Finding Willingness of Allah At The End of Night for Ramadhan with Uztaz Abu Zaki Yusuf, 31st Aug 2008

Masjid Haji Muhammad Salleh @ Makam Habib Noh are having Qiamullail with after Subuh lecture. On sunday 31st August 2008, beginning at 3.30am with Solat Taubat, Hajat, Tasbih, etc. Followed up with Kuliah Subuh with the heading: "I Implore Forgiveness dear God! In Arch of Ramadhan". This majlis, steered by : Ustaz Abu Zaki Yusuf. Breakfast will follow with discussion, all are welcome

Synopsis
Preparation from spiritual dimension to welcome the blessed month of Ramadhan. Looking at our personal weaknesses and to be aware, that our soul are prepared for Allah grant in this noble month.

Preparation for the blessed month of Ramadhan-ul-Mubarak 1429/2008

Ramadan is fast approaching, every Muslim should prepare himself to welcome the blessed month of Ramadan by strengthening his relationship with the Qur’an, busing himself with the spirit of fasting, and recharging his spiritual battery to prepare himself to make the whole blessed month of Ramadan a real occasion of sincere obedience.

" Wishing all, a blessed Ramadhan-ul-Mubarak from hatzputra "

Fasting - Imam al-Ghazali

Excerpt from Imam al-Ghazali’s (d. 1111 CE / 505 AH) Book of Forty Principles from the Foundations of Religion:

Translated by: Khalil Abu Asmaa (Christopher Moore)

[ After discussing the Prayer and Zakah, Imam al-Ghazali goes on to say: ]

The Third Principle: Fasting

The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said that God said:

Every good deed is ten times its likeness, up to seven hundred times, except for fasting, for verily it is for Me, and I will reward it. [al-Bukhari and Muslim]

He (peace and blessings be upon him) also said:

For everything there is a door, and the door of worship is fasting. [Ibn al-Mubarak]

Fasting has been singled out with these amazing qualities for two main reasons:

1. Its essence is that it is a personal abstinence, and such is a hidden action that no one but God can see, unlike the prayer, the zakah, or other (acts of worship).

2. It is a grief for, and subdual of, the enemy of God. Shaytan is the enemy, and the enemy cannot gain strength except through the medium of the passions. Hunger breaks all the passions that are the tool of Shaytan. For this reason, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

Verily Shaytan runs in the Son of Adam like blood. Therefore, constrain the passageways of Shaytan with hunger. [al-Bukhari and Muslim, except after “Therefore”]

Such is the secret of his statement (peace be upon him):

When Ramadan comes the doors of Paradise are opened, the doors of the Fire are shut, the shaytans are restrained, and a caller calls: ‘Oh seeker of good, come forward! Oh seeker of evil, back off!’ [al-Tirmidhi, and al-Hakim said it was sound]

Know that fasting, in addition to its rank, has three levels, and in addition to its secrets, has three levels as well.
As for the levels of its rank:

The least of them is to only fast the month of Ramadan. The highest of them is the fast of David (peace be upon him), which entails fasting every other day. It is mentioned in an authentic narration (in both al-Bukhari and Muslim) that such is “the fast of all time” and that it is the best of all fasts. The wisdom behind this type of fast lies in the fact that whoever fasts daily, fasting will become completely habitual and he will not feel brokenness in his soul, purity in his heart, or weakness in his desires. For indeed, the soul is only impacted by what comes to it (occasionally), not by what it has become used to. This shouldn’t be hard to imagine, for medical doctors also discourage their patients from developing a dependence for medicine, and they say, “Whoever becomes accustomed to that he will not benefit from it when he is sick, for his temperament will becomes used to it and it will henceforth not affect him.”

Know that the doctoring of the hearts is akin to that of the doctoring of the bodies. This is the wisdom of the statement of the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) to ‘Abdullah b. ‘Amr b. al-‘Aas (may be pleased with them both) when he asked him about fasting: “Fast one day, break your fast the next.” He replied, “I want something better than that.” The Prophet (peace be upon him) responded, “There is nothing better than that.”

