Maintaining closeness to Allah(swt) through Tahajjud

Jun 7, 2022

Over a month after Ramadan has ended, isn’t it time we ask ourselves- how much of it are we still carrying with us? How hard are we trying to keep the Ramadan spirit alive, like the sahabah did throughout the year? For sure, the special ease that comes from the barakah of that month may not be here anymore, but is it not the same ‘us’ and the same Rabb? The same ‘us’ who proved to ourselves that yes, we CAN read Quran every day, AND fast, AND pray Tarawih/Qiyam al Layl! And isn’t our Creator still and always the Ever-Merciful, the Ever-Hearing, regardless of season or month?

Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, “Our Lord, the Blessed, the Superior, comes every night down on the nearest Heaven to us when the last third of the night remains, saying: “Is there anyone to invoke Me, so that I may respond to invocation? Is there anyone to ask Me, so that I may grant him his request? Is there anyone seeking My forgiveness, so that I may forgive him?” (Sahih al-Bukhari 1145)

One way we can carry forward a part of Ramadan with us, is to pray Tahajjud, or the night prayer regularly. It is a time when we will again find our Lord just as near and giving. Tahajjud spiritually energizes, relaxes and heals us, often even replacing the need for the lost sleep. It sets the stage for a beautiful and productive day- both in matters of the Dunya and Deen.

Here are some tips to wake up for Tahajjud and enjoy spiritual rejuvenation and a cherished closeness with Allah(swt):

  • Nap in the day

  • Keep yourself in check during the day- a righteous day leads to a righteous night

  • Eat less in the evening

  • Set up your prayer clothes/place/Mushaf/dua books at night before going to sleep

  • Make Dua for Allah to enable you to wake up & experience Tahajjud

  • Sleep early after Isha

  • Cleanse your heart- a heart full of bitterness, grudges or malice is a heavy heart to wake up with

  • Stay patient. Give your body time to develop this new keystone habit. Don’t get discouraged when you miss it

  • Try & try until you succeed!

Truly in the Footsteps of RasulAllah (ﷺ)

Oct 19, 2021

By Sameen Fahmi
“Indeed, We have sent you as a witness and a bringer of good tidings and a warner. That you [people] may believe in Allah and His Messenger and honor him and respect him [i.e., the Prophet (ﷺ)] and exalt Him [i.e., Allah] morning and afternoon.” (Quran, Surah Al Fath: 8-9)

 “Muhammad” is from the Arabic root hamd, and means ‘the one who is very praiseworthy’, and praised very much. 

Allah(swt) Himself praises our beloved Prophet Muhammad(ﷺ), and sends His blessings upon him(ﷺ).

“Indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet(ﷺ), and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [Allah to grant him] peace.” (Quran, 33:56)

It is our honor and pleasure to praise, revere, and send salutations upon the Prophet(ﷺ), but we do it just as he himself taught us and approved. We follow in his(ﷺ) footsteps, just like how the first, and the best three generations of Muslims did. We do so every day of our lives, and day of the year alike.

SubhanAllah, Allah(swt) is perfect, and His Deen is perfect and perfectly complete.

“This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved for you Islām as religion.”(Quran, 5:3)

There is no room to add anything to religion, nor the permission to omit anything. And just like that, the status of the Prophet(ﷺ), given to him(ﷺ) by Allah(swt) Himself,  is already the highest possible rank any creation could be given, and there is no room to elevate that further either; as above that rank is only the Creator Himself, and there is no allowance for anybody or anything to even come close to Him and His attributes.

We worship and ask ONLY Allah(swt), and we walk in the footsteps of RasulAllah(ﷺ) to do just that.

“He who obeys the Messenger(ﷺ) has obeyed Allah..” (Quran, 4:80)

“And whatever the Messenger(ﷺ) has given you – take; and what he has forbidden you – refrain from. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty. (Quran, 59:7)

“But they who believe and do righteous deeds – those are the companions of Paradise; they will abide therein eternally.” (Quran, 2:82)

The definition of a good deed is that it is one which has ‘Ikhlaas- purity in intention for Allah’ and ‘Itteba-e-Sunnah- following the way of the Prophet(ﷺ).

