Youth, - The enduring bond of sisterhood

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The Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said,“Whoever possesses the following three qualities will taste the sweetness of Eman )faith(: One to whom Allaah and His Messenger become dearer than anything else, whoever loves his brother )or sister( solely for Allaah’s sake, and whoever hates to revert to disbelief just as he loathes to be thrown into the Fire.”]Al-Bukhaari and Muslim[
Although we readily understand the sweetness of Emaan )faith( that one experiences from loving Allaah and His Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, and hating to revert to disbelief, the concept of loving a sister in Islam is not often discussed in this manner. How could love of a sister in Islam be tied to the sweetness of Eman? And what is the sweetness of Eman?
In essence, love for the sake of Allaah is a thing that cannot be truly grasped until it is experienced. But some explanation may be beneficial.
Love for the Sake of Allaah
When a Muslim woman loves her sister ‘in Islam’ she loves her for the ‘sake of Allaah,’ subhanahu wa ta’ala—as noted in the hadeeth. This means that her love for her sister is connected to, and is part of her love for Allaah. She may love her and want to befriend her and be close to her for all the good reasons people love and befriend one another, but in addition, she loves her and treats her in the manner that Allaah has ordained she be treated in. Maintaining that as the basis for the relationship is what strips the love from worldly elements, and purifies it so that she and her friend know and feel their love extend way beyond this world.
In this way, a Muslim woman is certain that her love for her sister will endure, because they share a special bond that can never be broken, the bond of faith in Allaah, the Creator of all humankind, the Lord through whose Love people love, respect and be kind to one another. It is a bond between hearts and minds that brings them together in a
unique and special way; so much so that they are willing to sacrifice anything for each other knowing they will gain the pleasure of Allaah in the process. Nothing is ever done for worldly gain or purpose.
Status of those who love for the sake of Allaah
It is important to understand that loving someone solely for Allaah’s sake may not be easily found and nourished, but for those who do, the reward goes far beyond tasting the sweetness of Eman in this world to an unimaginable blessing—eternal enjoyment in Paradise. The Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said, “On the Day of Judgment, Allaah, subhanahu wa ta’ala, will announce, ‘Where are those persons who )in the world used to( love each other for the sake of My Pleasure? This day I am going to shelter them in the shade provided by Me. Today there is no shade except My shade.” )Muslim( Sisters who love each other for Allaah’s sake will find His shade on the day when there will be no other shade. The rewards that Allaah gives for this love are beyond what we are capable of earning through other deeds. This emphasizes the importance of loving each other for the sake of Allaah.
In another story, “A man went to visit a brother of his in another village. Allaah, subhanahu wa ta’ala, sent an angel to wait for him on the road. When the man came along, the angel asked him, ‘Where are you headed?’ He said, ‘I am going to visit a brother of mine who lives in this village.’ The angel asked, ‘Have you done him any favor )for which you are now seeking repayment(?’ He said, ‘No, I just love him for the sake of Allaah.’ The angel told him, ‘I am a messenger to you from Allaah, sent to tell you that He loves you as you love your brother for His sake.” )Muslim( How could we deny or ignore the significance of this, when we understand that our love for our sister in Islam brings to us the love of Allah? How could we treat our sister in any other way than that which would gain us Allah’s Pleasure and Grace? How could we harm our sister in Islam knowing that that will lead to losing all of these rewards and blessings?
The sweetness of Emaan
Have you tasted Eman? Do you know how it feels?
It is one of the most amazing gifts in this life, and how sweet it is. Loving your sister in Islam for the sake of Allah is one of the paths to tasting the sweetness of Eman. Experiencing this sweetness requires effort, self-sacrifice, and compassion.
The Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said,“None of you has Eman until he desires for his brother Muslim that which he desires for himself.”]Al-Bukhaari and Muslim[ He also said,“The Muslims in their mutual love, kindness, and compassion are like the human body, where when one of its parts is in agony, the entire body feels the pain, both in sleeplessness and fever.”]Al-Bukhaari and Muslim[
Feeling the pain should prompt us to action to alleviate the pain of our sisters in Islam. We should not sleep a night until our sisters are free from the pain and suffering that they are experiencing. When we start feeling the pain our sister feels, and not rest until we do something to alleviate it, then, and only then, we feel joy and happiness, no matter what hardships we had to overcome, we have tasted the sweetness of Eman.
