Ek Jazba Ek Paigham - Milad Raza Qadri

Muhammad Milad Qadri gives a heart-warming performance at Alhambra theatre, Bradford, in celebration of Prophet Muhammad's birth. 

Tafsir of Surah Al Qasa - Sh Ninowy

The Mawlid: The Conservative View - Naeem Choudhry

The scholars' case is very clear. The celebration of the Holy Prophet's birthday, an event of unique importance in mankind's religious history, is classed as a 'good innovation' (bid'a hasana) in the weighty tomes of classical fiqh (Islamic law). In a fatwa delivered in 1991, Shaykh Muhammad al-Khazraji, the present Mufti of the United Arab Emirates and author of many authoritative works on Islam, explains that although Mawlid was not known in its present form to the early Muslims, its immense value in inculcating love for the Prophet, and the fact that it does not contradict any principle of the Quran and Sunna, means that it is considered recommended (mustahabb) by the jurists.

Despite the objections of some smaller sects, such as the Kharijites of Oman, this view has been overwhelmingly shared by conservative Islamic scholarship. Great legal experts such as Ibn Hajar, al-Suyuti, al-Nawawi, al-Shawkani and many other orthodox figures have written in confirmation of the classical support for the mawlid celebration. Mainstream Sunni scholarship thus concurs with the 'salafi' branch of Hanbalism, which has always been at the forefront of calls to promote this Islamic festival. Ibn Taymiya, for instance, the medieval scholar of Syria, wrote: 'To celebrate and to honour the birth of the Prophet, and to take it as an honoured season, as some of the people are doing, is good, and in it there is a great reward, because of their good intentions in honouring the Prophet, may Allah bless him.' (Ibn Taymiya, Fatawa, vol.23, p.163.)

His pupil Ibn al-Qayyim takes the same line: 'Listening to a beautiful voice celebrating the birthday of the Prophet, or celebrating any of the holy days of our history, gives peace to the heart, and bestows upon the listener a light from the Prophet himself.' (Madarij al-Salikin, p.498.)

In the tradition of these scholars, the 'salafi' sect of Islam has produced a number of beautiful mawlid works written specifically for public recital on these celebrations. Perhaps the best known of these is the famous Mawlid of Ibn Kathir, which soon became popular throughout the Islamic world. This great commentator on the Quran begins his Mawlid by observing: 'The night of the Prophet's birth, may Allah bless him, is a magnificent, noble, blessed and holy night, a night of bliss for the believers, pure, radiant with lights, and of immeasurable price.'

Hence despite the efforts of secular regimes and sectarian tendencies to deprive the Muslims of this most happy and beneficial of Islamic festivals, the scholars of all orientations have been overwhelmingly in support of the orthodox position. At a time when conditions for the Muslims are hard, and we need more than ever to rekindle the fire of love for our Prophet in the Umma, our communities should follow their counsel loyally. As Mufti al-Khazraji concludes: 'Celebrating the Mawlid is a recommended practice, especially in this difficult age of ours, and should never be abandoned.'

Source

A Time to Celebrate - Dr. Muhammad Abduh Yamani

Every year, when the month of Rabi al-Awwal comes around once again, bringing in its train the night of the twelfth, it seems to us as if the whole world is perfumed by the memory of the birth of the Final Messenger, may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him. Countless millions of Muslims in every corner of the earth fix their thoughts on his birth, by re-reading his biography and learning from his unique values and qualities. For he was the Unlettered Prophet, in whose human essence were combined and perfected every noble and generous trait of character: the best of all role-models, of whom Allah Himself has said: "Truly, yours is a tremendous character."

Without the slightest doubt, the best way of commemorating this most noble of all birthdays is in reciting the story of his life, to adults and to children, in order to accustom them to the love of Allah's great Messenger.

My own mother, may Allah show her soul mercy, used to put us in the habit of sitting down and reading the sira books. Even though she herself could neither read nor write, she knew much of the sira by heart, and would constantly encourage her family and neighbours to become intimately familiar with the beautiful life-story of the Prophet.

No-one could deny that gathering to listen to the career of the Master of the Messengers is one of the most desirable of all activities. It can yield a whole range of blessings and benefits, as long as it takes place in a proper Islamic atmosphere without any reprehensible innovations or distortions. Needless to say, the life of the Prophet, upon him be blessings and peace, can and should be commemorated at any time of the year. Nonetheless, when he is remembered in Rabi al-Awwal, people's attachment to him grows even stronger, for the simple reason that it was in this month that he was born. At this special time, when the impulse to gather for this purpose is at its strongest, one feels an overwhelming sense of connection between our time and his, as the present reminds us of the past, and helps us to bring to mind and relate to events which took place many centuries ago.

