Asalamu alaykum,
I hope all of you are well and pray that everyone is in a state of being close to Allah. Just 10 short years ago I was struggling as a new convert to Islam and one of the greatest hurdles was the ladies. My college days were rough in many regards. Before my conversion I was a successful DJ (I had just got my hands on a really nice four track mixer. Okay so you know I’m old school. But, in those days I could make it fly) and was about to walk the Burning Sands. All praise be to God that instead I became Muslim and slowly started to pull out of those things. It was rough but the most difficult part was dealing with the other gender.
Young brothers and sister I feel your pain man. It is difficult and as the summer months roll up it gets more and more difficult to manage as the clothes roll up as well. We all know the routine: “Lower the gaze! Lower the gaze! Lower the gaze!” But, if the heart is not lowered in awe of Allah’s magnificence and His tremendous bounties, then how can we expect the eyes to lower?
Tonight I attended a reading of the Shamil Muhamadiyah with Sh. Ibrahim al-Khalifa from Saudi Arabia. He is visiting Egypt for a few weeks and I had just finished my exam and decided to go and listen to his dars. The streets in Cairo are a mix of cars, buses, donkeys, cows and pollution that, seriously, when you make wudu slides off your face. I can only liken the air to a full vacuum bag that spews its contents creating a small cloud of dust. However, in the heat I remembered the homies in the West: My Boyz in Chicago, the brothers in L.A and most importantly the brothers in the Bay. I miss them all. The love for brothers is something that we should cherish and hold on to like we hold on to our checkbooks.
Anyways, after reading from the Shamail, the Sheikh moved on to al-Muhasibi’s Risalat Mustarshidin with the tahqiq by Sh. Abdul Fatah Abu Ghuda. The Sheikh was talking about worshiping Allah as though you see the Hereafter close and understand that your time is up. “Be ready! Don’t let this life delude you! Be good people. Treat others with respect and worship your Lord as though you are going to leave this life soon.” It was a real masterpiece to watch the Sheikh tie vice with the rope of responsibility and knowing that one is going to die one day and answer for his time. Imam al-Muhasibi’s texts is intense and I felt a buzz in my chest as the Sheikh started to get into the flow.
This is for the all the young brothers and sisters struggling:
The Sheikh, after talking about this responsibility linked it to a very interesting story. That, for me, is the sign of a good Imam,teacher or Sheikh that they can tie things into our daily lives. Thus, such a style gives the din fresh legs, opens up one’s heart and soothes the coals of sin. He said that during the time of ‘Umar there was a young man who’s desires got the best of him. It all started with the look and the next thing the young man was alone with a woman. Suddenly, as the clock was starting to turn, the young man heard a verse of Qur’an being recited that reminded him of Allah’s greatness. He left the young woman, stood up shaking from the fear of Allah and fell dead from this fear. ‘Umar (may Allah have mercy on him) buried this youth and after hearing how he died walked over to the fresh grave and recited the following verse from Surah al-Rahman, “And for the one who fears the meeting with Allah there are two gardens.” Suddenly a response came from the grave reciting the verse, “We have found the promise of our Lord to be true.”
Dear brothers and sisters,
The summer is upon you and it is no joke. Statistics show that as the barometer rises that evil rise as well. One of the most important things you can take with you is Allah’s awesome nature and bounties. Reflect! Turn of the PS3! Put down the I-Pod and think for a minute! Put handcuffs on your Internet use and know that you will be asked about your youth. Where are you headed? What are you doing and how are you going to use this summer? Take sometime away from the gadgets and turn on your heart. Make some goals for yourself to do some good things in your community. Remember that when you see something that causes your temperature to fly that Allah is watching you. He knows what is in your heart and understands that it ain’t easy. Ask Him for His help and try to withstand the attacks of Iblis. I have a lot of faith that our young brothers and sisters can do loads of wonderful things in their communities!
Cool the heat of summer with the following:
1. Good friends who take you to good places. The Prophet (sa) said, “A person is on the faith of his friend.” One nice note about the hadith of the three people stuck in the cave. If they had not been together then they would have not been able to help each other get out. However, since they were all decent guys they were able to work together and use their good to remove the rock from the cave.
