New Year Resolutions – Part 1

Hope everyone had a wonderful start to this new year, inshaAllah. I felt like the previous year just flew by me and I didn’t achieve much. So I’ve decided a make a few new year resolutions to help myself be a better Muslim and whether I achieve much in this dunya or not, I should prepare for my akhirah.

It is believe that in order to make anything a habit, one needs to repeat it over prolonged periods of time. Once you’ve done it 20 times or more, it will eventually come naturally. Hence, I’ve decided to spread my new years resolution over the period of next 12 months. This way, it is not overwhelming and it gives me time to practice.

The other benefit is that I have time to concentrate on perfecting this ONE thing and even if my imaan dwindles at any point, I can push myself to just do that single thing instead of trying to do a bunch of things and then feeling like I can’t go on. 

So here are my resolutions so far:

1. Praying salah at proper times. I wanted to start with salah because it’s the difference between a true Muslims and a non Muslim. It’s what makes us different. It’s also the way we connect with Allah. Unfortunately, I used to miss prayers at times because I used to get preoccupied with other things or find it difficult to wake up for fajr. 

2. Reciting Surah Kahf every Thursday after maghrib or on Friday before maghrib.

3. Reciting Surah Mulk daily. It’s the Surah that will protect us again the punishment of the grave.

4. Learning a new Surah.

5. Waking up for tahajjud. Several scholars recommend this as the best time to pray and make heartfelt dua to Allah (swt).

6. Spending at least 2 mins reciting dua after every salah. Most people might it confusing how this can be difficult. But I had never been in a habit of making regular dua after salah and there are other reasons which I won’t go into.

7. Reciting duas upon waking up and going to bed. I would love to include how beneficial some of these duas are. InshaAllah, I’ll cover them in individual posts when I get to them.

Right now this is no set order. I figure that I should probably test it out and see how it goes before fixating on what I’m going to be doing next. One thing’s for sure, salah is this month’s priority.

Now these are only 7 because at the moment as they are something I want to achieve. I may make changes as and when I see fit. If anyone would like to join me, they are most welcome. And of course, it doesn’t have to be the same set of things that you’d like to do. It can be anything you’d like to fix. Do let me know if you decide to join. It might be more motivating for us.

Something To Reflect On

A hadith I came across recently:

The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam) said, “Allah `azza wa jall said: ‘Verily, from amongst My slaves is he whose faith cannot be rectified except by being inflicted with poverty, and were I to enrich him, it would surely corrupt him. Verily, from amongst My slaves is he whose faith cannot be rectified except by wealth and affluence, and were I to deprive him, it would surely corrupt him. Verily, from amongst My slaves is he whose faith cannot be rectified except by good health, and were I to make him sick, it would surely corrupt him. Verily, from amongst My slaves is he whose faith cannot be rectified except by disease and illness, and were I to make him healthy, it would surely corrupt him. Verily, from amongst My slaves is he who seeks worship by a certain act but I prevent that from him so that self-amazement does not enter his heart. Certainly, I run the affairs of My slaves by My Knowledge of what is in their hearts. Certainly, I am the All-Knower, All-Aware.‘”

[Reported by al-Tabarani.]

If anyone comes across an explanation for this hadith in more detail, please do post in the comments.

Jazakallah khair.

Low Imaan/Faith

It’s an extremely common problem that everyone of us have faced at some point or the other in our lives. Yet, it can be very dangerous because at times this can lead people out of the fold of Islam. So it’s important that we recognize when our imaan is low and work on things that will help improve it.

The Prophet Muhammad (S) said: “Faith wears out in the heart of any one of you just as clothes wear out, so ask Allah to renew the faith in your hearts” (Mustadrak al-Haakim).

How can we recognize when our faith dwindles?
- One feels irritated and moody and even depressed.
- They delay good deeds and sunnah, such as salat (prayer).
- Not remembering Allah in dua or dhikr.
- Quranic ayahs not having an effect on the person.
- Stinginess/miserliness.

What one can do to boost their imaan?
- Make dua if you feel your imaan is low.
- Reflect on ayahs of the Quran. Here are a few ayahs that one might feel at ease when reading:

93:1 By the Glorious Morning Light,
93:2 And by the Night when it is still,-
93:3 Thy Guardian-Lord hath not forsaken thee, nor is He displeased.
93:4 And verily the Hereafter will be better for thee than the present.
93:5 And soon will thy Guardian-Lord give thee (that wherewith) thou shalt be well-pleased.

4:99 For these, there is hope that Allah will forgive: For Allah doth blot out (sins) and forgive again and again.

