Categories
Dhulm/Oppression Poems

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak…

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

I am not Palestinian, I am not Arab, I am Muslim but it is the duty,

Of every Muslim to make me free.

Where are your men, where are the armies?

That is what I need in times of atrocities.

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

Your speeches are empty and your words are weak,

I wish the truth had a tongue and my walls could speak.

To the tyrant rulers I don’t need your false lies,

I don’t worry about the merciless Zionists but I worry for the Muslim hypocrites and spies.

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

I don’t worry about tanks and planes,

I don’t care about the tractors and cranes.

I worry about the Takbeer inside me and the echoes of the Adhan,

I worry about the Tasbeeh in my corners and the melody of the Qur’an.

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

I want to hear the name of Allah, My Master,

He will free me from this calamity and disaster.

I no longer have any patience, the time has come,

Please! I beg you march and roll the drum.

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

To the Muslim rulers, come and liberate me,

Otherwise don’t you dare visit me.

O Muslims! Why don’t you feel my pain?

Don’t see you see the bombs and rockets that daily rain?

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

Where is NooruDeen? Where is SalahuDeen?

Nowhere are they to be found, nowhere are they to be seen?

O Ummah! Rescue me, I am shackled and tied,

You say you are 1 billion, but I feel like you have already died (spiritually).

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

They are weak and known to be cowards (Israelis),

But what has happened to you, you seem to have spiralled downwards?

Even a small army is sufficient, it would certainly conquer and win,

But you fear your enemy more than you fear your sins.

If al-Masjid al-Aqsa could speak… it would say

I know you will not come, I know you are afraid,

I await the Khalifah the one who must be obeyed.

I shall return to the Muslims, I will be free one day,

This has been prophesised and it is not just hearsay… (In Sha Allah).

Ismail ibn Nazir Satia (One who is in dire need of Allah’s forgiveness, mercy and pleasure)

15th Shawwal 1442

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNLhwhp6co8

Audio recital of the poem

Categories
Spirituality

Watch YOUR Words!

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Manner of Advising

The Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said: “O Umar! You are a strong person. Do not jostle through the crowds to reach the black stone lest you injure the weak. If you find an opening, then touch it, otherwise, simply face it and utter Tahleel and Takbeer (laa ilaaha illallaah and Allaahu akbar).” [Musnad Ahmad]IMG_9831

On one occasion the Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi was a sallam) noticed that Umar (radi Allahu anhu) was making Tawaf around the Kaabah and as he wished to touch the black stone, he jostled through the crowds and kissed it. Umar (radi Allahu anhu) was very muscular and strong and on his way to the black stone he could have harmed someone. The Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) wanted to advise him in this regard, so in order to mentally prepare him for advice he started by saying, “O Umar, you are a strong person.” Umar (radi Allahu anhu) became pleased upon hearing this. The Prophet (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) then said, “Do not jostle through the crowds to reach the black stone.”

There was once a king who saw in a dream that all his teeth had fallen out. He called a dream-interpreter, told him what he had seen, and asked him to interpret it.

When the interpreter heard the dream his complexion changed and he began to repeat, “Allah’s refuge is sought! Allah’s refuge is sought!” The king became worried and asked, “What is the interpretation of my dream?” The interpreter said, “After many years pass, your wife and children will die and you will be all alone in your kingdom!”

The king screamed, became furious, and began to hurl abuses and insults. He then ordered that the interpreter is imprisoned and called for another interpreter. He again related to him what he had seen in his dream and asked him for the interpretation.

The dream interpreter smiled and said, “Glad tidings dear king!” The king said, “What is the interpretation of the dream?” The interpreter said, “It means that you will live for very long – so long that you will be the last of your family to die, and you will remain a king your entire life.”

The king became very pleased, showered him with gifts, and remained content with him whilst angry with the first dream-interpreter. In reality, both interpretations were the same, the difference was in the way in which the interpretation was conveyed.

