Tesekurler, Allah razi olsun!! Turkish government have made amazing strides to help us.

By Wael Abdelgawad Source :Muslimmatters Listen to the quiet voice inside yourself. The persistent voice that tells you that there’s something more to life, that calls you to do something meaningful, to experience the world in a profound way. So many of us dismiss that voice and suppress it. We are told that our dreams are not realistic or practical. We are told that we should settle for what is reliable, and will pay the bills, and garner us the respect of our peers. But if we do not listen to that quiet voice, then who will? There is no external advocate who can read the yearnings of your heart and speak up on your soul’s behalf. You must be the champion of your own soul. On the authority of Abu Malik Al-Harith bin Asim Al-Ashari, the messenger of Allah said: “Purity is half of faith. alhamdu-lillah [Praise be to Allah] fills the scales, and subhana-Allah [How far is Allah from every imperfection] and alhamdu-lillah [Praise be to Allah] fill that which is between heaven and earth. Prayer is light; charity is a proof; patience is illumination; and the Quran is an argument for or against you. Everyone starts his day and is a vendor of his soul, either freeing it or bringing about its ruin.” (Related by Muslim). You are the vendor of your soul: either freeing it or bringing about its ruin. You free it by worshiping Allah in love, gratitude and fear; keeping the praises of Allah on your tongue and in your heart; praying and fasting and living righteously (as opposed to self-righteously); by showing love and concern for other human beings; and by being true to yourself. CONTINUATIONhttp://muslimmatters.org/2011/01/13/be-true-and-be-you/

AS-SALAAM ALAYKUM WA RAHMATUL LAAH There will be a day that you will have to say goodbye to me... There will be a week you won't hear from me again... There will be a month where you might still think of me sometimes... There might be a year that you can offer me something... A memory or a beautiful thought as long as you don't forget me... And if it happened today then I ask you not to be sad... But I ask for your forgiveness for everything I've done wrong to you or when I hurt your feelings, while I did not know and your Duah that will help towards my journey... I send you this email because no man or woman on earth knows when they will leave this world and meet their Rabbi. It could be any moment, fast and unexpected.. .. I tremble with the thought that death will come while I perhaps have hurt my Sisters and Brothers in Islam. I never meant to but sometimes you do things and you are not even aware that you might have actually hurt someone... Everyone needs to answer him or herself in front of Allah Subhaanahu Wa Ta'aala on the Day of Judgement... Therefore I want to ask for your forgiveness today... Forgive me if I ever hurt you even if it was a silly* remark Forgive me if I ever hurt you even by giving you an unpleasant look Forgive me if I ever hurt you even by talking behind your back Forgive me if I ever hurt you even by raising my voice... PLEASE FORGIVE ME May Allah (SWT) forgive us all and grant us Jannatul Firdaus... May Allah shower His Mercy and blessings over you... Send this to all the people you know, ask for their forgiveness. Do it today and not tomorrow because nobody promised us or guaranteed that we would be there for one additional day. __________________________________________________________________________________ 18 sources of Barakah http://www.somaliaonline.com/community/showthread.php/50969-18-sources-of-Barakah

13. Charity In the Hadeeth Qudusi, Allah says: “O son of Adam, spend (in charity), and I’ll spend on you!” Whenever you are broke, or you feel barakah is zapped out of our life and urgently need it back, the quickest of way of getting barakah in your life is giving charity. Not only because of the above hadeeth, but let’s say barakah has been removed from your life because of a sin you’ve committed, charity cleanses your sins and adds good deeds and is truly a source of barakah. I cannot describe the instantaneous gratification of giving charity and the barakah that follows it! Try it NOW! 14. Tying your ties of kinship Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet said, “Allah created His creation, and when He had finished it, the womb got up and caught hold of Allah whereupon Allah said, “What is the matter?’ On that, it said, ‘I seek refuge with you from those who sever the ties of Kith and kin.’ On that Allah said, ‘Will you be satisfied if I bestow My favors on him who keeps your ties, and withhold My favors from him who severs your ties?’ On that it said, ‘Yes, O my Lord!’ Then Allah said, ‘That is for you.’ ” Abu Huraira added: If you wish, you can recite: “Would you then.......if you were given the authority...... do mischief in the land and sever your ties ofkinship.” 15. Waking up early Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said: “Allah made the early hours blessed for my Ummah.” This hadeeth was the reason for me to start ProductiveMuslim.com! Such gems of productivity are actually sources of blessings that we should seek to make our life productive. Waking up early is such an important part of being blessed and feeling blessed throughout your day. Try to wake up for tahajjud, pray, and then work during the hours before fajr salaat and tahajjud. If you can’t, then at least wake up for fajr and stay up till sunrise before you go back to sleep. Those hours are so blessed. If you’re able to go to work in those hours, do so, you’ll get much more work done than the whole day put together! 16. Marriage Allah says in the Quran: “Marry those among you who are single, or the virtuous ones among yourselves, male or female: if they are in poverty, Allah will give them means out of His grace: for Allah encompasseth all, and he knoweth all things.” 17. Salaat Allah says in the Quran: “Enjoin prayer on thy people, and be constant therein. We ask thee not to provide sustenance: We provide it for thee. But the (fruit of) the Hereafter is for righteousness” To illustrate the point of Salaat further, just imagine your life without salaat, where would barakah come from? For those of you who are still wavering in their Salaat, please get back on track, this is your lifeline in this life and hereafter, and the daily food for your soul. 18. Asking Allah for forgiveness The Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: “If anyone continually asks forgiveness from Allah, Allah will appoint for him a way out of every distress, and a relief from every anxiety, and will provide for him from where he did not reckon.” Source: http://www.productivemuslim.com/journal/2009/4/10/feature-article-18-sources-of-barakah.html

