Session 2

Duaa of the Week: Duaa Before Sleeping

Please memorize this duaa before the next halaqah and implement it into your daily routine inshallah. 

Hadith of the Week: Hadith #2 from An-Nawawi's 40 Hadith

On the authority of `Umar (radi Allaahu 'anhu), who said:

One day while we were sitting with the Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) there appeared before us a man whose clothes were exceedingly white and whose hair was exceedingly black; no signs of journey were to be seen on him and none of us knew him. He walked up and sat down in front of the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam), with his knees touching against the Prophet's (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) and placing the palms of his hands on his thighs he said: “O Muhammad, tell me about Islaam.”

The Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “Islaam is to testify that there is no deity worthy of worship but Allaah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah, to perform prayers, to give zakaah, to fast in Ramadaan, and to make the pilgrimage to the House if you are able to do so.”

He said: “You have spoken rightly”; and we were amazed at him asking him and saying that he had spoken rightly.

He (the man) said: “Tell me about Eemaan.”

He (the Prophet, sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “It is to believe in Allaah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, and to believe in divine destiny (qadr), both the good and the evil of it.”

He said: “You have spoken rightly.”

He (the man) said: “Then tell me about Ihsaan.”

He (the Prophet, sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “It is to worship Allaah as though you see Him, and if you do not see Him, then (knowing that) truly He sees you.”

He said: “Then tell me about the Hour.”

He said: “The one questioned about it knows no better than the questioner.”

He said: “Then tell me about its signs.”

He said: “That the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress, and that you will see barefooted, naked destitute shepherds competing in constructing lofty buildings.”

Then he (the man) left, and I stayed for a time. Them he (the Prophet, sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) said: “O `Umar, do you know who the questioner was?”

I said: “Allaah and His Messenger know best.”

He said: “It was Jibreel, who came to teach you your religion.”

-It was related by Muslim.

Things to Learn from this Hadith

1.    That the Angel Jibreel himself came to teach the fundamentals of the Faith to the Companions by asking questions to the Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam).

2.    That one can teach others by asking about that which he already knows.

3.    That if someone wants to know about Islaam generally, then he should be made aware of the pillars which constitute it.

4.    That Islaam is built on the five pillars which have to be acted upon with eemaan and ihsaan. Denying any one of these pillars and not wishing to fulfill any one of them makes one a non-Muslim.

5.    That belief in what Allaah has destined for us, whether it is perceived to be good, or bad, is part of eemaan, and without believing in it, our eemaan is incomplete and defective.

6.    That one must accept the Messengers sent by Allaah.

7.    That one must develop ihsaan in all that he does so that he is as much aware as he can be that Allaah is indeed watching every move that he makes. Ihsaan is the highest level of faith that a Muslim can attain. We should all strive to reach this level inshallah. 

8.    That as part of the Islaamic manner the teacher should be ready to accept and say that he does not know the answer or that he does not know it better than the enquirer.

9.    That the signs of the Last Hour are real and cocern how we live and behave.

10. That although the Companions were the best of the people and were the most knowledgeable, they did not interrupt with their own answers, nor did they show impatience at the questioner. Therefore as part of the Islaamic manners, if someone asks a question to the teacher in a group, then the others in the group should keep quiet until one of them is asked for help.

11. It is not permissible to say that there is a certain length of time left before the end of the world, for none knows but Allaah, not even the Messenger (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam).

12. From Jibrael’s clean and beautiful appearance, we see the importance of appearance when entering upon our scholars, teachers as as Jibreel (alayhi as-salaam) came to teach the people by his appearance, his statements and his actions.

Topic of the Week: Judging People

• Understanding that Allah (swt) is the Ultimate judge because he is the One that knows what we think, believe and what we believe is inside our hearts.
•  Surah Qaf, Verse 16 – “And we have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him in his consciousness, and we are closer to him than [his] own jugular vein”
• Who has the right to judge what is in our hearts and minds when Allah (swt) has stated He is closer to us than that? At this point it can be considered as a form of shirk for you are saying that you know equally of what Allah (swt) knows.
• Suspicion is the leading cause of what leads us to judge others wrongly, but at the same time this is also a natural part of us. Even with this said, we still do not have the right to judge others based on mere suspicion and you are not allowed to suspect someone until you have absolutely clear evidence.
• Judging someone is allowed in 1 case, where there is enough evidence to support the belief, but that too has conditions:

1.     A person in authority

2.     Someone who needs to give right to other people (i.e. a judge)

3.     People for whom it concerns directly, if there is harm that will come out of it

-      Allah has advised us in the following surahs:

      - Surah Al-Hujurat, Verse 12 – “O you who have believed, avoid much [negative] assumption. Indeed,   

        some assumption is sin. And do not spy or backbite each other. Would one of you like to eat the flesh  

        of his brother when dead? You would detest it. And fear Allah ; indeed, Allah is Accepting of 

        repentance and Merciful.