2. Have some goals for this summer:
1. Community (volunteer with any number of Muslim/Non-Muslim organizations and do something good for your neighborhoods
2. Spiritual (get those five prayers rocking and if you are real with it you will throw in some night prayers and extra fasts)
3. Educational (try and attend some lessons or educational programs that will boost your faith)
4. Family (spend some time with the wife/husband (find one) kids and close relatives
3. Have some nice activities:
1. Qiyam
2. B-Ball tourneys (all nighters) followed by Qiyam, Fajir and some Aunties phat spicy eggs
3. Sleep overs
4. Camping
5. Weekly ‘Itikaf (inshallah, when I’m back in the States I’m down)
I ask Allah to help us, bless us and let us use our time well. I would appreciate it if whoever reads this could help us generate a list of things to do this summer.
Suhaib
www.virtualmosque.com
I need you back for my emaan.
jazakumallahu khayrun, this is great masha allah.
– Go to the beach before Fajr, pray and do some tafakkur. Swim a little and leave before everyone else gets there.
– Attend a MAS Youth TICamp
– Rent a private villa on Cape Cod that has a private lakeside beach
– Start a special Summer Halaqa in your city and study a nice raqa’iqi book together
– Picnics
– Fishing trips
– Ice cream socials
– Cook outs/BBQs at friends’ back yars
– Road trips Boston-NYC-DC…hit up all the masajid/centers along the way…spend a night in each
– Media training workshops
– Summer with the Shaikh – special youth summer halaqa with a scholar
– Learn a new skill
– Get an internship that is extraordinary – with the Shaikh/muezzin/youth worker etc.
– Soccer tourneys for cities that have mad Morrocans ; )
Subhanallah, right on point…
Excellent and much-needed reminder.. Jazaka Allahu Khairan
Bismillah
Send salawat on the Prophet sal Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
One of my teachers pointed out the importance of this for the student of knowledge.
Narrated Anas ibn Malik (radiAllahu anhu) that Allah’s Messenger (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said:
He who invokes one blessings upon me, Allah will shower ten blessings upon him and obliterate ten sins (of his) and elevate him by ten ranks.
[Nasa’i; Hadith No. 922 of Mishkat al-Masabih.]
I asked one shaykh and he said these ten ranks refers to being elevated in JANNAH. Allahu akbar.
–Read the Qur’an with excitement and awe. Read the translation (also) if you do not understand Arabic. (How many people’s hearts flipped to Islam after reading the Qur’an? The Qur’an=amazing)
–Watch “The Message”, about the life of Rasul Allah sal Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Invite brothers/sisters to watch together and try and feel what it was like to live like companions of the Prophet sal Allahu ‘alayhi wa sallam
–Start a fajr or tahajud buddy system- have one sister/brother call you/vice versa and encourage each other to get out of bed until you actually get up and pray
–Set up and person a dawah table.
–Avert your gaze and make duaa every time you see something that shaytan wants you to go for. Without a doubt, Allah ‘Azza wa Jal will give you something better than it, inshaAllah.
–Turn up Hani ar Rifai, Shakyh ‘Afasy or another Qari while driving through scenic areas = Eman blast
–Take an AlMaghrib class (coming to the Bay Area Aug 31-Sept 2/Sept 7-9 inshaAllah- Rays of Faith, Shaykh Waleed Basyouni- http://www.almaghrib.org/rof.php). Knowledge + Eman RUSH= increase love for obedience to Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala
EXTRA Credit:
Umm Habibah bint Abu Sufyan reports that the Messenger of Allah said: “Whoever prays twelve rak’at during the day and night will have a house built for him in paradise: four rak’at before zuhr and two after it, two rak’at after maghrib, two rak’at after ‘isha, and two rak’at before fajr.” This is related by at-Tirmizhi who called it hasan sahih.
Did you just read, “…will have a house built for him in paradise…” ? SubhanAllah
–Email this to all your friends and inshaAllah try to implement some extra prayers until we reach 12 extra rak’at and inshaALLAH get houses in Paradise DAILY.
Mashallah. – Thats all I can think of. Just repeating that in my head.
Masha3 Allah, it makes perfect sense . Strengthen the deen. Live the deen.
GAK May Allah help u in Egypt
i used to live there it s really a jihad Alnafs so that u can be able to live there may Allah accept all ur Good deads
by the way did u eat from the fool and tamiah ?
my input to the best way to use summer time is if some one able to join the IAU islamic American University for a calss would be a good Idea
JazakAllah khar!
Also, constant dhikr will help too.
Salaam,
Another suggestion is that there are many DEEN INTENSIVE courses that take place in the summer time all over the states and the UK. Take advantage of them and join the classes so that you are occupied with studying and worshiping as opposed to wasting time and having nothing to do.
As sallamu alaikum wa rahmatullah
Stay away from not only the sin itself. But things that lead to sin.
