Weekly Islamic Quizzes and an Arabic Teacher

Weekly Islamic Quizzes

http://fiveonfriday.imaan.net/five.htm

It's a very simple website that asks 5 new questions to test your knowledge of Islam, every friday. 

One of the better websites that teach arabic:

http://www.madinaharabic.com/

They have around 26 lessons covering pretty much everything. I haven't looked into it too deeply, but the stuff they teach is on par with an arabic course book I have so it's pretty good.

Duha Prayer

 Abu Dharr reported Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) as saying: In the morning charity is due from every bone in the body of every one of you. Every utterance of Allah's glorification is an act of charity. Every utterance of praise of Him is an act of charity, every utterance of profession of His Oneness is an act of charity, every utterance of profession of His Greatness is an act of charity, enjoining good is an act ofcharity, forbidding what is distreputable is an act of charity, and two rak'ahs which one prays in the forenoon will suffice.  (Book #004, Hadith #1557)

Ahmad and Abu Daw'ud record from Buraidah that the Prophet (SAW) said: In a human (body) there are 360 joints and man must perform an act of charity for each one." The people said: "Who can do that, O Messenger of Allah?" He responded: "One may cover the mucus that one finds in the masjid or remove something harmful from the road. If one cannot do that, he can pray two rak'ahs of Duha and that will be sufficient for him". (Fiqh us Sunnah)

So, as you can no doubt see, we are pretty much expected to do Duha prayer. 

It's time: From when the sun is about a spears length above the horizon until the sun reaches it's meridian. Preferrably delay it until the sun has risen high, and the day has become hot. So, in english about an hour after sunrise until about an hour before duhr should be good. 

The number of Rakaa's: The previous hadith mention doing two, which is the minimum number, but, you can pray as much as you like really. (See Fiqh us Sunnah).

And that's it! Wasn't that easy?

The Witr Prayer

Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib: The Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: Allah is single (witr) and loves what is single, so observe the witr, you who follow the Qur'an.  (Book #8, Hadith #1411)

Narrated Kharijah ibn Hudhafah al-Adawi: The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) came out to us and said: Allah the Exalted has given you an extra prayer which is better for you then the red camels (i.e. high breed camels). This is the witr which Allah has appointed for you between the night prayer and the daybreak.  (Book #8, Hadith #1413)

Witr itself, means "odd", and it is an odd number of rakaas.

The time of Witr: After Isha, but before Fajr, and if you plan on doing other night prayers (i.e Tahajjud,) then witr should be done after those.

The Number of Rakaa':

First of all, whatever you do, don't do a replica of Maghrib. 

Imam al-Hakim in his book named al-Mustadrak and Imam Ibn Hibban in his Book Sahih Ibn Hibban that the Prophet (SAW) said: "Do not perform three Rakah of Witr resembling to the Maghrib prayer. But you can perform five, seven or eleven Rakah of Witr or more".

Second, you can only do ONE witr prayer. If you want to pray some more after doing witr, go right ahead, but DON'T make another witr. 

Okay, so what CAN you do?

You can do any odd number of Rakaa, but the numbers most mentioned are:

1) One

2) Three

3) Five 

4) Seven 

5) Nine

6) Eleven

7) Thirteen

So HOW do you do it?

First of all, in witr, Quran is recited in every rukaa.

The main event in Witr, that makes it a bit different from your other prayers, is the Qunut (a special dua). Qunut is done in the last rukaa, after the Quranic Recitation, but before bowing and is as follows:

QUNUT

1) Raise your hands and make takbir (say: "Allahu akbar")

2) Fold your arms like usual

3) Recite the Qunut:

"O Allah, guide me aright among those You guide aright,

and grant me health and pardon among those You grant health and pardon.

And care for me among those You care for

And bless me in what You have given

and protect me from the evil of what You have predestined.

You alone decrees, and none decrees against You.

He is not abased whom You befriend.

Blessed are You, O Lord and You are Most High.

