Ramadan Confession #2: I have this type of Ramadan guilt every year

By Fatima Asad Many things change in your life when you become a mother.  (Wait! This is not just another mama post; I need to tell you when I truly felt this guilt for the first time.)  In fact, you meet another person in the mirror when you are blessed with motherhood.  It was the first Ramadan after...

Ramadan Challenge: Gratitude to the One!

By Abdul Rehman Raza The One who is most worthy of our gratitude, more than anyone else, is Allah, our Lord! But why should we be grateful to Him anyway? The basic thing that separates humans from every other living thing is the ability to think and ponder. A rabbit would never sit under a...

Ramadan Challenge: It’s All Good!

By Fiza Khan Today was one of those days when I really....I mean reallyyyy....felt drained out by fasting. As I walked back home from the bus stop, in the peak heat of noon, all I could think of was, 'Water. Water. Water.' As I came closer to home, I heard myself saying 'Alhamdulillah' out loud....

Chapter 13: The Waning Dusk (series)

Myth: Whine for more لَٮِٕن شَڪَرۡتُمۡ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمۡ‌ۖ   This snippet is from one of the most beautiful verses of the Quran on gratitude from surah Ibrahim (v. 7). And I wrote just the Arabic text here for you guys to read it and comprehend it better when I expand on it. In Arabic, there are a lot of...

My Ramadan Diary: Forgive Me When I Whine

By Umm Ibrahim Hot days? Long fasts? Parched tongue? Droopy eyes? Aching legs? This Ramadan, I will not whine! I absolutely refuse to complain. Not only will I not complain to Tom, Dick and Harry (or to Jamilah, Sakinah and Aneela) I will not even complain to myself! I feel too grateful to do that. I...

To starve or not to starve- Ramadan 2014!

By Umme Aisha It’s almost Ramadan! Just a few hours to go, inshaAllah. This is the one time of the year where most Muslims readily sacrifice both food and the immediate gratification of their desires. It’s a month that when it leaves, it leaves us feeling sad and gloomy. Despite it being the favorite month...

12 Reasons I’m Excited About Ramadan

By Umm Ibrahim          1- The Honourable Mention Ramadan is the only month mentioned in the Quran by its name. Reading through this verse at any time of the year brings to me a rush of beautiful memories, as well as anticipation for the next Ramadan. “Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down...

Five practical steps to be a steadfast Muslim!

Not a single person can deny the fact that human nature is notorious and censurable;  history is one unfortunate witness to this very fact! But human beings are bound to err. They were never designed to be perfect, nor  do they run on pre-defined algorithms for pre-designed results. They are not machines- rather they are driven by their...

Diary of A Spoilt Brat

  By Umm Ibrahim The ever-alert guard slides open the gate, and my chauffeur-driven car glides in smoothly to a view of lush green grass, and all the colors of spring in bloom. I step out and look around at the gardeners busy working away in the sun. “I have to leave in 30 minutes...

Would you like it Blessed or Wretched?

Marriage is a colorful artwork gifted to you by Allah, specially designed for you to find repose in.  It is an institution where real love is nurtured for the family to bask in its warmth and light.  It is the building where the foundation of future is laid in the present.  It is falling in...