Date: May 29, 2016
The author Jameel Syed expresses his experience in Umrah that he witnessed while his pilgrimage. He says nobody can walk empty handed from this place of purification. He first visited Umrah in the month of Ramadan in 1998. The pilgrimage journey was a gift from his parents for graduating from the University of Michigan. Pilgrims chanted loud and loud as they moved closer to the object of desire. His heart beats started to beat faster and faster when he reaches the place of Allah. His eyes started to fill with tears and while walking towards the object of desire he was in a dreamy state. Finally he stopped and he knew that he was in the presence of majesty. People come from far and near to have their prayers heard. Different people believes in Islam with different skin colors eat different foods, speak different languages, wear different clothes and practice different customs all gathered in one place to celebrate peace, brotherhood and unity. The pilgrimage places like Mecca and Madinah have their own flavors. Both cities carry the wonderful air of devotion and humanity and both are complimentary to one another. Both cities make you feel safe and privileged. While the trip to Madinah, he could meet many notable personalities who are working for Islam and its teachings. Qalam Institute, Ustadh Wissam Sharieff, Imam Dawood Yasin, Imam Khalid Latif, imam Omer Bajwa, Ustadh Jameel Besada were some among them. The ever loving and memorable thing that the author could do was being given the permission to raise the adhan in two masajid of the holy city: Darul Hadith and the famed Islamic University of Madinah. Since this greatest thing happened, he believes that nobody can walk away from this place empty handed.
Lailat al Miraj : The Miraculous Night Journey of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) Miracles do happen, for those who do not believe, are clearly unaware of the life of our Holy Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH). Islamic history is a superior witness to these miracles. Lailat-al-Miraj, was one of the greatest miracles of his time, the night that the Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) ascent to the Heavens. It was not only a spiritual journey but a physical one as well. The journey of Lailat-al-Miraj signifies the greatness and importance of the Prophet (PBUH) in Allah’s (SWT) eyes. This night of miracle is also known as the “Isra and Miraj” which denotes 2 parts of the journey. The first part of the Prophet’s (PBUH) journey from Mecca to Jerusalem is known as Isra - which means ‘walking in the night’. Angel Jibrael visited the Holy Prophet (PBUH) and was carried to Masjid-al-Aqsa in Jerusalem on “buraq”, the steed of the prophets. In the Quran, Allah (SWT) verifies the truth of this journey as well: _“Glory be to Him Who took His devotee (Muhammad) one night from Masjid-al-Haram (in Makkah) to Masjid-al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem), whose vicinity We have blessed, so that We may show him some of Our signs: surely He is the One Who is the Hearer, the Observer. (Quran 17:1) The second part of the journey is called as Miraaj, which literally means “ladder”, and it alludes to the Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) ascension to Heaven itself. From Jerusalem, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was then transported to Paradise on his steed ‘Buraq’, where he explored all seven levels of paradise and met a number of the prophets who had preceded him, which included Adam (AS), Musa (AS), Ibrahim (AS), Isa (AS), Yusuf (AS), Yahya (AS), and numerous others. Upon reaching Sidra-tul-Muntaha in the seventh heaven, a tree denoting the very end of heaven and the beginning of the abode of Allah (SWT), Jibrael stopped as his entrance was prohibited and let the Prophet (PBUH) pass. Here, our dearest Prophet (PBUH) got an opportunity to meet the Almighty and talk with Him. It is on this night, that the Prophet (PBUH) accomplished a condition of closeness with Allah (SWT) that is past human measure. Additionally, it was on this very moment that Allah (SWT) on all Muslims urged the five daily prayers. Prayers was originally supposed to be 50 daily prayers, but our Prophet (PBUH) importuned for the benefit of his ummah to make it easier for them and alas, Allah (SWT) brought the number down to five. Allah (SWT) revealed to Muhammad (PBUH) that all Muslims were to pray fifty times a day. As Prophet (PBUH) was returning, Musa (AS) disclosed to him that fifty prayers were excessively high so Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) mentioned Allah (SWT) to decrease the number of supplications. Allah (SWT) decreased the obligatory supplications to 45 yet Musa (AS) still idea they were excesses of so eventually on Prophet’s (PBUH) request, Allah (SWT) reduced the number of prayers to Five. Allah (SWT) makes reference to a couple of insights regarding the journey in another part of the Quran as well: _“While on the highest point above the horizon, then he approached ˹the Prophet˺, coming so close, that he was only two arms-lengths away or even less. Then Allah revealed to His servant what He revealed ˹through Gabriel˺. The ˹Prophet’s˺ heart did not doubt what he saw. How can you ˹O pagans˺ then dispute with him regarding what