A Muslim Convert Once Before

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   Allah ( s.w.t. ) Says:   سُوۡرَةُ المجَادلة يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِذَا نَـٰجَيۡتُمُ ٱلرَّسُولَ فَقَدِّمُواْ بَيۡنَ يَدَىۡ نَجۡوَٮٰكُمۡ صَدَقَةً۬‌ۚ ذَٲلِكَ خَيۡرٌ۬ لَّكُمۡ وَأَطۡهَرُ‌ۚ فَإِن لَّمۡ تَجِدُواْ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ۬ رَّحِيمٌ (١٢)   O ye who believe!   When ye consult the Messenger in private, spend something in charity before your private consultation.   That will be best for you, and most conducive to purity (of conduct).   But if ye find not (the wherewithal), Allah is Oft-Forgiving Most Merciful. (Surah al-Mujadilah:12)   Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, “The actual cause for the Revelation of this verse of the Qur’an was that the people, in their contact with the Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ), asked him too many importune questions and thus wearied him.   That is why these words have been Revealed.”   Thus, it is possible to see who is a friend an...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu al-Faraj ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn ‘Ali ibn al-Jawzy ( r.a. ) wrote, in Thib ar-Ruhani , “Lying is one of the contingencies that hawa’ calls to.   This is because the human being, with his love of leadership and authority, prefers to be the informant and the teacher because he knows the excellence of the informant over the informed. The cure of this disease is to know Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Punishment for a liar and to be certain that when a person continuously lies, he will eventually be exposed one day, then he will be disrespected in such a way that cannot be averted; his shame will increase, earn people’s disrespect to the extent that they will not believe him even when he is truthful, and their distrust will exceed beyond what he lied about. ‘Abdullah ( r.a. ) narrated that the Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ) said, ‘A man keeps telling lies and endeavours in telling them until he is Written a liar with Allah ( s.w.t. ).’ ibn Mas...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, “Indeed, righteousness illuminates the heart, radiates the face, strengthens the body, increases provision, and produces a love in the hearts of Creation for that person.   Whereas sinfulness darkens the heart, greys the face, weakens the body, and produces hatred in the hearts of Creation for that person.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Qadhi Abu al-Fadhl ‘Iyadh ibn ‘Amr al-Yahsubi ( r.a. ) wrote, in his ash-Shifa’ , “ibn ‘Abbas said, ‘Some of the companions of the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) sat down to wait for him.  He came out and stood near them and heard what they were saying to one another.   One of them said, ‘How extraordinary!  Allah Took Abraham from among His Creation as His intimate friend!’   Another said, ‘Even more extraordinary was when Allah Spoke Directly to Moses!’   Another said, ‘Jesus is the word of Allah and His spirit!’   Another said, ‘Allah Chose Adam!’   Then the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) came and greeted them and said, ‘I have heard what you were saying and noticed your amazement at the fact that Allah Chose Abraham as a close friend, and it is the case; that Moses is the intimate of Allah, and it is the case; that Jesus is the spirit of Allah, and it is the case; and that Adam was Chosen, and it is the case.   I am ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Those things which one could not protect one’s self from, such as swallowing one’s saliva, the dust of the road, sifting flour and so on are all overlooked.  These are inevitable and unavoidable.  Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) ruled that there is no problem with tasting liquid food or something one wishes to purchase.  This is so since the intention is not to break the fast.

