Breaking the Fast and Maghrib (Sunset) Prayer

Some Muslims have exaggerate about breaking their fast to the point
that they miss the Magrib prayer( after eating dates comes the soup
and juice and so on).
What is your advice withregard to such behavior?
If the meal is put in frontof a person without his own intention being
to miss the congregational prayer, then he can eat and drink, even if
he misses the congregational prayer, based on the statement of the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), "If the meal is
served and the prayer starts, begin with the meal." (Bukhari
narratedit, #631.)
As for putting a large portion of food out purposely to miss the
congregational prayer, this is the wrong approach and incorrect
behavior. The correct thing is for a Muslim to take a lot of food
unsuspectedly, thereby making him miss the congregational prayer, but
he still gets the bigger reward. Then what is the sunnah? The sunnah
is what is reported on the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him) "that he used to break the fastbefore he prayed with fresh
dates, if there were no fresh dates thenwith dry dates, and if there
were no dry dates,then he sipped from water." (At-Tirmidhi narrated it
and others. He stated it was hasan, gharib hadith. Also Al Albanni
declared it hasan in Sahih Al Jama#4995.)

Where does Waswaas( bad thoughts) come from in Ramadaan

If bad dreams are from the Shayateen, but the Shayateen are chained
during Ramadhan, then how is it that we have bad dreams during
Ramadhan?
Praise be to Allaah.
Not all shayateen are chained. Only the leadersor the strong ones are
chained, which means they could not do in Ramadan the things theyused
to do throughout the year. Let it also be known to you that alqareen,
who is the resident shaytan, never leaves you no matter where you go.
Also thereis the evil within every one of us. Therefor, all ofthese
factors promote the evil which we see during Ramadan, yet it
iscertainly less than outside Ramadan.

