I do not need any introduction. I have been introduced to you many times by your Lord. But, you do not take heed because you are selfish and worthless, as I always knew. You and your father were made of clay, but I, I was made of fire! Yet, I was asked to prostrate before you. [1]

Why would I? I refused quite blatantly. Clearly, I am far too superior to Adam. My refusal earned me a promise from your Lord – promise of Hell fire, for eternity…..

All this, because of you. I hate and envy you, just as I envied your father. I will never rest till I destroy you. I want you to share the pain with me. I want you to be part of the curse that has befallen me. I want to see you burn and scream in pain, just as I would!

The manner of my deceptions is no secret. Your lord has revealed it and His Messenger has elaborated it for you. In spite of their warnings, I never fail! Because you are weak and ungrateful!

I will strike at your heart and your weaknesses. I will cause corruption in this world with my strategies, misconceptions and tricks, which you will never realize until you die.

But let me clarify one aspect about myself. I have no power to force you to sin. I enjoy no power over your free will. I only entice you to evil, but it is you who choose to follow me and destroy yourself.

I start with calling you to associating partners with your Lord. I beautify to you the thought that you are sinners and hence are in no position to seek help and favors directly from your Lord. I make you believe that pious intermediates are necessary so that I can break the direct connection between you and your Master and leave you in the lurch forever.  

If this fails, I drag you to ‘my all time favorite’ deception: major sins. Its possibilities are infinite. I will entice you to leave your Salaah, pre occupying you with petty matters. I will make you love music and hate the Qur’an. I will call you towards zina, towards the intoxication of alcohol and desires. I will perpetrate the pleasure of this evil in your mind. I will fill you with lustful desires so much so that you forget that your Lord has forbidden it for you. You will forget the promise of Jannah and succumb to my lowly invitations even though it is in your hands to back out.

Don’t you know how I destroyed Barsisa?[2] He was the most pious of Bani Israel, but he was weak, he gave in. How it pleased me to see him die on my path! How it pleased me to destroy him!

If you do not entangle into my web of major sins, I call you to minor sins. Now, if you are pious and are able to stay away from this too, I begin to pre occupy your time with permissible activities. I will make you busy in earning your livelihood to such an extent that you are too tired and exhausted for ‘ibadah. I will slowly cause you to introduce petty matters in your life which are not sins, but will consume your entire time.

I will make this world and its desires magical to you. I will tempt you with wealth, power, fame and women. I will blur your reasoning and work on your weaknesses. I will rope you into one passion after the other.

If you still do not get swayed by my deceptions, I will apply my next trick on you. I will fill you with grief and sadness. I will make poverty demeaning in your eyes so that you cheat and lie to improve your situation. I will make you envy the bounties that others have been blessed with, filling you with remorse and anger. I will destroy you from within

I will make this world and its desires magical to you. I will tempt you with wealth, power, fame and women. I will blur your reasoning and work on your weaknesses. I will rope you into one passion after the other.

I flow in your blood.[3] I will enter your soul though desires, passions and weaknesses and make you hollow from within. I will feed your mind with evil and daunting thoughts. I will break your determination and power to resist. I will bring you down, I promise you that!

Do not think you can overpower me in your path of righteousness to Allah  . I will show you that which no one has even seen from me. I will make you forget every promise that your Lord has made to you. I will drown you in the depths of sins, will enslave you to me, and when you realize this, it would be too late- you will be DEAD!



I hate you and wish only harm for you. I am obsessed with destroying you. I will remain with you like your shadow when you are alive, but when you die having followed my orders, I will leave you alone to deal with the torture and punishment that your Lord will subject you to. You were weak! You forgot the love, mercy and care that your Lord has for you. You forgot His promise of Jannah!

Remember, I will not rest till I drag you with me to Hell, till I see you rage with thirst and see your skin peeling out due to the fire. I will not rest till I see you scream and burn in the scorching flame.

I WILL NOT REST, TILL I DESTROY YOU!

“O you who have believed, do not follow the footsteps of Satan. And whoever follows the footsteps of Satan – indeed, he enjoins immorality and wrongdoing…..” [4]

References:

[1] Surah al-Baqarah, 2:34

[2] http://www.islamicbulletin.org/free_downloads/quran/stories_of_the_quran.pdf

[3] Anas ibn Malik reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, was in the company of one of his wives when a man passed by them. The Prophet called to him and when he came, the Prophet said, “She is my wife.” The man said, “O Messenger of Allah, I do not doubt you in the least.” The Prophet said, “Verily, Satan flows through the human being like blood.”

Source: Sahih Muslim 2174

[4] Surah an-Nur, 24:21

Jazakumullahu khayran bro, may Allah (SWT) save us from all the deceptions of shaitan ameen.

I heard a scholar say, and i believe it has a positive psychological effect, whenever you wake up in the morning, and after the Prophetic azkar, compile a statement that would boldly define your enmity with shaitan for that day, and preferably, in your mother's tongue...

sino:
Jazakumullahu khayran bro, may Allah (SWT) save us from all the deceptions of shaitan ameen.

I heard a scholar say, and i believe it has a positive psychological effect, whenever you wake up in the morning, and after the Prophetic azkar, compile a statement that would boldly define your enmity with shaitan for that day, and preferably, in your mother's tongue...

