Chill Yo Islam Yo

Salam Yo,

It’s going to be a hot summer, that’s what I hear nowadays. What do people mean by that? I have no idea, All I know is what the scholars say this time around, “it’s going to be harder for you to lower your gaze” and keep it moving like the road runner. Meep Meep.. No doubt that’s definitely true, I don’t think anybody disagrees with that. I guess it will be hot, if all the devils are out. If you want to go to the beach, go at fajr time Inshallah. With your wife.

So taking my story, I work in the mall where you constantly have to lower your gaze. Sometimes when we do some serious detailed cleaning I have to mop with bleach and windex, for that span off time, my eyes are on the floor watching it slowly begin to shine. Inshallah on the day of judgment our face’s will shine also.

Controlling our natural temptations and rectifying our inner self is part of life. Islam tells us how to control ourselves and stay on the guard, the right guard, like the deodorant. Some people say it’s ok to look once, then we have the slick Muslims who look and don’t blink. Some even get a quick glance and wink. Other’s stare like they are looking at themselves in the mirror. Well putting all that to side, as believers we constantly try to remember God Almighty, all the blessings which he has bestowed in our life. One of which include the eyes.

The principle of life which should help us in showing gratitude is to accept the fact as humans, we don’t appreciate something until we lose it. Alhumduillah everyday we wake up, our soul is returned to our body. God Almighty gives us more time to do good in this life, but because we lose focus and become distracted very easily we take the time and waste it. Sort of like a wedding ring in a cell.

My cousin who recently got married told me “saad just because you get married doesn’t mean it’s easier to lower your gaze”. If you see an attractive girl walk by you while your driving, it’s going to be hard for you not to look. Inshallah Marriage makes it easier, but I understand what he was saying.

What thing we gotta respect all year around but especially in the summer is our Muslim sisters who wear hijab. It’s not easy, all the girls who dress mad loose complain how hot the weather is burning and they hardly wear anything. Where as the sisters who dress modestly don’t complain. That’s official. Also protecting your skin and head in the summer is important. One of the benefits of hijab and modest clothing is protection from skin cancer and rays from the sun which are dangerous.

To end this article, I just want to say that our sight is a gift. We should preserve our eye, in the spiritual and physical sense. Of course being blind is a great loss, but being blind in this life in a spiritual aspect is incredibly dangerous. If Allah swt tells us to lower our gaze, we should. We wouldn’t want someone looking at our sisters or mother like that so why contribute to that type of behavior.

At the end of the day, we have to reflect off this ayah where God Almighty says ” Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty. That is purer for them. Verily, Allah is All aware of what they do. Say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty…Oh you who believe! Turn all together towards Allah that you may attain success. (Surah Nuh, 30:31)

So next time you see a girl that catches your attention, don’t od. Tell yourself ” Chill Yo Islam Yo”… and remember Allah swt is watching you. That’s what it comes down to, I can write all day convincing myself and you guys about the sinning, but it all comes down to the basics. Don’t make it complicated like the matrix.

This last ayah in the Quran in Surah Balad is mad serious. It’s all about remembering Allah in your hearts, and that’s when we will find real rest and comfort. God Almighty says in the Holy Quran “Thinks he that none sees him? Have We not made for him a pair of eyes?”. Basically this means that Allah has given us eyesight and we are so foolish we sin and start totally forget that he is watching us. Astugfurillah…

Let me say it straight up, Summer fever means tough times for the believer. Check out this official video from my man Imam Siraj Wihaj

I’m out, Waslaaam.

(You can drop some halal feedback on the top or rate the article)

[ratings]

Salam,

What do you do to fulfill your desires? Ask different people and you will certainly get different answers, but looking upon the state of society we can say that some individuals drink excessively, some do drugs, some worship money and become obsessive compulsive gamblers and then their are those who eat like theres no tomorrow.

Considering as a country we consume much of the worlds resources, its interesting to know we also waste much also, but nevertheless thats not my point, i wanted to talk a little bit about people who eat like they have two stomachs and have developed such a big belly that they can’t see their toes when they look down.

