Spiritual Advice for Hajj

Allah سبحانه وتعالى says in the Holy Qur'an:
الْحَجُّ أَشْهُرٌ مَّعْلُومَاتٌ فَمَن فَرَضَ فِيهِنَّ الْحَجَّ فَلاَ
رَفَثَ وَلاَ فُسُوقَ وَلاَ جِدَالَ فِي الْحَجِّ وَمَا تَفْعَلُواْ مِنْ
خَيْرٍ يَعْلَمْهُ اللّهُ وَتَزَوَّدُواْ فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ الزَّادِ التَّقْوَى
وَاتَّقُونِ يَا أُوْلِي الأَلْبَابِ
The season of Pilgrimage is the months known; wherefore whosoever
ordaineth unto himselfthe pilgrimage therein, there is no lewdness nor
wickedness nor wrangling during the pilgrimage, and whatsoever of good
yedo, Allah shall know it. And take provision for the journey, for
verily the best provision is abstainment; and fear Me, O men of
understanding!
[al Baqarah 2/197]
In the verse related to Hajj , the need to perform tawaaf (ritual walk
around the Holy Ka'ba), sa'ee (ritual walk between the hills of Safa
and Marwa), stoning of the shayaateen are not mentioned, rather Allah
سبحانه وتعالى mentions the need to abstain from 3 acts :
1. Lewd talk
This means any talk which is rude, indecent, offensive or vulgar. To
speak in such a manner violates the sanctity of Hajj. It does not
befit a Muslim to speak in a lewdmanner – it only suggestsa filthy
heart and mind. This prohibition during Hajj also includes speaking of
conjugal relations between husband and wife which under normal
circumstances would be permissible.
2. Sinning
This includes any act of disobedience to Allah سبحانه وتعالى
especially not lowering one's gaze. During Hajj, being such a large
gathering of men and women, the need to lower one's gaze becomes all
the more important. Not lowering one's gaze not only destroys the
sanctity of Hajj, but one's attention is diverted from Allah سبحانه
وتعالى to the creation. Nothing is achieved by the stray gaze – it is
an arrow which only returns to pierce one's own heart.
3. Arguing
The Hajj journey makes the most patient and forbearing of people
irritable because one's sleeping and eating patterns are disrupted.
Insuch a state and in such alarge gathering of people one may be
easilyprovoked and get into anargument. At such times one should
exercise patience and self-discipline and remind himself by saying 'I
am in Hajj' i.e. I am in a sanctified state.
These 3 sins reflect the 3 categories of sins a Muslim should avoid
throughout his life i.e.
• Sins of the tongue
• Sins of the flesh
• Sins against fellow Muslims
During Hajj these 3 sins are especially dangerous yet so easy to
commit. If a person engages in any of these there is a great danger
that all of the reward for Hajj will be destroyed. As well as
fulfilling all the rites and rituals of Hajj, it is necessary to
refrain fromthe above sins for an accepted Hajj.

The Names of Allah (swt)

اللَّهُ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ هُ
Allah! There is no god butHe. (2:255)
وَلِلّهِ الأَسْمَاء الْحُسْنَى فَادْعُوهُ بِهَا وَذَرُواْ الَّذِينَ
يُلْحِدُونَ فِي
And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them. And leave
[the company of] those who practice deviation concerning His names.
They will be recompensed for what they have been doing. (7:180)
اللَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ لَهُ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَىٰ
Allah! There is no Allah save Him. His are the most beautiful names. (20:7)
هُوَ اللَّهُ الْخَالِقُ الْبَارِئُ الْمُصَوِّرُ ۖ لَهُ الْأَسْمَاءُ
الْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُ مَافِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ
الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
He is Allah, the Creator, the Shaper out of naught, the Fashioner. His
are the most beautifulnames. All that is in the heavens and the earth
glorifieth Him, and He is the Mighty, the Wise. (59:24)
No: 99 الرَّشِیدُ
Ar-Rashid: The Guide to Path of Rectitude
Meaning: The Guide to the Right Path, The One who guides.
Found In Quraan Ayah(s): (2:256)
No: 100 الصَّبُورُ
As-Sabuur: The Extensively Enduring One
Meaning: The Patient, TheOne who does not quickly punish the sinners.
Found In Quraan Ayah(s): (2:153) (3:200) (103:3)

