SURATUL JUMUA' (62) - Scheme Of Work - Ramadhan 1425 · SURATUL JUMUA’ (62) SCHEME OF WORK FOR...

SURATUL JUMUA’ (62)

SCHEME OF WORK FOR THE MONTH OF RAMADHAN

1425

OCTOBER 2004 www.hujjat-workshop.org

CONTENTS PAGE Scheme of Work for the month 3 Suratul Jumua’ 6 Aya 1 7 Al-Malik 8 Al-Quddoos 11 Al-Azeez 13 Al-Hakeem 15 The teacup 16 Aya 2 17 Rasulullah (S.A.W.) 19 The Qur’an 21 Aya 3 25 Aya 4 28 Tawheed (7 stages) 28 Shukr 34 Aya 5 37 Aya 6,7,8 38 Death 38 Aya 9 45 Salatul Jumua’ 45 Day of Friday 46 Aya 10 48 Zhikr 48 Aya 11 50 Self Development 50 The month of Ramadhan 58 Sermon of Rasulullah (S.A.W.) 60 Sawm (Fasting) 62 Sayyida Khadija (A.S.) 65 Imam Hasan (A.S.) 67 Battle of Badr 71 Imam Ali (A.S.) – Shahadat 73 Laylatul Qadr 76 Suratul Qadr 77 Eidul Fitr 81 Sample Worksheets 83

SCHEME OF WORK Date Topics For Lesson Teaching tips Suggested

Activities

30 Sha’ban

Discuss the asserting of the first of the month by sighting of the moon. Maybe introducing Dua to be recited on sighting. Recitation of Suratul Jumua’

Lunar calendar, Qur’anic aya 2:189 diff between solar & lunar, concept of hijra calendar

Phases of moon, lunar calendar months and solar calendar months on concentric circles…

1 Ramadhan

Sermon of the Prophet (S.A.W.) Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a (focus on correct makharij and tajweed)

Focus on best deed – keeping away from Muharramaat

Terminology Resolution oath to keep away from Muharramaat

2 Ramadhan

Concept of sawm Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Benefits of Suratul Jumu’a

Masails of sawm – times- imsak, fajr & iftaar Duas of sehri & iftaar

Worksheets on that which breaks a fast

3 Ramadhan

Sawm cont……. Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation.

Masails of travelling?

Worksheet on masails.

4 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation Understanding of 1st aya

AL-Malik AL-Quddoos Understanding through stories

Worksheets on Al-Malik & AL-Quddoos

5 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Understanding of 1st aya

Al-Azeez Al-Hakeem Understanding

Worksheets on AL-Azeez & Al-Hakeem

6 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Understanding of 2nd aya

Rasulullah (S.A.W.) answer to dua of P Ibraheem (A.S.) Concept of dua

Dua worksheet

7 Ramadhan


Rasulullah (S.A.W.) 4 duties fulfilled – Recitation of book, purification, teaching, wisdom..,

Worksheet on Qur’an

8 Ramadhan


The Qur’an – basic details, learning skills…..

Worksheets on the Qur’an

9 Ramadhan

Eve of wafat of Sayyida Khadija (A.S.)

Sayyida Khadija (A.S.) 93:8

Support of orphans in her name…… Make sadaqa boxes….

10 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Understanding of 3rd aya

Message of Qur’an for all times. Example through Qur’an and science.

Worksheets on Planets in orbit – Suratu Yaseen… 36:38-40

11 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Understanding of 4th aya

Concept guidance (religion) being a fadhl (grace) and shukr

Worksheet on guidance

12 Ramadhan


Shukr done by utilising the guidance

Worksheet on Shukr

13 Ramadhan


The Qur’an as a book of guidance – to be utilised

Worksheet on differentiation between utilising and ‘papers on donkeys’

14 Ramadhan

Eve of Wiladat of Imam Hasan (A.S.)

Imam Hasan (A.S.) Card to parents

15 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Understanding of ayaat 6-8

Concept of death not being annihilation – Baqiyatus Saalihaat

Worksheet on Baaqiyatus Saalihaat

16 Ramadhan

Eve of victory of Battle of Badr Battle of Badr Worksheets on Battle of Badr

17 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Importance of Laylatul Qadr

Qur’an + Ma’sumeen (Hadith Thaqalayn)

Worksheet on Ghadeer sermon

18 Ramadhan

Eve of Shabe Zarbat – Imam Ali (A.S.) + Laylatul Qadr

Imam Ali’s (A.S.) will

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19 Ramadhan

Imam Ali (A.S.) Discuss writing of one’s thoughts, aspirations for loved one’s taking extracts from Imam’s will

Writing of aspirations e.g. the world to be a better place, zhuhur of Imam Zamana (A.S.)………..

20 Ramadhan

Eve of shahadat of Imam Ali (A.S.) + Laylatul Qadr

Imam Ali (A.S.) -

21 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Explanation of aya 9

Importance of Jumu’a. Talk of Juma’tul Widaa to come

Worksheet on Jumua’

22 Ramadhan

Laylatul Qadr Laylatul Qadr -

23 Ramadhan


Importance of Zhikr

Worksheet on Zhikr

24 Ramadhan


Prioritising the aakhira in life

Worksheet on priorities in life

25 Ramadhan

Recitation of Suratul Jumu’a and memorisation. Overall look at concepts of Suratul Jumua’

Discussion on lessons learnt from Suratul Jumua

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26 Ramadhan

Review of the month Discussing resolutions for next year

Making Eid cards

27 Ramadhan

Eve of Jumu’atul Widaa Preparation for Eidul Fitr

Look at zakatul Fitr and sile raham – remembering family and friends if only with a card, e-mail…………

Making Eid cards

28 Ramadhan

Dua Wida & review of month Look at extracts from the dua

Illustrate extracts of Dua Widaa

29 Ramadhan

Eve of Eid ul Fitr Eid Amals Amals

SURATUL JUMUA’

Suratul Jumua’ consists of 12 ayaat in 2 Arkaan (sections). It was revealed in Makka and is the 62nd sura of the Qur'an. It is recommended to be recited on Thursday night (Laylatul Jumua’) and on Friday especially in the Zhuhr & Asr prayers. It is one of the recommended suras for the 1st rakaat of Salaatul Jumua’. Benefits If the Sura is recited every morning and evening it will keep the reciter safe from the 'whisperings' (was waas) of Shaytaan. It is a means for forgiveness of sins and also protection from danger.

SURATUL JUMUA’ (62)

بسم اهللا الرحمن الرحيم دوس العزيز الحكيميسبح لله ما في السماوات وما في الأرض الملك الق

Whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth declares the glory of Allah, the King, the Holy, the Mighty, the Wise.

الكتاب ويزآيهم ويعلمهم و الذي بعث في الأميين رسولا منهم يتلو عليهم آياتهه والحكمة وإن آانوا من قبل لفي ضلال مبين

He it is Who raised among the inhabitants of Mecca an Messenger from among themselves, who recites to them His communications and purifies them, and teaches them the Book and the Wisdom, although they were before certainly in clear error,

م وآخرين منهم لما يلحقوا بهم وهو العزيز الحكي And others from among them who have not yet joined them; and He is the Mighty, the Wise.

ذلك فضل الله يؤتيه من يشاء والله ذو الفضل العظيم That is Allah's grace; He grants it to whom He pleases, and Allah is the Lord of mighty grace.

الحمار يحمل أسفارا بئس مثل القوم مثل الذين حملوا التوراة ثم لم يحملوها آمثل الذين آذبوا بآيات الله والله لا يهدي القوم الظالمين

The likeness of those who were charged with the Taurat, then they did not observe it, is as the likeness of the ass bearing books, evil is the likeness of the people who reject the communications of Allah; and Allah does not guide the unjust people.

الناس فتمنوا الموت إن آنتم زعمتم أنكم أولياء لله من دونقل يا أيها الذين هادوا إن صادقين

Say: O you who are Jews, if you think that you are the favorites of Allah to the exclusion of other people, then invoke death If you are truthful.

لا يتمنونه أبدا بما قدمت أيديهم والله عليم بالظالمين و And they will never invoke it because of what their hands have sent before; and Allah is Aware of the unjust.

فينبئكم ملاقيكم ثم تردون إلى عالم الغيب والشهادةقل إن الموت الذي تفرون منه فإنه بما آنتم تعملون

Say: (As for) the death from which you run away, that will surely overtake you, then you shall be sent back to the Knower of the unseen and the seen, and He will inform you of that which you did.

يا أيها الذين آمنوا إذا نودي للصلاة من يوم الجمعة فاسعوا إلى ذآر الله وذروا البيع كم إن آنتم تعلمونذلكم خير ل

O you who believe! when the call is made for prayer on Friday, then hasten to the remembrance of Allah and leave off trading; that is better for you, if you know.

ثيرافضل الله واذآروا الله آ فإذا قضيت الصلاة فانتشروا في الأرض وابتغوا من علكم تفلحونل

But when the prayer is ended, then disperse abroad in the land and seek of Allah's grace, and remember Allah much, that you may be successful.

ند الله خير من اللهو وإذا رأوا تجارة أو لهوا انفضوا إليها وترآوك قائما قل ما ع ومن التجارة والله خير الرازقين

And when they see merchandise or sport they break up for It, and leave you standing. Say: What is with Allah is better than sport and (better) than merchandise, and Allah is the best of Sustainers.

AYA 1 بسم اهللا الرحمن الرحيم

دوس العزيز الحكيميسبح لله ما في السماوات وما في الأرض الملك القWhatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth declares the glory of Allah, the King, the Holy, the Mighty, the Wise. Every existent, without exception, glorifies Allah and is submissive to that which Allah has set forth for it. According to hadith once the people heard the pebbles in the Prophet's (S.A.W.) hand praising Allah. They could understand the praise of the pebbles, but this praise was such that the human ears were quite unfamiliar with it. It was in the pebbles' own language, not in any human language. Hence, it is clear that the pebbles possess perception, although of course according to their existential capacity. The human being who considers himself to be the source of all kinds of perception, thinks that other things are devoid of it, but that is not a fact, although it is true that the human being has a higher degree of it. Being veiled, we are unaware of the perception of other things and their praising Allah, and think that there is no such thing. The cause of all that occurs in the world is the manifestation of Allah's glory. Everything is from Him and everything returns to Him. The praise of any kind of excellence is actually the praise of Allah. When you eat something and say how delicious it is, you are praising Allah unconsciously. Whatever there is, it is a manifestation of Allah's glory. The one who understands this knows that he/she and his/her intellect are also a manifestations of Allah's glory.

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THE KING Al-Malik conveys the meaning of ‘One who is free, by virtue of His own merits and characteristics from depending on anything in existence whilst everything in existence depends on Him.’ In other words, nothing in existence can do without Him, whereas everything that exists derives it’s existence from Him or because of Him. Everything/everyone is His. He can exercise His authority on anything /anyone under His possession. He is the one and only real King who will remain forever ruling not only over bodies or physical existences but over the heart and souls too. A land owner is ‘maalik’ of the land – one who is legally bound to obey the king – the malik with regard to land related laws whereas the opposite is not possible. In the Qur’an, Allah describes Himself as the Owner of the whole domain saying: åÕFäräM æÅìÀê¿ ò¹ô¼åÀô»A åªølæÄäM äË åÕFäräM æÅä¿ ò¹ô¼åÀô»A ÓêMæÛåM ê¹ô¼åÀô»A ê¹ê»Bä¿ ìÁåÈé}¼»A ø½å³

“Say! (O Muhammad) O Allah! The Master of the kingdom; You give the kingdom to whomsoever You wish and You take away the kingdom from whom so ever You wish…...” Suratu Ali Imran 3:26 The aim is to be aware that Allah is the sole and ultimate authority in both creation and legislation. Everything is the outcome of His creation and is held by Him. It must be remembered that the kingdom in question is not just the temporary glory of the world. In Suratul Mulk, Allah says:

èjæÍêfä³ ëÕæÏäq þ½ó· Ó}¼ä§ ääÌåÇ äË k ó¹ô¼åÀô»A êÊêfäÎøI æÐêhú»A òºäj{JäM

¢ õÝäÀä§ åÅänæYòA æÁó¸íÍòA æÁó·äÌó¼æJäÎê» äÑÌ{ÎäZô»AäË äPæÌäÀô»A äµò¼äa æÐêhú»A

åiæÌå°ä¬ô»A ålæÍølä¨ô»A äÌåÇ äË

“Blessed is He in whose hands is the kingdom and He has power over all things; It is He who created death and life that He may test you – as to which of you does the best of deeds; and He is the Honourable, the Forgiving.” Suratul Mulk 62-1,2 From these ayaat of the Qur’an, we see that Allah refers to death and life as creations and He alone controls both.

Namrud addressing Prophet Ibraheem (A.S.) said:

“I am your great lord” - Ó}¼æ§äôÜA åÁó¸ìIäi BäÃòA

Prophet Ibraheem (A.S.) replied:

“My Lord gives life and death” - OæÎêÀåÍ äË ÏøÎæZåÍ æÏðIäi

Namrud said he could do that as well. He called 2 men and ordered one to be killed and the other to be spared. “I give life and death.” - OæÎê¿óA äË ÏøÎæYóA BäÃòA

Prophet Ibraheem (A.S.) told him to raise the one whom he had killed. Namrud had no answer. Applying Al-Malik to our lives means to be able to have kingship (total control) of our nafs. The acquisition of Mulk means to have authentic power. one that perceives meaningfulness and purpose in every aspect of creation and ‘amr’ of Allah. (No grief nor sadness, no fear). It has 3 main aspects – Hayaat (Immortality), Nur (radiance), Sukun (Contentment). It means iving to die and not dying to live. It allows one to discriminate between right and wrong and to question the purpose of existence thus transforming one’s situation. As Imam Husayn (A.S.) said “ Life is nothing but hijra and jihad.” A prince once asked a wise man whom he admired if there was anything he could do for him. “How can you possibly ask me that when I have two servants who are your masters?” the wise man replied The prince asked: “Who are these two?” The wise man responded: “Inappropriate anger and desires. I have conquered them while they have conquered you. I rule over them while they rule over you!” There is an anecdote about a man who once died and in the next world met a number of souls, some of whom he knew and liked and some he knew and disliked. But there was one person there whom he did not know and he could not bear. Everything he said infuriated him and disgusted him- his manner, his habits, his laziness, his insincere way of speaking....and it seemed to him that he could even see the man's thoughts and feelings; in fact he could see all his life.

He asked the others who this impossible person was. They answered: "Up here we have very special mirrors which are quite different from those in the world you came from. This man is yourself." We must always put ourselves in the position of how others see us, hear us and experience our daily behaviour. When we do that we are seeing ourselves through their eyes. We are then in control of ourselves.

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THE HOLY

Al-Quddoos is derived from the word ‘quds’ meaning purity. It means purity in all aspects. That is to say that Allah is pure and free from all flaws, defects, errors, drawbacks, faults…. He is above all human weaknesses. It means the One who is so pure and holy that His characteristics cannot be perceived by the senses. The human being is by nature averse to everything that he/she perceives to be defective or faulty and a human being is by nature inclined towards absolute perfection. Although people vary regarding their identification and perception of perfection, each of us having perceived something as an ideal, turns towards it. When we find something better or higher or attention diverts – If we ponder for a moment at the perfection of our Rabb, we will realise that the search is over for perfection lies only with Him. When we have acknowledged His perfection and purity, it evokes in us reverence. When we stand before Him especially during Salaa it must be with cleanliness, tahara, discipline and humility and behaviour that befits one who is The Holy. It is reported that the great ‘alim – Muqaddis Ardebeli (A.R.) never stretched his legs, even when he slept. Never did he explain this peculiar habit. In the last moment of life, he had no choice, but to stretch his legs for one who is about to depart from this world is to have his legs outstretched, facing Qibla. The family and friends heard Ardebeli utter this to Allah: “Forgive me, for my stretched legs are but a necessity at this time. I never stretched them before for fear of disrespecting You, for I know that You are present, always. Forgive me, for now I must.” How does one apply Al-Quddoos to one’s life? Firstly, we must understand what perfection is for Al-Quddoos is purity in all aspects – in other words perfection. In the world we can often distinguish perfection of things e.g. a perfect apple is identified by it’s flavour, colour, delicacy, shape but the most

difficult task is to define is a perfect human being. Because our current understanding of progress in perfection is to control the environment, it produces a competition that affects every aspect of our life. In this one person’s gain in this power is another’s loss. Sadly all our institutions display this power – it shapes our economics – our existence – Money is a symbol of external power – those who have the most have the most ability to control their environment and those within it – Anything we fear to lose – a home, a car, a person’s affection – are all symbols of external power. External power is pursued by the ‘ego’ – it is the go which judges, manipulates, exploits….Spiritual intelligence shows us another kind of power – one that perceives meaningfulness and purpose in every aspect of creation and ‘amr’ of Allah. (No grief nor sadness, no fear. It has 3 main aspects – Haya (Immortality), Nur (radiance), Sukun (Contentment). It means the development of all three types of intelligence – IQ – Rational, logical, rule bound thinking – EQ (Emotional intelligence) - Habit bound, emotional thinking and SQ (Spiritual intelligence) – the thinking with which we address meaning, direction and value to our actions. He most important being SQ which makes us respond to the Qur’an allowing us to witness janna and jahannam on earth and that which takes us closer to Allah. So perfecton and purity is the ability in a person to bring higher vision and value to others and showing them how to use it; in other words a person who motivates others. He/she is incapable of making anyone or anything a victim; one who does not use any force against another….All our Prophets and Ma’sumeen were perfect human beings. They taught us with that which awakens in us the recognition of truth.

ålæÍølä¨ô»A

THE MIGHTY 59:23

The root word of this attribute is ‘izz’ meaning might, power, strength, victory and elevation. Al- Aziz is the one Who Alone has all honour, He is never humiliated – neither imagination nor intellect can conceive Him. He can never be harmed, He is always victorious. It also means The Incomparable. The Prophet (S.A.W.) used to say “I seek refuge with Your Might, for You Who is the One and only God who never dies, while jinn and humans die”. The battle of Badr illustrates the manifestation of Al-Aziz in those who sincerely believed in Him. In Suratu Aali Imraan, aya 122, Allah says: “And indeed Allah assisted you at Badr when you were weak, so be careful (to your duty) to Allah so that you may be of the thankful ones. When you said to the believers ‘Does it not suffice you that your Lord should assist you with three thousand angels sent down.. “

The battle of Badr was the first of the great battles of Islam. When the Prophet heard the news that there was a trade caravan going to Syria from Makka under the leadership of Abu Sufyan he sent two men to gather information about it. It was discovered that it was a large caravan in which all the Makkans had shares. The Quraysh had decided to put all their savings into it and use the profits on arms, horses and other items of war to use against the Muslims. The news was disturbing. The Prophet (S.A.W.) left Madina with 313 men, 2 horses and 70 camels to go to Badr which was a stopping point for the caravans. The Quraysh had confiscated all the property of all the Muslims who had left Makka for Madina and the Prophet therefore decided to confiscate the property of the caravan in compensation. Abu Sufyan feared an attack from the Muslims and sent a messenger to Makka telling them of his fears. On receiving the message, an army of 1000 men, 100 horses and 700 camels under the leadership of Abu Jahl left Makka to go to Badr. Meanwhile Abu Sufyan took a different route back to Makka avoiding Badr. Once he was back in Makka he called Abu Jahl back but Abu Jahl was too proud and wanted to crush the Muslims with his large army. The two armies met at Badr on 17th Ramadhan 2 A.H.