This is one of the ways a sister can experience the sweetness of Eman, and this is the pinnacle of being a Mu’minah. Achieving that is an essential stage on the path to strengthening the Muslim Ummah.
The keys to being a true believing sister
Even though being a true believing sister in Islam is an achievable goal, it is not a simple matter, and there are many ways to fulfilling it. What is listed below outlines the things sisters should struggle to keep in their relationship so that it grows to be for the sake of Allah.
A true sister in Islam will honestly and sincerely love her sisters for the sake of Allah. This should not be construed to mean that sisters will not, and may not, have disagreements or problems. This is not possible, because we are human beings not angels. What makes our relationship unique is the fact that it is controlled by Allah’s commands and guidance. No matter what goes wrong, ultimately, we deal with one another according to the acceptable ways of Shari’ah, seeking only to please Him.
Thus, a sister will strive hard to maintain the ties of love and sisterhood. She will like for her sisters what she likes for herself, and will not forsake them or cut off relations. She will greet her sisters with a cheerful, smiling face, even )or especially( if she does not know them. Tolerance and forgiveness for mistakes will be an important part of her character, and she will be certain to cover the faults of her sisters. There will be no hatred, envy or malice, and she will not hurt feelings by being hostile or argumentative. The true sister will not backbite or gossip, and will stop others who engage in this harmful behavior. She will be kind and generous to her sisters and will offer them sincere and constructive advice when necessary. She will make every effort to enjoin them to the right and forbid them from wrong. She will be loyal toward her sisters and defend them in their absence.
It comes back to us
In the end it all comes hack to us. The Prophet, sallallaahu alayhi wa sallam, said, “One who helps a fellow Muslim in removing his difficulty in this world, Allah will remove the former’s distress on the Day of Judgment. He who helps to remove the hardship of another will have his difficulties removed by Allah in this world and the Hereafter. One who covers the shortcomings of another Muslim will have his faults covered up in this world and the next by Allah. Allah continues to help a servant so long as he goes on helping his own brother.” )Muslim(
The rewards that we gain are far beyond the efforts and sacrifices that we make.








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Youth, - Milestones on the path ofdutifulness to parents

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There is no doubt that parents play an effective role in preventing their children from being undutiful. As it is known that prevention is better than cure, we advise noble parents who play the greatest role in this important process, to prepare youth and prevent them from being undutiful.
The family is the first incubator where the adolescent grows up and receives an upbringing. Hence, it has a far-reaching effect on the upbringing of children. It is sufficient to know that children act in a way that conforms to their environment. So, the environment forms the way in which the child learns his behavior. If adolescents grow up with a sense of righteousness and gratitude, undoubtedly, this would greatly affect them.
The following are some of the important means that parents should use while building the wall to prevent undutifulness:
1-Extreme warning: An extreme warning lies in bringing up the children to be undutiful. Perhaps some people wonder about this warning. Yes, there are parents who plant the bomb which soon explodes. For example, some families express happiness when the child grows and is able to speak and move. Consequently, they tell him to beat or insult one of the parents. They mix jest with seriousness causing the disruption of the child’s moral standards. They are not aware that they are implanting in the innocent little child, at a very young age, disrespect to parents. This is the way it has always been, and always will be.
2-Keenness on teaching the child the parents’ favors: It is a key step on the way of preventing undutifulness. It is to raise the children to be accustomed to respecting and realizing the status and favor of their parents. Ignorance of the status of parents and consequent punishment for being undutiful to them will lead the children to be undutiful.
