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Priceless Value Of Righteous Actions

Islam came to aid the world and to make it a better place to live in. Be it countries, communities or individuals, this great religion provides them with clear guidance. Allah has guaranteed those who live by the rules laid down in the Qur’an and the traditions of the Prophet eternal paradise.

As Muslims we are commanded to perform righteous deeds and Allah says about those who perform righteous actions: “Verily, those who believe and do righteous good deeds, they are the best of creatures.” (Qur’an, 98:7)

Righteous actions will aid us in this world and in the hereafter. In the famous narration collected by Al-Bukhari and Muslim, the Prophet (peace be on him) said, “The dead person is followed (to his grave) by three: His family, his wealth and his actions. Two of them return and only one remains. His family and wealth return, but his actions remain.”

From this narration, it is understood that our good actions and their benefits will remain with us forever.

But we need to look at what constitutes a righteous action. How often people think they have performed a good action but in fact they have not. So what are the conditions that a Muslim must fulfill in order for the action to be righteous? This is shown in the statement of Allah:
“Say (O Muhammad, peace be upon him): I am only a man like you. It has been inspired to me that your God is One God. So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.” (Qur’an, 18:110)

For our deeds to be rewarded by Allah, we must first have the proper belief in Allah. We must worship Him alone and not associate anyone with Him. This is Tawheed, the foundation of Islam.

Are You Preparing For The Day Of Judgment ?

Everyone in this world is well aware of the fact that this life is mortal. All of us are sent in to this world for some specific time after that we have to dwell in eternal life which starts after the end of this life.

Humans pass through different phases after the death i.e. separation of soul from body, life, in grave and the most important event that will happen on the Day of Judgment is when we will be held accountable for our deeds and when we will be questioned by our Lord Allah (S.W.T.) as He says in Quran:

“Then surely, We shall question those (people) to whom it (the book) was sent and verily, We shall question the Messengers.” ( Al-Araf, 6 and 7)

Two Methods of Accountability
On the Day of Judgment, every human being who is sent into this world in any era will be stood together at a place where they will be held accountable in front of God as He says in Quran:

“The Day is approaching when every soul shall find itself confronted with whatever good it has done and whatever evil it has wrought. It will then wish there is a wide space between it and the Day! Allah warns you to beware of Him; He is most tender towards His servants.” (Surat Al-Imran, 30)

There will be two methods of accountability,

Those who have successfully spent their lives according to the teachings of Allah and His Prophet (PBUH) will be directly sent to the paradise to live an eternal life with all the blessing they have been promised for and will be considered as the most successful people.

They will say: “Praise be to Allah Who has fulfilled His promise to us and made us the inheritors of this land, letting us settle in Paradise wherever we want. How excellent is the wage of those who work.” (Surat az-Zumar, 74)

Those who used to commit evil things in the worldly life will be questioned about their bad acts and surely they will have no answer for it except shame on their own deeds and begging pardon for their wrongdoings but the time of forgiveness will be over. Those people will be sent to hell fire where they will be tortured for their sins until they complete their punishments.

When One Is Too Tired To Pray

Zainab bint Jahsh, one of the Prophet’s wives, was very devout. She was keen to offer voluntary prayers, and to fast. Furthermore, she excelled in handiwork. She did things and sold them, giving the proceeds to charity. As her home was adjacent to the mosque, she sometimes offered voluntary worship in the depth of the night in the mosque.

Anas ibn Malik reports: “The Prophet (peace be upon him) came one day into the mosque and found a rope stretched between two pillars. He asked what was the rope for.

He was told that it was put up for Zainab, so that she would hold on to it during her prayer when she felt too tired. The Prophet said: ‘No. Take it off. Let everyone pray when they feel fresh and comfortable. When they feel tired, they should sit down.’” (Related by Al-Bukhari).

This is just an example of the fact that Islam does not overburden its followers with worship duties. Voluntary night worship is highly recommended. It earns rich reward from God. Yet no one should go to extreme lengths in offering such worship. It is not right to test one’s endurance in worship. God has made fasting one of the best rewarding acts of worship. We fast in Ramadan as a duty, refraining from taking food or drink for the length of the day, from dawn to dusk. Yet when the fasting time is over, we enjoy a good meal. We have another meal just before starting the fast. Thus, we are able to cope without much strain. Some people tried to make fasting harder, by taking a drink at sunset and continuing the fast to the next day. The Prophet made it clear that was wrong. He issued clear orders that no one should do that.

