Featured – The Muslimah

Fresh Beginnings

In the name of Allah, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy

In today’s time many Muslim women are experiencing internal chaos. A lot of us aren’t sure why we are here and don’t know who we are. We’re not sure why a headscarf is valuable, why prayer is crucial for our spiritual well being, and why we were created so differently from men. A lot of us are confused and we find ourselves trying to be like the women in magazines and many times fighting our own fitrah or innate natures. Many of us are preoccupied with our materialistic lifestyles that leave us spiritually dry. And the very fundamentals of Islam – our faith – are misunderstood by many of us. And if we allow ourselves to be honest, many of us don’t have an urge to understand any better and live any better because we are happy with where we are.

It is so important that we admit our weaknesses and confusion to ourselves so that we can start rebuilding ourselves spiritually. And this begins by realizing that Islam is a way of life that offers all of mankind a solution. Islam – the continuation of the message since the beginning of creation – is a faith that establishes true purpose and one that seeks to transform our life to a life of purity. It is a faith that calls us to the belief in One Perfect Creator. He is the Creator of all of mankind, all of the Prophets (peace be upon them), including Jesus and Mohammad (peace be upon them). It is a faith that pushes us to think and look around so that we may realize that things did not just come about on their own. Islam is a religion that grants all of humanity peace and eternal happiness when we allow it to penetrate our hearts and souls.

Once we realize that Islam is the solution it is then that we will be able to attain peace through Remembrance of God. It is then that all of our priorities will fall right into place and the problems that we currently face will no longer take over our lives. We will be able to be Muslim women without having to rely on outside talk to dictate to us how we should think and act. It is then that we will begin to see our Islamic garment as a protection of our faith and a reminder that God has entrusted us with something very special. And it is then that we will be proud to pass on this beautiful Message, beginning with ourselves and those nearest to us.

As Muslim women we play an important role in the way our society works. If we change our own outlook on the role that Islam plays within our life and begin to adopt it as our way of life, it is then that we will be able to bring strength to our communities. We all play an important role in in this world. With this in mind, a college education will be more than just seeking a degree – we will obtain more tools to help ourselves and our local and global communities. Mothers will raise the future generations that will uphold Islamic values. Wives will be the backbone of their husbands, the ones who encourage them and support them through the hardships of this world like Khadijah (may God be pleased with her) supported our last and final Messenger – Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

It is with this that we hope youwill join us on the re-launch of The Muslimah, a website created to inspire all of us as Muslim women to reflect so that we can bring about change through the acceptance and practice of our God-given faith.

Bienvenidos. Welcome. Marhaba.

Islam Inspires Meme

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Rules:

1) Answer the following questions
2) Post on your blog with link to who tagged you
3) Tag a minimum of three other bloggers and include links to their blog in your tag. Make sure to let them know you’ve tagged them too.

Meme Questions:

1) What Qur’anic verse do you find most inspiring and why? What does it mean to you personally?

فَإِنَّ مَعَ الْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا

So verily, with hardship there is ease. [ash-Sharh, 94:5]

I’m a stressed person by nature; I take things to heart quicker, I get headaches from thinking too much, and I can be very impatient during hardship. When I first came across this ayah I felt at peace. Finding this ayah shifted my mindset of concentrating on the bad moments to being hopeful for that moment of ease. I really believe when we are tested it pushes us to be grateful for those moments of ease that are ever so often ignored.

2) What Hadith (Qudsi or Sunnah of the Prophet salalahi alahi wa salaam) do you find most inspiring and why?

I have two favorite Hadith Qudsi: 15 and 34.

They inspire me because I don’t know what my life would be like if I didn’t do dhikr and if I didn’t have hope that Allah forgives us.

3) Other than the Prophet himself salalahi alahi wa salaam – what Muslim man do you find most inspiring and why?

Prophet Ayyub (peace be upon him) was a man who went through very hard times and still held onto his faith in Allah, increasing in it with every struggle. He was a man that displayed the meaning of patience, determination, and obedience.

4) Who is the most inspiring Muslim woman to you and why?

Sumayya bint Khubbat (Allah be pleased with her). Whenever I was treated badly after my conversion, I reminded myself of the strength of Sumayya’s faith. She gave her life for her love for Allah Ta’ala. What more inspiration do I need?

