For children, - Valentine's Day or Festival of Love in Islam

Allah (SWT) has chosen for us Islam as our religion and He will not accept any other religion from anyone, as He says: "And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will not be accepted from him and he will be one of the losers in the Hereafter." (Noble Qur'an, 3:85) Indeed, Islam is the religion of altruism, true love and cooperation on that which is good and righteous. We implore Allah (SWT) to gather us together under the umbrella of His All-encompassing Mercy, and to unite us together as one Ummah. Allah Almighty says: "The believers are but brothers, so make settlement between your brothers. And fear Allah that you may receive mercy." (Noble Qur'an, 49:10) Among the forms of love that are religiously acceptable are those that include the love for Prophets and Messengers. It stands to reason that the love for Allah (SWT) and His Messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) should have the top priority over all other forms of love. Islam does recognize happy occasions that bring people closer to one another and add spice to their lives. However, Islam goes against blindly imitating the West regarding a special occasion such as Valentine's Day. Hence, commemorating that special day known as the Valentine's Day is an innovation or bid'ah that has no religious backing. Every innovation of that kind is rejected, as far as Islam is concerned. Islam requires all Muslims to love one another all over the whole year, and reducing the whole year to a single day is totally rejected. Hence, we Muslims ought not to follow in the footsteps of such innovations and superstitions that are common in what is known as the Valentine's Day. No doubt that there are many irreligious practices that occur on that day and those practices are capable of dissuading people from the true meanings of love and altruism to the extent that the celebration is reduced to a moral decline. Chocolates, flowers, hearts, cards, teddy bear and romance: these are the ingredients that make up the annual celebration of Valentine's Day every February 14. On the surface, these are lovely things. But in reality, the occasion promotes the culture of male-female relations from a specific point of view. We should avoid anything associated with pagan immoral practices - We do not need to honour or celebrate the death of a Christian "saint" - Islam does not encourage flirting or suggestions of romantic relationships before marriage - Love between families, friends and married people does not need to be celebrated on a day with such un-Islamic origins. As Muslims, we are required to love one another and to wish and inculcate love among people regardless of their color, race, religion or identity. However, this does not mean dissolving our identity or blindly copying and imitating others' traditions and practices. Valentine's Day Pahmphlet Note: The Arabic word bid'ah means adopting something new as a religious practice into Islam. Bid'ah is a sin in Islam. Muslims should avoid things with un-Islamic roots even though they may appear to be innocent.

Personal, - Change of self is better than change of scenery

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“If I was living in Egypt, I'm sure 1 would be wearing Hijaab."
"If only I wasn’t in classes all day long, I would surely make it to the Friday Prayer every Friday."
How many times have you told yourself: if it weren’t for this or that, I would be able to do such and such? How often is it that our actions depend upon our environment? If our surroundings were more conducive to performing prayer or fasting or wearing Hijaab, we would do it. But alas, we live in such an environment where some things are just not possible, right?
Sure, our surroundings determine much of what we do and even how and when we do it. But in order for us to better ourselves, we cannot blame our environment, or lack thereof. Just because we don’t live in a society that surrounds us with Muslims 24/7 who are cloaked in Islamic garb and who use their IPods to listen to Quran instead of Rihanna, doesn’t mean we can use that as an excuse for our own behavior.
Each of us has at least one thing about ourselves that we would like to better, but for some reason we can’t manage to overcome that challenge. It could be anything. Some people want to lose weight, but they say that because they are in school and always short on time and cash, fast food is all that they can eat. So, it is really not their fault. Some people say that they want to learn Arabic, but they can’t go to Syria, or Egypt, or Saudi Arabia, so what is the point? Again, it is really not their fault. Others say that they want to get married, but they can’t find the right person. So, instead they have given up and just hang out with ‘friends’. There aren’t any eligible singles around, so it is really not their fault.
Actually, it is. It is our fault if there is something about our lives that we want to change and we don’t attempt to try. If I want to get a new job but I can’t seem to find something, I can’t just give up and say that there is nothing available. I can’t blame my situation when it might be me that has the shortcomings. Maybe I need to take a few classes to brush up on my skill set, maybe I need to go back to school to get a degree, and maybe I need to work on my interviewing skills. In fact, most of the time, we are responsible for our own situations. Perhaps because of my personality and character, I constantly find myself in a particular situation. Maybe because of my lack of interviewing skills, I find that I never get the job. Maybe I’m creating that scenario.
People sometimes say that `we create our own destiny.' Muslims believe it is Allaah Almighty that determines destiny; however, we are responsible for our actions and once in a while, we are also responsible for the situations in which we find ourselves. Not every situation or predicament can be blamed entirely on fate; a lot of our circumstances we create ourselves. Then, we complain that it is this same circumstance that either makes us who we are or is the cause for our deficiency.
Sometimes, however, making improvements in ourselves isn’t enough. Sometimes, we can better someone else’s situation to help him or her better themselves. In this way, changing or creating a particular situation is a good thing. Think of it this way: Maybe you have a friend that has a bad habit of backbiting. You have noticed for some time now, but you have never had the nerve to tell her about her problem to her face. You just don’t know how to break it to her; how do you tell your friend that she has a character flaw?
If you are in a situation where you feel uncomfortable changing a person’s behavior, you can do the next best thing by changing the environment. A change of scenery, a change of topic could be all that is needed. Avoid discussions that you are sure will get your friend heated. Refrain from mentioning anyone’s name or any specifics about any other person. Change the mood of the situation and try to prevent opportunities for backbiting. In this case, changing scenery is not a cop-out, it is a way out. And it could mean the difference between you and your friend committing a sin or escaping from one.
So, the next time you find yourself doing something that you shouldn’t be doing, ask yourself how you can change your character to avoid the situation in the future and don’t harp on the gripe that the planets weren’t aligned and the environment made you do it.

