Notes from the convert/revert classes:

Here you will find notes taken from the Sunday convert/revert classes. If you have any questions or would like to get in touch with us, please do not hesitate to contact us insha’ Allah!

Basics of Islam

  • Worship + System
    • Worship
      • The essence of Worship is love
    • System
      • Principles & Values
      • Guidance
      • Benefits/Harm
      • Lawful/Unlawful
  • Fitrah (natural inclination of the soul/heart towards Allah and towards doing good and being a good human being)
    • A question that was asked:  How to access this love of Allah or fitra that we have inside of it?  
      • Think about: What really draws someone to Islam?
    • Definition: Natural Disposition
    • Fitra is a spiritual aspect, not intellectual, the essence of who we are, defies logic
    • Like a bulb that goes on, something resonated in you

Salaah (Prayer)

    • Direct connection with Allah
    • Expression of love
    • Prayer is an expression and experience of loving Allah
    • Salaah is the embodiment of Tawheed
    • The Prophet s.a.w said:
      • “The coolness of my eyes is found in Salaah”
        • Meaning: my paradise is in Salaah
      • “Bring tranquility to our hearts ya Bilal”
        • Salaah = tranquility
    • Surah Taha (20:14) , Allah is directly talking to Musa a.s. about the prayer:
      • Indeed, I am Allah. There is no deity except Me, so worship Me and establish prayer for My remembrance.”
  • Khushuu’ (Focused state during prayer)
    • Spiritual state → Love
    • Can’t define it
    • Indescribable experience   
    • Often confused with ‘focus’
  • Fear vs Love
    • Not mutually exclusive
    • Fear and Love has to be in proportion when it comes to salaah, but one should be drawn into the love side of it.
  • 4 Elements of Engagement in Salaah
      • Body – physical framework
      • Tongue – recitation, duaa’s
      • Mind – mental, thought process, reflection
      • Heart – the experience of the soul
    • focusing solely on the technicalities hijacks your experience of Salaah

– La illaha ilallah (there is no God but Allah)

– Islam is based on the oneness of Allah

– love for Allah

Tawheed : Arabic word that comes from #1( wahid= uniqueness, one), to make something one.

    • To affirm and acknowledge that Allah is one.
    • Allah is the proper name of God in Arabic.

Three things that we need to acknowledge to Allah in regards to being ONE:

(1) His Might & Knowledge & Creation

– Rubb = Lord in Arabic
– He created the world, He has knowledge of everything and all
– Powerful, Creator, Sustainer, Controller of all and everything
– Taking care of His creation, element of compassion and car
– Oneness of Lordship (Tawheed – Ar-Roob-boo-biyyah)

(2) Names & Attributes

      • In Arabic , asmaa wa sifaat
      • Recognizing the Uniqueness of Allah
      • Nothing is like Allah because He is the Creator
      • Creator can never be like the creation, can never compare!
      • We are limited in so many things but Allah is above everything and all and never limited!
      • Allah is all able and all powerful
      • There are not only 99 names of Allah, there are many more
      • Allah is ABOVE his creation, he NEVER mixes with his creation
      • He is separate from his creation
      • Actions that are unique to Allah

(3) Worship

      • Allah is the ONLY ONE who has the right to be worshipped
      • Everything in Islam stands on this.
      • In Arabic , Uloohiyyah
      • Love for/of Allah
      • Worship should not be just a technical thing, it should come spiritually within

The heart of worship is love for Allah:

      • Only Allah has the right to be worshipped
      • Ultimate love, devotion, deepest part of who you are as a human being
      • Purpose of your life, gives your life meaning
      • Born into loving Allah, our natural state (fitrah)

Verse 51:56 “ I created the jinn and mankind to worship me”

Muhammadun ar-rasoolullah

Prophet and final messenger of Allah

      • Sent down to spread the message and guidelines
      • A system to navigate the worldly life which is the guidance of the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)

What is the system of Islam made of ?

      • Principles & values compatible with the way the universe runs
      • Principles & values as a legal system, way of life
      • General guidance (defines the benefits and defines the harms)
      • Halal & haram (do’s & dont’s – commands and prohibitions )
      • Halal & haram respond to the context of our situation (for example: when something that is normally haram but it can save a life, it will become halal – a person starving and lost and no food for days but they find a dead carcass or swine, they can eat it because if you don’t, you will die  )
      • Behavioural system (behaviour and a way of life !)

*Everything happens because of the love of Allah

  • Human & Jinns ( “ghosts”, the unseen, invisible creation who have a life of their own and they are also accountable and answer to Allah)
  • Universal harmony because everything runs on the love of Allah
  • Being denied the connection of Allah is the biggest calamity
  • This life is full of tests and shaytaan (the devil) tries to take us off the straight path to Allah
  • Must follow all principles and not just pick and choose

nahal – v: 90/91 verse on justice

v: 90 – Indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded.

