Welcome to the school of life

What if I told you that 10 years from now your life was still the same? your ibadah was still the same? and nothing has pretty much changed except for your age? 

Allah has put certain lessons in your life so that you can learn from them, and it may seem like you are reliving the same trail over and over again, for example some people always seem to complain about being broke but has it occurred to them that Allah wants them to be grateful so that he can increase them?. No matter what trails you are facing, nothing goes away until it teaches us what we need to know. So the question is are you ready to learn? because "when the student is ready, the teacher appears". 

And you might say "well yes I am ready, I do want to change my life" and that's true many of us say that all the time, but I have learned in life a long time ago there is a difference between want and need, because all of us want a better life but how many of us make this a need? how many of us burn the bridges behind us and say "I will memories the Quran because I need to do it for my sake" you see there is a difference between want and need. One must figure out what is holding them back from moving forward? and say "how can I learn a lesson from my current experiences in life"?

                                                                The mystery of timing 

Allot of times we want to take our lives into our own hands but we forget that Allah is the one in control, it may be that you do realize a trail in your life and how to cope with it according to the Quran and Sunnah but your still in that same trial for many years unable to break free from the cycle your in, why? for me this ayah in the Quran pretty much sums it up.

. . then when (Sulaiman (Solomon)) saw it placed before him, he said: “This is by the Grace of my Lord to test me whether I am grateful or ungrateful! And whoever is grateful, truly, his gratitude is for (the good of) his own self, and whoever is ungrateful, (he is ungrateful only for the loss of his own self). Certainly! My Lord is Rich (Free of all wants), Bountiful” [An-Naml: 40]

That's right Allah wants you to be grateful  to call upon him and when the time is right you will overcome your difficulties but in the meantime Allah wants to forgive you and expiate your sins so bear with it only a little remains.

So, verily, with every difficulty, there is relief: (5) Verily with every difficulty there is relief. (Surah Al-Inshirah 94-6)

The path I once chose

walking alone in the light is better than walking with a crowd during the dark #

I once had a dream that I wanted to succeed, to climb the stairs of jannah, but halfway through my journey i was dragged down by the so called friends in my life. At the time this was a reality check for me I realised I will only go so far as i allow myself to go, when I had enough I was in a position where i stood alone facing the harsh realities of this dunya (world), but in these times of loneliness I was truly able to chose my own path, and the decisions I chose then have brought me to the blessings in my life now.

And this ayah's i studied recently only proved that thought to be true! In verse 14 of surah Nisah when Allah speaks of those who will go jahannam he uses the singular word 'Khalid' (one abiding  forever)

 this indicates that no matter how many friends you have in this dunya in jahannam you will always be alone and there will be no one to share your pain and suffering. So we should all really ask ourselves "is it really worth "rolling" with those who misguide you now only to be suffering alone in pain later on"?
I highly doubt it I for one don't regret the times i spent alone in the light of islam.

 Now in the previous Ayah 13 Allah speaks of the believers and uses the plural word khalidina (ones abiding forever)

4:13

 indicating that the believers will be in jannah together abiding in bliss and sharing their joy. . And for those who are suffering alone now, iA a day will come where everyone will share your joys! # chose the friends you want to see in jannah

The torch bearers of the Quran

(^-^*) Dedicated to my class mates at Alhuda institute !

Reciting the Quran is challenging, but learning the Quran word for word in its in-depth meaning is like being in a tough spiritual training ground where every part of you is tested. Starting from your intentions (as to why you chose this path), your will (if it breaks under pressure) finally your self discipline (if you can maintain it). Either way this path you chose can never be in vain, much like being a doctor, the skills you learn are never in vain because they could end up saving a persons life. Similarly, Taleem Al Quran will either take you higher up in the ranks of Allah or it will give you the necessary tools to be able to climb higher in the ranks of Allah someday. Its like climbing a mountain, you either reach a higher point today or you train your physical and mental strength to be able to climb higher tomorrow, and this is the reality of it. There are some who will reach a peak of self actualisation, whereby they are living to their fullest potential because of their understandings of the Quran and what Allah has commanded of them, and others will lag behind on this mountain of life. They will be left looking upwards, like a mountain cat looks at an eagle with desire and anticipation to catch up to their target, the eagle, but will never be able to.

Its tough and many times I have been left broken and defeated only to be lifted up again and put together in a much better piece like a shattered vase glued together. It's much stronger than the last time, although the cracks may be visible, in this case the light of knowledge is shining brightly in those areas which are shattered, they are wiping away the traces of ignorance that can only be cured by knowledge. Subhanallah indeed Allah chooses whom He wants to invite to this blessed gathering of knowledge, like a royalty chooses wisely whom they would like to invite to their gatherings. I would like to say for those who are struggling in pain, worried, unable to bear it much it longer and afraid they will not live up to Allah's expectations. Then don't worry! Allah chose you. Yes, you. And therefore He knows that you can do this! No training ground is meant to be fun, but in the end the result will speak for itself. Looking back at the many great scholars who graced this earth once upon a time, do you think that they were not tested before Allah gave them such light to carry? Truly the torch bearers of Quran are but few, but their light is bright enough to shine for eternity paving the roads for many generations to come..

And this can be you, inshaAllah.

nature our teacher in disguise.