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The Most Perfect Days for Perfect Ibaadah

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"So whosoever does good equal to the weightof an atom, shall see it;
~And whosoever does evil equal to the weight of an atom, shall see it."
{ Source :-Qur'aan ~ Surah Al-Zalzalah ~99:7-8}
{ 'Alhamdulillaah 'Hir RabbilAlameen'} ......{!!!}
The glorious days when rewards are multiplied many times,
and sins are forgiven much more...
{'Insha Allah'}
These Blessed days are the first ten {10} days of Dhul-Hijjah{!!! }
....Just like the last ten nights of Ramadaan are the best ten nights
out ofthe whole year.
The *Prophet*
(Sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam)
said:-
"There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allaah
than these ten~{10} days."
The people asked~
"Not even 'Jihaad' for thesake of Allaah?"
He said:-
"Not even Jihaad for the sake of Allaah...
except in the case of a man who went out to fight giving himself and
his wealth up for the cause, and came back with nothing."
{Source:- Bukhaari }
{'Subhaan Allaah wal-Hamdulillaa h'!
...what an Amazing Blessing ! }
1) Fast all nine {9} days and
especially fast the Day of 'Arafah {!!!}
The Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam) said:-
"Anyone who fasts for one day for Allah's pleasure, Allah will keep
his face away from the Hell fire for a distance covered by a journey
of...
seventy {70}years!!!"
{Source:- Bukhari & Muslim}
The Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam) used tofast on the
ninth[9th] dayof Dhul Hijjah and he said:-
"Fasting the Day of 'Arafah ~
{9th} ~ ninth Dhul-hijjah is an Expiation for (all thesins of) the
previous year and an expiation for (all the sins of) the coming
year{!!!}"
{Source:- Sahih Muslim}
2) Do a LOT of Dhikr and Takbeer.
The Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam) said:-
' There are no days on which good deeds are greater or more beloved to
Allaah than on these
ten {10} days!so recite much...
Tahleel { Laa ilaaha ill-Allaah }
Takbeer {Allaahu Akbar}
and ...
Tahmeed {Al-hamdu Lillaah.}"
{ Sources:-Ahmad. ..Saheeh }
Takbeer at this time is a Sunnah that has mostly been forgotten,
especially during the firstfew days. So say it in the Masjid, in your
home, on the street and every place where it is permitted
to remember Allaah.
Revive the Sunnah that have been virtually forgotten and earn great
rewards for doing so.
{'Insha Allah"}
The Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam) said:-
"Whoever revives an aspect of my Sunnah thatis forgotten after my
death, he will have a reward equivalent to that of the people who
follow him, without it detracting in the least from
their reward."
{Source:-Tirmid hi- a Hasan Hadeeth}
Obviously, men should recite these phrases out loud, and women should
recite them quietly.
3) Stand in Night Prayers:-
Remember the virtues of spending the night in prayer, and its
sweetness in Ramadan?!
Why not revive this beautiful act of worship during these nights as well?!
Remember, how in the last third of every night, Allah Almighty calls
out tous, His servants:-
"Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to his invocation?
Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is
there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I mayforgive him?"
{'Alhamdullilah '}
{Sources:-Bukha ari & Muslim}
4) Make Sincere Repentance{!!!}
One of the best and most important things to do during these ten days
is to repent sincerely to Allaah and to give up all kinds of
disobedience and sin right away because we do not know when we will
die{!} and also because one evil deed leads to another.
But what does 'repentance' exactly mean?
It means that you come back to Allaah and give up all the deeds, open
and secret, that He dislikes.... that you regretwhatever you did in
the past, giving it up immediately and be determined never ever, to
return to it, and resolve to adhere firmly to the Truth by doing