Pls can u explain better the aspect of compiling statement for shaitan in ur mothers tongue with example

personal59:


Pls can u explain better the aspect of compiling statement for shaitan in ur mothers tongue with example

Okay, for example, lets assume english is the mother tongue, one can make statement such as;

"Shaitan, you are my sworn enemy, and today by Allah's will, you will never have power over me, i shall disgrace you and render useless all your deceptions, and machinations. You are evil, and i have no business with you in my life"

If i were to say this in my mother tongue, which is yoruba, it would carry lots of charisma, as i would also add some innuendo that i can't easily replicate with english language.

Again it would also suffice, if we really understood some of the morning and evening azkars, so as we say them, we are fully aware of their potency against evil(shaitan).

sino:


Okay, for example, lets assume english is the mother tongue, one can make statement such as;

"Shaitan, you are my sworn enemy, and today by Allah's will, you will never have power over me, i shall disgrace you and render useless all your deceptions, and machinations. You are evil, and i have no business with you in my life"

If i were to say this in my mother tongue, which is yoruba, it would carry lots of charisma, as i would also add some innuendo that i can't easily replicate with english language.

Again it would also suffice, if we really understood some of the morning and evening azkars, so as we say them, we are fully aware of their potency against evil(shaitan).

Hmmmm my brother is there an hadith on this am really sorry o is not. That am trying to talk. This down or something bt am also a yoruba o nd the prophet said d best language is arabic moreover we don't do our salat with our mothers tongue we use arabic so y that one all I knw is we can atworst say authu bilahi mina shaitani rajeem........ So what's hard in that Sso my brother this is what I understand a little on it o

personal59:



Hmmmm my brother is there an hadith on this am really sorry o is not. That am trying to talk. This down or something bt am also a yoruba o nd the prophet said d best language is arabic moreover we don't do our salat with our mothers tongue we use arabic so y that one all I knw is we can atworst say authu bilahi mina shaitani rajeem........ So what's hard in that Sso my brother this is what I understand a little on it o

You are correct about using the Arabic language in our acts of worship, and I had stressed saying the prophetic azkars in my responses, as well as understanding what is being said. You would agree with me that it is important we understand what we are reciting be it azkar, dua or the Qur'an in our mother tongue, it gives confidence, proper concentration and understanding while reciting them.

I have not said there is a spiritual benefit or a reward for the statement I mentioned, and I haven't said it to replace what is prescribed in the shariah. The point I'm trying to make is that, making statement as stated earlier, can inspire, give focus and strenghthen ones resolve to take shaitan as an enemy on a daily basis. The Qur'an as stated clearly that he is our enemy, and we are to take him as such (Qur'an 35 vs 6). We can look at my statement as a self pep talk or a daily mission statement for one to lead a successful life devoid of shaitan 's influence by Allah's Leave.

^It is an innovation bro.

I hate that guy (shytin) men, he needs to be arrested

maclatunji:
^It is an innovation bro.

I do not see it as such, perhaps if you can elaborate cos i don't see how telling myself that shaitan is my enemy on a daily basis amounts to innovation.

sino:

I do not see it as such, perhaps if you can elaborate cos i don't see how telling myself that shaitan is my enemy on a daily basis amounts to innovation.

Of course you can't see it, but it started with you hearing somebody suggest it without any backing from Qur’an or Subnah, then you started practising it, you are now recommending it to others and so it spreads with all sorts of additions until it becomes widespread even when it never was with sound footing from the onset other than "I don't see anything wrong." This is how deviant sects are born.

The Prophet (SAW) has taught us many things, we don't need to start "feeling" at our whims how to practise the perfected religion. It is the beginning of misguidance. May Allah protect us from it.

^ you too much oga Mac.

maclatunji:


Of course you can't see it, but it started with you hearing somebody suggest it without any backing from Qur’an or Subnah, then youstarted practising it, you are now recommending it to others and so it spreads with all sorts of additions until it becomes widespread even when it never was with sound footing from the onset other than "I don't see anything wrong." This is how deviant sects are born.

The Prophet (SAW) has thought us many things, we don't need to start "feeling" at our whims how to practise the perfected religion. It is the beginning of misguidance. May Allah protect us from it.

May Allah protect us from innovation ameen. I never thought of this as an innovation, and it is quite unfortunate I cannot ask the scholar(may Allah have mercy on his soul) I heard it from to clarify where I might have gone wrong, if any, in my explanation of his statement (I think it was a lecture on a cassette i heard him say it). Still, I'll like to make some point so we can all look at what I was trying to explain from another angle and understand my statements here.

First, I believe you misunderstood my point mac. What I said the scholar mentioned, is not meant to protect one from shaitan (la), as that would clearly negate what is prescribed in the shariah, and rightly classified as an innovation. Please read my initial post again. I believe what you want is for evidences to be presented, and in sha Allah, I’ll try my best in doing that, and clarify why I believe it is not bid’ah.


Allah (SWT) Says "O Mankind indeed the promise of Allah is the truth so let not worldly life delude you and be not deceived about Allah by the deceiver (Satan). Indeed Satan is an enemy to you so take him as an enemy. He only invites his party to be among the companions of the blaze (Fatir: 5-6).

