Briefly.... Arrogance

Arrogance was the first sin at the beginning of creation when Adam Peace be upon him was created. When Allah (SWT) created Adam Peace be upon him, Allah commanded the Angels and Iblees who was from the Jin to prostrate before him.. Iblees "aba wastakbar wa kan min al kafereen". He refrained and disobeyed ALLAH obstinately.

We need to learn..we need to try as best as we can to free our souls from hatred and arrogance..When Allah chose to tell us of this incident as many others, He was probably giving us a warning to avoide this ugly trait.. Arrogance

"In ALLAH la you7ebo kola mokhtalin fakhour"

Modesty and simplicity ...We need to work on those as best as we can.

Allahoma Saly Ala Muhammed afdala salatin wa salim tasleema

I cannot come near to finding words to express my sadness. I stumbled on a blog of a guy who seems to be from the Shee'ah Wallaho a'alam! From those who say La Illaha Illa ALLAH ALI Habeebo Allah

The way he spoke of Prophet Muhammed (Allahoma SalyAleih) was so ….I just can't find the words to describe his words… I can’t even get myself to say Allah yahdeeh, although I should. May Allah forgive me.

I feel we need to have more solidarity as Moslems, to be able to settle our differences, to be a true one body as the Prophet encouraged us to be. To want for one another what we truly want for ourselves.

What happened ya Ummet Mohammed? What happened to the love and solidarity Allah and His prophet encouraged us to work for and are expecting from us till we die? Why do we have so many differences although Kalimat Ullah (the word Of ALLAH) is one and clear? And the Prophet did nothing but encourage for beautiful things?

But what makes me tell myself to be calm, is I know that Islam will rise in strength, it shall flourish. Nothing will alter that no matter what who says.

I only wonder, will I live to see that day? Only ALLAH knows. Even if I don't I know it will happen Insha'Allah. The will Of ALLAH shall prevail.

Oh ALLAH, give us strength to have strong and unchangeable Faith, Oh ALLAH help us to help ourselves to be able to help others. OH ALLAH, shed light into our hearts and minds.

Ameen. Ameen.. Ameen...

The birdy and the kidergarten girl

A little kindergarten girl, was walking in her school play yard, when all of a sudden she finds a bird on the floor. As she approached it, it just stayed there, didn't move much or show fear of the little girl's approach… She sat on the floor and picked the bird up.. Strangely the bird still hadn't made an attempt to flee the little girl's hands. Happily, she walked to her class and put the bird in her bag...

The bell rang; all the other kids dashed into class, each found her place and sat down… Mrs. Fayza the class teacher was about to begin when the head mistress, Mrs. Hala, walked into the class... All the kids stood up. She looked around silently, and then she said: "I believe one of you girls has a bird in her bag… Every one looked to the other, only the little girl kept staring in disappointment at the head mistress…

Mrs. Hala walked up with a faint smile to the little girl and asked: "Do you have a bird in your bag?" In disappointment and fear the headmistress would take the birdy away, she replied in a very low tone, "yes, but the birdy wants to come home with me, she likes me and doesn't want to leave!"
Mrs. Hala said: "Please open your bag and let the birdy out. The little girl opened the bag but was not so happy while doing as told... The head mistress, the class teacher, the kids in class and the girl anticipated the birdy to come out flying out of the bag, but to every one's astonishment, including the little girl, nothing came out! That made the little girl happy though.

The head mistress asked the little girl where the birdy went, so she peaked into her bag and said, "I told you, birdy likes me, doesn't want to leave me and wants to come home with me. Why don't you believe me? She sadly said.

The head mistress asked the little girl to get the bird out. She did as instructed. To every one's surprise, the bird hoped back into the bag !!!

Every one had a puzzled face, except for of course the little girl who felt that the birdy will not leave her and go, and that maybe the head mistress would walk away...
"See" the little girl said, "I told you, birdy likes me and wants to come back home with me".

The head mistress came herself and took the bird out. Again the bird hopped back in. It was very odd, so she had a closer look inside the bag. The bird had been eating the little girl's toast sandwich!!

The head mistress still insisted that the little girl take the bird out of the class and let her fly away. It was so disappointing to the little girl. But what choice did she have but to do as told. She sadly got the bird out of her bag, and went to the classroom door and opened her hands to let the bird free.
Strange enough, the bird was calm in her little palms. She looked back to the head mistress hoping she might reconsider but still, no was written all over her face. She stood for a while waiting for the bird to fly away, but the bird just stayed there.

What was strange was as soon as the head mistress came close, the bird decided to fly. In agony, the little girl's tears came down as she waved good bye to her birdy.

That little kindergarten girl was me. I was four years at the time.

I've had the strangest, yet most beautiful moments with animals as I grew up. I've always loved animals dearly. Maybe I'll write something soon again about another one of my beautiful encounters. I hope you find them as interesting as I did and still do.

Just a small reminder, Prophet Muhammed (SAW) ordered us to be gentle to animals. (Is there anything Allah or His Propet left out? I doubt)

Allahoma Saly afdal salaatin wa salamin 3ala khatam al nabeyeen wa salem, Sayed Al Khalk Wal khuluk as Allah (SWT) said " إنك لعلى خلق عظيم " Ameen.