And Allah's blessings be on (His) Prophet Muhammad (SAW)

4) Raise your hands and make takbir (say: "Allahu Akbar")

The Number of Rakaa's:

For ONE rakaa':

This is actually a bit misleading, since while Fiqh us Sunnah says the Prophet (SAW) did one Rakaa' of witr, the following hadith shows that it was the necessary Rakaa' to make HIS PREVIOUS NIGHT PRAYERS odd:

Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Umar : The Prophet said, "Night prayer is offered as two Rakat followed by two Rakat and so on, and if you want to finish it, pray only one Raka which will be witr for all the previous Rakat." Al-Qasim said, "Since we attained the age of puberty we have seen some people offering a three-Rakat prayer as witr and all that is permissible. I hope there will be no harm in it."  (Book #16, Hadith #107)

For THREE rakaas:

You have 2 options:

1) Do a 2 rukaa'd night prayer, then a single rukaa'd witr as before.

2) Do a three rukaa'd witr, in which tashahhud is done only in the last rakaa, followed by taslim (salams)

For ANY OTHER ODD NUMBER of rakaa's:

You have 3 options:

1) Do many 2 rukaa'd night prayers, then do a one rukaa'd witr, so by the time you've finished this witr you'll have done the necessary number of rukaas. So, for example, 5 rukaas would be : 2 rukaa'd night prayer, 2 rukaa'd night prayer, one rukaa'd witr.

2) Do an odd numbered rukaa'd prayer, with two tashahuds: one in the second last rukaa, and one in the last rukaa, then taslim (salams).

3) Do an odd numbered rukaa'd prayer, with only one tashahud done in the last rukaa, then taslim (salams).

What to recite during witr:

Recite whatever you like, but it is preferred, that in the first three rukaa's to recite:

Rukaa one: Al-A'la

Rukaa two: Al-Kafirun

Rukaa three: Al Ikhlas, Al Falaq, and An Nas.

What to recite after Witr:

Glory be to the Master, the Holy

Glory be to the Master, the Holy

Glory be to the Master, the Holy

Lord of the angels and the spirits

O Allah, I seek refuge in Your pleasure from Your anger.

And I seek refuge in Your granting well being from Your punishment.

And I seek refuge in You from You.

I cannot reckon Your praise: You are as You have praised Yourself.

Sources: Fiqh us-Sunnah by As Sayyid Sabiq

go to searchtruth.com and look up witr. You'll get a bunch of hadith confirming everything I've said :)

Argumentation, Again

I mentioned before that arguing is discouraged in Islam, and lucky for me, I hardly ever argue: 9.5 times out of 10 I'd rather keep the peace than have my way. Today however, I had a chat with a friend who basically said people should argue, and that they admire argumentative people. And for a moment I actually considered changing my ways. 


Then I read these and decided against it.


Narrated 'Aisha: The Prophet said, "The most hated person in the sight of Allah is the most quarrelsome person."  (Bukhari Book #43, Hadith #637)      

Do you know what is better than charity and fasting and prayer? It is keeping peace and good relations between people, as quarrels and bad feelings destroy mankind. (Muslims & Bukhari)

Rasul Allah (SAW) said: "Whoever does not argue when he is in the wrong will have a home built for him on the edge of Paradise. Whoever avoids it when he is in the right will have a home built for him in the middle of Paradise. And whoever improves his own character, a home will be built for him in the highest part of paradise." Tirmidhi  

Sa’eed bin Musayyeb says: Once the Prophet was sitting with his Companions, and one person used insulting words against Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), causing him pain. But Abu Bakr remained silent. The person again used bitter words against Abu Bakr, and still Abu Bakr did not respond. The third time when this ignorant person hurt Abu Bakr with his tongue, Abu Bakr tried answering back.
At this point the Prophet got up. Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) asked him, “Are you displeased with me, O Messenger of Allah?” The Prophet replied, “No, but (when you remained silent) an angel came down from the heaven responding to this man’s talk. But the moment you started replying to that man, the angel went away and the devil sat down. And I cannot sit where the devil is sitting.” Abu Dawood 041 4878


I'm not going to trade that which is better for that which is worse simply for the approval of one (or more) people. I'd rather have a house (or two or three or...lots) in paradise than have my way or my voice heard. That doesn't mean I'm going to be a complete pushover. Obviously if someone tells me to stick my head in an oven, I'm going to protest, but if nothing bad is going to happen except me being a bit inconvenienced I'm probably not going to bicker. It's not worth it, and it hasn't made me any enemies or lost me any friends yet. n_n

Tahajjud, the late night prayers, or as I like to call it: the H-bomb of prayers.

