PIRACY AT THE HIGH SEAS

Piracy at the high seas

All praise and adoration belongs to ALLAH and may the peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammed .

I hope that we will depart, once and for all from the style of something aching and paining and agonizing Muslims, than they go to the mosque, to hear a talk about a ritual or about a dress code or about something that is really. Not what is agonizing them in their hearts and occupying their minds. So this is a step forward and the reason is we consider that the scope of Islam goes beyond the issue of rituals or identity or declarations. The scope of Islam includes life and one of the very central core issues of Islam, is justice. So as a Muslim, you cannot, you should not, escape the fact that it is your duty to deal with injustice whenever it happens and wherever it might be.

If there is a violation of justice by Muslims or by non Muslims, close or far, a Muslim person he or she, cannot consider this politics or this is economy. Injustice is a reason for having religion, Allah in chapter Al-Hadid [57:25] says:

We have already sent Our messengers with clear evidences and sent down with them the Scripture and the balance that the people may maintain [their affairs] in justice. And We sent down iron, wherein is great military might and benefits for the people, and so that Allah may make evident those who support Him and His messengers unseen. Indeed, Allah is Powerful and Exalted in Might.

Sahih International

Tafsir al-Jalalayn

We have verily sent Our messengers, the angels, to prophets, with clear signs, with the definitive proofs, and We revealed with them the Scripture and the Balance, justice, so that mankind may uphold justice. And We sent down iron, We caused it to be extracted from mineral ores, wherein is great might, with which one may wage battle, and [many] uses for mankind, and so that God may know, a knowledge of direct vision (li-ya?lama?Ll?hu is a supplement to li-yaq?ma?l-n?su, ?so that mankind may uphold?) those who help Him, by helping [to uphold] His religion through [the use of] instruments of war made of metal and otherwise, and His messengers through the Unseen (bi?l-ghaybi: a circumstantial qualifier referring to the [suffixed pronoun] h??, ?Him?, of yansuruhu, ?[who] aid Him?), that is to say, while He [God] is not seen by them in this world. Ibn ?Abb?s said: ?They help Him even though they do not see Him? (yansur?nahu wa-l? yubsir?nahu). Assuredly God is Strong, Mighty, without any need of being helped, but such [help] benefits those who proffer it.

We have sent down the proofs and the messengers and the scale of balance, all of these, so that people can live their life according to justice & wherever there is justice, there is a manifestation of the ????? of Islam. As Ibn Al Qaim (one of the imminent scholar of Islam) said, where there is justice there is ????? which concludes that if there is no justice, there is no ????? no matter what the banner is, or what the title says, so because it is an issue of major injustice. It automatically becomes an Islamic religious issue for us, the group of British Muslims.

Other groups have also a reason to consider this their issue, but the point I am emphasising is that for Muslims in particular. This is a religious issue as far as we are concerned. Otherwise we will be reducing the religion to something that is not vibrating with life and is not affecting the lives of human beings and we are lead to so that people can establish justice and equity and we should never be confused about that.

Because I am sure that certain times in the  past, people say the Islamic centre is talking politics, this is not politics, we are talking Quran and Quran abhors injustice and considers it, incompatible with being a Muslim. So once there is a manifestation of injustice, we are trigger to formulate a stand or to articulate a statement or to take certain steps to correct it. And even if we cannot do any of that, at least in our hearts, we should abhor it. This is what our religion dictates upon us.

The first step to deal with injustice is to understand it.  If you don’t understand the issue yourself, you will not be able to form a stand that will be fulfilling your conscience as a Muslim person. So we have to understand. If we don’t understand how others will define the issue. They will say what the issue is not us and we will find ourselves sacked into their definitions. They framed the issue for us and we just play inside that frame. This is something that ought not to happen. Because simply our frames are formed by us according to the spirit and the teaching of the Quran and the model of the conduct of prophet Muhammad (??? ???? ???? ????). So we have to understand the issue and the issue should be clear.

