LESSON OF THE DAY 396

Ayah of the Day:
Their is certainly advice in their stories for those who have reason. It is not an invented tale, but confirmation of what proceeds it, and analysts of all things, and guidance and mercy for people who believe. [12: 111]

Hadith of the Day:
Give people respite from your evil. For to do this is a form of charity that you give to yourself. [Bukhari & Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
The heart of those who intimately know Allah is a wellspring of Divine remembrance, whereas the heart of the one stuck in the mires of this world is a factory, which produces only greed and covetousness. [Mansur Ammar]

Guidance of the Day:
One of the most important ways to conquer the hearts of people is that one always seeks an opportunity to do others good and once such an opportunity appears, make use of it without delay. If only we could set our hearts on always doing good to others!

Good morals and sound conscience, and good manners and virtues, are like a currency universally acceptable and which is not affected by changes in the values of other means of exchange. Those provided with such qualities are like merchants with the highest credit who can do business wherever they want.

The more a person suffers in life and is conscious of the life he or she is living, the more profound his or her feelings become. Those who live unconsciously of the meaning of life and events have experienced no suffering, can never develop their feelings and faculties. Nor can they feel themselves as parts of existence. [Peals of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
He dies not who gives life to learning. Who are learned? Those who practice what they know.

LESSON OF THE DAY 395

Ayah of the Day:
And We only sent before you men, from the people of communities, men whom We inspired; do they not travel the earth and see how things turned out for those before them? Surely the home of the Hereafter is better for those who are conscientious, Don't they understand? [12: 110]

Hadith of the Day:
Every good deed counts as charity. Among one's good deeds is to meet your brother with a smiling face. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
One of the most basic requirements of repentance is that the person who sinned is obligated to avoid people, places, and circumstances associated with that sin. [Umm Salah]

Guidance of the Day:
Those fortunate ones, whose actions reflect the obedience of their spirits, will always seek to please the Creator and humanity, and will continue to acquire praiseworthy virtues. Their progress indicator will always show the same route. Although some straying may occur every once in a while, a truly sincere remorse and a heartfelt penitence will melt away the sin from their hearts and souls. After this, they will resume their roads, often with renewed vigor.

Those fortunate ones who fulfill their duties meticulously and thoroughly, who carefully attend every little detail, enjoy orderliness, harmony, and devotion to duty in their outer worlds. At the same time, they increase the pure light of their inner worlds and, on the wings of their prayers, attain a few times each day the rank of angels. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
The real measure of your wealth is what you have invested in eternity. It is where one spends their money that shows where their heart lies. It is in giving not in seeking gifts, the heart is blessed.

LESSON OF THE DAY 394

Ayahs of the Day:
Do they feel sure that a calamity from the punishment of God will not come upon them, or the end of time will not come upon them suddenly, while they are unawares? Say,"This is my way; I invite to God, based on evidence; I and whoever follows me. And, glory be to God, I am not a polytheist. [12: 107, 108]

Hadith of the Day:
There is nothing wrong with wealth for those who are purified. But good health for those who are conscious of Allah is even better. And, being good-natured is a gift. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Knowledge is the spirit that saves the heart from the death of ignorance; it is the light that saves it from the darkness of iniquity. The hearts of iniquitous are dead because they are oblivious to God, and the hearts of heedless are sick because they ignore His commandments. [Abu Ali Thaqafi]

Guidance of the Day:
Establishing a sound relationship with a long, great past and a long, better future depends on your having a proper understanding of your heart's and soul's vitality. The fortunate ones live at this level and fully understand this life. They see the past as our ancestors' great tents and thrones, the future as roads leading toward the gardens of Paradise, and, while sipping inspiration from their inner conscience as if from the fountain of Kawthar (one of the rivers in Paradise), they pass on from the guesthouse of this world.

But the unfortunate ones, those who cannot reach such level of understanding and endeavor, lead lives that are worse than deaths, and their deaths are a hell of darkness upon darkness. There is a mutually supportive and perfective relation between one's actions and inner life. We may call this relation a virtuous circle." Attitudes like determination, perseverance, and resolve illuminate one's inner conscience, and the brightness of this inner conscience strengthens one's will power and resolve, stimulating him or her to ever-higher-horizons. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Form good habits, they are just as hard to break as bad ones. Live your life so that there will be those that will thank God that you lived.

LESSON OF THE DAY 393

Ayahs of the Day:
How many signs in the heavens and the earth do they pass by, turning away from them! For most of them do not believe in God, except as polytheists. [12: 105,106]

Hadith of the Day:
The prophet of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) used to prohibit idle speculation, the wasting of resources, unnecessary questioning, avarice, disobedience to parents, and the burying of baby girls. [Bukhari & Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
One who remembers death a lot will be easily contented with the simple things in life. [Ali radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
The really long lived are not those who live long but those who can make their lives as fruitful as possible. In view of this standard, as there may be those who, though a hundred years old, are truly short lived, it is also possible that there are those who, though only fifteen years old, have been able to attain to the highest degrees by dedicating their lives to giving as many fruits as possible.