Our beloved Palestine

Our beloved Palestine..

My heart flaps each time I look at this picture

What does this picture bring to your heart and mind?

ما هي شروط المزاح الشرعي ؟

- لا يكون فيه شيء من الاستهزاء بالدين -
فإن ذلك من نواقض الإسلام قال تعالى : ( ولئن سألتهم ليقولن إنما كنا نخوض ونلعب قل أبالله وآياته ورسوله كنتم تستهزئون – لا تعتذروا قد كفرتم بعد إيمانكم ) التوبة/65-66 ، قال ابن تيمية رحمه الله : ( الاستهزاء بالله وآياته ورسوله كفر يكفر به صاحبه بعد إيمانه )
وكذلك الاستهزاء ببعض السنن ، ومما انتشر كالاستهزاء باللحية أو الحجاب ، أو بتقصير الثوب أو غيرها .
قال فضيلة الشيخ محمد بن عثيمين في المجموع الثمين 1/63 : فجانب الربوبية والرسالة والوحي والدين جانب محترم لا يجوز لأحد أن يبعث فيه لا باستهزاء بإضحاك ، ولا بسخرية ، لأنه يدل على استهانته بالله عز وجل ورسله وكتبه وشرعه ، وعلى من فعل هذا أن يتوب إلى الله عز وجل مما صنع ، لأن هذا من النفاق ، فعليه أن يتوب إلى الله ويستغفر ويصلح عمله ويجعل في قلبه خشية من الله عز وجل وتعظيمه وخوفه ومحبته ، والله ولي التوفيق .

- لا يكون المزاح إلا صدقاً -
قال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( ويل للذي يُحدث فيكذب ليُضحك به القوم ويل له ) رواه أبو داود .
وقال صلى الله عليه وسلم محذراً من هذا المسلك الخطير الذي اعتاده بعض المهرجين : ( إن الرجل ليتكلم بالكلمة ليُضحك بها جلساءه يهوي بها في النار أبعد من الثريا ) رواه أحمد

-عدم الترويع -
خاصة ممن لديهم نشاط وقوة أو بأيديهم سلاح أو قطعة حديد أو يستغلون الظلام وضعف الناس ليكون ذلك مدعاة إلى الترويع والتخويف ، عن أبي ليلى قال : ( حدثنا أصحاب محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم أنهم كانوا يسيرون مع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ، فنام رجل منهم فانطلق بعضهم إلى حبل فأخذه ففزع ، فقال رسول الله عليه وسلم : ( لا يحل لمسلم أن يروع مسلماً ) رواه أبو داود .

- الاستهزاء والغمز واللمز -
الناس مراتب في مداركهم وعقولهم وتتفاوت شخصياتهم وبعض ضعاف النفوس – أهل الاستهزاء والغمز واللمز – قد يجدون شخصاً يكون لهم سُلماً للإضحاك والتندر – والعياذ بالله – وقد نهى الله عز وجل عن ذلك فقال تعالى : ( يا أيها الذين آمنوا لا يسخر قوم من قوم عسى أن يكونوا خيراً منهم ولا نساء من نساء عسى أن يكن خيراً منهن ولا تلمزوا أنفسكم ولا تنابزوا بالألقاب بئس الاسم الفسوق بعد الإيمان ) الحجرات/11 ، قال ابن كثير في تفسيره : ( المراد من ذلك احتقارهم واستصغارهم والاستهزاء بهم ، وهذا حرام ، ويعد من صفات المنافقين )
والبعض يستهزأ بالخلقة أو بالمشية أو المركب ويُخشى على المستهزئ أن يجازيه الله عز وجل بسبب استهزائه قال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( لا تُظهر الشماتة بأخيك فيرحمه الله ويبتليك ) رواه الترمذي .
وحذر صلى الله عليه وسلم من السخرية والإيذاء ، لأن ذلك طريق العداوة والبغضاء قال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( المسلم أخو المسلم لا يظلمه ولا يخذله ولا يحقره ، التقوى ها هنا – ويشير إلى صدره ثلاث مرات – بحسب امرئٍ من الشر أن يحقر أخاه المسلم ، كل المسلم على المسلم حرام ، دمه وماله وعرضه ) رواه مسلم .

- أن لا يكون المزاح كثيراً -
فإن البعض يغلب عليهم هذا الأمر ويصبح ديدناً لهم ، وهذا عكس الجد الذي هو من سمات المؤمنين ، والمزاح فسحة ورخصة لاستمرار الجد والنشاط والترويح عن النفس .
قال عمر بن عبد العزيز رحمه الله : " اتقوا المزاح ، فإنه حمقة تورث الضغينة "
قال الإمام النووي رحمه الله : " المزاح المنهي عنه هو الذي فيه إفراط ويداوم عليه ، فإنه يورث الضحك وقسوة القلب ، ويشغل عن ذكر الله تعالى : ويؤول في كثير من الأوقات إلى الإيذاء ، ويورث الأحقاد ، ويسقط المهابة والوقار ، فأما من سلم من هذه الأمور فهو المباح الذي كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يفعله .

