Al-Talib News Magazinequran

myRamadan: Family and Community Bonding

AT Reader — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:55:21 +0000

Amelia’s story | Samina’s story | Hana’s story | Sumaya’s story | Alia’s story

by Samina Mohammad

Since I live in a college town in Indiana, Ramadan and Eid is the time when my community comes together to help the college students feel part of a family. The mosque has daily iftars for them and each family would be responsible for cooking for a particular day. We have about 15 families that contribute and the MSA brothers come to our houses to pick up the food to distribute for iftar. Two of the days is designated to community iftars, so a family would host the iftar for the whole community usually at a banquet hall, hotel or even a high school gymnasium.

Memories:

During the day, I remember my mom preparing/cooking for iftar and she always would have the Taleem ul-Quran (tafseer/explantion of the surahs) by Dr. Farhat Hashmi (an urdu scholar who is masha’Allah amazing) played as much as possible, mostly in preparation of what we would be reciting in taraweeh that night. My dad would have me and my brother prepare mini khaterahs to give after asr prayer – mostly it was from Riyad ul Saliheen. Even to this day, he still makes my brother do it or if I’m home, I have to do it. As a family we set a goal to read the entire Qur’an and compete to see who will finish it first, but every year it’s the same person: my mama!

Ramadan Meals:

At the time of breaking our fast, we have dates and a drink called Rooh Afza. This drink is the one thing you will find at many Indo-Pak homes during Ramadan. As for snacks or meals, we have a dish called pakoras served with mint chutney, fruit chaat (spicy fruit salad), dahiy baray (which is basically soft dumplings made out of lentils in yogurt), and samosas (stuffed fried pastry either with beef or potatoes, and/or cutlets).

Eid:

Indo-Pak folks have this thing called “Chand Raat” (Night of the New Moon) the day before Eid (last night of Ramadan) where all the females get together and prepare for Eid and apply mehndi (henna) on their hands. Usually we have the “Chand Raat” at my house for Eid al-Fitr. I always grew up with having “Chand Raat” to prepare for Eid, like the goodie bags for the kids, working on last minute carnival stuff.

On the day of the Eid, we would get up early to get ready. We always wear new clothes (it’s not Eid unless we get new clothes). I usually wear a traditional Indo-Pak outfit with a matching abaya over it. If there was a time that my family got on each other’s nerves it would on the morning of Eid –trying to get everyone to prayer on time, figuring out how many cars to take to Eid prayer, asking why is this not ironed, etc.

Before going to prayer, my mom would make us eat seviyan (vermichelli noodles) and dates. It is of the Sunnah to eat an odd number of dates before going to pray Salatul Eid. The Prophet (saws) would not go out on the day of Ed al-Fitr without eating and odd number of dates (Bukhari).

My community does not pray Eid at our Masjid, instead we pray outside in an open field (during the summers/spring) or in gymnasium (during the winter months), as it is Sunnah to pray outside for the Eid prayer unless you are in Makkah (there, Eid prayer is at Masjid Ul-Haram). After Eid prayer, we usually greet one another and take pictures. My friends and I take our traditional Eid pictures, which we’ve been taking since we were 5-7 years old, and then we take one with our families.

After that, we have a mini award ceremony for the Ramadan volunteers to show our appreciation for their hard work and dedication in making the month of Ramadan successful. Then we have our community breakfast along with a carnival for the kids. My friends and I usually never stay for that and instead go to our favorite place: Ihop (when you live in a college town, there are not that many choices). After that, my family has our typical brunch/lunch gathering for all the single students, mostly for the brothers, so I’m there to help my mom out. After they all leave, we usually take a nap or we open our Eid gifts. In the evening, we have a community Eid dinner where we reserve a restaurant or a banquet hall.

So all in all, Ramadan and Eid is like major family bonding time!

*Al-Talib has asked its staff and readers to share their Ramadan traditions, experiences or memories with us. If you would also like to share what makes Ramadan special for you, please e-mail us at webmaster@al-talib.org. Ramadan Mubarak!

The Importance of Time

AT Reader — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 04:50:47 +0000

I came to recall an important truth that all of us are already aware of, at least subconsciously, but most of us fail to incorporate into our daily life. I was re-reading Surah Al-Asr with careful attention to the translation, which is as follows:

“By time, Indeed, mankind is in loss, Except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and advised each other to truth and advised each other to patience.” (Qur’an, 103:1-3)

Allah (subhan wata’alah ) establishes the default position for all mankind at the very beginning of the ayah (verse): a state of loss. That is followed by the exceptions to the default position, namely those people that have iman (faith), do good deeds, propagate truths and exercise patience. Interestingly, all of these four exceptions allude to actions done consistently. Even iman itself is not a static state, but its level fluctuates in every individual, with the exception of prophets, depending on a person’s actions and worship. As such, we realize a hard fact: everyone is losing with the passage of time by default, with the exception of those that are doing righteous actions. With time, it’s use it or lose it. Contrary to what most of us would like to believe, there is no stationary state. If we are exactly the same person today as we were yesterday, we are actually losers under this definition. Certainly, amongst the major differences in this world and the next is time itself: this life is temporary, and the next life is eternal.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) stressed the importance of time in numerous hadiths, of which one is specially relevant. It is inspiring to note that the Prophet himself was a husband, statesman, military leader, adjudicator and a prophet at the same time. It is narrated by Abdullah ibn Masoud, one of the most famous companions, that, “A man shall be asked concerning five things on the day of resurrection: concerning his life, how he spent it; concerning his youth, how he grew old; concerning his wealth, whence he acquired it, and in what way he spent it; and what was it that he did with the knowledge that he had.” As apparent from the hadith, we will all be held accountable for the time that we were given on earth and how we used, especially our youth. Most of us sometimes do not realize that even wasted time, just like wasted money, is a blessing we will be questioned about.