If we were to look for an Islamic definition of Productivity, it'll probably be summarised in the word "barakah" or Blessing. Being able to achieve more with little resources, doing much in little time, and generate a lot with little effort surely is a blessing from Allah (SWT). Yet Barakah has somehow become a lost treasure these days; everyone's looking for it, but no one seems to find it! You always hear people complaining that there's no barakah in their time, no barakah in their sleep, no barakah in their money..etc. In this post, we'll solve this mystery inshaAllah, we'll find out what Barakah is and where you can find it! What is Barakah? A Well-known daee explains it as follows: والبركة: هي ثبوت الخير الإلهي في الشيء؛ فإنها إذا حلت في قليل كثرته، وإذا حلت في كثير نفع، ومن أعظم ثمار البركة في الأمور كلها إستعمالها في طاعة الله عز وجل. "Barakah is the attachment of Divine goodness to a thing, so if it occurs in something little, it increases it. And if it occurs in something much it benefits. And the greatest fruits of Barakah in all things is to use that barakah in the obedience of Allah (SWT)" Sources of Barakah I’m a firm believer that Barakah is not a lost treasure, it’s right in front of our eyes! This treasure is only available and ready to be handed over to the one who works for it. Below I list some of the sources of Barakah. It’s not an exhaustive list, therefore, I do hope you can contribute to it with your comments below inshaAllah so we can all share and extend our understanding of this great treasure! 1. Good Intentions If you want something to have barakah attached to it, have good intentions for it. More specifically, make sure that deed is intended for the sake of Allah (SWT). Looking at the definition of Barakah again, you may guess that without us intending what we have or do to be for thesake of Allah, the “Divine goodness” won’t be attached to it. 2. Piety and Belief in Allah Allah says in the Quran: “If the people of the towns had but believed and feared Allah, We should indeed have opened out to them (All kinds of) blessings from heaven and earth…”(Surat Al-A’raf, verse 96). And He says in the Quran: “And for those who fear Allah, He (ever) prepares a way out. And He provides for him from (sources) he never could imagine” (Surat Al-Talaq, verses 2-3). 3. Putting your trust in Allah Allay says in the Quran: “And if any one puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is ((Allah)) for him. For Allah will surely accomplish his purpose: verily, for all things has Allah appointed a due proportion” (Surat Al-Talaq, verses 3) Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said: “If only you relied on Allaah a true reliance, He would provide sustenance for you just as He does the birds: They fly out in the morning empty and return in the afternoon with full stomachs.” 4. Reading Quran This is the fountain of the Barakah! But subhanaAllah, we rarely drink from it! Allah says in the Quran: “And this is a Book which We have sent down, bringing blessings, and confirming (the revelations) which came before it…” (Surat Al-An’am, verse 92). So read the Quran, and note the blessings and barakah of Allah coming to your life. The further we are from this book, the less barakah we’ll have in our lives, trust me. 5. Saying Bismillah When you say bismillah before anything you do, you’re invoking the name of Allah on that activity, not only will that activity be blessed but shaytaan cannot take part in it! So always say bismillah before anything you do! SubhanaAllah, it’s easy for us to forget to say Bismillah or be conscious of saying it. Sometimes we’re so used to saying it that we can’t remember if we said it or not! Try to be conscious of saying Bismillah and understand what you’re saying. 6. Eating with People Anyone who had the experience of inviting guests to his/her house will know this one. No matter how little you think the food you’re presenting to your guest is, it’s always enough! (note: this is not an excuse to be miserly when you invite guests over, in fact we should follow the sunnah of our Prophet Ibhraim (Peace be upon him) who when the angels visited his house and he didn’t know they were angels he went and prepared a large meal for them). What I’m referring here is the blessing that occurs with eating together, this is confirmed in the hadeeth of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) who said :”Eat together, for blessing is in Jamma’a (congregation or being together)…” and in another hadeeth “Whoever has food enough for two persons, should take a third one, and whoever has food enough for four persons, should take a fifth or a sixth (or said something similar).” 