Ramadan Mubarak! - a message from Shaykh Abdul-Kareem Yahyaa (may Allah preserve him & his teachers)

Bismillah,

As-salamu'alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful and CompassionatePraise is for Allah, Lord of all beingsMay Allah bless and grant peace to our Liegelord Muhammad, his folk, companions and those who follow them in excellence until the last dayTo our beloved elders, brothers and sisters in Islam,As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh.

We ask Allah that He grant us, you and all Muslims His Mercy and that He turn to us that we may return to Him in repentance. Amin.

Some of you have asked for advice about preparing for Ramadan. So, with Allah’s aid, we can only respond by reminding ourselves and you of that which our teachers have advised us.Bayhaqi narrated in the Branches of Faith, on the authority of Jabir Bin Abdullah (Allah be pleased with him) that Allah's Messenger (Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:"My nation (ummah) was granted in Ramadan five things that no Prophet prior to me was given.

As for the first, when it is the first night of the month of Ramadan, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, gazes to them and the one to whom Allah looks, He does not punish him, ever.

As for the second, the smell of their mouths in the afternoon is more pleasant to Allah than the fragrance of musk.

As for the third, the angels seek forgiveness for them in each day and night.

As for the fourth Allah, Mighty and Majestic, commands His Paradise, He says to it, ‘Prepare yourself and adorn yourself for my slaves, they are about to take rest from the toil of the world to My Abode and My Generosity.’

And as for the fifth, when it is the last night, they are forgiven, all of them.” So a man from the people said, "Is it the Night of Power?" And the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) replied, "No, do you not see that if laborers work, when they finish their tasks, they are given their wages?"The first work of Ramadan that our teachers have advised us to perform is to expose ourselves to this gaze of Allah which the Prophet (peace be upon him) informed us of in the aforementioned tradition.

As the Prophet (peace be upon him) has taught us, Allah looks to the hearts.Habib Umar (Allah preserve him) advised the students of Dar al-Mustafa this afternoon and evening that Allah should see in our hearts poverty (extreme neediness) for Him. This is the real meaning of prostration.

Allah should also see from us on the first night of Ramadan sincere remorse and genuine repentance from all the wicked actions of our lives up to this point. In addition to this we should have mercy in our hearts for all of His creation and have a sincere desire for the guidance of all morally responsible beings on the surface of the Earth.

Allah (swa) shows mercy to those who are merciful.

Another manner of preparing our hearts for Allah’s gaze that our teachers have shown us by example is forgiving everyone. So following their example, with Allah’s aid, we absolve everyone from any of our rights that may have been transgressed and sincerely request forgiveness from all of you for any wrong we may have done to any of you.

We implore those who know of something we owe them to either request it from us or absolve us, and may Allah accept.

During Ramadan our teachers have advised us not to do anything with our limbs that would be a cause of sorrow for the heart of our beloved Prophet (peace be upon him).

We ask Allah to bless all of us this Ramadan and that He aid us in our fasting, praying and recitation of Quran.

We ask Him to cast His Gaze on us all on the first night of this Ramadan and that He forgive us our sins and raise us in degrees of nearness to Him and His beloved Prophet. May Allah bless him, his folk and companions and grant them peace.

Please keep Shaykh Abdul-Kareem & his family, this needy and the Ummah in your du'as

A SLIDE OF OUR COUNTRY...

BROTHERHOOD.

Bismillah...

The whole Community of Believers is conceived of as a great brotherhood.

' Surely the believers are but brothers. So set things right between your two brother, and aware of God - perhaps you will obtain mercy' (Qur'an 49:10).

Know that the contract of brotherhood is a bond between two persons, like the contract of marriage between two spouses. In all, this comprises of eight duties:

The first duty is the material one.

