Old is Gold !

How wonderful it is to have grandparents at home ! 

The love,care and concern they have for everyone. 

My grandparents,dad and myself stayed up a bit longer than the rest of the family during Fajr time. 

No doubt about the level of care,love and affection they have for us.

But look at this: 

1.My dad had gone to receive the cows that had reached late due to traffic and my grandfather,as and when he
remembered important details,called him up to ensure everything was ok-make sure the food is bought and given to the animals,tell the caretaker to make them drink water immediately etc.. 

2.It was raining and out of the 4 goats,one ( which was a bit violent ) was on the terrace in a somewhat safe
place but they wanted to be sure so my grandfather insisted on going and checking even though it was slippery.So,I accompanied him. Still worried,they called our darwan uncle and told him to take it down and
tie it with the rest of the goats. Really,this is something only our "buzurg" can do,that too at such a
time ! May Allah bless them with good health and reward them.Aameen. 

Truly,Old is Gold ...

Siblings love

Alhamdulillah,its a beautiful feeling spending time with your siblings especially if they are very young.. 

My 5 year old brother,Muhammad always wanted to party (eat,play and stay up) late night but he couldnt coz of
his school .. Alhamdulillah around 1 am,we both were hungry after the pillow fight in which he enjoyed overpowering me and a bit of "wwf" ..

He is usually fussy about eating but i was happy he enjoyed eating "the most" followed by the fighting.. And the best part-he kissed me on both cheeks and hugged me! Aww !

In our busy lives,we forget these "small" things..acts of love and affection..as elder sis or brother we need to be an example and make them feel loved and special. It means so much to them and no doubt,it means a lot to me..the feeling is undescribable.. 

May Allah Help us to be role models and to be kind to our siblings.Aameen.

Reflections during beautiful weather

Sitting alone on the terrace..

Cool breeze blowing,
Watching clouds drifting,
Birds flying high with wings widespread,
Plants swinging in the breeze..
All this accompanied by a drizzle..

# Makes you think of the One you love,the One Who Created you,the One Who Created the world for you.. He Created things for your benefit..

It makes you think of Al-Wudood,the Loving God-Allah,Who Loves you more than your parents,family,friends.

# I thought how could there be a disbeliever or an atheist in the world when there are miracles all around you ?

Allah says:
"Do they not think deeply
(in their ownselves)
about themselves (how
Allah created them from
nothing, and similarly He
will resurrect them)? Allah has created not the
heavens and the earth,
and all that is between
them, except with truth
and for an appointed
term. And indeed many of mankind deny the Meeting with their Lord."

(Ar-Room, Chapter 30,
Verse 8 )

How could these birds,these plants,this sky,this Earth,the Sun,the Universe, Us?..how can all of these be a product of an explosion or perhaps just evolution from basic components (elements and compounds) ? How ?

Consider if a tornado came through a junkyard and tore through the old cars; would it leave behind a nice new Mercedes with the engine running and no parts left around? Naturally not.

How could we look to the universe above us through a telescope or observe the molecules in a microscope and then think that all of this came about as a result of a "big bang" or some "accident?"

Why are you here? Just for fun and nothing else? Is Life just a Game?

Allah says:
"Did you think that We
had created you in play
(without any purpose),
and that you would not
be brought back to Us?”

(Al-Mumenoon, Chapter 23, Verse 115)

We don't have to see an artist to recognize a painting, correct? So, if we see paintings without seeing artists painting them, in the same way, we can believe that Allah created everything without having to see Him (or touch, or hear, etc.).

I am grateful to Allah that He Chose Islam for me as my Religion..Alhamdulillah..I am grateful that Allah has made me from among the lucky and special 1.6 billion people on the Earth..people who Allah says:
"You are the best nation produced [as an example] for mankind. You enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and believe in Allah..."
(Quran,3:110).

May Allah Guide us and may Allah Help us to fulfill our roles as the best nation..Aameen.

Women treated as objects of desire

It really irritates me to see the ads of bikes or cat food promoted by semi-naked women...What has cat food or bikes got to do with semi-naked or naked women?

My car was stuck in the traffic on the flyover near K.C.Das and I saw this ad on a board saying “playing Dirty”-an ad for deo or soap for men. The picture is not worth describing.
Ridiculous.


There are the so-called “item numbers” which are so “well justified” by people especially teens as just a form of dance..!
The title “item girl” makes majority of the girls so happy.. I wonder if they even understand what it implies.
Sick !


We don’t care about self-respect and do nothing to earn respect and then we expect everyone to respect us !
If you cannot respect “yourself” no one will.


