The epidemic of fatigue and depression are caused by Shaydan.

The epidemic of fatigue and depression are caused by Shaytan.

Millions of people around the world today are complaining of fatigue and tiredness. The feeling of being sluggish prevents people from performing to their potential.

This epidemic of fatigue has no physical causes in majority of the cases. Our prophet  (ﷺ) informs   fatigue and depression is caused by Shaytan.

The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying: When one of you sleeps, the devil ties three knots at the back of his neck, sealing every knot with, "You have a long night, so sleep." So if one awakes and mentions Allah, a knot will be loosened; if he performs ablution another knot will be loosened; and if he prays, the third knot will be loosened; and in the morning he will be active and in good spirits; otherwise he will be in bad spirits and sluggish.

عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ  " يَعْقِدُ الشَّيْطَانُ عَلَى قَافِيَةِ رَأْسِ أَحَدِكُمْ إِذَا هُوَ نَامَ ثَلاَثَ عُقَدٍ يَضْرِبُ مَكَانَ كُلِّ عُقْدَةٍ عَلَيْكَ لَيْلٌ طَوِيلٌ فَارْقُدْ فَإِنِ اسْتَيْقَظَ فَذَكَرَ اللَّهَ انْحَلَّتْ عُقْدَةٌ فَإِنْ تَوَضَّأَ انْحَلَّتْ عُقْدَةٌ فَإِنْ صَلَّى انْحَلَّتْ عُقْدَةٌ فَأَصْبَحَ نَشِيطًا طَيِّبَ النَّفْسِ وَإِلاَّ أَصْبَحَ خَبِيثَ النَّفْسِ كَسْلاَنَ " .

Shaytan casts a spell on people every time they go to sleep. The ancient magic trick of blowing in knots is one of the classic forms of witchcraft. The Shaytan targets the neck as it is a weak point. It is through the neck that the brain is supplied blood. The back of the neck is a bridge for the spinal cord know as the cervical  vertebrae which supports the skull, moves the spine, and protects the spinal cord, a bundle of nerves connected to the brain.

The Prophet has ordered us to take preventative  measures before sleeping by reading the three last surahs in the Quran.

Narrated 'Aisha:
Whenever the Prophet (ﷺ) went to bed every night, he used to cup his hands together and blow over it after reciting Surat Al-Ikhlas, Surat Al-Falaq and Surat An-Nas, and then rub his hands over whatever parts of his body he was able to rub, starting with his head, face and front of his body. He used to do that three times.

It is worth mentioning  the relevance of this verse "And from the evil of the blowers in knots" in order to comprehend the wisdom in the Sunnah to  counter attack the spell of shaydan when one goes to sleep.

Also reading ayatul Kursi before going to sleep is another form of protection mentioned in another Hadith. (Sahih al-Bukhari 3275)

Do not allow shaydan to spiritually paralyze you and prevent you from performing worship for Allah. Pray fajr to feel good and energetic throughout the day.

Another dimension of this Hadith is the feeling of bad spirit and despondency the bedrock of depression. We will discuss this in another article inshallah.

Sayeed Yusuf Mohamed.

Broadcast your Dua via the Radio-heart

Broadcast your Dua via the Radio-heart

The Dua is the communication that we have with Allah directly, and the heart is the transmitter. The purest cleanliness heart and the most humble will produce the most powerful Dua and will send out the strongest signal. We can channel and desires and through the medium of supplication. Dua that is channelled through strong emotions will be received and answered. The feeling of being desperate as if in a state of emergency and in need is one of the most important channels. As for the one who makes Dua with emotionless words and does not put himself in the state of being desperate and in emergency that supplication will treated likewise.

The Dua is powered with the energy of eating Halal. The heart needs energy to transmit this Dua from the depth of the heart. A heart that is powered with Halal will transmit this Dua successfully, a heart that gets its energy from the purest nutrition. But as the heart that is powered with energy that is unclean and filthy will not have the force to send out its message.   The greatest calamity is when a person thinks that the Dua has no impact on his life as the whole process is hidden from the naked eye. However just as we cannot see the electric currents that are transmitted and received by a radio antenna and transformed into radio waves. Likewise we cannot see the Dua that we make from the heart that reaches Allah but what is need is certainty in Allah's promise and that He hears the Dua and will respond.
By Sayeed Yusuf Mohamed

Training to be a genius

Training to be a genius 

If anyone was to claim that they deserve to be given the title of being a genius then it would be the righteous slaves of Allah as they possess spiritual, physical, intellectual, emotional and conscious intelligence. Their never ending energy is fueled with their sincere yearning for the next life as it absorbs all their emotions and thoughts. They possess outstanding qualities, exclusive to them a religious vision and strength in worshipping Allah. In the month of Ramadhan Muslims were able to emulate the lifestyle of the most righteous slaves of Allah, those who attained inner purity and perfection in their servitude for Allah through continuous worship. There are a few ingredients to this success and we displayed all of them in Ramadhan.

