How he used his eyes

It is said that Da'wood Ta'ee Rahmatullah alaihe used to take crumbs of bread soaked in water, that being the only meal he took everyday. On being asked why he did so, he replied, "By drinking this liquid food, instead of chewing and swallowing bread, I can save enough time to recite fifty Ayaat of the Holy Quran." Once a visitor came to see him and told him that the beam of his room had cracked. He said, "I have not looked up at the ceiling of this room for the last twenty years." Not only did these pious beings avoid indulging in idle talks, but also abstained from idle gazing. Muhammad bin Abdul Aziz Rahmatullah alaihe says that he remained with Sheikh Ahmad ibne Razeen Rahmatullah alaihe from morning till Asr and saw that the Sheikh never looked this way or that. Someone asked him about it and he said,"Allah Ta'ala has granted us the gift of eyes in orderthat we may take a lessonfrom seeing His Majesty and Grandeur, manifested in all created things. He who cannot do so is not making proper use of his eyes."
May Allah give us the ability to make wise use of our bounties./ - - - :-> Transtors: 1.http://free-translation.imtranslator.net/lowres.asp 2.http://translate.google.com/m?twu=1&hl=en&vi=m&sl=auto&tl=en

How he used his eyes

It is said that Da'wood Ta'ee Rahmatullah alaihe used to take crumbs
of bread soaked in water, that being the only meal he took everyday.
On being asked why he did so, he replied, "By drinking this liquid
food, instead of chewing and swallowing bread, I can save enough time
to recite fifty Ayaat of the Holy Quran." Once a visitor came to see
him and told him that the beam of his room had cracked. He said, "I
have not looked up at the ceiling of this room for the last twenty
years." Not only did these pious beings avoid indulging in idle talks,
but also abstained from idle gazing. Muhammad bin Abdul Aziz
Rahmatullah alaihe says that he remained with Sheikh Ahmad ibne Razeen
Rahmatullah alaihe from morning till Asr and saw that the Sheikh never
looked this way or that. Someone asked him about it and he said,"Allah
Ta'ala has granted us the gift of eyes in orderthat we may take a
lessonfrom seeing His Majesty and Grandeur, manifested in all created
things. He who cannot do so is not making proper use of his eyes."
May Allah give us the ability to make wise use of our bounties.

--
- - - - - - -

old news - FOR SOME, A MINDSET THAT LEADS TO VIOLENCE

Is Islam the problem? It's an increasingly public debate the White House seems less than thrilled to have. President Bush insists that "our quarrel
is not with Islam," because, well,"Islam means peace." End of story...
...At one time or another all religions have been nasty. For all of the passages in the Koran that have been used to justify violence, one can just
as easily find passages in the Jewish or Christian Bibles justifying violence.
The difference is that Europeans and Americans, broadly speaking,no longer have the desire to use religion to justify violence. Vast numbers of Arabs, North Africansand East Asians still do. Our inquisitions are in the past, their inquisitions happen every day.
Much of Muslim world simply livesin a different time than the West. Oh sure, some of the big cities, with their cars and satellite dishes, may look modern. But their culture is horribly behind the times...
...Meanwhile, Muslims use the word jihad in its literal sense, i.e. a holy war, and nobody in America or Europe is at all offended, despite the fact that the West has been a victim of Muslim jihads just as much as Muslims were victims of Crusades- take the Ottoman Empire for example. But you don't hear us shrieking about their insensitive use of the word because, frankly, we don't remember or care enough to know we should be offended. That's all in the past.
It's unfashionable to say some cultures are more "backward" than others, but that doesn't make it any less true (the lifestyle of millions of Afghans today is indistinguishable from, or worse than, the way Afghans lived centuries ago). The West went through the Protestant Reformation, the Counter Reformation, hundreds of revolts and revolutions, the Enlightenment and dozens of wars to unshackle itself from the sort of mindset that seeks religious justification for cruelty and barbarity.
Much of the Muslim world has yetto go through such a process. When they do, I have no doubt they will still be Muslims. They justwon't use that as a justification to murder people./ - - - :-> Transtors: 1.http://free-translation.imtranslator.net/lowres.asp 2.http://translate.google.com/m?twu=1&hl=en&vi=m&sl=auto&tl=en