I respect Parambrata Chatterjee,a Tollywood actor who featured in Kahani,he played a significant role.
He was a speaker in a panel discussion in an event organized by an NGO – ASRA. He said that he did not wish to be a part of those superhit films that boasted of “chikni chameli”, “fevicol se” , ‘munni badnaam hui”, “Sheila ki jawani”, “ooh la la”, ‘halkat jawani”, if it means to tarnish the image of a woman and disrespect them.

We talk about respecting women, Liberating women and our “great” movie makers make “Rowdy Rathore”,”The Dirty Picture”, “Ra one” and the list goes on.
Actor Aditi Rao Hydari in an interview to rediff.com said: “I wish our movies wouldn't objectify women. There's so much more to being a woman.” There have been some women centric movies like ‘Kahani’ or ‘No one Killed Jessica’ but those are just one or two.


Our TV serials are no less.Every serial,you name it has Adultery and Fornication whether its Bade Ache Lagte Hain,Tarak Mehta ka Ulta Chashma or even Balika Vadhu.

Even the cartoons are not spared.Kids around 5 years of age know who a “girlfriend” is,they know what a girl and a boy do when alone.
How sick can it get ?


Pornography-the internet market runs on it. Every second 372 Internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines. One out of five mobile users in India wants adult content on his 3G-enabled phone, according to an 2011 IMRB Survey.

Sunny Leone's CDs are bestsellers here in Kolkata. Teenage boys creep up and ask, "Sunny Leone ka CD chahiye?" (Want Sunny Leone's CDs?), at Chandni Chowk market in central Kolkata, the city's piracy hub. Step inside the dingy alleys between shops selling electronic goods, and piles of pirated blue film come out of hiding-Rs.120 for just a CD and Rs.250 for one with Leone on the cover. Ask too many questions and they show you the door. The police are their friends, although motorcycles stand ready for sudden crackdowns. "Sunny's CD is selling like hot cakes, 200 a day," says one.(India Today)


Everywhere,in every field,to promote an item “sexualisation” is the criteria for success of a product or a movie.


Surprisingly people watch it,buy it,encourage it,promote it.So,there’s more and there’s more of it and it doesn’t stop rather it increases tenfold.


You and I talk about respecting women on social media, in interviews, in panel discussions, in articles.

We talk about respecting women when a Rape Case is reported.

We talk and talk but we do nothing.


If it is a serious concern, an issue troubling you, do something. Start from where you are.

Perhaps your homes-stop watching those movies,those serials.
Dont let the kids in your house watch the cartoons that have such content.

You may ask how will my preventing help to stop it ?

Dear sister or brother in humanity,,remember CHANGE starts with “one”....Prophet Muhammad (pbuh),Mahatma Gandhi,Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King and Aung San Suu Kyi .

Change begins with you and then your family and then your society and then the nation.
Whenever there’s change in one part of the world,the rest of the world gets affected...

Why not affect the world Positively?

What Humans Wish for

WHAT HUMANS WISH FOR !

It occurred to me that we humans long for :
A LONG LIFE,ETERNAL YOUTH AND BEAUTY,HAPPINESS AND SUCCESS.

We Long for them but we don’t get them.

No matter how hard “SCIENCE” tries to achieve long life and eternal youth and beauty through medicines or cosmetics,

no matter how much make-up you do,you cannot run way from the reality or hide the truth.

No matter how much you run away from sorrow by going to clubs-dancing and drinking,to hookah bars or watching serials or porn or hanging out with cool people-you will never be happy.

No matter how many Degrees you have to your name Bachelors,Masters,Ph.D or how high your social status may be or how many crores you have in your bank accounts,you will never be successful.

It is sad indeed that people run after all of the above but never get them.
They will not.
Coz it does NOT exist in this world.
It is NOT a part of this world.

All these things you long for are with ALLAH in the Aakhirah,the Hereafter.

