Conversation About Allah

السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته

An Atheist Professor of Philosophy speaks to his Class on the Problem Science has with ALLAH, The ALMIGHTY.
He asks one of his New Muslim Student to stand and . . .

Professor : You are a Muslim, aren't you, son ?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So you Believe in ALLAH ?
Student : Absolutely, sir.
Professor : Is ALLAH Good ?
Student : Sure.
Professor : Is ALLAH ALL - POWERFUL ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : My Brother died of Cancer even though he Prayed to ALLAH to Heal him.
Most of us would attempt to Help Others who are ill.
But ALLAH didn't.
How is this ALLAH Good then ? Hmm ?
( Student is silent )

Professor : You can't answer, can you ?
Let's start again, Young Fella.
Is ALLAH Good ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Is Satan good ?
Student : No.
Professor : Where does Satan come from ?
Student : From . . . ALLAH . . .
Professor : That's right.
Tell me son, is there evil in this World ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : Evil is everywhere, isn't it ?
And ALLAH did make Everything. Correct ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : So who created evil ?
( Student does not answer )

Professor : Is there Sickness ? Immorality ? Hatred ? Ugliness ?
All these terrible things exist in the World, don't they ?
Student : Yes, sir.
Professor : So, who Created them ?
( Student has no answer )

Professor : Science says you have 5 Senses you use to Identify and
Observe the World around you.
Tell me, son . . . Have you ever Seen ALLAH ?
Student : No, sir.
Professor : Tell us if you have ever Heard your ALLAH ?
Student : No , sir.
Professor : Have you ever Felt your ALLAH , Tasted your ALLAH , Smelt
your ALLAH ?
: Have you ever had any Sensory Perception of ALLAH for that
matter ?
Student : No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.
Professor : Yet you still Believe in HIM ?
Student : Yes.
Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol,
Science says your ALLAH doesn't exist.
What do you say to that, son ?
Student : Nothing. I only have my Faith .
Professor : Yes. Faith . And that is the Problem Science has.
Student : Professor, is there such a thing as Heat ?
Professor : Yes.
Student : And is there such a thing as Cold ?
Professor : Yes.
Student : No sir. There isn't.

( The Lecture Theatre becomes very quiet with this turn of events )

Student : Sir, you can have Lots of Heat, even More Heat, Superheat,
Mega Heat, White Heat,
a Little Heat or No Heat.
But we don't have anything called Cold..
We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is No Heat, but we
can't go any further after that.
There is no such thing as Cold.
Cold is only a Word we use to describe the Absence of Heat.
We cannot Measure Cold.
Heat is Energy.
Cold is Not the Opposite of Heat, sir, just the Absence of it.

( There is Pin - Drop Silence in the Lecture Theatre )

Student : What about Darkness, Professor ? Is there such a thing as Darkness ?
Professor : Yes. What is Night if there isn't Darkness ?
Student : You're wrong again, sir.
Darkness is the Absence of Something.
You can have Low Light, Normal Light , Bright Light, Flashing Light . . .
But if you have No Light Constantly, you have Nothing and it's called Darkness, isn't it ?
In reality, Darkness isn't.
If it is, were you would be able to make Darkness Darker, wouldn't you ?
Professor : So what is the point you are making, Young Man ?
Student : Sir, my point is your Philosophical Premise is Flawed.
Professor : Flawed ? Can you explain how ?
Student : Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality.
You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a Good ALLAH and a Bad ALLAH .
You are viewing the Concept of ALLAH as something finite, something we can measure.
Sir, Science can't even explain a Thought.
It uses Electricity and Magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one.
To view Death as the Opposite of Life is to be ignorant of the fact that
Death cannot exist as a Substantive Thing.
Death is Not the Opposite of Life : just the Absence of it.
Now tell me, Professor, do you Teach your Students that they Evolved from a Monkey ?
Professor : If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes, of course, I do.
Student : Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir ?

( The Professor shakes his head with a Smile, beginning to realize where the Argument is going )

Student : Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and
cannot even prove that this Process is an On - Going Endeavor,
are you not Teaching your Opinion, sir ?
Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher ?

( The Class is in Uproar )

Student : Is there anyone in the Class who has ever Seen the Professor's Brain ?