About 4 years ago a blockade was imposed on Gaza, because the people of Gaza elected what others consider a bad government. I will not discuss a bad government or good government. This is their business & really not the business of anybody else. But because of that, an illegal blockade has been imposed on those people.

The second thing, is a collective punishment which is against all religions and all international laws, have been inflicting the civilians, the children, the innocent people of Gaza because of that blockade. In all civilized legal systems, collective punishment is illegal and should not happen. It is against the wisdom of Allah who create it life and it should not be this way.

Thirdly, there was a military attack on Gaza that demolish everything. This stands now, up to this moment I am speaking. It is the only mass destruction that have not been seriously remedied it. Even in a steps, we have Katrina, we remedied it. We have Tsunami, good effort  to correct the damage of the Tsunami. We have the oil spill, everybody is running to contain the oil spill. We have Gaza nobody dares to say, it must be remedied up to this moment and this is unique.

We Muslims have to understand that, because when they frame this issue for us, they will not frame it like that. But we frame it like that. This is the only mass destruction that no serious steps have been taken to reconstruct. So the people are still besieged and suffering because of the blockade.

They say we don’t want let materials for reconstruction to enter Gaza because it can be used to make bombs. Such outrageous and ridiculous statement passes. Because any material can be used to make bombs, matches, needles, pins, concrete, fertilizer. So what is left, they are saying we make those people starve to death or to surrender under that framing material that can be used to make weapon to be used by terrorists.

The continuity of the suffering doesn’t seem to be bothering the official world a lot. But it bothered some decent human beings. So those decent human beings got together and said we cannot sit idle like that. Let us take food, medicine and made ship houses. No matter what the consequences are. There were several trials, the Flotilla was the last one.

500 activists who are civilians, all of them, one of them is a Holocaust survivor, two of them are Christian bishops and Muslims, Jews, Christians, old and young, man and women. In other words a sample of humanity. This is not a group of religion. This is a sample of civilized humanity, decided to do what  a wise human beings should do. So they take on sea, in peace, to go to offer the help. They said we cannot live with clear conscience with this tragedy going on.

In the middle of the night and in international water, in high sea they were attacked by special forces. Those are the commanders and the helicopters and guns. More than ten were killed. More than fifty were wounded and rest of them were detained, deported, interrogated, insulted. Then, their majesty  the government of Israel decided to release them in group after group. We don’t know really the real number, but this is very important in framing.

You are celebrating that you release people that you shouldn’t have arrested them at the first place but the world swallow this false logic. It is very humiliating, if I captured me and said congratulation we are going to release you, very merciful nation indeed. This is exactly what happened. Then we look into the reaction to that event and reaction actually is more maddening than the event itself.

I want to say loud and clear that the only government that deserves honour and respect is the Turkish government. In my capacity I never praise or criticize governments, because I didn’t find the government that deserve respect. But the stand of the Turkish government, now ought to be celebrated, respected and acknowledged.

The Arab governments, I have no comments because the language I can use is not suitable for a Friday prayer. The most deserving of blame is the government of USA, because: 1) they squeezed the security council  to delete two important words, condemn, it was replaced by we feel sorry for, and deleted the word independent investigating the body, it was replaced by the word transparent investigation. In other words, Israel should investigate the event. In other words Al kaboun should investigate the Mafia. This is exactly what it is. We are the only ones we can say that, so don’t underestimate the value of your voice to America now, otherwise it will be stark.

The government of Israel came with unbelievable statements from Mr Netanyahu,  saying that, small Israel has to deal with the hypocrisy of the world, which is actually, the world has to put up with the arrogance and hypocrisy of Israel.

Our government collect tax from me and you, is still financing a criminal regime that violates every western value. It is a moment of history that is important. The west has to make a tough choice  to be the body guard of Israel or the leader of the civilized world. They have to hear that voice from us.

Whoever is not thankful to people, he is not thankful to Allah, Deputy Prime minister Nick Clegg has told Israel to lift its unjustifiable and untenable blockade on the Gaza strip asap.

And Allah knows best.

