A Conversation with Shaykh Hamza Yusuf

Sallam alaykum.

Jess and Jamal have a conversation with Shaykh Hamza Yusuf on Arab Talk Radio.

Event: The Trodden Path

Sallam alaykum.

In the name of Allah, Most Benificent, Most Merciful

All Praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds
Peace and salutations upon His beloved Messenger

ISLAMIC CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION 

presents 

THE TRODDEN PATH

Wednesday 26th March 2008 7.30pm

Lectures by

Habib Kazim al-Saqaaf &
Shaykh Umar al-Khatib (Tarim, Yemen)

with Shaykh Ibrahim Osi-Efa (Ibn Abbas Institute, UK) &
Ustadh Yahya Rhodus (Zaytuna Institute, USA)

VENUE: Madni Jamia Masjid 101 Thornbury Road (off Killinghall Road) Bradford BD3 8SA Directions click on link: http://www.streetmap.co.uk/

All welcome (Special arrangements for sisters)

Further info: 07852 189425

Habib Kazim al-Saqqaf
Al- Habib Kazim Ja’far Muhammad al-Saqqaf was born in Tarim, Hadramaut in the year 1960. He was taught the Qur’an and other Islamic disciplines by his eminent teachers at the famous school of Qur’anic Literacy and Memorisation Abu Murayyim and the prestigious school of classical learning the Ribat of Tarim. After graduating from the two aforementioned institutions, he continued his studies at the hands of some of the most qualified scholars and teachers of Tarim.
He thereafter travelled in search of knowledge to the northern Yemeni city of Bayda, registering at the famous Ribat of Bayda where he was blessed to study with some of the greatest scholars of recent times such as al-Habib Muhammad b. Abd-Allah al-Haddar, al-Habib Ibrahim b. Aqil b. Yahya and al-Habib Zain b. Sumait.

He then returned to Tarim were he continued his studies as well as embarking upon the continual task of da’wah. He was appointed the principal and head teacher of the Ribat of Shihr, occupying that post for the next six years, thereafter transferring to the Ribat of Mukalla once again as principal and head teacher for a further two years.

He has taught internationally in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Oman, the UAE, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

He currently teaches at the prestigious Islamic institute Dar al-Mustafa in Tarim as well as sitting on the Council for Legal Verdicts at the same establishment. He is also extremely active in all parts of Hadramaut, regularly lecturing and participating in conferences.

Shaykh Ibrahim Osi-Efa
Shaykh Ibrahim was born and raised in Liverpool, England. He was blessed with the opportunity to study several classical disciplines at the hands of some of the holders of the tradition such as Murabit al-Haj, al-Habib Umar b. Hafiz and Shaikh Hassan al-Hindi. Initially studying for three years in Syria and Mauritania, Ustaz Ibrahim was then blessed with the opportunity to spend over six years in the illuminated city of Tarim, Hadramaut where he studied under the qualified hands of teachers such as al-Habib Kazim al-Saqqaf, al-Habib ‘Ali al-Jifri and al-Shaikh ‘Umar Husain al-Khatib.
He was one of the founders of several Islamic initiatives including the Ibn Abbas Institute, Starlatch Press, Badr Language Institute and the Greensville Trust. He currently resides in Liverpool, England with his wife and two children.

Ustadh Yahya Rhodus
Ustadh Yahya was born and raised in America’s midwest. At the age of 19 he became Muslim in the San Francisco Bay Area and began studying with Shaykh Hamza Yusuf and other distinguished scholars visiting from Mauritania, namely, Shaykh Khatri & Shaykh Abdullah Ould Ahmadna. In 1998, he traveled to Mauritania to further his studies of the Islamic sciences. There he spent more than 2 years learning with some of Mauritania’s greatest scholars, including Shaykh Murabit al-Hajj. In 2000, he moved to Yemen to continue his studies. In 2005, he returned from his studies overseas to serve as a full-time teacher at Zaytuna Institute. ‘He currently resides in Yemen with his wife and children where he continues to augment his studies, teach and work on various projects.

Shaykh Umar al-Khatib
Biography unavailable.

The Prophetic Mirror: With Habib ‘Ali al-Jifri

Sallam alaykum.

Eid Milad-Un-Nabi Mubarak!

Sallam alaykum.

Eid Milad-Un-Nabi Mubarak!

