Help you one another in righteousness

 

 

**By the way, these artworks were requested by one of my friends. She works as a humanitarian with Global Peace Mission Malaysia. May Allah bless her and her family for their great contribution this deen.. :)

How Do We End Our Ramadhan (Combined and edited in 2013)

Eid Mubarak to all Muslims! Taqabalallahu minna wa minkum.

(I know.. it is quite late.. 'sigh')

Let us continue doing all of the good deeds that were done during Ramadhan.

I don't draw any new artwork for this year's 'Eid. I just combine my previous work about 'Eid all together into one sheet and edited few spelling mistakes that I made. Hopefully this will make sharing process easier.

Laylatul Qadr Supplication

English Version

Malay Version

| Laylatul Qadr Supplication |

اللَّهمَّ إنَّك عفُوٌّ تُحبُّ العفوَ فاعْفُ عنِّي

Transliteration: Allahumma innaka afuwwun tuhibbu al-afwa fa'fu anni
Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said: I asked the Messenger of Allah: ‘O Messenger of Allah, if I know what night is the night of Qadr, what should I say during it?’ He said: ‘Say: Oh Allah, You are the Most Forgiving. You love forgiveness, so forgive me.’ “

(Ibn Majah, and Tirmidhi).

 

 The Night of Power (Laylat’l-Qadr): Step by Step Guide

Author: Shaikh Abdullah Hasan
Source: http://muslimmatters.org/2012/08/09/the-night-of-power-laylatl-qadr-step-by-step-guide/

As Muslims we are blessed with countless blessings from Allāh . Among them is that He has prescribed the fasting during the month of Ramadan and has favored us over any other faith group in the past by multiplying our deeds especially in this blessed month. Another immeasurable blessing which Allāh has favored us with is the night of power. Worshiping in this night sincerely and expecting the reward from Allāh carries great reward for the servants. In an authentic narration from the Prophet , we read:

“Whosoever worshiped on laylat'l-qadr, with faith and with a sincere intention, all of his previous sins are forgiven.” [i]

This night is special for the Ummah of the Prophet Muḥammad . Worshiping Allāh in it is equivalent to worshiping Him for 1000 months.

I do not wish to delve into the views and opinions of the scholars regarding the timing and date of this powerful and blessed night. There are a plethora of articles and books on these topics. The reader may wish to read the writings of imām Ibn Rajab al Hanbali in his much celebrated book Lataif al Ma'arif in the chapter of Ramadan.

I wish to focus on how we can prepare ourselves to reap the rewards of this night and hopefully be granted the forgiveness of our Lord. Below is a step by step guide to achieving success during laylat'l-qadr inspired by the writings of imām Ibn Rajab and others:

1. Start preparing for it at Fajr. After Fajr ṣalāh, ensure you recite the morning adhkar (remembrance), especially:

لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شيء قدير
'La ila illahu wahdau la sharika lahu, lahul mulku walahul hamd wahuwa 'ala kulli shayin qadeer'
There is no God but Allāh; He is alone without any partner. To Him belong the dominion and to Him belong all praise and He is over all things able.
Repeat this 100 times.

The Prophet said whoever recites it 100 times in the morning and evening, 100 good deeds will be recorded for him and 100 evil deeds will be erased from his tab, and he will be protected from the Shaytan. An important note here is that he will be free from the whisperings of the Shaytan to prepare for the Night of Power.

2. Treat Iftar to a fasting person, either by inviting him to your house, or by buying the food for him and sending it to him. The Prophet said that whoever gives food to break another person's fast, he will receive the same reward as the person without his reward being diminished.

3. When the day breaks, make as much du‘ā’ as possible that Allāh helps you and makes it easy for you to worship Him during this night.

4. If you haven't paid your Zakat money, pay it this night as the rewards will be magnified. If you have, then prepare some sadaqah (charity) to give in the way of Allāh. Remember charity burns our sins as fire burns wood.

