Where do you get recommendations for new books to read?
If its to do with law, then the teacher gives me a recommended book list or i ask former students, if its to do with books on Islam, i always read the blurb which tells u the background of the scholar where he was educated etc, and flick through it, if it has quotes from the qur'an and ahadith then i will buy it (subject to price of course!). I don't really have time for fiction anymore, and personally think its a total waste of time, i would rather read something that's gonna benefit me in the long run as most islamic books i choose to read are geared towards how to improve myself in some way or talk about issues which are relevant to me. Every Muslim should try to build up their islamic book collection but mine seems to stay the same as i lend people my books and lose track of who has got them (one thing that peeves me off is when people don't return the books you so kindly lent them until you ask them to)
i remember when i was at school i used to read a book a day, from teenage romances to sidney sheldon novels haha i wonder what happened to him - they were a good read but you could always guess the twist at the end!!
Reading is good for you though,, it keeps the brain cells going, i have enough practice of that reading cases for law, today i had to read loads of cases to do with money laundering!!
Some of you may have noticed that i like to do 3 posts at a time (some are for family before u think i cannot count!)
Looking forward to September:
1- Kids go back to school/college- first day back at school is always a happy one for all parents!
2- Ramadan is round the corner - time to awaken my spiritual batteries - more about Ramadan soon
3- Back to Uni - I haven't seen my friends in 4 months nor picked up never mind read a book on law!
4- Annual Faith Festival - an opportunity for people in my area to visit local places of worship and to learn more about other people's beliefs, always a great atmosphere.
I'm on the mailing list of a south african based radio station (i don't know how they got my email address lol), they send me a weekly newlsetter of programme schedules as well as jokes, recipes, world news and islamic reminders. I have put the kid's stuff into one document which i am gonna send to a colleague who will be hosting Radio Ramadan a monthly spiritual radio show that runs 24-7 throughout Ramadan (the Muslim holy month of fasting), the adult stuff i have put into one document which i can send to my fellow Muslims to read. I thought i would share some of the stuff sent to me- authors unknown :
First some jokes:
A man visited the grave of his dearly departed mother and started back toward his car when his attention was diverted to another man at a grave. The man seemed to be praying with profound intensity and kept repeating, "Why did you have to die? Why did you have to die?"
The first man approached him and said, "Sir, I don't wish to interfere with your private grief, but this demonstration of pain is more than I've ever seen before. For whom do you mourn so deeply? A child? A parent?"
The mourner took a moment to collect himself, then replied, "My wife's first husband."
An
insect falls into a mug of beer...
Englishman: Throws his mug away and walks out
American: Takes the insect out and drinks the beer
Chinese: Eats the insect and throws the beer away
Indian: Sells the beer to the American and insect to the Chinese and gets a new mug of beer.
Pakistani: Accuses the Indian for throwing insect into his beer, relates the issue to Kashmir, asks the Chinese for Military aid, takes a loan from the American to buy one more mug of beer.A journalist had done a story on gender roles in Kuwait several years before the Gulf War, and she noted then that women customarily walked about 10 feet behind their husbands. She returned to Kuwait recently and observed that the men now walked several yards behind their wives. She approached one of the women for an explanation. "This is marvelous," said the journalist. "What enabled women here to achieve this reversal of roles?" Replied the Kuwaiti woman: "Land mines"
What Women Want in a Man?
What women want in a man at age 22: Handsome; Charming; financially successful;
A caring listener; Witty; in good shape; Dresses with style; Appreciates finer
things; Full of thoughtful surprises; and an imaginative, romantic lover.
What women want in a man at age 42: Not too ugly (bald head is fine); Doesn't drive off until I'm in the car; Works steady - splurges on dinner out occasionally; Nods head when I'm talking; Usually remembers punch lines of jokes; Is in good enough shape to rearrange the furniture; Wears a shirt that covers his stomach; Remembers to put the toilet seat down; and shaves most weekends.
What women want in a man at age 62: Doesn't scare small children; Remembers where bathroom is; Doesn't require much money for upkeep; Only snores lightly when asleep; Remembers why he's laughing; Is in good enough shape to stand up by himself; Usually wears some clothes; Likes soft foods; Remembers where he left his teeth; and remembers that it's the weekend.