A man’s flesh is not fit for eating nor is his skin fit for clothing – there is nothing in him except the sweetness of his tongue.

 

Anonymous

Rabiul Awwal 1440

Categories
Poems

WORDS as sharp as sWORDS ⚔️

1-1-Cosplay-Free-Shipping-Sword-Movie-Lord-of-The-Rings-The-Hobbit-Frodo-Baggins-72cm.jpg_220x220.jpg
Words can be sharp, as sharp as a sword,
Sometimes we need to let them out because of the stuff we hoard.
But before you speak, take my advice on board,
Think before you speak, think of your Lord.
Don’t let your words out loosely, like marbles rolling down the road,
The cost of such a tongue is astronomical, one which you can’t afford.
When you speak, speak clearly, not like deciphering a code,
Some murmur and mutter, like they’re in sleep ? mode!
Using hurtful words can sometimes strike a chord,
They may get you in trouble or attract a nasty horde (a crowd).
We all make mistakes and we are all flawed,
We need to ensure before we wag our tongues our words are pored (examined).
If you have nothing good to say, keep your lips ? sewed,
Don’t let your words out, let them be stored.
Otherwise, on Qiyamah you will carry a heavy load,
Because words can be sharp, as sharp as a sWORD!?
Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejFLIy2Atx8
Sword_topNteaser
Ismail ibn Nazir Satia (one who is in dire needs of Allah’s forgiveness, mercy and pleasure).
19 Rabiul Awwal 1440
Categories
Muslim women

Bullying in Islam

bully

In the name of Allah, the most Beneficent, the most Merciful.

Bullying in Islam

Bullying is against Islam as it entails injustice being done towards an individual by another.  Those that engage in bullying actually have a weak nature and want to compensate for that weakness by trying to be ‘superior’ to others that they deem inferior to themselves.

Bullying is a form of oppression. Islam explicitly forbids all forms of oppression and injustice.  Sayiduna Jabir Bin Abdullah (Radiallahu Anhu( narrates that the Prophet of Allah (Sallallahu Alahi Wasalam) said “Be on your guard against oppression, for oppression is a darkness on the Day of Resurrection.”   (Sahih Muslim)

In a Hadith Qudsi, Allah (SWA) has said: ‘I shall take revenge on the oppressor in this life and the next.  I shall take revenge on someone who saw a person being oppressed and was able to help him but did not help him.’   (Tabraani)

If you are being bullied, especially at school, you should not remain silent but instead inform those who have authority.

Only Allah Knows Best

Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham

Islam Says NO to Bullyinghttp://muslimmatters.org/2012/02/24/bullying-islam-everything-in-between/

Noora runs into the house and slams the door behind her.  She bounds up the stairs and her mother hears her bedroom door slam.  She audibly sighs sadly thinking to herself, “She had another bad day at school.  I wish she would talk to me about it.”  Noora curls up on her bed and cries quietly wondering what she did to deserve what she goes through at school everyday.  Sometimes she even finds herself wishing she could just get a physical “beat down” rather than suffer through the daily emotional torment of being teased, ostracized and singled out for abuse.  She feels as though her mother won’t understand what she’s going through and she also doesn’t want to disappoint her by confessing that she just doesn’t know how to handle the bullies.  She feels hopeless and she doesn’t know to whom to turn so she cries quietly in her room, and each day holds in more and more of the torment she faces.

Bullying was once viewed as a necessary rite of passage of childhood, something children simply must endure.  However, bullying is not simply something children will mature out of; rather, bullying can result in serious harm and long-term consequences.  Bullying can take different forms, including[1]:

  • Physical bullying: includes hitting, punching, kicking and other types of physical harm, as well as destruction of a child’s property.
  • Verbal bullying: includes teasing, name-calling, taunting and racial slurs, as well as spreading gossip or malicious rumors.
  • Cyberbullying: includes harassing emails, instant messages and text messages, as well as intimidating or threatening websites, blogs or posts.