- معرفة مقدار الناس -
فإن البعض يمزح مع الكل بدون اعتبار ، فللعالم حق ، وللكبير تقديره ، وللشيخ توقيره ، ولهذا يجب معرفة شخصية المقابل فلا يمازح السفيه ولا الأحمق ولا من لا يُعرف .
وفي هذا الموضوع قال عمر بن عبد العزيز : ( اتقوا المزاح ، فإنه يذهب المروءة ) .
وقال سعد بن أبي وقاص : " اقتصر في مزاحك ، فإن الإفراط فيه يُذهب البهاء ، ويجرّئ عليك السفهاء "
- أن يكون المزاح بمقدار الملح للطعام -
قال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( لا تكثر الضحك فإن كثرة الضحك تميت القلب ) صحيح الجامع 7312
وقال عمر بن الخطاب رضي الله عنه : ( من كثر ضحكه قلت هيبته ، ومن مزح استُخف به ، ومن أكثر من شيء عُرف به ) .

- ألا يكون فيه غيبة -
وهذا مرض خبيث ، ويزين لدى البعض أنه يحكي ويقال بطريقة المزاح ، وإلا فإنه داخل في حديث النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( ذكرك أخاك بما يكره ) رواه مسلم .

- اختيار الأوقات المناسبة للمزاح -
كأن تكون في رحلة برية ، أو في حفل سمر ، أو عند ملاقاة صديق ، تتبسط معه بنكتة لطيفة ، أو طرفة عجيبة ، أو مزحة خفيفة ، لتدخل المودة على قلبه والسرور على نفسه ، أو عندما تتأزم المشاكل الأسرية ويغضب أحد الزوجين ، فإن الممازحة الخفيفة تزيل الوحشة وتعيد المياه إلى مجاريها .
أيها المسلم :
قال رجل لسفيان بن عيينة رحمه الله : المزاح هجنة أي مستنكر ! فأجابه قائلاً : " بل هو سنة ، ولكن لمن يُحسنه ويضعه في موضعه "
والأمة اليوم وإن كانت بحاجة إلى زيادة المحبة بين أفرادها وطرد السأم من حياتها ، إلا أنها أغرقت في جانب الترويح والضحك والمزاح فأصبح ديدنها وشغل مجالسها وسمرها ، فتضيع الأوقات ، وتفنى الأعمار ، وتمتلئ الصحف بالهزل واللعب .
قال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( لو علمتم ما أعلم لضحكتم قليلاً ولبكيتم كثيراً ) قال في فتح الباري : ( المراد بالعلم هنا ما يتعلق بعظمة الله وانتقامه ممن يعصيه ، والأهوال التي تقع عند النزع والموت وفي القبر ويوم القيامة )
وعلى المسلم والمسلمة أن ينزع إلى اختيار الرفقة الصالحة الجادة في حياتها ممن يعينون على قطع ساعات الدنيا والسير فيها إلى الله عز وجل بجد وثبات ، ممن يتأسون بالأخيار والصالحين ، قال بلال بن سعد : ( أدركتهم يشتدون بين الأغراض ، ويضحك بعضهم إلى بعض ، فإذا كان الليل كانوا رهباناً )
وسُئل ابن عمر رضي الله عنهما : " هل كان أصحاب النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يضحكون "
قال : نعم ، والإيمان في قلوبهم مثل الجبال .
فعليك بأمثال هؤلاء فرسان النهار ، رهبان الليل .
جعلنا الله وإياكم ووالدينا من الآمنين يوم الفزع الأكبر ، ممن ينادون في ذلك اليوم العظيم : ( ادخلوا الجنة لا خوف عليكم ولا أنتم تحزنون )

وصلى الله على نبينا محمد وعلى آله وصحبه أجمعين .

منشورة لعبد الملك القاسم . (www.islam-qa.com)

Why in my opinion is Islam the completing religion to all others

Well, I still think that everything you say is beside the point. I am just asking you to tell us 'why do you think Islam is the best religion? Simple, right? With all the due respect to the Coran and Hadith and Prophet, just tell us, your humble opinion. We agree that the sources said that, but why you think this way? Why? Just answer the 'why' question. Balash better than other religion part. JUST WHY DO YOU THINK ISLAM IS THE DEEN MUKAMEL? Please don't use any islamic sources. Just your personal opinion.
6/7/2005 11:28:10 PM

This question was part of ongoing comments on Haal's blog "A message from within" regarding a post titled "Can it be" (u can refer back to it for more details if u wish).

In the course of what I may call a very hot conversation which elevated way more than I imagined, I was explaining that Moslems are bestowed with a one step ahead privilege in the sense that we believe in all religions sent prior to Islam and acknowledge them. We are told Islam was no different than the earlier religions; it was just the completion of the earlier ones. We are all equal in terms of humanity, but not in religion.

To be clearer, religions were sent in gradual form, the commandments were set forth in steps not all at once. Islam was the final religion sent to mankind.

My personal opinion IS the outcome of and according to evidence in the Quraan and the Hadeeth (Prophet Muhammed's sayings and directions for lives of moslems).

