Salams

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Merely typing "salam" does not fulfill the sunnah of giving the Islamic greetings of peace. When you type "salam", all you're saying is "peace". It wouldn't really make sense if someone came up to you and just said, "Peace," would it?

So when greeting others, type in the full "al-Salamu ‘alaykum". (You can use your phone's text expansion settings to ensure you don't have to type the whole thing every time.)

Khutbah: Tears of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ for His Ummah

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

It was narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) recited the statement of Prophet Ibrāhīm:

فَمَنْ تَبِعَنِي فَإِنَّهُ مِنِّي وَمَنْ عَصَانِي فَإِنَّكَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ

"So whoever follows me - then he is of me; and whoever disobeys me - indeed, You are [yet] Forgiving and Merciful." (Qur’ān 14:36)

and the statement of Prophet ‘Īsā:

إِنْ تُعَذِّبْهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ عِبَادُكَ وَإِنْ تَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ فَإِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ

"If You should punish them - indeed they are Your servants; but if You forgive them - indeed it is You who is the Exalted in Might, the Wise." (Qur’ān 5:118)

Then he (ﷺ) raised up his hands and said, "O Allah! My ummah, my ummah!" and wept. So Allah, Mighty and Majestic, said: "O Jibrīl! Go to Muḥammad – though your Lord knows fully well – and ask him: 'What makes you weep?'"

Dear brother. Dear sister. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) cried for you and me. He cried for you and me fearing for us the punishment of the Fire. This man who was a mercy to all of creation, a man who was already guaranteed forgiveness by Allah – his tears would roll down his blessed cheeks and wet his beard for you and me. He cried for his ummah – the vast majority of whom were people he'd never even met, like you and me. He cried for us. He (ﷺ) was more merciful to us than we are to ourselves! He cried due to the mercy he had for us and his fear for us. Thus, going back to the incident, Jibrīl went to the Prophet (ﷺ) and asked him what made him cry, and so he replied that he was crying about his ummah. So Allah Most Exalted said: "O Jibrīl, go to Muḥammad (ﷺ) and say: 'Verily, We will please you with regard to your ummah and will not displease you.'"

Dear Muslims! Here we have the best of mankind crying for his ummah out of compassion for them and fearing for them the punishment of Allah. He (ﷺ) cried out of concern for us while we don't even cry for ourselves. He (ﷺ) cried fearing for us the punishment of Allah while we lack that fear for themselves. He (ﷺ) cried for our sins while we don't even cry about our own. Here, we have a man who would cry the nights for his ummah yet the ummah is in a deep sleep. Heedless. Heedless of obedience, falling into sins. They have become busy with this worldly life, obeying their desires and lusts. They do not remember the intensity of the heat on the Day of Judgement. They do not remember the intense heat of the Hellfire. They do not remember standing for judgement by Allah on that tough day.

I want to leave you with three things:

1) Remember that our Beloved (ﷺ) would cry the nights for us. He would fear for us the punishment of Allah. He was concerned for us until his final breaths. So it is more appropriate that we cry for ourselves. The righteous ones before us would soak their clothes with tears. Remember the punishment of Allah and the magnitude of your sins, and cry. But at the same time, don't lose hope in His mercy. Strive for what He has prepared for His righteous slaves. Cry that you haven't done enough to deserve that. And on a side note, crying isn't an expression of weakness. People whom Allah has soften their hearts are easily touched and moved to the extent that tears fall from their eyes.

2) Uphold the sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). He underwent much struggle and sacrifice to ensure his message reached us. His noble body was hurled rocks at. He was verbally hurt by his own relatives. He once bled so much that the blood glued his feet to his sandals. All that so the message of Islam could spread and reach us. Now you have people who just want to scrunch it up and throw it away. But no. Stick to his teachings. Stay firm upon his sunnah.

3) Don't delay anything. Don't delay your prayers, your seeking forgiveness of Allah, your tawbah, your quitting a bad habit, your acts of worship. You never know when you will die. Recently we heard the news of the cricketer Phil Hughes who died at at age of just 25. So young. Before that day, death would have been one of the last things on his mind. Yet, when his time came, his time came, and no one could prevent it. So don't feel so secure about yourself that death will meet you when you're 70 or 80. Prepare now, and don't delay.

Khutbah: Three Things to Ask Yourself Before Any Action

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

First and foremost, fear Allah. Fear Allah, and fear the day when all of humanity will be brought to account for their actions by the One who sees everything they do.

Know that you will be questioned about what you used to do in this life. Know that your actions will be weighed up and that you'll have to answer for them. So choose your actions wisely. You should have three things in mind whenever you're about to do something.

The first one: if Rasulullāh ﷺ was alive and watching you, would you do it? You know how if your parents are around, there are certain things you wouldn't do, right? Now ask yourself this: if the Messenger of Allah, the most beloved of all of Allah's creations, the best man to walk the face of this earth, the man via whom you were guided to the light of Islam, the man who will plead with Allah on the Day of Judgement to pardon the sins of his ummah, – of which you are a part – the man who would cry the nights for you and I, the man who was concerned for you – someone he had never even met – and your salvation until his final breaths (ﷺ) – ask yourself: if I was to be in HIS presence, would I do this action?

The second thing to have in mind: would you like death to meet you doing this action? Ask yourself: would I like to spend my last breaths doing this action? Do I mind that the Angel of Death comes to take my soul whilst I do this action? Would I want that this action be the last thing I do before I'm lowered into my grave for the questioning?

The third thing to have in mind: if you were to be questioned about this action on the Day of Judgement, would you be willing to answer for it? The day when some people will be drowning in their sweat, the day when Hellfire – which is 70 times hotter than the fire of this world, let alone the heat you're feeling right now – will be brought forth before the eyes of everyone present, the day when the nursing mother will be distracted from the child she was nursing and the pregnant woman will abort her pregnancy out of the intensity of the horror of that Day – ask yourself: would I be willing to answer for this action of mine on this terrifying day, mind you, with all of humanity watching on?

So, whenever you intend on doing something, keep these three things in mind. Whenever you're invited to an event/function, ask yourself these questions. Whenever your friends go to you, "Hey, come, let's do this...," consider these questions. If it's something you wouldn't do in front of Rasulullāh ﷺ, if it's something you wouldn't want to die doing, if it's something you wouldn't want to answer for to Allah, then DON'T DO IT. Don't let your friends/peers convince you and pressure you and persuade you to do otherwise. Who are they compared to Rasulullāh ﷺ? Will they be able to help you on the Day of Judgement? And don't let your ego and your desires get the better of you. Come on, you're stronger than that. It is people of weakness that let their egos and desires get the better of them. Be someone of true strength, for this will be the only strength that will benefit you when you are judged by Allah. And always remember: the Owner and King of the Day of Judgement sees what you do at all times, so be aware of that before that day comes when it will be too late for those who didn't.

I'll end by reminding you: whenever you intend on doing an action, ask yourself these three questions: 1) If Rasulullāh ﷺ was around, would I do it? 2) Would I like death to meet me whilst I do this? 3) If I were to be questioned about this action on the Day of Judgement, would I be willing to answer for it?

Khutbah: Remember the Favours of Allah Upon You... On A Continuous Basis

All praises and thanks are due to Allah, the One who honoured us by means of Prophethood, taught us the Qur’ān, made us comprehend the religion and its commandments, granted us eyes, ears and hearts, and kept us free from polytheism. We praise Him and thank Him. We testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah alone, without a partner. And we testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

Brothers and sisters! Know that Allah does not need us, whilst we are in constant need of Him. We need Him every second of the day. There is not a breath that passes except that it happens by Allah's Will and Permission. Is He not the one who ensures that your heart never stops beating, even whilst you're asleep? Is He not the one that has blessed you to live somewhere where air conditioning is readily available when it gets hot? Is He not the one who lets the saliva secrete from your mouth so that you can comfortably speak and actually enjoy your food? Is He not the one who causes the rain to fall on the land such that the plants and crops may grow, providing you and the animals you eat with food? Is He not the one who created you in such an excellent form, without any defects, and allowed you to enjoy long periods of good health and wellbeing?

Just think about it: What if Allah were to cut your source of food and water? What if Allah were to leave you with no place of shelter, with no roof over your head at night? What if something were to happen to you such that you lose something so important and beloved to you: your phone, laptop, your arms, your legs, your ability to see, to hear, to speak?

Subḥan Allāh! Think about Allah's favours upon you! But yet, many of us seem to only really remember Allah during times of need. When we really want something from Allah, we call upon Him with our hearts pouring, begging and pleading with Him. We pray more, fast more, give more charity. We think twice now about committing sin. All this so we can get what we want from Allah. But when we finally get what we want or when our need is fulfilled, we become forgetful of Allah. We no longer are conscious of Allah in our day to day actions. We become heedless of Him.

No! This is not how things should be! We are obliged to show gratitude to Him at all times for His uncountable favours. We show gratitude with our hearts, acknowledging that everything we love and enjoy in life ultimately came from Allah – via the Will of Allah – whether it's the excellent exam result you earn, that thing you have that you worked so hard for or those awesome skills that you've got. Allah says:

وَمَا بِكُم مِّن نِّعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ ٱللَّهِ

"And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allah." (Qur’ān 16:53)

We show gratitude with our tongues by praising and thanking Allah for all He has granted us – for our food, our drink, our hearing, our sight. And we show gratitude with our limbs. This means using our body faculties in obedience of Allah and keeping them away from disobedience of Him. This isn't something you only do in times of need. This is something you do all the time. So you don't say to yourself, "Look, I'm only going to listen to that ḥarām conversation/those ḥarām sounds just once." That's not showing gratitude for the blessing of hearing; what if you were to lose it whilst you were listening to that? You don't say to yourself, "Well, I know that some un-Islamic things are going to happen at that place, but I'm only gonna go just once." That's not showing gratitude for your ability to walk; what if some accident were to occur and your legs became paralysed? You don't say to yourself, "Man, I really want to eat that, even though it's not halal; it just looks so delicious. I'll have it just once." That's not showing gratitude for the blessing of being able to enjoy food. Your saliva softens your food so that you can actually enjoy its taste and painlessly swallow it. So what if your mouth were to stop producing that saliva?