In the beginning as per Arab custom, single combat (one to one) took place. The famous Quraysh warriors Utbah, Shayba and Walid came to challenge three ‘Ansars’ from Madina. The Quraysh refused to fight any of the ‘Ansars’, demanding their ‘equals’ and so the Prophet (S.A.W.) sent Ubayda, Hamza and Imam Ali (A.S.) The three Kuffar were killed (Ubayda was hurt). The Quraysh got disturbed and began attacking en masse. In the thick of the battle the Prophet prayed to Allah. In Surat ul Anfal, aya 9 Allah gave the answer: “When you asked for help from your Lord, He answered you. Indeed I will aid you with a thousand of the angels in rows after rows”. The enemies got frightened and began to retreat. The skill of Imam Ali (A.S.), the other Muslim soldiers and the sight of so many angels struck terror in the enemies hearts. 70 Kuffar were killed including their leader Abu Jahl. Imam Ali (A.S.) killed 36 of them. 14 Muslims were martyred. 70 prisoners were taken by the Muslims. The prisoners were treated with kindness and some became Muslims. In later days some of the prisoners said: “Blessed be the men of Madina, they made us ride whilst they walked, they gave us wheat and bread to eat when there was little of it contenting themselves with plain dates”. The rich prisoners paid ransom and were set free. Others were asked to gain their freedom by teaching 10 Muslims to read and write. To apply Al-Aziz to our lives is to be able to seek victory over the elements that keep us from reaching our full potential.

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THE WISE

Hakeem is a superlative form, a form for the glorification of the One Who has all the Wisdom. Wisdom means the best way of knowing something, utilising the very best of means. Al-Hakeem is One who is Just in His assessments, Rahmaan in the management of affairs, One Who has determined the measure of everything, One Who places everything in it’s right place. When one acknowledges Allah as the Wise, then it follows that he/she will act on His orders without any questions or dispute – that which we call submission. Submission is not the absence of reason, it is a skill in it’s own right, which, when cultivated, allows us to experience the ultimate. The divine Architect through His Wisdom provided us with a road map and guides that illuminate the world’s many winding dark paths, so that we too may reflect His wisdom. Allah in the Qur’an in 2:269 says:

مة فقد أوتي خيرا آثيرا وما يذآر إال أولوا يؤتي الحكمة من يشاء ومن يؤت الحك األلباب

He grants wisdom to whom He pleases, and whoever is granted wisdom, he indeed is given a great good and none but men of understanding mind. The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said: “The apex of wisdom is to have taqwa in Allah” As wisdom increases, goodness increases in a person. He/she desires for others what they desire for themselves. One who applies AL-Hakeem to his/her life is continuously pursuing the acquisition of knowledge and applying it. A young man once said to his father that he was not moved by the heart rendering sermons of the scholars because he did not always find them practising the teachings they preached about. He said:”They teach me to abandon the world but they themselves run after it!” His father replied “It is not wise to turn your attention away from the advice of scholars simply on account of some of their weaknesses and remaining excluded from the benefits of their knowledge. If you shut your eyes the sun cannot show you the way”

THE TEA CUP There was once a couple who were looking to buy something pretty for their house. One day in this beautiful shop they saw a beautiful teacup. "May we see that? We've never seen one quite so beautiful." they said. As the lady handed it to them, the teacup suddenly spoke. "You don't understand," it said. "I haven't always been a teacup. There was a time when I was red and I was clay. My master took me and rolled me and patted me over and over and I yelled out, 'Let me alone', but he only smiled, 'Not yet.' "Then I was placed on a spinning wheel, and suddenly I was spun around and around and around. Stop it! I'm getting dizzy! I screamed. But the master only nodded and said,'Not yet.' Then he put me in the oven. I never felt such heat. I wondered why he wanted to burn me, and I yelled and knocked at the door. I could see him through the opening and I could read his lips as he shook his head, 'Not yet.' Finally the door opened, he put me on the shelf, and I began to cool. 'There, that's better', I said. And he brushed and painted me all over. The fumes were horrible. I thought I would gag. 'Stop it, stop it!' I cried. He only nodded, 'Not yet.' Then suddenly he put me back into the oven, not like the first one. This was twice as hot and I knew I would suffocate. I begged. I pleaded. I screamed. I cried. All the time I could see him through the opening nodding his head saying, 'Not yet.' Then I knew there wasn't any hope. I would never make it. I was ready to give up. But the door opened and he took me out and placed me on the shelf. One hour later he handed me a mirror and I couldn't believe it was me. It's beautiful. I'm beautiful.' 'I want you to remember, then,' he said, 'I know it hurts to be rolled and patted, but if I had left you alone, you would have dried up. I know it made you dizzy to spin around on the wheel, but if I had stopped, you would have crumbled. I knew it hurt and was hot and disagreeable in the oven, but if I hadn't put you there, you would have cracked. I know the fumes were bad when I brushed and painted you all over, but if I hadn't done that, you never would have hardened; you would not have had any colour in your life. And if I hadn't put you back in that second oven, you wouldn't survive for long because the hardness would not have held. Now you are a finished product. You are what I had in mind when I first began with you'. His wisdom always prevails .

AYA 2 الكتاب ويزآيهم ويعلمهم تلو عليهم آياتهو الذي بعث في الأميين رسولا منهم يه

والحكمة وإن آانوا من قبل لفي ضلال مبين He it is Who raised among the inhabitants of Mecca an Messenger from among themselves, who recites to them His communications and purifies them, and teaches them the Book and the Wisdom, although they were before certainly in clear error. RASULULLAH (S.A.W.) – ANSWER TO THE DUA OF IBRAHEEM (A.S.) This aya is the answer to the dua of Prophet Ibraheem (A.S.).

فيهم رسوال منهم يتلو عليهم آياتك ويعلمهم الكتاب والحكمة ويزآيهم إنك ربنا وابعث أنت العزيز الحكيم

Our Lord! and raise up in them a Messenger from among them who shall recite to them Your communications and teach them the Book and the wisdom, and purify them; surely You are the Mighty, the Wise. 2:129 Dua in Arabic means "To call", and "To invoke" and in the Islamic terminology, it means a humble prayer by a modest person to a superior.

سيدخلون جهنم عوني أستجب لكم إن الذين يستكبرون عن عبادتيوقال ربكم اد داخرين

And your Lord says: Call upon Me, I will answer you; surely those who are too proud for My service shall soon enter hell abased. 40:60 Imam Sadiq (A.S.) has said: “Dua” is the shield of a believer. If you keep on knocking the door of Divine Mercy, it will be opened to you.” He also said: “If a person desires something which pleases God too, it will be granted during his lifetime.”

The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said: “Whenever you recite dua, have this impression that what you ask for is at the door.” Othman Ibne Saeed says a man came to Imam Sadiq (A.S.) saying: There are two Quranic verses which I have not comprehended properly. Imam Sadiq (A.S.) said: What are those verses? He said: One of them is 40:60 “Call Me, I will answer you”, for although we offer our duas but there is no answer. Imam (A.S.) asked: Do you think Allah breaks His promise? He said: No. Imam (A.S.) said: “Whoever obeys God’s order and offers his dua properly, they will be answered. He said: “How should I pray?”

Imam (A.S.) said: “First praise Allah, then remember Him and thank Him for His blessings. After that, send salawat on the Prophet (S.A.W.) and his progeny, then confess your sins and ask forgiveness for them. That is the right way for dua. It is impossible that a person asks something from Allah which is suitable and Allah does not grant it. Therefore one should always pray in this way: “Yaa Rabbiy! fulfill my desire if it is in my interest. If delay in fulfilling a wish is advisable, then Allah will delay it for He Himself says: بالخير لقضي إليهم أجلهم فنذر الذين ال ولو يعجل الله للناس الشر استعجالهم يرجون لقاءنا في طغيانهم يعمهون “And if Allah should hasten the evil to men as they desire the hastening on of good, their doom should certainly have been decreed for them.” 10:11 Abul Sabak Kanani quotes Imam Baqer (AS) as saying: “ Allah answers the call of those servants of His who invoke Him often.. Therefore, pray at dawns until sunrise, for the gates of Janna are opened at this time. Daily food is distributed at this time and great needs are met.” Seyed Ibne Tavoos says the days of week are associated with the Imams (AS) and each day we are their guests. Saturday is associated with Rasulullah (SAW). Sunday is associated with Imam Ali (AS) . Monday is associated with Imam Hasan and Imam Husayn (AS). Tuesday is associated with Imam Zainul Abedeen, Imam Baqir and Imam Sadiq (AS). Wednesday is associated with Imam Kadhim, Imam Reza, Imam Javad and Imam Hadi (AS). Thursday is associated with Imam Hasan Askari (A.S.) and Friday is associated with Imam Mehdi (AS) The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said:“The Dua of one who fasts is not rejected.”

RASULULLAH (S.A.W.) This is the man whom the Encyclopaedia Britannica calls the most

successful of all religious personalities of the world. A man who moved not only empires, dynasties, legislations and armies but millions of human beings in the one third of the then inhabited world. More than that he moved beliefs and nufoos (souls). His ambition was entirely devoted to one cause – that the human being would recognise his/her true potential and recognise their Rabb through themselves.

Often due to media manipulation or preconceived ideas we fail to recognise real truths. The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said: “If you have a pearl in your hands and people call it a peanut, it will remain a pearl.”

He was born an orphan but belonged to the noblest of tribes. His genealogy was accepted as the most righteous yet he would say: “No honour is nobler than humility and kindness (rahma) ” Imam Ali (A.S) has said: “Humility is the product of knowledge, self-conceit poisons the mind impedes progress and ruins greatness. Humility is one of the nets spread by real greatness whist boasting comes from small minds.” The Prophet (S.A.W.) called Rahmatul lil Aalemeen by Allah. His opponents created enmity with him, wronged him, spoke ill of him and harassed him – yet he would say: “Oblige your brother by warning him, correct him by showing favours and giving favours.

He was always the first to greet others, avoided sitting at prominent places in gatherings so much so that visitors had trouble identifying who he was. He visited the poor and the sick. No housework was too low or undignified for him. He was especially fond of children yet when it came to bravery there was no parallel. He instructed that no war was to be initiated unless one was attacked first and if the enemy lost not to chase the fleeing soldiers. When battle was necessary he would first address the enemy with good words hoping their humanity would shine through.

He taught that both genders were created for the same purpose – the recognition of their Creator and therefore the realisation of their full potential as human beings – but have been given different tools with which to fulfill their common goal. Indeed, their physiological, emotional, and psychological differences are a result of their divergent spiritual mandate. In secular societies even today if a woman marries, she changes her name. She has no essential existence - A name is significant - she does not possess

sufficient value or credit to have a name. When his daughter used to enter the room he would stand for her in respect…..

They tried to bribe him, intimidate him but even when faced with united enemies who accused him with infidelity, threatened him with death and destruction – he stood firm – not slowing his activities but continuing with the same zeal.

A teacher is recognised through his students. His most perfect student – Imam Ali (A.S.) describes the Prophet (S.A.W.) – “In the past I had a brother in God, the insignificance of the world in his eyes made him great in his eyes. He was not ruled by his stomach, he did not wish for what he did not have and he did not seek more of what he did have. He used to keep silent much of the time and when he spoke he silenced all speakers and quenched the thirst of questioners. He was delicate and considered weak, but when an emergency arose, he was a veritable lion of the forest, a viper in the valley. He would not advance an argument unless it was decisive and he would not censure anyone for what he could be excused until he had heard the excuse. He did not complain of a pain until he recovered. He used to say what he would do and not say what he would not do. If he was ever defeated in speech, he was never defeated in silence. He was more eager to listen than to speak. When two things came to him, he would see which was more emotionally desirable and then he would do the contrary.”

There is no reformer greater than the Prophet (S.A.W.). His message withstands the test of time. Normally philosophers and intellectuals find ‘pleasure’ in criticising those of the past. In the case of Rasulullah the intellectual ‘pleasure’ lay in affirming the truth.

All this possible because the revolution of the Prophet (S.A.W.) was an intellectual one – The Arabs thought they had reached the peak of literature even having competitions where the seven most renowned pieces were pinned onto the Ka’ba. (Sab’a muallaqaat). The Prophet (S.A.W.) nailed Suratul Kawthar under them and the best of them looked at it and said “This is not from a human being.”

This personality preached a religion, founded a state, built a nation, laid down a moral code, initiated numberless social and political reforms, established a dynamic and powerful society to practise and represent his teachings, he brought a revolution to the world of human thought and human action for all time using 4 principles:

o Reciting the communications of Allah, Purifying, Teaching them the Qur’an and instilling Wisdom.

THE QUR’AN Ahadith on the excellence of reciting and memorising the Qur’an Imam Sadiq (A.S.) said: "A believer should not die before learning the Qur'an, or trying to learn it." (Usul-e-Kafi, vol.2, Pg.607)

The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: "Those who recite Qur'an and those who listen to it, deserve equal virtuous reward." (Al-Faqih vol4, p.399, Amali-e-Saduq, Ma'iul-Akhbar, p.177-178, Khesal, vol.1, p.7)

The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: "Allah will not punish such heart that contains Qur'an". (Amaali-e-Tusi, vol.1, p.5-6)

Imam Sadiq (A.S.) said "Whoever memorises the Qur'an and inspite of his bad memory works hard to learn it, is entitled to a double reward one for the memorization and the other for the hard work." (Kaafi, vol.2, p.606, Sawaab-ul-Aamaal, p.127)

The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: ”The number of stations in the heaven conform with the number of verses in the Quran. When a reciter of the Quran will enter the heaven, he will be told: “Ascend and need, for every verse has a station, There is no station above the station of one who knows the whole Quran by heart.” (Bihar ul Anwar Vol 92 P.22)

Imam Ali (A.S.) has reported that the Prophet (S.A.W.) said: “Reciting the Quran in daily prayers is better than reciting it at other times, and reciting the Quran at other times is better than other forms of remembering Allah. And remembering Allah is better than giving to charity which again is better than fasting. And fasting is a shield against hellfire”. (Bihar ul Anwar Vol 92 P.19)

Reported from Imam Musa bin Ja’fer (al Kadhim) A.S. that the Prophet (S.A.W.) was asked about the verse: “And recite the Qur’an in slow, measured tones” (al Muzzammil V 4). He said: “Pronounce it clearly, do not render it incoherently like scattered pebbles, nor recite it like poetry. Pause at its wonders, and allow it to move your heart. And when you start reciting, you must not be concerned with the ending of the chapter. (Nawadir al Rawandi: 30)

The Prophet (S.A.W.) told Ibn Masood: ”Read it to me”. Ibn Masood said: ”I opened the chapter of ‘al – Nisa’ and when I reached the verse: ”How will it be then, when we bring from every nation a witness, and bring you to witness over all of them” (4:41),I saw tears flowing from his eyes.

Then he said: ”This is enough for the time being”. Then he said: ”Read the Quran long as the hearts are drawn to it and your skins have softened (with awe and fear). When your attention wonders, you are not reading it“. (Biharul Anwar Vol 92 p 216)

The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: “Whenever one of you feels inclined to converse with his creator (i.e. Allah) he should read the Quran”. (Kanzul Ummal Vol 1 p 510)

Basic Details The Qur'an is that which was revealed as the Final message of Allah to Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) during the last 23 years of his life. Every Prophet is granted the power to perform miracles in order to verify the truth of his message.The Qur'an is a standing and continuos miracle for all times and places - A Living Miracle. Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) was amongst the Arabs who were experts in language and literature and the Qur'an challenged them at their own art. There are over 6000 ayaat in the Qur'an in 114 suwer. An aya means various things - a sign, miracle, wonder... An aya in the Qur'an varies from being a single letter (38:1) , a two lettered word (36:1) to over half a page long (2:282). The first ayaat that were revealed were the first five of Suratul Alaq and the last aya was the 4th aya of Suratul Maida : "This day I have perfected your religion for you , completed My favour upon you, and have chosen ISLAM as your religion " This was revealed at Ghadeer e Khum on 18th Dhulhijja 10 a.h. The suwer are of unequal length. The shortest sura is Suratul Kawthar with only 4 ayaat whilst the longest is Suratul Baqara with 286 ayaat covering one twelfth of the Qur'an. All the suwer begin with the phrase Bismillahirrahmanirraheem except Suratut Tawba. Every sura is given a name derived by following one of the following criteria :

i. The complete story of the Prophet appears in that sura e.g. Suratu Yusuf

ii. The important event about it can be found in the sura e.g. Suratul Baqara

iii. The distinguished word in the sura e.g. Suratul Hijr iv. The opening aya of the sura e.g. Suratu Yaseen v. In some cases the name has very little to do with contents of the

suwer. E.g. SUratul ‘Ankabut In this sura there is nothing about the spider. It only talks of the constitution of the spider's web.

