baghdad – My Little Breathing Space – I write for the few, not the many. The few that are left out!

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

rich-lock-354758 If Cleopatra visited Swarovski Jewellery store or Claire’s, I wonder how she would feel about her jewellery?

If Kisra, the ruler of Persia spent the night sleeping in YOUR bed, what would he think of his own royal bed?

Would Caesar be proud of his luxurious life; reclining on a couch and fanned by slave girls if he knew that my living room has a more comfortable reclining chair and an A/C unit that can make it feel like an igloo even in a Texan summer?

Would Qaroon strut arrogantly about the keys to his wealth that needed strong men to carry, if he knew that the keys to my wealth are carried in plastic cards in my wallet?

In the land of Mesopotamia so mesmerized by their chariots, what would they think if they saw a Toyota Corolla?

If the people of Baghdad and Cordoba, who used to pride themselves at the vastness of the collection of their libraries, saw the number of books that can be carried by a college student on their USB drive, how would they feel?

If the kings who used to pride themselves on the quickness of their messengers and carriers were introduced to email, text messages and WhatsApp, what would they think of how we were living?

If Al-Nu’man RH, the king of Arabia, who used to drink cold water kept in a specially made skin container and the people used to envy him for that, how would they feel if they saw the water fountain in our masjid?

If the ‘Abbasid Caliph Al-Mansour RH who used to have his slaves mix hot water with cold water to create a unique bath for himself and his people used to imagine what that was like, what he would think of trying out my jacuzzi?

If the people who used to dream about items and search for them all their lives knew that we simply search and purchase them on Amazon?

If the people who used to travel for months and maybe years to reach their destinations knew that it takes us only a few hours on planes, trains, cars or motorbikes!

My brothers and sisters, we live today better than many of the kings and royals of the past, but we can’t see it! We only have eyes for what others have, remember every time your eyes wander wide, your heart constricts!

“And do not extend your eyes toward that by which We have given enjoyment to [some] categories of them, [its being but] the splendor of worldly life by which We test them. And the provision of your Lord is better and more enduring.” (Taha v. 131)

Do not focus on what you DON’T have. Focus on what you DO have!

Comprehend the following statement with your heart and memorize it on your tongue:

When you are grateful to Allah and do what He asks of you, He will give you much more than what you ask of Him.

By Shaykh Waleed Basyouni

ADVICE FROM BAGHDAD REGARDING OUR MADARIS

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Hadhrat Mufti Muhammad Taqi Uthmani ( حفظه الله ) has written regarding his journey to Baghdad:

“Baghdad is that city which for centuries had been at the center of the Islamic world. The mere sight of this city reminds one of the glorious days of the Abbāsi khilāfat.

Upon reaching Baghdad I enquired whether there were any Madāris (seminaries) present in which Islamic knowledge is imparted in accordance with the ways of the pious predecessors.

I was informed that all such Madāris had now been converted into schools and universities. Now, the knowledge of Deen can only be attained from university faculties, such places wherein Islam is taught as mere theory, similar to ancient philosophy. Islam can neither be seen in the lives of the students nor in the Ustādhs (teachers). Forget bring religious scholars, on seeing their appearance, one wonders if they are even Muslim.

“This is just like how orientalists study Islam today, in the universities of America, Canada, and Europe. If you read their books and articles you will come across the names of such books that many of our Ulamā have never even heard about. It seems as if deep tahqīq (research) is being made. But [sadly], in spite of swimming in the ocean of Islamic knowledge from morning till evening, they return dry as bone. No effect of what they rigorously study can be seen in their lives. The soul of this knowledge has been destroyed. “

Mufti Taqi Uthmani thereafter asked if they could at least direct him to an Ālim (scholar) of the old school of thought, so that he could present himself at his service.

He was directed to a Masjid close to the tomb of Shaykh `Abd al-Qādir al-Jīlani (رحمة الله ), in which was a Maktab.

Here he met an old pious-looking man. Mufti Taqi Usmani described his meeting with him in the following words:

“On seeing him, I felt as if I was in the presence of a pious Allah-fearing Ālim. He was sitting on a straw mat, dressed in coarse clothing, and eating dry bread. The light of the Sharī`ah could be discerned on his forehead.

“After making salaam, he enquired regarding my name and the place from which I had come. He also asked about the condition of the Madāris of our country, their syllabus, and the manner in which the kitābs (books) are taught.

Tears flowed from his eyes as I mentioned the names of the kitābs found in the Dars-e-Nizami syllabus [the syllabus used by Islamic seminaries across the Indian subcontinent].

He asked, “Are these kitābs still being taught!?”

“I replied in the affirmative. He then explained, ‘Today, we have been deprived of even hearing the names of these kitābs.

These kitābs create Allah-conscious men, they create true Muslims. In our country these books are no longer taught.

I beg you to convey this message of mine to the Ulamā and the masses of your country, that for the sake of Allah عز و جل , they should bear everything , but should never allow the destruction of such Madāris wherein these kitābs are taught!’ ”

The enemies of Islam are fully conscious of the fact that as long as these simple Mawlānas, sitting on straw mats, are present in society, they cannot remove Īmān (faith) from the hearts of the Muslims.

Therefore the enemies of Islam are making all out effort to remove these Madāris.