The love of the Prophet, and the joy which his birth and career have brought to us, bring every imaginable kind of good thing to a true Muslim. Even an unbeliever can benefit from his birth. The idolator Abu Lahab, one of the greatest enemies of Islam, was pleased when one Monday he heard the news that Muhammad had been born: and he freed his slave-girl Thuwaiba who had brought him the news. We are told that because of this deed his punishment in the grave is reduced every Monday. This hadith, which is narrated by Imam Bukhari, inspired Imam Shams al-Din al-Dimashqi to write:

If an unbeliever, condemned by the Quran to eternal pain,
Can be relieved every Monday through his joy at Ahmad,
Then what must a true servant of God hope to gain,
When with the truth of Tawhid he felt joy at Ahmad?

The Prophet himself, may Allah bless him, used to commemorate his birthday, thanking his Lord for His great kindness to him. He would express this commemoration by fasting, as we are told in a hadith narrated by Imam Muslim. The methods by which his birthday may be celebrated vary widely, but the objective is the same: whether in fasting, giving food to the poor, gathering for the remembrance (dhikr) of Allah or calling down blessings upon His Messenger, and listening to the story of his virtues and mighty achievements.

Allah has commanded us Muslims to rejoice at the things by which His grace and mercy comes to us. In the Holy Quran we read: 'Say, by Allah's grace and mercy; and let them be made joyful by this!' (Yunus, 58.) And we have never received any mercy greater than the Prophet himself: 'We sent you only as a mercy to the worlds.' (Anbiya, 107.)

The Blessed Prophet was keenly aware of the connection of the flow of time with the great religious events of the past. Whenever the time of year recalled such an event, he would seize the opportunity to commemorate it, and call to mind its significance.

There are many examples of this. For instance, when he first arrived at Madina, he found the Jews fasting on the Day of Ashoura. When he enquired about this practice, he was told, 'They fast on this day because Allah rescued their prophet on this day, and drowned their enemy, so that they fast it in gratitude to Allah for this blessing.' And the Prophet remarked: 'We have even more right to Moses than have they!', and ordered that the Muslims should fast on that day as well.

For all these reasons, every year during the month of the Mawlid I devote my time to the great books of the Sira, spending some time enjoying their shade and cool breezes. I recall to my mind the episodes and events of his unique career from the time when the light of Muhammad first shone upon the world: the Arbitration at the Ka'ba, the Beginning of Revelation, the trials and sufferings endured while calling men to Allah, the Hijra, the great and heroic battles against paganism and misguidance, the creation of the Islamic State, the Farewell Pilgrimage, and finally, the moment when revelation to earth came to its conclusive end with the demise of the Blessed Prophet and his passing-on to the Highest Companion in Heaven.

During this month, I spend as much time as I can in this blessed company. This is despite the fact that these astonishing and moving events remain in my thoughts and reflections during the entire year, forming a constant guide, reference and inspiration, as I remember the actions and deeds of him whose every action and deed had the purpose of educating the human race.

Yesterday, my wife came to me while I was engrossed in my reading. She looked at the book before me, and saw that it was about the Mawlid, open at the page where the greatest of all sira writers Ibn Ishaq says: 'Allah's Messenger, may He bless and keep him, was born on Monday, during the twelfth night of Rabi al-Awwal, in the Year of the Elephant.'

She asked me this interesting question: 'Why was he born during that month, rather than during Ramadan, the month when the Quran was revealed, or in one of the Sacred Months, which Allah rendered sacred on the day He created the heavens and the earth? Or even in Sha'ban, the month which contains the blessed Night of Mid-Sha'ban?'

She stopped, and looked at me for an answer. I looked again at the book, and searched for a clue, but without success. So I asked her to give me a little time to allow me to read and do some thinking.

I fell silent and began asking myself: Why did the Almighty Creator decree that this noble Prophet should come into the world on Monday the twelfth of Rabi al-Awwal? Why this date in particular? There must be some exquisite wisdom in this choice: but where and what?

I pulled out the great works of Sira, and turned their pages. I read the words of the scholars and historians of Islam, trying to unearth the secret of this divine decision. After hours of reading and contemplation, the books gave me four subtle indications which together point to the answer.

