Al Quran = Boring? Yes?

Sweet sister : Wana join us to a class?

Nice sister : What class?

Sweet sister : Class on Tafseerul Quran. Trust me you'll like it!

Nice sister : Err.. You mean i will learn Quran throughout the class? Reciting it? (with eagerness to hear an impossible 'NO')

Sweet sister : It's a QURAN class. Of course we'll start with its recitation. Why?..

Nice sister : Mm.. Boring. No thanks.

.....Erk? Boring? BORING? B-O-R-I-N-G??

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Ok.

I believe many of us are familiar with above situation. Whether you being the sweet sister dealing with people who act more like the nice sister and they could be your.....

sister

brother

close friends

any close individual to you!

or

it was you: the nice sister,

with the firm-unshakeable-BIG tree (your idea!) planted there on a piece of land called 'brain' with huge thorny black-roses trees surrounding it and a clear warning board hung up having a saying written on it:

"Miss Tree said Al Quran is boring-THAT'S FINAL" :)

Khayr. It stuck there in your mind, "Al-Quran = Boring"

So..

Who's fault? No one's? Yours? Your parents? Your friends? Your childhood Quranic teacher who acted more like a mean-heartless police officer as portrayed in most movies?

No? None of the above?

Or all of the above?

Fine. No "Who's fault?" or "It's your fault!".

No accusing. No blaming.

Only S-O-L-U-T-I-O-N.

Click here for the picture

So do you have any idea how to make The Quran

as appealing as vanilla ice-cream full chocolate toping, (Yummy!)

as cool as ice, (Kids, ice not healthy)

as luring as a bar of chocolate, (Can't trust you with chocolate-MINE!)

as interesting as Bollywood movie? ( I don't watch Hindustani film)

or, at least,

as pleasing as seeing your mommy? (Aww.. Allah bless you sweetie)

Aha. I have few tit-bits for you ;)

1. Change your new BFF (Best Friend Forever)..

Well, you could still have your recent BFFs remain as they are-not to neglect them or something but from now on, i want you to have NEW bff= BFFLH!

BFFLH = BEST FRIEND FOR LIFE and HEREAFTER,

which is Your Quran :)

2. BFFLH vs iPod Touch Screen

You would want to return to your house which is 15 minutes (or more than 30 minutes!) away from the spot you are standing on now just for the sake of your iPod (Or any phone you are so in love with) or what u call as 'My Baby'?

Then do the same to your Quran! I'm not talking about the BIG Quran you have in your CLOSET-untouched for centuries. Go get small one, a cute one which suits you-so that you'll have enough space to easily put into or tug it out of your small bag. (You can find plenty of the small Quran of various designs and colours in the market, with translation. Insha Allah :)

3. Learn different ways to 'communicate' with your BFFLH

Just as how easily you could get bored with the same song (used-to-be your FAVE that you keep listening to, humming and singing, and the whole city knows it) as you keep listening to it over and over and over................. again. So now, you're telling me this syeikh so and so's recitation is SO BORING? Who told you to listen the same song over and over and over................. again? And who told you to listen to only one qari(Quran reciter)? It’s like:

“Now i’m feeling a bit sleepy, need to be a bit waky and freshy. Let’s listen to Sheikh Emad Al-Mansary/Bro Muhammad Taha/Bro Ahmad Saud’s recitation!”

Instead of listening to Sheikh Mansary al Afasy or Syed al Ghamidi who recite so nice that could put me to a heartfelt and tearful mood for my muhasabah session with my BFFLH. Let’s be creative suiting and matching these different qari-s to our different mood. Do you get what i’m trying to say here? J

There are so many awesome reciters out there, over the internet. Just click search, find few which suit your mood and preference, keep them in you MP3 player (better MP4 player-download videos from YouTube, HalalTube, TubeIslam.com) and listen to them interchangeably anytime and anywhere you want. Easy. Fun. Sweet. No more excuses, alright? :)

4. Treat your BFFLH well, yet the BEST

Tell me how do you treat your BFFs? How do you behave with them? You consult them almost all the times, correct? Sad, happy, excited, gloomy or feeling bloomy, you will express them all out to your devout BFFs. Now, treat your BFFLH waaaaay better than that. Before you meet BFFs, consult BFFLH first. Open your cute-small Quran randomly, read the page, contemplate. Or better, read the suitable surah for each condition. For example, when you feel sad, read surah Yusuf. Contemplate on the hardship Prophet Yusuf (may peace be upon him) undergone-betrayal, imprisonment, seduction, lonelines/away from beloved family, etc..