Many people don’t know this but protecting the stomach is one of the things which Islam put high priority towards and their is much wisdom behind it. Did you know that eating excessively hardens the heart, it weakens the limbs, this in return has an immediate effect on your laziness in obedience. Our beloved Prophet Muhammad said ‘The son of Adam has not filled a vessel more evil than his belly. Sufficient for the son of Adam are morsels to sustain his back. But if this is impossible, then let him keep a third for his food and a third for his water and a third for his breath.’ (Related by Related by al-Tirmidhī)

Essentially regulating gratification is the main theme here or as we say in the modern world ” Watch What You Eat”. See with all the modern techniques to combat weight loss and help people live a better lifestyle, i would have to say with alot of sincerity that if we as humans look towards our beloved Prophet and followed simple directions then perhaps we can see how our life’s can transform. From a physical and spiritual standpoint.

Go Ahead Try leaving 1/3 of your stomach empty every time you eat, and make it a habit. I promise you will notice the immediate difference in your everyday productivity. Coming from a desi family, I obviously have eaten much hell spices my whole life and still often continue to do so. Although its real unhealthy, the reason we can’t seem to give it up is because of taste.

What I learned from this is that if you want to see a change in your life, you will have to let go of your desires and control yourself. You have to condition your body and soul so that it becomes less dependent on the world. Yes you will have to make sacrifices, maybe let go of some tasty food or habits which you have become used to. But in the end sacrifice pays off, its sort of like leaving life as a believer. We all know Allah swt created this life with hardships but if we pass we will be in heaven, its your choice to have fun right now or in the afterlife. Intelligent people always think about the future.

Our beloved Prophet Muhammad also said ” He who’s stomach is full in this world will be hungry for longest in the Hereafter” (Related by al- Tarbani on the Authority of Salman) See how much the Sunnah talks about watching your stomach! Anyhows that pretty much does, Just because you have a dollar don’t run to the dollar menu, save up and buy some organic my brothers and sisters. I will end with a quote by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf ” The reason why people are so fat is because their souls are starving”. Wow Subhanullah. Also remember the reason why we are Slaves of Allah the Almighty is because we are Free of our inner animal driven desires.

Next time you start eating, please watch what you eat. The fatter someone is, the less space in the prayer line. Haha. Drop me a comment, tell me what you think…..Alright Wasalam Peace! Your boy Saad Ahmad Rashad.

[ratings]

Salam Yo,

Interesting enough to say, we are already on our 14 day of Ramadan, Time is flying, kind of scary, but it’s time we elevate our souls and become more aware of life and reflect upon the state of our iman, what i mean by this is that take full advantage of our time and resources, Alhumduillah Allah gave us a body, and with this body we pray, we work, we inshallah try to carry out good deeds and most importantly submit to the will of Allah in every aspect of our life’s.

Often times the youth say “we will practice islam when we get older”, especially the way this society is designed, a kid graduates from high school where he is exposed to fitnah at every level, then goes on to college, and what do people tell him “oh this is your time, you will never get it back, go do whatever you want to do”, I dont have to explain what that means but its sad to see that we are in a state of heedlessness, we often are unaware that we are getting nearer to death and will be raised and questioned about what whether we achieved our purpose in life? Which is to submit to Allah.

Every second that goes by, every opportunity that comes our way and we waste to submit to Allah, is in reaction a tremendous loss to what we could have seized in that moment. Becoming so full of this life thinking at times we are going to be here forever, the teachings of the Quran that warn them about falling into this state are ignored. Our inner desires take over and we get trapped in our ways surrendering to our lower selves and let the immediate pleasures of this short life filled with illusions grab a hold of us. This is something to seriously think about, Especially in Ramadan, I’ve been thinking about how have i been doing, is my imann shifting in the right direction. This month filled with blessings, Alhumduillah, which if we are in most be a wake up call.

