A Revelation from (Allah), Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Ha-Mim

A Revelation from (Allah), Most Gracious, Most Merciful;- 

A Book, whereof the verses are explained in detail;- a Qur'an in Arabic, for people who understand;-  

Giving good news and admonition: yet most of them turn away, and so they hear not. 

They say: "Our hearts are under veils, (concealed) from that to which thou dost invite us, and in our ears in a deafness, and between us and thee is a screen: so do thou (what thou wilt); for us, we shall do (what we will!)"  

Say thou: "I am but a man like you: It is revealed to me by Inspiration, that your Allah is one Allah: so stand true to Him, and ask for His Forgiveness." And woe to those who join gods with Allah,- 

Those who practise not regular Charity, and who even deny the Hereafter.  

For those who believe and work deeds of righteousness is a reward that will never fail. 

 

Our Nightly Companion

The holy month of Ramadan has gone by, and it seems as if maybe our enthusiasm to meet our nightly companion (that is Qiyam al Layl – Night Prayer) has been declining. The importance of this prayer has been emphasized in many sayings and verses of the Quran. One important question that arises is how do we stay consistent with this beautiful prayer? Let us first remind our self with some of the sayings of the Prophet PBUH, and Allah’s words to us about the night prayer.

A) Among the reports that describe the virtues of this act of worship is the hadeeth of Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him), in which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The best of prayers after the prescribed prayers is prayer in the depths of the night, and the best of fasting after the month of Ramadan is fasting the month of Allaah, Muharram.” (reported by Muslim).

B) And, ‘Amr ibn ‘Absah reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The closest that the Lord is to His slave is in the later part of the night, so if you can be one of those who remember Allaah at that time, then do so.” (Reported by al-Tirmidhi and al-Nisaa'i).

C) Allah swt also says “Their sides forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and hope, and they spend (charity in Allaah’s Cause) out of what We have bestowed on them” [al-Sajdah 32:16]

Right after this verse Allah swt describes the reward for the people mentioned above (including the ones who perform Qiyam) by saying “Now no person knows what delights of the eye are kept hidden (in reserve) for them - as a reward for their (good) deeds.” It’s amazing how Allah swt describes in the Quran how other acts have specific rewards, but for Qiyam the reward is hidden and it will be an amazing surprise for the worshipper in the day of judgment for what they used to sacrifice for Allah.

That being said, here are some steps that can help us inshaAllah obtain Qiyam Al Layl, and most importantly gain the pleasure of Allah swt.

* Duaa: Supplications and speaking directly to Allah swt is one of the best weapons given to you by your creator. Use it in this matter by asking Allah swt to help you get-up for Qiyam Al Layl. Allah swt says “And as for those who strive hard in Our Cause, We will surely guide them to Our Paths. And verily, Allaah is with the muhsinoon (good-doers).” [al-‘Ankaboot 29:69]

* Fajr: Prior to performing any voluntary acts of worship we must make sure that all of our obligatory requirements are met, and this includes praying Fajr on time. If you don’t pray Fajr on time, work on doing so; one of the best ways to accomplish this is to set up an alarm.

* Train yourself by gradually increasing your time: Sometimes we can overwhelm ourselves into doing acts of worship (which is great) but that can get us tired and thus we end up completely leaving the voluntary act of worship. A strategy that might be helpful is that one should perhaps ease him/her self into these acts (Qiyam al layl), even if the act looks small in your eyes. Remember that Allah loves the slave who performs constant deeds, even if they are small! Narrated Hazrat 'Aisha (Radi Allah Anha): The Prophet Salla Allahu ta'ala 'alayhi wa Sallam was asked, "What deeds are loved most by Allah?" He said, "The most regular constant deeds even though they may be few."Sahih Bukhari: Volume 8, Book 76, Number 472

This “gradual easing” can be whatever makes it easy for the slave of Allah. For example, you can try to wake up 10, 15, or 30 minutes before Fajr and perform one rakah of witr or three. As you increase your time you can also increase your number or rakahs and recitations of the Quran. In Contrast, you can choose to perform Witr right after Salatul Isha, or before you go to sleep as a preparation for future “last 1/3 of the night” Qiyam.

* Allah is calling you: The person who wants to pray Qiyaam al-layl should realize that Allah is calling him to qiyaam. When the slave realizes that his Master, Who has no need of people’s worship, is calling him to do this, he will respond. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “O you wrapped in your garments (i.e., Prophet Muhammad)! Stand (to pray) all night, except a little. Half of it, or a little less than that, or a little more; and recite the Qur’aan (aloud) in a slow, (pleasant tone and) style.” [al-Muzzammil 73:1-4]. From:http://islamqa.com/en/ref/3749/Qiyam

This means that you should remember Allah swt right as you hear your alarm. It will help you fight your self desire to go back to sleep, and fight the whispering of shaytan. Reassert to yourself that you have a meeting with your creator, and remember that Allah swt listens to your thoughts and is with you all of the time.