Firstly, in a hadith we read that Allah created the tree on Monday. This can be taken to mean that the creation of sustenance, fruits and all the good things of the earth upon which the children of Adam depend for their life, and which give them medicines to heal them, and whose very sight brings them rest and joy: all this was decreed to come into existence on this day.

The Prophet, upon him be peace, also came into the world on this day, as a cause of rapture and joy. He is associated with it in other ways also: according to Ibn Abbas, 'Allah's Messenger was born on a Monday, became a Prophet on a Monday, and raised up the Black Stone on a Monday.'

Secondly, we should recall that the Arabic name of the month of his birth signifies the season of spring: the time of rebirth and renewal. Shaykh Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Siqilli writes: 'Every human being is associated in some way with his name and circumstances in time. When we look at the season of spring, we see that it is the time when the Blessed Lord splits open the earth to reveal His bounty within, without which His servants could not subsist. Seeds split open and produce countless kinds of plant, which make all who see them rejoice. Though silent, they mutely proclaim the news of the imminent and delightful ripening of their fruit. Now, the Birthday of the Prophet, may Allah bless him, resembles this closely. His birth in the month of this name gives good tidings of the greatest forms of sustenance and protection for the believers. It proclaims Allah's mercy, the greatest of which is His granting guidance, through His messenger, to the Straight Path.'

Thirdly, Shaykh Muhammad Yusuf al-Salihi writes: 'Can you not see that the season of spring is both the most beautiful and moderate of seasons, free of both bitter cold or stifling heat, or exaggerated length in its days or nights? It is the time of year when people feel most refreshed and whole, so that they can enjoy the pleasure of prayer at night, and of fasting during the day. All of this symbolises and resembles the moderation and healthfulness of the Sunna and the Law which the Prophet brought.'

Fourthly, it would seem to be the case that the Wise God sometimes wishes to ennoble times through events, not events through times. A time otherwise left vacant can thereby be filled with a special quality from which people can derive benefit.

Obviously, if the Blessed Prophet had been born in Ramadan, or one of the Sacred Months, or in the holy month of Sha'ban, some people might think that it was he himself who was being ennobled by these times because of their great merit. But it was Allah's wise decree that he be born in Rabi al-Awwal in order to ennoble that month, and to display Allah's care and good providence for His Prophet. As an Arab poet has written:


Allah gave good news of you to the heavens, and they were adorned,
The soil of the earth turned to musk when it heard of you.
A day whose dawn is part of history,
And whose evening is made luminous by Muhammad!

To sum up what I have been trying to say: celebrations of the Mawlid are nothing other than a revival of the memory of the Chosen One. When this is done in the context of an Islamically-learned circle of knowledge and remembrance, in which the manners of our Islamic religion are observed, it is something which the great scholars approve of strongly. It provides a superb opportunity to link us to the Sira, to his miracles and beautiful character, and to the magnification of the Prophet whom Allah has commanded us to follow and emulate in all things.

Only by knowing his virtues and good qualities can we have perfect faith in him.
Only by listening to his life-story will we acquire a true and deep love for him.
As Allah Himself has stated: 'We tell you the stories of the Messengers, in order to make firm your heart.'
O Allah, make firm our hearts in Islam! Make our faith true and deep, and bestow upon us real love for Your Prophet!

Source

The Sterile Woman

A man went to a doctor and told him that his wife was not bearing children. The physician saw the woman, took her pulse, and said:

'I cannot treat you for sterility because I have discovered that you will in any case die within forty days.'

When she heard this the woman was so worried that she could eat nothing during the ensuing forty days.
But she did not die at the time predicted.

The husband took the matter up with the doctor, who said: 'Yes, I knew that. Now she will be fertile.'

The husband asked how this had come about.

The doctor told him:

'Your wide was too fat, and this was interfering with her fertility. I knew that the only thing which would put her off her food would be fear of dying. She is now, therefore, cured.'

The question of knowledge is a very dangerous one.

  

Tafsir of Surah Al Anfal - Sh Ninowy

Modern Lessons from an Ancient Faith - Sh Hamza Yusus

Islamic scholar Shaykh Hamza Yusuf warns that religious teachings can be dangerously misappropriated.


