There was also a disabled person who lived in the hostel and Maulana was touched and inspired by the dedication and devotion this person would show in attending Salah, despite living on the fourth floor.  As a consequence he first went to Jamaat for 3 days, and then spent more time in Jamaat.  After completing a period of four months in Jamaat, Maulana decided to leave his medical studies and enrol for the Alim course at Raiwind Madrassah.  As a result of leaving his medical studies his parents disowned him.  After 10 years of study Maulana graduated as an Alim.

He has travelled accross the world to deliver speeches and has touched the hearts of many, including Saeed Anwar, Junaid Jamshed and Yousuf Youhana.  Very recently (March 2010) Maulana suffered a heart attack though he is recovering well at this moment in time.

May Allah give long life and good health to Maulana Tariq Jamil in order that the Ummah continue to benefit from him.

Adapted from www.tariqjamil.org

Some of Maulana’s Urdu speeches can be heard at the following website. Islam Bayanaat

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Whilst I was at University a few years ago, there was a mobile contract ‘everyday 50′ where 50 free mins off peak daily were given.  Off peak time would start (7pm) and the network would jam up and in some cases you would have problems trying to dial out.  Everyone would so keenly utilise these free minutes they had to the point the network.

Thinking about life, each day we are given ‘free minutes’, but do we utilise these minutes as religiously as we might use the free minutes we get on our mobile?  Do we also show as much determination to perform our salah on time?  Networks might jam up at peak times but unfortunately the Masjids are empty at congregational prayer times.

After the 50 free mins are used up, calls were charged at 1p a min.  In our mind a quick cost benefit analysis and we would make calls even at this rate because the pleasure or benefit we get is deemed greater than the cost.  Sadly we dont have this mentality when it comes performing a’amaal and Ibadaat.

We have been awarded additional voluntary prayers during the course of our day, but do we take stock to reflect on the benefits and rewards we would get for performing them?  Or do we pretend and inflate the cost of our time and pursue worthless and worldly pursuits instead?  Do we even really have to be ’sold’ in order to perform good deeds instead of doing them for the love of Allah and His messenger?

 These days free text messages are also given away as part of mobile phone tariffs.  This allows us to keep in touch with friends/ colleagues easily and within a few seconds we can communicate a message across the globe.

Do we take a few seconds out during our day to send a message to Allah or His Rasul (peace and blessings upon him) in the form of dhikr or Durood?  All one needs to do is say Allahu Akbar or Sallahu alayhi wasallam to complete the task.

Lastly, we would be ashamed if we paid money for the mobile contracts and tariffs we have and we never used the free minutes and texts we got wisely.  Why then don’t we feel ashamed of the free minutes in life that we have been given but we waste them in idle pastimes and pursuits.

May Allah Almighty give us the ability to make good use of our time, ameen.

Please remember me, my family and teachers in your du’as.

Wasalam

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[Moroccan Proverb]

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If they go on at this rate,
They’ll all enter Paradise through Rayyan’s gate,
But I promised to lead the children of Aadam astray,
This Ramadan thing’s clearly not going my way

So one of his chained jinns looked up from the devilish herds,
And said if ye bid me sire to say some words,
I have just the plan to fool the muslim ummah,
And seduce them away from that place called Jannah

Pray tell, my devilish companion…Please
We must lower those muslims by degrees,
For their good deeds have become vast like the seas,
I’m going to lose my reputation as Iblees!

Microchips –Its called the internet
Its an idea you gotta hear-you won’t regret,
I’ve thought long and hard about this one,
And boy,Oh boy…is this some fun.

At the touch of a keyboard they have an Islamic forum,
Where they think they’re increasing their imaan with much decorum,
And they log on and click with their mouse,
Not realising they’ve entered a room from shaitaan’s house.

We’ll teach them to backbite, argue and fight,
They’ll leave reciting the Quran and lose their heavenly light,
Sufis verus salafis and vice versa,
All at the click of a mouse and cursor.

At the touch of a button they can curse the scholars,
Nowadays a laptop costs just a few hundred dollars,
And they’ll type bad words about Ibn Arabi and Ibn Taymeeyah,
Without any knowledge of the sciences of the Shariah.

Non-Mahrems can interact on chatrooms from Pakistan to France,
What began as da’wah often ends up in Romance,
Tahajjud prayers go out of the window,
The troops of hell will just grow and grow.

We’ll drown them in information overload,
Hell will be waiting; their final abode,
Lost in useless bits, bytes and endless sights
Ghaflah, Ghaflah- They’ll waste their nights.