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BARAAKAH (BLESSING)

WAYS OF OBTAINING BARAQA
(BLESSINGS INTO OUR LIVES)


All praise is due to Allah the great, the might. We praise him for the blessings and we also praise him whilst in trial and tribulations. And I bear witness that no one has the right to be worshipped except Allah. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger, the leader of the pious and the master of those who came before us and those who come towards the end. May the peace and blessings be upon the prophet (salli alei wassaam) And may the peace and blessing be also on the companions and those who followed them until the day of resurrection.
Indeed, to proceed, the advice that I would like to give to everybody including myself is to fear Allah Subhanau wa ta’ala. As Allah says, fear Allah and indeed He will teach you, and He is aware of all affairs. Indeed, we live in a time in which our civilisation has attained and developed in different spheres of life. These types of developments are unprecedented, which we haven’t seen in previous nations and previous civilisations. We find that we have a higher degree of worship whether it be related to life or technology. We see this advancement.
So we live in this contemporary life which really surprises and astonishes us. Despite all of these advancements, we see in society, we find that these advancements in our society, they do not guarantee happiness in the way we have seen people attain happiness in the past. And this is all due to the absence of a matter which is extremely important. And without this particular thing, there is no meaning to life. And we ask ourselves, what is this important thing , without which you can not attain happiness in life. It is indeed, Oh Servants of Allah, it is attaining baraqa benefit  blessings in our life. There is no person who has a steadfast life and he does not receive blessings. And what is the benefit of time if it has no blessing in it? What is the benefit of knowledge if it has no blessing in it? And what is the benefit of having food that has no blessings in it?
So blessings is not just about attaining great amounts of wealth, rather it is a value which Allah Subhanau wa ta’ala has given to particular deeds. Rather it is a blessing which leads to tranquility in the soul and also to be content ed. These are the signs of baraqa. And likewise for a person to continue and remain good health, these are the effects of Allah’s baraqa in a person’s life. And so if you were to assume life to be like a tree, then the water that goes to the tree, this is the baraqa. The baraqa is the water which gives life to the tree and this baraqa is that which gives life to the soul itself. and by this baraqa, a person is able to live in a small hut, to him, it will be like a palace.
If a person does not understand baraqa and does not receive baraqa, if he was to live in a palace, then to him it would be like living in a prison. And this is the result of even attaining this blessing in life or being prevented from attaining it. So baraqa essentially is that which gives an increase in good, so for example a person wants to have blessings in his life then that would tell a person has long blood. this blessing could also occur in a persons wealth, that would mean that a person attains a sufficient amount of wealth until he dies and Allah makes his wealth go a long way. A person could be blessed in his food as well and the blessing in this food is that it fills a persons stomach even though it might be a small amount and likewise, a blessing in knowledge, the blessing in knowledge is that it leads to beneficial deeds. These are the effects of baraqa.
However, we live in a time where we suffer from lack of baraqa, and we live in a time where people really suffer in all aspects of life from the lack of baraqa from Allah Subhanau wa ta?ala. So people think that in reality, blessings is all about attaining great amounts o wealth and many children but you will find that there are many people with great amounts of wealth yet you find they have no blessings in their wealth. You find they earn hundreds of thousands of pounds yet you find that it does not benefit them and they lose their money quickly. People have many children yet you find there is no baraqa in their children.
We find, for example, in the developed world, they give loans to these developing and poorer countries. And they impose these loans on them, which incur interest. And in fact you find that these loans that these people take on, they do not benefit them. Rather it creates more hardship on the people. and so these countries and these poor nations that take these debts upon themselves, they sell their own products to the creditor. And they end up losing out on the benefit. It is as if the creditor is strangling the debtor. So what baraqa( blessing) is this? This is a result of involving yourself in these transactions. It is just like a person who keeps drinking salty water, ever time he gets thirsty, he tries to drink it more but in reality, he becomes more thirsty.
However, if you were to compare the era that we live in today to the era of the Prophet salAllahu alahi wa sallam and his companions, you will find a stark difference in baraqa. So for example, you will find that the Prophet sallAllahu alaihi wa sallam, he would find a great deal of blessings in just a small peice of bread that would suffice for him and all of his companions.
For example we see the companion, Uthman ibn Aafaan, Allah blessed his wealth and by his wealth, he was able to provide and sustain a whole army. And likewise we have the axample of zubair ibn Awaam, when he was on his death bed, he advised his son to pay back his debt. His debt reached one million and two thousand dinar, so he was in a great amount of debt. So in paying back the debt, he said that if you are unable to pay back the debt then seek help in my freed slave and he will help you. There was a peice of land he had which grew date palm trees and so his son was able to use this land and cultivate it and therefore the value of this land reached great amounts. In fact it reached millions of dinars and he was able to pay back his debt and he also left behind four wives and he was also able to give each wife a million dinar. So look at how baraqa occurs.
