false Allah says that which translates as: &quot;Say, [O Muhammad], 'If you should love Allah, then follow me, [So] Allah will love you and forgive you your sins.'&quot; (Aal Imraan: 31). <br /> <br /> &quot;Follow, [O Mankind], what has been revealed to you from your Lord and do not follow other than Him any allies. Little do you remember.&quot; (Al A'raaf: 3)<br /> <br /> &quot;And [Moreover], this is My path, which is straight, so follow it; and do not follow [other] ways, for you will be separated from His way.&quot; (Al An'aam: 153)<br /> <br /> The Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;The most truthful of speech is the Book of Allah and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, and the most evil of things are those which are newly invented.&quot; And he sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islaam), that is not part of it will have it rejected.&quot; (Bukhaari &amp; Muslim). According to a version narrated by Muslim, &quot;Whoever does anything that is not in accordance with this matter of ours (i.e., Islaam), will have it rejected.&quot;<br /> <br /> Among the reprehensible innovations that people have invented is the celebration of the birthday of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam (Al Mawlid) in the month of Rabee Al Awwal. They celebrate this occasion in various ways:<br /> <br /> 1. Some of them simply make it an occasion to gather and read the story of Al Mawlid, then they present speeches and Qaseedahs (odes) for this occasion.<br /> <br /> 2. Some of them make food and sweets etc., and offer them to the people present.<br /> <br /> 3. Some of them hold these celebrations in the mosques, and some of them hold them in their houses.<br /> <br /> 4. Some people do not limit themselves to the actions mentioned above; they include in these gatherings Haraam and reprehensible things, such as free mixing between men and women, dancing and singing, or committing actions of Shirk such as seeking the help of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, calling upon him, seeking his support against their enemies and so on. So, this is the origin of this celebration on the occasion of the Prophet's birthday. More recently idle entertainment, extravagance, and wasting of money and time have become associated with an innovation for which Allah has not sent down any authority. Whatever form it takes and whatever the intentions of those who do this are, there is no doubt whatsoever that it is an invented, Haraam innovation. It is incumbent upon all Muslims to revive the Sunnah and put an end to Bid'ah (innovation); they should not perform any action until they know the ruling of Allah concerning it.<br /> <br /> Celebrating the occasion of the birthday of the Prophet Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is forbidden and is to be rejected for a number of reasons:<br /> <br /> 1. It is not part of the Sunnah of the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam or of the khaleefahs who succeeded him. Since this is the case, then it is a forbidden innovation, because the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;I urge you to follow my Sunnah and the way of the rightly guided khaleefahs after me; adhere to it and cling to it firmly. Beware of newly invented things, for every newly invented thing is an innovation (Bid'ah) and every innovation is a going astray.&quot; (Ahmad &amp; Tirmidhi). If a person does anything in order to draw closer to Allah which was not done by the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam or enjoined by him, and was not done by the khaleefahs who succeeded him, this action implies that he is accusing the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam of not fully explaining the religion to the people, and that he disbelieves in the words of Allah what translates as: &quot;This day I have perfected for you your religion&quot; (Al Maa'idah) because he is adding something extra and claiming that it is a part of the religion, which the Messenger Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam did not bring.<br /> <br /> 2. Celebrating the birthday of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is an imitation of the Christians, because they celebrate the birth of the Messiah, peace be upon him. Imitating them is extremely Haraam. The Hadeeth tells us that it is forbidden to imitate the Kuffaar, and we are commanded to differ from them. The Prophet Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;Whoever imitates a people is one of them&quot; (Ahmad &amp; Abu Daawood). And he said, &quot;Be different from the mushrikeen (polytheists)&quot; (Muslim) especially with regard to things that are the symbols or rituals of their religion.<br /> <br /> 3. Besides being Bid'ah and an imitation of the Christians, both of which are Haraam, celebrating the birthday of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is also a means that leads to exaggeration and excess in venerating him, which even goes as far as calling upon him (making Du'aa to him) and seeking his help, instead of calling upon Allah, as happens now among many of those who observe the Mawlid, when they call upon the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam instead of Allah, and ask him for support, and sing Qaseedahs (odes) of shirk praising him, like Qaseedat Al Burdah etc. The Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam forbade going to extremes in praising him, as he said: &quot;Do not extol me as the Christians extolled the son of Maryam. For I am just His slave, so call me the slave of Allah and His Messenger&quot; (Bukhaari), i.e., do not exaggerate in praising me as the Christians exaggerated in praising the Messiah and venerated him until they worshipped him instead of Allah. Allah forbade them to do that when he said that which translates as: &quot;O people of the Scripture (Christians)! Do not commit excess in your religion or say about Allah except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, was but a Messenger of Allah and His word which He directed to Mary and a soul [created at command] from Him.&quot; (An Nisaa: 171). Our Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam forbade us to exaggerate concerning him lest the same thing happen to us as happened to them, so he said: &quot;Beware of exaggeration, for those who came before you were destroyed because of exaggeration&quot; (An Nasaa'i).<br /> <br /> 4. Observing the innovation of the Prophet's birthday opens the door to other kinds of Bid'ah and being distracted by them from the Sunnah. Hence you find that the innovators are very active when it comes to Bid'ah and very lazy when it comes to the Sunnah; they hate it and regard those who follow it as enemies, until their entire religion is innovated anniversaries and Mawlids. They have split into various groups, each of which commemorates the anniversary of its Imaam's birth, such as the births of Al Badawi, Ibn Arabi, Al Dasooqi and Al Shaadhili. No sooner do they end the celebration of one birthday but they start the celebration of another. This results in exaggeration concerning these dead people and others, and in calling upon them instead of Allah, believing that they can bring benefit and cause harm, until they deviate from the religion of Allah and go back to the religion of the people of the Jaahiliyyah about whom Allah says that which translates as: &quot;And they worship other than Allah that which neither harms them nor benefits them, and they say: 'These are our intercessors with Allah.&quot; (Yoonus: 18). &quot;And those who protectors besides Him [say]: 'We worship them that they may bring us nearer to Allaah in position.'&quot; (Az Zumar: 3). <br /> <br /> Those who think that this Bid'ah should be continued produce specious arguments which are flimsier than a spider's web. These specious arguments may be dealt with as follows:<br /> <br /> 1. Their claim that this is veneration of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam: The response to that is that the way to venerate him is to obey him, do as he commanded and avoid that which he forbade, and to love him; he is not to be venerated through innovations, myths and sins. Celebrating his birthday is of this blameworthy type because it is a sin. The people who venerated the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam the most were the Sahaabah, may Allah be pleased with them, as Urwah Ibn Mas?ood, may Allaah be pleased with him, said to Quraysh: &quot;O people, I swear by Allaah that I have visited kings. I went to Caesar, Chasroes and the Negus, but I swear by Allaah that I never saw a king whose companions venerated him as much as the companions of Muhammad venerated Muhammad. By Allaah, whenever he spat it never fell to the ground, it fell into the hand of one his companions, then they would wipe their faces and skins with it. If he instructed them to do something, they would hasten to do as he commanded. When he did wudoo?, they would almost fight over his water. When he spoke they would lower their voices in his presence; and they did not stare at him out of respect for him.? (Bukhaari). Yet despite this level of veneration, they never took the day of his birth as an ?Eid (festival). If that had been prescribed in Islaam they would not have neglected to do that.<br /> <br /> 2. Using as evidence the fact that many people in many countries do this. The response to that is that evidence can only consist of that which is proven from the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, and what is proven from the Prophet is that innovations are forbidden in general, and this is an innovation. What people do, if it goes against the evidence (Daleel), does not prove anything, even if many of them do it. Allah says that which translates as: &quot;And if you obey most of those upon the earth, they will mislead you from the way of Allah.&quot; (Al Anaam: 116). Nevertheless, in every age, and all praise is due to Allah, there have always been those who denounce this Bid'ah and state clearly that it is false. Those who persist in following it after the truth has been explained to them have no proofs to fall back on.<br /> <br /> 3. They say that by celebrating the Mawlid they are keeping the memory of the Prophet Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam alive. The answer to this is that the memory of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is constantly kept alive by the Muslim, such as when his name sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is mentioned in the Adhaan and Iqaamah and in Khutbahs, and every time the Muslim recites the Shahaadatayn after doing Wudoo and in the prayers, and every time he sends blessings upon the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam in his prayers and when he is mentioned, and every time the Muslim does a Waajib (obligatory) or Mustahabb (recommended) action that was prescribed by the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam. In all of these ways (the Muslim) remembers him and the reward equivalent to the reward of the one who does that action goes back to the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam. Thus the Muslim constantly keeps the memory of the Messenger alive and has a connection with him night and day throughout his life through that which Allah has prescribed, not only on the day of the Mawlid and things which are Bid'ah and go against the Sunnah, for that puts one at a distance from the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam and the Messenger will disown him because of that. The Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam has no need of this innovated celebration, because Allah has already bestowed veneration and respect upon him, as He says that which translates as: &quot;And raised high for you your repute.&quot; (Ash-Sharh: 4) This is because the name of Allah is not mentioned in the Adhaan, Iqaamah or Khutbahs, except that the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is mentioned after Him; this is sufficient veneration, love and renewal of his memory, and sufficient encouragement to follow him. Allah did not refer to the birth of the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam in the Qur'an, rather He referred to his Mission, and says what translates as: &quot;Indeed, Allaah conferred a great favour on the believers when He sent among them a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves.&quot; (Aal Imraan: 164). &quot;It is He who sent among the unlettered a Messenger from themselves.&quot; (Al Jumu'ah: 2).<br /> <br /> 4. They may say that the celebration of the Prophet's birthday was introduced by a knowledgeable and just king who intended thereby to draw closer to Allah. Our response to that is that Bid'ah is not acceptable, no matter who does it. A good intention does not justify a bad deed and even if a person died as a knowledgeable and righteous person, this does not mean that he was infallible.<br /> <br /> 5. They say that celebrating the Mawlid comes under the heading of Bid'ah Hasanah (good innovation) because it is based on giving thanks to Allah for the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam! Our response to that is that there is nothing good in innovation. The Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islaam), that is not part of it will have it rejected.&quot; (Bukhaari). And he sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;Every innovation is a going astray&quot; (Ahmad &amp; Tirmidhi). The ruling on innovations is that they are all misguidance, but this specious argument suggests that not every Bid'ah is a going astray, rather there are good innovations. Ibn Rajab, may Allah have mercy upon him, said: &quot;The words of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, 'every innovation is a going astray' is a concise but comprehensive comment which includes everything; it is one of the most important principles of religion. It is like his words 'Whoever innovates anything in this matter of ours (i.e., Islaam) that is not part of it will have it rejected.' (Bukhaari). Whoever innovates anything and attributes it to Islaam when it has no basis in the religion, this is a going astray and is nothing to do with Islaam, whether that has to do with matters of belief (Aqeedah) or outward and inward words and deeds.&quot; These people have no proof that there is any such thing as a &quot;good innovation&quot; apart from the words of Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, concerning Taraaweeh prayers when he said: 'What a good innovation this is.' (Bukhaari).<br /> <br /> They also said that things were innovated which were not denounced by the Salaf, such as compiling the Qur'an into one volume and writing and compiling the collections of Ahadeeth. The response to that is that these matters had a basis in Islam, so they were not newly invented. Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, said: 'What a good Bid'ah' meaning innovation in the linguistic sense, not in the Shar'i sense. Whatever has a basis in Islam, if it is described as an innovation, is an innovation in the linguistic sense, not in the Shar'i sense, because innovation in the Shari sense means that which has no basis in Islam. Compiling the Qur'aan into one book has a basis in Islam, because the Prophet Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam had commanded that the Qur'an be written down, but it was scattered, so the Sahaabah compiled it in one volume so as so protect and preserve it. The Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam led his companions in praying Taraaweeh for a while, then he stopped doing that, lest it become obligatory on them. The Sahaabah, may Allah be pleased with them, continued to pray it individually during the life of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam and after his death, until Umar Ibn Al-Khattaab, may Allah be pleased with him, gathered them behind one Imaam as they used to pray behind the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam. Therefore, this was not an innovation introduced into the religion. Compiling the collections of Ahadeeth also has a basis in Islaam. The Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam ordered that some Ahaadeeth be written down for some of his companions when they asked him for that. Generally, doing this during his lifetime was prohibited, for fear that the Qur'an might be mixed with things that were not part of it (from the sayings of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam). When the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam died, this fear was no longer a factor, because the Qur?an had been completed and arranged in order before he died. The Muslims compiled the Sunnah after that in order to preserve it and keep it from being lost. May Allah reward them with good on behalf of Islaam and the Muslims, because they preserved the Book of their Lord and the Sunnah of their Prophet Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam from being lost or being tampered with. We may also say to them: why was this act of thanksgiving, as they call it, not done by the best generations, the Sahaabah, Taabi'een and followers of the Taabi'een, who loved the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam the most and who were most keen to do good and give thanks. Are those who introduced the innovation of the Mawlid more rightly guided than them? Do they give more thanks to Allah? Definitely not! 6. They may say that celebrating the birthday of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is indicative of their love for him; this is one way of showing that, and showing love of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is prescribed in Islam! The answer to that is that undoubtedly loving the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam is obligatory for every Muslim; he should love him more than he loves himself, his child, his father and all of mankind ? may my father and mother be sacrificed for him ? but that does not mean that we should introduce innovations for doing so that have not been prescribed for us. Loving him dictates that we should obey him and follow him, for that is one of the greatest manifestations of love, as it is said: &quot;If your love is sincere then obey him; for the lover obeys the one whom he loves.&quot; Loving the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam implies keeping his Sunnah alive, adhering firmly to it, and avoiding words and deeds that go against it. Undoubtedly everything that goes against his Sunnah is a reprehensible innovation (Bid'ah) and a manifest act of disobedience. That includes celebrating his birthday and other kinds of Bid'ah. Having good intentions does not mean that it is permissible to introduce innovations into the religion. Islaam is based on two things, purity of intention and following the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam. Allah says that which translates as: &quot;Yes [on the contrary], whoever submits his face [i.e., self] in Islaam to Allah while being a doer of good will have his reward with his Lord. And no fear will there be concerning them, nor will they grieve.&quot; (Al Baqarah: 112).<br /> <br /> Submitting one's face to Allah means being sincere towards Allah, and doing good means following the Messenger sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam and implementing his Sunnah. 7. Another of their specious arguments is when they say that by celebrating the Mawlid and reading the biography of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam on this occasion, they are encouraging people to follow his example! We say to them that reading the biography of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam and following his example are required of the Muslim all the time, all year long and throughout his life. Singling out a specific day for that with no evidence for doing so is an innovation. Bid'ah does not bear any fruit but evil and it leads to a person distancing himself from the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam. In conclusion, celebrating the birthday of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, whatever form it takes, is a reprehensible innovation. The Muslims should put a stop to this and other kinds of Bid'ah, and occupy themselves with reviving and adhering to the Sunnah. They should not be deceived by those who promote and defend this Bid?ah, for these types of people are more interested in keeping innovations alive than in reviving the Sunnah; they may not even care about the Sunnah at all. Whoever is like this, it is not permissible to imitate him or follow his example, even if the majority of people are like this. Rather we should follow the example of those who follow the path of the Sunnah, among the righteous Salaf and their followers, even if they are few. Truth is not measured by the men who speak it; rather men are measured by the truth. The Prophet sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam said: &quot;Whoever among you lives (for a long time) will see many differences. I urge you to follow my Sunnah and the way of the rightly guided khaleefahs who come after me. Hold on to it firmly. Beware of newly invented matters, for every innovation is a going astray.&quot; (Ahmad &amp; Tirmidhi). So the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam explained to us in this Hadeeth what we should do when there are differences of opinion, just as he explained that everything that goes against his Sunnah, be it words or deeds, is a Bid?ah, and every Bid?ah is a going astray. If we see that there is no basis for celebrating the birthday of the Prophet sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam, whether in the Sunnah or in the way of the rightly guided khaleefahs, then it is one of the newly invented matters, one of the Bid'ahs which lead people astray. This principle is what is implied by this Hadeeth and is what is indicated by the Aayah which translates as: &quot;O you who have believed, Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best [way] and best in result.&quot;(An Nisaa: 59). Referring to Allah means referring to His Book, and referring to the Messenger Sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam means referring to his Sunnah after he has passed away. The Qur?an and Sunnah are the reference point in cases of dispute. Where in the Qur?an or Sunnah does it indicate that it is prescribed in Islam to celebrate the Prophet?s birthday? Whoever does that or thinks that it is good must repent to Allah from this and from other kinds of Bid'ah. This is the attitude of the Muslim who is seeking the truth. But whoever is too stubborn and arrogant after proof has been established, then his reckoning will be with his Lord. 0 2010-02-10T10:29:00+00:00 Praise be to Allah and peace on his noble Prophet (PBUH). The commands mentioned in the Qur'an and Sunnah to follow the laws of Allah and His Messenger, and the prohibitions of introducing innovations into the religion are quite clear. 2831 0 1849 approved