Instead of using tasbeehs for performing dhikr
We’ll create nonsensical arguments and make them bicker,
And brother against brother shall live in divide,
Through endless debates we’ll inject poison inside.

As for the very sinful, there’ll be pornography
And music dancing and much debauchery,
Who can resist those pop-up windows?
Can you see, master, muslims entering hell in their throes?

The ultimate computer virus is called shaitaan,
That Trojan horse will snatch away your precious imaan,
He’s an evil whizz who has lots of experience
His aim in life is to take your soul to decadence.

Oh Slave of Allah(swt) be not so sordid,
Your internet access is being tapped and recorded
By the noble angels on your shoulders that accompany you,
You might escape human cameras but you can’t escape Allah’s view.

Say a’oodhubillah, And don’t waste your time
Spend each moment in dhikr of the divine,
Use technology to please the Lord of Creation
Avoid trivial pursuits and satanic temptation.

Author unknown

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If you hear the Azan you must listen and respond to the call of Allah. Many people, even those with Islamic knowledge continue talking while the Azan is being called. This is rude, since those hearing the Azan should listen to it and quit speech, study and even Quran recitation. Solemnly they should repeat the words of the Azan and reflect on the words of this highest call. We should listen to the Azan, whether we are at home, office, shop, or attending a lesson, even if it is a religious lesson. Imam Al-Kasani in Badaiu Al-Sanaei’ said: ‘Those hearing the Azan or Iqama should not talk. Even if reading Quran or doing other noble things, everything should be stopped to listen and respond to the Azan’.

The Azan is the food of the soul nourishing it with faith and elevation. Do not forgo your share of it. Teach this to your children and friends. Al-Bukhari narrated a Hadith by Abu Saeed Al-Khudri that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: ‘If you heard the call say like what the Muezzin is saying.’ In another Hadith reported by Jaber that the Prophet said ‘He deserves my help on the day of judgment who said when hearing Azan: O’ Allah, the Lord of this perfect call and imminent prayer, please award Mohammad the help, nobility, and the desired status you promised him.’

Imam Abdul Razaq narrated in his Musanaf that Ibn Juraig said: ‘I was told that people used to listen to Azan like they would listen to recitation of Quran. They would repeat after the Muezzin. If he said: come to prayer, they will say: with the help and power of Allah. If he said: come to the good deed, they will say: with the will of Allah.

4.2 TALK IN A SUITABLE TONE
If you speak to a guest or any other person, whether in a gathering or alone, make sure that your voice is pleasant, with a low, audible tone. Raising your voice is contrary to proper manners and indicates a lack of respect for the person to whom you are talking. This manner should be maintained with friends, peers, acquaintances, strangers, the young and the old. It is more important to adhere to this with one’s parents or someone of their status, or with people for whom you have great respect. If appropriate, smile while talking to others. This will make them more receptive to what you have to say, and may dispel the impression that practicing Muslims are stern and humorless.

The Quran tells us that the advice of Luqman the Wise to his son was, ‘…and lower your voice,’ directing him to speak in a gentle manner, for speaking loudly is detested and ugly. Verses two and three of Surat Al-Hujurat read: ‘Oh you who believe! Raise not your voices, above the voice of the Prophet, nor speak aloud to him as you speak aloud to one another, lest your deeds become vain and you perceive not. Those that lower their voices in the presence of Allah’s apostle, Allah has tested their hearts for piety, for them there is forgiveness and a great reward.’

Imam Al-Bukhari in his Sahih reported that ‘Abdullah bin Al-Zubair said that after the revelation of this verse, whenever Omar bin Al-Khattab wanted to speak to the Prophet (PBUH), he would talk as if whispering. The Prophet would hardly hear him and he would inquire about some of what Omar said, since he did not hear him well.

Your talk should be clear, concise and to the point. Do not talk and talk and talk. Bukhari and Muslim reported that Anas said ‘The Prophet’s talk was precise clear, and succinct without undue elaboration.’ Al-Hafiz Al-Zahabi wrote in his biography of Imam Ibn Sireen, the great scholar and eminent follower of the companions, that: ‘Whenever he was in his mother’s presence, he would talk in such a low voice that you would think that he was ill.’ In his biography of Abdullah bin Awn Al-Basri, a student of Imam Ibn Sireen and one of the famous scholars Al-Hafiz Al-Zahabi, noted: ‘One time his mother called him and because he responded with a voice louder than hers, he was fearful and repentant and he freed two slaves.’

‘Asim bin Bahdelah Al-Koofi, the reciterof the Quran, said: ‘I visited Omar bin ‘Abdul Aziz, and a man spoke loudly, and Omar replied: ‘Stop it. You need not talk loudly. Talk loud enough to make your listeners hear.’

