My Role Model

How often do we judge people based on preconceptions about them. But, when we get to know that individual we look past those biases people placed in our minds and see the person for who they are. Here is a chance to read the description of a person I value and someone I try to be like. This person is without a doubt my biggest role model. In honor of this persons contributions to the world, I ask you to read a little about this individual to get to know this person the same way I do. Here is the description of this person’s character, mannerisms, and virtues.

Whatever he said, it was always explicit and in plain terms. His speech was never long-winded nor unnecessarily concise. He was kindhearted and soft-spoken, never harsh or cold in his behaviour. He neither humiliated anyone nor himself liked to be treated with disrespect. He was esteemed by every provision; even if it was small in quantity he never deprecated it. As for food, he never disapproved nor praised, nor did he show anger about anything of the world or what it stands for. However, whenever one failed to meet one’s obligation to God, nothing could cool down his indignation until he had paid back in full measure. But, for the wrongs done to his own person, he would never become angry.

My grandfather? No.

When he pointed out something, he did so with his whole hand; and when he was astonished he turned his hand over. In speaking with another man, he would strike the palm of the left on the thumb of his right hand. When angry, he would avert his face; joyful, he would look downwards. His laughter was but a smile, and when he laughed, his teeth used to appear white as hailstones.

JFK? No.

He was predisposed to refrain from unseemly language, curses and revilings and deeds shameful; he never said or did anything improper; he never raised his voice in a marketplace, nor returned evil for evil; rather, he was given to forgive and forget. Never in his life he laid his hands on anyone save in a fight for the sake of God, nor did he ever strike anybody with his hand, neither a servant nor a woman. I never saw him exacting retribution for any offence or excess excepting when the honour of God was concerned or the limit set by God was transgressed, in which case he would become angrier than anybody else. If he had the choice between two courses, he would choose the easier one. When he came to his house, he engaged in the work of a commoner, cleaned his garments, milked the sheep and performed the household chores.

Martin Luther King Jr.? No.

He was not given to idle talk; he spoke only when he was concerned and comforted the people instead of giving them a scare through his speech. If a man of rank or nobility called upon him from another tribe, he showed him due honour and appointed him to some respectable post. He was always as cautious in his dealings with the people as he was overcareful in forming an estimate about them, although he never denied anyone his courtesy and sweet temper. He kept his companions always posted with the events and happenings and used to ask them about their affairs.

Gandhi? No.

He commended what was good and deprecated what was bad or vile; strengthened the one and weakened the other; was always moderate and steadfast without going back and forth; never allowed anything to escape his attention lest others should become negligent or get distracted; took care to possess the means for meeting every contingency; and was never found wanting in doing what was right and proper but in no wise he ever exceeded the limits. Those who kept his company were all virtuous and the elect; he was the best in his estimation who was the most benign and courteous to all; and he was the most esteemed in his eyes who excelled others in benevolence and kindliness and in doing a favour to others.

Jesus Christ? No.

He would stand up with the name of God on his lips and so he sat down. Wherever he went, he sat down in the rear and instructed others to do the same. He paid such attention to everyone attending his meetings that everybody thought that none attracted his notice like himself. If anybody asked him to sit down or spoke of his affair, the Prophet (peace be upon him) listened to him patiently and gave heed to him until he had finished his talk and departed. If anybody asked for something or wanted his help, he never allowed him to leave without disposing of his business or at least comforted him with words kind and sweet. Such was his grace and kindness to one and all that everybody took him as his father. In regard to what was right and proper, he regarded all on the same plane. His were the gatherings of knowledge and edification, of seemliness and modesty, of earnestness and probity. Neither anybody talked in a loud voice, nor censured others, nor cast a reflection on anybody, nor found fault with others; all were equal on even ground, and only those enjoyed a privilege who were more pious and God-fearing.

Mother Theresa? No.

In his meetings, the elders were held in reverence, the youngsters were treated kindly, those in need were given preference by all and the wayfarers and strangers were afforded protection and looked after.

Oprah Winfrey? No.

Of cheerful disposition, he was always bright and radiant; he was tenderhearted and sweet tempered; not stern by nature, he never spoke harshly; nor was he accustomed to speaking loudly; nor to saying anything unseemly or lewed; nor yet he found fault with others; he was not stingy or miser; if he disliked the request made to him, he simply ignored it and instead of refusing it outright he gave no reply. From the three things he always kept aloof; one was squabble, the other, arrogance, and the third, dabbling in a futile task. And, the three things he spared others were that he never spoke ill of anyone, nor maligned anybody, nor pried into anyone’s failings. He addressed only the things which were decent. When he spoke, all those present listened to him attentively lowering their heads as if birds were sitting on their heads. Others spoke only when he had finished his talk, nobody joined issue with others in his presence and when anybody said something, others kept quiet until he had finished his talk.