5) What CONTEMPORARY (i.e., living) Muslim do you find most inspiring and why?

Shaykh Nuh Ha Meem Keller. His story of how he came to Islam is beautiful and very inspiring. To go from a normal American man to a man who has decided to abandon all of the trivial things this dunya has to offer is inspiration in and of itself. To many he may be considered an extremist for his abandonment of many things we are too weak to abandon, but he knows that to live this life in the most fulfilling manner, we must train ourselves to abandon anything that distracts us from the worship of Allah, and the betterment of our souls. It has been a blessing to find him. May Allah protect him and his family.

6) How has Islam inspired you in your daily life?

Islam has brought my life together at a very young age. When all of the teens my age were dating, drinking, smoking, doing drugs, I was ready to settle down in my new faith, find ways to improve myself and get away from all the hype. This whole going green thing has been because of Islam, too. We can’t have good adab if we forget ourselves and the earth.

7) If you could do anything at all to inspire others through Islam, how would you do it?

My main goal in this dunya is to work on myself and my family. I want to offer my children the inspiration and tools they need to help others. I would also like this blog, wherein I share a little bit about my struggles, to encourage other sisters to take a hold of their lives. We need to accept that we are human, try to fix our ill habits, and become healthier human beings all around. We waste our time so often on trivial matters that we lose ourselves and our Iman.

I tag: Abul Layth, Fatimah, Aeryn, and Nadia. And thanks to Aaminah for a wonderful meme.

Feed the Hungry, Clothe the Poor, Think Glocally

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

If every single one of us thought globally and acted locally would there remain any needy person in this world? Imagine if we all took charge and fed our neighbors, the Muslims and non-Muslims at the shelters, and on the streets.

An Afghan child sleeps as his mother begs for alms in Herat, Afghanistan. During the holy month of Ramadan Muslims consider the giving of alms mandatory. — Source: Moscow-Pullman Daily News – Sep 19, 2007, page 8a

Imagine if we took the time to help alleviate some of the pressure some people face because of being underpaid, not having good stable jobs, not having a reliable car. The world would be a much better place.

What if we were that person who could not afford any food or water?

What if our children had to depend on donations?

And what if at the moment that our families and neighbors were needy of food, you saw this?

Have we failed?

Alhamdulillah for the many blessings we already have. Alhamdulillah for having a stable home, food on the table, and clean clothes to wear.

But what if this was our son or little brother, our spouse or our mother?

Enough is enough, right? Go to your local Masjid, donate some money and volunteer some of your time. Also, donate essentials (or anything else that someone could use). Here is a small list of needed food/necessity items.

1. Bags of Rice, Dried Beans, Pasta, Flour, Sugar, Sandwich Bread, Powdered Milk

2. Canned Tuna, Hummus, Ful, Fruit, Vegetables

3. Peanut Butter, Jelly, Pasta Sauce

4. Cooking Oils (Canola, Olive)

5. Boxes/Bags of dried cereal

6. Toilet Paper, Diapers, Women necessities

7. Don’t stop at the basics if you can give more. Give away toys, clothing, meat. We can do so much.

Next time you sit down to eat ask yourself, how many more could eat from this food?

Contact Islamic Relief. http://www.islamic-relief.com/

Learn How You Can Help in other ways.

Remember that the more mercy we show to others, the more Mercy Allah will show to us on the day when we will need it the most.

Please, let’s stop talking and get acting. Allah could remove our own blessings. Let us feed those who are starving. Let us clothe those who have nothing. Let us bring smiles to those who only wait for ease. I know it breaks your heart to see these pictures. How could it not hurt?

If you have other ideas that may encourage others to act, I encourage you to post them here and I will add those ideas to this post. This post will stay up for a while. Anytime you help, make du’aa’ for people, pass this message along, please rate this entry (any number). Allah knows how much we all help. And remember that the best charity is that which is given in secret. So don’t expose yourself. But help. It could be our children, our brothers, our friends in this situation, tomorrow.

Many thanks to the sister who shared these saddening pictures with me. May Allah reward you immensely. Ameen