"For Muslim men and women,- for believing men and women, for devout men
and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient and
constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women
who give in Charity, for men and women who fast (and deny themselves),
for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who
engage much in Allah's praise,- for them has Allah prepared forgiveness
and great reward."
"As for him who gives (in charity) and keeps his duty to Allah and fears Him, And believes in Al-Husna (The Paradise). We will make smooth for him the path of ease (goodness). But he who is greedy miser and thinks himself self-sufficient. And gives the lie to Al-Husna; We will make smooth for him the path for evil;"
A crucial time for all Muslims across the world is almost upon us. A
time of gratitude, reflection and hope. Ramadan is the event where we
give all thanks and praises to Allah, The One Source of everything. We
show our appreciation for Him and His gifts He endlessly bestows on us
by sacrificing some of the more significant things in our everyday lives
during the daytime. Unfortunately, there are many people out there that
are in a dire situation where they're not able to be kept fed regularly
or have sufficient shelter from harsh weather conditions, so this
annual occurrence reminds us that we all could be in a much more modest
position, and to supplicate [pray] for those that are really struggling
for Allah to improve their state of affairs.
Ramadan starts upon the sighting of the new moon; for 2015 this will
commence around the evening of the 5th June; but as you may probably
know, it is also dependant upon your location. Ramadan UK has various timetables for places around Britain, stating that fast spans between Fajr and Maghrib prayers.
AYTD hopes that you enjoy this special occasion, and that it strengthens
your personal connection to Him. Please, never stop reaching out and
conversing with Him - He is always there to listen to you; always.
Is happiness real? Or am I so jaded I can't see or feel, like a man been tainted Numbed by the effect, aware of the muse Too in touch with myself, I light the fuse
I'm the changingman, built on shifting sands I'm the changingman, waiting for the bang As I light a bitter fuse
Time is on loan, only ours to borrow What I can't be today, I can be tomorrow
And the more I see, the more I know The more I know, the less I understand.
I'm the changingman, built on shifting sands I'm the changingman, waiting for the bang To light a bitter fuse
It's a bigger part When our instincts act A shot in the dark A movement in black
And the more I see, the more I know The more I know, the less I understand.
I'm the changingman, built on shifting sands (I don't have a plan) I'm the changingman, waiting for the bang To light a bitter fuse
Here's an article I came across just now, and thought I'd share it with you all. Article courtesy of Islamic Leaning Materials.
You Pray And You Pray…
Frustrating isn’t it? You pray and you pray. You make long duas and
just pour your heart out. You beg and you plead to Allah to give you
something or remove some harm from you.
But no matter how hard you supplicate, your duas just don’t seem to get answered. And you have no idea why.
You’re not a bad person. There are worse people out there than you.
Why won’t Allah answer your duas? What are you doing wrong? Is there
some secret formula or secret code to getting the Almighty to respond?
Let me first put your mind at ease by letting you know that Allah hears everything you say, and He knows everything you desire.
And when My servants ask you, concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the #invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me and believe in Me that they may be guided.
So rest assured, that Allah hears you. But look at the last part of
that verse. Allah commands us to respond to Him and Believe in Him.
Are you doing that? Have you responded to Allah and His messenger (peace be upon him)? Is your belief (imaan) complete?
Perhaps you’re lacking in a few areas. Or perhaps it’s something even
deeper than that. Let’s look at a few reasons that might be holding
your duas up. Photo courtesy Bogdan Migulski
1. You Aren’t Doing Your Part.
This might be the most obvious problem. You want Allah to give you
this and give you that, but you aren’t giving Him anything in return.
I’m sure you understand that Allah punishes us for the wrong we do.
That punishment is not just in the hereafter; it can also happen in this
life. Neglecting the 5 pillars of Islam is sinful and will earn Allah’s punishment.
Perhaps that’s why He’s not giving you what you want. So stop
backsliding and straighten up. Do what He has commanded you to do and
you might see your life improve through #dua.
2. You Are Impatient.
You just couldn’t wait could you? You asked Allah for something over
and over again, and when you didn’t get it when you wanted it, you got
impatient.
And so you gave up. You stopped asking and started believing that
Allah wasn’t going to answer your dua. And then you went and told
someone that Allah didn’t answer your prayers.
The supplication of a slave continues to be granted as
long as he does not supplicate for a sinful thing or for something that
would cut off the ties of kinship and he does not grow impatient.” It
was said: “O Messenger of Allah! What does growing impatient mean?” He
(PBUH) said, “It is one’s saying: `I supplicated again and again but I
do not think that my prayer will be answered.’ Then he becomes
frustrated (in such circumstances) and gives up supplication altogether.
Related in Muslim.
Your knowledge is limited. But Allah’s knowledge is unlimited. You
might think you want something right now, but Allah knows better when it
is right to give it to you.
Perhaps He didn’t give it to you at that time because it would bring
you more harm than good. Perhaps He wanted to test you and had you been
patient with the test, He would have rewarded you with something better.
Only Allah knows.
But since you became impatient, and said the wrong thing and stopped making dua, you lost out on everything.
3. You Ask For Something Evil.
This should be a no-brainer.
Why would anyone ask Allah for something bad? Is that what you did? Did you ask Allah for something that would bring you sin?
Did you ask Him to give you a girlfriend or boyfriend?
Did you ask Him to to give you a Riba-based loan so you could buy a house or car?
Did you ask Him to bring you income from a job that sells pork or alcohol?
Well if you did, now you know why He didn’t answer your supplication.
4. You Don’t Think You’re Gonna Get It.
Why would you even ask Allah for something if you don’t believe He’s
gonna give it to you? What’s the point of supplicating Allah if you
don’t have any faith that it’s gonna happen?
Impossible and possible is all in your mind. Just because you don’t
think it can happen, doesn’t mean it won’t. And it certainly doesn’t
mean Allah can’t make it happen.
Don’t you know that Allah is:
Al-Aziz – The Mighty
Al-Samad – The One that everything relies upon
Al-Qadir – The Powerful
Don’t make half-hearted duas. Make your duas with confidence that
Allah will grant them. Especially if you’re asking for something good
and beneficial.
Abu Huraira reported: “None of you should say, ‘O Allah,
forgive me if You wish, (or) O Allah, have mercy on me if you wish.’
Rather you should be firm in your request, for (Allah does whatever He
wishes) and no one can force Him to do otherwise.”
That just about says it all.
5. You Are Involved In Too Much Evil.
Read the following hadith:
“O people, Allah is Good and He, therefore, accepts only
that which is good. And Allah commanded the believers as He commanded
the Messengers by saying, ‘O Messengers, eat of the good things, and do
good deeds; verily I am aware of what you do,’ Qur’an 23.51 and He said:
‘O those who believe, eat of the good things that We gave you’.” Qur’an
2.172 The Prophet, peace be upon him, then made mention of a person who
travels widely, his hair dishevelled, and covered with dust. “He lifts
his hands and makes supplication, ‘O Lord, O Lord,’ but his diet is
unlawful, his drink is unlawful, and his clothes are unlawful, and his
nourishment is unlawful. How then can his supplication be accepted?“
Narrated in Muslim.
There are many things you can take from this hadith regarding your duas. Let’s look at some of them:
Allah is good and He only likes that which is good. So if you’re good, then He will give you good.
The things we eat and consume have an affect on our spirituality and closeness to Allah.
Just because you’re going through a difficult time, it doesn’t mean Allah is obligated to answer your prayers.
We are commanded to follow the example of the Prophets of Allah (peace be upon all of them).
Inshallah, I hope this serves as a reminder for both you and me on
what it takes to come closer to Allah and have our duas answered.