Bill Clinton? No.

He used to smile on the remarks which made others laugh and expressed surprise over things which astonished others. He always gave heed to the wayfarers and used to put up patiently with the rudeness of strangers until his companions diverted the attention of such persons. He used to say: ‘Help those whom you find in need.’ He gave ears only to such tributes as were modestly worded and never interrupted nor cut in the talk of others. If anybody exceeded the limits, he either forbade him or got up to cut short such prattle.

Billy Graham? No.

He was the most generous, largehearted, truthful, clement, lenient and amiable person. One who saw him for the first time was overawed, but when one kept his company and came to know him intimately, one became attached to him like an inseparable companion. Those who had seen him say that they never saw a man like him either before or after him.

Michael Jordan? No.

God had endowed His Prophet (peace be upon him) with an impressive personality. His features displayed a harmonious blending of a lovely elegance and grace, sublime splendour and impressiveness.

A woman who knew him said: “He was self-respecting, graceful and splendid—pleasing to the eyes set on him. His face had the brilliance of a full moon.”

A man who knew him said, “He was of medium height. I had seen him once wearing a red robe and had never seen anyone more beautiful than he.”

A friend of his said: “He was of a moderate size, a bit more tall than short. His complexion was very fair, his beard was black, the mouth was of moderate size and of good appearance, his eye-lashes were long, his shoulders were broad— I have never seen a man like him either before or after him.”

Another man who knew him said: “I have not touched any brocade or silk which was softer than his palm, nor smelt anything sweeter than his scent.”

Who is this person? It is Muhammad- the most maligned human in history, May God’s Peace and Blessings be upon him. Having more than 40,000 books written against Him and Islam, his life and legacy continues to prevail. As Immanuel Kant once said:” Have patience awhile; slanders are not long-lived. Truth is the child of time; ere long she shall appear to vindicate thee.” The truth has for centuries and will continue to show this man for who he his to people who sincerely seek to know him. Haters can hate, but they will never blow out God’s light of timeless guidance.

You disagree about his legacy? Or want to clear up what people say about him? Please visit this site and learn his legacy: www.inspiredbymuhammad.com

 

reproduced from livingislam.com

love life and fill your life with love

it has been a few months since I have posted anything. It seems as if anytime I make a transition in my life I find it hard to sit down on a computer for more than 5 minutes.
What is this most recent transition?
1. I met a beautiful wonderful Muslimah and got married in February
2. I quit my job and moved back to Chicago
3. I started a new job and now all I do is play games with little kids all day.. woo wooo
4. I rehabed a condominium with my wonderful father
5. Went to Spain and Morocco..

It has been a busy few months. Anyways, it is time to get back to work.

Over these last few months I realized a really important thing. I learned that it is important for us to find joy in every aspect of our lives, even the frustrating and stressful aspects. We are so fortunate that God even gave us the abilities to eat, to see, to breath, to walk and we complain about a lack of ‘luxuries’ in our lives(cars, money, concerts, etc). The other important thing I learned was that it important for us to fill our lives with love. If you cannot honestly say you love your life, I think you should take sometime to examine and reflect on the great things you have in your life that you may not even realize. Ohhh, and brothers… let us step up and be men.. Go find a wonderful Muslimah, man up, and ask her to be your companion in this dunya
until next time…
much love ibn yahya..

escalating premarital violence

CBS news had a special this evening discussing a growth in a disturbing trend.  This trend is teen dating violence.  Last year 30% of teens reported they were in relationships of physical and/or sexual abuse and 25% of tweens have been exposed to abusive relationships. This has created such a problem in the past few years, that state governments and local governments have been stepping up educational programs to educate teens on what constitutes abuse as well as passing legislature.  I find it particularly interesting that in today’s day and age we need to be educated on if we are a victim of a violent relationship or what constitutes an abusive relationship.  So I ask myself why? 

 The numbers paint a picture and the teens surveyed clearly spell out the sources that are contributing to the growth of this horrific behavior.  Figures from national reporting agencies show that abuse went up 600% from march of last year to march of this year!  According to the teens in these studies, a majority indicate that violence being more prevalent in pop-culture and that an increase in technology makes them more likely to be abused (i.e. use of social networking websites, cell phones, picture and video messaging, etc). 

