Reference: Ibn al Qayyim’s Haadi al-Arwaah ilaa Bilaad il-Afraah, p.193

Authibillahhimina Shaytanir Rajim…Bismillahir Rahamanir Raheem
Allahumma Salle Ala Muhammed Wa Alle Muhammed

Praise belongs to God who guided us to His praise and placed us among the people of praise, that we might be among the thankful for His beneficence and that He might recompense us for that with the recompense of the good-doers!

Thankful 

 And praise belongs to God who showed favour to us through His religion, singled us out for His creed, and directed us onto the roads of His beneficence, in order that through His kindness we might travel upon them to His good pleasure, a praise which He will accept from us and through which He will be pleased with us!

 And praise belongs to God who appointed among those roads His month, the month of Ramadan, the month of fasting, the month of submission, the month of purity, the month of putting to test, the month of standing in prayer, in which the Qur’an was sent down as guidance to the people, and as clear signs of the Guidance and the Separator!

Praise Allah 

 

Then He made one of its nights surpass the nights of a thousand months and named it the Night of Decree; in it the angels and the Spirit descend by the leave of their Lord upon every command, a peace constant in blessings until the rising of the dawn upon whomsoever He will of His servants according to the decision He has made firm.

Night of Decree 

O God, bless Muhammad and his Household, inspire us with knowledge of its excellence, veneration of its inviolability, and caution against what Thou hast forbidden within it, and help us to fast in it by our restraining our limbs from acts of disobedience toward Thee and our employing them in that which pleases Thee, so that we lend not our ears to idle talk and hurry not with our eyes to diversion, we stretch not our hands toward the forbidden and stride not with our feet toward the prohibited, our bellies hold only what Thou hast made lawful and our tongues speak only what Thou hast exemplified, we undertake nothing but what brings close to Thy reward and pursue nothing but what protects from Thy punishment! Then rid all of that from the false show of the false showers and the fame seeking of the fame seekers, lest we associate therein anything with Thee or seek therein any object of desire but Thee!

 

 O God, bless Muhammad and his Household, in it make us attend to the appointed moments of the five prayers within the bounds Thou hast set, the obligations Thou hast decreed, the duties Thou hast assigned, and the times Thou hast specified; and in the prayers make us alight in the station of the keepers of their stations, the guardians of their pillars, their performers in their times, as Thy servant and Thy messenger set down in his Sunna (Thy blessings be upon him and his Household) in their rowings, their prostrations, and all their excellent acts, with the most complete and ample ritual purity and the most evident and intense humility!   

 

Five Prayers 

Give us success in this month to tighten our bonds of kin with devotion and gifts, attend to our neighbours with bestowal and giving, rid our possessions from claims, purify them through paying the alms, go back to him who has gone far from us, treat justly him who has wronged us, make peace with him who shows enmity toward us (except him who is regarded as an enemy in Thee and for Thee, for he is the enemy whom we will not befriend, the party whom we will not hold dear), and seek nearness to Thee through blameless works which will purify us from sins and preserve us from renewing faults, so that none of Thy angels will bring for Thee the kinds of obedience and sorts of nearness-seeking unless they be less than what we bring!

O God, I ask Thee by the right of this month and by the right of him who worships Thee within it from its beginning to the time of its passing, whether angel Thou hast brought nigh to Thee, prophet Thou hast sent, or righteous servant Thou hast singled out, that Thou bless Muhammad and his Household, make us worthy of the generosity Thou hast promised Thy friends, make incumbent for us what Thou hast made incumbent for those who go to great lengths in obeying Thee, and place us in the ranks of those who deserve through Thy mercy the highest elevation!

Purify Them 

O God, bless Muhammad and his Household, turn us aside from deviation in professing Thy Unity, falling short in magnifying Thee, in Thy religion, blindness toward Thy path, heedlessness of Thy inviolability, and being deceived by Thy enemy, the accursed Satan!

 O God, bless Muhammad and his Household, and when in every night of this month’s nights Thou hast necks which Thy pardon will release and Thy forgiveness disregard, place our necks among those necks and place us among the best folk and companions of this our month!