Anas ibn Malik reported: The Prophet(ﷺ) said, “Whoever has three traits within himself will find the sweetness of faith: one who loves Allah and His Messenger more than anything else, one who loves a servant only for the sake of Allah, and one who hates to turn back to unbelief after Allah has saved him, just as he hates to be thrown into the fire.” (Muttafaqun Alayh)

Alhamdullilah, Islam is a Deen(a complete way of life) based upon proof, it is that which makes complete sense to the intellectual mind; it is also ‘Deen-fitrah’- the true and natural Deen that hits the heart and our innate nature. Therefore, before we implement a way of worship, we must first verify its authenticity in the original and trustworthy sources. If the Prophet(ﷺ) did it, and the best and closest of His followers- the Sahabah, Tabieen, and Taba-tabieen did it- then we should do it too; otherwise, we must refrain from any such act, and ask Allah(swt) for forgiveness and return to the one and only true Deen- which is preserved as is, in the Quran and Sahih Sunnah.

Let’s go back and renew the fundamentals and the very foundation of our faith- pure Tauheed, as Allah has taught us through His Messenger(ﷺ).

Tauheed as divided in its three core concepts- ‘Tauheed-ul-Khaliq’, ‘Tauheed-ul-Ibadah’ and ‘Tauheed-ul-Asma wa Sifat’ makes it clear that we ask, and thus worship no one but Allah, the Only Creator, who shares none of His unique attributes and powers with anyone, including the ability of being the Only One Who can give and accept. Al Fatihah, the very 1st chapter of the Quran, also lays out this belief clearly- ‘..wa iyyaka na’budu, wa iyyaka nastaeen’- ‘It is You we worship and You we ask for help’.

Even the first pillar of Islam- the Shahadah, the very declaration of faith, entails that ‘we testify that there is no god but Allah(swt), and Muhammad(ﷺ) is His slave and messenger’, who was no other than His devout worshiper, who himself was dependent upon Allah’s mercy.

Today we must remind ourselves of the awakening words of Abu Bakr(RA) at the death of our dear Prophet(ﷺ), which shook the Believers back to the true reality of Tauheed. He said, “To proceed; whoever among you worshiped Muhammad, then Muhammad is dead, but whoever worshiped Allah, Allah is alive and will never die. Allah said, ‘Muhammad is no more than a Messenger and indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he dies or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels And he who turns back on his heels, not the least harm will he do to Allah; and Allah will reward the grateful’.” (Tafsir Ibn Kathir- Quran 3:144)

 

The sunnah of our beloved Prophet(ﷺ) is staunch Tauheed- he TAUGHT us how to be firm upon it, only to ask Allah and love Him and strive to please Him more than anyone or anything else; and how to only live the Quran-which was his way-the Sunnah. And whatever he did not show us from Deen, is not Islam.

 

In the following dua of Abdullah ibn Mas’oud(RA), as approved and adored by the Prophet(ﷺ), we ask Allah(SWT) to grant us the best of company- that of the Prophet(ﷺ), in Paradise, forever.

“اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ إِيمَانًا لَا يَرْتَدُ وَ نَعِيمًا لَا يَنْفَدُ وَ مُرَافَقَةَ مُحَمَّدٍ فِي أَعْلَى جَنَّةِ الْخُلْدِ”

(Allāhumma innī as’aluka emānan la yartadu wa na’īman la yanfadu wa murāfaqatah Muhammadin fī a’lā Jannat al-Khuld)

“O Allah, I ask you for firm faith that does not revert, and bliss that never ends, and then companionship of Muhammad at the highest (level) of eternal Paradise.” (Silsilah as Saheehah)

The Prophet(ﷺ) mentioned ways that we can be near to him by doing certain deeds in many ahadeeth. Some of those actions are: having good character, increasing in our prostrations, raising two girls to maturity(in Islam), helping the orphans, and staying upon his Sunnah.

