Ibn `Umar radhi Allaahu anhu said, “After `Umar was stabbed, I placed his head on my lap. He said, ‘Place my head on the ground.’ Thinking that that was simply restlessness on his part, I did not do as he asked. Then he said, ‘Place my cheek on the ground - may you have no mother! Woe upon me, and woe upon my mother, if Allaah `Azza wa Jall does not forgive me.’”

And when Umar ibn al-Khattaab radhi’Allaahu anhu was in the final moments of his life, al-Mughirah bin Shu’bah radhi Allaahu anhu said to him, “Congratulations to you for Paradise, O Leader of the Believers.” Though one should not say such statements to someone while he is healthy, it is recommended to do so when someone is dying, so as to help him have good thoughts about Allaah subhanahu wa ta’ala.

“O Ibn Umm al-Mughirah,” `Umar radhi Allaahu anhu said, “And what makes you know (that I will enter Paradise)? By the One Who has my soul in His Hand, if I possessed all that is in the east and in the west, I would have ransomed it all to be saved from the terror of the beginning [of Judgement Day (and that which happens during it in terms of accountability)].”

[Min Qasas as-Saaliheen]
___________

Subhan’Allaah… what have we prepared for that Day… may Allaah protect us from the punishment of the grave and hellfire, and Grant us Jannat al-Firdaus, ameeen.

On the authority of Abu Dharr radhiAllahu anhu who said that the Messenger of Allaah sallallaahu alaihi wasallam said,

“I can see what you do not see, and I can hear what you do not hear. Indeed the sky groans (the large number of Angels in the sky make it heavy so that it groans) and it has a right to do so. There is not an area equal to that of four fingers, except that an Angel is prostrating to Allaah therein. By Allaah! If you knew what I know you would laugh little and weep much, and you would not enjoy your wives in bed. But rather you would come out onto the hills, supplicating and praying fervently to Allaah.”

[Ahmad, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah: Hasan]

And that’s why you should keep on aiming high.
Just seek yourself and you will shine
You’ve got to search for the hero inside yourself.
Search for the secrets you hide.
Search for the hero inside yourself.
Until you find the key to your life.
In this life long and hard though it may seem
Live it as you’d live a dream.
Aim so high.
Just keep the flame of truth burning bright.
The missing treasure you must find.
Because you and only you alone.
Can build a bridge across the stream.
Weave your spell in life’s rich tapestry.
Your passport to a feel supreme.

(M People)

In the name of Allaah, the Most-Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy.

Know, may Allaah have mercy upon you, that it is obligatory upon you to have knowledge of four matters:

(i) Knowledge (al-`Ilm), which is knowledge and awareness of Allaah, and His Prophet,

(ii) Action upon that.

(iii) Calling to that.

(iv) Patiently persevering and bearing any harm encountered upon that way.

The proof is the saying of Allaah, the Most High: “By time, mankind is in loss, except for those who truly believe and worship Allaah Alone, and do righteous deeds, performing that which is obligatory upon them and avoiding that which they are forbidden, and enjoin one another with patient perseverance upon obedience to Allaah and in facing harm and trials.” [Soorah al-`Asr]

Ash-Shaafi’ee, may Allaah, the Most High, have mercy upon him, said: “If Allaah had sent down to His creation no other proof besides this Soorah, it would have been sufficient for them.”

Al-Bukhaaree, may Allaah have mercy upon him, said: “Knowledge precedes speech and action and the proof for that is the saying of Allaah, the Most High, “Know that none has the right to be worshipped except Allaah, and ask forgiveness of your Lord for your sins.” [Soorah Muhammad: 19]. So He began by mentioning knowledge before speech or action.”

[Explanation of the Three Fundamental Principles of Islaam, by Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-`Uthaymeen hafidhahullaah]

Lesson plans! Here I come…

…with the present
rather than the past or future.

What is the point in slapping your cheeks or rending your garment in sorrow over something you missed or some calamity that befell you? What is the point of focusing your thoughts and feelings on some incident that has passed so as to increase your pain and make you fall apart?