Islam is a logical religion and its teachings and commandments are filled with balance, I have been exposed to other religions, maybe not in depth, but many discussions took place during a certain period of my life, and I enjoyed watching debates amongst scholars, Moslem and non Moslem, Christian mainly.

I had a lot of confusion, and I asked myself why Isalm? Why not any other religion? Why any religion? Why all that confusion? Why couldn't there have been but one religion. As time went by, i realized it is one religion after all.

I spoke to different people, to priests and to some Jews as well. But I was just not convinced, even in the way they lead their lives on a day to day basis. I was still very confused. There came a time when I think I was just living in complete emptiness. I had drifted away from everything anyone around me had been following. More and more, I felt insecure, lost and alone.

One day, I said out loud: I need a sign! I need to be into something but I am not sure what it is. Believe me; I was practically pulled back somehow.

Down deep inside I really wanted to know. There was something major missing. Till this day came, I was in a discotheque/bar in Sharm El Sheikh, and it was the time when different cities in Egypt were experiencing earthquakes.

A very hard one had started, and I found myself unintentionally reciting Quraan and Duaa. I kept saying them and did not move from my place although so many people around me had started screaming and running frantically. I was scared, but strange enough as I recited verses from the Quraan, I was granted a strange feeling of peace. Since that night on, I started thinking more, and I kept stumbling into people whom were into religions and we had talks and talks. I believe that was Allah's answer to my request of a sign, I needed guidance, and He granted it in the simplest form.

Ever since, I've been taking steps forward. It took some time, but thank God I did and still trying to take more steps ahead. This is what Allah wants from us, to keep trying. He knows we will fall, but I guess he expects us to get up and continue the journey according to his rules as best as we can. And as long as we are trying He will always give us help, even at moments when we are not so close to Him and we ask for His support he grants it. I am saying this with confidence because I was in similar situations. I was quite distant where Islamic practices were concerned, but I always tried to keep up with my prayers and certain conducts f Mo3amalat (al din al mo3amala so to speak). Believe me, Allah is extremely compassionate.

I have not become the way that I am now (trying to be of strong belief that is, still have a long way ahead of me) out of the blue, or blindly as haal and others accuse or think. I am truly convinced because I questioned so many things back then but without publicly saying or doing things that might offend, mislead or confuse others. I did not create confusion. I was the only one confused and when I spoke of the matter with others, it was in the form of seeking knowledge rather than nullifying, or arguing concret teachings or beliefs in religion, even though I was not so sure of anything and actually had doubts.

The main idea is in our quest for the truth, or knowledge, we must be very careful not to cause confusion. Allah expects us to do that and allowed it since he gave us free will, but with keeping our limits.

Conclusion for this part is, now I feel that I was really wrong to doubt things the way I did and thank God I didn't die back then because I would have really been in lots of trouble.

Now back to the main question, why Islam is al Din Al mukamel (the completing religion) and why I believe it is the best religion is because of simple LOGIC.

There has been a marvelous synchrony to the order of divine teachings to mankind. There were so many prophets sent to mankind, 27 mentioned in the Quraan and many others, but Allah did not tell us of their names and stories (probably has a wisdom behind it). All the prophets that were sent were in fact Moslems, and calling for Islam. Maybe the names were different but the commandments were all leading to a final stage; Islam.

A very important part of Moslem faith includes the belief that all prophets are the same and had but one message, (chosen by the one and only God and Creator, ALLAH) and that was the submission to the will of ALLAH and no other. Islam itself means the submission to the will of Allah.

As Moslems, we should believe in all those prophets and divine teachings as they were before they had been tampered with since the basics were the same as in Islam, but then Prophet Mohammed was chosen to complete and fulfill Allah's commandments to mankind, that which he did and Allah emphasized on that by saying
"اليوم أكملت لكم دينكم واتممت عليكم نعمتي"

In Islam there is respect for all prophets and books with no discrimination.

"ءامن الرسول بما انزل إلية من ربة والمؤمنون كل ءامن بالله وملئكته وكتبه ورسله لا نفرق بين أحد من رسله وقالوا سمعنا واطعنا غفرانك ربنا وإليك المصير"
(سورة البقرة أية 285)

Briefly, Non Moslems on the other hand do not share the same view and do not acknowledge the prophets and divine books the way Moslems do and most importantly do not Acknowledge that Allah is one with no partner and that Prophet Muhammed was the final prophet sent to all mankind, which is the most essential part in the declaration of complete faith in Allah.

That is in my humble opinion, as haal mentioned, is why I know Islam is considered Al Din al mukamel.

Readers of this post, if u r non Moslem, please note that this is just a glimpse of why Islam should be embraced by all people, I do not mean to offend anyone, because again I emphasize, Moslems respect and acknowledge all other divine religions.

For detailed information, please visit www.harunyahya.com. Many topics are beautifully covered about Islam over there, including the Islamic view of the prophets and many other aspects that might shed some light about Islam for those who might be interested to know.

I would just like to say, last but not least, We are all here for a very short period of time, we shall be asked about this life, how we spent it, what we did in it and so forth…

P.S. I will include translation for the verses above very soon, just didn't have the time now and was so anxious to post this!!