Praise be to Allah and peace on his noble Prophet (PBUH). The commands mentioned in the Qur'an and Sunnah to follow the laws of Allah and His Messenger, and the prohibitions of introducing innovations into the religion are quite clear.

2010-02-22T10:34:52+00:00

false <p>&quot;Verily, the number of months with Allah is twelve months (in a year), so it was ordained by Allah on the Day when He created the heavens and the earth; of them, four are sacred. That is the right religion, so wrong not yourselves therein?&quot;[al-Tawbah 9:36]</p> <p>Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: &quot;The year is twelve months of which four are sacred, the three consecutive months of Dhu'l-Qa'dah, Dhu'l-Hijjah and Muharram, and Rajab Mudar which comes between Jumaada and Sha'baan.&quot; (Reported by al-Bukhaari, 2958).</p> <p>Muharram is so called because it is a sacred (muharram) month and to confirm its sanctity. Allah's words (interpretation of the meaning): &quot;so wrong not yourselves therein?&quot; mean do not wrong yourselves in these sacred months, because sin in these months is worse than in other months. It was reported that Ibn Abbas said that this phrase (so wrong not yourselves therein) referred to all the months, then these four were singled out and made sacred, so that sin in these months is more serious and good deeds bring a greater reward. Qutadah said concerning this phrase (so wrong not yourselves therein?) that wrongdoing during the sacred months is more serious and more sinful that wrongdoing at any other time. Wrongdoing at any time is a serious matter, but Allah gives more weight to whichever of His commands He will. Allah has chosen certain ones of His creation. He has chosen from among the angels Messengers and from among mankind Messengers. He chose from among speech the remembrance of Him (dhikr). He chose from among the earth the mosques, from among the months Ramadan and the sacred months, from among the days Friday and from among the nights Laylat al-Qadr, so venerate that which Allah has told us to venerate. People of understanding and wisdom venerate the things that Allah has told us to venerate. (Summarized from the Tafseer of Ibn Katheer, may Allah have mercy on him. Tafseer of Surat al-Tawbah, aayah 36).</p> <p>Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: I never saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) so keen to fast any day and give it priority over any other than this day, the day of'`Ashura', and this month, meaning Ramadan. (Reported by al-Bukhari, 1867). The meaning of his being keen was that he intended to fast on that day in the hope of earning the reward for doing so. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: &quot;For fasting the day of 'Ashura', I hope that Allah will accept it as expiation for the year that went before.&quot; (Reported by Muslim, 1976). This is from the bounty of Allah towards us: for fasting one day He gives us expiation for the sins of a whole year. And Allah is the Owner of Great Bounty.</p> <p><strong>Bidahs common on Ashura</strong></p> <p>Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) was asked about the things that people do on 'Ashura', such as wearing kohl, taking a bath (ghusl), wearing henna, shaking hands with one another, cooking grains (hubub), showing happiness and so on. Was any of this reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in a sahih hadith, or not? If nothing to that effect was reported in a sahih hadith, is doing these things bid'ah, or not? Is there any basis for what the other group do, such as grieving and mourning, going without anything to drink, eulogizing and wailing, reciting in a crazy manner, and rending their garments? His reply was: Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. Nothing to that effect has been reported in any saheeh hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) or from his Companions. None of the Imams of the Muslims encouraged or recommended such things, neither the four Imams, nor any others. No reliable scholars have narrated anything like this, neither from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), nor from the Sahabah, nor from the Tabi'een; neither in any sahih report or in a da'if (weak) report; neither in the books of Sahih, nor in al-Sunan, nor in the Musnads. No hadith of this nature was known during the best centuries, but some of the later narrators reported ahadith like the one which says, &quot;Whoever puts kohl in his eyes on the day of 'Ashura' will not suffer from eye disease in that year, and whoever takes a bath (does ghusl) on the day of 'Ashura' will not get sick in that year,&quot; and so on.</p> <p>They also reported a fabricated hadith that is falsely attributed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), which says, &quot;Whoever is generous to his family on the day of 'Ashura', Allah will be generous to him for the rest of the year.&quot; Reporting all of this from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is tantamount to lying. Then he [Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him)] discussed in brief the tribulations that had occurred in the early days of this ummah and the killing of al-Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him), and what the various sects had done because of this. Then he said: An ignorant, wrongful group - who were either heretics and hypocrites, or misguided and misled - made a show of allegiance to him and the members of his household, so they took the day of 'Ashura' as a day of mourning and wailing, in which they openly displayed the rituals of jahiliyyah such as slapping their cheeks and rending their garments, grieving in the manner of the jahiliyyah.</p> <p>We ask Allah to make us followers of the Sunnah of His Noble Prophet, to make us live in Islam and die in a state of faith. May He help us to do that which He loves and which pleases Him. We ask Him to help us to remember Him and be thankful to Him, to worship Him properly and to accept our good deeds. May He make us of those who are pious and fear Him. May Allah bless our Prophet Muhammad and all his family and companions. <strong><a href="http://www.islaam.net">www.islaam.net</a></strong></p> 0 2009-12-18T15:18:00+00:00 The sacred month of Muharram is a blessed and important month. It is the first month of the Hijri calendar and is one of the four sacred months concerning which Allah says: 2861 0 1934 approved