In my perspective it is quite clear that the reason for the exponential growth of this behavior is similar to many other horrific trends that have escalated in our society over the past 40 years.  I see the major contributions being : 

1. Globalisation and poor media priorities.  Ever year we are exposed to more and more violence on the television and through various avenues on the internet.  The more you see something, the easier it becomes to accept as a societal norm.  The more that this act, that was previously seen as unspeakable, is viewed by the youth, the easier it becomes for them to emulate the behaviors.  Look at who the role models are of the youth nowadays,  they may have attained high places in life, but commonly are poor in their values.

2. “The modern age moral decline”  Less and less people are sticking to strong moral and ethical values every decade.  In this modern secular society, individuals typically have viewed religious values as particularly “conservative” or antiquated.   This is evidenced by the fact that religious values are consistently being compromised on a generational basis and evolve to reflect issues of the times.  I was watching the Jimmy Fallon show a few months ago and he had that guy Spencer and his girlfriend/wife Heidi on the show.  She was talking about how they were on a reality tv show, “Im a celebrity get me out of here” when they had a spiritual awakening and found spirituality.  The next topic of discussion was how Heidi was going to model for playboy, also, while wearing a cross around her neck.  Jimmy Fallon asked her, ” What do you think Jesus would say about that?”  She said she thinks he would be proud of her and want her to do what is best for her.  Obviously this is not in accordance with Christian values, but this mentality and the broadcast of it poses a threat to the stability of moral and ethical values in our modern society for all groups of faith.(Disclaimer: these examples occur in EVERY religion and eat at the moral fabric of these traditions)  I think it is time for people of all faiths to stick strong to their religious values and fight the increase in both immorality and atheism/religiouslessness.  Irrespective of our different religious views, people of morality and spirituality must stick together and publicly speak out against moral transgressions in addition to putting their best efforts forward to changing the direction which our society is heading.

God Almighty says in the Qur’an – Suratal Asr:

 Wal Asr, Innal insana lafi khusr.  Illaladhina amanu wa amilus salihaati wa tawaasaw bil haqqi wa tawaasaw bis-sabr

By the decline of  Time. Indeed, man is in a condition of utter loss–Except for those who believe and do good deeds and exhort one another to uphold the truth and exhort one another to persevere in faith with patience.

Let us all reflect on this revelation, and not permit the future generations to believe that these actions, nor, that  a declining moral society are acceptable.  People of faith must look past religious differences and fight against a problem that is bigger than any of our theological problems at this moment in time. 

ibn yahya

Turning to your Lord

For those of us who reflect on this miraculous world in which we exist, for those of us who are aware of how much of a blessing it is for our complex bodies to work as reliably as they do, for those of us who see the destructive powers possessed by nature yet acknowledge that we are protected from them, for those of us who realize we can only create with materials/objects what God has already created, and for those of us who not only believe in a Creator but also seek refuge in him and remember him frequently; we are the ones that should know that prayer is the strongest weapon we have in this world.  I wanted to remind those of us who strive to be conscious of God about the importance of our du’as or supplications and of how God handles these supplications.

Excerpt from al Adab al Mufrad compiled by Muhammad ibn Ismail al Bukhari

The Rewards and blessings for those who make du’a (supplication/prayer):

Abu Sa’id al Khudari reported that the Prophet of Allah, upon him be peace, said, ” Any Muslim who makes du’a for that which is not sinful and does not involve the severing of family ties will recieve one of the following: either his/her prayer will be answered quickly, it will be saved for the next world, or it will ward of an equivalent amount of evil.” Sa’id said, ” Then we will make much du’a .” The Prophet replied, “Allah will do more!”

The Virtue of Du’a:

Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet of Allah, upon him be peace, said. “Nothing is dearer to Allah than du’a”

Nu’man ibn Bashir reported that the Prophet of Allah, upon him be peace, said, “Verily du’a is worship.” Thereafter the Prophet recited from the Holy Qur’an “Call me, and I will answer you” (40:60)

“Du’a is a weapon of the believer,  a pillar of Islam, and the light of the heavens and the earth” (Mustadrak)My Reflection:

I think as humans we are all apt to become heedless, I catch myself all too often.  Lately, I have been strongly upholding the importact acot of worship known as du’a or making a supplication/prayer to the Lord of the worlds.   There are people who believe in God and people who don’t and when I talk to people in my life about things that have recently occured and that I have prayed for, some say ”What a coincidence” and others say “SubhanAllah-Glory be to Allah.”   I hope none of us ever deny any of the favors our Lord bestows upon us, because there is nothing more insulting and disrespectful than ingratitude. May Allah make us those of whom turn to him in times of hardship and remember him in times of ease. Ameen…

Religious Extremists on Devon?

