"...The second characteristic that everyone has to be cautious of, but especially those people who are studying the `ilm, who have been given by Allaah (subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa), who have been blessed by Allaah (subhaanahu wa ta`aalaa) to have knowledge and to be making da`wah, these people have to be very careful about a disease that comes to people of this nature many times, unfortunately, and this is the disease of kibr, of arrogance and pride. And sometimes the way this is reflected is where the person refuses and does not want anyone to correct him, or at least he will not accept correction from certain people. He may accept correction or be told that he is wrong by someone who is from his group, someone who is a close friend of his, but anybody else, he will look down upon anyone else, and he will not accept any kind of criticism from anybody else, and this is kibr. This is pride and arrogance, as described in the hadeeth of the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam).

The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) said that no one who has even a mustard grain seed weight of kibr in his heart, no one who has this in his heart will enter Jannah.

Someone asked the Prohpet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam), he said that a man loves to have nice clothing on, put nice shoes., and he understood this is may kibr; the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) said, "Allaah is beautiful and loves beauty," this is not kibr, but kibr is "to reject the truth and to look down upon the people", to reject the truth for example when it comes to you from the source you do not like, when it comes to you from someone perhaps who is not as much upon the right path as you think you are, and to look down upon other people and to disgrace them, this is kibr.

You have to realize that, I don't care if you are the biggest `aalim in the world, you could make a mistake sometimes, that some child could come up to you and say, you know, that was a mistake. Al-Bukhaaree was just 11 or 12 years old the first time he corrected his shaykh.

This is something that we have to be very careful about especially as I said when we are involved in da`wah and in giving knowledge. Because it is really when one gets knowledge that he feels, who are you to talk to me,... don't talk to me, you have a problem with me,... go talk to the ulamaa', and have the ulamaa' come and talk to me. This is a problem, and it is very dangerous unfortunately."

Action Plan for the Muttaqun:

• be humble with the people
• avoid despising, mocking, degrading the people with speech and actions
• accept the truth from whatever source it comes from and be sincere in correcting yourself

External Links:

• Pride: A Barrier to Paradise - By Shaykh 'Abdur-Rahmaan Ibn Naasir as-Sa'dee-Taken from Bahjatul-Quloobul-Abraar
• Explanation of the hadeeth: “Anyone who possesses a speck of Pride in his heart will not enter Paradise” - Ibn Taimiyyah
• The Prohibition of wearing long Garments out of Pride and the undesirability of wearing them without Pride - Riyaad as-Saliheen
  
• [Audio] On the Path of Da`wah (3): Wisdom and Humbleness by Yahya Adel Ibrahim

What does this mean? It mains patience doesn't just "happen". You must strive for it. You have to actively remind yourself and make yourself patient.

Also, remember that Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tests you with what you are not patient with. If He (سبحانه وتعالى) tested you with things you already succeed at, how could you ever learn and grow?

For a classic example of patience, consult Surah Yusuf. In Yusuf (عليه سلام) is an excellent, excellent example of patience. Every test becomes increasingly more intense, and yet, you see Yusuf (عليه سلام) bearing with patience, through to the end. (I suggest you read it with tafseer from tafsir.com.)

May Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) grant us all patience in all aspects of our lives, ameen.

Based on your intention, the end result of your action can be one of three things:

1. Reward: If your intention is to please Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), then all good actions will be rewarded (actions not in compliance with Shari'ah will be rejected). For example, if you intend to read a book of seerah because seeking knowledge is an obligation on all Muslims, inshaAllah you will be rewarded in the akhira for it.
   In this case, if something sabotages your intention--like riyaa--it can undercut your reward.
2. Neutral: If you perform an action with the intention for other then Allah (سبحانه وتعالى)--such as if you make a business trip to some city--your action will result in neither reward nor punishment.
   In this case, if you change your intention to be something good--such as to earn money so you can support your family or spend it in the way of Allah--you can be rewarded.
3. Punishment: If your intention is to disobey Allah, you can be punished for the action in the akhira. For example, if you decide to go to the Las Vegas (or Niagra Falls) casino to enjoy a little gambling, your journey becomes haram from day one.

