Sheikh Ibrahim Osi-Efa

Holding on to a cinder

Imam Zaid Shakir

The Madhi

The Disputations

Part twenty one

1. When you have certainty is present there is no problem when you have doubt everything is a problem.

2. Accuse yourself when you do not practice and speak when you do.

3. Do not look for people to help you.

4. Do not look for people to validate your feelings as most of the time they won’t understand

5. You can only move on from a tribulation once you do one thing. Accept it.

6. In a state of tribulation your heart is humble before Allah. In a state of wealth your heart is haughty before Allah. Thats one of the reasons we have tribulations so our hearts are in a good state before Allah the Exalted.

7. Does the loin think he's smart by scaring the inhabitants of the jungle? If one animal opposes him they cannot do anything but together they can kill the loin.

8. Allah give us what he knows is best for us not what we think is best for us.

9. Break any code of law and face the consequences...

10. Sidi Ahmed Az-Zurraq (may Allah show him mercy) said in Qawiad Al-Tasawwaf, "Whoever follows this path must accustom himself to trails."

11. Sometimes words that are uttered are so difficult to practice...

12. What is Pakistani politics? Its the taking of the engine from a working car and replacing it with a bucket! Then wondering why the car won't start! It was working before. Yes before you messed things up!

13. We live in an age in which are not changing we are repeating.

14. If you make sure what comes out of your mouth and what goes in is halal, then you have no problems!

15. The ending of all your desires is loss except the desire for Allah.

16. Why do people complain about satan when all he did was suggest! It was you who decided to do it! So stop blaming him and blame yourself!

17. If you have a need read Yasin!

18. Do not allow someone's evil actions to prevent you from doing good actions...

19. When Allah wants you to come to Him he causes events which take out the love and hope for anything except Him from your heart.

20. How merciful Allah is to you! When your sins pile up he sends you a tribulation to remove it and then gives you an opportunity to attain reward for your patience! So he takes your sin away and gives you chance to excel. What a generous Lord!

Sheikh Ibrahim Osi-Efa

Walking the Path

Sheikh Hamza Yusuf

 Freedom of SPEECH or Freedom to INSULT?

The Disputations

Part nineteen

1. A human being is the hardest thing to fix...

2. If you make sure what comes out of your mouth and what goes in is halal, then you have no problems!

3. The ending of all your desires is loss except the desire for Allah.

4. Whoever desires a friend without blemish remains alone; Whoever desires a wife without fault lives single; whoever desires a beloved without problem lives in search and whoever desires complete closeness lives severing family ties." Sheikh Al-Sha'arawi

5. Why do people complain about satan when all he did was suggest! It was you who decided to do it! So stop blaming him and blame yourself!

6. If you have a need read Yasin!

7. Do not allow someone's evil actions to prevent you from doing good actions.

8. Isn't awful when you realise that those bad thoughts are from your nafs because satan is not around now.

9. Only when someone is pure outwardly can someone pray and only when the heart is pure can it prostrate.

10. Large amounts of wealth do not help on the day of judgement but large amounts of faith does. So why are we so bothered about gathering wealth and so avid about neglecting our faith?

11. If you rely on yourself then you’ve already failed and if you rely on Allah (the Exalted) then you have already succeeded.

12. The lion will be slain at the gates justifying the fallen. The butchers will be butchered.

13. Sooner or later you'll realise that you can only rely on Allah and everyone else will let you down.

14. Difference of opinion is only accepted from those with knowledge.

15. Celebrating the mawlid is about being happy that the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bestow peace and blessings upon him) was sent to guide you and if you are not happy about that, then what else would make you happy?

16. How merciful Allah is to you! When your sins pile up he sends you a tribulation to remove it and then gives you an opportunity to attain reward for your patience! So he takes your sin away and gives you chance to excel. What a generous Lord!

17. When you get dunya you get something that is worth less than nothing.

18. Only by filling the heart by something else can you remove what it presently contains.

19. The outward of the prayer means nothing if the inward does not move.

20. When people turn against you its a reminder that you have to turn to Allah. 

The Disputations

Part twenty

Never allow anyone to distract you from Allah, not your family, wealth, business or livelihood.

Only have hopes in Allah as all other hopes in anything else are fruitless.

Everything you desire other than Allah is a veil that needs to removed.

Never have hopes in anyone but Allah

Never rely on anyone other than Allah

Be content with your current state

Always have hope in Allah in severity

Do not think someone else can help

Only Allah can help

Long for nothing except Allah

Do not desire anything but Allah

Your desire for anything else takes you away from Him

The world means nothing to you

Allah means everything

There is a substitute for everything lost

There is no substitute for Allah

Those who have everything have nothing without Allah

Those who have nothing have nothing without Allah

Only those with Allah have something

Sever all connections in your heart except for the connection to Allah

All connections to this world are the cause of grief

Only a connection to Allah is a cause of joy.

Speak English!

The other day I was reflecting on the state of the masjids. We have some sincere people involved in setting up masjids and some who are not. This is normal and happens everywhere in life. 

 

We have spoken previously about the responsibilities of the masjids but now we rant at specific things.

There are scholars who simply do not believe that speaking English language is important. Those scholars who say we should speak Urdu only should not be allowed to preach in the UK. It should be mandatory for each masjid to have at least one speaker in English and do not come to me complaining that the youth are not interested in Islam. Of course they are not because you speak a language they do not understand!

Someone said well the youth follow bollywood films why can’t they follow the khutba? Do you need to know the language to follow a film? Essentially you can follow a film without knowing the language. 

