Health Benefits of Pomegranate/ Pomegranate Juice

Pomegranate Lovers ♥ ♥
Pomegranate and its juice have been found to reduce blood pressure and exert beneficial effects on blood vessels thereby reducing risk of heart attacks….

1. Antioxidants – These help to wrangle the hoards of free radicals in your system. Free radicals have an
uneven number of electrons and like to balance themselves out by stealing from other molecules and cells in your body. These cells are oftentimes very important ones dealing with your DNA, and when they are destroyed, disease steps in. Pomegranate juice is an excellent source of antioxidants that work to help you stay disease-free.

|♥ SEVEN THINGS TO DO IN THE TIME OF HARDSHIP |♥

During times of hardship, it’s essential to remember there are effective ways to deal with any difficulty.
Here are 7 practical steps to help you face any difficult situation:

1_Salah (Prayer):
Make sure you stick to praying on time – 5 times a day.
Never miss a Prayer and do your best to pray each Prayer with sincerity as if it’s your  last Prayer in this world.

A Call to the Real Salvation

This is an invitation to observe, to ponder and to be with us, aware and certain that it is our duty and moral obligation to convey the message of our Creator.  In the search for truth, it is indispensable that we take some time and effort to know the basis of our faith, and as true believers, we must follow the purest essence of our belief as exemplified by the messengers of God.

Who else can give us the guidance but those whom God chose and entrusted with the mission of proclaiming glad tidings to the believers and warnings to those who deviate from the way of our Creator and refuse to believe?

Religion for some may simply be a field of academics, to others it’s a medium solely for spiritual enrichment, and to a lot more various aspects or views people may find fitting on their level of desires or caprices.

Why the world needs Islam today?

These are some of the distinct features of Islam, which make it necessary for modern man to seek his salvation through this ideology:

First, it must be well understood that Islam is not a mere ideological vision.

It is a practical system of life that fully appreciates all the genuine needs of humankind and tries to realize them.

Second, in trying to meet the genuine requirements of man, Islam effects perfect balance between all areas of life and activity. It starts with the individual maintaining a balance between the requirements of body and soul, reason and spirit and in no case allows one side to dominate the other.

It does not suppress the human instincts in order to make the soul ascend the higher planes, nor does it allow man, in his efforts to fulfill his bodily desires, to stoop down to the low level of animalism and hedonism. On the contrary,it makes them both meet on a single higher plane, doing away with all the internal psychological conflicts that threaten the human soul or set a part of it against the other parts.

Why do Muslims think that Islam is true?

This is a reasonable enough question for one who has not entered Islam, but one who believes in and practices this religion already knows the blessings which are his because of this religion.

There are many reasons for this, which include the following:

The Muslim worships One God, Who has no partner, and Who has the most beautiful names and the highest attributes. Thus the Muslim’s focus and aim is concentrated, focused on His Lord and Creator; he puts his trust in Him and asks Him for help, patience and support; he believes that Allaah is able to do all things, and has no need of a wife or son. Allaah created the heavens and earth; He is the One Who gives life and death; He is the Creator and Sustainer from Whom the slave seeks provision.

Universality of God’s Religion

Since the consequences of following a false religion are so grave, the true religion of God must have been universally understandable and universally attainable in the past and it must continue eternally to be understandable and attainable throughout the entire world. In other words, the true religion of God cannot be confined to any one people, place, or period of time. Nor is it logical that such a religion should impose conditions that have nothing to do with the relationship of man with God, such as baptism, or belief in man as a savior, or an intermediary. Within the central principle of Islam and its definition (the surrender of one’s will to God) lie the roots of Islam’s universality. Whenever man comes to the realization that God is one and distinct from His creation, and submits himself to God, he becomes a Muslim in body and spirit and is eligible for paradise.
Consequently, anyone at any time in the most remote regions of the world can become Muslim, a follower of God’s religion, Islam, by merely rejecting the worship of creation and turning to God alone. It should be noted, however, that in order to actually submit to God’s will, one must continually choose between right and wrong. Indeed, man is endowed by God with the power not only to distinguish right from wrong but also to choose between them. These God-given powers carry with them an important responsibility, namely, that man is answerable to God for the choices he makes. It follows, then, that man should try his utmost to do good and avoid evil.