There are other verses which Allah (SWT) Has warned us against shaitan, but this verse above is the most relevant to this discuss. Here Allah (SWT) gives a direct command to take shaitan (la) as an enemy; looking at this verse, it is mandatory/obligatory we take shaitan (la) as an enemy. Looking further in the books of tafsir, tafsir Tabari states in regards to this verse especially Allah’s (SWT) statement “Indeed Satan is an enemy to you so take him as an enemy”,

فأنزلوه من أنفسكم منزلة العدو منكم واحذروه بطاعة الله واستغشاشكم إياه حذركم من عدوكم الذي تخافون غائلته على أنفسكم، فلا تطيعوه ولا تتبعوا خطواته، فإنه إنما يدعو حزبه، ينعي شيعته ومن أطاعه، إلى طاعته والقبول منه، والكفر بالله
“He i.e shaitan should be placed from yourselves in a position of an enemy amongst you and you should be guarded against him by following Allah (SWT) and you should be suspicious of him and be vigilant against your enemy in which you fear his calamity upon yourselves, thus never follow him or his group, that is, his disciples who follow him, following his path and following his footsteps…”

Ibn Kathir states:
أي: هو مبارز لكم بالعداوة، فعادوه أنتم أشد العداوة، وخالفوه وكذبوه فيما يغركم به،
“That is: He is a contender with you in enmity, your enmity against him is a greater enmity, being at variance with him, and calling him a lier in whatever he brings to deceive you with…”

Still on the issue of shaitan being an enemy and taking him as such,

Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim said,

"There are two types of Jihad Ash-Shaytan (the devil). First, Jihad against him to disregard the misgivings and doubts that he raises to erode the person's faith. Second, Jihad against him by ignoring what he tempts one with of
erroneous intentions and desires. Achieving certainty (concerning faith) comes after
performing the first type of this Jihad, while
successfully observing patience is the result of
performing the second type. Allah said, "And We
made from among them (Children of Israel),
leaders, giving guidance under Our Command, when they were patient and used to believe with
certainty in Our Ayat (Signs, Verses, etc.)." [32:24].
In this Ayah, Allah has stated that achieving the
status of being leaders in the religion is achieved by
observing patience and feeling Yaqin (certainty in
Allah and that Islam is the only true religion, etc.). Patience defeats desires and ill intentions, while
certainty defeats the doubts and misgivings."

The fact that Imam Ibn Qayuum used jihad against shaitan (la) and the explanations from scholars of tafsir I quoted, shows that we must be on guard, plan and strategize on a daily basis against shaitan, it is a war, you must declare your enmity towards shaitan and since shaitan has promised to deceive and destroy man, and this he will continue to do till judgement day.


Indeed, it should be fully understood that the Prophet (SAW) has thought us how to guard ourselves against shaitan. There are narrations abound in the books of ahadith in regards to this, there are a number of adhkar to be said morning and night to protect us against the devil, I have not stated we neglect such, and I even emphasized it in my previous posts. I have only stated we reinforce the Qur’anic injuction by compiling a statement that would clearly indicate our enmity towards shaitan (la) and tell ourselves that every morning we wake up after saying our prescribed adhkar according to the shariah.

Indeed, the religion is complete, and I have come to realize that things that are wowing people in the world today in terms of self development, how to be successful in our affairs and how to be happy, focused, set goals etc are embedded in Islam as brought to us by the Prophet (SAW) and practiced by his companions and the salafs.

I would like to give an example here, one of the key to success and happiness, as being promoted in some quarters especially motivational speakers is gratitude, they explain we show gratitude for what we have and recommend we do that in the morning, and once you do that, talking to yourself about what you have and what you are grateful for, automatically, you start feeling better about your life and therefore, happiness sets in. the effect of this singular act is said to transform your day, having a ripple effect in all your activities for that day.

People have tried this and gave testimonies; they applied this and are wowed. But this is infact what the Prophet (SAW) had thought us over 1400 years ago when he mentioned the adhkar to be said when we wake up, which is about showing gratitude for life, in another narration, he adviced us to not look at people above us in status, but people below us, and hence, we would be grateful to Allah (SWT) for his bounties, and most importantly, Allah (SWT) has asked us in the glorious Qur’an, which of His favours can we deny…

If I had written, every morning after your adhkar or during your adhkar, you compile a list of all what you are grateful for, and as you say alhamdulilah, you clearly state all things in which you are grateful for, does this fall under innovation?

If as muslims, we take this prophetic tradition, and apply it in our lifes the way we should, then we wouldn't be complaining about difficulties we face, in fact there are many more of such teachings embedded in the sunnah and the lives of the salaf, i had one time wanted to write about this, but i guess i wasn't properly equipped for such a task.

Allah (SWT) has commanded us in the Qur’an to think, ponder and reflect on His Word, because therein lies wisdom and understanding. I strongly recommend we all study the lives of the companions and the salaf as to their attitude and ways of reflection and the kind of self talk they engage which gives them focus in carrying out their responsibilities. We have lost this edge these people had, we just say these adhkar without much thought...may Allah assist us and grant us understanding.

I must also state here that the scholar I heard this from, is a righteous scholar, a devote ahl sunnah, who gave his all to defend Islam and the Sunnah. Whenever he gives adhkar or dua, he teaches them, explaining each word in them, he teaches to the extent that each individual understands the importance of that dhikr or dua, and by Allah, whenever you make such dhikr or dua, it is never like just rote reading, it is such that you say these dhikr and dua, with deep reflection and understanding. I have a book also “the fiqh of dua and adhkar, night and daily duties” by Abd Razak bin Abd Muhsin bin Badr. In his introduction, he states,
“…this 3rd section from the fiqh of dua and adhkar, contains the explanation of adhkar and duas that are associated with a muslims duty or actions in the day and night, such as the adhkar of the day and night and sleep, and the adhkar of prayers and after prayers, and adhkar of entering and leaving (the home), and that of riding and travel, of eating and drinking, and others apart from these amongst the lofty adhkar, and blessed prayers, which accompanies a muslim in his day and night with explanation of their meaning and evidences.

