What is necessary in order to die withîmân?

 What is necessary in order to die with îmân?

 Question: What is necessary in order to die withîmân? 

ANSWER In order to die with îmân, it is necessary to strive to have a correct faith, to do good deeds, and to keep company with pious people. It is declared in hadîth-i sharîfs: (Îmân is to have belief in Allah, in His angels, in His books, in His prophets, in the Last Day [that is, the Resurrection, Paradise, Hell, the Reckoning,Mîzân], in qadar, in that good and evil are from Allah, in death, and in the Resurrection.

 It is to bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that I am His born servant and messenger.) [Bukhârî, Muslim, Nasâî] (A slave's first deed for which he will be called to account on the Day of Resurrection is namâz. If it is found good, his other deeds will be good, too. If it is found bad, his other deeds will be bad, too.)[Tabarânî] (To say "Subhânallah" fills half of Mîzân's pan that weighs thawâb. To say "Alhamdulillah," on the other hand, fills all of it. To say takbîr [saying "Allahu akbar"] fills the space between the heavens and the earth.) [Tirmidhî] (What weigh heaviest on the Mîzân are these five words: "Subhânallahi wa-l hamdulillahi wa lâ ilâha illallahu wallahu akbar" and the reward a person expects on account of his pious child who has died before himself.) 

Nasâî] (I swear that if all that is between the earth and the heavens were brought and put on one pan of the Mîzân and if [the word] "Lâ ilâha ill-Allah" were put on the other pan of it, it would certainly outweigh them.) [Tabarânî] (A Muslim who reaches the age of 80 will not be brought before Mîzân, will not be called to account, and will be said, "Enter Paradise.") 

[Abû Nu'aym] (Jabrâil 'alaihis-salâm brought this message: "Live as much as you wish, but you will certainly die. Love whatever you want, but you will eventually have to bid farewell to it. Do whatever you please, but you will have to account for it in the end.") [Tabarânî] (If a person makes friends with another even for a moment, he will account for his company.)[Ibn Jarir]

Those Who Desire Paradise - Bilal Assad

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Your Best Ramadan - Sheikh Muhammad Salah

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How to Perform Salah - Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha

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(97:1) Behold, We revealed this (Qur'an) on the Night of Power. *1

(97:1) Behold, We revealed this (Qur'an) on the Night of Power. ^*1

(97:2) And what do you know what the Night of Power is?

(97:3) The Night of Power is better than a thousand months. ^*2

*2) The commentators in general have understood this to mean that the good acts performed in this Night are superior in value to the good acts of a thousand months in which Lailat-ul-qadr is not included. There is no doubt that this is in itself correct and the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) has described great excellencies and virtues of the good acts and devotions of this Night. According to a tradition related in Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Hadrat Abu Hurairah, the Holy Prophet said: The one who remained standing in worship in the state of belief and for the sake of rewards from Allah during Lailat-ul-qadr, would have all his previous sins forgiven." And in Musnad Ahmad, there is a tradition from Hadrat `Ubadah bin as-Samit, saying that the Holy Prophet said: Lailat-ut-qadr is. Among the last ten nights of Ramadan. The one who stood up in worship in order to take advantage of their rewards, Allah wilt forgive all his former and latter sins." But, the verse does not say: "To act righteously in Lailat-ul-qadr is better than acting righteously in a thousand months, " but it says: lailat-ul-qadr is better than a thousand months. " And "a thousand months" also does not imply 83 years and 4 months exactly, but a very long period of time as "a thousand" denoted among the Arabs. Therefore, the verse means that in this one night a task was accomplished for the welfare of mankind the like of which had not been accomplished even during an indefinitely long period of history. 

(97:4) The angels along with the Spirit ^*3 descend in it by the permission of their Lord ^*4 with all kinds of decrees.