The lowest degree is where you place your brother on the same footing as your slave or your servant, attending to his need from your surplus. To oblige him to ask is the ultimate shortcoming in brotherly duty. At the second degree you place your brother on the same footing as yourself. At the third degree, the highest of all, you prefer your brother to yourself and set his need before your own. This is the degree of the siddiq, and the final stage for those united in spiritual love.

The second duty is to render personal aid in the satisfaction of needs, attending to them without waiting to be asked, and giving them priority over private needs. Here too there are different stages, as in the case of material support.

The lowest degree consists in attending to the need when asked and when in plenty, though with joy cheerfulness, showing pleasure and gratitude. In short, your brother's need ought to be like your own, or even more important than your own.

The third duty concerns the tongue, which should sometimes be silent and at other times speak out. In short, you should keep silent about any speech unpleasant to your brother in general and in particular - unless obliged to speak out to promote good and prevent evil, and even then only if you can find no valid excuse for saying nothing.

The lowest degree in brotherhood is where you treat your brother as you would wish to be treated yourself, and there is no doubt that he would expect you to veil his shame and keep quiet about his misdeeds and faults. Know that the mainstay of brotherhood is concord in word and deed, and compassion.

The fourth duty is to use the tongue for speaking out. Just as brotherhood calls for silence about unpleasant things, so it requires the utterance of favourable things. You should use the tongue to express affection to your brother, and to enquire agreeably about his circumstances. For brotherhood means participating in joy and sadness.

The fifth duty is forgiveness of mistake and failings. The failing of a friend must be one of two kinds; either in his religion, through the commission of an offence; or in his duty to you, through an omission in brotherhood. In the case of religion, where he commits an offence and persists in it, you must advise him kindly so as to supply his deficiency, put his affairs in order, and restore him to a correct and virtuous state. As for his error in brotherly duty, by which he causes alienation, there is no disagreement on the proper course being forgiveness and patience. Indeed, whenever a good interpretation is possible, or an excuse - whether obvious or far-fetched - can be advanced, this obligatory in the duty of brotherhood.

The sixth duty is to pray for your brother, during his life and after his death, that he may have all he might wish for himself, his family and his dependants.

The seventh duty is loyalty and sincerity. The meaning of loyalty is steadfastness in love and maintaining it to the death with your brother, and after his death with his children and his fellows. For love is for the sake of the Other Life. If it is severed before death the work is in vain and the effort wasted.

The eighth duty is relief from discomfort and inconvenience. You should not discomfort your brother with things that are awkward for him. Rather you should ease his heart of its cares and needs, and spare him having to assume any of your burdens. Such then are the duties of fellowship. Therefore you must bind all your faculties to their service.

These manners of the Outer are only the title page of the Inner and Purity of Heart. When hearts are purified there is no need of formality to display their content. He who looks to the fellowship of creatures will sometimes be crooked and sometimes straight.

But he who looks to the Creator is bound to the Straight Path both inwardly and outwardly. His inner is adorned by love of God and his creatures. His outer is beautified by worship of God and service to His servants, for these are the highest kinds of service to God, since there is no way to them except by good character.

The slave can attain by the goodness of his character to the

degree of the upright keeper of fasts - and beyond.

Imam Al Ghazali..(May Allah be pleased with him)

Source: www.sunnipath.com

ALHAMDULILLAH

Bismillah ..

MashAllah,
Que mágico es el Islam, que maravilloso es ALLAH (swa) que nos pone en un lugar y nos reune.

Como es el Islam .... Allah pone en nuestros corazones un amor incondicional, una luz, y no importa que no nos conozcamos, estamos unidos...por un lazo mas fuerte, el amor a ALLAH nuestro Creador.

Imagínate vivir siempre en busqueda de agua, ya tienes, pero necesitas mas para llenar el pozo... buscas por todos lados y encuentras pero necesitas mas...y justo donde no pensaste que había, hay agua, pero no cualquier agua...sino una cristalina...de manantial...muy buena y fresca..

