A Muslim Convert Once Before

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The dead are not so dead.   Perhaps, they are more alive.   We are the dead.   We are the sleeping.   We are the heedless.   We are the ones immersed in dunya , heedless of what comes after.   We live as if this world is forever.   This world is a dream.   It is but a mere moment in time.   For even if we lived a thousand years, it would still end.   There is no life.   There is only the interval between waking.   Before we were born, we have been in the Presence.   And then, there was the Day of Promises.   We affirmed that He is One.   And that we will come back to Him.   سُوۡرَةُ الاٴعرَاف وَإِذۡ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِنۢ بَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمۡ ذُرِّيَّتَہُمۡ وَأَشۡہَدَهُمۡ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِہِمۡ أَلَسۡتُ بِرَبِّكُمۡ‌ۖ قَالُواْ بَلَىٰ‌ۛ شَهِدۡنَآ‌ۛ أَن تَقُولُواْ يَوۡمَ ٱلۡقِيَـٰمَةِ إِنَّا ڪُنَّا عَنۡ هَـٰذَا غَـٰفِلِينَ (١٧٢)   When thy Lord Drew forth...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is taken from The Problem of Suffering: Muslim Theological Reflections by Dr. ‘Abd al-Hakim Sherman A. Jackson, 18 th September 2010.   Dr. Jackson is the Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Arabic & Islamic Studies, University of Michigan.   The Mu’tazilite says, “Glorified be Allah ( s.w.t. ) Who is Above committing evil.”   The Ash’arite replies, “No, Glorified be Allah ( s.w.t. ) in Whose Dominion nothing occurs without His Permission.”   The Mu’tazilite responds, “Does Allah ( s.w.t. ) Will that He be disobeyed?”   The Ash’arite retorts, “Could Allah ( s.w.t. ) be disobeyed against His Will?”   The Mu’tazilite claims, “If Allah ( s.w.t. ) Denies me guidance and decrees my perdition, does Allah ( s.w.t. ) Commit a good or an evil act?”   The Ash’arite says, “If Allah ( s.w.t. ) Denies you something that belongs to you, then Allah ( s.w.t. ) Commits an evil act.   But if Allah (...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal ( r.a. ) used to mention the virtues of his shaykh , Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi’i ( r.a. ) to his wife.  He would mention to her the extensive and superb knowledge of Imam ash-Shafi’i ( r.a. ) as well as his taqwa .  Imam Ahmad ( r.a. ) invited Imam ash-Shafi’i ( r.a. ) to come visit him at his home.  When the time for dinner arrived, Imam ash-Shafi’i ( r.a. ) ate until he was full, and went to the guest room for some sleep.   The wife of Imam Ahmad ( r.a. ) said to him, “O Ahmad!  Is this the same ash-Shafi’i that you used to tell me so much about? ” Imam Ahmad ( r.a. ) replied, “Indeed he is.“   So she said, “I noticed three things about him worthy of criticism.  Firstly, when we served him the food, he ate plenty of it.  Secondly, when he went into the guest room, he went to sleep without standing up to perform tahajjud .  Lastly, when he p...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   Sayyidina ‘Ali ibn Abu Thalib ( k.w. ) said, “You are the clear book in which every letter Manifests a True Meaning.”   Shaykh Kumayl ibn Ziyad an-Nakha’i ( r.a. ), accompanying Sayyidina ‘Ali ( k.w. ) in the suburb of Kufa, a city of Iraq, asked, “Show me my nafs and help me to become aware of it.”   Nafs is a singular term that has been translated as self, nature and also as ego.   Sayyidina ‘Ali ( k.w. ) replied, “Of which nafs are you eager to become aware?”   “Is there more than one nufus ?” asked Shaykh Kumayl ( r.a. ).   Sayyidina ‘Ali ( k.w. ) explained, “Yes, there are four: nafs of growth; nafs of sensibility; nafs of pure intellect; and nafs of wholeness and Divinity.   Each one of the nufus has powers and qualities of its own.   The powers of the nafs of growth are energies of attraction, circulation, digestion and repulsion; its qualities are to increase and decrease.   T...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu ‘Ali Hasan ibn Ziyad al-Lu’lu’iy al-Kufi ( r.a. ) related that a man once buried his treasure and then forgot where he had buried it.  He searched everywhere but could not find it.  He decided to go and see Imam Abu Hanifah Nu’man ibn Tsabit ( r.a. ), and related his problem.   Imam Abu Hanifah ( r.a. ) advised him, “This is not a problem of fiqh that I can solve.  Go home and offer swalah all night until you remember where you have buried it.”   Acting upon Imam Abu Hanifah’s ( r.a. ) advice, he stood in prayer.  After less than a quarter of the night had passed, he remembered where he had buried the treasure.  The man then went and retrieved the treasure.  The following day the man related the events to Imam Abu Hanifah ( r.a. ).  Imam Abu Hanifah ( r.a. ) said, “I knew Shaythan would not let you pray all night until he himself would remind you.  If only you had prayed all night th...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Once, in one of the villages in Turkey, there used to be a mosque where people of the village used to go.  Once a woman came to the mosque and said that her husband passed away.  She wanted him to be buried, but the people in the mosque did not want to bury him because in some ahadits , it was known that some companions of the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) did not join the funeral prayer of the people who were hypocrites, who did not believe in Allah ( s.w.t. ) and did not go to the prayers in the mosque.   They said, “Your husband has never come to the mosque.”   The mufti was in the mosque when the people did not accept her request.  He said, “No, we cannot bury him.”   The woman cried, left the place and went home.  Friday came.  People went to the mosque for Friday prayers.  After the prayers, the mufti sealed the door.  He said to the people, “Wait brothers!  I had a dream last night that dis...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Once, a wise man was riding along when he saw a snake going into the mouth of a man sleeping beneath an apple tree.  He tried all that was possible to scare away the snake but to no avail.  The snake succeeded in entering the mouth.  Seeing that the snake had already entered the mouth of that man, the rider tried to employ other methods to help that man.  He beat the sleeper several powerful blows with a mace.  Those blows roughly awakened the man who was under a tree.  Still, he knew not about the snake.  He only saw that he was being attacked by a strange person.   Many rotten apples had fallen from the tree.  The wise man sternly ordered him to eat the rotten apples.  So many apples the man had eaten, that some were falling out from his mouth.   The man, in desperation, without knowing what really happened, cried out, “O Chief, why are you behaving like this with me?  What have I...