Allah says:

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ ٱذْكُرُوا نِعْمَتَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ ۚ هَلْ مِنْ خَٰلِقٍ غَيْرُ ٱللَّهِ يَرْزُقُكُم مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ فَأَنَّىٰ تُؤْفَكُونَ

"O mankind, remember the favour of Allah upon you. Is there any creator other than Allah who provides for you from the heaven and earth? There is none deserving of worship except Him, so how are you turned away [from His Oneness]?" (Qur’ān 35:3)

So to conclude: Be a thankful slave of Allah; express your gratitude to Him via your heart, words and actions at all times. Don't forget that He continuously provides for you, not only during your times of need but rather during every second of your life, so don't be of those ungrateful ones who only remember their Lord during times of need.

Khutbah: The Legacy of `Ashura'

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

The upcoming day of ‘Āshūrā’ – the 10th Day of the sacred month of Muḥarram, the first month of the Islamic calendar – is a special day as it was the day Allah saved Prophet Mūsā and his people, the Israelites, from the clutches of the Pharaoh – the biggest tyrant to have lived in human history – and his army. A story full of lessons, in shā' Allāh, within these next few minutes we will go through just one of these lessons, but it's a lesson I hope ALL of you can internalise and put into practice, bi idhni llāh.

Allah sent Prophet Mūsā with a huge task: to face the greatest oppressor that ever lived and invite him and his people to Islam. He was sent on a mission to make truth prevail over falsehood, a struggle against corruption, injustice and oppression. Now, on the night which marked the beginning of his mission, Mūsā is instructed by Allah to throw his staff on the ground. Upon doing so, the staff suddenly turns into a huge snake moving around rapidly. Put yourself in this situation: an item of yours you've had for so long suddenly turning into this giant snake slithering around everywhere in the middle of a desert at night. Wouldn't that be a scary situation? So then Allah instructs Mūsā:

قَالَ خُذْهَا وَلَا تَخَفْ ۖ سَنُعِيدُهَا سِيرَتَهَا ٱلْأُولَىٰ

"Grab it and don't be afraid – We will return it to its original state." (Qur’ān 20:21)

Listen up now: this is where an important lesson is being taught. We learn from this short tale that: 1) Prophet Mūsā obeys Allah without any excuse. He does as he's told by picking up this large, slithering snake. 2) He is courageous and brave in doing so. His natural human fear did not get the better of him. 3) He demonstrated a complete trust in Allah; he fully trusted that Allah would return the snake to how it originally was and that the snake would not harm him. He trusted that Allah will manage everything even when things didn't appear to be in his favour, even when things seem not to be going right, for Allah's promise is undoubtedly true.

Obedience, courage, trust. These three things were to play an important role for the rest of Prophet Mūsā's life. How? Mūsā would obey Allah in every command, even the most difficult of ones, such as facing the Pharaoh, this great tyrant ruler of Egypt, a task no one else would've even thought of doing. Mūsā would carry out his task with great courage, bravely resisting the threats, intimidation and persecution of the Pharaoh and his regime. And Mūsā would have the trust in Allah that the success and victory promised by Allah would definitely come to be, even when it seemed distant.

Now then, let's apply the lesson from this story to our present situation. Prophet Mūsā was on a mission to preach Lā ilāha illa Llāh. So are we. He was on a mission to fight for what was right. So are we. He was on a mission to make truth triumph over falsehood, justice over injustice. So are we. As Muslims who are part of the nation of Muhammad (ﷺ), we shoulder all these responsibilities. And to do so, we will need to obey Allah in all of His commands. We will also need to instil in ourselves the courage and bravery needed for this task. We should be able to stand up for the truth without fear of being criticised and insulted by those who oppose the truth, without fear of being abandoned by friends and family, without fear of loss of anything worldly. And we will also need to have complete trust in Allah, such that our trust that help and success will eventually come is greater than what our eyes and ears tell us about help and success being far-fetched.

The day of ‘Āshūrā’ has been made sunnah to fast on. The Prophet (ﷺ) said that fasting this day wipes out the sins of the previous year. So I encourage you to take this chance and fast this esteemed day. One should also fast the day before it or after it.

However, more importantly, take heed of the legacy of this day. A legacy of standing up for truth against falsehood, for right against wrong, for justice against injustice. A legacy that requires us all to obey our Lord, be courageous for His sake and place our complete trust in Him. This is the beginning of a new Islamic year. Let this be your new year's resolution.

Khutbah: Don't Let Death Find You Disobeying Allah

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

O Slaves of Allah! First and foremost, I advise you to fear Allah. Fear Allah, your Lord, and know that He does not break His promises. The Day on which all will stand to be judged for their actions, the day on which the human being will be in a state of regret over his actions during his worldly life, a day of horror and dread 50,000 years in length: this Day has been promised by Allah, so it will definitely come.

Brothers and sisters! Know that there are very few things in life that we can say are 100% certain to occur. One of these very few things is death. It is an undisputed fact of life: every human being will one day meet his death. Everyone will die, and there's no running away from this. And as Muslims, we believe that the entire life of a human being is nothing but a preparation for this inevitable event. We as Muslims are supposed to fill our lives with actions that will benefit us after our deaths. For after we die, nothing that we had in this life will accompany us – whether wealth, family, friends, status – nothing will accompany us except the actions we performed.

So it makes perfect sense then that we must busy the time we have in this world with actions Allah approves of and keep away from those Allah does not approve of. We must remember that death can befall us at any time. Don't forget that every day, many, many people die at such young ages, at ages people least expect them to die. Death can find you at any time, any place. Do not let death find you disobeying Allah.

What I am informing you now of is a serious matter. Don't take it lightly. Don't let your whims and desires get the better of you when it comes to disobeying your Lord. Don't say, "Oh, but I'm only going to do it just once," or, "I just wanna go for one night, I swear, then I won't go again," or, "Let me do it just for now; I promise I'll stop soon," or, "I can't perform this religious obligation now, but in shā’ Allāh I'll do tawbah and start doing it later, when I'm older." No, no, no... My dear Muslim brother/sister, death can hit at any time! What if death befalls you whilst you're doing "that one thing"? What if death befalls you whilst you're at "that one-time-only event"? What if death befalls you before you get a chance to repent? What a bad situation to breathe your last breaths in: disobedience of Allah. What an unfortunate situation. How sad would that be.

Let me pose a question: if the police caught you stealing something and your excuse to them was, "I was only going to do it once," do you think that'd be a good enough excuse for you with the police? So what about with Allah, the Incomparable? Would you even have the courage to say such a statement like, "I was only going to do it once," on the Day of Judgement?

Subḥān Allāh, it's a reality of life: death may befall you at any second. You just don't know when. If you knew that today would be your last day on Earth, how would you spend that day? How would you spend those precious breaths? How many seconds would elapse without you remembering Allah? How cautious would you be as to your words and actions? So this is advice firstly for myself then for you: work for the Hereafter as though you will die tomorrow. I'm not saying that you should now throw away your future aspirations and plans and goals, and stop thinking about what you'd like to do when you grow up. Rather, plan and work for this world as though you'll live a long life, but plan and work for the Hereafter as though today is your last day.

I will end with a statement Ibn ‘Umar (raḍiya Llāhu ‘anhumā) used to say:

إذَا أَمْسَيْتَ فَلَا تَنْتَظِرْ الصَّبَاحَ، وَإِذَا أَصْبَحْتَ فَلَا تَنْتَظِرْ الْمَسَاءَ، وَخُذْ مِنْ صِحَّتِك لِمَرَضِك، وَمِنْ حَيَاتِك لِمَوْتِك

“When you reach the evening do not expect [to live until] the morning, and when you reach the morning do not expect [to live until] the evening. And take [advantage of] your health before times of sickness, and [take advantage of] your life before your death.” (Narrated by al-Bukhārī)

An Ayah to Reflect Upon...

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Allah says:

فَٱصْبِرْ إِنَّ وَعْدَ ٱللَّهِ حَقٌّ ۖ وَلَا يَسْتَخِفَّنَّكَ ٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُوقِنُونَ

"So be patient. Indeed, the promise of Allah is truth. And let not those who are not certain [in faith] cause you worry and uneasiness." (Qur’ān 30:60)

Imam Ibn Kathīr explains this āyah as follows: "Bear their (i.e. the unbelievers) stubborn opposition with patience, for Allah will fulfil His promise to grant you victory over them and cause you and those who follow you to prevail in this world and in the Hereafter. [...] Remain steadfast in the mission with which Allah has sent you, for it is truth in which there is no doubt. Do not turn away from it, for nowhere else is there truth which is to be followed; the truth rests exclusively in the Message with which you have been sent."

May Allah make us people of ṣabr, especially during the trying times that the ummah finds itself in nowadays. May Allah keep us and all the Muslims firm upon the Truth. And may Allah expedite the descent of His victory. Āmīn.

And Allah knows best.

The First Ten Days of Dhu al-Hijjah: a Blessed Season

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

A while ago, we bade farewell to the chief of months, Ramaḍān – a month full of blessings and opportunity. But now, another blessed season has once again, a season the daytimes of which many scholars have deemed to be better than even the daytimes of the last ten days of Ramaḍān. We have just entered the first ten days of the month of Dhū al-Ḥijjah, a month which is already considered sacred with Allah. Allah says:

وَٱلْفَجْرِ ۝ وَلَيَالٍ عَشْرٍ ۝ وَٱلشَّفْعِ وَٱلْوَتْرِ

“[I take oath] By the dawn; And [by] the ten nights; And [by] the odd and the even.” (Qur’ān 89:1-3)

Some scholars such as al-Ḍaḥḥāk say that the dawn Allah is taking an oath by is the dawn of the 1st day of Dhū al-Ḥijjah, whilst some others said that it refers to the Day of the Sacrifice (i.e. the 10th day of Dhū al-Ḥijjah, the Day of Eid). Most scholars hold that the ten nights Allah is taking oath by in these Verses are the first ten nights and days of Dhū al-Ḥijjah. Many scholars also hold that when Allah swears by the odd and the even, the odd here refers to the Day of ‘Arafah (i.e. the 9th day of Dhū al-Ḥijjah) whilst the even refers to the Day of the Sacrifice. Now, Allah doesn't just take oath by anything; He takes oath by things of significance and value. And so by Allah taking oath by these days, He thus demonstrates the significance of these days and their superiority over other days.

