Our Lives In This Dunya.

To smile often and much; to win the respect of intelligent and sincere people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.

My Emptiness....Filling the Vacuum

BismiLLAH wa al-Salaat wa al-Salaam 'alayh.

Due to my emptiness and the emptiness of this world, I couldn't think of much to keep this blog busy.  However, after reading on a profound gem sent to me recently by a big brother, I thought I should share it here for us to reflect on. 

"This being human is a guest house. Every morning is a new arrival. A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.....Welcome and entertain them all. Treat each guest honorably. The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in. Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond."

RAMADAAN MUBAARAK

BismiLLAH was salaatu was salaamu 'alaa khairi Khalqi Allah.

Having been silent over the months, I thought it would be a good thing to at least post something about this month for our thoughts.

It is Ramadaan again: the month of patience, mercy, forgiveness. The month of Qur'an, Dhikr, night of qadr. The month of the poor, mujaahadah and taubah. It is that month that has in it so many events and occasions.

AlhamduliLLAH, by His mercy, we are able to witness this month. Many were those who fasted with us last year but are not with us today, either that they have gone to the next life or Allah has not given them health to join us in fasting this month.

What will be of us after this month? Will we continue with the khair, the dhikr, the Qur'an recitations, the night prayers, the charity, the sincerity, and other virtuous acts we do in this month in the months ahead? Or will we be those who only see the mercy of Allah in the month of Ramadaan?
                                           
By Allah's goodness, I am fasting again in the city of Johannesburg. Last year was my first year in South Africa and it continues this year. This year, especially this month, I have been too occupied with my research work on West African tafsirs. I beg you all to pray for me that Allah makes for me the writing of my thesis easy and that I get a sound understanding of what I read and write. 

Just like we all say, I wish you all RAMADAAN MUBARAK. Kullu 'aam wa antum bi khair (in every year, you are in good health). Surprising to see the new Ramadaan greetings from friends.....they say, SAHUR MUBARAK, IFTAR KAREEM, HAPPY IFTAAR. 'Ajeeb, these are weird greetings that I have never heard before. 
                                                      

Like a sister advised that we should not forget but include in our prayers are brethren who fled Myanmar, those spending Ramadhan in detention centres, and we should remember our brothers and sisters in every single part of the globe. 

May Allah give us the strength to fast, accept out fasting and good deeds in this beautiful month.

I end this by mentioning that one of our dear teachers from Mauritania is visiting South Africa and I will, inshaa Allah, be paying him a visit tomorrow. It would be nice to see him again after two years of being away from Mauritania. 

Wa sallaaLLahu 'alaa Habeebihi Muhammad wa 'alaa aalihi wa sallam

Describing Mauritania

BismiLLAH was Salaatu was Salaamu 'alaa RasuliLLAH.

In my old posts, I mentioned my numerous experiences in Mauritania. I think whenever I do that, I write without really minding the contents of the posts. It was few days ago that one of my friends that studied together with me in Nabbaghiyyah drew my attention to a blog quoting one of my old posts.
The blog says, "To give you an idea of the place (at least its capital city), here is what a brother seeker of knowledge says about his return from Syria to Mauritania, it’s pretty eloquent".

And below is the quote from my blog:

“It was almost mid-night but it looked like morning to me. I was feeling like being home again […] I prayed and had a good sleep with wonderful, sweet mosquito bites. In the morning, I looked at the mosquitoes in my net, singing their irritating music in their pregnant state, moving around with my sucked blood.

I took to the city to use the internet and pray in the saudi masjid. How nice it feels like to be back! Looking the streets, you see men and women urinating openly by the sides of cars, walls, etc, dirty streets, and in the mosques, hearing the Mauritanian style of loud Shouting of TAKBIR at the opening of Solah(not Maalilki style to shout too loud). From all of these, I said to myself, welcome back to Mauritania!”

Allahu Akbar!!! Yaa Kareem!!! Did I really post this about Mauritania? I was shocked after reading this from the sister's blog. What was I thinking when I wrote this? However, come to think of it, the descriptions and experiences are correct. Even the sister who quoted this agrees with me.