The first is vision, it is easier to fulfill ones dream if it exists, hence in Ramadhan Muslims vision and aim was to attain paradise and be spared from hell-fire, to be forgiven for the sins perpetrated and to meet Allah and be presented with delightful gifts. This is a long term vision, however in Ramadhan it became sharper and revived.

 The second ingredient of success in the life of the righteous is discipline and Taqwa. We also experienced discipline to its greatest degree in Ramadhan. It was an opportunity to discipline ourselves by refraining from what we enjoyed and loved most, as well as abstaining from bad habits and possibly changing our daily routine. We were prepared to stay focused by disciplining our bodies to reap the benefits of the blessed month. A famous Arabic saying "If the soul has a magnificent vision the bodies will become tired in achieving it". Our bodies were working at its full potential and its maximum capacity. If a person was to push the body to the same level of intensive worship after Ramadan it would be practically impossible to continue. This is simply because the same vision of being freed from hell-fire and the bonus of lalylutul Qadr is absent.

 The third ingredient was the passion that kept us awake throughout the night, the strong desire to continue, the enjoyment of reading the Quran for hours, the night prayers with long prostrations, without this passion there is no sweetness in the physically exhausting worship. We remained intellectually engaged as were ready to challenge our minds with reciting and pondering over the meanings of the Quran. We had to seek the council of the scholars for our problems regarding the matters of fasting and we felt enlightened. We remained conscious of our actions and were able to asses ourselves and reflect on our lives especially in the moments of seclusion with Allah in Itikaaf. In Ramadhan we stepped out of our comfort zone to reflect on our bad habits and our daily routine and with purified hearts we were are able to morally evaluate our lives. In Ramadhan we were trained to be geniuses with the highest levels of Taqwa but we must question ourselves are we going to return and become foolish once again and put aside this training that fasting brings?

 What is your vision for life? Are you always thinking about Allah the Subhanahu wa tala, Are you exercising Taqwa and discipline in your daily life? Are you planning your day to fit in short bursts of worship? Are you evaluating the level of your loyalty to Allah?

We can never reach the levels of the Prophets and companions who were the smartest people to walk the face of the earth but we could emulate them, and become more successful in our lives. With the right intention (vision), the Taqwa (discipline), love of Allah (Passion), sound reasoning (intellect), and moral reasoning (Conscious) we can achieve success in the rest of the months of the year.

(By Sayeed Yusuf Mohamed)

 إِنَّ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَاخْتِلافِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ لَآيَاتٍ لِّأُولِي الأَلْبَابِ الَّذِينَ يَذْكُرُونَ اللَّهَ قِيَامًا وَقُعُودًا وَعَلَىَ جُنُوبِهِمْ وَيَتَفَكَّرُونَ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ رَبَّنَا مَا خَلَقْتَ هَذَا بَاطِلاً سُبْحَانَكَ فَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ رَبَّنَا إِنَّكَ مَن تُدْخِلِ النَّارَ فَقَدْ أَخْزَيْتَهُ وَمَا لِلظَّالِمِينَ مِنْ أَنصَارٍ رَّبَّنَا إِنَّنَا سَمِعْنَا مُنَادِيًا يُنَادِي لِلإِيمَانِ أَنْ آمِنُواْ بِرَبِّكُمْ فَآمَنَّا رَبَّنَا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَكَفِّرْ عَنَّا سَيِّئَاتِنَا وَتَوَفَّنَا مَعَ الأَبْرَارِ رَبَّنَا وَآتِنَا مَا وَعَدتَّنَا عَلَى رُسُلِكَ وَلاَ تُخْزِنَا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ إِنَّكَ لاَ تُخْلِفُ الْمِيعَادَ Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding. Those who remember Allah (always, and in prayers) standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and think deeply about the creation of the heavens and the earth, (saying): "Our Lord! You have not created (all) this without purpose, glory to You! (Exalted be You above all that they associate with You as partners). Give us salvation from the torment of the Fire. "Our Lord! Verily, whom You admit to the Fire, indeed, You have disgraced him, and never will the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers) find any helpers. "Our Lord! Verily, we have heard the call of one (Muhammad SAW) calling to Faith: 'Believe in your Lord,' and we have believed. Our Lord! Forgive us our sins and remit from us our evil deeds, and make us die in the state of righteousness along with Al-Abrar (those who are obedient to Allah and follow strictly His Orders). "Our Lord! Grant us what You promised unto us through Your Messengers and disgrace us not on the Day of Resurrection, for You never break (Your) Promise." (Quran:3:190-194) By Sayeed Yusuf Mohamed