A miracle (amongst many) in surgery room

Miracles happen everyday, but who really takes notice?

I watched a programme today about twins that were joined from the abdomen and needed separation. To cut the long story short, their livers were joined (and so were the hearts).
The heart issue was resolved, but the host of the programme was saying that when the doctors saw how the livers were joined they didn't know what to do when all of a sudden, they realized there was a white line as if marked by someone for guidance to cut through.

The situation was very critical, they actually decided to cut through that white line and things went well for the beautiful baby girls.

All I can say, is glory be to Allah (Sub7an Allah), their creator and the creator of the universe!

Something to remember

Setting: A famous street in Manial overlooking the Nile
Characters: Myself (dalulla) and a little (cute) girl selling tissues for a living

I am standing on the sidewalk at night, with no money waiting for my mom's cousin to pick me up to go home.

Little girl: Do you want tissue?
Dalulla: I would love to buy one from you (I patted her gently on the shoulder or back I can't exactly remember), but I am soo sorry (I continued nicely), I have no money with me now. But aren't you too young to be on the street now? ( I always manage to open discussions with almost anyone)
Little girl: What can I do, I need to work and I do not want to go on the street begging, so I must work hard.

She looked real sincere. In my evaluation she was about seven or eight years old. I really wanted to buy from her to help and to encourage her but had no money at all.

Little girl: It is alright, I believe you, people are usually not nice but you are.

So I smiled at her and told her thank you, you are very sweet. She walked away, and I continued waiting. A minute later, she came back

Little girl: Excuse me miss ( ya anesa), why are you standing alone?
dalulla: I am waiting for someone to drive me home, but I don't know why he is late.
Little girl: I will stand with you
dalulla: Why?
Little girl: To protect you from young men who might hassle you or try to flirt
dalulla: (I laughed) And how will such a little girl like you protect me?
Little girl: I will just stand with you and if anyone comes I will tell them to go away.
dalulla: (I smiled at her innocence) Ok I will let you protect me.

For some reason she was happy to stand with me. She lifted her small hand and reached out to mine to hold it, so I gave her my hand. She just kept looking up and smiling and I smiled back, we were both silent. After another couple of minutes of waiting:

Little girl: Why is your relative late? You cannot stand here all night, and you do not have money.. What will you do? (she was quite concerned)
dalulla: What about you, you are still on the street, I at least am a big girl, but you are little
Little girl: I am used to staying out and going home on my own, but "enty mosh wesh bahdala"

I was so surprised at the way she thought, and at her remarks which to me seemed much older than her age.

dalulla: Thank you for protecting me
Little girl: I like you, you were nice to me, you didn't shove me aside or told me to scram or any thing of the sort, and you smiled at me too, and tapped me on the shoulder. Is this not a good enough reason for me to like you?

Then she left my hand and reached into one of her torn pockets, from her shaggy clothes, and took out all the money she had, which were about five pounds, and held them out to give them to me and said:
Little girl: here, forget your cousin, take these and go home!!!

I was in shock! I truly was, I was speechless for a couple of seconds and I went down on my knees and held her so tight in my arms. But she seemed a bit stiff, trying not to get too close to me. I then held her back and looked at her in the eyes:
Little girl: What? (She asked, she being surprised at my reaction) why did you hug me? And aren't you afraid your clothes would get dirty from mine?

I couldn't help but hug her again and for a longer time, but this time she was not so stiff, I felt she enjoyed the warmth I was trying to convey to her little heart. I then held her back and looked her straight in the eyes, to my surprise, she had some tears, but they had not come down yet, it was as if she was trying to hold them for some reason.

dalulla: You want to give me all the money you probably had a very hard time earning today? And you don't even know me? What about this money, don't you need it?
Little girl: Mana 2oltelek (I already told you), enty mosh wesh bahdala, if I go home without the money, 3al2a we tefout wala 7ad yemout, or I will get badgered for a while we khalas.
But I don't want you to stnd here waiting for long.

She marveled me! She really did. My cousin arrived. I told her he had, she was happy I was not going to be alone, but I was not, since I was going to leave her. At that moment I wished I could take her back home with me.

Maybe if I was old enough at that time and had a home of my own, I may have actually taken her. It was finished at that. I stood for a while unable to take any steps, so she said, aren't you going to leave? I said yes I will. I told her thank you so much for what you wanted to do, and I explained that it was something very selfless for her to propose.

Little girl: I told you, I liked you because you were nice to me and patted me on the shoulder (or back I still can't remember). I walked slowly to the car, and she kept waving good bye to me. It was a hard good bye for me. Very hard!
_______________________________________________________
I always remember this story for some reason, and believe me it is very true.
I wanted to share it with you just to say, we do not and should not be nasty to people on the streets. I know they can really be a menace at times, but remember this:
It is not their fault they became like this. They did not choose this sort of life. The way they were brought up was wrong (that is even if they were brought up by someone from the first place!) and the circumstances were and are difficult. Do not shove them off as if they are trash, or tell them something nasty, even if they do, because some of them do... Just try to be nice on your part.

