True peace comes with remembering Allah and growing closer to Him

When we remember God, we also realize that we areconstantly in His
presence, and thus we are liberated from the self-destructive habits
that consume us.
So often in life we are wronged by others, and the temptation to
respondin a demeaning and un-Islamic manner is very strong.
Fortunately, we can avoid wrong responses in the case of mistreatment
by relying on Allah and knowing thatHe is the All-Knowing. When we
take part in wrong responses, we fall victim to disobediences that
lead the soul away from righteousness, and into the pits of
retaliation and cruelty.
"Surely in Allah's remembrance do the hearts find peace." (13:28)
Those who seek God and remember Him will find contentment and joy in
their lives with the knowledge that they are under the protection of
Allah. When we utter praise to the Almighty andthank Him for his
countlessbounties, our hearts are filled with inner peace
andreflection. How happy and blessed are those who seek refuge in
their Lord, the Most Beneficent and Most Merciful Allah.

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In a season of consumerist madness,let’s be grateful, and give

At this time of year the stores are pushing their sales at us.
Advertising is everywhere. There if a frenzy to buy, buy, buy. Let's
realize that this is nota spiritual way of life. It's not an
appropriate lifestyle for someone who is dedicated to God. The
consumerist madness is a deception. There's no joy or peace attached
to it. It's a shallow illusion.
Look at what society has done to itself in the name of consumerism. A
day of thanks (Thanksgiving) has become the prelude to "Black Friday",
the biggest shopping day of the year. It used to be that Black Friday
did not begin until Friday morning, out of respect for Thanksgiving.
Then the starting gun was moved to midnight, and now it has crept into
Thursday evening. Nothingis sacred.
The Prophet 'Isa ibn Maryam (Jesus the son of Mary), peace be upon
him, has been turned into a marketing strategy. His purported birthday
has become a month of shopping insanity, presided over by a mythical
sub-deity named Santa. People go into debt,they fight over sale goods…
no mention is made of faith.
We Muslims fall prey to the same consumerist lifestyle. Sometimes the
holy month of Ramadan becomes a month of shopping, sleeping and binge
eating, astaghfirullah.
Let us – Christians, Muslims, Jews and all people of God – not
followthis path. Let's hew to a way of sacrifice, zakat
(purification), sadaqah (charity), zuhd (giving up material luxury).
We don't have to be monks, but we must focus on the things that
matter: faith and family.
There are movements thatadvocate a simple living, back-to-nature,
low-impact lifestyle. In Islam this is called zuhd , which could be
translated as detachment or asceticism. Zuhd is a choicethat a person
makes to give up the hunger for material possessions and transgressive
carnal experiences, and live a simple lifestyle dedicated to God.
That's what we need.
The faith in our hearts is more important than the brand name of the
clothes we wear. Where our feet carry us – to someplace good or bad –
is more important than the cost of our shoes. The sincerity in our
hearts is more important than any gift. May Allah help us to see what
is important in life.
The Enjoyment of Delusion
There's a powerful verse from the Bible, Proverbs 30:8-9:
Give me neither poverty nor riches,
grant me only my share of bread to eat,
for fear that surrounded by plenty, I should fall away
and say, "Yahweh – who isYahweh?"
or else in destitution, take to stealing
and profane the name of my God.
(Yahweh is an ancient Hebrew name for God).
If you visit the shopping malls at Christmastime, and read the news
stories of people lining up from the night before and huddling in
sleeping bags in order to buy the latest gadgets, then trampling each
other in the rush; if you turn on the TV to the usual Christmas
comedies and "Frosty the Snowman"cartoons, you see that God has been
forgotten, and has even become taboo. It's not politically correct to
speak of God. Just watchwhat we broadcast, be hypnotized by our
Christmas elevator music, buy and forget…
Allah says about this:
"Know that the life of this world is but amusement and diversion and
adornment and boastingto one another and competition in increase of
wealth and children – like the example of a rainwhose [resulting]
plant growth pleases the tillers; then it dries and you see it turned
yellow; then it becomes debris. And in the Hereafter is severe
punishment and forgiveness from Allah and approval. And what is the
worldly life except the enjoyment of delusion." – Quran, Surat
Al-Hadeed, 57:20
This theme is struck repeatedly in the Quran. The amusement and
adornment of the dunya isan illusion that dries up and crumbles like a
corn stalk, and becomes dust. It is empty, the enjoyment ofdelusion .
Wow. That phrase, "enjoyment of delusion", makes me think of a madman
alone in a room, tied in a straight jacket, engaged in a pleasant
delusion playing only in his mind.
I know people who have abedroom devoted to all the junk that they have
bought but do not use. They never enter that room and the door is kept
locked. Isn't that a kind of mental illness?
Gratitude
How do we resist the onslaught of the season? How do we remember Allah?
The greatest tool in our toolbox is gratitude. By looking at what
we've been blessed with, our hearts become content. Socrates commented
that contentment is natural wealth, while luxury is artificial
poverty. Contentment does not mean complacency or passivity; it refers
to a state of awareness of our blessings, and gratitude for the
smallest to the greatest provisions – the tiniest cells in our bodies,
to the grand earth itself.

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Going to Allah when we need Him

Do we think we can go to Allah only when we "need" Him?
I'm not saying that it's wrong. I'm saying that it's impossible.
We need Allah every hour, every day. Every heartbeat,every breath,
every bite of food, every ray of sunshine. We need Him when we are
poor and sick, and when we're rich and robust. We need Him when we're
starving in thegutter, or cruising on top of the world. We depend on
Allah more than a newborn baby depends onits mother, even when we
don't see it.
Our failure to see this reality does not change the fact that it is
true. We can achieve nothing without Allah. I write this article only
by His will. Youget out of bed, pour your cereal, hug your children,
go to work, run that 5K race, and breathe, all by means of the gifts
He has given.
When we're doing well, and everything is butter, that's the time to
turn to Allah even more, with gratitude and praise. If we do that,
then when we're having hard times He'll be there for us, He'll rescue
usand lift us up, even if we don't ask.
This not my idea. I did not make this up. The Messenger of Allah (sws)
said, "Remember Allah during times of ease andHe will remember you
during times of difficulty." (Tirmidhi)
Remembrance of Allah is not only a matter of prayer. It is also
kindness to others. If I have an excess of energy, I need to use that
to help someone who is ill, weak, depressed,or lost. If I have been
blessed with wealth, intelligence, knowledge, ortalent, then I need to
use that to bring someone relief.
I need Allah , I know that. Ifeel it.
We need Allah with every rotation of the earth. So yes, go to Allah
when you need Him – at every moment in time.

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1a] The punishment for breaking the fast in Ramadaan with no excuse

1a]
For Allaah is Most Generous, Forbearing and Most Merciful, as He says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Know they not that Allaah accepts repentance from His slaves and
takes the Sadaqaat (alms, charity), and that Allaah Alone is the One
Who forgives and accepts repentance, Most Merciful?"
[al-Tawbah 9:104]
If you try fasting and find out how easy it is and what comfort it
brings and how close it brings you to Allaah, you will never give it
up.
Think about what Allaah says at the end of the verses on fasting
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Allaah intends for you ease, and He does not want to make things
difficult for you"
[al-Baqarah 2:185]
The phrase, "so that you may be grateful to Him" shows that fasting is
a blessing for which we must give thanks. Hence some of the salaf used
to wish that the whole year was Ramadaan.
We ask Allaah to help youand guide you, and to open your heart to that
which will bring you happiness in this world and in the Hereafter.
And Allaah knows best.

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