The following ḥadīth further explains the significance of these ten days.

عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَنَّهُ قَالَ ‏"‏ مَا الْعَمَلُ فِي أَيَّامِ الْعَشْرِ أَفْضَلَ مِنَ الْعَمَلِ فِي هَذِهِ ‏"‏‏.‏ قَالُوا وَلاَ الْجِهَادُ قَالَ ‏"‏ وَلاَ الْجِهَادُ، إِلاَّ رَجُلٌ خَرَجَ يُخَاطِرُ بِنَفْسِهِ وَمَالِهِ فَلَمْ يَرْجِعْ بِشَىْءٍ "‏‏.‏

Ibn ‘Abbās (raḍiya Llāhu ‘anhu) reported that the Prophet ﷺ said, “There are no deeds as excellent as those done in these ten days.” Those listening said, “Not even jihad?” He ﷺ‎ said, “No, not even jihad, except a man who sets out endangering his life and wealth and returns with neither.” (Narrated by al-Bukhārī, al-Tirmidhī, Abū Dāwūd and others)

So, you've now heard of how precious these ten days are. So what can you do to take full advantage of these ten days?

1) Fasting. Among the best ways one can do this is by fasting, an act which Allah directly ascribes to Himself and promises a great reward for it Himself. The Mother of the Believers ¹, Ḥafṣah (raḍiya Llāhu ‘anhā), said:

أَرْبَعٌ لَمْ يَكُنْ يَدَعُهُنَّ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم صِيَامَ عَاشُورَاءَ وَالْعَشْرَ وَثَلاَثَةَ أَيَّامٍ مِنْ كُلِّ شَهْرٍ وَرَكْعَتَيْنِ قَبْلَ الْغَدَاةِ

"The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ would not leave four matters: Fasting on ‘Āshūrā’ (i.e., the 10th of Muḥarram), the ten days [of Dhū al-Ḥijjah], three days of every month; and performing two rak‘ahs of prayer before dawn (i.e. Fajr)." (Narrated by al-Nasā’ī and Aḥmad)

(Note: as for the 10th day of Dhū al-Ḥijjah, it is the day of Eid, a day sinful to fast on as it is a day of food and celebration).

If you can't do all nine days, try to do at least some. Try fasting three of these days, for then you will have fulfilled the sunnah of fasting three days in a month, a great sunnah which if performed every month counts as if one has fasted continuously, as is narrated in a ḥadīth by Imam Muslim. How? Well, one good deed is multiplied in reward ten times; fasting three days thus has its reward multiplied by ten times to thirty days' worth of reward – one month's worth of reward. Doing this every month would thus be equivalent in reward to fasting an entire year.

If not even this, then at least fast the 9th day of this month, the Day of ‘Arafah, the greatest day of the year, the day when Allah perfected His Religion, a day which if one fasts it, one's [minor] sins of the previous year and the following year are wiped out (major sins require separate tawbah), as reported by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ where he said:

صِيَامُ يَوْمِ عَرَفَةَ أَحْتَسِبُ عَلَى اللَّهِ أَنْ يُكَفِّرَ السَّنَةَ الَّتِي قَبْلَهُ وَالسَّنَةَ الَّتِي بَعْدَهُ وَصِيَامُ يَوْمِ عَاشُورَاءَ أَحْتَسِبُ عَلَى اللَّهِ أَنْ يُكَفِّرَ السَّنَةَ الَّتِي قَبْلَهُ 

"I seek from Allah that fasting on the day of ‘Arafah may expiate for the sins of the preceding year and the following year, and I seek from Allah that fasting on the day of ‘Āshūrā’ may expiate for the sins of the preceding year." (Narrated by Muslim and Abū Dāwūd)

2) Developing a good habit. Use these ten days as an opportunity to increase in your worship. It doesn't have to be big. Make it something manageable. Fix up your prayers, especially the five daily obligatory prayers. Spare some extra dollars for the poor or for the local mosque. Work on your manners and conduct. Try to be a better person, especially to parents and family. Work on something during these ten days that will draw you closer to Allah and try to maintain it beyond these ten days. In other words, try to develop a good habit. It doesn't have to be big. The Prophet ﷺ said:

وَإِنَّ أَحَبَّ الأَعْمَالِ إِلَى اللَّهِ مَا دَامَ وَإِنْ قَلَّ

“The most beloved of actions to Allah are the most consistent ones, even if little in amount.” (Narrated by al-Bukhārī)

And when these ten days come to an end, don't slack off in your worship. Keep them up throughout the rest of the month – actually, throughout the entire year. Dhū al-Ḥijjah is one of the four sacred months in the Islamic calendar, which means that the rewards of deeds are multiplied throughout the whole month (especially in the first ten days). However, remember that sin is graver during these months too.

3) Moistening the tongue with the remembrance of Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said:

ما من أيام أعظم عند الله ولا أحب إليه العمل فيهن من هذه الأيام العشر، فأكثروا فيهن من التهليل والتكبير والتحميد

“There are no days that are greater before Allah or in which good deeds are more beloved to Him, than these ten days, so say a great deal of tahlīl (لا إلٰه إلّا الله), takbīr (الله أكبر) and taḥmīd (الحمد لله) during them.” (Narrated by Aḥmad)

Instead of engaging in non-beneficial speech, show your thanks to the One who blessed you with the ability to speak by remembering Him. And when remembering Him, don't just let the phrases roll off your tongue – say them with full understanding of what you're saying. So when you say al-Ḥamdu lillāh, ensure that you're actually praising and thanking Allah from the bottom of your heart, not just letting the phrase roll off your tongue.

Al-Bukhārī narrates that Ibn ‘Umar and Abū Hurayrah (raḍiya Llāhu ‘anhumā) would go into the marketplace in these days and raise their voices with the takbīr. The people in the marketplace would then raise their voices with the takbīr in response. Thus the most hated place to Allah, as mentioned in the ḥadīth, was filled with His remembrance.

The value of the first ten days of the month of Dhū al-Ḥijjah is something many Muslims are unaware of, unlike the last ten nights of Ramaḍān. However, these days are the best days of the year (at least the daytimes of these days; scholars have differed on this matter). Such a season of blessings will pass before you even know it, so take full advantage of the blessings and opportunities this season has to offer.

May Allah aid us in our efforts to please Him, particularly in these ten blessed days.

And Allah knows best.

PS. Follow Sh. Abdul Wahab Saleem's daily podcasts throughout these blessed ten days here.

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1 Mother of the Believers: an honorific title for the wives of the Prophet (raḍiya Llāhu ‘anhunn)^↩

Khutbah: Be Proud of Your Islam

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

Dear brothers and sisters! Understand that out of all the people ever created, you are amongst those whom Allah has guided to His religion – the only way to success in this life and the next. Not only that, but Allah has made you from the nation of the last and best of the Messengers – in fact, the best of all creation – the nation of Muḥammad ﷺ, the best nation of all nations that have ever existed. You have been given the best of books, – al-Qur’ān – the best of laws, – the sharī‘ah of Muḥammad ﷺ – and the best of all ways of life – Islam. What a great favour and blessing indeed!

So if such is the case, why then should there be any reason for us not to follow it? One reason people will often mention is peer pressure – negative, external pressure. We're told to do one thing whilst our religion tells us to do the opposite. We're encouraged, for example, to free, liberal interactions with the opposite gender as well as free, liberal attitudes towards them, whilst our religion teaches us otherwise. We're encouraged to live by the idea that life was made to be enjoyed and so we should in indulge it and just "have a good time" before we die – because, as they say, "you only live once" – whilst our religion teaches us otherwise: that this one life we have is a preparation stage for the next everlasting life. We're encouraged us to dress, talk and act in a manner contrary to what our religion teaches us. And so as a result, some people become overwhelmed by all the pressure and end up giving in. They start dressing like everyone else. They start speaking like every one else. They start acting like everyone else. Of course, by this we mean in the ways which contradict Islamic teachings; i.e. they starting imitating the others in ways that go against Islamic teachings – we're not talking about those things that don't clash with Islamic teachings. So they dress not covering the ‘awrah. Their speech is filled with gossip, lies, hurtful statements and filthy words. Their actions do not reflect Islamic teachings of having manners and a sense of shame and dignity. All this because "everyone's doing it."

But dear brothers and sisters, realise: you can be better than that! Such people are indulging themselves to destruction. But Allah provided a way out of this destruction: Islam. And He chose YOU as one of those people who would be guided to following that way. Isn't that such a great blessing? YOU were one of those fortunate ones whom Allah guided to Islam (provided you hold on to the religion until death). So why feel pressured to act contrary to Islamic teachings? Why feel embarrassed about your Islam? Why feel ashamed in following it?

Perhaps you fear being "that strange guy", isn't it? The Prophet ﷺ said:

بَدَأَ الْإِسْلَامُ غَرِيبًا ، وَسَيَعُودُ غَرِيبًا كَمَا بَدَأَ ، فَطُوبَى لِلْغُرَبَاءِ

“Islam began as something strange, and it will return to being strange as it began. So, glad tidings for the strangers.”

He was asked: “O Messenger of Allah, who are the strangers?” He replied:

الَّذِينَ يُصْلِحُونَ إِذَا فَسَدَ النَّاسُ

“Those who are righteous when the people are corrupt.” And in another narration:

الذين يُصلحون ما أفسد الناس من سنتي

“Those who correct what the people have corrupted of my sunnah.” And in another narration:

 نَاسٌ صَالِحُونَ قَلِيلٌ فِي نَاسٍ كَثِيرٍ ، مَنْ يَعْصِيهِمْ أَكْثَرُ مِمَّنْ يُطِيعُهُمْ

“A tiny group of righteous people in the midst of a large number of corrupted people. Those who go against them are more than those who go along with them.”

So if anything, be proud of the strangeness that arises from following the religion! It's a good thing.

