Surat Ya Sin — Stunningly beautiful recitation by Shaykh Muhammad Siddiq al-Manshawi
Can also be downloaded:
Surat Ya Sin - Shaykh Manshawi
… link given by a dear brother in UK.
Speaking Ill of Scholars by Saraji Umm Zaid — Living Tradition
“There was an article released on an internet site recently that slandered several scholars and a group of students, singling out one particular sheikh….”
Umm Zaid, writing from her heart with clarity of mind.
Qasida — O Messenger of Allah, O Reliable One! (Ya Rasul Allah Ya Ahl al-Wafa’
Click to listen.
To download:
Ya Rasul Allah Ya Ahl al-Wafa’
How to think about prescription drugs — The New Yorker: The Critics: A Critic At Large
All naked in the same bathhouse…
Living Tradition — A Traditional Muslim’s look at “Progressive” Sexual Ethics
A criterion for judging who is ‘right’: who is closest to the example of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), in their actions, conduct, dealings, states, and aspirations?
There are no humans more noble or more perfected than the inheritors of the Prophets (peace and blessings be upon them)…
Audio: Sheikh Nuh: Listening to the recorded music
Explaining why faith, piety, and sound scholarship all point clearly to the impermissibility of music with instruments (other than the duff).
Jala’ al-Qulub - Bringing Hearts to Life Through Praising Allah and His Messenger
The Muzarza` Brothers (of Damascus, Syria), in one of the classic recordings of qasidas and a rocking hadra, in five parts:
Jala’ al-Qulub - Part One
Jala’ al-Qulub - Part Two
Jala’ al-Qulub - Part Three
Jala’ al-Qulub - Part Four
Jala’ al-Qulub - Part Five
May Allah grant us hearts aflame with His love, and the love of His Beloved Messenger (peace and blessings unlimited be upon him, his family, companions, and followers).
What Do We Choose, Anyways?
Joseph Epstein said,
“We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, or the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time or conditions of our death. But within all this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we shall live: courageously or in cowardice, honorably or dishonorably, with purpose or adrift. We decide what is important and what is trivial in life. We decide that what makes us significant is either what we do or what we refuse to do. But no matter how indifferent the universe may be to our choices and decisions, these choices and decisions are ours to make. We decide. We choose. And as we decide and choose, so are our lives formed. In the end, forming our own destiny is what ambition is about.”
Also by Epstein:
The Perpetual Adolescent - The Triumph of Youth Culture
“Maturity provides a more articulated sense of the ebb and flow, the ups and downs, of life, a more subtly reticulated graph of human possibility. Above all, it values a clear and fit conception of reality. Maturity is ever cognizant that the clock is running, life is finite, and among the greatest mistakes is to believe otherwise. Maturity doesn’t exclude playfulness or high humor. Far from it. The mature understand that the bitterest joke of all is that the quickest way to grow old lies in the hopeless attempt to stay forever young.”
Sunni Path Online Academy: The Legal and Spiritual Dimensions of Fasting - Free Course
A free course on Fasting, offered through SunniPath Academy. There are lessons on:
* Guidance from the Qur’an and Sunna on the Outward and Inward Dimensions of Fasting
* The Fiqh of Fasting Ramadan
* Making the Most of Ramadan
* Q/A Session on Fasting
And related articles, FAQ on Fasting and Ramadan, and more…
Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad - Bombing Without Moonlight:The Origins of Suicidal Terrorism
“The war against neo-Kharijite ideology can only be won by Sunni normalcy…”
DeenPort - New Qasidas by Ustadh Mahmoud Faris of Aleppo (Syria)
Four excellent songs,
1. “Billahi Billahi Ya Habibi”
2. “Allah Ya `Adheem”
3. “Hiya Tayba al-Ghaliya”
4. “Ya Imam al-Rusli”
Rocking renditions… don’t miss.
Language Fatwas Online - Chicago Manual of Style - Q&A
Darul Ifta’ for English Usage, Style, and more.
Ya Rabbi Bi’l Mustafa Balligh Maqasidana - Shaykh Muhammad al-Halbawi
“O Allah, grant us our goals, by the Chosen One!”
The yearning of lovers…
Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad - Ramadan - BBC Thought For The Day
“Our culture has blundered into the assumption that if a sensation is pleasurable and does no harm, then we should have as much of it as possible….”
Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad’s BBC Thought of Day Archive
Marrying a Second Wife - BBC - Religion & Ethics - Inside The Harem
“Shagufta Yaqub, a young educated British Muslim, got married two years ago. In her marriage contract she did not prohibit her husband from taking another wife…”
Interesting…
SunniPath Answer - The Fiqh of Marrying a Second Wife
This is the link to the full PDF of this wonderful book (from the Ihya) by Imam Ghazali, on how to live one’s life according to the example of the Beloved Messenger Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him, his family, and companions).