It is for this reason that when it was said to the Messenger of God (peace be upon him), “So-and-so fasts all the time,” he said, “He neither fasted, nor broke his fast.” This is just like when Aisha (may God be pleased with her) said to a man that was reciting the Quran in a rapid fashion: “This one here has neither recited the Quran nor kept silent.”

As for the middle level, it is to fast one third of the time. Whenever you fast every Monday and Thursday, adding to it Ramadan, then you have fasted four months and four days out of the year, which is slightly over a third. With that said, it is necessary that one day will be broken during the days of tashriq (during Hajj), so the total left is now three days. It is also imagined that the days of Eid will be lost as well, so this makes three days missed altogether, leaving us with one day. So think about the arithmetic and you will figure it out.

Therefore, it is inappropriate for your fast to be less than this, for it is light on the nafs (self) and its reward is immense.

As for the levels of its secrets, they are three:

1. The least of them is that one abstains from those things that break the fast, all the while not preventing his limbs from that which is disliked. This is the fast of the masses and it is indicative of their being pleased with the name (of “fasting”).

2. The second level is when you add to it prevention of the limbs. Hence, you guard the tongue from backbiting and the eye from looking at doubtful things, as well as guarding the rest of the body parts.

3. The third level is when you add to it the maintenance of the heart from (bad) thoughts and whisperings, and when you restrict it to the remembrance of God (Mighty and Majestic). This is the fast of the elect of the elite and it is the perfection of the fast.

Finally, fasting has a last matter by which it is completed: to break the fast with that which is permissible, not that which is doubtful. In addition, not to be excessive in the eating of the permissible, in an attempt to make up for what was lost in the morning. In this case one would be merging two meals into one thereby weighing down the stomach and increasing the desires. This will invalidate the wisdom of the fast and its benefit, and will lead one to be too lazy to get up for tahajjud (night vigil prayer) and possibly cause one to not even get up before Fajr (to have suhur and prepare for prayer). All of this is a complete loss and it may be that such a one will not even benefit from the fast at all.

As-Shafa’ah Al-Kubra - A Morning of Divine Devotions with Shaykh Hisham Kabbani Video

" a great event and I did enjoyed it very much 

and would like to share with you, sorry with 

resolution. I use my small camera "

As-Shafa’ah Al-Kubra - A Morning of Divine Devotions
Date: Sunday 24 August 2008
Time: 8.30 am to 1.30 pm
Venue: The Arab Association
No. 11 Lorong 37 Geylang Singapore 387908

As-Shafa’ah Al-Kubra - A Morning of Divine Devotions organized by SimplyIslam.sg on Sunday 24 August 2008 with Shaykh Hisham Kabbani and other Islamic scholars and personalities. The programme includes the following:

Congregational Recitation of Surah Yasin led by Ustaz Abu Zaki Yusuf
Lectures by Shaykh Hisham Kabbani, Ustaz Mohamed Iqbal Abdullah, Ustaz TM Fouzy & Ustaz Jalaluddin Hassan
Dhikrullah led by Shaykh Hisham Kabbani
Qasidah & Salawat recitals/performances by the Haqqani Malaysia Ensemble
Qawwali recital by A. Jainullabidin Faizi
Devotional Poetry recitals by Art Fazil & Friends

Conversation with God by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani in Singapore 2008

" auditorium at Singapore Power was very crowded "

" part lecture by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani, Conversation with God "

Alhamdulillah. I had the opportunity to attend a public lecture entitled “Conversation with God” by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani. Suppose to start at 8pm but Shaykh, was stucked in a traffic jam at Serangoon Road. It was an enlightened talk, and am please to share part of his lecture with you in my YouTube channel. I hope you, the reader, benefit from this sharing. Thank you to brother Mohamed Nassir and his team from simplyislam.sg in organizing this event. Please attend our next gathering this Sunday (please read my previous post).