The true life is the one lived at the spiritual level. Those whose hearts are alive, conquering the past and the future, cannot be contained by time. Such people are never excessively distressed by sorrows of the past or anxieties of the future. Those who cannot experience full existence in their hearts, and thus lead banal, shallow lives, are always gloomy and inclined to hopelessness. They consider the past as a horrifying grave, and the future an endless well. It is torment if they die, and it is torment if they survive. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
If anyone speaks badly of you, live so that no one will believe it. Some people make the world more special just by being in it.

LESSON OF THE DAY 392

Ayahs of the Day:
But most people won't be believers, no matter how much you wish. And you do not ask them any reward for this; for it is nothing but a reminder to all worlds. [12: 103,104]

Hadith of the Day:
And what could be worse than a miser!! [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Acquire knowledge, and for acquiring knowledge learn to be calm and clement. [Omar radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
Worship is blessed, growing resource feeding a person's thoughts and deliberations of being good, righteous and virtuous, and a mysterious elixir which reforms the innate tendencies of selfhood toward evil. One who has resource to this resource a few times a day with reflection on Divine truths and remembrance of God, has entered on the way to becoming a perfect one and taken shelter against the temptations of the carnal self.

Worship is developing the potential in a person to be like angels in order to be fitted for Paradise and bringing under control the bestial inclinations and potentialities. So far in human history, by means of their worship many have surpassed angels, while many others, refusing worship, have fallen to the lowest of the low.

The most meritorious of the acts or services of worship is knowing and loving God Almighty. If there is something more meritorious and commendable than this, it is seeking God's approval and good pleasure in whatever one does and, moved by the command, "Be upright as you are commanded," always being in pursuit of what is the truest and highest ideal in life. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
When you throw mud at someone, remember that you are the one who is losing the ground.

LESSON OF THE DAY 391

Ayah of the Day:
My Lord, You gave me some authority, and taught me some interpretation of stories. Creator of the heavens and the earth, You are my protector in the world and the hereafter; take my soul in the state of acquiescence, and unite me with the upright. [12: 101]

Hadith of the Day:
The best among you in Islam are those with the best manners, so long as they develop a sense of understanding. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Disputes that escalate to high levels can only be defused if one of the parties lays down arms and surrenders, preferring family harmony and the pleasure of God Most High over personal grudges. [Hamza Karam Ali]

Guidance of the Day:
Worship means one's sincere acknowledgment of himself or herself as a servant, and God as the sole and true Object of Worship. It consists in a servant designing his or her life in accordance with the relations between a true servant and the True Object of Worship, in the light of the fact that one is the created and the other the Creator.

Worship means one's thankfulness for the bounties with which he or she is endowed, such as life, consciousness, power of perception and faith, while negligence of the duty of worship is crude ingratitude.

Worship is a road to travel, opened by the Being Who commands us to believe, and it is a set of good manners that He ordered us to observe, so that we could finally reach Him and obtain happiness in both this life and the next. It is not possible for those who cannot find this way and acquire these manners to reach God, the Truth. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Take delight in the good fortune of another person. Blowing out another person's candle won't make ours any brighter.

LESSON OF THE DAY 390

Ayahs of the Day:
Say to those who do not believe, "Do what you can; for we are at work. And wait, for we are waiting." The secrets of the heavens and the earth belongs to God, to whom everything is returned. So worship God, and trust in God; your Lord is not unaware of what you do. [11: 121,122,123]

Hadith of the Day:
Two qualities will never be joined in a believer: greed and bad manners. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
He does not refuse sustenance to the one who speaks ill of Him. How then could He refuse sustenance to the one whose soul is overflowing with love for Him? {Rabi'a Basaria]

Guidance of the Day:
Religion is an inexhaustible and blessed source that lays the foundation of true civilization. It is through religion that we are elevated so high in spirit and feelings that we make contact with metaphysical worlds, where we are "fed' to full satisfaction with all kinds of beauty, virtue, and goodness.

Virtues are to be sought in the practice of religion. It rarely happens that an atheist has laudable virtues, or that a religious person has none. Men and women attain true humanity by means of religion, which distinguishes them from animals. Religion is the way established by God, while atheism is the way of Satan. This is why the struggle between religion and atheism has existed since the time of Adam and will continue until the Last Day. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Deal with the faults of others as gently as you deal with your own. Under everyone's hard-shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved

LESSON OF THE DAY 389

Ayah of the Day:
Everything We tell you from stories of the messengers is by way of making your heart firm; and truth comes to you in them, and advice and reminder for the believers. [11: 120]

Hadith of the Day:
Stinginess and faith will never meet in the heart of a believer. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
When the lover of God turns his eyes away from the temptations of this world, he sees the Lord with the eyes of his heart. [Al Hujwiri]

Guidance of the Day:
Nothing in true religion is contrary to sound thinking, common sense, and knowledge. Therefore true religion cannot be criticized from any rational point of view. Those who do not accept religion either are devoid of sound thinking and reasoning or have a wrong conception of knowledge and science.