      - Surah Al-Ma’idah, Verse 105 – “O you who have believed, upon you is [responsibility for] yourselves.  

        Those who have gone astray will not harm you when you have been guided. To Allah is you return all 

        together; then He will inform you of what you used to do.”

-      It is the norm now a days to find out about the “latest gossip” or “one up” the ones around us. Yet, 

        Allah (swt) advises us to be positive about one another, and try to transform and interpret each other’s 

        words that seem negative, look positive.

-     Ummar ibn Khathab used to say, do not think ill (bad) of the word that comes out of your believing  

       brothers mouth, as long as you can find a good excuse for it

-      
      We should even try to apply this if the person it is in a wrong manner, Allah (swt) did not make you a judge or police over them because you do not know what their intention was, and there is no harm to other people (they are not taking the rights of other people), rather try to find some good excuse for the person. Doing this could allow for some of the following:

1.     Allowing them to swell on their action may help them learn something

2.     Allah (swt) will lift you in His eyes and you will continue to be an honorable  

        person as long as you continue to do that

3.     People will naturally begin to love you because Allah (swt) will love you

-   The Prophet (saws) said: Whoever covers up a flaw of their brother or sister in this dunya, than Allah will cover up a sin of his on the Day of Judgment and not show anyone. It will remain a secret between you and Allah (swt).

Qur'anic Tafseer: Sura Alaq (Part 1)

Session 1

Duaa of the Week: Duaa after Waking Up

Memorize this duaa by the next halaqah inshallah and implement it into your daily routine inshallah.

Quranic Tafseer: Surah Fatiha

The Prophet ﷺ said, “No group of people will gather together in a house from the houses of Allah”— and many ulema (scholars) said this doesn’t mean just the masjid, this could be any place where people gather to study the Qur’an—and the Prophet continued “and they come together to recite the book of Allah, the Qur’an, and to study it and to ponder upon it, except that tranquility from Allah will descend on them and that they will be covered with rahma (mercy) and that the angels will come to this gathering and cover them and shower them. And the stack of the angels will go all the way to the heavens and Allah is going to mention your name by you studying the Qur’an.”

Q: Names of AlFatiha

The scholars say that Al-Fatihah consists of twenty-five words, and that it contains one hundred and thirteen letters.

If you get 7 rewards for every letter, think about 113*7 = 791 rewards

Q: How many ayats does the surah have?

Q: Proof that the surah is seven versus, ie that the bismillah is included.

 Importance of knowing the meaning of this surah

There are 5 fard prayers in the day, fajr 2 rakah, dhur 4 rakah, asr 4 rakah, maghrib 3 rakah, and isha 4 rakah. For a total of 17 rakahs. That is 17 times a day, not including any sunnah or nawafil that you have read the surah. Think about the impact of knowing what you are reciting, and knowing that Allah is responding to you as you recite. Think about what you are promising and asking Allah for. This is a great way to increase kushoo in Salah

Hadith of the Day

On the authority of Ameer ul-Mu'mineen (the Commander of the Faithful), Aboo Hafs `Umar ibn al-Khattaab radiAllaahu anhu, who said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam say:

"Actions are but by intentions and every man shall have only that which he intended. Thus he whose migration (Hijrah to Madeenah from Makkah) was for Allaah and His Messenger, his migration was for Allaah and His Messenger, and he whose migration was to achieve some worldly benefit or to take some woman in marriage, his migration was for that for which he migrated." Explanation of Hadeeth 1 This is a saheeh hadeeth that has been agreed upon by the scholars, and is collected in both the collections of al-Bukhaaree (Hadeeth No. 1) and Muslim (Hadeeth No. 1907). This hadeeth is great in its benefit and importance, and it has been said that the religion of al-Islaam revolves around it. Some of the scholars have said that it is 1/3rd of Knowledge, because the actions of man involve his heart, his tongue and his limbs, and hence the intention in the heart is 1/3rd of that. Other scholars have said that the whole religion is encompassed in three hadeeth - this one, the hadeeth "The Halaal is clear, the Haraam is clear and between them are doubtful matters...", and the hadeeth "Whoever innovates in this religion that which is not from it will have his actions rejected [by Allaah]". [Note: These other hadeeth will be covered later in shaa' Allaah] Some of the scholars have said that this hadeeth should be mentioned at the beginning of every book, in order to establish that the seeking of knowledge is for the sake of Allah alone, and not for anyone else. It is also said that this Hadeeth is the foundation of Islam, so clearly we understand that it is very IMPIORTANT that we understand and spread this hadeeth to those around us, so we may be of those that have surely practiced what the Prophet had to say,PBUH. Imam Ahmed stated, that there are 3 Hadeeth’s around which Islam revolves, and out of those 3 Hadiths this Hadith is the 1st. In the hadeeth, when the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) says "actions are but by intention,"  the 'by' here means that the acceptance and correctness of any action depends upon the intention behind it. An action which is apparently good, such as giving money in charity, will be rejected if the intention behind it is wrong, for example: to show off. Indeed, the Prophet (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) has narrated from Allaah that if a person performs an act for Allaah's sake and also for the sake of someone else, then Allaah will reject the deed entirely and leave the whole of it for the partner that the person made. This shows us how grave the sin of shirk is - it is the only sin that Allaah will never forgive. In the hadeeth, the words "shall have" means that the person will be rewarded for only that which he intended. So, as mentioned in the hadeeth, if a person performed the Hijrah, but did it with the wrong intention then he would not be rewarded for that action of Hijrah. The word "actions" refers to those actions which are part of the Sharee'ah of Islaam. Thus, any action of the Sharee'ah - such as making wudoo', or ghusl, or making tayammum, or the prayer, or zakaat, or fasting, or the Hajj, or i'tikaaf in the masjid, or any other act of worship - will not be accepted and rewarded unless it is performed with the correct intention. Summary Everything we do has to be intended to be for Allaah, i.e., for anything we do we want to make sure that it will be acceptable to Him and will not in any way interfere with the upholding of His Deen. A good action with the wrong intention will not get us any reward in the Hereafter.

Topic of the Day: The Importance of the Years of Youth

·      Wasting of the heart: Done by preferring this worldly life over the Hereafter

·      Wasting of time: Done by having incessant hopes (leads to following desires)

“As for him who transgressed and preferred the life of this world, verily, his abode will be Hell-fire. And as for he who feared the standing before his Lord, and restrained himself from impure desires and lusts, verily, Paradise will be his abode.”

-An-Naziat 37-41

·      Desires are the root of all evil because the one who follows his desires has essentially pushed aside the guidance. Especially in our youth, there are desires for many things (attraction to the opposite sex, partying etc). So our job is as Allah said:

“And follow that which is revealed to you, and be patient until Allah judges and He is the best of judges.”

- Yunus 109

·      The Messenger of Allah (S.A.W) said:

“Take advantage of five things before five other things: from your youth before your old age, your health before your sickness, your wealth before your poverty, your free time before you become occupied and from your life before your death.”

-       Narrated by Abdullah bin Abbas

·      Take advantage of your youth, because you are today able to perform optional fasts; when you are old you will not be able to withstand the pains of fasting. Right now you are a youth who can get up and pray in the middle of the night, staying up in the bowings and prostrations. It’s the time in which you are not tied down with many responsibilities. Tomorrow, as the years pass, the responsibilities pile up and you won’t have as much time as you may have now.

·      If we look to the people who first gave victory to Islam, we would find that many of them were youths. In fact, most of them were less than 20 years of age. How many youth today would be willing to sacrifice everything for Islam?

·      Allah will ask a specific question to everyone on the Day of Resurrection:

“The two feet of a servant will not move from their places until he is asked about four things: about his life and what he did with it, about his youth and how he spent it, about how well he acted upon his knowledge, and about his earnings- where he obtained it, and what he spent on it.”

-       at-Tirmidhi (2417)

·      Even though the period of youth is part of a person’s life, Allah has singled out the period of youth for questioning. Shaytaan often whispers to us and tells us that we will have time later in our lives to worship Allah; but the truth is that we do not know when we will die and we do not know when we will meet our Lord.

·      Allah will shade the youth who was raised in obedience on the day in which there will be no other shade:

“There are seven whom Allah will shade beneath the shade of His Throne on the day in which there will be no shade but His shade…(including) a youth who was raised upon the obedience to Allah.”

-       Al Bukhari (1423) and Muslim (1031)

·      It’s important that we gain knowledge about Islam from a young age so that it is easy to implement it throughout our lives. When the decisions that we make in our life are made taking the path of Islam into consideration, the rest of our lives will be a lot easier. For example, choosing a career that is halal and brings you thawaab instead of a career that involves haraam; or choosing a spouse who is righteous and has strong Imaan rather than choosing a spouse for their wealth or looks. Later in life, we may come to realize how the decisions we made were not in coherence with Islam. It will be more difficult to implement Islam later than if we make the right decisions from the beginning.