I'm sure you've read about the benefits and recommendations of staying up late, or waking up late to pray. If not, here are a few:

Surat 25: Al-Furqan

63) And the (faithful) slaves of the Most Gracious (Allah) are those who walk on the earth in humility and sedateness, and when the foolish address them (with bad words) they  reply back with mild words of gentleness.

64)  And those who spend the night in worship of their Lord, prostrate and standing.

Surat 51: Al-Dhariyat

15) Verily, the Muttaqun (the pious. See V.2:2) will be in the midst of Gardens and Springs (in the Paradise),

16) Taking joy in the things which their Lord has given them. Verily, they were before this Muhsinun (good-doers. See V.2:112).

17) They used to sleep but little by night [invoking their Lord (Allah) and praying, with fear and hope].

18) And in the hours before dawn, they were (found) asking (Allah) for forgiveness.

Verily, the rising by night (for tahajjud prayer) is very hard and most potent and good for governing oneself, and most suitable for (understanding) the Word (of Allah). 
(  سورة المزمل  , Al-Muzzammil, Chapter #73, Verse #6)

And during night, prostrate yourself to Him (i.e. the offering of Maghrib and 'Isha' prayers), and glorify Him a long night through (i.e. tahajjud prayer). 
(  سورة الإنسان  , Al-Insan, Chapter #76, Verse #26)

So I am here today to tell you the whats and hows of this recommended prayer, so here's what you do:

1) You need to wake up, or plan to wake up. Waking up your family is recommended too.

Jabir reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: He who amongst you is afraid that he may not be able to get up at the end of the night should observe Witr (in the first part) and then sleep, and he who is confident of getting up and praying at night (i. e. tahajjud prayer) should observe it at the end of it, for the recitation at the end of the night is visited (by angels), and that is excellent.  (Book #004, Hadith#1651)

Also, Abu Ad-Darda has reported that the Prophet (SAW) said: "Whoever goes to his bed with the intention of getting up and praying during the night, and sleep overcomes him until the morning comes, for him will be recorded what he had intended, and his sleep will be a charity for him from his Lord." (Fiqh us Sunnah)

The best time, of course, is during the last 3rd of the night:

Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated that Allah’s Messenger (SAW) said: 'In the last third of every night our Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) (Allah (SWT)) descends to the lowermost heaven and says; "Who is calling Me, so that I may answer him? Who is asking Me so that may I grant him? Who is seeking forgiveness from Me so that I may forgive him?."' [Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith Qudsi]

2) Wipe your face, brush your teeth (Narrated Hudhaifa : Whenever the Prophet got up for tahajjud prayer he used to clean his mouth (and teeth) with Siwak.  (Book #21, Hadith #237)) , look to the sky and say:

There is no God but You. glory be to You. I seek forgiveness from You for my sins, and I ask for your mercy. O Allah, increase my knowledge and let my heart not swerve after you have guided me, and bestow upon me from Yourself. You are the Granter of bounties. All praise be to Allah who restored us to life after our death and unto Him is the resurrection. 

3) Whip out a copy of the Quran and recite the last 10 Ayahs of Surah Al-Imran, starting at #190.

4) Say:

O Allah, to You belongs the praise.

You are the Light of the heavens and the earth and what is therein.

And to You belongs the praise.

You are the Sustainer of the heavens and the earth and whatever is therein.

To You belongs the praise.

You are the truth and Your promise is true.

And the meeting with You is true.

And Paradise is True.

And the Fire is true.

And the Prophets are true.

And Muhammad (SAW) is true.

And the Hour is true.

O Allah, to You have I submitted.

And in You have I believed. 

And in You have I put my trust.

And to You have I turned.

and by You I argue.

And to You do I turn for my decisions.