( The Class breaks out into Laughter )

Student : Is there anyone here who has ever Heard the Professor's Brain, Felt it, Touched or Smelt it ? . . .
No one appears to have done so..
So, according to the Established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that
you have No Brain, sir.
With all due respect, sir, how do we then Trust your Lectures, sir ?

( The Room is Silent. The Professor stares at the Student, his face unfathomable )

Professor : I guess you'll have to take them on Faith , son.
Student : That is it sir . . .
the Link between Man & ALLAH is FAITH.
That is all that Keeps Things Moving & Alive

adapted from message by "AM MUSLIM,Proud n insha'Allah striving 2 be better !!" group

Have You Given This A Thought?

السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته

have you ever stopped & pondered on your life?
maybe at the end of the day?
or maybe at the end of the week?
do you forget that we're only here temporarily?
that this is all just like a dream?
that we will wake up at the end to the "real" world?



*the photo above is linked to a great article over at halalbucks.com

Harms Of Looking at Opposite Sex with Lustful Gazes

السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته

In this day and age, due to the shamelessness and immodesty which has been spread through Pornography, TV, VCR, Internet, Cell Phone, Cinema, etc., so many people's lives have been destroyed. Young people have ruined their youth in illicit sexual intercourse and masturbation. Life-life marriages have been broken due to unlawful love affairs. On a social level, society is plagued with problems such as rape, prostitution, child molestation and pedophile, homosexuality, AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.

The question arises as to what is the root of all these problems. May Allah Ta'ala reward our pious predecessors, who look at the world with the eye of the heart, enlightened by the light of the Quran, Hadith and the burning love of Allah Ta’ala. They have diagnosed all these sickness to be brought about by one deadly disease. The root of all these problems is the SIN OF THE EYES, casting evil glances, looking at the opposite or same sex with lustful gazes. Unfortunately today, people do not even consider casting evil glances to be a sin, when in actuality it is the root of innumerable vices and sins.

Another reality which people are totally unaware of is that by protecting one's eyes from lustful glances, one is promised the taste of the sweetness of Imaan. Once the sweetness of Imaan enters the heart, it will never be taken back. Thus by protecting the eyes, one is given grad tidings of a good death.

Rasulullah Muhammad (صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم) said:

"Verily the evil glance is a poisonous arrow from the arrows of Iblees. He who abstains from casting evil glances, I will grant him such Imaan, that he will feel the sweetness of it in his heart".


Hafiz ibn Katheer (رحمۃ اللہ علیہ) mentions in his Tafseer:

"He who protects his eyes from unlawful gazes, Allah Ta'ala will grant him the light of the heart."

We ask Allah Ta'ala that He makes this note a means of exposing the reality of this destructive disease and that He guides the entire Ummah from the darknesses of sin into the light of piety and obedience to Allah Ta'ala and Rasulullah Muhammad (صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم).

They Pray & Fast but are Sinful & Say: "Allah is Merciful" - Sheikh Khâlid Husayn

People who commit sinful deeds have many different ways of looking at their sins. When we wish to call them to what is right and have them give up their sinful ways, we must understand their way of thinking and approach them accordingly

One group of people who need a special approach are those primarily young people who appear to exhibit extremely contradictory behavior. On the one hand, they are regular in their prayers, observant of their fasts, and uphold their religious duties admirably. However, when it comes to the sinful and licentious behavior that Allah has forbidden them, they have no qualms about indulging in the most serious of sinful acts. It is not like they fall weak and sin, and then feel bad about it. They show a complete indifference to their bad behavior.

Many people who behave like this, if you ask them why they do so, they turn to you and say: "Allah is forgiving and merciful". They see themselves as religious, and do not realize that their fasts and their prayers do not give them license to indulge in sin. How do we answer such people? Aside from the general prescription that we should call them to the truth with wisdom and beautiful preaching, showing them respect and avoiding harshness – what exactly can we say that will show them the error of their ways?

People who exhibit such behavior are operating under a serious misunderstanding. They misunderstand the verses of the Qur'ân that speak about Allah's mercy. It is their misunderstanding that makes it easy for them to disobey Allah in what He forbids them.