he saw? And he certainly saw that ˹angel descend˺ a second time, at the Lotte Tree of the most extreme limit ˹in the seventh heaven near which is the Garden of ˹Eternal˺ Residence. while the Lotte Tree was overwhelmed with ˹heavenly˺ splendors! The ˹Prophet’s˺ sight never wandered, nor did it overreach. He certainly saw some of his Lord’s greatest signs. (Quran 53:7-18) The sole purpose of the Holy Prophet’s (PBUH) extraordinary voyage to the Heavens was an act of declaration about the lifted up status of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in the realm of Islam and vouched for the imperative position he held in the eyes of Allah (SWT) and His creation. However, the date of this voyage is still unclear as there is no solid indication in any Sahih hadith for its exact occurrence. It is thought to have occurred somewhere close to the Prophet's visit to Taif and the season of the Hijra, around the 27th of the Islamic month of Rajab, yet this date isn't formally perceived by Islamic researchers. Layla-tul-Miraj is a witness to Allah’s (SWT) infinite glory and power and His bond with His creation. Allah (SWT) sent the Holy Prophet (PBUH) as a blessing to His creation, an exemplary figure and good example for each human to gaze upward to. Miraj night marks itself as a test of faith in mankind and enjoins them to believe in the truth of all that Allah (SWT) is and all that only He is capable of doing. Layla-tul-Miraj holds great significance to every Muslim across the globe, where the Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) ascension is remembered and the definitive purpose of it is recollected. It is viewed as a standout amongst the most sacred of miracles of the Almighty, which He offered to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and just him.
Read MoreDepression usually comes from being far from Allah. We need remembrance of Allah. Our body consists of flesh, bone, muscle and blood. Our body has two parts. Those are physical sense and spiritual sense. For physical sense, it needs exercise, good heart, good food and nutrition. But what does the soul needs. Soul needs Allah. And when that soul taken away from Allah, it never remember Allah. It never is in a good environment. It becomes depressed and lonely. It yearns for Allah and it yearns for its creator. For this we needs in good environment and we needs to be around good people. Good people will remember Allah always. People who pray and people who have genuine fear of Allah are good people. So be in a circle of good people always and remember Allah, the creator.
Read MoreParenting is a great time in one’s life. As far as parenting is concerned, it is a challenging and lovely responsibility. There are a number of different needs that a person has in his or her life. That needs may be physical, mental or spiritual. A parent should give the correct path to his child on how to fulfill these needs by the time. Good parenting is all about meeting all these needs of a child in a balanced and correct order. Many parents think that, by meeting the physical and material needs of their children, all their responsibilities are complete. No! You have to make them learn how to lead a life with spirituality and kindness. Normally, if a parent is very much busy with his job or something else, he tries to manage the needs of his child by gifting everything that is possible with money power. By doing this, you are spoiling your child’s great future. So, every parent should find some time to pay attention to his child and to love him or her with affection and care. Each child has emotional needs and spiritual needs. To meet these needs, there are different ways for parents. Parents can read about this particular subject by referring respective books or magazines. Parents can go for a class online or offline that covers the psychological scene of a child. Try to find some time to meet the intellectual needs of your children that their school cannot meet-such as visit historical places, visit some places of natural beauty, centers of worship, homes for the aged or the infirm, factories, museums, or a slum, a forest or an orphanage, a shrine or a park, a dance performance or a planetarium or a bakery, combining in this way entertainment as well as exposure to various situations and dimensions of lived reality. Parents should have to teach their children about God and his wisdom. Make them pray to God everyday at regular time with family members. Let them thank God for the good time they had in life. One cannot acquire good parenting skills by simply giving birth to a child. Its a regular practice to lead the child to a good future by giving him or her better guidance spiritually, physically and emotionally.
Read More"When a person dies, his works end, except for three: ongoing charity, knowledge that is benefited from, and a righteous child who prays for him."
Prophet Mohammed (PBUH)
"The best of what a man leaves behind are three: a righteous child who supplicates for him, ongoing charity the reward of which reaches him, and knowledge that is acted upon after him."
Sunan Ibn Mājah
"Every day two angels come down from Heaven and one of them says, 'O Allah! Compensate every person who spends in Your Cause,' and the other (angel) says, 'O Allah! Destroy every miser.'"
Sahih Bukhari