*3) "The Spirit": Gabriel (peace be on him), who has been mentioned separately from the angels in view of his unique eminence, honour and merit.
*4) That is, they do not descend of their own accord but by leave of their Lord, and "every decree" implies amr hakim (a wise decree) as described in Ad-Dukhan: 5. 

(97:5) All peace is that night until the rise of dawn. ^*5

*5) That is, the entire Night, from evening till morning, is peace, free from every evil and mischief.

Ramadan Mubarak 22-Ramadan: Spending Days in Mosques

Ramadan: Spending Days in Mosques

Author: Edited by Adil Salahi

The month of Ramadan is a special season of worship. If one attends to his worship with dedication and sincerity, he is certain to end the month having earned forgiveness of all his past misdeeds. Muslims know the reward God gives for fasting in the month of Ramadan is greater than we can imagine, because fasting is an act of worship that admits no hypocrisy. It is not possible for any person to fast in order to deceive others. This is due to the fact that boasting about fasting is forbidden. Hence, he cannot publicize the fact that he is fasting. If he does not mention it, then other people have no way of knowing it, because fasting is an act of worship by abstention, rather than a positive action.

Moreover, the Prophet (peace be upon him) has taught us to spend part of the nights of Ramadan in worship, standing up in prayer to offer the special prayer known as Taraweeh. This means that in Ramadan we fast during the day in fulfillment of an obligatory type of worship and we stand up in prayer at night as a recommended act of worship. Moreover, there is the Night of Power that falls in the last ten days of the month of Ramadan. It is a night that is worth more than one thousand months. If one happens to spend that night in worship, he is certain to have all his prayers answered and all his sins forgiven.

The Night of Power is the pinnacle of this season of worship. It takes place in the last ten days of the month when a Muslim's devotion is brought to its climax. One way of doing this is to stay in a mosque, following the Sunnah of the Prophet. That Sunnah is known as ietikaf, which means, linguistically speaking, to commit oneself to doing something to the exclusion of everything else.

In a religious context, it means to stay in a mosque for worship. Reference to it is made in the Quran in Verse 187 of Surah 2, "The Cow". All scholars agree that it is a Sunnah, following the practice of the Prophet. Abdullah ibn Umar, a learned companion of the Prophet, reports: "God's messenger (peace be on him) used to stay in the mosque during the last 10 days of Ramadan." (Related by Al-Bukhari). Aisha, the Prophet's wife, also reports that "The Prophet (peace be on him) used to stay in the mosque for the last 10 days of Ramadan until he passed away, and his wives used to do the same afterwards." (Related by Al-Bukhari). From these Hadiths we deduce that the ietikaf, or staying in the mosque for worship, is recommended to both men and women, especially during the last 10 days of Ramadan. Most scholars agree that ietikaf should be in a mosque, although the Hanafi school of thought makes it possible for a woman to practice this Sunnah in the place where she normally prays in her home.

When a person embarks on this Sunnah, it is permissible for him to pay a visit to his family at home to attend to their needs. He does this during the day and then comes back to resume his stay in the mosque. It is also permissible for this family to visit him in the mosque.

It so happened when the Prophet was in the midst of his stay in the mosque that his wives visited him. When they left, he asked Safiyah, his wife, to stay a little longer, perhaps because she arrived later than the others and he wanted her to stay an equal length of time. He accompanied her to her home, which was, like the homes of his other wives, just next to the mosque.

It is permissible for a person who is in the middle of his stay in a mosque for worship to have his head washed and his hair combed. Aisha, the Prophet's wife whose home was adjacent to the mosque, reports: "God's messenger (peace be on him) used to put his head through the door, while the rest of his body was inside the mosque, and I used to clean and comb his head. He did not come into his home during ietikaf, except to relieve himself." This report is a clear indication of what to observe during ietikaf.

We understand that if one puts his head out of the mosque, say, through a window, while his feet and the rest of his body are inside, then he has not violated the rules of ietikaf. Another version of this Hadith, also related on the authority of Aisha, quotes her as adding that she could be in the period when she washed the Prophet's head.

