Reminders Benefit the Believers.

Two Simple Reminders:

`Â’ishah tells us: “During the last ten nights of Ramadan, the Prophet (peace be upon him) would tighten his waist belt and spend the night in worship. He would also wake up his family.” [Sahîh al-Bukhârî (1920)]

Abû Hurayrah relates that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Whoever spends Laylah al-Qadr in prayer, believing in Allah and seeking His reward, will be forgiven all of his past sins.” [Sahîh al-Bukhârî (1802) and Sahîh Muslim (760)]

Malaria Event: My Review :)

I spent almost the entire day on Saturday at the Gaylord National Convention Center at the Malaria Fundraiser hosted by Islamic Relief.  It was the largest fundraising event that I’ve ever been to aside from those done specifically during conventions and although the turnout wasnt as large as I had anticipated, the organization- from registration, program management, and speaker services- seemed to be handled very well, walhamdulillah.

Arab TV looks to Ramadan to Offset Losses

kinda sad……..

by Riad Abu Awad Riad Abu Awad – Mon Aug 31, 12:38 am ET
CAIRO (AFP) – Arabic television is counting on an explosion of Ramadan serials to restore losses from the global recession, but some concerned Muslims are scrambling to pull the faithful back to prayer during the holy month.

Around 60 serials hit the screens on more than 400 channels this month as producers have used bloated budgets and big names to lure advertisers during a fiercely competitive period for Arabic television dramas.

“Ramadan is the most attractive month for advertisers,” television critic Adel Abbas in Cairo told AFP, putting the ad budget — a good chunk of which is for fast-moving consumer goods — in Egypt at half a billion Egyptian pounds (100 million dollars) in Ramadan alone, 40 percent of the annual budget.

Ramadan Mubarak!

SubhanAllah, I’ve really been swamped this Ramadan and havent had the time to get out a Ramadan Mubarak to all my loyal readers (all five of you, lol).  This Ramadan, Dont forget to reconnect with the Book of Allah!

“The best of you is he who learns the Qur’an and teaches it.” [al-Bukhari]

“Will not any of you go to the masjid and learn or read two verses from the Book of Allah `azza wa jall? (For) that is better for him than two she-camels, and three (verses) are better for him than three (she-camels), and four (verses) are better for him than four (she-camels). And the number (of verses read in total) are better than the same number of camels.” [Muslim]

“Religion Allied to Progress”

In the 19th century, Samson Ralph Hirsch, a German Rabbi and founder of contemporary Orthodox Judaism, wrote about the concept of Religion being allied to progress and its effects on the Jewish Community.  Though the dynamics of the Jewish Community at that time may have been slightly different than the ummah in its current state, one cant help but feel that many of the issues Hirsch addresses are slapping us in the proverbial face time and time again.  Its a very interesting read, and one that I highly encourage people to read.  I’ve pasted a short excerpt below as well as a link to the article in its entirety.

Now what about the principle, the much-vaunted, world-redeeming principle of “religion allied to progress” If it is to be a principle–something more than an empty phrase meant for show–it must have a definable content and we must be permitted to try to clarify it. In the expression “religion allied to progress,” progress is evidently intended to qualify religion. Indeed, this is the very essence of the “idea,” not religion by itself, but religion only to the extent and in so far as it can co-exist with progress, in so far as one does not have to sacrifice progress to religion. The claim of religion is therefore not absolute but is valid only by permission of “progress.” What, then, is this higher authority to which religion is therefore not absolute but is valid only by permission of “progress”? What, then, is this higher authority to which religion has to appeal in order to gain admission? What is this “progress”?

Read Article at This Link

ISNA and the Pastor Pickup, lol.

Bismillah, was salaatu was salaam ala rasool Allah.

I’ll start with some background, and you may or may not find the story interesting

Back…

I havent been as frequent with posting recently as I’ve been out of town for the past two weeks.  InshaAllah I should be posting more often in the near future In the meantime, please enjoy the funny pic I got from a friend recently:

10 Lessons from Ibn Al Mubarak

by ibn al Jawzi

‘Abdullah bin al-Mubarak was a scholar known for simultaneously combining numerous traits of virtue. In fact, his friends would sit and count all of the good things that were part of his character and personality. adh-Dhahabi related that they said: “Let’s sit and count the good traits that Ibn al-Mubarak has.” So, they ended up listing: “Knowledge, Fiqh, literature, grammar, language, zuhd, eloquence, poetry, praying at night, worship, Hajj, Jihad, bravery, instinct, strength, speaking little in what doesn’t concern him, fairness, and lack of conflict with his companions.”

Reading through his life story, one sees exactly this and cannot help but to derive brief yet heavy lessons from how this man lived:

1- No matter how bad you think you are, you can always become better.

Places and Times when Duas are Answered

There are many times and places where du’aa’ is answered. There follows a summary thereof:

1 – Laylat al-Qadar. It was narrated that ‘Aa’ishah asked the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “If I know what night is Laylat al-Qadar, what should I say during it?” He said: “Say: Allaahumma innaka ‘afuwwan tuhibb ul-‘afwa fa’fu ‘anni (O Allaah, You are forgiving and love forgiveness, so forgive me).”

Ramadan on Campus

When starting school, one of the most difficult prospects was that of spending the blessed days of Ramadan stuck in classes or studying for an exam.  In fact, during my freshman year, I purposefully scheduled classes early morning so that I wouldnt have to deal with classes in the evening, and although I still got stuck with one evening class, I usually just took a snack with me, took a quick break for salah and then jetted out of class for taraweeh when class commenced.

It wasnt until my sophomore year in college that I began to understand that there was indeed a culture of Ramadan that existed on campus- the prayer area would routinely be filled, there was a more visible Muslim presence around the university, and best of all, there were daily iftars that many attended not only out of necessity, but preference.  It was amongst the most beneficial initiatives that the George Mason University MSA ever instituted, and it goes as far back as I can remember.

Every single night in Ramadan, Monday-Thursday, the GMU MSA provided Iftar for students on campus.  Between 150 and 300 students would come nightly (and continue to do so in Ramadan), and the cost for one night of iftar range between $1000 and $1400.  90% of the funding for iftars occured through fundraising, and traditionally that didnt necessarily pose a problem because the time between the start of the semester and the start of Ramadan provided the MSA with enough time to go out and elicit the requisite funding from students.

For this upcoming Ramadan, the school year will be starting after (or slightly before) Ramadan begins.  If you can, I HIGHLY encourage you to donate whatever you can to this cause, no matter how little it is.  Alhamdulillah, the GMU MSA has set up an online donation site through chip in and you can see how much has been raised up until now:

http://gmumsa.chipin.com/iftars-on-campus-2009

A little encouragement :

The Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) said, “Whoever feeds a fasting person will have a reward equal to that of the fasting person, without any reduction in his reward.”

[Related by Ahmad and Al-Nasai. Also verified by Al-Albani as sahih].