The little things matter, refraining from those things that drive us away from our purpose and Islam, People tell me ” if you can stop doing something for month” then you can stop doing it for a year. No excuses, its just a matter of reflecting and being real with yourself. Our beloved Prophet Muhammad said ” A person will miss two things when they are old, Health and Youth”. When we become weak physically of course we can’t do the things we normally did, the events, the dawah efforts, which is why its so important to understand that Alhumduillah while we have health, youth, inshallah then make moves. The internal clock which Allah has put for you is ticking and Inshallah we must be in a constant state of ibadah, in our mental, physical, and spiritual.

Allah says in the Holy Quran, “So glad tidings to one who takes himself to account (hasaba nafsahu) before he it taken to account. Allah Most High has said, “O ye who believe! Observe your duty to Allah. And let every soul look to that which it sendeth on before for the morrow. And observe your duty to Allah! Lo! Allah is Informed of what ye do. And be not ye as those who forgot Allah, therefore He caused them to forget their souls. Such are the evil-doers.” (Qur’an, 59: 18)

So always bring youself into account, ask yourself, did i act righteous today? did I improve? was i alert and concerned about my state with Allah, or did i just waste time, did i pray?. Inshallah let’s all start become more aware of our life before it is to late and understand that we will be taken into account as those before us, So fullfill your obligations and stay on the deen. Ameen!

[ratings]

Alhumduillah since Ramadan is here, I’ve noticed alot of brothers who consider themselves overweight saying its our chance to get in shape.

What a good thing to hear, I mean everyday i hear about disasters and people starving to death, I just look around in this society and i begin to understand why we have some of the highest rates of obesity, from supersize soft drinks to triple burgers, it’s seem like the more we see in front of us the more we can’t control ourselves, how sad.

In the time of the Prophet Muhammad, A fat man walked by him with a big belly, stomach, however you want to say it and it was hanging, our Prophet said ” that stomach could have been on someone else”. Meaning that the amount of intake of food this guy was consuming he could have shared it with another person or “PERSONS”.

So anyhow the main point here is Ramadan is a month of controlling our desires, I spoke about food in particular because this is one of the problems i see in this country. So look at your metabolism, be on point with your weight, and one way to know if your overweight is if you look down, if you see your toes your ok, if you can’t, then umm yea!

So since you don’t have to eat from sunrise to sunset, when tims comes to eat, be a difference maker and leave your 1/3 of your stomach empty after breaking fast. As our Prophet said you should fill one third of your stomach with food, another 1/3 with water and the last part of your stomach should be empty with air. See how simple that is, there is no point of fasting and trying to lose weight if you are going to od when time comes, so be moderate in your eating habits, And Inshallah lets all control our desires. Ameen!

Some help from sunnipath on how to eat during Ramadan

“Fried foods, very spicy foods and foods containing too much sugar, such as sweets, can cause health problems and should be limited during Ramadan. They cause indigestion, heart-burn and weight problems. Fasting can often increase gastric acidity levels causing a burning feeling, a heaviness in the stomach, and a sour mouth. This can be overcome by eating foods rich in fibre such as whole wheat bread, vegetables, hummus, beans, and fruits. These foods trigger muscular action, churning and mixing food, breaking it into small particles, and thus help reduce the build up of acid in the stomach.

Drinking of sufficient water and juices between iftar and sleep to avoid dehydration, and for detoxification of the digestive system, should be encouraged in fasting individuals. However, the intake of large amounts of caffeine-containing beverages should be avoided, especially at sahur. For example, drinking too much tea will increase urine output and inevitably cause the loss of valuable mineral salts.

Fruits such as bananas are a good source of potassium, magnesium and carbohydrates. However, bananas can cause constipation and their intake has to be balanced with adequate fibre intake.

It is recommended that everyone engage in some kind of light exercise, such as stretching or walking. Overweight people should increase the amount of exercise and reduce the amount of food intake to help reduce weight.

It is also important to follow good time management procedures for Ibada (prayer and other religious activities), sleep, studies, work, and physical activities or exercise. A good balance in the amount of time attributed for each activity will lead to a healthier body and mind in Ramadan”