There is no doubt that the persistence on these adhkar and the adhearance is associated with lots of good, and blessings that follows in this life and the hereafter, especially, when the adherent, conforms with it looking carefully at the evidences, and reflecting on its purpose and its goal, and attaining its target and requirements.”

I had also mentioned in my previous post, the importance of understanding what we recite in arabic in our mother tongue, but not only that, as pointed out above, we also need to reflect upon it, even while in prayer or while making our daily adhkar. A brother once said, he reflects on his day, strategize and plan his day while saying his morning adhkar, thinking about what he is saying and what he wants to achieve in that day. This is how a muslim should perform his daily duties. It is quite unfortunate that we are so much in a hurry, we hardly have time to reflect and contemplate on what we recite, we have become robots, no wonder our spirituality can never be compared to the earliest generations of Muslims.

So the question now arise again, is what I said the scholar mentioned an innovation?

Well, I reiterate that no, it is not, it cannot be said to be an innovation, because Allah (SWT) has commanded us to take Shaitan as an enemy, and from all what I have presented here thus far, it shouldn’t be difficult for us to see it isn’t, it is not a new form of dhikr or a new form of worship. But I know it might still be confusing for some, and they may like to ask, give us a proof from the sahabas or the salafs of such actions…So i present some narrations from the salafs, how they engage in self talk in keeping their responsibilities to Allah (SWT), which i believe gives allowance for us to engage in these kinds of actions....

"Someone asked Haatim al-Asamm as to how did he say his salah. He replied: “When the time for salah comes, I perform my wudoo and go to the place where I have to say my salaah. I sit down for some time, till all the parts of my body is relaxed. Then I stand up for salaah, visualizing the kaabah in front of me, imagining my feet upon the bridge over jahannam, with jannah to my right, and jahannam to my left, and the angel of death close behind me, and think that it may be my last salaah. Then I say my salaah with full sincerity and devotion. And I finish my salaah between fear and hope about its acceptance.”

If i had written, since we are expected to have full concentration in salah, hence, before salah, compile a statement that would keep you focused during salah, in your mother tongue, would that be an innovation in the deen one capable of estinguishing the sunnah and creating deviant sects?!

More examples,

Mu’adh Ibn Jabal adviced his son:

“My son! Pray the prayer of he who is just about to leave and imagine that you might not be able to pray ever again”.[“Sifat As-Safwah”, 1/496].

Abu Noeh Al Ansariy said:
“A fire once broke out in a house where ‘Ali bin al-Husayn – may Allah have mercy on him – was prostrate in prayer. He didn’t raise his head until the fire went out. When asked about this he said: “The other Fire kept my mind busy.”[“At-Takhwief min An-Naar”. 33].


Al-Fudhayl Ibn Iyaadh said:
“I met some people who feel ashamed before Allaah to sleep for too long in the night. Such a person may be resting on his side, and when he moves, he says to himself, “This is not your right. Get up and take your share of the Hereafter”.[“Sifat As-Safwah”, 2/241].

We could see here the use of imagination and visualization as well as talking to oneself as practiced by these sahabah and salafs, and there are more, scattered in books detailing the lives of our righteous predecessors, interestingly, we do this consciously or unconsciously, and what i have suggested here is to conciously engage in self talk or whatever it is called, to help us keep focus on our responsibilities on a daily basis.

Haafiz Ibn Taymiyah said:
“What can my enemies possibly do to me? My paradise is in my heart; wherever I go it goes with me, inseparable from me. For me, prison is a place of (religious) retreat; execution is my opportunity for martyrdom; and exile from my town is but a chance to travel (in the path of Allah).”[“Al-Wabil Al-Sayyib”, 1/69].

This quote by sheikh ibn taymiyah is quite deep, the statement "My paradise is in my heart" is very powerful, if i were very good in psychology, i would be able to write elaborately the benefits of making such statements to oneself, especially when one finds himself in a difficult situation...One could just wonder how these scholars come up with such statements. The truth is that, it is from reflecting and pondering over the words of Allah(SWT) and the words of his Prophet (SAW).

Ad-Dhahabi writes :
“… Al-Ahnaf ibn Qayss used to approach the lamp and put his finger in it then say: “Feel it! O Ahnaf, feel it. Why did you do what you did in such and such day?!”[“Siyar A’lam An-Nubala”, 4/92].

There is also another popular narration, where the Prophet (SAW) said a sahabah was from the people of paradise, another sahabah Abdullah ibn amr ibn al aasi took it upon himself to findout what he did differently, on noticing no special deeds from him,he therefore enquired about what could have made him to be mentioned by the Prophet(SAW) as one of the people of Jannah, he was reported to have said, every night, before I go to sleep, I forgive whoever has wronged me. I remove any bad feelings towards anyone from my heart.

We can clearly see that what these people did are not innovations, but rather, actions which were borne out of deep reflection and understanding and a sincere effort to carryout their responsibilities as prescribed by the shariah. It is innate for us to talk to ourselves, and making decisive efforts to channel what we say to ourselves in helping us focus on our responsibilities according to the shariah, cannot and should not be classified as an innovation.

Finally, i would like to give a quote which captures the shariah definition of innovation and i hope would help us understand more what bid'ah is...