And likewise, it was reported in the Musnad of Imam Ahmad, that the time of  bani kudaiba, in the time of Imam Ahmad, that they found a piece of wheat and it was so large that it was written on it that this was grown in the time of  blessings baraqa. So when we have this baraqa, it has an effect on our food and the way that it grows. And we find other examples of earlier generations where they would find for example camel loads of grapes and this was something very rare to find in Arabia . So these are examples of the previous generations and how much they attained great amounts of baraqa.
And this is SubhanaAllah, despite the advanced technologically in other areas of life. The Prophet Muhammad salAllahu alaihi wa sallam mentioned in Sahih Muslim that the Day of Judgement will not return until the land of the Arabian Peninsular will become green and lush again as it was before. And it is reported that a time will come when just a small fruit will be enough for a few people and a small piece of flesh of a camel will be enough to feed groups of people and this is a sign that we will have this baraqa. Though we have to ask ourselves two important questions: How do you attain this baraqa and you need to think; Are we doing these things that will entail the securing of these blessings. And at the same time we have to ask ourselves; What are the things that prevent the baraqa from befalling upon us. And as Allah Subhanahu wa ta?ala says, indicating this, that if the people of the town had truly believed, then we would have sent rain in multitude gushing forth upon them.
2ND KHUTBA
All praise is due to Allah and may the peace and blessings be upon the Prophet salAllahu alaihi wa sallam. The person who wishes to attain the blessings in his life, then he must observe and be aware of those things which bring about these blessings. It is, if a person contemplates, he will find that he will be able to find the blessings in life by completing the following things. Firstly, by believing in Allah Subhanahu wa ta?ala, and believing in his messenger and adhering to the law of Allah and his messenger. As Allah says and indeed if the people of the past had believed, then indeed we would have sent down the blessings from the skies. Secondly, a person has to be grateful towards Allah, for his blessings. As Allah Subhanahu wa ta?ala says, then indeed, if you were to be grateful to Allah, he will increase your blessings, but if you deny my favours then indeed my punishment is severe. And as the Messenger salAllhu alaihi wa sallam said, whatever blessings Allah sends down from the skies you will find a group of people denying this blessing.
The third cause of attaining benefit is having a halal source of income. As Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala says he obliterates usury but he makes charity grow. And the fourth cause of obtaining benefit is by staying away from israaf ? extravagance in spending lavishly. As Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala says, indeed those who spend lavishly and extravagantly, they are the brothers of the devils. And thus they will not be able to attain any baraqa. And that is why the prophet salAllahu alaihi wa sallam said, the best of women for marriage are those who are the easiest in terms of expenditure.
And likewise, another cause is by being truthful and straight as well. As the Messenger salAllahu alahi wa sallam said two people who are involved in a transaction they will have a choice to go back on their deal as long as they do not separate, if they are truthful then indeed they will be blessed in their trade.
And also from the other causes of attaining baraqa is a person, he engages in supplicating the Lord and invoking the Lord, making du’ah to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala as we saw in the case of Zubair ibn Awaam before as well. And likewise another important reason for obtaining baraqa is by having contentment and being satisfied with what Allah has given us. And as Allah Subhanahu wa ta?ala says indeed he will give you a happy life. A happy life as many scholars say, is to be satisfied and have contentment with what Allah Subhanahu wa ta?ala has given you. And these are the means by which we can obtain baraqa in our lives.
Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala says, oh you who believe, send your salat and salam upon the messenger salAllahu alaihi wa sallam. The Prophet salAllahu alaihi wa sallam said, who ever sends one greeting upon me, Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala sends ten greetings upon him. And may Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala also send greetings upon the four rightly guided khulafa, Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthmaan and Ali and upon the rest of his companions. And likewise the successors and those who followed them until the day of resurrection. Oh Allah, give victory to Islam and to the Muslims, Oh Allah give victory to your book and to your Sunnah. Oh Allah, relieve the distresses of the believers and cure the ill. Oh Allah, give us peace and security in our lands, and rectify the affairs of our rulers and make the rulers those who fear Allah Subhanahu wa ta?ala. Oh Allah, give the ability to fear you to our rulers. Oh Allah what ever there is of good then please grant it to us, even that which we are unaware of in terms of good then give it to us as well. Oh Allah, give us the good of this world and the good of the hereafter and save us from the punishment of the fire. And all praise id due to Allah Subhanahu wa ta’ala.