I want to share an experience I recently underwent that really helped solidify a preexisting stance that I had on an approaching dawah or calling to the way of God.  I have a cat and she is sweet and playful.  I love to chase her around my house trying to catch her as she craftily works her way over to her favorite petting spot in our home.  Every know and then I am able to trick her and put an obstacle in her typical escape route.  She runs because she feels like she is on the defensive.  She isn’t sure what to expect from me and attempts to get to a place where she feels comfortable and secure.   When she hits this unexpected roadblock in her escape route she quickly does a 180 degree turn and looks me stern in the eye.   As I get closer, this wonderful cat changes it’s personality by hissing and raising its claws in ultimate defense mode.  I suppose this is where the saying of “cornered like a cat” comes from.  Something beautiful and enjoyable can easily turn into something mean and irrational when placed in a situation of feeling “cornered.”

The same is true for humans.  I was on Devon wearing a shirt that said “sabr” (patience) in Arabic script.  As I was walking to my destination a woman passed me and said “Excuse me sir, Excuse me sir, I read your shirt and it says “sabr”.  Can you please explain to me what this “sabr” means.”  I asked her, “You can read arabic but you don’t know what this common term means?”  How obvious can you be that you are trying to play someone? It instantly registered with me that she was an Arab Christian who then attempted to proselytize me.  In my opinion, her points were ridiculous and actually entertained me.  My purpose for writing this is not to highlight her flaws in thinking, but rather something more important.  Although her thinking was flawed, her methodology was more flowed and was actually offensive.  Here I am, on DEVON, Pakistani part of devon on my way to an EXTREMELY important meeting and some woman decides she has the right to not only interrupt my day’s business but also offend me.

Her methodology was this:

1. To assess my level of knowledge/intellect.  How did she do this? She asked me to define terminology in an attempt to see if I would trip myself up.  What terminology you might ask? Allah, who is Allah? Sabr, what is sabr? You follow Muhammad, don’t you know what kind of man he was?  She was trying to find out if I was knowledgeable or if I was susceptible to her weak arguments. 

2. To affirm that her perspectieve was superior to mine by demeaning mine.  This was done by her talking AT me rather than WITH me.  She said things like  ”Where do you get your sabr/patience? Surely Jesus the lord must have given you patience and he gives all to everything.”

3. To pass out literature to convince me of what her words could not.  She said “I hope by the lord Jesus Christ that you will read this pamphlet.”  I said, “I would love to read this booklet, thank you very much!  I hope that you too will show respect towards me and pick up the Qur’an to read.”  She said, “I have already done that!”  I replied “And I have read several pamphlets by evangelists as well as the bible and many other books of Christian theology, but it is of my ettiquettes to respect you, your papers, and your faith and I will unquestionably read your pamphlet regardless of whether or not I already know the information.”  At that I said, “May God protect you” and walked away. 

4. When all else failed, to insult my beliefs.  As I walked away she repeated “Your prophet married a 9 year old and is a dirty pedophile!”  (For the record, I set her straight about this earlier in our discussion when I told her that her Christian Arab ancestors did the same thing and of all the accusations the people at the time of the Prophet made against him, not one accused him of pedophilia.  As a matter of fact, as of 100 years ago the minimum age for marriage in the US was 10 years old in several states!  Christians, Jews, and polytheists all supported the idea that it was ok to marry a girl who has reached puberty and at that time in that part of the world that was the typical age of puberty for women. Let us not hold our modern standards to earlier ages.)   I smiled and continued to walk away saying one last time “May God protect you.”

Her methodology resulted in me wanting to pull out my claws and hiss just like my cat!  I held back; however, she further reinforced my hesitancy to discuss matters of religion with “message delivering” Christians closing yet another door for Christians to attempt to make me accept Jesus peace be upon him as divine.  I do not waste my time talking to people of this methodology for they are extremists in their religion and intolerant of differing beliefs.  By the way, it has been told to me that there are a group of Christians that go to Devon a few times per week (Sam Shamoun’s peoples) and adopt a similar methodology to this woman in order to harass and terrorize Muslims.  They think they are saving our souls but are merely giving us headaches…

Well let me tell you what. For all you evangelists out there, you should already be aware of the fact that your actions bring people FURTHER away from your cause.  When you do not have proper etiquettes in this secular society you actually offend people and force them to create shields  not only towards you, but also towards all who are similar to you.  Poorly inviting people to share your beliefs hinders your effectiveness. This is a fact that cannot be denied …

Now to the reason why I shared this story.  Muslim’s also be aware of how you do dawah or invite people to Islam, because you too can become an “evangelist” or proselytizer.  Many of us unintentionally come across to non-Muslims in the same manner that the woman described above came across to me.  We should not forget the ayaat in Qur’an specifically referring to the proper guidelines of dawah. 

“Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious.”   

Noble Qur’an 16:125

Now, I do not mean to be inflammatory but merely realistic.  If we go out in groups, pass out literature to people, and are confrontational then are we living the verse of the Qur’an listed above? In my opinion, no!  We must understand that this in your opinion might be dawah, but in all reality it is counterproductive to our cause.  I understand that people come to Islam through this avenue or at least it appears as if they do.  I hear stories of people who go out and get several shahadahs in a day.  As a convert, I simply do not come across any other converts in our community who came to Islam this way.  Perhaps they recited shahadah, but then where have they gone?  The practicing converts I personally know almost all have the same story.  They were not compelled by words of others to accept Islam, but rather the truth of their words via validation through their actions.  This leads me to another ayaat:

“Let there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong: They are the ones to attain felicity (bliss)” 

Noble Qur’an 3:104

In this ayaat the concept of our actions speaking louder than our words is reinforced.  Why has Islam become so vilified in the West? Because of ACTIONS not by words or by pamphlets.  I personally believe it is a disservice to Allah Azza wa Jaal  to say that going out in public and passing out literature is dawah.  For, dawah must be done through wisdom and beautiful preaching.  Through my experiences I have concluded that the most effective invitation to Islam is through our good conduct and impeccable characters. After all, is this not how Prophet Muhammad salAllahu alayhi wasalaambrought others to Islam.  If he had not been the amazing person that he was and his conduct as stellar as it was, would God have chosen him to be his Mercy to mankind?  So we should follow this in our approach to introducing Islam to others.  Be cautious that you do not fall into the pit of proselytization use this impedes our ability to spread the truth about what Islam is.  Let us not turn others away or offend people by being rudely argumentative and disrespectful to their beliefs.  Instead of doing street dawah you may be more effective by joining a charitable organization as a volunteer and using your character to validate your beliefs to the people you work with and the people you encounter through your charitable efforts.  If you engage society or your community with the beautiful embodiment of  Islam as your character, the community has NO evidence to indicate that Islam is not beautiful!

So, proselytizers of all faiths! Do not think that passing out paper ir standing on the corner with a megaphone is truly propagating the Message of God. If you want to convince me that Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Athiesm, or any other ism is the true way to worship God then your actions better speak louder than your words!

End of story…

May God protect us all!

For those of you familiar with America’s Bad Boy, Loon, he now goes by the name Amir Junaid Muhadith.  He accepted Islam and left his life of ignorance and hedonism.  Check out this 30 minute interview he touches on the effectiveness of true dawah which is through the actions of people not just through words.  Dawah should be a pleasant experience for the receiver or else their displeasure will be manifested throuigh their rejection of your invitation. Enjoy…

 

Ibn Yahya

theoryofheart.wordpress.com

disclaimer- this is merely my opinon, I would love to hear other opinions!

Yes, I am a convert.. No brother, you are a revert!!

The conversation occurs on an average of twice a week with well-meaning individuals.  It begins with me meeting a wonderful and considerate brother or sister who asks about my Islamic heritage.  They have already made the assumption in their head that I had come to Islam and not been raised as such.  So I state, knowing very well what is about to emerge from my conversation partners mouth, “I am a convert”.  They quickly respond “No, no brother dont you know (In my head I think- Oh nooo. Here it goes AGAIN, time for yet another lecture)  its revert, not convert.  Every human is born a Muslim and they return or ‘revert’ back to their natural state when they accept Islam.” 

I wish I got a prize every time I had to listen to someone explain this to me or perhaps I should just stop saying convert so I do not have to receive this lecture EVERY time I use the word.  Do not get me wrong, I appreciate people explaining things to me.  But, don’t people ever think that maybe there are better things to remind me of rather than their opinion of my lexical preference or jumping on an opportunity to correct someone? Perhaps you can remind me of the beauty of Allah, perhaps the calamities our Ummah faces, perhaps the ways I can gain more knowledge, perhaps of the Qur’an, perhaps of the permissible forms of tawassul (drawing nearer to Allah).  I suppose it gets under my skin because I already know the story and feel like people are always itching for an opportunity to demonstrate that they have more knowledge than you do. However, they do so in arguing over trivial and unimportant matters… I know what they are about to tell me, I know it very well. However, I prefer to use the term convert.  It is in my opinion that both are acceptable and we should not correct someone on the choice of words they use, for this may be more offensive to someone than you might think. If you are presuming that they are in some form of ignorance of this deen or come off that way, the person you are talking to may have just received a huge and unnecessary slap in the face from you.  Not to mention, there are many things of higher importance that we should continue to remind ourselves about.  Anyways,  I prefer to use convert as opposed to revert.  Here is my reasoning and hopefully if you hear someone label themselves a convert in the future you will not give them a ‘fatwa’ on how to refer to themselves, but rather listen and get to know their story or praise Allah.