Honourable believers! Why would you want to fit in with the evil that's around you? You as a Muslim are supposed to stand out! You are not inferior to them! What makes you inferior is abiding by the standards of evil and corruption because you no longer have a sense of self-identity and thus need to derive your identity from such evil. But Islam provides you the best identity – slave of the Almighty – achieved by abiding by the standards of the Almighty.

I will end with two quotes. ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (raḍiya Llāhu ‘anhu) once said:

‏نحن قوم أعزنا الله بالإسلام فإن ابتغينا العزة بغيره أذلنا الله‏

“We are a people whom Allah has honoured with Islam and if we seek honour in other than it, Allah will humiliate us again.”

And Allah states in His Book:

لَّقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِى رَسُولِ ٱللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلْيَوْمَ ٱلْءَاخِرَ وَذَكَرَ ٱللَّهَ كَثِيرًا

“There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent example for anyone whose hope is in Allah and the Last Day and [who] remembers Allah often.” (Qur’ān 33:21)

Bringing About Barakah From Time: Advice From al-Ghazali

“Your time should not be without any structure, such that you occupy yourself arbitrarily with whatever comes along. Rather, you must take account of yourself and order your worship during the day and the night, assigning to each period of time an activity that must not be neglected nor replaced by another activity. By this ordering of time, the blessing in time will show itself.

A person who leaves himself without a plan as animals do, not knowing what he is to do at any given moment, will spend most of his time fruitlessly.

Your time is your life, and your life is your capital: by it you make your trade, and by it you will reach the eternal bounties in the proximity of Allah.

Every single breath of yours is a priceless jewel, because it is irreplaceable; once it is gone, there is no return for it.

So do not be like fools who rejoice each day as their wealth increases while their lives decrease. What good is there in wealth that increases while one’s lifespan decreases?

Do not rejoice except in an increase of knowledge or an increase of good works. Truly they are your two friends who will accompany you in your grave, when your spouse, your wealth, your children, and your friends will remain behind.”

— Imam al-Ghazālī (Allah shower His mercy upon him)

Khutbah: Arrogance – A Prevalent Disease

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

O Slaves of Allah! I first and foremost advise myself and you to fear Allah and keep your duty to Him, and fear a day on which nothing of a human being will benefit him except a pure heart.

Among the things that have polluted the hearts of many people today is the disease of arrogance. Arrogance is that you think you're better than others. It is a serious disease detested by Allah. The worst creatures to have ever existed were full of this disease: the likes of Iblīs, Fir‘awn and the enemies of Rasul Allah ﷺ. It is such a serious disease that Rasul Allah ﷺ said regarding it:

لاَ يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ مَنْ كَانَ فِي قَلْبِهِ مِثْقَالُ ذَرَّةٍ مِنْ كِبْرٍ

"One will not enter Paradise [without prior punishment, if Allah doesn't will to forgive him] if one has a speck of dust of arrogance in his heart." (Narrated by Muslim and al-Tirmidhī)

Do not think you're better than someone else just because you got higher marks in that recent assessment. Or because you own something they don't. Or because you've got skills they don't. And definitely do not let those extra acts of worship of yours make you look down upon others and feel arrogant and conceitedly proud of yourselves, whether it's extra prayers, extra days of fasting or you leaving off those sins your friends may commit. This is a dangerous trap of Shayṭān; it deludes you into a bubble that may not burst until you see the Angel of Death, when you'll find out what you're really worth. You never know: those friends you think you're better than may worship Allah in secret and beg for His forgiveness more than you do. It may be that they end up becoming more religious than you, whilst you end up moving away from the dīn, by the will of Allah. Their fate may end up being better than yours in this life and the Hereafter.

O children of Adam! How dare you think that you're better than someone else just because you belong to a certain race or ethnicity! Just because you happened to be born in a certain race, in a certain ethnicity, in a certain family, in a certain city – now you think you're better than someone who wasn't? How silly is it that you brag about something you didn't even put effort towards!

Whatever the source of your arrogance and pride may be – intelligence, looks, wealth, strength, number of online friends/followers, whatever it is – remember that Allah Almighty is the provider of everything you have. He can snatch away from you the objects of your arrogance and pride in the blink of an eye.

Now, we often hear phrases such as: "No one messes with me! I'm this...", or "I'll smash you...", or "Who do you think you are? I'm all this and you're that..." And then the person will say something negative about the other person.  Such statements are not befitting of a Muslim. A Muslim is supposed to be humble. Ask yourself: who are YOU, O sinful being, to utter such statements? Please understand: the world's NOT all about YOU. You AREN'T the centre of the world.

Allah says:

وَلَا تَمْشِ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ مَرَحًا ۖ إِنَّكَ لَن تَخْرِقَ ٱلْأَرْضَ وَلَن تَبْلُغَ ٱلْجِبَالَ طُولًا

"Do not walk on the earth boastfully. Certainly, you can neither tear the earth apart, nor can you match the mountains in height." (Qur’ān 17:37)

Ḥasan al-Baṣrī once saw a man he didn't know walking arrogantly. The man saw Ḥasan looking at him and said, “Do you know me?” to which Ḥasan said, “Yes, you began as a clot of blood, then at the end your life you become a rotten corpse, and in between that you carry filth in your body.”

Compare those attitudes of arrogance with the humbleness of the Best of all Creation ﷺ – when he finally conquered Makkah, he had all the reasons to display pomp and pride in the faces of those he'd just conquered. But no: he entered the city in humility, glorifying and praising his Lord.

Know, O honourable believers, that justice follows every evil act. The arrogant will meet their fate in the Hereafter as the most humiliated of people, whilst the humble will be elevated to the highest stations.

So I advise myself first and then you: remember your humble origins. Know yourself: a weak, tiny, limited human being. Thank Allah and acknowledge that everything comes from Him; nothing was from your own accord. Indeed, people before you recognised this, and so they ended up becoming the greatest people to walk this earth.

Dhu al-Qa‘dah – A Sacred Month

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Dhū al-Qa‘dah (also Dhū al-Qi‘dah) is one of the four sacred months in the Islamic calendar, along with Rajab, Dhū al-Ḥijjah and Muḥarram. Abū Bakrah (Allah be well-pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

الزَّمَانُ قَدِ اسْتَدَارَ كَهَيْئَتِهِ يَوْمَ خَلَقَ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضَ، السَّنَةُ اثْنَا عَشَرَ شَهْرًا، مِنْهَا أَرْبَعَةٌ حُرُمٌ، ثَلاَثَةٌ مُتَوَالِيَاتٌ ذُو الْقَعْدَةِ وَذُو الْحِجَّةِ وَالْمُحَرَّمُ، وَرَجَبُ مُضَرَ الَّذِي بَيْنَ جُمَادَى وَشَعْبَانَ

"The division of time has turned to its original form which was current when Allah created the heavens and the earths. The year is of twelve months, out of which four months are sacred – three are in succession: Dhū al-Qa‘dah, Dhū al-Ḥijjah and Muḥarram, and [the fourth is] Rajab of [the tribe of] Muḍar which comes between Jumādā al-Thāniyah and Sha‘bān." (Narrated by al-Bukhārī)

As Dhū al-Qa‘dah is a sacred month, good deeds are multiplied and extra-virtuous. Thus, one should increase in ‘ibādah in this month. One should also be extra-cautious of falling into sin, as sin is considered graver in the sacred months.

A sacred month is similar to a sacred place. It is recommended to bathe and purify oneself before entering the Sacred Precinct of Makkah and while in it one is more conscious of the weight of one’s actions. Likewise with a sacred month – we try to enter it in a state of purity and we try to maintain that purity throughout through doing good and avoiding evil.

It is recommended to fast more during the sacred months since good deeds are multiplied during them.

May Allah aid us in our efforts to please Him.

And Allah knows best

Khutbah: Why Isn't My Du‘a’ Being Answered?

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

I first and foremost advise you and myself to fear Allah and obey Him in every time and place. Respond to the call of Allah and He will respond to you when you call upon Him.

Allah says:

وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ٱدْعُونِىٓ أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ

“And your Lord says, ‘Call upon Me; I will respond to you.’” (Qur’ān 40:60)

And He says:

وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِى عَنِّى فَإِنِّى قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ ٱلدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ 

“And when My servants ask you, [O Muḥammad], concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me.” (Qur’ān 2:186)

But why is it that sometimes we ask of Allah for something but He doesn't grant it to us? Why doesn't He answer our du‘ā’ at times?

Realise that there are several factors which may prevent your du‘ā’ from being accepted by Allah. It may be that your du‘ā’ is not accepted by Allah due to your lack of sincerity and focus in making du‘ā’; indeed, Allah does not accept du‘ā’ from a heedless, inattentive heart. It may be that you are too hasty – too much in a hurry – to see the response to your du‘ā’; one might say, 'I have prayed and prayed, but no response has come', and as a result his du‘ā’ is rejected by Allah. It may be that your food, drink, wealth or clothing is not halal; indeed, Allah is pure [from all imperfection] and does not accept other than what is pure. It may be that your sins are blocking your du‘ā’ from being accepted by Allah. How can you expect that your du‘ā’ be responded to, when you have blocked its path with sins?

Ibrāhīm ibn Ad'ham, one of the greatest of the tābi‘īn (the generation following the ṣaḥābah), was once asked, "Why is it that we make du‘ā’, yet they are not responded to?" He replied: "Because you know Allah, yet do not obey Him. And you know the Prophet (ﷺ), but do not follow his sunnah. And you know the Qur’ān, but you do not act upon it. And you eat from the blessings of Allah, but you do not express gratitude for it. And you know Paradise, yet do not strive for it. And you know the Fire of Hell, yet do not run away from it. And you know Shayṭān, but you do not fight him, and instead obey him. And you know death, but you do not prepare yourselves for it. And you bury the dead, but do not learn a lesson from it. And you have left your own faults, and instead busy yourself with the faults of others."