The sand taught me one thing, that you can't hold too many things no matter what you do to make them stay and no matter how much they want to stay. The wind will always blow them away, so learn to let go and choose carefully because like sand only those which are in the centre of your palm will last.

but most of all when I was just a kid growing up and playing in my back yard, there was one creature that used to dazzle me so much, I was awe inspired and in love with caterpillars, so much so that I used to put them in a jar and feed them just so I could watch them transform into butterflies! I wonder am I weird?  but either way if there is anything I learned from this creature of Allah then its that, just like caterpillars were not much different in this life we are all striving to do our best so that we can also one day become butterflies in the gardens of Jannah, (paradise) but right now we are all in our cocoons and this is pretty much our training ground, not everyone is guaranteed to bloom into a beautiful butterfly and even if they do not every one is guaranteed they wont lose their wings and simply crash and remain on this Dunya (world) with no hope of ever experiencing the joys of the true life to come.

                                                                  ..x0x0x..

Al-Fatiha [Chronicle Analogies part1]

The wild ocean of the Dunya and the forgotten map to the kingdom of heaven.

Islam's like a ship the passengers are the muslims, and within that ship there are many small boats signifying division with in our ummah, the sharks are the enemies of islam that prevent us from reaching our destination, the fishes are the non muslims, and we need to catch and save as many as we can from shaytan before the sharks catch them, but how can we when our ship is flooded? no one knows whether he will reach the other side of the shore save any more.

Asalamu Alaykum, 

I hope you all are in the best of health and Imaan. Thanks again for joining me on my journey,
are you saying, what your saying, just because your supposed to say it, without any comprehension? 
then you have lost the true blessings of the treasure your holding!

As a gift I'd like to present you all with a treasure map! 

But there is a catch you see, if you want to grab the treasure you will need to meet some requirements, just like a captain needs a team, a looking glass so he can spot his enemies, and most importantly a ship. A Muslim will need the following

• A map to show us the way and guide us to Jannah(paradise). But don't worry, every body has this map either some where in their home on the Quran, or perhaps they even memorised it!.That's right Al-Fatiha the seven oft repeated verses, the opener of every door and heart, a map to Jannah that every believer must embark upon, but only a few actually look at the map and try to capture its every treasure.
• A captain, Muhammad[s.a.w.s] of course! follow the sunnah and you will not get lost in the vast ocean.
• Righteous companions, every body needs loyal companions who are willing to travel with you on this journey, and who long to meet you at the shores of jannah.!

Now your wondering he must be a very merciful Lord to give us a blueprint to jannah right?, not only that he has sent us many prophets as captains to lead us in the right direction, and although they are not here any more, they taught us exactly in which direction we should sail. Warning us of the dangers of shaytan.

                                                                  ..x0x0x..
Jabir reported: I heard Allah's Messenger (way peace be upon him) as saying: The throne of Iblis is upon the ocean and he sends detachments (to different parts) in order to put people to trial and the most important figure in his eyes is one who is most notorious in sowing the seed of dissension. Sahih Muslim, Hadith 5031)

We as Muslims should be very great full and happy that Allah has saved us from the dangers of the wild oceans of the Dunya, and has rescued us! there are still so many people who are drowning in the ocean of life, and we need to save them, it is up to us to give them the life boat that will reconnect them with the ship Islam.! Don't be selfsih there is plenty of treasure to share for everyone! in fact sharing will only grant you more as the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) says: "he who guides to goodness gets the same reward as he who actually does the good deed" Wouldn't you like to receive double the rewards? =)

Rescue somebody today and give them a life boat ! =]

                                                              

The umbilical cord to my Life!

The Quran The umbilical cord to my Life!

Allah's Book is Allah's rope; he who follows it has guidance, and he who abandons it is in error. (Muslim)

                                                     

                                      Asalamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatu

When we think of an umbilical cord, immediately we think of a baby, why because we know that when the baby is still a foetus in the stomach of its mother it is very much dependent on the umbilical cord to survive as it provides food, similarly we are dependent on Allah in this world, and the Quran is our umbilical cord that connects us with Allah providing us guidance. It is our guidance and means of our survival in this Dunya (world) and we need to be close with it like a mother and her newborn baby and not cut ourselves of from our life line. We as Muslims know that if we were to be left in this world on our own, with out Allah or the Quran in our life's that we would be in this world like a child who has abandoned its mother after they gained some Independence and completely denied her existence I ask you what sort of child would this person grow up to be?. There is no such thing as complete independence, a Muslim is always dependent on Allah. And just like a mother is always there if the child completely abandons her, she will be waiting for her child to return even if the child is not aware of it. similarly the quran was in my cupboard in the midst of all my other books almost as if it was waiting for my return, and even though i had left its side the love and comfort i found in the words of Allah were always there to welcome me lovingly more so than a mother ever could.

As i begin this wonderful life as a student of the Quran, i am mesmerised by its glory, lessons, wisdom and heart rendering miracles.

I want you to take my hand and join me on this emotional, inspiring, awesome jaw dropping journey! and let us connect back to our rope that is waiting for us to return patiently and lovingly. 

No! [But] indeed, man transgresses

Because he sees himself self-sufficient.

Indeed, to your Lord is the return.

 [Quran: Al Alaq 6-8]

It was narrated that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab said: “Some prisoners were brought to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and there was a woman among the prisoners who was searching (for her child). When she found her child she embraced him and put him to her breast. The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said to us, ‘Do you think that this woman would throw her child in the fire?’ We said, ‘No, by Allaah, not if she is able not to.’ The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, ‘Allaah is more merciful to His slaves than this woman is to her child.’”  

Agreed upon. Al-Bukhaari, 5653; Muslim, 6912. 

How does the Quran make you feel? please share your wonderful expiriences of when you returned to the book of Allah. =]

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Fadumo S. Ali