And, what women want in a man at
age 72:
1. Breathing
2. Doesn't miss the toilet
Something to ponder:
Self-knowledge
"Truth telling is not compatible with the defence of the realm." -
George Bernard Shaw
Healthy self-esteem grows from self-acceptance based on self-knowledge. That is why it is so important to tell ourselves the truth and get our facts straight. If our self-knowledge is spotty or inaccurate, the very basis of our self-esteem is threatened.
Self-knowledge is gained by degrees. Many of us worked hard, for example, to own up to the hurt in our lives. For years we said, "its fine," "It doesn't matter," or "I'm okay, let's talk about you." We had to struggle to say, "That bothered me a lot," "My feelings were hurt," or "I decided not to put myself into that situation again." That's progress!
But even then, we may be "defending the realm" of the fearful ego. Acknowledging pain and acknowledging the depth of the pain are not the same. It is one thing to admit hurt and another to admit a broken heart. It is one thing to say, "I don't like this," and another to say, "I feel like dying." Minimizing our pain is better than denying it. But self-knowledge constructed of half-truths will always be spotty. To be honest about the depth of the hurt is the only real honesty.
Normal Life is getting dressed in clothes that you buy on credit for work, driving through traffic in a car that you are still paying for, in order to get to a job that you need so badly so you can pay for the clothes, car and the house that you leave empty all day in order to afford to live in it.
You are what your deep, driving desire is. As is your desire, so is your will.
As is your will, so is your deed. As is your deed, so is your destiny.
Finally, something spiritual:
Islam has always placed an importance on seeking Knowledge. Indeed Allah taught Adam the first man the names of all things as he lacked the knowledge to do so, and from the moment we are born we are constantly seeking knowledge with our eyes, ears and when we can speak we constantly question everything, due to our thirst for knowlege. Everything that is wrong with Muslims today is down to their lack of knowlege of their deen (religion).If only every Muslim was sincere in seeking knowledge then the problems they have today would be non-existent.
I attended a talk yesterday on the "Beautiful Names of Allah", the speaker explained the names of Allah as mentioned in the Qur'an and the differences between the Names and Attributes, to cut a long story short, many Muslims (including myself) lack real spirituality, we pray and fast then get on with our daily lives without making any connection to Allah (God) as we lack real knowledge of Him (which in turn can be found in studying his Names and Attributes). The speaker very patiently went through the 99 Names of Allah and although i have at least 2 books on the subject i am ashamed to say i haven't read them properly.
Someone sent this via email to me which i really liked and though i would share, Islam places an emphasis on the heart as being alive in the spiritual sense as well as the physical sense which is why knowledge is linked to the heart:
Whoever lacks knowledge has an ailing heart and his death is certain; yet he is not aware of his doom because the love of this world and his concern therewith have dulled his sense, just as a shock from fright may momentarily do away with the pain of a wound although the wound be real.
The heart will perish if it is cut off from wisdom and
knowledge for three days. The nourishment of the heart, on which its life
depends, is knowledge and wisdom, just as the nourishment of the body is food.
(Ihyaa)
What would you attempt to do if you knew you could never fail?
Submitted by BeckyPink.
I would memorise the Qur'an in Arabic and also the translation in English.
Dutch MP Geert Wilders calls for ban of the Qur'an in his country, i can see this happening where i live very soon as now it has become acceptable for people to dress up as Muslims and mock them as part of a street carnival.
This photo shows a group of male and female villagers in Cornwall dressing up as Muslim women in burkhas, Calling themselves the "Page Three Beauties from the Ramalama Ding-Dong Times", the 17 men and women carried placards with made-up names such as "Miss Hairyarmpitsbad", "Miss Slackistan", "Miss Notbadinbedabad" and "Miss Reallyamanistan".they were veiled with hats and sunglasses parading as part of a carnival, they are using a fake compass and pretending to pray.
Of course only a tabloid trash newspaper would give this story any coverage as its bound to stir up trouble between those who find it offensive and those who think its just a bit of harmless fun. Considering how much uproar was made of Jade Goody calling Shilpa Shetty Shilpa Poppadum you would think that many would consider this to be racist? Wrong.