Allahu Akbar!! JazaakumAllahu kher, this article def gave me back a big energy boost, and was a huge encouragement for me after coming back home and despairing at the hell which which are cairo streets.
I think all those activities that sheikh Suhaib proposed are to be encouraged. For my personal situation, after exploring all the possible strategies since decades-i mean since months (which seemed like eternity, hence the metaphor), I discovered that there’s really 3things which work mostly for me. I call it the 3F’s… Friends, fasting, football.
FRIENDS
As the sheikh explained us in the article, support from our friends is primordial in helping us carrying out this jihaad. We need to be well surrounded by friends who are going through the same troubles as us. We all have the problem with lowering the gaze, some of us a little, others more, but we all have it. hanging out with brothers in the appropriate environments will help you immensely in barring ibliss attacks.
FASTING
For the brothers, I personally think this is non negotiable. MAKE IT A MUST!! put it in your schedule. Its true its really difficult to do it during the summer, not consume anything for 15hours-and the worse part is when you get thirsty. but really, for those who have serious troubles with the heatwave fitnah, fasting on thursdays and mondays is the way to go. And no need to mention, the rewards thats being credited to your account are infinite… theres no better summer longterm investment than this, the payoff is immediate and lasts for eternity 🙂
FOOTBALL
Sports, sports, sports. this is the safety net in case the first two F’s fail, very easy to keep to. boys, this is the ideal time to work out and develop those triceps you’ve always been dreaming of having. insert specific moments devoted to sports in your weekly schedules. Consistent athletes have very low testosterone levels. this says enough about how much help sports are going to be. for those who keep to the monday and thursday siyaams, best thing is to work out on the days right before that (sundays, wednesdays), and heavy workout on the remaining days.
I would really appreciate if the other brothers reading this could chip in and give us some more tips, buiilding on Sheikh Suhaib’s article, about how they go around dealing with the fitnah heatwave. also please pass this article to as many folks as you can (esp the brothers), I think it will help so many of us if we get to discuss about this and share our strategies.
Jzk.
Oh, i forgot to mention…. nutrition. AVOID SPICY FOOD AT ANY COST!!!!!
😛
Just a suggestion for the Qiyaams –
Not every kid is good at Basketball, though it has slowly become the sport of Islam in America, hehe. What we did (in Chicago) at a Qiyaam we had was this:
1) ‘Isha was at 8:00pm. Afterwards we had a 15 minute talk by a youth speaker (a certain giant white man who studied in Egypt for 6 months…;-)
2) After that we opened the gym up for the kids who wanted to play Basketball.
3) Along with opening up the gym, we brought TV’s, a projector, an XBOX, a PS2, and a Nintendo Wii, and we hooked them all up so that we could have some sort of video game tournament going on with each. This attracts alot of the non-sporting types of Muslim youth to the masjid for a Qiyaam. So this way, we had kids in the gym, and kids playing video games in the basement area.
4) After 2.5 hours of playing/gaming, we got the pizza set up and let the kids eat for about half an hour.
5) Following the food, we had another speaker come and give a quick 25 minute speech about Jannah – the kids really liked it. Afterwards, we had a 20 minute Q&A.
6) We opened up the playing/gaming session once again for another 1.5 hours.
7) Rest time. Kids could either sleep, or they could pray.
8) 30 minutes before Fajr athaan calls, we wake everyone up to get at least 4-8 rak’a of tahajjud in. We try to let the kids lead so they can get a taste of how it feels to actually pray to Allah during the sweetest of times.
9) We stay up till Fajr, pray Fajr, then all the kiddies go home.
That Qiyaam, alhamdulilah, had alot of success. All the kids are requesting another one, so I’m hoping by sharing with you brothers and sisters, you can have the same success, if not more insha Allah.
Sorry Imam Suhaib, didn’t mean to still your thunder :-P. I would start a blog-website, but my name’s too long ;-).
Jazakallah brother Suhaib!
absolutely awesome reminder for all us.
jazakAllahu khairan
BarakAllahu feek!
ridwan
hey wait a sec “10 short years ago…” oh so thats why we were taking refuge at taco bell and taco mayo
JazakAllah khayr yaa Shaykh! (And kudos on mentioning PS3 instead of PS2, way to stay fresh)
My list of activities, bismillah:
1) Learn a new skill: this can be a sport, a trade, whatever as long as it’s beneficial.
2) READ!! Make a summer reading list, don’t let your brain rot for 4 months. And having your nose in a book keeps the eyes from wandering on the bus/subway/train
3) Start a reflections journal – use it to ponder on the ayat of Allah, write down one blessing Allah has given you every night before bed.
