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Not Every Calamity Is a Punishment

Suffering is not necessarily a punishment for a sin one has committed, but it may be a test and trial for some people. Allah allows some people to suffer in order to test their patience and steadfastness. Even Allah’s Prophets and Messengers were made to suffer. Moreover, Allah sometimes allows some people to suffer to test others, how they react to them.

Whenever we encounter suffering we should ask ourselves, “Have we broken any law of Allah? Is the cause of the problem our own misdeeds?” In that case, we should correct the situation. “Could it be a punishment?” Let us repent and ask forgiveness and reform our ways. “Could it be a test and trial for us?” Let us work hard to pass this test. Believers face sufferings with prayers, patience, repentance and good deeds.

Further, one’s daughter’s/son’s visual impairment may seem a calamity to him/her now, but in time he/she may find that this is offset by other abilities that she/he has. Allah has given one a chance to earn a great reward in Paradise if he/she are patient with her/him and with his/her situation.

In this regard, Sheikh M. S. Al-Munajjid, a prominent Saudi Muslim lecturer and author, states:

Not every sickness or handicap is necessarily a punishment; rather it may be a test for the child’s parents, by which Allah will expiate their bad deeds or raise their status in Paradise if they bear this trial with patience. Then if the child grows up, the test will also include him, and if he bears it with patience and faith, then Allah has prepared for the patient one a reward that cannot be measured. Allah says : “Only those who are patient shall receive their reward in full, without reckoning.” (az-Zumar 10)

Fulfilling Obligations Before Hajj

Preparing for Hajj is one of the most important matters that help in performing Hajj in the right manner and ensuring that a pilgrim’s Hajj is accepted. Muslim scholars confirm that whoever wants to perform Hajj should first requite the rights of others by returning them to their rightful owners.

Almighty Allah says: “And eat up not one another’s property unjustly (in any illegal way), nor give bribery to the rulers (judges before presenting your cases) that you may knowingly eat up a part of the property of others sinfully.” (2: 188)

Almighty Allah also says: “O you who believe! Fulfill (your) obligations … ” (5: 1)

In addition, Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “The claimants would get their claims on the Day of Judgment so justly that the hornless sheep would get its claim from the horned sheep.” Abu Hurairah also narrated : “Whoever takes the money of the people with the intention of repaying it, Allah will repay it on his behalf, and whoever takes it in order to spoil it, then Allah will spoil him.” (Reported by Al-Bukhari)

Moreover, Abu Hurairah narrated : “The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, ‘Do you know who the insolvent is? They (the Companions) said, ‘An insolvent man amongst us is one who has neither dirham with him nor wealth.’ He (the Prophet) said, ‘The insolvent of my nation would be the one who would come on the Day of Judgment with prayers and fasts and Zakah (alms) but (he would find himself bankrupt on that Day as he would have exhausted his stock of virtues since) he hurled abuses upon others, spoke slander against others, unlawfully consumed the wealth of others, shed the blood of others and beat others. Thus, every one of them would be given of his virtues ( i.e., his virtues would be credited to the account of those who suffered at his hands). And if his good deeds fall short to clear the account, then their sins would be transferred to his account and he would be thrown into the Hell-Fire’.” (Reported by Muslim)

There are many other Ahadith indicating that a Muslim should return the rights he had usurped to their rightful owners.

Pleased With Allah’s Decree

When there is just one son, parents have to make him live with them; when there are several, it’s easier, as some of them can go abroad. After all, parents should not be left all alone. That is why one should have many children,’ says a mother-of-five empathetically. I remain silent, not agreeing with her simply because not everyone is blessed with children.

My mind shifts some childless couples and unmarried people I know. If Allah has kept them barren, what should their outlook be on life during old age? Should they constantly be complaining to Allah for the fate decreed on them, or should they accept their fate and be content with it, achieving peace of mind?

Almost anyone and everyone can choose to be ungrateful. A short person may wistfully look at taller people and lament on his or her natural stature; a pauper sitting on the curb may stare enviously at the glamorous cars passing by; a blind person can very well gripe about not being able to see; and of course how slightly dark-skinned people wish they had fairer skin.