Month’s Moon 

  O God, bless Muhammad and his Household, efface our sins along with the effacing of its crescent moon, and make us pass forth from the ill effects of our acts with the passing of its days, until it leaves us behind, while within it Thou hast purified us of offenses and rid us of evil deeds!  

O God, bless Muhammad and his Household, and should we go off to one side in this month, set us aright; should we swerve, point us straight; and should Thy enemy Satan enwrap us, rescue us from him!

Rescue Us 

O God, fill this month with our worship of Thee, adorn its times with our obedience toward Thee, help us during its daytime with its fast, and in its night with prayer and pleading toward Thee, humility toward Thee, and lowliness before Thee, so that its daytime may not bear witness against our heedlessness, nor its night against our neglect!

O God, make us like this in the other months and days as long as Thou givest us life, and place us among Thy righteous servants, those who shall inherit Paradise, therein dwelling forever, those who give what they give, while their hearts quake, that they are returning to their Lord, those who vie in good works,
 outracing to them!

O God, bless Muhammad and his Household in every time, in all moments, and in every state, to the number that Thou hast blessed whomsoever Thou hast blessed and to multiples of all that, through multiples which none can count but Thee! Surely Thou art Accomplisher of what Thou desirest. 

Inherit Paradise 

 

 

Bless Muhammed and his Household 

Thirteen hours had passed since sunrise, and that plate of dark, sweet dates, and those brimming water glasses, looked tempting indeed.

“I saw the stars,” a hopeful young girl in a head scarf told her friend as they waited for the sun to set.

But it was not until they heard the adhan, or call to evening prayer, at 7:34 that they and other worshipers at this West Philadelphia mosque reached for “breakfast” – their first food and drink of a long day.

“Yes, you may have a date,” a woman assured her young son Thursday evening. He scurried toward the table.

It was Day 14 of Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, when Muslims around the world abstain from food and drink during daylight hours, donate to the poor, and – above all – pray.

“If a person fulfills the obligation to fast and to pray five times a day, he is considered a pious Muslim,” explained Ali Ghazzawi, the imam at the Association of Islamic Charitable Projects’ mosque at 44th and Walnut Streets.

But to go beyond the core obligations during Ramadan brings “special merit,” said the Lebanese-born Ghazzawi, on hand that evening to participate in the special salah, or prayer, known as Tarawih.

Uttered at night and only during Ramadan, Tarawih (tadda-WEEHKH) is a recitation of the complete Quran over the course of 30 days.

“Every night, we say about one-thirtieth” of Islam’s holy book, said Ghazzawi, who also teaches physics at Dobbins-Randolph Vo-Tech High School in Philadelphia.

After the maghrib, or recitations and prostrations of sunset prayer, about 50 people – half of them children – descended to the mosque’s basement dining room for barbecued chicken, sweet potatoes, and string beans.

Only some would stay for the night prayer that began about 9:15, and fewer still for the nearly hour-long Tarawih that followed.

“It’s very beautiful, and rewardable,” said Hana’ Hishmeh, 22, who explained that “in the hereafter, we are rewarded for our good deeds,” and that to recite the Tarawih was the equivalent of “thousands” of good deeds.

Although an esteemed ritual for the world’s one billion Sunni Muslims, Tarawih is not practiced by the minority Shiites, who view it as a false understanding of Muhammad’s intentions.

According to tradition, Muhammad entered a mosque one night during Ramadan to recite portions of the Quran. Seeing him, a crowd gathered to pray with him, and their numbers grew each night.

Fearing the faithful would suppose the recitations were mandatory – like the five daily salahs – after three nights, the prophet withdrew from praying in public and sent word that it was voluntary.

Its voluntary aspect is part of its attraction for Ra’id Abu Malik, 33, who arrived at the mosque shortly before 9 p.m.

Fetching a plate of dinner for his small son, he then stood facing east at the side of the dining hall to recite the maghrib while there was still time.

After bowing, prostrating, and sometimes kissing the floor, for about 12 minutes, he joined his son with a plate of food. He was staying for night prayers and Tarawih, he said, “because, personally, I like Tarawih.”

A convert to Islam at 17, Malik said he was observant, but did not feel he does enough. “I’m lazy,” he said, and laughed.