These concepts are expressed in the final revelation as follows:

Malcolm X’s Letter from Mecca

Many Muslims who have been blessed to make Hajj often speak of how the journey is a life-changing experience. This is more the case for some than others.
Malcolm X, or Al-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, is one Muslim who saw the light of true Islam through his Hajj in April 1964.  As a former member and speaker for the Nation of Islam, a black spiritual and nationalist movement, he believed that the white man was the devil and the black man superior.
After leaving the Nation of Islam in March 1964, he made Hajj, which helped change his perspective on whites and racism completely.
Here is an excerpt of a letter El Hajj Malik El Shabazz wrote a letter to his loyal assistants in Harlem… from his heart, telling them of his experience.  In it, he explains what it was during this blessed journey that made him so profoundly shift his perspective on race and racism.  We should keep in mind that this letter was written in a time when the history of African Americans in America was in making, a time when centuries worth of oppression was being spoken about and condemned in public.[1]

“Never have I witnessed such sincere hospitality and overwhelming spirit of true brotherhood as is practiced by people of all colors and races here in this ancient Holy Land, the home of Abraham, Muhammad and all the other Prophets of the Holy Scriptures.  For the past week, I have been utterly speechless and spellbound by the graciousness I see displayed all around me by people of all colors.

The Search for Inner Peace

The topic of inner peace addresses a universal need. There is nobody on this planet that does not desire inner peace. It is not a desire that is new to our time; rather, it is something that everybody has been searching for throughout the ages, regardless of colour, creed, religion, race, nationality, age, sex, wealth, ability or technological advancement.

People have taken a variety of different paths in trying to achieve inner peace, some through accumulating material possessions and wealth, others through drugs; some through music, others through meditation; some through their husbands and wives, others through their careers and some through their children’s achievements.And the list goes on…

Yet the search also goes on. In our time we have been led to believe that technological advancement and modernisation will produce for us physical comforts and and through these we will attain inner peace.

However, if we were to take the most technologically advanced and most industrialised nation in the world, America, then we would see that what we have been led to believe is not factual. The statistics show that in America some 20 million adults suffer from depression yearly; and what is depression but a total lack of inner peace? Furthermore in the year 2000 death rate due to suicide was double the rate of those who die from Aids. However, the news media being what it is, we hear more about those who die from Aids than we do about those who die by committing suicide. Also more people die from suicide in America than from homicide, and the homicide rates themselves are massive.

The Benefits of Islam

The following items are some of the benefits to be earned and enjoyed by those who wish to become Muslim:

1. As far as the Creator (whose proper name is Allah) is concerned, you will be able to identify Him and get to know Him, His role and your relationship to His names, you will be able to communicate with Him any time, 24 hours a day, throughout the whole year. As a result of this category, you will be able to know your origin, your roots and the wisdom as to why you are on this planet. You will be able to have good answers to the questions why, how, when, where, what and other philisophical questions.

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): A Mercy to the mankind — (Part- 2/2)

The Prophet’s Care for People With Special Needs

The civilized world has recently paid attention to people with special needs. This started after it had cast aside corrupt, racist theories calling for neglecting them on the false grounds that people with special needs are not of any benefit to the society. A report issued by the United Nations International Labour Organization in 2000 estimated the number of those with special needs to be more than 610 million, out of which 400 million live in developing countries. According to the World Bank’s statistics, this category represents 15 percent of the world’s population.

