Recent Blog Entries

Jan

2011

The Thief of Maalik ibn Dinar

posted by muslimah101 on 9th January 2011 - 0 comments

A burglar scaled the wall of Maalik bin Dinar's house one night and easily managed to get inside. Once inside the house, the thief was disappointed to see that there was nothing inside actually worth stealing. The owner of the home was inside at the time, he was busy performing prayer. Realizing that he was not alone, Maalik quickly ended his prayer and turned around to face the thief. Without showing any sign of being shocked or afraid, Maalik calmly extended greetings of peace and then said, "My brother, may Allah forgive you. You entered my home and found nothing that is worth taking, yet I do not want you to leave my home without taking away some benefit." He stood up, went to another part of the room, and came back with a jug full of water. He looked into the eyes of the burglar and said, "Make ablution and perform two units of prayer, for if you do so, you will leave my home with a greater treasure than you had initially sought when you entered it." Much humbled by Maalik's manners and words, the thief said, "Yes, that is a generous offer indeed." After making ablution and performing two units of prayer, the burglar said, "O Maalik, would you mind if I stayed for a while, for I want to stay to perform two more units of prayer?"

Jan

2011

The Emperor and the Seed

posted by muslimah101 on 8th January 2011 - 0 comments

An emperor in the Far East was growing old and knew it was time to choose his successor. Instead of choosing one of his assistants or his children, he decided something different. He called young people in the kingdom together one day. He said, "It is time for me to step down and choose the next emperor. I have decided to choose one of you." The kids were shocked! But the emperor continued. "I am going to give each one of you a seed today. One very special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it and come back here one year from today with what you have grown from this one seed. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be the next emperor!" One boy named Ling was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He went home and excitedly told his mother the story. She helped him get a pot and planting soil, and he planted the seed and watered it carefully. Every day he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks, some of the other youths began to talk about their seeds and the plants that were beginning to grow. Ling kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew. Three weeks, 4 weeks, 5 weeks went by. Still nothing. By now, others were talking about their plants but Ling didn't have a plant, and he felt like a failure. Six months went by-still nothing in Ling's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed.

Jan

2011

Days of the Couch Potatoes

posted by muslimah101 on 8th January 2011 - 0 comments

Probably one of the most prominent, pervasive, and powerful products of this age is the media, and especially the television. Its control over our thoughts and actions is mind boggling. Among its corrosive effects is that on physical health. In April 2003, for example, the Journal of the American Medical Association reported results of a six-year Harvard study: watching four hours of television a day increased risk of obesity by 50 percent and of diabetes by 30 percent. It referred to the couch potato syndrome, the damaging combination of junk food diet and inactivity, which is a serious public health hazard. But the television produces couch potatoes not just physically but also mentally and intellectually. It entertains, it captivates, and it dictates what we will think and talk about. And like superbly programmed robots, we act on its cues. We worried about Somalia when the media talked about famine there, although that was a couple of years after the famine had set in. And we forgot it the day it was replaced by other hot news. We worried about Bosnia and Kosova when they were in the headlines. Not a day before or after. Afghanistan concerned us when the media producers decided it was important and to the extent they dictated. Atrocities in Afghanistan did not provoke the same reaction as those in Iraq; the difference was not in the seriousness of the atrocities but in the cues issued by the media machine. And even when we do focus on the latest hot spot, what do we do beyond talking about it? Do we work on solutions for any of the problems about which we are so eager to get the latest reports? If that were the case, just one days news might be sufficient to keep us busy for a whole year. But every day we are ready to receive another batch of headlines, while quietly trashing yesterdays reports like stale produce in a grocery store. Imagine a company president who receives reports about problems throughout his company and about changes in the economy that will affect him. He reads them with interest and talks about them with passion but does nothing. Every day. Of course such a president will not survive in a business. But are we not doing the same thing? We seek the latest news but the question, what we will do with that news, does not bother us. As a result of this divorcing of information from the possibilities of action, our interest in it is so superficial. Fickle. Here now, gone the next hour with the next headline. The modern media machine has turned life into a spectator sport. But life is not a spectator sport and it is a terrible mistake of incalculable proportions to treat it as such. Information is valuable but only if it is sought for action. Ultimately the value of our life is to be determined not by the "information" we gathered but by the actions we performed. The Quran says: He has power over everything, the One Who created death and life that He may test which of you is finest in action. [al-Mulk, 67:1-2] This is a central message of Islam and it changes our entire outlook on this life. But life is not a spectator sport and it is a terrible mistake of incalculable proportions to treat it as such.

