No Distance! There is no real distance between you and Him ﷻ in order for you to journey to Him. And the connection between you and Him is not cut in order for you to seek to mend it. Allah ﷻ says: وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِى عَنِّى فَإِنِّى قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ ٱلدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ […]
Eid is around the corner! We should be grateful to Allah (SWT) for completing this Ramadan, and for the coming of another Eid ul-Fitr. While we may be sad to see Ramadan go, with all its benefits and khayr, Eid is a time of celebration. May Allah accept our fasting and prayers, and we wish […]
Achieving your Goals As Ramadan comes to a close, Insha’Allah you have found it to be a beneficial month. Hopefully, you have also made some clear goals to follow in order to strengthen your relationship with Allah beyond this month. It is of the utmost importance that you stick to these goals and any improvements […]
Increase your Knowledge The Prophet (saw) said, “seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim.” This refers to the obligation of every Muslim to seek basic knowledge of their Deen in order to practice it. More than basic knowledge, the Prophet (saw) said, “the angels lower their wings for the one seeking knowledge in approval […]
Connect to Those Around You Allah has made humans to be highly sociable animals, and our religion encourages this sociability by encouraging us to find and stick beside righteous companions. One reason the Muslims at the time of the Prophet (saw) were able to overcome the Quraysh was their solidarity, companionship and love for one […]
Life Goals If you have been following these reminders and trying to benefit from them, you may have reflected on your life goals and general attitude towards life. If you have identified something you want to do in order to bring you closer to Allah, four tips in order to make this goal be successful […]
Zakatul-Fitr Zakatul-Fitr becomes obligatory on the Muslim when the sun sets on the last day of Ramadan. It is disliked to delay giving it beyond the Eid prayer. The wisdom of giving zakatul-fitr is an important act of charity to ensure that nobody should go hungry on the day of Eid and everyone can partake in […]
Self-Cleansing As you are in the last days of Ramadan, make a serious effort to cleanse yourself of vices, particularly anger. Living in fast-paced cities can make us angry and frustrated, but we must remember the hadith of the Prophet (saw) where a man asks him for advice and he replies, “do not get angry.” […]
Remembering Allah As you are fasting, it is important to remember Allah throughout the day. There are numerous ahadith pointing out forms of dhikr we can do, whether saying alhamdulillah, subhanAllah, la ilaha illa Allah, astaghfirullah. Yet the best form of dhikr we can do is to recite the Quran, and the best way to […]
What is your Direction in Life? Everyone says they want to be a good Muslim, but these words require action in order to achieve. But what is a “good Muslim?” We must ensure that we live up to our intentions of being a good Muslim by orienting our direction in life towards submitting to Allah […]
Laylatul-Qadr The rewards of Laylatul-Qadr are known and immense. This night is greater than 1000 months, and the Prophet (saw) said, “whoever stands in prayer on Laylatul-Qadr, out of iman and anticipation, then all his previous sins will be forgiven.” The night will most likely be in any of the last ten nights of Ramadan, […]
I’tikfaf-اعتکاف The Prophet (saw) used to spend the last ten days of Ramadan in the masjid. It is a highly recommended and rewarded act, and many who have performed it can speak to the benefit of performing it. While it may not be feasible for many to perform, if you are able to, consider going […]
Praying in the Night Qiyamul-layl is to spend some of the night in worship, which in Ramadan includes the taraweeh prayers. There is immense reward in praying in the night, as the Allah (SWT) said, “And rise at ˹the last˺ part of the night, offering additional prayers, so your Lord may raise you to a […]
Akhlaq – Morals The Prophet (saw) said, “I have been sent to perfect good character.” Unfortunately, we live in times when good character is lacking among many, especially in the hustle and bustle of urban British life. However, good akhlaq is at the centre of our faith. You must make an effort to follow the […]
Conflicting Objectives Humans all have desires, but it is essential that we control them and pursue them in a halal manner, as Allah allows us to. One is what we see, it is essential we are not looking at what is haram to us. This can be started by lowering your gaze in front of […]