Ramadan is a time to redeem himself, he explained, and perhaps acquire the discipline of prayer. The daylong fasting “softens my heart,” and the deep absorption he feels praying Tarawih leaves him feeling “better, lighter” – and more disposed, he hopes, to expanding his prayer life after this year’s Ramadan ends Sept. 19.

Like Malik, most people at the mosque said they genuinely enjoyed the daylong fasting of Ramadan. “The first day, you feel a bit hungry,” said Maryam McClain, 9. “But once you get used to it, it’s very, very easy.”

“It’s amazing,” said Omar Dimachki, president of the Association of Islamic Charitable Projects in North America, whose wife had just brought him a small handful of pills. “I have diabetes and hypertension, and Ramadan is my best month of the year.”

Shortly after 9, there was a call to prayer, and the remaining handful of worshipers made their way to the domed sanctuary, slipped off their shoes, and lined up side-by-side at the front of the cavernous, carpeted room.

About 20 men and teens stood in the front rank. Five women stood a dozen feet behind them. All recited the ‘Isha, or mandatory night prayer, and then settled into the Tarawih, led by an Arabic-speaking prayer leader.

Instead of proceeding sequentially through the Quran, group prayer leaders (like individuals at home) may select passages, which are recited in pairs lasting seven to 10 minutes, with short breaks in between.

The two lines lengthened and shortened as the hour wore on. Some people slipped away after a few couplets, scooping up their children and heading for the door, only to be replaced by late arrivers.

Then, around 10:20, the worshipers visibly relaxed. Some stood, others sat and stretched, and many began chatting among themselves. Tarawih for this night was over.

“It’s like an extension of the fast,” explained Abd Ghazzawi, 21, the imam’s son. “Not a chore, but a very calming experience . . . a time to remember why we are put on this Earth.”

Tonight we will be observing remembrance of Laylatul Baraat, the 15th Shabaan.

Some Resources on the significance of this night:

The Night of the 15th of Sha`ban
“Laylatul-bara’ ah” (The night of freedom from Fire).

1) Imam Nawawi mentioned in his Majmu`, where he also quoted Imam al-Shafi`i from the latter’s al-Umm that it has reached him that there are 5 nights when dua is answered, one of them being the night of the 15th of Sha`ban.
**Note, of course, that the night of the 15th is the night before it.**

2) Imam Haskafi said in his Durr al-Mukhtar, one of the primary references in the Hanafi school:
“Among the recommended [prayers] are on. . . . the nights of the two Eids, the middle of Sha`ban, the last ten of Ramadan, and the first [ten] of Dhul-Hijjah. ”

3) It is reported from Sayyiduna `Ali (Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (Allah bless him & give him peace) said: “Let all of you spend the night of mid-Sha`ban in worship (i.e. partly) and its day in fasting. Allah descends to the nearest heaven during this night, beginning with sunset, and says: ‘Is there no one asking forgiveness that I may forgive them? Is there no one asking sustenance that I may grant them sustenance? Is there no one under trial that I may relieve them? Is there not such-and-such, is there not such-and-such, and so forth until until dawn rises.’” [Narrated by Ibn Majah with a weak chain.]

There are many other narrations from the Companions and early Muslims confirming this matter, as mentioned by Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali in his Lata’if al-Ma`arif, and others.

There is general consensus that weak hadiths may be acted upon for virtuous acts, such as voluntary fasting and prayer, as long as the hadith is not excessively weak, returns to a general basis in the Shariah, and one is not convinced that the Prophet (Allah bless him & give him peace) specifically prescribed it.

Mother of the believers, Sayidatuna A’isha (May Allah be pleased with her) says, I missed the Prophet (Sallahu alayhi wa salaam) one night so I went out to al-Baqi’ graveyard, and found him). He said: “Were you afraid that Allah would wrong”? I said: “O Messenger of Allah, I thought that you might have gone to visit one of your [other] wives.” He said: “Allah Glorious and Exalted descends to the nearest heaven on the night of mid-Shabaan (15th night) and He forgives more people than the number of hair on the hides of the flocks and herds of sheep of the tribe of Kalb. {Tirmidhi}.

