Some of its inhabitants

Imran bin Husayn (radiAllahu anhu) narratedthat the Prophet (salAllahu
alayhi wasalam) said: "I looked into Paradise and saw that the
majority of its inhabitants were the poor, and I looked into Hell and
saw that the majority of its inhabitantswere women."
[Sahih al-Bukhari]
Usamah (radiAllahu anhu) narrated that the Prophet (salAllahu alayhi
wasalam) stated: "I stood at the gate of Paradise and saw that the
majorityof the people who entered it were the poor, while those of
means were held [for account], except the companions of the Fire, who
were already ordered to [be taken to] the Fire. And I stood at the
gate of the Fire and [saw that] the majority of those who entered it
were women."
[Sahih al-Bukhari and Muslim]
Ibn Abbas (radiAllahu anhu) stated: "The Prophet (salAllahu alayhi
wasalam) said, 'I looked into the Hellfire, and the majority of its
dwellers were women who were ungrateful.' It was asked, 'Did they
disbelieve in (i.e.were ungrateful to ] Allah?' He replied, 'They were
ungrateful to their husbands and were ungrateful for favors and the
good deeds done for them. If you had always been good to one of
themand then she saw something in you not to her liking, she would
say, 'I have never seen any good from you at all."'"
[Sahih al-Bukhari]
Pharaoh:
"And We sent Musa with Our clear [signs] and an authority manifest
unto Pharaoh and his chiefs, but they followed the command of Pharaoh.
And the command of Pharaoh was no right guide. He will go before his
people on the Day of Judgment and lead them into the Fire. And how
evilwill be the place to which they are led. And they are followed by
a curse in this[life] and on the Day of Judgment. And evil is the gift
which will be given [to them]."
[Hud, 11: 96-99]
"The Fire - they will be exposed to it morning and evening, and on the
Day that judgment will beestablished [it will be said], 'Cast the
people of Pharaoh into the severest punishment.'"
[Ghafir, 40: 46]
The Wives of Nuh and Lut:
"Allah has given an example of those who disbelieve: the wife of Nuh
and the wife of Lut. They were under two of Our righteous servants but
betrayed them; so they [the two prophets] did not benefit them [the
wives] before Allah at all, and they were told, 'Enter the Fire with
those who enter.'"
[at-Tahreem, 66: 10]
Abu Lahab and His Wife:
"May the hands of Abu Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he. His wealth
will not avail him nor thatwhich he gained. He will enter a flaming
fire and his wife [as well] - the carrier of firewood - around her
neck a rope of palm fiber."
[Masad, 111: 1-5]
Amr bin Luhayy:
Abu Hurairah (radiAllahu anhu) reported that Allah's Messenger
(salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said: "I saw 'Amr bin Luhayy bin Qam'a bin
Khindif, brotherof Bani Ka'b, dragging his intestines in the Fire."
[Muslim]
Amr bin Amir al-Khuya'i:
Abu Hurairah (radiAllahu anhu) stated that Allah's Messenger
(salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said: "I saw 'Amr bin 'Amir al-Khuya'i
dragging his intestines in the Fire; he was the first who dedicated to
animals to false deities."
[Muslim]
Abu Talib:
Ibn Abbas (radiAllahu anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allah
(salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said: "Of the inmates of the Fire, the one
with the easiest punishment will be Abu Talib; he will be wearing
apair of shoes which will cause his brain to boil."
[Sahih al-Bukhari]
"He will say, 'Enter into the company of communities who passed away
before you - of jinn and men - into the Fire.'"
[al-A'raf, 7: 38]
"If your Lord had so willed, He could have make mankind one people,
but they will not cease to dispute except those on whom your Lordhas
bestowed His mercy. And the word of your Lord will be fulfilled:
'Certainly I will fill Hell with jinn and men all together.'"
[Hud, 11: 118-119]
"Then they will be throwninto it [the Hellfire] on their faces - they
and those straying in evil and the soldiers of Iblees, all together."
[ash-Shu'ara, 26: 94-95]

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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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