4.3 THE ART OF LISTENING
If a person started telling you or your group something that you know very well, you should pretend as if you do not know it. Do not rush to reveal your knowledge or to interfere with the speech. Instead, show your attention and concentration. The honourable follower Imam ‘Ata ibn Abi Rabah said: ‘A young man would tell me something that I may have heard before he was born. Nevertheless, I listen to him as if I have never heard it before.’

Khalid bin Safwan Al-Tamimi, who was with the two caliphs Omar bin Abdul Aziz; and Hisham bin Abdul Malik, said: ‘If a person tells you something you have heard before, or news that you already learned, do not interrupt him or her to exhibit your knowledge to those present. This is a rude and an ill manner.’ The honourable Imam ‘Abdullah bin Wahab Al-Qurashi Al-Masri, a companion of Imam Malik, Al-Laith bin Sa’d and Al-Thawri, said: ‘Sometimes a person would tell me a story that I have heard before his parents had wed. Yet I listen as if I have never heard it before.’ Ibrahim bin Al-Junaid said: ‘A wise man said to his son: ‘learn the art of listening as you learn the art of speaking. Listening well means maintaining eye contact, allowing the speaker to finish the speech, and restraining yourself from interrupting his speech.’

Al-Hafiz Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi said in a poem:

A talk never interrupt
Though you know it in and out

from the book ISLAMIC MANNERS
By Shaykh Abdul-Fattaah Abu Ghuddah (RA)

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He frequently travels the world for da’wah and lectures, including countries such as Australia, United Kingdom, USA, Somalia, Palestine, Eygpt, Turkey, Sri Lanka & Malawi.

Shaykh Ebrahim I. Bham is also the founder member and vice chairman of Johannesburg Muslim School, executive committee member of National Religious Leaders Forum (Initiated By South Africans for Greater Liaison between Religious Groups and Government), executive member of Muslim AIDS Programme (MAP), national trustee of Moral Regeneration Movement (Working towards the improvement of morality amongst South Africans) and also an executive member of the United Ulama Council of South Africa (UUCSA).

Shaykh Ebrahim I. Bham is presently the chief theologian and general-secretary of the Council of Muslim Theologians in Johannesburg, South Africa (http://www.islamsa.org.za/). Shaykh Ebrahim I. Bham lives in Johannesburg, South Africa with his wife and three children.  Some of Shaykh ebrahim’s lectures can be heard from the Every Muslim site.

May Allah give a long a life and good health in order for us to benefit from the Shaykh, ameen.

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‘Amr ibn Shu’ayb reported from his grandfather that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said,

“Do not pluck out white hair. It will be the light of a Muslim on the Day of Rising.”

[at-Tirmidhi]

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She recited this kalimah and immediately dived into the fire. The fire had no effect on her as well. She then came out of the fire and went and rebuked and censured her father. He subjected her to great difficulties but she remained steadfast on her iman.

Lesson: Glory be to Allah! How courageous she was that she did not abandon her iman even when in difficulty! O women! You should also be strong-willed at the time of difficulties and do not act contrary to the Deen even if it equals a hair’s breadth.

Source: Bahesti Zewar

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Before they knew it, they were sending him off to school.
They were so happy; he shined like a precious little jewel.
He was taught that he was a Muslim, but that’s about all he knew.
He wanted to know more but his dad had way too many things to do.
He had cute little cheeks; they turned rosy as he got tired.
He was a handsome little guy, he was always admired.

But with his parents so busy, he never got to learn about Allah.
The days past by and his parents never taught him how to do Salah.
Some more years past by, and by now his voice began to change.
He felt new emotions, and he liked them, even though they felt strange.
His dad finally took him one day to some Islamic Sunday school.
But he had already learned from his friends that religion just wasn’t cool.

Time passed by and the little man grew older.
With the passage of time his temper became bolder.
His mother was getting worried, he was found to be ditching school.
But she didn’t say anything, or else his temper would flare up like fuel.
He would go to parties and come home all drunk.
And in some of his classes he was now beginning to flunk.

Her cute little rosy-cheeked child had become a wild young man.
She cried every night because teaching him Islam was never in her plan.
He meet a pretty girl named Rose, he thought he loved her for sure.
She noticed how he felt, so she asked him to go out with her.
He thought it was love at first sight, she kissed him on the first date.
But she just wanted to sleep with him, yet to that he had no debate.