Parents often feel completely powerless as they witness their child’s tears day-after-day, as much a part of the afterschool routine as homework.  Bullying has reached a new peak in our society and with tragedies such as the shooting at Columbine, bullying has received a great deal more attention than it used to. With the advent of technology, bullying no longer occurs exclusively within the walls of schools.  Rather, social media has provided another opportunity to bullies who seek to demean others.  Home is no longer a safe haven for victims of bullying; a Facebook status can hurt just as much, if not more, than hearing the typed words spoken aloud.

The Victims of Bullying

Being the victim of bullying can evoke a great deal of shame in children and teens (and in adults as well, since bullying is not an epidemic that exclusively targets children).  Therefore, your child may not confide in you and may go through great pains to hide the fact that s/he is being bullied.  The signs may not be as visible as a black eye; although children are often physically intimidated, bullying can be also be targeted in a way that leaves psychological and emotional bruises.  Some things to keep a lookout for, which may signal that your child is being bullied includes (but is not limited to): damage to personal belongings, unexplained injuries, a decline in academic performance, physical complaints (i.e. stomach aches, headaches, tiredness, etc.), reluctance when going to school or riding the bus, few friends, or a noticeable change in sleeping or eating habits.

There are certain qualities that may make some children more susceptible to bullying.  These include the following characteristics: cautious, sensitive, quiet, withdrawn, shy, anxious, insecure, low self-esteem, unhappy, lack of a close friend, relate better to adults than peers, physically weaker than peers.  Bullying is a cycle, so these characteristics can be just as much a consequence as a partial cause of being victimized.  There is also another subset of people within this bullying cycle who are characterized as bully/victims, who are both bullies and victims of bullying simultaneously.  Bully/victims tend to experience a greater variety of symptomology including both internalized (anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts) and externalized (hyperactivity, rule-breaking) issues[2].

The Bullies

Although the focus of prevention and interventions are often on victims of bullying, it is important to provide support to bullies as well.  As the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,  “Help your brother, whether he is an oppressor or he is oppressed.” The Prophet was asked: “It is right to help him if he is oppressed, but how should we help him if he is an oppressor?” He replied: “By preventing him from oppressing others.” (Ṣahīh Bukhāri, Volume 3, Ḥadīth 624)

From this ḥadīth, we learn the importance of helping those who are oppressed but, even more profoundly, the need to assist oppressors by stopping them from committing this infringement on the rights of others.  Bullies are often misconstrued as people who simply take pleasure in the pain of others.  However, research has found that some are quite complex and somewhat of a mystery.  Many research studies have found that bullies are more likely to exhibit behavioral issues including aggressiveness, hyperactivity, attention deficits and conduct problems.  However, contrary to what is normally considered of bullies, one research study found that they suffer from depression, anxiety, psychosomatic disorders, and eating disorders to the same extent as those who were victimized by their bullying[3].  Some things that may signal that your child is bullying others include: being aggressive with others, gets sent to detention often, has unexplained new belongings or extra money, quickly blames others, refuses to accept responsibility for actions, and has a need to win or be the best at everything.

Verbal, Emotional & Psychological (Nonphysical) Bullying

Interactions between individuals, from an Islamic point of view, are governed by the fundamental right of sanctity of life, honor, and property.  Therefore, anything that compromises these rights should be stopped.  In Sūrat’l- ujurāt (49:10-12), Allah says, Verily, the believers are brothers…

  •   let not some people mock others, for they may be better than themselves,
  • nor (let) women (mock) women who may be better than themselves.
  • And do not slander yourselves, nor revile by (offensive) nicknames
  • O you who believe, avoid (indulging in) much suspicion; truly, some suspicion is a sin.
  • And do not spy or backbite one another; would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would abhor that.
  • And be conscious of Allah; indeed, Allah is Relenting, Merciful.” 