Ii is my understanding that Allah created us on a fitrah or natural state of existence.  In my opinion this does not mean I was a born a Muslim.  Rather, I was born in the nature which Allah prescribed for all of us.  This fitrah is a concept that all humans are born with an innate knowledge or recognition of tawhid ( oneness of God), with intelligence, with ihsan, and other human characteristics (two eyes, hair, natural emotions, etc) .  This fitrah is based on Al-Mithaq (The Covenant) please see 7:172 for a beautiful explanation in the Qur’an. It goes a little like this, when Allah created our souls he said to us  ”Am I not your Lord?” We all said, “Yes, we do testify.” On the day of judgement we will be called into account for our maintenance of this Covenant. The fitrah we are born on is tawhid (oneness of God), not Islam.   Once again, it is a condition or a state but not a religion.  If I lived in the woods and never met another human, I would 1) Have an innate feeling of having a creator–one creator 2) I would have gift of intellect which other creatures do not share to the same extent 3) and many other traits that are inherent in all humans.  So, I would be fulfilling my covenant with Allah, yet not practicing what we know to be as Islam.  So, when people say that they have reverted they are saying they have strayed from the innate awareness of tawhid that we were created with and later in life returned to it (i.e. they either disbelieved in God or accepted a spiritual view that was in contradiction to tawhid).  To me, Islam is a perfect match to the fitrah of humans and that is why so many people accept Islam, because it is so compatible with our true nature (fitrah) and is so appealing to the intellect. I do not find any other religion that totally syncs with the natural state of humans as Islam does. I personally have never strayed from the fitrah that Allah created me on.  Never once have I believed God had a son, never once have I ever believed that God has partners, and never once have I denied God.  Therefore, I have always been on the fitrah, which inherently led me to CONVERT my way of life from a life of ignorance to that of a Muslim.  Not from  DISBELIEF in the oneness of God to BELIEF in the oneness of God.  So, with all of this said, this is why I use the term CONVERT.. Please brothers/sisters, in the future do not correct people who refer to themselves as converts for it is nothing more than a word and it is the concepts we should be reminding each other of.  If you see me or another convert and want to correct any of us on what you believe is the correct word to use, please stop for a second and use this as a chance to remember Allah and exalt him instead of attempting to act as a theologian or a linguist.  If you still feel like you must say something, then us the praise for Allah and for his covenant and mercy upon us and not just criticizing somebodies preference of words.  Let us focus more on concepts rather than words and encourage eachother towards more intense and sincere ibadah (worship), inshaAllah….

ibn yahya

parable of the candy shop

On a bright and clear sunny day a man sporting his typical garb walks down the street.  Minding his own business he enters the business district of the town in which he lives.  While taking in the scenery and admiring the beautiful day, he could not help but set his eyes on a shining sign with the letters “candy shop.”  This man has never had any candy in his life, because he was worried that it was unhealthy, could give him cavities, and give him sugar rushes. The man had always been wise and avoided what he knew could have any negative effects on him.  However, the man instantly imagined in his mind what candy might be his most favorite;  Lemonheads, Chocolate turtles and truffles, Twizzlers, chocolate covered raisins, lollipops, or maybe something  else.  After about  1o seconds, the man’s brain began to dream up the luscious tastes of these candies he has never before tasted.  The man could no longer control his urge to go candy shopping and indulge in a sweet sweet taste bud party. 

The man entered the store hearing the sharp “ding” of the door bell followed by a “hello” from the store attendant.  The attendant asked the man ” Pardon me sir, do you need any assistance?”   He quickly replied “Umm, no thank you.  I am just looking.”  At least this is what he was telling himself.  He started in the sugary aisles made his way down to the gum aisle until admiring all the sweet tastes along the way, until he reached the chocolates and rare candy aisle.   So sweet so, so alluring, and oh so tempting.  The man could not help but dream of being in his home surrounded by these exotic chocolates and their rich flavors.  He stood there for minutes debating what he wanted.  He engaged the attendant in dialogue talking about all of the common chocolates vs the rare ones.  He decided to take the next step and ask if he could taste each candy.  The attendant said that this may not be the best idea, but the man opened up each jar anyways and took bite after bite until he was overcome by a sugar high.  The sugar high made him open his eyes realizing that the sun had set hours ago and he had wasted his whole day overindulging in his desires to taste what he has never tasted. 