35:29  who rehearse the Book of Allah, establish regular Prayer, and spend (in Charity) out of what We have provided for them, secretly and openly, hope for a commerce that will never fail:

- If you are feeling low, give something in charity. It has helped me feel better.
- Do dhikr and when you suffer from bad thoughts, say “audhubillah”. Some forms of dhikr:
Subhan’Allah- ‘Praise be to Allah’
Al-Hamdullilah- ‘Thanks be to Allah’
Allahu Akbar – ‘Allah is the Greatest.’
La ila ha illallah- There is no worthy of worship except allah

Things that can help prevent imaan from decreasing:
- Avoiding sin as sin hardens the heart. This means both major and minor sins. We have to keep improving ourselves and trying to be better Muslims.
- Keeping good company and avoiding the bad. Our family and friends influence us and it is important to try and stay in the company of good people who remember Allah (swt) often and hasten to do good deeds.
- Performing good deeds.
- Praying regularly and remembering Allah (swt) often.
- Remembering death.

I’ve tried to keep the topic short and simple. If you have had some ayahs/hadith, etc which have benefited your imaan, please feel free to share.

Duas Unanswered

There are times in our lives when we are concerned about our duas not being accepted but one should not feel disheartened.

Allah says in the Quran:
“When my servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close to them: I respond to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me; let them also, with a will, listen to My call and believe in Me: that they may walk in the right way”
(surah Baqarah 2:186)

He (swt) listens to every supplication and either the dua is answered or it is kept for a later time or Allah (swt) removes some misfortune from the path of the person or it is kept to be given as a reward in the Hereafter.
The Prophet (pbuh) said:
“If a Muslim invokes Allah for other than sin or the severing of relations, Allah in turn responds to his Du’a in one of three ways; either He accepts it (and grants what was asked for),or He delays its reward to the Hereafter, or He removes a calamity from him that equals his Du’a (in magnitude). The Companions said, “ We will then supplicate often.” The Prophet (pbuh) replied, “Allah will reward you greatly.” [Ahmad, Bazzar, Abu Ya’la and Hakim]
The Prophet (pbuh) explained how the answer of a Du’a is good in all its forms even if it appears as though they were not answered. The Prophet (pbuh) said:
“On the day of judgement, Allah will call a believer until he stands before Him. ‘O My servant, I have commanded you to call upon Me and have promised to answer you. Did you truly call upon Me?’ He (the servant) will say, ‘Yes, my Lord.’ Allah will say, ‘Whenever you called upon Me I answered you. Did you not call upon Me on the day of such and such to relieve your calamity and I did?’The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah will say, ‘I gave it you in the worldly life, Allah will add, ‘Did you not call upon Me on the day of such and such to relieve your calamity but it seemed that I did not reply to you.’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah will say, ‘I compensated such and such for you in Paradise.’ Allah will say, ‘Did you not call on Me to meet your need and I did.’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah will add, “I gave it to you in worldly life.’ ‘Did you not call on Me on the day of such and such to meet your need but it seemed that I did not reply to you.’ The servant will say, ‘Yes my Lord.’ Allah will say, ‘I compensated such and such for you in Paradise.” The Messenger of Allah said, “ Allah will never leave out any supplication of a believer unless He will expound this for him through the following; either He will give it to him in worldly life or delay it in the Hereafter. Thereupon, the believer will say, ‘I wish I was given nothing of my du’a in this world.” [Hakim]

So even if for some reason our duas seemed to not have been answered for this world, they will be as rewards in the Hereafter. The best thing to do then is to be assured that no matter what, we will always benefit from making duas.

Death in Islam part 2

The following hadith talks about what happens after a person dies.

From Al-Baraa’ ibn Aazib (ra), who said:

“We went out with Allah’s Messenger (saws) with the funeral of a man of the Ansar and we came to the grave and the niche in the side of the grave (al-Lahd), had not been dug out yet, so Allah’s Messenger (saws) sat and we sat around him as if we had birds upon our heads, and in his hand he had a stick with which he was striking the ground. Then he raised his head and said: ‘Seek Allah’s refuge from the Punishment of the Grave,’ two or three times. Then he said: ‘When the believing servant is leaving this world and going onto the Hereafter, angels with white faces – as if their faces were in the Sun – descend upon him. With them is a shroud from the shrouds of Paradise and perfume for embalming from the perfume of Paradise, so they sit away from him at the distance the eye can see and then the Angel of Death (as) comes and sits by his head and says: “O good soul, come out to forgiveness from Allah and His good pleasure.” He said: “So it comes out, just as a drop flows out from the mouth of the drinking vessel, and he takes it but does not leave it in his hand even for the blink of an eye until they take it and places it in that shroud, and that perfume, and there comes out from him a smell like that of the best musk found upon the face of the earth.” He said: “So they ascend with it, (i.e. the persons soul) and they do not pass by any group of Angels except that they say: ‘Who is this good and pure soul?’ So they reply: “So and so, the son of so and so.” with the best of his names which he used to be called by in this world, until they come to the lowest Heaven, and ask that it should be opened for him, so it is opened for him, they accompany him through every Heaven until he is taken up to the seventh Heaven, and Allah the Al-Mighty says: “Write the record of my slave in Illiyon (signifying highness) and return him to earth to his body.” Then they say: “Who is your Lord?” So he will say: “My Lord is Allah.” So they will say: “What is your Deen?” He will say: “My Deen is Islam.” So they say: “Who is the man who was sent amongst you?” So he will say: “He is Allah’s Messenger.” So they say: “How did you come to know that?” So he will say: “I read the Book of Allah, and believed in it , and attested to it.” So a caller will call from Heaven: “Indeed My servant has spoken the Truth, so spread a place for him in Paradise, and a open a door to Paradise for him, so some of its fragrances and scents come to him and his grave is extended as far as the eye can see.” He said: “A person with a Handsome face, and beautiful clothes and good smell comes to him and says. ‘Receive good news, which will please you. This is the day which you were promised.’ So he says to him: “Who are you?, since your face appears to signify good.” So he says: “I am your righteous actions.” He therefore says: “O Lord, establish the Last Hour. O Lord establish the Last Hour – so that I may return to my family and wealth.”

But when the unbelieving servant is leaving this world and going into the Hereafter, angels with black faces descend upon him as far as the eye can see. The Angel of Death comes and sits by his head and says: “O foul soul, come out to Allah’s displeasure and anger.” So the soul spreads throughout the body, so he (the Angel of Death) drags it out, just as a pronged roasting fork is pulled out of wool. So he takes it, but does not leave it in his hand for the blink of an eye until they put it in those coarse sack cloths. Then there comes from him an offensive stench, like that of the foulest smelling corpse rotting upon the face of the earth. So they ascend with it (i.e. the soul), and they do not pass by any group of angels except that they say: “what is that foul smell!” So they say: “So and so, son of so and so,” calling him with the ugliest names which he used to be called with in this world, until they come with him to the lowest heaven, and ask permission to enter, and it is not opened for him.” Then Allah’s Messenger (saws) recited:

“…for them the gates of heaven will not be opened, and they will not enter Paradise until the camel goes through the eye of a needle (which is impossible).” (Qur’an Al-Araf 7:40)

Allah (swt) says: “write his record in Sijjeen (a name signifying constriction) within the lowest earth.” Then his soul is flung down, and he recited:

“…and whoever assigns partners to Allah, it is as if he had fallen from the sky, and the birds had snatched him, or the wind had thrown him to a far off place.” (Qur’an Al-Hajj 22:31)

So his soul is returned to his body and two Angels come and make him sit up. Then they say to him: “Who is your Lord?” So he will say: “Ah, ah, I don’t know.” So they will say: “Who is this man who was sent amongst you?” So he will say: Ah, ah, I don’t know.” So a caller will call from heaven: “You have lied so spread a place for him in the Fire, and open a door to the Fire for him.” So some of its heat and scorching air comes upon him, and his grave is constricted to the extent that his ribs interlace, and a man with an ugly face, unsightly clothes and smelling offensively comes to him and says: “Receive news of that which will grieve you, this is the day which you were promised.” So he will say: “Who are you?” He will answer: “I am your evil actions.” So the unbeliever will say: “O Lord, Do not establish the Last Hour.”

It is important for us to read and reflect upon the hadith and imagine ourselves in such a situation. Once we are touched by death, there is no going back. There is nothing more we can do to improve our status in the eyes of Allah (swt). We can never be sure how long we have. Would we continue to live the way we do if we knew we’d die today?

“Until when death comes to one of them (those who join partners with Allah), he says: “O my Lord! Send me back in order that I may work righteousness in the things I have neglected…” (Qur’an Al-Mu’minun 23:99-100)

Allah accept the repentance of those who do evil in ignorance and repent afterwards; to them will Allah turn in mercy, for Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom. Of no effect is the repentance of those who continue to do evil until death faces one of them and he says: ‘Now have I repented indeed’, Nor of those who die rejecting faith; for them We have prepared a punishment most grievous.” (Qur’an An-Nisa 4:17-18)