Why do we 'read'?

Taken from email.....

Dear All,
This is an email sent to me by my father.. And I would love to share this with all of my other brothers and sisters. Have a blessed day.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I wonder if you have seen this before if so it is a good reminder.

An old American Muslim lived on a farm in the mountains of eastern Kentucky with his young grandson. Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table reading his Quraan .

His grandson wanted to be just like him and triedto imitate him in every way he could. One day the grandson asked, "Papa, Itry to read the Quraan just like you but I don't understand it, and what I do understand I forget as soon as I close the book. What good does readingthe Quraan do?"

The Grandfather quietly turned from putting coalin the stove and replied, "Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water." The boy did as he! was told, but all thewater leaked out before he got back to the house. The grandfather laughedand said, "You'll have to move a little faster next time," and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again.This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before hereturned home. Out of breath, he told his grandfather that it wasimpossible to carry water in a basket, and he went to get a bucket instead.

The old man said, "I don't want a bucket of water;I want a basket of water. You're just not trying hard enough," and he wentout the door to watch the boy try again.

At this point, the boy knew it was impossible, but he wanted to show his grandfather that even if he ran as fast as he could,the water would leak out before he got back to the house. The boy again dipped the basket into river and ranhard, but when he reached his grandfather the bas! ket was again empty.

Out of breath, he said, "See Papa, it's useless!"

"So you think it is useless?" The old man said,"Look at the basket."

The boy looked at the basket and for the first time realized that the basket was different. It had been transformed from adirty old coal basket to a clean one, inside and out.

"Son, that's what happens when you read the Quraan. You might not understand or remember everything, but when you readit, you will be changed, inside and out. That is the work of Allah in our lives."





~ Jazakallahukhairank athira ~

Problems in the Heart of Teens...

Nowadays....so many teenagers don't know about their own problems, and bad to say, they thought that some of the problems are the good things to do. O Allah please forgive them....

Below are the problems pointed out by the teenagers themselves during a speech by Dr. Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips. His speech is focuses on the various Haram things that us teenagers are exposed to in modern day society. He answers questions that are relevant to a modern day teenage Muslims.


1) Music
2) Girls
3) Media
4) Video Games
5) Smoking
6) Fashion
7) Body piercing
8) Lazy
9) Crime
10) Disobedience to parents
11) Dissatisfaction of ourselves
12) Gossip and etc.




In fact, all those problems are the symptoms of another big and main problems - like peer pressure, etc

What peer pressure is? Is it good or is it bad?

A group of friends or the people that you are with, they all doing something or they all want to do something and you may not want to do it because you think it is not right, but you may want to do it because everybody near to you do the things. End up by you do the things. This is called peer pressure.

But, what Islam said about peer pressure?

Islam told us not to follow anybody blindly. In other words, dont be blind followers.

Rasulullah said, "The believers or muslims should not to be IMMA'AH".

What is imma'ah...? It is arabic word and there is no exact word in english to describe this word.
We can just say imma'ah is when people are good, you are good, but when people are bad, you are bad.

From this discription, we can say that it is ok when people are good, and this is really trouble when people are bad. That's why Rasulullah taught us not to be blind followers. This is one of the signs of the weakness of the iman and also the weakness of the muslims personality. This is not good.

Besides that, after we are awaken by Allah from the grave, who will be with us is our friends.
If they are bad, wake up with a ugly face because of 'mungkar' they do, is it good to have them besides us in front of Allah? Allah might ask us about our friend that we choose. How to answer it? Nauzubillah. Think of it.

Now, we go to 'music' problem.
What you can say about music that is HARAM? Of course there is Halal music like nasyeed, zikrullah, etc. What do you think they are called Haram and Halal music?

Haram Music is the musics that are contradict with the akhlaq of the muslims. Example, the musics that contain bad languages. In islam, it is haram to say bad thing, even to hear it. Other, example, the haram music instruments like guitar or other string type instruments.
Why they are haram?

They are haram because of they are addictive and hypnotics. They have the ways to go through and sneaking into your heart (capture your heart). This was naturally experimented, when you are always listened to a music, you will remember it. If you left the song for a long time ( not listen to it anymore), you will not remember it, but if there is a little nodes of the song you hear somewhere, for the whole song you will remember it again. That's the power of the music. So, music instruments that make someone can not leave his music instrument when he start playing it is haram. Even bad, he forgot to play his role as a muslim(solat, zikrullah, etc) if he start to play it. Nauzubillah minzalik.


Therefore, for all above problems, what is the solution?

First, make a lot of dua' because it is our 'weapon' to kill all enemy within and outside us.