More will come in the future as I plan to return for a visit to this beautiful desert city. My teachers want to see me.

WalhamduliLLAH Rabbil 'Aalameen.

Change 4 Change

BismiLLAH was salaatu was salaamu 'alaa RasuliLLAH.

Below is a link from Noor al-Islam Mosque, Bolton-UK. I thought I should share this here as one of my experiences is mentioned in it and also a project I think we should all know about.

http://www.noorulislambolton.com/change4change/Change4Change_Intro.pdf

May Allah bless those who assist with this project.

Was salaam.

My New Direction.

BismiLLAH, was salaatu was salaamu 'alaa RasuliLLAH.
It is several months since I last posted on this blog. Things have drastically changed for me since the day I left Mauritania.  I miss Mauritania and my teachers but leaving became very necessary. I left to enrol for further studies in Islamic studies in one of the universities in the South. AlhamduliLLAH after years of sitting with some of the heirs of Rasul Allah, Allah Jalla wa 'Alaa guided me again through my beloved friend Sidi Bilal to study at a university in his country. It is interesting how Allah uses this brother to facilitate my studies.

I remember the first week when I arrived Syria and went to register for the Abu Nour University's Arabic program, I was refused registration because I was a month late. Sidi Bilal after hearing of my situation went to the director of the program, spoke to him and he later allowed me to register. That was a good beginning for my studies of shari'ah abroad.

While many would think it is useless and a waste of time to do Islamic studies in our present day secular institutes, they sometimes neglect the fact that there is a need for students of our beautiful traditional institutes to furnish themselves with some challenging contemporary issues and discourses scattered here and there at these secular institutes. Although we could argue that the knowledge acquired in some of these universities are incomparable to the ones at our madaaris. However, a complete dismissal of them would be a fallacious thought. One of the blessings of our time, Shaykh Abdul Fattah Abu Ghudda said (RA), ''there are some things you get in rivers that you can't get in oceans''.

AlhamduliLLAH, one of my Shuyukh gave me a go-ahead to pursue this course and I feel happy doing this. It is new for me but I enjoy the whole of it. My professors are Muslims and are graduates some Islamic institutes such as al-Azhar and Seminaries in Pakistan. We have the opportunity to learn from them and get the tools and language used in the academia which we do not use at our madrassas.

In case you don't find more posts here, please check the link below for my articles on seeking knowledge. I have been given a page on the Noor al Islam Masjid Bolton website where my articles are posted. You can always email me for questions relating to studying sacred knowledge in traditional schools. Yours sincerely will always be there for you.
http://www.noorulislambolton.com/blog.asp?Blog=10324

I ask you all to always remember me in your duas even if you can do it immediately after reading this. May ALLAH give us all hidayah and istiqaamah.

Was salaamu alaykum warahmatULLAHI

GOOD BYE MAURITANIA

BismiLLAHI maa Shaa ALLAH, no goodness except from ALLAH.
BismiLLAHI maa Shaa ALLAH, no reliance except upon ALLAH.
BismiLLAHI maa Shaa ALLAH, no guidance except by ALLAH.
Was salaatu was salaamu ‘alaa RasuliLLAH.

I thought my not posting on this blog for a long time now was a successful strategy of forgetting about it but that strategy failed when I remembered today that I need this blog so much because I want to reach you. Let me just entertain you a bit with my ever uneventful adventure in this path that I have been travelling through over the years.

Finally, I have left Mauritania: A dream come true. Will I be back again? Yes but only to visit my teachers. As for studying, I doubt if I will sacrifice months again in Mauritania to study texts: so many reasons for that.

It was very difficult for me to finally make that decision to leave Mauritania. I left the village two weeks before Ramadhan hoping to travel to Senegal to spend ramadhan and EID but all that didn’t work out as I was left contemplating if my leaving was the right thing to do. From Senegal, I was wondering where I would since I cancelled my plan to travel to Malaysia for further university studies as the conditions of admission were not what I expected. I thought of going back to sham but not with the present crisis, far from it my friend suggested India and some suggested Sudan and Egypt.