Suwer and ayaat are either Makki or Madani according to their place of revelation - Makka or Madina. Makki suwer mainly describe the basic faith whilst Madani deal with the rules for the code of life like salaa, sawm, zaka and khums...This division is not absolute because a Makkan sura may contain some Madinite ayaat and vice versa. e.g. Suratul Anfal revealed in Madina has ayaat 30 -40 revealed in Makka. Each sura is also divided into groups of ayaat called a ruku. The ruku is

indicated by the sign ª : The number on the top denotes the n.o. of the

ruku in the sura. The central number being the number of ayaat in the ruku and the bottom number being the n.o. of ruku in the juz. For convenience of reading the Qur'an has been divided into 30 equal parts - Juz (pl. Ajzaa) without disturbing the original divisions formed by the ayaat and suwer to enable completion of reading in one month. Every juz is further divided into Rub (quarter), Nisf (half) & Thuluth (three quarter). These are written in the margin. The Qur'an is also divided into seven equal sections - Manzil (pl. Manazil) to enable the reader to complete the recitation on one week if so desired. This is written at the bottom of each page. There are four wajib sajadat in the Qur'an ( on hearing or reciting the following 4 ayaat one must perform a sajda). It is not necessary to face qibla, or be in wudhoo...... The sajadat are in the following ayaat : 32:15 Juz 21 41:38 Juz 24 53:62 Juz 27 96:19 Juz 30

There are 10 mustahab sajadat in the Qur'an (on hearing or reciting the ayaat in which they appear it is recommended that one performs sajda). As for wajib sajadat the ayaat are marked in the Qur'an with the word sajda. The 10 ayaat with mustahab sajadat are : 7:206 13:15 16:50 17:109 19:58 22:18 25:60 27:26 38:24 84:21

AYA 3 وآخرين منهم لما يلحقوا بهم وهو العزيز الحكيم

And others from among them who have not yet joined them; and He is the Mighty, the Wise. When asked who the people were that Allah referred to in this aya; Rasulullah (S.A.W.) placing his hand on Salman Al-Farsi (A.R.) said: “Even if faith was near the Pleides * human beings from amongst those would certainly find it.” *On cold winter nights one of the most noticeable star groups is the Pleides, an open star cluster. The unaided eye can see 6 stars, which are all brighter than magnitude 6. It is alleged that in ancient times 7 stars were easily seen, implying that one star has dimmed since then. It is more likely that clearer skies, and better eyesight, account for this legend. It is meant that one need not have been in Makka to benefit from Islam, but that wherever one was, if one desired the truth, one would find it. The term ‘aakhareena’ (i.e. the others), means all the other people who would later embrace Islam. By extension therefore, Islam and thus the Qur’an is for all time. Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said: "The Qur'an is living, its message never dies. It turns like the turn of day and night, it is in motion like the sun and moon. It will embrace the last of us, the way it embraced the first of us ". When the Qur'an was revealed science was in its infancy and many of the theories which are known today and are taken for granted were not even conceivable. Some of the scientific theories revealed in the Qur'an are: Origin of the Earth "Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and earth were joined together ( as one unit of creation ), before we split them asunder. We made from water every living thing - will they not then believe? "

Suratul Ambiya 21:30 Modern theories also say that originally the earth, planets and everything in space were part of a gaseous nebula or cloud which gradually separated. Creation of the earth in 6 periods of time "It is God who has created the heavens, and the earth and all between them in 6 periods of time and is firmly established on the throne (of authority ). You have none besides Him to protect or intercede. Will you not then receive admonition ? He rules from the heavens to the earth, in

the end all will go up to Him on a day the space of which will be a thousand years of reckoning." Suratus Sijda 32:4,5 Geologically the earth's history dating from a gaseous nebula has been divided into 6 eras. Each era covers millions of years. These eras are: 1. When the earth was in a gaseous stage. 2. When the earth had been created but there was no life on it. 3. When early life has developed. 4. When vegetable and vertebrae had been created. 5. When birds and four footed egg laying animals lived. 6. When mammals including man were created. Movement of Celestial bodies "It is He who created the night and the day and the sun and the moon, all move along; each in it's orbit." Suratul Ambiya 21:33 Erosion "They ask you concerning the mountains ! Say : My Lord will uproot them and scatter them as dust, He will leave them as plains smooth and level, nothing curved or crooked will you see in their place ."

Suratu Taha 20:105-107 The geologists know of hundreds of mountains of the past that no longer exist. They have been uprooted completely and scattered on the face of the earth. The Qur'an says that this will be the fate of all the mountains that we see today. Origin of life "And Allah has created every animal from water; Of them there are some that crawl on their bellies, some that walk on two legs and some that walk on four; Allah creates what He wills, for indeed he has power over everything ". Suratun Noor 24:45 "Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we split them asunder. We made from water every living thing - will they not then believe? "

Suratul Ambiya 21:30 All theories about the origin of life accept that the first life was created in water and all living cells have a high proportion of water.

The human being was not the first to be created "Has there not been over the human being a long period of time when he was nothing - not even mentioned ? " Suratud Dahr 76:1 Geologically man was created as the last act of creation. Separation of salt and fresh water "It is He who has made the two seas join and flow together, one palatable and sweet, and the other salty and bitter; and yet He has made a barrier between them - a partition impassable. " Suratul Furqan 25:53 In recent years it has been discovered that under narrow peninsulas and islands fresh water floats on top of salt water. Because of the differences in their specific gravities they never mix together. The famous French oceanographer Mr Jacques Yves Cousteau, who has spent his lifetime on undersea discoveries and is considered an authority on undersea exploration has embraced Islam after his amazing undersea discovery was confirmed by the Qur’an. One day somewhere in deep ocean, Mr Jacques Yves Cousteau was doing some undersea exploration when he discovered that within the salty sea water there were several spring of sweet palatable water. What amazed him most was the fact that the sweet water of the springs was not mingling with the salty water of the sea. For a long time he tried to find plausible excuse for this phenomena, but to no avail. One day when he mentioned it to a Muslim Professor who told him this phenomena simply followed Allah's command as clearly explained in the Qur'an. He then read to Mr Cousteau the following ayaat from the Qur'an. وهو الذي مرج البحرين هذا عذب فرات وهذا ملح أجاج وجعل بينهما برزخا وحجرا محجورا"It is He Who has let free the two bodies of flowing water : One palatable and sweet, and the other salty and bitter; yet has He made a barrier between them, a portion that is forbidden to be passed" 25:53 وجعل بين البحرين حاجزا أإله مع الله بل أآثرهم لا يعلمون

"And He made a separating bar between the two bodies of flowing waters."27:61

مرج البحرين يلتقيان بينهما برزخ لا يبغيان فبأي آلاء ربكما تكذبان"He let free the two bodies of flowing water, meeting together; between them is a barrier which they do not transgress." 55:19-20 Hearing these ayaat he embraced Islam.

AYA 4 ذلك فضل الله يؤتيه من يشاء والله ذو الفضل العظيم

That is Allah's grace; He grants it to whom He pleases, and Allah is the Lord of mighty grace. The aya before states that Allah is Mighty and Wise and therefore knows who to grant His grace to. Nobody can stop another from receiving the grace of Allah. Some poor people came to the Prophet (S.A.W.) and said that the rich had been blessed with wealth and thus could do more good like freeing slaves, giving to charity and performing Hajj... but they could not afford it and therefore could not earn that mush 'thawaab'. The Prophet (S.A.W.) said : "You recite 100x Laa Ilaha Illallah and celebrate the unity- oneness of Allah and it will be better than freeing a slave , or giving away 100 horses ...in the way of Allah " When the rich heard this they began doing the same and the poor once again came to the Prophet (S.A.W.) saying that the rich too were following in what he had instructed. The fadhl (grace) of Allah is therefore guidance (religion) – the knowledge of tawheed. Every Muslim must ask him/herself: What is tawheed? Why do I need tawheed in my life? How do I practically apply it to my life? How we answer these questions will define, more than anything else, who one is and how one lives his/her life. Any human definition of Allah will however be limited to the boundaries of human knowledge. Since Allah is a reality, He must be defined in His terms and not ours for He also created the laws of logic and reason, No matter how sophisticated a machine may be, it cannot tell us about the engineer that created it or about the vision and hidden forces that inspired him/her to create it. Once someone asked Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) to guide him toward Allah, saying that he had been confused by the words of the atheists. Imam asked, "Have you ever travelled by ship?" He answered, "Yes." Imam said: "Did it every happen that the ship sprang a leak and there was nobody to save you from drowning in the waves of the ocean?"

"Yes." Imam continued: "At that dangerous moment and in that state of despair, did you have the feeling that an infinite and almighty power might save you from your terrible fate?" "Yes, that's the way it was." Imam said: "It is Allah Who is the source of reliance and toward Whom human beings look with hope when all doors are closed." Tawheed therefore is the belief in the One and Only God – Allah after rejecting all other idols – physical or mental. Thus the awe inspiring slogan for every Muslim

åÉé}¼»A úÜêA äÉ}»êA òà There is no God except Allah. Tawheed has different levels and degrees. The various stages are: 1. Tawheed in Ibada 2. Tawheed in Sifaat (Attributes of Allah) 3. Tawheed in that none can order or forbid except Allah. 4.Tawheed in that none can benefit or deprive except Allah. 5. Tawheed in trusting none but Allah. 6. Tawheed in ‘amaal (deeds). 7. Tawheed in total devotion to none but Allah

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Tawheed in Ibada’ From the point of view of Islam, every good and beneficial action if performed with a pure niyya is viewed as ibada. The niyya for ibada (worship) must be totally for Allah. Niyya is the longing felt when one feels lonely and helpless and desires to be tied with the Truth to remove the feeling of loneliness and helplessness. The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said: ó½äÀä¨ô»A äÓêÇ äÒìÎðÄ»A ìÆêA äË òÜòA ø½äÀä¨ô»A äÅê¿ ó½äzô òA åÒìÎðÄ»A äË

“And intention is superior to action, or, rather, intention is the complete reality of act itself.” The success or failure of an act depends on the intention with which it is done. Niyya is the base of a deed, according to it one’s deed will either be good or bad, sound or unsound. The word niyya means the aim which

makes one decide to do or say something. It is in this sense that the above hadith applies. Imam Ali (A.S.) has said that if we wish to find out our sincerity that we must compare the salaa we pray in front of people to that which we pray when we are alone. He has also said:“A group of people worship Allah out of desire for reward – that is the ibada of traders. Another group worship Him out of fear – that is the ibada of slaves. Yet another group worship Him out of gratitude – this is the ibada of free human beings.” Tawheed in Ibada is therefore to focus our attention solely towards Allah during Ibada. It helps to understand the recitations especially in salaa thus enabling one to concentrate. Eradication of evil thoughts and suspending the material world for those moments are other means of focusing attention.

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Tawheed in sifaat (attributes) The acquiring of knowledge about the attributes of Allah is closely related to our knowledge of recognition of Allah. The attributes of Allah cannot be separated from Him. e.g. 'Ãlim - The one who is knowledgeable. Whilst a human being acquires knowledge and is still a human being even without knowledge, Allah is knowledge itself. We try to understand Him through His Names but He is far superior to the names. In Suratu Bani Israil 17:110, Allah says: “Say (O Muhammad): Call upon Allah or call upon The Merciful, whichever you call upon, He has the best names…..” The word Allah in the Qur’an is the name of an essence of His 99 beautiful names and qualities like Merciful, Kind, Knowing…... Whatever little information the human being can get about Allah can only be acquired through His names. Otherwise, we have no access. Our whole word in essence is a name of Allah because nothing which exists can come into existence automatically. These qualities and Names are therefore an infra-structure for human akhlaq because in Islam, the human being is the representative of Allah. The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said:

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“Adopt the akhlaq of Allah” Tawheed fis Sifaat – therefore means to be able to first find out His attributes, to study them and then to live them. It must reflect in our day to day conduct in every aspect of our life.

Each name of Allah is a Dua in itself . When reciting any one of His beautiful Names, ponder over them and try to apply them to your life.

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Tawheed in that none can order or forbid except He Everything in this world is based on a precise calculation, logic and law. When we use an appliance..etc.. we follow the instructions of the manufacturer to ensure it’s well being and to be able to attain it’s full potential. We will not follow the instructions of anyone else. Similarly, we are the creation of Allah – to accomplish our full potential, the Creator has provided us with a blueprint, a road map which illuminates all the winding dark paths of the world in the form of the Qur’an and the Ahlulbayt. Imam Ali (A.S.) says:Do not pretend to obey Allah; but obey him sincerely and faithfully. Let this desire of obedience be engraved in your mind and be deep rooted in your hearts. Let it rule over your words and deeds."

Sermon 203-Nahjul Balagha

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Tawheed in that none can give benefit or deprive except He The aim is to be aware that Allah is the sole and ultimate authority in both creation and legislation. Everything is the outcome of His creation and is held by Him. Nothing and no-one can benefit or deprive us unless Allah wills it. Allah has created the world according to a precise and specific scheme in the framework of which a set role has been assigned to certain phenomena in the origination of others. Those phenomena are completely and unquestioningly submissive to His command while fulfilling that role and never rebelling against His orders in the slightest. The Quran says: "The sun, the moon and the stars are all at His command. Be aware that creation belongs only to God; it is His penetrating command that in its exalted purity creates the world and all it contains." Suratul A’raaf - 7:54 However, he Creator Who has assigned a particular effect to every factor and cause is able to neutralize and suspend that effect at any instant. Just as one command brought the order of the universe into existence, another command robs phenomena of their customary effect. Thus, the Quran in Suratul Ambiya 21:68-69 says: "They said, 'Burn him (Ibraheem) and help your gods, if you are going to do anything.' We commanded the fire, 'be a comfort and peace to Ibraheem’. Although the powerful attraction exerted by the sun and the earth prevails over a vast space, both bodies are submissive to His will.

However, it is very easy to fall into thinking that this means that all actions of the human being are pre-destined. Imam Ja'far Sadiq (A.S.) has said: "Neither determinism nor free will; the truth of the matter lies between these two." So there is free will, but it is not all-embracing, because to possess that would be equivalent to assigning Allah a partner in His acts. The free will that man enjoys is willed by the Creator of nature, and Allah's command manifests itself in the form of the norms that rule man and nature, natural relations, causes, and factors.

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Tawheed in trusting none but Allah “And put your trust in Allah, and Allah is sufficient as a protector” Suratul Ahzaab 33:3 “…And so Allah loves those who trust (Him). Suratu Aali Imran 3:159 Human beings have many faculties at their disposal. Eiman (faith) is not often seen as a basic human faculty – it is often seen as an absence of reason. However, it is a skill in it’s own right, which when cultivated, allows the human being to experience the ultimate. We are all born with eiman – it is neither acquired nor taught – it is a natural state. “We offered the trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to carry it and were afraid of it and the human being carried it….” Suratul Ahzab 33:72 This trust is a task that the morally conscious never forget. Trust is the basis of faith. e.g. fairy tale told to child – not to be confused with childhood naivety or gullibility – it is a faculty that recognises truths that are infinitely incomprehensibly greater than ourselves. “Tawakkul means entrusting all matters to Allah and relying upon His trusteeship.” “tawakkul upon Allah means the severance of the abd of all hopes and expectations from others creations of Allah.” This is not to say that we can function on trust alone. Once we experience eiman through trust – reason becomes a tool to help us express the essence of Allah Trust is not passive – it does not mean sitting back and accepting events as they happen. . e.g. camel tied and then trust for safekeeping, dawa and dua. It means knowing that however much effort one invests, all blessings originate from Allah and ‘trusting’ that Allah always does what is good and right. True trust does not waver – even if things do not workout the way we like. It is not blind faith of ignorance – rather it is the uncompromising belief in the absolute truth. Trust in Allah is the purest expression of love for Him.

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Tawheed in ‘amal (deeds) This means that in all our actions there should be no riya' or suma'. Riya' is doing something so as to be seen by others (showing off) and Suma' is doing something so that when people hear of it, they praise it. Tawheed in ‘amal (deeds) means to only obey the Creator and serve His creation In Hadith e Qudsi, Allah says: “I am the best of partners” This means that if we were to do anything with a mixed niyya (partly for Allah and partly for someone else), He will give it all to the other person. Thus tawheed in ‘amal is in a nutshell to revolve all actions around Allah.

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Tawheed in total devotion to none but Allah The pinnacle of eiman for one who believes in tawheed is to be totally devoted to Allah. In Suratu Aali Imran 3:31, Allah says: “Say, (O Muhammad) If you love Allah, then follow me, Allah will love you and will forgive your sins; Indeed Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” The human being is programmed within his/her fitrat to love perfection. ‘fitrat is the basic conciousness which is common to us all. The source of the word ‘fitr’ in the ‘Arabic language is from ‘fatar’ which relates to a crack or break in the ground when a seed is germinated and a plant begins to grow out of the earth. If we allow ‘fitr’ to manifest itself it tells us clearly what is right and wrong. One in love sees nothing but his/her beloved – Why then do we not see Allah in everything when all creation does His tasbeeh? – “”Whatever is in the heavens and the earth do the ‘subhaan’ of Allah…” Suratul Jumu’a - 62:1 We see the effect of the love of Allah in those close to Him – e.g. Dua of Sayyida Aasiya in Qur’an, Dua Kumayl, Imam Ali’s search for shahada, Dua ‘Arafa, Munajaat of Imam Ali Zaynul ‘Aabedeen (A.S.) – “Ilaahiy! Who would want another in place of You after having tasted the sweetness of Your love?….. I ask from You love for You, love for those who love You, love for every amal (deed) which will bring me near You, and that You make Yourself more Beloved to me that anything other than You…….” This devotion is graphically demonstrated by Imam Husayn (A.S.) and his family and friends on the plains of Karbala. Every mother in Karbala demonstrated this by putting aside her motherly love (one of the strongest bond humankind has) for the love of Allah and encouraging their children to give up their lives for Allah.

Shukr (Thankfulness) You should know that thankfulness means appreciation of the ni'mah (favour, blessing, bounty) provided by the Provider and the appearance of the effects of this appreciation in the heart, on the tongue, and in bodily acts and movements. As to the heart, the effects there are of such nature as humility, awe, love and the like. As to the tongue, the effects there appear as praise and glorification. As to the bodily members, the effects consist of obedience, the use of the bodily members for the good pleasure of the Provider and the like. Khwajah 'Abd Allah Ansari says: "Shukr is a name for the knowledge (marifah) or ni'mah, for it is the means of knowing the Provider". Prophet Dawud (A.S.), said: "O Lord! How can I thank You, for my thankfulness is another bounty (ni'mah) of You that itself requires thanksgiving!" Allah revealed to him: "O Dawud, when you have known that every ni'mah that you enjoy is from Me, you have thanked Me." It should be known that shukr rests on three supports.

i) Firstly, the knowledge (ma'rifah) of the Provider and the attributes. This knowledge does not become perfect unless one understands that all the apparent and hidden bounties are from Allah. All the means and intermediaries, whatever they are, are subject to His law and command.

ii) Secondly, it is a state which is the result of this knowledge, which consists of humility, awe, and delight for the bounty as a gift.. Its sign is that you should not be delighted by the world except for something that causes nearness to Allah.

iii) Thirdly, it is action that results from this state of Shukr. That action is related to the heart, tongue and other members. As to the heart, its action consists of praise and glorification of the Provider, the contemplation of His creation, His acts, the effects of His grace. and His Rahma towards all His creatures. As to the tongue, its action consists of the expression through praising and glorifying and Him and and discharging the duty of al-'amr bi al-ma'ruf wa al-nahy an al-munkar and other duties. As to the bodily members, their thanksgiving action lies in using the outward and inward bounties in obedience, worship and in preventing sin against Allah and violation of His commands. E.g. The eye should be used for studying His creation, reading His book.