Imaam ash-Shaatibee (rahima-hullaah) mentions:

“Linguistically bid’ah (innovation) means ‘a newly invented matter’. The Sharee’ah definition of bid’ah as: ‘A newly invented way [beliefs or action] in the religion, in imitation of the Sharee’ah (prescribed Law), by which nearness to Allaah is sought, [but] not being supported by any authentic proof – neither in its foundations, nor in the manner in which it is performed’.” [Al-I’tisaam of ash-Shaatibee, 1/37]

And Allah (SWT) knows best.

^There are clearly defined ways to keep shaitan at arms length and establish enmity with him. This your speech is not one of them. It really should not be something you share in this discussion even with the best of intentions.

[b]Thn Abbas explained: "Following upon the death of those righteous men, Satan inspired their people to erect statues in the places where they used to sit. They did this, but these statues were not worshipped until the coming generations deviated from the right way of life. Then they worshipped them as their idols."

These idols represented, respectively, manly power; mutability, beauty; brute strength; swiftness; sharp sight, insight. (Source: A. Yusuf Ali, The Holy Quran: Translation and Commentary. Appendix XIII)
In his version, Ibn Jarir narrated: "There were righteous people who lived in the period between Adam and Noah and who had followers who held them as models. After their death, their friends who used to emulate them said: 'If we make statues of them, it will be more pleasing to us in our worship and will remind us of them.' So they built statues of them, and, after they had died and others came after them, Iblis crept into their minds saying: 'Your forefathers used to worship them, and through that worship they got rain.' So they worshipped them."
Ibn Abi Hatim related this story: "Waddan was a righteous man who was loved by his people. When he died, they withdrew to his grave in the land of Babylonia and were overwhelmed by sadness. When Iblis saw their sorrow caused by his death, he disguised himself in the form of a man saying: 'I have seen your sorrow because of this man's death; can I make a statue like him which could be put in your meeting place to make you remember him?' They said: 'Yes.' So he made the statue like him. They put it in their meeting place in order to be reminded of him. When Iblis saw their interest in remembering him, he said: 'Can I build a statue of him in the home of each one of you so that he would be in everyone's house and you could remember him?' They agreed. Their children learned about and saw what they were doing. They also learned about their remembrance of him, until they took him to be a deity and worshipped him instead of Allah. So the first to be worshipped instead of Allah was Waddan, the idol which they named thus."
It was narrated that 'Umm Salmah and 'Umm Habibah told Allah's Prophet Muhammad about the church called "Maria" which they had seen in the land of Abyssinia. They described its beauty and the pictures therein. He said: "Those are the people who build places of worship on the grave of every dead man who was righteous and then make therein those pictures. Those are the worst of creation unto Allah."

The essence of this point is that every idol from those earlier mentioned was worshipped by a certain group of people. It was mentioned that people made pictures and as the ages passed they made these pictures into statues, so that their forms could be fully recognized; afterwards they were worshipped instead of Allah. [/b]

Source: http://www.alim.org/library/biography/stories/content/SOP/3/3/Nuh%20(Noah)/Various%20Hadith%20Describing%20the%20Origin%20of%20Idolatry

Good intentions are not enough to justify your position. You shouldn't give such advice.

And indeed Allah knows best.

^ My speech is about why i believe the statement made in my initial post is not an innovation...I presented evidences, and explained my points, it is not about having good intentions and trying to bring a new idea alien to the Muslim world.

If i said making such statement would make shaitan to run away from you whenever you say it, then it is a different ball game entirely.

I Seek Allah's refuge from Shaitan, eni ti a ma le loko pa!

sino:
^ My speech is about why i believe the statement made in my initial post is not an innovation...I presented evidences, and explained my points, it is not about having good intentions and trying to bring a new idea alien to the Muslim world.

If i said making such statement would make shaitan to run away from you whenever you say it, then it is a different ball game entirely.

I Seek Allah's refuge from Shaitan, eni ti a ma le loko pa!

Hmmmmmmmm
Mr pls I want to recommend u to b more closer to d hadith of prophet SAW, not to listen to alfa said dis nd dat nd also I want u to b a cautious muslim who is cautious of his deen because part of what I see in u is dat u like argument nd all ur argument doesn't av basis in d religion I like people who clarify things with fact nd hadith not with kitabu ras this is ISLAM with lay down principle anything that is nt there before will never nd not modify it better never.

Do u knw how people com about salatu fathi which people knw more than the recommend my brother pls if u don't af fact. U don't recommend
Abi where did u hear I seek refuge from shaitan eni ti ama le loko pa am still saying this because in islam if the rule says four raka for asr u don't say let m please Allah because of d love I av for him am making mine 5 nop so we don't go beyond boundary nor lay down principle in islam


I still stand on my point there is nothing like mothers dialect in this discussion.

‎​As'salam aleykaa

maclatunji:
^There are clearly defined ways to keep shaitan at arms length and establish enmity with him. This your speech is not one of them. It really should not be something you share in this discussion even with the best of intentions.

[b]Thn Abbas explained: "Following upon the death of those righteous men, Satan inspired their people to erect statues in the places where they used to sit. They did this, but these statues were not worshipped until the coming generations deviated from the right way of life. Then they worshipped them as their idols."

