Safi Khan, in his “Marriage 101″ lecture CD (available from here), mentions many points; of the best, he mentions the following: For Brothers: use extreme compassion and mercy towards your wives! Almost all relationships could benefit from more mercy and compassion. For Sisters: struggle not to complain! Once complaints start, they only get worse, and in the end, they can spoil your marriage. For Both: have a common goal–to serve Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), to worship Him, and to enter Jannah together, without reckoning.

With the Facebook craze that has struck us all in the past months, we have forgotten about a very serious matter that our beloved Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسل) talked about, and that matter being exposing of ones sins. We post messages on peoples walls, we post up pictures and what not, and its all exposing our sins to the public. We should be very cautious of the environment and inshallah try our best to protect our own dignity but also the dignity and respect of our brothers and sisters.

Typ‧i‧cal: Conforming to a particular type. For someone to be “typical”, he/she would be one who conforms to his society and behaves much like his environment. Typical in the 21st century: clubbing, flirting, sex, drugs, alcohol, stealing, cheating, swearing, injustice, premarital relations, immodesty, and the list goes on and on. So who’s typical? Is it the one who refrains from all the above, or the one indulges in it? Is it the one who’s perceived weird when he speaks out against someone swearing?

بَلَى مَنْ أَسْلَمَ وَجْهَهُ لِلّهِ وَهُوَ مُحْسِنٌ فَلَهُ أَجْرُهُ عِندَ رَبِّهِ وَلاَ خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ Translation: Nay, but whoever submits his face (himself) to Allah and he is a Muhsin then his reward is with his Lord (Allah), on such shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. [Suratul Baqarah, verse 112] 1. Submit to Allah = fulfill the faraidh and abandon the haram 2. Be a Muhsin = do ibadah as if you see Allah, treat parents outstandingly, fulfill the rights of others outstandingly…basically, do good at every opportunity and whatever you do, try to be outstanding in it.

What if you were asked to praise Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) in the best possible way, using the best possible words? What words would you pick? Subhanallah, look at the words of our beloved prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم): Juwairiya (رضي الله عنها) reported that Allah’s Messenger (صلي الله عليه وسلم) came out from her apartment in the morning as she was busy in observing her Fajr prayer in her place of worship.

“Whoever wishes to be delivered from the fire (of Hell) and enter the garden (of Paradise) should die with faith in Allah and the Last Day and should treat the people as he wishes to be treated by them.” [Muhammad – Messenger of Allah (صلي الله عليه وسلم) as recorded in Sahih Muslim] 1. Make a list of people you deal with: Parents Friends Co-workers _2. Write how you would want to be treated in each of those roles:

Of Allah’s greatest names is Al-Ghafuwr (الغَفُور). It’s one of the most common names mentioned in the Qur’an (91 times). The name itself is on the pattern that denotes a very powerful doer of an action. Linguistic Meaning: The root of Al-Ghaffuwr and Al-Ghaffar is the verb is ghafara (غَفَرَ), which does NOT mean “to forgive”; rather, it means to shield and protect and cover. Like a helmet, which, in Arabic, is called a “mighfaar.

Question: I heard that there’s one name of Allah, that if you use it to invoke Allah, your du’a is accepted. Is this true? Answerer: Shaykh Yasir Qadhi The Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said: “To Allah belongs a Grand Name, that, if you make du’a with it, it will be responded to. And if you plead or request with it, it shall be answered.” [Recorded in Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, and others; Saheeh]

Light Upon Light Light Upon Light: Fundamentals of Faith 102 is an AlMaghrib Institute course taught by Yasir Qadhi. Allah. The name conjures up many associations–the Creator, the Sustainer, the only one to be worshipped. The All-Knowing, the All-Seeing, the All-Hearing. Ar-Rahmaan, Ar-Raheem. But who is Allah? Do we really know Allah (سبحانه وتعال), in all His majesty and glory and might and mercy? Or–like so many of the Muslims today–do we only claim to know Allah, while in fact, we know almost nothing about Him–the one who sent the Prophets as a mercy to us, who created us for nothing but His worship, out of His mercy!

Abu Hurayrah relates that Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) said: “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should speak a good word or remain silent. And whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should show hospitality to his neighbor. And whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should show hospitality to his guest.” [Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim] _Speak good, or stay silent Treat your guest, and don’t be violent