Carrots, Eggs, & Coffee!

Bismillahirahmaniraheem
This is something a good friend sent to me. And I am Sharing it with you all. (I just copied and pasted and did not proof read so any typos are not mine.)

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.'

'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it mean, mother?'

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water.. Each reacted differently The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak the egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling..

Live your life so at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

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Sheikh Hamza Yusuf - Elements Of Success

Bismillahirahmaniraheem
I found these videos on youtube and have embedded them in my post. If you are subscribed to my blog via E-mail you will have to actually visit the site to see them most probably. ENJOY!!

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Islam and Democracy. Islam and Politics. USELESS

Bismillahirahmaniraheem

As I said before in my article here, the Muslim Ummah should not depend on any politician to do what needs to be done. Instead we must make dua. Dua is the only way to accomplish what needs to be done, asking Allah for help is better than asking anyone else. With Dua we should also cultivate and educate the people i.e. give dawah.
This past November we were happy that Obama won. But look at Obama now and you will see what the future holds when he does get into power. However before Obama, Muslims were rejoicing how great democracy was when Keith Ellison and Andre Carson were elected into congress. Now both these men failed to stand up for Gaza. Andre Carson voted in favor of H RES 34 and Keith Ellison voted "present". The resolution is basically "Recognizing Israel’s right to defend itself against attacks from Gaza, reaffirming the United States’ strong support for Israel, and supporting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process."
Muslims must recognize that politics, no matter what form it takes, democracy, communism, socialism, capitalism etc. is not the way to go forward. All these governmental and economic theories are just different forms of paganism. They either give one man ultimate power, the majority the supreme power or make people the slave of money. None of them put Allah first.
Now do not make the mistake of thinking that I am saying that we should completely pull away from society and live in our own bubble. Rather we should take part more in society and not just move from the bubble of separatism to the bubble of government. What I mean by take part in society is that we must create institutions such as schools, youth centers, orphanages etc. Educate the masses on who the Muslims are and what Islam is and most importantly educate everyone on what Islamic Tawheed is. On the individual level we can stand on street corners and preach Tawheed like the crazy christian who preaches "jesus loves you." We can write and start a letter campaign. Basically we must interact with the people and not just come out when there is an election, hostile actions against Muslims or some other one time event. Islam came to China not by Muslims taking part in Chinese politics or by the sword. Rather it came by trade, the Chinese saw Muslims were trustworthy salesman and then decided to learn more about Islam.
However if we still want to take part in politics we can. But politics is not the end because people's minds have been programmed to think a certain way. So much so that if we do have government positions we still will not be able to do anything. Organizations like CAIR take part in society and education as well as take part in politics (I plan on interning there so please make Dua I get the position). Also MAS, they encourage voting but at the same time create Quran institutions and youth centers. Both these institutions are involved in politics so they may use it as a tool to fight injustices against Muslims. But politics is just a tool to fight against oppression not a methodology to move forward. Know that the answer lies in Dawah and Dua. Once we change the mindset of the people then we can move forward as a people and be able to effectively support our brothers and sisters and end their suffering. InshAllah!

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Muslim Unity

Bismillahirahmaniraheem
This is a Piece I wrote. InshAllah I hope people find this beneficial.

Muslim unity, what is it? Does it exist; if it does how can we accomplish it; is it by creating a universal Muslim state, such as the Caliphate again; or is it by having each separate Muslim nation cooperating with one another?

Before answering any of those questions we must first address the elitist mentality that many Muslims now have and from where or how it has come about. This elitist mentality has nothing to do with wealth, rather it stems from two sources: nationalism or ethnic elitism and religious elitism. Rather our elitist mentality is of two types, one type is of nationalistic or ethnic elitism and the other is religious elitism.

In Islam we believe that, “All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over black nor does a black have any superiority over white except by piety and good action.”[1] Unfortunately today we see that Muslims do not follow this. We have Muslim youth of Arab descent who believe that they know more about Islam than a non-Arab because “Islam is in their blood.” We have different moon sightings not because of difference in fiqh, because most of us do not know the evidences of all the opinions on moon sightings, rather we see our Muslim brothers from another descent do it one way and we have to be different and do it the other way. And this is not only limited to local domestic Muslim problems in the West; rather it is an international problem. Instead of people or mosque communities disagreeing on moon sightings you have entire nations disagreeing on moon sightings and the disagreement is not based in fiqh but rather on arrogance!