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, “In the children of Adam is a nafs and a ruh .  The nafs is that by which the intellect is able to make distinction and differentiation, and the ruh is that by which the breath and movement is actualised.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali ‘Izz ad-Din ibn Muhammad al-Atsir ( r.a. ) wrote, in his al-Kamil fi al-Tarikh , that Yazid ibn Mu’awiyah went on the haj like a prince during the era of his father.   After that, he came to Madina, and commenced with his drinking parties.   At one stage, Sayyidina Husayn ibn ‘Ali ( r.a. ) and Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) came to see him.   So, his companions advised him not to let Sayyidina ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) enter, so he was turned away.   They allowed Sayyidina Husayn ( r.a. ) to enter, and he smelt the alcohol mixed with the scent of perfume, so he asked Yazid, “What is this?” Yazid replied, “A perfume from Sham.”   Then he called for a cup, and asked Sayyidina Husayn ( r.a. ) to join him in drinking it.   Sayyidina Husayn ( r.a. ) refused.   Then Yazid, who was a known poet, recited couplets the summary of which was, “My friend, I invite you to fulfill your desires: wi...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   It is recorded, in Sunan ad-Darimi , that one day, Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) asked Shaykh Abu Ishaq Ka’b ibn Mati’ al-Himyari al-Ahbar ( r.a. ) to tell him of the characteristics of the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) mentioned in the Torah.  Shaykh Abu Ishaq Ka’b ibn Mati’ al-Himyari al-Ahbar, ( r.a. ) was a Yemeni Jew, from the tribe of Dzi Ra’iyn, who had converted to Islam.  His title, “ Ahbar ”, is the plural of “ habr ”, from the Hebrew “ habir ”, a scholarly rank immediately below rabbi, used by the Babylonian Jews, and their descendants.   Shaykh Ka’b al-Ahbar, ( r.a. ) said, “Mentioned therein are the following characteristics: Muhammad ibn ‘Abdullah will be born in Makkah and will migrate to Madina.  He will eventually seize Damascus.  Never will he speak foul words, nor will he raise his voice in public.  He will not retaliate against evil with evil and will forgive the culprits.  His people ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ It is recorded, in Nasikh at-Tawarikh , by Imam Muhammad Taqi Lisan al-Mulk ( r.a. ), the Shi’ah scholar of sirah and ahadits , that Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, “May Allah have Mercy on Abu ‘Amr,” the kunya of Sayyidina ‘Utsman ibn ‘Affan ( r.a. ).   “By Allah, he was the noblest and most righteous of men.   He prayed a great deal at the time before dawn, shed many tears when he remembered the Fire, the first to do righteous deeds and to offer help at the time of calamity, beloved, confident and loyal, the one who equipped the army of Tabuk, the son-in-law of Rasulullah ( s.a.w. ).”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, of the apostles of Jesus ( a.s. ), “They were fishermen who were catching fish, and Jesus passed them and asked them, ‘What are you doing?’   They replied, ‘We are catching fish.’   He asked them, ‘Will you not come with me that you may catch men?’   They replied to him, ‘What do you mean?’   He said, ‘We will summon men to Allah ( s.w.t. ).’   They asked, ‘And who are you?’   He said, ‘I am Jesus, son of Mary, Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) servant and apostle.’   They asked, ‘Are any of the prophets above you?’   He replied, ‘Yes, the Arabian prophet.’   So, those men followed him and believed on him and set out with him.”

Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas narrated that the Prophet said, “Whoever fasts the last day of Dzu al-Hijjah and the first day of Muharram, he completes a whole year’s worth of fasting in that previous year, and Allah Gives him penance for fifty years.” This narration circulates widely in fadha’il al-‘amal literature, the genre covering virtuous deeds, but its chain is generally graded weak ( dha’if ) by the muhadditsin , not sound ( swahih ) or even fair ( hasan ).  Mainstream Sunni scholarship, including Imam Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Sharaf an-Nawawi, has long held that acting on a weak hadits in matters of virtuous deeds is permissible, provided three conditions hold: the weakness is not severe, the deed falls under an already-established general principle, and the person does not believe it to be definitively authentic while acting on it.  Fasting the ninth and tenth of Dzu al-Hijja h, and encouraged fasting around the Islamic New Year, both rest on firmer ground elsewhere....

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Tafsir , or the interpretation, of the Qur’an was not recorded in the time of the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) as an independent field of study, but statements of the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) which bore on the interpretation of the verses of the Qur’an were transmitted from him, just as ahadits were transmitted from him.  The era of the companions continued like this, without tafsir being recorded independently.  Then came the time of the successors, who took their knowledge of the Qur’an and sunnah from the companions.  Each group of successors received knowledge directly from the companions.  So, they collected everything that was transmitted by the companions from the Prophet ( s.a.w.) as ahadits , and they heard from the companions what concerned the interpretation of the verses of the Qur’an.  So, the scholars of each region collected what their predecessors knew, as the people of Makkah did with regard to the tafsir of Sayyidina...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ One of those texts that specifically reflect the state of the parents of the Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ) as being one free of Punishment is the Statement of Allah ( s.w.t. ):   سُوۡرَةُ الشُّعَرَاء وَتَقَلُّبَكَ فِى ٱلسَّـٰجِدِينَ (٢١٩)   And your movements among those who prostrate themselves. (Surah ash-Shu’ara:219)   Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, regarding this verse, “Meaning through the progeny of the children of Adam, Noah, Abraham, until you were delivered into this world as a prophet.”