It is important to know these details, since it is forbidden to have sexual intercourse while one is observing this Sunnah. The instruction prohibiting that is given in the aforementioned verse in the Qur'an. This prohibition was specified because any of the companions of the Prophet who went home for a brief period, during his ietikaf, to attend to his family's needs, might have had intercourse with his wife before returning to the mosque. This was expressly forbidden by this Qur'anic statement.

That, however, does not include having a normal relationship with one's wife during ietikaf. One may go home to inquire if his family needs anything. During this brief visit, his wife may attend to his own needs, such as combing his hair.

A person who stays in a mosque in order to follow the Prophet's example, may have some sleep before waking up to spend the rest of his night in worship, reciting the Qur'an or praying.

Needless to say, ietikaf is not easy for everyone to observe. People have to attend to their needs and to continue their work. It is possible to limit one's ietikaf to one night, or even a portion of one night. According to scholars, one may make his stay in a mosque a stay of ietikaf at any time, if he dedicates his time to worship, and intends his stay for such dedication. It should be strongly emphasized that ietikaf is highly rewarded by God, as is every action which involves dedication.

The power of Friday in Islam

The power of Friday in Islam

 Nermin Abdullayeva 

Friday is a very important day for Muslims. It is more significant and more beneficial than any other day of the week.Here is some real facts: On that day Adam was created,on it he was admitted to Paradise and on it he was expelled therefrom. On that day the Trumpet will be blown and on that day all of creation will be gathered together.

"O you who believe (Muslims)! When the call is proclaimed for the Salaah (prayer) on Friday (Juma prayer), come to the remembrance of Allaah and leave off business (and every other thing). That is better for you if you did but know!" [al-Juma 62:9]

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--

waxyaabaha soonka buriya

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Ramadan in Paris

Alawi Islam and Muslims

Alawi Islam and Muslims

Alawis

Also known as Nusayris, the Alawis are a branch of Isma'ilism which has gone so far along its own path that many Muslims no longer even regard it as a form of Islam. The term Alawis actually just means "followers of Ali," which is used in some countries to refer to all Shi'a in general. Some think that they worship Ali as God, but that isn't entirely accurate.

Today they can be found almost entirely in Syria, where they number around 1,350,000 and constitute Syria's largest religious minority. For a long time the ethnic minority group which comprises the Alawis held to pre-Islamic beliefs, but after years of Isma'ili influence they gradually moved closer to Islam. Yet they also added in Christian elements to their developing religious beliefs through the influence of the Byzantines and Crusades. For example, Alawis celebrate Christmas, Easter, and Epiphany, and use sacramental wine in some ceremonies.

Their origins can be traced to the eleventh Shi'a Imam al-Hasan al-Askari (d.873) and his pupil Ibn Nusayr (d.868). Another common name for the Alawis is the Nusayris, which is derived from Nusayr.

During the Ottoman empire, they were consistently persecuted and had heavy taxes imposed upon them. After Alawi President Hafiz al-Asad and his followers came to power in 1970, however, the well being of the Alawis improved considerably. Despite this, they have no single leader or powerful ruling family because they are split by sectional rivalries. The four Alawi confederations, each divided into tribes, are Kalbiyah, Khaiyatin, Haddadin, and Matawirah.

There are three Alawi doctrines which cause them to be rejected by most Muslims as a valid form of Islam. The first is the belief in incarnation - the idea that God can be made flesh, for example in the case of Ali. Ali is believed to have created Muhammad, who in turn created Salman, an early Shi'ite saint. These three form a Trinity.

Thus, Ali is the "Meaning"; Muhammad, whom Ali created of his own light, is the "Name"; and Salman is the "Gate." Alawi catechesis is expressed in the formula: "I turn to the Gate; I bow before the Name; I adore the Meaning." An Alawi prays in a manner patterned after the shahada: "I testify that there is no God but Ali," which gives rise to the idea that they worship Ali as God.