He would go out all night with her, sometimes without even saying good-bye.
“Why didn’t I show him the deen?” His father could only cry.
He kept on partying while his family kept on weeping.
And he meet other girls, and with them too he was also sleeping.
He started to look sick, and he wasn’t really felling so good.
His mother just had to cry, he didn’t look like the way he should.

He went to the doctor for what he thought was a cold.
“Young man, you got AIDS,” is what he was told.
When his mom found out she just couldn’t take the pain.
For not teaching him his deen, she knew she was to blame.
Mo got sicker and you could see him getting weaker day by day.
And he didn’t know Allah, so to Him he never prayed.

What could she do now for her once precious little guy?
She knew he needed the deen, but now she could only cry.
His time came one day so the Angel came for his spirit.
His dad told him to say la ilaha illalah, but Mo didn’t hear it.
“What’s that dad? I can’t seem to hear you, everything’s going dull.”
But before Mo ever heard it, the Angel was off with his soul.

His father fell to his knees and cried like he never did before.
He knew he should have taught him the deen, so he felt guilty to the core.

This is the story of little Mo. Lets not let it be the story of our kid’s
situation. So please, my dear brothers and sisters, take this deen to the next
generation with seriousness and its totality
and we must show it to them from our action inshaAllah.

May Allah azza wa jaal guide us all to The Truth Of Al-Islam, protect us from all evils and make us the carriers of Islam to the next generation and the rest of humanity Ameen.

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Birth and Birth place:

The complete name of Imam Nawawi is Abu Zakaria Mohiuddin Yahya, son of Sharaf An-Nawawi, son of Murry, son of Hassan, son of Hussain, son of Muhammad, son of Juma, son of Hazam. Nawawi refers to Nawa, a place near Damascus, in the suburb of the city of Howran. One of his ancestors named Hazam had settled at this place. Imam Nawawi was born at Nawa in the year 631 A.H. His father, a virtuous and pious man, resolved to arrange for proper and befitting education as he had discovered the symptoms of heavenly intelligence and wisdom in his promising child at an early stage.

Shaikh Yasin bin Yousuf Marakashi, a saintly figure of Nawa says: “I saw Imam Nawawi at Nawa when he was a youth of ten years of age. Other boys of his age used to force him to play with them, but Imam Nawawi would always avoid the play and would remain busy with the recitation of the Noble Qur’an. When they tried to domineer and insisted on his joining their games, he bewailed and expressed his no concern over their foolish action. On observing his sagacity and profundity, a special love and affection developed in my heart for young Nawawi. I approached his teacher and urged him to take exceptional care of this lad as he was to become a great religious scholar and most pious saint of future. His teacher asked whether I was a soothsayer or an astrologer. I told him I am neither soothsayer nor an astrologer but Allah caused me to utter these words.” His teacher conveyed this incident to Imam’s father and he keeping in view the learning quest of his son, decided to dedicate the life of his son for the service and promotion of the cause of Islamic Faith.

In a short period, Nawawi learnt to read the Holy Qur’an and by that time he nearly had attained puberty. Nawa had no academic or scholarly atmosphere and there were no religious academies or institutes where one could earn excellence in religious learning, so his father took him to Damascus, which was considered the center of learning and scholarship, and the students from far and wide gathered there for schooling. During that period, there were more than three hundred institutes, colleges and universities in Damascus. Imam Nawawi joined Madrasah Rawahiyah which was affiliated with the Ummvi University. The founder and patron of this Madrasah was a trader named Zakiuddin Abul-Qassim who was known as Ibn Rawahah. Madrasah was named after him. Noted and eminent teachers of the period taught in that Madrasah. Imam Nawawi says, “I studied in this institution for two years. During my stay in Madrasah Rawahiyah, I never had complete rest and lived on the limited food supplied by the institution.” As a routine he used to sleep very little at night. When it became irresistible as a human being, he would lean and slumber for a while against the support of books. After a short duration he would again be hard at his scholastic pursuits.

His Teachers and Guides:

During his stay at Damascus, he studied from more than twenty celebrated teachers. These teachers were regarded as masters and authority of their subject field and disciplines they taught. Imam studied Hadith, Islamic Jurisprudence, its principles, syntax and Etymology from great scholars of his time. Abu Ibrahim Ishaq bin Ahmad AI-Maghribi, Abu Muhammad Abdur-Rahman bin Ibrahim Al-Fazari, Radiyuddin Abu Ishaq Ibrahim bin Abu Hafs Umar bin Mudar Al-Mudari, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim bin Isa Al-Muradi, Abul-Baqa Khalid bin Yusuf An-Nablusi, Abul-Abbas Ahmad bin Salim Al-Misri, Abu Abdullah Al-Jiyani, Abul-Fath Umar bin Bandar, Abu Muhammad At-Tanukhi, Sharafuddin Abdul-Aziz bin Muhammad Al-Ansari, Abul-Faraj Abdur-Rahman bin Muhammad bin Ahmad Al-Maqdisi, Abul-Fada’il Sallar bin Al-Hasan Al Arbali etc.