All the beautiful "flowers" of laudable virtues are grown in the "gardens" of religion, as are the most illustrious "fruits" of the tree of creation, such as Prophets, saints, and scholars of high achievement. Although atheists deliberately ignore them, regardless of how hard they try, they will not be able to remove them from the hearts of people and pages of books. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Du'a of the Week:
Allahumma'ghfirli, fa innahu la yaghfiru'dh-dhunuba illa anta. (O Allah forgive me, for none forgives sins except You).

Food for Thought:
It is nice to be important, but it is more important to be nice. He who is happiest is he, who gives most happiness.

LESSON OF THE DAY 388

Ayahs of the Day:
But your Lord would not destroy a population for one error, if its people would make amends. And your Lord would have made humankind one people, had that been the divine will; but they will not stop disputing. [11: 117,118]

Hadith of the Day:
Being wealthy does not mean having many possessions. Rather, being wealthy means possessing a wealthy soul. [Bukhari & Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Allah gives wealth to those He loves and to those He does not love, but He gives faith only to those He loves. [ Abdullah ibn Mas'ud]

Guidance of the Day:
Religion means recognizing God and His absolute and transcendental Oneness; acquiring spiritual purity by acting in His way; arranging relationships in His name and according to His commandments, and feeling a profound interest in and love for all creation on His account.

Sooner or later those who do not recognize religion will come to despise such noble values as chastity, patriotism, and love of humanity. Immorality is a disease caused by the absence of religion, and anarchy is a product of the same lack.

Religion and science are two faces of a single truth. Religion guides us to the true path leading to happiness. Science, when understood and used properly, is like a torch that provides us with a light to follow the same path. [Peals of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Do atheists, who devote their lives attacking religion, not have some obligation to demonstrate the benefits, if any, and the good consequences, if any of atheism?

LESSON OF THE DAY 387

Ayah of the Day:
Why were there not people of constancy among generation before you who would forbid corruption on earth, except a few of them whom We saved? Those who went wrong pursued the luxuries afforded them, sinners as they were. [11: 116]

Hadith of the Day:
Seeking knowledge (of the Deen) is obligatory on every Muslim male and famale. [Ibn Majah]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Praise that is more than deserved is flattery, while less than it deserves indicates incapacity of expression or jealousy. [Ali radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
Since its appearance on the Earth, humanity has found true peace and happiness in religion. As it is impossible to talk of morality and virtue where people do not practice the true religion, it is also difficult to imagine real happiness, for morality and virtue originate in a good, clear conscience. Religion is what makes one's conscience good and clear, for it is a connection between humanity and God.

Religion is the best school, a most blessed institution founded to inculcate in people good moral qualities. It is open to everyone, from the youngest to the oldest. Only those who attend it attain peace, satisfaction, and freedom. By contrast, those without religion cannot save themselves from losing everything, including their true identity.

Religion is the collection of Divine principles that guide people to what is good, not by force but by appealing to their free will. All principles that secure our spiritual and material progress, and thereby our happiness in both worlds, are found in religion. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
You can't always have everything, but you can make the best of what you have. Discontentment makes rich people poor, while contentment makes poor people rich.

LESSON OF THE DAY 386

Ayahs of the Day:
Pray regularly at the borders of the day, and the approaches of the night; for good things remove bad things. That is a reminder for the mindful. And be patient, for God will not neglect the reward of the good. [11: 114,115]

Hadith of the Day:
Nothing is weightier on the Scale of Deeds than one's good manners. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Knowledge and understanding is inherited from teachers, not merely inferred through one's own reason. [Hamza Karam Ali]

Guidance of the Day:
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings upon him) proclaimed true freedom to humanity, and ingrained in human consciousness that all human beings are equal before the law. He established that superiority lies in virtue, piety, and morality. He regarded proclaiming the truth against all oppressors and oppressive thought as a kind of worship.

He (peace and blessings upon him) called upon us to protect religion, life, reason, property, and the integrity of family and lineage, and to strive for this purpose. In a remarkable balanced way, he proclaimed that no other duty could equal this struggle.He (peace and blessings upon him) unveiled the transitory nature of this world and death, and showed the grave to be a waiting room opening on to a realm of eternal happiness. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Rejoice in the things that you have. Seek not after the riches nor the vain things of this world, for behold you cannot carry them with you.

LESSON OF THE DAY 385

Ayahs of the Day:
So be upright as you have been directed, you and those who turn to God with you and don't transgress. For God sees what you do. And do not incline toward those who have gone wrong, lest the fire touch you; you have no protectors other than God, and you won't be saved. [11: 112,113]

Hadith of the Day:
Every religion has an innate character. The character of Islam is modesty. [Bayhaqi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Sincerity is to make Allah one's sole aim in acts of obedience, meaning to intend by one's obedience to draw nearer to Allah Most High and nothing. [Abul Qasim Qushayri]

Guidance of the Day:
Humanity came to know true civilization by means of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings upon him), and favored it. All efforts exhorted after him for the sake of true civilization have been no more than practicing or trying to practice the principles he brought and adjusting to new conditions.