So confused I was, I decided to remain in Nouakchott, doing revision and relieving myself from the difficult days in Nabbaghiyyah. I studied a little with the opportunity that I had and did so many but little things. At the end, I finally decided to leave Mauritania but not with ease. My friend sidi Bilal who came down to Mauritania with his wonderful family suggested to me a beautiful idea that I will let you know in my subsequent posts insha ALLAH.

Few days before leaving Mauritania, I got yet another malaria. This year, malaria was a good companion in Mauritania. Not giving me a breathing space. I didn’t bother too much but took off for Senegal in my ill state. I travelled by land to Senegal. For those who have travelled through the Senegali-mauritanian border of Rosso know how crazy that place is. My first experience travelling through the border was in 2008 and it was hell for me. I was duped and refused entry to Mauritania after two long trips from Dakar to the border.

This time around, things were easier than I thought and I passed through without too much stress or problems from the rogues at the border. Maybe it was easier because I have become too stubborn and arrogant in this last few months but all the success still goes back to ALLAH’s favours on me. From the border, I travelled straight to Madinah kaolack, the popular city of the Tijanis of Senegal. It is a place where many people travel to particularly people from my country.

There I got a good reception from my friend who lodged me in the house of his grandfather, the present Khalifah of the tijaniyyah-Ibrahimiyyah branch of the tariqah. I had a good time there and celebrated EID. There was so much for me to eat and drink there and I forgot about my zuhd days in Nabbaghiyyah. Infact, I had a big bed to sleep on which was very odd for me after months of sleeping on mats and blankets. This reminded of my experience last year when I visited home. My mother would prepare the bed for me to sleep but I would resort to sleeping on the rug. She got angry and would say, what if you got married, would you be sleeping on the rug like that??? My sweet mum, she didn’t understand that I was passing through a big transition to city life after staying in the village for long. Well, she didn’t know I was living in a village without electricity and infrastructures because I hid everything away from them.

In Kaolack, I visited different maqaams, places and people, met my country people and even met small boys from my state who spoke with me my dialect. I realized that I have lost so much of my dialect to Arabic as most of what I tried saying was mixed with Arabic. That is one weakness in me that I need to work on for da’wah activities in the future.

I spent two weeks in Kaolack, it was generally fun except for my last two days.

I left Kaolack for Dakar, the capital of Senegal where I was going to meet my friend and teacher, Shaykh Mustafa. Shaykh Mustafa, was one out of the numerous advanced students in Nabbaghiyyah and above all, very unique. He was already a teacher in Senegal before coming to Mauritania to study. I will talk about him insha ALLAH in another post. It is in Shaykh Mustafa’s house I have been staying since my arrival in Senegal and it has been a very good stay. I learn from him every day and we talk about life in Mauritania. So many things happened in the village that I am yet to know and I spent three years there.

Staying with sidi Mustafa here, I recall some beautiful moments with friends and shuyukh in Mauritania but not living out the worst moments of my life there. I can sum it up that, seeking knowledge for me this year wasn’t too pleqsqnt. I faced so many challenges and trials. This year, I almost lost my life to hepatitis attack that we thought it was malaria. So many things happened...but above all, I saw the pains many students go through daily just to survive or seek knowledge. Mauritania like so many think is a place you come to see sahabis like Abu bakr, Umar, Fatimah, Aishah, etc (Radhiya ALLAHU anhum). You can only see the truth of Mauritania if you lived ‘in’ the people, in the villages, read their lives in its true nature and not what people just say. I won’t mention some of those things here but to sum everything up, Mauritania has goods just like there are bads in her.

I request from you all to make duas for me and my family. You can reciprocate my love for you by remembering us in your duas. What are you waiting for? Start making duas now. Send solawaat on the Prophet (alayhis salaam), do any possible good for me my dear brethren.

May ALLAH be our Guide and Protector and may HE forgive us our sins and shower upon us His mercies, amin.
Was salaamu ‘alaykum warahmatULLAH.