Our faith is once again being called to suspicion. Innocent people are being hurt. What is needed now is meeting hate with love, trials with patience and fear with increased worship. Each and every one of us needs to be a shelter in this storm.
God has chosen the Boston community to be the focus, because our community is an excellent one. Our track record speaks volumes to the dedication we have to our city, our heart, Boston. Do not fear and do not waiver, for God stands with this community! Face the coming days with a sense of pride and altruism, that will grant you the dignity to swallow the pills of the shallow minded, the heart to continue to give and support our city. I remind you as our Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (peace be upon him) reminded Abu Bakr when things looked dire, “Do not fear, God is with us.”
Notice how there is no line connecting you and that special person?
well the thing is, you have to reach God first.
LOVE God so much that you draw closer to Him,
but the thing is… your special person must do the same until
you both reach God, and by God be connected.
The space inside your Self is sacred. Let no intruder enter. It is saved only for you and God. The reason we have trouble letting go is because we take things in and make them a part of our Self. When we feel sadness, we say, “I am sad.” The sadness becomes a part of us. When we have wealth, we say, “I am wealthy.” When we feel anger or pain, we say, “I am angry” or “I am in pain.” We allow these things to define us. And control us. When we love a person, we make that person a part of us. Beware of making another person a part of your Self. Love, give, interact—but never absorb. Keep your Self intact. Do not add to yourself by taking from another person. Nor subtract from yourself to give to another person.
Therefore, the secret to letting go is the realization that the object of attachment (sadness, fear, wealth, people) was never a part of you. You may have held it close, but it was always outside of *you*. Therefore letting go of that object of attachment will not break you because you existed as a whole before the object and will exist as a whole after the object.
Global Deaf Muslim started a NEW campaign to raise money to fund 40 Muslim Deaf Americans to Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj/Umrah during Ramadan 2013. Please try to support them and FORWARD THIS TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS. We would love to try to spread the word out as much as we can!!!
Those who spend (in the cause of Allah) privately or publicly, by night and day, have their reward with their Lord. And (on the Day of Resurrection) they shall neither fear nor grieve. (Al-Baqarah 2:274)
Be generous, therefore, for whatever you spend on yourself is only for your temporary sustenance while whatever you spend in the way of Allah is an investment in your future for which will provide everlasting sustenance. Seek to invest in others for your own benefit with whatever Allah has endowed you.
Article I wrote for Montclair State University’s paper:
“The soul.” A word used often these days, as in “mind, body & soul,” that most know very little about. Some of us call it “the spirit,” some call it “inner beauty,” others refer to it as an inner conscience, intuition, or maybe even calling it the heart. Call it what you want, but the reality is that we are so distracted with our outer physical being, that we have little to no time to even consider our inner reality. The lost science… the one never taught in school, besides perhaps some brief mention of an identity crisis at some point during Psychology in high school or college.
We all understand these avatars, our physical bodies, quite well by this point in time. We understand that we need to eat, drink adequate water, and sleep. We know what seems to feel good and what doesn’t. Though the human body is arguably one of the greatest anatomical and physiological phenomena to exist, perhaps the greatest splendor of it is that it houses our “soul.” But in order to reach this point, one must first question what the soul even is.
Once we come to understand that this inner element, the soul exists, we can then seek The Source of its Existence. This marked the start of how I came to understand my reality. The soul knows no language, no race, or creed. The soul only knows its Creator. As a Muslim, I have come to experience myself as a creation, both my inner self and my outer-self. And as a Muslim, you will see that my outer-self is covered with a Hijab, meaning veil.
Hijab is not just a piece of fabric lacking spiritual significance; it is a component of commitment to a particular way of life. In this way of life, modesty is important, both inwardly and outwardly. Wearing a hijab is not reduced to a mere fashion statement; instead its most important purpose is to remind me of my inner reality, to remind me of my Creator. It is an act of obedience similar to the way a servant willingly serves their Provider. Beyond the outer physical sense, hijab transcends to purifying the inward, by serving as a pure reminder of the one who created me, you, and the entire universe. It is a way to break free from worldly distractions and tune in to the purification of our hearts. The heart is purified when we become conscious, God-conscious that is. Of course, the Creator of the hearts would know; “Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest” (Qur’an 13:28).
My personal experience of wearing hijab is that it serves as a lifelong companion that is always with me. It reminds me that I exist, far more than in a physical human sense, but in a purposefully existential sense. It reminds me that I am here for reasons much deeper than my academic work, far beyond my daily tasks and duties, for a reason that my intellect, my heart, and my soul yearn for deeper understanding.