Shukr in Hadith:

Rasulullah (S.A.W.) said: 'One who eats food with shukr has a reward like the one who fasts exercising vigilance over himself. The healthy person grateful for his health has a reward like the one who bears his (bodily) afflictions patiently. And one who gives gratefully has a reward similar to the one who bears his deprivation with patience.'

Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said: 'There are three things in whose presence nothing can harm one: Dua in affliction, seeking Allah's forgiveness for one's sins, and thanksgiving for Allah's favours.' "

Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said "Indeed one of you drinks water and Allah assigns Janna to him on that account." Then he added: "Indeed, one who takes the glass (containing water), brings it to his mouth, then takes Allah's Name, then drinks from it, then draws it away while desiring it, then praises Allah, then drinks from it again, then takes it away while he desires it, praises Allah, then drinks from it again, then sets it aside and praises Allah; Allah makes the Janna wajib for him."

Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) said: "Shukr for Allah's gifts lies in abstaining from what He has made unlawful. One's thanksgiving is complete when one says: 'Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.' "

Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) once came out of the mosque to find his horse missing. Thereupon Imam (A.S.) said: 'Should Allah return it to me, I will thank Him as He deserves to be thanked.' It was not long before the horse was brought to him. Imam (A.S.) said: 'Al-hamdu lillah.' Someone said to him: 'Didn't you say that you will thank Allah as He deserves to be thanked? Imam as-Sadiq (A.S.) said to him: 'Didn't you hear me say 'Al-hamdu lillah?' " This hadith shows that the praise of Allah is the best of the ways of oral thanksgiving. In this regard Imam As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said:

"One who has been given thankfulness has been also given increase (in ni’mah) Allah, says: 'If you are thankful, surely I will increase for you..19:7

AYA 5 الحمار يحمل أسفارا بئس مثل القوم مثل الذين حملوا التوراة ثم لم يحملوها آمثل

الذين آذبوا بآيات الله والله لا يهدي القوم الظالمينThe likeness of those who were charged with the Taurat, then they did not observe it, is as the likeness of the ass bearing books, evil is the likeness of the people who reject the communications of Allah; and Allah does not guide the unjust people. The 'Bani Israil' were entrusted with the Tawraat (Torah) through Prophet Musa (A.S.). They added their own customs and distorted it corrupting their thoughts and thinking themselves as the chosen ones of Allah - to be the exclusive bearers of the divine law . They also thought they were exempt from any punishment. They held the Tawraat but they failed to act upon it's teaching and thus the simile to the donkey who bears the burden but does not act on it. The same example applies to us as Muslims if we have the Qur'an with us but do not act on it's teachings. The Qur’an in the opening ayaat of Suratul Baqara calls itself "Guidance for humankind" and demands that people live by its commands. Islam is a complete way of life. The first aya in the order of revelation, ‘Read in the name of Your Rabb Who created´ (96:1) with its injunction to read lays an emphasis on the necessity of learning and understanding. The Qur’an also exhorts us to ‘Tazakkur´ which means recalling to mind the fundamental truths recognized by human nature. In essence, ‘Tazakkur´ pertains to the first stage in the comprehension of divine realities and meanings.. It actually reflects the experience of the human being’s inner self and it is meant to awaken something already known rather than to import anything altogether new. It urges us again and again to study it intelligently and with deliberation, bringing our thought to bear upon it, and exercising our reasoning faculty in following its arguments and comprehending its meaning. For this purpose it uses the term ‘Tadabbur´ and related words such as ‘fahm´ ‘aql´ ‘fiqh´ ‘fikr’…. generally mean pondering and reflecting over the meaning and significance of ultimate questions. And finally, acting on the knowledge so that the human being is able to realise his/her full potential. To be the best one can be.

AYAAT 6, 7 & 8 الناس فتمنوا الموت إن آنتم قل يا أيها الذين هادوا إن زعمتم أنكم أولياء لله من دون

صادقين Say: O you who are Jews, if you think that you are the favourites of Allah to the exclusion of other people, then invoke death If you are truthful.

ولا يتمنونه أبدا بما قدمت أيديهم والله عليم بالظالمين And they will never invoke it because of what their hands have sent before; and Allah is Aware of the unjust.

فينبئكم قل إن الموت الذي تفرون منه فإنه ملاقيكم ثم تردون إلى عالم الغيب والشهادة بما آنتم تعملون

Say: (As for) the death from which you run away, that will surely overtake you, then you shall be sent back to the Knower of the unseen and the seen, and He will inform you of that which you did. Aya 6 is a challenge to those who claim to be the 'special' ones of Allah. One who loves and submits to Allah will naturally want to be nearer Him. A similar challenge was offered to the Christians in Mubahila (Qur'an 3:60) The aya also shows how one who loves Allah and submits to him totally does not fear death but rather longs for it . Imam Ali (A.S.) had said : "Indeed the son of Abi Talib is more familiar to death than the baby with it's mother's breast " Aya declares that those who presume their exclusiveness with Allah dare not wish for death as because of their misdeeds i.e. the corruption of their scriptures in the case of the Jews. In Suratun Nisa - 4 : 78 Allah says : "Where ever you be, death will overtake you even if you be in strong and lofty towers.............. One who is born has the sentence of death around his neck. There is no escaping it however hard one tries.

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“..Indeed we are from Allah and indeed to Him we will return.” Suratul Baqara 2:156 There are only two things that are certain in one’s existence. One is birth - as in the above aya - indeed we are from Allah - and the other is death - and indeed to Him we will return. We prepare for the birth of a child, even calling the mother an ‘expectant’ mother but we do not call ourselves ‘expectant’ marhumeen

even though the journey of death to the aakhira’ is inevitable and unavoidable. However, sooner or later, because of our old age or illness, or that of someone we love, or the news of the death of someone in the community we are forced to face the reality of death realising the need for preparation for the journey. According to an old fable a man made an unusual agreement with Izraeel - the angel of death. He told Izraeel that he would be willing to accompany him (as though he had a choice) only if Izraeel would send him a messenger well in advance. The agreement was made. Weeks became months and the months into years. One bitterly cold night, as the man sat alone thinking of his success in life, Izraeel tapped on his shoulder. “You are here to soon” the man cried out. “You sent no messenger. I thought we had an agreement!”. Izraeel whispered “Notice your hair, once it was full and black, now it has streaks of silver in it!. Observe your face in the mirror and see the wrinkles. Yes! I have sent many messengers through the years! I have kept my part. I am sorry that you are not ready for me but the order of Allah cannot be averted!” Imam Husayn (A.S.) said to his companions on the day of Ashura: "Death is nothing but a bridge over which you pass from this world of distress and affliction towards a vast heaven of eternal bliss. Who amongst you does not like to migrate from the (worldly) prison to the (heavenly) palace? And as for your enemies, it is like migrating from the palace towards the prison." When one undertakes to migrate or in other words travel in the world there are numerous preparations to be made: i) Tickets (means of travel) ii) Passport iii) Visas iv) Inoculations/Health certificates v) Clothes (befitting the particular climate of the country of destination) vi) Funds (in the right currency or recognised changeable funds) vii) Ensure that all is settled at home e.g. bills paid... viii) Leave behind someone trustworthy to look after affairs. The same criteria applies to the transitional journey of death. Imam Ali (A.S.) has said: “Believe me, I know not of any blessing as great as Janna, yet those who seek it are lazy and unconcerned about it. There is no punishment as formidable and everlasting as Jahannam and yet those who wish to escape it are so fearless of it.”

We must be prepared all day, every day as the date of travel is not known. Fortunately, the tickets are provided by Allah and we do not have to bear the cost. Since there is a choice of two destinations, the passport and visa requirements vary. The first stage is to know which destination we wish to travel to and make a firm niyya (intention). Movements and journeys are useless if there is no arrival. It is said that niyya is a flame of a fire of love. When it is lighted in the heart then only does one begin to respond. For the destination of the pleasure of Allah (Janna), the passport must confirm bay'a to Allah, his Prophets and the Aimma. It must also testify to tawheed, adala and qiyama. This declaration is not only repeated every day in Adhan from the minarets as a reminder but must be reflected in our lives. Unlike a worldly passport there is no necessity for witnesses or swearing the oath in front of a lawyer for allegiance to the country - Here the judge and the witnesses is our own nafs - for if we try and fool Allah we are only fooling ourselves as is said in Suratul Baqara:8 & 9:

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“And from humankind, there are those who say - we believe in Allah and in the last day whilst they are not believers. They intend to deceive Allah and those who believe but they deceive only themselves but they do not understand.” For the destination of Jahannam, there is no need of a passport at all. The visas for Janna are even more difficult to obtain. Numerous qualifications are required. It is reported in Biharul Anwaar by Allama Majlisi from one Abdullah ibn Masud that the Prophet (S.A.W.) narrated the inscriptions on the eight doors of Janna and the seven doors of Jahannam as told to him by Jibraail. The doors are like immigration checkpoints. Let us look at a few of the inscriptions which constitute the visa requirements from this hadith. On the second door of Janna it says: “There is no god except Allah, Prophet Muhammad is the messenger of Allah and Imam Ali is the wali of Allah. Everything has a means of attainment and to attain happiness in the hereafter one must adopt the following four qualities: Affection towards orphans, compassion to those who are widowed, strive to meet the needs of mu’mineen and enquire about and visit the poor and needy.”

In Hadith e Qudsi Allah says: "When one of my servants performs a good act, I award him Janna in exchange " Prophet Dawood (A.S.) asked Allah: "Ya Allah! What is that good act?" The revelation came: "It is making a mu'min happy even if it be by offering him a date" Imam Ali Zaynul Abedeen (A.S.) has said: Strive to acquire a high position in Janna. Remember the more useful a person is to a fellow mu'min the higher his/her position in Janna. At times even the saying of one sentence becomes the source of becoming closer to Allah. Never consider kindness to your fellow mu'min brother/sister to be insignificant for it will be these that will be useful on a day when nothing much will be of any use." On the seventh door of Janna, the inscription says: “There is no god except Allah, Prophet Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, Imam Ali is the wali of Allah - he/she who wishes to purify his/her heart should adopt the following four qualities: Visiting the sick, escorting a janaza, acquiring kafan and repaying debts.” The Prophet (S.A.W.) has said: "One of the qualities that purify the heart is to acquire a kafan." Imam Ali Ar-Ridha (A.S.) has said: "Whoever escorts a janãzã of one of our Shias is forgiven his/her sins and becomes void of sins as a newly born child." One day the Prophet (S.A.W.) was escorting a janãzã. He heard some people praising the dead person and saying that he was a good man. The Prophet (S.A.W.) on hearing this said: "I swear by the Lord of the Ka'ba that the path of Janna has been made secure for this man (the one whose janãzã was being escorted and who was being praised) because mu'mineen have witnessed his goodness and Allah does not reject their testimony." Let’s now look at another question which comes to mind - Is death painful? Because even the word ‘death’ strike’s fear in the heart - fear is almost often associated with pain - As we are to return to our Rabb, it is logical that the pain can only be associated with justified punishment. We must therefore first understand the aspect of punishment (adhab). Punishment for sins is in seven stages. Before we look at them it is necessary to know that adhab is not revenge of Allah, nor does Allah enjoy punishing mankind. It is a form of cleansing and curing just like a doctor who cures his patients. The cure may entail the need of pain -

injections, operations.......and is not the result of the doctor being cruel to the patient but rather being merciful and kind The seven stages of punishment are i) In this world ii) When death comes iii) The squeeze of the grave iv) Barzakh v) Day of Judgement vi) The bridge of sirat vii) Jahannam The Punishment therefore is on a graded basis. Today we will discuss briefly the first four stages. If ones sins have been answered for in this world and tawba done then death is like a welcome gentle breeze. It is reported in Vol 3 of Furu’ Al-Kafi that one of the companions of Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) realtes that he once asked Imam whether a mu’min is grieved at the taking of his nafs when he is at the threshold of death. Imam answered: “Never! When malakul mawt comes to take his ruh, he is at first distraught. But then the angel consoles him and says: ‘ O friend of Allah, do not distress yourself. I swear by the Rabb who sent Muhammad as His messenger that we will treat you more kindly and gently than your father. Open your eyes and look at us....” “Nothing could be more desirable for the mu’min at that moment than for his nafs to be taken and receive all that it had been promised.” However, if the sins have not been cleansed then death is painful. Imam Ja'fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) says: "Whatever a mu'min suffers at the time of death, it is for the purpose of cleansing him/her from sins so that he would come into the hereafter pure and unblemished deserving the eternal reward of Allah without any obstacle between him/her and the reward." What happens after a person is interred in the grave? It is said that after those who have buried the dead person have gone away, two angels visit the grave. One is Munkar and the other Nakeer. The soul re-enters the body and they ask questions on belief: Who is your Lord? What is your religion? What is your book? What is your qibla? Who is your Prophet? Who are your Aimma? This questioning is the composition of talqeen which is recited at the time of burial. Talqeen (which means to teach) should be recited daily at bed time so one is in a constant state of preparation for answering Munkar and Nakeer. Imam Ja'fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said: "Who so ever is subjected to the questioning in the grave, is also squeezed in the grave*"

*Be it a grave in water, earth or where ever for it is the nafs that is subjected to the squeezing.. For some it will be like the embrace of two friends but for those whose sins have still not been cleansed by death, it is severe. Then comes the first stage reached by a human being in his migration from the world. It is called barzakh which literally means a limit or a boundary separating two things. Allah mentions it in the Qur’an saying:

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"...And before them is barzakh (a barrier) till the day of Qiyama. Suratul Mu'minun 23:100

Barzakh is therefore the period of time in the grave from burial upto the day of Qiyama. Life in barzakh is characterised by the liberation of the nafs from the fetters of the body. The nafs is no longer harassed by passion and instinct, and there is no question of time or space in barzakh just as it is in dreams, and thus the horizon’s of a human being’s vision is vastly enlarged. Everything can be imagined is a single instant. The nafs of he/she who is virtuous is no longer constricted in the cage of the world and will delight in roaming freely through the infinite. However, to the mu'mineen whose sins have not been cleansed by death, and by the squeeze in the grave, our 6th Imam has said: "We will intercede for you on the day of Qiyama, but by Allah, I am worried about you for the period when you will be in barzakh." The nafs is on a different realm after death, yet it does not completely sever it’s relationship with the body which it used as it’s vehicle for it’s destiny. It is reported in Vol 3 of Al-Kafi that a companion of Imam Ali (A.S) was once with the Imam at the cemetery of Waadi us Salaam. He said: “Imam stood in the cemetery as though he was addressing a gathering. I remained standing with Imam until I became tired and sat down. When I got tired of sitting I stood up again and remained standing until I got tired again and sat down once more. Finally, I stood up and said to Imam - I fear for you, seeing you stand for so long, please rest a little!” Imam replied: “O Habba! I am standing here talking to the mu’mineen!” Habba asked: “Do they have conversations with each other?” Imam replied: “Yes! Once the veil is lifted you will see them gathered in circles talking to each other.” “Are you speaking of their bodies or their arwaah?” Imam replied: “Their arwaah”

It is reported in Al Mahaasin that Abu Baseer - a companion of our 6th Imam says that there was a discussion on the arwaah of righteous mu’mineen in the presence of Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.). Imam said; “The arwaah of mu’mineen meet each other....they talk to each other and recognise each other, when you see someone there, you will say. ‘This is so and so.” Those in barzakh can also establish contact with those in the world. In Vol 1 of Al-Kaafi it is reported that Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said: “...Amongst the believers are those for whom Friday is a day of visiting, and there are also those the balance of whose deeds permits them to see them.” In the same volume it is reported that someone asked Imam Ali (A.S.) whether the dead were allowed to visit their relatives. Imam confirmed that they were and the questioner asked - when and how often? Imam replied: “Every week, every month, or every year depending on their spiritual rank and capacity.”

AYA 9 فاسعوا إلى ذآر الله وذروا البيع يا أيها الذين آمنوا إذا نودي للصلاة من يوم الجمعة

كم إن آنتم تعلمونذلكم خير لO you who believe! when the call is made for prayer on Friday, then hasten to the remembrance of Allah and leave off trading; that is better for you, if you know. Daily prayers are said individually or in the local mosque. On Jumua’ Muslims within the radius of about 5 miles attend one congregational prayer . Twice a year on Eid Muslims of a whole area (city) meet and once a year the international assembly of Muslims is at Makka for Hajj. The call for Friday prayers according to the Maasumeen(A.S.) is solely the right of 'Sultanil ‘Aadil' -the Just King - in other words the Imam of our time . In his 'ghaibah' the Jumua’ prayers are optional which is the view of a majority of the mujtahids . The first Jumua’ prayers were held at Quba - 3.5 miles from Madina. When the Prophet (S.A.W.) arrived at Quba on his way from Makka - Hijrah he first arranged for the building of a mosque there . Then he delivered a sermon and offered the Friday prayers before proceeding to Makka. Salatul Jumuàh is simply the same as Salatul Zhuhr on the day of Friday (Jumuàh) - however it has a few differences from the regular salaa that we perform. Salatul Zhuhr that is four Rakàt whilst Salatul Jumuàh is two Rakàt. It is wajib that it is prayed in Jama’a and in which ever locality the Salatul Jumuàh is established, it is not permissible for another Salatul Jumuàh to be held for a distance of 6 km. It is wajib that before the Salaa, two speeches are given which are part of the salaa. Imam Ali (A.S.) has even said: “ “The khutbah (speech) is salaa.” The Contents of the Speeches of Jumuàh

i) Praise and glorification of Allah. ii) Blessings upon the Prophet (S.A.W.) and his progeny. iii) The people must be advised of issues currently relevant to

Muslims. Imam Sadiq (A.S.) has said: “And also so that the people would be made aware of what is good for them in relation to their religion and religious affairs and of the worldly affairs as well.” He also said: “And surely the reason why two speeches have been made wajib is that in one of them, the praise of Allah and His glorification should be carried out. However as for the second speech, the mentioning of the needs of the people and

warning them and inviting them to that which they need to know of the commandments and prohibitions (of Allah) and that which is righteous and wicked (from amongst those acts).”

iv) A short sura from the Qur’an must be recited. The Imam who performs the Salatul Jumu`ah must also follow certain manners and etiquette. These include that he should wear an Turban and must stand to deliver the talks. The Imam must also lean on or hold in his hand a sword or a sword…. Friday is superior to all the days of the week and any good done on this day has manifold reward. Rasulullah (S.A.W.) has said: “Indeed the 24 hours of the night and day of Friday belong to Allah. In every hour there are 600,000 opportunities of freedom from the fire.” He also said: “The recompense of deeds on Friday is twice as much. SO avoid sins and perform good deeds to gain more thawab.” Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (A.S.) has said: “As soon as the sun sets and Friday begins, Allah orders an angel to announce: ‘Is there any mu’min who before the night ends asks for safety in this world and peace in the aakhira so I may grant it? Is there any mu’min who turns to Me in tawba so I may forgive? Is there any mu’min who is in distress, seeks livelihood, or seeks health in illness or freedom in captivity, or gain in times of loss… I will grant whatever is asked for if I am called upon tonight.” Some of the recommended a’maal for the night of Friday (Thursday night)

1. Recite Tasbeehate ‘Arba’aa as many times as possible. 2. Recite salawat as many times as possible. 3. Recite any or all of the following suwer of Qur’an:

a. Bani Israil b. Kahf c. Naml d. Sajda e. Yaseen f. Saad g. Dukhan h. Waqia i. Jumua’

4. Recite Suratul Jumua’ in the first rakat of Salatul Maghrib and Suratul Ikhlas in the second. For Salatul Eisha recite Suratul Jumu’a in the first raka’t and Suratul ‘Alaa in the second.