If you have time, encourage them to try to do something with their lives, and if you have more time, try to help them do something positive, like selling vegetables, or tissue or whatever, or even working somewhere. I know it is not easy, but I have tried it, it has a much better impact than scolding them or shoving them off. Worked out many times…At least you walk away not hurting them… They happen to be human.

Think of how you would feel if you were in their shoes.

So what do you think?

Women's Humor

One day my housework-challenged husband decided to wash his sweatshirt. Seconds after he stepped into the laundry room, he shouted to me, "What setting do I use on the washing machine?" "It depends," I replied. "What does it say on your shirt?" He yelled back, "University of Oklahoma."
And they say blondes are dumb...
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Q: What do you call an intelligent, good looking, sensitive man?
Ans.: A rumor!
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A man and his wife, now in their 60's, were celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary. On their special day a good fairy came to them and said that because they had been such a devoted couple she would grant each of them a very special wish. The wife wished for a trip around the world with her husband. Whoosh! Immediately she had airline/cruise tickets in her hands. The man wished for a female companion 30 years younger... Whoosh...immediately he turned ninety!!!
Gotta love that fairy!
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Lacking Listening Skills
A police officer in a small town stopped a motorist, who was speeding down Main Street.
"But, officer," the man began, "I can explain."
"Just be quiet," snapped the officer. "I'm going to let you cool your heels in jail until the chief gets back."
"But, officer,” the man said, “I just wanted to say …"
"I said to keep quiet! You're going to jail!" said the officer. A few hours later, the officer looked in on his prisoner and said, "Lucky for you that the chief's at his daughter's wedding. He'll be in a good mood when he gets back."
"Don't count on it," answered the fellow in the cell. "I'm the groom."
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Happy because....

Things to remember

Things to remember

The most destructive habit.............................Worry

The greatest joy......................................Giving

The greatest loss.........................................self-respect

The most satisfying work.........................Helping others

The ugliest personality trait..........................Selfishness

The most endangered species..................Dedicated leaders

Our greatest natural resource.......................Our Youth

The greatest "shot in the arm".................Encouragement

The greatest problem to overcome................Fear

The most effective sleeping pill................Peace of Mind

The most crippling disease............................Excuses

The most powerful force in Life................Love

The most dangerous outcast.........................A gossiper

The world's most incredible computer........The brain

The worst thing to be without..........................Hope

The deadliest weapon...............................The tongue

The two most power-filled words...................I Can

The greatest asset....................................Faith

The most worthless emotions..........................Envy and hatred
The most beautiful attire...........................A Smile

The most prized possession...........................Integrity

The most powerful channel of communication........Prayer

The most contagious spirit...................Enthusiasm

Last but not least, to the world, you may be one person, but to one person, you may be the WORLD!

I just wanted to say....

Photo by: Ian Britton (c) freefoto.com
The sun always rises to shed light into our lives, do not ever loose hope or faith in God

We all go through difficult times in life, but we must not let them break us, because simply:

"If God brings us to it (a test), He will guide us through it".

Keep that in your mind and heart, and do not let it slip out... Believe it strongly, it will really help you to struggle your way through life, but with hope.

Facing difficulties in life is all dependent on our states of minds and hearts, so if you plant the hope and faith in God within your heart and mind, trust me, it'll make you stronger.

Not all problems are easy to cope with, they will eventually pass but sometimes they stay for sometime. So what we need is to keep on believing that the sun will shine with a new day filled with prospects of hope.

One more thing, do not escape from your problems, FACE THEM!

Loving ourselves and our country (an addition)

The magnificant Nile

In relation to the post earlier about "loving ourselves and our country", I don't want anyone to think I am dreaming, or not being practical... I am being very serious.
Changing our government system is not going to happen soon, and we all know no matter what changes occur, only slight changes will take place. And lets say a miracle happens which could, you never know.

But first, lets start with personal change. We must first believe that change comes from within! If we all set our minds to positive change, our overall social status will too. And please, those of you out there who say, this is the way we are and we will not change, think again. As long as we live we proceed in life, and throughout the process I am sure that all of us want to be better people. Therefore, we must be open to positive change. I am not saying the change has to be in every aspect, but at least be honest with yourselves, think of your negative sides and try to refine them. Refine is what leads to change and that is the part I am mainly talking about here.

We must have POSITIVE ATTITUDE towards one another! We must rid ourselves of the idea of being only concerned about ourselves;

We must think "Share" out loud, with those who are truly in need, whether it be financial or educational or just a word of advice.

We must think "Help Others" out loud. Disregard the outcome, just do it sincerely, oh and never feel that it'll be in vain. Even if the outcome is not satisfactory do not stop, keep it going with the intention of doing it for the sake of GOD and the sake of goodness, two out of ten trials are bound to work, and that is not so bad, later the trials will succeed more if we keep them going.

We must think "Kindness", even to those miserable, nagging people and kids on the streets, a word of
encouragement might help. Talk to them; try to tell them something positive, if repeated from different people over and over again, it might change their attitudes and life (from personal experience).

We must think "Care" beyond family and friends and self.

We must think "Cleanliness" of our homes, buildings, streets and neighborhoods

We must think "Organization" of daily bits and pieces that might seem like they don't make a difference, but they do.