If one were to cave in to negative thinking, ungratefulness and wistfulness for the blessings one has supposedly missed out on in life, he or she would be losing on something greater: the blessings they have been granted by Allah! Life’s just too short to lose the good moments wishing for what was not meant to be yours in the first place.

The tendency to be ungrateful and negative in thinking is admittedly more common in women; this is a fact that has been mentioned in several Ahadith:

“…they are ungrateful to their husbands and ungrateful for good treatment.” (Al-Bukhari)

Common Errors In Prayer That Must Be Avoided

Listed below are the 6 Common mistakes usually we make in prayers

Mistake 1: Reciting Surat al-Fatiha fast without pausing after each verse.
The Prophet (SAW) used to pause after each verse of this surah. (Abu Dawood)

Mistake 2: Sticking the arms to the sides of the body, in rukoo’ or sujood, and sticking the belly to the thighs in sujood.
The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said: ‘Let not one of you support himself on his forearms (in sujood) like the dog. Let him rest on his palms and keep his elbows away from his body.’ (Sahih Muslim). The Messenger of Allah (SAW) used to keep his arms away from his body during rukoo’ and sujood that the whiteness of his armpits could be seen (Sahih Muslim).

Mistake 3: Gazing upward during prayer.
This may cause loss of concentration. We are commanded to lower our gaze, and look at the point at which the head rests during sujood. The Prophet (SAW) warned: ‘Let those who raise their gaze up during prayer stop doing so, or else their sights would not return to them. i.e. lose their eyesight].’ (Muslim)

Mistake 4 : Resting only the tip of the head on the floor during sujood.
The Prophet (SAW) said: ‘I am commanded to prostrate on seven bones the forehead and the nose, the two hands [palms], the two knees, and the two feet.’ (Sahih Muslim) Applying the above command necessitates resting the forehead and the nose on the ground during sujood.

The Exalted Status Of Al-Aqsa Mosque

AL-AQSA is the first Qiblah (direction of prayer) of Muslims, and the land of Al-Israa’ and Al-Mi’raj. Our hearts bleed for all the sacrilegious acts been perpetrated against Al-Aqsa. The status of Al-Aqsa is clearly explained in the Hadith that reads: “People are not to travel except to three mosques: The Sacred Mosque (in Makkah), Al-Aqsa Mosque (in Jerusalem), and my Mosque (in Madinah).” (Reported by Muslim)

The city of Jerusalem was chosen at the command of Allah by Prophet Dawud (David, peace be upon him), in the 10th century B.C. After him his son Prophet Sulayman (Solomon, peace be upon him) built a mosque in Jerusalem according to the revelation that he received from Allah. For several centuries this mosque was used for the worship of Allah by many Prophets and Messengers. It was destroyed by the Babylonians in the year 586 B.C., but it was soon rebuilt and was rededicated to the worship of Allah in 516 B.C.

It continued afterwards for several centuries until the time of Prophet Isa (Jesus, peace be upon him). After he departed this world, it was destroyed by the Romans in the year 70 C.E. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was taken there in his miraculous journey of Al-Israa’ and from there he went for Al-Mi’raj. When Muslims took the city of Jerusalem in 636 C.E. during the caliphate of Umar he ordered for the building of this mosque again and it stands until now as a Masjid for the worship of Allah as it was originally built by our Prophet Sulayman (peace be upon him).

The significance of Jerusalem is that it is the city of many Prophets of Allah as Makkah is the city of Prophets Ibrahim (Abraham), Isma’il (Ishmael) and Muhammad (peace be upon all of them). The Mosque of Al-Aqsa is one of the ancient mosques and in the Qur’an Allah called it and its land “… the neighborhood whereof We have blessed…” (17: 1)

When Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was in Makkah and also for about 17 months after his Hijrah to Madinah, he and his followers used to pray toward the direction of Al-Aqsa Mosque. This was to establish in the minds of Muslims the link between the teachings of Prophet Muhammad and other Prophets of Allah (peace be upon them all). When this principle was established in their minds then Allah ordered Muslims to turn to the Ka’bah and pray toward its direction.

