Presence of heart in prayer (khushoo'):
How do we attain presence of heart in our prayer?
1) Realize that presence of heart is not just during prayer but it’s in everything we do, doing lots of thikr helps us achieve this realization.
2) remove the love of the world from your heart
3) Avoiding the haram outwardly and inwardly.
4) Don’t “jump” into prayer: focus your heart on Allah before saying Allahu akbar.
Friday, May 18, 2007
May 10th: Prayer (Part1)
Assalamu alaikum,
In this week's halaqah we spoke about the importance of prayer. Here are some hadiths that we mentioned:
Abu Hurayra said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, 'What do you think would happen if there was a river by someone's door in which he washed five times every day? Do you think that any dirt would remain on him?' They said, 'Not a scrap of dirt would remain on him.' He said, 'That is a metaphor of the five prayers by which Allah wipes out wrong actions.'" [Agreed upon]
Ibn Mas'ud reported that a man received a kiss from a woman and went to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and told him about it. Allah sent down, "Establish the prayer at the two ends of the day and in the first part of the night. Good actions eradicate bad actions." (11:114) The man said, "Messenger of Allah, is this for me?" He said, "It is for every single one of my community." [Agreed upon]
Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The five prayers, and Jumu'a to Jumu'a is expiation for what is between them as long as a man has committed no major sins." [Muslim]
'Uthman ibn 'Affan said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, "There is no Muslim man who attends a prescribed prayer and does wudu' for it well and is humble in it and in its bowing, without that being expiation for the sins before it as long as he did not commit any major sin. This will always apply." [Muslim]
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
In this week's halaqah we spoke about the importance of prayer. Here are some hadiths that we mentioned:
Abu Hurayra said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, 'What do you think would happen if there was a river by someone's door in which he washed five times every day? Do you think that any dirt would remain on him?' They said, 'Not a scrap of dirt would remain on him.' He said, 'That is a metaphor of the five prayers by which Allah wipes out wrong actions.'" [Agreed upon]
Ibn Mas'ud reported that a man received a kiss from a woman and went to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and told him about it. Allah sent down, "Establish the prayer at the two ends of the day and in the first part of the night. Good actions eradicate bad actions." (11:114) The man said, "Messenger of Allah, is this for me?" He said, "It is for every single one of my community." [Agreed upon]
Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The five prayers, and Jumu'a to Jumu'a is expiation for what is between them as long as a man has committed no major sins." [Muslim]
'Uthman ibn 'Affan said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, "There is no Muslim man who attends a prescribed prayer and does wudu' for it well and is humble in it and in its bowing, without that being expiation for the sins before it as long as he did not commit any major sin. This will always apply." [Muslim]
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
Friday, May 4, 2007
May 3rd: Patience
Assalamu alaikum warahmatullah,
for those of you who couldn't make it last night, here's a quick summary of what we spoke about:
-The optimal patience is the one descirbed in the Quran in surah Yusuf as a "beautiful patience". That is patience that is not coupled with complaints, annoyance, worry, or frustration.
-There are three kinds of patience:
1- Patience with afflications: this is the patience we have with illness, death, disaster, loss of money, etc. This kind of patience has no reward, yet it will erase your sins. (So while your good deeds aren't increasing, your bad deeds are being erased)
2-Patience with abstaining from sin: This is the patience needed to stay away from the haram and not fall into it. It's the patience you have when your friends are trying to convince you to go to that party, yet you stay firm and resist.
3-Patience with obedience: This is the best of all three kinds as it is the hardest and most rewarded. This is the patience you have while staying up at late hours of the night to pray to Allah, it's the patience you have when you fast on a long, hot summer day, etc.
Why is this the best kind of patience?
Because patience with affliction is nothing we have control over. The disaster/event happens without our control and all we have to do is be patience. When it comes to falling into sin, you'll find it easier to stay away from sin than to pray for example. Alot of Muslims never pray, but they don't drink for example.
Also, it's the best kind of patience because you are rewarded for your obedience. One sin is equal to one bad deed, yet one act of obedience is equal to 10 good deeds.