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) : A Mercy to the Mankind — (Part- 1/2)

Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is the best role model for all humankind. Among his outstanding virtues and characteristics, he was an extraordinary husband, a perfect father, and a unique grandfather. He was also a great statesman, judge, and spiritual leader. His most distinctive quality, however, was the fact that he was a blessing to all in both word and deed. He infused justice, love, and dignity in all those around him. He spread the power of brotherhood to the extent that it became exceptional in human history. Affirming that these grand virtues were bestowed on him by Allah the Almighty and that He prepared His loyal messenger to call for the true religion, is part of one’s belief.
The Qur’an describes the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as merciful and kind to the believers. Allah the Almighty says,
{Now hath come unto you a Messenger from amongst yourselves: it grieves him that ye should
perish: ardently anxious is he over you: to the Believers is he most kind and merciful.)
(The Holy Quran, Surah At-Tawbah 9:128)

Allah’s Knowledge, Power and Kingdom are Limitless

Allah the Exalted states that He created the heavens and earth, and all that is between them, in six Days and then rose over the Throne after He created them. We discussed this before in the explanation of Surat Al-A`raf, so it is not necessary to repeat the meaning here. Allah’s statement,

(He knows what goes into the earth), indicates His knowledge in the amount of seeds and drops of water that enter inside the earth’s surface,

Brief details about the life of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)

Praise be to Allaah.

Differences and disputes arose among the Children of Israel. They introduced alterations and changes in their beliefs and laws. Thus truth was extinguished and falsehood prevailed, oppression and evil became widespread, and people needed a religion that would establish truth, destroy evil and guide people to the straight path, therefore Allah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) as Allaah said (interpretation of the meaning):

“And We have not sent down the Book (the Qur’aan) to you (O Muhammad, except that you may explain clearly unto them those things in which they differ, and (as) a guidance and a mercy for a folk who believe”

[The Holy Quran, Surah, al-Nahl 16:64]

Punishment of the Disbelievers and Reward of the Pious Believers

Here, Allah swt mentions the punishment of the disbelievers and the reward of the righteous believers, after describing the Kufr(not believing Allah, and rejecting the message of truth) and Shirk (Seting partner with Allah)  that the disbelievers indulge in,

(For them is a torment in the life of this world,) by the hands of the believers, killing and capturing them,

(and certainly, the torment of the Hereafter.) which will come after they suffer humiliation in this life, (is harder) many times harder.

The Messenger of Allah  (PBUH) said to those who agreed to Mula`anah,

(Surely, the torment of this life, is easier than the torment of the Hereafter.) Indeed, and just as the Messenger of Allah stated, the torment of this life ends but the torment of the Hereafter is everlasting in a Fire that is seventy times hot than our fire, where there are chains whose thickness and hardness are unimaginable. Allah said in other Verse,

(So on that Day none will punish as He will punish. And none will bind as He will bind.)﴿[The Holy Quran, 89:25-26]

The Bid’a (Innovation) In Islam

Allah swt says in Qur’an

قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

1) “Say (O Muhammad to mankind): ‘If you (really) love Allah, then follow me (i.e. accept Islamic Monotheism, follow the Qur’an and the Sunnah), Allah will love you and forgive you your sins’.” [The Holy Quran, Surah al ‘Imran 3:31]

2) “Follow what has been sent down unto you from your Lord (the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad’s Sunnah), and follow not any Awliya’ (protectors and helpers who order you to associate partners in worship with Allah), besides Him (Allah). Little do you remember!” [The Holy Quran, Surah al-A’raf 7:3]

The Qualities of a real Muslim

1-Patience:
Allâh loves As-Sâbirun (the patient). [The Holy Quran, 3:144]
”O you who believe! Seek help in patience and As-Salât (the prayer). Truly! Allâh is with As-Sâbirun (the patient.)”

[The Holy Quran, 2:153]
”And …certainly, We shall test you with something of fear, hunger, loss of wealth, lives and fruits, but give glad tidings to As-Sâbirun (the patient) .Who, when afflicted with calamity, say: “Truly! To Allâh we belong and truly, to Him we shall return.”

[The Holy Quran, 2:155-156]

Common Mistakes in Salah (Prayer)

1. Delaying the Prayer intentionally: While being busy in worldly affairs we often delay the Salah from its preferred time. This is the most common mistake in Prayer made by most of us.

