Represent Your Faith, Come What May

Some people worry about appearing Muslim because they don't want to
attract negative attention from non-Muslims. They want to be liked and
accepted. So they hide their deen. At work or on a journey they worry
about doing salat in public and may actually miss prayers. They are
reluctant to wear hijab. They don't even like to greet their fellow
Muslims with salam in public.
I say that it's better to be hated for what you are, than loved for
what you are not.
When you appear before Allah, do you want to say,"I hid my religion
and thenon-Muslims accepted me."
Or do you want to say, "People harassed me anddespised me, because I
represented Islam."
Be proud of who you are – not the pride of arrogance but the pride of
self-respect. Be grateful for Allah's greatest favor to you, Islam.
Represent your faith, no matter how people respond. I think you'll
find that most people will respect you for it. In fact I have noticed
that practicing, representing Muslims are sometimes treated like sages
or priests. But if you are mocked for being Muslim, that's an honor
and a barakah for you on Yawm Al-Qiyamah.
Stand up straight and smile. Speak your truth without preaching.
Perform your salat wherever you are, without ostentation. Greet your
fellow Muslimswith enthusiasm, wish people a happy Eid (even
non-Muslims!), wear yourIslamic garments, have no fear, and be
yourself, a believer.

Live the Moment – It’s All You Have

Try to appreciate the present moment and truly live it, rather than
using it up by feeling guilty about the past, or fretting about the
future.Regret for the past is a waste of spirit, and worrying about
the future is pointless.
Hanan Bilal, a communityactivist and motivator from Florida, asks,
"Whenwill we stop living in the past and longing for our future? All
we really have is this moment. The question is what are we going to do
right now? Our time is now!"
The Past
That's not to say that contemplation of past and future is verboten.
The Quran tells stories of the past in order to educate us. The
Messenger of Allah (sws) told us many stories of past Prophets and the
Bani Israa'il, for the samereason. We study world history, we study
the seerah of our Prophet and the lives of the Sahabah, because it
inspires and informs.
I taught a martial arts class several hours ago and I'm still
reviewing it in my mind, examining what I could do better next time.
That's part of the learning process for me.
I have a sweet young daughter named Salma and I often think about my
time with her, something funny that shesaid, or the small gifts that
she likes to make forme. Yesterday she made me a card that says "I
love Baba." A few days ago we had a poetry reading at our local Muslim
community center, and in between readings our host told jokes. For
some reason Salma positioned herself in the front row, and every time
our host told ajoke I heard Salma laughing loudly, even though I'm
sure she did not understand the jokes ("do vegetarians eat animal
crackers?"). Crazy kid, ha ha. So yeah, I think about past moments.
But I'm not stuck in the past. I think about those moments because
they educate meor make me smile, so they become a part of mypresent
and future.
On the other hand, I occasionally think about my former marriage, and
those are usually not good thoughts, because Itend to dwell on the
mistakes I made, and I feel sadness or guilt. I've already
contemplated deeply on that period in my life, and I've learned my
lessons. I don't need to keep returning there in my mind, punishing
myself. If I did, then I would indeed be stuck inthe past, unable to
move forward. That is the kind of pointless regret that weighs people
down andburdens their spirits.
The Future
We plan for the future byhaving goals, getting an education, working
hard,saving money, always learning and improving ourselves. We plan
for our aakhirah by dedicating ourselves to Allah, worshiping, giving
our money to the poor and orphans, and humbling ourselves. We build
our futures step by step. But it's not productive to sit around biting
our nails and thinking, "What if I fail my exam, oh, when will I get
married, what's going to happen if I lose my job, how will I pay
mybills…" You make yourselfsick and it doesn't help.
Don't worry, plan . There'sa huge difference! Then acknowledge that
you don't control the future. That's Allah's province. Trust in Him,
let him be your guide, find your security in Him.
The security of the dunyais false security. Sufferingis the lot of all
Adam's children, in one way or another, and death comes when we're
ready or not. The security of Allah is real and transcends this world.
The Moment
This moment is all we have, my friend. The past is gone, and the
future never comes, because when we get there, we're still in the
present.
If you take this moment to breathe deeply and say, "SubhanAllah wa
bihamdihi" – glory to Allah and all praise to Him – and then thank
Allah for the blessings in your life, or sit down andplay a game with
your child, go for a walk in thesunshine, maybe take a few nature
photos, call an old friend, write your spouse a love note, read a
verse from the Quran and contemplate it – thenyou have lived! You have
turned that moment into a precious gem, something to smile aboutand
feel good about.
Let's live the moment, be conscious of it, feel it, and give Allah the
credit, and in doing so let's turn the moment into a circle of
sunshine and barakah.
P.S. Isn't that the most amazing photo above? I absolutely love it. I
want to roll around in that grass, bathe in that river, call the
adhaan to the sky, and build a small house among those
trees.SubhanAllah.