“…Whoever revives my Sunnah has loved me, and whoever loves me will be with me in Paradise.” (Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2678)

Let’s do more of what is truly righteous and loved by Allah(swt)- let’s make a habit of loving and sending durood upon the Prophet(ﷺ) regularly and throughout the year; let’s revive his(ﷺ) everyday sunnahs and make them our own daily lifestyle. Let’s adopt his(ﷺ) akhlaaq to be truly the best of creation. 

“Umm Salamah reported: By the One who took the Prophet’s soul, peace and blessings be upon him…The most beloved deeds to him were righteous deeds that a servant performs regularly, even if they are easy.” (Sunan Ibn Mājah 4237. Grade: Sahih)

Which Sunnahs are you going to adopt to attain the company of RasulAllah in Jannah in sha Allah?

Attaining Qalb-e-Saleem

Sep 27, 2021

“The Day when there will not benefit [anyone] wealth or children. But only one who comes to Allah with a sound heart. And Paradise will be brought near [that Day] to the righteous.” (Surah Ash-Shu’ara, 88-90)

Who doesn’t wish for Paradise…a life full of bliss that never ends? But to enter, one must have Qalb-e-Saleem, or a sound heart; yet, sometimes we all need reasons to forgive someone, and to truly clean our hearts.

Alhamdulillah for the guidance always present in the Quran and Sunnah, we can find those reasons whenever we feel the need. Here are some beautiful reminders to motivate ourselves for those times of need! 

1)Anas ibn Malik reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said to me:

يَا بُنَيَّ إِنْ قَدَرْتَ أَنْ تُصْبِحَ وَتُمْسِيَ لَيْسَ فِي قَلْبِكَ غِشٌّ لِأَحَدٍ فَافْعَلْ

Young man, if you are able every morning and evening to remove any rancor from your heart towards anyone, do so.

Then, the Prophet said to me:

يَا بُنَيَّ وَذَلِكَ مِنْ سُنَّتِي وَمَنْ أَحْيَا سُنَّتِي فَقَدْ أَحَبَّنِي وَمَنْ أَحَبَّنِي كَانَ مَعِي فِي الْجَنَّة

Young man, that is my Sunnah. Whoever revives my Sunnah has loved me, and whoever loves me will be with me in Paradise.

(Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2678)

2)Abu Huraira reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لا تَدْخُلُوا الْجَنَّةَ حَتَّى تُسْلِمُوا وَلا تُسْلِمُوا حَتَّى تَحَابُّوا وَأَفْشُوا السَّلامَ تَحَابُّوا وَإِيَّاكُمْ وَالْبُغْضَةَ فَإِنَّهَا هِيَ الْحَالِقَةُ لا أَقُولُ لَكُمْ تَحْلِقُ الشَّعْرَ وَلَكِنْ تَحْلِقُ الدِّينَ

By the one in whose hand is my soul, you will not enter Paradise until you submit to Allah and you will not submit until you love one another. Spread peace and you will love one another. Beware of hatred, for it is the razor. I do not say that it shaves hair, but rather it shaves away the religion.

(Source: al-Adab al-Mufrad 260)

3)Abdullah ibn Amr reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

لَا يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ إِنْسَانٌ فِي قَلْبِهِ مِثْقَالُ حَبَّةٍ مِنْ خَرْدَلٍ مِنْ كِبْرٍ

No human being will enter Paradise if there is as much as the weight of a seed of arrogance in his heart.

(To not forgive is to have arrogance)

(Source: Musnad Aḥmad 6526)

4)The gates of Paradise are opened on Monday and Thursday. Allah forgives every servant who does not associate anything with him, except a man with enmity between himself and his brother. It will be said: Delay these two until they reconcile, delay these two until they reconcile.

(Source: Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2565)

(But what if we die before that?…)

May Allah(SWT) bless us all with a heart that is peaceful, safe and sound from anything that He dislikes, and that is firm upon His Deen and obedience. Aameen.

 

Author: Sameen Fahmi

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