| Living \r\n the Quran |
An-Naziat \r\n (The Setting Stars) Ibn al-Qayyim noted that the desires \r\n lead to one's wants and goals being distorted or ruined. \r\n This causes the person to commit sins. \r\nAl-Qurtubi quotes ibn Masud as saying, "You \r\n are living in a time in which the desires are steered [and controlled] \r\n by truth. There will come a time in which the truth will be steered [and \r\n controlled] by the desires." \r\nIbn Taimiyyah once noted that the root of deviation from \r\n the straight path lies in either giving preference to one's own deductions \r\n and conclusions over the text of the Quran and Sunnah or in following \r\n one's desires rather than the Command of Allah. \r\nFurthermore, a very dangerous facet concerning desires \r\n is that they can afflict a person even after he has attained knowledge. \r\n In fact, Sayyid Qutb noted, "Ignorance \r\n is easy to cure. However, desires after knowledge are a destructive force \r\n in the soul that needs a long-term, difficult jihad to cure." \r\nTo make matters even worse is that the desires \r\n and lusts in the soul are of numerous varieties. Perhaps \r\n if one can control one or some of them, he may not be able to control \r\n the others. Some of them are actually quite natural to the human being. \r\n For example, the innate desire for wealth and sexual pleasure aids in \r\n establishing civilizations on earth as well as propagating the species. \r\n However, in order for them not to have a negative effect, they \r\n must be nurtured and restrained according to the teachings of the Quran \r\n and Sunnah. \r\nOne can become enslaved to what he is desiring such that \r\n desire becomes the controlling factor in his life. It is said, "The \r\n slave [human] is free as long as he is content [with what Allah has given \r\n him] and the free one is a slave as long as he desires." \r\nSource: \r\n \r\n |
| Understanding \r\n the Prophet's Life |
Avoiding \r\n Exaggeration \r\nThe true Muslim avoids exaggerating in his speech for \r\n the purpose of showing off or attracting attention. Exaggerated speech \r\n and foolish chatter are not characteristics of the true Muslim who loves \r\n noble things and hates foolishness. They belong to the empty-headed person \r\n whose only concerns are to show off and attract attention. Abdullah ibn \r\n Masud, may Allah be pleased with him said: \r\n\r\n\r\n Source: |
| Islamic \r\n History |
\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n Freedom \r\n Fighters \r\nThe first force of freedom fighters in the history \r\n of Islam came into existence when Utbah ibn Usayd, better known by \r\n his title Abu Busayr, was refused shelter in Madinah from the persecation \r\n in Makkah to keep the peace agreement of Hudaybiyah alive. As he left \r\n Madinah, Abu Busayr realized that he had to cause the Quraysh some \r\n trouble in order to survive. He, therefore, sought a place on the \r\n coastal route of the Quraysh's caravans where he stayed in hiding. \r\n Whenever a Quraysh trade caravan passed he would attack it, looting \r\n as much as he could of its goods. As these attacks were reported in \r\n Makkah, they provided encouragement to the Muslims there. Abu Jandal \r\n and his fellow Muslims in Makkah carefully planned their escape, and \r\n as many as 70 of them were able to join Abu Busayr in his hiding place. \r\n Soon afterwards, they were joined by a number of people from various \r\n tribes such as the Ghifar, Aslam and Juhaynah, who were not bound \r\n by the peace agreement between the Prophet and the Quraysh. \r\nHistory in all its ages, including today's, shows \r\n that there is no simple answer to the \r\n problem of determined guerrilla fighters. Despite \r\n the great advances in modern weaponry and the large resources states \r\n are able to mobilize against freedom fighters, a guerrilla war is \r\n the hardest to win for any regular army. Moreover, no victory can \r\n be achieved against guerrilla fighters without great losses for which \r\n no logical justification may reasonably be found. It is therefore \r\n not surprising that the Quraysh was soon very tired of the new situation \r\n created by Abu Busayr, Abu Jandal and their men. They started appealing \r\n to the Prophet to take those guerrilla fighters into his fold and \r\n spare the Quraysh the trouble they created. \r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n Source: |
| Did \r\n You Know? |
\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n Inventor \r\n of Self-Adhesive Stamp \r\nIn the early 1990s, Alim Fatah, a Somalian born Muslim \r\n working as an employee for the US Post Office, invented the new self \r\n adhesive stamp. \r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n Source: |
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