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ It was narrated that Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said, “Salman al-Farisi told me his story from his own lips.”  And this is Sayyidina Abu ‘Abdullah Salman al-Farisi’s ( r.a. ) story of his search for the Truth.   He said, “I was a Persian man, one of the people of Isfahan, from a village thereof called Jayy.  My father was the chieftain of his village, and I was the dearest of Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Creation to him.  He loved me so much that he kept me in his house near the fire, as girls are kept in.  I strove hard in the Magian religion until I became the Keeper of the Fire, which I tended and did not let go out for a moment.  My father had a huge garden, and he was busy one day with some construction work, so he said, ‘O my son, I am too busy with this building today, go and check my garden,’ and he told me some of the things he wanted done.  I went out, heading towards his garden, and I passed by one...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   A mother asked Habib ‘Umar ibn Muhammad ibn al-Hafizh for something to read for protection for her children.   He told her to read, over them, Ayat al-Kursi , Surah al-Ikhlasw, Surah al-Falaq and Surat an-Naas, and then the following du’a :   أُعِيذُكَ بِكَلِماتِ الله التَّامة مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْطانٍ وهَامَّةْ وكُلِّ عَيْنٍ لامَّةْ   A’iyydzuka bikalimaati Allah at-taamat min kulli shaythaan wa haammat wa kulli ‘ayni laammat.   I seek Refuge for you, in the complete Words of Allah, from every devil, every creature, and every evil eye.   Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) narrated that the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) used these words to protect Sayyidina Hasan ibn Abi Thalib ( r.a. ) and Sayyidina Husayn ibn Abi Thalib ( r.a. ), and he would say, “Your father (Ibrahim) used these words to protect Isma’il and Ishaq.”   حَصَّنْتُكَ بِالحَيِّ القَيُّوم الَّذِي لّا يَمُوتُ أَبَدًا وَ دَفَعْتُ عَنكَ السُّوء بِأَلْف...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيم When drinking zamzam , it is recommended to drink one’s fill as a sign of gratitude for Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Bounty.   It is drunk with a specific intent, and not frivolously.   To do so, face the qiblah , mention the Name of Allah ( s.w.t. ), then say, “O Allah, it has reached me that Your Messenger ( s.a.w. ) said, ‘The water of Zamzam is for that which it was drunk for.’   O Allah, I drink it so that You may Forgive me.   O Allah, Forgive me.’”   Or, “‘O Allah I drink it seeking Healing from illness; O Allah, Heal me.’”   We may also ask for whatever it is that is our need. It is recommended that one drink it in three breaths like with any other beverage, and when done, to praise Allah ( s.w.t. ).   There are numerous ahadits on this issue.   Sayyidina Abu Dzar Jundub ibn Junadah al-Ghifari ( r.a. ) reported that the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) said, of zamzam , “It is Blessed.   It is nourishing food, and ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ It is related by Sayyidina ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) that he once stayed the night as a guest of Sayyidatina Maymunah bint al-Harits al-Hillaliyyah ( r.a. ), who was his aunt, and the Prophet ( s.a.w. ).   They slept on their blanket lengthways, and he slept at the end, crossways.   After they had all slept for a while, the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) rose in the middle of the night to pray tahajjud , and Sayyidina ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) joined him. They both performed wudhu , and he prayed eleven rak’ah with the Prophet ( s.a.w. ).   Then they both went back to sleep again until dawn.   Sayyidina Bilal ibn Rabah al-Habashi ( r.a. ) called the adzan and the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) did another two short rak’ah , before going into the mosque to lead swalah al-fajr . Sayyidina ibn ‘Abbas ( r.a. ) said that one of the ud’iyyah that the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) made during this night was, “O Allah, Place light in my heart, light in my tongu...