These idols represented, respectively, manly power; mutability, beauty; brute strength; swiftness; sharp sight, insight. (Source: A. Yusuf Ali, The Holy Quran: Translation and Commentary. Appendix XIII)
In his version, Ibn Jarir narrated: "There were righteous people who lived in the period between Adam and Noah and who had followers who held them as models. After their death, their friends who used to emulate them said: 'If we make statues of them, it will be more pleasing to us in our worship and will remind us of them.' So they built statues of them, and, after they had died and others came after them, Iblis crept into their minds saying: 'Your forefathers used to worship them, and through that worship they got rain.' So they worshipped them."
Ibn Abi Hatim related this story: "Waddan was a righteous man who was loved by his people. When he died, they withdrew to his grave in the land of Babylonia and were overwhelmed by sadness. When Iblis saw their sorrow caused by his death, he disguised himself in the form of a man saying: 'I have seen your sorrow because of this man's death; can I make a statue like him which could be put in your meeting place to make you remember him?' They said: 'Yes.' So he made the statue like him. They put it in their meeting place in order to be reminded of him. When Iblis saw their interest in remembering him, he said: 'Can I build a statue of him in the home of each one of you so that he would be in everyone's house and you could remember him?' They agreed. Their children learned about and saw what they were doing. They also learned about their remembrance of him, until they took him to be a deity and worshipped him instead of Allah. So the first to be worshipped instead of Allah was Waddan, the idol which they named thus."
It was narrated that 'Umm Salmah and 'Umm Habibah told Allah's Prophet Muhammad about the church called "Maria" which they had seen in the land of Abyssinia. They described its beauty and the pictures therein. He said: "Those are the people who build places of worship on the grave of every dead man who was righteous and then make therein those pictures. Those are the worst of creation unto Allah."

The essence of this point is that every idol from those earlier mentioned was worshipped by a certain group of people. It was mentioned that people made pictures and as the ages passed they made these pictures into statues, so that their forms could be fully recognized; afterwards they were worshipped instead of Allah. [/b]

Source: http://www.alim.org/library/biography/stories/content/SOP/3/3/Nuh%20(Noah)/Various%20Hadith%20Describing%20the%20Origin%20of%20Idolatry

Good intentions are not enough to justify your position. You shouldn't give such advice.

And indeed Allah knows best.

Jazakallahu khairan ya akhi I wish he learn

sino:


May Allah protect us from innovation ameen. I never thought of this as an innovation, and it is quite unfortunate I cannot ask the scholar(may Allah have mercy on his soul) I heard it from to clarify where I might have gone wrong, if any, in my explanation of his statement (I think it was a lecture on a cassette i heard him say it). Still, I'll like to make some point so we can all look at what I was trying to explain from another angle and understand my statements here.

First, I believe you misunderstood my point mac. What I said the scholar mentioned, is not meant to protect one from shaitan (la), as that would clearly negate what is prescribed in the shariah, and rightly classified as an innovation. Please read my initial post again. I believe what you want is for evidences to be presented, and in sha Allah, I’ll try my best in doing that, and clarify why I believe it is not bid’ah.


Allah (SWT) Says "O Mankind indeed the promise of Allah is the truth so let not worldly life delude you and be not deceived about Allah by the deceiver (Satan). Indeed Satan is an enemy to you so take him as an enemy. He only invites his party to be among the companions of the blaze (Fatir: 5-6).

There are other verses which Allah (SWT) Has warned us against shaitan, but this verse above is the most relevant to this discuss. Here Allah (SWT) gives a direct command to take shaitan (la) as an enemy; looking at this verse, it is mandatory/obligatory we take shaitan (la) as an enemy. Looking further in the books of tafsir, tafsir Tabari states in regards to this verse especially Allah’s (SWT) statement “Indeed Satan is an enemy to you so take him as an enemy”,

فأنزلوه من أنفسكم منزلة العدو منكم واحذروه بطاعة الله واستغشاشكم إياه حذركم من عدوكم الذي تخافون غائلته على أنفسكم، فلا تطيعوه ولا تتبعوا خطواته، فإنه إنما يدعو حزبه، ينعي شيعته ومن أطاعه، إلى طاعته والقبول منه، والكفر بالله
“He i.e shaitan should be placed from yourselves in a position of an enemy amongst you and you should be guarded against him by following Allah (SWT) and you should be suspicious of him and be vigilant against your enemy in which you fear his calamity upon yourselves, thus never follow him or his group, that is, his disciples who follow him, following his path and following his footsteps…”

Ibn Kathir states:
أي: هو مبارز لكم بالعداوة، فعادوه أنتم أشد العداوة، وخالفوه وكذبوه فيما يغركم به،
“That is: He is a contender with you in enmity, your enmity against him is a greater enmity, being at variance with him, and calling him a lier in whatever he brings to deceive you with…”

Still on the issue of shaitan being an enemy and taking him as such,

Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim said,

"There are two types of Jihad Ash-Shaytan (the devil). First, Jihad against him to disregard the misgivings and doubts that he raises to erode the person's faith. Second, Jihad against him by ignoring what he tempts one with of
erroneous intentions and desires. Achieving certainty (concerning faith) comes after
performing the first type of this Jihad, while
successfully observing patience is the result of
performing the second type. Allah said, "And We
made from among them (Children of Israel),
leaders, giving guidance under Our Command, when they were patient and used to believe with
certainty in Our Ayat (Signs, Verses, etc.)." [32:24].
In this Ayah, Allah has stated that achieving the
status of being leaders in the religion is achieved by
observing patience and feeling Yaqin (certainty in
Allah and that Islam is the only true religion, etc.). Patience defeats desires and ill intentions, while
certainty defeats the doubts and misgivings."

