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Date: June 18, 2015
Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam. The word Zakat means purification and growth. Quran promotes feeding hungry people and helping the poor. Since, the month of Ramadan is termed as the very month of forgiveness, blessings, helping others, prayers and thanks giving. Zakat is an activity connected with prayer and compassion towards the poor people. Allah says that provide Zakat with prayers and it will make you and the receiver blessed. Conditions for Zakat Giving If you are possessing property in excess of a minimum exemption limit, you must give Zakat to the needy. Another term is that if your wealth equal to or in surplus of Nisab in the beginning and at the end of the lunar year, you must give Zakat. At the same time, at the end of the lunar year if the wealth is less than the Nisab, it is not necessary to give Zakat. It says that Zakat is due on all the gold and silver ornaments, jewellery. All bank deposits and provident fund will fall under the Zakat giving. It is also said that if one has agriculture land irrigated by rain water or by natural water channels or if the land is wet due to a nearby water channel, the yield of the land must be provided as Zakat. Zakat is obligatory on goats, sheep, cows, buffaloes and camels which graze on wild grass, plant leaves and on some feed, now and then given by the owner, and on the above animals meant for sale. Do Not Give Zakat to these People * To a person who owns minimum 7 1/2 tolas of gold or 52 1/2 tolas of silver or equivalent wealth in cash, kind or in trade goods. * To one’s mother, father, paternal and maternal grand-parents, great grand-parents, etc. * To one’s offspring-sons, daughters, grand-children, great grand-children, etc. * to spouse * To other relatives such as brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, cousins, nieces, nephews, etc. * To Sayyeds(descendants of Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh). * To domestic or other servants as wages. * Zakat cannot be given for repairing or maintenance of mosque. * Do not pay Zakat to meet the funeral expenses.
"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
Everybody know that what exactly Qiblah is. It is the direction of the Kaaba,the sacred building at Mecca, to which Muslims turn at prayer. Suppose, you are on a road trip and it is the time to pray Maghrib and ‘Isha. Suddenly you strated peforming the Wudu. But how do you know which direction to face? Your answer might be to use a Qiblah app from your smart phone. Thats right! But if you are not having such facilities in your hand, what is the perfect solution to find the Qiblah? Before inventing smart phones and such technologies, Muslim sailors developed the art of reading the stars to find the navigation. As the earth rotates, stars moves to different positions. Muslim sailors called it al-Qiblah and it is found in the constellation they named al-Rakabah. We know it as the North Star, found in the Little Dipper. Once you are done this, it becomes easy to locate the north star to know the Qiblah. Check out the folllowing steps to find out the Qiblah: 1. Locate Banat Naash al-Kubra (The Big Dipper). The Big Dipper is one of the easiest constellations to find. This constellation is shaped as a large spoon. That is, three stars in the handle and four stars in the head. By finding this Big Dipper, you can spot the north star. 2. Trace a line to al-Qiblah (the north star). Next step is to imagine a line that connects the front two stars of this Big Dipper. If you follow this particular line, you can spot the north star at a five times distance range. It&8217;s the first bright star you&8217;ll run into that&8217;s close to this vector. 3. Verify that you are spotted the north star itself. Be sure that you have spotted the north star itself and then only start the prayer. Otherwise, your prayer time may get conflicted.
Read MoreLailat 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 MoreSometimes our children are orphans even if they are living with their parents. Fathers are busy with their business. Mothers are busy with makeup necessary things. Now a days this problem is a growing thing. We are failing to have a good discussion with our children. But here we have to realize the ugly fact that this is the turn our children are getting in to some other ugly relationship. To stop this, you must cut your work time; it might be your own business to make excess wealth. But dear brothers and sisters, what is the meaning of wealth without making our children happy? When you work, ask yourself that, how much you want to earn? Make a target of your earning and work for that and spend the rest of your time to talk and listen to your kids. Life is not all about making money, but it&8217;s all about happiness and peace.
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