Learning from the Battle of Badr The Battle of Badr can teach us many things, but one major focus is to rely on Allah in all circumstances. At Badr, the Muslims faced 1000 soldiers of the Quraysh, despite having only 313 men of their own. They prevailed, largely due to their belief and reliance on […]
Fasting is a Shield Fasting gives you time to reassess your life choices. The Prophet said, “a person is on the same path as his close friend, so let each one of you look at to whom he befriends.” As you refrain from food, drink and bad habits, you should also be asking yourself if […]
Control your Tongue The Prophet (saw) said: “A person utters a word thoughtlessly (i.e., without thinking about its being good or not) and, as a result of this, he will fall down into the fire of Hell deeper than the distance between the east and the west.” The tongue is one of the main causes […]
Reflect Upon the Quran The Quran is the central foundation of belief for any Muslim. A Muslim must rely on it, and have it be the guidance for our hearts and actions. Ramadan is the best time to increase your relationship with the Quran, through reading it, one should be able to marvel and its […]
Monitor your Food and Drink In Ramadan, Allah shows us that eating twice a day (iftar and suhur) is enough for us to sustain ourselves. This fast should show us to return to what is essential, rather than chasing excess. This is particularly relevant to food – we should not be eating so much for […]
Follow the Sunnah Allah says “Indeed, you have in the Messenger of Allah, the best example to follow those who seek Allah and the Final Day.” We have from the sunnah the best example of fasting, we should stick closely to it. The Prophet (saw) would: hasten in breaking the fast break his fast on […]
The Month of Charity The Prophet (saw) was the most generous of people, and Ramadan is one of the best times to increase your charity to others. Giving to charity, when done with sincere intentions, cleanses the soul of vices such as greed, arrogance and selfishness. Through this, charity is one of the best ways […]
Time is Running Out Our time is one of our most valuable possessions and blessings from Allah. Our time on earth is limited and fleeting, as is our time in Ramadan. It is of the utmost importance that we take advantage of our time. We must ensure we stick to a schedule, complete our tasks […]
The Month of Spirituality A focus in Ramadan should be to increase our spirituality, meaning our iman, our taqwa, and cleanliness of the heart and. This can be done through doing good deeds solely for the sake of Allah and removing ourselves from situations that would bring us further away from Allah. If we are […]
Rid yourself of Bad Habits Unfortunately, many habits and customs can distract us from ibadah (worship) and building a better relationship with Allah. While this doesn’t mean we should leave all our customs, such as cooking certain foods, we cannot allow Ramadan to be a month of relaxation and leave the primary focus of the […]
Connect with the Quran Ramadan is the month of the Quran. Scholars and ulama of the past and present would leave their focus on subjects such as hadith, seerah and others and focus solely on the Quran in this month. You should take advantage of this time to vitalise your connection with the Quran. A […]
What Really Matters to You? Every Muslim’s priority in life should be seeking the pleasure of Allah. Seeking the pleasure of Allah can lead to true happiness and contentment in life. Ramadan is the best time of year to focus on this goal of ensuring your actions and objectives in life are focused on pleasing […]
Come back to Allah All of mankind sins, and Ramadan is the month of tawbah (repentance). Allah loves when His servants make sincere tawbah, which can be accomplished by truly repenting from this act and intending to never do it again. Use this month to scan your heart for any ills and diseases, repent from […]
The Change Starts Here Ramadan is the best time of year to improve yourself. Identify areas you want to improve, such as salah, and habits you want to give up, such as swearing. Take advantage of this time of fasting to improve these areas. Indeed, the Prophet (saw) said, “Fasting is a shield.” Use your […]
Have a Plan From the beginning, you must have a plan on how you want to bring the most benefit out of Ramadan. Set some goals you want to achieve, which can be split into communal and individual. Individuals could be completing the Quran, communal could be volunteering at the masjid. Make this plan and […]
Renew our Intention We must examine our intentions as we enter Ramadan and remember the ultimate purpose of fasting is to gain the pleasure of Allah (SWT). As a Muslim, we must use this month to remember we have willingly submitted ourselves to Allah and therefore, the prime reason we fast is because Allah commands […]