A sermon given by - Sheikh Shuraim

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Everyone Is a Shepherd and Responsible for his Flock

Everyone Is a Shepherd and Responsible for his Flock

All Praise is due to Allah, we praise Him and we seek His forgiveness and assistance. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil in ourselves and the evil of our actions. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whomever Allah lets be led astray none can guide. And I bear witness that there is no rivalry to Allah the One without any partners. And I bear witness that our Master and our Prophet Muhammad (Salallahu Alayhi Wasallam) is His servant and messenger. Oh Allah, we ask you to send our salutations and prayers upon Your servant and messenger Muhammad, and his family and companions.

Oh Believers, fear Allah and be aware of Him. Allah says:
And have fear of the Day when you shall be brought back to Allah. Then every person shall be paid what he earned, and they shall not be dealt with unjustly.
— [Surah Al Baqarah : Ayaah 281]

Oh Muslims, in explaining the obligatory responsibility upon every member of the Muslim community, the role of the man and the woman is mentioned as those whose responsibility that they cannot escape, whether it is for those who are under their care.

Abdullah ibn Masud (Radiallahu Anhu) has narrated that he heard the Messenger of Allah (Salallahu Alayhi Wasallam) say Each one of you is a shepherd. And each of you will be asked about your flock. A ruler also is a shepherd and he will be asked about his flock. And every man is a shepherd to his family. And every woman is the custodian of her husband?s house and his children. Thus each one of you is a shepherd and each one will be asked about his flock.
— [Sahih Bukhari and Muslim]

Specifically, a man’s responsibility over his household entails that he provides for the necessary needs of his family and providing them with that which will keep them happy and successful in this world as well as in the hereafter. Thus, not only does he provide them that which is necessary, but he grants them that which is virtuous and prohibits them from engaging in harmful deeds. From the greatest responsibilities which he is entrusted with is he upholds the prayer and is consistant with it.

Allah Ta’ala says:

And enjoin As-Salat on your family, and be patient in offering them. We ask not of you a provision; We provide for you. And the good end is for the Muttaqun.
— [Surah Taha : Ayaah 132]

It is only unacceptable to anyone with sound reasoning that a person who ordains prayer as a means of correcting and disciplining his children and his family that he becomes neglectful and ignores the components that will lead them to a life of failure and misery.

Allah says:

Oh you who believe, Protect yourselves and your families from a fire whose fuel is men and stones.
— [Surah Tahreem : Ayaah 6]

Allah has put over Jahannam angels who protect it, who do not disobey Him, but rather they obey every command of His.