The fact that Imam Ibn Qayuum used jihad against shaitan (la) and the explanations from scholars of tafsir I quoted, shows that we must be on guard, plan and strategize on a daily basis against shaitan, it is a war, you must declare your enmity towards shaitan and since shaitan has promised to deceive and destroy man, and this he will continue to do till judgement day.


Indeed, it should be fully understood that the Prophet (SAW) has thought us how to guard ourselves against shaitan. There are narrations abound in the books of ahadith in regards to this, there are a number of adhkar to be said morning and night to protect us against the devil, I have not stated we neglect such, and I even emphasized it in my previous posts. I have only stated we reinforce the Qur’anic injuction by compiling a statement that would clearly indicate our enmity towards shaitan (la) and tell ourselves that every morning we wake up after saying our prescribed adhkar according to the shariah.

Indeed, the religion is complete, and I have come to realize that things that are wowing people in the world today in terms of self development, how to be successful in our affairs and how to be happy, focused, set goals etc are embedded in Islam as brought to us by the Prophet (SAW) and practiced by his companions and the salafs.

I would like to give an example here, one of the key to success and happiness, as being promoted in some quarters especially motivational speakers is gratitude, they explain we show gratitude for what we have and recommend we do that in the morning, and once you do that, talking to yourself about what you have and what you are grateful for, automatically, you start feeling better about your life and therefore, happiness sets in. the effect of this singular act is said to transform your day, having a ripple effect in all your activities for that day.

People have tried this and gave testimonies; they applied this and are wowed. But this is infact what the Prophet (SAW) had thought us over 1400 years ago when he mentioned the adhkar to be said when we wake up, which is about showing gratitude for life, in another narration, he adviced us to not look at people above us in status, but people below us, and hence, we would be grateful to Allah (SWT) for his bounties, and most importantly, Allah (SWT) has asked us in the glorious Qur’an, which of His favours can we deny…

If I had written, every morning after your adhkar or during your adhkar, you compile a list of all what you are grateful for, and as you say alhamdulilah, you clearly state all things in which you are grateful for, does this fall under innovation?

If as muslims, we take this prophetic tradition, and apply it in our lifes the way we should, then we wouldn't be complaining about difficulties we face, in fact there are many more of such teachings embedded in the sunnah and the lives of the salaf, i had one time wanted to write about this, but i guess i wasn't properly equipped for such a task.

Allah (SWT) has commanded us in the Qur’an to think, ponder and reflect on His Word, because therein lies wisdom and understanding. I strongly recommend we all study the lives of the companions and the salaf as to their attitude and ways of reflection and the kind of self talk they engage which gives them focus in carrying out their responsibilities. We have lost this edge these people had, we just say these adhkar without much thought...may Allah assist us and grant us understanding.

I must also state here that the scholar I heard this from, is a righteous scholar, a devote ahl sunnah, who gave his all to defend Islam and the Sunnah. Whenever he gives adhkar or dua, he teaches them, explaining each word in them, he teaches to the extent that each individual understands the importance of that dhikr or dua, and by Allah, whenever you make such dhikr or dua, it is never like just rote reading, it is such that you say these dhikr and dua, with deep reflection and understanding. I have a book also “the fiqh of dua and adhkar, night and daily duties” by Abd Razak bin Abd Muhsin bin Badr. In his introduction, he states,
“…this 3rd section from the fiqh of dua and adhkar, contains the explanation of adhkar and duas that are associated with a muslims duty or actions in the day and night, such as the adhkar of the day and night and sleep, and the adhkar of prayers and after prayers, and adhkar of entering and leaving (the home), and that of riding and travel, of eating and drinking, and others apart from these amongst the lofty adhkar, and blessed prayers, which accompanies a muslim in his day and night with explanation of their meaning and evidences.

There is no doubt that the persistence on these adhkar and the adhearance is associated with lots of good, and blessings that follows in this life and the hereafter, especially, when the adherent, conforms with it looking carefully at the evidences, and reflecting on its purpose and its goal, and attaining its target and requirements.”

I had also mentioned in my previous post, the importance of understanding what we recite in arabic in our mother tongue, but not only that, as pointed out above, we also need to reflect upon it, even while in prayer or while making our daily adhkar. A brother once said, he reflects on his day, strategize and plan his day while saying his morning adhkar, thinking about what he is saying and what he wants to achieve in that day. This is how a muslim should perform his daily duties. It is quite unfortunate that we are so much in a hurry, we hardly have time to reflect and contemplate on what we recite, we have become robots, no wonder our spirituality can never be compared to the earliest generations of Muslims.

So the question now arise again, is what I said the scholar mentioned an innovation?

Well, I reiterate that no, it is not, it cannot be said to be an innovation, because Allah (SWT) has commanded us to take Shaitan as an enemy, and from all what I have presented here thus far, it shouldn’t be difficult for us to see it isn’t, it is not a new form of dhikr or a new form of worship. But I know it might still be confusing for some, and they may like to ask, give us a proof from the sahabas or the salafs of such actions…So i present some narrations from the salafs, how they engage in self talk in keeping their responsibilities to Allah (SWT), which i believe gives allowance for us to engage in these kinds of actions....