--

- - - - -

And Allah Knows the Best!

- - - - -

Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

People will be called on the Day of Resurrection by their fathers’ names, not their mothers’

Is it true that on the on the Day of Resurrection Allaah will call the
people by their names and the names of their mothers, and what is
theresponse to those who say that? Is there any shar'i evidence?.
Praise be to Allaah.
The idea that people willbe called by their mothers' names is mistaken
and goes against that which is proven in the saheeh Sunnah which
indicates that they will be attributed to their fathers. In his
Saheeh, al-Bukhaari included a chapter entitled "Chapter: The people
willbe called by their father's names, in which he quoted hadeeth no.
6177 from Ibn 'Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him), that the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "A banner will be
raised forthe betrayer on the Day of Resurrection and it will be said:
This is the betrayer of So and so the son of So and so."
This hadeeth was also narrated by Muslim (1735).
That which was narratedsaying that people will be called by their
mothers' names is da'eef(weak).
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Tuhfat al-Mawdood
bi Ahkaam al-Mawlood (p. 147):
Chapter Ten: Mankind will be called on the Day of Resurrection by
their fathers' names and not by their mothers'. This is the correct
view which isindicated by the saheeh Sunnah and was stated by the
imams such as al-Bukhaari and others. He said in his Saheeh: The
people will be calledon the Day of Resurrection by their fathers'
names and not by their mothers'. Then he quoted in this chapter the
hadeeth of Ibn 'Umar who said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "When Allaah gathers the first
and the last on the Day of Resurrection, Allaah will raise for every
betrayer a banner on the Day of Resurrection and it will be said: This
is the betrayer of So and so the son of So and so."
In Sunan Abi Dawood (4948) it is narrated witha jayyid isnaad from
Abu'l-Darda' that he said:The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings
of Allaah be upon him) said: "You will be called on the Day of
Resurrection by your names and the names of your fathers, so choose
good names for yourselves."
Some people claimed that they will be called by their mothers' names
and they quoted as evidence for that a hadeeth which is not sound.
This appears in Mu'jam al-Tabaraani in the hadeeth of Abu Umaamah from
the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): "When one of
your brothers dies and you have levelled the dirt over his grave, let
one of you stand at the head of his grave and say: O So and so son of
So and so [his mother's name], for he can hear him but cannot reply.
Then let him say: OSo and so son of So and so [his mother's name], and
he will say: Tell us, may Allaah have mercy on you." And in this
hadeeth it says that a man said: O Messenger of Allaah, what if his
mother's name is not known? He said: Then lethim be attributed to his
mother Hawwa' (Eve), O So and so son of Hawwa'."
al-Haythami said (3/163):Its isnaad includes a number of people whomI
do not know. End quote.
It says in Kashf al-Khifa' (2/375): It was classed as da'eef (weak) by
Ibn al-Salaah, then by al-Nawawi, Ibn al-Qayyim, al-'Iraaqi, Ibn Hajar
in some of his books and by others.
They said: Moreover, a man may not know for sure who his father is,
such as one who is disowned in a case of li'aan or an illegitimate
child, so how can he be called by his father's name?
The answer is: The hadeeth is weak according to the consensus of
scholars of hadeeth. As for the one whose his father is not known, he
will be called as he was called in this world, so a person will be
called in the Hereafter as he was called in this world, whether he was
called by his father's name or his mother's. And Allaah knows best.
End quote.
Note:
Some of them interpreted the verse (interpretation of the meaning):
"(And remember) the Day when We shall call together all human beings
with their (respective) Imam [their Prophets, or their records of good
and baddeeds, or their Holy Books like the Qur'aan, the Tawraat
(Torah), the Injeel (Gospel), or the leaders whom the people followed
in this world]" [al-Isra' 17:71] asreferring to this weak meaning. See
al-Qurtubi (10/257).
Al-Zamakhshari said: Oneof the weird ideas mentioned in tafseer is the
idea that the word "imam" is the plural of the word "umm" (mother) and
that the people will be called on the Day of Resurrection by their
mothers' names,and that the reason why they will be called by their
mothers' names instead of their fathers' is out of respect for the
rights of 'Eesa (peace be upon him) and to show the honourable descent
of al-Hasan and al-Husayn on their mother's side, and so that
illegitimate childrenwill not be embarrassed.How strange these notions
are. End quote. Al-Kashshaaf 2/682.
And Allaah knows best.