7. Honesty in Trade This is for all of the business people out there (include ebayers!), don’t think that lying and deceiving people would make your trade profitable, on the contrary, it’ll remove the blessing from your trade. Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said: “The buyer and the seller have the option ofcancelingor confirming the bargain unless they separate, and if they spoke the truth and made clear the defects of the goods, them they would be blessed in their bargain, and if they told lies and hid some facts, their bargain would be deprived of Allah’s blessings.” Yes, it’s difficult to be honest when you’re trying to sell something, but trust me it’s worth it. 8. Dua Ask Allah for barakah! If you listen to some of the Duas from the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) you’ll notice how the Prophet used to make dua for barakah. We always say “May Allah bless you!” well, guess what? That’s a source of barakah! Also, when you’re invited to someone’s house, Prophet Muhammad advised us to make the following dua for the host:”O Allaah, bless for them, that which You have provided them, forgive them and have mercy upon them.” 9. Halal income/money Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said: “O people, Allah is good and He therefore, accepts only that which is good”Scholars refer this to Halal income and the importance of Halal income. A scholar also said that the one who eats Haram his limbs will disobey Allah whether he likes it or not, and the one who eats Halal and seeks Halal income his limbs will also do good and would be given the permission to seek goodness. This concept of your limbs being “blessed” and enabled to do good, is truly a blessing and a barakah we should all seek. Reminds me of a story of the old man, who jumped a large distance that young people couldn’t do. So when the young men asked the old man how he did it, he replied: “These are limbs, we’ve protected it from doing sins when we were young, so Allah preserved them from us when we got old.” 10. Following the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad in all things I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, the most Productive Man in the history of humanity is Prophet Muhammad(Peace be upon him), therefore, by just following his lifestyle and the sunnahs we so often hear about, is a great source of Barakah! Some of these sunnahs include: Eating Suhoor, eating with the right hand from the side of the plate, going out for Eid Salat, licking your fingers after finishing eating, sleeping on your right hand side, using the siwaak, and many more. Look out for these sunnahs and follow them, for imitating the life of the most blessed man on earth, is surely a source of blessing! 11. Praying Istikhara Praying istikhara in all matters and handing over the matters to Allah and accepting his decree is a great source of barakah. And Prophet Muhammad have taught us this beautiful dua which helps us make decisions and not regret the choices we make with the permission of Allah in the following hadeeth: On the authority of Jaabir Ibn ‘Abdullah he said: The Prophet (S) would instruct us to pray for guidance in all of our concerns, just as he would teach us a chapter from the Qur’an. He (S) would say ‘if any of you intends to undertake a mater then let him pray two supererogatory units (two rak’ah naafilah) of prayer and after which he should supplicate: ‘O Allaah, I seek Your counsel by Your knowledge and by Your power I seek strength and I ask You from Your immense favour, for verily You are able while I am not and verily You know while I do not and You are the Knower of the unseen. O Allaah, if You know this affair -and here he mentions his need- to be good for me in relation to my religion, my life, and end, then decree and facilitate it for me, and bless me with it, and if You know this affair to be ill for me towards my religion, my life, and end, then remove it from me and remove me from it , and decree for me what is good wherever it be and make me satisfied with such.’ One who seeks guidance from his Creator and consults his fellow believers and then remains firm in his resolve does not regret for Allaah has said: ‘…and consult them in the affair. Then when you have taken a decision, put your trust in Allaah…” 12. Giving thanks to Allah in abundance Allah says in the Quran: “If ye are grateful, I will add more (favours) unto you” A scholar once told me if you look into this verse, the Arabic word that is used to confirm that Allah will favours unto the person who thanks Allah is actually in the form of an Oath “La azidannakum” so Allah is promising the person who thanks Him that He’ll increase him, and Allah never breaks his promises.