whatever Allaah loves~
{'Insha Allah'}
"But as for him who repented, believed and did righteous deeds, thenhe
will be among those who are Successful."
{Source 'Quran'~Surah~Al-Qasas 28:67}
5) Return to the Qur'aan.
It is time now to dust off your copy of the Qur'aan and return to its refuge.
Make it a daily habit, using these 10 days the beginning of a strong
and beautiful relationship with it.
Read it with meaning, understand it, and then implement it and change
your lives for the better, as much as you can. Remember that reading
one letter of the Qur'aan earns you 10 rewards.
In this way, reading SuratAl-Fatihah,whic h doesn't take more than two
minutes will give you more than one thousand rewards!
This is on ordinary days, so what about these magnificent days!
Certainly the reward will be far greater...{!!!}
{'Insha Allaah'}
6) Generally Increase in doing ALL good deeds.
We should strive in doingmore good deeds in general, because good
deeds are beloved by Allaah and will bring us closer to Him. So if we
are not able to go to Hajj this year, we should occupy ourselves
during these blessed days by worshipping Allaah, praying extra
prayers, reading Qur'aan, remembering Allaah!
Sending Salaams on the Prophet
(Sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam)~
making dua,
giving charity,
honoring our parents,
upholding ties of kinship,
enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, and other good
deeds and acts of worship.
{'Insha Allah'}
7) Get the reward of Hajj wherever you are!
You may be unable to do Hajj this year, and you may feel sad because
youare deprived of the greatreward of Hajj. But you can achieve a
similar reward in whatever place you may be.
The Prophet (sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam) said:-
"Whoever prays Fajr Prayer in congregation, and then sits and
remembers Allah until thesun rises, then after a while prays two [2]
rakats, he will gain a reward equal to that of making perfect Hajj and
Umrah."
{He repeated the word Perfect three {3} times}
{ Source:- At-Tirmidhi }
8) Slaughter an animal and distribute the meat.
Ibn Umar said:-
The Prophet (sal Allaahu Alayhi wa Sallam)
lived in Madeenah for 10 years and
every year he slaughtered an animal."
{Source:-Ahmad- }
9) Attend Eid Prayers.
But remember that Eid prayer is a form of worship and we shouldn't be
doing thingsthat are unIslaamic (especially) during these times, such
as listening tomusic, women going out for prayer without proper
Hijaab{!!!}
mixing of men and women, etc.etc. etc.
10) Gratitude to Allaah .
One of the biggest forms of worshipping
Allaah [Subhaanahu wa Ta'ala] is to thank Him, deeply, sincerely and
continuously.
After all, it is He who gave you every single thing that is in you, on
you or around you.
In fact, you wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for the Mercy of your Creator.
So thank Him for EVERYTHING that He gave you, the Islaam that He gave
you, the very life He gave you. And thank Him for the chance that He
gives you in these ten[10]days, to ask for forgiveness and guidance.
'Alhamdulillah' ~ there is much to be gained in these coming days. So
make the most of this perfect opportunity offered by these invaluable
and irreplaceable ten days. Hasten to do good deeds and appreciate
this blessing and make the most of it !!!
"And worship your Lord until there comes unto you the certainty (death)."
{Source:-'Quraa n' Surah~ Al-Hijr ~15:99}
...My 'Salaams' To You All...
... Y a s m i n ...
Say, 'Indeed, my Prayer, my Rites of Sacrifice,
my Living and my Dying are for ALLAH, Lord of the Worlds'.
{'Quran'~Surat Al-'An`am -# 6-162.}
"All that is on earth will Perish. But will abide {Forever}
the Face of thy Lord, full of Majesty, Bounty and Honour."
{'Quran'~ Surat Al-Rahman- # 55~26-27 }
I Want to Die With my Forehead on the Ground!
The Sunnah in my Heart, Allah on my Mind,
Qur'an on my Tongue, and Tears in my Eyes! {'Insha Allah'~'Aameen' }

