Audio books are my lifeline while driving. And these are the first thing that I turn to once i my car - after ofcourse the beautiful supplication (which is here). Infact someday i want to blog about the deeper meaning in this supplication. This is something i discovered teaching the kids and boy, do these kids come up with difficult questions.. keeps me on the read all the time.

ok back to Audios, these are some in the pipieline i am so excited about and making a mention of those to remind me to write abt them

1. john taylor gatoo - Education kills creativity in chidlren

I am exicted about this series and its a long one. They say that some perform the best when under a necessity (or wat was that new expression that something is the mother of invention... watever - i think the answer is patent, but u may differ)..

anyways with my daughter growing and she is alreay 11 months, i need to put the system in place and thats why should listen to this one first.


2. hamza yusuf- he is different and not the usual run of the mill talks. imagine talking about aesop fable in his tafseer of Surah Luqman. simply has so much to offer.. and it was in his talk that he mentioned that, every year, come Rabiul Awwal, its a must that we review the Seerah of the final Messener peace on him.

So here is Rabiul Awwal (the 5th month of Islamic calendar).. and i begin my seerah review with Hamza yusuf's tapes.

2.1 Also, Beyond Schooling - anything to do with education is a must listen on my list.

Infact, I have to write a long pending article on the wonderful experience I am having preparing the syllabus for the Qamar (Arabic - moon) class for Burooj Kids Age 3- 6.

3. David Bach-The Automatic Millionaire (CD 1 to 9)

4. Malcom Galdwell - Blink

Series 3: Where is Allah?

Where is Allaah?

It is from the established traditions of Final Messenger Muhammad (peace be on him) to test a person’s faith by asking the question ‘Where is Allaah?’, as understood from his authentic saying when the Final Messenger asked a slave girl, 'Where is Allaah?' .

She said, 'Above the heavens'. Then he asked her, 'Who am I?' She said, 'The Messenger of Allaah. Thereupon, the Messenger ordered to free her and declared her to be a believer. Once a person ascertains the fact that Allaah is above His Arsh, above His seven heavens and not everywhere, then he comes to realize that it is futile to worship anything that he can see or visualize as none of it is his object of worship but Allaah.

The evidence for the statement that Allaah is above the heavens are overwhelming from the Quran as for example
 in Chapter 7:54, "And verily, your Lord is Allaah who created the heaven and earth in six days, and then rose over the 'Throne’;
 and also from traditions of Final Messenger when he went "up" during the miraculous night journey
 or that he pointed his finger "towards the sky" when making Allaah the witness over his final sermon.

This question assumes a fundamental importance as any negation of Allaah’s Attribute is a negation of Allaah Himself. I quote the iman of our times in this regard:

Imaam Abu Hanifah said about a person who says, 'I do not know whether my Rubb is, above the heavens or on earth?' Abu Hanifah, said: 'A person who makes such a statement becomes an apostate because Allaah, the Exalted says, 'The Merciful has ascended above the 'Arsh, and the 'Arsh of Allaah is above His heavens'. It was further asked to Abu Hanifah, 'What if such a person admits, Allaah is above His 'Arsh, but exclaims, I do not know whether His 'Arsh is above the heavens or on earth'. Abu Hanifah responded: 'If he denies that the 'Arsh is above the heavens, he is an apostate.(a disbeliever)"

Series 2: Tawheed al-Asmaa was-Sifaat

InshaAllaah we will begin the basic of Tawheed by a little explanation of the category and related question with it:

Tawheed al-Asmaa was-Sifaat (lit. "Maintaining the Unity of Allaah's Names and Attributes")

Allaah must be referred to according to how He and His Final Messenger (saws) have described Him and to believe in that Allaah has most beautiful of Names and Attributes.

Here we will discuss 4 points:

• Where is Allaah?
  
• Are there only 99 name of Allaah?
  
• Forbidden names of Muslims which are Haram
  
• Is 786 the translation of Bismillah
  

Milad un Nabi - a celebration in disguise?

What's wrong in celebrating the Mawlid? Nothing wrong and nothing new unless you realize this is coming from a self titled Salafi. Then everything has to be wrong.

Ofcourse, I dare admit that I would never be a part of any singing & qawwali Milad celebration but thought let me pause and be more honest with myself.

As I was reading the mails from my old school egroups, there were a dozen or so Birthday messages. This coming just a couple of days after the Milad holidays declared across UAE, made me write this article.

It would be difficult writing back at my school buddies, "hey listen guys, b'day celebrations are not allowed in Islam, so please refrain". Besdies missing the point and not talking about offending them, it would be an excersie in vain. What would I gain anyway. A clear conscience? A removel of guilt and having done my "bit" in uprooting this malicious and evil pratcise that the Muslims have inherited from the white westerners! I would rather convey Tawheed than make an attempt to what would rather be an inconsequential email.

But then Muslims should know and that is why we have to get our neck out and blast them with the "threats of innovation". Bi'da is a nice word to scare them and rub the rubbish off your back.

But the irony of this very situation is, on this very day, a supposedly Bi'da celebration day, most of the scholars (and yes, the Ahle-Hadeeth ones too!) climb on the celebration podioums and speak how important the whole life of our Messenger sallahualhiawasalam is, and not only a day.

How on this very day, do we get an opportunity to reach millions of "others", who would otherwise not tune to listen to any of the scholars with "authentic" information.

Isn't it so surprising that just like the emails from my old school egroup, a b'day was just an occasion to pen in few lines and find out where I am - that we use the Milad for this very purpose in our lives. A reminder to tell us about the greatest man to have ever set foot on in world.

Why, strange enough I was invited to deliver a small talk on the Prophet on the Milad at one of the popular radio FM stations and I spoke, days are not important but we have to remember our Prophet the whole life and then began my speech titled, Prophet as a teacher.

How ironical, isn't?