May Allah shower His infinite blessings on our Habib, salallahu alayhi wassallam.

Allahumma salli ala Muhammad, Allahumma sali alayhi wassallam.

Sit back and enjoy the following!

Burda Night At Zaytuna Institute

A Poem In Honour of Tony Blair!

Sallam alaykum.

A mystery poet from the government has written the following poem.

LOL! Who could it be?

Alan Duncan thinks it is John Hutton.

At Downing Street upon the stair,

I met a man who wasn’t Blair,

He wasn’t Blair again today,

Oh how I wish he’d go away.

The Greatest Bounties Of Allah: With Shaykh Muhammad Al-Yaqoubi

Sallam alaykum.

To Know Him Is To Love Him, sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam: With Shaykh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi

Sallam alaykum.

Features a poem in the beginning by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf.

Shaykh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi takes the listener through an amazing path of enlightenment, surveying in great detail the essence of why the Prophet, sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam, is loved by creation.

With thanks to MeccaOne and Shaykh Muhammad.

Seerah Class Notes: Part One

Sallam alaykum.

This is going to be a series of class notes from a course I am currently taking, taught by Shaykh Atabek Shukurov.

I would like to say a massive thank you to the Abu Zahra Foundation and to all the organisers from Islamic Cultural and Educational Association. Last, but not least, Shaykh Atabek Shukurov. May Allah reward and bless them all! Ameen.

Part One

The Arabic word, Seerah, means way.

From Sara which means to walk

Sayrun means trip/journey/walk.

Seerah is the biography of anyone.

Reasons why we should learn Seerah.

In order

1. To understand who he was and to understand what made him so special.
2. To find good/excellent examples for us to follow. He is the most amazing example of being a father.

• Whenever Sayida Fatima (peace be upon her) used to go to the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him) house, he would stand up, take her hand, and would sit her down.

He is the most beautiful example of being a brother. He is the best example of being a leader. And he is the greatest example of being a teacher.

• A Sahabi once said that he didn’t find any better teacher than him. Another example is that once the Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) was giving a khutba (a lesson) on his minbar (chair). A Bedouin approached him and asked “Ya Rasul’Allah, teach me my religion.” The Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) ordered for a chair to be brought for the Bedouin and he then proceeded to answer the Bedouin’s questions. Once he finished teaching the Bedouin, he returned to his minbar and proceeded with his khutba.

If we want to be the best leader or the best teacher, then we should go back to the life of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and we will learn from the best of examples.

3. To lean more about Islam and about Islamic knowledge. When learning about Seerah, we will come across Quranic Ayat (verse) which will be to do with Fiqh or Aqida etc. When someone learns about Fiqh they only learn Fiqh. When someone learns about Aqida, they only learn Aqida. Seerah is different. Seerah includes Fiqh, Tafseer, Hadith and thus Seerah includes all the subjects of Islam.
4. To meet more Sahabah and to learn about more Sahabah. We know about the famous Sahabah such as Abu Bakr and Umar (peace be upon them both), but by learning Seerah, we will learn about other lesser known Sahabah such as Dihatul Qalbi (peace be upon him).

If we were to write up our own biographies we would rip out or destroy pages. However, the Seerah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is not like that. Nothing needs destroying or made a secret of. This makes him an amazing human being.

No one else has a detailed biography as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). The Shaykh said these are clear signs from Allah that this is the Prophet of our generation. Allah provded the most information about this Prophet as he is the Prophet of our generation.

What are the main references of Seerah?

Two kinds of references:

• Primary (includes general references and specific references).
• Secondary.

Primary

General:

1. The Qur’an.
2. The books of Ahadith (Sahih Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Sunan Abi Dawud, Sunan Ibn Majah, Musanaf Ibn Abi Shaybah, Tabakat, Hilyatul Awliya, Muajam Tul Awsatul, Muajamul Akbar by Tabarani. All of these books included a big part of the Seerah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). We can cover all of his life relying on the books of Ahadith.

Specific:

1. A book called Seeratul Rasul’Allah, by Arwatul Ibn Zubayr, who was a Tabi’i. He passed away 92^nd of Hijra.
2. A book by Aban Ibn Usman, who passed away 105^th after Hijra.
3. A book by Wahab Ibn Munabih, most of the transmissions of Faza’il comes from him, he was a Tabi’I, he passed away 110^th after Hijra.
4. Sharahbil Ibn Saad, who passed away 123^rd after Hijra. He is Tabi’i.
5. Muhammad Ibn Shihab Az Zuhri,

These scholars were the first to write a separate book about the Seerah of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).