The sacred month of Muharram is a blessed and important month. It is the first month of the Hijri calendar and is one of the four sacred months concerning which Allah says:

2009-12-21T13:08:52+00:00

false <p>This encourages them to do more righteous deeds and makes them more eager to worship Him, so that the Muslim renews his efforts to gain a greater share of reward, prepare himself for death and supply himself in readiness for the Day of Judgement.</p> <p>This season of worship brings many benefits, such as the opportunity to correct ones faults and make up for any shortcomings or anything that one might have missed. Every one of these special occasions involves some kind of worship through which the slaves may draw closer to Allaah, and some kind of blessing though which Allaah bestows His favour and mercy upon whomsoever He will. The happy person is the one who makes the most of these special months, days and hours and draws nearer to his Lord during these times through acts of worship; he will most likely be touched by the blessing of Allaah and will feel the joy of knowing that he is safe from the flames of Hell. (Ibn Rajab, al-Lataa'if, p.8)</p> <p>The Muslim must understand the value of his life, increase his worship of Allaah and persist in doing good deeds until the moment of death. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): &quot;And worship your Lord until there comes unto you the certainty.&quot; [al Hijr 15:99] The mufassireen (commentators) said: &quot;'The certainty' means death.&quot;</p> <p>Among the special seasons of worship are the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, which Allaah has preferred over all the other days of the year. Ibn Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: &quot;There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allaah than these ten days.&quot; The people asked, &quot;Not even jihaad for the sake of Allaah?&quot; He said, &quot;Not even jihaad for the sake of Allaah, except in the case of a man who went out to fight giving himself and his wealth up for the cause, and came back with nothing.&quot; (Reported by al-Bukhaari, 2/457). Ibn Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him and his father) also reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: &quot;There is no deed more precious in the sight of Allaah, nor greater in reward, than a good deed done during the ten days of Sacrifice.&quot; He was asked, &quot;Not even jihaad for the sake of Allaah?&quot; He said, &quot;Not even jihaad for the sake of Allaah, except in the case of a man who went out to fight giving himself and his wealth up for the cause, and came back with nothing.&quot; (Reported by al Daarimi, 1/357; its isnaad is hasan as stated in al Irwaa, 3/398).</p> <p>These texts and others indicate that these ten days are better than all the other days of the year, with no exceptions, not even the last ten days of Ramadaan. But the last ten nights of Ramadaan are better, because they include Laylat al Qadr (&quot;the Night of Power&quot;), which is better than a thousand months. Thus the various reports may be reconciled. (See Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 5/412). You should know, my brother/sister in Islaam, that the virtue of these ten days is based on many things: Allaah swears an oath by them, and swearing an oath by something is indicative of its importance and great benefit. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): &quot;By the dawn; by the ten nights&quot; [al Fajr 89:1-2]. Ibn Abbaas, Ibn al Zubayr, Mujaahid and others of the earlier and later generations said that this refers to the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah. Ibn Katheer said: &quot;This is = the correct opinion.&quot; (Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 8/413)</p> <p>The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) testified that these are the best days of this world, as we have already quoted above from saheeh ahaadeeth. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) encouraged people to do righteous deeds because of the virtue of this season for people throughout the world, and also because of the virtue of the place - for the Hujjaaj (pilgrims) to the Sacred House of Allaah. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) commanded us to recite a lot of Tasbeeh (&quot;Subhan Allaah&quot;), Tahmeed (&quot;Al hamdu Lillaah&quot;) and Takbeer (&quot;Allaahu akbar&quot;) during this time. Abdullaah ibn Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: &quot;There are no days greater in the sight of Allaah and in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Him than these ten days, so during this time recite a great deal of Tahleel (&quot;La ilaaha ill Allaah&quot;), Takbeer and Tahmeed.&quot; (Reported by Ahmad, 7/224; Ahmad Shaakir stated that it is saheeh).</p> <p>These ten days include Yawm Arafaah (the Day of ?Arafaah), on which Allaah perfected His Religion. Fasting on this day will expiate for the sins of two years. These days also include Yawm al Nahar (the Day of Sacrifice), the greatest day of the entire year and the greatest day of Hajj, which combines acts of worship in a way unlike any other day. These ten days include the days of sacrifice and of Hajj. </p> <p><strong>Question: What must the Muslim avoid during these ten days if he wants to offer a sacrifice?</strong></p> <p>The Sunnah indicates that the one who wants to offer a sacrifice must stop cutting his hair and nails and removing anything from his skin, from the beginning of the ten days until after he has offered his sacrifice, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: &quot;When you see the new moon of Dhul Hijjah, if any one of you wants to offer a sacrifice, then he should stop cutting his hair and nails until he has offered his sacrifice.&quot; According to another report he said: &quot;He should not remove (literally, touch) anything from his hair or skin.&quot; (reported by Muslim with four isnaads, 13/146) The Prophet's instruction here makes one thing obligatory and his prohibition makes another haraam, according to the soundest opinion, because these commands and prohibitions are unconditional and unavoidable. However, if a person does any of these things deliberately, he must seek Allaah's forgiveness but is not required to offer (an extra) sacrifice in expiation; his sacrifice will be acceptable. Whoever needs to remove some hair, nails, etc. because it is harming him, such as having a broken nail or a wound in a site where there is hair, should do so, and there is nothing wrong with that. </p> <p>The state of ihraam is so important that it is permitted to cut ones hair if leaving it will cause harm. There is nothing wrong with men or women washing their heads during the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) only forbade cutting the hair, not washing it. The wisdom behind this prohibition of the one who wants to offer a sacrifice from cutting his hair etc, is so that he may resemble those in ihraam in some aspects of the rituals performed, and so that he may draw closer to Allaah by offering the sacrifice. So he leaves his hair and nails alone until the time when he has offered his sacrifice, in the hope that Allaah will save him in his entirety from the Fire. And Allaah knows best. If a person has cut his hair or nails during the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah because he was not planning to offer a sacrifice, then he decides later, during the ten days, to offer a sacrifice, then he must refrain from cutting his hair and nails from the moment he makes this decision. Some women may delegate their brothers or sons to make the sacrifice on their behalf, then cut their hair during these ten days. This is not correct, because the ruling applies to the one who is offering the sacrifice, whether or not he (or she) delegates someone else to carry out the actual deed.</p> <p>The prohibition does not apply to the person delegated, only to the person who is making the sacrifice, as is indicated in the hadeeth. The person who is sacrificing on behalf of someone else, for whatever reason, does not have to adhere to this prohibition. This prohibition appears to apply only to the one who is offering the sacrifice, not to his wife and children, unless any of them is offering a sacrifice in his or her own right, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to sacrifice &quot;on behalf of the family of Muhammad,&quot; but there are no reports that say he forbade them to cut their hair or nails at that time. If a person was planning to offer a sacrifice, then he decides to go and perform Hajj, he should not cut his hair or nails if he wants to enter ihraam, because the Sunnah is only to cut hair and nails when necessary. But if he is performing Tamattu? [whereby he performs Umrah, comes out of ihraam and enters ihraam anew for Hajj], he should trim his hair at the end of his Umrah because this is part of the ritual. The things that are described above as being prohibited for the person who is planning to offer a sacrifice are reported in the hadeeth quoted above; the person is not forbidden to wear perfume, have marital relations, wear sewn garments, etc.</p> <p>Concerning the types of worship to be performed during these ten days: one must understand that these days are a great blessing from Allaah to His slave, which is appreciated properly by the actively righteous. It is the Muslims duty to appreciate this blessing and make the most of the opportunity, by devoting these ten days to paying more attention to striving hard in worship. Among His blessings to His slaves, Allaah has given us many ways in which to do good and worship Him, so that the Muslim may be constantly active and consistent in his worship of his Lord. Among the good deeds which the Muslim should strive to do during the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah are: Fasting. It is Sunnah to fast on the ninth day of Dhul Hijjah, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) urged us to do good deeds during this time, and fasting is one of the best of deeds. Allaah has chosen fasting for Himself, as is stated in the hadeeth qudsi: &quot;Allaah says: All the deeds of the son of Adam are for him, except for fasting, which is for Me and I am the One Who will reward him for it.&quot; (Reported by al Bukhaari, 1805).</p> <p>The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to fast on the ninth of Dhul Hijjah. Hunaydah ibn Khaalid reported from his wife that some of the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: &quot;The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) used to fast on the ninth of Dhul Hijjah, on the day of 'Aashooraa', on three days of each month, and on the first two Mondays and Thursdays of each month.&quot; (Reported by al Nisaai, 4/205 and by Abu Dawud; classified by al Albaani as saheeh in Saheeh Abi Dawud, 2/462). Takbeer. It is Sunnah to say Takbeer (&quot;Allaahu akbar&quot;), Tahmeed (&quot;Al hamdu Lillaah&quot;), Tahleel (&quot;La ilaha ill Allaah&quot;) and Tasbeeh (&quot;Subhaan Allaah&quot;) during the first ten days of Dhu?l-Hijjah, and to say it loudly in the mosque, the home, the street and every place where it is permitted to remember Allaah and mention His name out loud, as an act of worship and as a proclamation of the greatness of Allaah, may He be exalted. Men should recite these phrases out loud, and women should recite them quietly. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): &quot;That they might witness things that are of benefit to them (i.e., reward of Hajj in the Hereafter, and also some worldly gain from trade, etc.), and mention the name of Allaah on appointed days, over the beast of cattle that He has provided for them (for sacrifice)...&quot; [al Hajj 22:28]</p> <p>The majority of scholars agree that the &quot;appointed days&quot; are the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, because of the words of Ibn Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him and his father): &quot;The 'appointed days' are the first ten days (of Dhul Hijjah).&quot; The Takbeer may include the words &quot;Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, la ilaaha ill Allaah; wa Allaahu akbar wa Lillaahi'l hamd (Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there is no god but Allaah; Allaah is Most Great and to Allaah be praise),&quot; as well as other phrases. Takbeer at this time is an aspect of the Sunnah that has been forgotten, especially during the early part of this period, so much so that one hardly ever hears Takbeer, except from a few people. This Takbeer should be pronounced loudly, in order to revive the Sunnah and as a reminder to the negligent. There is sound evidence that Ibn Umar and Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with them) used to go out in the marketplace during the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, reciting Takbeer, and the people would recite Takbeer when they heard them. The idea behind reminding the people to recite Takbeer is that each one should recite it individually, not in unison, as there is no basis in Shareeah for doing this.</p> <p>Reviving aspects of the Sunnah that have been virtually forgotten is a deed that will bring an immense reward, as is indicated by the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): &quot;Whoever revives an aspect of my Sunnah that is forgotten after my death, he will have a reward equivalent to that of the people who follow him, without it detracting in the least from their reward.&quot; (Reported by al Tirmidhi, 7/443; this is a hasan hadeeth because of corroborating asaaneed). Performing Hajj and Umrah. One of the best deeds that one can do during these ten days is to perform Hajj to the Sacred House of Allaah. The one whom Allaah helps to go on Hajj to His House and to perform all the rituals properly is included in the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): &quot;An accepted Hajj brings no less a reward than Paradise.&quot; Doing more good deeds in general, because good deeds are beloved by Allaah and will bring a great reward from Him. Whoever is not able to go to Hajj should occupy himself at this blessed time by worshipping Allaah, praying (salaat), reading Qur?an, remembering Allaah, making supplication (du'aa), giving charity, honouring his parents, upholding the ties of kinship, enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, and other good deeds and acts of worship. Sacrifice. One of the good deeds that will bring a person closer to Allaah during these ten days is offering a sacrifice, by choosing a high-quality animal and fattening it, spending money for the sake of Allaah. Sincere repentance. One of the most important things to do during these ten days is to repent sincerely to Allaah and to give up all kinds of disobedience and sin.</p> <p>Repentance means coming back to Allaah and foregoing all the deeds, open and secret, that He dislikes, out of regret for what has passed, giving it up immediately and being determined never to return to it, but to adhere firmly to the Truth by doing what Allaah loves. If a Muslim commits a sin, he must hasten to repent at once, without delay, firstly because he does not know when he will die, and secondly because one evil deed leads to another. Repentance at special times is very important because in most cases people's thoughts turn towards worship at these times, and they are keen to do good, which leads to them recognizing their sins and feeling regret for the past. Repentance is obligatory at all times, but when the Muslim combines sincere repentance with good deeds during the days of most virtue, this is a sign of success, in sha Allaah. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): &quot;But as for him who repented, believed and did righteous deeds, then he will be among those who are successful.&quot; [al Qasas 28:67] The Muslim should make sure that he does not miss any of these important occasion, because time is passing quickly.</p> <p>Let him prepare himself by doing good deeds which will bring him reward when he is most in need of it, for no matter how much reward he earns, he will find it is less than he needs; the time of departure is at hand, the journey is frightening, delusions are widespread, and the road is long, but Allaah is ever watchful, and to Him will we return and render account. As the Qur?aan says (interpretation of the meaning): &quot;So whosoever does good equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it, And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it.&quot; [al Zalzalah 99:7-8] There is much to be gained, so make the most of the opportunity afforded by these invaluable and irreplaceable ten days.</p> <p>Hasten to do good works, before death strikes, before one can regret one?s negligence and failure to act, before one is asked to return to a place where no prayers will be answered, before death intervenes between the hopeful one and the things he hopes for, before you are trapped with your deeds in the grave. O you whose hard heart is as dark as the night, is it not time that your heart was filled with light and became soft? Expose yourself to the gentle breeze of your Lord's mercy during these ten days, for Allaah will cause this breeze to touch whomever He wills, and whoever is touched by it will be happy on the Day of Judgement. May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad and all his Family and Companions.</p> 0 2009-11-09T23:47:00+00:00 Praise be to Allah Who has created Time and has made some times better than others, some months and days and nights better than others, when rewards are multiplied many times, as a mercy towards His slaves. 2858 0 1722 approved

