September 2013 Acting Editor: Nasir Ahmad B.A. LL.B.

IN MEMORY OF JALAL-UD-DIN AKBAR IBN-I ABDULLAH, SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA

Vol. No. 7, Issue No. 14

Editorial Note 2

Our Contributors 2

Hazrat Ameer and members of the UK in Suriname 3Dr Zahid Aziz

Glimpses of the Visit to Suriname 6

Top Islamic Diplomats visit to the Synagogue and the Lahore Ahmadiyya Mosque, Paramaribo, Suriname 8Ray Chickrie, Correspondent: Caribbean News Now

Eid-ul-Fitr and Friday Prayers in Bolton, UK 11Dr Zahid Aziz

Eid-ul-Fitr or Celebration of Charity 12Dr Jawad Ahmad

Power of Words 18Mrs Nazra Ali

Physical and Spiritual Benefits of Ramadan 23Mr Ahmed Saadat

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Formatting and Designing: Erwan Hamdani, JakartaPhotographs: Dr. Zahid Aziz & Mr. Shahid Aziz, UK and Ahmad Saadat, BerlinPhotographic editing: Faizaan Ahmad

CONTENTS

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EDITORIAL NOTEFirst of all we wish to thank various branches of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement in the world for sending us news and activities. The response has been so overwhelming that it has become difficult to keep pace with the timings of events happened. We are already late by one month. In this issue we have hardly covered Eid-ul-Fitr in UK and Germany. The ones in Oakland, Indonesia, Fiji and other places are awaiting their turn. In order to accommodate all incoming material we issued some of the previous issues consisted of 32 pages. But as it is circulated through email, our readers complained of their being too long to glance through sitting on a computer. So we have decided to contain it to 24 pages and try to accommodate the contributions and reports as far as possible. Hope our readers will understand our position for the delay of some of the events which should have been reported in that particular month in which it happened.

In this issue we would like to highlight a very brilliant British Muslim lady whose writings are not only thought-provoking but inspiring too. She is highly qualified lady with an award of OBE from the Queen and has earned name and fame among the British Muslims in the UK. In the next issue we will reproduce her excellent article “The Transformative Power of the 5 Pillars of Islam” from monthly EMEL of which she is the editor. Just to introduce the article, here is an extract from her contribution about “Al-Saum, Fasting in Ramadan”:

“Self-control is one of the ultimate skills to learn in life. To control one’s anger in the face of provo-cation, and desires in the face of temptations, is to have immense power and inner strength. All of these attributes are built by fasting, which helps us manage our weaknesses and desires, for fasting helps us to act on conscious intention as opposed to responding to every base desire on a whim.” (Monthly EMEL, August, 2012).

One of members will be away from UK for a couple of months, but we hope to keep it up-to-date and regular..

Members of the TeamThe HOPE Bulletin

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OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Dr. Zahid Aziz

Dr. Jawad Ahmad

Mrs. Nazra Ali

Mr. Ahmed Saadat

Hazrat Ameer Dr. Abdul Karim Saeed

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Hazrat Ameer and UK members of the Delegation in Suriname

Ten-day visit to Paramaribo, Nickerie and other Branches 30 May– 8 June 2013

Brief report by Dr. Zahid Aziz

Hazrat Ameer Dr A.K. Saeed, Bro Sjaikh Kassiem of Hague, Holland and Bro. Shahid Aziz and I (from UK Jama’at) flew from Amsterdam to Paramaribo on Thursday 30th May 2013, arriving there in the afternoon. Our visit was arranged by Bro. Sjaikh Kassiem, president of Paulkrugerlaan Jama’at, Hague. Its main purpose was for us to give courses to the imams of our mosques on the subject of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement, its mission and beliefs, showing the great necessity of this Movement for the work of the progress and defence of Islam in the present times.

Evening in HollandBro Shahid Aziz and I had arrived in Holland from UK on the day before our departure to Suriname, but our arrival sadly coincided with the funeral of Mr Abdul Shakoer Hoeseni of Stichting Ahmadiyya Anjuman, Hague who had passed away on 26th May. We were able to attend a memorial service for the marhoom, at which Bro Noer Sardar invited Bro Shahid Aziz to address the gathering on this mournful occasion.