We think that Praying is last thing to do and we must attend to other matters first. Many workers delay Zuhr and Asr Prayer till night-time. Quran speaks strictly on guarding our Salat:

“Guard strictly (five obligatory) As-Salawat (the prayers) especially the middle Salat (i.e. Asr Prayers)”

[The Holy Quran, 2:238]

Here to safeguard the Salat means to perform it at its prescribed time and to be steadfast upon it.
2: Reciting Holy Quran fast in the Prayers:

We must pause and take breaks while reciting Holy Quran during Salat. We should not recite the Surah’s so fast that that the verse get intermingled. One of th…e Hadith emphasizes this issue:

“The Prophet (P.B.U.H) used to pause after each verse of Surah al-Fatiha.

[Abu Dawood]

3: Moving before the Imam in congregational prayers:

One should not race with the imam i.e. try to move before the Imam or with the Imam because the correct ruling is when Imam says Allahu Akbar, then the person who’s following the Imam in Prayers should say Allahu Akbar.
Not before Imam or with Imam. Like this Hadith of the Prophet (P.B.U.H) states:

“Surely the imam is there to be followed”

[Sahih Muslim]

Another Hadith states:

The Prophet (P.B.U.H) said: “Does not the one who raises his head before the Imam does fear that Allah would transform his head into a donkey’s head”

[Sahih Muslim]

4: Performing the Salah hastily:

Salat should be performed slowly and calmly. Rukoo or Sujood must be performed unhurriedly. In order to complete the Rukoo one must stay in Rukoo posture long enough to recite
“Subhan Rabbi yal Adtheem” at least three times.

In the same manner, for the Sujood the person should say “Subhan-na Rabbi yal-ala” three times slowly.

This Hadith commands to complete the Rukoo and Sujood in proper manner:

The Messenger of Allah (P.B.U.H) said:

“The worst thief is the one who steals from his own prayer.” People asked: ‘Messenger of Allah! How could one steal from his own prayer?’ He said:

“By not completing its rukoo and sujood”

[at-Tabarani]

The Prophet (P.B.U.H) said:

“He who does not complete his rukoo and sujood, his prayer is void”

5. Gazing right, left or upward during Salat (Prayer):

While performing Salah, one should concentrate on looking to the point where the head is placed during Sujood rather than looking upwards. Because this may lose concentration.
In the Hadith recorded by Sahih Muslim the Prophet (P.B.U.H) said:

“Let those who raise their gaze up during prayer stop doing so, or else their sights would not return to them” (i.e. they will lose their eyesight)

[Sahih Muslim]

The scientific miracles of Islam; fire under the sea

On the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘As that the Prophet (PBUH) said:

… “ No one should sail on the sea except the one who is going to perform Hajj or ‘Umrah , or the one who is going to fight in Allah’s path for under the sea there is a fire , and under the fire there is a sea ” .

Explanation of the Hadith

This honorable hadith coincides with the Qur’anic oath at the beginning of the chapter of at-Tur (The Mount) in which Allah, the Almighty, swears – in spite of the fact that He has no need to swear – by the burning sea. Almighty Allah says:

﴾ By the Mount . And by the Book Inscribed. In parchment unrolled. And by the Bait-ul-Ma’mur (the house over the heavens parallel to the Ka’bah at Makkah, continuously visited by the angles). And by the roof raised high (i.e. the heaven). And by the burning sea. Verily, the Torment of your Lord will surely come to pass. There is none that can avert it. ﴿ (Surat At-Tur (The Mount): 1-8)

the reality of a man and his pride..!

“Man comes from a drop of semen and leaves as a piece of dust. He doesn’t know when he came and he doesn’t know when he’s leaving, yet he goes around thinking he knows everything.”

[Ali Ibn Abi Thalib Karamallahu wajhu]

Ultimate Victory will be for the believers but only after succeeding in Trials

“Or think you that you will enter Paradise without such (trials) as came to those who passed away before you?”