Praise be to Allah Who has created Time and has made some times better than others, some months and days and nights better than others, when rewards are multiplied many times, as a mercy towards His slaves.

2009-11-09T10:12:44+00:00

false <p>The reason for this is that a good deed is multiplied tenfold, hence every fast is like ten fasts. [Trans: hence a total of 36 fasts will be equivalent to 360 fasts] Therefore why not take the opportunity to fast six days in this month which is now 1 day old? Allah Azzawajal only knows if you will see this month again, or even the rest of this year, so why not take the reward for fasting it.</p> <p>Therefore please accept this invitation to fast and share it with those who you know, as it is authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah ( sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam) said, &quot; None of you [! truly] believes until he loves for his brother that which he loves for himself. &quot; [Al Bukharee &amp; Muslim]</p> 0 2009-09-22T13:06:00+01:00 It is authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah ( sallAllahu 'alayhiwa sallam) said, &quot;whoever fasts the month of Ramadan and then follows this with six days of Shawwal, it will be as if he fasted the whole year&quot; [Muslim] 2766 0 2178 approved

It is authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah ( sallAllahu 'alayhiwa sallam) said, &quot;whoever fasts the month of Ramadan and then follows this with six days of Shawwal, it will be as if he fasted the whole year&quot; [Muslim]

2009-09-25T15:52:40+01:00

false <p>This hadith is proof that the last ten days of Ramadan have a special virtue over any other (set of days), in which one should increase in obedience and acts of worship, such as prayer, making dhikr (remembrance) and reciting the Qur'an.</p> <p>Aishah (radyAllahau 'anha) has described our Prophet and role model, Muhammad (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam), with four attributes:</p> <p>1. He (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would &quot; spend his night in worship &quot;, meaning he would not sleep during it. Thus, he (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would remain awake throughout it in worship and he would liven his soul by spending the night in sleeplessness. This is since sleep is the brother of death. The meaning of &quot;spend his night&quot; is that he (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would spend all of it in the state of qiyam (night prayer) and performing acts of worship that are done for the sake of Allah, Lord of the worlds. We must remember that the last ten days of Ramadan are fixed and numbered. As for what has been reported concerning the forbiddance of spending the entire night in prayer, which has been mentioned in the hadith of 'Abdullah Ibn 'Amr (radyAllahau anhu) , then it is in regards to someone who does that consistently throughout every night of the year.</p> <p>2. He (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would &quot; wake up his family &quot; meaning his (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) pure wives, the Mothers of the Believers, so that they may take part in the profiting of good, the dhikr (remembrance) and the acts of worship during these blessed times.</p> <p>3. He (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would &quot; exert himself &quot;, meaning he (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would persevere and struggle in worship, adding more to his deeds than what he had done in the first twenty days (of Ramadan). He only did this because the night of Al-Qadr occurs during one of these (last ten) days.</p> <p>4. He (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would &quot; tighten his Izaar (waistcloth) &quot; meaning he would exert himself and struggle intensely in worship. It is also said that it means he (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would withdraw from women. This seems to be more correct since it inclines with what was mentioned previously and with the hadith of Anas (radyAllahau 'anhu) : &quot;He (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would rollup his bed and withdraw from women (i.e. his wives).&quot; [Lata'if ul Ma'arif] </p> <p>Also, he (sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam) would observe 'Itikaf in the last ten days of Ramadan and the person who is in the state of 'Itikaf is restricted from interacting (sexually) with women. So, O Muslims, strive to characterise yourself with these attributes. And guard the prayer you make in the depths of the night (tahajjud) with the Imam in addition to the Taraweeh prayer (which is prayed in the early parts of the night), so that your exertion in these last ten days may go beyond that of the first twenty. And so that you may achieve the attribute of &quot; spending the night in worship &quot; by praying. And you must be patient in your obedience to Allah, for indeed, the tahajjud (night) prayer is difficult, but its reward is great. By Allah, it is a great opportunity in ones life and a profitable thing to take advantage of, for the one whom Allah grants it to. And a person does not know if perhaps he will encounter one of Allah's many rewards during the night prayer, thus serving as assistance for him in this world and in the Hereafter. </p> <p>The righteous predecessors of this ummah would lengthen the prayer at night, exerting themselves. As Sa'ib Ibn Yazid said: &quot;'Umar Ibn Al Khattab ordered Ubay Bin Ka'ab and Tamim Ad-Dar to lead the people in prayer with eleven raka'at. The reciter would recite one hundred verses, to the point that we had to lean upon wooden staffs due to the long standing. And we would not stop until the early parts of Fajr.&quot; [Al-Muwatta]</p> <p>Abdullah Ibn Abu Bakr reported: &quot;I heard my father (i.e. Abu Bakr) say: 'During Ramadan, we would finish (the night prayer) late and we would hurry the servants to present the food (of suhoor) for fear that Fajr (morning) would come upon us.&quot; [Muwatta of Imam Malik] There are two struggles of the soul that the believer faces during Ramadan: the struggle by day with fasting and the struggle by night with qiyam (night prayer). So whosoever combines these two and fulfills their rights, then he is amongst the patient -- those who will &quot;be given their reward in full without any reckoning.&quot; [Surah Az-Zumar]</p> <p>These ten days are the last part of the month and a person's actions are based on his last ones. So perhaps, he will encounter the night of Al-Qadr, while standing in prayer for Allah and thus have all his past sins forgiven. And one must incite, animate and persuade his family to perform acts of worship, especially in these great times in which no one neglects it except that he has been deprived.</p> <p>What is more incredible than this is that while the people are performing prayer and making tahajjud, some individuals spend their time in forbidden gatherings and sinful events. This is indeed the greatest loss. We ask Allah for his protection. Therefore, embarking on these last days means entering into the profiting from righteous deeds in what remains of the month. From the unfortunate matters is to see that some people excel in righteous actions, such as prayer and recitation of the Qur'an, in the first part of the month, but then signs of fatigue and weariness begin to show on them afterwards, especially when the last ten days of Ramadan come in. And this is in spite of these last ten days possessing a greater standing than the first ones. Thus, one must persevere in striving and struggling and increase his worship when the end of the month draws near. And we must keep in mind that a person's actions are based on his last ones.</p> 0 2009-09-04T14:31:00+01:00 Aishah (ra) said: &quot;When the last ten days (of Ramadan) would come, the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wasallam) would spend his night in worship, wake his family (at night), exert himself and tighten his Izaar (waistcloth).&quot; [Al-Bukhari and Muslim] 2855 0 1653 approved

Aishah (ra) said: &quot;When the last ten days (of Ramadan) would come, the Prophet (sallAllahu alayhi wasallam) would spend his night in worship, wake his family (at night), exert himself and tighten his Izaar (waistcloth).&quot; [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