They need to be brought to understand that just like Allah is most forgiving and most merciful, he is also severe in punishment. One of the best verses to call their attention to in this regard is where

Allah says: "Inform My servants that I am the Forgiving and Merciful, and that truly My punishment will be a painful one." [Sûrah al-Hijr: 49-50]

Then, when they justify to us their sinful behavior by saying "Allah is Most Merciful" we can tell them:

"Indeed He is, just as He is the Most Severe in Punishment. Do you have some guarantee that Allah is going to forgive all of your sins?

Know that Allah warns us in the Qur'ân against thinking that we have such a guarantee.

He says: "What! Do they then feel secure from Allah's plan? But none feels secure from Allah's plan except the people who are doomed to fail." [Sûrah al-A`râf: 99]

They need to know that although Allah is Most Merciful, His Mercy is not equally applicable to everyone. Allah says: "My mercy extends to all things, and I shall ordain it for those who do right, and practice regular charity, and those who believe in Our signs." [Sûrah al-A`râf: 156]

Allah's mercy is for those who fear Him. Those who are pious and God-fearing are the one's who will surely benefit from it. The Arabic word for piety – taqwâ – derives from the word wiqâyah, which means "a protective barrier". This is because a pious person is like someone who puts up a barrier between himself and what Allah has prohibited. Such a person fulfills his religious obligations and stays away from religious proscriptions.

As for those who commit major sins and licentious deeds with full abandon, and then brush it off by saying "Allah is merciful." – they are projecting their own wishful thinking onto the meaning of Allah's mercy.

The eminent scholar al-Hasan al-Basrî once commented: "There are some people who project their own hopes upon Allah. They say: 'We merely have a good opinion about Allah.' Though they commit the most atrocious of deeds and eschew noble conduct. If they really had a good opinion about Allah, they would be equally good in their conduct."

These people should take heed of what the Prophet's Companion Ibn Mas`ûd said: "The most wanton person is the one who sees his sins to be like a fly that alights upon his nose that he can just brush away. Would that it were true. The believer, on the other hand, sees his sins to be like a mountain about to fall down on him. Therefore, he is scared and takes stock of himself."

A Muslim should always be in a state of both hope and fear. He should never let his fear overwhelm him and make him despair of Allah's mercy. He should never become so overwhelmed by hope that he disregards the consequences of his bad deeds. He needs to have the hope for Allah's reward and forgiveness that will inspire him to do good and to repent for his sins. He needs to have the fear of Allah's punishment and wrath that will inspire them to shun evil and be conscious of his duties.

The people who use Allah's mercy as an excuse to commit sins should fear being addressed by the following verses of the Qur'ân: "Do those who plan evil (deeds) feel secure that Allah will not cause the earth to swallow them or that punishment may not overtake them from whence they do not perceive? Or that He will not seize them in their going to and fro so that there be no escape for them?" [Sûrah al-Nahl: 45-46]

The Prophet (peace be upon him) warned his Companions against committing even the most minor of sins. He said to them: "Avoid even the most trivial of sins, for they can gather up upon a man until they destroy him." [Musnad Ahmad (2808)]

In one narration it is related that the Prophet (peace be upon him) then said: "Indeed, the most trivial sins, when they are taken up by someone, they lead to his ruin." [Musnad Ahmad (22302)]

Trivial sins are those that people generally pay little regard to, so they do not seek to avoid them. However, we are warned that if someone commits them excessively, they will be his ruin. How, then, should we think the effects will be of trivializing major sins? We ask Allah to protect us and guide us.

By Sheikh Khâlid Husayn

Actions Are Only According To Intentions - Bukhari

The Prophet (upon him be peace) said:

"Actions are only according to intentions, and a person receives only what he has intended. Therefore, whoever’s emigration is for Allah and His Messenger, his emigration is [truly] for Allah and His Messenger. And whoever’s emigration is for any worldly gain or a woman he is to wed, then his emigration is for what he emigrated."
(Bukhari, Muslim)

This hadith addresses one of the most important aspects of Islam—sincere intention in one's worship. The general meaning of the hadith is that a person should set aright his intention at the beginning of every action. The entitlement of reward for an action depends on a person's intention for performing that action. If an action is carried out with sincerity, it is rewarded by Allah, otherwise it is done in vain. Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal said that the fundamentals of Islam are based on three hadiths: this hadith, the hadith of 'A'isha (may Allah be pleased with her), "Whoever innovates something reprehensible in this religion of ours which does not belong to it, is rejected" (hadith 213), and the hadith of Nu'man ibn Bashir (may Allah be pleased with him) transmitted by Imam Muslim in his Sahih, "The lawful is clear and the unlawful is clear..."