Do we still have any of these books?

No, we don’t have them as separate books.

However, Imam At-Tabari was from the third Islamic generation, he was alive at the same time as Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal. He passed away in the third Islamic generation. Imam At-Tabari transmitted all the above books in his own book, which was a history book, which not only covered Islamic history but history even before Rasul’Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). It was called Tarikhul Ul Muluk Wal Umrah, and became famous as Tarikhut Tabari (the history of Imam Tabari). He included all the above books in his own book.

We have the original copy of the book by Wahab Ibn Muhabih, in the library of Heidelberg, Germany.

6. Muhammad Ibn Ishaac, who lived in the same time as Imam Malik, and wrote a separate book on Seerah. He passed away 152^nd of Hijra. We have his book by transmission of Ibn Hisham in his book Seeratun Ibn Hisham. His full name was Abdul Malik Ibn Hisham, he passed away 202^nd of Hijra. This book was translated in several languages including English and French. The original copy is in 4 big volumes. It includes the names of the Sahabah who went to the battles of Badr and Uhud.

The above books including the books of Ahadith, are references for famous Seerah books such as The Sealed Nectar. The most important reference for Seerah is Seeratun Ibn Hisham because it is very detailed and reliable and was transmitted by lots of people.

Secondary

Books that rely on the above mentioned books:

1. Kitabul Shifa (Ash Shifa).
2. Al Muwahibulad-Duniya by Qastalani (the Shaykh recommended us all to buy this book as it is important and most of the transmissions of the scholars of Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’a come from this book), the name of the book translates to ‘The Holy Gifts’.
3. As-Seerah by Ibn Katheer.
4. Al Khasahisul Qubra by Jallaludin Suyuti. Shaykh again recommended that we buy this book. It answers questions such as, was the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) a Prophet before Prophethood/before he reached the age of 40? The book answers yes including evidence. In addition, was the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) the light from Allah? The book answers yes. Again this is a reference for the scholars of Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jama’a.
5. Hujjatullahi Al Alameen, by Shaykh Yusuf An Nabahani.
6. Rahikul Maktoum,

What are the most important periods in Western history?

If we want to understand how Rasul’Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to be, we need to have an idea about the situation around him (the world), that’s why as the course progresses the Shaykh will mention things that took place in Turkey or Italy to give us an idea of the situation in which Rasul’Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) used to live.

Most important periods in Western history are:

1. The Ancient Age, which started 3200 BC (the calligraphic ere i.e. writing). We Muslims believe calligraphy was established before, and that Allah (subhanahu wata’ala) taught Adam (peace be upon him). Allah taught everything, including how to cook how to build, how to name (plants and trees etc) and how to write.
2. Middle Age, when the Barbarians destroyed Rome, in 476 AD. The most famous period in Western history as it is also called the Dark Age. The Muslim scholars woke up the western countries from the Dark Age. They were the scholars of Al Andalusia. Ibn Rushd and Ibn Tufail.
3. The New Age, which started when Muhammad Ibn Murad, the 7 Khalifah of the Usmans took Constantinople, in 1452 AD.
4. The last period starts at 1789, when the French Revolution occurred, this is when the new history starts.

These ages to not apply to Muslims, as for example, the Middle or Dark Age does not apply to Muslims because it was the Golden Age of Islamic history.

All good in these notes is from Allah. Any mistakes are from this student alone.

And Allah knows best.

Rare ruins found in Israel

Sallam alaykum.

© ITN 2008

Israeli researchers have discovered rare ruins in the heart of Jerusalem’s Old City, dating back 2,800 years.

The find has been made 100 metres west of the Western Wall, the holiest site for Jews, and the religious compound known to Jews as Temple Mount and to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif, where the Al-Aqsa mosque is located.

Israel said that the dig is aimed at salvaging artefacts before a planned construction of a walkway leading up to the Muslim complex.

Source.

BBC: White Girl

Sallam alaykum.

Drama. An 11-year-old girl, Leah, and her family relocate to an entirely Muslim community in Bradford.

(Available for 6 more days).

(Note!: Contains strong language and some other unpleasantness).

Watch it here.

An article from the Telegraph about the programme.