And lastly we talked about the conditions of patience, these are the conditions that make your patience rewarded:
1- To be patient at the first shock. So you're patient as soon as you hear the bad news...not after you react and show your anger/frustration, that's when the patience counts.
2-You have a "beautiful patience" that is not accompanied by any complaint.
I hope to see you all next week inshaAllah. Please let me know if you have any questions on Patience! :)
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
for those of you who couldn't make it last night, here's a quick summary of what we spoke about:
-The optimal patience is the one descirbed in the Quran in surah Yusuf as a "beautiful patience". That is patience that is not coupled with complaints, annoyance, worry, or frustration.
-There are three kinds of patience:
1- Patience with afflications: this is the patience we have with illness, death, disaster, loss of money, etc. This kind of patience has no reward, yet it will erase your sins. (So while your good deeds aren't increasing, your bad deeds are being erased)
2-Patience with abstaining from sin: This is the patience needed to stay away from the haram and not fall into it. It's the patience you have when your friends are trying to convince you to go to that party, yet you stay firm and resist.
3-Patience with obedience: This is the best of all three kinds as it is the hardest and most rewarded. This is the patience you have while staying up at late hours of the night to pray to Allah, it's the patience you have when you fast on a long, hot summer day, etc.
Why is this the best kind of patience?
Because patience with affliction is nothing we have control over. The disaster/event happens without our control and all we have to do is be patience. When it comes to falling into sin, you'll find it easier to stay away from sin than to pray for example. Alot of Muslims never pray, but they don't drink for example.
Also, it's the best kind of patience because you are rewarded for your obedience. One sin is equal to one bad deed, yet one act of obedience is equal to 10 good deeds.
And lastly we talked about the conditions of patience, these are the conditions that make your patience rewarded:
1- To be patient at the first shock. So you're patient as soon as you hear the bad news...not after you react and show your anger/frustration, that's when the patience counts.
2-You have a "beautiful patience" that is not accompanied by any complaint.
I hope to see you all next week inshaAllah. Please let me know if you have any questions on Patience! :)
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
Sunday, April 29, 2007
A parable
This is a very meaningful story, please read: http://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/parable.htm
Description of the Righteous.
Assalamu alaikum warahmatullah,
During our last halaqah on April 26th, we spoke about Taqwa. We gave a description of the people of taqwa through using a text provided by Zaytuna institute.
If you'd like a copy of this text please email me and let me know.
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
During our last halaqah on April 26th, we spoke about Taqwa. We gave a description of the people of taqwa through using a text provided by Zaytuna institute.
If you'd like a copy of this text please email me and let me know.
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
Monday, April 23, 2007
The last three weeks
Assalamu alaikum warahmatullah,
Here's what we did in the last three weeks:
April 5th: Description of the Prophet's Physical Characteristics (pbuh)
Summary: We spoke about the way the Prophet looked (pbuh). Including: How his hair was, his eyes, his height, his nose, his mouth, the way he ate, the way he spoke, the way he walked, the way he drank, and much more.
We learned how beautiful the Prophet is physically and in characteristically. May Allah bless him with peace inshaAllah.
April 12th: The Death of The Prophet (pbuh), by Hajirah Ali
Summary: Sr. Hajirah gave a beautiful talk mashaAllah which included dhikr and an explanation of some verses from the burdah and finally it ended with the description of the Prophet's death (pbuh).
April 19th: Reliance on Allah (Topic suggested by Ferozan)
Summary: we spoke about how important it is to truly rely on Allah. However, that is under one condition. One must do everything they can first and then put their trust and reliance on Allah. The Prophet (pbuh) was once asked by a man: Should I tie my camel or should I rely on Allah?. The Prophet (pbuh) said: Tie the camel and then rely on Allah.
This week inshaAllah (April 26th) we will be talking about "Taqwa".
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
Here's what we did in the last three weeks:
April 5th: Description of the Prophet's Physical Characteristics (pbuh)
Summary: We spoke about the way the Prophet looked (pbuh). Including: How his hair was, his eyes, his height, his nose, his mouth, the way he ate, the way he spoke, the way he walked, the way he drank, and much more.
We learned how beautiful the Prophet is physically and in characteristically. May Allah bless him with peace inshaAllah.
