Allah says, in Surah Al-An’aam: وَهُوَ الَّذِي أَنشَأَ جَنَّاتٍ مَّعْرُوشَاتٍ وَغَيْرَ مَعْرُوشَاتٍ وَالنَّخْلَ وَالزَّرْعَ مُخْتَلِفًا أُكُلُهُ وَالزَّيْتُونَ وَالرُّمَّانَ مُتَشَابِهًا وَغَيْرَ مُتَشَابِهٍ كُلُواْ مِن ثَمَرِهِ إِذَا أَثْمَرَ وَآتُواْ حَقَّهُ يَوْمَ حَصَادِهِ وَلاَ تُسْرِفُواْ إِنَّهُ لاَ يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفِينَ Translation: And it is He Who produces gardens trellised and untrellised, and date­palms, and crops of different shape and taste (its fruits and its seeds) and olives, and pomegranates, similar (in kind) and different (in taste).

The following is an explaination on zakaah as it applies to business. In short, it’s 2.5% of marketable items. Narrated Samurah ibn Jundub: The Mesenger of Allah used to order us to pay the sadaqah (zakaah) on what (goods) we prepared for trade. [Abu Dawud 9⁄1557]1 “Goods from what we prepared for trade” means business inventory. So if someone owns a clothing store full of leather jackets, they pay zakaah on all the jackets not sold after a year.

The following is a beautiful little speech by Shaykh Abdullah Adhami, entitled “A Wife”. Read it inshallah ta’ala and benefit from it. Props to Beautiful Islam for the original. By getting married you are not just getting a wife, you are getting your whole world. From now until the rest of your days your wife will be your partner, your companion, and your best friend.She will share your moments, your days, and your years.

Zakaah is paid on assets–things that bring in money. This is important, because it means zakaah is not on things you use–like your only car, or your house. More on that next post inshallah ta’ala. There are three requirements before zakaah becomes due: Islam: The person has to be Muslim. (Non-Muslims don’t pay zakaah.) We deduce this from the hadith of Mu’ad ibn Jabal (رضي الله عنه), who the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) sent to Yemen.

While FIFA World Cup blares over TV, reports on the radio, articles in the paper, we see our friends, our family, our co-workers, all of them glued to this new world. Here are eleven reasons to unglue them (and yourself!) inshallah ta’ala: I will be questioned on the Day of Judgement about how I squandered and wasted my time. Who are those guys running around like headless chickens kicking that ball?

Ilm Fruits is under heavy construction. (Hence the lack of posts.) Inshallah when it’s finished, it’ll be better then ever!In the mean-time, if you notice anything out of order–any broken links, broken images, anything like that, please drop a comment and let me know. Similarly, if you have any suggestions for improvement, drop a comment and let me know inshallah. That includes suggestions for upcoming content or awesome articles! May Allah reward all your efforts and make the transition smooth and easy for us all.

What is Tawassul? Linguistically, it means that which brings you closer to an object. The Arabic is tawassul (توسّل) or wasiylah (وسيلة). Islamically, it means any good deed that brings you closer to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى)–so every single good deed can be called tawassul–though scholars use it specifically to mean things that increase our chances of having our du’a accepted. The Qur’an and Sunnah only sanction four types of tawassal (with a difference of opinion on the fifth).

Now that you know what barakah is, you might ask, how can one increase the barakah in his or her life? Aside from visiting the places with barakah, and making use of times with barakah, what else can you do? The answer is very simple. If you want Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) to bless you, then do anything for the sake of Allah, upon the sunnah (methodology) of the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم).

Most of the ayat in the Qur’an that are directed to non-Muslims, are directed to mushrikeen–those who commit shirk. In fact, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) spells out, in painful detail, just how dangerous shirk is. Read and remember. The Unforgivable Sin Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says, in Surah Nisaa: إِنَّ اللّهَ لاَ يَغْفِرُ أَن يُشْرَكَ بِهِ وَيَغْفِرُ مَا دُونَ ذَلِكَ لِمَن يَشَاء وَمَن يُشْرِكْ بِاللّهِ فَقَدِ افْتَرَى إِثْمًا عَظِيمًا Translation: Verily, Allah forgives not that partners should be set up with him in worship, but He forgives except that (anything else) to whom He pleases, and whoever sets up partners with Allah in worship, he has indeed invented a tremendous sin.

Scholars say: there are no major sins with tawbah, and there are no minor sins with repetiton. What does that mean? The one who commits major sins and performs tawbah is forgiven; and the one who commits minor sins repeatedly is overcome by them, and they reach the level of major sins. Ibn Mas’ud (رضي الله عنه) said: A believer treats a sin as if it is a mountain over his head that may fall on him any moment; whereas a dissolute person looks at it as a fly that hovers around his nose and he waves it away with his hand.