It is recorded in books that the tribe of Kalb used to have the most number of sheep in Arabia, but some unfortunate people are still not forgiven on this night when Allah showers His mercy on mankind. Amongst them are 1) those who are habitual drinkers [alcoholics] 2) those who are habitual adulterous 3) those who are disobedient to their parents 4) those who break family ties 5) those who are mischief-spreaders and, 6) those who are back-bitters. In another narration mischief-spreader is replaced with those who make pictures. {Mukashifatul Quloob}.

In a long Prophetic narration, narrated in Ghunya tut-Talibin, the Messenger of Allah said, that is the night of mid-Shabaan (15 night) when Allah (Exalted is He) arranges the affairs of the year. He transfers [some of] the living to the list of dead, and records those who will make pilgrimage [Hajj] to the House of Allah that year, neither adding one too many nor leaving a single one of them out.”

Spend the night, as much as possible, in worship and on the 15th of Shabaan. It is written in Anees-ul-Waezeen that whoever fasts on the fifteenth of Shabaan the fire of hell will not touch him.

Next to the “night of Qadr” the night of 15th Shaban is the most auspicious night ( also known as “night of Baraat”). According to the Imam Muhammad Ibn Ali Al Baqir (AS) and Jafar Ibn Muhammad Al Sadiq (AS) The Almighty Allah has promised to fulfill every legitimate desire put foward to him tonight.

In another Tradition she says, “Prophet Muhammad, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam, would sometimes begin to fast continuously until we thought he would not stop fasting, and sometimes he used to stop fasting until we thought he would never fast. I never saw the Messenger of Allah, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam, fasting a complete month, except the month of Ramadan, and I have never seen him fasting in a month more frequently than he did in Shaban.”

SIGNIFICANCE OF SHAB’E BARAAT – 15th of Sha’baan

The night which falls on the even of the 15th of Sha’baan is called Shab’e Baraat.

THE AUSPICIOUSNESS OF THIS NIGHT

1. The names of those who are to die in the coming year are given to the Angels.
2. The names of those who are to be born in the coming year are given to the Angels.
3. Those who are to receive sustenance during the coming year, their names are given to the Angels.
4. After sunset Allah Ta’ala’s splendour descends on the first Heaven. This remains till dawn.
5. A proclamation is made by Allah Ta’ala for those seeking forgiveness so that they may be forgiven.
6. A proclamation is also made for those seeking livelihood so that they may be given livelihood.
7. A proclamation is made for those in trouble so that they may be released from their troubles.
8. Countless people are freed from Jahannum.

Ummul Mu’mineen ‘Aishah, Radi-Allahu anha, says, “Prophet Muhammad, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam, used to fast the whole of Shaban. I said to him, ‘Messenger of Allah, is Shaban your most favorite month for fasting?’ He said, ‘In this month Allah prescribes the list of the persons dying this year. Therefore, I like that my death comes when I am in a state of fasting.”

Egyptian women perform the Eid al-Fitr dawn prayer at a stadium in Mansura, 120 km north of Cairo.

Muslims around the world woke up Sunday and welcomed the end of a long month of fasting with hearty greetings of “Eid Mubarak,” or happy festivities.

The faithful were ushering in Eid al-Fitr — three days of celebrations that Muslims mark with joyous community prayers, acts of charity, visits from far-flung relatives, gift-giving and elaborate feasts.

“Think Christmas, Thanksgiving, New Year’s — all rolled into one. It’s that huge for us,” said Sajjad Aziz of Hoboken, New Jersey.

Islam follows a lunar calendar, and the timing of Eid al-Fitr varies around the world depending on when the crescent of a new moon is sighted.

So, while most countries — including the United States — observed Eid on Sunday, some will begin their celebrations on Monday.

The night before Eid, entire communities gather on rooftops, scanning the sky with giddy anticipation.

“It only needs one sighting of the moon in the whole country, and the whole nation erupts in cheers,” said Qazi Arif, 35, of Sirajgong, Bangladesh. “It’s a divine feeling, hard to describe.”

Eid al-Fitr bids goodbye to Ramadan — a month of dawn-to-dusk abstinence from food, drinks and other sensual pleasures. Muslims believe the Quran, the religion’s holy book, was revealed to Prophet Muhammad during Ramadan more than 1,400 years ago.