V: 91- And fulfill the covenant of Allah when you have taken it, [O believers], and do not break oaths after their confirmation while you have made Allah, over you, a witness. Indeed, Allah knows what you do

Islam a reflection of our true nature

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Pure Soul: 20 ways to become more spiritual every day (Rashidoon.com)

  • Do not try to investigate whether it is halal or not  
  • Take things at surface value unless there is a clear indication

Elements of Khushu

Gratitude  

  • we are on the receiving rather than the giving end during Salah
  • We always have the assumption that we owe Allah something (we are on giving end and Allah is on the receiving end)
  • Perform Salah from a position of thankfulness
  • Salah is a statement of gratitude to Allah
  • Allah designed Salah, Allah taught us to pray through the prophet (saw), Allah inspired us to pray (not our excellence), Allah allows us to pray (physically able)
  • Shapes and colors intention, doing salah in gratitude recognition for our blessings
  • What gets people into paradise is paradise
  • Gratefulness opens our soul
  • Be grateful for everything around you even if it seems insignificant
  • Gratitude comes from the soul 
  • Your best is not enough whatever you offer to Allah is never enough
  • Do it for Allah connection between you and Allah, nobody has a share (people’s love, approval, admiration is irrelevant

 

  • Physical Frame : Pray as the Prophet (SAW) pray
  • prayer comes from Allah swt, nothing random
  • everything in salah is consequential; perfect order

designed to access a state that we cannot access in any other posture (e.g. going into sujood & heart is in connection to the ground, closest place to Allah)

  • physical and spiritual connection
  • learning how the Prophet SAW pray enhances salah
  • do not obsess over the technical parts of salah
  • pray in a human fashion (don’t focus on right angles, swift moves etc…)
  • Constant Stream of Presence: Do it from your heart
  • Truthfulness and excellence
  • Perform salah willingly, because you love & enjoy it . Not on autopilot, to get off shoulders
  • The act of prayer is so enjoyable that you are present in your salah
  • pour heart completely into the process of salah
  • Work on the first 4 elements, it will become easier to access presence
  • DO IT TRULY FROM THE HEART
  • Have the willingness to want to go into rukoo (heart wants to go into this state)  
  • Not about following instruction and just owning the process of it with flow and depth

e.g. writing so often that words come out as an internal flow outwardly

praying at night brings more connection from tongue and heart (more spiritual time)

 

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Repentance:

  • Allah accepts tawbah and then inspires us to make tawbah
  • What is truly tawbah? Tawbah is inspiration from Allah for us to repent, feel remorse
  • Tawbah starts with Allah then it goes through us, then He accepts it
  • Doing any good act don’t see yourself there – Allah inspired us to made us a tool/instrument to do the good act
  • When we commit a sin, we hold our self-accountable

Surah Tawbah  

v:118

And [He also forgave] the three who were left behind [and regretted their error] to the point that the earth closed in on them in spite of its vastness and their souls confined them and they were certain that there is no refuge from Allah except in Him. Then He turned to them so they could repent. Indeed, Allah is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.

  • Allah inspires us to repent, then He accepts it
  • What we say has consequences, we don’t know how it can interact with our qadr (decree/ our divine outcome)
  • Nothing pushes qadr back except dua and what we say
  • Maybe a reason why don’t expose a bad dream
  • Watch what you say, they have consequences
  • Things we say to ourselves is very powerful

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Attaining Khusoo’

  1. Gratitude
  2. Your best is not enough
  3. Do it for Allah
  • Do it for sincerity – comes from the heart, not the brain
  • Ikhlas = sincerity
  • Do it to please Allah
  • Wanting to please Allah – genuinely wanting/willingness to do it
  • To attain khusoo’, perform salah with sincerity – Muslim community see sincerity as a duty/burden/resistance
  • Sincerity = love of Allah

-prayer is a heartfelt love that we are experiencing to the one who is our creator, then that is what sincerity is

-the intention is in the heart, not a thought

-doubt of lack of knowing intention to salah is lack of sincerity

-your attention goes to where your love is

-having a problem attaining attention in salah shows where the heart’s attention goes to

-review relationship with Allah – heighten the love that you have with Allah

** my Salah is my expression of love towards Allah (feelings should be homely and cozy) **

-استحضار   – ح ض ر-unlocking feelings and bringing them to the forefront of our intellect/vision)to bring forward with effort) –

-Fatwah can change from person to person applies to them depending on the situation

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Situational information for converts: (Disclaimer : please do not overanalyze or take out of context the information shared in this section – it is very difficult to form a fatwah for the general population considering everybody’s situation is different and sometimes more harm can be done to an individual than good given their iman level and their circumstances if they follow the general ruling on something. All information below should not be taken out of context nor should it be judged by us – )

General Ruling on Christmas

  • General ruling on Christmas is HARAM (ruling can change depending on situation)  
Stronger personality Weaker personality
  • No basis

e.g. Christmas is about family, getting together and giving but that’s not a strong basis. That can be done without Christmas

  • Easier for them to leave
  • under pressure, emotionally broken down, may lose faith, depression, lose sense of hope
  • weaker personality will take different approach
  • “too considerate” having higher expectations from family
  • need to make a “plan” to get out of it – how to pull oneself slowly out of these things
  • slowly pull out so the emotional burden is lessened
  • the more independent you become the more you are free from these acts
  • always send the message of Islam

Any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to write us.  Thank you.

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