We must think "Charity" and try to direct it well, begin with your fellow poor citizens and go further out if you are financially capable (i.e. other countries, many are in need).

We must think "Drive in a civilized manner", maybe some day our traffic jams will be less, and people will get more done because they will simply reach their destinations in less time and with the least dents on their cars!

We must think "Be nice" regardless of some nasty reactions, keep calm!

We must think "Be competitive", but do not step over others in a sleazy manner to get to the top, and you will eventually still reach your goals with God's blessings rather than his anger and contempt!

We must think "Be honest", it is a strong quality of self respect and of others.

We must think "Be optimistic", and spread the feeling amongst others.

We must think "love" it is the greatest feeling ever! But love with decency and respect, rather than selfishness and possessiveness.

We must think so many things, and it is all for our own good and others, thereby a whole nation can thrive and move forward to a better future. We are in desperate need to arouse all these positive traits amongst us.

Think positive, think of refinement to reach to a better state than you are in this moment. Think of how much better you can be and make others be too.

Love is the real drive for every thing, maybe we need to try to properly understand it. Think of the real true meaning of loving yourself, others and your country.

Loving ourselves and our country

Cairo - Egypt

As an Egyptian, I started to think of the following questions and would like your comments. Please think seriously of these questions. These questions can apply to any other country, but here, I am discussing Egypt.

What does it mean to have a sense of belonging to somewhere? i.e. to be a real nationalist.
What does it mean to truly love that place? Again, i.e. to be a real nationalist
How can we really participate in construction of our nationalism and having positive impact on our society?
Do we really understand what loving our country means?
Do we really know what benefits we can really gain from that love?
Do we understand the difference between loving and respecting our country despite not accepting our government policies and governing personnel and officials?
Do we really know the difference between not being able to accept certain political and economical aspects and still loving and respecting our country?
Do we know how we can better our lives and being able to make a difference without protests or demonstrations since they get us no where! (They really don't since the upper hands of the governing sectors still have their way! Wake up! They really do not change much, except if they want to change and not because there is a public demand!

So many questions can be squeezed in, all aiming at one important aspect and that is the future of our country and its prosperity. How can this country really flourish and be better?
There are answers and solutions, but the matter is, how well can we apply them?

Individuality! Believe it or not every single one of us is the answer. Attitudes of each individual matters so much to the building of a country. Positive thinking and good attitude can build strength, and thereby, power. But this is the main problem. Not every one has the power to be strong and patient, that is why the ones who posses strength of will should help those who don't. It is about time we develop a sense of sharing and caring beyond our own selves and needs.

I believe so strongly that the following have a disastrous effect on each individual, thereby affecting an entire population! Firstly and most importantly is the lack of faith in God, then come the following: greed, selfishness and being self centered, hatred, loosing hope in one self and in everyone around, and envy!

The part about faith and obedience to God sums it up. God has given us so much to go forward from, but how many people actually do understand what the teachings of Allah and his prophet are truly about? We need to start knowing and applying.

A person's life must not be limited to one self only. Each of us should start caring beyond his/her own needs, which is something I see is beginning to take place in Egypt. Now, there are many non profit organizations, Islamic non profit organizations, and individual efforts aiming to help the uneducated, the orphans, and poor people in different areas in Egypt, which is a positive awareness growing amongst many people in our society. What we need to do is to increase our efforts more and more. There is good in our society, but some people are just too lazy to do something. Every little bit of effort will make a difference.

I am aware that our country is going through a difficult phase, especially economically, and I am sure that none of us are happy with many of the policies, but we should not let this aspect affect us in a total negative way, we must think as positive as we can. When we all manage to think positive most of the time, this will push us forward. When each of us develops a positive sense of dedication to what we do, the outcome will be greater.

I wish some of us can reach the minds of the people that work for the governmental sectors and be able to make a change to their attitudes! Those people need to be stimulated to work with more conscience, but they don't and we all know why. Their salaries are so low, and they developed a great sense of negligence in their daily work. They for some reason enjoy making people suffer getting paper work done. This is one of the very negative aspects we have in our governmental institutions.
Suddenly as I am writing this, I felt down, real down, right now, this instant, to the extent I was going to delete this whole post and ignore it! (I felt I should mention this).
But it is this feeling I just got that we need to neglect (I just did and will continue). I believe it is Satan.. Telling me to forget it... that this is useless, but I decided to continue. Words are easy, applying is much more difficult. But we must try.

Back to what I was writing… Well, you must be thinking. Ok… what is this gibberish she is talking about? How can we affect those people...? Ok... here I go, and this is from my personal experience.
Back to the people in the governmental institutions... How can we reach them?
Some of us need to get something done for instance, any sort of paper work or whatever. We do not necessarily need to talk to them directly. We can, or actually should resort to God for anything prior to resorting or expecting from people. Have any of you ever read Surat Yaseen before setting out to have something done? Or said any dua'a to facilitate things? Or even did a salat Istikhara? These are the keys to really getting things done. Those of you out there, who think that miracles are over, I tell you NO! The miracle of the dua'a and the Quraan still work and will always work for those who really resort to them. Salat al Istikhara is great. God gave us keys to solving problems, yet we seldom use them? Why is that? I have no clue!

