Islamic Culture & Photo Blog – Muslim Blog

Tag Archives: Muslims

Routines Most Muslims Follow During Fasting

August 13th, 2012
Comment
Articles, Ramadan
by Sufia

As soon as the month of Ramadan arrives, the routines of a vast majority of Muslims change in a lot of ways. The routines followed by Muslims during this month center around the Seher (Suhoor) and Aftaar times. These routines maximize the opportunity of Muslims to gain Allah’s blessings by increasing the time in which they can worship and pray to the Almighty God.

ramadan 480x800 Routines Most Muslims Follow During Fasting

In this article, a short discussion of the common routine followed by Muslims is presented, along with the description of the various ways in which this routine helps a Muslim in gaining physical fitness and mental cleanliness. The routines followed by Muslims all over the world vary in different regions, because the physical requirements of fasting and culture are different for different places. The fundamental routine, however, is quite similar, and revolves around the Seher and Aftaar timings.

Muslims begin their day by getting up atSeher (Suhoor). This is the time before dawn and Muslims get up around this time in order to take in meals and water to fulfill the bodily requirements for the fast of the upcoming day. The women generally get up before men because they have to handle all the cooking responsibilities. In some households, food for seher is prepared in the night to prevent the risk of skipping seheri (seher meal) the next morning due to late awakening. The Seheri food is mostly simple breakfast food supplemented with servings of water/juices to make up for the liquid intake of the rest of the day. The kind of meal served in Seheri differs in different cultures, but it is generally simple food comprising of bread, eggs and fruits.

The time for Seher gets over with the call (azaan) of Fajr, after which Muslims offer the Fajr prayer. From Fajr time to early morning, Muslims enjoy free time with no religious or worldly obligation. Some Muslims resume their sleep during this time while others use it to complete their work, projects or assignments. However, the majority of Muslims use this time to engage in worship and in reading the Holy Quran.

After this time, Muslims go to their works and begin their business/office activity as usual. Some Muslims begin their work a bit later in the morning during Ramadan to make up for the sleep lost during Seher. They continue their work activity till evening, taking two breaks for prayers for Zuhr and Asar prayer. Most Muslims like to offer these prayers in a congregation during Ramadan.

In the evening, Muslims return back to their homes as Aftaar time approaches. This is the time for feast for Muslims, as they eat ravenously to make up for the lack of food during the fast. This is not a good approach because taking such high amounts of food negates the very essence of fasting, i.e. to inculcate self-restraint in Muslims.

After this, Muslims rest for a while and then go off for Isha prayer after which they offer Tarawih prayers.

This is the routine commonly followed by most Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan.

Guiding Light For Muslims Of This Era Dr Muhammad Tahir-Ul-Qadri

June 10th, 2012
Comment
Articles, Faith, muslim
by Sufia

Dr Muhammad Tahir Ul Qadri 480x800 Guiding Light For Muslims Of This Era Dr Muhammad Tahir Ul Qadri

Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri is a great reformer, an aficionado, a devotee and a noble preacher of Islam. He has been working for the welfare of Islam for the past many years. He is renowned for his work. He has somehow succeeded in bringing to the bottom line the misconceptions about Islam in the western world. He has emerged as one of the most conscientious and diligent parson. He holds the credit for almost 1000 books. These books are available in different languages e.g. English, Arabic, Urdu, etc. Some of his distinguished and acclaimed books include The Glorious Qur’an English Translation, Fatwa on Terrorism and Suicide Bombings, Mawlid al-Nabi, Beseeching for Help, Islamic Concept of Intermediation, etc.

Around 425 of his books are on paper and published while the remaining 575 books are going through the procedure of being in the hardcopy. His books are so acclaimed that they have been translated in to different languages. Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri’s resurrecting, revitalizing, amending and reconstructive labours and harmony dynamics abide notable and significant connotation and embrace a consummate spot in promoting the grounds of world peace and human rights, metastasizing the factual Islamic assurance and belief and propagating portentous scrutiny exertion and discoursing the ideas of the Quran and Sunnah. Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri laid the foundation of a Sufism-based establishment Minhaj-ul-Quran International and used up the next decade mounting it countrywide and globally.

Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri has done prestigious work about the existence and the livelihood of Hazrat Muhammad (S.A.W). His work is beautiful and alluring. The way has thrown light on the slightest events from the life of the greatest Reformer of mankind is just the exhibition of his talent and competency. He actually makes all his readers worship and adore the subject again and again. His speeches on terrorism depict a new face of Islam to the western world, the one they praise. While his lectures he quotes references from different books which makes his lectures even more effectual.

Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri delivered a sermon titled as “Islam on Peace, Integration and Human Rights” in Manchester. Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri disagrees that terrorists and traitors have strayed and trespassed from the right, canonical wisdom of Islam and their defiant and mutinous fortitude of brutality, aggression and spiritual radicalism and fanaticism is a permanence of the Khawarij. Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri portrays intimidation as an “ideological contagion “Suicide assaults are strictly prohibited in Islam, these activities and conducts are un-Islamic, the massacre and killing of innocent mankind in any creed, conviction or kingdom, and violence in all its demonstrations, are thoroughly in negation with the tradition of Islam.” Last but not the least Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri has the right ability to speak to the heart and souls of his listeners, he conveys them the right and factual message and preaching of Islam.

Muslim Marriage – A Relationship Which Symbolizes Islam and Love

June 5th, 2012
3 Comments
Articles, Featured, muslim, Muslim Culture, Muslim Marriage
by Sufia

muslim marriage services Muslim Marriage A Relationship Which Symbolizes Islam and LoveMarriage in Islam is of huge importance. It is a sacred agreement between a man and a woman to be together in all times. The wed lock (Nikkah) allows the man and the woman to be together and grants this relationship a social, cultural, legal as well as religious/ holy permission to exist.

A typical Islamic marriage, one in which Islamic rules are being observed, is a symbol of love and unity. Islam prohibits dowry being obtained from the parents of the bride. The man is responsible for all the expenses. Islamic wedding parties are supposed to be attended by close family members and friends of the boy and the girl. This ceremony is supposed to be a simple one instead of being very pompous or elaborate.

Parents of the girl are to give only the essentials to their daughter. Hence it puts no economic or social pressure on them. This is different to Western traditions, where the bride’s parents are supposed to provide her with a dowry, as well as pay for the wedding.

Islam gives equal rights to man and woman. A woman has the right to file a divorce case under Islamic laws. Islam gives ultimate freedom to women by declaring that if a woman does not like her husband for some reason, she can get a divorce without further delay. A man is entitled to the same consideration.

Muslim Marriage 480x573 Muslim Marriage A Relationship Which Symbolizes Islam and Love

A Muslim man is responsible for earning for the household. He is bound by Islamic law to keep his wife happy and comfortable otherwise the woman has the right to leave him. Again this varies greatly from the Westerner, who technically has to provide for the woman, but all too often does not. The Islamic system also propagates a separate family setup in which husband and wife are allowed to have personal privacy. In the Islam world, the husband has to be just in his relationship with his woman. This is despite the fact that Islam allows the man to marry four times but he must seek the first woman’s permission for it. It is allowed only if the man is capable of being just to all of them. In the Western world, this is forbidden and punishable in a court-of-law if the law of monogamy is broken.

Giving man and woman equal rights and conferring equal duties shows that Islam wants a house to be an institute where living together is not a compulsion. Living together should arise out of love and not be a compromise. Islam believes in love and pursues this aim in every walk of life with ultimate determination.

Religion in America- Towards a better understanding of religion

May 30th, 2012
Comment
American Muslims, Articles
by Sufia

islam in america Religion in America Towards a better understanding of religion

American society has gone through a lot of radical social changes ever since the attacks on the Twin Towers on 9/11. One of such changes is the nation’s increased interest in religion on the whole. The horrific act of violence on 9/11 turned the whole world upside down.

Socio- political framework of the world has undergone a series of drastic changes. As an immediate reaction the whole world went against Islam but with the appearance of later proof about the responsibility of the attacks, the attitude has slowly reversed. American public’s shift towards religion is inevitably connected to the attacks and the people who caused them.

The horror that followed the attacks, the suffering that people witnessed, was enough to shake them hard. The questions about the importance of human life were raised at every forum. Terrorists were condemned globally. The turning point in all the mayhem was when America attacked Afghanistan and later Iraq.

World media and humanitarian organizations showed footages exposing that America was inflicting the same terror as did the terrorists. Human life meant nothing in any case. Serious reconsideration of politics and national interests is underway now. Questioning the society and life led people to religion, not only in America but all over the world. Hence we see millions of converts in the post 9/11 world.

The emergence of industry in the eighteenth century shifted the balance of society to commercialism from agriculture. The basic values of love and care got exchanged with economic and financial well being. Tribal identity vanished and even identity meant well being and status based on economy. The First World War and also the World War Two brought a regime of human rights around and the political ways of the governments were challenged but religion still remained in the background. 9/11 has put religion back on the agenda.

An overwhelming number of Americans, converting to Islam and other religions (in lesser numbers) from atheism shows humans quest for finding the meaning for life. In the process of giving life a meaning, American population is evidently moving towards a better understanding of religion. Every other day scientists are discovering new facts about universes, new theories are born and old ones are rejected. With every new discovery people are becoming more aware of their Creator.

Now the scientists have found that everything is written and mentioned in Quran, the book of God. The people are witnessing lot of miracles happening and proving the worth of becoming a true believer. Islam basically is the only religion that has code of life, and is a total manual for humans to follow and be successful. Islam is the chosen religion of Allah Subhan wa Tallah and the time is not far away when there will be the rule of Islam.

Page 1 of 512345