Assalam Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatu,

I would like to wish you and your family a most joyous and beneficial Eid.  May Allah (SWT) accept our deeds from the beautiful, blessed month of Ramadan.

For a quick refresher presentation on Eid, check out Eid 101 by Shaykh Muhammad AlShareef.

Jazak’Allahkhair,
Bilal

Assalam Alaikum wa Rahmatullah,

Alhamdulillah, I’ve had this blog going for more than a year now and I just wanted to give some updates about what’s going on here.  If you look at the pages on this blog, I’ve attached two more page links to Dawah and Links.  Furthermore, I’ve updated the other pages on this blog so make sure to re-check-out the About, Lectures, and Non-Muslim pages here.

Furthermore, I’ve started a YahooGroup.  If you decide to sign-up for it, you will insh’Allah receive a weekly email in your inbox with a hadith of the week (possible reflections) and an Islamic website of the week.  You can join by going here: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ahadithaweek/

Moreover, I just got a webcam and so I started making some videos on youtube.  You can check me out at youtube at http://www.youtube.com/coolguymuslim.  I hope to make videos for both Muslims and non-Muslims.  If you have suggestions on topics to be covered, please let me know, insh’Allah.

I think that is really about it.  If you have any suggestions whatsoever, I would absolutely love to hear them.  Jazak’Allahkhair for your time and for reading this post.  May Allah (SWT) reward you plentifully.  Ameen!

Wa assalamu alaikum!

Shaykh Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah [rahimahullah] relates,

The pillars of Kufr [i.e. disbelief and disobedience] are Four:

1. Kibr [arrogance], which prevents him from submission, [to the command of Allah]

2. Hasad [jealousy], which prevents him from accepting advice and giving it.

3. Ghadab [anger], which prevents him from being just.

4. Sha`wah [lowly desires], which prevents him from devoting himself totally to worship.

Hence,

·If the pillar of arrogance is removed then it becomes easy to submit,

·If the pillar of jealousy is removed then it becomes easy for him to accept Naseehah [advice] and to give advice.

·If the pillar of anger is removed then it becomes easy for him to be just and humble himself.

·If the pillar of lowly desires is removed then it becomes easy for him to be patient, chaste and devote himself to worship.

Every imprudent characteristic derives from these four. And when these characteristics settle in his heart they will cause him to see falsehood as truth and to see truth as falsehood. To see Ma`roof [i.e. good] as Munkar [i.e. evil] and evil as good, and it brings him closer to the life of this world and pushes the hereafter further from him.

Uprooting strong and power mountains from their places is easier than removing these four characteristics from the heart of an individual who is tested with them. This proves especially true when these characteristics become firmly rooted and embedded in an individual to the point they become second nature, for when an individual reaches this point it is almost impossible for him to do any good deeds, nor would he purify himself with them if he were to perform any acts of good. The more he strives diligently to perform acts of good the more his actions are corrupted by these four characteristics.

These characteristics [i.e. the Pillars of Kufr which are Kibr, Hasad, Ghadab, and Sha’wah] emerge due to the slave`s ignorance of his Lord, and his ignorance of his own self-worth or value. If he truly knew his Lord with all of His lofty characteristics and was truly aware of his own short-comings and deficiencies, he would not have a reason to be arrogant nor seek retribution for himself, nor would he be jealous of anyone because of what Allah has given them, because in reality, jealousy is a type of enmity or hostility towards Allah, primarily because the slave hates the fact that Allah has bestowed upon one of his servants a particular blessing and he ardently desires that this blessing be taken away from him. So he actually oppose and contests the decree of Allah and he deems the blessing of Allah to this slave to be unjust and dislikes for him what Allah loves for him. And it was because of this characteristic that Iblees [Shaytaan] became the enemy of Allah.

Hence, to replace these two hideous and evil characteristics with sound knowledge of Allah and His uniqueness and being pleased with Him as your Lord and turning towards Him for assistance in all of his affairs, and replacing anger with true knowledge of himself and his value, and the fact that he does not have the right to get angry and seek retribution for himself, because in this is giving precedence to himself over the pleasure of his Lord and expressing anger towards his Lord, who originated him.