I once heard an interesting story about Harun al-Rashid, the fifth and most famous Abbasid Caliph. He employed a professional jester for his entertainment. After one such performance, in a hysterical state after being overcome with laughter, Harun gave his jester a stick, and asserted that the jester was the most foolish man he had met, and instructed him to pass on the stick to anyone who exceeded him in foolishness. Some time passed, and Harun Rashid was on his death bed. The jester came to visit him, and after being allowed audience, asked Harun Rashid what he had done to prepare himself for the coming life. Harun burst into tears, and replied that he had done very little. At this point the jester gave him back the very same stick, and remarked that Harun was more foolish than him. Whether or not the story is true, we can all take home the point: take advantage of your time before it runs out.

The Importance of Da’wah

Kutibh Chihabi — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 04:47:38 +0000

Da’wah, which in Arabic means an invitation to Islam, is one of those words that many members of the Muslim community turn a blind eye towards. Many people acknowledge its importance but at the same time fear it because they wrongly presume it takes lots of knowledge. The reality is far from the fact. Anyone who knows Surat Al-Ikhlas (The Purity), or even just knows what Tawheed is (the Oneness of Allah) can give Da’wah. Many people new to Da’wah are surprised to know that once they begin talking to people, they uncover lots of knowledge about Islam which they didn’t really know they had.

Yet people forget that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave Da’wah his entire life. This was his purpose on Earth, to call people to Islam. And in the Qur’an, we are commanded by Allah:

“Call to the way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious” [The Qur'an 16:125]

Yet even though this is an obligation upon every Muslim, many people neglect it because of fear of speaking with strangers. However the model of Da’wah that Muhammad (pbuh) used was to first start with speaking to his family about Islam. Later, he gave Da’wah to his friends. Soon after that, Allah commanded him in Surat Najm (The Stars) to give Da’wah to the public and this is when he made his first recitation to the tribe of the Quraysh (the tribe that Muhammad (pbuh) was born into and the tribe whom persecuted him for 23 years). Therefore by following the model of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in giving Da’wah, we can successfully gain comfort in the way we speak to people about Islam and at the same time gain knowledge about our own faith and others’ faith.

Many of us may fear giving Da’wah to strangers because they not be as welcoming as friends or family. So start with your family and friends. And as you gain comfort, move on to giving Da’wah to strangers. Just remember that no one will ever have every bit of Islamic Knowledge. But if you start out with Tawheed, I guarantee you will always succeed. So please do not delay this commandment from Allah, and share your religion with those deprived from it!

Analysis of Piety

Abdullah Al-Jammal — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 04:23:49 +0000

Analysis of Piety
(from ahmad fareed Hafidhullaah)

From the morals and manners of the righteous was that they would strictly analyze their taqwa (piety) never claiming to be a possessor of such. Allah the Most High has said, “Therefore do not declare yourselves as being purified. He knows best who has taqwa.” [53:32]

The Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam (May Allah’s peace and blessing be upon him), said, “Taqwa is here,” and he pointed to his chest. [Muslim (16/120, 121) in al-Birr..and at-Tirmidhi (8/115) in al-Birr and Ahmad (2/277)]

‘Umar ibn ‘Abdul ‘Azeez, rahimahullaah (May Allah have mercy upon him), used to say, “None can reach the station of taqwaa until he possesses neither action nor words that can be exposed to his embarrassment either in this world or the Hereafter.” He was once asked, “When does the worshipper reach the peak of tawqa?” He replied, “If he put all his thoughts and desires in his heart on a plate and then wandered around in the market, he should not feel ashamed of anything there.” He would frequently say, “The sign of muttaqi (pious person) is to bridle oneself from speaking just like one in ihraam bridles himself from speaking. The muttaqi needs to be a scholar (‘aalim) of the Sharee’ah, all of it, otherwise he leaves taqwa without realising.”

Abu Darda, radhiAllaahu ‘anhu (May Allah be pleased with him), said: “From the completion of taqwa is that the slaves fears from his Lord even with regards to things the weight of an atom.”

Abu Hurayrah, radhiAllaahu ‘anhu, was asked about taqwa. He said, “It is a road full of thorns. One who walks it needs to have extreme patience.”

Sufyaan ath-Thawri rahimahullah said, “We met a people who loved it when it was said to them – Fear Allah the Most High. Today you find that people only become annoyed at this.”

A person asked Fudhayl ibn ‘Iyaad rahimahullaah, “Which country would you like me to live in? Fudhayl replied, “There is no connection between you and any nation. The best country for you is the country which helps you to acquire taqwa.”

O brothers and sisters! Search your soul. Have you feared Allah as the righteous have feared? Or have you fallen short of that. Seek the forgiveness of Allah as all praise is to Him the Lord of the worlds.