Note, however, that many of the resources on the site hosting this PDF are not reliable. Generally, the writings and translations of non-Muslims (or even Muslim non-scholars) about Islam are not “relied upon” for religious guidance or learning…
The Qur’anic paradigm: “Enters houses through their doors…”
The Guardian — Census shows Muslims’ plight
… And what about the spiritual health of the community?
The community of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was materially poor and apparently weak in the foundational stages in Mecca and in the early years in Medina. But it was a community of deep spiritual and religious strength…
May Allah give us the success to have communities that are inwardly rich through the light of following the guidance of Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in the most pleasing of ways, and outwardly rich as a manifestation of Divine Favor, Generosity, and Mercy…
“And verily the Next Life is better for you than this Life…” [Qur’an]
Living in Jordan: A Resource Guide, Contents
I haven’t seen a better guide…
(Though Sidi Sohail Nakhooda and I could add a useful section on good eateries in Amman…)
Shaykh Nadwi (Allah have mercy on him) was widely regarded as one of the great men of Islam in the 20th Century, respected and revered by scholars from across the spectrum of Islamic thought…
“Jacques Derrida, the thinker whose concept of “deconstruction” influenced at least two generations of scholarship in the humanities, died in Paris on Friday at the age of 74. The director of the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences in Paris, Derrida also held a professorship at the University of California at Irvine, beginning in 1986. Irvine houses an archive of Derrida’s manuscripts….”
See also:
The Rise and Fall of Russia — The New Yorker
“Since 1965, life expectancy for Russian men has decreased by nearly six years. And now there is AIDS…”
People raising issues…
Mufti Taqi Usmani - English talk - “Is Islam Different in the West?”
A thought-provoking talk by one of the leading contemporary scholars of Islam…
Naat - Muhammad Mushtaq Qadri - Hum Faqeeron Ko Madeenay Ki Gali…
Yearning for the streets of Madina, and for its Noble Light (peace and blessings be upon him, his family, companions, and followers)…
DigitalBookIndex: World’s Virtual Library (60,000 FREE eBooks, eTexts, On-Line Books, eDocuments)
A lot of fascinating stuff (including The 9/11 Commission Report), though of varying quality…
T.S. Eliot “The Wasteland” — notes
“Eliot’s poem, depicts modern society as being in the infertile part of the cycle. Human beings are isolated, and sexual relations are sterile and meaningless. Because of the variety and relative obscurity of Eliot’s allusions, readers must work through the poem’s footnotes several times to appreciate it, but the general impression of isolation, decadence, and sterility comes through in every reading….”
:: Zaytuna Institute & Academy :: Imam Zaid on Approaching Ramadan
Imam Zaid Shakir (may Allah preserve him) writes:
“We pray that this month is a means for our spiritual ascension. When our spirits are ascendant, and our carnal lusts retreat, we will be able to engage in the type of fast described by one of our righteous forebears when he advised:
“Fast your entire lifetime. Make death your ‘Eid! Life itself is a fast for the righteous. Their fast is from all forbidden lusts. When death comes to them their fast has ended. At that time they find the new moon of ‘Eid.”
Qasida - Taba Li Khal`u `Idhari
Qasida about losing all restraint in love of Allah, and reaching one’s goals through absolute neediness and abasement…
Guardian Unlimited Books | Review | William Boyd: Brief encounters
We forget the power of words at our own peril. We ignore literature at our own loss…
It is very interesting that the ulema historically paid a lot of attention to the great works of literature. Why? There are many reasons, but one of them is that literature gives us insights into the human condition…
Surat Ya Sin - Recited by Shaykh Mahmud Khalil al-Hussary
Ma`qil ibn Yasar (Allah be pleased with him) relates that the Messenger of Allah (Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him, his family, companions, and followers) said,
“Ya Sin is the heart of the Qur’an. No one reads it intending thereby Allah and the Next Abode except that Allah forgives them. Recite it for your deceased ones.” [Related by Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Nasa’i (this wording is his), and Hakim, who deemed it rigorously authenticated (sahih)]
Imam Ghazali explained that this is because soundness of faith rests on acknowledging Resurrection and Judgment, and Surat Ya Sin details this in the most emphatic of ways. Imam Fakhr al-Din al-Razi concurred.
Imam al-Haddad - Meaning of La hawla wa-la quwwata illa bi’Llah
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him, his family, companions, and followers) said, “‘There is no power nor ability save by God’ (la hawla wa la quwwata illa bi Llah) is a treasure of the treasures of Paradise.”
This is why.