Jazakhallah kheir for the reminder.

Originally posted by Karl_Polanyi: Alafasy is the man. My favorite, too!

Originally posted by BoX of ChoColateS: May Allah forgive my transgressions. Amin on the topic of forgiveness:Dua * Astaghfiru-Allah, “I ask forgiveness from Allah” * Subhanaka-Allah humma wa bi hamdika wa ash-hadu al la Ilaha illa Anta astaghfiruka wa atubu ilayk, “Glory be to You, Allah, and with You Praise (thanks) and I bear witness that there is no deity but You, I ask Your forgiveness and I return to You (in obedience)”.

Mashallah Mabrouk, it's tough and time consuming when deciding on which name to name your child and everyone in the family have a say in it. May Allah make it easy for you and may your child be blessed and grow to be beneficial to you and the whole community Amin. Thought this list may help. muslim names Some unique names....I love their meaning and have cousins named in the extended family. Inshirah Ibtihal ibtihaj iffah or iffadat intessar

Mashallah, JAZ Box of chocolate By my favorite Qari Mishary Rashid Al Afasi few supplications after prayers, and and

Asalaam Aleykum my fellow Nomads Wanted to share these audio & visual collection of supplications from the Holy Quraan. Very helpful for memorization. I remember in the past I made a compilation of duas in this thread, hope these clips will also get us closer to Allah in attaining our goal of perfecting ourselves and increasing us in faith. Amin. Fiamanillah WOL

Asalaam Aleykum my fellow Nomads Wanted to share audio & visual collection of supplications from the Holy Quraan. Very helpful for memorization. Fiamanillah WOL

Asalaam aleykum And May Allah forgive all those who cannot fast with us this year who are sick or deceased. Amin to all the duas. Ramadaan Kariim WOL

Great list C&H, ramadhaan Kariim, 8. Eat in small portions, instead of only at afuur and sahor atleast eat 3 times during the night... at the break of fasting(light meal similar to breakfast), after tarawiih similar to a mid afternoon snack and lastly at Sahor.. which is also supposed to be a light meal and should be ate nearing the time of observing the new fast in observance of the Sunnah of the Prophet SAW. 9. Stay active, ramadhaan isnt the time to sleep or slack. Keep active during the day, rest a little and at night indulge yourself with ibadaah. If you cant attend the mosque or pray the extra prayers at home be proactive at home and dont sit glued infront of the tv, sleep or engage in lame activities.Every minute passing is gone and unfortunately with inactivity.. the body is storing the extra nutrients into fat..so Move it , move it!!

Asalaam aleykum Ramadhan Mubarak to all Muslimmatters.org will be posting Ramadan Daily Tafsir Videos by Sh. AbdulNasir Jangda starting today, Wednesday August 11th at 9:30 EST. The videos will be approximately 15-20 minutes long and also be posted on youtube. And May Allah forgive all those who cannot fast with us this year who are sick or deceased. Amin. Fiiamanillah WOL

Originally posted by Tahaani: Ladies, I need your thoughts. Question, has anyone here ever moved cities for someone they love? if so, did you regret it or was it the best decision you ever made? I have moved from one continent to another. Had a secure job and everything. I am an optimist, it was a call I had to make in order for us to give the marriage 100% and start a family. Do I regret it? At times when I reflect on what I miss, I still haven't been able to fully establish myself professionally in my new dwellings for the last 2 and a half years but I believe it is but a test from Allah on my patience and perseverance and also I know regret is part of human nature.At times we find fault with the simplest of things especially if things dont go your way.Though I try to see the positive side of things. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat but I would have planned the move better. Try to list your priorities down and also learn beforehand the requirements for you to establish yourself in the "possible new" place. You may need to take accreditation exams, do internships, require visa etc... who knows what type of bureaucracy, challenges you may have to face. Originally posted by Tahaani: Is anyone planning on moving and how did you make that decision? Salatul Istikharah, alot of dua and prayers and an honest pros/con list... at the end of the day it's your life but you have to be ready to live with the consequences and when things go rough dont hang it around the other half's head you will both be miserable instead see it as a challenge which can be conquered together. Best of luck with the decision making. Fiamanillah WOL

Its been on tv for a while now. Hardly know what to beleive.

Niwakumbushe jokes za mombasa: One of my old favorites: Kitambulisho Another Abdallah Moi kicheckesho kama Muhindi tambo

Originally posted by SeeKer: quote:Originally posted by *BOB: You owe me few BOBs Sir...si nim ku chekesha? BOB :mad: mimi si kijidume bisinka! Kanichekesha kisha kanikasirisha....... watu wa bongo kajulikana kwa maendo yao Nimekuwa lost in translation... Bobs is the kenyan way of saying pesa... yani visenti kidogo.. Au ni kwasababu kakuita Sir,... Seeker chukua hiyo kama sifa, umepewa ujiko kidogo!! By the way BOB hizo jokes za kijapani ni notorious sana.. nyengine hazifai kabisa. Dada Malika, ya kwako kali pia.. umenikumbusha mbali na wazee wakisomali. OZ, Naona upo kwenye mitaa ya kuchonganisha, acha zako!!!

