DOES ISLAM PROMOTE POLYGAMY?

February 13, 2011

‎21. Does Islam promote polygamy?

No, polygamy in Islam is a permission not an injunction.

Historically, all the prophets except Jesus, who was not married, had more than one wife. For Muslim men to have more than one wife is a permission which is given to them in the Quran, not to satisfy lust, but for the welfare of the widows and the orphans of the wars.

In the pre-Islamic period, men used to have many wives. One person had 11 wives and when he became Muslim, he asked the Prophet Muhammad (P), “What should I do with so many wives?” and he said, “Divorce all except the four.” The Quran says, “you can marry 2 or 3 and up to 4 women if you can be equally just with each of them” (4:3).

Since it is very difficult to be equally just with all wives, in practice, most of the Muslim men do not have more than one wife. Prophet Muhammad (P) himself from age 24 to 50 was married to only one woman, Khadija.

In the western society, some men who have one wife have many extramarital affairs. Thus, a survey was published in “U.S.A. Today” (April 4, 1988 Section D) which asked 4,700 mistresses what they would like their status to be. They said that “they preferred being a second wife rather than the ‘other woman’ because they did not have the legal rights, nor did they have the financial equality of the legally married wives, and it appeared that they were being used by these men.”

From the series most common question asked by non muslims, feel free to share the full album, copy paste this link your status. http://on.fb.me/f3SpKp

 

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To Celebrate or Not to Celebrate… That is the Question

February 12, 2011

By Asma bint Shameem

 

Some of us celebrate it with great devotion and diligence, while some of us are against it with an equally great vengeance. Some say it is our religious duty while others say it is nothing but bid’ah.

People argue about it. Families split up, friends forsake each other. And sometimes people literally fight over it and hurt one another.

So what is it that I am talking about?

I am talking about celebrating the birthday of the Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam), the Mawlid or Milad, as some of us say. Yes, the 12th of Rabi-ul-Awwal came and went. But, ever wondered….. what is the reality regarding the celebration of the birth of our beloved Prophet anyway?  Let’s examine the facts.

First of all, whenever a Muslim is faced with a problem or confusing situation, what are we supposed to do? Allaah tells us:

“O you who believe! Obey Allaah and obey the Messenger (Muhammad), and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. (And) if you differ in anything amongst yourselves, refer it to Allaah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allaah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final determination” [Nisaa’:59]

Referring it to Allaah and His Messenger means to turn to Allaah’s Book and the Sunnah of the Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam).

1. What does the Qur’aan say about the Mawlid?

Nothing. Yes that’s right…..NOTHING.

There is absolutely nothing in the Quraan that tells us to celebrate the birthday of the Prophet (Sal Allaahu Alaiyhi wa Sallam). Not one single ayah.

You see, all acts of worship are tawqeefi which means that they are not subject to personal opinion and it is not permissible to do any acts of worship except those which are approved by Shareeah.

So, for example, I cannot pick a special day or time, say the 22nd of every month, and start celebrating that day as a form of worship.

Why?

Because there is nothing in the Shareeah that permits me to do that. Read the rest of this entry »

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MAKING THE MOST OF 25 MINUTES

January 31, 2011

Time:  where does it go???  In the past few years, time has become a rare commodity; it runs- sometimes flys- away and we are left running after it to catch as much of it as we can.  At the end of the day we ask ourselves, “what have I accomplished?!”  ”Have I done something new or learned something different from the day before?”  I once read in a book that we should not leave one day to be the same as the day before it.  We should always strive to improve ourselves; learn something new, take care of the poor, visit lonely friends or family, strengthen the bonds of relatives, spread some good news and refrain from spreading bad.

Some of us take classes to learn how to better manage the precious time that we have in order to increase our productivity or simply, our enjoyment of time– OF LIFE!  Therefore, when I came across this post I felt it’s too good to not share.  Also, as an ending note; I will never forget how Siraj Wahaj told us in a conference how he used to even read a small mus-haf during the one minute at traffic lights.. he has gone thru several of those small Quran mashallah… what a great example for us to follow.

Good Deed for the Day: Every minute counts – what can you do in 1 minute?

by Quran & Science on Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:49pm

Life is short and it’s transitory. We to make the most of now – that is, make the mostevery minute possible. Hence, got a list of things that can be done in one minute, by the permission of ALLAH (SWT), and would like to share the same list with you – 25 things to do in 25 minutes everyday (and maybe more times in a day too!) and would love it if you could ADD TO THE LIST as well under comments:

 

time clock

1. In one minute you can recite Surah al-Faatihah 3 times, reciting rapidly (yet clearly) – silently or aloud. The hasanahs one can gain, not to mention, the right Guidance from ALLAH, are incomparable rewards to anything we can get from this material world.

