SPED Int Sec Sch Muslim Alumni

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*GENERAL ADVICE TO EVERY MUSLIM BY SHAYKH ʿABDUL-ʿAZĪZ BN BĀZ*
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*EPISODE 2️⃣: Taqwá: The Admonition Of Allāh And His Messenger*
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When what preceded has been known, that which I admonish you and myself with is Taqwá (the fear of Allāh)—the Exalted—in secret and open, and in hardship and ease. For indeed, it is the admonition of Allāh and that of His Messenger (ﷺ). As Allāh—the Most High—said:

*وَلَقَدْ وَصَّيْنَا ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْكِتَٰبَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ وَإِيَّاكُمْ أَنِ ٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَۚ*

*“. . . And verily, We have admonished the people of the Scripture before you, and you (O Muslims) that you (all) fear Allāh . . .”*

[An-Nisa' 4:131]

And the Prophet ﷺ used to say in his sermons:

*_“I admonish you with the fear of Allāh and listening and obeying.”_*

Taqwá is an encompassing name that encompasses every good. And its reality is carrying out what Allāh obligated and refraining from what He forbade out of sincerity for Him, and love, and desiring his reward, and being cautious of His punishment. And Allāh has commanded His slaves to fear Him. And as a reward, He promised them the easing of their affairs, relief from afflictions, facilitation of sustenance, forgiveness of sins, and the attainment of paradise.

He—the Most High—said:

*يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ ٱتَّقُوا۟ رَبَّكُمْۚ إِنَّ زَلْزَلَةَ ٱلسَّاعَةِ شَىْءٌ عَظِيمٌ*

*“O mankind! Fear your Lord and be dutiful to Him! Verily, the earthquake of the Hour (of Judgement) is a terrible thing.”*

[Al-Hajj 22:1]

He—the Most High—said:

*يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَلْتَنظُرْ نَفْسٌ مَّا قَدَّمَتْ لِغَدٍۖ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِيرٌۢ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ*

*“O you who believe! Fear Allāh and keep your duty to Him. And let every person look to what he has sent forth for the morrow, and fear Allāh. Verily, Allāh is All-Aware of what you do.”*

[Al-Hashr 59:18]

He—the Most High—said:

*وَمَن يَتَّقِ ٱللَّهَ يَجْعَل لَّهُۥ مَخْرَجًا▪️وَيَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُۚ*

*“. . . And whosoever fears Allāh and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And He will provide him from (sources) he never could imagine . . .”*

[At-Talaq 65:2-3]

He—the Most High—said:

*إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ جَنَّٰتِ ٱلنَّعِيمِ*

*“Verily, for the Muttaqun (pious and righteous persons) are Gardens of delight (Paradise) with their Lord.”*

[Al-Qalam 68:34]

He—the Most High—said:

*ذَٰلِكَ أَمْرُ ٱللَّهِ أَنزَلَهُۥٓ إِلَيْكُمْۚ وَمَن يَتَّقِ ٱللَّهَ يُكَفِّرْ عَنْهُ سَيِّـَٔاتِهِۦ وَيُعْظِمْ لَهُۥٓ أَجْرًا*

*“. . . And whosoever fears Allāh and keeps his duty to Him, He will remit his sins from him, and will enlarge his reward.”*

[At-Talaq 65:5]

And the verses with this meaning are numerous.

O Muslims, be conscious of Allāh—the Exalted—and hasten to Taqwá in every condition. Call yourselves to account in all of your statements, actions, and dealings. So, whatever is permissible in the legislation from it, there is no harm in dealing in it. And whatever is prohibited in the legislation from it, be wary of it, even if many desires are associated with it. For indeed, what is with Allāh is better and more lasting. And whoever leaves a thing out of the fear of Allāh, Allāh compensates him with something better.

And when the slaves are conscious of their Lord and keep their duty to Him by doing what He commanded and abandoning what He prohibited, Allāh—the Exalted—will give them what He associated with Taqwá from honour, success, abundant sustenance, liberation from hardships, and bliss and salvation in this world and the hereafter.

_To be continued... إِنْ شَاءَ ٱللّٰهُ‎_

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The Meccans had plotted to kill the prophet overnight. Yet, Allah safeguarded him to Madinah without an army. Today, Muslims feel as if they’re doing good for Islam. Lo and behold! The good you do is for your own soul. Allah is not in need of us, and He will protect this faith until the end of time. We are the ones in need of Him, and He’s As-Samad — The One Who is free from need. The sooner we realize this, the better.

10 Life Lessons from the Hijrah Migration Those who believed and emigrated and strove hard and fought in Allâh’s Cause with their wealth and their lives are far higher in degree…

LOWERING THE GAZE

The greatest form of Zina culpable under the Shari'ah Law is indeed Zina of the ge****ls. However, Allah commands the believers to lower their gazes from illegal sights. Abiding by this prohibition will ultimately protect one against the temptation of fornication and adultery.

