Are You Scared of Wearing Hijab Outside?

Indeed everyone knows that it is quite difficult for you to go out wearing Hijab and Niqab in a society that mocks and torments you. I know that you, indeed, feel strange and out of place. However, if you knew the status of those who are mocked by the Kuffar as well as the status of the strangers, you will continue to wear your Hijab & niqab; for ALLAH Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala says in His Book in Surah Al-Mutaffifin:

[083:029] In fact the criminals, the unbelievers, used to laugh at those who believed.

[083:030] As they passed by the believers, they would wink at each other (jokingly).

[083:031] And when they returned to their family, they returned jesting (and grinning).

[083:032] Whenever they saw the believers, they said, “These are the people gone astray.”

[083:033] The unbelievers were not sent as guardians over the believers.
[083:034] So today, it is the believers’ turn to laugh at the unbelievers.

[083:035] (The believers would be sitting) on elevated thrones, looking on.

[083:036] Now, have the unbelievers not been paid in full for what they did?

Transliteration:
[083:029] Inna allatheena ajramoo kanoo mina allatheena amanoo yadhakoona

[083:030] Wa-itha marroo bihim yataghamazoona

[083:031] Wa-itha inqalaboo ila ahlihimu inqalaboo fakiheena

[083:032] Wa-itha raawhum qaloo inna haola-i ladalloona

[083:033] Wama orsiloo AAalayhim hafitheena

[083:034] Faalyawma allatheena amanoo mina alkuffari yadhakoona

[083:035] AAala al-ara-iki yanthuroona
[083:036] Hal thuwwiba alkuffaru ma kanoo yafAAaloona

Now…ALLAH Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala’s Words mentioned above should serve as a support for you O my dear respected sisters in Islam. Be strong!!!.. and keep holding on tight to the rope of ALLAH Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala.

May ALLAH Subhanahu Wa Ta’ala guides and protects us always. Ameen ya Rabbal Alameen.

Why Not to Celebrate "April Fool's Day"?

Many of us celebrate what is known as April fool or, if it is translated literally, the “trick of April”. But how much do we know of the bitter secret behind this day?

When the Muslims ruled Spain, approximately one thousand years ago, they were a force that could not be destroyed. The western Christians wished that they could wipe Islam from the face of the earth, and they succeeded to some extent. They tried to limit the spread of Islam in Spain and to put an end to it, but they did not succeed. They tried numerous times and never succeeded.

After that, the kuffar sent their spies to Spain to study and find out the secret of the Muslims’ strength which could not be defeated. They discovered that adhering to taqwa (piety or consciousness of ALLAH) was the reason.

When the Christians discovered the secret of the Muslims’ strength, they started to think of strategies to break this strength. On this basis they began to send wine and cigars to Spain for free.

This tactic on the part of the west produced results, and the faith of the Muslims began to weaken, especially among the young generation in Spain. The result of that was that the western Catholic Christians subdued the whole of Spain and put an end to the Muslim rule of that land which had lasted for more than eight hundred years. The last stronghold of the Muslims, in Grenada, fell on April 1st, hence they considered this to be the “trick of April.”

From that year until the present, they celebrate this day and consider the Muslims to be fools. They do not regard only the army at Granada to be fools who are easily deceived, rather they apply that to the entire Muslim Ummah. It is ignorant of us to join in these celebrations, and when we imitate them blindly in implementing this evil idea, this is a kind of blind imitation which confirms the foolishness of some of us in following them. Once we know the reason for this celebration, how can we celebrate our defeat?

After knowing this reality, let us make a promise to ourselves never to celebrate this day. We have to learn from the Spanish and adhere to the reality of Islam and never allow our faith to be weakened again.

Thus I would say: It does not matter what the origins of April fool are. What matters more is knowing the ruling on lying on this day, which we are sure did not exist during the first and best generations of Islam. It did not come from the Muslims, but rather from their enemies.