When he met with President George W. Bush at the White House in the wake of the September 11, 2001, attacks, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf famously declared that “Islam has been hijacked” by an ideology of rage. That’s an alarm that Yusuf, an Islamic scholar whose charismatic and accessible style has earned him an international following, continues to sound nearly a decade later. He delivered the annual al-Ghazali Lecture on February 19 to an overflow audience—including many members of the local Muslim community in Hammerschmidt Memorial Chapel. (Attendees shut out of the chapel watched the lecture on screens in Schaible Science Center and the Chapel basement) “Islam is in crisis,” he said, but added, along with the crisis came an opportunity to “recapture the tradition” of the faith.

Addressing both ancient theological debates and pressing contemporary issues in the same nearly conversational tones, Yusuf reminded his audience that religious teachings can be dangerously misappropriated. “Whether it’s a president or a man in a cave, when people believe they’ve been sanctioned by God, they can do the most misguided things,’ he said. “Religion is like nuclear power. It’s clean, it has the power to illuminate, but it also has toxic by-products.”

It’s a problem, Yusuf said, not just in the Muslim world, but in religious communities everywhere. The waning influence of religious scholarship in an increasingly secular world has left believers unprepared to deal with teachings “without the interface of an enlightened scholarly class.” And when believers misread and misapply religious teachings, “religion becomes the problem, not the solution to the problem.”

As Modern as an IPod

Yusuf’s own career would seem to belie any concerns about the irrelevance of scholarship. His California-accented analyses of Islam and its place in the modern world have made him a highly sought-after lecturer, especially among young Muslims, and attracted critiques from those who don’t share his inclusive approach. The British newspaper the Guardian called him “one of the West’s most influential Muslim scholars.” Jordan’s Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre placed him on its list of the top 50 most influential Muslims in the world. The magazine Egypt Today described him as a kind of theological rock star, “the Elvis Presley of western Muslims.”

“He has the talent for showing how this ancient religion is as modern as an iPod,” says Paul Parker, professor and Baltzer Distinguished Chair in religious studies at Elmhurst. “He brings a modern sensibility, but also a critical eye for the problems of modernity, the wars, the pollution. And he can probably draw more English-speaking Muslims than anyone on the face of the Earth.”

His personal story is as remarkable as his success. Born Mark Hanson in Washington state in 1960, he was raised in the Orthodox Christian tradition in California and converted to Islam while still a teen. He spent a decade studying in north Africa and the Middle East—where he says his personal background attracted both special treatment and a fair amount of suspicion--before returning to California. There in 1996, he co-founded Zaytuna Institute, an Islamic school devoted to classical scholarship. He is working now to establish what would be the United State’s first accredited Islamic college.

His lecture combined his characteristic calls for interfaith understanding with trenchant commentary on religion’s place in an ever more secular world. He drew laughs when he recounted attending his children’s martial arts lessons and learning that every child participating received a medal. He understood the impulse to build self-esteem, he said, but wondered what happened to the idea of rewarding merit. Has celebrating the self become paramount? “Religion is about mastering and overcoming the self, but we live in an age that glorifies the self,” he said.

In an interview before the lecture, Yusuf said that American Muslims are still claiming their place in the larger society.

“Every group that has come here has had to struggle to get to the table. Muslims are not only latecomers, but in some ways so alien,” he said. But he pointed to the ubiquity of Muslim physicians as an example of how Muslims figure in the everyday lives of so many Americans. “I think of Dave Letterman’s story about how he went to his doctor and his doctor told him to face Mecca and cough. And everyone got the joke, which shows just how ubiquitous Muslim physicians are. People put their lives in the hands of these physicians every day and nobody thinks of whether they’re infidels.”

Yusuf began his lecture by praising the 11th-century Islamic theologian Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali, for whom the College’s annual Islamic lecture is named, as “a universal writer, whose words written in the 11th century still resonate for us in the 21st.”

And as he closed, he pointed out how peculiar it was that he should be delivering the lecture: “An Orthodox Californian can convert to Islam, travel to the Muslim world to study, come back, and lecture at a college founded by devout Christians in a lecture series named for Imam al-Ghazali. Only in America.”


Source

The Idiot Self

If you cannot find in a man an appropriate example of dedication, study the lives of the Sufis. Man should also say to himself: 'O my soul! You think yourself clever and are upset at being called idiotic. But what else are you in reality? You make clothes for winter, but no provision for another life. You are like a man in winter who says: " I shall not wear warm clothes, but place trust in God's kindness to protect me form the cold." He does not realize that, in addition to creating cold, God placed before man the means to protect himself from it.'