Second, do not leave Al-Quran, always read It because Al-Quran is the 'direction' of life. There are also some chapter from Al-Quran as our 'spiritual protection. An-Nas, Al-Falaq and Al-Ikhlas. Please read those chapter before you go to bed and also after ecah fardh solat.




Third, make a lot of zikrullah.




Fourth, have a good friends. because of what Rasulullah said, who will be your partner after your grave is your friends. So, please make sure your friend is good.

Fifth, know all your intention when to do something (your intention to Allah).

Sixth, gain as much as possible your knowledge, because knowledge can make you more confident of yourself and then have the personality of a muslim, insyaAllah.

And etc.

Wallahua'lam.......Assalamualaikum w.b.t

Ya 'Abidal Haramain

Ya 'Abidal Haramain O ye who worships in the vicinity of the Two Holy Masjids! ‘O ye who worships in the vicinity of the Two Holy Masjids! If you but see us, you will realise that you are only jesting in worship. He who brings wetness to his cheek with his tears should know that our necks are being wet by our blood. He who tires his horses without purpose, now that our horses are getting tired in battle. Scent of perfume is yours, while ours is the glimmer of spears and the stench of dust [in battle]. We were narrated about in the speech of our Prophet, an authentic statement that never lies. That the dust that erupts by Allah’s horses and which fills the nostrils of a man shall never be combined with the smoke of a raging Fire. This, the Book of Allah speaks among us that the martyr is not dead, and the truth in Allah’s book cannot be denied.’

WHO WANTS TO BE A STRANGER?

A STRANGER

INTRO

On the authority of Ibnu Umar Al-Khattab radiyallahu 'anhu, who said: The messenger of Allah, Rasulullah s.a.w took me by the shoulder and said:

"Be in this world as though you were a stranger or a
traveler/wayferer."

Ibnu Umar used to say:

"When evening comes, do not expect(to live till) morning, and
when morning comes, do not expect (to live till evening. Take
ur health (a preparation) for ur illness, and from ur life for
your health."

LESSON

The Prophet s.a.w, tells the believers how to deal with this life, and as usual he offers his audience with more than one choice. In this hadith, the Prophet s.a.w, is giving 2 choices or levels with regards to living in this world:


1. To be as a stranger

This usually the easier choice. The Prophet s.a.w, used the analogy 'to be a stranger' because, as Ibnu Rajab points out, the stranger usually prepared to eventually go back to his original place or town. His heart will always long for his home. His main concern will be to be in preparation to do whatever possible and beneficial for returning. A stranger does not look like the other people in his current environment - he is different. Similarly, the believer should be different from those who can only care about this life and worldly matters. He should rid himself of the yearning for this materialistic world, a world where some people do not care about the spiritual aspects and the Hereafter. As believers, we should be different from the 'people of this wolrd'.

For the example, a muslimah, she went to work with the uncovered aurah, always talks to the men, wearing lipstick and perfume. She's like the other non-muslim women. She was NOT A STRANGER. But now, she understand about women in islam by reading Al-Quran and Al-Hadith. She starts to wearing hijab, cover herself from the men eyes, not wearing lipstick and perfume anymore, she quits from working becoz she knows that to keep herself from doing 'haram'. She's now become a stranger. Then, her husband ask ..."what's wrong with u? u become an extremist". Then she said, "i'm doing this for Allah and His messenger, not becoz i'm became an extremist". Her husband tell her, " i dont want u anymore". Also now she's completely a stranger becoz her husband didnt recognize her. Alhamdulillah, may Allah give her a better man that also a STRANGER.

Ibnu Al-Qayyim, a famous scholar, says that a Muslim is a stranger amongst the disbelievers and the Mu'min is a stranger amongst the Muslims, and the Muhsin is a stranger amongst the Mu'mins. This means that there are levels of being a stranger: the lowest level is Islam, the second is Iman and the third is Ihsan.



2. The impact of this hadith on the life of Muslims

-To increase the sense of responsibility in terms of our duties towards Allah, the Prophet, relatives, and the community members.
-To motivate the Muslims to enjoin what is good and to forbid what is evil.
-To be closer to Allah at all times.
-To minimize weaknesses, shortcomings and sinful acts.
-To maximize self-accountability and self-reckoning.
-To emphasize taqwa and fearing Allah Almighty.
-To be safeguard from being misled or enslaved by self-interests, desires and worldly temptations.

Written from the Khalid Yasin speech......you all can get from here insyaAllah.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvmTd6AWTaM

May Allah be with you all always.