Starbucks Dads: Perspectives on Somali Immigrants & Fathers By Safia Farole Source: Muslim Matters There they stood – a group of Somali men, some in their late-twenties and others in middle-age, congregated around the coffee shop located on the corner of the plaza, on a Friday afternoon. It was a typical rainy day in Seattle as I was driving down to the local Somali shopping mall, and the sight of these men was all too typical. Around several major cities in the US and Canada, where Somali immigrants live in large numbers, there is this phenomenon of “Starbucks Dads” (SD) – Somali fathers who gather at coffee shops, including but not limited to Starbucks, talking idly for hours on end. To clarify my position, in no way is this column meant to denigrate Somalis or Somali men, nor is it meant to cause fitnah. This phenomenon is a symptom of the disease that hampers our progress as a multi-ethnic Muslim community in the West. To approach this topic, we should first examine what factors motivate these men to engage in this activity. What are the social repercussions as a result? How does the immigrant Somalia experience parallel that of disadvantaged minorities in America? What is the role of the father in Islam? What did the Prophet (SAW) teach us about wasting time? And finally, what are the level of responsibilities necessary to addressing and fixing this social problem? Rest of the article: muslim matters

Waleikum Salaam Brother Nur, I think we differ a little on how we look at this matter. To me the approach the Al shabaab took it's wrong. The intention of removing Shirk maybe pure but it's only an assumpation as Somalia is/ was 100% Muslim..Likewise the comparison of Our Loved and blessed Nabii Ibrahim shouldnt be used in this context in it's entirety either. Nabii Ibrahim was in an infidel atmosphere all the occupants of his town were Idol worshippers instead the people in Barave/ somalia are Muslims. Instead what Alshabaab would have done is hold a shura council reminded the people of their obligations as muslims and what Islam says about visiting graveyards. Assuming I am also an inhabitant of one of the Barave cities it doesnt mean I and all inhabitants indulge in this shirk. It maybe culturally acceptable and whispered around that poeple do it but in reality only 2-3% group of the population who indulge in it. So through education these people could have been taught what is right and wrong. All I see with Alshabaab is abuse of power and no real education of Islam and bringing peace to the Muslims. The Prophet Muhammad SAW was very lenient and accomodating on teaching the Deen to his people and especially to the New Muslims. Somalia is compromised of old Muslims's, new Muslims and muslims who are more culturally inclined... so we have a couldron of different Islamic doctrinations.. Overnight you cant brand this is better than that instead through Shura, education and action you can elevate the state of the people to be better Muslims and citizens of the world. Something I didnt/ dont understand why mosques were destroyed? Shouldnt have Alshabaab reclaimed the mosque and bring them(the Ummah and reputation) back to their old and pure intention "To worship only Allah". With all the destruction in somalia every standing building and especially a mosque should be sacred. And it is for this reason Alshabaab are not getting support even from fellow Muslims because of their approach. Education, education is the key as well as Hikmah on implementing the Islamic ideals. Positive, I totally agree with your conclusion. " the purity of intention" and the need of people to be educated.

I would prefer waving flag as it's a new song for a new era. The waka waka song reminds me of the 80's as it was song sung in that era..zaminamina waka waka making fun of the military and leaders!!! The Shakira's chorus waka waka at 7:30th minute.

^ time for the two of you to bond. Know more about each other etc hobbies, do things together and for the first time to get used to the idea of having a partner in your life. If you are male, you become your wifes Imam so if you havent gone to the mosque it's your duty to start leading the prayer at home. During the honeymoon you get to know more about your spouse and their family as you usually "traditionally" spend time visiting both families. Fatboy there are alot of resources talking on this matter...

What a shame, instead of putting more effort in peace establishing schools and providing basic human needs. Alshabaab are desecrating graves n mosques,beating women etc.. These people are really undermining the real message of Islam and are abusing power if you ask me.

Problem is once a person gets used to making excuses... it becomes part n parcel of their character and.. it's easy to pick up bad behaviours than stopping and controlling the urge. They will start with those days.. then when pregnancy knocks the door ..which is 9 months of hormonal and physical changes or challenges.. you cant stand being around such people.