The Eid is one of two major holidays in Islam, alongside another called Eid al-Adha. The latter commemorates the prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, for God.

On the morning of Eid, Muslims don new clothes and head to prayers that are often held in open fields to accommodate crowds too big to contain in mosques.

Those who can afford it donate a small percentage of their possession or its equivalent to the poor and needy so they too can avail themselves for the celebrations. Feasts await at every house.

“It’s a festival principally about community. We’re even asked to take a different route when we walk back from prayers so that we can meet different sets of people to greet and celebrate with,” said Wasim Iqbal of Karachi, Pakistan.

For Muslims in North America — and countries where they are the minority — Eid is a more subdued affair.

“If you have family close by, then you can kind of capture the mood that you remember from back home,” said Abdallah Gamal, a native of Egypt who lives in St. Louis, Missouri. “But it’s not the same.”

Because the U.S. Census does not ask about religious affiliation, it is difficult to gauge the Muslim population in the United States. The Pew Muslim American study conducted two years ago estimated it at 2.5 million, while the Council on American-Islamic Relations places it as high as 6 million.

On Saturday, both President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton offered greetings to American Muslims.

“We know there is more than unites peoples of faith than divides us,” Clinton said. “So as Ramadan draws to a close, let us hold on to that spirit of community throughout the year to achieve our common goals of peace, prosperity and stability.”

It is a message that Afghanistan’s president, Hamid Karzai, also shared during Eid prayers when he called on the Taliban to join the peace process in his war-weary country.

The day wasn’t one of universal comity, however.

In Yemen, the government and rebels accused each other Saturday of breaking a cease-fire they both asked for to commemorate Eid.

And Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei used his Eid sermon to launch another volley at the country’s arch-rival Israel and at Western powers.

“We’re not quite there, I’ll will admit,” said Mehreen Ali of Boston, Massachusetts. “But have you seen an Eid prayer? Rows and rows of Muslims all prostrating together in unison. It’s a feeling of such unity and brotherhood. You have to believe that with that spirit present, anything is possible.”

khabrein.info

On the basis of this method the dates of Ramadan and Eid ul-Fitr for the year 1430 AH are established as follows:

1st of Ramadan will be on Saturday, August 22, 2009
1st of Shawwal will be on Sunday, September 20, 2009

Ramadan 1430 AH:
The astronomical New Moon is on Thursday, August 20, 2009 at 10:01 Universal Time (1:01 pm Makkah time). Sunset at Makkah on August 20 is at 6:47 pm local time, while moonset at Makkah is at 6:46 pm local time (1 minute before sunset). Therefore the following day Friday, August 21, 2009 is not the 1st day of Ramadan. First day of Ramadan is Saturday, August 22, insha’Allah. First Tarawih prayer will be on Friday night.

Eid ul-Fitr 1430 AH:
The astronomical New Moon is on Friday, September 18, 2009, at 18:44 Universal Time (9:44 pm Makkah time). On Saturday, September 19, 2009, sunset at Makkah is 6:20 pm local time, while moonset is at 6:36 pm local time. Therefore, first day of Shawwal, i.e., Eid ul-Fitr is Sunday, September 20, insha’Allah.

May Allah (swt) keep us on the right path, and accept our fasting and prayers. Ameen. For more detailed information, please visit: www.fiqhcouncil.org or www.moonsighting.com (Courtesy: ISNA.net)

One question most Imams, Shuyukh, Du’at, etc get asked is, “How and when did you know this is what you wanted to do?” Often this question is asked by parents in order to get an idea of how to get their kids interested in similar things. Well my answer to this question has to do with attending Tarawih in Ramadan. Alhamdulillah since the age of about 5 my father used to take me to Tarawih every night in Ramadan, even on school nights. Around the time I was 8 I remember being amazed by the Imam’s recitation of the Qur’an from memory in Tarawih. I even told my father that I want to be able to do what he does. So bi’idhnillah when the opportunity presented itself to go and memorize the Qur’an, I jumped at it and insisted that I be allowed to go. Keep in mind that this involved traveling overseas at the age of 10. Alhamdulillah, since then one thing Allah has granted me the ability to do consistently is lead Tarawih every Ramadan. This was the beginning of my journey down the road of seeking knowledge and serving the Deen.