It has been mentioned that the hadith of intention was narrated regarding a person who emigrated from Makka to marry a woman by the name of Umm Qays, who had stipulated his emigration. Hence, he became known as Muhajir Umm Qays, or "The Emigrator for Umm Qays." However, hadith scholars consider this to be an unsubstantiated opinion and say that the hadith was said as a general exhortation for those who were emigrating, and the incident with Umm Qays took place much later.

Niyya, which means to intend, desire, or will something, is a function of the heart, not the tongue. Through niyya, a person distinguishes the nature of the action he is to perform (i.e., an obligatory or supererogatory prayer; an optional or make-up fast, etc.), as well as its purpose (i.e., spending to show off to others or spending to please Allah and spread His religion). Scholars have explained the first segment of the hadith, "Actions are only according to intentions," as referring to how an action can only be considered religiously valid if done with a sound intention. For instance, a person's fast, which includes abstaining from food, drink, and sexual intercourse from dawn to sunset, will only be considered valid if he had intended to fast for the sake of fasting and not, for instance, because he did not have the time to eat during a busy work day. The second portion of the hadith, "a person receives only what he has intended," refers to the reward a person will gain for a soundly intended action. Another explanation of the two statements is that the first portion refers to the entitlement of reward and the second serves to emphasize and further clarify the first.

With regard to intention, an action done purely for Allah's sake is undoubtedly superior to one that is coupled with a desire to gain something worldly (e.g., a pilgrim who makes the pilgrimage for Allah's sake but also intends to trade while in Makka [a permissible action]). However, if the motive for performing an act of worship is mixed with ostentation, even to the slightest degree, then the action will not be accepted by Allah (see also hadith 80 and 191). Noble scholars such as the Companion Abu 'l-Darda' (may Allah be pleased with him) and Hasan al-Basri and Sa'id ibn al-Musayyib (may Allah be pleased with them) are of the opinion that actions mixed with ostentation will not be accepted by Allah the Exalted.

What happens if an action is started with a pure intention, but the notion of ostentation occurs afterwards? If it is a fleeting notion and does not persist in one's heart then it will not cause any harm. However, if it is entertained and allowed to rest in one's heart, then there are two opinions about this. Imam Ahmad and Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on them) have expressed hope that the person will still be rewarded based on his initial intention in spite of the entry of ostentation while performing the action. However, Ibn Jarir al-Tabari, the renown exegete of the early fourth century ah, explains that it depends on the type of action.

For example, if it is a comprehensive action, such as salat, fasting, or pilgrimage, which requires an initial intention, and if its prerequisites and integrals are met, then the action is considered complete, then ostentation creeping in the middle of this action will not harm it. If, however, the action is not of this type but rather a separate action not consisting of prerequisites and integrals, such as recitation of the Qur'an, remembrance of Allah, or teaching, then the intention will have to remain pure and free from ostentation throughout the action in order to be valid. Hence, actions of this second category require a renewal of the intention in order for them to yield reward.

As for unsought praise a person receives (on some accomplishment), it is not blameworthy, even if one feels happiness about it. The Messenger of Allah (may Allah be pleased with him) described this praise and honor as "Advanced glad tidings [from Allah] for the believer" (Muslim).

The scholars have stated that it is recommended that authors begin their works with this hadith (on intention), as have Imam Bukhari and many others. By doing this, the author reminds himself and the reader to correct their intentions for writing, reading, and studying the book (Jami' al-'ulum wa 'l-hikam, Mirqat al-Mafatih).

[A] From this narration, it is also understood that any permissible action, however mundane, can be a source of reward for a person if soundly intended. For instance, if a person eats, drinks, sleeps, or exercises, and intends that he is undertaking these essential activities to remain healthy and active to worship Allah each one of these activities will be a source of reward for him and thus blessed.

Source: Provisions for the Seekers