Forgive me my former and latter sins, and those done in private and those done in public. 

You are Allah, there is no God besides You.

5) Pray two quick Rak'ahs

Aishah says: "When the Prophet (SAW) prayed during the late night, he would begin his prayers with two quick rak'ahs." (Muslim)

Anas relates that the Prophet (SAW) said: "Prayer in my mosque is equal to ten thousand prayers (elsewhere). And prayer in the Sacred Mosque is equivalent to one hundred thousand prayers (elsewhere). And prayer in the battlefield is equivalent to one million prayers (elsewhere). And what is more than all of that is two rakahs by a servant (of Allah SWT) during the middle of the night. 

6) Pray whatever you'd like. 

There's no limit to the number of rakahs you can perform; tahajjud would count even if you just prayed one rak'ah of Witr, but whatever you pray, Witr should be the last payer. This means I'm going to have to explain what Witr is, doesn't it? 

Okay, without going in to great detail (and believe you me there is a lot of ways to do witr. In fact, I just found out I have been doing it wrong! ToT)

Right, for a 3 rukaa'd Witr, it's going to be just like any other prayer, except you don't sit for at-tahiyat in the second rukah: you just stand up again, and in the third rukah, there is a Quranic recitation after Al-Fatiha, and then there is a special dua called the Qunut to be said. So, from the beginning:

1) "Allahu Akbar"

2) Opening Dua

3) Al Fatiha

4)Quran

5) Bow

6) rise

7) Prostration 1

8) sit

9) Prostration 2

10) stand up

11) Al Fatiha

12) Quran

13) bow

14) rise

15) Prostration 1

16) sit

17) Prostration 2

18) STAND UP.

19) Al Fatiha

20) QURAN

21) Raise your hands and make takbir (say: "Allahu akbar")

22) Fold your arms like usual

23) Recite the Qunut:

"O Allah, guide me aright among those You guide aright,

and grant me health and pardon among those You grant health and pardon.

And care for me among those You care for

And bless me in what You have given

and protect me from the evil of what You have predestined.

You alone decrees, and none decrees against You.

He is not abased whom You befriend.

Blessed are You, O Lord and You are Most High.

And Allah's blessings be on (His) Prophet Muhammad (SAW)

24) Raise your hands and make takbir (say: "Allahu Akbar")

25) bow

26) rise

27) Prostration 1

28) sit

29) Prostration 2

30) sit

31) Finish the prayer (recite At-tahiyat and whatever else you normally do, then say the salams to the right and left.)

7) Recite:

Glory be to the Master, the Holy

Glory be to the Master, the Holy

Glory be to the Master, the Holy

Lord of the angels and the spirits

O Allah, I seek refuge in Your pleasure from Your anger.

And I seek refuge in Your granting well being from Your punishment.

And I seek refuge in You from You.

I cannot reckon Your praise: You are as You have praised Yourself.

8) Now that that's all done and finished with, I like to take this time to make Dua for whatever; good health, pass exams, forgiveness. If it's the last third of the night, and you did all that, I'd imagine you'd be in pretty good standing to have your prayers answered! :D

A Quran reciter, searcher, explorer, translator, educator!

It has about 15 or so reciters, and an English speaker as well.  If you hover over any ayat, you can get the English translation. It even has a feature I’ve never seen before: you can change the complexity of the Arabic script to be simple (no phonetics), intermediate (some phonetics) or regular (all the phonetics and pauses, etc.). It’s got a nice simple easy to use interface so if you’re looking for an online Quran without all the bulk, this might be the one for you!

http://www.tanzil.info/

Or, you could use this handy little tool I found:

http://www.memorizenow.com/

It's not specifically designed for Quran, but find your favorite transliteration, actually It'll probably even support arabic text, copy and paste it into the box, and let the memorizing begin! This little web app will gradually cut down what is shown to you, taking out words and leaving blank spaces that you can mouse over to get  a hint. Is it effective? Well, I've heard an 8 ayat long Surat about 5 times, 2 months ago, but of course the general sound pattern remains in your head (The Quran is weird that way). I put it into the box and 30 minutes later, I have the thing memorized! :)

He's Here, But a Bit Tied Up.