Every parent ought to be alert and pay attention to these warnings, which if they fail to take heed to they only risk the failure of their children’s future and the threat of their children facing a punishment in the hereafter. Some parents are negligent and leave their children behind closed doors in their rooms not knowing what they are doing, what web sites they are visiting, who they are chatting with in chat rooms or on the phone, or what pictures they are looking at. This is in fact negligence and allowing our children to be exposed to threats and being irresponsible towards them. What is required is that parents provide a balanced and wise approach in safeguarding and monitoring their children’s activities. The one who falls short of fulfilling his responsibility, then he be held responsible with Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala) and indeed Allah is not unjust with His servants. As far as his role in the community where he is responsible for bringing up upright children who contribute positively to the society and not become a burden in it, he needs to pay attention to raising his children from these angles as well.

As for the woman, she has been entrusted with the responsibilty of the care of her children and the house of her husband. It is neccessary that she makes sure that her children are provided with the education and an environment that is needed for children to grow up as upright adults. A mother ought to not cover up and overlook her child?s mistakes and weaknesses, thinking that her actions are beneficial to them. Rather, she is only contributing to their destruction and misguidance. Sometimes parents, especially the mother, resorts to protecting their children from accountability and even if their children fall into something that is clearly wrong and shameful. They fail to see that this action can become monstrous later in their life. Similarly, raising children in a good environment and granting them the neccesary education increases the chances of them becoming productive adults. These children will also in turn supplicate for their parents.

If a parent does raise their children to the best of their ability and spend from their wealth on them, and the children still fall into the path misguidance, then indeed the parents are free. Surely Allah does not hold one accountable for that which we are not able deliver upon. We find great comfort in the story of Nuuh (Alayhi Salaam) when he had warned his people of a great flooding that would befall them, and his son replied by saying that

I will betake myself for refuge to a mountain that shall protect me from the water.?
— [Surah Huud : Ayaah 43]

But Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta?ala) sent down the rain, and the flooding overwhelmed them and his son was drowned.

Oh you Believe, do not try to deceive Allah and His Messenger and let them down on the trust that has been bestowed upon you. Oh Muslims, strive to live up to your responsibilities as it has been ordained by Allah and in the Sunnah. With this we conclude, and I seek the forgiveness of Allah for myself and for all the Muslims. Indeed Allah is the most Forgiving, most Merciful!

All praise is due to Allah, whose bounties and blessings cannot be counted. I bear witness that there is no rival to Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad (Salallahu Alayhi Wasallam) is his servant and messenger. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon His servant and messenger, and the family of his servant and messenger and all those who follow his footsteps until the day of Judgement.

Oh servants of Allah, it has been narrated by Abu Hurayrah (Radiallahu Anhu) that Allah?s Messenger (Salallahu Alayhi Wasallam) talked about Friday and said:

There is an hour on Friday and if a Muslim gets it while offering Salat (prayer) and asks something from Allah Ta’alaa, then Allah will definitely meet his demand.
— [Sahih Bukahri and Muslim]

So brothers and sisters, let us take the opportunity to seek out this hour and supplicate in it. During this time supplicate to Allah that which is good for us in this world and that which is good for our children.

Oh brothers, for those of you who are in Saudi Arabia, the King has requested for all of you to partake in the prayer for rainfall on Monday. And we ask Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta?ala) bring down rain and quench the thirst and provide us with this resource which is benefical for our lives. With this we conclude and send our salutations upon the Nabi (Salallahu alayhi Wasallam). Indeed Allah has said:

Allah and His angels send Salat on the Prophet. O you who believe! Send your Salat on him, and greet him with the Islamic way of greeting.
— [Surah Ahzaab : Ayaah 56]

Oh Allah, confer your peace and blessings on our Prophet Muhammad, and be pleased with his four rightly guided khulafa, Abu Bakr, ?Umar, Uthmaan, and ?Ali and those who have followed their footsteps and upon us along with them out of your Mercy. Indeed you are the Most Merciful.

Oh Allah we ask You to bring honor and victory to Islam and the Muslimeen.

Oh Allah we ask You to rectify our leadership and show them the path of righteousness.

Oh Allah we ask of You to give prominence to the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah  Ameen!

