The Fasting of Shawwaal

Almost everyone knows the virtues of fasting the 6 days of Shawwaal which along with the fasts of Ramadan gets you the reward for fasting a whole year. However, the details aren't common among many people as to when to start the fasts or to fast consecutively or not?

When should a Muslim start fasting six days of Shawwaal?

US court sentences Dr. Aafia Siddiqui to 86 years of prison

Pakistan has condemned a US court's sentencing of Aafia Siddiqui to 86 years in prison, vowing to bring the neuroscientist back home.

Ramadan, My Dear Guest, I’m Sorry

Sorry for such a long delay in posting. I was a bit busy lately.

You might have noticed the change in the layout (If you hadn't, now you must have!). Inshallah, this will remain the layout unless there's some special event coming up.

Here's an article on the finishing of Ramadan by Yasir Birjas.

Eid Greetings

Happy Eid to all those who are celebrating it today. May Allah Azza Wajal accept all our fasts and all our good deeds of Ramadan and allow us to continue with them, inshallah!

Finally! A Verdict on Burn a Quran Day!

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The leader of a small Florida church that espouses anti-Islam philosophy said Wednesday he was determined to burn copies of the Quran on Sept. 11, despite pressure from the White House, religious leaders and others to call it off.

Pastor Terry Jones said at a press conference that he has received a lot of encouragement, with supporters mailing copies of the Islamic holy text to his Gainesville church of about 50 followers. He proclaimed in July that he would stage "International Burn-a-Quran Day" to mark the ninth anniversary of 9/11.

"As of right now, we are not convinced that backing down is the right thing," said Jones, who took no questions.

Jones said he has received more than 100 death threats and has started carrying a .40-caliber pistol since announcing his plan to burn the book Muslims consider the word of God and insist be treated with the utmost respect. Jones, 58, was flanked by an armed escort Wednesday.

Eid Takbir

It is recommended to recite the Eid Takbir from the time of Maghrib of the previous day till the time of Eid prayer. I've added a video below and you can download the mp3 format from below and put it on repeat play.

Moonsighting Issue

Moonsighting issue is one of the most important issues that the Muslim Ummah is facing nowadays. However, most of the people do not realise that this is one of the Fiqh issues which started off as early as the time of the Sahaba (RA).

Eid Flash Presentation

From Muhammad Alshareef, courtesy of www.SuccessinIslam.com

As salamu alaykum,
I made this super cool "Eid 101: What to do on Eid" flash presentation
that never loses it's coolness. Ma sha Allah.
Some Masjids even show this to their entire congregation with a LCD projector.

At this time that I'm sending this email to you, there is still some
time left in Ramadan - so extra reminder to take full advantage of
these final Ramadan moments.

But also, get a head start on educating yourself for what happens on
Eid (and share it with your family and friends so that they too may
educate themselves more)

View it here...
http://www.outstandingmuslim.com/Eid101/engage.html

Move Forward with your Dreams

You’ve just had an amazing ‘Productive’ Ramadan, you feel completely buzzed, and want to continue this feeling after Ramadan...now what?!
OR

With Ramadan almost over, many of us begin drifting back into our daily routines, 

perhaps letting go of some of the habits we picked up this blessed month.

Till today, this was an individual challenge; you had to figure out on your own how to continue the Ramadan spirit after Ramadan. Unfortunately, these individual efforts usually fail miserably as they don’t have structure to them and their isn’t a support network to help you. That was till today. 

What if you could maintain the Ramadan spirit throughout the year?

Though it is sad to see it go, it's time to strengthen those habits and make them a part of our lifestyle throughout the year. 

Our friends at DiscoverU have put together a special 10 days Post Ramadan course,conducted by Muhammad Alshareef to help you stay Productive and ‘buzzed’ after Ramadan. 

Here’s why we like it:

1.It’s practical: The course is packed with actions & to-dos.
2. It’s extensive: This is a 10 day course, not a one-off talk or webinar.
3. It’s ONLINE: So anyone from anywhere can take part in it.

The course is only for $197 (or with 2 instalments of $98.50 each). I know this might sound expensive (and even unconventional to get charged for an Islamic course), but honestly, how much would you pay to get professional help to stay ‘buzzed’ and ‘productive’ after Ramadan?! Think of the benefits. 