What you want,
what you long for,ALLAH is offering you:

"Their Lord gives them glad tidings of a mercy from Himself and good pleasure and of gardens for them wherein is lasting enjoyment." [QURAN,9:21]


Abu Sa`eed al-Khudree and Abu Hurayrah both narrated that Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) said: "
There will be an announcer [in Paradise] who will make this announcement, ‘Verily, there is in store for you [everlasting] health. You will never fall ill, and you will live [forever] and never die. You will remain young and never grow old. You will always live in affluent circumstances and never become destitute.’ [This is explained in] the words of Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, ‘And it will be announced to them, ‘This is the Paradise you have been made to inherit for what you used to do.’’[7:43]" (MUSLIM)


Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
"It will be said to the people of Paradise, ‘O people of Paradise, eternity [for you] and no death!’ To the people of the Fire [it will be said], ‘O people of the Fire, eternity [for you] and no death!’" [Al-Bukhaari]

“Successful are true believers! Those who pray humbly, who shun idle talk, who pay the prescribed alms, who guard their chastity except with their spouses or their slaves ––with these they are not to blame, but anyone who seeks more than this is exceeding the limits––who are faithful to their trusts and pledges and who keep up their prayers, will rightly be given Paradise as their own, there to remain.” [Qur'an, 23.1-11]


But T&C (terms and conditions) apply !
You have to Live the way HE wants you to live and you get what you want !

What you WANT,
what you wish for,
what you Long for is NOT an impossibility or imaginary or a dream or an illusion..NO

It exists.

But it is NOT for EVERYONE who WANTS it but for ANYONE who is WILLING to WORK HARD, to GET it !

ARE YOU ?

Role model-Maryam alayhissalam

Today we are living in the time of Fitnah and during these times we Need People of Motivation.

As women our roles and identities are questioned every single day.
The society as well as ourselves are responsible for the “bad picture" of a woman...
A woman who is a beautiful creation of Allah..women after whom a whole surah is named in the Quran-Surah AN-NISAA !

And one such woman was Maryam alay hissalam,the mother of Prophet Isa (Jesus) pbuh,after whom Surah Maryam was named.

Maryam was an honoured student of knowledge.
Allah says:
“He made her grow in a manner and put her under the care of Zakaria.”
(Quran,3:37)

She was taught by a Prophet and other scholars of Deen.

Many a times sisters today are discouraged from pursuing studies that would be beneficial for themselves and the Muslim Ummah.

They are told that the most important thing in life is to find a good husband and so their focus from gaining Knowledge is lost.

The role of wife and mother are significant and there is much more and without knowledge,they cannot fulfil their role in society.

Beneficial and Deeni Knowledge will ensure that women do not spend their time aimlessly or indulge in backbiting,quarrelling etc..

They will not Just “BRING UP CHILDREN” but” RAISE A GENERATION OF MEN LIKE MUSAB IBN UMAIR,KHALID BIN WALEED,UMAR BIN ABDUL AZIZ,ABU HURAIRAH.”


As women,we undergo trials and tribulations at every stage..in childhood,in the form of unequal treatment as compared to men;in the youth-pressure of marriage and committing zina or as mothers and wives-household responsibilities.

Maryam alay hissalam was an Epitome of TAWAKKUL in ALLAH. From her youth as a student of knowledge to her trials later on in life. From hiding the test of pregnancy to delivery of Prophet Jesus pbuh,to keep silent when her infant spoke to defend her honour.

Sometimes like Maryam,we do not have any human support and we are on our own but to be Patient in such times is not only BEING REWARDED WITH RELIEF but with SUCCESS too.

Today,she is the “most honoured woman in human history” and the “greatest woman in al-Akhirah.”

Subhanallah,her story is a shining example of the promise:
“INNAL AAQIBATUL MU’MINEEN”
“TRULY THE END IS FOR THE GOD CONSCIOUS.”
(QURAN,11:49)


Very often as women we are so occupied with studies,house work,family,kids that we don’t get the “alone time with our Creator”.

The excuse-“we are very busy” and that is why we face so many problems.

Maryam alay hissalam’s spirituality was also embodied in her Khalwa (Solitude) with Allah swt.
She always sought to increase her closeness to Allah.

Sometimes when the heart aches,one reaches for unhealthy distractions-movies,serials etc and pain goes away temporarily.When the distraction is gone,pain returns.

“Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest.”
(QURAN,13:28)


It might happen that you might find yourself alone with a good looking man/boy in school or college or tuitions or gatherings.It might be tempting,you might get carried away or commit zina but listen to this :

When Jibreel alay hissalam appeared before Maryam in the form of a handsome man when she was alone,she did not say a “hi !” “hello!” “Assalamualaikum”.

She said:
“I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you,(so leave me),if you should be fearing of God.”
(Quran,19:18)

Maryam calls Allah by “AR-RAHMAN”,hoping that the stranger who was transgressing would abstain from the evil..a Dawah lesson for us all.

Also reflect on this:Maryam’s modesty..she did not allow him to start a conversation.


Maryam alay hissalam was truly spiritually liberated.Her self esteem was based on her relationship with Allah,not with the number of stares and random conversation she could provoke from strange men.