An excellent two-part article on Islamtoday.com sums this up: "The greatest threat to our worship is the threat of insincerity. We can do the noblest of deeds and make the greatest of sacrifices, but if our intentions are not right, those deeds become stripped of virtue. This can leave a person without good deeds on the Day of Judgment."²

So what happens when insincerity creeps into your intentions? What can you do to stave it off?

1. Repent: Make sincere, heart-felt repentance to Allah, and inshaAllah He will forgive you. Pray two rakaahs of tawbah. Vow never to make the same sabotaged intention again.
2. Make Du'a: Pray to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) to purify your intentions. If the issue is riyaa, the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) taught us a du'a for it:
   
   "O Allah, I seek refuge in You lest I should commit shirk with You knowingly, and I seek Your forgiveness for what I do unknowingly."³
3. Fight the Insincerity: Realize that an insincere action will not benefit you at all in the hereafter. You might impress this or that person temporarily--but on the day of judgement, they won't care about you, nor will they be able to help you. Read the hadith about the first three people whose fate will be decided⁴ on the Day of Judgement and remind yourself that you don't want to be like them.
4. Renew Your Intentions: Remind yourself of your original pure motives, and think of the tremendous reward that's waiting for you, inshaAllah, if you stick to your motives. Always keep your intentions fresh, and know why you do what you do.
5. Never Despair: Remember, if you truly wish for pure intentions, Allah is watching out for you. What more do you need?

May Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) protect us all from intentions that devoid our actions of good deeds and grant us sincerity in intentions and in our actions, ameen!

And remember: if you're not worried about your intentions, then you might be in trouble.

Related Posts: 'Ibadah, Natural Actions, Religious Actions

(1) “Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Book 1: Revelation.” USC-MSA Compendium of Muslim Texts. USC-MSA. 21 Apr. 2006 <http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/bukhari/001.sbt.html#001.001.001>.

(2) "'Actions are But by Intentions' (Part 2)." Islamtoday.Com. 21 Apr. 2006 <http://www.islamtoday.net/english/showme2.cfm?cat_id=31&sub_cat_id=559>.

(3) "Du'a - Supplication for Fear of Shirk." Fortification of the Muslim Through Remembrance From the Quraan and Sunnah. 21 Apr. 2006 <http://www.makedua.com/display_dua.php?sectionid=86>.

(4) “Translation of Sahih Muslim, Book 20: The Book on Government (Kitab Al-Imara), Chapter 43: Who Fought for Ostentation and Vanity Deserved (Punishment in) Hell.” USC-MSA Compendium of Muslim Texts. USC-MSA. 21 Apr. 2006 <http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/muslim/020.smt.html#020.4688>.

Each day, you pass by some plants, and you have to stop and water them, or they die--the big, thick bush of family. The tall, massive oak tree of Allah. The smaller tree of yourself. Each plant represents obligations you must pay. If you don't water these plants, they dry up, wilt, and eventually die.

Now, after you water them sufficiently, the rest of the water is yours--free to use as you please. You can pour it all into the plants for reading, video-games, hanging out, islamic work, whatever you please. Some plants bear fruit quickly. Others slowly. Others not at all--like weeds, they drink up all the water, and strangle any plant in their reach.

The key to managing your life is to pour the water into the plants that flower with the sweetest fruit--even if that fruit takes months and years--and not the quickest. And the best plants to water are planted on the soil of the akhira, not the soil of the dunya.

The three most important trees to manage are Allah's tree, your family's tree, and your own tree.

• Allah's Tree: Your obligations to the Lord of the Universe. Pray your salaah on time. Pay zakaah. Feed the poor. Strive to work for His cause.
• Your Family's Tree: Spend time with your family. Don't neglect them. Be good to parents, they're not going to be around forever.
• Your Tree: Take time out for yourself--especially as you get involved in more and more Islamic work. Never work at the cost of yourself--if this tree dies, there'll be nobody left to water the other ones.

Incidentally, the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) distributed his water into exactly those three categories. Time into Allah's tree involved time for the the Islamic State and the Muslims. The time for his family, he reserved for his family. And the time for himself, he used for personal ibaadah, and to answer any queries companions would bring him.

May Allah allow us to make the best use of our time in His cause, ameen!