Although many people thought this was offensive, others thought it was just a joke, and justified it by saying that Christians are mocked and so is Jesus. I dont think that makes it acceptable, as Muslims we should support Christians when people mock Jesus as he is a prophet of Islam. Also Britain has become more secular, but that doesnt mean they can mock Jesus and other religions, people have accepted it over the years but Christians shouldnt allow it. Muslims will be accused of not being able to take a joke, if we dont laugh this incident off, after all its just a British thing to do, take the piss out of foreigners isnt it? Back in the day they had english actors playing black people and chinese people on TV until they realised they cant do that its racist, haha, Muslims have become the easy target in the media, we cant do anything right, if we complain we are extreme and cant take a joke, why didnt they dress up as rabbis or as ghandi or guru nanak instead? I cant help feeling the reaction would have been different if they did. I havent linked to this article as i dont want to give this islamophobic newspaper any free publicity.
Should driving while talking on a cell phone be outlawed?
Submitted by Soup.
It is outlawed in the UK, it is an offence to hold a mobile phone in your hand whilst driving (so texting is out) if u have a call you must park up and switch your engine OFF before answering the call but it dont make any difference as many people still take calls while driving.
i think its good that it is outlawed as many people (including myself) couldn't hold a phone in my hand while driving with the other u cant control the vehicle properly. Handsfree sets are not illiegal though (yet).
Babar Ahmed has been incarcerated in prison for almost 3 years. He is a British Muslim who was arrested and jailed for alleged terrorism charges in the UK and after being held without trial, moves have been made to extradite him to the US for trial. I came across his story 3 years ago when he was first arrested, brutally attacked then incarcerated and must admit haven't given him much thought, he was one of the first Muslims to be held in the UK and since then a growing number of Muslims are arrested on terrorist charges, awaiting trial. Organisations like cageprisoners and charities like HHUGS (Helping Households under great stress) and satellite channel the Islam Channel have highlighted his plight over the years and he always keeps the public informed of his situation via letters from prison.
The following is a letter he wrote this month addressed to Muslims, giving them hope and inspiration:
Reading his letter helps me appreciate how lucky i am to be free but also humbles me at how brave and strong in faith people like him are, many prisoners/detainees have been unable to sustain the pain and suffering and many have committed suicide due to the injustices they faced, but Babar like many incarcerated Muslims is an example for us to follow.
Babar Ahmad 17/08/2007
Today I feel as if I am only three years old and the rest of the years of my life have no value. Ibn Taymiyyah also spent 36 months imprisoned in the citadel during which he completed reciting the Quran 80 times. He would put his head on the floor in prostration from Isha until Fajr (all night long) repeating the supplication, "O Allah! Help me to remember You, be grateful to You and to worship You with excellence." This is what you call a blessed, productive life.
Prison teaches you the value of time. We are nothing more than a combination of days, hours, minutes and seconds. When a day passes a part of us dies along with it never to return. Time is immortal. We can never kill time but it is time that devours us day after day after day.
People say that time is money. This is an illusion. Money can be replaced but lost time can never be replaced. Time is the most precious thing we posses. Ask the dead in the graves whether they would prefer time or money. They would probably give the whole earth full of gold in exchange for the chance to pray just one more salah. How deprived is the one who wasted years of his life waiting for a 'tomorrow' that never came?
The classical scholar Sufyan Ath-Thawri said, "Fear evil when you are in a good situation and expect good when you are in an evil situation." This is life. A wave of tidal currents that oscillates between the ebbs of hardship and the flows of ease. Allah tests us continuously, with good (to test our gratitude) and evil (to test our patience) until the day we meet Him.
When all the people you encounter in your daily life- friends, neighbours, work colleagues, etc. - are what one may describe as decent, honest, genuine people, your worldview is limited to that narrow mindset. You begin to think that everyone and everything in the world is good. You cannot imagine concepts such as 'evil.'
That is why it is necessary to be subjected to physical, psychological, verbal and racist abuse in order to form a balanced view of the world. Having treaded both paths I have finally understood the hadith of the Prophet (SAS): "People are like 100 camels out of which you can hardly find one suitable to ride." In other words less than one out of every 100 people is genuine: the rest are fakes. To varying degrees.
Eyes are the window to the soul. The art of recognising good and evil in a person by reading the eyes carries its weight in gold in life in general. In prison it is priceless. Smiles, soft words, 'sincere' comments and crocodile tears cannot gloss over the evil that the eyes conceal. Learn to read the eyes and you will seize treachery before it seizes you. Fail to read the eyes and you will always be stung in life.
At times in our lives every one of us will cross paths with a handful of truly inspirational individuals who will have a life-changing effect on us even though we may meet them only once. You know that someone has had a profound effect on you when you find yourself remembering their faces, their actions and their words long after they leave your company.