The present hadith tells us a similar story with regard to prayer. His wife, who was known for her exemplary devotion, wanted to spend much of the night in worship. After a while she was very tired and could not stand up in prayer. The following day, she asked for a rope to be tied to two pillars at a suitable height for her. She felt that if fatigue overtakes her and she is about to fall asleep, she could hold on to the rope in order to keep awake.

Thus, her body would be crying for sleep but her mind wanted her to continue her voluntary worship. The Prophet disapproved. He was too kind to his people to allow this. Moreover, he wanted them to approach worship in a cheerful and comfortable frame of mind. If worship becomes too tiring, people would soon feel it a burden and might leave it altogether. Hence, he told them to offer voluntary worship only when they are fresh and alert.

This is in line with Quranic guidance. God says in the Qur’an: “God does not charge a soul with more than it can bear. In its favor shall be whatever good it does, and against it whatever evil it does. Our Lord, do not take us to task if we forget or unwittingly do wrong. Our Lord, do not lay on us a burden such as that You laid on those before us. Our Lord, do not burden us with what we do not have the strength to bear. Pardon us, and forgive us our sins, and bestow Your mercy on us. You are our Lord Supreme; grant us victory against the unbelievers.” (2: 286)

Such is the supplication of believers: that they should not have a burden that is too hard. Hence, they must not make worship too hard.

-By Adil Salahi

How To Perform Tawaf

ONE must begin Tawaf of the Ka’bah (circumambulation) with one’s right shoulder uncovered, (for men only) and the Ka’bah on one’s left side, while facing the Black Stone, which you should kiss, if possible, touch with one’s hand, or point in its direction. In this regard, we cite what Sheikh Sayyed Sabiq states in his well-known book Fiqh As-Sunnah: One must begin Tawaf (circumambulation) with one’s right shoulder uncovered, (for men only) and the Ka’bah on one’s left side, while facing the Black Stone, which you should kiss, if possible, or touch with your hand, or point in its direction, saying, Bismillah wallahau akbar Allahumma imanan bika wa tasdiqan bikitabika wa wafa’an bi ahdika wa ittiba’an li sunnati nabbiyyika sallalahu alaihi wa sallam (In the Name of Allah. Allah is the Greatest. O Allah! [I begin this Tawaf] believing in You, affirming the truth of Your Book, fulfilling my covenant with You, and following the example of the Prophet (peace be upon him).”

It is encouraged to jog slowly through the first three rounds around the Ka’bah. One should walk quickly, keeping close to the Ka’bah as much as possible, while taking short steps.

During the next four rounds, one should walk at a normal pace. If one is unable to jog or get close to Ka’bah, because of the area being overcrowded, one may perform one’s Tawaf in any way possible.

Touching the Yemeni corner (Ar-Ruknu Al-Yamani) is encouraged, and so is kissing or touching the Black Stone in each of the seven rounds of Tawaf, if possible.

Remembering Allah and supplicating to Him as much as possible is also encouraged. For this purpose, one may choose any supplication that one feels comfortable with, without restricting oneself to any particular supplications or repeating what others may be saying. There are no set supplications prescribed for this purpose.

The supplications that some people consider to be prescribed for various rounds of Tawaf are not authentic. There are no such supplications reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him).

One should pray for oneself, for one’s family and for the Muslims for anything that is good in this life or in the Hereafter.

The True Treasure

A BURGLAR scaled the wall of Maalik Bin Dinar’s house one night and easily managed to get inside. Once inside the house, the thief was disappointed to see nothing worth stealing. Maalik was busy performing prayer. Realizing he was not alone, he quickly ended his prayer and turned around to face the thief. Without showing any signs of shock or scare, Maalik calmly extended greetings of peace and said, “My brother, may Allah forgive you. You entered my home and found nothing worth taking, yet I do not want you to leave without taking away some benefit.”

He went in another room and came back with a jug full of water. He looked into the eyes of the burglar and said, “Make ablution and perform two units of prayer, for if you do so, you will leave my home with a greater treasure than you had initially sought.”

Humbled by Maalik’s manners and words, the thief said, “Yes, that is a generous offer indeed.”

After making ablution and performing two units of prayer, the burglar said, “O Maalik, would you mind if I stayed for a while, for I want to stay to perform two more units of prayer?”

Maalik said, “Stay for whatever amount of prayer Allah decrees for you to perform now.”

The thief ended up spending the entire night at Maalik’s house. He continued to pray until morning. Then Maalik said, “Leave now and be good.”