He (peace and blessings upon him) rejected indolence and the lazy and esteemed labor as a mode of worship and applauded the hard-working. He directed his followers beyond the age in which they lived and taught them how they could be the element of balance in the world.

He (peace and blessings upon him) is unequaled in that he appeared as a sword of valor and eloquence against unbelief and savagery. He proclaimed the truth with the clearest voice and showed mankind the ways to true existence. Those who search for truth and thirst for true knowledge eventually will seek him out and embrace his path. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream, not only plan, but also believe. It is only the farmer who faithfully plants in the spring who reaps a harvest in the autumn.

LESSON OF THE DAY 384

Ayahs of the Day:
We gave Moses a scripture, but differences arose in regard to it; and had it not been for a word gone forth from your Lord before, the matter would have been settled among them. Now they are sure in disquieting doubt about it. Your Lord will requite them all fully; for God is indeed acquainted with what it is they do. [11: 110,111]

Hadith of the Day:
Allah has never sent a prophet or a caliph except that He sent an entourage with him. One entourage would enjoin him to do good and shun evil, and another entourage would spare no effort to corrupt him. Those who resist the temptings of the evil entourage will be protected. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Do not strut proudly on account of your good deeds. Do not let pride waylay you. When you deem yourself holier than others, know that you have fallen into grave error. [Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani]

Guidance of the Day:
Those who criticize the Quran as if it were their profession generally have only a vague and superficial knowledge of its contents. It is ironic that such people feel free to vent their opinions without researching the Quran or even reading it. It seems that we must continue to wait for people to awaken to truth.

In the near future, and under humanity's gazes of commendation and amazement, the streams of knowledge, technique, and art flowing toward the Quranic ocean will fall into their essential source and unite with it. At that time, scholars, researchers, and artists will find themselves in that same ocean.

Those who have prevented Muslims from understanding the Quran and perceiving it in depth have thus removed them from the essence and spirit of Islam. It should not be too hard to see the future as the Age of the Quran, for it is the word of One Who sees the past, present, and future at the same moment. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Think of your own faults the first part of the night when you are awake, and the faults of others the latter part of the night when you are asleep.

LESSON OF THE DAY 383

Ayah of the Day:
So do not be in doubt about what these people worship; they only worship as their ancestors used to worship before. And We will indeed repay them their portion without stint. [11: 109]

Hadith of the Day:
Do not laugh in excess, for excessive laughter deadens the heart. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Prayer is an instrument through which novices find their path to God. Thus ablution symbolizes repentance; the Qibla, a spiritual guide; standing in prayer becomes self-mortification; the recitation of the Quran, inner meditation; bowing the head, humility; prostration, self knowledge; profession of faith, intimacy; and salutation becomes detachment from the world and bondage of stations. [Al Hujwiri]

Guidance of the Day:
The most orderly life for the humanity is that breathed by the Quran. In fact, some of the beautiful things that are today universally commended and applauded are the exact things encouraged by the Quran centuries ago. So, whose fault is it if Muslims are in a miserable situation today?

The Quran enables people to rise to the highest level, namely the station of being addressed by God. Those who are conscious of being in this position hear their Lord speak to them through the Quran. If they take an oath that they speak with their Lord, they will not be among those who swear falsely.

Even though we are still in this world, when we enter the Quran's enlightened climate we feel that we are passing through the grave and the intermediate world, experiencing the Day of Judgment and the Siraat (bridge), shuddering at the horror of Hell, and walking on Heaven's tranquil slopes. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
Knowledge is not acquired with laziness, it does not come to one without effort. One must seek it, and sacrifice his time and wealth in order to attain knowledge.

LESSON OF THE DAY 382

Ayah of the Day:
As for those who have been blessed, they will be in the garden, where they will abide as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except as your Lord wills, as an uninterrupted gift. [11: 108]

Hadith of the Day:
Every people are put to test a through something, and my people will be tested through the wealth. [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Wisdom can only be found in three people: the one who leaves the vain pursuits of the world, the one who seeks after the glories of the Hereafter, and the one who is intoxicated in his love for the Divine. [Yahya bib Mu'adh]

Guidance of the Day:
The Quran is the only book that, protects the orphan, the poor and innocent, puts the king and the slave, the commander and the private, the plaintiff and the defendant in the same chair and then judges them.

Claiming that the Quran is a source of superstition is nothing more than repeating the words uttered by ignorant Arabs fourteen centuries ago. Such a view ridicules wisdom and true philosophy.

If only those who criticize the Quran and the things it brought could produce something to guarantee the order, harmony, peace and safety of human life even in a short, temporary period....Actually, it is very difficult to understand the perversity and obstinacy when faced with the miserable and unbalanced civilizations based on principles foreign to the Quran, and the troubled, depressed, and moaning hearts of those deprived of its light. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Du'a of the Week:

Raditu bi'Llahi Rabban, wa bi'l-Islami dinan, wa bi-Sayyidina Muhammadin Salla'Llahu' alayhi wa sallama nabiyyan wa rasulan. (I am content with Allah as Lord, with Islam as religion, and with our master Muhammad, may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him, as a Prophet and Messenger).