4) Join a Muslim sports league – competition for the sake of Allah!
jazakallah. the summer is a huge fitnah for the youth esp the guys. more activities need to be done over the summer to keep us away from this…
Me and my husband enjoy packing a picnic and heading out to the beach on a sunny day. Together we build a sand-mosque in the sand (we are getting pretty good and even discovered cool ways to make minaras and domes!!) We always remember to take pictures of all the mosques we build in the sand for memories. And make du’a together that some day Allah will bless us with enough money to build a real mosque for the community.
When all else fails, Disney Land is always fun 🙂 Hey, it’s a family place, no alcohol, it’s magical, Anaheim has lots of HALAL places to eat… all they need now is a prayer room…
Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahim,
Asalaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu, Brothers & Sisters,
Alhamdulillah, InshaAllah, we CAN implement these valuable suggestions into our daily lives & exemplify a the standard of RasoolAllah (SAAwS) for the generations to come. Both for Muslims and Non. It has been entrusted to us to ensure we are on one accord.
Let us not forget because Allah (SWT) took Mercy upon us . . . Islam . . . Subhanallah!
No one is excluded.
I was born & raised on of the few reservations of Native America; even there, the evils of the duniya are familiar & becoming more rampant. I can attest that life without Islam is, without a doubt, utter darkness. May Allah Ta’ala Protect us from all that leads to jahannum. Amin.
Please, Brothers & Sisters, take special care for the sake of ALLAH (swt).
Inna lillahi wa illaihi raji’un. [To Allah we belong & to Allah is our return.]
May the Peace, Blessings, & Mercy of Allah (SWT) be upon RasoolAllah (SAAwS), upon his Companions (RAA), upon his family, & upon all those who follow in their footsteps until the Day Allah (SWT) calls us to Account. Amin. Allahumma Amin.
Asalaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.
hope you still remember those who knew you from edmond, ok. although we are strewn all over the globe knowing your web address makes it easy to drop by (not for those spicy dishes ali mujahid used to churn out). i am in montreal by the way raising my two yr old rashdan.
As salaamu alaikum wa rahmat Allahi wa barakatuh
Jazak Allahu khair for this priceless advice Sheikh Suhaib. May Allah reward you with Jannatul Firdous, ameen! And may He guide all of us and help us to use our time properly to get close to Him, ameen!
SOLID…
On the authority of Abu Umama, the Prophet (may God’s blessing and peace be upon him) asserted, “Whoever gazes upon a woman’s beauties and then lowers his eyes with the first look, God makes of this an act of worship the sweetness of which he experiences in his heart.”
AS SALAMU ALAYKUM WA RAHMATALLAHI WA BARAKATAHU-
On the authority of Abu Umama, the Prophet (may God’s blessing and peace be upon him) asserted, “Whoever gazes upon a woman’s beauties and then lowers his eyes with the first look, God makes of this an act of worship the sweetness of which he experiences in his heart.”
Does this also apply to a woman whose gaze falls upon a man and she lowers her eyes with the first look?
Salam,
Try and stop one bad thing you do (inshallah) do tauba, as God (swa) is forgiving,
Inshallah everytbig wil fall in to place, and your friends or company will aslo stop doing those things!
Assalamu’alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
Here in Jeddah, the girls in my Qur’an school held a special talent show singing praises of the Prophets, acting a skit on how Muslims have dwindled and some time in the future return to their glory. In fact, I played the part of a Western student who came to Madinah to study technology during an imagined future period, when Muslims dominate Science and Technology bisultani lLah. I hope we can do something like this in our communities – special event for girls only and boys only where we harness their talents and bountiful energy, and entertain the elders and toddlers.
Assalamualaikum,
For those who are incharge and running islamic organisations, what would your advice be to those individuals? Many a times, you organise yet you dont really benefit from it..
wassalam
Great post — I especially like your goal categories for the summer — all need to be nourished. I am so glad there is lots to do in chicago with the family
as salaamu alaikum,
I hope everyone is well. Some goals I have for this summer are: learn the meaning of the COMPLETE salah, type without looking at the keyboard, tone my body by going to the college gym three times a week, start my internship with the Children’s Home, get another article published by my local newspaper, increase my friendship with the sisters around me, finish Towards Understanding Islam by Mawdudi , and get A’s in my summer school classes: Biochemistry and Developmental Economics. Some of these goals I have already started and others I will start soon, iA. Maybe this will help others get some ideas….