Fasting lasts until the sun sets and is not as some of the Shi’ah say

I am asking about the topic of fasting and breaking the fast. I was
speaking to my neighbours who follow the Shi'i madhhab, and they
recited to me a verse of Qur'aan which says that fasting is from the
time of the white thread until night, and itis not until sunset only.
This is what they said to me. I hope that you can advise me, may Allah
reward you with the best of rewards.
Praise be to Allaah.
The time of fasting on which the Muslims are unanimously agreed
andwhich they have followed from the time of the Prophet (blessingsand
peace of Allah be upon him) and his Companions until the present day
is from the break of the true dawn until when the disk of the sun
disappears completely beneath the horizon. This is indicatedby the
Qur'aan and Sunnah and definitive consensus of the Muslims.
Allah says (interpretationof the meaning): "then complete your Sawm
(fast) till the nightfall [al-layl]" [al-Baqarah 2:187]. Al-layl
[translatedhere as nightfall] in the language of the Arabs starts when
the sun sets.
It says in al-Qamoos al-Muheet (1364): al-Layl:from the setting of the
sun until the break of the true dawn or sunrise. End quote.
It says in Lisaan al-'Arab (11/607): al-Layl: comes straight after the
end of al-Nahaar (day), and starts when the sun sets. End quote.
Al-Haafiz Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said in his
commentary on this verse:
The words of Allah "thencomplete your Sawm (fast) till the nightfall"
imply that breaking the fast at the moment of sunset is a shar'i rule.
End quote.
Tafseer al-Qur'aan al-'Azeem, 1/517
In fact some commentators have pointed out that the use of the
preposition ila (till) in this verse also implies hastening, because
that prepositionindicates reaching the end and achieving the goal.
Al-'Allaamah al-Taahir ibn 'Ashoor (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Ila al-layl (till the nightfall) means until one achieves that goal
and reaches the night, and the preposition ila ischosen to indicate
that one should hasten to break the fast when the sun sets, because
the preposition ila means that the purpose is achieved then, unlike
the preposition hatta (until). What is meant here is to indicate that
the fast is completed when the night begins. End quote.
Al-Tahreer wa'l-Tanweer, 1/181
All of that is supported by what is narrated in al-Saheehayn from
Ameer al-Mu'mineen 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allah be pleased with
him) who said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) said: "When the night comes from here and the day departs
from here, and the sun sets, then it is time for the fasting person to
break his fast."Narrated by al-Bukhaari (1954) and Muslim (1100).
In this hadeeth the coming of night from the east and the
disappearance of the disk of the sun below the horizon are mentioned
together, which is something that is well known, because darkness
starts from the East as soon as the light of the sun disappears below
the horizon. Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The phrase "when night comes from here" meansfrom the east, and what
is meant is when darkness becomes discernible. In this hadeeth he
mentioned three things, because even though they are interconnected in
fact, they may appear not to be connected, and it may be thought that
night is coming from theeast when it has not yet come, because
something is covering the light of the sun; the same is also true of
the departure of day. Hence it is clarified by the words "and the sun
sets", as an indication that it is essential to confirm that night has
come and day has gone, and that these events occur because of the
setting of the sun and not for any other reason.End quote.
Fath al-Baari, 4/196
Al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The scholars said: each of these three things implies the other two
and is interconnected with them. Rather he mentioned them together
because a person may be in a valley and the like in such a way that he
cannot see the setting ofthe sun, so he relies on the coming of
darkness and the disappearing of daylight. End quote.
Sharh Muslim, 7/209
Al-Bukhaari (1955) and Muslim (1101) narrated that 'Abd-Allaah ibn Abi
Awfa (may Allah be pleased with him) said: We were with the Messenger
of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) on a journey and
he was fasting. When the sun set, he said to one of thepeople: O So
and so, get up and make saweeq forus (mix it with water so that we can
drink it). He said O Messenger of Allah, why not wait till the
evening? He said: Dismount and make saweeq for us. He said: OMessenger
of Allah, why not wait till the evening?He said: Dismount and make
saweeq for us. He said: It is still day. He said: Dismount and
makesaweeq for us. So he dismounted and made saweeq for them, and the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) drank it, thenhe
said: When you see that night has come from here, then let the fasting
person break his fast.
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
This hadeeth indicates that it is mustahabb to hasten to break the
fast and that it is not permissible to refrain from eating and
drinking for any part of the night at all; rather assoon as it is
established that the sun has set, it is permissible to break the fast.
End quote.
Fath al-Baari, 4/197.
Moreover, the fact that there is consensus among the Muslims regarding
breaking the fast and eating as soon as one hears the muezzin give the
call to Maghrib prayer when the sun disappears is evidence that this
is the truth and the one who goes against that is following something
other than the way of the believers and has introduced something into
the religion for which he has no proof or reports from the scholars.
Al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Maghrib comes immediately after the sun has set, and this is something
on which there is consensus. Something concerning this was narrated
from the Shi'ah to which no attention should be paidand which has no
basis. End quote.
Sharh Muslim, 5/136
In fact, in many of the books of the Shi'ah it mentions that on which
there is consensus among the Muslims concerning this matter. Some of
them narrated from Ja'far al-Saadiq (may Allah have mercy on him) that
he said: "When the sun sets, it becomes permissible to break the fast
and it becomes obligatory to offer the prayer." End quote.
Al-Baroojardi narrated from the author of al-Da'aa'im that he said: We
narrated from Ahl al-Bayt -- may the blessings of Allah be upon them
all -- that there was consensus concerning that which we learned from
the reports from them, that the onset of night whichmakes it
permissible for the fasting person to break the fast is the
disappearance of the sun beneath the westernhorizon without any
barrier which would prevent seeing it such asa mountain or wall and
the like. When the disk disappears beneath the horizon, then the night
has begun and it is permissible to break the fast. End quote.
Jaami' Ahaadeeth al-Shi'ah, 9/165
To sum up: what are some of the Shi'ah do now, of delaying Maghrib
prayer and the breaking of the fast untilsometime after the sun has
set is contrary to what is indicated by the Holy Qur'aan, the
saheehSunnah of the Prophet and the consensus of theMuslims.
Moreover it is contrary to what they themselves narrated from their Imams!
And Allah knows best.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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note that the Taj Mahal is closed every Friday