Food for Thought:
Some of the greatest thinking has been done by those who cared little for riches. And who shall say that theirs was not the richer life?

LESSON OF THE DAY 381

Ayahs of the Day:
As for those who are miserable, they will be in the fire, where they will sob with sigh, staying there as long as the skies and the earth endure, except as your Lord wills; for God can do what ever God wants. [11: 106,107]

Hadith of the Day:
A deceitful person, a miser, and he who upbraids for favors done by him never enters Heaven. [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Do not despair in the face of adversity, and do not yield to those without direction. [Fethullan Gulen]

Guidance of the Day:
When humanity was floundering in the brutality of ignorance and unbelief, the Quran burst forth in a flood of enlightenment that drowned the world in its light. The Quran engendered a revolution without parallel or equal. History is a sufficient witness!

The Quran teaches in a most balanced way the meaning and nature of humanity, and the truth and wisdom, as well as the Essence, Attributes, And Names of God. No other book can equal it in this field. Look at the wisdom of scholarly saints and the philosophy of true philosophers, and you will understand.

The Quran is the unique book commanding true justice, real freedom, balanced equality, goodness, honor, virtue, and compassion for all creation. It is also the matchless book forbidding oppression, polytheism, injustice, ignorance, bribery, interest, lying, and bearing false witness. [Pearls of Wisdom]

Food for Thought:
It is the minority that have stood in the van of every moral conflict and achieved all that is noble in the history of the world.

LESSON OF THE DAY 380

Ayahs of the Day:
And We will not postpone it, except for a definite term. The day it comes, no soul will speak but by divine permission, and some of them will be happy. [11: 104,105]

Hadith of the Day:
If you are always suspicious of people, you will ruin them. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Your dignity is solid, but making requests evaporates it. So be careful about who it is before whom you allow your dignity to evaporate. [Ali radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
In accordance with humanity's worth and value, and considering the human heart, spirit, mind, and physical being, the Quran descended from the Highest of the High. Containing the most perfect messages, it is a collection of Divine laws. Followed today by more than one billion people, the Quran is a unique book that, with its eternal and unchanging divine principles, guides everyone to the shortest and most illuminated road to happiness.

The Quran has been a source of light for the most magnificent and enlightened communities that have ruled the world, those that have produced thousands of scholars, philosophers and thinkers. In this sense no other rule is equal to its rule. Since the day it was revealed, the Quran has encountered many objections and criticisms. However, the Quran has always emerged unscathed and so continues to reflect its victory.

The Quran crystallizes the heart, illumines the spirit, and exhibits truths from beginning to end. Only believers who can sense all the beauty of the universe in a single flower and see raindrops in a drop of water can know and understand its real countenance. [Pearls of Wisdom by Fethullah Gulen]

Food for Thought:
If God resides in your home, His presence cannot be hidden

LESSON OF THE DAY 379

Ayahs of the Day:
Such is the punishment of your Lord when punishing communities who go wrong, divine punishment is truly painful and severe. For in that is a sign for those who fear torment in the hereafter; that is a day for which humanity will be gathered together; and that is a day that will be witnessed. [11: 102,103]

Hadith of the Day:
Greed and miserliness and Faith do not subsist together in a heart. [Nasai, Abu Daud]

Wise Quote of the Day:
He who remembers Allah with all his heart will find that everything other than Allah leaves his heart. [Yahya bin Mu'adh]

Guidance of the Day:
Spiritual guidance on prayer:

Purifying the soul so that it focusses in prayer can take a long time and requires persistence. Until one reaches the goal, a good habit to inculcate is to follow the Sunna of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) by asking Allah's forgiveness after each prayer. One intends by this to ask Allah to accept one despite one's shortcomings.

Scholars mention that it is this broken-hearted and helpless attitude that is the most effective treatment for a diseased heart. Someone who puffs up with pride after offering a prayer with a distracted heart is not only deluded, but is also barred from spiritual progress because he has prevented himself from repentance, which scholars of Islamic spirituality mention is the very heart of every spiritual station. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
He who knows his ownself, knows his Lord, and knows that prayer requires more of the heart than the tongue.

LESSON OF THE DAY 378

Ayahs of the Day:
Those are some of the stories of the communities of which We tell you; some of them still exist, some are now extinct. But We did not wrong them; rather, they wronged themselves. and the deities to which they prayed instead of the one God were of no benefit to them on the coming of the order of your Lord. And they added nothing to their lot but loss. [11: 100,101]

Hadith of the Day:
Those who are present should convey (my message) to those who are not. Convey for me (to the people) even it be a single ayah. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
That one instant is the best of your moments which causes you to reach the intimate knowledge of your Lord. [Abu Hafs Haddad]

Guidance of the Day:
Spiritual guidance on prayer:

Learning Arabic--It is not normally possible to focus during prayer until one knows the meaning of what one is saying. One should, at the very least, learn the meanings of the Fatiha, commonly recited surahs, and the main dhikrs that are said during the prayer, such as the testification of faith and the prayer on the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace).