"Oo my BFFLH, i feel extremely sad, make me happy.. :("

pss: Al-Quran is not a living thing. Bear in mind it is Allah 'azza wa jal you're consulting. The above is just the analogy to help you how to behave towards Al-Quran. Or better, it shoud sound this way:

“Oo Allah, i feel extremely sad, make me happy..”

Anyway, what else better than reading Al-Quran with understanding as a way to communicate with your LORD, Allah, in prayers, or best at all times? Agree? :)

Ok. All tips above seem to be more effective for ourselves, not helping much to attract others to love the quran, u might think. Uhuh. That's my point. You start first. Then inshaAllah you will be able to share the beauty of the Quran and the miracles it has with the others. InshaAllah..

Trust me. Who else is HAPPIER than the one who feels peace in his/her heart at most of the times? And who else could feel and be in that state other than the one who is always with Allah, in HIS rememberence? And tell me who else is closer to Allah than the one who's BFFLH is The Quran? Who reads, contemplates, understands and lives by its advices-the teachings? And of course the best example in understanding our BFFLH is habeebuna Muhammad (s).. :)

You don't trust me? Of course you won't! Because you have not tried. That's why..

Try first, you will learn well from experience. It will work. Insha Allah

You just need to struggle a bit, with patience (as-sabr) and perseverence (al-istiqamah) ;)

Mistakes are from me , please forgive the imperfect-me.

All the goodness you get is from Allah, thank Allah, alhamdulillah.

The rest, wallahu a'lam (And Allah knows best)

Read! Or at least listen to its recitation? :)

Click here for the picture

pss: Have so many tips to share with you, but next time maybe ;)

May Allah make us among those who love knowledge and best of knowledge is the divine knowledge: Al-Quran and As-Sunnah. Aamin..

Wassalam~

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The Amazing Old Man

Bismillah..

ASsalamu'alaykum..

Here's a story i read from FB (About an old man who was so concern being on time to mosque-crawling!)

SubhanAllah! Amazing..

On the road to Dubai, my husband stopped at a small mosque to offer the Asr prayer. As I sat in the car, I saw a figure approaching from the direction of a small group of houses. It took some time before I realised it was a man, crawling towards the mosque. He wore rubber sandals on his hands. His lower body dragged on the hard, rocky ground. The sweltering heat was beating down hard on his body. By the time he reached the courtyard of the mosque, I could see he was soaked and his face was flushed. Many men passed him on their way to the prayer, perhaps accustomed to seeing him everyday. One man came out of a shop and watched him for a while. He went back into the shop and came out with a cold drink. He opened it for the crawling man and they sat together for a minute. I heard them talking as the man who offered him the cold drink requested that he would help the crawling man to make it up the stairs to the mosque. He was concerned about making it on time, so he excused himself and continued his slow, laboured journey to the prayer.

I did not watch him as he mounted the stairs. I could not imagine how to help him. I was crying by then, remembering the Hadith of the Prophet (pbuh): "The hypocrites find the Fajr and Isha prayers in congregation very oppressive. If they could know the virtues of these two prayers, they would certainly join them, even if they had to go crawling." (Bukhari, Muslim)

This man, who literally did crawl even in the heat of the day, did not find the congregational prayer oppressive at all. May Allah reward all who struggle to please Him and may He always remind us of our own weaknesses through such people.

By: Um Yaqoob Read More......

Abu Bakr(r.a) and A Tree

Abu Bakr once disputed with another companion about a tree. During the dispute Abu Bakr said something that he rather would not have said. He did not curse, he did not attack someone’s honor, he did not poke a fault in anyone, all he said was something that may have hurt the other companion’s feelings.

Immediately, Abu Bakr – understanding the mistake - ordered him, “Say it back to me!” The companion said, “I shall not say it back.” “Say it back to me,” said Abu Bakr, “Or I shall complain to the Messenger of Allah.” The companion refused to say it back and went on his way.

Abu Bakr went to Rasul Allah and related what had happened and what he said. Rasul Allah called that companion and asked him, “Did Abu Bakr say so and so to you?” He said, “Yes.” He said, “What did you reply.” He said, “I did not reply it back to him.” Rasul Allah said, “Good, do not reply it back to him (do not hurt Abu Bakr). Rather say, ‘May Allah forgive you O Abu Bakr!’”

The Companion turned to Abu Bakr and said, “May Allah forgive you O Abu Bakr! May Allah forgive you O Abu Bakr!” Abu Bakr turned and cried as he walked away.