2009-09-03T08:29:37+01:00

false <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">Patience</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.35pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; color: rgb(116, 4, 4);">&hellip;those who patiently persevere will truly receive a reward without measure!<a name="_ftnref1"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn1" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">1</span>}</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">Patience is inseparable from the purpose of Ramadan. Scholars mention four areas where patience is required: fulfilling acts of obedience to Allah; refraining from prohibitions; bearing trials and tribulations; and preserving one&rsquo;s heart and intellect from misguidance. Fasting allows us to exercise and develop all these types of patience.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">For Days Passed By!</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.35pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; color: rgb(116, 4, 4);">Eat and drink at ease for that which you have sent on before you in days past!<a name="_ftnref2"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn2" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">2</span>}</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">Al-Hasan al-Basri is reported to have said, &lsquo;The Hur al-'Ayn will say to a wali of Allah whilst reclining with her by a river of honey and being presented with a cup, &quot;Allah looked upon you on a very long hot day, experiencing severe thirst and so Allah boasted about you before the Angels saying, 'Look at my slave, he has forsaken his wife, desire, pleasure, food and drink for my sake and for what is with me, bear witness that I have forgiven him!' So he forgave you that day and wed me to you&quot;.'<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><em><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></em></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">The All-Seer</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">The fasting day is much longer this year and it will get even longer with the years to come. This creates more difficulty for everyone, especially those at work. It is important to realise that we are all under the watchful gaze of the One who is above us all and that He is reserving our reward for us and soon enough we will find that reward with great happiness and joy. This is a matter we should often remind ourselves of throughout the day especially when we feel the pangs of hunger; when we fast all the while being conscious that Allah is watching us, our rewards multiply.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">A Private Affair</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">The fast is a secret between the slave and his Lord, no one knows about the difficulty and hardship the fasting person is going through except Allah. He is the one who determines the reward, and His bounty is unlimited! Allah&rsquo;s Messenger said, &lsquo;Every action of the son of Adam is given manifold reward, each good deed receiving ten times its like, up to seven hundred times. Allah the Most High said, 'Except for fasting, for it is for Me and I will give recompense for it, he leaves off his desires and his food for Me.'Fasting is a type of communication with Allah just as prayer is. It is as though we are calling out to Him, &lsquo;I am only doing this action that no one knows about except for you. And this action that I do, even though I am doing it, it belongs to you.&rsquo;<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">Striving to Win</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">Abu Musa al-&lsquo;Ashari is an example of one who came before us who truly understood the rewards and virtues of fasting and would love to increase his worship of Allah. He said, &lsquo;Allah decreed upon Himself that whoever goes thirsty for Him on a hot day, that He would grant him water on the Day of Judgement.&rdquo;<a name="_ftnref3"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn3" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">3</span>}</span></a> Abu Musa would often fast and choose days that were hot and long.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">The Highest Objective</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.35pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; color: rgb(116, 4, 4);">O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may attain taqwa (piety).<a name="_ftnref4"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn4" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">4</span>}</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">We fast in order to attain taqwa. One scholar defined it in the following manner, &lsquo;Taqwa is to act in obedience to Allah, upon a light from Allah, hoping for reward from Allah; and to abandon disobedience of Allah, upon a light from Allah, fearing punishment from Allah.&rsquo;<a name="_ftnref5"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn5" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">5</span>}</span></a><span style=""><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">The Glorious Qur&rsquo;an</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.35pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; color: rgb(116, 4, 4);">&ldquo;The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for mankind and clear proofs for the guidance and the criterion (between right and wrong).&rdquo;<a name="_ftnref6"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn6" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">6</span>}</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">It is almost as though Allah is telling us that we should shift our focus and efforts during the holy month of Ramadan to reading the Qur&rsquo;an. This is what some of the past scholars did as they would stop delivering lectures and answering questions. Many of them completed it dozens of times during this blessed month. This is a great opportunity for us to become more proficient in our recitation and ponder much over the Quran.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">Translating Guidance</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">We should read the Quran with its translation as this will help us to understand what Allah is saying to us and will aid us in learning the Arabic words that appear in the Quran often. Reading the Quran is not enough; we must understand and ponder over it. This is why Allah said it is guidance for mankind so that we know what is right and what is wrong. Only when we know what is being read can we take it as a source of guidance. An easy step to take in this regard is to simply select a small portion of your daily recitation and read the English whilst following the Arabic. By doing this every Ramadan one can really build up their Quranic Arabic vocabulary.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal;"><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><br /> </span></strong><strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;">Intimacy of Tawheed</span></strong><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.35pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; color: rgb(116, 4, 4);">&ldquo;And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near. I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me. So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.&rdquo;<a name="_ftnref7"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn7" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">7</span>}</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">This verse is among the same set that commands us with fasting; as we read the words of Our Lord and comply with what is asked from us, we should also ask Him what we need and want from Him. We should feel close to Allah in this month more so than any other month. As Allah speaks to us through his words in His book, we should speak to Allah in our supplications.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">Whenever people questioned the Prophet about a matter and Allah addressed it in the Qur&rsquo;an he would start by saying, &lsquo;Qul&rsquo; (Say) Yet, when Allah was asked about Himself as in this ayah, he did not say, &lsquo;Qul&rsquo;. This shows us that we do not need to go through anyone to reach Allah and ask of Him, emphasising the greatness and importance of His Oneness. This also shows us how close Allah is to us. Allah also expresses His nearness to us by attaching the slave to Himself, &lsquo;And when </span><em><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">My</span></em><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""> slave asks you.&rsquo; This also shows the great heights a human being can reach by being a slave of Allah. Other verses refer to the slave as though they are distant and many, whilst here the slaves are being addressed as being near and as one individual.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">So we know how close Allah is to us and that He promised to respond to His slave. Now imagine that this slave is fasting and the Prophet has told us that the supplication of the fasting Muslim will not be rejected!<a name="_ftnref8"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftn8" target="_blank" title=""><span style="">^{<span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">8</span>}</span></a>. The bounties and opportunities of Ramadan are many and unlimited yet the number of days we have to take advantage of it are few and limited.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="">Let us make this Ramadan different to all our previous ones. They say that actions speak louder than words, so let your actions (worship) therefore be as though you are speaking to your Lord.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><a name="_ftn1"><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""><!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> </span></a><span style=""></span><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;"><span style="">^{^{<span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">source: </span>}}</span>^{<a href="http://www.islam21c.com/" target="_blank"><span style="">^{<span ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">www.islam21c.com</span>}</span></a><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""><o:p></o:p></span></span>}</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.2pt; line-height: 15.9pt;">^{<a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref1" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">[1]</span></span></a><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"> Surah Al-Zumar verse 10<br /> <a name="_ftn2"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref2" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">[2]</span></span></a> al-Haaqqah verse 24<br /> <a name="_ftn3"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref3" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">[3]</span></span></a> Al-Bazzar and declared hasan by Al-Albani in Sahih al-Targhib, Vol 1 pg 412</span><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""> </span><a name="_ftn4"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref4" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"><br /> </span></span><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">[4]</span></span></a><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"> Surah Al Baqarah, 2:183<br /> <a name="_ftn5"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref5" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span style="color: rgb(154, 10, 10);">[5]</span></span></a> Talq Ibn Habib, related by Ibn Abi Shaybah in Kitaab al-Iman (no. 99)</span><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""> </span><a name="_ftn6"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref6" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"><br /> </span></span><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">[6]</span></span></a><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"> Surah Al Baqarah, 2:185</span><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""> </span><a name="_ftn7"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref7" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"><br /> </span></span><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">[7]</span></span></a><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"> Surah Al Baqarah, 2:</span><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""> </span><a name="_ftn8"></a><a href="http://www.islam21c.com/general/ramadan-pointers.html#_ftnref8" target="_blank" title=""><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"><br /> </span></span><span style=""><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;">[8]</span></span></a><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style="font-size: 7.5pt;"> Al-Tirmidhi</span><span color:="" ui="" segoe="" style=""><o:p></o:p></span>}</p> 0 2009-08-10T12:28:00+01:00 The bounties and opportunities of Ramadan are many and unlimited yet the number of days we have to take advantage of it are few and limited. 3070 4 1058 approved

The bounties and opportunities of Ramadan are many and unlimited yet the number of days we have to take advantage of it are few and limited.