In Islam,a woman’s worth is not defined by men but by her Creator,Allah.

May Allah’s peace be upon her.May Allah allow us to be inspired by her life and embody humility and modesty in our hearts,speech and personal spaces.

May Allah help us to derive lessons from the life of Maryam as a wise and honoured student of knowledge,her spiritual journey,her devotion to Dawah,her commitment to modesty.Aameen

Friendship and Islam

We all have friends and we all consider friends to be an important part of our lives.

Alhamdulillah,by Allah’s Mercy,friendship is acceptable to me as long as either I benefit my friends or they benefit me in a spiritual way-becoming a good human being or growing closer to Allah.

Alhamdulillah from the time I have joined Burooj and started hearing khutbahs,I have this in mind when I’m making someone my friend or breaking my friendship with someone.

It is correctly said that if your intentions are correct,Allah will Help you to accomplish things.

I reflected on this in the last few days and realized that either I distance myself from them or they distance themselves from me due to some reason or the other,when friendship is not beneficial either way. I thank Allah for that coz as humans we are weak and the credit to resist it doesn’t belong to us but to our Creator.

My belief is becoming stronger in the fact and the truth that “what matters” is our RELATIONSHIP WITH ALLAH.

Every other relationship-be it friendship or love should be made or broken on the basis that it draws us closer to Allah,our Creator otherwise what’s the point !

If there is any other basis,it will be harmful and a waste of time....

For example,if you are friends with people who you thought are serious about studies,very soon you’ll see how immoral they can get due to their “seriousness”.

Similarly,if you are friends with someone whom you think will help you improve your social status or in any other materialistic way then remember my dear brothers and sisters,that friendship is bound to end and will not really benefit you.

Don’t “attach” yourself too much to the world otherwise you’ll be left with nothing but a “broken and hating heart” and “revengeful and selfish mind.”

Seek something higher,something that drives you,motivates you to achieve something “great and good” ,not something that drives you to immorality.



Prophet Muhammad (saws) said: “The example of a good companion and a bad companion is like that of the seller of musk, and the one who blows the blacksmith’s bellows.. So as for the seller of musk then either he will grant you some, or you buy some from him, or at least you enjoy a pleasant smell from him. As for the one who blows the blacksmith’s bellows then either he will burn your clothes or you will get an offensive smell from him.”
(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)


Ibn Katheer, commenting on this verse, relates a story on the authority of Ali Ibn Abi Talib (ra) and says that any friendship for other than Allah is turned into enmity, except what was in it for Allah the Mighty and Majestic: “Two who are friends for Allah’s sake; one of them dies and is given good news that he will be granted al-Jannah, so he remembered his friend and he supplicated for him, saying: ‘O Allah, my friend used to command me to obey You and to obey Your Prophet (saws) and used to command me to do good and to forbid me from doing evil. And he told me that I will meet You. O Allah, do not let him go astray after me, until you show him what you have just shown me, until You are satisfied with him, just like You are satisfied with me.’ So he is told: ‘Had you known what is (written) for you friend, would you have laughed a lot and cried a little.’ Then his friend dies and their souls are gathered, and both are asked to express their opinions about each other. So each one of them says to his friend: ‘You were the best brother, the best companion and the best friend.’

And when one of the two disbelieving friends dies, and he is given tidings of Hellfire, he remembered his friend and he said: ‘O Allah, my friend used to order me to disobey You and disobey Your Prophet, and commanded me to do evil, and forbade me from doing good, and told me that I would not meet You. O Allah, do not guide him after me, until you show him what you have just shown me and until you are dissatisfied with him just like You are dissatisfied with me.’ Then the other disbelieving friend dies, and their souls are gathered, and both are asked to give their opinions about each other. So each one says to his friend: ‘You were the worst brother, the worst companion and the worst friend.”



How can we expect sincere advice and exhortation in regard to our beautiful DEEN from those who are displeased with our Deen or are simply indifferent? Are they going to help us achieve the purpose of our life, or will they take us away from it?

Will they desire for us Allah’s pleasure or is that Completely irrelevant to them and not their concern at all? Are they leading us to al-Jannah or to the Hellfire? These are the questions we have to ask ourselves, lest we wake up after we die.

“O you who believe! Take care of your own selves. If you follow the right guidance and enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong no hurt can come to you from those who are in error. The return of you all is to Allah, then He will inform you about (all) that which you used to do.”
(Qur’an 5:105)

I ask Allah to make us of the righteous ones and give us companions that will take us away from His Wrath and lead us to His Pleasure and Paradise.