Ramadan 2012, The 9th Day

Perform prayer and givethe alms. Any good you send ahead for yourselves, you will find with Allah. Certainly Allah sees what you do. (Surat al-Baqara, 110)
There is no god but Allah, the One, having no partner with Him. Sovereignty belongs to Him and all the praise is due to Him, and He is Potent over everything. O Allah, grant me pardon, have mercy upon me, direct me to righteousness and provide me sustenance. (Muslim)
What does safeguarding their prayer mean? Allah does not say ‘prayers.’ Because there is not just one prayer. There are five.Someone who immaculately safeguards the prayer, who prays without exception. Not someone who prays in the morning but not at noon, or who prays at noon but not in the evening. Someone who performs them all, one after the other. (A9 TV, May 12, 2012)
The Importance Of Salat (Prayer) In The Life Of A Muslim
The scrupulousness whicha believer displays towards his religious observance makes his faith apparent. He enthusiastically establishes salat, fasts andperforms ritual washing made compulsory by Allah throughout the course of his life. Allah hasdescribed sincere Muslims'enthusiasm for religious observances in many verses. One of these reads:
Those who are steadfast in seeking the face of their Lord, and establish salat and give from the provision We have given them, secretly and openly, andstave off evil with good, it is they who will have the ultimate Abode. (Surat ar-Ra'd, 22)
The salat is a religious observance that believers are commanded to perform throughout the course of their lives, the times of which have been stipulated. Human beings are prone to forgetfulnessand heedlessness. If they fail to use their will and become caught up in the flow of daily life, they move away from subjects to which they should actually turn their attention and cling to. They forget that Allah enfolds and surrounds them in all ways, that He sees and hears them at every moment, that they will have to account to Allah for all they do; they forget death, the existence of Paradise and Hell, that nothing can happen that is not destined, and that there issomething auspicious in everything and every event. By falling into heedlessness they can forget the true purpose oflife.
The salat performed five times a day eradicates that forgetfulness and heedlessness, and keeps the believer's will and awareness alive. It ensures that the believer constantly turns to Allah and assists him in living inthe light of our Lord's commandments. The believer who stands in the presence of Allah in order to pray establishes a powerful spiritual bond with our Lord. It is revealed in one verse thatthe salat reminds people of Allah and keeps them from all forms of evil:
Recite what has been revealed to you of the Book and establish salat. Salat precludes indecency and wrongdoing. And remembrance of Allah isgreater still. Allah knowswhat you do. (Surat al-'Ankabut, 45)
Throughout history the prophets have communicated the salat made compulsory by Allah to their respective peoples, and have been role models for all believers by abiding by this observance in the best and most correct manner.
In the Qur'an it is revealedthat the times of the salathave been set out for believers as a religious observance:
When you have finishedsalat remember Allah standing, sitting and lying on your sides. When you are safe again do salat in the normal way. The salat isprescribed for the believers at specific times. (Surat an-Nisa', 103)
The timings of the salat are "dawn," "noon,""afternoon," "evening," and "late evening." The salat timings are clearly set out in several verses of the Qur'an. Some of these verses read:
So be steadfast in the face of what they say and glorify your Lord with praise before the rising of the Sun and before its setting. And glorify Him during part of the night and at both ends of the day, so that hopefully you will be pleased. (Surah Ta Ha, 130)
So glory be to Allah when you start the night and when you greet the day. Praise be to Him in the heavens and the Earth, in the afternoon and when you reach midday. (Surat ar-Rum, 17-18)
Our Prophet (saas) who, by the revelation and inspiration of Allah, best understood and interpreted the Qur'an, described for believers thetimes of day when the five salat prayers begin and finish.
Establishing salat in awe means performing this religious observance in the presence of our Almighty Lord by feeling His might and grandeur, with fear and respect. A believer who wishes to properly fulfill this obligation must take measures against everything that might prevent this awed awareness and display the maximum scrupulousness...../ - - - :-> Transtors: 1.http://free-translation.imtranslator.net/lowres.asp 2.http://translate.google.com/m?twu=1&hl=en&vi=m&sl=auto&tl=en