2009-08-10T12:30:51+01:00

false <p> All praises are due to Allah and peace and blessings be upon the prophet Muhammed. The beginning of summer occasions great confusion amongst many Muslims living in the UK, North America, Canada and some other European countries concerning the commencement of Isha, Magrib and Fajr prayers. Muslims frequently enquire about the best time to pray Isha since it starts very late. In this fatwa I will explain the different opinions of the scholars in dealing with this problem. Thereafter, I will discuss these opinions, their evidences and any respective criticisms made against them. Finally, I will explain the best practical opinion taking into consideration the diversity of Muslims residing in these countries as well as the abnormal situations they are facing.</p> <p> Firstly, it is essential to state that Isha time starts once twilight disappears. This is based on many prophetic traditions such as the statement narrated in Sahih Muslim by Abdullah Ibn Amr that the prophet (SAW) said &ldquo;and the time for Magrib continues until the twilight does disappear&rdquo;. Both Muslim and non-Muslim astronomers disagree on the time twilight disappears especially in areas of extreme latitude such as Canada and many European countries. England has a latitude of between 50 to 60 degrees. Some believe that the twilight never disappears for a certain period of time during the summer while others believe that it does disappear, but extremely late.</p> <p> This disagreement is a result of different opinions concerning two main factors: a) The linguistic interpretation of the disappearance of twilight and b) The astronomical interpretation of the disappearance of twilight. While the vast majority of scholars believe that it is the disappearance of the redness of twilight that truly signifies its &lsquo;disappearance&rsquo;, Hanafi scholars believe that it is the disappearance of the whiteness. Concerning the second reason behind this disagreement, Muslim scholars differ on which astronomical interpretation should be adopted to determine the disappearance of twilight. The resolution of the ninth Muslim World League conference held in 1406 H (March 1996) holds that 17 degrees is the correct interpretation for the disappearance of twilight. If we adopt this opinion, which is the opinion of the majority of Muslim scholars as well as astronomers, then all countries located above 49 degrees latitude may well observe the phenomenon of persistent twilight until the break of dawn. If we adopt the other linguistic meaning and the second astronomical interpretation for the disappearance of twilight we will end up with allocating 15 degrees as the start of Isha time. According to this degree, twilight does disappear yet it disappears very late in places located roughly at 49 or 50 degrees but it never disappears in countries which are located at 60+ degrees latitude. According to the opinion of the vast majority of scholars and astronomers, twilight does not disappear for a period of time during summer in many European countries since many of them are located above 49 degrees latitude.</p> <p> The above discussion is far from sufficient in uniting the words of the scholars since the difference discussed above is deeply rooted in the four acceptable official schools of thought as well as astronomical interpretation. Moreover the wide diversity of Muslims residing in the UK and Europe, their juristic schools of thought, and the absence of any Muslim leadership for Muslims to follow, makes it almost impossible to agree on specific criteria for the timings of prayer. In any case, it is almost universally accepted that twilight either does not disappear or persists until very late into the night before disappearing in many European countries. In other words, there are two aspects to this period of confusion or hardship: the first aspect is when the legislated indications of the commencement of Isha are to be observed, but very late; the second concerns that period when the legislated indications for the commencement of Isha disappear completely. Hence, irrespective of the disagreement amongst scholars and astronomers, there will be places which observe only one aspect while there will be definitely some other countries observing both aspects mentioned above. The issue is further confounded when on the one hand, some followers of some schools of thought believe that they are observing the first aspect only, while on the other hand, followers of other schools of thought in the very same locality, may believe that they are facing both situations. Now, regardless of whether we follow 17, 19, or 15 degrees as being the start of Isha, a comprehensive explanation and solution should be presented taking in consideration the diversity of understanding found amongst the Muslims.</p> <p> The problem of the absence of the legislated signs indicating the start of Isha, or the very late start, leads to difficulty in understanding the correct position concerning three related issues: 1) The end of Magrib, 2) The start of Isha and 3) The start of Fajr. Let us first discuss the start of Isha time since it is the main matter of concern here.</p> <p> <strong> Start of Isha time</strong><br /> From the previous discussion we conclude that the aspects relevant to this discussion comprise two parts: 1) The first part is when the legal sign is visible, but it starts extremely late and 2) The second part is when the legal sign disappears altogether. Both cases are treated in a very similar way since the late start makes it extremely difficult to pray Isha on time. An example of this is the start of Isha time on May 20th in London just after midnight<a href="http://www.islam21c.com/british-affairs/isha-fajr-prayer-times-during-the-summer.html#footnotes">¹</a> and a similar time is found on 25th July. The following options result when examining this situation in its totality, taking into consideration all of its various facets: a) Muslims pray Isha at its stated time even if it starts very late or even if it starts after midnight, which according to many scholars signifies the end of Isha time. This is based upon many prophetic traditions. Let us call this option praying at the astronomical time or praying on time; b) Because of the difficulty involved, Muslims estimate the time for Isha prayer at odds to its actual astronomical time. Let us call this option estimation and c) Because of the difficulty involved, Muslims combine Isha with Maghrib at the time of Maghrib. Let us call this option combination.</p> <p> <em>Discussion of the first opinion: praying on time</em><br /> Scholars who hold the first option, i.e. praying on time, base their opinion on numerous evidences that clearly indicate that praying on time is the most important condition for performing prayer. Among such proofs is the Qur&rsquo;anic verse where Allah says [4:103] &ldquo;Verily, the prayer is enjoined on the believers at fixed hours&rdquo;. We also find that the Prophet (SAW) explained the significance of prayer at the appointed time in various ways. For example he said, &ldquo;The most beloved of actions to Allah is the prayer at its time&rdquo;. However, this opinion faces problems when twilight persists. In that period, the legal sign for the start of Isha disappears, so what then should be the starting time of Isha? These scholars, in this circumstance, adopt the option of estimation yet their opinions vary as to the best way of estimating. Some scholars believe that the last time on which the legal sign appeared should be the reference time. This time should be adopted throughout the period of persistent twilight. In London, for example, the last day when the legal sign is detectable is the 25th May at 12:38 am<a href="http://www.islam21c.com/british-affairs/isha-fajr-prayer-times-during-the-summer.html#footnotes">²</a> . According to this opinion, Isha should be prayed at 12:38 until the legal sign starts to be visible again on the 18th July. A second group of these scholars hold that the reference point should be the nearest city where the legal sign is visible. A third group of these scholars hold that we should divide the night into 3 parts and Isha should start by the end of the first third of the night. This means that Muslims living in London, for example, should pray Isha at around 10:45 pm. The fourth group of those scholars hold that Makkah should be our reference point for matters related to acts of worship as it is our Qiblah and we perform Hajj there. According to this opinion Isha commences one and a half hours after Magrib.</p> <p> <em> Discussion of the second opinion: estimation</em><br /> The second group of scholars believe that estimation is the best solution. We have seen in the previous argument the justification for such an opinion. These scholars do not accept the option of combination due to the following reasons: a) The Shari&rsquo;a intended to distribute the prayers over the day and night. This is why the Shari&rsquo;a considered time a vital condition for prayer. They supported their argument by the fact that the Shari&rsquo;a discourages people from combining unless there is a pressing need let alone the fact that many scholars prohibited the continuous practice of combining prayers over a long period of time in a manner that gives rise to a habitual action; b) The estimation of Isha time is a valid approach since many scholars agree that Isha time starts after the end of the first seventh of the night according to an interpretation of some Shafi&rsquo;i scholars and c) The principle of estimation in essence is valid since it is mentioned in the famous hadith of the Dajjal during the last days when Allah extends the length of the days of his presence so that one day will be as long as one complete year, another day will be equal to a month in length, and the third day as long as a week, while others are normal days in length. The Companions asked the Prophet (SAW)about praying in these extended days. The reply of the Prophet (SAW)was to command them to estimate the times of prayer. This hadith is reported in Sahih Muslim.</p> <p> <em>Discussion of the third opinion: combining</em><br /> Those who believe that we should combine prayers during the whole period, i.e. both scenarios, base their opinion on various justifications: a)The disappearance of the legal sign leaves no option but to combine the two prayers together. b) The late start of Isha makes it extremely difficult for the vast majority of people in these countries to pray on time when the sign is visible, or at similar time when the sign can no longer be observed. This difficulty brings to attention the principle established by Islamic law to remove any hardship. There is no doubt that praying Isha after midnight, or close to midnight, in such countries is a hardship that the Shari&rsquo;a seeks to remove. Based on this they believe that, whether the legal sign is visible or invisible, the end ruling is the same, i.e. the period of late visibility should be treated the same as the period of absence. There are numerous prophetic traditions where the Prophet (SAW) combined Magrib with Isha. Most of the scholars believe that the legal reasoning behind this combination is to remove hardship. For example, the prophet carried out this practice several times while he was on a journey from one city to another<a href="http://www.islam21c.com/british-affairs/isha-fajr-prayer-times-during-the-summer.html#footnotes">³</a> . Moreover, the Prophet (SAW) practiced combination once when he was resident in the city of Madinah neither without being sick nor in a state of fear. Ibn Abbas explained the reason behind this by saying &ldquo;He intended to remove hardship from his ummah&rdquo;. The scholars deduce from this that in cases of hardship or necessity it is allowed to combine between Dhuhr and Asr prayer any time between the start of Dhuhr and the end of Asr. Likewise it is allowed to pray Magrib and Isha together in the time of either. According to these scholars, this verdict is conditional on not making this act a habit. In a similar vein, we find that Imam Ahmad allowed the breast-feeding woman who faces difficulty in cleaning her clothes to combine between these prayers. Sa&rsquo;eed bin al-Mussayyib instructed a shepherd who sought his advice to combine Isha with Magrib before sleeping if he is afraid of missing Isha prayer due to sleepiness and tiredness. These scholars disagree with the opinion of estimating prayers, as they believe that it is baseless. They believe that this situation is different from the situation mentioned in the hadith of the Dajjal. These scholars explained that this analogy is unacceptable because this hadith is only applied in the case of complete disappearance of all the legal signs. This means that we cannot extend this to cover our case when only one of the legal signs is present but appears very late or is absent altogether.</p> <p> <em>The strongest opinion concerning the start of Isha time in such countries</em><br /> As we can see, all the opinions mentioned above are justified by many evidences, while at the same time, none of these opinions are free of criticism. Even if we say we must pray on time irrespective of the necessity of hardship involved in praying late at night, we will still not be safe from valid criticism. Isha might start after midnight, as is the case of cities lying above 49 degrees. Midnight according to many scholars is the end of Isha time. This means that adopting this option results in praying Isha after it has ended! Having analysed the previous argument, the following conclusion can be drawn: 1) There is no opinion free of criticism and 2) All opinions are supported by strong direct or indirect proofs and evidences. Moreover all opinions are supported by quotations from the previous scholars. As a result this disagreement becomes a mater of valid Ijtihad. So if someone were to ask: what shall I do and when do I pray Isha? We will give the following answer:</p> <p> 1) The male adult should join the congregational prayer in the mosque that he usually prays in whether they combine or chose any criteria for estimation; 1a) Praying in congregation is compulsory upon every able male adult and it is of great significance in Islam. The Prophet (SAW)desired to punish those who did not attend the congregational prayer and he did not excuse a blind person who hears the call for Salah from not attending it. Some scholars mentioned that attending prayer in congregation takes precedence over many conditions of Salah. For example the adult person who is sick and will pray in a sitting posture if he joins the congregation while he could pray in a standing posture if he prays alone should join the congregation; 1b) The times assigned for Isha in such countries are not definite as shown by the previous discussion. Actually it is a matter of ijtihad as we have just stated. In such cases courses of action that maintain unity or remove disagreements should take precedence over individual opinions; and 1c) The reason behind this conclusion is the fact that we cannot confirm that Isha during this period starts at a specific time which puts it within the area of ijtihad. So if it is an matter of ijtihad, one should pray in congregation even if it takes place at a time that does not match his ijtihad. This conclusion is supported by the fact that Islam aims to prevent fitnah between Muslims and block all roads leading to it.</p> <p> 2) If there is no near-by mosque or the person is not an individual who must join the congregation like a sick person, a female or immature child, then he or she should delay Isha prayer as much as he or she can. The reason behind this conclusion is the fact that praying on time puts great hardship on a person yet at the same time this opinion is not free of criticism. On the other hand combining Isha with Magrib should not be a habit especially when there is no pressing need. Estimation, as a last resort, should take into consideration the practical side of the situation despite the fact that there is no solid foundation for any of the estimation criteria mentioned earlier. Moreover estimation is not a very strong option during the time of late visibility since the sign is still visible. So we should pray Isha at the closest time to its legal time which starts very late provided that we do not cross midnight. The basis for this is the principle in Islam established by the Qur &rsquo;anic verse, &ldquo;fear Allah as much as you can.&rdquo; Also, by doing so, we are meeting the Shari&rsquo;a aim of distributing the prayers over the day and night.</p> <p> 3) A related point to this is a situation where a person has the choice to join either of two congregational prayers: one praying late and the other praying early. In this case this person should join the prayer that is taking place very close to the actual legal start of Isha time, provided that it does not cross midnight, unless there is a harm that arises from doing this. An example of this harm is a split occurring between the Muslims praying in that Mosque.</p> <p> <strong>Fajr time</strong><br /> Another major problem occurs during summer time especially when the twilight does not disappear is determining the beginning of Fajr prayer. This is due to the fact that the continued presence of the twilight makes it impossible to determine the appearance of the white colour of the Fajr or we might even say that there is no start for Fajr. In this case what should be done? Again this is a mater of disagreement between the scholars. The previous opinions and justifications mentioned earlier when we discussed the start of Isha time are also apply here which makes it a matter of valid Ijtihad. To conclude we advice people who cannot join the congregational Fajr prayer to pray Fajr one and half hour before sunrise. Any time around that may be acceptable. Many Muslims ask if they can pray Fajr at times such as 1:15 am since many Islamic calendars show that Fajr time enters at that time in many European countries (England is one example). The answer for this is we should pray at a time that is most likely part of the legal time. We should avoid praying and performing our ibadah on a doubtful time. The prophet (SAW)said: leave what is doubtful for that which is not doubtful. There is no question about the doubtful start of Fajr at 1:15 am or so. So we should delay Fajr to a time where we are most likely sure that the time has definitely started. A good time for that is 1 &frac12; or 2 hours before sunrise. Another reason for that is the aim of the Shari&rsquo;a in distributing the prayers over the day and night. Also the Shari&rsquo;a seeks to establish prayer during the beginning, middle and end of the day. Allah says in the Quran [17:78] Perform As-Salat from duluk al shamas (midday till the darkness of the night, and recite the Qur&rsquo;an in the early dawn. Verily, the recitation of the Qur&rsquo;an in the early dawn is ever witnessed). The manner in which the Shari&rsquo;a legalised combining two prayers give us a clear indication that there are five times in normal situations and three times for abnormal situations. These are: just after the end of the night and sleep period and just before the start of the day, at midday and the third one is the one performed just after the end of the day and in the beginning of the night. However, if other factors are involved we should exercise a degree of flexibility since the matter is an issue of valid ijtihad. A critical factor in this regard is unity, what leads to it and to remove any form of fitnah.</p> <p> <strong>Maghrib time</strong><br /> Magrib time starts after sunset and ends when the twilight disappears according numerous prophetic traditions. This conclusion is what the scholars have agreed upon unanimously. We have mentioned earlier that scholars differ on the end of the visibility of twilight. As a result we can conclude that they differ on the Maghrib prayer. According to some scholars and astronomers Maghrib time ends just before midnight as twilight disappears at that time. Moreover, can some one say that Magrib time ends before Fajr time or even after Fajr since twilight ends at that time? The answer is of course no since it is against the meaning of the time allocated for Magrib, it will lead to changing the order of prayers and it will lead to combining Magrib, Isha and Fajr which is completely unacceptable. So when shall we pray Magrib in these situations? The answer is very simple and can be extracted from the hadith narrated by al-Tirmidhi through Ibn Abbas that the angel Jibreel led the prophet (SAW)to teach him the prayer times. On the first day he prayed all the prayers at the beginning of their respective times and on the second day he delayed the prayers until just before the end of their times for all prayers except Magrib where he instead prayed it on both days at the same time. This hadith explains the other hadith that shows that the Magrib time continues until the disappearance of twilight and it is a clear indication that the time of Magrib is very limited. That is why the Hanafi school of thought normally prays Magrib immediately after sunset. Moreover, a deep reflection upon Quaranic verses and prophetic traditions shows us that the daily prayers are distributed over five different times in normal situations and three times in abnormal situations. As a result we should pray Magrib just after the sunset and should not delay it for more than an hour after sunset. Other guidelines provided earlier should be applied here as well.</p> <p> We have explored the main opinions about performing Isha, Fajr and Maghrib prayers in countries located in extreme latitudes. We have seen that all of these opinions are justified by valid proofs and at the same time they are not free from valid criticism. Consequently, this existent difference of opinions which is supported by authentic evidences places this matter into the realm of valid ijtihad. In consideration of this fact, Muslims facing this situation should apply a certain degree of flexibility when dealing with other Muslims who hold different opinions as a result of valid ijtihad in this regard especially when dealing in an inappropriate manner may lead to fitnah, a split, disunity or extreme hardship. I also advise Muslims to pray on time whenever possible. In situations of extreme hardship or invisibility of the legal signs for the start of any prayer, they should join the congregation in their localities unless they are excused from doing so such as the elderly or sick men, women, young children or very remote individuals. In this case they should strive to perform their prayers in a way very similar to the aim of the Shari&rsquo;a in distributing the five prayers thought the day and night.</p> <br /> <p>Source: Shaykh Haitham Al Haddad <a href="http://www.islam21c.com">www.islam21c.com</a></p> 0 2009-07-07T14:49:00+01:00 <span>The designated times for Fajr and Isha prayers in the UK and other countries during the summer season.</span> 3065 4 965 approved