So, if you’ve been rattling your brains about how you can stay Productive after Ramadan sign up to BringIT! today and stay Productive!

With Bring It! 2.0 Shaykh Muhammad Alshareef will assist you to move beyond the

Ramadan blues. 

Bring It! 2.0 will focus on some of the most important topics in our life, including

time management, finances, family/spouse relationships, spirituality and so much more.

Zakat al-Fitr

You don't need to think about it, Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) already told us! It’s paying Zakat-al-Fitr! 

SubhanaAllah, it’s easy to forget this special Zakat with all the Eid shopping, but please DON’T forget it!  It’s the least you can do to make sure that your fasting is accepted inshaAllah.

Following is an article by Muhammad Alshareef about a few mistakes people normally do regarding Zakat-al-Fitr, please read it as it contains super useful information. I just wanted to add that if you can, try to give this Zakat in person this Ramadan instead of doing it via a Charity organisation. 

Will We Continue?

Around this time each year, a feeling of ‘sadness’ clouds our hearts...We feel sad because we wonder if we’ll ever continue being this spiritual and close to Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala) as we were during Ramadan.  Our past experiences have shown that we always fail to keep up after Ramadan, so what can we do?!

There is a video which was recently received which discusses 6 tips to help you solve this problem (Watch it below), but here’s one important idea which wasn't mentioned in the video:

One Strong Push, inshallah!

The best athletes are those who finish strong and in Islam we’re taught that Deeds are judged by their endings. Just give Ramadan one last STRONG Push please! The next 5 days should be the most productive spiritually for you! Here is a practical tip for those of you who are busy during the day and can’t do full i’tikaaf at the masjid:

Try to spend your nights at the Masjid:

Donate and Pray

As most of you would already be aware, Pakistan has been struck by one of the worst calamities, or one of the worst wraths of Allah Azza Wajal, the heavy flooding which has done a lot of damage to the infrastructure as well as the people. An estimated 2 million people have been severely affected.

Remember to pray for the people and donate as much as possible especially during Ramadan when the rewards for everything is multiplied.

I actually wasn't planning on posting this before Ramadan ends but I realized that it is more important to focus on this in Ramadan due to the extra rewards. Here's a short outline of how people can help:

5 things to do on Laylatul Qadr

So valuable is this Night of Qadr that the Quran devotes a special surah to
it “Lailatul Qadr is better than a thousand months” [97:3] 

This one night surpasses the value of 30,000 nights. The most authentic account of the occurrence of the Night indicates that it can occur on any one of the last ten, odd numbered nights of Ramadan, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29.

We should strive to stay up at least on the odd numbered nights of the last ten days. If we can't manage that then let us pray at least on the 27th night. If one prays on all of the last odd numbered nights then there is more chance that one may have caught this most powerful night and the reward is of over 83 YEARS OF WORSHIP! Subhanallah! Most will not even live upto that age!

It is a night that we CANNOT miss out on so here is how we can maximise this blessed night:

The Last Sprint – Ways to Keep Yourself Motivated

The race for good deeds starts with huge momentum at the beginning of Ramadan, but somewhere down the race some of us slowed down. With only few days left till end of Ramadan, we need to make that one last sprint in order to finish strong and be among the winners! Nothing more disappointing that an athlete who had a good run for the first 400m then messes up the last 100m sprint!

In this article, you’ll learn about ways to keep yourself motivated in the remaining few days of Ramadan.

How should we observe Laylat al-Qadr and when is it?

Surprise! The last Friday of Ramadan is here! It seemed as though Ramadan had only started yesterday! A few days are still left which are actually the most important ones.

Anyways, here's an article on Laylat ul Qadr:

Dividing Qiyaam al-layl into two parts during the last ten days of Ramadan

Question

I hope that you could tell me about the opinions of the scholars with regard to the ruling on dividing Taraweeh prayers in the last ten days of Ramadan into two parts: at the beginning of the night and at the end, as is done in many mosques. Please also mention the evidence if possible.

What are the signs of Lailatul-Qadr Night???

Answered by Dr. Shaikh Muhammad Salah on ask Huda!