But doesn't Allah say, “Call upon Me; I will respond to you”? Yes, Allah has guaranteed for you a response, though Him accepting your du‘ā’ the way you asked for it is something else. His response is in what He chooses for you, not in what you choose for yourself. His response is at the time He wills, not the time you want. You are the servant and He is the Master. He responds to you however He wills. He may respond to your du‘ā’ by accepting it the way you asked it, or He may respond by granting you something better. For He is al-Ḥakīm – the Most Wise. He knows what is better for you than you do. It may be that you're asking for a thing that is in fact bad for you, and so Allah does not grant it to you out of His Great and Perfect Wisdom.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

مَا مِنْ مُسْلِمٍ يَدْعُو بِدَعْوَةٍ لَيْسَ فِيهَا إِثْمٌ وَلَا قَطِيعَةُ رَحِمٍ إِلَّا أَعْطَاهُ اللَّهُ بِهَا إِحْدَى ثَلَاثٍ: إِمَّا أَنْ تُعَجَّلَ لَهُ دَعْوَتُهُ ، وَإِمَّا أَنْ يَدَّخِرَهَا لَهُ فِي الْآخِرَةِ ، وَإِمَّا أَنْ يَصْرِفَ عَنْهُ مِنْ السُّوءِ مِثْلَهَا

“There is no Muslim who makes du‘ā’ with words in which there is neither sin nor severing ties of kinship, except that Allah will grant because of it one of three things: either He will grant him what he asked for, or store it up for him in the Hereafter, or avert from him an equivalent harm.” (Narrated by Aḥmad)

To end, call upon Allah with the certainty that He will definitely respond to you, either by granting you what you asked for or by granting you something greater.

Khutbah: The Existence of Allah and Our Purpose in Life

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

O human being! Know that you are limited. You can only grow to a certain size and live to a certain point in time. Not only you, but everything around you is limited. Light, the fastest thing we know, has its limit. The entire universe, with all its vastness, has a limit to its size. And the list goes on. But the point is, everything of the universe is limited and finite. This attribute of limitedness is one common attribute that we notice of everything in the universe. Now, there's another attribute everything in the universe shares, and that is neediness and dependency. Everything, in order to exist, needs assistance from something else. Humans need food and water to survive. Our food, i.e. plants and animals, depend on a water cycle to sustain them. This water cycle is dependent on the Sun. The Sun is dependent on a whole set of other things. And the chain continues. Also, everything needed something to come about; things don't just create themselves out of thin air. So now, we see a chain where each limited thing is dependent on another limited thing, which in turn is dependent on another limited thing, and the chain keeps going. But since this is a chain of limited and dependent things, it needs to stop at some point; it needs something to bring it into existence. From here, we come to the conclusion that this chain needs something neither limited nor dependent on anything to start it off. And this "something" is none other than God – Allah ta‘ālā – the One beyond all limits, the One free of all need. Thus, we prove that this universe must have a Creator, a Creator that is unlike the creation in all aspects. And this is Allah – the One beyond all limits, whether time or place, direction or space, or any other limits that exist; the One not in need anything (al-Ghaniyy) and independent from everything.

O human being! Know that your mind is limited whilst Allah is beyond any limit. Thus, you won't be able to understand and comprehend the reality of Allah. Though what you can understand is that the Creator is beyond any limit – whether it's size, space, direction or any other limit – and so it is wrong to think of the Creator as being in any sort of shape or form, unlike what some religions out there teach. We do not concern ourselves with thinking about the reality of Allah as that's something we can't do, something our limited minds can't grasp; rather, we concern ourselves with believing in His existence, affirming the names and attributes by which He has described Himself, and also with reflecting upon His creations

O human being! You know that a Creator exists. You should also know that He demands something from you. He has sent messengers to you, the last of whom was a man by the name of Muḥammad ﷺ, who calls you to obey Him. Now, proving the truth of this is for another time as we don't have enough time to discuss this. But nevertheless, know that this Messenger ﷺ came with a Book from the Creator Himself. In this Book, the Creator tells us more about Himself – His Names and Attributes. E.g. where He says:

لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِۦ شَىْءٌ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلْبَصِيرُ

"Nothing is like Him. And He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing." (Qur’ān 42:11)

In this Book is information about the unseen world – angels, devils, Paradise, Hell, Judgement Day, etc. We must believe in all this, even though we can't sense these things with our senses, as all this information has been revealed by the Creator Himself, the one with absolute knowledge of everything. But this Book also contains guidelines by which our Creator orders us to live our lives. So let us believe in this Book and what it contains wholeheartedly, and let us act upon it to the best we can in obedience to our Creator, for He did not create us except to order us worship Him. He says:

وَمَا خَلَقْتُ ٱلْجِنَّ وَٱلْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ

"And I did not create the jinns and the human beings except for the purpose that they should worship Me." (Qur’ān 51:56)

Our Creator commands us in many places in His Book to reflect upon His many creations. So whenever you take a look at something of the world you live in, reflect on its limited and needy nature, and remember the One who ultimately brought it and all other things into existence – the One beyond all limits, free of all need. Let everything in the world around you remind you of Allah. Let this all draw you closer to obedience of Him.

Being Proud to be Muslim: a talk on the concluding ayat of Surat al-Hajj by Ust. Nouman Ali Khan

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Eight lessons from a recent talk by Ustādh Nouman Ali Khan on the concluding āyāt of Sūrat al-Ḥajj:

1. We Muslims shouldn't feel like we need to explain ourselves when our religious practices come into question. We shouldn't be on the defensive in such scenarios. Rather, we should be on the offensive. So when you're asked by your colleagues, "Hey, why don't you attend our Christmas party?", instead of going to the imam and asking for a decent response, we should turning the question back on them; we should be asking them questions like, "Why do you celebrate Christmas? Why do you celebrate God having a son? How can God have a son?" Our religion is full of reason whilst other people's aren't, thus, when people question our religion, we shouldn't hesitate to not only give them a satisfying response but also turn the tables on them and open their eyes to the truth.

2. Everything other than Allah is ultimately weak – including you. If you seek that which is weak, it won't make you any stronger – you'll still be weak. But if you seek Allah – the Strong, the Mighty – and internalise this in your heart, He will make you strong. If you seek wealth, a woman, a promotion, a position, a job, etc., and that object which you seek is all you seek, when that object is taken away from you or you are prevented from it, you crumble – and this demonstrates how weak you are. But if Allah is the One whom you ultimately seek, no matter what is taken away from you – whether it be wealth, position, property or anything else –, you remain strong. This is what īmān does to the believer – it makes him strong.

3. Allah chooses His Messengers solely because that's what He wills. In the ayah, Allah uses the word yaṣṭafī, which is derived from the Arabic tri-literal root ṣād-fā’-wāw (ص ف و). The use of this word denotes that in making this choice, Allah made the choice purely on His own, no explanation needed. It's a bit like your favourite food – you like it because you just like it. So there's no complaining about Prophet Muhammad ﷺ as being Allah's chosen one – because that's just what Allah willed, full stop.

4. Allah tells us to "strive in [the way of] Allah the way He deserves to be striven for." Now, no human being can actually do this – we'll never be able to worship Allah the way He deserves to be worshipped. But from the human beings, He saw certain ones from them who had some sort of "qualification" whereby they could fulfil this task, a qualification they don't even see in themselves. And it's these people He chose to fulfil this task – a task which was the legacy of Ibrahim (peace be upon him), a man who underwent many trials and hardships. Though Allah states that He'll make this difficult task easier for us; if Allah could make the task of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) easier, He can indeed do the same for us. Now, the word used in this ayah is ijtabā, which come from the Arabic tri-literal root jīm-bā’-yā’ (ج ب ي). The word jaby is used for tax collection. Taxes aren't collected from everyone; taxes are only collected from those qualified to pay them, i.e. those within the tax bracket. By using the phrase huwa -jtabā, Allah is saying that HE chose YOU, out of all the people on this earth, to be a Muslim. Not only that: ONLY ALLAH had a role in deciding that you would be Muslim. You weren't Muslim because you were born into a Muslim family or because of your nationality. You were Muslim because ALLAH CHOSE YOU to be a Muslim. Same applies to all the Muslims around the world. No Muslim is worthless. So if you're one of those chosen for this seemingly impossible task, you're actually one of the lucky few who were specially selected by Allah, one of those lucky few in whom Allah saw something special. Allah chose YOU to be from His Muslims. So be grateful for your Islam.

5. Allah named you as a Muslim. That's right, Allah Himself. Thus, it's a consequence of īmān that we shouldn't be embarrassed to be Muslims. Rather, we should be proud to be Muslims. We shouldn't feel shy about this gift which may often make us distinct and different from the society we live in. A Muslim was never meant to fit in with society. The chosen people of Allah were meant to stand out. Did any of the messengers of Allah (benedictions and peace be upon them all) fit in? Be proud to be Muslim. Those truly proud of their Islam will try and share it with those who don't have Islam. And that's our duty. Be outstanding Muslims!

6. The honour of us being Muslim should cause us to do something in recognition of this honour. Allah tells us to establish ṣalāh, give zakāh – which by the way can only be given on halal wealth, thus, our income must also be halal – and to hold on tightly for protection to the Rope of Allah – i.e. the Qur’ān –, in recognition of this honour. Holding on to the Rope of Allah is a life and death matter. So hold on for protection to the Rope of Allah and Allah will be your protector – and what an excellent protector He is!

7. Islam is powerful. Its ideas our powerful. Its truth is powerful. Living in our fitnah-plagued times, we shouldn't be so weak we run away from the fitnah. Rather, we should work to change to fitnah. (This links back to the point #1.)

8. Every congregational ṣalāh proves that we can be disciplined, organised and united. When the iqāmah is called, don't we see perfectly straight rows? When the congregational ṣalāh is taking place, doesn't everyone move at the same time in a disciplined fashion? Every congregational ṣalāh proves that we're capable of being a disciplined, organised and united people. So just like we're disciplined, organised and united in ṣalāh, we should be disciplined, organised and united outside ṣalāh. What we do in ṣalāh should inspire everything we do outside ṣalāh. The same way we ensure that we fill the gaps in our rows when we pray so that the Shayṭān doesn't pass through, we should do this with our communities.

The ustādh made several other excellent points, some of which can be seen here, though to hear all the point, you'll have to wait until the full talk is posted online, which bi idhni llāh should be soon.

