I hope everyone’s having an awesome Ramadan so far. Ramadan in South Africa usually means that our esteemed guest, Mufti Ismail Menk (from Zimbabwe) performs taraweeh in one of our cities – each night following the salaah with a talk based on some aspect of the Quran. This year, he’s in Cape Town – at … More Ramadan 2011 with Mufti Ismail Menk
It’s amazing how much benefit and reward a person can get from just simple actions. For example, the following hadith (narrated in Muslim) tells of four simple words that – if recited three times – are more valuable than hours and hours of thikr. Juwairiyah bint Al-Harith (May Allah be pleased with her) reported, the … More Four words of tremendous benefit
As a reminder to myself and to my readers, here’s an excellent piece from Suhaib Webb‘s site. ———– Avoiding a Harmful E-Diet by Naiyerah Kolkailah Food is a necessity in life. But keep over-eating (irrespective of nutritional value), and you can become overweight and obese. Eat unhealthy, fatty foods, and you get high cholesterol, high … More Avoiding a Harmful E-Diet
“Tasawwuf” is a segment of Islam that’s concerned with the growing – or maturation – of the soul. One of the teachings it extracts from the Islamic sources is that things – all of which were created by the Almighty Allah – are created in one of two ways: Instantly, by Allah’s command (“Be…and it … More Food for the Soul
As a reminder to watch what we say, I thought I’d put up a collection of Islamic quotes and more with regard to backbiting. It has been covered before, but we can never get too many reminders when it comes to matters of such importance. I hope these serve as reminders to us all about … More Watch what you say
In the class I’m attending on the biography (seerah) of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), clear parallels were drawn between the pre-Islamic era (the so-called “Days of Ignorance”) and our modern times. One of the stories covered is that of ‘Amr ibn Luhayy – a chief of the Arab Jurhum tribe – … More Unintended consequences
Why is it that ‘celebrity’ is such an admired and celebrated status in today’s times? These are normal individuals who are separated from us only by a particular talent, which is being put to publicly-visible use. What makes them worthy of an elevated status? A pedestal which places them way up there, while the masses … More When eyes are opened
There’s a lot to be said for delayed reactions: Stopping yourself from instinctively reacting. Forcing yourself to not go the usual route, and trying to take the situation in, see the bigger picture and the good in it; then decide how you WANT to respond. When you can do that, I think a degree of … More Stop
slip-sliding away..... 