The Taj Mahal is an immense mausoleum of white marble, built between
1631 and 1648 by order of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of
his favourite wife. Taj Mahal means Crown Palace ; one of the wife's
names was Mumtaz Mahal, Ornament of the Palace . The Taj is one of the
most well preserved and architecturally beautiful tombs in the world,
one of the masterpieces of Indian Muslim architecture, and one of the
great sites of the world's heritage.
The Taj Mahal has a life of its own that leaps out of marble, provided
you understand that it is a monument of love. The Indian poet
Rabindranath Tagore called it a teardrop on the cheek of eternity ,
while the English poet, Sir Edwin Arnold, said it was Not a piece of
architecture, as other buildings are, but the proud passions of an
emperor's love wrought in living stones. It is a celebration of woman
built in marble and that is the way to appreciate it.
Although it is one of the most photographed edifices in the world and
instantly recognisable, actually seeing it is awe-inspiring. Not
everything is in the photos. The grounds of the complex include
several other beautiful buildings, reflecting pools, and extensive
ornamental gardens withflowering trees and bushes, and a small gift
shop. The Taj framed by trees and reflected in a pool is amazing.
Close up,large parts of the building are covered with inlaid
stonework.
There is an apocryphal tale that Shah Jahan planned to build an
exactcopy out of black marble on the opposite side of the river. His
plans were foiled by his son, who murdered three elder brothers and
overthrew his father to acquire the throne. Shah Jahan is now buried
alongside hiswife in the Taj Mahal.
If you are taking a camera, beware that because the Taj is white your
camera may underexpose your photos. If it is a film camera you will
not find out until it is too late. Overexposure by 1 or 2 stops is
recommended.
The Taj is open from 6:00 AM to 7:30 PM every day except Friday .
Entry costs₹250 (plus levy of ₹500) for foreigners and ₹20 for
Indians. Get there as early as possible to beat the crowds (but note
thatthe gates won't open until at 6AM at the earliest - often a few
minutes later, so don't bother getting there at 5AM), and plan to
visit the Taj at least two different times during the day (dusk and
dawn are best) in order to experience the full effect of changing
sunlight on the amazing building. It is also utterly stunning under a
full moon. You can also get very good views from Mehtab Bagh (see
Gardens section below).
To buy tickets, you can go to the South gate, but this gate is 1 km
far awayof the entrance and the counter opens at 8:00 AM.At the West
and East gates, the counters open at 6:00 AM. These gates also have
smaller queues in peak times as the big tour buses drop groups off at
the South gate. Alongside the ticket counter, you can also purchase a
self-guided audio tour (allows two toa device) for ₹100 in English and
foreign languages and ₹60 for Indian languages.
The Taj is located pretty much in the middle of town. Expect a line to
getinto the grounds. There are three gates. The western gate is the
main gate where most tourists enter. A large number of people turn up
on weekends and public holidays and entry through the western gate may
take hours. Thesouthern and eastern gates are much less busy and
should be tried on such days.
There are night viewing sessions on the nights of a full moon and the
two days before and after (so five days in total). Exceptions are
Fridays (the Muslim sabbath) andthe month of Ramadan. Tickets must be
purchased 24 hours in advance, starting at 10am, but do not always
sell out, so it can be worth looking into it when you arrive even if
well after 10am. Tickets only allow viewing from the red sandstone
plaza at the south end of the complex, and only for a 1/2 hour window.
Make sure to wear mosquito repellent.
It is a good idea to bring a flashlight, because the interior of the
Taj Mahal is quite dark (even during the day) and to fully appreciate
the details of the gem inlays, you need a good light.
Taj Mahal can also be seen during Night 2 days before and 2 days after
full moon in all 5 days including full moon, the booking has to be
made 24 hours in advance fromArcheological Society of India office
situated at 22, Mall Road, Agra. Ticket fare is Rs. 500 for Indian
Nationals and Rs. 750 for Non Indians. The viewing hours for night
viewing is from 8:30 pm to 9:00 pm and 9:00 pm to 9:30 pm. A visitor
has to reach 30 mins prior to viewing hours for security check at Taj
Mahal Ticketing counter on East Gate of Taj Mahal or he may loose his/
her chance. The Night View isnot worth spending as the visitors are
kept quite far from Taj Mahal nearly 200 Mts away and there in no
light so it could hardly be seen during night hours at viewing hours.
Cameras also do not give images with near zero flux can easily be
avoided for night viewing.

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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