Good deeds appear in the form of a man in the grave

How sound is this hadeeth?
"When a person dies, whilst his relatives are busy with his funeral
rites, a very handsome man stands at the head of the deceased and when
the body is shrouded, that man comes in between the shroud and chest
of the deceased, and after the burial, the people go back to their
homes and the two angels Munkar and Nakeer come to the grave and they
try to separate this handsome man from the deceased so that they will
be able to question the deceased about his faith.But the good-looking
man says: 'He is my friend, he is my friend, and I will never leave
him without interveningunder any circumstances. If you areappointed to
question him, then do as you are commanded, but as for me, I can never
leave him until I admit him to Paradise.' Then the handsome man turns
to the deceased and says tohim: 'I am the Qur'aan that you used to
recite ina loud voice sometimes and in a low voice sometimes. Do not
worry. After the questioning of Munkar and Nakeer, there will be no
sorrow after this day.' When the questioning ends, the handsome man
and the angels prepare a bed of silk filled with musk for the deceased
in Paradise.".
Praise be to Allaah.
What is narrated in the saheeh Sunnah about one's good deeds takinga
physical form and appearing in the form ofa handsome man in the grave,
including the deed of reciting the HolyQur'aan, is as follows:
1-
It was narrated from al-Bara' ibn 'Aazib (may Allaah be pleased with
him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said:
"When the believing slave is about to depart this world and enter the
Hereafter, there come down to him from heaven angels with white faces
like the sun, and they sit around him as far as the eye can see. They
bring with them shrouds from Paradise and perfumes from Paradise…"
until he said,describing the state of the believer in the grave:
"Then a voice calls out from heaven, 'My slave has spoken the truth,
so prepare for him a bed from Paradise and clothehim from Paradise,
and open for him a gate to Paradise.' Then there comes to him some of
itsfragrance, and his grave is made wide, as far as he can see. Then
there comes to him a man with a handsome face and handsome clothes,
and a good fragrance, who says, 'Receive the glad tidings that will
bring you joy this day.' He says, 'Who are you? Your face is a face
whichbrings glad tidings.' He says, 'I am your righteous deeds.' He
says, 'O Lord, hasten the Hour so that I may returnto my family and my
wealth.'"
Narrated by Ahmad (4/362); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Ahkaam
al-Janaa'iz (156).
2-
It was narrated that Buraydah (may Allaah bepleased with him) said: I
heard the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) say:
"The Qur'aan will meet its companion on the Day of Resurrection when
his grave is opened for him, in the form of a pale man. It will say to
him, 'Do you recognize me?' He will say: 'I do not recognize you.' It
will say: 'I am your companion the Qur'aan, who kept you thirsty on
hot days and kept you awake at night.Every merchant benefits from his
business and today you will benefit from your good deeds.' He will be
given dominion in his right hand and eternity in his left, and there
will be placed on his head a crown of dignity, and hisparents will be
clothed with priceless garments the like of which have never been seen
in this world. They will say: 'Why have we been clothed with this?' It
will be said: 'Because your son used to recite Qur'aan.' Then it will
be said to him: 'Recite and ascend in the degrees of Paradise,' and he
will continue to ascend so long as he recites, either at a fast pace
or a slow pace ."
Narrated by Ahmad in al-Musnad (394) and Ibn Maajah in al-Sunan
(3781); classed as hasan by al-Busayri in al-Zawaa'id and by
al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah (2829).
Al-Suyooti said in his commentary on the hadeeth (2/1242):
"In the form of a pale man". Al-Suyooti said: This is the one whose
colour has changed. It is as if he comes in this form so as to
resemble his companion in this world, or to draw attention to the fact
thatjust as his colour changed in this world because of staying up at
night to read Qur'aan, the Qur'aan will appear in a similar form
becauseof its striving on the Day of Resurrection until its companion
attains the ultimate goal in the Hereafter. End quote.
I have not found anything in the saheeh Sunnah to suggest that aman's
righteous deeds will appear in the form of a man in the grave except
in these two hadeeths.
As for the hadeeth whichyou quoted, it is not narrated in any of the
reliable books of Sunnah, and we have not found it with any isnaad,
saheeh (sound) or da'eef (weak). Rather it is something that appears
in some chat rooms or on some sites with no proof. Perhaps some
ignorant person wrote it himself then attributed it to the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), to encouragethe people to
respect theQur'aan and pay attention to it, but these people do not
know thattelling lies about the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) is one of the worst of sins that doom a person to the
Fire of Hell, and the good intention does not remove the burden of sin
for those who tell liesand fabricate ahaadeethas if the Prophet (peace
and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said them. The Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Telling lies about me is not
like telling lies about anyoneelse. Whoever tells a lie about me
deliberately, let him take his place in Hell." Narrated by al-Bukhaari
(1291) and Muslim (4).
And Allaah knows best.