5. Recite Dua Kumayl 6. Eat a pomegranate if possible.

Some of the recommended amal for the day of Jumua’

1. Recite Suratul Jumua’ in the first rakat of Fajr salaa and Suratul Ikhlas in the second.

2. Recite Suratur Rahmaan after the ta’qibaat of Salatul Fajr. 3. Recite salawat 100x 4. Recite Suratul Ikhlas 100x 5. Recite Suratul Ahqaaf and Suratul Mu’minoon after Salatul Fajr. 6. Recite Ayatul Kursi as many times as possible from Fajr to Dhuhr. 7. Do ghusl of Jumu’a . It is recommended to do ghusl between Fajr

and Dhuhr (as near to the time of Dhur as possible). Rasulullah (S.A.W.) said to Imam Ali (A.S.): “Ya Ali! Do ghusl on Friday even if it means that by purchasing the water you will have to give up a days food for there is no better good deed than it.”

8. Cut nails, trim hair, wear neat clean clothes and apply perfume. 9. Eat a pomegranate for breakfast if possible. 10. Utilise time in learning about religion. 11. Visit the graves of relations and mu’mineen. 12. Recite Dua An-Nudba 13. Do Istighfaar after Salatul ‘Asr 70x

The day of Jumua’ is associated with Imam Mahdi (A.S.). He was born on a Friday and his zhuhur will be on a Friday. It is recommended to give sadaqa on Friday for his safety and remember him in earnest.

AYA 10 ثيرافضل الله واذآروا الله آ فإذا قضيت الصلاة فانتشروا في الأرض وابتغوا من

لعلكم تفلحونBut when the prayer is ended, then disperse abroad in the land and seek of Allah's grace, and remember Allah much, that you may be successful. After the Friday prayers the believers are advised to seek the grace of Allah. It is said that this means visiting other brothers in faith, visiting the sick, seeing to the needs of the needy and doing good to others. Imam Ja'fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said that charity given on Friday is rewarded by Allah 1000x ZHIKR “Everything has a limit except “Zhikr” for which there is no limit. Allah ordained Salaa and whoever performs them he has observed the limit. If fasts during the holy month of Ramadhan, he has observed the limit. If a one performs Hajj , he has observed his limit but “Zhikr” is not as such. Allah is not content with little “Zhikr”, for He has not set a limit for it. Then Rasulullah recited 33: 41,42:

ا الذين آمنوا اذآروا الله ذآرا آثيرا وسبحوه بكرة وأصيلا يا أيه “O you who believe! Remember Allah, remembering frequently. And glorify Him morning and evening.” “Allah has said: O children of Adam! Remember Me moments after dawn and moments before evening. I too will assume your important affairs.” Zhikr is classified into several kinds: 1. “Tashmeed” (Saying praise is due to Allah) Saeed Chamat said: I said to Imam Sadiq (AS): May I be sacrificed for you! Teach me a comprehensive Dua. The Imam said: “Praise Allah, for in this case, every worshipper will recite Dua for you and will say: Allah hears one who praise Him.” “Whoever says: Praise is due to the Rabb of the worlds at dawn four times, has thanked Allah for that day and whoever repeats the same in the evening, has thanked Allah for the night.” 2. “Tamjeed” (Saying Allah is Almighty) (commendation) Ali Ibne Hasan has reported on the authority of a friend from Imam Sadiq (AS): “Every Dua which is not preceded by “Tamjeed” is not perfect; first “Tamjeed” and then eulogy. The reporter says: I asked Imam Sadiq (AS): What is the least which will suffice as Tamjeed? The Imam said: “Praise is due to Allah who dominates everything. Praise is

due to Allah who is aware of the hidden. Praise is due to Allah who brings the dead back to life and He has power over all things.” 3. “Tahleel” (Saying there is no Allah but Allah) and Takbeer (Saying Allah is the Greatest) Rabee Azfazeel has reported from Imam Sadiq (AS): “Recite “Tahleel” and “Takbeer” frequently, for there is nothing more favored by Allah than “Takbeer” and “Tahleel”. The Prophet (SAW) has said:“The best prayer is to say: There is no Allah but Allah.” Four “Tasbeehs” “One day the Prophet (SAW) said to his companions: If you heap up all your clothes, buildings and the living goods, do you think they will reach the sky? They said: No, O Messenger of Allah! The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: Shall I introduce to you something whose root is in the earth and its branches in heavens? They said: Yes. The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: Whenever you complete your prayer say thirty times: Subhanallahi wal hamdulellahi walailahaillalah walaahuakbar the roots of which are in the earth and its branches are in heavens. It is these words that removes from man sorrows, collapsing of wall, fire, being drown in water, falling into well, being attacked by fierce animals, bad death, and tribulation which descend from heavens on the day. Those words are truly righteous deeds.” It has been reported on the authority of Imam Baqir (AS): “Rasulullah was passing by a man who was planting trees in his orchard. The Holy Prophet stopped and said: Shall I introduce to you a tree whose roots are stronger, gives fruits earlier, and has purer and more lasting fruits than this? The man said: Yes, show it to me O Messenger of Allah! The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: At dawn and in the evening say: Subhaanallahi walhamdulillaahi walaa ilaa ha illallahu wallaahuakbar. If you recite this Dua there will be ten trees of every fruit for each Tasbeeh in Janna. This is an example of the righteous deed. The man said: O Messenger of Allah! I take you witness and give this orchard to you as a charity for Muslims, that is, for those who give sadaqa. Here Allah revealed ayaat 5-7 of Suratul Layl: فأما من أعطى واتقى وصدق بالحسنى فسنيسره لليسرى “Then as for he who gives away and guards against evil and accepts the best, We will facilitate for him the easy end.”

AYA 11 ة أو لهوا انفضوا إليها وترآوك قائما قل ما عند الله خير من اللهو وإذا رأوا تجار

ومن التجارة والله خير الرازقين And when they see merchandise or sport they break up for It, and leave you standing. Say: What is with Allah is better than sport and (better) than merchandise, and Allah is the best of Sustainers. The Prophet (S.A.W.) was once praying Salatul Jumua’ when a caravan entered the town beating the drum and playing musical instruments. According to the Prophet's (S.A.W.) companion Jabir bin Abdillah Ansari , only twelve people including him were left praying behind the Prophet (S.A.W.) All the others ran to see the caravan and do business with them. Thrice the people behaved in this way and this aya was revealed. The aya advises not to get distracted by any amusement or business at the cost of our duty to Allah. Prioritising that which is important in life – some tips on self-development.

1. Sleep less. This is one of the best investments you can make to make your life more productive and rewarding. Most people do not need more than 6 hours to maintain an excellent state of health. Try getting up one hour earlier for 40 days and it will develop into a powerful habit. Remember, it is the quality not the quantity of sleep that is important. And just imagine having an extra 30 hours a month to spend on the things that are important to you.

2. Set aside one hour every morning for personal development matters. Meditate, visualize your day, read the Qur’an to set the tone of your day, listen to it. Take this quiet period to vitalize and energize your spirit for the productive day ahead. Watch the sun rise once a week or be with nature. Starting the day off well is a powerful strategy for self-renewal and personal effectiveness.

3. Do not allow those things that matter the most in your life be at the mercy of activities that matter the least. Every day, take the time to ask yourself the question "is this the best use of my time and energy?" Time management is life management so guard your time with great care. There are roughly 168 hours in a week. This surely allows plenty of time for achievement of the many goals we desire to accomplish. Be ruthless with your time. Set aside a few minutes each morning to plan your day. Plan around your priorities and focus on not only those tasks which are immediate but not

important (i.e., many telephone calls) but especially on those which are important but not urgent, for these allow for the greatest personal and professional development. Important but not immediate activities are those which produce long-term, sustainable benefits and include exercise, strategic planning, the development of relationships and professional education.

4. Use the rubber band method to condition your mind to focus solely on the most positive elements in your life. Place a rubber band around your wrist. Each time a negative, energy sapping thought enters your mind, snap the rubber band. Through the power of conditioning, your mind will associate pain with negative thinking and you will soon possess a strongly positive mindset.

5. Always answer the phone with enthusiasm in your voice and show your appreciation for the caller. Good phone manners are essential. To convey authority on the line, stand up. This will instill further confidence in your voice.

6. Throughout the day we all get inspiration and excellent ideas. Keep a set of cards (the size of business cards; available at most stationary stores) in your wallet along with a pencil to jot down these insights. When you get home, put the ideas in a central place such as a coil notepad and review them from time to time. As noted by Oliver Wendell Holmes: "Man's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions."

7. Always remember the key principle that the quality of your life is the quality of your communication. This means the way you communicate with others and, more importantly, the way you communicate with yourself. What you focus on is what you get. If you look for the positive this is what you get.

8. Stay on purpose, not on outcome. In other words, do the task because it is what you love to do or because it will help someone or is a valuable exercise. Don't do it for the money or the recognition. Those will come naturally. This is the way of the world.

9. Learn to be still. The average person doesn't spend even 30 minutes a month in total silence and tranquility. Develop the skill of sitting quietly, enjoying the powerful silence for at least ten minutes a day. Simply think about what is important to you in your life. Reflect on your mission. Silence indeed is golden. . Sir Isac Newton, one of the greatest classical physicists the world has produced, once said: "if I have done the public any service, it is due to patient thought." Newton had a remarkable ability to sit quietly

and think without interruption for very long periods of time. If he can develop this so can you.

10. Build your will-power by restraint in your conduct with others. Speak less (use the 60/40 Rule = listen 60% of the time and speak a mere 40%, if that). This will not only make you more popular but you will learn much wisdom as everyone we meet, every day has something to teach us. Also restrain the urge to gossip or to condemn someone who you feel has made a mistake. Stop complaining and develop a cheerful, vital and strong personality. You will greatly influence others.

11. When a negative thought comes to your mind, immediately replace it with one that is positive. Positive always dominates over the negative and your mind has to be conditioned to think only the best thoughts. Negative thinking is a conditioned process whereby the negative patterns are established over and over. Rid yourself of any limitations and become a powerful positive thinker.

12. Associate only with positive, focused people who you can learn from and who will not drain your valuable energy with complaining and uninspiring attitudes. By developing relationships with those committed to constant improvement and the pursuit of the best that life has to offer, you will have plenty of company on your path to the top of whatever mountain you seek to climb.

13. You must have a mission statement in life. This is simply a set of guiding principles which clearly state where you are going and where you want to be at the end of your life. A mission statement embodies your values. It is your personal lighthouse keeping you steadily on the course of your dreams. Over a period of one month, set a few hours aside to write down five or ten principles which will govern your life and which will keep you focused at all times. Refine it and review it regularly. Then when something adverse happens or someone tries to pull you off course, you quickly and precisely return to your chosen path with the full knowledge that you are moving in the direction that you have selected.

14. No one can insult or hurt you without your permission.. There are no negative experiences only experiences which aid in your development and toughen your character so that you may soar to new heights. There are no failures, only lessons.

15. Take a speed reading course. Reading is a powerful way to gain many years of experience from a few hours of study. Speed reading will allow you to digest large quantities of material in relatively small periods of time.

16. Remember people's names and treat everyone well. This habit, along with enthusiasm, is one of the great success secrets. Everyone in this world wears an imaginary button that screams out "I WANT TO FEEL IMPORTANT AND APPRECIATED!".

17. Be soft as ‘khichdi’ when it comes to kindness but tough as thunder when it comes to principle.

18. Never discuss your personal matters with anyone outside of your immediate family. Be very disciplined in this regard.

19. Try fasting at least one day a one day a week. It has an amazing effect. If not that them the middle three days of the month – 13, 14, 15 of the lunar month.

20. Remember that forgiveness is a virtue that few develop, but one that is most important to maintaining peace of mind. Practice forgiveness especially in those situations where it is seemingly difficult. By using your emotional forgiveness muscles more regularly, petty wrongs, remarks and slights will not touch you and nothing will penetrate your concentrated, serene mindset.

21. Empty your cup. A full cup cannot accept anything more. Similarly, a person who believes that he cannot learn anything else will stagnate quickly and not move to higher levels. A true sign of a secure, mature individual is someone who sees every opportunity as a chance to learn. Even the teachers have teachers.

22. When you stand and meet someone, stand firm and steadfast. A telling sign of an unfocused, weak mind is constant fidgeting, shifting of the eyes and shallow breathing.

23. Ask not what this world can do for you but, rather, what you can do for this world. Make service an important goal in your life. It is a most fulfilling investment of time. Remember, in the twilight of your life, when all is said and done, the quality of your life boils down to the quality of your contribution to others. Leave a legacy for those around you.

24. Start by praying Salatut Tahajjud at least once a week. You will feel alive and invigorated.

25. Make it a point to attend inspirational lectures each month to consistently renew the importance of personal growth in your mind. In an hour majlis, you can learn powerful techniques and strategies that others have spent many years learning and refining. Never feel that you have no time for gathering new ideas, you are investing in yourself.

26. To enhance your concentration, read 10 ayaat of the Qur’an and try to memorise one or part of it. Practice this for only 5 minutes a day and enjoy the results which follow after a few months of effort.

27. Aromas have been proven to be an effective means of entering a state of relaxation. Scents have a very noticeable effect on your mindset and moods. Purchase essential oils (many ahadith of the ma’sumeen. Put a few drops of either oil within a cup of boiling water and inhale. Then let the mixture sit in the room where you are resting. You will gain a sense of peace and serenity.

28. Never argue with the person you work for - you will lose more than just the argument.

29. Regularly send handwritten notes to your relations, friends, associates……. Develop a system which reminds you to send something valuable to this network at least once every four months. Relationship building should always be a central focus whether you are a teacher, a student or a parent.

30. Remember that effective time management makes you more rather than less flexible. It allows you to do the things that you really want to do rather than the things you really have to do.

31. Spend time with Nature. Natural settings have a powerful effect on your senses which in turn will lead to a sense of renewal, refreshment and peacefulness. Peak performers through the ages have understood the importance of getting back to Nature. By cultivating a friendship with Nature, you will quickly find more serenity, contentment and richness in your life.

32. A sound body rests a sound mind. Never neglect the body which is intimately connected to the mind. This is your temple. Feed it the finest fuels, exercise daily and care for it as you would your prized possession - because it is.

33. Do not eat three hours before sleep. This allows for smoother digestion and a more restful sleep. For deeper, more renewing sleep, remember that a daily dose of exercise promotes good sleep as does a period of relaxation an hour before bed.

34. It has been rightly said that "you sow an action, you reap a habit. You sow a habit, you reap a character. You sow a character, you reap a destiny." The essence of a person is his character - make yours unique, unblemished and strong. Do not say you will do anything unless you will indeed do it. Speak the truth and measure your words wisely. Be humble, straightforward and peaceful.

35. Find mentors to model who will guide you in your progress. The mistakes of the world have all been made once before - why

shouldn't you have the benefit of the experience of others?. Your mentor must have only your best interests in mind and should be sufficiently senior to offer you good guidance on the subjects you seek assistance with. Everyone needs to feel appreciated and even the busiest of executives will find time to assist a person who respects them and values their advice.

36. Make a list of all your weaknesses. A truly confident and enlightened person will note a weakness and seek to methodically improve. Bear in mind that even the greatest and most powerful people have weaknesses. Some are better than others in hiding them. On the other hand, get to know your best qualities and cultivate them.

37. Never complain. Someone who complains, is cynical and always looks for the negative in everything, will scare people away and rarely will succeed at anything.

38. Overlook the weaknesses of your friends. If you look for flaws you will most surely find them. Friends are so very important to a happy existence - especially those who have shared many experiences and laughs with you. Work hard to make friendships, and all your relationships for that matter, stronger and richer.

39. Become an expert in human psychology and be able to read the essence of people. Never be taken advantage of and be aware of the politics around you. Stay above petty gossiping and office politics but appreciate that they indeed exist and know what goes on behind your back. Every great leader does. Speak only good things and people will flock to you. Never speak ill of others and all will know you will not malign them behind their backs. Build your character and live a highly principled life.

40. Familiarity breeds contempt is a very good rule. The stars remain far above the Earth. You must keep a distance from all but your closest of relations.

41. Learn to organize your time. Good time management offers more time for fun and relaxation - not less. The key to successful time management is doing what you planned to do when you planned to do it. Keep your mind fully on the task at hand.

42. Keep well-informed about current events. You don't have to read every story of every paper. Know what to focus on, what to pass by and what to clip out and read at another time.

43. 83% of our sensory input comes from our eyes. To truly concentrate on something, shut your eyes and you will remove much distraction.

44. Get into the habit of reading one hadith a day. Make it one of your goals to develop your personality.

45. On the subject of conversation, sit with scholars. “A single conversation across the table with a wise man is worth a month's study of books."

46. Make every one of your days a true masterpiece. Remember the old saying: "it's not who you think you are that holds you back but what you think you're not."

47. Contrary to popular opinion, stress is not a bad thing. It allows us to perform at peak levels and can assist us through the flood of chemicals it releases within our bodies. What is harmful is too much stress, or more particularly, a lack of relief from stress. The times of stress must be balanced nicely with times of pure relaxation and leisure for us to be healthy and at our best.

48. Do not talk when you are listening. 49. "Anybody can become angry - that is easy; but to be angry with the

right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way - that is not within everybody's power and is not easy." - Aristotle

50. Be known as that person who goes the extra mile. The person who works longer than others. The one who takes on the extra assignments and follows them through with great success. Be the person who always has concerns about others and who makes family members feel truly special. Be a standout, the one with a balance in both personal and professional excellence. Be a star that shines brightly for all others to admire.

51. Send cards on birthdays and little notes from time to time showing that you care and were thinking about your relations.

52. Remember and use people's names when you talk to them. A person's name is a uniquely sweet sound to them.

53. Develop the essential habit of punctuality for it is most important for high success. Punctuality reflects discipline and a proper regard for others.

54. Consider yourself as an orange. Only what is really inside can come out. If you fill your mind with thoughts of serenity, positivity, strength, courage and compassion, when someone squeezes you, this is the only juice that can flow.