Imam Al Ghazali

Man was made for Learning

 A camel is stronger than a man; 

an elephant is larger; 

a lion has greater valour; 

cattle can eat more than man;

birds are more virile. 

Man was made for the purpose of learning.

Imam Al Ghazali 

Tafsir of Surah Al Ahzab 2

Sheikh Hamza Yusuf - Interview on BBC - Jihad

Qasida al Muhammadiya - Ahbab Al Mustapha

Qasidah Muhammadiah yang dinyanyikan oelh kumpulan Ahbab Ai Mustafa dari Saudi

By sending Salawat

Bismillah

By sending Salawat;

• You are following the way of Allah azza wa jal and His Honorable Angels. “Allah and His angels send blessings on the Prophet.” (33:56)

• Your salah on him reaches him sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam. We have lost our chance in this life to see and interact with our Messenger sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam, but out of Allah’s Great Mercy He has allowed our duaa to reach him no matter how far or close we are.
It was narrated that Abdullah ibn Mas’ood (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said: “Allah has angels who go around on earth, conveying to me the salaam of my ummah.” [Sunan Nasaa'i]

• The Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam will return your greeting. Abu Hurayrah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “There is not one of you who sends his greetings upon me except that Allah returns the soul to my body and I return his greeting.” [Abu Dawood]

• Amplification of reward, removal of sins and receiving the blessings of Allah. Abdullah bin ‘Amr bin Al-’As (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam saying: “Whoever supplicates Allah to exalt my mention (i.e., send salah), Allah will exalt his mention (i.e., send salah) ten times and remove from him ten sins and raise him ten degrees.” [Muslim]

• Jibreel alayhi salaam will send salah and salaam upon you. AbdurRahman ibn Awf (may Allah be pleased with him) said, I came to the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam while he was in prostration and he elongated his prostration and then said, “Jibreel came to me and he said, ‘whoever sends blessings (salah) upon you, I will send blessings on him, and whoever sends greetings (salaam) upon you, I will send greetings upon him,’ so I prostrated out of thankfulness to Allah.’” [Haakim]

• Answering of one’s duaa. Dua is suspended between the heavens and earth until we send salawat on the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam. Umar radi Allahu anhu said, ““Dua is suspended between heaven and earth and none of it is taken up until you send blessings upon your Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam.” [At-Tirmidhi] The scholars state that it is recommended (mustahabb) to include salawat in our dua for the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

• The Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam invited the believers to make salah on him. It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said: “Do not take your houses as graves and do not take my grave as a place of festivity. Send blessings upon me for your greeting will reach me no matter where you are.” [Abu Dawood]

• You will not be among the humiliated. Abu Hurayrah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “May his nose soil with dust in whose presence mention is made of me and he does not supplicate for me.” [At-Tirmidhi]
Imam Nawawi rahimahullah states the saying ‘may his nose be rubbed in dust’ means to suffer humiliation and disgrace. That is “may such person be humiliated and disgraced who hears my name and does not invoke Allah’s blessings upon me.”

• You will not be among the miserly. Ali (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, “The miser is the one in whose presence I am mentioned but he does not supplicate for me.” [At-Tirmidhi]

• You will not be among those that Jibreel alayhi salaam made dua against and the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam replied “Ameen” (O Allah, grant it). It was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) ascended the minbar and said: “Ameen, ameen, ameen.” It was said: ‘O Messenger of Allah, you ascended the minbar and said, ‘Ameen, ameen, ameen.” He said: “Jibreel came to me and said: ‘If Ramadan comes and a person is not forgiven, he will enter Hell and Allah will cast him far away. Say Ameen.’ So I said Ameen. He said: ‘O Muhammad, if both or one of a person’s parents are alive and he does not honour them and he dies, he will enter Hell and Allah will cast him far away. Say Ameen.’ So I said Ameen. He said: ‘If you are mentioned in a person’s presence and he does not send blessings upon you and he dies, he will enter Hell and Allah will cast him far away. Say Ameen.’ So I said Ameen.” [ibn Hibbaan]

• You will be among the closest to the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam on a Day that will cause a child’s hair to become grey. Ibn Mas’ood (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said: “The people who will be nearest to me on the Day of Resurrection will be those who supplicate Allah more often for me.” [At-Tirmidhi] Imam Nawawi rahimahullah states, “Nearest to me” signifies “those who are most entitled to my intercession”.