There is a never a day or a moment when shari’ah permits a person to tell lies or to say whatever he wants based on lies. One of the things that have become widespread among the common people is the so called “April Fool’s Day”, where they claim that the first day of the fourth solar month is a day when lying is permitted without being subject to any shar’ii guidelines.

Journey of Sister 'Amal Loring' to Islam

Five years ago, Amal Loring converted to Islam. A year later she became second wife to her Emirati husband and has never been happier. “I was born into a middle-class family in the UK. At 29, I moved to Dubai with my then partner to take a job for a multinational software company. We got married in 1999 and I decided to retrain as a counselor. For many years we lived the typical expat life of Friday brunches and beach clubs. On reflection it seemed an empty existence.

“Our daughter was born November 9, 2001 and her birth coincided with so much negative press about Islam. As an expat I didn’t mix with the local community and had many preconceptions about Muslims – in particular about terrorism and the treatment of women. Yet my own culture was far from ideal. On visits back home I witnessed what I felt was a breakdown of society. I saw children with no respect for elders, binge-drinking, teenage pregnancy and increasing violence. It was not the life I wanted for my daughter or myself. I began to take more notice of the local culture and religion of Dubai, particularly the role of Islam.

“Word about my research got around and one day I received a call from Shaikh Saeed Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum inviting me to his palace to discuss Islamic theology. We talked openly for hours. I discovered that rather than women being repressed and controlled, they are respected and treated as a precious jewel. So many things fell into place that day. Shaikh Saeed asked me several questions and, on answering them, he declared me a Muslim. In his presence I recited the shahada, accepting that there is only one God and that the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) was his last messenger. From that moment my new life began.

“A Muslim woman cannot be married to a non-Muslim, which put an end to my already rocky marriage. Our then six-year old daughter stayed with me. In the beginning it was difficult. I never lost my faith but I did wonder if I’d done the right thing. I didn’t fit into my own culture but I didn’t feel entirely comfortable in my adopted one either. So much was unfamiliar, I was always tripping over my abaya and I was constantly stared at wearing it, being pale-skinned and blue-eyed. I soon chose to also wear the niqab, the facial covering that reveals only the eyes. Non-Muslims think it is oppressive but I see it as the opposite. It’s entirely my choice and I wear it because it stops the stares and gives me a sense of freedom and dignity.

“The transition from my old life continued to be difficult. I lost most of my expat friends because I no longer drank and didn’t socialise in mixed company. Back home my family and friends assumed I was having some kind of breakdown. I was accused of being a fool, a victim of brainwashing, even a suicide bomber. In my full abaya my own mother wouldn’t walk on the same side of the street as me. People refused to serve me in shops. I was once asked to leave a park, even spat at. I dealt with each stressful situation calmly because of the new inner strength my faith gave me.

“As soon as you become a Muslim there is much excitement in finding a husband. The introduction process in Islam was completely new to me – you don’t go to the cinema or have meals alone with a man. Instead a prospective husband will sit and discuss your values and beliefs. I was introduced to Mohammad and we quickly fell in love. His family and most of his friends accepted me without question. We were married in June 2008. I am his second wife. He lives with my daughter and me three days a week and with his first wife and their children for the rest of the time. I don’t get jealous – a Muslim husband treats all his wives equally.

“The line between culture and religion can sometimes be blurred. I now realise I have lived much of my life in ignorance and I feel compelled to bridge the cultural divide. My husband is very supportive of this wish. In 2009 I began a degree in Islamic Studies to give me the courage and knowledge to answer the many misconceptions about Islam. I have set up a Facebook support group, the New Muslim, and I volunteer at a local mosque. A big part of my work at Mind Body Dynamixs is also dedicated to bringing Dubai’s many cultures together.

“As a therapist, people come to me every day searching for happiness. By embracing Islam and marrying into the local culture I have found inner peace. My faith, my husband and my daughter are my inspiration. I am now content with myself and have never felt more understanding towards others. What I would say to anyone considering marrying outside their own culture is to not make hasty decisions – thoroughly research the culture you’re marrying into and then focus on the good points of the other culture and blend them into your own.”