55. Every week, out of the 168 hours available, spend a few in service to others.

56. Finally never forget the power of Dua.

THE MONTH OF RAMADHAN



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"Indeed the number of months with Allah is twelve months in Allah's book……” Suratut Tawba - 9:36 Chronologically arranged, they are as follows: 1. Muharram 2. Safar 3. Rabi'’ ul Awwal 4. Rabi' uth Thani 5. Jumad ul Awwal 6. Jumad uth Thani 7. Rajab 8. Sha'ban 9. The month of Ramadhan 10. Shawwal 11. Dhul-Qa'da 12. Dhul-Hijja. The lunar month cannot be less than 29 days, nor can it be more than 30. The beginning of each lunar month is recognised by the sighting of the new moon, the crescent. The month of Ramadhan in comparison to the Solar calander comes eleven days earlier every year. Thus, in a cycle of about thirty-three years, it passes through all the seasons successively. The Arabic word shahr is used for a month due to its being mushtahir which means well-known or famous. The root word for Ramadhan is ramadha, of the means to burn due to excessive sun-heat reflected on the desert sands. The ramdha is the burning rock. This is why it was called the month of Ramadhan. It is also said that it was called the month of Ramadhan because people become ramadh due to their suffering from the combination of hunger and thirst during a very hot month. Arab linguists say that to make something ramadh is to squeeze it between two soft rocks then to pound it. A person fasting, by analogy, pounds his own nature between two rocks: hunger and thirst. The Prophet (S.A.W.) said: "The month of Ramadhan was named so because it tends to ramadh the sins, that is, burn them." During the life-time of the Prophet (S.A.W.) the month of Ramadhan used to be called Al-Marzooq - the one full of sustenance, due to the abundance of the blessings of Allah in it.

IMPORTANT EVENTS OF THE MONTH OF RAMADHAN 10th Ramadhan Wafat of Sayyida Khadija (A.S.) 15th Ramadhan Wiladat of Imam Hasan (A.S.) 17th Ramadhan Victory of the battle of Badr 19th Ramadhan* Shab e Zarbat - Imam Ali (A.S.) 21st Ramadhan* Shahadat of Imam Ali (A.S.) 23rd Ramadhan* Laylatul Qadr * All the odd nights in the last ten days of the month of Ramadhan are possible nights of Qadr. However, in ahadith our ma’sumeen have said that the 23rd is the most ‘adheem’.

SERMON GIVEN BY THE PROPHET (S.A.W.) ON THE LAST NIGHT OF SHA'BAN

ABOUT THE MONTH OF RAMADHAN O people! Indeed ahead of you is the blessed month of Allah. A month of blessing, mercy and forgiveness. A month which to Allah is the best of months, its days the best of days, its nights the best of nights and its hours the best of hours. It is the month which invites you to be the guests of Allah and invites you to be one of those near to Him. Each breath you take glorifies Him; your sleep is worship, your deeds are accepted and your duas are answered. So, ask Allah, your Lord; to give you a sound body and an enlightened heart so you may be able to fast and recite his book, for only he is unhappy who is devoid of Allah's forgiveness during this great month. Remember the hunger and thirst of the day of Qiyama with your hunger and thirst; Give alms to the needy and the poor, honour your old, show kindness to the young ones, maintain relations with your blood relations, guard your tongue, close your eyes to that which is not permissible for your sight, close your ears to that which is forbidden to hear, show compassion to the orphans of the people so compassion may be shown to your orphans. Repent to Allah for your sins, and raise your hands in Dua during these times, for they are the best of times and Allah looks towards His creatures with kindness, replying to them during these hours and granting their needs if He is asked.... O people! Indeed your souls are dependent on your deeds, free it with Istighfar (repentance); lighten its load by long prostrations; and know that Allah swears by His might : That there is no punishment for the one who prays and prostrates and he shall have no fear of the fire on the day when man stands before the Lord of the worlds. O people! One who gives Iftar to a fasting person during this month will be like one who has freed someone and his past sins will be forgiven. Some of the people who were there then asked the Prophet (S.A.W.) "All of us are not able to invite those who are fasting?" The Prophet (S.A.W.) replied: "Allah gives this reward even if the Iftar is a drink of water".

One who has good morals (Akhlaq) during this month will be able to pass the 'Siraat'... on the day that feet will slip.... One who covers the fault of others will benefit in that Allah will curb His anger on the day of Judgement......... As for one who honours an orphan; Allah will honour him on the day of Judgement And for the one who spreads his kindness, Allah will spread His mercy over him on the day of Judgement. As for the one who cuts ties of relation; Allah will cut His mercy from him.... Who so ever performs a mustahab salaa in this month; Allah will keep the fire of hell away from him. Whoever performs a wajib prayer; Allah will reward him with seventy prayers in this month. And who so ever prays a lot during this month will have his load lighten on the day of accounts. He who recites one aya of the holy Qur'an will be given the rewards of reciting the whole Qur'an during other months. O people! Indeed in this month the doors of Janna are open, therefore ask Allah not to close them for you; The doors of Jahannam are closed, so ask Allah to keep them closed for you. During this month Shaytan is imprisoned; so ask your Lord not to let him have power over you. Imam Ali (A.S.) says that I stood up and asked: "O Prophet ! What are the best deeds during this month?" The Prophet (S.A.W.) replied: "Stopping oneself from doing those deeds which are forbidden by Allah..."

FASTING Fasting means abstaining from the things that will be explained below from the moment of Fajr to Maghrib with the niyya of Qurbatan Ilallah. Sawm is also known as roza in Urdu & Farsi. Every baligh Muslim must fast during the whole month of Ramadhan.

Niyya In the month of Ramadhan on the first night (i.e. the night preceeding the first day) one can make the niyya to fast the whole month and remain with that niyya until the month ends or one can make the niyya for each day separately.Other than the month of Ramadhan, one must make a separate niyya for each day whether they are few or many, wajib or mustahab.

During the sawm we have to abstain from nine actions or things. These are known as "muftirãt". Muftirãt "means those things that make a sawm batil. The muftirãt are as follows:- 1. Eating intentionally. 2. Drinking intentionally. 3. Vomiting intentionally. 4. Letting dust or smoke enter into the throat. 5. Sexual intercourse. 6. Men: Doing any such thing which causes discharge of semen. 7. Intentionally remaining in state of janabat, haydh or nifas up to true

dawn. 8. Taking liquid enema. 9. Speaking, writing or conveying by sign a lie about Allah, and the

ma'sumeen. All these break the sawm if they are done intentionally. If a person forgets that he is a Sa'eem (one who is fasting) and eats or drinks, then his sawm is correct.

Those allowed not to fast and the concept of fidya They are of two categories: 1. Who will not fast and have no qadha to give. 2. Those who will give qadha later, when the holy month is over. Men and women who are incapable of fasting because of advanced old age are totally exempted. They do not have to give any Qadha either.

Those elderly people who find it extremely trying and difficult to fast are also exempted; but they have to pay a redemption (Fidya) of 1 Mudd (=3/4 kg) of food to the poor and needy in lieu of each fast. It is recommended that preference be given to wheat or barley. A person who, due to certain illness, is unable to sustain and endure thirst, is exempted. However in view of the sanctity of the holy month, he or she should not drink water to quench the thirst fully. Such a person will pay Fidya in lieu of each fast and will give Qadha if the illness is later remedied. A mother in advanced stage of pregnancy will not fast if fasting is harmful to herself or the baby. She will give Fidya in lieu of the fasts and will give Qadha later. Similarly, a nursing mother who fears that fasting might reduce the supply of milk for the child is exempted from fasting. But she will give Fidya in lieu of each fast she has left out and will later give Qadha also. A lady in her period will not fast. In fact, she is forbidden to fast while in her periods. She will give Qadha later. Kaffara: (Expiation) It is a great sin to eat or drink during the days of Holy Ramadhan or deliberately commit acts which break the fast - without a justifiable reason. Those reasons have been explained earlier. Anyone who leaves out a fast purposely has to give Qadha together with Kaffara. The Kaffara is either 1. to free a slave 2. to fast for two months in lieu of each fast of Holy Ramadhan 3. to feed 60 poor He who chooses to fast for two months as kaffara will fast for 31 days in succession. He may then complete the balance at random. And if one wishes to feed sixty poor, one has to give away food or grain which would be enough for a full meal. This could be in form of wheat, barley or loaves. Caution: If a person invalidates his fast by a Haram (forbidden) act like: drinking alcohol etc.. or committing adultery, fornication. Attributing lies to Allah, his Prophet (S.A.W.) and Masumeen (A.S.) - he or she will have to give ALL THREE KAFFARA together.

What is a Sawm (Fast)? "The meaning of the ritual FAST is not simply abstaining from eating and drinking, for one must also abstain from sin. This is amongst the main aspects of the fast for (spiritual) beginners - while for those who wish to reach the source of magnificence, the aspects of fasting are more profound".- Imam Khomeini (A.R.) The Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) has said: "The month of Ramadhan is the month in which you are called to divine hospitality and therefore: 1. Seek from Allah that he purifies your intentions and hearts from (the

stains of) sins and ugly qualities. 2. That he grant you success in keeping the fast and reciting the Qur'an. 3. When you are hungry and thirsty, remember the hunger and thirst of

Qiyama. 4. Search out the poor and needy and supply their needs. 5. Treat children and relatives with kindness. 6. Guard the tongue from that which should not be said. 7. Guard the eyes from that which is forbidden to look at. 8. Guard the ears from that which is forbidden to listen to. 9. Be kind to the orphans of others so that others will be kind to your

orphans." Imam Ja'fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said: "Fasting is not merely refraining from eating and drinking. On the contrary, your fast must be coupled with: 1. Keeping your tongue from lying. 2. Not quarrelling with one another. 3. Refraining from jealousy. 4. Not backbiting or gossiping. 5. Putting aside disputes. 6. Not swearing oaths, EVEN if they are true. 7. Being careful not to utter bad language or abuse. 8. Not being mean and miserly. 9. Not being unjust to anyone. 10. Keeping your eyes from what is forbidden to look at." The Prophet (S.A.W.) has also said: "There are many a people who derive no benefit from fasting except for hunger and thirst." In Hadith Qudsi Allah says: "The fast is for me and I shall give its reward."

SAYYIDA KHADIJA (A.S.) Name :Khadija. Title :Tahira (pure one). Father :Khuwayled bin Asad. Birth :Makka. Children :Qasim, Abdullah (Titles: Tahir & Tayyib) and Sayyida Fatima(A.S.). Death :619 AD (Aamul Huzn - The year of Grief) and buried in Makka. Sayyida Khadija's father was a merchant like most of the tribe of Quraysh in Makka. He sent caravans to other cities to trade in the summer and winter. Her mother and father both died within 10 years of each other. Their wealth was divided amongst the children but it was Sayyida Khadija who took over the family business and expanded it. With the profit she made she helped the poor, widows, orphans, sick and the disabled people of Makka. She had a cousin called Waraqa bin Naufal who was a very learned man and who was not an idol worshipper. Both Waraqa and Sayyida Khadija believed in one God. Because of her excellent Akhlaq the Arabs (who at that time used to look down upon women) called her Tahira - the pure one. She was also known as the 'princess of Makka' because of her wealth. A lot of Arab nobles and princes wanted to marry her but she refused all of them. In 595 AD Sayyida Khadija was looking for someone to be in charge of her caravan to Syria. Abu Talib suggested the Prophet to her. She had heard of his trustworthiness and agreed to employ him although he did not have much trading experience. To help him she sent her slave Maysara. The trading caravan was a great success and when Sayyida Khadija heard of the Prophet's skills and excellent conduct she became his admirer. Soon it was arranged for Sayyida Khadija to be married to the Prophet (S.A.W.) Abu Talib read the Nikah on behalf of the Prophet whilst Waraqa read it for Sayyida Khadija. Abu Talib paid the mehr for his nephew and fed the people of Makka for 3 days in celebration. Sayyida Khadija too fed the people. The marriage was a very happy one and their first child was a son called Qasim. The second was Abdullah. Both died in infancy. Their third and last child was Sayyida Fatima Zahra (A.S.) When the Prophet used to go to meditate in the cave of Hira on Jabal An-Noor it was Sayyida Khadija herself who would climb up there to give

him his food and necessaries. Sayyida Khadija was the first person to accept Islam as taught by the Prophet (S.A.W.) In 616 AD the Quraysh isolated the Bani Hashim (the family of the Prophet) who then took refuge in a ravine called Shib e' Abu Talib. Sayyida Khadija was there too and it was her wealth (which she had donated for Islam) that sustained the Muslims at that time. The siege lasted for 3 years during which time they experienced hunger, thirst , and the cold and heat of the desert. In 619 AD Sayyida Khadija died. When she died nothing was left of her wealth. Abu Talib died in this year too. The Prophet called the year Aamul Huzn (the year of grief).

IMAM HASAN (A.S.) Name: Hasan (Shabbar) Parents: Imam Ali (A.S.) & Sayyida Fatima (A.S.) Kuniyya: Abu Muhammad Title: Al-Mujtaba (The Chosen One) Birth: 15th Ramadhan 3 A.H. (Madinat ul Munawwara) Death: 7th Safar 50 A.H. (Madinat ul Munawwara) Poisoned by his wife - Jo'da binte Ash'ath Buried: Buried in Jannatul Baqee He was born on Tuesday the 15th of Ramadhan 3 A.H. He was named by the Prophet (S.A.W.) (The name came from Allah through Jibrail as Hasan). The Prophet said to Imam Ali (A.S.) : "O Ali! You are to me as Harun was to Musa. Prophet Harun had two sons called Shabbar and Shabbir. Shabbar translated in Arabic is Hasan". He was the first grandson of the Prophet (S.A.W.). and on the news of the birth, the Prophet smiled showing all his teeth (One of the rare occasions of intense happiness for him). On the 7th day 'Akika' was performed and it was the first 'Akika' in Islam. The Prophet arranged for a feast for the people of Madina. He was born in a year when the battles of Islam were taking place and therefore opened his eyes in an environment of 'Jihad'. It was a traumatic childhood in which he saw the injustice done to his parents. (The door fell on Sayyida Fatima (A.S.) leading to the death of Muhsin (A.S.); The taking away of Fadak and the dragging of Imam Ali (A.S.) through the streets of Madina with a noose around his neck). It was all done to incite Imam Ali (A.S.) to unsheathe his sword and therefore give an excuse for the Khalifas to kill him. Imam Hasan (A.S.) and Imam Husayn (A.S.) had an age difference of only 1yr and they grew up side by side with the same principles and goals. Imam Hasan (A.S.) in his youth saw a constant attempt to remove the 'rights' of his father. Those who knew Imam Ali (A.S.) were sent away to Rome, Palestine and Iran to fight wars. There was a continuos effort to make sure that no one in Madina knew of Imam Ali's bravery and his rights. Heroes were created like Khalid bin Walid to cloud the heroism of Imam Ali (A.S.) In the battle of Yamama 17 of those present in Badr amongst

whom were also those who had memorised the whole Qur'an (Hafize Qur'an) were killed. When Imam Ali (A.S.) assumed Khilafat in 34 A.H. the battles of Jamal, Siffeen and Nahrwan were fought. Imam Hasan (A.S.) was the flag bearer in all these battles and played an important part in the victories. For example: Before the battle of Siffeen the people of Basra were against Imam Ali (A.S.) Imam Ali (A.S.) sent Imam Hasan (A.S.) to Basra and within a few days a great proportion fought on Imam Ali's side - On the way back Imam Ali (A.S.) wrote a letter to Imam Hasan (A.S.) and his life is a reflection of the admonition given to him by his father.( Refer to Letter No. 31- Nahjul Balagha). On the 21st of Ramadhan 40 A.H. Imam Ali (A.S.) was martyred. Imam Hasan (A.S.) and Imam Husayn (A.S.) buried him and straight after went to Masjid e Kufa before they went home. Here Imam Hasan (A.S.) gave his first sermon after his father's death. Abdullah bin Abbas stood up and paid allegiance after which all those present rushed to him and paid allegiance. However, when Imam asked them to perform Jihad, they left his company and preferred Muawiya's promise of wealth. They wrote to Muawiya by the sackful telling him that Imam was asking them to fight him and if Muawiya wanted they would surrender Imam to him. Muawiya sent all the letters to Imam to see (4 - 5 Camel loads). Muawiya was also preparing an army and with 60,000 men he set out towards Iraq. Imam was compelled to prepare for war but those joining his army were few and those who did, succumbed to Muawiya's bribes. On 21st Ramadhan 40,000 had pledged allegiance but 4 months later there were only 10 -12 people left. Muawiya declared independence. Imam seeing the 'colour' of his so-called supporters, gave a sermon telling them that those who had changed sides to go to Muawiya would regret it and their supplications to Allah would never be accepted. Muawiya initiated a treaty but Imam stipulated the conditions. There was no question of compromise of Khilafat or Imamate as these were ordained by Allah. Peace Treaty This is a treaty between Muawiya - son of Abu Sufyan and Hasan - son of Ali (A.S.)

1. That Muawiya should deal according to the Qur'an and Sunnah of the Holy Prophet.

2. That all Muslims in the Muslim empire - Syria, Iraq, Hejaz, Yemen and Egypt - will live in peace and enjoy amnesty against persecution.

3. That he shall appoint none as his successor. 4. The friends, companions and followers of Imam Ali (A.S.) and all

their families shall be protected against all fear and allowed to live in peace.

5. That Muawiya should not in any way harass, harm, threaten or plot (secretly or otherwise) against Imam Hasan (A.S.) and Imam Husayn (A.S.)

6. Muawiya would not send 'Lanat' (curses) to Imam Ali (A.S.) in qunoot, Jumua prayers....etc..

Muawiya accepted all except the sixth one. When Imam Hasan (A.S.) saw his stubbornness he dictated that at least 'Lanat' (curses) should not be uttered in the presence of Imam Hasan (A.S.) and Imam Husayn (A.S.) Muawiya gave his oath to Imam Hasan (A.S.) that he would abide by all the conditions but on his return to Shaam he declared "I do not have to abide by any of these. I will do what I want". Advantages of Peace Treaty Imam Hasan (A.S.) gained time through the treaty to do tableegh. The environment of hatred against Imam Ali (A.S.) created by Muawiya was changed by Imam Hasan (A.S.) In the 10 years of 'peace' he undid what Muawiya and his predecessors had done in 50 years of inciting people from childhood against Imam Ali (A.S.) (e.g. School meals were served only if preceded with lanat on Ali (A.S.) and his family). The fruits of his efforts were proved when the captives of Kerbala were taken through the towns of Kufa and Shaam. People refused to open doors to the soldiers, even refusing to give them food and drink and in some cases even fought the soldiers. Imam Hasan (A.S.) used the time to prepare companions to fight with Imam Husayn (A.S.) The supporters of Imam Husayn (A.S.) were a result of the efforts of Imam Hasan (A.S.) He created a 'jama'at' of people who were only available to Imam Husayn (A.S.) (even the 12th Imam is waiting for such helpers). The treaty also proved the 'KUFR' of Muawiya. He cursed Imam Ali (A.S.) and his family when the Prophet had said "He who curses Ali (A.S.) has cursed me. He who has cursed me has professed kufr". Muawiya therefore professed his kufr openly. A whole group of those who were neutral joined Muawiya on 25th Rabi ul Awwal 41 A.H. Muawiya called the year 'Sanatul Jama'a'. All those who paid allegiance to Muawiya were called 'Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama'a'.