Personal, - Ambition

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A wise person should not be satisfied with his or her present circumstances; rather, he or she should continually aspire to achieve noble aims and seek self-improvement. If he or she attains a certain status, he or she must look forward to achieving an even higher one. Undeniably, this has to be done without demonstrating an inclination to this worldly life or contradicting theSharee’ahof Allaah The Almighty. If he or she follows such a way, he or she will not settle for anything less than Paradise.
‘Umar ibn ‘Abd Al-‘Azeez, may Allaah have mercy upon him, noted about himself:"I am ambitious. At first, I strove for the position of emir and when I gained that, I was determined to hold the title of caliph. When I attained even that rank now, I am still motivated now to reach Paradise."This is what true ambition is – the soul longing for what is more perfect and sublime. The Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, used to guide his Ummah to be ambitious for noble causes and rise above all that is petty, when he said:"Allaah The Almighty loves the things that are most exalted and honorable, and ]He[ hates all that is mundane."
Difference between ambition and determination
In our context, both ambition and determination share the same purpose: seeking noble things; however, they differ in terms of motivation and means.
For instance, a determined person may be motivated by an aversion to apathy that is caused by humiliation or to ward off the shame of imperfection. On the other hand, ambition is driven by the desire of one’s soul to achieve a higher goal.
However, in terms of means, a person motivated by the latter may go to extremes in pursuit of his or her objective, while a person with strength of mind usually makes use of noble ways that conform to theSharee’ahof Allaah The Almighty.
Yet, undoubtedly, if one does not exert his or her utmost to achieve a goal, his or her aspirations are nothing but mere wishes. A truly ambitious man is he who does his best to achieve what he wants and may tire himself for the sake of his ambition. That is why many poems speak of this, such as some of those that state that a person who is afraid of risks and failure, and is overly cautious cannot attain glory, just like a rose cannot exist without thorns.
Indeed, the path to all that is noble is unpaved and suffused with hardship, which is why Mu‘aawiyah once advised ‘Amr ibn Al-‘Aas, may Allaah be pleased with them:"A person who seeks something great must risk something significant."Similarly, the latter, may Allaah be pleased with him, would say:"You ]people[ have to pursue decisive and critical matters."
Ambitions of the noble and eminent
Great people are typically driven toward achievement of honorable aims and far removed from petty gains. Hence, one would usually find them ambitious in:
1-Seeking knowledge: Having realized that knowledge is the worthiest acquisition, both morally and spiritually, and the most honorable objective of all nations, they sacrifice their time and wealth for it. Then, their wisdom saves them from being led astray. Hence, they endure hardship, lead an austere life, leave behind their homeland and families and do not bother with rest and entertainment for its sake. One of them would depart from his country to another place in pursuit of only one Hadeeth. This is only done with infinite determination and great care to make the best of every moment.
2-Achieving martyrdom: When those of great willpower learn of the reward of one who dies a martyr for the sake of Allaah The Almighty, they race each other to it, not favoring others over themselves in this respect. Ibn ‘Umar narrated that his father, may Allaah be pleased with them, said to his brother during the battle of Uhud:"O my brother, take my armor",but he replied:"I want to die as a martyr just as you do."Therefore, neither of them donned the armor. ]At-Tabaraani[ It was also reported that Ja‘far ibn Abi Taalib, may Allaah be pleased with him, hit his horse ]urging it to gallop faster[, while he was fighting, saying:"How nice Paradise is when it comes near; it is good and ]like[ a cool drink. The Romans will be subjected to torment; they have rejected belief and are of ignoble ancestors; when I meet them ]in the battlefield[, I am required to kill them."He remained in this spirit until he was killed.
3-Attaining Paradise: When, it was once said to Al-‘Attaabi, may Allaah have mercy upon him:"So-and-so is an ambitious person", he replied:"Then he must have no aim but Paradise."Indeed, any goal that is less than that is meager in comparison. Yet, this does not mean that a person is forbidden from having ambitions in his or her worldly life; that is okay, as long as he or she adheres to theSharee’ahof Allaah The Almighty, observes His limits and has a righteous intention behind all deeds.