It is true that as part of my hijab, one will also see modest dress. Modesty is an important element of Islam as the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said “Every religion has a distinct call, and for Islam it is haya (modesty).” Haya is the natural feeling that discourages us from committing a wrongdoing. It is a constant reminder to refrain from forbidden actions. Haya is a concept that we all must work on, as individuals of both genders. It is a part of our fitrah, or natural inclination, and only socially have we been conditioned to believe otherwise. Once we begin to ponder our inner reality, this inner truth, which exists in all of us, will find its way outwards.
The desire to seek more and more understanding of The Creator of this phenomenal universe led to a growing desire for me to seek my inner reality. I chose to wear hijab, not because of family or peer-pressure, but I realized that covering my outer beauty facilitated a deeper awareness of my inner beauty. True beauty lies in consciousness, in understanding of reality, and in seeing life through the lens of the inner conscience and not solely the human eyes. Hijab has become an integral part of my perspective in every moment.
Finally, it is interesting to note that in wearing my hijab, people understand it to be a veil. My reality is that my physical body and all of the distractions that swept my life prior to hijab were truly the only veil, covering who I really am, covering the soul within. The best way I can summarize my experience of the hijab simply lies in the world around us. Once we harmonize with our inner reality, the entire universe becomes a proof of the Truth. It is only during the night, when darkness covers the sky, that one can see the piercing beauty of the stars. Hijab covers me like nighttime covers the sky, and only the one that looks up, or looks in rather, will find the Absolute Brilliance above.
A lot of times we interpret marriage as a goal. We’re made to feel incomplete and haven’t fulfilled our purpose yet. As soon as someone sees you, the first thing they ask is when you’re getting married. We made it our final goal, it becomes a purpose of our lives. As if marriage was the reason Allah created us, marriage is a means to get to Allah. Of all the ways to build our deen. There are a lot of Islamic virtues that are tested and built in marriage.its a character builder. You gain so much. This no longer becomes a means and becomes an end itself. Mariam (ra) never got married. She wasn’t hurt. Allah has chosen that for her. Another consequence is that a person would do anything to achieve that end. If my end and goal is “I want to become a doctor.” You’ll do anything to reach it even if it’s displeasing to Allah. It becomes our downfall when we take something that’s supposed to be a means and make it an end. It’s as if their life is over. This idea that she’s 25 and not married. we get this idea that we might as well bury her. Never make it the goal itself.
Our purpose is not ultimately to get married, rather it is to worship Allah in a way that is most pleasing to Him. A slave is someone who obeys what their master says. Anything our Master tells us to do is for our own good. Anything He tells us to stay away from is for our best interest. Allah knows His creation and if He takes away from you, He will only replace it with something better if we respond in the right way.
May Allah make it easy for those struggling to get married.
Speakers: Imam Siraj Wahhaj and Ustadh AbdelRahman Murphy!
This fundraiser will help raise money to create the first Qur’an for Deaf Muslims by translating the meaning of the Qur’an into American Sign Language. This project will give our Deaf brothers and sisters an opportunity to experience submission to our Creator by making the Qur’an accessible to them.
Our projects solely focus on benefiting Deaf Muslims and their needs. Global Deaf Muslim (GDM) is a non-profit organization founded in 2005 by Nashiru Abdulai, GDM’s Deaf President. It is the only organization in North America and one of the few in the world that works to make Islam accessible to the Deaf. As you may be aware, Deaf Muslims struggle to learn about Islam because of the limited availability of information in American Sign Language (ASL). They cannot benefit from khutbahs, lectures, and events because few mosques and Islamic organizations provide ASL interpretation. Consequently, the Deaf have not only been excluded from learning about Islam, but they also have been excluded from the Muslim community all together. However, the Deaf community has shown nothing but eagerness to learn more about Islam and their Creator.
-Formal Dinner will be served. Please dress to impress.
-Discover local Muslim businesses at the bazaar!
-Professional babysitters will be available for those who would like to bring their children. Tickets for children are included in the link below.
***Tickets are being sold now get yours today!!!! For tickets visit: http://guestli.st/153660 ***
إذا ما قال لي ربي .. أما استحييت تعصيني وتخفي الذنب عن خلقي .. وبالعصيان تأتيني If my Lord asks me “Have you no shame in disobeying me? You hide your faults from my creation yet full of sin you come to Me”
فكيف أجيب يا ويحي .. ومن ذا سوف يحميني So what will I answer? O’ Woe to me, and who shall protect me do you see?
