Fasting Has No Equivalent
21 virtues of fasting... how many can you name?
What’s the point of covering your head if you are not…?
Query : “Asalamualaykum, I wanted to seek your opinion on the matter of wearing hijab. Among my friends and family, we have been discussing the role and purpose of hijab in Islam. Some are of the view that it’s more important to be a good human being i.e best in character, polite, truthful, honest, have clear intentions etc and fulfil your huquq ul-Ibad (rights of fellow people). ‘What's the point of covering your head if you are not doing the above mentioned?,’ is the response of some. Could you please elaborate on this issue in the light of Sunnah and…
Sheikh Farid Haibatan
An Islamic studies lecturer and head of development at MRDF.
Peaking at the Last Ten
As we enter the last ten days and nights of Ramadan for this year, the following is a short reminder of how significant the last third of Ramadan is and why any opportunity to increase one’s quantity and quality of worship should be seized. Ai’shah, may Allah be pleased with her, relates, ‘On the onset of the (last) ten, the Messenger of Allah would tighten his waist belt, stay awake the night and wake up his family.’1 Muslim also relates, ‘The Messenger of Allah would strive in the last ten in a manner he would not do so in…
Subhanallah
Juwayriyyah, the mother of the believers (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanha) related that the Prophet (sall Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) left her sitting in her place of prayer one morning after having prayed Fajr. On his return during the forenoon he found her still sitting as he had left her, he asked, ‘Are you still in the same state as when I left you?’ She replied, ‘Yes’. The Prophet said, ‘I said after leaving you four sentences three times - if you were to weigh them against what you have said today up until now, they would outweigh them: Subḥānallāh wa biḥamdihi…
Linking Repentance to the Need for Allah
This article is part of a free translation of al-Iftqar ila Allah, Lubb al-‘Ubudiyyah by Ahmad al-Suwayan. Following on from the previous article which details the veneration that believers should have for divine commandments. One of the best explanations of repentance is one offered by al-Ghazālī, ‘It is a fire raging in the heart, a fissure within that does not heal.’ The sincere believer experiences both regret and pain in his heart for succumbing to disobedience - the fear and fright of his Lord renders his heart asunder. Repentance fills the heart with an incessant need for Allāh and the servant suffers the…
Sinning and Hastily Repenting
This article is part of a free translation of al-Iftqar ila Allah, Lubb al-'Ubudiyyah by Ahmad al-Suwayan It follows on from the previous article which details the veneration that believers should have for divine commandments. Committing sins and falling into error is an unavoidable human trait, such that Allāh’s Messenger said, “By the One in whose hand is my soul, if you were not to commit sin, Allāh would have swept you out of existence and would have brought about another people who commit sin, and then seek forgiveness, and He would then forgive them.” He also said, “All the children of Ādam…
Venerating Commandments
This article is part of a free translation of al-Iftqar ila Allah, Lubb al-'Ubudiyyah by Ahmad al-Suwayan Following on from the previous article, this article discusses the dread the believer should feel in relation to his righteous actions being rejected by the Almighty. The purpose of servitude is to submit and comply out of love and subservience; attaching importance to orders and prohibitions is thus a manifestation of venerating Allāh, the Most High. Allāh says, “That , and whoever honours the sacred ordinances of Allāh – it is best for him in the sight of his Lord...” Allāh also says,…
Fearing Allah in Open and Secret
This article is part of a free translation of al-Iftqar ila Allāh, Lubb al-ʿUbudiyyah by Aḥmad al-Suwayan Following on from the previous article, this article the dread the believer should feel in relation to his righteous actions being rejected by the Almighty. Possessing fear of Allāh is one of the most sublime qualities of those with Īmān. Allāh says: “The believers are only those who, when Allāh is mentioned, their hearts become fearful, and when His verses are recited to them, it increases them in faith; and upon their Lord they rely.” Allāh also says: “And give good tidings to…
Dreading the Rejection of Righteous Actions
This article is part of a free translation of al-Iftqar ila Allah, Lubb al-'Ubudiyyah by Ahmad al-Suwayan Following on from a previous article, this article focuses on the apprehension we should have of our actions being accepted by Allāh. All the while a believer strives to be obedient and continually draw closer to Allāh through the many acts of devotion, he still fears greatly for himself; apprehensive of not being accepted. ʿᾹ’ishah (raḍiy Allāhu ʿanha) said, ‘I questioned Allāh’s Messenger about the āyah, “And they who give what they give while their hearts are fearful ” ‘Are they the ones…