Removing distractions--Examples of this includes not praying when one needs to relieve oneself, when one is hungry, or in a place where many people pass.

Preventing the development of a Mechanical Attitude--One should variegate the surahs and dhikrs that one recites during the prayer. If one always recites Surat al Ikhlas, one's prayer will quickly become mechanical. If one recites different surahs, the irregularity between prayers will keep them from becoming mechanical. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Prayer does one of two things: it either frees us from the trouble we fear or gives us the strength and courage to meet the trouble when it comes.

LESSON OF THE DAY 377

Ayahs of the Day:
As for those who believe and do good works and humbly acquiesce to their Lord, they are the company of Paradise, where they will abide. The comparison of the two parties is like the blind and deaf compared to the seeing and hearing--are the two equal? So will you not take lesson? [11: 23,24]

Hadith of the Day:
God and His angels, the dwellers of the heavens and of the earth, even an ant in its hole and fish (in the depths of the sea), invoke blessings on a scholar who teaches people goodness. [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
I never saw anyone as just as the world. As long as you pursue the world it will pursue you, but when you turn away from it and seek God, it will leave you alone and its glamour shall no longer fascinate you. [Al Hujwiri]

Guidance of the Day:
Spiritual guidance on prayer: Scholars of Islamic spirituality mention that the only ones who are normally able to focus on Allah during prayer are those who regularly focus on Him outside of prayer. The root cause of not having presence of heart in prayer is a diseased heart that is attached to the world.

Imam Ghazali mentions in the ihya that "whoever loves something remembers it frequently." Someone who loves the things of the world will think about them during prayer. Someone who truly loves His Lord will find no space in his heart for the things of the world; this is the person who is able to have presence of heart during prayer.

Ultimately, the only way to achieve focus during prayer is to tread the spiritual path by purifying the heart from its fruits and adorning it with praiseworthy traits. One should engage in spiritual struggle (mujahada) by going against the desires of the ego during prayer and forcing it to focus on Allah. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Begin each morning with a talk with God the Almighty, prayer is an armor do not go into your day without it.

LESSON OF THE DAY 376

Ayahs of the Day:
"Those who divert people from the way of God, and seek distortion in it, being themselves disbelievers in the hereafter." They will not cause frustration on earth, and they have no protectors but God. The penalty will be doubled for them. They could not hear; and they did not see. They are the ones who have lost their souls; and their inventions have deserted them. There is no doubt that they will be the greatest losers in the hereafter.[11: 19,20,21,22]

Hadith of the Day:
Bidding in an auction just to increase the price to defraud real buyers is prohibited. [Bayhaqi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
One who examines his own flaws is distracted from the flaws of others, and one who is satisfied with the sustenance God grants him does not grieve over what he has missed. [Ali radi Allh anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
Imam Ibn Rajab said that the Prophet's (peace and blessings be upon him) words, "Do not get angry," can mean one of two things:

First, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was calling to the means of acquiring good character, such as benevolence, generosity, forbearance, modesty, humility, bearing the harm of others, not harming others, overlooking, forgiving, restraining one's anger, cheerfulness, smiling, and the like of these beautiful traits and they become one's habit, then this results in warding off anger when its causes are found.

Second, that the meaning is not to act according to what anger entails...Rather, that one strive against one's lower self by not acting on one's inclinations call to.

Know too that at the root of good character is humility and making one's intention sincere to Allah. The root of lowly character is arrogance and thinking highly of oneself. Whoever is free from these has been saved from all ill. Whoever is humble for the sake of Allah is raised by Allah, and is shielded from the sicknesses of the lower self, and Allah knows best. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Thank God for what you have, trust God for what you need. Whenever you ask in prayer, believe that you will receive it, and you will.

LESSON OF THE DAY 375

Ayah of the Day:
And who is more wrong than one who invents a lie against God? They will be set before their Lord and the witnesses will say, "These are the ones who lied against their Lord. Behold--the curse of God is on the unjust. [11: 18]

Hadith of the Day:
He who buys stolen property with the knowledge that it is stolen, shares in the sin and shame of stealing. [Bayhaqi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
The one who holds on to Allah's door finds all other doors opened up in front of him. [Abu Hafs Haddad]

Guidance of the Day:
Anger is something both the Shariah and the sound intellect regard as generally blameworthy. This is why the Beloved of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) told the one who sought his counsel, "Don't get angry," repeatedly.

Khattabi said, 'The meaning of 'Do not get angry' is: don't fall into those matters that cause anger and those matters that stir one's anger--because anger itself is an intrinsic human trait and one can't get rid of it.

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Forbearance (hilm) is the best of traits." Forbearance is for one not to be moved by one's anger and emotions; rather, one acts in accordance with the dictates of Revelation and reason. [Sunni Path]

Du'a of the Week:
A'udhu bi kalimaati'Llaahi't-taammaati min sharri ma khalaq. (I seek refuge in the complete words of Allah from the evil of what He has created).