May Allah help us all swt Allah clean our intentions, Pray Salatul Fajr, and meet our night prayer prior to Fajr prayer.

http://islamqa.com/en/ref/3749/Qiyam

Ways on How to obtain a Hasana and Sayya Gareeya (Ongoing Good and Bad deeds which continue after death)

How to get a Hasana Gareeya (ongoing Good Deed)

1.       Plant a tree for the sake of Allah to feed people and animals

2.       Teach someone how to read the Quran, pray, or any act of worship (every time they perform this act, you will be rewarded inshAllah.)

3.       Pass videos, mp3s, and notes about Allah and Islam

4.       Be a reason or part of a reason of someone converting to Islam

5.       Have children (to pray for you!)

6.       Give Sadaqah for building a mosque.

7.       Help clean and load simple objects in the mosque (Soap, papertowels, cleaning.)

How to get a Sayya Gareeya (ongoing Bad Deed)

1.       Share the newest (or old) videos with friends (in Facebook or online) about the newest artist on MTV.

2.       Have you email account automatically send haram pictures received from websites to your friends, even after your death! (Yes this happens.)

3.       Spread Bidaas and sayings not mentioned by the prophet (Review what you say before you say it.)

4.       Talk about your friends in a way which they won’t like (your good deeds will be removed from you and put on them on the day of judgment.)

5.       Teach someone how to do a sin.

~ Then as for him whose good deeds are preponderant, these are the successful (23:102)

Cell Phones and Prayer Disturbance

Bismiallahi alrahmani alraheem (In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful)

Do you remember the last time you heard a cell phone ring during the prayer? It’s very rare these days to observe the Salah without having to listen to one of the cool tunes coming from a cell phone. These cell phones with all of their benefits have become very disturbing and harmful in the context of prayer. Take for example this incident: A while back I was standing in the Jumuah prayer, and suddenly the tune of “Who let the dogs out” started playing for a few seconds. I’ll tell you, I was “letting the dogs out” in my head during the Salah, and even after the prayer. This brother, who forgot to turn off his phone, was the cause of prayer-disturbance of more than 60 Muslims including himself. Unfortunately this incident is very common nowadays.

 Another problem that is secondary to this issue is the spreading of filthy music and making other Muslims listen to it indirectly. You should realize that even if the phone ring is halal (Azan, halal nasheeds, Quran, etc…) one must still turn of his/her phone because it will distract the Imam, musaleen, and others during salah or Jumuah. And of course it is known that in Jumuah one must not talk, play, reply to people or engage in anything but listen to the khateeb. Otherwise, engagement in such acts may invalidate his/her Jumuah and remove some or all of his/her rewards. In this context, cell phones are without a question, a distraction to their owners and others during the Friday khutbah.

I cannot comprehend how some Muslims do not have the will to turn off their phones before entering the prayer. Even though they are repeatedly reminded of this fact through posters, signs, and imams asking them to do so, they still seem to fail in this aspect. It is understandable that a person might forget to turn off the phone once in a “while” as we are all forgetful, but to do so every time and be careless about it only brings evil. I wonder what the reaction would be, if one was to offer an ounce of gold to these Muslims for each time they turn off their phone before prayer. I can imagine that they would hasten and would never forget, because it involves money and wealth. But how about something that is better than money and wealth? Your Salah!

I advise myself and all of my Brothers and Sisters to put their phones on “silent” when entering the masjid. May Allah swt protect us from disturbing Muslims during the Salah, and protect us from having our Salah revoked due to our negligence.

Memorization of the Quran – Points and Tips

Bisimillahi Alrahmani al-Raheem (In the name of God, the most beneficent, the most merciful)

The memorization of the Quran (the direct words of Allah swt) is a wonderful act of worship that brings one closer to his/her creator. It raises one in status by Allah in this dunya (world), and in the hereafter. There are numerous benefits for the one who memorizes or is memorizing the Quran, which is out of the scope of this article. But let’s just take a look at one of these benefits in the following hadeeth:

Al-Tirmidhi (2914) and Abu Dawood (1464) narrated from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Amr that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “It will be said to the companion of the Qur'an: Recite and rise in status, recite as you used to recite in the world, for your status will be at the last verse that you recite.” This hadith was classed as sahih by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al- Saheehah

This means that the more you memorize, the more you will ascend into the heavens!

Every now and then you hear an amazing story of one who memorizes the Quran. For example, one man set himself for memorization, and he finished the Quran in 50 days. This takes great courage and commitment, and shows you that anything can be done if you put your heart into it. Another story is of a grandmother “Umm Saalih” who memorized the Quran at age 82, her interview was narrated by Dr. Saleh al Saleh in the Ad-Da'wah Magazine. How do these people get the energy and will power to memorize in a short time, or in their weak age? Well, each person has their own story but generally there are points that need to be taken care of, if you really want to be a companion of the Quran. The list below is not exhaustive, but refers to some of these points:

·       -  Intention: The most important element to any act of worship is the sincere intention. If this fails, anything after it will follow into failure. More importantly, you will bring the anger of Allah upon you, and in the day of the judgment you will be one of the losers. Make your intentions very clear and sincere for your merciful lord. And don’t just do it one time, repeat your intentions to clean any ills that may have been seeded in your heart throughout the process.