Before getting something done, talk to God, tell Him that you need something done, but at the same time, ask Him to grant you what He knows is best for you, and trust me, He is the all knower, He will never grant you something bad. Please bear in mind the following verse:

وعسى ان تكرهوا شيئا وهو خير لكم و عسى أن تحبوا شيئا و هو شر لكم والله يعلم وانتم لا تعلمون

( أية 216 من سورة البقرة)

There also happen to be many dua'as one can use to open closed doors:

ألله المستعان وعلية التكال ولا حول ولا قوة إلا بالله العلى العظيم

Leave your matters to God, ask Him for help in whatever it is you need, believe me if it is good for you He will help. God is just like a loving father to us all, He really loves us and wants what is good for us. All we need to do is ask, and He assured us of this saying

(وقال ربكم ادعوني أستجب لكم (أية 60 من سورة غافر

Do you know that people's natures can be changed for just a while to suit your needs? Maybe that is a bit vague, let me explain. For instance, you have a problem where you need to go have some paper work done at one of the so called governmental institutes or authorities, and you really need things done. What I suggest you do is the following: Pray two rak3as for God and in your sujoud ask Allah to grant you aid in whatever it is you need done, or say dua'a al isitikhara, then before entering the place, say the dua'a above and be as patient and nice as you can to them, no matter what (God will do the rest)!

From my experience where I had an incredibly complicated law suite, it worked miraculously! Only with the aid of the dua'a and prayers I had done all through out the entire procedure. I am not saying it went 100% smooth, but I assure you, it went 90% smooth! It did take time, yes, but things were going, and I had no lawyers with me, I had to do everything myself, and my opponents had 5 lawyers whom happened to be scum bags!! You know what I mean! The guys called Mo7derren at the district attorney's building were always offering help and actually asked me to leave my number just incase my opponents lawyers tried to go behind my back to bribe anyone or play some sort of dirty games! The same happened at court! I was really surprised how things went! And I never bribed anyone (it is haram any way) but I did tip them after it was all over, and I asked a Sheikh if it was haram, and was told as long as I was not paying them before hand or making them expect something from me at the beginning, and as long as I was not rewarding them for giving me something that is not my right, then it is ok. It is just the only convenient way of thanking them (since again those people are underpaid). You will not believe this, they did not want to take anything, I had to practically convince some of them. But some did not take anything! This was something I did really respect.

Some people still do their work with decency regardless of being underpaid. I know they are few, but they say they are just happy to be of service and to please GOD... SO there, some people still want to please god and have blessings in whatever little they get from their jobs! You know why? Because they have peace inside, because Allah blesses whatever little they get to suite their needs! Because they still have strong Faith!

Modesty and nice words too can play an important role in getting things done! Try to be modest with those who are less than you in social standards.

"الكلمة الطيبة صدقة"

You must be asking what on earth does this have to do with loving Egypt? Right? I'll tell you. When you say Duaa, and ask God to guide those people who are in places such as governmental authorities, this duaa can do miracles when you ask Allah to help them do what is right and what is good for you and others, it is not something to be taken lightly. Do not belittle the effect of the duaa you say for others and for your self.

I wrote all that because the aspect of faith in God needs to be strengthened amongst us. Religion is all about moving on to being better and to having a better life! If people think that Islam is a backward religion they are wrong and mistaken. Having faith strengthens us, gives us hope for a better future. We just need to hang on.
Prophet Muhammed said that there will come a time when :

(القابض على دينة كالقابض على جمرة من نار). "He who hangs on to his religion will be like he who hangs on to a piece of burning rock!"
That will not affect our modernization, we just need to pick out what is good for us and discard what is not, from this so called modernization.

As individuals, when we do that, we will each participate in the bettering of our country's future. And yes, it is that simple. The whole thing depends on how much we believe and have faith in God and ourselves. Isalm encourages us to think of others, to care, to help, to give, even a simple smile or salam (hello) can make someone's day brighter, therefore work harder towards productivity.

Why can't the owners of companies for instance mix more with their employees? Why can't they go down the steps of arrogance and mingle with the guys at the buffet, or the factory workers, or with their company drivers? Simple gestures can be great drives for those people, and come to think of it, they are the main reason why big companies and factories have grown!

Why can't our president walk amongst the people without fear of being assassinated? Do you know that king Abdullah of Jordan does that? He actually walks amongst his people, on his feet, in the streets. My ex-boss was in Jordan on business once and to his surprise he ran into the king!! On the street!!

Why can't we walk in the street and smile to one another, and throw salams when we pass by anyone sitting down? It was encouraged by the prophet to do so?

Why can’t we for instance arrange for parades on the streets asking people to be nice to one another and calling for peace amongst our own fellow citizens?? Make a "Fellow citizen day!" Or being helpful day? Or Cleaning Cairo Day? It is not funny! I am serious. Some of you may be members of some sort of NGO, why not think of this seriously, as a matter of fact, I should start trying to find a way to do something like that.

Stimulating positive thinking and cooperation amongst citizens of Cairo (to begin with).

Does any one have any suggestions???