For some reason influential people tend to have more of an effect on you in their absence than their presence. The longer and more distant the absence (e.g. death, imprisonment, exile) the more the effect they have on you. I have been honoured to meet some exceptional individuals in my life and blessed to spend moments in their company.
Time and time again I picture their blessed faces and hear the echoes of their precious words in my cell as I journey through the toils of prison life, even though they are far away from me. Their faith inspires me when I feel low, their determination motivates me when I lose hope and their wisdom advises me when I am in a difficult situation. Even though they are absent from me their influence is not.
I am aware of men in unjust captivity today who are like priceless diamonds buried deep in a mine. It would not be an exaggeration to say it is not just those who know them, but the entire world that is deprived due to their absence.
Allah says repeatedly in the Quran: "Indeed Allah is with the patient ones." To the individual of weak iman, these are just empty words until an experience brings them to life. There are times in prison when you experience such utter despair, hopelessness and helplessness that you pray (and curse) not from your tongue or even in your heart, but from somewhere far deeper.
Those are the times when you need a response to your supplication now. Not tomorrow, not next week, month or year, but now. And I swear that Allah, Generous and Bountiful is He, never abandons you when you call Him in such a state. In these situations His Response comes immediately. By this I do not mean a good dream, but real-life miracles that first melt then strengthen your shattered heart. These supernatural signs are Allah's way of saying, "Don't worry, I am still with you."
Syed Qutb rightly said that reading the Quran whilst actually immersed in the struggle to uphold 'La ilaha illallah' (There is no god but Allah) has a different sweetness and meaning to reading the Quran in a passive state detached from reality. Every verse of the Quran becomes alive in prison. It is not just something recited in prayer or hung up on walls. It represents your daily life to the extent that Allah 'reveals' specific verses of the Quran to you in dreams at night, that correspond to the hardships you experience in the day.
For years I recited the Quran day and night but I did not unlock its secrets and power until I came to prison. Now I understand why prison is known as the University of Islamic Knowledge. Muslims expect miracles from the sky but forget the miracle living in our very midst. The Quran is the story of my ordeal. Whoever wants to know what I have gone through need only read the Quran and reflect upon it.
Allah the Almighty revealed the story of Prophet Yusuf (Joseph) (AS) in the Quran as a comfort and a symbol of hope to every unjustly detained believer until the end of time. Allah (SWT) knew that Yusuf (AS) was not the first believer to be imprisoned for his faith. And he would not be the last. That is why the scholars said that no believer recites Surah Yusuf while in any distress, except that Allah will fill him with comfort, peace and hope.
Many today say that these are dark days for the Muslim ummah. I beg to differ. These are glorious days that will be sorely missed once gone. Successive generations of Muslims will look back to these days as the days in which Islam was revived and heroes were made as dreams turned into realities. History is repeating itself as we have returned to the early days of Prophethood in Makkah. The Muhajireen (Emigrants) of today are those who have been forcibly expelled from their homes and estranged from their loved ones. The Ansar (Helpers) of today are those who are helping them and their families. It is precisely at times like these that nations discover their quest for mission and moment.
Years after the death of the Prophet (SAS), after the world's luxuries had opened up to them in abundance, the Companions would weep yearning for those glorious early days of hardship in Makkah. Those were the days in which many of them secured their places in Paradise. The path of hardship due to one's belief is the path of the prophets and righteous. Umar bin Al-Khattab (RA) said, "The best days of our lives were those days (of hardship) in which we exercised patience."
There is no time to rest; that will come later. Prison is not a place of rest. In fact this whole dunya is not the realm of rest. Khalid bin Al-Waleed (RA) said, "Rest is only in the Hereafter. Man will rest in the Hereafter according to how much effort he expends in the dunya." Imam Ahmad's students asked him when they were experiencing hardships, "When will we rest?" He replied, "When our first step enters Paradise, that is when we will rest."
Fear of the future is what holds you prisoner; hope is what sets you free. Hardship is overcome by hope and the excitement of good things to come. And good things will come, for it is Allah's unconditional Promise: "Allah will make after hardship, ease." (Quran 65:7). I can feel the breeze of relief blowing in my face and its vibrations in my blood. It's only a matter of time before it arrives. The story is not over yet as articulated by this quote:
"Life is a book with many chapters. Some tell of tragedy, others tell
of triumph. Some are dull and ordinary, others intense and exciting. The key to
success in life is to never stop on a difficult page, to never quit on a tough
chapter. Champions have the courage to keep turning the pages because they know
that a better chapter always lies ahead, because with Allah all things are
possible."