April 12th: The Death of The Prophet (pbuh), by Hajirah Ali
Summary: Sr. Hajirah gave a beautiful talk mashaAllah which included dhikr and an explanation of some verses from the burdah and finally it ended with the description of the Prophet's death (pbuh).
April 19th: Reliance on Allah (Topic suggested by Ferozan)
Summary: we spoke about how important it is to truly rely on Allah. However, that is under one condition. One must do everything they can first and then put their trust and reliance on Allah. The Prophet (pbuh) was once asked by a man: Should I tie my camel or should I rely on Allah?. The Prophet (pbuh) said: Tie the camel and then rely on Allah.
This week inshaAllah (April 26th) we will be talking about "Taqwa".
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
Monday, April 2, 2007
Shaykh Ninowy
Assalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
I hope you are all doing well inshaAllah.
For those of you who couldn't make it to the halaqah on Thursday, here's a summary of what Shaykh Ninowy spoke about:
-The Shaykh explained how pleasing people is impossible, yet pleasing Allah will cause people to be pleased with us.
-The word "Aqeedah" is actually not mentioned in the Quran or sunnah. It comes from the Arabic word "Aqada" which means to tie. Aqeedah is what you tie your heart on believing.
-The word "Assamad" in surat Al-Ikhlas means: the one who is not in need of anything, yet everything in creation is in need of Him.
-"need" usually implies imperfection and dificiency, our creator is not in need of anything. We are in need of Him.
-Another attribute of Allah (swt) is that He is not subject to change.
-The Shaykh mentioned that the most two famous schools of Aqeedah are "Al-Ashari" and "Al-Matureedi". It's important for us to study one of them.
-The attributes of Allah have no beginning, no end, and are not suject to change.
-The Shaykh also gave some advice on how we shouldn't "label" people, we are all Muslim. He also mentioned how we should worry about our own faults, not the faults of others.
-He also said that the best way to learn sacred knowledge is from a shaykh who studied with a shaykh who studied with a shaykh...Reading books without someone explaining them to us is not recommended.
The Shaykh said: "learn from someone who is authorized, trustworthy, and knowledgeable".
-Finally the Shaykh gave advice on how to speak to non-Muslims who approach us with endless questions regarding hijab, why men can marry more than one wife, etc. He said we should talk to them about Aqeedah first, then we can answer their other questions.
I'm sorry that my notes are not that detailed. For anyone else who did attend, please post any additional notes you may have! :)
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
I hope you are all doing well inshaAllah.
For those of you who couldn't make it to the halaqah on Thursday, here's a summary of what Shaykh Ninowy spoke about:
-The Shaykh explained how pleasing people is impossible, yet pleasing Allah will cause people to be pleased with us.
-The word "Aqeedah" is actually not mentioned in the Quran or sunnah. It comes from the Arabic word "Aqada" which means to tie. Aqeedah is what you tie your heart on believing.
-The word "Assamad" in surat Al-Ikhlas means: the one who is not in need of anything, yet everything in creation is in need of Him.
-"need" usually implies imperfection and dificiency, our creator is not in need of anything. We are in need of Him.
-Another attribute of Allah (swt) is that He is not subject to change.
-The Shaykh mentioned that the most two famous schools of Aqeedah are "Al-Ashari" and "Al-Matureedi". It's important for us to study one of them.
-The attributes of Allah have no beginning, no end, and are not suject to change.
-The Shaykh also gave some advice on how we shouldn't "label" people, we are all Muslim. He also mentioned how we should worry about our own faults, not the faults of others.
-He also said that the best way to learn sacred knowledge is from a shaykh who studied with a shaykh who studied with a shaykh...Reading books without someone explaining them to us is not recommended.
The Shaykh said: "learn from someone who is authorized, trustworthy, and knowledgeable".
-Finally the Shaykh gave advice on how to speak to non-Muslims who approach us with endless questions regarding hijab, why men can marry more than one wife, etc. He said we should talk to them about Aqeedah first, then we can answer their other questions.
I'm sorry that my notes are not that detailed. For anyone else who did attend, please post any additional notes you may have! :)
wassalamu alaikum,
Dana
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