So I recommended the same thing to my community and last year there was a family who regularly attended Tarawih all Ramadan and even stayed afterwards to listen to the Tafseer sessions. By the end of Ramadan they came to me with their 10 year old son saying that he insists he wants to memorize the Qur’an – and asking advice for how to go about doing it.

It’s really simple to understand, take your son to NASA and on the way home he’ll tell you that he wants to be an astronaut when he grows up. Take your daughter to the zoo and now she wants to be a veterinarian. Same thing goes for sports and athletes, Tiger Woods’ father starting taking him to the golf course at an early age. So if we want our children to develop a love for the Qur’an and knowledge in general and aspire to be students of sacred knowledge, then we have to introduce them to it. InshaAllah no time better than the present, use this Ramadan and Tarawih wisely.

Five times a day
Muslims are obliged to pray

We prepare by doing ablution
All the while engaging in devotion

With our hearts inclined we do stand
To obey Almighty Allah’s command

We raise our hands and say takbeer
Salah starts and our worries disappear

Beautiful recitation of the Qur’an is heard
Our hearts captivated by these blessed words

Standing, bowing and prostrating with devotion
Allah’s name taken with each and every motion

Till finally with salam does prayer end
We hope the next prayer we are alive to attend

We make du’a for Allah to accept this deed
And back to our homes/ work we proceed.

The Islamic finance sector in the United Kingdom has seen enormous growth both domestically and internationally. London is one of the top five financial centers in the world for Islamic finance and is the premier center outside the Muslim world. What are the key factors that have lead to this success?

An essential ingredient is a regulatory framework that can accommodate Islamic finance principles and a regulator that is prepared to work with Islamic institutions to overcome technical hurdles. The Bank of England has had a close interest in the Islamic banking sector since the early 1990s. The Financial Services Authority, created in 1998, articulated the policy of “no obstacles, no special favors,” its approach being one of establishing a level playing field within the overall framework of its risk-based approach to regulation.

There must be a tax regime that enables Islamic financing structures and products to be treated in an equivalent manner to their conventional counterparts. The U.K. tax authorities’ aim has been to ensure that Shariah-compliant financial products are taxed in a way that is neither more nor less advantageous than equivalent banking products in the conventional sector. A package of measures has evolved and been introduced over a period of six years which, in broad terms, works by setting out particular fact patterns that describe generically equivalent Islamic financing structures and products, but without naming them, and applying specific tax treatment to putting them on a level playing field with the nearest equivalent conventional financing structure. The specific tax treatment is not restricted to Muslim customers or Shariah-compliant products. Indeed, the legislation is silent on this, as to avoid discrimination issues.

A legal system that is recognizable on an international basis for cross-border transactions and that is widely enforceable is essential to the mix. English law has long been accepted in the international finance markets and has lent itself well to Islamic financial transactions.

The courts must adopt a pragmatic approach to Islamic products. The U.K. courts have taken the approach (based on specific facts) that a general reference to the principles of the Shariah of the type often seen in documentation should be regarded as being merely a reference to the parties’ desire to state the principle of compliance with the Shariah. The market has generally embraced this sentiment.

Another essential element is the existence of a body of legal, accounting and banking professionals who are well-versed in cross-border financing transactions and are prepared to invest time in developing the knowledge and skill sets to put deals together and implement them. As one of the world’s largest financial centers, London can easily fulfill this need.

Conventional banks must also be willing to participate by opening Islamic “windows” within their organizations. We have seen a large number of U.K. banks and foreign banks in the U.K. adopt this approach to very great effect.

Trade organizations with links to the Muslim world that are active in promoting the interests of their members are helpful in stimulating the debate and helping to pull together the interested parties.

Finally, there must be a clear willingness of the government to promote Islamic finance. In the U.K., we have been fortunate that the government has fully supported the industry. Only about 3 percent of the U.K. population is Muslim, but it is the second largest religious group in the U.K., and the government has listened to the needs and concerns of the Muslim population and reacted by implementing the necessary changes. It has also enabled and encouraged the banking industry to harness the U.K.’s legal, accounting and banking expertise to develop the industry to its pre-eminent position today.