Khutbah: Ramadan Aftermath

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him, and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

I first and foremost advise you to fear Allah, to remain conscious of Him and to obey Him in every place and time. Ramaḍān – the month of fasting, tarāwīḥ, recitation of Qur’ān and extra worship – may have ended, but remember that the Lord of Ramaḍān is Ever-Living and His existence does not come to an end. He is the Lord of all 12 months of the year, so don't slack off in your worship now that Ramaḍān is over.

Dear Muslims! During Ramaḍān, we experienced the struggles of abstaining from food and drink for the entire day, of waking up early in the morning for suḥūr, of staying up further into the night for tarāwīḥ and tahajjud prayers. But that really isn't the difficult part about Ramaḍān. The more difficult part is keeping up after Ramaḍān the good habits and attitudes developed during Ramaḍān. Just like you fasted during Ramaḍān from eating, from speaking bad words, from looking at inappropriate things, from listening to forbidden matters, from going to ḥarām places, from doing ḥarām things – likewise, you ensure your body parts keep up this habit of fasting after Ramaḍān and throughout the entire year. You keep up the good habits and attitudes from Ramaḍān and carry them with you throughout the year. Failure to do so and you risk losing that which you gained of barakah and reformation of the heart via these struggles during Ramaḍān.

Dear brothers and sisters! As we celebrated Eid, greeting each other with warm smiles, words and hugs, visiting dear family and friends, receiving gifts and money, enjoying daytime meals after a month, and celebrating a wonderful and joyous occasion, we can't help but remember and contemplate the situation of our brothers and sisters suffering abroad who celebrated their Eid with no family to share smiles with, no houses to visit, no gifts to give, no new clothes to wear, no food to feed even themselves with, and no joy to celebrate. They had Eid whilst in constant fear of being the next target of some missile or armed attack. They had Eid watching their neighbourhoods and cities crumble to the ground. They had Eid with the prospect of returning home to find another loved one gone forever. They had Eid having to survive in disease-ridden camps with insufficient food, having been forced to flee their own homes. They had Eid enduring extreme hunger, thirst, disease and malnutrition, to the point where their bones would pop out from their bodies. This is how many of your brothers and sisters experienced Eid this year in places like Palestine, Syria, Burma, the Central African Republic and eastern Africa, amongst the many other places where the situation for Muslims is dire, tough and gloomy. So along with your Eid celebrations, always keep in mind the situation of your Muslim brothers and sisters suffering abroad who are not as fortunate as you are to celebrate how you celebrate: plenty smiles and laughs, lovely gifts, new clothes, nice food, a solid roof over the head, home heating, and family and friends to enjoy the occasion with.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

الْمُسْلِمُونَ كَرَجُلٍ وَاحِدٍ إِنِ اشْتَكَى عَيْنُهُ اشْتَكَى كُلُّهُ وَإِنِ اشْتَكَى رَأْسُهُ اشْتَكَى كُلُّهُ

"The Muslims are like one body of a person; if the eye aches, the whole body aches, and if the head aches, the whole body aches." (Narrated by Muslim)

And he ﷺ also said:

مَثَلُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ فِي تَوَادِّهِمْ وَتَرَاحُمِهِمْ وَتَعَاطُفِهِمْ مَثَلُ الْجَسَدِ إِذَا اشْتَكَى مِنْهُ عُضْوٌ تَدَاعَى لَهُ سَائِرُ الْجَسَدِ بِالسَّهَرِ وَالْحُمَّى

"The believers in their mutual kindness, compassion and sympathy are just like one body. When one of the limbs suffers, the whole body responds to it with wakefulness and fever" (Agreed upon)

So I remind myself and you once again: Ramaḍān – the month of extra worship – may have ended, but the Lord of Ramaḍān is to be worshipped on all 12 months of the year. And just as we have celebrated the joyous occasion of Eid, we must never forget the hardships our fellow Muslims overseas are suffering through. The bare minimum you can do for them is make du‘ā’. Never underestimate the power of du‘ā’.

I end by reminding you all to follow up your Ramaḍān fasts by fasting another six days during this month, the month of Shawwāl. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said in this regard:

‏مَنْ صَامَ رَمَضَانَ ثُمَّ أَتْبَعَهُ سِتًّا مِنْ شَوَّالٍ كَانَ كَصِيَامِ الدَّهْرِ

"Whoever fasts during the month of Ramaḍān, then follows it with six days of Shawwāl, it is like continual fasting." (Narrated by Muslim)

Khutbah: The Last Ten Nights and Days of Ramadan

Indeed, all praises and thanks are due to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His Help and and we seek His Forgiveness. And we take refuge in Allah from the evils of ourselves and from the bad of our actions. Whomever Allah guides, none can misguide. And whomever Allah misguides, none can guide. And I testify that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah. And I testify that Muḥammad is His slave and messenger. May blessings and peace be upon him and upon his family and companions.

To proceed:

O slaves of Allah! Indeed, Allah bestows upon His slaves seasons of immense blessings. Ramaḍān is truly one of these seasons. A season of mercy, forgiveness and salvation from the Fire of Hell, it is sadly about to leave us for another year. However, Allah has kept the best for last, and has placed at the end of this blessed month a series of extra-blessed nights. These are none other than the last ten nights of Ramaḍān. So dear slaves of Allah, I urge you to be more diligent in worshipping your Lord in these final ten days of this blessed month. The Master of all worshippers ﷺ would strive in worship during these ten nights more than he did during the other nights of Ramaḍān, a month during which he already strove more as compared to the other months. For in these ten nights most likely falls the greatest night of the year—Laylat al-Qadr. Allah ﷻ says in this regard:

لَيْلَةُ ٱلْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ

"Laylat al-Qadr (The Night of Decree) is better than a thousand months." (Qur’ān 97:3)

And the Prophet ﷺ said:

وَمَنْ قَامَ لَيْلَةَ الْقَدْرِ إِيمَانًا وَاحْتِسَابًا غُفِرَ لَهُ مَا تَقَدَّمَ مِنْ ذَنْبِهِ

"Whoever stands in prayer on Laylat al-Qadr out of faith and in the hope of reward, his previous sins will be forgiven for him" (Narrated by the Six Imams except Ibn Mājah, and by others)

Seek this especially-blessed night on each of the last ten nights of this blessed month, particularly on the odd-numbered nights, i.e. the 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th and 29th. Let this night find you absorbed in good works, remembering Allah ta‘ālā, neither distracted, heedless, nor absorbed in foolishness. Stand in prayer in obedience to your Lord on these nights, even if little, for the best prayers after the obligatory prayers are those performed at night. Make plenty du‘ā’ during these nights, particularly during the middle and last third of the night, for du‘ā’ made at these times is like an arrow which never misses its target. Make du‘ā’ both for yourself and your fellow brothers and sisters. Ask your Lord for your needs and have confidence that your du‘ā’ will be accepted, for He is Most Generous. Complain to your Lord of your suffering and grief, for He is All-Hearing. Shed your tears out of shame of your Lord and express your deep regret over your past mistakes, and know that He is Most Kind, Ever Merciful, more so than a mother is to her child. For we are truly in need of cleaning the filth of our sins, so let us show our helplessness and neediness before our Lord so that He may grant us what we need—the washing away of our sins.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ taught us to say the following du‘ā’ on Laylat al-Qadr:

اَللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ تُحِبُّ اَلْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي

"O Allah! Indeed, you are Oft-Pardoning; you love pardoning, so pardon me." (Narrated by al-Tirmidhī, Ibn Majāh, Aḥmad and others)
So repeat it often throughout these nights.

The Best of all worshippers ﷺ would perform i‘tikāf—remaining in the masjid in spiritual retreat—for the full last ten days of Ramaḍān. So try to emulate him in this act of worship. If you cannot perform i‘tikāf for the full ten days, then at least every time you enter a masjid, make the intention to be in the state of i‘tikāf for as long as you remain in it.

The last ten days are the days of salvation from the Fire of Hell. Know that you can save yourself from Hellfire by giving just a little amount in charity. The Prophet ﷺ said:

اتَّقُوا النَّارَ وَلَوْ بِشِقِّ تَمْرَةٍ

"Protect yourselves from the Fire, even with half a date [in charity]." (Narrated by al-Bukhārī, Muslim and al-Nasā'ī)

Have confidence that your Generous Lord will give you better replacement for what you have spent in His cause. Allah ﷻ says:

إِن تُقْرِضُوا ٱللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًا يُضَٰعِفْهُ لَكُمْ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ

"If you loan Allah a goodly loan (i.e. give charity for the sake of Allah), He will multiply it for you and forgive you." (Qur’ān 64:17)

Now is an especially crucial time to donate to the needy, given the dire state of our Muslim brothers and sisters suffering abroad.

I once again remind you and myself to take maximum advantage of this last portion of Ramaḍān before it departs for another year. Spend it in prayer, du‘ā’, seeking forgiveness from Allah, tawbah and charity. For the greatest night of the year—a night better than 1000 months—is most likely to fall on one of these ten nights. Whoever is deprived of its goodness is indeed deprived. So don't waste this chance, for you may never live to see such an opportunity again.

Hifz Series: Part V – Other Priorities Regarding the Qur'an and Final Remarks

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

As much as memorisation of the Qur’ān has been encouraged in the dīn, we must ensure that we do not forget three other crucial aspects regarding this book:

1. Tajwīd and Tartīl. Ensure that your tajwīd (rules governing Qur’ānic recitation), especially your makhraj (pronunciation), is up to scratch. Also make sure that you recite in a pleasant manner (tartīl), as instructed by Allah in Surat al-Muzzammil.

2. Understanding the Qur’ān. Take some time out to understand what you're memorising/have memorised. In my opinion, the best explanations of the Qur’ān in the English language—by a mile—are those by Sh. Abdul Nasir Jangda and Ust. Nouman Ali Khan, which can be found here. They currently have tafsīrs (exegeses/explanations) on Sūrat al-Baqarah (in progress), Sūrat Maryam (in progress), Sūrat Yāsīn, Juz’ Tabārak and Juz’ ‘Amma.  I highly recommend that you listen to them. Though a note: their tafsīrs aren't actually "tafsīrs" in the classical sense; they're more of an linguistic (particularly semantic) study of the Qur’ān, coupled with life lessons and advice we can learn and implement—they don't really go into what a typical tafsīr would go into, such as asbāb al-nuzūl (science of causes of revelation), fiqh, branches of ‘aqīdah, etc.