But this is just the crust of our problems. We have seen forced marriages of youth, specifically in Arabia you have forced marriages of youth to people of the same tribe or clan because parents do not wish their children to marry outside of the family. Or we have parents telling their children to marry people of the same “home country” they are from; a Pakistani marry a Pakistani or an Egyptian marry an Egyptian, when the family has not been “back home” for years! It goes so far that some parents want their children not only to marry someone from “back home” but also from the same cultural sect. This is a practice our Prophet (pbuh) specifically broke down. This racial pride amongst the Muslim is what led to our greatest fall; the fall of the Caliphate in the early twentieth century.

The fall of the Caliphate created the rise of secular Muslim nation states all around the world. This division gave rise to the nationalism movement and caused the Muslims to be deeply divided based on arbitrary, superficial borders. Today we see how this phenomenon of putting culture before Islam causes divisions that are so deep that we not only stopped calling ourselves Muslims first we do not know the suffering of our Muslim brothers from half way across the world, let alone feel the pain of the brother who lives in the nation-state next to us. It has gotten to a point where our brothers are being slaughtered next to us and when they run to us for help we not only refuse to help them from being slaughtered but also take part in the slaughtering! In the light of these observations we see why The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “People should give up their pride in nations because that is a Coal from the Coals of Hell-Fire."[2] And why The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "He is not one of us who calls for asabiyyah, (nationalism) or who fights for asabiyyah or who dies for asabiyyah."[3] Nationalism has caused us to not have any compassion for our brothers and sisters in Islam.

Some might say, even if we do have nationalism or nation states, Muslims can still have love for their brothers and sisters. Even without the Caliphate we can still be human and feel the pains of others who share the same faith as us. This is true but is not the case. The Muslims have created the identity of “the other” towards their own brothers and sisters. With little to no knowledge and with no teacher to guide them, when a Muslim reads the hadith that states, “The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “My community will experience everything that the Children of Israel had experienced, following in their footsteps exactly, so much so that if one of their number had approached his mother publicly for sex, one of my community will do the same. The Children of Israel divided into 72 sects. My community will divide into 73 sects, and all of them will be in the Hellfire save one.” they misunderstand it to mean that they should start accusing others of wrong doing and not understand it as that they should always look at themselves to make sure they do not fall off the path. Instead of finding faults within themselves so they may benefit themselves they find faults in others and unknowingly slander. Because of their ignorance and the fact they have no teacher to guide them they not only are unable to appreciate the implications of the hadith but also call other Muslims deviants or outright claim that other Muslims are not really Muslims. Scholars do debate and refute and have disagreements however they have proper manners when doing so. However, the common Muslim, who has no teacher for guidance, does not have or know the proper manner of disagreements and debates that our scholars have. They forget the verses “(O Prophet and his followers), turn your face single mindedly to the true Faith and adhere to the true nature on which Allah has created human beings. The mould fashioned by Allah cannot be altered. That is the True, Straight Faith, although most people do not know. (Adhere to the True Faith and) turn to Him, and hold Him in awe, and establish Prayer, and do not be of those who associate others with Allah in His Divinity, those who have split up their religion and have become divided into sects, each party exulting in what they have.”[4] Because of this behavior amongst the common Muslim, we have lost love for our fellow brethren.

In the end we must see ourselves as Muslims first and not as a national identity or a certain school. Because Muslim is the name Allah has given us in the Quran. Leave the theological or law debates to the scholars who have wisdom, knowledge and manners. And lets not have their differences spill over to the masses. Pray to Allah consistently for our oppressed brothers and sisters no matter where they are or what differences they may have. And remember, “The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "The Muslim Ummah is a unique Ummah among the whole of mankind: Their Land is one, their War is one, their Peace is one, their Honor is one and their Trust is one."[5]





[1] Prophet Muhammad, Last sermon delivered on the 9th day of the Islamic month Dhul Hijjah of the Islamic year 10 A.H. in the Uranah valley of Mount Arafat in Mecca.

[2] Abu Dawud & Tirmidhi

[3] Abu Dawud

[4] The Quran Chapter 30 verse 30-32

[5] Ahmed

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The Second Station of The Fourteenth Flash part 6

Bismillahirahmaniraheem
The End!!