Defining Tasawwuf: by Azhar Scholar Imam Abdul Halim Mahmoud

Defining Tasawwuf:
Abu bakr al-Kitaaniy said in defining tasawwuf, that it is manners and whomever increase on another in manners thus has more clarity and abul-Hasan an-Nawawi said, tasawwuf is not a set of rules or knowledge but manners, because if it was rules, then it would have been acquired through hard training, and if it was knowledge then it could have been achieved through studying. but it is through copying the manners of Allah. And the Shebly has defined it as its beginning is knowing Allah and its end is declaring his oneness.

And the general definition is what Abu bakr al-katani said: " Tasawwuf is clarity and observation. And Tasawwuf had started immediately with Islam and that is because it is of refined manners and a direction towards Allah in the easy parts of the deeds and the tough ones.

And from the first of the Sufis after the Sahabas and the followers are Ibrahim bin Adham and al-Fadil bin `Iyad. And because of the confusion between the people in distinguishing between an ascetic and a worshipper and a Sufi, we say:

The ascetic: The one who shuns away from the temptations of this world and its pleasures.

The worshipper: The one who is steadfast in the acts of worshipping like awaking in the night and prayer and so forth

The Sufi:
The one who is the ascetic and the worshiper, because the Sufi dispense with little from this world because he abstain from having anything distract him from Allah. And the Sufi is a worshipper because of his firm and continuous connection with Allah the exalted. He worships Allah because he is worthy of worshipping and not for desire or fear.

Rabe`a al-`Adawiyya (may Allah be pleased with her): Oh my Lord, if I worship you for fear of your hell fire then throw me in it, and if I worship you in greed for your heaven then forbid me from having it and if I am worshipping you for your generous face [an Arabic expression that means for no direct or indirect benefit] then forbid me not from seeing you.

FATAWA al-Imam Abdul Haleem Mahmoud Page 334, Vol 38 - Dar al-Ifta' al-Masriyya

"Sufism : The Core of Islam" lecture and Nisfy Shaban, orgazised by Ba'Alwi Mosque

" backdrop projection design by hatzputra for this close-door lecture event "

Title: 'Sufism : The Core of Islam'
Venue: Raffles Town Club
Date: 16th August 2008; Saturday
Time: 10am - 1pm

Speakers: Dr. Hisham A Hellyer
Assc/Prof Mehmet Sait Ozervarli
Prof. Rex O'Fahey

Moderator: Dr. Karim Crow

I will post some videos of the lecture and transcript soon after... will make time for this. But, meanwhile... enjoy this Majlis Nisfu Shaban the night after this event by Habib Hassan. Feel great, gathering with the huge crowd in prayers.

Shaykh Hisham Kabbani events in Singapore, August 2008

" Please visit simplyislam.com.sg for updated info "

Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Al-Kabbani will be in Singapore once again this August 2008, Alhamdulillah wa shukru lillah! SimplyIslam.sg will be organising a couple of events with Shaykh Hisham Kabbani, Ustaz Mohamed Iqbal Abdullah, Ustaz TM Fouzy, Ustaz Jalaluddin Hassan and others.

Prophet Muhammad (s): The Perfection of Character lecture by Prof Recep Senturk in Singapore

" This was taken in Al-Madinah Al-Monawwara (The Enlightened City),
where the mosque and grave of our great prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is. "

Lecture & Discussion
Prophet Muhammad (s): The Perfection of Character
Speaker: Prof Recep Senturk
Date: Wednesday 13 August 2008
Time: 8 to 10 pm
Venue: CIMS @ Wisma Indah
448 Changi Road, #04-01
SINGAPORE

Fee: $20 per person (w/refreshments)
Very Limited seats. So register now!
[CLICK HERE] TO REGISTER ONLINE

For enquiries, call Sis Saira Elley at Tel 65474407 or
Bro Mohamed Nassir at Mobile 90703200 or email saira@simplyislam.sg

SimplyIslam.sg and the Turkish Cultural Center are organizing an in-house lecture cum discussion with a visiting scholar, Prof Recep Senturk, from Istanbul's Fatih University.