For a good, accessible, classical tafsīr, it's hard to go past Tafsīr Ibn Kathīr, which can be accessed online here. If you have an Android device, you can download this app. For iOS devices, check out this app.

3. Implementing the Qur’ān. This is the most important aspect. The Qur’ān came primarily to be implemented in our lives. Hence, we must base every element of our lives upon this book, as well as upon the sunnah of the one onto whom the Qur’ān was sent down, ﷺ.

May Allah aid you in your ḥifẓ endeavours. May He make us the people of the Qur’ān, those who are His people and His elect ones. May He make us from those who permit what it has permitted, forbid what it has forbidden, act upon its unambiguous āyāt, believe without doubt in its ambiguous āyāt, and recite and learn it the way it ought to be recited and learned. May He make it an intercessor and proof for us, not against us, on the Day of Judgement. May He make us from those who recite the Qur’ān and guard its commandments, and may He not make us of those who recite the Qur’ān but violate its commandments. Āmīn.

Hifz Series: Part IV – How to Memorise a Section of the Qur'an

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Please note: this is what worked best for me. Everyone has their different methods of memorisation, and you may find that a certain method of memorisation works better for you than the one given below. Use what works best for you. If you feel comfortable with the method you currently use to memorise a section of the Qur’ān, stick to it. Otherwise, if you haven't quite figured it out yet, you can try the method below and see if it works out for you. If it doesn't, try modifying it to suit you. Alternatively, ask someone else who has completed their ḥifẓ or is making good progress with his/her ḥifẓ, or search online.

1. Warm-up. This helps ready yourself to absorb a new section of the Qur’ān and commit it to memory. Warm-up by revising the previous day's memorisation, followed by reading—whilst looking—the section you plan on committing to memory.
2. Read—whilst looking—the first āyah of the section, repeating it three times.
3. Try to recall as much as you can of the āyah. Whatever you can recall, repeat it seven times. If you stumble, you must restart the count to seven.
4. Read, whilst looking, the next few words of the āyah three times. Then, recall those words without looking, repeating those words seven times. (If three times isn't enough for you to be able to recall anything after removing your eyes from the muṣḥaf, try increasing this number to five or seven or any number that suits you.) If you stumble whilst trying to recall, restart the count to seven.
5. Recall what you have memorised from the beginning of the āyah and link it with what you have just memorised, three times. If you stumble, restart the count.
6. Continue until you have reached the end of the āyah. Once you've reached the end of the āyah, recall the whole āyah from memory three times. If you stumble, restart the count.
7. Repeat steps 2-6 for the subsequent āyāt. Once you have completed an āyah, recall from memory the first āyah till the latest āyah. If you stumble, complete the āyah you are on first, then restart from the first āyah.
8. Once you have committed the entire section to memory, recall it from memory, repeating it three times.
9. End by praising Allah. This can be done by saying "ṣadaqa Llāhu l-‘aẓīm", "al-ḥamdu lillāh" or the like. Make a small du‘ā’, asking Allah to bless you with the Qur’ān, to make you a person of the Qur’ān and to aid you in your endeavours to memorise the Qur’ān.

This style is more geared towards longer and medium-length āyāt, such as those in al-Baqarah, al-Kahf, Yāsīn, al-Mulk and al-Bayyinah. As for suwar with shorter āyāt, such as al-Raḥmān, al-Wāqi‘ah and al-A‘lā, I would suggest that you take one or two lines as an "āyah".

May Allah aid you in your ḥifẓ endeavours. May He make us the people of the Qur’ān, those who are His people and His elect ones. May He make us from those who permit what it has permitted, forbid what it has forbidden, act upon its unambiguous āyāt, believe without doubt in its ambiguous āyāt, and recite and learn it the way it ought to be recited and learned. May He make it an intercessor and proof for us, not against us, on the Day of Judgement. May He make us from those who recite the Qur’ān and guard its commandments, and may He not make us of those who recite the Qur’ān but violate its commandments. Āmīn.

Hifz Series: Part III – A Unique Method For Memorising the Qur'an

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Used mainly in Turkish ḥifẓ schools and dating back to the Ottoman period, the method described below is the one I have found to be most effective for the memorisation and revision of the Qur’ān. This method relies on using the "15-line muṣḥaf", i.e. the copies of the Qur’ān printed in Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, etc. that have 15 lines page and have 20 pages per Juz’. It also relies on the ability to memorise one page a day and revise an increasing number of pages as one progresses through one's ḥifẓ. It works like this:

1. Start by memorising the last page of the 1st Juz’.
2. The next day, memorise the last page of the 2nd Juz’. (As a warm-up before commencing memorisation, it's a good idea to revisit the previous day's memorisation.)
3. The next day, memorise the last page of the 3rd Juz’. Keep going with this pattern until you've memorised the last page of each Juz’. This should take about 28-30 days, depending on whether you've already memorised the last few Ajzā’ of the Qur’ān. This is one "cycle" once completed.
4. At the beginning of the next cycle, memorise the second-last page of the 1st Juz’; as well, revise the last page of the 1st Juz’.
5. The next day, memorise the second-last page of the 2nd Juz’; as well, revise the last page of the 2nd Juz’. Continue with this pattern until the end of the cycle.
6. At the beginning of the next cycle, memorise the third-last page of the 1st Juz’; as well, revise the last two pages of that Juz’. Continue with this until the end of the cycle.
7. With each cycle, you'll be memorising one new page of the Qur’ān a day, moving backwards from the end of the Juz’, in addition to revising all the pages you've memorised of the Juz’ you are focusing on for that day.

Being able to memorise one page a day is key to making the most of this method. If you're not capable of that as of yet, continue with your current memorisation plan until you are eventually able to memorise at this rate. You will need to push yourself to get there.

I would suggest beginning each memorisation cycle at the beginning of the calendar month (preferably the Hijrī month). It makes it easier to monitor your progress, lest you fall behind in your memorisation schedule.

If you memorise with a teacher (something I assume most ḥifẓ students do) and would like to follow this memorisation method, do discuss it with them first. They know more about your capabilities than the author of this post does. Furthermore, they may be apprehensive in going through with this method with you due to their unfamiliarity with it.

May Allah aid you in your ḥifẓ endeavours. May He make us the people of the Qur’ān, those who are His people and His elect ones. May He make us from those who permit what it has permitted, forbid what it has forbidden, act upon its unambiguous āyāt, believe without doubt in its ambiguous āyāt, and recite and learn it the way it ought to be recited and learned. May He make it an intercessor and proof for us, not against us, on the Day of Judgement. May He make us from those who recite the Qur’ān and guard its commandments, and may He not make us of those who recite the Qur’ān but violate its commandments. Āmīn.

This Ramadan, get over moonfighting...

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

This Ramaḍān, instead of engaging in the classic but fruitless annual Ramāḍan tradition of moonfighting, think about your many fellow brothers and sisters who are suffering around the world. Think about your brothers and sisters particularly in:

• Syria – they risk their lives just to walk across the street and buy some ifṭār
• Palestine – they've been living in oppression for more than 60 consecutive Ramaḍāns
• Egypt – they head into Ramaḍān with their land in turmoil
• Iraq – a war-torn nation, they enter Ramaḍān with their nation potentially heading into another war
• Central African Republic – they've been massacred in cold blood, harassed and forced to flee their homes—a reality they've had to live with for more than half a year
• Burma – they're being tortured and harassed, their villages literally burned to the ground and their families forced to flee—to the neighbouring Muslim lands whose governments heartlessly reject them and send them back
• Afghanistan – a nation embroiled in war for more than a decade

Moonsighting is for the mashāyikh and ‘ulamā’ to discuss and make decisions on. All we laypeople need to do is follow a reliable scholar and/or adopt a sound position regarding this issue. We laypeople should't be fighting over such issues, for such fighting sows further division within the community.

I'll leave you with a quote from Sh. Abdul Wahab Saleem from a recent post on his Facebook page:

For those who feel that they have so much knowledge that they should be making tall claims about how this committee or that committee is opposing the Sunnah of our beloved Messenger -SAWS-, these issues are not conclusive. Traces of discussions on calculations and moon-sighting have always been found in the encyclopedic works of Islamic law. Many of the people who have supported calculations in modern times are some of the biggest proponents of the Sunnah our Prophet -SAWS-. People who have dedicated their entire lives to the Sunnah have defended this idea.
Just to name one of those, Sh. Ahmad Muhammad Shakir (d. 1958), who is known to be the Muhaddith of his times. In either case, this post is not encourage an opinion over another. It is, however, to humble us and remind us of the fact that, like always, there is a deeper discussion about these issues among the scholarly class than what may surface in your casual family dinner a week before Ramadan.

Hifz Series: Part II – A Memorisation List for Starters

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

(This list is based on my knowledge of the virtues of certain sections of the Qur’ān. And Allah knows best.)

For Those Fluent in Qur’ān Recitation

- al-Fātiḥah
- The "ten" āyāt of al-Baqarah (i.e. 1-5, 255-257, 283-286) OR entire al-Baqarah
- Last "ten" āyāt of Āli ‘Imrān (i.e. 190-200)
- al-Kahf
- al-Sajdah
- Yāsīn
- al-Dukhān
- al-Raḥmān
- al-Wāqi‘ah
- Last three āyāt of al-Ḥashr (i.e. 22-24)
- Juz’ Tabārak
- Juz’ ‘Amma
(Sum: ~ 3½ Ajzā’/~ 6 Ajzā’)

For Those Not Yet Fluent in Qur’ān Recitation

- al-Fātiḥah
- First five āyāt of al-Baqarah (i.e. 1-5)
- Āyat al-Kursī (al-Baqarah, āyah 255)
- Last 2 āyāt of al-Baqarah (i.e. 285-286)
- First ten and last "ten" āyāt of al-Kahf (i.e. 1-10 and 100-110)
- Last three āyāt of al-Ḥashr (i.e. 22-24)
- Last 22 sūrahs of the Qur’ān (i.e. from Surat al-Ḍuḥā till Surat al-Nās) OR entire Juz’ ‘Amma
(Sum: ~ ½ Juz’/~ 1¼ Ajzā’)

If you're not yet fluent in Qur’ān recitation, I wouldn't recommend that you pursue memorisation of the entire Qur’ān.