The attendant finally said “Sir, you have been here for hours.  Have you made your mind up yet?”  He replied, “Mam, I appreciate your help.  But I have tasted all of these chocolates and candies in this store and now I cannot make up my mind.  I like these and those, but I know I cannot possibly get all of them.  It is almost as if I have tasted every candy there is and now all I want are more options in the hopes to find a more pleasurable treat.  Actually, I am searching for the most delightful candy that exists. ”  The attendant replied ” My dear sir, do you not understand your poor decisions?”  The man said” What are you speaking of”  The attendant gently stated “God granted you this beautiful day and you were enjoying the bounties which he bestowed upon you.  Until you saw a candy store, knowing full well your desire for a great and out of this world candy.  You gave in and came in to just “look around”  You refused your inclination to pick one candy, leave, and enjoy the candy and the rest of your day.  You foolishly indulged and tasted every candy in the room until no longer could just one candy could fulfill your craving.  Now, you are left empty handed, unable to decide on a candy and your day is long over.  Your only option is to settle for one  candy that will not possibly be able to give you the pleasures you seek, for you will constantly be thinking about all of the other candies that you have tasted.  Your desires and indulgence have spoiled your ability to appreciate the candy that you are about to chose.  When you entered I asked you, “Sir can I help you”  because I knew you did not know exactly what you needed.  If you would have simply said yes, I could have quickly found you a candy or chocolate that you would have enjoyed.  Every time you would have come back here you would have known exactly what candy you fancy. But, because you were stubborn and refused the help offered to you, you will never truly be pleased with your decision.  My recommendation to you good sir is to accept the assistance people wish to provide to you, to pick something you suspect with all good reasons will please you, settle with your decision and enjoy your decision for the rest of your life.  This decision will make your life simple and will become the perfect sweet fix for life.  The more you taste, the less you can appreciate the magnificence of this one sweet treat.”

The man said “What a shame.  I have spent my whole life foolishly chasing my desires and indulging in things that perhaps I should have never indulged in and now I cannot find pleasure in the beauty of simplicity, but rather continue to search for love in grandiose things.  Look at me now, standing in your shop and in the span of one day my average clothes have become tattered, my hair has grown grey, my face and body have begun to droop and my heart has grown cold.  If I only would have settled with something simple and worked in my life to make it grand, I would have surely enjoyed life to its fullest and never would have been considered a fool.”

the chemistry of interpersonal chemistry

This unique hadith has surfaced several times this week in various discussions after I had read it in Imam Bukhari’s Al-adab Al-Mufrad, prior to that I have never heard this hadith.  Upon reflection I have awoken to find the profundity of this saying.  I thought I would share it on here.  In short, Prophet Muhammad (may the Peace and Blessings of God be on him) said, “The souls of humans were once as a gathered army. Those who knew each other from before will harmonize with one another, while those who did not know eachother will not.” Narrated by both Aisha may Allah be pleased with her and Abu Hurairah may Allah be pleased with him.

Reflection:

I remember growing up and just having like this 6th sense about who I am compatible with and who I am not compatible with.  I think a majority of people use the verb “vibe” to describe this feeling of compatibility.  I also recall the movies featuring love stories where a young man and a young woman who had been acting so bashfully eventually share a kiss.  After the kiss there were either fireworks or none at all….  I believe it is an age old sensation or myth depending on how you look at it.  SubhanAllah, this hadith just kept popping up in random discussion the week after I read it for the first time.  To me it explains a lot about the interpersonal chemistry between individuals.   It makes it easy for us to understand that we cannot force a friendship to work that isnt meant to.  Simply because our souls never mingled and just dont vibe.. what an interesting explanation to a psychosocial phenomonon.. Thank you Prophet Muhammad, may the Peace and Blessings of Allah be with you for additional insight into the social aspects of the human being..

Back in action

asalaamu alaykum ( peace be with you all!!)

I am back in action, I have recently made a move out of Chicago to a nearby community known as Rockford as I have begun my career in this isolated location.  I have not had time to blog or express my opinions on this wordpress majiggy due to my overextension of myself into different projects and the rekindling of friendships.  Please keep me in your du’as as I hope to be opening my heart back up here shortly….