If it were possible to reach into the past and change it’s events which we did not like, and alter them the way we like, then going back to the past would be essential. We would all rush to go back and erase the things we regretted doing and increase our share of good fortune. But that is impossible, so it is better for us to focus our efforts on what will help us get on with our lives, for that is our only means of compensation.

This is what the Qur’aan drew attention to after Uhud (a battle named after a mountain in Madeenah), when Allaah said to those who were weeping for the slain and regretting going out to the battlefield:

“Say: “Even if you had remained in your homes,
those for whom death was decreed would certainly
have gone forth to the place of their death,”“
{Surah alee-Imraan: 154}

“Be certain that happiness is
like a planted flower that has
not yet blossomed, but it is
certain to appear.”

[You can be the happiest woman in the world]

During his final illness, Ibn al-Munkadir began to cry. “Why are you crying?” he was asked. “By Allaah,” he said, “I am not crying for the sins I know I perpetrated, but instead because I fear that I did something I considered to be minor, when with Allaah (i.e. in His Judgment) it is a huge sin.”
[Min Qasas as-Saaliheen]

“What has passed is a dream
And what is hoped for in the future is unseen
Yet you have at your disposal
The hour in which you are at present”

|Imam Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah|
[Madarij as-Saalikeen 1/100-101, 105]“The Dispraise of Al-Hawaa (Desire) by Ibnul Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah”

`Uboodiyyah is a comprehensive term that asserts the meaning of the Aayah:

You Alone do we worship and You Alone do we seek for Help. (Qur’aan :5)

It comprises the slavery of the heart, tongue and limbs to Allaah ta`aala. The slavery of the heart includes both the Qawl (saying of the heart) and `Amaal (actions of the heart). The Qawl of the heart is the belief (I`tiqaad) in what Allaah has informed about His Self, His Names and Attributes, His Actions, His Angels, and that which He revealed in His Book and sent upon the tongue of His Messenger Muhammad sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam.

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The `Amaal of the heart include love for Allaah, reliance upon Him, turning to Him in repentance, fearing Him, having hope in Him, devoting the Deen sincerely to Him, having patience in what He orders and forbids, having patience with His decrees and being pleased with them, having allegiance for His pleasure, having humility for Him and humbling oneself in front of Him, and becoming tranquil with Him.

The Qawl (saying) of the tongue is to convey what Allaah has revealed (in the Qur’aan and authentic Sunnah) regarding Himself, His Names and Attributes, His Actions, His Commands, His Prohibitions, and all that is related to this Deen), to call to it, defend it, to expose the false innovations which oppose it, and to establish its remembrance and to convey what it orders.

The `Amaal (actions) of the limbs include the Salaat (prayers), Jihaad, attending the Jumu`ah prayers and the rest of the Jamaa`aat (congregational prayers), assisting those who are unable, and acting with goodness and kindness to creation, and other such acts.

This comprehensive meaning of the `Uboodiyyah pertains to its specific type. The people who fall under this type of `Uboodiyyah are the believers who obey, love, and sincerely follow the Deen of Allaah ta`aala.

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The second type of `Uboodiyyah is the general one in which all creatures in the heavens and in the earth are subdued to Allaah’s sovereign Authority and Power; everything is subservient to His Will, and Authority; nothing occurs or ceases to occur except by His leave; His is the Kingdom and He disposes the affairs as He pleases. This type of `Uboodiyyah is known as the `Uboodiyyah of Qahr (Subduing) and Mulk (Sovereignty, Kingship, Possession, Mastership, etc.).

So, the part of the Aayah signifying “You do we worship” asserts the adherence to the four principles of `Uboodiyyah:

1. The sayings of the heart

2. The actions of the heart,

3. The sayings of the tongue, and

4. The actions of the limbs.

The other part, “You Alone do we seek for Help,” stresses the fact that the believer must ask Allaah alone to help him establish the `Uboodiyyah and succeed in executing all what it requires.

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