 

2. In one minute you can recite Surah al-Ikhlas (Qul Huwa Allaahu Ahad) 20 times, reciting rapidly (yet clearly) – silently or aloud. Reciting it once is equivalent to one-third of The Qur’an. The rewards for this are well-known.

 

3. You can read one page of The Qur’an in one minute.

 

4. You can memorize a short Aayah from The Qur’an in one minute.

Read the rest of this entry »

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MEN AND WOMEN ARE CLOTHING FOR EACH OTHER

January 30, 2011
So called Husband and Wife trees at Lynncraigs...

Image via Wikipedia

 

They are clothing for you and you are clothing for them

By Sheikh Salman al-Oadah

 

Allah says: “It is made lawful for you to have sexual relations with your wives on the on the night of the fasts. They are clothing for you and you are clothing for them…” [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 187]

Allah chose to use the word “clothing” rather than any other word to describe the special relationship between a man and his wife. Allah made the man clothing for the woman and the woman clothing for the man. The word “clothing” as used in this context is rich with meaning. It would be quite difficult to express in words every subtlety that it conveys. We shall try, however, to consider a few of the ideas that this word expresses.

 

1. The word “clothing” in its most literal sense is what immediately covers the body with no barrier in between.

2. The word clothing connotes the idea of equality, complementarity, and support of both a psychological and physical nature. The man has his role and the woman has hers. The woman cannot be construed as merely a vehicle to fulfill the man’s desires. She is a human being, equal to the man. Each of them is as clothing to the other in every aspect of life.

3. Clothing implies adornment and beautification. Allah says: “Take your adornment to every mosque.” [Sûrah al-A`raf: 31] A man and woman are an adornment and beautification for each other.

Ibn `Abbâs said: “Indeed, I like to dress up for a woman in the same way as I like it for a woman to dress herself up for me. This is because Allah says: ‘And they have upon you similar rights to those you have upon them in good dealings.’ And I do not like to exact from her every right to which I am entitled, since Allah says: ‘and for the man there is a degree over them’.” [Tafsîr al-Tabarî (1/625)]

Some of this beauty is of a physical kind, for a person sees in the one he truly loves beauty that others do not see.

Some of this beauty is also of an intangible nature. Faithfulness and enduring friendship are a part of faith, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said.

A woman adorns herself with her husband when she speaks about him to her friends. She can tend to embellish her account, claiming that he loves her so much, honors her so much, and gives her so much… even when the truth is far short of all that.

4. Clothing conveys the meaning of covering and concealment. Allah says: “O children of Adam! We have bestowed upon you clothing to conceal your shame and as an adornment.” [Sûrah al-A`râf: 26]

cute Muslim couple

A husband and wife screen each other from falling into sin by fulfilling one another’s needs in a lawful manner.

Likewise, they conceal from others their intimacy. They do not disclose to others the details of their physical relationship nor the secrets that they share between them nor the little problems that they have with each other. They do not allow the personal life that they share together become the topic of public discourse.

5. Clothing implies cleanliness and purity. This is why Allah commands us saying: “And your clothing, purify it.” [Sûrah al-Mudaththir: 4] Read the rest of this entry »

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THE SIGNAL THAT SUMMONS THE HELP OF GOD

January 29, 2011

The Shipwreck

by I am a Muslim ! on Saturday, January 29, 2011 at 3:11pm

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island ….

He prayed feverishly for Allah to rescue him,and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming.

shipwrech

Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect him from the elements and to store his few possessions.

But then one day, after scavenging for food,he arrived home to find his little hut in flames, the smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened;everything was lost. He was stunned with grief and anger.

“Allah, how could you do this to me!” he cried.

(Comment; Plenty of people use such statement — think again you should never qestion Allah nor object to his willing)

Early the next day, however, he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him. ”How did you know I was here?” asked the weary man of his rescuers. “We saw your smoke signal,” they replied.

It is easy to get discouraged when things are going badly.  But we shouldn’t lose heart, because Allah is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering.  Remember, next time your little hut is burning to the ground–it just may be a smoke signal that summons The Grace of Allah.

Pass this on. You never know who may be in need of this today.

a burning hut

 

www.islamway.com

 

 

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MEN AND WOMEN: GARMENTS TO EACH OTHER

January 29, 2011

Men, women companions or competitors?

Saturday, 29 January 2011 11:21

By Sameera Ansari | Contribution to Saudi Life

Post taken from: (http://saudilife.net/component/content/article/124-marriage/6608-men-women-companions-or-competitors)

A MAN and a woman, from what I can understand, are made to be each other’s companions, to complement each other and complete each other, right? So where and when did this companionship turn into competition? When did one start wanting to be like the other or wanting to control the other to the extent of suffocating the other.