May Allah aid you in your ḥifẓ endeavours. May He make us the people of the Qur’ān, those who are His people and His elect ones. May He make us from those who permit what it has permitted, forbid what it has forbidden, act upon its unambiguous āyāt, believe without doubt in its ambiguous āyāt, and recite and learn it the way it ought to be recited and learned. May He make it an intercessor and proof for us, not against us, on the Day of Judgement. May He make us from those who recite the Qur’ān and guard its commandments, and may He not make us of those who recite the Qur’ān but violate its commandments. Āmīn.

Hifz Series: Part I – Twelve Tips and Advice on Memorising the Qur'an

Bismi llāh, wa l-ḥamdu lillāh, wa ṣ-ṣalātu wa s-salāmu ‘alā rasūli llāh, wa ‘alā ālihī wa ṣaḥbihī wa man wālāh

Numerous people have asked me for tips and advice on memorising the Qur’ān. So, with the month of the Qur’ān just around the corner, I've decided to put in writing some of what I have to offer those who have committed themselves to this noble task.

I've divided what I've got to offer into a series of five articles: 1) twelve tips and advice on memorising the Qur’ān, 2) a memorisation list for starters, 3) a unique method for memorising the Qur’ān, 4) how to memorise a section of the Qur’ān, and 5) other priorities regarding the Qur’ān.

I ask Allah that those who read this benefit from what they have read. Āmīn.

Twelve Tips and Advice on Memorising the Qur’ān

(Note: These tips have been written primarily for those who seek to commit the entire Qur’ān to memory, i.e. become ḥuffāẓ. Though if you're aiming for lower than that at the moment, don't worry—these tips should, in shā’ Allāh, still be of benefit.)

1. Taqwā. Keep your duty to Allah. Fear Him. Be conscious of Him at all times. Adhere to His commandments and keep far away from disobedience of Him. Allah says:

 وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ۖ وَيُعَلِّمُكُمُ ٱللَّهُ ۗ

"Have taqwā of Allah, and Allah teaches you." (Qur’ān 2:282)

Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah (رحمه الله) stated: "Sacred knowledge is a light which Allah throws into the heart and disobedience extinguishes this light. Imam al-Shāfi‘ī (رحمه الله) said:

'I complained to Wakī‘ about the weakness of my memory,
so he advised me to abandon disobedience,
and informed me that the knowledge is light,
and that the light of Allah is not given to the disobedient.'"

2. Commitment. You need to be serious about your ḥifẓ endeavours. Don't treat ḥifẓ as something secondary. Place ḥifẓ amongst your top priorities, even if you're only doing part-time* ḥifẓ. Put in the required time—I would suggest at least two hours a day. Plus, if you're only doing ḥifẓ because your parents are forcing you to, or because you're scared of your Qur’ān teacher, or because it's the only way you're getting that gift for Eid, then let me tell you now—something is seriously wrong. You need to rectify your intentions. Should you continue with your ḥifẓ? Yes, but you really need to actively try as hard as you can to make Allah the purpose of your ḥifẓ. Ḥifẓ is a form of worship, and worship done for other than the sake of Allah is of great detriment both in this life and the next. (This ties in with the last point on this list.)

3. Ṣabr and determination. The word ṣabr embodies several concepts, such as patience, constancy and perseverance. You, as an aspiring ḥāfiẓ, must have all these, plus the willpower and determination to complete your ḥifẓ. Don't take breaks in your ḥifẓ schedule. Once you start slacking off, it becomes harder to pick yourself up and get back on track. Add to that the classic weapon of Shayṭān—Satanic whisperings—and the numerous weapons of mass distraction around you—social media, TV and games for a start—, weapons aimed at your willpower to memorise. Don't be lazy. Let me tell you: you're already lazy enough. (Don't believe me? Go have a read about how Imam al-Shāfi‘ī and Imam al-Nawawī were during their youth.) If you're anticipating something that will disrupt your schedule (e.g. commitments, invitations, family outings, etc.) then plan beforehand how you'll cover for the missed time. Don't be lazy. If you feel like you're not making progress, don't let that dishearten you. Have the determination to complete you ḥifẓ and persevere in doing so.

4. Step by step. Take it easy, especially at the beginning of your ḥifẓ journey. Start by memorising, say, half a page per day, and if you're constant with this regimen you'll eventually be able to memorise something like one or two pages per day in a shorter amount of time. Don't start off by trying to memorise the entire Sūrat al-Baqarah in one month. You don't want to bite off more than you can chew and burnout later on as a result.

With me for example, I initially memorised at a rate of one page a week (yep, waay too slow for a young guy like me). However, I eventually—al-ḥamdu lillāh—ended up memorising at a rate of one page a day, each page taking about 20-30 minutes to memorise, bi idhni llāh.

5. Goal-setting and self-discipline. Set an amount for how much you want to memorise per day/week/month and stick to that. I'd advise not to go above that amount if you've completed it before the due time, unless you're planning on sticking to memorising at that increased rate. Either way, how ever great your goals are, ensure that you discipline yourself to meet your goals. (Clue: whisperings of the devils and distractions)

6. Time management. Manage your time well. Schedule your day and decide on when you will spend time in your ḥifẓ endeavours. Take advantage of Fajr time, as the Qur’ān mentions in Surat al-Isrāʼ that the recitation of Qur’ān at Fajr is witnessed by the angels of the night and the angels of the day. Furthermore, the early hours of the day are full of barakah; the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was reported to have said, “O Allah, bless my nation in their early mornings” (Narrated by Abū Dāwūd and Ibn Mājah). Besides, you're at your freshest in the mornings (provided you had a good night's sleep). Other virtuous times for spending time with the Qur’ān are after ʻAṣr and after Maghrib—these times are usually too short to conduct and complete worldly affairs. Besides, ʻAṣr time is supposed to be a time of remembering Allah, and what better way to do that than by committing to memory His Book!

7. Revision. Revise OFTEN. I've heard numerous, unfortunate stories of "ḥuffāẓ" who aren't really ḥuffāẓ because they have forgotten much of what they have memorised. Revision is ABSOLUTELY KEY to successfully completing your ḥifẓ.

8. Know what you're memorising. After memorising a section of the Qur’ān, take some time to read a tafsīr or translation of the meaning of what you've just memorised. It helps you appreciate what you're committing to memory. It also may help in various life-situations, such as when attempting to give daʻwah or when you're going through tough times in life.

9. Take advantage of your youth. Allah's Messenger ﷺ, in a ḥadīth narrated by al-Ḥākim, advised us to take advantage of five matters before five other matters, the first of which was youth before old age. We all reach an age when our brains no longer absorb information like they did during our youth. So take advantage of your younger years, when your brain is still like a sponge which readily absorbs water.

I usually advise school students who are doing ḥifẓ to take advantage of their pre-senior high school years (Years 11-12 in NSW, Australia), as once you get to senior high school you'll struggle to find the time for ḥifẓ, especially during your final year.

10. Motivation. Seek motivation, both from people who have completed their ḥifẓ and from the various aḥādīth of the Prophet ﷺ regarding the virtues of ḥifẓ and the ḥāfiẓ. A good book in the latter regard can be found here.

11. Use the same muṣḥaf. Stick to the same type of muṣḥaf (copy of the Qur’ān) when doing your ḥifẓ. If you're using the 15-line Madinan/Syrian muṣḥaf, stick with that throughout your ḥifẓ journey. If you're using the 13-line Indian muṣḥaf, stick with that throughout your ḥifẓ journey. Don't switch between muṣḥafs. You lose the advantage of a “visual memory” of the portions of the Qur’ān you've memorised.

12. Don't become heedless of the One who sent the book. Moisten your mouth with dhikr (remembrance of Allah). Have shukr (gratefulness) for EVERYTHING you've been blessed with. Be like the lowly Earth when walking on it; walk on the Earth with dhull (humility). But most importantly, be frequent in du‘ā’ (supplication), asking Allah to aid you in your ḥifẓ endeavours. And even more importantly, have ikhlāṣ (sincerity) in your intentions in memorising the Book of Allah.

"And be not like those who forgot Allah, so He made them forget themselves. Those are the defiantly disobedient." (Qur’ān 59:19)

"And [remember] when your Lord proclaimed, 'If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favour]; but if you are ungrateful, indeed, My punishment is severe.'" (Qur’ān 14:7)

"And do not walk upon the earth with conceit and arrogance. Indeed, you will never tear the earth [apart], and you will never reach the mountains in height." (Qur’ān 17:37)

"And your Lord says, 'Call upon Me; I will respond to you.' Indeed, those who are too proud for My worship will enter Hell, humiliated." (Qur’ān 40:60)

"... (Regarding the first three who will be judged on the Day of Resurrection) Next, a man who had acquired and imparted knowledge and read the Qur’ān will be brought forward. Allah will remind him of the favours He had bestowed upon him and the man will acknowledge them. Then He will ask him: 'What did you do to express gratitude for it?' The man will reply: 'I acquired knowledge and taught it, and read the Qur’ān for Your sake.' Allah will say to him: 'You have lied. You acquired knowledge so that people might call you a learned (man), and you read the Qur’ān so that they might call you a reciter, and they have done so.' Command will then be issued about him, and he will be dragged on his face and thrown into Hell." (Ḥadīth of the Prophet ﷺ. Narrated by Muslim.)

May Allah aid you in your ḥifẓ endeavours. May He make us the people of the Qur’ān, those who are His people and His elect ones. May He make us from those who permit what it has permitted, forbid what it has forbidden, act upon its unambiguous āyāt, believe without doubt in its ambiguous āyāt, and recite and learn it the way it ought to be recited and learned. May He make it an intercessor and proof for us, not against us, on the Day of Judgement. May He make us from those who recite the Qur’ān and guard its commandments, and may He not make us of those who recite the Qur’ān but violate its commandments. Āmīn.

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* Part-time ḥifẓ: when you endeavour in memorising the Qur’ān alongside your school/uni/work/etc. commitments. As opposed to full-time ḥifẓ, when you quit everything to focus only on ḥifẓ.