The second heretical belief for Muslims is the rejection of the Qur'an and all the traditional prayers which are associated with Sunni teachings. The five pillars of Islam are followed, but they are interpreted in a wholly allegorical sense to fit community tenets.

The third heretical belief is in reincarnation - although oddly enough, women do not have souls and are not reincarnated. Because of this, none of the secrets of Alawi doctrines are taught to them. Every person reincarnates several times, and faithful Alawis believe they must undergo transformation seven times before they can return to take their place among the stars, where Ali is the prince. If not faithful enough, they are can be reborn as Christians, where they must remain until atonement is complete. Infidels, unfortunately, are reborn as animals.

Although Sunni Muslims do not regard them as Muslims, Alawis consider themselves to be Muslims. The Syrian Constitution requires that the President of the Republic be a Muslim and there was doubt as to whether or not Hafiz al-Asad fulfilled that condition. But the leader of the Twelver Shi'as in Lebanon, "Imam" Musa Sadr, endorsed their claim to being Muslims.

Their prayer book, the source of religious instruction, is the Kitab al Majmu. Most tenets of their faith are secret, however, because the Alawis have refused to discuss them with outsiders. In fact, even most Alawis don't know everything and only a select few are taught everything after a long process of initiation and discipleship.

http://atheism.about.com/library/FAQs/islam/blfaq_islam_alawis.htm

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Fast of Ramadan: One of the five pillars of Islam

Fast of Ramadan: One of the five pillars of Islam



Mother and daughter breaking fast.

FASTING is not unique to the Muslims. It has been practiced for centuries in connection with religious ceremonies by Christians, Jews, Confucianists, Hindus, Taoists, and Jains. God mentions this fact in the Qur'an:
“O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may develop God-consciousness.” (Qur'an 2:183)
Some Native American societies observed fast to avert catastrophe or to serve as penance for sin. Native North Americans held tribal fasts to avert threatening disasters. The Native Americans of Mexico and the Incas of Peru observed penitential fasts to appease their deities. Past nations of the Old World, such as the Assyrians and the Babylonians, observed fasting as a form of penance. Jews observe fast as a form of penitence and purification annually on the Day of Atonement or Yom Kippur. On this day neither food nor drink is permitted.
Early Christians associated fasting with penitence and purification. During the first two centuries of its existence, the Christian church established fasting as a voluntary preparation for receiving the sacraments of Holy Communion and baptism and for the ordination of priests. Later, these fasts were made obligatory, as other days were subsequently added. In the 6th century, the Lenten fast was expanded to 40 days, on each of which only one meal was permitted. After the Reformation, fasting was retained by most Protestant churches and was made optional in some cases. Stricter Protestants, however, condemned not only the festivals of the church, but its traditional fasts as well.

In the Roman Catholic Church, fasting may involve partial abstinence from food and drink or total abstinence. The Roman Catholic days of fasting are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. In the United States, fasting is observed mostly by Episcopalians and Lutherans among Protestants, by Orthodox and Conservative Jews, and by Roman Catholics.

Fasting took another form in the West: The hunger strike, a form of fasting, which in modern times has become a political weapon after being popularized by Mohandas Gandhi, leader of the struggle for India’s freedom, who undertook fasts to compel his followers to obey his precept of nonviolence.
Islam is the only religion that has retained the outward and spiritual dimensions of fasting throughout centuries. Selfish motives and desires of the base self alienate a man from his Creator. The most unruly human emotions are pride, avarice, gluttony, lust, envy, and anger. These emotions by their nature are not easy to control, thus a person must strive hard to discipline them. Muslims fast to purify their soul, it puts a bridle on the most uncontrolled, savage human emotions. People have gone to two extremes with regard to them. Some let these emotions steer their life which lead to barbarism among the ancients, and crass materialism of consumer cultures in modern times. Others tried to deprive themselves completely of these human traits, which in turn led to monasticism.