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WHY ISLAM AND WHY ARE YOU A MUSLIM?

WHY ISLAM AND WHY ARE YOU A MUSLIM? 

إن الحمد لله نحمده ونستعينه ونستغفره، ونعوذ بالله من شرور أنفسنا ومن سيئات أعمالنا، من يهده الله فلا مضل له ومن يضلل فلا هاديَ ، وأشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له وأشهد أن محمداً عبده ورسوله

يا أيها الذين آمنوا اتقوا الله حق تقاته ولا تموتن إلا وأنتم مسلمون ¤ يا أيها الناس اتقوا ربكم الذي خلقكم من نفس واحدة وخلق منها زوجها وبث منهما رجالا كثيرا ونساء واتقوا الله الذي تساءلون به والأرحام إن الله كان عليكم رقيبا ¤ يا أيها الذين آمنوا اتقوا الله وقولوا قولا سديدا يصلح لكم أعمالكم ويغفر لكم ذنوبكم ومن يطع الله ورسوله فقد فاز فوزا عظيما ¤

فإن أصدق الحديث كتاب الله تعالى، وخير الهدي هديُ محمد - صلى الله عليه وسلم - وشر الأمور محدثاتها وكل محدثة بدعة وكل بدعة ضلالة وكل ضلالة في النار

All Praise is due to Alláh, We praise Him and we seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness from Him. We repent to Him; and we seek refuge in Him from our own evils and our own bad deeds. Anyone who is guided by Alláh, he is indeed guided; and anyone who has been left astray, will find no one to guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Alláh, the Only One without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad, SAW, is His servant, and His messenger.

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem!

O You who believe,  Fear Allah, as He should be feared, and die not except as Muslims.
Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena aamanut taqul-laaha, wa qooloo qawlan sadeedaa. Yuslih-lakum amaalakum wayaghfir lakum thunoobakum, wamay yu-til-laaha warasoolah, faqad faaza fawzan atheemaa.

O You who believe,  Be aware of Allah, and speak a straightforward word. He will forgive your sins and repair your deeds. And whoever takes Allah and His Prophet as a guide, has already achieved a mighty victory.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Most of you probably have been asked by someone on this question, Are you a Muslim??. And I believe 100%, all of you must be answer it steadily? Yes, I am?.
 But, have you ever been asked by someone else about the following question,
Why are you a Muslim? Or probably you may ever asked this question to yourself, ?Why am I a Muslim??.
In more general question ?Why Islam??.
Of course, this will make you stop answering that question immediately and start to think about it.

For most of us, the answer might be ?Oh, it’s easy. It’s because I was born and raised in a Muslim family?. But, is this the correct answer? Is this the answer that we really want? So, what happened if we weren’t born in a Muslim family? Are We still be a Muslim or not? Indeed, all of these questions are the questions that I asked myself almost a decade ago.  I could say with dignity that ?I am a Muslim and I am proud of it?.

 Before I proceed, it is better for us to really understand what Islam is about.

The word Islam means voluntary Submission, Surrender, or obedience to the Will of Allaah (عزوجل) . It derives from the root word Salam (سلام) , meaning peace. Those who try to perform these actions are called”MU-islams” shortly Muslims and equivalently, here we can say it [Islam-ERs]

Islam recognizes that human kind has free choice in whether to obey or disobey Allah (عزوجل) , but ultimately we will be held accountable to Allah (عزوجل)  in the next life for the choices that we make in this life.

Allah  sent Prophets to teach mankind how to worship Him; starting with Adam a.s., including Noah, Ibraaheem, Moses, Jesus or Isa (may the peace and mercy of Allaah be upon them all) and the last of the messengers, Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم ). The Islamic position is that all of these prophets came with the same message, that there is no deity worthy of worship except the One True God, Allah.

Islam recognizes the close relationship between the body and soul. Whereas the body originates from the earth and has a defined period of life on this earth, the soul originates from Allah and does not die.