Pues nosotros hemos encontrado ese manantial, se trata de dos jóvenes musulmanes, dominicanos, no sabíamos que estaban aquí pero ahí estan, buscando encontramos uno de ellos, él por su parte también buscaba y nos encontramos, y parece que nos conociéramos desde hace 30 años.... Que maravilla !!! El ya conocía a la hermana, también encantadora mashAllah!!!

Que alegría tan inmensa.... cuántas cosas buenas nos ha traído este mes de Shaban...preparándonos para Ramadan...

Estamos felices y super agradecidos con Allah (swa) por habernos puesto donde estamos, por darnos la oportunidad de conocernos y de llevar en nuestros corazones un amor tan grande,, que es mas fuerte que todo... que gran ejemplo nos da nuestro Profeta Muhammad (pbuh) al enseñarnos la hermandad y el amor entre nosotros mismos...

Alhamdulillah porque ahora no nos quedaremos sin agua en nuestro pozo..sino que cada día va aumentando la fuente hasta que ya estemos rebozados....inshAllah.!!!!!

Bienvenidos a nuestras vidas, hermano Abdul y hermana Khadijjah.. !!!!

Bismillah

Biography of the week...!!

Bismillah

MashAllah,
Born and raised in Berkeley, California, Shaykh Abdul-Kareem Yahya, by the Grace of Allah, embraced Islam in 1989 in his home city.

In 1996, having been inspired to study religious knowledge by the books of Imam Ghazali (Allah be pleased with him) and the call for the revival of Islamic knowledge, he traveled with his family to Damascus, Syria where he embarked on a course of active pursuit of knowledge. During his two-year stay in Damascus he focused his attention on the acquisition of an elementary knowledge of the Arabic language and Quranic recitation, studying the latter under the tutelage of the highly respected Shaykh of Qur'an Abu Anas (Allah preserve him) at the Rawda Mosque in Damascus. Thereafter he moved on with his family to Tarim, Hadramaut where he currently resides.

As a student at Dar al-Mustafa he has primarily turned his efforts towards keeping the company of his Shaykhs’ from the noble prophetic descendents of Ba Alawi and their lovers as well as attaining a knowledge of the Islamic Sciences. Specializing in jurisprudence according to the school of Muhammad Bin Idris al-Shafi'i (Allah be pleased with him), Shaykh Abdul-Kareem has studied the curriculum of jurisprudence at Dar al-Mustafa all the way to the Minhaj of Imam Nawawi (Allah be pleased him).

Since 1998, Shaykh Abdul-Kareem has been studying at the hands of Habib Umar and his older brother Habib Mashhour, the two sons of the late Habib Muhammad Bin Salim Bin Hafiz, as well as the other teachers of Dar al-Mustafa in Tarim, Hadramaut.

Shaykh Abdul-Kareem has been given permission to answer questions according to the Shafi'i School as well as to teach jurisprudence, Arabic Grammar, and other disciplines by his Shaykh Habib Umar, Allah preserve him. He has also worked extensively as a translator For Habib Umar Bin Hafiz and Habib Ali Al- jifri (Allah preserve both of them).

Source..(Sunni Path)

Shaykh Abdul-Kareem has a deep love and respect for his teachers, which helps us be more conscious about the greatness of the Prophet's (saaw) family and descendants. All we can say about this wonderful person, can be said by improving and fixing our moral character traits, by striving to do better and acting upon the teachings of those with knowledge we think is the best way to thank and to appreciate his work and his outstanding way of sharing what he has learned which has changed our lives in the best way possible and yet he does not take gratification but rather he expresses his love and admiration towards his teachers.

Has given us the attention although he has but little time, always takes a part of it to share with us. So we thank Allah Most High for putting Shaykh Abdul Kareem in our path.

May Allah (swa) give us tawfiq (enabling grace) , give us stregnth and love for our beloved nabi Muhammad (saaw) and his family, and help us be part of those whom Allah loves....ameen.

Biography of this week...

Bismillah...