These verses emphasize the non-physical face of bullying.  Verbal and emotional bullying can have even greater and longer-lasting negative effects on the victims than physical bullying.  Many of us may have grown up asserting the maxim, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” however, we soon realize that sometimes words can hurt more than anything else.

According to Rachel Simmons’s Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls[4], this type of bullying is particularly common among girls and often goes unnoticed by non-participants (such as teachers and parents).  Due to the expectation of girls to be sweet, nice and caring, direct aggression is deemed unacceptable in them.  However, girls are just as likely as boys to experience anger, a natural human emotion, so they engage one another in nonphysical, alternative forms of aggression.  This includes:

  •  Relational aggression: acts that harm others through damage (or the threat of damage) to relationships or feelings of acceptance, friendship, or group inclusion.
    •  This is seen through behaviors such as ignoring someone to punish them, excluding someone socially for revenge, using negative body language or facial expressions, sabotaging someone’s relationships, etc.
  • Indirect aggression: the bully avoids confrontation using covert behaviors.  In this way, it may seem as though there was no intent to hurt anyone and others may be used as vehicles to cause pain to the targeted person.
    •  This is seen in the spreading of rumors, backbiting, “accidentally” knocking over someone’s books, etc.
  • Social aggression: intent to damage the self-esteem or social status of a targeted individual.
    • This can include rumor spreading, backbiting, and social exclusion.

Rather than using physical intimidation as a weapon, relationships are used for leverage.  What could be worse than the threat of loneliness and social isolation as you wander friendlessly through the halls of school?  Hearing lies spread about you to cause you to lose your friends and fall into a downward spiral of lowering self-esteem?  One of the issues inherent in these forms of alternative aggressions is the fact that they can easily be committed under the radar of others.  Teachers are often caught unaware when their students speak with them about this type of bullying and don’t know how to deal with it since it is not easily spotted.  When engaging in covert aggression, the bullies often seem like the type of people who would never mistreat someone; it’s the perfect disguise for accomplishing as much damage as possible while ensuring their actions are undetectable to others.

Girls in this type of situation often have nowhere to turn; they may feel too ashamed to speak to their parents or teachers about the torment they’re enduring because they may feel as though they have failed at a fundamental rite of passage – making friends.  There is also a great deal of uncertainty regarding these alternative aggressions; girls may question, “Did she just bump into me on purpose?;” “Did she roll her eyes at something I said?;” “Is that note she’s passing about me?” It’s easy to know when someone gives you a black eye, but if you’re uncertain whether others are shutting you out or teasing you behind your back, it becomes much more difficult to discuss it with others.  By the same token, many girls withstand emotional abuse from their close friends in order to maintain the inclusion as a part of a group; they fear that the creation of any conflict (including voicing their concerns) will cause them to lose a relationship.  Due to this, anger continues to simmer and issues pile up and are rarely addressed.

Practical Tips & Possible Solutions

It is incredibly important to arm our children, our students, and ourselves with the proper methods of coping with bullying.  This is not simply a rite of passage that children must endure. Furthermore, the issues brought about by bullying can quickly, and dangerously, spiral out of control.  In the next segment, practical tips and possible solutions will be offered to promote healthy relationships.


[1] Mayo Clinic Staff (2010, August 24). Bullying: Help Your Child Handle a School Bully. Children’s Issues.  Retrieved January 19, 2012, from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bullying/MH00126

[2] Olweus, D. (1999). Sweden. In P. K. Smith, Y. Morita, J. Junger-Tas, D. Olweus, R. Cata- lano, & P. Slee (Eds.), The nature of school bullying: A cross national perspective (pp. 7–27). London: Routledge.

[3] Kaltiala-Heino, R., Rimpelä, M., Rantanen, P., & Rimpelä, A. (2000). Bullying at school. An indicator of adolescents at risk for mental disorders. Journal of Adolescence, 23, 661–674.

[4] Simmons, Rachel (2002).  Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls.  San Diego, CA: Hartcourt Trade Publishing.

bullying girls