Islam encourages the individual to focus on keeping the soul healthy, through the remembrance,obedience and worship of The creator (اللَّهَ) . Islam teaches that it is through the doing of good deeds and seeking the pleasure of Allah  that souls find true happiness and peace. It is in this context that the word Islam derives from the root word "salam" , or peace.

Now, after knowing what Islam is, we can start to answer the question why Islam?. And the simple answer that came to me is ?Islam gives me the purpose of life. People everywhere are asking the questions; “What is the purpose of life?”, “Why are we here in this world?” and ?Where are we going to go after we die??. You might be amazed to learn, that Islam is providing clear and concise answers for these questions.

Most of those who reflect or think about life in any detail will consider and ponder these questions.There are as many different answers to these questions. Some would hold that the purpose of life was to acquire wealth. But think carefully, suppose the purpose of life is to become wealthy, this means that there would be no purpose after becoming wealthy.

A child of 5 years would obviously prefer a new toy to a deposit slip for a million dollars. A teenager does not consider millions of dollars in the bank as substitute for movies, videos, pizza and hanging out with his friends. A person in their 80s or 90s would never consider holding on to their wealth in place of spending it to hold on to or regain their health. This proves that money is not the main purpose at all for the stages of one’s life.

Meanwhile Islam can provide you the answer. In the Quran Surah Al Qasas 56, Allah defines that the only purpose for which He created mankind is to Worship Him.

To a Muslim the whole purpose of life is “ibadah” or worship to the One True Almighty Allaah  on Terms and under His Conditions. The term “worship” to a Muslim includes any and all acts of obedience to Almighty Allah.Islam teaches us that this life is only a test or trial for the individual to show him his true nature. It is only natural that he would accept death as not so much an ending to everything but more as a beginning of the final and lasting life in the Hereafter.

Before entering into either of the final lodging places i.e.; Heaven or Hell, there must be a Day of Judgment or showing of one’s true self to make them aware of their own nature and thereby understand what they have sent on ahead during the life here on the earth.

Every person will be rewarded [or punished] according to their attitude, appreciation, and efforts during this stay on earth. None will be asked about the actions and beliefs of others, nor will anyone be asked regarding that which he was unaware of or incapable of doing.

As the life here is considered as an examination for the individual, the death stage is considered as a resting period after the test. It could be easy for those who were faithful and dedicated or it could be grueling and horrible for the wicked.

Reward and punishment will be in direct proportion to each person and it is only Allah alone who will be the Final Judge over us all.

So, in the teachings of Islam, the line of life and its purpose is logical, clear and simple:

The first life is a test
The life in the grave is a resting or waiting place before the Day of Judgment
The Day of Judgment brings about the clear understanding of what will happen to the individual based on his own desires and actions
The Permanent or Afterlife will either be spend in luxurious splendor or miserable punishment.
Following this clear understanding of life, the Muslim’s purpose is clear. First of all, he has no doubt in his mind that:

he is only created by Allah
he is going to spend a period of time in this material world [called “Ad Dunyah”]
he knows he will die
he knows he will spend time in the grave, either pleasant or difficult depending on his own choice of attitude and actions
he knows he will be resurrected for the Day of Judgment
he knows he will be judged according to the most fair of standards by Allah the Almighty, the All
For a disbeliever, the purpose of this life is to collect and amass great wealth, money, power and position. Over indulging in eating, drinking, drugs, sex and gambling are a high priority to them. But all of this will not avail them anything good in the grave, on the Day of Judgment or in the Next Life.

Eventually he will be faced with the question:

Now what?
What’s Next?
Where am I going.
What will happen to me?
Eventually, he will come to know. For sure, he will come to know. But then what will the knowledge avail him?

Look how Islam solves the mystery of the puzzle of life. It provides the answers to the questions and concerns of the human beings on all levels and in every aspect. It is really quite simple. The purpose of life as understood by the Believing Muslim can be simply stated in only two (2) words: Obey Allah . Our only purpose and salvation lie in these two words..

We will continue in second part of this article In Sha Allah.

And Allah knows best. 

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