MashAllah

Habib Ali Zain al-Abideen al-Jifri was born into a family of noble lineage extending in an unbroken chain to Imam Hussain, may Allah be pleased with him, grandson of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.

Habib Ali is from the majestic city of Tarim in Southern Yemen. Nestled in the ancient valley of Hadramawt, Tarim has been a centre of learning and spirituality for centuries.

Habib Ali received a classical Islamic education from the illustrious scholars of Hadramawt, embodying a methodology which crystallizes the middle way of Islam, Islamic jurisprudence, a respect for the differences between jurists, and a spiritual education drawn from the Qur'an and the Sunnah.

Habib Ali is Founder of the ‘Tabah Foundations for Islamic Studies and Research’ based in the United Arab Emirates. He is also a lecturer at Dar al Mustafa, Tarim, an educational institute established for the study of traditional Islamic sciences.

Habib Ali is continually invited to lecture in many countries across the globe and appears regularly on a variety of network television and radio programs.

(Biography taken from the book Wayfarers to God, published by Guidance Media)
May Allah (SWA) preserve him...!!

ARE U READY?

Bismillah

It is almost here...

It's comming... and they say it will be great, perfect, a time to feel better, to reflect and to bonde, to get closer to Allah, to make sacrifices, to unite, to realize how blessed we are, how much we have and to help those who are less fortunate. Yes, it is comming inshAllah....

It is around the corner... are u ready to receive it and to welcome this amazing time ?!!

It is............. RAMADAN...!!!!!!

Pensando...

Bismillah...

Distante, tanto tiempo, lejos de la luz, la q alumbra sin mancha, sin sombra. Que surge del mas puro y magnífico ser, emanando belleza, radiante.

Como pude, no lo se. Sé que estuve allí, no supe cómo ni cuándo, era ya un hecho!! Debía ser, completar la fase; cual aturdida desconociendo la razón, todo este tiempo y ahí continué hasta que decidiste que era el momento, el momento apropiado para surgir, para continuar, fuí y soy aun; desconozco el seré pero aguardo y pongo mi confianza en Tí y pienso que seré, en aquel lugar maravilloso, esperando, otra vez viviendo mi etapa; la que ahí me acercaría a la última, esa que espero ver, al final. Donde seré por siempre y viviré allí, quiero ser y que sean los míos conmigo y espero porque en tí aguardo y entiendo ahora que eres la razón de mi existir hasta que no exista aquí, continuaré mi existencia contigo hasta el día aquel en que al fin y si Tú quieres, LA FELICIDAD NO TERMINE JAMAS.......!!!!

GREAT NEWS..!!!!

Bismillah...

MashAllah,
A month and 5 days ago...a girl left a message in our blog...

She wanted to know more about us, about Islam. We got in contact with her, and so we started sharing our beautiful way of life, the amazing deen that has changed our lives and turned it to a happy journey.

We got really attached to her because of her way.... a young girl with a surprising innocence, a true conciousness about life and most importantly a thirst for the truth, that same one that has been running through her thoughts for the past 5 years...Alhamdulillah she found us!!

Like everything in this dunya is QADR (destined)by ALLAH Azawajal, our encounter was planned.

Through the days we've spoke, we have shared the most graceful friendship, so short time, but yet so fulfilling!!

And so we feel like telling you that last saturday, she was reborn...she reverted to ISLAM, Alhamdulillah!!!!! Allah guides whom He wills and has guide her mashallah..

She says it is a happy moment, she feels at ease, her thoughts are clear, she feels blessed.

Her words: " now i have a veil in my head, but there is another veil that leaves my eyes, that wouldn't let me see the greatness of ALLAH ".

How pleased and greatful to The Magnificent we are for giving us the opportunity of welcoming to ISLAM and our lives a great sister like her...

May Allah guide us all, and keep us in the straight path, the one that never breaks.

WELCOME TO THE DEEN OF ISLAM DEAR Aarifah..!!