mosques crippled and not playing their great role today,

    Mosques in Islam

 From the events of the emigration to Madinah, it is clear that the Prophet (PBUH) never stayed in any place unless he built a mosque therein for the believers to gather. He built the Quba mosque when he stayed there for four days. He also built a mosque between Quba and Madinah when the time of the Friday prayer came while he was in the residence of the tribe of Salem ibn Auf in the heart of Ranonaa’ Valley.

    When he arrived in Madinah, the first act he performed was the building of a mosque.

    This indicates the importance of a mosque in Islam. All acts of worship (ibadah) in Islam are for the purification of the soul, refinement of morals, and strengthening the ties of mutual cooperation among the Muslims. The congregational prayers and the Friday and Eid prayers are strong examples of the nature of the Muslim community and in the unity of their opinions, goals and cooperation in achieving righteousness and in fearing Allah.

    Thus, if this is the case with the acts of worship, it is no wonder that mosques carry a great social and spiritual place in the lives of the Muslims. The mosque is the thing which unites them and their efforts. It refines their souls and awakens their minds and hearts. It solves their problems. The mosque shows their strength and cohesiveness.

    The history of the mosques in Islam has proved that from them come the great armies of Islam which rush to fill the earth with Allah’s guidance. From the mosques the beams of the light of guidance emanate for the Muslims and others. Inside them, the seeds of Islamic civilization develop and grow.

    Is it not true that Abu Bakr (RA), `Umar (RA), `Osman (RA), Ali (RA), Khalid (RA), Sad (RA), Abu Obadiah (RA), and their likes from among the greats of Islamic history were but the students of the Muhammad’s school which was headquartered in the Prophet’s mosques?

    Another special characteristic of the mosques in Islam is that the word of truth emanates from them every week on the tongues of the preachers. The topic may be about forbidding evil and enjoining good or an invitation to do some good, an awakening for the heedless, an invitation to assembly, objections to a wrongdoer, or a warning about a tyrant.

    If we see the mosques crippled and not playing their great role today, it is due to the fault of some of their paid preachers, mercenaries or the ignorant. On the day when the strong leaders and the scholars of Islamic legislation, sincere to Allah and His Messenger, give advice to the leaders and common Muslims and ascend the pulpits and lead the prayers, on that day the mosque will return to its leading position in the Islamic society. The mosque will return to its role in raising real men, graduating heroes, reforming corruption, fighting evil and building society upon the foundation of fearing and pleasing Allah alone. We hope for this to take place, Allah willing, when the vanguard of our purified, believing youths, who are educated with Allah’s religion and who behave with the Prophet’s manners, occupy the pulpits and the rooms of the mosques.

 If you review the history of Islam you would note that great emphasis on the building of mosques has been laid from the very beginning of Islam.

Living in non-Muslim countries we as Muslims (especially our youth) carry the risk of losing our Islamic Identity. Aside from the rigorous discipline we must establish at home in learning and maintaining the Islamic culture, the mere fact that we are surrounded by non-Islamic ideas and emotions can have an overpowering impact on our personality. Trying to maintain Islam in isolation from the Ummah is not only difficult but Holy Muhammad Mustafa (Sallallaahu alayhi wasallam also advised against it:

…“Shaitan is a wolf like the wolf that preys on sheep, taking the isolated and the stray among them; therefore, avoid factionalism and keep to the Congregation and the collective and the Masjid.” [Ahmad]

It is of vital importance that the Muslims (including the community leaders) adhere to the example of Holy Muhammad Mustafa (Sallallaahu alayhi wasallam in all aspects of life. If there is any deviation than it is up to each and everyone one in the Muslim community to give his or her advise based on the commands and prohibitions outlined in the Qur’an and Sunnah.

For the Imams and Community Leaders: It is of the utmost importance when engaging in the day-to-day management of Muslim affairs, to observe the Ahkam of Islam with Taqwa, and to be very meticulous in following the laws and the trade regulations. In this way, it will be extremely difficult for the media to make a news piece about us or the centers we manage. Furthermore, it should always be considered that any information taken by the media will be publicized and will as a result, affect us and the Masjid, school or community centre that we are responsible for. More importantly, it could have an effect on the whole community as well. Being a leader in the community also means that we will be under the watchful eyes of the public. Consequently, it would be an extra motivation to examine and implement the example of Holy Muhammad Mustafa (Sallallaahu alayhi wasallam and of those who emulated him. For example, recall how Umar ibn Al-Khattab (R.A.) cooked with his own hands after learning that a mother and her children living as citizens of the Khilafah were hungry

Consequently, it is vital that we utilize all means permissible in Shariah to organize the Muslim communities in the non-Muslim lands and assist each other in holding onto Islam and establishing a sense of community amongst ourselves. The Masjid, Islamic schools and community centers are excellent tools for achieving this goal as they can serve the function of bringing Muslims together on the basis of Islam and facilitate the dissemination of Islamic ideas and emotions.

