Friday night sit at home and read quran?

‘Do you want me to sit at home and read Qur’an on a Friday night?’

Me: ‘Yes’

‘What? Are you mad? No way! I had a difficult week’

Me: ‘How was it difficult?’

‘I have been at work 8 hours a day, everyday. I have been taking care of the kids, cleaning the house and cooking food and taking care of your parents every day and I need a break’

‘What do you want to do?’

‘I want to relax. Chill out. Meet some friends. It’s all halal. I want to eat out tonight. My friends and I will wear proper hijaab. Its all sisters. I will lower my gaze from looking at women, but I need this time. Its all brothers. No free mixing. It will be my clocking out time. My own pick-me-up time. To get my energy back for the week ahead. To relax my head and body because I have to work/take care of the kids tomorrow’

Me: ‘When will be time between you and Allah happen?’

‘Tomorrow. The whole weekend is left. I promise. Tomorrow’

———————————————-

SubhanAllah…

Is this what happens on a Friday night? The weekend starts and there is a internal struggle within yourself?

A part of you – wants to remind yourself how little time you have left before you have to stand before Allah.. The Other part of you – is horrified to consider reciting Qur’an, or listening to an Islamic lecture on a Friday evening? Or doing anything remotely ‘Islamic’?

Who will win? Who has won? Just look at the last 4 weeks, not more – just 4 weeks, and decide who won these 4 times? Did you end up socialising with your friends, Facebooking and chatting on Whatsapp, OR, did you go to sleep early on Friday night so you could pray 2 rakats of Tahujjud before Fajr?

Tahujjud on a Saturday morning? Right! Reading an Islamic book on a Saturday evening? As if! Never! That’s not fun. Weekends are for fun.

Where are you going, my dear sister in Islam? Where are you going, my dear brother in Islam? Where are your priorities? When will you find time for Allah?

Please think about it. Only you and Allah knows. But His knowledge is enough as a Witness for or against us.

Islam *As* Entertainment

When we have imaan (faith) in our hearts, then learning about Islam and gaining knowledge about the deen of Allah becomes something we look forward to. It becomes our *relaxing* time. Learning about the seerah of the prophet saw and the stories in the Qur’an becomes our *form of entertainment*.

When we have islam, but imaan has not entered our hearts, then praying salah (even 5 times a day!) and reading Qur’an once in a while feels like it’s enough. We believe in Allah and His messenger saw and we mostly stay away from the major sins, surely this is enough? Our learning becomes stagnant. Our tears stop flowing. We stop living and start existing. This is dangerous. No one can guarantee that imaan will always stay at a constant level. No one can claim that they have “high” imaan all the time. That they are safe.

Faith needs to be nourished. Regularly. Daily. The exact way the prophet saw and his companions used to. Take more interest in the deen. Learn fiqh of a simple topic. Learn Tajweed. Learn seerah. Talk about Allah with your family. With your spouse. With your children. At dinner table. When you are at the park. Randomly and casually. It doesn’t have to be like a formal learning class all the time.

Make learning the deen something that relaxes you. Excites you. Pleases you. Not a chore or just a responsibility. That is when we have both imaan *and* islam fully in our hearts.

(Inspired by a lecture by Br. Nouman Ali khan on ‘Maintaining Imaan’)

Allah hears you, can YOU hear Him?

I was thinking today and realised something that changed the way I look at the Qur’an.

We cant see Allah in this world; He hasn’t given us the ability to see Him on this earth BUT He has allowed us to hear His words. To read His words. This is stunningly amazing.. Your imaan increases when you realize that these are the actual Words of our Creator, and you begin to pay a lot more attention.

Next time, you listen to the recitation, think about it. Acknowledge from the somewhere deep within yourself that you are listening to the Words that Allah spoke. These weren’t just handed to us written down in a book. These Words were actually spoken by Allah and you are the audience. He is talking to you, at the very moment you have the Mushaf opened in front of you. Realise that every ayah that you come across isn’t just text to read and recite but it has a purpose. To change your heart. To remove the layer of dirt accumulated by your sins. Qur’an is real. It is special. It changes you, if you let it.

May Allah make us from people of the Qur’an. Ameen

“Verily, those who recite the Book of Allah…. hope for a (sure) trade-gain that will never perish. That He may pay them their wages in full, and increase them, out of His Grace. Verily! He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Ready to appreciate.” [al-Fatir: 29-30].

Qatadah (radhi’Allahu ‘anhu) used to say whenever he read this verse: “This is the verse of the Qurra’ (recitors).” (Tafsir Ibn al-Kathir)

*post inspired by one of the lectures by sister Fajr – May Allah reward her immensely*

Remembering Him with him

Sometimes we are sad and upset. There may or may not be a big enough reason. Perhaps, a loved one – could be a parent, sibling, husband or a friend- has upset you and you can’t seem to reconcile. Perhaps there is a personal trial or a difficulty that you are going through and you are not able to share it with your family or your spouse. Your heart is distressed and talking to them or even a hug from a loved one doesn’t make it better. At time like these, where the heart is at unrest, we are recommended to find peace in the remembrance of Allah. Obviously one of the ways of remembering Allah is through the recitation of the Qur’an, BUT that’s not what I am suggesting.

Try something else. Instead of reciting the Qur’an yourself, ask your spouse to recite it for you. Let him select any surah that he wants and you simply listen. Close your eyes and let the words of Allah open your heart. Heal your heart. Know that the exact ayah that your husband chose to recite is the one that Allah decreed at this moment in time. This is what you need.

Let your heart feel that connection with Allah first and foremost and then with your husband. Perhaps, you couldn’t talk to him about something or felt a little mentally disconnected in your marriage. Remember – his voice usually calms you and right now hearing him recite the words of Allah will make all the difference. It will remind you of the mercy that Allah has put between you both. It will bring his love back in your heart. You will once again recall the purpose of marriage. You will remember how the person reciting the Quraan to you at this moment is the one who loves and cares for you. That you both are fulfilling one of the purposes of marriage – worshipping Allah together. As one unit.

Try it. Next time you feel disconnected with your spouse and talking to them hasn’t helped, ask them to recite the words of Allah. Any surah. Any ayah.

May Allah make us the coolness of our spouses’ eyes and unite us together in Jannah. Ameen