And the greatest thing which would assist him in ridding [removing] himself of this characteristic is to condition himself to get angry for the pleasure of Allah and to be pleased for the pleasure of Allah. And every time he gets angry or is pleased for the pleasure of Allah then anger and pleasure for other than Him will be obliterated [wiped out], and the opposite is the same.

However, the cure for his lowly desires is sound knowledge and understanding that his obedience to his lowly desires is the greatest reason or hindrance for him attaining satisfaction, and his abstaining from these lowly desires is the greatest reason and means by which he can attain satisfaction. So every time he sets out to attain satisfaction by following his lowly desires he actually pushes himself further away from achieving this satisfaction, and the more he avoids his lowly desires, the closer he is to attaining the satisfaction he is looking for in the most complete manner.

·So Ghadab [anger] is like a predator, the minute you turn your attention away from it, it will eat you alive.

·And Shah`wah [lowly desires] is like fire, the moment he ignites it, it will begin to burn you alive.

·And Kibr [arrogance] is like arguing with a king about his possession, either he will kill you because of this, or just deprive you of it.

·And Hasad [jealousy] is like showing enmity and hatred towards someone who is more powerful than you.

The one who can control his lowly desires and his anger will remove the Shaytaan from his midst. And the one whose lowly desires and anger overtakes him deprives himself from the shade and protection of Allah.
Source: www.madeenah.com (see website for full article)

Related: The Levels of Prayer (http://mustaqeem.wordpress.com/2008/01/01/the-levels-of-prayer-by-ibn-qayyim) and The Levels of Jihad (http://mustaqeem.wordpress.com/2008/06/12/the-levels-of-self-jihad-by-ibn-qayyim)

Check out this beautiful gem by Shaykh Ibn al-Qayyim:

“From the greatest of sins which are hidden – and widely practiced – is that the servant is enjoying a blessing that Allah has blessed him with and chosen for him, then that servant becomes bored of it and seeks to exchange it for what he thinks – due to his ignorance – is better for him than it, and His Lord continues to be merciful to him and does not prevent him from this blessing, and He excuses him due to his ignorance and this bad choice that he has chosen for himself. When he reaches the limit in scorning this blessing and his boredom with it overcomes him, Allah removes this blessing from him. So, if he is given what he sought in exchange for that blessing, and he sees the immense difference between what he was previously enjoying and and what he has now been given instead of it, his anxiety and regret increase and he requests a return to what he previously had. So, if Allah desires good and guidance for His servant, He allows him to bear witness that what he had was a blessing from the blessings of Allah upon him, and He causes him to become pleased with that blessing and to give thanks to Allah for it. If his soul then whispers to him to again seek to exchange that blessing for something else, he makes istikharah to His Lord, the istikharah of the one who is ignorant of what is in his best interests and unable to attain them. He turns his affairs to Allah, requesting of Him to help him make the best decision.

And there is nothing more harmful to the servant than to become bored of the blessings of Allah, because he does not see it as a blessing, and he does not thank Allah for it, and does not become happy because of it. Rather, he belittles it, complains about it and considers it to be a disaster – all this while it can well be from the greatest of Allah’s blessings upon him.

Most people have a feeling of enmity towards Allah’s blessings upon them, and they do not perceive that this opening that Allah has given them is actually a blessing, and they exert the utmost effort in repelling it and pushing it away out of ignorance and oppression. So, how many are those whom Allah’s blessings comes to one of them, and they rise to repel and fight against it? And how many are those whom the blessing comes to one of them and he strives to push it away and brush it to the side out of ignorance and oppression?

Allah – the Exalted – says: {“And this is because Allah would not change a blessing that He has blessed a people with unless they change what is within themselves.”} [al-Anfal; 53]

The one who is devoid of logic loses his chance * Until the affair passes him by. Then, he blames predestination.”

['al-Fawa'id'; p. 248]

Courtesy: http://minalmuttaqeen.wordpress.com/