Monthly Archives: October 2006

Five Sunnahs of Fasting

October 5, 2006 – 3:13 pm

The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) taught us five favourable (mustahab or “sunnah”) actions for us to follow while fasting. These are:

  1. Hasten Iftaar: When Maghrib time arrives, hasten to break your fast–do not delay. It’s said that he, (صلي الله عليه وسلم), sent Bilal (رضي الله عنه) to stand on top of a high-up hill to see when the sun set, then broke his fast immediately.
  2. Eat Suhoor: A lot of cultures teach us to skip suhoor and start fasting when we sleep. (Though nobody skips the sunnah of hastening iftaar …) Aside from being (medically) bad for you, it extends the length of your fast by a good six or more hours.
    Forget that. Eat suhoor–and close to Fajr time–and with this, with iftaar, protects your fast–dawn to sunset. The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said: My nation will remain in goodness as long as they break the fast as soon as it is due. [Muslim]
  3. Pray Fajr: The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) never, ever missed Fajr intentionally, ever. Skipping salaah entails a major sin! Scholars differ on whether you are considered Muslim or not if you skip prayers intentionally, i.e. whether you will enter Hellfire forever–may Allah protect us all. So don’t do it! If you eat suhoor close to Fajr anyway, it becomes very easy to pray Fajr. If you have access to transportation, pray at the masjid and get the benefit of multiplied good deeds deposited in your account.
  4. Avoid Foul Language: The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said: Whoever does not give up forged speech and evil actions, Allah is not in need of his leaving his food and drink (i.e. Allah will not accept his fasting.) [Bukhari 3/31/127, Muslim] So no swearing, lying, backbiting, insulting, etc. You wouldn’t want to struggle though all that hardship, to end up with an unaccepted fast, would you?
  5. Make Du’a at Iftaar: A lot of people miss out on this. We cram dates into our mouth when the adhaan sounds, then rush off to make wudoo or pray Maghrib.
    The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said: Three prayers are not rejected: the prayer of a father, the prayer of a fasting person, and the prayer of a traveler. [Al-Bayhaqi, Saheeh according to Al-Albani] [1]
    So keep it simple: stick the date in your mouth and raise your hands to the sky. You get the best of both rewards!

And remember, the reward of following a sunnah (or musthabb–recommended act) is an accreditation of good deeds in your account. And we can all do with more good deeds.

May Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) keep us all on the Straight Path and help us to follow the sunnah, ameen!

External Links: The Tongue, by Young Muslims Canada

References

[1] Asma Bint Shameem. “Mistakes During Ramadaan.” Have Fun! 19 Sept. 2006. 5 Oct. 2006 <http://funyetponder.blogspot.com/2006/09/mistakes-during-ramadaan.html>.

[2] Muhammad Alshareef. Lecture. AlMaghrib. Rizq Management. University of Toronto, Toronto. June 2006.

By Ilm Seeker | Posted in Islam, Sawm | Comments (5)

Muhaddith Al-Albani

October 4, 2006 – 8:58 pm

A Muhaddith is one who studies and memorizes ahadith, and internalizes the science of hadith–the science that allows us to dissect and analyze ahadith and sort the authentic from the un-authentic. (You can read more about ahadith and their statuses here.) This includes memorizing the biographies of people involved in the narration, including their strengths and weaknesses (in terms of memory and piety).

Shaykh Muhammad Nasir-ud-Deen al-Albani, one of the greatest scholars of recent times, also studied ahadith and became a muhaddith–one the likes of we have not seen in centuries. This is why many contemporaries–scholars, imams, teachers–often will quote a hadith as saheeh or da’eef and say “according to Shaykh Al-Albani”. May Allah forgive his sins and accept all the amazing work he completed during his lifetime, ameen!

You can find a brief sketch of his life here, if you would like more details.

By Ilm Seeker | Posted in Hadith, Islam | Comments (0)

Fire Exits in the Qur’an

October 4, 2006 – 8:43 am

Whenever Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) mentions the Fire, He (سبحانه وتعالى) always mentions a fire exit–usually immediately afterwards. There’s always a chance to escape. But once you die, there’s no fire exit.

For example, in Surah Baqarah, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

فَإِن لَّمْ تَفْعَلُواْ وَلَن تَفْعَلُواْ فَاتَّقُواْ النَّارَ الَّتِي وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْكَافِرِينَ
وَبَشِّرِ الَّذِين آمَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّالِحَاتِ أَنَّ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِن تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَار

Translation: But if you cannot–and you can never do it–then fear the Fire whose fuel is men and the stones, prepared for the Unbelievers. And give glad tidings to those who believe and do good deeds, that for them are Gardens, beneath which rivers flow! [Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:24-25]

Here, we see an explicit reference to the Fire (of Hell), followed by the most common fire exit–belief and good deeds.

You see these all over the Qur’an–so look for them and remember inshallah that there is always a way out.

May Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) make a way out for us from which to enter into His endless mercy, ameen!

References

Muhammad Alshareef. Lecture. AlMaghrib. Breach of Covenant. University of Toronto, Toronto. May 2005.

By Ilm Seeker | Posted in Gems, Islam, Tafseer | Comments (1)

The Qur’an: It’s All For You!

October 2, 2006 – 8:39 pm

When you read the Qur’an, cultivate the mentality that every single surah, verse, ayah, and letter was revealed for you, personally.

Verse addressed to Banu Israeel (Jews)? Maybe Ahlil Kitaab (people of the book)? Or maybe An-Naas (humankind)? Or even the obvious, to those who believed? Yes, it addresses them–but it also addresses you. Learn from their past–their triumphs and their defeats, their actions and their mistakes, their joys and their pains.

And remember, there is nothing uselss in the Qur’an–if you don’t feel like you benefit from any of it, grab a volume of tafseer (maybe Ibn Kathir?) and read up on the meanings.

May Allah cultivate in our hearts a love of this great and fundamental basis of our deen, ameen!

By Ilm Seeker | Posted in Gems, Islam, Tazkiyyah | Comments (0)