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Personal, - Who are the Woman's Enemies?

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When the woman is neither a mother, nor a daughter nor a wife, she is still a fellow Muslim and she is entitled to kindness and good treatment which is due to every Muslim. She is entitled to the same rights of man on other Muslims.
Islam honors woman in a manner that cannot be found in any non-Muslim society. Even the enemies who came to Muslim countries acknowledged that there is no other religion that honored woman as Islam did, nor a Sharee‘ah )Islamic legislation( that exalted the woman, raised her head and gave her full rights as the Islamic Sharee‘ah did.
Annie Rord, a writer, said, "It is better for our daughters to work as servants in houses than to work in laboratories where the woman is polluted with filth which remove the splendor of her life forever. I wish that our countries were like Muslim countries where modesty, chastity and purity prevail." ]Fatayaatuna Bayn-at-Taghreeb wal-‘Afaaf by Dr. Naasir Al-‘Umar, p.56[
The woman's enemies are the men's enemies and there is no difference at all. They are four groups:
First: The Jews:
They are the keenest of all people to corrupt humanity and destroy its beliefs and morals. The reason why they exert their utmost in this respect is that they believe that they will not live unless they destroy the others or corrupt them in order to be their slaves, as they say.
Second: The Christians:
They are the followers of a distorted religion. They deviated from the true religion and neglected the truth.
Third: Secularists:
Even if such people claim that they are Muslim, they are in fact the messengers of Western secularism. If secularism can justify its existence in Western countries, it cannot do so in Muslim lands.
Fourth: Opportunists:
They want to increase their income and make great profits even if this is at the expense of woman. They use her to promote their goods and attract customers to their shops. As a tool of blackmail, many opportunists use the woman to trap prominent people and then take photos of them in shameful positions and exploit this to turn them into slaves.
Aspects of the Enemies’ Plots against Woman
The enemies and their followers have ferocious plans to corrupt the woman and take her away from the straight path. They managed to carry out all these plans in some Muslim countries and they work hard to carry out all or some of these plans in other countries. Here I will mention some of these plans; some in brief and others in details.
First: Making up baseless issues:
Most people live without issues to disturb them and therefore the enemies are keen to instigate discussions about women's issues, indicating that they need supporters and defenders. Therefore, they keep talking in different media that the woman in our societies is suffering, oppressed, neglected, deprived of her full rights and that the man is in control of everything. They do so ceaselessly until they convince people that there are several women's issues in our society which, upon contemplation, do not exist.
We do not deny that some women experience oppression by some ignorant husbands and fathers. Nevertheless, this is due to the Muslims' negligence of their creed and religion. Consequently, it is the issue of the Muslim society as a whole which is afflicted with diseases because they have abandoned the means of protection. Some women's suffering is a consequence of the Muslims' negligence of their religion as well as their surrender to and imitation of their enemies.
Consequently, treating woman's issues is part and parcel of treating the Ummah )nation( as a whole and restoring matters to their proper place. However, to instigate people by indicating that the woman has special issues that are different from the other components of the Muslim society, is a studied plan intended to aggravate the issue. When people turn their attention to such issues, the enemies provide their poisonous solutions. To specify the matter in terms that it is a woman-specific issue, besides being far from the scientific view, this attitude does not treat the real issue because it neglects the actual reasons behind the problem and lacks comprehensive treatment.
Second: Aborting the society’s 'immunity':