You're welcome to another interesting episode of your beloved AYAH DIARY from ISLAMAFFAIR CARE FOUNDATION. I'm Abu Mar'yam and with me is my co-host, Abu A'ishah. Let's continue with the commentary of Surah An-Noor.

CENTRAL AYAH

قُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَغُضُّوا۟ مِنْ أَبْصَٰرِهِمْ وَيَحْفَظُوا۟ فُرُوجَهُمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ أَزْكَىٰ لَهُمْ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِيرٌۢ بِمَا يَصْنَعُونَ
Surah An-Noor (24): 30

COMMENTARY

قُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَغُضُّوا۟ مِنْ أَبْصَٰرِهِمْ وَيَحْفَظُوا۟ فُرُوجَهُمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ أَزْكَىٰ لَهُمْ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِيرٌۢ بِمَا يَصْنَعُونَ
30. Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts, etc.). That is purer for them. Verily, Allah is All-Aware of what they do.

Allah has mentioned lowering the gaze and guarding one’s private parts after the verse about seeking permission to enter someone's house because the house covers a person just as the clothes on his body do.

Thus, lowering the gaze includes not looking into people’s houses and refraining from looking at people's ‘awrah (nudity). Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (رحمه الله) said: “Haraam kinds of looking include looking at ‘awrah, which is of two types: the ‘awrah behind a garment and the ‘awrah behind doors.” [Madaarij al-Saalikeen (1/117)]

Imam Ibn Kathir (رحمه الله) commented that this verse is a command from Allah to His believing servants, to lower their gaze from looking at things that have been prohibited for them. They should look only at what is permissible for them to look at, and lower their gaze from forbidden things.

However, if a person's gaze unintentionally falls upon something forbidden, he should quickly look away. Jarir Ibn Abdullah Al-Bajali (رضي الله عنه) said: “I asked the Prophet about the sudden glance, and he commanded me to turn my gaze away.” [Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim]

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (رحمه الله) said: “Allah has enjoined us in His Book to lower the gaze, which is of two types: refraining from looking at ‘awrah and refraining from looking at the site of desire. The former refers to a man refraining from looking at the ‘awrah of another person. The second refers to looking at uncovered parts of a non-mahram woman. This is more serious than the former, just as alcohol is more serious than dead meat and blood and pork, and the hadd punishment should be carried out on the one who drinks it because these haraam things are not as desirable as alcohol may be.” [Majmoo’ al-Fataawa (15/414)]

Sitting on the roadside (people's pathway) is among the places by which one can easily look at things forbidden. Regarding that, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) told the companions to give the street its rights which are: “Lower the gaze, refrain from harm, return greetings of peace, enjoin good and forbid evil.” [Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2465, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2121]

Lowering one's gaze is one of the ways to gain entry into Jannah (Paradise). Anas Ibn Malik (رضي الله عنه) reported: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Accept six deeds from me and I assure your acceptance into Paradise. When one of you speaks, let him not lie. When one of you promises, let him not break it. When one of you is trusted, let him not betray it. Lower your gaze, restrain your hands from harming others, and guard your chastity.” [Musnad Abī Ya’lá 4195]

Notably, we're in a modern world where illicit dressings and pornographic contents are widespread. It requires a high level of discipline, strong determination and fear of Allah to resist the temptations. We earnestly beseech Allah to purify our hearts from evil desires and protect our sights against forbidden scenes.

Let's meet again next week for the continuation of the commentary of this week's verse. Also, don't forget to join my co-hosts; Umm Anas and Umm Bilaal on Wednesday and Friday for INSPIRED WORDS and ISLAM FOCUS respectively. Till then, let's remain focused on attaining Jannah.

Assalamualykum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuhu

FAJR REMINDER: *ASKING A WRONG BEING*
By: Umm Affan
Jumada Al-Awwal 2, 1438 (31-Jan-2017)

He thinks he is far from his Creator, so he can’t ask Him directly. However, he believes there are saints (apparently), other powerful and sacred creatures somewhere who are better than him, closer to Allah and that can help him communicate his requests to Him. He also believes that without them, Allah can’t attend to him. Though, he knows not whether they are even worse than him before Allah. Hence, he takes them as intermediaries – prays to them instead of his Lord. Allah informs: *“And when My Slaves ask you (O Muhammad [SallaLlahu ‘Alayhi wa Sallam]) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor). So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.”* [Surah Al-Baqarah (2): 186]

Then, Allah warns: *“Verily those whom you call besides Allah are slaves like you…”* [Surah Al-Araf (7): 194] Henceforth, don’t call the slaves again (whether Angel, Prophet, Human, Jinn, River, Mountain, Stone, Tree, etc.). Rather, call the One that created them. By Allah! It is clear that, whoever places intercessors between himself and Allah by making _Du’a_ (supplication) to them instead of Allah and relies upon them, is a disbeliever (because that is _Shirk_ – associating partners with Allah).

I beseech Allah to save us from transgression. (Aameen)