<span>The designated times for Fajr and Isha prayers in the UK and other countries during the summer season.</span>

2009-07-07T14:54:10+01:00

false <p>And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told us that groups of his ummah would follow the enemies of Allaah in some of their rituals and customs, as it says in the hadeeth of Abu Sa&rsquo;eed al-Khudri (may Allaah be pleased with him), who narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:</p> <p>&quot;You will certainly follow the ways of those who came before you, span by span, cubit by cubit, until even if they were to enter a lizard&rsquo;s hole, you would follow them.&rdquo; We said, &ldquo;O Messenger of Allaah, (do you mean) the Jews and Christians?&rdquo; He said, &ldquo;Who else?!&rdquo; (Narrated by al-Bukhaari 4/2054)</p> <p>What the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) spoke of has indeed come to pass and has become widespread in recent times, in many of the Muslim countries. Many of the Muslims follow the enemies of Allaah in many of their customs and ways of behaving, and imitate them in some of their rituals and in celebrating their holidays.</p> <p>In recent years, a new phenomenon has spread among the Muslim youth &ndash; males and females alike &ndash; which does not bode well. This is manifested in their imitation of the Christians in their celebration of the Valentine&rsquo;s Day, which has led the scholars and daa&rsquo;iyahs to explain the rulings of sharee&rsquo;ah concerning that, out of sincerity towards Allaah, His Messenger, the leaders of the Muslims and their common folk, so that Muslims may have a clear understanding of this issue and so that they will not fall into that which will undermine the belief (&lsquo;aqeedah) with which Allaah has blessed them.</p> <p>This is a brief discussion of the origins, development and purpose of this holiday, and what the Muslim should do with regard to it.</p> <p><strong>The story of the Festival of Love (Valentine&rsquo;s Day)</strong></p> <p>The Festival of Love was one of the festivals of the pagan Romans, when paganism was the prevalent religion of the Romans more than seventeen centuries ago. In the pagan Roman concept, it was an expression of &ldquo;spiritual love&rdquo;.</p> <p>There were myths associated with this pagan festival of the Romans, which persisted with their Christian heirs. Among the most famous of these myths was the Roman belief that Romulus, the founder of Rome, was suckled one day by a she-wolf, which gave him strength and wisdom.</p> <p><em>The connection between Saint Valentine and this festival</em></p> <p>Saint Valentine is a name which is given to two of the ancient &ldquo;martyrs&rdquo; of the Christian Church. It was said that there were two of them, or that there was only one, who died in Rome as the result of the persecution of the Gothic leader Claudius, c. 296 CE. In 350 CE, a church was built in Rome on the site of the place where he died, to perpetuate his memory.</p> <p>When the Romans embraced Christianity, they continued to celebrate the Feast of Love mentioned above, but they changed it from the pagan concept of &ldquo;spiritual love&rdquo; to another concept known as the &ldquo;martyrs of love&rdquo;, represented by Saint Valentine who had advocated love and peace, for which cause he was martyred, according to their claims. It was also called the Feast of Lovers, and Saint Valentine was considered to be the patron saint of lovers.</p> <p>It was also said concerning the origins of this holiday that when the Romans became Christian, after Christianity had become widespread, the Roman emperor Claudius II decreed in the third century CE that soldiers should not get married, because marriage would distract them from the wars they used to fight. This decree was opposed by Saint Valentine, who started to perform marriages for the soldiers in secret. When the emperor found out about that, he threw him in jail and sentenced him to execution. In prison, he (Saint Valentine) fell in love with the jailer&rsquo;s daughter, but this was a secret because according to Christian laws, priests and monks were forbidden to marry or fall in love. But he is still regarded highly by the Christians because of his steadfastness in adhering to Christianity when the emperor offered to pardon him if he forsook Christianity and worshipped the Roman gods; then he would be one of his closest confidantes and he would make him his son-in-law. But Valentine refused this offer and preferred Christianity, so he was executed on 14 February 270 CE, on the eve of February 15, the festival of Lupercalis. So this day was named for this saint.</p> <p>Anyone who looks at what is said above about the myths surrounding this pagan festival will clearly understand the following:</p> <p><strong>Firstly</strong>: That its origins lie in the pagan beliefs of the Romans, where it was an expression of the spiritual love of the idols which they used to worship instead of Allaah. Whoever celebrates it is celebrating an occasion of shirk on which the idols are venerated. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):</p> <p>&ldquo;Verily, whosoever sets up partners (in worship) with Allaah, then Allaah has forbidden Paradise to him, and the Fire will be his abode. And for the Zaalimoon (polytheists and wrongdoers) there are no helpers&rdquo; [al-Maa&rsquo;idah 5:72]</p> <p><strong>Secondly</strong>: That the development of this festival among the Romans was connected to myths and legends which no sound mind can accept, let alone the mind of the Muslim who believes in Allaah and His Messengers (peace be upon them). Can anyone of sound mind believe that a she-wolf suckled the founder of the city of Rome and gave him strength and wisdom. Moreover, these myths go against the belief (&lsquo;aqeedah) of the Muslim because the One Who bestows strength and wisdom is the Creator, may He be glorified and exalted, not the milk of a she-wolf! The same applies to the myth that their idols could protect them from evil or keep wolves away from their flocks.</p> <p>Someone may ask: why do we Muslims not celebrate this festival?</p> <p><strong>This question may be answered in several ways:</strong> </p> <p>1. In Islam, the festivals are clearly defined and well established, and no additions or subtractions may be accepted. They are an essential part of our worship and there is no room for ijtihaad or personal opinion. They have been prescribed for us by Allaah and His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: </p> <p>&ldquo;Festivals are part of the laws, clear way and religious ceremonies of which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): </p> <p>'To each among you, We have prescribed a law and a clear way [al-Maa&rsquo;idah 5:48] </p> <p>&lsquo;For every nation We have ordained religious ceremonies which they must follow&rsquo; [al-Hajj 22:67]</p> <p>Like the qiblah (direction faced in prayer), prayer and fasting. So there is no difference between joining them in their festival and joining them in their other rituals. Agreeing with the whole festival is agreeing with kufr. Agreeing with some of their minor issues is the same as agreeing with them in some of the branches of kufr. Festivals are the most distinctive things by which religions are told apart, so whoever celebrates their festivals is agreeing with the most distinctive rituals of kufr. Undoubtedly going along with them in their festivals may in some cases lead to kufr. Dabbling in these things, at the very least, is a sin. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) referred to the fact that every nation has its own festivals when he said:</p> <p>&lsquo;Every nation has its own Eid and this is our Eid&rsquo; (al-Bukhaari , 952, Muslim, 1892).&rdquo; (al-Iqtidaa&rsquo;, 1/471-472)</p> <p>Because Valentine&rsquo;s Day goes back to Roman times, not Islamic times, this means that it is something which belongs exclusively to the Christians, not to Islam, and the Muslims have no share and no part in it. If every nation has its own festivals, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said &ndash; &ldquo;Every nation has its Eid&rdquo; (narrated by al-Bukhaari and Muslim) &ndash; then this means that every nation should be distinguished by its festivals. If the Christians have a festival and the Jews have a festival, which belongs exclusively to them, then no Muslim should join in with them, just as he does not share their religion or their direction of prayer.</p> <p>2. Celebrating Valentine&rsquo;s Day means resembling or imitating the pagan Romans, then the Christian People of the Book in their imitation of the Romans in something that was not a part of their religion. If it is not allowed to imitate the Christians in things that really are part of their religion &ndash; but not part of our religion &ndash; then how about things which they have innovated in their religion in imitation of idol-worshippers?! </p> <p>Imitating the kuffaar in general &ndash;whether they are idol-worshippers or People of the Book &ndash; is haraam, whether that imitation is of their worship &ndash; which is the most serious form &ndash; or of their customs and behaviour. This is indicated by the Qur&rsquo;aan, Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):</p> <p>&ldquo;And be not as those who divided and differed among themselves after the clear proofs had come to them. It is they for whom there is an awful torment&rdquo; [Aal &lsquo;Imraan 3:105]</p> <p>Allaah has forbidden imitation of the kuffaar; He has described it as hateful and has warned against the consequences of that, in many aayahs, on many occasions, and in various ways, especially imitation of the kuffaar. Sometimes He does that by forbidding following them or obeying them; sometimes by warning against them or being deceived by their plots, following their opinions, or being influenced by their actions, conduct or attitude. Sometimes He does that by mentioning some of their characteristics that will put the believers off from them and from imitating them. Most of the warnings in the Qur&rsquo;aan refer to the Jews and hypocrites (munaafiqeen), then the People of the Book in general and the mushrikeen. Allaah tells us in the Qur&rsquo;aan that imitating and obeying the kuffaar may constitute riddah (apostasy). Allaah also forbids following them, obeying them, or following their whims and desires and bad characteristics.</p> <p>Prohibition of imitating the kuffaar is one of the basic principles of sharee&rsquo;ah. Allaah sent His Messenger with guidance and the true religion so that it might prevail over all other religions, and Allaah has perfected His religion for mankind:</p> <p>&ldquo;This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion&rdquo; [al-Maa&rsquo;idah 5:3 &ndash; interpretation of the meaning].</p> <p>Some people may wonder, and say, you mean to deprive us of love, but in this day and age we express our feelings and emotions &ndash; what is so wrong with that?</p> <p>We it is a mistake to confuse what they call the day with what the real intentions are behind it. The love referred to on this day is romantic love, taking mistresses and lovers, boyfriends and girlfriends. It is known to be a day of promiscuity and sex for them, with no restraints or restrictions&hellip; They are not talking of pure love between a man and his wife or a woman and her husband, or at least they do not distinguish between the legitimate love in the relationship between husband and wife, and the forbidden love of mistresses and lovers. This festival for them is a means for everyone to express love.</p> <p><strong>The Muslim&rsquo;s attitude towards Valentine&rsquo;s Day</strong></p> <p>From the above discussion, the Muslim&rsquo;s attitude towards this holiday should be clear:</p> <p>(1) He should not celebrate it, or join others in their celebrations of it, or attend their celebrations, because of the evidence quoted above which shows that it is forbidden to celebrate the festivals of the kuffaar.</p> <p>Al-Haafiz al-Dhahabi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: &ldquo;If the Christians have a festival and the Jews have a festival, which belongs only to them, then the Muslim should not join them in that, just as he does not join them in their religion or their direction of prayer.&rdquo; (Tashabbuh al-Khasees bi Ahl al-Khamees, al-Hikmah magazine, 4/193). </p> <p>Source: <a href="http://www.Islamqa.com">Islamqa.com</a> Under - The Supervision of Shaikh Saleh Al Munajid</p> 0 2009-02-08T12:43:00+00:00 Allaah has chosen for us Islam as our religion and He will not accept any other religion from anyone, as He says: &quot;And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers [Al Imran 3:85] 2967 4 1933 approved