.
Sunday - I bought a used car and traded my old car at the same place
Monday - picked car up from dealer - drove halfway home and realised windscreen chipped and battery was on so i
took car back
Tuesday - waited for them to ring me back when they have part to repair my car
Wednesday - took car back to garage - told me they cannot identify the problem, when i asked for a replacement car they said they had none available
Thursday -rang them 5 times still no car available, they promised to ring me back but didn't of course
Friday - did some research on my consumer rights and emailed it to my solicitor who faxed it threatening the garage with legal action, almost immediately i get a phone call from the manager of the garage asking me to come down to discuss things, he said my car's not ready but they will give me a replacement car while its off the road!! They also put some new parts in the car and replaced the windscreen! So after four days of not having a car i finally have one (but its not mine!!). Sometimes you have to get the solicitors in before they listen to you!
4 days without a car - must be a record for me.
Living in the West we take most things for granted..... like football. How would u feel if your favourite team was not allowed to play in the Champions League/European Championships or Premier League due to restrictions imposed on them by the country occupying them?
Imagine living under an occupied territory with checkpoints, people bulldozing your homes, taking away your livelihood, preventing you from going school and daily killings of innocent civilians by the army and being told that you can't play football? Football (or soccer) not Australian rules or American football, but football brings people together, makes people forget their differences it turns men into hooligans and drunken louts but thats a different story. Not being allowed to play football? Come on! Even Iraq despite being occupied by the US have a national team! Thats another injustice that the Palestinians have to face.
Morad
Fareed, American born Striker for Palestine says: “Football is one of
the very few institutions that Palestine has to compete, to show our
statehood, to be on the world stage"
Palestine’s
football team players have never been allowed to play an international
match (other than Qatar) due to restrictions imposed on them by Israel.
Teams from Gaza and the West Bank cannot even play against each other
due to the restrictions.
Israel’s military occupation of Palestine prevents Palestinian footballers training and playing for international fixtures.
In September 2005, Palestine was in a good position in its Asian zone group in the qualifying rounds for the 2006 World Cup, but the Israeli authorities stopped five key players travelling and Palestine failed to qualify.
In April last year, Israeli missiles destroyed the only stadium in Gaza , where 1.2 million Palestinians live.
Israeli forces regularly KILL young kids kicking a ball around with friends.
Just to highlight the support the UK has for Israel, the Palestinian Under 19 football team were due to arrive in the UK to undergo training with English clubs and play a few friendly matches with local teams, they were due to arrive at the same time England play Israel for their Euro 08 qualifier. A big demonstration has been organised for that day to highlight the fact that Israel can play international football but Palestine can't?
To sign the online petition go to:http://www.bigcampaign.org.uk/
I have just found out that the Palestinian team have been refused their visas they have not been given the reasons for refusal but apparently due to "the economic situation in Gaza where the majority of the team are based, they believe the Palestinians would not return causing a refugee situation, although they have since denied this they have given no other valid reason for refusing their visas.
Please see http://www.palestinefootball.myzen.co.uk/page18.html
http://www.btselem.org/english/Statistics/Casualties_Data.asp?Category=13 for statistics on Palestinian children being murdered for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Living in the West we take a lot of things for granted.. some things many people don't have which we waste such as food and water. It makes you think how the population would cope if they had to live without food, water etc (im not talking about Big Brother type conditions but genuine real life rations) We are so used to having everything at our disposal that we cannot cope with any minor discomfort or disruption to our lives. I have been complaining because i haven't had the use of my car. ( My son said somewhat cheekily that he never has to walk anywhere!)
We waste water cos we have it on tap. We waste food by cooking or buying too much. We waste money on useless things that we think will make us happy when in reality it adds to our misery as after we own it, we are told that theres something better and more advanced than the latest tv, mobile, toy that we have. We waste time on useless vain pursuits. People would rather engage in conversations with strangers than with their own family, we are afraid to discuss the real issues that are bothering us.We waste our brain cells by indulging in activities that kill them from dumb tv programmes to drugs and alcohol. I am guilty of all of the above to some extent and hope to change my ways before its too late. We waste our life away and realise when we are old and grey that we have achieved absolutely nothing cos it doesnt matter how rich or successful you are if you are old you will one day die and if not u will become a burden on someone and need looking after.