His Students:

There were hundreds of Imam’s students, among them some notables are: Alauddin bin Attar, Ibn Abbas Ahmad bin Ibrahim, Abul-Abbas Al-Ja’fari, Abul-Abbas Ahmad bin Farah, Rashid Ismail bin Mu’allim Al-Hanafi, Abu Abdullah Al-Hanbali, AbulAbbas Al-Wasti, Jamaluddin Sulaiman bin Omar Az-Zar’i, AbulFaraj Abdur-Rahman bin Muhammad bin Abdul-Hamid AlMaqdisi, Badr Muhammad bin Ibrahim, Shamsuddin Muhammad bin Abu Bakr, Ash-Shihab Muhammad bin Abdul-Khaliq, Hibatullah Al-Barizi, Abul-Hajjaj Yusuf bin Az-Zaki etc.

His Desire and Crave for Learning:

Imam Nawawi had endless thirst for knowledge, and it can be guessed from his daily practice of studies. He used to read daily twelve lessons and write explanation and commentary of every lesson and also made important additions. Whatever the book he read, he put down the marginal notes and explanations on that book. His intelligence, hard work, love, devotion and absorption in his-studies amazed his teachers and they become fond of him and began to praise and admire him. According to Imam Dhahabi, Imam Nawawi’s concentration and absorption in academic love gained proverbial fame. He had devoted all his time for learning and scholarship. Other than reading and writing, he spent his time contemplating on the interacted and complex issues and in finding their solutions. Allah had also conferred upon him the gift of fast memory and depth of thought, and he who makes the right use of this boon, there remains no doubt in his sagacity and discernment. Imam Nawawi made full benefit of his God given qualities and potentialities and earned the highest degree of honor.

Imam’s Simplicity and Niceness of Manners:

The learned persons, elite of the society and the public greatly respected the Imam on account of his piety, learning and excellent character. He used simple dress and ate simple food. Devout scholars do not care about worldly chattels, they give preference to religious and academic pursuits, propagation of Faith etc. They experience more heavenly delight and joy in such activities than those who seek satisfaction in luxurious foods, precious clothes and other worldly things. Imam Nawawi had a prominent place among the erudite notables of his age. He was God-fearing person having illustrious and glorious aims regarding propagation of Faith. Celebrated Sheikh Mohiuddin expresses his impression about Imam Nawawi as thus:
“Imam Nawawi had three distinctive commendable qualities in his person. If anybody have only one out of these three, people return to him in abundance for guidance. First, having knowledge and its dissemination. Second, to evade completely from the worldly inclinations, and the third, inviting to all that is good (Islam) enjoining Al-Ma’ruf [i.e., Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do] and forbidding Al-Munkar [polytheism and disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden]. Imam Nawawi had all three in him.”

His works and his death:

The learned Imam had a very short life but even during this short period, he had written a large number of books on different subjects. Every work of the Imam is a masterwork and a treasure of knowledge. Hundreds and thousands of people benefit from these works.

Some of the Prestigious Works of Imam Nawawi are:

Commentary on Sahih Al-Bukhari, Al-Minhaj fi Sharh Sahih Muslim, Riyad-us-Saliheen, Kitab-ur-Raudah, Commentary on Mohadhdhab, Tahdhib-ul-Asma was-Sifat, Kitab-ul-Adhkar, Arba’een, At-Taqreeb fi Ilmil-Hadith wal-Irshad fihi, Kitab-ulMubhamat, At-Tibyan, Al-Idah fi Manasikil-Hajj, Sharh Sahih AlBukhari (Naqis), Sharh Sunan Abi Dawud (Naqis), Tabaqat Ash Shafi’iyah, Muhimmatul-Ahkam, Manaqib-ush-Shafi’i, Bustan-ulArifeen, Al-Khulasatu fil-Hadith, Mukhtasar At-Tirmidhi, A1Masa’il Al-Manthurah, Al-’Umdah fi Tashihit-Tanbih and others.

After spending 28 years of age, Imam Nawawi returned to his hometown. Soon after his arrival at Nawa, he felt ill and died. Imam Nawawi is still living in the hearts of Muslims. His works are of everlasting value. May Allah bless him.
Source: Central Mosque

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