Stand firm...

The 7 Productive Goals a Day - Surah Al-Fathihah

1. Say Bismillah before beginning a task—In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.
2. Thank Allah (swt) often—[All] praise is [due] to Allah, Lord of the worlds
3. Be Kind—The Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful
4. Remember the Day of Judgment—Sovereign of the Day of Recompense
5. Seek Only Allah (swt) for help—It is You we worship and You we ask for help
6. Follow the Sunnah—Guide us to the straight path
7. Do righteous deeds and seek the company of the righteous—The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor, not of those who have evoked [Your] anger or of those who are astray

 (Full article here)

Wasting Time

Wasting time is worse than death, because wasting time disconnects you from Allah and the Hereafter, while death disconnects you from this worldly life and its people.

(Al-Fawaa'id by Ibn Qayyim) 

Killing Time

Study Tips

Study Tips

Bees and Ants

"The bees are divided into groups, one of which stays with the [queen] and never leaves [her]. Another group makes wax, which is made from the dregs of honey and is sweet like figs. The bees take great care of this, more than they do with the honey. They clean it and purify it from any contamination such as urine and the like. Another group builds the houses, another group brings water, carrying it on their backs. A third group sweeps the hive and cleans it of any dead bodies (of bees). If they see a slow, lazy bee, they kill it so that it cannot corrupt the other workers and infect them with its idleness and laziness." ('Belief in Allah' by 'Umar S. al-Ashqar, pg183)

"The ant is one of the most careful creatures whose caution is proverbial. It is mentioned that when Sulayman (Solomon) saw how cautious the ant was and how careful it was to store food, he brought out an ant and asked it how much does an ant eats each year? It said, three grains of wheat. So he ordered that the ant should be placed in a bottle, and be given three grains of wheat , and the bottle should be sealed and left after a year.  When the year had passed, he commanded that the bottle should be opened, and he found one and a half grains of wheat left. He said, 'Did you not claim that you needed three grains of wheat per year?'

The ant said, 'Yes, but when I saw that you were very busy with the affairs of your own kind, I thought of how much my life was left, and I realized that it was longer than the time you had allocated for me, so I limited myself to eating half the food, and I left half in order to ensure my survival...' "  ('Belief in Allah' by 'Umar S. al-Ashqar, pg199-200)

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Reflections relevant to work

• Each group/department/person in the working environment has a delegated role/function to play to ensure continuity of operations - do not short change these roles/functions (i.e. under-staff, employees to take on multiple roles) to ensure quality of product.
• Always give 110% when producing a product - maintain high standards, constant evaluation and improvements.
• Cut off any dead weight immediately.
• Be prepared for emergencies/ 'thunderstorms' - be cautious of the budget, less expenditure - to ensure survival.

Sahih Bukhari, Vol 1, Hadith no. 15

Narrated by Anas radiyAllahuanhu: The Prophet sallaAllahu alayhi wassallam said -

"Whoever possesses the following 3 (qualities) will have the sweetness (delight) of faith:

1. The one whom Allah 'Azza wa jal and His Messenger (Muhammad sallaAllahu alayhi wassallam) become dearer than anything else.
2. Who loves a person and he loves him only for Allah's sake.
3. Who hates to revert to kufr (disbelief) as he hates to be thrown in the fire."

Surah An-Nahl, Verse 128

Surah An-Nahl, Verse 128:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوا وَّالَّذِينَ هُم مُّحْسِنُونَ
 Truly, Allah is with those who fear Him (keep their duty unto Him), and those who are Muhsinun (good-doers).

Narrated by Abu Hurairah radiyAllahu anhu:

Allah’s Messenger sallaAhu ‘alayhi wa sallam said, “The deeds of anyone of you will not save you [from the (Hell) Fire].” They said, “Even you will not be saved by your deeds), O Allah’s Messenger?” He said, “No, even I (will not be saved) unless and until Allah bestows His Mercy on me and protects me with His Gtace. Therefore, do good deeds properly, sincerely and moderately, amd worship Allah in the forenoon and in the afternoon and during a part of the night, and always adopt a middle, moderate, regular course whereby you will reach your target (Paradise).”

(Sahih Al-Bukhari, Vol 8, Hadith No. 470)

A friend will not literally share your struggles...