3-To be equally dutiful to you: Some parents are trapped in discrimination by favoring some of their children to others. This is plain injustice. Therefore,Sharee‘ah)Islamic legislation( strongly forbids this matter and warns of its bad consequences. When Basheer ibn Sa‘d, may Allaah be pleased with him, came to the Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, to give his son An-Nu‘maan a gift; the Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, asked:“‘Did you give all your children gifts like An-Nu‘maan?’He said, ‘No.’ The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:‘So, look for another witness. Do you not like them )your children( to be equally dutiful to you?’”]Al-Albaani:Saheeh[
Steps of treatment
After dealing with the gravity of undutifulness and suggesting some methods to prevent it, we should talk about the steps of treatment, which are:
1-Virtues and punishments: This is one of the foremost steps which the person who seeks dutifulness should have in mind and realize. One could change from one state to another if he finds a strong motive. Undoubtedly, knowing and remembering the fruits of dutifulness will be one of the best incentives to practice it. Similarly, contemplating the bad consequences of undutifulness and the resulting distress and grief in the worldly life before the Hereafter will help one be dutiful and keep away from undutifulness.
2-Good friends: You should have good friends who correct your mistakes and inform you about the consequences of your actions. If good company is sought in the course of worldly journeys and travel, what should be the case in the travel of the Hereafter where the believer is in greater need to have a righteous helper and an agreeable companion who would be, in relation to his friend, like two hands that wash the other.
They are righteous people who guide you to the way of righteousness and direct you with their kind words if you commit an undutiful or a semi-undutiful act.
Hence, it becomes mandatory to get rid of bad friends who are the reason behind every catastrophe. You should know, especially in this stage of adolescence, that friends are chosen by the adolescent according to his desire and inclination. The grave problem is that this test often comes spontaneously where the child grows up with a neighbor at school or university. This friend may become the reason behind his undutifulness through absorbing behavior due to frequent interaction over a period of time. So, you should select your friends cautiously and deliberately.
3-O people of the faith: here, you should ask yourself: Are you faithful? Perhaps, you would quickly answer in the affirmative. This is a good reply; however, to reach such a degree of faithfulness you should read some questions, if your answer is in the affirmative, then, enjoy your faithfulness. Otherwise, you should do your best to make your answers in the affirmative.
- Do you frequently remember your parents’ favors?
- Do you frequently thank them for their care and upbringing?
- Do you supplicate Allaah The Almighty for them in your prayers, going, coming, with your friends and alone?
- Did you ever think about doing something for them and expressing your love and faithfulness?
- Do you quickly blame yourself and rush to serve them whenever you feel that you have fallen short to fulfill their rights?
This is the tip of the iceberg of questions which are well known to faithful people.Subhaan Allaah)Glory be to Allaah!(, when a friend does us a favor, we remember it, keep treating him kindly and speaking well of him in his absence by remembering his good qualities. How come that we do not adopt this attitude— which we adopt towards our friends— towards our parents who sacrifice their time so that we can enjoy our times? They spent their money so that we become rich. They spent many nights crying because of our illness. Many times they were preoccupied from life with our needs. There are many of their supplications for us which were answered. How many times do kind parents sit watching their children dreaming of the day on which they become successful Muslim youth, with people delighting in them? By Allaah, these are only a few matters to remember. Is it not time for us to become faithful?
Family role
1-Understanding the stage: first, I would like to ask why do adolescents clash with their parents. What are the reasons which drive him to argue after he was tractable during his childhood? Why does he tend to independence and individuality in taking decisions?
It seems that the answer is summarized in the fact that the adolescent is living through a new stage. The more parents are able to understand this, the more dutifulness they will get and vice versa. Missing understanding between parents and children is the gravest matter that culminates in undutifulness to parents. Children want to build their own life according to their style and that of their friends. On the other hand, parents look from their own point of view and through their own perspectives of their customs. Hence, each party is on a different wavelength. The deeper understanding of this stage the parents have, the more capable they will be of dealing according to methodology and awareness. By the permission of Allaah, it will result in dutifulness to parents and in having good manners.
We previously clarified that the adolescent in this stage wants to fulfill some needs such as security, acceptance, feeling responsible, and so on. The more the parents are aware of these needs, the stronger and more successful the relation will be. Undoubtedly, such success is topped by dutifulness to parents. Hence, we need to read a lot on the needs of adolescents and how to deal with them.
2-Stop the conflict: it is important that parents understand that their children during this stage need to feel that their parents value them highly and know that they have moved from childhood to youth. In many cases, we find that the family’s stance towards the child, which may degrade or mock him, increases the child’s tendency to resort to his friends and compound their influence and effect on him.