This is one of the most interesting hadith I've ever read. Basically what it amounts to is that somewhere on this planet there is an island on which both the Antichrist and Jassasa (the hairy beast) reside.

When Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) had finished his prayer, he sat on the pulpit smiling and said: Every worshipper should keep sitting at his place. He then said: Do you know why I had asked you to assemble? They said: Allah and His Messenger know best. He said: By Allah. I have not made you assemble for exhortation or for a warning, but I have detained you here, for Tamim Dari, a Christian, who came and accepted Islam, told me something, which agrees with what I was-telling, yuu about the Dajjal. He narrated to me that he had sailed in a ship along with thirty men of Bani Lakhm and Bani Judham and had been tossed by waves in the ocean for a month. Then these (waves) took them (near) the land within the ocean (island) at the time of sunset. They sat in a small side-boat and entered that Island. There was a beast with long thick hair (and because of these) they could not distinguish his face from his back. They said: Woe to you, who can you be? Thereupon it said: I am al-Jassasa. They said: What is al-Jassasa? And it said: O people, go to this person in the monastery as he is very much eager to know about you. He (the narrator) said: When it named a person for us we were afraid of it lest it should be a Devil. Then we hurriedly went on till we came to that monastery and found a well-built person there with his hands tied to his neck and having iron shackles between his two legs up to the ankles. We said: Woe be upon thee, who are you? And he said: You would soon come to know about me. but tell me who are you. We said: We are people from Arabia and we embarked upon a boat but the sea-waves had been driving us for one month and they brought as near this island. We got Into the side-boats and entered this island and here a beast met us with profusely thick hair and because of the thickness of his hair his face could not be distinguished from his back. We said: Woe be to thee, who are you? It said: I am al- Jassasa. We said: What is al-Jassasa? And it said: You go to this very person in the monastery for he is eagerly waiting for you to know about you. So we came to you in hot haste fearing that that might be the Devil. He (that chained person) said: Tell me about the date-palm trees of Baisan. We &aid: About what aspect of theirs do you seek information? He said: I ask you whether these trees bear fruit or not. We said: Yes Thereupon he said: I think these would not bear fruits. He said: Inform me about the lake of Tabariyya? We said: Which aspect of it do you want to know? He said: Is there water in it? They said: There is abundance of water in it. Thereupon he said: I think it would soon become dry. He again said: Inform me about the spring of Zughar. They said: Which aspect of it you want to know? He (the chained person) said: Is there water in it and does it irrigate (the land)? We said to him: Yes, there is abundance of water in it and the inhabitants (of Medina) irrigate (land) with the help of it, He said: Inform me about the unlettered Prophet; what has he done? We said: He has come out from Mecca and has settled In Yathrib (Medina). He said: Do the Arabs fight against him? We said: Yes. He said: How did he deal with him? We informed him that he had overcome those in his neighbourhood and they had submitted themselves before him. Thereupon he said to us: Had it actually happened? We said: Yes. Thereupon he said: If it is so that is better for them that they should show obedience to him. I am going to tell you about. myself and I am Dajjal and would be soon permitted to get out and so I shall get out and travel in the land, and will not spare any town where I would not stay for forty nights except Mecca and Medina as these two (places) are prohibited (areas) for me and I would not make an attempt to enter any one of these two. An angel with a sword in his hand would confront me and would bar my way and there would be angels to guard every passage leading to it; then Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) striking the pulpit with the help of the end of his staff said: This implies Taiba meaning Medina. Have I not, told you an account (of the Dajjal) like this? 'The people said: Yes, and this account narrated by Tamim Dari was liked by me for it corroborates the account which I gave to you in regard to him (Dajjal) at Medina and Mecca. Behold he (Dajjal) is in the Syrian sea (Mediterranian) or the Yemen sea (Arabian sea). Nay, on the contrary, he As In the east, he is in the east, he is in the east, and he pointed with his hand towards the east. I (Fatima bint Qais) said: I preserved It In my mind (this narration from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him).  (Muslim: Book #041, Hadith #7028)