Raising your Child to be a Muslim

It is true that the first learning center for a child is the mother's
lap. The mannerisms of the parents are reflected in the children.
The story of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani is famous: When he was
traveling with a caravan,a gang of thieves robbed the caravan, when it
came time to check Abdul Qadir Jeelani (Rahmatullahi Alaih), an
eighteen year old young man, the thieves inquired if he had any
valuables to which told them about money which had been sewn in his
clothes by his mother. The thieves asked out of curiosity as to why he
let them knowof the sewn money to which he told them that his mother
had advised him before leaving 'to never lie' upon which the thieves
become ashamed and repented to Allah.
It is the duty of the parents to be an example to their children and
advise them. Allah (Subhanahu Ta'ala) tells us of the advise that
Luqman Hakeem gave to his son, "Behold, Luqman said Tohis son by way
of instruction: "O my son! Join not others with Allah; association
with Allah is indeed the highest wrong-doing."
Then after some ayaat, the advise continues,
O my son! If there be (but) the weight of a mustard-seed and it were
(hidden) in a rock or (anywhere) in the heavens or on earth, Allah
will bring it forth; for Allah knows the finest mysteries, (and) is
well-acquainted (with them).
O my son! Establish regular prayer, enjoin what is Just, and forbid
what is wrong; and bearwith patient constancy whatever befalls thee;
these are affairs of determination.
And swell not thy check (for pride) at men, nor walk in insolence
through the earth; For Allah loveth not Any arrogant boaster.
And be moderate in thy pace, and lower they voice; for the harshest
ofsounds without doubt is the braying of an ass.
(Surah Luqman)
We can recall not to longago in our Muslim culture that all the
grown-ups in the community would take the role of guiders for the
youth. No child dared acting up in front of elders in any gathering.
All the elders held enough authority that they could discipline the
child without having to face the wrath of the parents as is the case
today. As a result, children tend to misbehave and disrespect elders
because they no longer have fear discipline fromanyone besides that
parents and that too is seen little.
Parents find out too late that what they thought was giving 'freedom'
to their children was really digging a hole for them. Being
affectionate to your child is one thing but to let them free to do
anything is not affection rather it is hurting the child. Ah, this is
all a result of the parents forgetting the duty of teaching the child.
More often the television takes the place of the parent and it is from
here the child gains much of his/her ill-mannerisms. Today, I ask you
to take my words to be a reminder and a word of caution.
When the child is able tospeak a little, teach themthe name of Allah.
Before, mothers would put their children to sleep by chanting Allah
Allah , but now it is by playing the music on theradio.
When children are mature do not do anything in front them which will
ruin their mannerisms because they tend to copy these acts, they do
whatever they see their parents doing. Never argue with your spouse in
front of them because this leavesputs a lot of stress on thechild and
causes them tothink that they are the cause of the argument. Never
curse your children.
Pray Salah in front of them, recite Quran, take them to the Masjid
with you, and tell them stories of our pious predecessors, they like
to listen to stories very much. Hearing stories with lessons and
morals will increase their good habits. When they are a little older,
teach them the five Kalimat, Imane Mujmal, Imane Mufassal, and then
teach them Salah.
Put them in under the teaching of an Allah-fearing, Mutaqee Saheehul
Aqeeda Hafiz or Maulvi of to learn Quran Majeed and knowledge of the
deen so they can learn of the beautiful religion to which they belong.
Teach them the masail ofgusul, wudu, and salah.
If Allah gives you taufeeq, make atleast onyour children Alim or
Alimah or Hafiz or Hafiza.A Hafiz will get three generations forgiven
and Alim will get seven generations forgiven [on the Day of
Judgement]. It is baseless to think that an Alim has no source of
earning bread for his family. Know that one does not get more than
destined by learning uloom of the dunya; onewill get what Razzaq has
written for him.
Teach your children simplicity and do not expose them to materialism.
Teach them the value of doing thier own work. Send them tocollege,
make them judges, make them doctors or any successfuland halal career
in this world but make them such that they take on these professions
as honest Muslims who know their religion.G

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