Food for Thought:
If you use the Quran as your guide, you will never lose your sense of direction. There is only one real way to attain success and that is to be in the will of God.

LESSON OF THE DAY 374

Ayahs of the Day:
As for those who desire the life of this world and its pomp, We will pay them for their works in it; and nothing will be withheld of what is due to them. They are the ones for whom there is nothing in the hereafter but the fire; and what they have done here is futile, and their works are in vain. [11: 15,16].

Hadith of the Day:
It is not permissible to sell an article without making it clear, nor is it is permissible for anyone who knows its defects to refrain from mentioning it. [Bayhaqi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Quran is above-all a Book of Guidance. There can be little blessing for those who have insufficient respect and veneration for the Quran to follow its guidance and command. [Shaykh Faraz Rabbani]

Guidance of the Day:
Good character traits may be present in some cases by natural disposition and nature. More commonly, however, they need to be acquired by making oneself used to performing good works, by observing those of good works and keeping their company. These are the worthy associates and brethren in godliness, for natures acquire both good and bad from the company one keeps.

The one for whom all three means are present are in a highly noble state, while the one with a lowly disposition who has bad companions whom he learns from, until the means to bad deeds become easy for him, is extremely far from Allah. Between these two stations are those with varying acquisition of these means, each with a station of closeness or distance depending on their state and situation. "And whoso does ill an atom's weight will see it then." (99: 7,8) [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Any person worth their salt will stick up for what they believe in, but it takes a slightly bigger person to acknowledge instantly and without reservation that they are in error.

LESSON OF THE DAY 373

Ayahs of the Day:
If We let man taste mercy from Us, and then withdraw it from him, he despairs and is ungrateful. And if We let him taste favor after affliction has touched him, he will say, "The ills have gone from me!" Indeed he exults and is boastful. The exceptions are those who are patient and do good works; for them there is forgiveness, and a great reward. [11: 9,10,11]

Hadith of the Day:
He who cheats is not from us. [Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
The most serious misdeed is that which the perpetrator thinks insignificant. [Ali radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
The one who wants to become a legal scholar of deep understanding needs to undertake the works of such scholars, namely repeated study of legal texts and keeping the company of jurists, until he is characterized by legal understanding, and thus becomes such a jurist.

Likewise, the one who seeks to purify his self, perfect it and adorn it with noble traits and good works has no way to achieve this except in the same manner. Just as the student of law cannot become a jurist by a night's study or reading, the one seeking to purify his self cannot achieve it by a night's worship or be debarred from it by a day's disobedience. However, a day's remissness could lead to another until, little by little, the self becomes accustomed to remissness and leaves its striving. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Troubles are usually the brooms and shovels that smooth the road to a good person's fortune.

LESSON OF THE DAY 372

Ayah of the Day:
And if We deferred the punishment for them for a determined time, they would surely say, "What holds it back?' Ah, the day it comes to them, it will not be diverted from them; and what they used to ridicule will surround them. [11: 8]

Hadith of the Day:
Visit the sick, free the captives, and feed the hungry. [Bukhari]

Wise Quote of the Day:
There is nothing worse than heedlessness, and there is nothing stronger than one's lusts, yet by extinguishing heedlessness, lusts are easily overcome. [Ahmad Hazria]

Guidance of the Day:
The food of hearts is wisdom, knowledge of Allah, and love of Him. Its turning away from its natural disposition is the result of sicknesses that afflict it, as when a sickness afflicts a person's stomach, causing him not to desire food or drink though they are the means for his survival. Thus, every heart that inclines to love Allah has a sickness to the extent of its inclining. The only exception is if it loved that thing as a means to the love of Allah and His religion. This is subtle, however, and only known by those of spiritual insight.

It has become clear, then, that it is certainly possible to acquire good character traits by spiritual discipline, which is forcing oneself to perform certain actions until they become a habit. This is a result of the wondrous relationship between the heart and limbs, the self and the body. Every attribute that appears in the heart leaves traces on the limbs, until they do not move except in accordance with it. And every action of the limbs can leave traces in the heart, so the relationship is circular. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Silence is an ultimate weapon of power. It is never wise to argue with a fool, a bystander does not know which is which.

LESSON OF THE DAY 371

Ayah of the Day:
And it is God who created the heavens and the earth in six days while God's throne was upon the water, to test which of you is best in conduct. But if you were to say, "You will be resurrected after death," those who scoffed would say, "This is but obvious witchcraft" [11: 7]

Hadith of the Day:
Whoever Allah wishes well for, He gives deep understanding of religion (fiqh). [Bukhari & Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
There is no rest for the envier; there is no moral integrity for the liar; there is no well-being for the miser; there is no nobility for the ill-mannered; there is no abrogation for Allah's decree. [Ahnaf ibn Qays]

Guidance of the Day:
If the self finds pleasure from the habit and its habitual company in the worthless and inclines to them, then how can it not find pleasure in the worthwhile if it is returned to it for a period and made to return attached to it while mixing with the righteous and keeping their company?