Jazak Allahu khayran, Shaykhuna.
It’s tough as sisters to wear hijab & proper clothing in the heat, but may Allah preserve our brothers ‘cuz it is crazy out there.
May Allah protect and preserve us all, and use this test as a means to raise our ranks. Ameen.
I’m kicking the summer by off by listening to Purification of the Soul by Imam Suhaib Webb
For the brothers and sisters who wear prescription glasses- I recommend you simply take off your eye wear when your outside to protect your eyes. It gives some protection, but still lower your gaze.
And be shy of Allah.
1) You can read the a good, inspirational book like “Three Cups of Tea” I love this book. Really opens your eyes about how a man can really change a community and the struggles you take to do it. It is simply amazing true story about a man building schools in Waziristan.
2) Stop watching movies and start having some Islamic lectures in the house with family. Quench the soul for 2+ hours, you will see the benefits later. With a movie you will forget majority of it, except if it was good or bad.
3) Throw a party for a brother that has done so much for the community and his family. Tell people to bring a gift, a smile, and a prospect for the this beloved brother(brother needs to get married). J/k about the prospect.
4) Stop puffing that Hookah and start reciting dhikr and recitations when your around friends. It is amazing how you can get others around you to do the same, kind of like the hookah. Plus it is soothing and you get the better flavor, the sweet taste of Imaan.
5) Finally, take your phone and play the Qur’an when you wake up, have your favorite reciter playing. I prefer having the last 10 verses of Surah Al-Imran by Sh. Ghamdi. Know the meaning and think deeply about it, great way to put things in perspective to start of your summer days, even if you had a bad dream.
Asssalamualaikum,
JazakAllahu Khair ya Ustadth…
Here are some ideas for things to do this summer…
* Join a local Islamic Camp in your area; MAS Youth and other Islamic organizations provide great options for a weekend or even a full week or two. Other programs are local to community centers as well
* Meet up with the Shabab for Fajr. Call each other up and carpool, pray in jama’ah and stay for the two Rakat after Shuruq and inshAllah you will feel great afterwards. Then go for b-fast or a jog or something
* Set a goal to memorize some quran by the end of the summer.
* Join a class like the “Summer Nights” or other options online or local.
* MENTOR a YOUTH! Take them under your wing and take interest in their affairs and life and most of all be a good example.
Help out with teaching the kids at your local masjid, organise a small get together for the aunties and uncles (seperately), cut down on the amount of hours spent watching movies and tv and replace it with listening to lectures.
For my sisters who get asked: “Aren’t you Hot in that?”
http://muslimology.wordpress.com/2009/05/30/are…
no love for new york? or the east coast in general? =/
Salams all,
If you have some free time this summer, I would recommend building your relationship with the Qur’an – I found a great free resource designed by some excellent Pakistani women, which has helped me profoundly in understanding the Qur’an more clearly.
Go here for a 60 hour explanation of the Quran in English go here:
http://www.alhudapk.com/audio-video/fahm-alqura…
For a 600 hour course go here:
http://www.alhudapk.com/audio-video/taleem-al-q…
Hope that helps.
P.S. If you have trouble sticking to your Qur’an related resolutions or any of your summer goals, go here: http://www.myliferesults.com – this guy will give you the psychological and emotional tools to follow through on any goal you set.
Wassalam
Is your spouse or significant other a little too chummy with someone of the opposite sex? — perhaps a workmate, a neighbor, an old schoolmate, or an online friend? DO NOT TREAT THIS LIGHTLY. Close friendships of this type can easily progress to emotional infidelity, which can often lead to sexual infidelity, even if that was not the original intent. It could be the beginning of the end for your marriage or relationship.
http://infidelityadvice.blogspot.com/
For my sisters who get asked: “Aren't you Hot in that?”
http://muslimology.wordpress.com/2009/05/30/are…
Jazak “Allah for this wonderful article. Sometimes i feel very alone and “bad” when i think about how i want to look at guys ( and not just in the summer)> This is very very hard when you are unmarried and often feel lonely and frustrated. And I dont want to rush into marriage just because i want to be intimate. We are all feeling this way.Halamdullilah, our Creator knows this about us, He created this need and he knows how difficult it is for us to control it. Its right up there with food and water during Ramadhan. I find that if i read Zikr and keep my zikr very simple “Li illalah illahlah Hu Allah Hu Akbar” this helps very much at critical moments and moments of weakness..and i seem to have plenty of those. Can someone please respond to me and say they feel the same way. so i dont feel like a complete idiot, weaker than everyone else.