·        - Plan: When one goes to a trip, prepares for a degree, exam, marriage, and so on he/she plans for it. Similarly, you need to have a general set plan for your memorization, otherwise it will become very easy to put a side and forget all about your intentions and excitement.

·        - Memorization Companion: If it is possible, sometimes it may be a good idea (especially if you are a beginner) to have a partner who will help you review, memorize, and read the Quran. Both (or more) of you will help you encourage each other.

·       - Listening: Do not underestimate the power of listening to the Quran! I know people who memorize so much by just listening to a recitation repeatedly. Repetition will cause you to be a memorizer (see Review)! An example of this strategy is as follows: Listen to your favorite Sura at least once a day for one week, then see how easy it will be to memorize it from the book, compared to memorizing without ever listening to it.

·       -Use your Iphone, Androids, mp3s, etc…:  Going back to the idea of listening – This can be enhanced by using your portable audio players. These devices can be used when you are riding in the bus, driving the car, or walking. In addition, these devices may also be used to download the Quran so that you will have the book everywhere you go. So use them to memorize and get reward for remembrance of Allah!

·        - Stop listening to other than the Quran: Here is the deal, if there is something else in your heart, it will compete with the Quran. If you listen to music, you will sing music. If you listen to nasheeds all day, you will be playing nasheeds in your head all day. But if you listen to Quran, you will be reciting Quran. And in fact, you will come to a point where you will be reciting Quran aloud, in your heart and in your sleep. Imagine remembering Allah with his words all day, and the unknown rewards that you will receive from this act.

·        - Review: Reviewing is just as important as the initial memorization. What is the point of memorizing if you are going to forget? The Quran needs to be repeated and reviewed, otherwise it will leave you. The prophet PBUH compared the Quran memorizer as an owner of a camel. If he keeps a hold of it, it will stay, but if he neglects it, it will eventually untie itself and leave.

·        - Act upon it: Imagine this scenario – a man/woman asks Allah swt to help him/her to memorize the Quran, but they do not act upon the verses that they memorize. They gossip about their friends, sin day and night, and neither pray nor fast. What do you think Allah swt feels about them? Let’s act upon what we memorize so we can be true companions of the Quran.

·        - Quran-O-Meter: I find it very encouraging to see the visual progress of memorization. A very useful tool that you can use is called “Quran-O-Meter.” This tool allows you to enter the number of Suras, verses, lines memorized and then it calculates the exact percentage memorized. Every time you add verses into your heart, you can see the increase of percentage (even if it is an increase of 0.5%.) It is another way of encouragement for your memorization. http://quraanometer.ilmsummit.org

Furthermore, if you think that it is too hard to memorize because you are not a native Arabic speaker, then there is even a bigger reward waiting for you:

al-Bukhari(4937) narrated from ‘Aa’ishah that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The likeness of the one who reads Qur'an and memorizes it is that he is with the righteous honourable scribes. The likeness of the one who reads it and tries hard to memorize it even though it is difficult for him, he will have two rewards.”

Finally, the Quran has around 6236 verses; and since in the beginning, we were discussing age and the period of memorization, let’s see exactly how long it will take us to memorize the Quran, if we follow these plans:

·         If you memorize 1 verse a day, it will take you 6236 days or 17 years to complete the Quran.

·         If you memorize 5 verses a day, it will take you 3.4 years

·         If you memorize 10 verses a day, it will take about 1.7 years

·         If you memorize 20 verses a day, it will take 312 days or less than a year

May Allah swt make us one of the companions of the Quran, and raise us with it on the Day of Judgment, Ameen.

“And We have indeed made the Qur'an easy to understand and remember: then is there any that will receive admonition?” Surat Al-Qamar-17

You Know You’re Becoming A Practicing Muslim When…

-When memorizing the Quran is more dear to you than any degree obtained in the world.
-When the recitation of the Quran makes your hair stand, while music makes you nervous (from fear of Allah.)
-When you do a good deed you feel happy and joyful, while a sin causes you to be sad and heavy-hearted.
-When you make a sin you immediately remember Allah and seek his forgiveness.
-When praying on time is above everything.
-When you want to see the Prophet PBUH in a dream, and long for the blessings of Jannah.
-When you remember Allah swt every time you see his wonderful creation.

-When you recite Quran in your sleep.

-When you recite the Quran as you wake up.
-When the love of Allah and his messenger surpasses everything.
-When you pray for your brother or sister without their knowledge.
-When you love your brothers and sisters for the sake of Allah.

-When you don’t make fun of your brother and sister with or without their presence.

-When your hijab makes you stronger, and closer to your creator.
-When you want to get married for the sake of Allah.
-When you want to do everything for the sake of Allah!