In reality, the self's inclination towards despicable things is contrary to its natural disposition and a kin to an inclination to eat mud. As for it inclining to wisdom, the love and knowledge of Allah and His worship, it is like its inclination to food and drink. It is a result of the natural disposition of the heart, for the heart is a lordly matter. Thus, the self's inclining to its passions is alien to it, and foreign to its disposition. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
It is better, beyond compare, to seek out the company of those who help one achieve contentment with God. When one is content, little will suffice. But without contentment, nothing will suffice.

LESSON OF THE DAY 370

Ayah of the Day:
And there is no moving creature upon the earth but whose sustenance is up to God; and God knows its time and place, and its grave. All is in a clear writ. [11: 6]

Hadith of the Day:
When three of you meet, let not two of you step aside and whisper something to each other, as that is bound to hurt the feelings of the third. [Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
The greatest wealth is unconcern with people's possessions. [Ali radi Allah anhu]

Guidance of the Day:
One who wishes to become generous, for example, should force himself to act as a generous person would, by spending money. Then one consistently struggles with one's self by giving until it becomes naturally easy to give, and one becomes generous by nature.

Likewise, one who wishes to become characterized by humility after arrogance was preponderant, should force himself to perform the actions of the humble for a while, struggling with his lower self, until it becomes a character trait, and these actions become easy. All traits that are praiseworthy in the Sacred Law may be attained by this means.

Keeping the company of perfected spiritual guides and avoiding the company of those with blameworthy traits has a strong effect, for dispositions can acquire good traits through company as it can acquire bad traits. Moreover, for many people a Guide's reminders and reprimands may achieve what mere determination and spiritual may not. It may be that a student may leave the mire of lowly traits by the reminders and reprimands of his Guide far more quickly than by his determination and spiritual alone. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
The race of mankind would perish, did they cease to help each other. Hardwork brings prosperity; playing around brings poverty.

LESSON OF THE DAY 369

Ayah of the Day:
See how they fold up their hearts, to lie hidden from God! Even when they cover themselves with their clothing, God knows what they conceal and what they reveal, for God knows what is in hearts. [11: 5]

Hadith of the Day:
He who alleviates the suffering of a brother in this world, God will alleviate his suffering on the Day of Resurrection. [Muslim]

Wise Quote of the Day:
Make it a habit to weep in the awe of the Divine, so that you may laugh on the Day of Resurrection. [Yahya bin Mu'adh]

Guidance of the Day:
Allah Most High said, "Those who control their anger and are forgiving towards people; Allah loves the good." (Qur'an, 3: 134). Allah did not say, "Those bereft of anger." Anger and passion are to be returned to a balanced state, such that they neither overcome nor master the intellect. Rather, the sacred Law and intellect are to be the standards and masters over anger and passion. This is clearly possible, and is what is meant by changing character traits.

This balanced state is achieved in two ways: firstly, by divine generosity and sound natural predisposition, such that one is born with a high intellect and good character, and with their passion and anger in balance. This is the case of the Prophets (Allah bless them and give them peace)...

The other way to attain these noble traits is by spiritual struggle and discipline, namely to make oneself perform the actions that a desired trait entails. These traits are then gradually acquired by becoming used to those actions, as well as by keeping the company of those who already possess these traits. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Take time to read--it is the foundation of knowledge. Take time to think--it is the source of power.

LESSON OF THE DAY 368

Ayahs of the Day:
And that you seek forgiveness of your Lord, and turn to God, that God may grant you a good provision for a determined period, and bestow divine grace on all the virtuous; but if you turn away, then I fear for you punishment of a grievous day. Your return is to God, Who has power over all things. [11: 3,4]

Hadith of the Day:
He who greets first is nearest to God. [Ahmad, Tirmidhi]

Wise Quote of the Day:
There are two kinds of speeches and two kinds of silences. Speech is either truth or falsification, and silence is either fruition or heedlessness. If one speaks the truth, his words are better than his silence, but the one who invents falsifications, his silence is better than his speech. [Al Hujwiri]

Guidance of the Day:
In reality, those who deny that character traits may be changed have confused changing traits with removing them. What is not possible is the second. If one sought to completely remove all traces of anger and passion, it would not be possible. However, it is possible to control and direct them through spiritual struggle and discipline, which we have been commanded to do, and these are the means of our salvation and the path to reach Allah. At the same time, dispositions vary. Some are quick to change, others slow.

How can it be desirable to uproot passion and anger completely when without anger, jihad would not be possible? How could that be a goal if the Prophets (Allah bless them and give them peace) were characterized by them? For our Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, "I am a human, and I get angry as humans do." Similarly, if someone spoke in his presence about a disliked matter, he would get angry until his cheeks were red. However, he would not speak other than the truth, so his anger would not make him leave the truth. [Sunni Path]

Food for Thought:
Don't be concerned with who's right, but what's right. Kindness to evil men is like injury to good men.