In The Words of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi

SIXTH MYSTERY
Oh unhappy man struggling within a boundless impotence and endless want! You should understand just what a valuable means and acceptable intercessor is Divine Mercy. For Divine Mercy is the means to an All Glorious Sovereign in Whose army both the stars and minute particles serve together in perfect order and obedience. And that All-Glorious One and Sovereign of Pre-Eternity and Post-Eternity is self-sufficient, He is utterly without need.
He is rich without limit being in no respect needy of the universe and beings. The whole universe is under His command and direction, utterly obedient beneath His majesty and grandeur, submissive before His sublimity. That is Divine Mercy for you, Oh man! It raises you to the presence of the One absolutely lacking any need, the Eternal Sovereign, and makes you His friend, addressee, and well-loved servant. But just as you cannot reach the sun, are far from it and can no way draw close to it, although the sun's light gives you its reflection and manifestation by means of your mirror, in the same way you are infinitely distant from the Most Pure and Holy One, the Sun of Pre-Eternity and Post-Eternity, and cannot draw close to Him, but the light of His Mercy makes Him closer to us.
And so, 0 man! He who finds this Mercy finds an eternal unfailing treasury of light. And the way to find it is through following the Practices of the Most Noble Prophet (Upon whom be blessings and peace), who was the most brilliant example and representative of Mercy, its most eloquent tongue and herald, and was described in the Qur'an as a 'Mercy to All the Worlds.'
And the means to this embodiment of Mercy who is a Mercy to All the Worlds is to utter the prayer calling down God's blessings upon him. Indeed, the meaning of this prayer is Mercy. As a prayer of Mercy for that living embodiment of Divine Mercy, it is the means of reaching the Mercy to All the Worlds. So, make this prayer the means to the Mercy to All the Worlds for yourself, and at the same time make Him the means to the Mercy of the Most Merciful One.
The whole Muslim community in all their great numbers uttering this prayer which is synonymous with Mercy for the Mercy to All the Worlds proves in brilliant fashion what a valuable Divine gift is Divine Mercy, and how broad is its sphere.
To Conclude: Just as the most precious jewel in the treasury of Mercy and its doorkeeper is the Prophet Muhammed (Upon whom be blessings and peace), so too is its first key In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. And its most easy key is prayer for the Prophet.

Oh God! Through the truth of In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate grant blessings and peace to the one whom You sent as a mercy to all the
worlds as befits Your Mercy, and in veneration of him, and to all his Family and Companions. And
grant us Mercy so as to make us free of want for the
mercy of any other than You from among Your creatures. AMEN.
Glory be unto You! We have no knowledge save that
which You have taught us. Indeed, You are All-Knowing, All-Wise.

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The Second Station of The Fourteenth Flash part 5

Bismillahirahmaniraheem
One last one to go. It will be up tomorrow inshAllah since I have not updated due to finals, papers and visiting my brother.

In The Words of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi

FIFTH MYSTERY
There is a Hadith which goes something like this:
God created man in the form of the All-Merciful One.
It has been interpreted by some Sufis in an extraordinary way inappropriate to the tenets of belief. Some of them who were ecstatics even considered man's spiritual nature to be 'in the form of the All-Merciful'. Since ecstatics are mostly immersed in contemplation and confused, they are perhaps to be excused in holding views contrary to reality. But on consideration, those in their senses cannot accept their ideas which are contrary to the fundamentals of belief. If they do, they are in error.
Indeed, the Most Pure and Holy Deity, Who administers with order the whole universe as though it was a palace or house, and spins the stars as though they were particles and causes them to travel through space with wisdom and ease, and employs minute particles as though they were orderly officials, has no partner, match, opposite, or equal. So also according to the meaning of the verse:
There is nothing whatever like unto Him, and He hears and sees fall things], 5
He has no form, like, or peer, there is nothing resembling or similar to Him. However, according to the meaning and manner of comparison of the following verse,
And His is the highest similitude in the heavens and the earth, and He is Exalted in Might, Full of Wisdom,6
His actions, attributes, and Names may be considered. That is to say, there is allegory and comparison in regard to actions. One aim of the above - mentioned Hadith is as follows: "Man is in a form showing the Divine Name of All-Merciful in its entirety."
For sure, as we explained before, just as the Divine Name of All-Merciful is manifest through the rays of a thousand and one Names on the face of the universe, and is apparent through the innumerable manifestations of God's absolute Dominicality on the face of the earth, so also is the complete manifestation of the Name All-Merciful apparent in a small measure in man's comprehensive form, like on the face of the earth and the face of the universe.
A further indication is this: the evidences to the Necessarily Existent One of places of manifestation like animate creatures and man, who are proofs of and mirrors to the All-Merciful and Compassionate One, are so certain, clear, and obvious that just as it may be said of a shining mirror which reflects the image of the sun: "That mirror is the sun", indicating to the clarity of its brilliance and evidence, so also it has been said and may be said: "Man is in the form of the All-Merciful One", indicating to the clearness of his evidence and completeness of his connection. It is as a consequence of this mystery that the more moderate of those who believed in 'the unity of existence' said: "There is no existent but He", as a way of expressing the clarity of this evidence and perfection of connection.
Oh God! Oh Most Merciful One! Most Compassionate One! Through the truth of In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate have mercy on us as befits Your Compassionateness, and allow us to understand the mysteries of In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate as befits Your Mercifulness. Amen

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