The fourth Pillar of Islam, the Fast of Ramadan, occurs once each year during the 9th lunar month, the month of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar in which: “…the Qur'an was sent down as a guidance for the people.” (Qur'an 2:185)
God in His infinite mercy has exempt the ill, travelers, and others who are unable from fasting during Ramadan.
Fasting helps Muslims develop self-control, gain a better understanding of God’s gifts and greater compassion toward the deprived. Fasting in Islam involves abstaining from all bodily pleasures between dawn and sunset. Not only is food forbidden, but also any sexual activity. All things which are regarded as prohibited is even more so in this month, due to its sacredness. 

Each and every moment during the fast, a person suppresses their passions and desires in loving obedience to God. This consciousness of duty and the spirit of patience helps in strengthening our faith. Fasting helps a person gain self-control. A person who abstains from permissible things like food and drink is likely to feel conscious of his sins. A heightened sense of spirituality helps break the habits of lying, staring with lust at the opposite sex, gossiping, and wasting time. Staying hungry and thirsty for just a day’s portion makes one feel the misery of the millions who go hungry or those who are living with hunger or are at risk of hunger.

 After all, why would anyone care about starvation if one has never felt its pangs oneself? One can see why Ramadan is also a month of charity and giving.
At dusk, the fast is broken with a light meal popularly referred to as iftar. Families and friends share a special late evening meal together, often including special foods and sweets served only at this time of the year. Many go to the mosque for the evening prayer, followed by special prayers recited only during Ramadan. Some will recite the entire Qur'an as a special act of piety, and public recitations of the Qur'an can be heard throughout the evening. Families rise before dawn to take their first meal of the day, which sustains them until sunset. Near the end of Ramadan Muslims commemorate the “Night of Power” when the Qur'an was revealed. The month of Ramadan ends with one of the two major Islamic celebrations, the Feast of the Breaking of the Fast, called Eid Al-Fitr. On this day, Muslims joyfully celebrate the completion of Ramadan and customarily distribute gifts to children. Muslims are also obliged to help the poor join in the spirit of relaxation and enjoyment by distributing Zakat Al-fitr, a special and obligatory act of charity in the form of staple foodstuff, in order that all may enjoy the general euphoria of the day.
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— Courtesy of www.islamreligion.comhttp://islaamdoon.blogspot.com/

GRAND MOSQUES IN UNITED KINGDOM

Madina Mosque,Leeds

Cardiff, Wales

Bradford

Leeds

Glasgow, Scotland

Greenlane. Birmingham

Birmingham

Bristol

Chesham

Manchester

Liverpool

Hartlepool, UK

Suleymaniya Mosque, London

Finsbury Park Mosque, London

Baytul Fatuh Mosque, London

Fazi Mochee Mosque, London

Regent's Park Mosque, London Central

Regent's Park Mosque, London

East London Mosque London

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Senegal: every mosque tells a story in modern Dakar

Senegal: every mosque tells a story in modern Dakar

Guardian Weekly reader Cleo Cantone reports from Dakar on the materialistic expressions of wealth that are even evident in the building of new mosques in the city

Cleo Cantone
Guardian Weekly,

Cheikh Oumar Foutiyou Tall mosque in Dakar. Photograph: Georges Gobet/AFP/Getty Images


Five years in the life of a child is a long time: from mewing and puking infant to child crawling like snail unwillingly to school. Dakar, too, has experienced tremendous change – originally a fishing village, the French transformed it into the capital not only of Senegal but of the whole of their part of west Africa.

Now Dakar is a sprawling and multi-ethnic metropolis that is steadily borrowing from western culture: western fashion is more prevalent and the "international" style dominates the skyscrapers built by foreign companies. Greater wealth seems to always have a materialistic expression.

Many of the mosques I visited in 2005 were cement enclosures covered with a flat roof. Now they sport a second storey for a Qur'anic school and a tiered minaret signalling the building's formal status as a Friday mosque rather than a local jakka for the five daily prayers.