[Soorah al-Baqarah (2): 214]
Every believer will have to go through the tests of Eeman in order to attain victory in this world and Paradise in the Hereafter.

Istikharah (The Prayer for Seeking Guidance)

Introduction to Salaat al-Istikharah

A spiritually immense prayer, endowing the Muslim with tranquility and restfulness. A prayer in which a servant if concerned with an affair or is faced with a worldly problem or intends to do something recommended or obligatory in which he has a choice, or when two recommended or obligatory actions conflict each other – which one should he do? Which one should he put forward?

He should pray two Rakahs of al-Istikharah prayer, then make a Duâaa specified by our noble Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa-sallam), seeking guidance form his Lord and seeking the counsel of his Creator and by it actualizes his servitude to Him, built upon the truthfulness of his certainty and his assurance in his Lord.

Islam and Terrorism (Ulama-e- Deoband Fatwa)

Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) [Prophet Muhammad PBUH)] came with the mission of Islam for o­ne single purpose, viz. the salvation of mankind. This purpose was the guiding factor the forgiveness which was granted to the Mushrikeen o­n the day of the Conquest of Makkah.

Inspite of the oppression, persecution and torture which the Mushrikeen of Makkah had perpetrated o­n the Muslims for 13 years, everything was forgiven and forgotten when Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and his noble Sahaabah entered Makkah as victors. There was no vengeance, no molestation and no acrimony. There was no need to establish any truth commission or put anyone o­n trial for the horrendous atrocities which had been committed against the Muslims in the past.

Words of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)

Jabir bin ‘Abdullah (Radiya Allahu anhu) reported that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said:
“Satan erects his throne on water and sends his emissaries among the people. The closest person to him is the person who causes the most Fitnah. One of them (a devil) would come to him and would say, ‘I kept inciting so-and-so, until he said such and such words.’ Iblis says, ‘No, by Allah, you have not done much.’ Another devil would come to him and would say, ‘I kept inciting so-and-so, until I separated between him and his wife.’ Satan would draw him closer and embrace him, saying, ‘Yes, you did well.”
[Recorded by Imam Muslim 4:2167]

Sa’eed ibn Zaid reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “He who wrongly takes a span of land, Allah shall make him carry around his neck seven earths.”

[Sahih Muslim, Book 10, Number 3920]

Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said, “Whoever has wronged his brother, should ask for his pardon (before his death), as (in the Hereafter) there will be neither a Dinar nor a Dirham. (He should secure pardon in this life) before some of his good deeds are taken and paid to his brother, or, if he has done no good deeds, some of the bad deeds of his brother are taken to be loaded on him (in the Hereafter).
[Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 8, Book 76, Hadith 541] – Narrated Abu Huraira

you still sad!? let’s have faith ♥

Are you going through a difficult time in life? Stressed about work? Marriage? Parents? Money? We all stress about different things. That’s just life. The important thing is how we deal with it.

“Allah puts no burden on any person beyond what He has given him. After a difficulty, Allah will soon grant relief”

(The Holy Quran 65:7)

What a beautiful and comforting Ayah. Let’s have faith 🙂

One thing you have to accept is that
when you strive in the path of Allah,
there will be many tests. Regardless of
what it is that you are doing, you will
always have critics. Reason being, they
… know that you’re doing well and thus
they dislike your success. People are
going to hate, they’re going to argue,
they’ll try their best to discourage you.
But don’t become light hearted.
Remember they are a tool of shaytaan,
more than anything shaytaan dislikes
your striving in the path of Allah, and
so he will also try his best to prevent
you from attaining Allah’s pleasure.
Don’t give up. Allah is with you, and
He’s your strongest defense. Push your
worries away and learn to have faith in
Allah. ♥

Stressed about work

‎3 Powerful Messages From Al-Mighty Allah

“And Whosoever Fears Allah and Keeps His Duty To Him, He Will Make A Way For Him To Get Out Every Difficulty”

~ [The Holy Quran, Surah At-Talaaq 65:2]

“And Whosoever Puts His Trust In Allah, Then He Will Suffice Him”

~ [The Holy Quran, Surah At-Talaaq 65:3]

“And Take A Provision (With You) For The Journey, but The Best Provision Is At-Taqwaa (Piety, Righteousness)”­

~ [The Holy Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah 2:197]

Khnowledge is power!