The Muslim community, even if it is afflicted with weakness, is still able to protect itself. It fights deviated beliefs and hates corrupted morals, like the body which can not be attacked by diseases when its immunity is still functioning.
Therefore, the enemies are keen on weakening the immunity of Muslim society in order to make it lose its religious zeal and enthusiasm for its beliefs. When they reach this stage, they will be able to perpetrate whatever forms of corruption they wish without the least resistance.
They managed to attack the Muslim society by emphasizing forms of violations here and there. People shudder when seeing evil for the first time, and this lessens the second time, a state of indifference occurs in the third, justifications are sought in the fourth, the self commits the evil in the fifth and attempts to philosophize it in the sixth.
The following are some of the methods used to weaken the Muslim society’s immunity:
•Provocative magazines and indifferent newspapers:
They present women in immoral images and disgraceful scenes. I wonder how we could claim to have concern for people's minds and morals by preventing our newspapers and magazines from this while our markets and bookstores are full of imported vanity. When those who sell spoilt goods are punished and forced to pay a fine, those who corrupt minds, hearts and tastes are worthier of receiving the punishment they deserve.
• Spreading corrupt thoughts:
This occurs through newspaper columns as well as interviews where people get used to hearing such words.
• Breaking the psychological barrier between Muslims and non-Muslims:
This has affected Muslims to the extent that it has become hard for some of them to hear the expression “intellectual invasion” in use, and they say that the proper name for it is “cultural communication”. They say that we have to adopt the policy of the open door, a wide open window and fresh air.
We do not prevent those who have enlightened thought to learn about the civilization of others. Rather, we are of the view that challenging the enemies' plotting and misguidance is a form of Jihaad )struggle(. Nevertheless, we are against the intellectual chaos which corrupts people's beliefs, morals and etiquettes.
• Calling for the freedom of the woman
Who hates freedom and loves restrictions? This was the starting point for the intense use of the term “the emancipation of women”, as if the woman is a slave who must be emancipated. Meanwhile, it presented those who call for corrupting woman as merciful saviors who wish to rescue her from the abyss she has fallen into.
We say: Is there absolute freedom in this universe without restrictions? Had there been no restrictions before the human except his capacities and potentials, they would have been enough to eradicate the concept of “the absolute freedom”. How? No human can live in communities without systems and laws. Does this mean that all the humans are enslaved? Even if this is the case, these restrictions should be investigated to know which is more likely to safeguard man’s dignity, maintain his honor and bring goodness for him in both worlds.
Spreading chaos under the pretext of freedom is a Jewish plot; and the Jews were the first to deny it.
It is mentioned in the First Protocol of the Learned Elders of Zion, "Far back in ancient times we were the first to cry among the masses of the people, the words "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity". In all corners of the earth the words "Liberty, Equality, Fraternity," brought to our ranks, thanks to our blind agents, whole legions who bore our banners with enthusiasm."
It is mentioned in the Fourth Protocol of the Learned Elders of Zion,
"But even freedom might be harmless and have its place in the State economy without injury to the well-being of the peoples if it rested upon the foundation of faith in God, upon the brotherhood of humanity, unconnected with the concept of equality, which is made negative by the very laws of creation, for they have established subordination. With a faith such as this, a people might be governed by a wardship of parishes, and would walk contentedly and humbly under the guiding hand of its spiritual pastor submitting to the dispositions of God on earth. This is the reason why it is indispensable for us to undermine all faith, to tear out of the mind of the "goyim" the very principle of god-head and the spirit, and to put in its place arithmetical calculations and material needs." ]

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