5. During the course of the day, try and avoid people as much as possible (except those who need your support). This way you will not be harmed and will not be in a position to harm anyone, thus entering the night with a clean heart and mind.

Note: this also applies to the various social networks such as Facebook, Twitter etc. You do not need to tell the whole world you're going to the Mosque at Tahajjud!


6. Throughout the daytime make sure you perform the obligatory duties such as praying on time with the additional Sunnah and optional prayers. Repeat the phrases of adhān after the muadhin and make the necessary supplications.[ii]

7. When you break your fast, make sure you're mindful that Allāh may not accept your fasting, so you should yearn for and anticipate His mercy and reward. Supplicate with the following:

اللهم اعني و وفقني لقيام ليلة القدر
''allahumma 'ainni wa waffiqni li qiyami Laylatul qadr'
O Allāh help me and facilitate for me to worship You in this Night'.

8. Constantly make the chosen du‘ā’ for this night:

اللهم إنك عفو تحب العفو فاعف عني
''Allahumma innaka 'afuwun tuhibbul 'afwa fa'fu 'anni''
O Allāh you the Most Forgiving, and You love to forgive, so forgive me''[iii]

9. If you have parents, make sure you are dutiful towards them. Break Iftar with them and fulfill all their needs.

10.  If you are not in good terms with a family member, try and resolve it before the night starts.

11.  If you can, have a bath and perform wuḍūʼ like the Prophet.

12.  Put on clean clothes and put nice perfume on before going to the Mosque.

13.  When you enter the Mosque perform all the etiquette of the Mosque. Try not to speak to people too much, just focus all your energy to be alone with Allāh.

14.  Pray the prayers with khushu (humility) and try to cry. If tears do not come out, try and make them come (I DON'T mean you should cut onions in the Mosques )

15.  When you return home, make sure you are still doing the dhikr of Allāh.

16.  When you arrive at your house, eat and make du‘ā’, make wuḍūʼ and take some rest (sleep) if you need to. Your sleep will be counted as ibadah.

17.  Wake up in due time and pray Tahajjud (many Mosques pray Tahajjud in a Jama'ah), eat and then pray fajr. After fajr, read the Qur'an, make constant du‘ā’ and plead to Allāh to forgive you. Do that and the morning dhikr until sunrise, all the while being mindful of the presence of the angels.

Remember this is the night in which Allāh decrees your rizq (provisions) for the coming year, so implore Allāh; cry your heart out as they say so that He may give you what you desire. Don't think what you're asking for is too much for Allāh, nothing you ask will decrease His dominion. You want money ask Him, you want a wife/husband ask Him, you want a job ask Him, you want children ask Him, you want peace of heart ask Him, anything you desire ask. Remember that you must focus and concentrate when you pray and make du‘ā’.

18.  When you make du‘ā’, remember that there is certain etiquette you have to follow:
a) Praise Allāh first,
b) then send salutations upon the Prophet,
c) then make du‘ā’ for your yourself,
d) then make du‘ā’ for your family and the rest of the Ummah.
Try and follow this order as much as you can.

19.  Remember when you supplicate you should have certainty and expect the best from Allāh. Pray with humility and fear in front of Allāh. Acknowledge your mistakes and shortcomings and implore and beseech Him alone to forgive you. Also supplicate to Allāh quietly – there is no need to raise one's voice.

20.  And finally, please do not forget to make du‘ā’ for this poor servant who is in need of your prayers.[iv]

Important note for sisters:

Many sisters who are on the monthly menses ask what they can do during this night. They feel left out from the blessings of this night.
Although she is not allowed to perform the prayers and recite the Qur'an by touching it. The scholars have stated that she may perform as much du‘ā’ as possible, remembering and praising Allāh. They also state that she is allowed to recite the Qur'an from her memory. And finally if her intention and ardent desire is to worship her Lord in this night but due to the valid excuse in the Shari'ah she is not able to perform the normal prayers; she should be certain that Allāh will reward her fully according to her sincerity and intention.
Allāh knows best.