Now, we are not allowed to pray to the direction of Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque, but we must respect and honor the city of Jerusalem and its blessed mosque. It is also the duty of all Muslims to guard and protect this mosque from any harm and damage, for the mosque belongs to those who believe in all the Prophets and Messengers of Allah.

Aishah: Wife Of The Prophet, The Greatest Muslim Woman Scholar

The life of Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) is proof that a woman can be far more learned than men and that she can be the teacher of scholars and experts. Her life is also a proof that a woman can have influence over men and women and provide them with inspiration and leadership. Her life is also a proof that the same woman can be totally feminine and be a source of pleasure, joy and comfort to her husband.

She did not graduate from any university, as there were no universities as such in her day. But still her utterances are studied in faculties of literature, her legal pronouncements are studied in colleges of law and her life and works are studied and researched by students and teachers of Muslim history as they have been for over a thousand years.

The bulk of her vast treasure of knowledge was obtained while she was still quite young. In her early childhood, she was brought up by her father who was greatly liked and respected for he was a man of wide knowledge, gentle manners and an agreeable presence. Moreover he was the closest friend of the Noble Prophet who was a frequent visitor to their home since the very early days of his mission.

In her youth, already known for her striking beauty and her formidable memory, she came under the loving care and attention of the Prophet himself. As his wife and close companion, she acquired from him knowledge and insight such as no woman has ever acquired.

Aishah lived on, almost 50 years after the passing away of the Prophet. She had been his wife for a decade. Much of this time was spent in learning and acquiring knowledge of the two most important sources of God’s guidance, the Qur’an and the Sunnah of His Prophet. Aishah was one of three wives (the other two being Hafsah and Umm Salamah) who memorized the Revelation. Like Hafsah, she had her own script of the Qur’an written after the Prophet had died.

Why Don’t We Open Quran?

The Noble Qur’an is the focal point of our lives, or so it deserves to be. The way we approach it, or lack thereof, on the other hand, falls miserably short of ideals. I’m currently teaching a self-help class entitled “Empower Yourself – Approaching and Understanding the Qur’an”, designed to reorient ourselves to the Book of Allah in a proper manner and providing useful tools and resources to developing a life-long relationship with it. It is my intention here, in a series of posts, to raise a number of significant issues that arise with respect to the Qur’an and our approach to it.

Broadly speaking, there are two approaches to a study of the Qur’an. The conservative, cautious approach predominates among Muslims and warns against misinterpreting the Qur’an. This approach is epitomized by the statement of Abu Bakr: What sky will shelter me and what earth will hold me, if I were to interpret one word of the Qur’an without proper knowledge? In other words, not for laymen is the task to understand or interpret the Qur’an. For that, one must refer to scholars-specialist s-jurists- muftis, and not just that, but those from approved institutions or madhhabs (legal schools). What exactly those are depends upon the one making the argument.

The other approach is a more liberal one, based upon the premise that the Qur’an was revealed to everyone and not just an elite group of specialists who hold the exclusive keys to it. Historically, it came down from the heavens to speak to the Bedouins and shepherds, the shopkeepers and merchants, children and adults, women and men, the illiterate and educated-in short, every type of common man. And so it must speak to us today.

There are points and counter-points, replies and counter-replies, between these two camps that can go on endlessly. That is not our purpose here. Nor are these two groups distinct entities, but two broad ranges of approaching the Qur’an, with all the spectrum of variation in between.

In my mind, at least, the approach that is most consistent with the spirit of the Qur’an is clear. But whatever your view happens to be, one thing should be unanimous: it’s high time we open our Qur’ans again. By Allah, we need it. And the world needs it. As Khurram Murad says in his classic work on the topic: “As you come to the Qur’an, you come to a new world. It is a journey that will take you through the endless joys and riches of the words that your Creator and Lord has sent to you and all mankind. Here you will find a world of untold treasures of knowledge and wisdom to guide you on the pathways of life, and to mould your thoughts and actions.”

Let’s spread the word. Facilitate the study of the Qur’an in our circles and communities. An “Open Your Qur’an” national day. A Qur’an literacy movement. Anything you can think of. But for Allah’s sake, let us open our Qur’ans.