One mosque in particular, whose evolution I have witnessed since 1999, has been completely covered in white tiles and the square minaret proudly perched on the second storey is the icing on the cake.

The tiled surfaces of the mosque echo other modern buildings similarly bedecked in tiles, and like them it is keeping pace with current aesthetic trends. When I asked a friend what she thought of the latest transformation, she said that there was still much to do but that she was impressed. It may also be a cheaper way to express opulence – the Great Mosque of Touba, spiritual capital of the Mourid brotherhood, is clad in pink marble from Massa-Carrara in Italy.

The Great Mosque of Dakar, by contrast, uses traditional Moroccan glazed tiles and its towering square minaret houses eight floors of classrooms in the belfry.

Yet vestiges of the village past survive and some of the tiniest mosques you find in the so-called quartiers populaires in the outskirts of Dakar bear witness to this phenomenon: these buildings cannot easily be distinguished as their minarets (if any) are shrunken, as are their domes. One that was once a shack now has a purple dome to signal its transformation.

Each mosque evolves according to its means, but I wonder if in the future Senegalese archi tec ture will attempt to find its own identity, one that is less reliant on western materialism and more true to its cultural roots.

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Barashada salaada Sh.Maxamud Shibli

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40 Syrian police killed as rebels overrun Aleppo posts: NGO

40 Syrian police killed as rebels overrun Aleppo posts: NGO




A free syrian army member stands by his anti-aircraft machine gun in Aleppo.

AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE

BEIRUT: Rebels overran two police stations in Aleppo on Tuesday killing at least 40 policemen, a watchdog said, as fighting for control of Syria’s commercial capital raged into a fourth day.
“Hundreds of rebels attacked the police stations in Salhin and Bab Al-Nayrab (neighborhoods) and at least 40 policemen were killed during the fighting, which lasted for hours” said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The police chief was among those killed at the Salhin station in the south of the city, while three vehicles were destroyed, he added.
Pitched battles broke out before dawn in other parts of the northern city as rebels attacked key military targets, including the air force intelligence branch in Zahraa district, according to the Observatory.
Rebels armed with rocket propelled grenades later attacked Aleppo’s main military court as well as a police station and a branch of the ruling Baath Party in Salhin district.
The watchdog added that the neighborhoods of Salaheddin, Marjeh, Firdoss, Al-Mashhad, Sakhur, Al-Shaar and Ansari were shelled through the night by government troops, while the army and rebels clashed at dawn in Al-Meesr and Al-Adaa.
Fighting also flared in the southwestern district of Salaheddin, the rebels’ main bastion in Aleppo, which was strafed by government helicopter gunships, according to the Syrian Revolution General Committee, a network of activists on the ground.
A security official in Damascus told AFP on Monday that the army had regained some of Salaheddin but it was facing “a very strong resistance.” The rebels, however, denied that the army had advanced even “one meter” (yard).
“The fierce fighting in Aleppo shows how crucial this city is for a regime that does not want a Benghazi in Syria,” said Abdel Rahman, referring to the coastal city secured by Libyan rebels as a base in their fight to bring down strongman Muammar Qaddafi.
He noted that gunmen from loyalist Arab tribes in Aleppo had joined the fray and were fighting alongside the army.
“Gunmen from the Al-Berri family and other Arab tribes of Aleppo entered the fighting on Tuesday on the side of the regime, which wants to bring the country into a civil war,” said Abdel Rahman.
“All of this links back to calls by Syrian media and talking heads on some Lebanese satellite stations that loyal Syrian citizens should take up arms and fight with the regime troops,” he added.
Rebels on Monday seized the strategic Anadan checkpoint, some five kilometers (3.8 miles) northwest of Aleppo, securing a direct route to the Turkish border.
“During the next few hours, the impact of rebel control over this checkpoint will be proven by the amount of supplies brought to Aleppo,” said Abdel Rahman



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