• Allah will love you and forgive you because following the sunnah of the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam. Allah says, “Say (O Muhammad to mankind): “If you (really) love Allah then follow me , Allah will love you and forgive you your sins. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (3:31)

• Your love for the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam will increase. When you love someone, your mind is filled with thoughts of them. By constantly making Salawat for the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam whenever his name is mentioned, you are making a conscious effort to remember him. Put in the effort to internalize the salawat whenever you make them and understand who you are making it for, and inshaAllah your love for him will increase tremendously, alayhi salaatu wa salaam.

Source : Deenport

The Miraculous Birth Of Muhammad (SAAW) - Sh Habib Ali Al Jifri

Shaykh Habib Ali Al jifri describes the extraordinary miracles and events that occured during the birth of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him and His Family). 

 

 

The Mawlid:A season of thanks and celebration

Jihad Hashim Brown

Only a tentative peace held in those first days after the opening at Mecca. The Quraysh tribe had submitted to the Prophet without bloodshed, but the air was still tense with uncertainty. While some members of the vanquished city explored the depths of their subconscious confidence in the integrity of Mohammed, others licked wounds of defeated pride. A lasting closure would have to wait until the defeated of today would be rallied together with the victors in one single community of purpose at Taif; but that was still days away.

Fadalah ibn Umayr, a young man from Mecca, was planning to kill the Prophet. Through stealth, he would wait for his opening as he followed closely behind him while circling the Kaabah. He was so close to his target that he could smell the perfumed perspiration of the Prophet. He was confident in his purpose, until, in one quick moment the Prophet turned to him, face to face, and said, “Is that Fadalah?” “Yes,” he replied, “it is Fadalah, O Messenger of Allah.”

“What were you saying to yourself just now?” “Nothing,” he replied, “I was only remembering Allah.” The Prophet smiled, saying: “Ask Allah to forgive you,” and he placed his hand on the young man’s chest. In that instance he was overcome with a feeling of calm and serenity.

Fadalah would say: “Until that point there was no one on the face of the Earth more hated to me than Mohammed, until he lifted his hand from my breast. After that there remained nothing in the creation of God more beloved to me than him.”

Everyone longs for that peace of heart and mind; that serenity that was found by Fadalah. We seek comfort in others, the friends we keep, sometimes even strangers. But what attracts us to others, what enables us to find a healing solace in their company, is the refractions of the character traits of Mohammed within them.

It is a belief held by Muslims that Mohammed is the model of the completed human being and the standard for beauty in character and conduct.

The biographical genre of “Shama’il” enumerate 12 primary traits of the Prophet Mohammed; forbearance, generosity, forgiveness, courage, modesty, humility, honesty, patience, dignity, fairness, trustworthiness and compassion. Ever wonder what it takes to be a saint? These are the qualities that draw us like moths to the flame of friendship, love and confidence. They are the refractions of that first resplendent source. They inspire, illumine, enthuse, and instill hope.

It is these qualities that the Prophet brought that we celebrate this month. Our consciousness of the Divine and comprehension of the meanings of His eternal speech only come to us through the conduit of Mohammed. And it is for this that we give thanks.

When his companions were asked by the Ethiopian king what their Prophet teaches, they responded: “We were uneducated, devoted to hollow idols, we consumed illicit food, we were involved in corruption, we damaged our relationships with family, and the strong among us would abuse the weak among us.” They continued saying that he taught them to devote themselves to Allah, who is timeless and eternal, and to leave the false idols of their past. “He enjoined us to be honest, to be dutiful to our family ties, leave corrupt practices.” No sooner did they finish, than tears were seen in the king’s eyes. Did he recognise the echoes of these states of affairs in his own society as we inevitably do in ours? Was he heartened by the clarity and simplicity of the message? We can only know what it can mean for us. Today though, we celebrate.

Jihad Hashim Brown is the director of research at the Tabah Foundation. He delivers the Friday sermon at the Maryam bint Sultan Mosque in Abu Dhabi

Source - http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100227/WEEKENDER/702269750/1080/NEWS

رحلة مع الشيخ حمزة يوسف (لقاء مع عائلة الشيخ) Hamza Yusuf Interviews his Siblings

مقاطع من رحله الشيخ حمزه يوسف الي امريكا (زياره الشيخ حمزه يوسف لمنزل عائلته و لقاء مع اخوه تروي و اخته نبيله).