In the following 9 years Muawiya tried to poison Imam several times eventually succeeding the 9th time when he sent poison to Imam's wife Jo'da. She was promised wealth and Muawiya's sons hand in marriage. Jo'da put the poison in Imam's water at night. He died 3-4 days later on the 7th Safar 50 A.H. Imam Hasan's wish was to be buried near the Prophet. At the burial those present were Imam Husayn (A.S.) Abdullah bin Abbas, Abdullah bin Ja'fer and Muhammad-e-Hanafiya. As the procession went to the Prophet's Mosque, Marwan bin Hakim informed Ayesha who came riding on a mule to protest against the burial of Imam in the Prophet's Mosque. Abdullah bin Abbas told her "You who have come on a mule and a camel (battle of Jamal), next is to be an elephant, yours is 1/9th of 1/8th*. How can you claim all?" She refused the burial to take place and arrows were fired at the coffin. Imam Husayn took the body back home, removed the arrows and gave ghusl and kafan again. Imam Hasan (A.S.) was then buried in Jannatul Baqee near his paternal grandmother Fatima binte Asad. * A woman inherits 1/8th from the 2/3rds of her husbands' net estate. Ayesha was one of nine wives. Therefore she inherited 1/9th of 1/8th.

BATTLE OF BADR "And indeed Allah assisted you at Badr when you were weak, so be careful (to your duty) to Allah so that you may be of the thankful ones. When you said to the believers 'Does it not suffice you that your Lord should assist you with three thousand angels sent down.. "

Qur'an - Suratu Aali Imran 3:122 The battle of Badr was the first of the great battles of Islam. When the Prophet heard the news that there was a trade caravan going to Syria from Makka under the leadership of Abu Sufyan he sent two men to gather information about it. It was discovered that it was a large caravan in which all the Makkans had shares. The Quraysh had decided to put all their savings into it and use the profits on arms, horses and other items of war to use against the Muslims. The news was disturbing. The Prophet (S.A.W.) left Madina with 313 men, 2 horses and 70 camels to go to Badr which was a stopping point for the caravans. The Quraysh had confiscated all the property of all the Muslims who had left Makka for Madina and the Prophet therefore decided to confiscate the property of the caravan in compensation. Abu Sufyan feared an attack from the Muslims and sent a messenger to Makka telling them of his fears. On receiving the message, an army of 1000 men, 100 horses and 700 camels under the leadership of Abu Jahl left Makka to go to Badr. Meanwhile Abu Sufyan took a different route back to Makka avoiding Badr. Once he was back in Makka he called Abu Jahl back but Abu Jahl was too proud and wanted to crush the Muslims with his large army. The two armies met at Badr on 17th Ramadhan 2 A.H. In the beginning as per Arab custom, single combat (one to one) took place. The famous Quraysh warriors Utbah, Shayba and Walid came to challenge three 'Ansars' from Madina. The Quraysh refused to fight any of the 'Ansars', demanding their 'equals' and so the Prophet (S.A.W.) sent Ubayda, Hamza and Imam Ali (A.S.) The three Kuffar were killed (Ubayda was hurt). The Quraysh got disturbed and began attacking en masse.

In the thick of the battle the Prophet prayed to Allah. In Surat ul Anfal Allah gave the answer: "When you asked for help from your Lord, He answered you. Indeed I will aid you with a thousand of the angels in rows after rows".

Qur'an - Suratul Anfal 8:9 The enemies got frightened and began to retreat. The skill of Imam Ali (A.S.), the other Muslim soldiers and the sight of so many angels struck terror in the enemies hearts. 70 Kuffar were killed including their leader Abu Jahl. Imam Ali (A.S.) killed 36 of them. 14 Muslims were martyred. 70 prisoners were taken by the Muslims. The prisoners were treated with kindness and some became Muslims. In later days some of the prisoners said: "Blessed be the men of Madina, they made us ride whilst they walked, they gave us wheat and bread to eat when there was little of it contenting themselves with plain dates". The rich prisoners paid ransom and were set free. Others were asked to gain their freedom by teaching 10 Muslims to read and write. The battle of Badr strengthened the faith of the Muslims.

IMAM ALI (A.S.) Shahadat "Tomorrow you will look back to my time and my innermost thoughts will be revealed to you. Then you will recognise me after I have left my position and another has taken my place". Imam Ali (A.S.) After the battle of Nahrwaan, some of the remaining enemies, the Kharijees had gone to find safety in Makka. Who are the Kharijees? They are those who believed that all believers are of equal standing and none can exercise authority over another. They made their creed with "Laa Hukm Illa Allah" (No judgement but Allah's alone). They believed there should be no leader (Imam or Khalifa) and no allegiance should be given to a human being. They were formed after the battle of Siffeen where they blamed Imam Ali a.s for succumbing to human judgement and giving the enemy (Muawiya) a chance to recover. Imam Ali (A.S.) pointed out to them that the sin lay with them for it was they who refused to continue fighting against Muawiya when they saw the Qur'an on spears and he had no choice but to call back Malike Ashtar who was on the verge of gaining complete victory. Furthermore it was they, who had compelled Imam to accept an arbitrator. To this they admitted guilt and said they had repented and he should do the same. Imam said that he had committed no sin on his part. The Kharijees who had fled to Makka, wanted to avenge their dead who had fallen at Nahrwaan and planned to assassinate Imam Ali (A.S.), Muawiya and Amr bin A'as. The boldest three from them volunteered:- 1. Abdur Rahmaan bin Muljim, to kill Imam Ali (A.S.) 2. Burk bin Abdullah, to kill Muawiya. 3. Amr bin Bakr, to kill Amr bin A'as. They chose Friday the 19th of Ramadhan 40 A.H. for their killings, swearing that they would accomplish their mission or perish. Burk bin Abdullah, on reaching Damascus on the appointed day managed to stab Muawiya but his sword slipped and Muawiya was only injured. Burk was caught, tortured and killed. Amr bin Bakr in Egypt went to kill Amr bin A'as but on that day Amr did not come to the Mosque and had sent his deputy to lead the prayers. The deputy was killed and so was Amr bin Bakr. Abdur Rahmaan bin Muljim arrived in Kufa as planned. Here, he fell in love with a woman called Qutuam who hated Imam Ali (A.S.) (Her father

and brother had been killed by Imam). She was very beautiful and agreed to marry Abdur Rahmaan on 3 conditions:- 1. 3000 Dirhams 2. A male & female slave 3. The head of Imam Ali (A.S.) Although Abdur Rahmaan had come to Kufa to kill Imam Ali (A.S.) this boosted his determination. Qutuam, to help him asked two men from her tribe to assist Abdur Rahmaan. 19th Ramadhan 40 A.H. Imam Ali (A.S.) had prophesied his death several days beforehand. The Prophet too had prophesied it and had said: "O Ali! I see before my eyes your beard covered with blood from your forehead". When Imam was leaving home on the morning of the 19th, the household birds began to make a great noise. When the servant came to quieten them, Imam said "Leave them alone for their cries are only lamenting over my coming death". As he came to the Mosque of Kufa for his morning prayers he awoke those who were sleeping including, Abdur Rahmaan bin Muljim who was sleeping on his stomach, hiding the poisoned sword under him. Imam told him that it was unhealthy to sleep on his front and also that he had a sword under his clothing which he was going to use for evil intentions. Imam then gave Adhaan and proceeded to lead prayers. In the first rakaat as he was arising from sajda he was struck on the head with the poisoned sword by ibn Muljim, which caused a deep wound. In the confusion ibn Muljim started running. Imam finished his second Sujud and requested Imam Hasan to complete the prayers. He uttered the words "Fuztu Birabbil Ka'aba" (I have been successful with the lord of the Ka'ba). The murderer was caught and brought before Imam Ali (A.S.) When Imam saw the ropes that ibn Muljim was tied in, Imam ordered them to be loosened and told the Muslims to treat him humanely. Ibn Muljim, on hearing this, started crying and Imam told him "It is too late to repent now. Was I a bad Imam or an unjust ruler?" He ordered that ibn Muljim should not be tortured. Imam was then carried to his house and when he saw the bright day he said: "O day! You can bear testimony to the fact that during the lifetime of Ali you never once dawned and found me sleeping".

He died two days later from his wounds on the 21st Ramadhan 40 A.H. He was buried in Najaf by Imam Hasan (A.S.) and Imam Husayn (A.S.) As the two brothers were returning after burying their father; they heard someone calling out “O you who used to feed me and dress my wounds; where are you?” The brothers proceeded towards the voice to find a leper crying for help. On talking to him they relaised that it was their father, Ali (A.S.) who had tended to his wounds and looked after him everyday. The leper said that when ever he asked Imam who he was – The Imam used to say “One needy person sits with another needy person) The brothers told him they had just returned from burying their father. The leper asked to be taken to Imam’s grave. Their he fell weeping and breathed his last. EXTRACTS FROM IMAM ALI'S (A.S) WILL (Made shortly before his death after he was fatally wounded by Ibn Muljim) Yesterday I was your companion, today I am a lesson for you, whilst tomorrow I shall have left you. I am just like a night traveller who reaches the spring (in the morning) or like the seeker who secures his aim. Fear Allah, to your affairs in order, and maintain good relations amongst yourselves for I have heard the Prophet say "Improvement of mutual differences is better than general praying and fasting". Fear Allah and keep Allah in mind when dealing with orphans. Do not let them starve and they should not be ruined in your presence. Fear Allah and keep Allah in mind in the matter of your neighbours because they were the subject of the Prophet's advice. He went on advising in their favour till we thought he would allow them a share in inheritance. Fear Allah and keep Allah in mind in the matter of prayers, because it is the pillar of religion. Fear Allah and keep Allah in mind in the matter of your Lord's house - Ka'ba. Do not forsake it as long as you live. Fear Allah and keep Allah in mind in the matter of jihad with the help of your property, lives and tongues.

LAYLATUL QADR Prophet Musa (A.S.) once addressed Allah saying: "Lord! I desire to be near to You." Allah said: "Whoever desires nearness to Me is one who remains awake during Lailatul Qadr (doing ibada)." Prophet Musa (A.S.) said: "Lord! I wish to earn Your mercy." Allah replied: "My mercy is granted to anyone who is merciful to the underprivileged during Lailatul Qadr." Prophet Musa (A.S.) said: "Lord! I wish to pass on the right path." Allah replied: "This is granted to anyone who gives sadaqa during Lailatul Qadr." Prophet Musa (A.S.) said: "Lord! I wish to enjoy the trees and fruits of Janna!" Allah replied: "This is granted to anyone who praises Me during Lailatul Qadr." Prophet Musa (A.S.) said: "Lord! I wish to achieve salvation from the fire!" Allah replied: "This is granted to anyone who seeks forgiveness during Lailatul Qadr." Prophet Musa (A.S.) said: "Lord! I wish to achieve Your pleasure!" Allah replied: "I shall be pleased with anyone who prays two (mustahab) rak'ats salaa during Lailatul Qadr."

SURATUL QADR (97)

Imam Ali (A.S.) has said:

Every thing has a fruit, and the fruit of the Holy Qur'an is Suratul Qadr

Everything has a treasure, and the treasure that removes poverty is Suratul Qadr.

For everything there is a means whereby it can be attained, and the means of the weak is Suratul Qadr.”

☺ For every hardship there is ease, and the ease of those suffering from hardship is Suratul Qadr.

There is a shield against every evil, and the shield of the believers is Suratul Qadr.

For everything there is guidance, and the guidance of the righteous is Suratul Qadr.

There is excellence for everything, and the excellence of knowledge is Suratul Qadr.

There is a adornment for everything, and the adornment of the Qur'an is Suratul Qadr.

There is a shelter for everything, and the shelter of the faithful is Suratul Qadr.

There is a glad tiding for everything, and the glad tiding of the innocent is Suratul Qadr.

There is a Proof (Hujja) for everything, and the Hujja after the Prophet (S.A.W.) is Suratul Qadr, therefore, believe in it.” Imam was asked how to believe in it, and he answered: "That it shall occur in each and every year, and that everything revealed in it is true." Imam also said: "For anyone who recites Suratul Qadr, Allah writes down a good deed for every particle of dust where he sits while reciting it.” “It is a good companion for anyone who wishes to pay off his debt, strengthen his/her faith, prolong life-span, and improve his/her condition. Anyone who recites it often will meet Allah as a siddeeq and as a martyr." "Allah has favoured Friday over all other days, the month of Ramadhan over all other months, and Lailatul Qadr over all other nights."

Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.) This name was used for Lailatul Qadr because Allah determines in it for everyone all what will happen the entire next year. The "Qadr" in this sense means destiny. According to al- Qummi's Tafsir, as explained on p. 432 of its second volume, such destiny includes life and death, sustenance, abundance of crops or famine and everything good or bad. This means that Allah determines in this night each and every event to occur during the next year to any and all of His creation. Sulayman al- Marzawi asked Imam Ali Ar-Ridha (A.S.): "Could you please tell us why Suratul Qadr was revealed?" Imam replied: "O Sulayman! Lailatul Qadr is the night when Allah decrees what will take place from one year to another of life or death, good or evil, or regarding sustenance, and whatever He then decrees is sure destiny." “Whoever spends Lailatul Qadr in ibada to his/her Rabb will have all his/her sins forgiven even if they had numbered as many as the stars in the heavens, the weight of the mountains, or the measures of the seas.”

Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (A.S.)

SUGGESTED THINGS TO DO on laylatul qadr Physically

• Make sure you are comfortable. • Don’t eat too much for you will feel sleepy. • Give sadaqa

Mentally • Concentrate on Allah today by focusing your thoughts on the importance

of this night and how it is the unfortunate who are devoid of the blessings of this night. To keep your thoughts focused everytime they stray recite “Innaa lillahi wa innaa ilayhi raaji’un” "Indeed we are from Allah and towards Him is our return. " 2:156

Emotionally • Make sure you are at peace with your relations especially your parents

and blood ties. Ask their forgiveness for any wrong doing or hurt….. • Forgive those who have hurt you. Release yourself from their prison…

Remember ‘The reward for goodness is only good”…. Spiritually

• Ponder over the translation of the duas so you can ‘connect’ • When reciting the names of the Ma’sumeen think about each of them

‘connecting’ to them. • Imagine yourself at the day of Judgement – cry and beseech Him for

forgiveness and a fresh start. The Prophet (S.A.W.) when asked what should one ask Allah for during these nights, said: "Ask for your safety (here and in the hereafter)".

DIVIDE THE NIGHT INTO 3 PARTS 1. The first part to gain knowledge. Listen to some lectures or read making notes. Maybe the understanding of the suwer* of ‘Ankabut and Room for Imam Ja’fer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has told Abu Baseer that whoever these suwer on the 23rd night of the month of Ramadhan will certainly be among the residents of Janna without any exception, adding, "... and I do not fear that Allah will record a sin against me for giving such a status for these two suwer ." (*Suwer is the plural of sura) 2. The 2nd part to be allocated for meditation. Ask yourself questions – Who am I? What do I wish to be? Where do I wish to go? How will I get there? Find time to talk to your Rabb and tell Him your insecurities, fears, aspirations……….. Ask the help of the ma’sumeen to intercede (tawassul) and help……..Recite the duas/munajat from Saheefa Sajjadiyya to help focus. 3. The 3rd part to be allocated for Salatul Layl to connect with Salatul Fajr.

ONE NIGHT OF QADR…….

One day I dug a little hole and put my hurt inside, Thinking I could forget it, I put it there to hide. But then the hurt began to grow and I had to cover it up each day, I could’nt let it show so that was the price I had to pay. My joy was gone, my heart was sad, pain was I all I knew, Wounded pride surrounded me and living was hard to do. One night of Qadr, I stood besides the hole and cried to my Rabb, I need your help, Ya Rabb, I cannot cope anymore, My Rabb I asked in the name of Husayn (A.S.)

In a flash Al-Muhayminu was there – His embrace so warm and safe Tears flowed from my hurting heart as He helped to dig the hurt out I dug down deep, brushing all the dirt away and gave it in His hands I told Him all about it – every single word – every single part. As-Sameeu listened to every distasteful detail as I promised to do my best to change, He took the blackness from my nafs and let me free from my prison of sins

Then something began to grow where the hurt used to be, Out of all the tears and pain I see His love, His care, His Rububiyya………

EID UL FITR "O Allah ! Bless us in the day of our Eid and our fast breaking and let it be the best day that has passed over us." Imam Ali Zainul Ãbedeen (A.S.)- Sahifa Al-Sajjadiyya Eid is an Arabic word derived from root of a-w-d. Literally it means a recurring event. In Islam it denotes the festivals of Islam. The word Eid occurs in the Qur'an once meaning a joyous recurring occasion. "Isa the son of Maryam said : O Allah, our Lord! send down to us food from heaven which should be to us a Eid (joyous recurring occasion), to the first of us and for last of us, and a sign from You, and grant us means of subsistence, and You are the best of Providers."

Qur'an- Suratul Maida 5:114 Human history has known festivals from the earliest days of man on earth. Man has celebrated festivals ever since he knew communal life. Ancient Egyptians had one called the day of adornment. It was during one such festival that Prophet Musa (A.S.) defeated the magicians. (Qur'an - Suratu Taha 20:57-59). Eid ul Fitr is the festival that marks the end of the month of Ramadhan. Fitr means to break and it therefore marks the breaking of the fasting period and of all evil habits. Happiness is observed at attaining spiritual upliftment after a month of fasting. Imam Ali (A.S.) has said that Eid is a day of happiness for those whose fasts and prayers have been accepted by Allah. He has also said that Eid is the day in which one has committed no sins. Zakat ul Fitr During Ramadhan we become familiar with the experience of the needy and poor who stay hungry not out of choice but because of lack of food. By fasting we appreciate the blessings bestowed upon us by Allah and become charitable towards those in need. As if to re enforce the idea in our minds , Allah has made a wajib charity of Zakat ul Fitr at the end of Ramadhan.