But instead of leaving, the thief said, “Would you mind if I stayed here with you today, for I have made an intention to fast?”

“Stay as long as you wish,” Maalik said.

The burglar ended up staying for a number of days, praying during the late hours of each night and fasting in the day. When he finally decided to leave, the burglar said, “O Maalik, I have made a firm resolve to repent for my sins and for my former way of life.”

Maalik said, “That is in the Hand of Allah.”

The man did mend his ways and began to lead a life of righteousness and obedience to Allah. Later on, he came across another burglar who asked him, “Have you found your treasure yet?”

He replied, “My brother, what I found is Maalik Bin Dinar. I went to steal from him, but it was he who ended up stealing my heart. I have indeed repented to Allah, and I will remain at the door (of His Mercy and Forgiveness) until I achieve what his obedient, loving slaves have achieved.”

(Al-Mawaa’idh wal-Majaalis: 85)
 – Adapted from ‘Stories of Repentance’ published by Darussalam

How They Prayed

From the lives of our pious predecessorsAL-Qasim Bin Muhammad said, “Whenever I went out in the morning, I used to visit Ayesha (may Allah be pleased with her), (his aunt and the wife of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and greet her.

One day I found her performing Ad-Duha prayer, reciting this verse repeatedly, crying and invoking Allah:

“So Allah has been gracious to us, and has saved us from the torment of the Fire.” (Qur’an, 52:27)

I stood there until I felt bored, so I left and went to the market (for some work). When I finished and went back to her, I found her still standing in prayer, reciting the same verse, crying and invoking Allah.'” (Al-Ihya 4/436)

On Salah

NARRATED Abu Dhar (Allah be pleased with him): Allah’s Apostle (peace be upon him) said, “While I was at Makkah the roof of my house was opened and Gabriel descended, opened my chest, and washed it with Zam-Zam water. Then he brought a golden tray full of wisdom and faith and having poured its contents into my chest, he closed it. Then he took my hand and ascended with me to the nearest heaven. When I reached the nearest heaven, Gabriel said to the gatekeeper of the heaven, ‘Open (the gate).’ The gatekeeper asked, ‘Who is it?’ Gabriel answered: ‘Gabriel.’ He asked, ‘Is there anyone with you?’ Gabriel replied, ‘Yes, Muhammad  is with me.’ He asked, ‘Has he been called?’ Gabriel said, ‘Yes.’ So the gate was opened and we went over the nearest heaven and there we saw a man sitting with some people on his right and some on his left. When he looked towards his right, he laughed and when he looked toward his left he wept. Then he said, ‘Welcome! O pious Prophet and pious son.’ I asked Gabriel, ‘Who is he?’ He replied, ‘He is Adam and the people on his right and left are the souls of his offspring. Those on his right are the people of Paradise and those on his left are the people of Hell and when he looks towards his right he laughs and when he looks towards his left he weeps.’

Then he ascended with me till he reached the second heaven and he (Gabriel) said to its gatekeeper, ‘Open (the gate).’ The gatekeeper said to him the same as the gatekeeper of the first heaven had said and he opened the gate. Anas said: “Abu Dhar added that the Prophet met Adam, Idris, Moses, Jesus and Abraham. He (Abu Dhar) did not mention on which heavens they were but he mentioned that he (the Prophet) met Adarn on the nearest heaven and Abraham on the sixth heaven. Anas said, “When Gabriel along with the Prophet passed by Idris, the latter said, ‘Welcome! O pious Prophet and pious brother.’ The Prophet asked, ‘Who is he?’ Gabriel replied, ‘He is Idris.” The Prophet added, “I passed by Moses and he said, ‘Welcome! O pious Prophet and pious brother.’ I asked Gabriel, ‘Who is he?’ Gabriel replied, ‘He is Moses.’ Then I passed by Jesus and he said, ‘Welcome! O pious brother and pious Prophet.’ I asked, ‘Who is he?’ Gabriel replied, ‘He is Jesus.