Prof Recep Senturk will elucidate on some of the beautiful character of Allah's Beloved Messenger (s), and will also discuss the ways of exuding in ourselves the beautiful characters as manifested by Prophet Muhammad (s).

CONFERENCE ON SUFI MOVEMENTS IN CONTEMPORARY ISLAM 11-15 August 2008

Within academic scholarship on contemporary Islamic expressions, the focus has largely been on Muslim 'modernists', and more recently 'fundamentalists', and their attempts to come to terms with Western modernity. This has largely ignored how traditional Sufis and traditionalist Muslim groups have responded to facets of contemporary Muslim expressions. The conference ultimately aims to educate the audience and readership about Sufism. There is often an unfounded assumption that Sufism is a sect in Islam and/or a marginal element of Islamic expression. In discussing Sufism in contemporary Islam, the presentations of this conference will focus on a relatively little studied, but demographically very substantial, segment of the global Muslim population. This conference will attempt to explicate that by theological and historical as well as anthropological standards, Sufism is not a marginal expression of certain adherents. As such, this conference itself a much-needed scholarly endeavor to re-centre the study of Sufism in scholarship on Islam. The diverse sub-themes/issues to be addressed include general themes in ancient/medieval/modern Sufi history; theological histories of diverse Sufi tariqahs; Sufi reform movements; traditionalist Muslim activism; "Neo-Sufism" and modernist Sufi intellectualism; connections between Middle Eastern, South Asian and Southeast Asian Sufi expressions; anti-Sufis and their attacks on Sufi traditionalism; and diverse forms of contemporary "cyber" and "artistic" Sufi expression and interaction. It is expected that in dealing with these issues, the papers will discuss them within the overall context of the Sufi reactions to extremism however the latter is to be defined.

You are cordially invited to the aforementioned Conference.

As places at the Conference are limited, acceptances will be on a first-come-first-served basis. Please send in your response to Mrs Betty Kwan by Tuesday, 5 August 2008. For further enquiries, please contact Betty at email: , tel: 6870-2472, or fax: 6775-6264/6259.

Here are info on tentative programme and a registration form for your completion.
Info: 1) Tentative Programme
2) Registration Form

A more detailed info from www.iseas.edu.sg

Associate Professor Syed Farid Alatas
Head, Department of Malay Studies, National University of Singapore
Convenor, Conference on Sufi Movements in Contemporary Islam

The Blessed Month of Sha`ban by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani

Sha`ban is one of the meritorious months for which we find particular instructions in the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (saaw). It is reported in authentic ahadith that Prophet Muhammad (saaw), used to fast most of the month in Sha`ban. These fasts are supererogatory (nafl) and well deserving of reward, for Sha`ban is the month immediately preceding the month of Ramadan. The Prophet mentioned in a hadith, "Rajab is the month of Allah (swt), Sha`ban is my month and Ramadan is the month of the Nation".

1. The blessed companion Anas (as) , reports that Prophet Muhammad (saaw), was asked, "Which fast is the most meritorious after the fasts of Ramadan?" He replied, "Fasts of Sha`ban in honor of Ramadan."

2. The blessed companion Usama ibn Zaid , reports that he asked Prophet Muhammad (saaw) : "Messenger of Allah (swt), I have seen you fasting in the month of Sha`ban so frequently that I have never seen you fasting in any other month." Prophet Muhammad , replied: "That (Sha`ban) is a month between Rajab and Ramadan which is neglected by many people. And it is a month in which an account of the deeds (of human beings) is presented before the Lord of the universe, so, I wish that my deeds be presented at a time when I am in a state of fasting."

3. Ummul Mu'mineen `Aishah (r), says, "Prophet Muhammad (saaw), used to fast the whole of Sha`ban. I said to him, 'Messenger of Allah (swt), is Sha`ban your 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.’"

4. In another Tradition she says, "Prophet Muhammad (saaw), 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 (swt) 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 Sha`ban."

5. In another report she says, "I never saw the Messenger of Allah (swt), fasting in a month so profusely as he did in the month of Sha`ban. He used to fast in that month leaving only a few days, rather, he used to fast almost the whole of the month."