  If I said anything correct, then it is from Allah (Subhanahu WA Ta’aala),

      And if I erred, then that is from me and Shaitan.

May Allah Subhanahu WA Ta’aala (GOD) make us from the Companions of His Book and unite us with His righteous slaves in the highest gardens of Paradise. Amen.

May Allah Subhanahu wata`aalaa grant us what is best in this world and the next!

Action speaks louder then words my friend’s practice Islam the way of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaahu alayhi wasallam) did.

 May Allah Subhanahu WA Ta’aala (GOD) help us to do that which He loves and which pleases Him?

May Allah Subhanahu WA Ta’aala (GOD) make our efforts sincere and keep us all on the straight path...........

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"O Allah, make the months of Rajab blessed for us.

Alhamdulillah, most of you will be familiar to the many blessings and endless mercy which transcends this holy month but here is the Prophet (sws) & Sahaba (ra) describing the Month of Rajab.

Month of Rajab

The Prophet said "Rajab is the month of Allah, Sha`ban is my month and Ramadan is the month of my Nation."

Is the seventh month of the Islamic Calendar.

The meaning of Rajab:    The lexical definition of Rajaba is "to respect", which is where the word Rajab has been deprived from.

 This month was regarded as one of the sacred months (Al-Ashhur-al-hurum) in which battles were prohibited in the days of the Holy Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam. It is also a prelude to the month of Ramadan, because Ramadan follows it after the intervening month of Sha'ban. Therefore, when the Holy Prophet Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam sighted the moon of Rajab, he used to pray to Allah in the following words:

"O Allah, make the months of Rajab and Sha'ban blessed for us, and let us reach the month of Ramadan (i.e. prolong our life up to Ramadan, so that we may benefit from its merits and blessings)."
    Al-Hafidh Ibn `Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Hajar Al-`Asqalani, an eminent scholar, wrote a detailed study entitled “Tabyeen Al-`Ajab bima Warada fi Fadl Rajab.” Ibn Hajar included in this study almost all the hadiths reported about the merit of Rajab and the rewards entailed by observing fasting and optional Prayer during it, classifying these hadiths into either weak or fabricated ones.

    He also mentioned that Rajab has eighteen names, the most famous of which are these:
Al-Asamm (“the Deaf Month”). It was called so because no rattle of weapons was heard during it, it being one of the sacred months in which fighting is prohibited.
It was called also Al-Asabb (“the Poured-in Month”), because [it was believed that] mercy is poured on people during it. It was called also “the Iron Remover.” In this regard it was reported that Abu Raja’ Al-`Utaridi said, “We used to worship stones [before Islam]. But when we found a better stone than the first one, we would throw the first one and take the latter. If we could not get a stone then we would collect some earth (soil), then bring a sheep and milk that sheep over it, and perform Tawaf around it. When the month of Rajab came, we used (to stop the military actions), calling this month the Iron Remover, for we used to remove and throw away the iron parts of every spear and arrow during it” (Al-Bukhari).

    The merit of Rajab is like the merit of the rest of the other sacred months. Allah Almighty says: (Lo! the number of the months with Allah is twelve months by Allah’s ordinance in the day that He created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred: that is the right religion. So wrong not yourselves in them) (At-Tawbah 9: 36).

    The names of these sacred months are mentioned in an authentic hadith said by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the Farewell Pilgrimage. According to this hadith, the sacred months are four, three in succession—that is, Dhul-Qi`dah, Dhul-Hijjah, and Muharram—and the fourth is Rajab, which comes between Jumada Thani and Sha`ban.

    According to the above verse, Allah Almighty has ordered the Muslims not to wrong themselves (or others), especially in these sacred months. So no fighting between tribes was to be waged during these months, so that people would guarantee that the way to the Sacred House be safe. This is indicated by Almighty Allah’s saying in another verse: (Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wherever ye find them) (At-Tawbah 9: 5).

    Another manifestation of not wronging oneself in the sacred months is to avoid committing sins or wronging others. Some scholars derived from Almighty Allah’s ordering Muslims not to wrong themselves especially in the sacred months that the blood money paid in the case of killing a person by mistake is to be increased by one third if this act is committed during the sacred months. But it is to be noted that the fatwas of those scholars are not based on direct evidence from the Qur’an or Sunnah.

    Observing voluntary fasting in the sacred months, including Rajab, is recommended. In this regard, Abu Dawud reported on the authority of Mujibah Al-Bahilyyah that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to her father or uncle, “Observe fasting for some days in the sacred months and leave fasting for other days.” He (peace and blessings be upon him) said this three times, folding three fingers of him and then unfolding them each time. The Prophet’s using three fingers here is meant to assert his recommendation of fasting during these months, and not to indicate the number of the days to observe fasting therein.