Advice from the great scholar Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (rahimahullah):

A friend will not (literally) share your struggles, and a loved one cannot physically take away your pain, and a close one will not stay up the night on your behalf. So look after yourself, protect yourself, nurture yourself and don’t give life’s events more than what they are really worth. Know for certain that when you break no one will heal you except you, and when you are defeated no one will give you victory except your determination. Your ability to stand up again and carry on is your responsibility. Do not look for your self worth in the eyes of people; look for your worth from within your conscience. If your conscience is at peace then you will ascend high and if you truly know yourself then what is said about you won’t harm you.

Do not carry the worries of this life because this is for Allah. And do not carry the worries of sustenance because it is from Allah. And do not carry the anxiety for the future because it is in the Hands of Allah.

Carry one thing: How to Please Allah. Because if you please Him, He Pleases you, fulfills you and enriches you.

Do not weep from a life that made your heart weep. Just say, “Oh Allah compensate me with good in this life and the hereafter.”

Sadness departs with a Sajdah. Happiness comes with a sincere Du’a. Allah Does Not forget the good you do. nor Does He Forget the good you did to others and the pain you relieved them from. Nor Will He Forget the eye which was about to cry but you made it laugh.

Live your life with this principle: Be good even if you don’t receive good, not because for other’s sake but because Allah Loves those who do good….

The Past is Gone Forever

“Episodes of the past are finished with, sadness cannot retrieve them, melancholy cannot make things right, and depression will never bring the past back to life. This is because the past is non-existent.”

- ‘Don’t be Sad’ by 'Aaidh ibn Abdullah al-Qarni

Remembrance of Allah

1. Narrated by Abu Musa (radiyAllahu anhu): The Prophet sallaAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said “The example of the one who remembers (glorifies the Praises of) his Lord, in comparison to the one who does not remember (glorify the Praises of) his Lord, is that of a living creature compared to a dead one.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)

2. Narrated by Abu Hurairah (radiyAllahu anhu): Allah’s Messenger sallaAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam said “Whoever says, Subhan Allahi wa bihamdihi, one hundred times a day, will be forgibven all his sins if they were as much as the foam of the sea.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari).

3. Narrated by Abu Hurairah (radiyAllahu anhu): Allah’s Messenger sallaAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam said “Whoever says: La ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lahu, lahul-mulku wa lahul-hamdu wa Huwa 'ala kulli shai'in Qadir*, one hundred times will get the same reward as given for manumitting ten slaves; and one hundred good deeds will be written in his accounts, and one hundred sins will be deducted from his accounts, and it (his saying) will be shield for him from Satan on that day till night, and nobody will be able to do a better deed except the one who does more than he.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari)

Surah Hud, Verse 114

Narrated by Ibn Mas'ud radiyAllahu anhu:

A man kissed a woman and then came to Allah’s Messenger sallaAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam and told him of that. So this Divine Revelation was revealed to the Prophet sallaAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam - “And perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat) at the two ends of the day, and in some hours of the night [i.e. the (five) compulsory Salat (prayers)]. Verily, the good deeds remove the evil deeds (small sins). That is a reminder for the mindful.” (Qur'an 11:114). The man said, “Is this instruction for me only?” The Prophet sallaAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam said, “It is for all those of my followers who encounter similar situation.”

(Sahih Al-Bukhari, Vol. 6, Hadith No. 209).

Today is all that you have

It is reported on the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn 'Amr (radiyAllahu anhu) that Allah’s Messenger sallaAllahu 'alayhi wa salam said “… verily, he whose abode will be Paradise, his final deed will be the deeds of the people of Paradise, whatever he did (previously), and verily, he whose destined for the Hell-Fire, his final deed will be of the people of the Hell-Fire, whatever he did (previously).” (Narrated by Ahmad and At-Tirmizi)

Taken from "Don't be Sad" by 'Aadh Ibn Abdullah al-Qami

Great Women of Islam Who were given the good News of Paradise

“One day [‘Aishah bint Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with her)] was fasting and a beggar came to her apartment and asked for some food. She told her maid to give the lady the piece of bread they had. The maid answered that there was nothing else with which she could break her fast. 'Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) answered curtly that she should help the hungry woman and the evening would take care of itself. By the evening, someone sent her a dish of cooked meat; she said to the maid that Allah 'Azza wa jal had provided her with something even better than what she had given away.”

Taken from “Great Women of Islam Who were given the good News of Paradise” by Mahmood Ahmad Ghadanfar.