Let us leave today with a resolve to revive this air Rasul Allah and his companions breathed, an air of mercy and love and brotherhood.

And Allah knows best.

Taken from here: When Friends Hurt Each Other

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Content EVER-AFTER

Bismillah.. Assalamu'alaykum..

A nice article to share for today..

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“And strain not your eyes in longing for the things We have given for enjoyment to various groups of them.” (Qur’an, 20:131)

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“Contentment is a treasure that never perishes.”

What happens then is every time we meet a potential for marriage, we hope they are the One. We project all of our dreams and emotional baggage on the poor person. We expect them to be that which they are not. Then we get married and discover the true person. We divorce. Then we repeat the same cycle, living miserably ever after.

While some people do actually find their SSM, most people don’t (including the actors in those movies). Despite this, some people still live happily! Omar (ra) said, “Love is not the only component for building successful families.” Happiness can still be achieved with someone short of the ideal spouse. The key is to accept what one has. A beautiful Arabic proverb says: “Contentment is a treasure that never perishes.” If a person is content with a difficult situation, he will be happy; if he is discontent with a good situation, he will never be happy.

Here are a few things that could help:

1. Stop watching those romantic comedies. Most of those stories are more ‘fiction’ than Avatar.
2. Remember, you’re not perfect yourself, even if your mother thinks you are.
3. Get to know your spouse as they are, not as you wish for them to be. Each person has their own individuality, and if you accept them as they are, you may find someone very beautiful. Put an effort into discovering your other half, without any prior judgment. But essential for that is…
4. … not to criticize them and to make them feel uncomfortable. When people feel they’re constantly monitored and evaluated, they act very sloppy and awkward and could never blossom, showing their true beauty.
5. Do not define them by their shortcomings. In a hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah in Sahih Muslim, our Prophet ﷺ said:“A believing man would never feel repulsed by his believing wife; if finds something about her that he dislikes, he will always find something else about her that satisfies him.”
6. Keep in mind that Mr. or Mrs. Super-Perfect DOES NOT exist. What about Khadija (R), you ask? She was perfect and real, wasn’t she? Yes, she was real, for someone like the Prophet ﷺ. It would not be fair to hold that perfect woman as the minimum acceptable standard; that unless my wife is like her, she won’t be good enough. Khadijah was indeed the maximum - the best a woman can be. The Prophet ﷺ said four women attained perfection. Only Khadijah amongst them was married to a prophet. In a hadith narrated in the Musnad, the Prophet ﷺ said Allah sent 124,000 prophets, yet only one of the perfect women was married to a prophet. So 123,999 prophets had less-than-perfect wives. Some, like the great Prophets Nuh and Lut (`alayhi assalam) even had bad wives. Something to think about.
7. Have taqwa (God-consciousness) of Allah in whatever you do and keep in mind His reward. Omar (ra) said, “We found the joy of our lives in patience (sabr).”
8. To make it easier on others, if you are blessed with a great spouse, then praise be to Allah. Just don’t make it difficult on the others, by continuously telling them how perfect your spouse is.
9. Finally, if you still feel a compulsion to compare with others, then you should compare with those that have less. The Prophet ﷺ recommended for this, as “it makes it easier for you to appreciate the blessings of your Lord.”

Full article click here

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Guess what? He's a MUSLIM :)

He's a straight A's student

The asset for his basketball team

(well, he's small but that's not an excuse for him to be the star ;)

He's humble and likeable.

But the most important part is that

HE'S A MUSLIM.

He's a small, ordinary muslim guy but confident and able to stand firm for his belief and has gained respect from others. MashaAllah

Watch this video! May Allah make us all the leaders of the muttaqin. Amin

SubhanAllah. A muslim truly is the best human kind in this world!

As he's having the best BOOK OF GUIDANCE (al-Quran) and the best ROLE MODEL (Prophet Muhammad salallahu 'alayh waslm)...

IF

He BELIEVES and put priority to HIS RELIGION as HIS DEEN (way of life) to guard, secure, guide his affairs in all matters :)

ps: No more waiting for someone else to be our 'wall' for us to lean on! Let's start becoming one! Let's don't wait. InshaAllah

We're not weak, ya know? :)

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'You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. you enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah. if only the People pf the Scripture had believed, it would have been better for them. Among them are believers, but most of them are defiantly disobedient.."

(Ali 'Imran:110)

Wassalamu'alaykum..

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