[i] Bukhāri and Muslim
[ii] See Hisnul Muslim. Alternatively visit: http://www.makedua.com/
[iii] Please watch a short video clip explaining briefly the meaning of this du‘ā’: http://youtu.be/QU1jDhW64ak [iv] Please refer to Ibn Rajab's Lataif al Ma'arif for discussion on the virtues and some actions of this night.

Ramadhan ~ Let's Make a Change!

Let us make a change in our life this Ramadhan. And ask Allah to make it stays in ourselves. InshaAllah. 

The Ramadhan Hero ~ I Beat My Own Nafs

Dealing with our own nafs or soul isn't an easy job. We need to put a huge effort and a lot of struggles in order to defeat our own nafs. A strong WWE wrestler maybe can defeat 10 opponents at the same time. But when he needs to 'wrestle' with himself, there is no 100% guaranty that he would success. 

That is why concerning spiritual struggle or mujahadah, the Prophet , said:  

al-mujahid man jahada nafsahu fi ta'ati'Llah – 'The warrior is the one who strives against his lower soul in obedience to God.'

(Ibn Hibban, Sahih, no.4707; al-Tirmidhi, Sunan, no.1671, who said the hadith is hasan sahih.)

Ramadhan is just a perfect time as fasting is one of the effective ways to tame our nafs. It is a perfect 'school' to educate ourselves. And hopefully, after Ramadhan School ends, we will graduate as a true warrior. InshaAllah..
___________________________________________________________________

Speaking about nafs, here i got a good article on Nafs for you.

Know Your Soul, Know Yourself
Author: Abu Aliya
Source: http://muslimmatters.org/2013/01/22/know-your-soul-know-yourself/

Many passages in the Qurʾān extol the significance of the soul or nafs. In one celebrated passage, it says:

By the soul and Him that formed it, then inspired it with its wickedness and God-fearingness. He is truly successful who purifies it, and he is indeed ruined who corrupts it. [Surah Ash-Shams, 7-10]

The Qur'ān also offers this glad-tiding:

But those who feared the standing before their Lord and curbed their soul's desires, the Garden is their abode. [Surah An-Nazi'aat, 40-41]

The idea of curbing the soul's passions and of seeking to purify it is reiterated in the following hadith: 'There are three acts that, whoever does them will experience the sweetness of faith: one who worships God alone, for there is no true god but Him; one who pays his yearly zakat on his wealth with an agreeable soul – not giving a weak, decrepit nor diseased animal, but giving from his middle wealth, for God does not ask for the best of your wealth and nor orders to give the worst of it; and one who purifies his soul.' A man inquired: What is purification of the soul (tazkiyat al-nafs)? He replied: 'To know that God is with him wherever he may be.'1
The Qurʾān describes the human soul (nafs) as possessing three potentials or degrees which are present within it simultaneously.2

The first and the lowest degree is al-nafs al-ammarah bi'l-su' – “the soul that constantly incites to evil”. The Qurʾān says:

…The soul does indeed incite to evil… [Surah Yusuf, 53]

 This untamed, unweaned soul is the abode of a multitude of incessant cravings and passions: be it for wealth, fame, power, physical gratification, exploiting others – that is, anything which deflects one away from God and to the lower possibilities of the human condition. Al-Jurjani (d.816H/1413CE) defined the nafs al-ammarah as: 'It is that which inclines to the bodily nature, ordering [the pursuit of] physical pleasures and carnal appetites, pulling the heart to debasement. It is the abode of evil, giving birth to all reprehensible traits.'3 So, this nafs, equivalent to the English word “ego”, refers to the reprehensible aspects of our actions and character – actions in respect to our sins of omission or commission; character in terms of pride, envy, vanity, greed, impatience, ostentation, and the like.
As the believer strives to purge his soul of blameworthy traits (radha'il) and labours to replace them by their praiseworthy opposites (fada'il), the nafs al-ammarah is gradually weaned away from heedlessness and disobedience to God, and thus begins to give way to al-nafs al-lawwamah – “the reproachful soul.” The Qurʾān declares:  

