The Rawha: Daily Guidance for Seekers with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Faraz Rabbani discusses salat al-istikhara (the prayer of guidance) by

defining it,

debunking misconceptions regarding it,

the best way to perform it, and

easy ways to integrate it into our lives in a meaningful manner

Some of the common misonceptions include

Istikhara is a prayer in matters of marriage

The signs come in the form of dreams

A sinful person must ask a pious person to perform the prayer on his behalf

Istikhara is only for the big decisions, not small matters

 

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Shaykh Faraz Rabbani discusses the lessons of the great day of Ashura – the 10th of Muharram. This is one of the greatest days of the year – a day the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) highly encouraged us to fast.

This is the day in which…

Prophet Adam was absolved of his error;

the day in which Prophet Nuh was saved from the flood;

the day in which the people of Prophet Yunus were forgiven;

the day in which Prophet Musa and Bani Israel were saved from the Pharaoh

It is from the days in which Allah has favoured and honoured those whom He has tested with trials and challenges – and who responded right through the right choices.

Shaykh Faraz explains the sunnahs related to fasting and devotion on the 10th of Muharram, as well as how the great historical events that happened on this day can help us respond right to the challenges in our life.

The importance of knowing the history of faith – the life of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself, the past Prophets, the righteous, scholars, saints, and virtuous – is that it gives us embodied examples of turning to Allah through the tests of life, towards becoming of His honoured and beloved servants.

In this Friday sermon, Shaykh Faraz Rabbani reminds us of the great bounties and blessings that God has bestowed upon us in this sacred month of Hajj. Shaykh Faraz calls upon us to recognize and appreciate the moments of life that God has gifted us with. The scholars of Islam state that the greatest moment that a believer finds him or herself in is the moment of the present. By returning and repenting to Allah with sincerity and a firm resolve we can elevate our ranks to that of a friend of God.

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The Many Benefits Hidden in Trials. This sermon looks at the concept of trails and the hidden benefits within them. It is based on a work by Imam 'Izz al Din Ibn 'Abd al-Salam, and introduces the Islamic understanding of 'tribulation' and the first four points covered in the work: 1. Realizing that Allah is in charge. 2. Realizing the humility and lowliness before Allah that servanthood entails. 3. Learning sincerity to Allah. 4. Returning back to Allah.

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Shaykh Faraz Rabbani shares inspiring reminders on the vastness of Allah’s mercy, and the gratitude and joy a believer should experience when realizing the blessings and opportunities before them.

The Days of Dhu’l Hijja are special. The Day of Arafa is special. Eid is special.

Here are keys to truly benefit and rise through them.

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This sermon is a discussion around the sahih hadith 'All of you are [like] shepherds, and all of you will be asked about you flocks. The topics of parenting, fulfilling the needs and rights of children, and common parental malpractices are addressed here.

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In this new podcast series, Shaykh Ahmed Hussein El Azhary will discuss why the art of reading is critical for students of knowledge to master. One of the greatest barriers in mastering a science is the inability to read with structure and comprehension. In this series, Shaykh Ahmed will provide students with a detailed approach to rectifying this problem.

In addition to offering practical tips and guidance in improving one’s reading and learning skills, Shaykh Ahmed will also elaborate on the development of the instrumental (foundational) sciences within the Islamic tradition and how they compare to medieval and modern theories of literary comprehension.

In this fifth episode of The Art of Reading, Shaykh Ahmed Hussein El Azhary further elaborates on how a student can build an intimate relationship with a text. He provides a framework of surveilling a text on various levels, and also how to analyze concepts and propositions laden within the text. He urges the student to always try to determine the questions the author is trying to answer in a text.

 

 

Biography of Shaykh Ahmed Hussein El Azhary:

Shaykh Ahmed El Azhary is a researcher in Islamic intellectual history and a teacher of Islamic traditional sciences. He’s currently a teacher of Hadith, Usūl, Logic, and Kalam at Rawdatul-Na`īm under the supervision of Habib `Ali al-Jifrī; and at Madyafat Shaykh Ismaīl Sadiq al-`Adawī (RA), a prominent learning center by al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo.

Formerly, Shaykh Ahmed worked as a Lead Researcher at Tabah Foundation. He was appointed by Habib `Ali al-Jifrī to architect the philosophical framework of Suaal initiative – an initiative concerned with modeling an Islamic philosophical response to contemporary existential questions, supervised by Shaykh `Ali Jumu`ah, Habib `Umar and Shaykh Usama al-Azhary. Shaykh Ahmed continues to participate in Suaal initiative through essays, public lectures, and workshops.

Shaykh Ahmed studied Anthropology at American University in Cairo and received his training in Leadership Communication from Tulane University and The University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is also a life-long learner. He holds a diversified portfolio of almost 50 certificates in a variety of subjects – extending from Teaching Character and Clinical Psychology of Children and Young People to Complexity Theory, Model Thinking and Conflict Analysis.

Shaykh Ahmed began his journey of studying traditional sciences about 20 years ago. In addition to studying with scholars from al-Azhar, he had the privilege of studying with visiting scholars from Algeria and India in a one-on-one format and was thus given an exceptional opportunity to study and discuss advanced-level texts of different sorts and over a long period of time. Shaykh Ahmed has more than 70 Ijazas from scholars from all over the Muslim world.

In this Friday sermon, Shaykh Faraz Rabbani gives a beautiful and uplifting reminder on how to respond to Allah's Call to the Believers regarding Friday prayer, with joy, gratitude, urgency, and resolve.

Allah calls us, "O you who believe, when the call to prayer is given on Friday rush to the remembrance of Allah and leave all trade..." (Qur'an, Surat al-Jumuah:9

Shaykh Faraz shares beautiful insights on how the believer, the Muslim, approaches life and work; what the true life is; who are the truly alive; our true homeland; the wisdom of religious duties; key outward and inward sunnas of Friday prayer, and more.

 

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In this talk, at the 24th anniversary of the Srebrenica Massacre of over 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys--rightly classified as a genocide--Shaykh Faraz Rabbani shares reflections on some lessons for all believers:

One: Faith and how we view tests and tribulations.

Two. How we respond to tribulations, and how we ready ourselves to be able to respond.

Three: The critical need to learn from history, past and recent.

Four: The imperative of unity for Muslims, locally and globally.

 

Check out the SeekersGuidance Ramadan Portal: www.seekersguidance.org/ramadan

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Ustadh Amjad Tarsin looks at the closing chapter of Imam Haddad's Book of Assistance, on Divine Love and Contentment. He begins the section by explaining why we love Allah and the various degrees of love of God. He shows that other loves for the sake of God -- such as love of the prophets -- are in reality part of one's love for God, and discusses the signs of sincere love. Next, he discusses contentment with the Divine decree and leaving objection to Allah's Will, particularly in tribulation (though he warns against falsely applying this same outlook in relation to one's sins, from which one is obliged to repent). He closes by highlighting the importance of supplication (duʿa'), which in reality expresses the meanings of contentment with Allah and neediness to Him.

 

This is part of the series presented by SeekersGuidance Canada in Ramadan 2019.

Check out the SeekersGuidance Ramadan Portal: www.seekersguidance.org/ramadan

Help SeekersGuidance reach millions around the world through reliable knowledge and guidance from qualified scholars, completely free: become a monthly supporter – www.seekersguidance.org/donate Help SeekersGuidance support deserving scholars and students this Ramadan: give your zakat and charity to the Global Islamic Scholars Fund — www.seekersguidance.org/donate