Then I passed by Abraham and he said, ‘Welcome! O pious Prophet and pious son.’ I asked Gabriel, ‘Who is he?’ Gabriel replied, ‘He is Abraham. The Prophet added, ‘Then Gabriel ascended with me to a place where I heard the creaking of the pens.” Ibn Hazm and Anas bin Malik said: The Prophet said, “Then Allah enjoined 50 prayers on my followers when I returned with this order of Allah, I passed by Moses who asked me, ‘What has Allah enjoined on your followers?’ I replied, ‘He has enjoined 50 prayers on them.’ Moses said, ‘Go back to your Lord (and appeal for reduction) for your followers will not be able to bear it.’ (So I went back to Allah and requested for reduction) and He reduced it to half. When I passed by Moses again and informed him about it, he said, ‘Go back to your Lord as your followers will not be able to bear it.’ So I returned to Allah and requested for further reduction and half of it was reduced. I again passed by Moses and he said to me: ‘Return to your Lord, for your followers will not be able to bear it. So I returned to Allah and He said, ‘These are five prayers and they are all (equal to) 50 (in reward) for My Word does not change.’ I returned to Moses and he told me to go back once again. I replied, ‘Now I feel shy of asking my Lord again.’ Then Gabriel took me till we reached Sidrat-il-Muntaha (the utmost boundry) which was shrouded in colors, indescribable. Then I was admitted into Paradise where I found small (tents or) walls (made) of pearls and its earth was of musk.”

Sahih Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 8, Number 345.

Performing Wudu For Your Daily Prayers

  1. Niyyat – Make intention to perform Wudu in one’s mind for the purpose of worshipping Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala.
  2. Bismillah – Invoking Allah at the start of Wudu by saying Bismillah (in the Name of Allah)
  3. Hands – Wash the hands 3 times up to the wrists with water, allowing water to run between the fingers.
  4. Mouth – Rinsing the mouth with water three times. The mouth must be empty of food.
  5. Nose – Cleaning one’s nostrils by sniffing water in then out 3 times.
  6. Face – Clean the face 3 times from the top of the forehead down to the chin and from ear to ear.
  7. Arms – Wash the arms three times, from the elbows. Right arm first, then left.
  8. Head – Moisten the hands and pass them over the head from the forehead to the back of the neck (over the head), and from there back to the forehead. Never wet the neck. Then wipe the earlobes with the fore-fingers cleaning the inside of the ears and the thumbs cleaning the external side.
  9. Feet – Finally wash both feet beginning with the right first, up to the ankles. The feet should be rubbed whilst washed and water must run between the toes. No part of the foot remains dry.

Don’t Rush Through Prayer

We truly appreciate the value of something when we are deprived of it – either temporarily or irrevocably. Owing to a recent accident, I was compelled to say my prayers while sitting down, and like many others who are unable to bow down due to physical disabilities or old age, I realized the value of one of the pillars of prayer which many of us tend to rush through or neglect in ordinary circumstances: the Ruku’ (bowing/genuflection).

Obligation of Ruku
The acts of bowing and prostrating in prayer are commanded in the Qur’an and made obligatory upon the believers:

“O you who believe! Bow down and prostrate yourselves and serve your Lord.” (Qur’an, 22:77)

“Behold! The angels said: ‘O Mary! Allah has chosen you and purified you – chosen you above the women of all nations. O Mary! Worship your Lord devoutly: Prostrate thyself, and bow down (in prayer) with those who bow down.’” (Qur’an, 3:42-43)

In a Hadith (narration) the Prophet (peace be upon him) advised “the one who prayed badly”, saying, “Indeed, the prayer of one of you is not complete until he makes an excellent ablution as Allah has commanded him to … then he celebrates Allah’s greatness, praises and glorifies Him, then recites the Qur’an as much as is easy for him from what Allah has taught him and allowed him, then says Takbeer (Allahu-Akbar) and makes Ruku’ (and places his hands on his knees) until his joints are at ease and relaxed.” (Abu Dawood and An-Nasai’)

In another narration, Abu Qatadah (may Allah be pleased with him) related that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The worst people are the thieves who steal part of the prayer.” He was asked how this was done, and he replied, “The one who does not complete his bowings and prostrations,” or he said, “The one who does not straighten his back during his bowings and prostrations.” (Ahmad, At-Tabarani, Ibn Khuzaimah and Al-Hakim)

Abu Mas’ud Al-Badri (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The prayer of one who does not straighten his back in his bowing and prostration is not accomplished.” [Narrated by “the five,’’ [narrators] and Ibn Khuzaimah, Ibn Hibban, at-Tabarani and al-Baihaqi]

The Companion Hudhayfah Bin Yaman (may Allah be pleased with him) saw someone who did not straighten his back during his bowings and prostrations, and told him, “You have not prayed. And if you were to die, you would not die on the way of Allah and His Messenger.” (Al-Bukhari)