Jan

2011

Very powerful story:Salah

posted by muslimah101 on 8th January 2011 - 0 comments

There were only 15 minutes left before Salat-ul Isha. He quickly made Wudhu and performed Salat-ul Maghrib. While making Tasbih, he again remembered his grandmother and was embarrassed by how he had prayed. His grandmother prayed with such tranquillity and peace. He began making Dua and went down to make Sajdah and stayed like that for a while. He had been at work all day and was tired, so tired. He awoke abruptly to the sound of noise and shouting. He was sweating profusely. He looked around. It was very crowded. Every direction he looked in was filled with people.

Jan

2011

The Triple Filter test

posted by muslimah101 on 7th January 2011 - 0 comments

During the golden Abbasid period, one of the scholars in Baghdad, the capital of Muslim caliphate at that time, was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great scholar and said, "Do you know what I just heard about your friend?" "Hold on a minute," the scholar replied. "Before telling me anything I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test." "Triple filter?" "That's right," the scholar continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test. The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"

Jan

2011

Message from a disbeliever

posted by muslimah101 on 7th January 2011 - 0 comments

A Message by George Carlin:[an extract] The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness. We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too

Jan

2011

Description of Paradise

posted by muslimah101 on 7th January 2011 - 2 comments

Ibn al-Qayyim said, in regards to the description of the Paradise and the delights that it contains: "And if you ask about its ground and its soil, then it is of musk and saffron. And if you ask about its roof, then it is the Throne of the Most Merciful. And if you ask about its rocks, then they are pearls and jewels.

Jan

2011

Gap between Parents and Children

posted by muslimah101 on 6th January 2011 - 0 comments

Gap between Parents and Children- Mufti Muhammad ibn Adam al-Kawthari

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WADnBfcNXz8&feature=channel

Jan

2011

The 4 Wives

posted by muslimah101 on 6th January 2011 - 1 comment

Once upon a time there was a rich King who had four wives. He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to the finest of delicacies. He gave her nothing but the best. He also loved the 3rd wife very much and was always showing her off to neighboring kingdoms. However, he feared that one day she would leave him for another. He also loved his 2nd wife. She was his confident and was always kind, considerate and patient with him. Whenever the King faced a problem, he could confide in her, and she would help him get through the difficult times. The King's 1st wife was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom. However, he did not love the first wife. Although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her!

Jan

2011

Hadeeth: No 42 An-Nawawi's Forty

posted by muslimah101 on 6th January 2011 - 0 comments

Hadeeth 42 : The Expanse of the Forgiveness of Allaah The Most High عن انس رضي الله عنه ، قال : سمعت رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم يقول : ( قال الله تعالى : يا ابن ادم ! إنك ما دعـوتـني ورجوتـني غفرت لك على ما كان منك ولا أبالي ، يا ابن آدم ! لو بلغـت ذنـوبك عـنان السماء ، ثم استغـفـرتـني غـفـرت لك ، يا ابن آدم ! إنك لو اتيتني بقراب الأرض خطايا ثم لقيتـني لا تـشـرك بي شيئا لأتـيـتـك بقرابها مغـفـرة ). رواه الترمذي [ رقم : 3540 ] وقال : حديث حسن صحيح On the authority of Anas (radiAllaahu anhu) who said : I heard the Messenger of Allaah (sallAllaahu alayhi wa sallam) say : Allaah the Almighty has said : O Son of Aadam, as long as you invoke Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O Son of Aadam, were your sins to reach the clouds of the sky and you then asked forgiveness from Me, I would forgive you. O Son of Aadam, were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the Earth, and were you then to face Me, ascribing no partner to Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great as it [too].

Older Posts