    Hence, doing good deeds, including fasting, in Rajab is generally praiseworthy like doing so in the rest of the sacred months. According to Ibn Hajar, there is no hadith, whether authentic or good, reported to the effect that observing fasting in Rajab entails a special reward.

    Among the weak hadiths circulated about the special rewards entailed by fasting in Rajab is this: “There is a river in Paradise called Rajab; its water is whiter than milk and sweeter than honey. He who observes fasting of a day from the month of Rajab is like him who observes fasting for a whole month; he who observes fasting of seven days from it will be given refuge against the seven gates of the Fire; he who observes fasting of eight days from it, the eight gates of Paradise will be opened for him; and he who observes fasting of ten days from it, his bad deeds will be turned into good ones.”

    There is another long hadith reported in this regard, in the context of which it is reported “Rajab is Almighty Allah’s month, Sha`ban is my month, and Ramadan is my Ummah’s month.” This hadith was said to be fabricated. It was also mentioned in Al-Jami` Al-Kabir by As-Syuti that this hadith was reported by Abu Al-Fat-h ibn Abu Al-Fawaris in his book Amali as a mursal hadith (a hadith which a Successor has directly attributed to the Prophet without mentioning a Companion).

    Of the fabricated hadiths reported about the praiseworthiness of offering special Prayers during Rajab is this: “He who performs the Maghrib Prayer in the first night of Rajab, and then offers twenty rak`ahs, two by two, reciting in each rak`ah surat Al-Fatihah and surat “Qul huwa Allahu Ahad,” Allah Almighty will guard him, his family, his wealth, his children; he will also be given refuge against the punishment of the grave and will pass over the bridge above Hell like lightening without being brought to account or exposed to punishment (in the Hereafter).”

    Ibn Hajar dedicated in the study referred to above, a whole chapter for the hadiths reported about prohibiting fasting the whole month of Rajab. He then said, “This prohibition applies to the person who observes fasting during it out of following the pre-Islamic tradition of sanctifying this month. But if he observes fasting in this month for Allah’s sake without obligating himself to fast certain days from it, or to offer night vigil Prayer in certain nights of it, there is nothing wrong in this. The prohibition meant here is analogous to the prohibition referred to in the Prophet’s hadith ‘Do not single out the night (preceding) Friday among the nights for Prayer and do not single out Friday among days for fasting.’ ”

    As for him who observes fasting in Rajab, believing that fasting during it is more praiseworthy than fasting in the other months, this is controversial among scholars, but Ibn Hajar was of the opinion that this is not permissible.

    Ibn Hajar also quoted Abu Bakr At-Tartushi as saying in Al-Bida` wa Al-Hawadith, “It is not recommended to observe fasting in Rajab if this is done out of one of three intentions, one of which is to do so out of believing that its fasting is obligatory like the fasting of Ramadan, or it is a regular act of Sunnah, or that its fasting is more rewarded and praiseworthy than fasting in the other months. If anything of the kind had been true, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would have clarified it. According to Ibn Dihyah, fasting in general is a good act, but it should not be observed in Rajab out of believing that it entails special rewards then. `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) would not recommend fasting in Rajab out of this belief.”

    Concerning visiting graves in Rajab, many people, especially women, are used to visiting graves on the first Friday of Rajab. There is nothing in Shari`ah that recommends such an act, and doing so does not entail a reward better than that entailed by visiting graves on any other ordinary day.

    Muslims should, rather, remember the important events that took place in the history of Islam during this month, such as the Night Journey and Ascension, the Battle of Tabuk, and the liberation of Al-Aqsa Mosque from the crusaders at the hands of Salah Ad-Din Al-Ayubi (AH 538). Muslims should derive lessons from this glorious history, so that they may reunite and seek to liberate Al-Aqsa Mosque anew from its recent brutal occupiers.

Events of Rajab:-    The Holy Prophet  ascended to Heaven on the 27th of Rajab on either Sunday or Monday (Mi'raaj).
-Hadhrat Bilal Ibn Haritha (R.A) brought a congregation of four hundred men named Banu Muzeena in the presence of the Holy Prophet .  They all embraced Islam and became followers of the Holt Prophet  in the year 5 A.H
-The battle of Tabook took place in the year 9 A.H. This was the last battle which the Holy Prophet  participated in.
-The second Oath of Aqabah took place in Rajab, 12 A.H.

Deaths in Rajab:-
-Imam Abu Hanifa (R.A) passed away on the 15th of Rajab 150 A.H.
-Imam Shafi'ee (R.A) passed away on the 14th Rajab 204 A.H.
-Imam Muslim (R.A) passed away on the 24th of Rajab 261 A.H.
-Imam Nawawee (R.A) passed away on the 14th of Rajab 677 A.H.

“Knowledge knocks on the door of action. If it receives a reply, it stays, otherwise it departs.”

Have fun praying and getting ready for the Day of Judgment coz that day will NOT be fun :) P.S.: don’t forget to make dua  for me. !! .