Allaah has chosen for us Islam as our religion and He will not accept any other religion from anyone, as He says: &quot;And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers [Al Imran 3:85]

2009-02-09T11:27:57+00:00

false <div>They also believed that the souls of the dead were let loose and were allowed to revisit their homes, and that hosts of evil spirits roamed the earth. Thus, this night acquired a sinister significance, filled with spirits, ghosts, witches, hobgoblins, black cats, fairies, and demons. The Celts made sacrifices and offerings to ward off the perils of the season and the anger of the deities, and they set huge bonfires on hilltops to frighten away evil spirits.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>After the pagan Romans conquered Britain, they added to October 31st some features from their Harvest Festival, held in honour of Pomona, goddess of tree fruits.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Some years later, the early Western Christian churches celebrated on the same day the All Saints (or All-Hallows) Day, as well as its night (Hallows Eve or Halloween). Adopting some of their pagan heritage, they continued to believe that on this night the dead walked among them and witches and warlocks flew in their midst, and bonfires continued to be lit to ward off those malevolent spirits.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Gradually, Halloween turned into a family observance. By the 19th century, additional customs developed, and witches&rsquo; pranks were replaced by tricks and games played by children and young adults.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>But even in modern times, Halloween&rsquo;s seemingly innocent practices still carry a good deal of its pagan roots. Homes and yards are often decorated with ghostly figures and, on Halloween&rsquo;s night, children paint their faces, wear costumes, and go from house to house, demanding, &ldquo;trick-or-treat&rdquo;. The old practice of leaving offerings of food and drink to obscure spirits has been replaced by giving candy to costumed children, and bonfires have been substituted by &ldquo;Jack-O-Lanterns&rdquo; &ndash; hollowed-out pumpkins carved in the appearance of demonic faces, with lighted candles fixed in their centre.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>And since Halloween was largely based on rituals involving dead spirits and devil worship, it also represents, nowadays an archaically sacred day for the devil worshipers.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>From the above, it is obvious that taking a part in celebrating Halloween is strongly prohibited in Islam. Yet, it is indeed appalling to see some ignorant Muslims participate in it, purchase and wear silly Halloween costumes, and send their children to collect candy. This clear endorsement of Halloween&rsquo;s diabolical origin is totally unacceptable, and may not be justified by saying that they want to make their children happy.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Rather, the duty of Muslim parents is to enlighten their children and caution them from the dangers of participating in Halloween or other un-Islamic occasions. Instead of meekly following their children&rsquo;s wishes, they should strive to mould them within the correct Islamic framework of the Qur&rsquo;an and Sunnah. Their serious responsibility of imparting correct Islamic knowledge and training to their children cannot be fulfilled unless they firmly guard them from the deviant ways of the non-Muslims.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>If the children are taught to be proud of their Islamic heritage, they themselves will abstain from Halloween and other un-Islamic celebrations. Islam is a pure and complete religion with no need for adopting alien customs, practices or celebrations.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>On Halloween&rsquo;s night, the Muslim parents must not send their children to collect candy. Rather, they should teach them why we do not celebrate Halloween. Most children are very receptive when taught with sincerity,</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>It must also be noted that the Muslims who stay home but give out treats to those who come to their door are thereby participating in this festival. In order to avoid this, they should leave their front lights off and should not open their door.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Furthermore, they should educate their neighbours about the Islamic teachings and inform them in advance that Muslims do not participate in Halloween.</div> <div></div> <div></div> <div><span lang="EN-US" style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-FAMILY: TTE24BE9F8t00; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><strong>By Shaikh Muhammad al-Jibaaly</strong></span></div> 0 2008-10-22T13:19:00+01:00 Halloween originated many centuries before Christianity. The pagan Celts in ancient Britain and Ireland believed that, during the night of October 31st, the gods (may Allah be exalted above their blasphemy) played tricks on their mortal worshipers, bringing about danger, fear and supernatural episodes. 3018 4 1606 approved

Halloween originated many centuries before Christianity. The pagan Celts in ancient Britain and Ireland believed that, during the night of October 31st, the gods (may Allah be exalted above their blasphemy) played tricks on their mortal worshipers, bringing about danger, fear and supernatural episodes.

2008-10-22T13:24:23+01:00

false <p>2. Beware of breaking your fast during the days of Ramadhan without a valid Islamic excuse, for it is from the greatest of sins.</p> <p>3. Pray Salat ut Taraweeh and the night prayer during the nights of Ramadhan, especially on Layatul-Qadr, based on belief and truly seeking the reward of Allah, so that Allah may forgive you your past sins.</p> <p>4. Make sure that your food, your drink and your clothing are from halal means, in order that your actions be accepted, and your supplications answered. Beware of refraining from the halal while fasting and breaking your fast with the haram.</p> <p>5. Give food to some fasting people to gain a reward similar to theirs.</p> <p>6. Perform your five prayers on time in congregation to gain the reward and Allah's protection.</p> <p>7. Give a lot of charity for the best charity is that of Ramadhan.</p> <p>8. Beware of spending your time without performing righteous deeds, for you will be responsible and reckoned for it and will be rewarded for all you do during your time.</p> <p>9. Perform umrah in Ramadhan for Umrah in Ramadhan is equal to Hajj.</p> <p>10. Seek help for fasting during the day by eating the sahoor meal in the last part of the night before the appearance of Fajr.</p> <p>11. Hasten breaking your fast after the sun has truly set in order to gain the love of Allah. 12. Perform ghusl before fajr if you need to purify yourself from the state of major impurity so that you are able to do acts of worship in a state of purity and cleanliness.</p> <p>13. Cease the opportunity of being in Ramadhan and spend it with the good that has been revealed in it - by reciting the noble Qur'an and pondering and reflection of its meanings so that it be a proof for you with your Lord and an intercessor for you on the Day of Reckoning.</p> <p>14. Preserve your tongue from lying, cursing, backbiting and slander for it decreases the reward of fasting.</p> <p>15. Do not let fasting cause you cross your boundaries by getting upset due to the slightest of reasons. Rather, fating should be a cause of peacefulness and tranquility of your soul.</p> <p>16. Upon completion of fasting, be in a state of taqwa of Allah the Most High, being aware of Allah watching you in secret and in public, in thankfulness for His favors, and steadfastness upon obedience of Allah by doing all what He has ordered and shunning all that He has prohibited.</p> <p>17. Increase in remembrance of Allah, seeking of forgiveness, asking for Paradise and protection against the Fire, especially when fasting, while breaking the fast and during suhoor, for these actions are among greatest causes of attaining Allah's forgiveness.</p> <p>18. Increase in supplication for yourself, your parents, your children and Muslims, for Allah has ordered making of supplications and has guaranteed acceptance. </p> <p>19. Repent to Allah with a sincere repentance in all times by leaving sins, regretting those that you have done before and firmly deciding not to return to them in the future, for Allah accepts repentance of those who repent.</p> <p>20. Fast six days of Shawwal, for whoever fasts Ramadhan and then follows it with six days of Shawwal, it is as if he fasts all the time.</p> <p>21. Fast on the Day of `Arafah, the 9th of Dhul Hijjah, to attain success by being forgiven your sins of the last year and the coming year.</p> <p>22. Fast on the day of `Aashuraa', the 10th of Muharram, along with the 9th, to attain success by being forgiven your sins of the past year.</p> <p>23. Continue being in a state of iman and taqwa and perform righteous actions after the month of Ramadhan, until you die. &quot;And worship your Lord until there comes to you the certainty (i.e. death)&quot;. [Qur'an 15:99]</p> <p>24. Ensure that you attain the positive effects of your acts of worship such as prayer, fasting, zakat and hajj, sincere repentance and leaving of customs that are in variance with the Sharee'ah.</p> <p>25. Invoke a lot of salawat and salam upon the Messenger of Allah, may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him, his Companions and all those who follow them until the Day of Judgment. </p> <center>O Allah make us and all Muslims of those who fast and stand in prayer during the month of Ramadhan based on belief and truly seeking Your reward so that we are forgiven our past and future sins. O Allah make us of those who fasted the month, attained full reward, witnessed Layatul-Qadr and attained success by permission of the Lord, Blessed and Most High. O Allah, verily you are Forgiver, like to forgive, so forgive us. O Lord, accept from us, verily you are the All-Hearing, all-Seeing, O Living, O Independent, O Owner of all majesty and honor. And may Allah's blessings and peace be upon Muhammad, his family and his Companions.</center> 0 2008-08-20T00:12:00+01:00 Brother Muslim, Sister Muslima: 1. Fast Ramadhan with belief and truly seeking the reward of Allah so that He may forgive you your past sins. 2854 0 1403 approved

Brother Muslim, Sister Muslima: 1. Fast Ramadhan with belief and truly seeking the reward of Allah so that He may forgive you your past sins.

2008-08-21T11:50:04+01:00