When we are physically, emotionally and mentally different, why do we work so hard at trying to be like each other or expect one to behave like the other rather than accepting these differences and helping each other where required?

If a man imitates a woman he becomes feminine and physically weak… weaker in fact than an average woman. A

muslim man holding flowers for his wfie

nd if a woman imitates a man she loses her feminine side and the tenderness which is, should I say, a woman’s hallmark.

My husband once said something which rang a bell inside me, an alarm in fact. ‘If you and I act and behave the same way then where’s the attraction? It would be like me being with my male friends. Would you be comfortable if I started behaving like you? Just imagine it and see how repulsive you’ll find that to be.’

Allah made the male and female gender for specific roles in society to nurture a strong and stable environment that brings about stable-minded individuals – men and women.

What we are witnessing today is chaos. Either men are overly dominant or men and women are competing to prove each other wrong in the name of equality. The balance is lost. Where is the companionship that we were created for? Why is there such a great desire to control your ‘better half’ – male or female? Why constantly be at war with that one person who should be the one to provide you the most comfort a human can to another? Read the rest of this entry »

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MOTHERHOOD: THE HAND WHICH ROCKS THE CRADLE ROCKS THE WORLD

January 29, 2011



Muslim mother teaching her children

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Motherhood: The pivot of humanity

 

By Faraz Omar | Saudi Life

Tuesday, 25 May 2010 09:06

(this article was used from Saudi Life link: http://saudilife.net/life-and-society/92-life-and-society/222-motherhood-the-pivot-of-humanity)

I WILL never forget the 15-day summer Islamic classes I was part of in India in 2005. It was the first time I was teaching a class of toddlers. They were surely going to be different from the older boys I was used to. It was also the first time I would teach girls. That hardly crossed my mind though. Toddlers are all the same (be they boys or girls), was my presumption.

Boy, was I wrong!

A week of classes later, a tiny girl came up to me shyly and handed me a glittery paper that said something like this: “Dear brother Faraz, I like you. Thank you for teaching us Seerah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). With love, so-and-so.”

I was taken aback, spell-bound and totally at loss of words. It was the first time I received such a loving letter. I thanked her a lot and then thought about it the whole day. The following days more and more girls came up with bigger letters that were more decorated and more loving.

The boys? Ha! Good one. Seated on the left-hand-side of the same classroom, they didn’t even bother to know what was happening. Not a word of thanks! All they knew was, “It’s time to play when the bell rings.”

That experience was when I realized, being the typical male I am, how tender the hearts of girls were. That was when I could truly appreciate this creation of Allah. He created males and females with different characteristics – strengths and weaknesses – that would complement each other and suit the roles they were to play. And toddlers are closer to the natural state in which children are born.

The emotional strength, the love and the care a woman is blessed with cannot be fully expressed in words. But it can be felt in the boundless mercy and sacrifice of a mother (and wife).

For nine months she carries the child – a sentence that’s a cliché now, but the miracle certainly not – and she delivers through the pangs and pains of labor – what no macho man on earth will have the strength to bear, let alone be capable.

When the baby arrives in her hands, her pains are forgotten, her struggles are not worthy anymore (in her eyes), because her heart is already with the apple of her eye. She then goes through sleepless nights only so her baby would sleep tight; her comfort and respite is in her baby’s delight; and her sadness is in her baby’s unhappiness. She brings up the baby teaching everything it needs until it’s ready to face the world and contribute to the continuation of humanity.

Social engineering

One of the greatest crimes of our generation – an outrageous blasphemy, a satanic deception – is that the world today doesn’t appreciate women for who they are, for what they do, and for the crucial role they play. Feminism, heavily promoted by the media, has wrecked havoc across countries by redefining the social balance. Read the rest of this entry »

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Which People are The Best?

January 22, 2011

Recently I read this hadith (saying of the Prophet Mohammed, or things he allowed or did) and was really touched.  Then I started to think that maybe if all people would work on keeping or making their hearts “white” then other acts of goodness, righteousness,,, will follow naturally.   How many of us walk around with bitter feelings, ideas, attitudes, or anger against a neighbor, co-worker or relative?  Can the list go on?  It does for many of us.  Anger, hatred, impatience, ingratitude and many other attributes can cause “black spots” on our heart.  After reading this hadith, I felt that the definition of a pure heart was very clear and something we should all work towards…

 

 

 

Abdullah ibn Amr (May Allah be pleased with him) narrated the Prophet (salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam) was asked, “Which people are the best?” He said, “The best people are those whose tongues are truthful and their hearts are Makhmum….They said, “We know the meaning of a truthful tongue, but what is a heart that is Makhmum?” He said, “It’s a heart that is pious and pure with no sin. This heart has no unfairness, no envy and doesn’t hold malice.”

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