أسلي النفس بالآمال .. من حين إلى حين I keep forestalling my soul with thoughts of hope from time to time
وأنسى ما وراء الموت .. ماذا بعد تكفيني And forgetting what is to come after death, and after I am warped in the sheets of the dead
كاني قد ضمنت العيش .. ليس الموت يأتيني As if I have guaranteed living forever, and that death will not overcome me
وجاءت سكرة الموت الشديدة من سيحميني Then the harsh drunkenness of death overtakes me, who now will be able to protect me?
نظرت إلى الوجوه أليس منهم من سيفديني I looked at the faces, is there not from amongst them who will ransom me?
سأسأل ما الذي قدمت في دنياي ينجيني I will be asked what have I put forth in my life to save myself
فكيف إجابتي من بعد ما فرطت في ديني So what will I answer, after I’ve been neglectful regarding my Deen
ويا ويحي ألم أسمع كلام الله يدعوني O’ woe to me, did I not hear the Speech of Allah calling out to me??
ألم أسمع لما قد جاء في ق و يس Did I not hear what has come in Qaaf’n, wa Yaseen’i
ألم أسمع بيوم الحشر يوم الجمع والدين Did i not hear of the day the crowds will be summoned, the day we will be collected, and the day of al-Deen’i
ألم أسمع منادي الموت يدعوني يناديني Did I not hear the caller of death calling me; seeking me
فيا رباه عبد تائب من ذا سيؤويه O my lord a slave to you I come repenting, who than shall grant me shelter?
سوى رب غفور واسع للحق يهديني Other than an oft-forgiving Lord, to the truth he will guide me
أتيت إليك فارحمني وثقل في موازيني I have come to you, so have mercy on me, and make heavy my weights
وخفف في جزائي أنت أرجى من يجازيني And lighten my reckoning you are the best of who will bring me to reckoning
“The US Harvard University has posted a verse of the Holy Quran at the entrance of its faculty of law, describing the verse as one of the greatest expressions for justice in history, a Saudi newspaper reported on Sunday.”
foodfashionfun asked: Asalaam Alaikum, I recently came upon your blog from a reblog that I found on my feed and just wanted to say how I am in LOVE with your blog :) I recently have become more closer to Islam and have felt alone but after reading the majority of your posts/asks (yes i have stalked lol :P) I feel more at peace and stronger in my journey/beliefs. InshAllah we shall all be guided on the straight path and forgiven from our sins. Ameen.
Welikum assalam,
Jazak Allahu Khairan! Anything good and beneficial is from Allah Himself. Anything wrong is certainly from myself or the shaytan. May He always guide us to the straight path and keep our hearts in His remembrance. Ameen.
A boy said to his father: “I saw a girl and I want to marry her. She is so beautiful and she has gorgeous eyes. The father answered his son: of course son, let’s ask for her hand in marriage.”
When the father saw the girl, he admired her beauty and he told his son: “You don’t deserve this girl, she needs someone who has experience in life and she can depend on, someone like me.”
The boy was surp
rised by the attitude of his father and he told him : “She will marry me, not you”. They started to fight and finally they decided both to go to the police station to solve their problem.
When they tell their story to the police officer, he told them:”bring the girl so we can ask her about her opinion about this. ” When the officer saw the beauty of the girl he said to the boy and his father:”you both don’t deserve her, she needs someone who has prestige like me.”
The 3 men started a fight and decided to go to the minister to solve their problem. When the minister saw the girl, he said: “She deserves to be married with a minister like me”. The prince heard about their problem and call them all to help them solve it but and when he saw the girl he said : “This girl will marry me” .
All the 5 men started to fight. Finally, the girl said “I have the solution! I will start to run and whoever catches me first, he will be my husband”. When she started to run, the boy, his father, the police officer, the minister and the prince started to run to catch her. Suddenly the 5 men fell into a deep hole.
The girl looked to them from the top and she said “do you know who am I?”
I am the Dunya (THE LIFE!!)
People want to run to catch me, they are racing to have me. By doing that, they forget their religion, until they end up in their grave and still won’t have me.
Diana. NJ. I live for the little joys and surprises life affords us. Everyday, I thank Allah for everyday things like the ability to breathe, to love, to laugh, and the ability to eat and drink. By the same token, I gratefully acknowledge and respect those that demand better of me.