No! I swear by the reproachful soul. [Surah Al-Qiyamah, 2]

 This soul is man's active conscience that is afflicted with regret, remorse and self-reproach whenever the Divine Will is disobeyed and elements of the lower, evil-inciting soul resurface. Al-Jurjani writes of the nafs al-lawwamah: 'It is that which is illumined with the light of the heart, according to the measure of how much it has become awakened from habitual heedlessness. As soon as it commits a sin due to its natural oppressive disposition, it takes to blaming itself and repenting from it.'4
After much inward striving and discipline, the nafs al-lawwamah is further purified of any opposition to God's will or shari'ah, and is ever receptive to heavenly outpourings. Here the nafs al-mutma'innah – “the soul at peace” or “the tranquil soul” then begins to predominate. It is this soul that is most worthy of divine assistance and acceptance. It is about this that the Qurʾān says: 

O tranquil soul! Return to your Lord, pleased and well-pleasing. Enter among My servants. Enter My Paradise. [Surah Al-Fajr, 27-30]

Having established His obedience and internalized it, it is intimate with God, at peace with God's decree (rida bi'l-qada'), tasting the sweetness of faith. Al-Jurjani defines the nafs al-mutma'innah in the following manner: 'It is that whose illumination is completed by the heart's light, such that is has been purged of its blameworthy traits and adorned with praiseworthy ones.'5
In all of this, four factors are crucial and have a significant bearing in purification of the soul: (i) one's inborn nature; (ii) his upbringing; (iii) spiritual striving (mujahadah) and self-discipline (riyadah) in adulthood; and, of course, (iv) God's tawfiq or enabling grace.

Concerning spiritual struggle or mujahadah, the Prophet , said: al-mujahid man jahada nafsahu fi ta'ati'Llah – 'The warrior is the one who strives against his lower soul in obedience to God.'6

So let us roll-up our sleeves and let the work begin.

Our Lord! Grant piety to our souls and purify them.

You are the Best of those who purify;

You are their Guardian

and Master.

āmīn!

References:
1. Al-Bayhaqi, al-Sunan al-Kubra, no.7275. Its chain is sahih - as per al-Albani, Silsilat al-Ahadith al-Sahihah (Riyadh: Maktabah al-Ma'arif, 1987), no.1046.
2. Cf. T.J. Winter (trans.), al-Ghazali, Disciplining the Soul and Breaking the Two Desires(Cambridge: The Islamic Texts Society, 1995), xxviii-xxix.
3. Al-Jurjani, al-Ta'rifat (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-'Ilmiyyah, 2000), 239; no.1931.
4. ibid., 239.
5. ibid., 239.

6. Ibn Hibban, Sahih, no.4707; al-Tirmidhi, Sunan, no.1671, who said the hadith ishasan sahih.

Ramadhan Lecture Series #3 : Wash Our Heart

It's just a few days before we meet Ramadhan. Let's all by start making some preparations before she arrives.. purify our heart before we meet her. 

WASH OUR HEART!

How? 

Let's watch this beautiful short reminder for me and you by Shaikh Muhammad Hussein Yaqub

p/s: Someone asked me about the the links for Mufti Menks' lectures (Ramadhan Lecture Series #1). For your information, those links had been changed. And I am really sorry since there is nothing I can do..  But don't worry, there are lots of Mufti Menks' lectures on Youtube. Just type his name, and you'll get hundreds feeds of his videos. 

The Ulul Albab

Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, - there are indeed Signs for men of understanding, - Men who celebrate the praises of Allah, standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and contemplate the (wonders of) the creation in the heavens and the earth, (with the thought): "Our Lord! Not for naught have You created (all) this! Glory to You! Give us salvation from the penalty of the Fire"

Quran | Surah Ali Imran | Verses: 190 - 191

Tutorial 1: How to Draw a Basic Hijabi Doodle Using Ms Paint

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim

Assalamu'alaikum wbt.

