good deeds as proven in the Quran and the Sunnah. So let’s take advantage of this great opportunity while we still can.

Benefits Of Repenting

Allah Said:

   “Truly, Allah loves those who turn unto Him in repentance and loves those who purify themselves.’’ 2:22

Do you want to drive disasters and accidents away and be safe from Fitnah (trials) and dilemma? You should ask for forgiveness.

Allah said:

    “But Allah would not punish them while you, [O Muhammad], are among them, and Allah would not punish them while they seek forgiveness.” 8:33

Do you want to have a strong body and be healthy; free of diseases and disabilities? You should ask for forgiveness.

Allah Said:

    “Ask Forgiveness of your Lord and then repent to Him. He will send [rain from] the sky upon you in showers and Increase you in strength [added] to your strength.” 11:52

And finally this next Hadith is one of the best analogy to show how much Allah loves those that go back to him and how happy he becomes with that servant.

The Prophet (saw) said,

    “Truly, Allah is happier with the repentance of His slave than one of you who is on his mount, and upon his  mount is his drink and food; then he loses his mount in the desert, and he searches for it until he loses hope; so he sleeps and then wakes up to find that his mount is beside him, and he says, ‘O’ Allah, you are my slave and I am your Lord’. He pronounced this mistake as a result of extreme happiness.”

#This reminder was not written by me. It was the work of Haaruut Maaruut. May Allah reward him. Feel free to comment!!!

Non-Muslim holidays...What does Islam say?

Asalaamu Aliakum!!!

I know am kinda late with the whole Christmas Holiday talks but I wanted to gather as much authentic sources as I can before I just say "Its haraam or Halal." So the main discussions/questions that I have seen on Facebook were: "Can we say happy holidays when a Non-Muslim says happy holiday?" Can we join our Non-Muslim friends for dinner on Christmas Day? My friend gives me a gift on Eid why can't I give her something on Christmas?" And all other questions related to this. So how do answer this or how do we deal with this, after all we do live in their country...do we comply?

Before I give you any evidences, I want to ask all of you readers to open your heart first and foremost because all day I can give you all the evidences in the world but if your not open to guidance then you will not receive guidance. Like they say if you turn the cup upside down water cant get through it BUT if you turn it up you will be able to fill the cup. 

Now another thing I want to mention is that WE really need to be serious about our religion. Saying La ilah ilalah means that you are submitting yourself to Allah ONLY and to submit means to give over or yield oneself to power or authority of another which in this case is Allah. What Allah permits we do and what He forbid we must abstain from. What He hates we must hate and what He loves we must love. Now tell me does Allah love to be associated with partners? Does Allah love to be lied about? We would hate ANYONE who lies about our parents imagine ALLAH. 

       "They have said, " Allah has taken a son." Exalted is He; He is the [one] Free of need...Do you say about Allah that which you do not know?

       "Say, "Indeed, those who invent falsehood about Allah will not succeed."- Surah 10:68-69.

So our so called "friends" or those whom greet us happy holidays, we definitely know that they ASSOCIATE Jesus(a.s) with Allah...so how can we claim to love Allah while giving in to those whom He hates? No one said be mean or insult them but we must be firm and not compromise our deen. We cant take these issues lightly just because its an utter of words..."happy holidays"...because we know as Muslims we are accounted for EVERYTHING whether its words or actions.. 

    The Prophet(saw) said, "A slave (of Allah) may utter a word which pleases Allah without giving it much importance, and because of that Allah will raise him to degrees (of reward): a slave (of Allah) may utter a word (carelessly) which displeases Allah without thinking of its gravity and because of that he will be thrown into the Hell-Fire.-Bukhari