"Someone asked Haatim al-Asamm as to how did he say his salah. He replied: “When the time for salah comes, I perform my wudoo and go to the place where I have to say my salaah. I sit down for some time, till all the parts of my body is relaxed. Then I stand up for salaah, visualizing the kaabah in front of me, imagining my feet upon the bridge over jahannam, with jannah to my right, and jahannam to my left, and the angel of death close behind me, and think that it may be my last salaah. Then I say my salaah with full sincerity and devotion. And I finish my salaah between fear and hope about its acceptance.”

If i had written, since we are expected to have full concentration in salah, hence, before salah, compile a statement that would keep you focused during salah, in your mother tongue, would that be an innovation in the deen one capable of estinguishing the sunnah and creating deviant sects?!

More examples,

Mu’adh Ibn Jabal adviced his son:

“My son! Pray the prayer of he who is just about to leave and imagine that you might not be able to pray ever again”.[“Sifat As-Safwah”, 1/496].

Abu Noeh Al Ansariy said:
“A fire once broke out in a house where ‘Ali bin al-Husayn – may Allah have mercy on him – was prostrate in prayer. He didn’t raise his head until the fire went out. When asked about this he said: “The other Fire kept my mind busy.”[“At-Takhwief min An-Naar”. 33].


Al-Fudhayl Ibn Iyaadh said:
“I met some people who feel ashamed before Allaah to sleep for too long in the night. Such a person may be resting on his side, and when he moves, he says to himself, “This is not your right. Get up and take your share of the Hereafter”.[“Sifat As-Safwah”, 2/241].

We could see here the use of imagination and visualization as well as talking to oneself as practiced by these sahabah and salafs, and there are more, scattered in books detailing the lives of our righteous predecessors, interestingly, we do this consciously or unconsciously, and what i have suggested here is to conciously engage in self talk or whatever it is called, to help us keep focus on our responsibilities on a daily basis.

Haafiz Ibn Taymiyah said:
“What can my enemies possibly do to me? My paradise is in my heart; wherever I go it goes with me, inseparable from me. For me, prison is a place of (religious) retreat; execution is my opportunity for martyrdom; and exile from my town is but a chance to travel (in the path of Allah).”[“Al-Wabil Al-Sayyib”, 1/69].

This quote by sheikh ibn taymiyah is quite deep, the statement "My paradise is in my heart" is very powerful, if i were very good in psychology, i would be able to write elaborately the benefits of making such statements to oneself, especially when one finds himself in a difficult situation...One could just wonder how these scholars come up with such statements. The truth is that, it is from reflecting and pondering over the words of Allah(SWT) and the words of his Prophet (SAW).

Ad-Dhahabi writes :
“… Al-Ahnaf ibn Qayss used to approach the lamp and put his finger in it then say: “Feel it! O Ahnaf, feel it. Why did you do what you did in such and such day?!”[“Siyar A’lam An-Nubala”, 4/92].

There is also another popular narration, where the Prophet (SAW) said a sahabah was from the people of paradise, another sahabah Abdullah ibn amr ibn al aasi took it upon himself to findout what he did differently, on noticing no special deeds from him,he therefore enquired about what could have made him to be mentioned by the Prophet(SAW) as one of the people of Jannah, he was reported to have said, every night, before I go to sleep, I forgive whoever has wronged me. I remove any bad feelings towards anyone from my heart.

We can clearly see that what these people did are not innovations, but rather, actions which were borne out of deep reflection and understanding and a sincere effort to carryout their responsibilities as prescribed by the shariah. It is innate for us to talk to ourselves, and making decisive efforts to channel what we say to ourselves in helping us focus on our responsibilities according to the shariah, cannot and should not be classified as an innovation.

Finally, i would like to give a quote which captures the shariah definition of innovation and i hope would help us understand more what bid'ah is...

Imaam ash-Shaatibee (rahima-hullaah) mentions:

“Linguistically bid’ah (innovation) means ‘a newly invented matter’. The Sharee’ah definition of bid’ah as: ‘A newly invented way [beliefs or action] in the religion, in imitation of the Sharee’ah (prescribed Law), by which nearness to Allaah is sought, [but] not being supported by any authentic proof – neither in its foundations, nor in the manner in which it is performed’.” [Al-I’tisaam of ash-Shaatibee, 1/37]

And Allah (SWT) knows best.

My brother I don't see any place with saying it in dialect or so her nd all dis eni ti ama le loko pa


My brother Alfa is prone to error is not a prophet all what u need to ask him is what his the stand of the prophet in it or the sahaba's if u ask him that I expect him to reply with quotes to back it up not doing tekleedu ahama(blind followership) my dear brother islam is far beyond I don't know now cos the world is now interwoven nd knowledge is flying outside both the good nd d virus so brother choose wisely

DEFINITION OF QUR'AN


[size=20pt]Q[/size] uality (Quran, chapter 41, verse 34)

[size=20pt]U[/size] nity (Quran, chapter 3, verse 103)

[size=20pt]R[/size] flection(Quran, chapter 4, verse 82)

[size=20pt]A[/size] ction (Quran, chapter 28, verse 77)

[size=20pt]N[/size] ature (Quran, chapter 3, verse 84)

@personal59 jazakumullahu khayran for your advice, may Allah grant us the proper understanding of the deen ameen.

For the record, I do not engage in a discuss for no reason, especially when it is about religion, it is either to learn or explain what I know and understand.

Please again I repeat, I am not saying that you perform your dhikr in your mother tongue. What I wrote in my previous post is a translation of the Arabic statement "audhubillahi mina shaitani rajym" and translation is not an innovation.