6. Ummul-Mu'mineen Umm Salamah (r), says: "I have never seen the Messenger of Allah fasting for two months continuously except in the months of Sha`ban and Ramadan."

These reports indicate that fasting in the month of Sha`ban, though not obligatory, is so meritorious that Prophet Muhammad (saaw) did not like to miss it.

The Night of Bara`ah (nisf Sha`ban)
Another significant feature of the month of Sha`ban is that it consists of a night which is termed in Shari`ah as "Laylatul-bara`ah" (The night of freedom from Fire). This is the night occurring between 14th and 15th day of Sha`ban. Traditions of Prophet Muhammad (saaw), prove that it is a meritorious night in which the people of the earth are attended by special Divine Mercy. We will be posting much more about this blessed night shortly.

What should be done in this night?
On the Holy Night of 15th Shaban, after Maghrib or Isha prayer it is traditional practice to read Surah Yasin three times, and after each time, read a special du`a with the following intentions:
1st reading the niyyat (intention) for should be for Long Life.
2nd reading the niyyat (intention) should be for Protection from Calamities.
3rd Reading the niyyat (intention) should be for not being needy to anyone except Allah.

What to recite (PDF ) [excerpted from Guidebook by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani]

It is very necessary that just as others observe this night, you observe it. To make an invitation to feed people on that night, to remember Allah (swt) and to remember His Prophet , and to fast its day and pray its night, will be rewarded for that night and for whoever observes it.
In order to observe the Night of Bara`ah, one should remain awake on this night as much as possible. If someone has the opportunity, he or she should spend the whole night in worship and prayer. However, if one cannot do so for one reason or another, he can select a considerable portion of the night, preferably of the second half of it for this purpose, and should perform the following acts of worship:
praying Salat ul-Khair, which consists of 100 raka`ts, in each raka`t reciting Sura al-Fatiha and 10 Surat al-Ikhlas. To complete the prayer one recites 1000 Sura al-Ikhlas.
The Night of Bara`ah is a night in which special blessings are directed towards the Muslims. Therefore, this night should be spent in total submission to Allah Almighty, and one should refrain from all those activities which may displease Allah.

Fast of the 15th Sha`ban
On the day immediately following the Night of Bara`ah, i.e. the 15th of Sha`ban, it is mustahabb (advisable) to keep fast. Prophet Muhammad (saaw) is reported to have recommended this fast emphatically. A large number of the predecessors (salaf) of the Ummah have been observing the fast of the 15th of Sha`ban.
Therefore, it is advisable to fast the 15th of Sha`ban as an optional (nafl) fast. One can also keep a fast of qada (make-up) on this day and it is hoped that he can also benefit from the merits of this fast.

'Conversation with God' Lectures by Shaykh Hisham Kabbani

Alhamdulillah, this month of August 2008 came with a lot of knowledge by renown Islamic scholars & teachers. We have the above lecture and at another event bellow, organized by the great people from SimplyIslam.sg. Both events are open to public. Free admission, No registration required and All are welcome.

AS-SHAFA’AH AL-KUBRA - A Morning of Divine Devotions
Date: Sunday 24 August 2008
Time: 9 am to 1.30 pm
Venue: The Arab Association
Program: Lectures, Qasidah, Poetry Recitals
Lectures by: Shaykh Hisham Kabbani, Habib Hassan Al-Attas, Ustaz TM Fouzy and Ustaz Jalaludin Hassan
Performances by: Haqqani Malaysia Ensemble, Jainul Abidin, Art Fazil, etc

About Shaykh Hisham Kabbani
Born into an eminent family of religious scholars in Beirut, Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Al-Kabbani is a world renowned Muslim scholar, author, and lecturer. He is Chairman of the Islamic Supreme Council of America. His mission is to spread the peaceful and beautiful Islamic teachings of the brotherhood of mankind and the Unity of belief in Allah. His arduous spiritual training of 40 years has endowed him with the sublime qualities of wisdom, light, intellect, and compassion. [Click here] for a detailed biodata of Shaykh Hisham Kabbani.