Even if you accept this excuse, which I do not, religion means more than mindless entertainment. Although to call any movies nowadays entertainment may be stretching the definition of entertainment! (Most of them are just formulaic remakes of old stories told again and again with one film out of million containing any originality.)

If you stick to speaking Urdu then you have to accept two things. One: that the other groups will take the youth away because they speak English. Two: you will never reach the youth. So this perennial problem of the youth will remain as long as there are people who stick to speaking Urdu.

Allah (the Exalted) sent every prophet speaking the language of their people. So any person who claims that speaking English is not important has negated the wisdom of Allah (the Exalted) in this matter. 

Also ponder that the manners of the Prophet (may Allah bestow peace and blessings be upon him) he would not exclude others who did not understand Arabic. He used Persian words when speaking to Salman the Persian (may Allah be pleased with him). Why? So he feels comfort. Have we left the Sunnah when none of this bothers us? The answer is clear.

Also consider the fact that many converts are in the same position. They do not understand Urdu and are forced to listen to sermons which they do not understand. Now what would you do in their situation? Listen to someone speaking in Urdu or go to someone speaking English? The answer is obvious. We have left this great Sunnah of not making people feel marginalised. Thus making sure that many converts are left out in the cold.

There are also many other Muslims in our communities who are also marginalised because they come from other Muslim countries. You’ll be surprised to know that there are Arabs, Chinese, Sudanese and Malay Muslims in your area. They are all left out in the cold because of the instance of Urdu being the default language of their local masjid.

How can someone who is born in another place relate the problems of children from another place? Especially the contrasting worlds of the east and the west. They need answers of how to deal with the world and not simple condemnation of things you want them to stay away from. 

Even after all this if people refuse to speak in English then you have no one to blame but yourselves. Despite this you claim that those speaking in English are misleading people, why do not you speak English and set the record straight!

The way forward

There are a few solutions to these problems if we are willing to do something about it. 

1)      Have the Urdu khutba for a section of the community and the follow it up by a English khutba making sure both parties are catered for.

2)      One week have an English Khutba and another week have an Urdu one.

3)      Designate a certain masjid to have an English sermon.

4)      Have an Imam who is proficient is both languages to mix it up. Do some of both languages.

5)      Have the Khutba in Urdu and get someone to summerise or 

6)    (insert your solution)

We do not want to be very critical of people and masjid committees but if people are not serious about serving their communities then they should step aside. Let someone else do something for a change and see how they do because managing a masjid is not about managing costs it’s about serving the needs of the local community. How we failed to do even the least of serving anyone except 'bigging' ourselves before the communities. 

We may even have to go as far setting up our own masjids if we cannot work within the current set up. You have to consider going solo but there will be others who want to see a change in their communities, find them and start again.

If we do not act now then our children will inherit the same wretched problems that we face. Thus there will be no solution to this problem, ever.

Sheikh Abdul Hakim Murad

Ethics of the Prophet

Sheikh Yahya Rhodus

Prophetic Model of a Beautiful Community


Communties Knowledge and Spirituality

Sheikh Yahya Rhodus

Sheikh Abdul Hakim Murad

Breaking the two desires last part

Sheikh Abdul Hakim Murad

Departure

Straight Translations

http://straighttranslations.blogspot.co.uk

Above is a link to our other blog which contains all published translations that we have worked on since 2006 and links to the physical releases.

There are lecture notes that are too large to be posted here.

So please take a look.

Sheikh Abdul Hakim Murad

Breaking the two desires part four

Sheikh Muhammad Al-Yaqoubi

Description (Shama'il) of the Prophet (may Allah bestow peace and blessings upon him)

Habib Ali Al-Jifri

Lessons from life of Isa/Jesus (upon him peace)

The Disputations

Part eighteen

1. When Allah wants you to come to Him he causes events which take out the love and hope for anything except Him from your heart.

2. Once you understand the reality of things; small details fall into place.

3. I have no desire to appease the brainwashed, okay?

4. If you rely on yourself then you’ve already failed and if you rely on Allah (the Exalted) then you have already succeeded.

5. If you do not share what you have been given it will be taken...

6. Even if you have something does not mean you own it; as it could go in a second like a bird flies from its nest.

7. Have hope in Allah and no one else.

8. Its easy to be ungrateful in plenty and grateful with little.

9. Our normality is someones luxury.

10. Assign the past to the bin and leave it there.

11. A life lost is a life without Allah.

12. What we deem insignificant now will be monumental on the day of judgement.

13. Detach your heart from the world before you leave it or its taken from you.

14. There is nothing that makes life punishment or pleasure like a spouse.

15.  You are not going to get something whilst you still have a desire for it.

16. Break any code of law and face the consequences... 

17. Sidi Ahmed Az-Zurraq (may Allah show him mercy) said in Qawiad Al-Tasawwaf, "Whoever follows this path must accustom himself to trails."

18. Sometimes words that are uttered are so difficult to practice.

19. There is a narration in which a scholar refused to help one of the Ahl Al-Bayt saying, "where is your proof that you are Ahl Al-Bayt?" That night he had a dream in which he saw the Prophet (may Allah bestow peace and blessings upon him) and the scholar kept turning to greet him but he kept turning away. The scholar then said, "Why are you not greeting me? I am one of your Umma." The Prophet (may Allah bestow peace and blessings upon him) said, "Do you have any proof for that?"

20. What is Pakistani politics? Its the taking of the engine from a working car and replacing it with a bucket! Then wondering why the car won't start! It was working before. Yes before you messed things up!

Sheikh Abdul Hakim Murad

Breaking the two desires part three

Habib Muhammad Al-Saqqaf

People Do Not Like the Prophet (may Allah bestow peace and blessings upon him)