We are in the same predicament that the Prophet(saw) and his companions were in during the Meccan period(before they migrated to Medina). The Quraish which were the disbelievers at the time saw the effect of Muhammed(saw) Dawah and were frustrated about it. So they sought to find a solution to stop this Dawah since torture and boycotting the Muslims didnt work. The solution that they thought might work was asking for a compromise from the Prophet(saw).  They proposed the idea that for one year the Prophet(saw) should worship their gods and that in turn they would worship Allah for a year. If this was proposed to us I think we would have given in after all they are soooo nice and they're "our friends." But what response did the Prophet(saw) give them for this proposal? The response of the Prophet(saw) was what Allah revealed to him in Suratul-Kafiroon. Allah made sure that in this Surah all arguments and confusion  were cut short by firmly distinguishing between the two forms of doctrine and worships. When Allah says "Qul Ya aayuhal Kafiroon." Kafiroon refers to every disbeliever on the face of this earth. Allah is emphasizing that there is no meeting point which exists between us and them and that's why this Surah begins with "Qul Ya aayuhal Kafiroon" to bring in to reality difference between us and them which cannot be IGNORED . We are Muslims and they are kafirs. And finally this Surah ends with "To you be your religion and me my religion." Meaning there is no bridge to connect us. 

So my sisters and brothers in Islam leave them for theirs as they have left us for ours. I would have quoted what major scholars said about this topic but am sure you all have read it on facebook. I believe that the Quran and Sunnah is sufficient for us. So lets take it!   

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Starting with the Basics

Asalaamu Aliakum

I have been studying from this book called The Three Fundamentals Principles (Thalatha-Usool) which by the way should not be confused with Usoolu-thalatha its a little similar but different. However, it is written by the same scholar: Muhammed bin Abdul-Wahhaab. I know your probably like WAIT WAIT WAIT! I cant read a book by this Sheikh. Isnt that the Sheikh the Wahhabis follow?...NO Ya Ikhwaan! This is not the type of mentality we should have. In fact, I bet most of us don't know ANYTHING about this Sheikh besides his last name WAHHAB. Inshaa Allah I will post a little biography about him another time but for now take the good from him. Anyways the reason am sharing this book with you is because I find it to be very beneficial and specially if your a student of knowledge this book would be perfect for you; in fact many scholars recommend that students of knowledge start with this book and master it. Because walahi your learning the basic fundamentals of the religion in the most easiest way. For example Suratul-Asr. A lot of us if not all of us have memorized this Surah but do we really derive anything from this Surah? Did we know that if this surah was the only surah to be revealed it would have been sufficient for us?

                                  

By the Time! Man is surely in loss, except those who believed and did good works, and exhorted one another to Truth, and exhorted one another to patience.¹

So lets see what we need to understand from this Surah:
    
     1. That we have to be Aware(believe) of Allah, His Prophet, and His religion based on evidences. 
     2. Acting on this(to be Aware of Allah and His messenger is not enough we have to work using our limbs as well). 
     3. Calling to it(A lot us think that giving Dawah is an option but clearly it's not).
     4. Patience with the harm that befall due to it(Acting upon the religion of Allah is not easy nor is calling people to the way of Allah, So we have to be patient).

I hope that we have benefited from this Bi'ithnillah. And remember try to purchase this book or look for an online version because as I said before it's very easy to learn! 

Reminder Benefits the Believers

Asalaamu Aliakum, 

"And Remind for verily a reminder benefits the believer"(51:55). 

I began with this verse as my first post in this blog because I believe it is relevant for all of us to understand that we do not necessarily have to be ignorant about an issue in order for someone remind us. To remind means to recall or to cause someone to remember something that they already know, but have forgotten. One of the weaknesses that we have as human beings is being forgetful. Allah gives us a great analogy in the Quran depicting this, saying: 

"And when some hurt touches man, he cries to his Lord(Allah alone), turning to Him in repentance. But when He bestows a favor upon him from Himself, HE FORGETS that for which he cried for before, and he sets up rivals to Allah, in order to mislead others from his path. Say: Take pleasure in your disbelief for a while: surely, you are(one) of the dwellers of the Fire." 

Therefore, Oh Muslims we must be willing to allow others to remind us that which we have forgotten, so that we may take heed. Do not be among those who are reminded but take no benefit, rather take the reminder and let it benefit you, for verily that is one of the characteristics of a believer.