1. Fitra becomes wajib after the moon of Shawwal is sighted upon a person who is baligh, intelligent & sane and for his/her dependants - these include guests. Fitra is not wajib on a needy person (faqeer) nor a slave.

2. Fitra must be given from that which is the staple food of the giver like wheat, barley, dates, raisins, rice, milk ...etc..The amount is approximately 3 kg of the food or it's cash value.

3. It is to be given to a needy person (faqeer) who is not able to meet living expenses for himself and his dependants for a year nor has the means of earning a livelihood.

4. A non seyyid cannot give Fitra to a seyyid (one from the progeny of the Prophet S.A.W.)

5. It is ehtiyate wajib to set aside Fitra before Eid salaa and for those not praying Eid salaa before Dhuhr.

6. Fitra is a zaka and can also be used for the works where zaka is used. Salaa of Eid ul Fitr

1. It is only wajib in the presence of the Imam of the time. i.e. they were wajib upto the ghaibat of Imam Muhammad Mahdi (A.S.). However it is mustahab to pray Salaatul Eid. It is prayed in jama'a or individually.

2. The time is from sunrise to Dhuhr. 3. It is recommended that women should not go to pray Salaatul Eid in

jama'a (congregation). 4. It consists of two rakaats of salaa. It is recommended that after

Suratul Hamd in the first rakaa one should recite Suratul A'ala (sura 87) and in the second rakaa after Suratul Hamd recite Suratush Shams (91). In the first rakaa, after the second Sura, do five Takbeers and recite Qunoot after each Takbeer. Do a sixth Takbeer and go to rukoo. In the second rakaa, after the second Sura do 4 Takbeers and recite recite Qunoot after each Takbeer. Do fifth Takbeer and go to rukoo. After salaa, recite tasbee of Sayyida Fatima Zahra (A.S.)

Recommended a'mal for the day of Eid 1. Ghusl of Eid. 2. Wear clean neat clothes and apply perfume. 3. Begin breakfast with dates or a sweet dish. 4. Recite Ziyarat e Waritha. 5. Recite Dua e Nudba.

SAMPLE WORKSHEETS

The New Moon

The Lunar calendar has ................or .............. days

The full moon is around the ..................of the month

Ramadhan is the ................. month of the Lunar Calendar

Write your dua in the moon above and colour it in

CALENDAR

Fold an A4 sheet of paper length wise in half. Mark the ISLAMIC months on the paper and decorate. Cut a piece of card 5" x 2". Make two cuts on the card half an inch from the top and bottom as shown below by the dotted lines.

Slide the folded A4 paper with the months through the cuts in the card.

........................................... ..........................................

Muharram Safar

Rabi ul Awwal Rabi ul Aakher Jamad ul Awwal Jamad ul Aakher

Rajab Sha'ban

Shawwal Dhulqa'ada Dhulhijja

Ramadhan

TruthfulNiyya

PureHeart

Jahannam JannaCLOSED

OPEN

Shaytanlocked upDuas

From the sermon of the Prophet (S.A.W.)

Draw and/or write how you fast withthe different parts of the body.

FAST (Sawm)Put a X on all the things NOT allowed whist fasting.

THINGS WHICH BREAK A FAST Below are some acts, some of which when done can break a fast. Put a tick in the correct column. One has been done for you. ACTION DONE

MAKES THE FAST VOID

DOES NOT MAKE THE FAST VOID

Mohammed forgot that he was fasting and drank half a bottle of ice cold Fanta after his football match.

Saida is diabetic and has injected herself with insulin whilst fasting.

Farhan is swimming for his school team and swam an entire length of the pool.

Fatemah felt sick in school and vomited whilst fasting.

Jamil intentionally drank only a few sips of water whilst fasting.

Sabir swallowed his saliva whilst fasting.

Hur was pushed in the pool whilst he was fasting and his entire head was under the water.

Mariam intentionally swallowed some food that was stuck between her teeth.

Sarah put some eye drops in her eyes whilst fasting.

What food did the Prophet (S.A.W.) recommendfor breaking the fast?

Circle the right answer

Who will you serve first?

Hot waterFizzy drink

Cold drink

SweetsDates Fried food

Yourself Your family& those havingiftaar with you

FAST (Sawm)Put a X on all the things NOT allowed whist fasting.

Ramadhan TimingsTo be able ot keep sawm (fast) we need to know thetime for Imsaak, Fajr and Iftaar; just as we must knowtime for salaa every day.

Draw a clock with the right time for each of the timingsfor tomorrow's fast.

Imsaak

Fajr

Maghrib

My Resolutions for the month of Ramadhan

This month I promise to myself to STOP doing the followingbad habits for the pleasure of Allah.I ask Allah to help me to be successful.

..................................................................

.................................................................

.................................................................

..................................................................

..................................................................

Signed

........................................

This is your secret, private resolution with Allah.Keep it to yourself and STICK to it.

FASTING WHEN TRAVELLING Below is a map of London and places outside London. M25 is London’s boundary (HADDE TARAKHUS) Colour the M25 RED

FASTING WHEN TRAVELLING

Answer the following questions below:

1) Hilal is living in London and he is going to Peterborough which is more than 28 miles ,for the weekend. He is leaving for his journey on Friday afternoon at 3.00 pm. Can Hilal fast on that Friday? _______________ Why? _______________________________________

2) Khalid is a pilot and he travels all the time. It is the

month of Ramadhan can Khalid fast? ___________________.

Why? ________________________________________

3) Zainab has just flown in from Iran. She reached her

home in Harrow at 10.00 am this morning. She has not done anything that could break her fast. Can Zainab continue to fast? _________.

Why? _______________________________________

EVERYTHING IN THE HEAVENS AND ON THE EARTH GLORIFIES ALLAH

ACTIVITY: Prepare your four seasons calendar. You will need: Card, Scissors, cotton wool, glue, dry leaves & colours

Cut a circle from card the same size as the one below also cut 1 hand of a clock from card.. Draw and colour summer, winter, autumn & spring. You may stick cotton wool in the winter scene and dry leaves in the autumn scene. Now cut the circle below and stick it on to the card circle. Stick the names of the seasons and the months in the appropriate section of the circle. Put a slit pin through the hand of the clock and on to your card circle at the centre.

SUMMER JAN

WINTER FEB

AUTUMN MARCH

SPRING APRIL

DEC MAY

NOV JUNE

SEPT JULY

OCT AUGUST

EVERYTHING IN THE HEAVENS AND ON THE EARTH GLORIFIES ALLAH

ACTIVITY: Colour the life cycle of the butterfly below.

Al – Malik The King Below is a table where certain things belong to certain people, they own it and have control over it. All the things have been jumbled up.

ACTIVITY: Colour all things belonging to the cook RED, to the barber BLUE, to the handy man GREEN, to the artist YELLOW and to the farmer BROWN. Who do you think is the owner of everybody , everything, every soul and the entire Universe? WHO IS THE KING OF ALL KINGS ??????

-----------------

COOK BARBER HANDY MAN ARTIST FARMER

SCISSORS

SPANA

TURPENTINE

SPADE

PANS

HAMMER

FLOUR

SCREW DRIVER

CANVAS

MIRROR

EASLE

COMBINE HARVESTOR

SOIL

OVEN

FERTILIZER

WASHING UP LIQUID

OIL PAINTS

TRIMMER

SAW

PENCILS

SEEDS

HAIR DRYER

SPICES

GELL

DRILL

AL-QUDDOOS – Pure and free from all faults Below are 2 pictures. The one on the left is the perfect picture as there are no mistakes in it. There are 10 mistakes in the picture on the right. Can you spot them? Circle the 10 differences.

AL QUDDOOS – Pure and free from all faults In your opinion what are / is ……

A PERFECT FRIEND

A PERFECT FRUIT A PERFECT WORLD

Allah is pure and perfect ( Al Qudoos ) because He is ………………………..

AL AZIZ – the Mighty

“ IZZ ” means might , power , strength and victory. In order to be victorious we have to undergo a process in order to over come our weaknesses and be successful. Try and complete the table below, some has been done for you.

WEAKNESES PROCESS TO UNDERGO

VICTORIOUS

typical student

Chats a lot on the computer.

A Graduate

A

basketball player

Eat a lot of junk food.

Winner

A CARELESS MUSLIM – who does not pray on time, is naughty at times, bullies others, tells lies and also up sets his parents

Try to keep an alarm clock

To be able to pray to Allah with a clean heart and be His obedient servant.

The Wise AL HAKEEMU

Below is the entire process of how a tea cup is made from a mound of clay.

mound of clay

mixing clay with

water

shaping the clay

Painting the tea cup

timing

putting it into the hot kiln

putting the glazed tea cup in the kiln/furnace

the finished pretty tea cup

Ahsanu A'mal(The best deeds)

The best deed is when the niyya and the action are both correct.colour the niyya that with the action makes the best deed

Greeting someoneNiyya Action

Bay'at of Imam Mahdi (A.S.)

Giving sadaqa

THE DUTIES OF THE PROPHET (S.A.W.) In the boxes above write down how the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.) carried out his 4 duties.

TAUGHT ISLAM

TAUGHT US WISDOM

TAUGHT US THE QURA’N

PURIFIED US

GHADEER KHUM

“ For whomever I am the Master Ali is his Master… ” Holy Prophet at Ghader ACTIVITY: Draw / write the two weighty things mentioned in

Hadith Thaqalayn that the Holy Prophet has left behind for us

G U I D A N C E - H I D A Y A Everyone in the world needs something or someone to guide them.

ACTIVITY: Mix and match the items in the columns below:

COLUMN A COLUMN B

A sailor

Text Books

A pharmacist

A manual

A train traveller

The National Curriculum

A motorist

The globe

A camper who doesn’t have a watch

A complete guide to medicine

An explorer

A compass

A teacher

London’s underground

A student

The sun

A machine operator

An A - Z

The __________________ is my GUIDE Can you please guide the bee to its bee hive. It is not as easy as it looks………

“AND IF YOU COUNT THE BLESSINGS OF ALLAH, YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COMPUTE THEM……” Circle the things for which you will say Alhamdulillah. Draw and/or write more things for which you will do shukr.

Parents

Qur’an & Ahadith

Bad Manners

Body Parts e.g.ear…

Ruh

Ma’sumeen

OUR UNIVERSE

Below are words related to our Universe. Complete the word search.. You may go horizontally, vertically and diagonally as well!

UNIVERSE PLANETARIUM

ASTRONOMER SATURN

SUN COMET

EARTH METEOR

ORBIT ASTEROID

MOON ASTRONAUT

ECLIPSE SATELLITE

CONSTELLATION TELESCOPE

GALAXY VENUS

T

R

E

W

Q

E

C

L

I

P

S

E

Y T E L E S C O P E P V I U

S O L K A J N S H D E F D

A C V B U B S X M Z N G A

T P L A N E T A R I U M S

E C A S I B E S T H S O T

L A S T V S L T U U E L R

L T T A E A L R L N R O O

I S E R R C A O I F E N N

T T R S S K T N F T Q A A

E C O M E T I O E D J L U

E J I D E D O M O O N I T

A A D E F K N E Y R U E L

J C R K B E B R G O B N O

H R G T G A L A X Y L I O

I D O G H A P R E S T O T

OUR SOLAR SYSTEM

“ It is not practical for the sun that it should overtake the moon, nor can the night outstrip the day, and each of these heavenly bodies giving off light rotate on its peculiar sphere “ ( 36: 40 )

Colour the planets below

THE HOLY QURA’N Check out your knowledge on the Qur’an with this simple quiz.

1. How many ayaat are there in the Qura’n?

2. There are 114 _________________ in the Qur’an.

3. The word aya can mean _______________.

4. There are ___________ ayaat in Surah Jummah.

5. Surah ________________ is recommended to be receited on Thursday Night and on Friday.

6. The shortest surah in the Qur’an is _______________ made up of ____________ ayaat.

7. The longest surah is __________________ of ___________

ayaat.

8. The only surah that doesn’t start with Bis milla …. is Surah ________

9. Name at least 5 Prophets mentioned in the Qur’an

______________ ____________________________, ______________________ ______________________ and ______________________ .

10. The plural of Surah is ___________________.

11. The Qura’n was revealed in which 2 places ?

a. Meccah b. Syria c. Kufa d. Medinah e. Kerbala

12. The Qur’an has been divided into 30 equal parts called ___________ So that Qur’an can be completed over a month ( 30 days ).

THE HOLY QURA’N - RUKU ACTIVITY: Below is a picture of a RUKU . Look it up in the Qur’an, you will find it on almost any page on the margin. Explain what the labelled Arabic Numbers mean and also complete the sentence below: A Ruku is __________________________________________ .

UTILISING THE QUR’AN The Qur’an is a complete code of life, but how much of it do we utilise. ACTIVITY: complete the table below: Guidance from Qur’an Qur’an

Reference Do I follow it?

Do not backbite 49 : 12

Do not waste time 93 : 1,2

Be kind to your parents 17 : 23

Be mindful of your Salaat 107 : 5

Do not say mean things to others

2 : 104

Give the best to others when you give them a gift

2 : 267

Do not follow the saitan, he is your open enemy

36 : 60

Qur’an is a healer and a guide 10 : 57

Importance of Friday Salaat 62 : 9

If we do not act according to the Qur’an are we not the same as the donkey who bears the burden but does not act on it ??????

THE ONLY TWO CERTAINTIES OF EXISTANCE BIRTH & DEATH

ACTIVITY: Complete the columns below: How do we prepare for How do we prepare for the birth of a baby death 1. Paint the spare room. 1. Buy and keep our kafan. 2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5. 5. Death is not something to be afraid of, if you have performed your duties well and you love your Lord than of course you will not fear death but rather long for it.

BAAQIYATUS SAALIHAAT

Death is not the end of everything. Allah is HAYY (Alive ) and we can also be ever living if we perform deeds in this world by which people will always remember us. Below are some examples of good deeds by which you can be remembered.

ACTIVITY: Draw or write about those deeds with which may remember you.

Being kind to orphans Teach others what you know

Try to help fellow Mu’mineen Visit the sick

FRIDAY YAWMUL JUMUA’

Conditions for Friday Salaat. Second sermon has Verses From the Qura’an

Must be prayed in Jamat

1st sermon = current affairs There must be at least 5 Ehtiyat Wajib

There must be 2 sermons Only 1 Friday prayer may Delivered by Imam be held in a radius of 3

miles Method of praying Friday Salaat

ACTIVITY: Zahid would like to Pray Salaat Juma. Can you please help him by putting the actions below in the right order.

TASHAHUD

2nd RUKU

1st set of SAJDAH

1st QUNOOT

SALAAM

2ND QUNOOT

1st RUKU

2nd set of SAJDAH

NIYAAT

1st QIRA’AT

2nd QIRA’AT

FridayYawmul Jumu'a

The angels record the thawabs of thosewho recite salawat on Friday on silver

paper with gold pens

"The thawab of deeds on Friday is twice as much. So avoidsins and do more good deeds to get more thawab."Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.)

On Friday if you...

Smile You get the thawab of 2 smiles

Give 22p sadaqa You get the thawab of ............p sadaqa

Help mum clean one roomGet the thawab of cleaning............ rooms

Qur'an

Recite one sura of Qur'anGet the thawab of reciting ........ suwer

SUPPORT THE ORPHANS AS SAYYIDA KHADIJA (A.S.) DID

How to make a SADQA box. You will need:

• card / manilla paper • A pair of scissors • Pritt stick / glue / • Colour pencils.

Imam Hasan (A.S.) Fold a piece of card and draw a heart on the front cover. Write Imam Hasan (A.S.) on it. Colour and decorate the heart.

Write a greeting inside the card . e.g. In Hadithe Kisaa, Sayyida Fatima Zahra (A.S.) addressed her son Imam Hasan (A .S) as "Thamarata fuaadiy" -Delight of my heart .

To, My dearest Mummy & Papa, On this day I promise that I will try my best to follow the teachings of my Imam and I hope always to remain your thamarata fuaadiy .

Lots & Lots of Love & Duas

The Battle of Badr Below are images of the Battle of Badr, cut out the pictures and stick them on card to make your own scene of The Battle of Badr

THE BATTLE OF BADR If you were a soldier going to fight for a battle of ISLAM, which of the following things would you need!!!! Circle them.

Weapons Magazines Musalla Spade

Mohr & tasbee

Jawshan Kabeer

Sunglasses

Compass

Will Computer games

Kafan

Waterbottle

Writing paper & pen

Party clothes First Aid Box

Helmet

Cap

Ammunition Tank

Uniform

Imam Ali (A.S.)

ImamAli(A.S.)

Father Mother

Son Son Son

DaughterDaughter

MY ASPIRATIONS

Ramadhan 40 A.H 5. Be kind to your neighbours. 6. Be mindfull of your prayers. 1. Fear Allah 7. Do not forsake the Ka’aba. 2. Put your affairs right. 8. Do jihad with your 3. Maintain good relations property, life and tongue…

Amongst yourself. …………………………….. 4. Take care of the

Orphans. Ali ibn Abi Talib. Ramadhan 1425 MY THOUGHTS I would like the world to be a better place, I can

Do this by: 1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6. TO HASTEN THE ZUHUR OF MY IMAM MAHDI

(A.S )

Sura Al-Ankabut Sura Ad-Dukhan

Colour inthe smoke (dukhan)

Draw the web

Write 'R' for theRomans in the circle

SuraAr-Room

Who wrote the Duasin Sahifa As-Sajjadiyya?

DuaMakarimul Akhlaq

SahifaAsSajjadiyya

SahifaAsSajjadiyya

Dua e Tawba

What will youdo Tawba for?

Laylatul Qadr

PHASES OF THE MOON “ And as for the moon, We have fixed for it stages till it returneth to be bent like an old palm branch “ Suratu Yaseen: 36 : 39

ACTIVITY: In the boxes below draw the different stages of the

moon as it would appear on the following dates according to the Lunar calendar.

Does your drawing correspond to the above aya of the Quran ? Do you think Allah talks about science in the Quran ? Check out Suratu Yaseen , 36: 33

1st of Ramadhan

15th of Ramadhan 29th Ramadhan

"Ramadhan burns sins and faultsjust as fire burns wood."Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.)

"Everything has a season,Ramadhan is the season ofQUR'AN."Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W.)

QUR'AN

RAMADHAN

O Allah!Grant us success to be able tofast and worship You in Ramadhan;Guide us to do whatever You like;And stop us from doing what Youdislike;Keep our feet steady in Your way;And help us follow Your Book andYour Prophet and his AhlulBayt.

SURATUL JUMUA' (62) - Scheme Of Work - Ramadhan 1425 · SURATUL JUMUA’ (62) SCHEME OF WORK FOR...

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Transcript of SURATUL JUMUA' (62) - Scheme Of Work - Ramadhan 1425 · SURATUL JUMUA’ (62) SCHEME OF WORK FOR...