Some of you had asked me how did I draw the doodles and asked me to teach them. They also asked me about the software that I use..

I use Ms Paint which I guess, it should be available in every laptop and PC. Then, I add the wording and edited the pictures using Microsoft Power Point. Though it is quite tiring, but it could give you a satisfying result if you're really focusing on what you are doing.

I don't use advance software like Adobe Photoshop because I don't have it. I've tried to search for free download on the internet, but I end up with downloading a virus! Ooopssie!!!

  

 This is how I draw my doodles.. You can always create your own doodle with your own style. Try not to follow 100%. Try to do something unique instead.

To create something different, all that you need is an imagination and lots of experiments and practices. 

If you are a muslim, try to make a doodle that could be a tool for the da'wah. Add some advices.. or maybe a Quran verse or an authentic hadith from Rasulullah saw.. Anything.. as long as it can benefit others.

Alright, let us jump into the real business!

Here is my first tutorial video uploaded on Youtube. Hope this will help you! inshaAllah..

Good luck! :)

Quran or Music?

O Muslim, lawful things have good attributes
Where is the good in singing, dancing and listening to flutes?
Can we compare the words of singers and sounds of Musicians
To the Glorious Qurʾān, its lessons, wisdoms and admonitions?
How many singers do you know and give admiration,
And how many do you know of the companions and the following generation?
How much do you spend on singers from your dollars?
Compared to how many you know of Islamic Scholars.
Do you see how much is memorized of Music songs?
While you ignore the book to which memorization belongs?
How much do you memorize of these incantations?
And swayed back and forth in intoxication?
Have you not seen those who follow the misguided?
And increase the loudness of the Music, when they should hide it?
And who writes their songs? thinkers, or men of academia?
Or maybe scholars, like Ahmad, Malik or maybe ibn Taymiyah.
O you who listens to music..
Don't you see that All the songs of the world and all the lyrics you've seen
Wouldn't compare in reward to Alif Laam Meem

~Poem by Shaykh Kamal Al-Mekki (al-Maghrib Institute)~

Knowledge and Education

English version

Malay version

How and what kind of knowledge that would makes us higher than everyone? 

Here is a good lecture about "Seeking Knowledge and Education" by Mufti Ismail Menk.

Barakallahulakum feek :)

New Booklet Project

Assalamu'alaikum. Dear all, 

It has been a while since I posted my last doodle on this blog.. Honestly, I feel quite guilty to myself for not being so productive and not being a good time manager. But I kept on thinking of some new idea on how to deliver the da'wah through arts and doodles.

And here is the new one!

I am thinking of starting a new booklet project that can be used as a learning tool for the kids.. Basically it will be a compilation of Quran verses and saheeh/hasan ahadeeth from our beloved prophet. Hopefully, I can start the project around this September, after I have submitted my thesis. InshaAllah..

And for that, I need to collect and select few Quran verses and saheeh ahadeeth to be included inside the booklet.

For those of you who'd like contribute in this project, please share the Quran verses and ahadeeth (saheeh and hasan only), in the comment box. Or you can simply e mail me those verses and ahadeeth to this e mail: little_muslimah86[at]yahoo.com

May Allah gives us strength and capability to do good deeds and accept our effort.

Barakallahulakum feek.

Art For Islam on Facebook

Assalamu'alaikum.

I’ve been thinking about this for quite some times but I kept on delaying this..

But Alhamdulillah, this year, I decided to create a facebook page for Art 4 Islam blog and littleMuslimah’s deviantart. Well, actually not exactly this year. I created the page since June 2012, but only this year, I decided to make it public.

Basically, the content would be still the same as on my blog and deviantart. But inshaAllah, instead of the arts and doodles, I’ll be also sharing anything that I think would be beneficial for all of us.  

Hope you’ll like it the way it is.. Hehe..

For those who are interested, you can like my page on facebook here: http://www.facebook.com/ArtForIslam

Till then, see you there folks.  (^,~)

Regards,

littleMuslimah