1. Knowledge of Facts: know the information (eg. what year did 'Umar (radiallahu 'an) become the Khalifa?)
2. Comprehension: think about the information and understand it (eg. the khalifa is in charge of the entire Muslim ummah)
3. Application: learn and apply the knowledge--it helps you remember. Apply it to your context. What does it mean for you and me, here, today?
4. Analysis: Analyze the information critically. Get a deeper understanding of the meaning.
5. Synthesis: Link the information to other information you know.
6. Evaluation: recognize more authentic information over other information.

If you study at a university in Canada, you may notice that most of what they teach you doesn't go beyond the Comprehension stage. Some may reach the Application stage, depending on your field--or it may not.

Learn to think critically!

May Allah protect us from knowledge that does not benefit us, ameen.

Source: Someone with a Ph. D. in Education.

Project: Revision. By Al-Khurasani. Paltalk. 19 Feb. 2006.

Always strive to the best of your abilities. And inshaAllah this way, your skills and talent grow faster than if you barely use them.

Never fall into the trap of so many people who produce second-rate material "just because" it's for Islamic work, and not for their own (percieved/worldly) benefit.

And remember: ihsaan means excellence, not perfection. Only Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) is perfect.

Muhammad Alshareef. Lecture. AlMaghrib. Conquest: History of the Khulafa. University of Toronto, Toronto. November 2005.

The bartender looks at him, nods, and turns to fill the order.

A desi guy who sits nearby stares. The Saudi guy turns to the desi guy. Black spiked hair, leather jacket, one hand clamps around the handle of a half-filled mug of beer. The other curls around his girlfriend.

The desi guy says: "Hey man, you know that's not halal, right?"

...

Who's more messed up, the Saudi guy, or the desi guy?

...

This is no joke. This happens in real life.

Who's this desi brother to speak, you might ask, when he's totally into haram? Isn't that hypocritical?

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) blesses certain nations with certain things. The Saudis, they're blessed by being looked up to. When they enjoin good, other people follow their example. But when they enjoin evil, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) can punish them more for all the people they misguide by their example.

When the potential for reward increases, the potential for punishment increases.

Quite often, not-quite-practicing brothers and sisters say things like "It's ok if I mix, I'm not hurting anyone" or "it's only a beer, nobody will know," or "I'm not representing Islam since I don't observe beard/hijab." But people do see the examples, and get misguided.

Wallahu 'alim.

May Allah protect us from misguiding people with our actions, ameen.

Muhammad Alshareef. Lecture. AlMaghrib. Conquest: History of the Khulafa. University of Toronto, Toronto. November 2005.

In particular, if you need to track (and, optionally, aggregate) time usage for multiple projects, you can assign one timer per project and track your time use per day. Or per week. Or per month. Or per year. Or, if you follow the ABCD life management method, you can assign one timer to each category.

You can download the stand-alone application (15kb) or the installer (200kb).

Related Posts: ABCD Life Management

The article defines three categories of tasks, and allocates your daily time to each of them proportionally based on their expected benefit.

1. "A" tasks yield benefit in five or more years, such as learning a new language.
2. "B" tasks yield benefit in two or more years, such as training for a marathon.
3. "C" tasks yield benefit in 90 days or less. This includes day-to-day tasks, like checking email.

He supports a 50-30-20 method of time-sharing: allocate 50% of your time for A tasks, 30% of your time to B tasks, and 20% of your time to C tasks.

As Muslims, we know the hadith of the Prophet, (صلي الله عليه وسلم): "There are two things humans are decieved by: their health, and their time."¹ In addition, we focus long-long-long-term, on the Akhira (afterlife). How do you categorize tasks like praying salaah?

I suggest a fourth category of "D" Tasks: tasks that bear fruit in the Akhira mainly, and in the dunya (world) marginally. D tasks are usually fard (obligatory: you get rewarded if you perform them, and punished if you abstain from them) and mustahab (you get rewarded if you do them, but no punishment if you abstain from them). Therefore, D tasks should be first-priority, over A tasks.

Wallahu 'alim. I find this form of time management helps you complete those mundane tasks on your to-do list that idle for days and weeks.

Related Posts: Timeboxing, MultiTimer

(1) Sahih Bukhari. MSA-USC Hadith Database. 1 Jan. 2006 <http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/bukhari/076.sbt.html#008.076.421>.