Obsession: Man’s radical war against himself…

So, the zionist foundation ‘The Clarion Fund’ has put out this film to explain what they want people to believe is Islam.  Well, good for them.  Inciting hatred and fueling terrorist attacks by Americans against their Muslim-American neighbors (like what happened in Ohio) is absolutely UNAMERICAN.. These right wing, neo-con, trash talkers do not have the intelligence to see what the true threat to humanity is.  The problem that is plaguing the US sits not in the soul of a religion, but rather in the hearts of men.  Materialism and the our unending desire for power is what has infected individuals in our society.  If you want to talk about a true threat against the US, just look at ourselves.  We need to discard trivial matters and embrace the matters that are important, such as social justice, hypocrisy, and corruption. 

I found this to be very intriguing and felt compelled to share it.  Give it a good read and you will understand that this parable discusses a problem that people everywhere are suffering from, more specifically here in the US.  Let this story serve as a reminder or as an eye opener to a very prevalent disease of the heart..

The Woman: A Parable:

© Nuh Ha Mim Keller 2001

        A man was walking through the marketplace one afternoon when, just as the muezzin began the call to prayer, his eye fell on a woman’s back. She was strangely attractive, though dressed in fulsome black, a veil over head and face, and she now turned to him as if somehow conscious of his over-lingering regard, and gave him a slight but meaningful nod before she rounded the corner into the lane of silk sellers. As if struck by a bolt from heaven, the man was at once drawn, his heart a prisoner of that look, forever. In vain he struggled with his heart, offering it one sound reason after another to go his way-wasn’t it time to pray?-but it was finished: there was nothing but to follow.

        He hastened after her, turning into the market of silks, breathing from the exertion of catching up with the woman, who had unexpectedly outpaced him and even now lingered for an instant at the far end of the market, many shops ahead. She turned toward him, and he thought he could see a flash of a mischievous smile from beneath the black muslin of her veil, as she-was it his imagination?-beckoned to him again.

        The poor man was beside himself. Who was she? The daughter of a wealthy family? What did she want? He requickened his steps and turned into the lane where she had disappeared. And so she led him, always beyond reach, always tantalizingly ahead, now through the weapons market, now the oil merchants’, now the leather sellers’; farther and farther from where they began. The feeling within him grew rather than decreased. Was she mad? On and on she led, to the very edge of town.

        The sun declined and set, and there she was, before him as ever. Now they were come, of all places, to the City of Tombs. Had he been in his normal senses, he would have been afraid, but indeed, he now reflected, stranger places than this had seen a lovers’ tryst.

        There were scarcely twenty cubits between them when he saw her look back, and, giving a little start, she skipped down the steps and through the great bronze door of what seemed to be a very old sepulcher. A soberer moment might have seen the man pause, but in his present state, there was no turning back, and he went down the steps and slid in after her.

        Inside, as his eyes saw after a moment, there were two flights of steps that led down to a second door, from whence a light shone, and which he equally passed through. He found himself in a large room, somehow unsuspected by the outside world, lit with candles upon its walls. There sat the woman, opposite the door on a pallet of rich stuff in her full black dress, still veiled, reclining on a pillow against the far wall. To the right of the pallet, the man noticed a well set in the floor.

        “Lock the door behind you,” she said in a low, husky voice that was almost a whisper, “and bring the key.”

        He did as he was told.

        She gestured carelessly at the well. “Throw it in.”

        A ray of sense seemed to penetrate for a moment the clouds over his understanding, and a bystander, had there been one, might have detected the slightest of pauses.

        “Go on,” she said laughingly, “You didn’t hesitate to miss the prayer as you followed me here, did you?”

        He said nothing.

        “The time for sunset prayer has almost finished as well,” she said with gentle mockery. “Why worry? Go on, throw it in. You want to please me, don’t you?”

        He extended his hand over the mouth of the well, and watched as he let the key drop. An uncanny feeling rose from the pit of his stomach as moments passed but no sound came. He felt wonder, then horror, then comprehension.

        “It is time to see me,” she said, and she lifted her veil to reveal not the face of a fresh young girl, but of a hideous old crone, all darkness and vice, not a particle of light anywhere in its eldritch lines.

        “See me well,” she said. “My name is Dunya, This World. I am your beloved. You spent your time running after me, and now you have caught up with me. In your grave. Welcome, welcome.”

        At this she laughed and laughed, until she shook herself into a small mound of fine dust, whose fitful shadows, as the candles went out, returned to the darkness one by one…..