“What is this world but a dream that a sleeper sees – he delights in it for a few moments, and then wakes up to face reality.”

~ Imam Hasan Al-Basree

“seek knowledge from cradle, to the grave.”

~ Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

“Dua to start your day with, so lets pray together”

O Most Compassionate and Most Merciful! If You leave me to myself, then I will be lost to my weakness, neediness, sinfulness and erring. I do not depend but on Your Mercy, so forgive all of my sins, for none but You can forgive sins; accept my repentance, for You are the Oft-Relenting and the All-Compassionate.

Aa’meen!!

 

Who is Allah ?

Some of the biggest misconceptions that many non-Muslims have about Islam have to do with the word “Allah”. For various reasons, many people have come to believe that Muslims worship a different God than Christians and Jews. This is totally false, since “Allah” is simply the Arabic word for “God” – and there is only One God. Let there be no doubt – Muslims worship the God of Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus – peace be upon them all. However, it is certainly true that Jews, Christians and Muslims all have different concepts of Almighty God. For example, Muslims – like Jews – reject the Christian beliefs of the Trinity and the Divine Incarnation. This, however, doesn’t mean that each of these three religions worships a different God – because, as we have already said, there is only One True God. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all claim to be “Abrahamic Faiths”, and all of them are also classified as “monotheistic”. However, Islam teaches that other religions have, in one way or another, distorted and nullified a pure and proper belief in Almighty God by neglecting His true teachings and mixing them with man-made ideas.

Attributes of the Prayer

“Prayer has three attributes, and any prayer that contains none of these attributes is not truly prayer: Being done purely and sincerely for Allah alone (Ikhlas), fear of Allah, and remembrance of Allah. Ikhlas makes a person do good deeds, fear prevents him from doing evil deeds, and the remembrance of Allah is the Quran which contains the commands and prohibitions.”

[Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged) Volume 7 Page 494]

The sign of Real loves!

“The sign of the love of ALLAH is the love of the Qur’an, and the sign of the love of ALLAH and the Qur’an is the love of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) and the sign of the Prophet’s love is the love of his sunnah, and the sign of the sunnah’s love is the love of the Hereafter; the sign of the Hereafter’s love is detachment from the worldly life, and the sign of detachment from the worldly life is taking only sustenance needed to attain Paradise in the Hereafter.”

~ Sahl ibn Sa`d (Radiallahu Anhu)

being Guardian of soul!

A believer is a guardian over himself: he accounts himself for Allah. Those who take account of themselves in this world will be audited lightly in the Hereafter. Those who take this issue lightly will find their auditing very difficult.
~ Imam Hasan Al-Basree

Never have I dealt with anything more difficult than my own soul, which sometimes helps me and sometimes opposes me.
~ Imam Muhammad Ghazali Rahimahullah

The real cleanliness!

Cleanliness in the life of a believer does not only refer to being physically clean.

Cleanliness includes, cleaning the mind, gaze, beliefs, dealings, dress code, mouth, choice of friends, relationships, dietary habits & every aspect of life.

May the Almighty guide us to leading a clean life, within His Pleasure at all times. Aameen

~ Mufti Ismail Menk

Take care of your soul!

 

Iman (belief) in Islam

What is Iman ?

Iman (Arabic: إيمان) is an Arabic term which denotes certitude to the unseen. In Islamic theology, it refers to the inner aspect of the religion, and denotes a believer’s faith in the metaphysical realities of Islam.

According to the Quran, Iman must be accompanied by evidence of righteous deeds, and the two together are necessary for entry into Paradise. Also, since Iman is a qua…lity of the heart / belief, it is impossible for anyone to judge who really is a believer. Iman is one of the three dimensions of the Islamic religion: islam, iman and ihsan.