3-Feeling rejected followed by loss: It is noteworthy that whenever the adolescent feels acceptance and esteem, he loves his parents more and more. Therefore, the more we accept the basic personal traits of our adolescents, the more they feel at ease with us and their desire to spend time at home increases. Undoubtedly, such a feeling of acceptance and esteem leads to a similar result with the children.








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Youth, - Follow their Footprints

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There have been people who insisted on leaving their imprints on life, and this is why historyhas immortalizedtheir mention. They formed the civilization of theirUmmah)nation(; their renaissance became a source of goodness and light for the entire world, and they were the lanterns which lit the way for the West during their age of darkness.
Al-Hasan and his beneficial knowledge
He isAl-Hasan ibn Al-Haytham)often known as Alhazen, the Latinized version of his first name "al-Hasan"(, may Allaah have mercy upon him. He was born in Basra, Iraq, and studied medicine, astronomy, geometry, mathematics and physics.
Among his important books of optics, a mention may be made ofAl-Manaathir)LatinizedOpticae =Book of Optics(, in which he studied the theory of refraction and reflection of light in transparent media like water and air. It continued to be the main reference for that science in Europe until the end of the seventeenth century CE. In this book, he laid the foundation of the discovery of the physical principle on which both the microscope and telescope are based.
The National Library of Paris contains many of his books and manuscripts in which he deals with some branches of geometry. Others are at the Bodleian library at Oxford. He compiled 43 books on philosophy and physics, 25 books on mathematics, 21 books on geometry, and 20 books on astronomy and arithmetic. It is mentioned that the total number of his books handed down to us is approximately 200, all of which he, may Allaah have mercy upon him, prefaced with the following wonderful words: "As long as I live, I am going to devote my effort, mind and energy to knowledge for three reasons:
1- To benefit the one who seeks knowledge during my lifetime and after my death.
2- To be a treasure for me in my grave and on the Day of my reckoning.
3- To make superior the power of Muslims."
The determination of Al-Bukhaari:
He, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said,"Once, I was in the house of Is-haaq ibn Raahawayh when one of our companions suggested the compilation of an abridged book of the Sunnah )acts, deeds and sayings( of the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. I was impressed by the suggestion, and started to compile this book.”]Siyar A‘laam An-Nubalaa’[
Serving theSunnahof the Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallamwas the mission for which Al-Bukhaari, may Allaah have mercy upon him, pledged his life since he was ten years old. Allaah The Almighty endowed him with his vision in this blessed gathering )in the house of Ibn Raahawayh(, which he realized by traversing the lands from his native Bukhara on long journeys, collecting theHadeeths)narrations( of the Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa salam, passing by Balkh, Marw and Naysaaboor, before he entered Iraq and travelled between its different cities. Thereafter, he went to Makkah and then Madeenah and completed his journey by visiting Egypt and Ash-Shaam.
Al-Bukhaari, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said,"I composed the Saheeh )Book of Authentic Hadeeths( in sixteen years."]Siyar A‘laam An-Nubalaa’[ He further said,"I have produced this book out of approximately six hundred thousand Hadeeths."]Sifat As-Safwah: Ibn Al-Jawzi[
He, may Allaah have mercy upon him, was a miracle in the power of memorization and intelligence. He said about himself,"I have memorized about one hundred thousand authentic Hadeeths, and two hundred thousand unauthentic Hadeeths."]Fat-h Al-Baari: Ibn Hajar[
When will you leave your trace?
O you, upon whom Allaah The Almighty has bestowed Islam, and sufficient it is for a favor! O you, whose forefathers lit up the darkness of the world and established an astonishing civilization! Are you not alarmed by the present state of yourUmmah)nation(? Are you not discomfited by the fact that the world exists for others, rather than you, with which they play, and make weapons that they direct towards the chests of yourUmmah? Are you not worthier of precedence in the task of building?
Wake up and release yourself from the chains of inertia. Recognize your identity and look at the golden past of yourUmmah, to draw a torch to light up the way for you. Hasten to work, and make your mark on life which is but a limited number of breaths, and you do not know at which point it would end. At that time, you will have nothing to leave in this world except your imprint upon it. If there is none, then, history would irretrievably fold your page. However, if you blaze a trail, people would stand by it and say:"He has passed away, and this is his legacy."









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