Later on in the evening there was a meeting at the Paulkrugerlaan Mosque, addressed by myself, Bro Shahid Aziz and Hazrat Ameer My speech was on the topic of what I had recently read in book The Preaching of Islam by Sir T.W. Arnold (published about a hundred years ago), that Islam spread outside Arabia due to the superior moral example shown by the Muslims to Christians and others, and the tolerance, justice and humanity with which Muslims ruled over non-Muslims in regions such as Eastern Europe and North and East Africa. The speeches of Shahid Aziz and Hazrat Ameer were on the necessity of pledging allegiance to the Ahmadiyya Movement by means of taking the bai‘at, which was an affirmation that the person taking the pledge would strive to act on the teachings of Islam. They both explained that this practice of re-dedicating oneself to Islam, by those who were already Muslims, originated in the Holy Prophet Muhammad’s time, and why it is so necessary. The responsibility for carrying forward the ideals of our Jama‘at to the future, they both emphasised, now lay upon all of us. The same subject continued to be the theme of the speeches of Hazrat Ameer and Shahid Aziz afterwards while in Suriname. Each speech, in Urdu, was followed by a summary in Dutch ably presented by Bro Haroun Badloo.

After Hazrat Ameer’s speech, several persons came forward and took the bai‘at at his hand, in the form of one group, as he read out the words of the pledge from the pledge form. We were guests of Bro Sjaikh Kasiem in Almere.

Arrival in ParamariboThe following morning we boarded the flight in Amsterdam for Paramaribo. After landing in Suriname, we were taken to a house of the relations of Sjaikh Kassiem, where we were welcomed by a gathering of our members.

We stayed in guest rooms in the Jamaat’s centre, which were situated in a building right next to the Jamaat’s huge mosque in Paramaribo. This mosque, located in a road called Keizerstraat, is a na-tional landmark of Suriname. If you conduct a Google search for ‘Paramaribo Mosque’, you will find

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a large number of webpages where visitors to Suriname mention this mosque, displayed pho-tographs which they took of it, and comments how greatly impressive it is. A unique feature of the Mosque’s location, which is pointed out with pride by the people of Suriname, and is mentioned in the above websites, is that it is ad-jacent to a synagogue, and this has the symbolic significance that Muslims and Jews can live as neighbours in harmony.

Staying next to this Mosque meant that the three of us were able to say the five daily prayers in it, except when we were visiting elsewhere.

Friday 31st MayOur first public occasion was the Friday prayers on 31st May at the great Keizerstraat Mosque. The khutba was of course delivered by Hazrat Ameer, and it was recorded on video by Bro Shahid Aziz. (Other speeches as well as the course presentations were also recorded on video by him.)

On Friday evening there was a large gathering of Jama’at members at another mosque, where a meeting was held after Isha prayers. Again, the three of us delivered speeches on the same topics as at the previous meeting in Holland, and these were summarised in Dutch by the Jama’at President, Dr Robert Bippat. After Hazrat Ameer’s speech several people took the bai`at, some of whom had taken it some years earlier at the hand of the late Hazrat Ameer Dr Saeed Ahmad Khan.

At the weekend we socialized with members of the Jama’at. On Sunday a group of members took us on an outing to Brokopondo reservoir, and in the evening there was a function at the Imdadia Mosque. (See: http://www.imdadia.org/).

Educational CoursesThe courses presented by myself and Bro Shahid Aziz, were delivered in Urdu, began on Monday morning and continued till the morning of Saturday 8th June. During the following week Bro Shahid Aziz, who remained in Suriname till Thursday 13th June, continued the teaching sessions.

The course was presented in the lecture room in the offices of the Jama’at which was within the vicinity of the Mosque. All sorts of facilities including a laptop connected to a data projector, along with Internet access, were available. I covered the life of the founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, in a fair amount of detail. About three weeks earlier I had advised Bro Sjaikh Kassiem that participants in the course should take a preliminary look at chapters 1 and 4 of Maulana Muhammad Ali’s Urdu book, Tahrik-i Ahmadiyyat, and I sent him pdf files of these chapters. When the course began, I was impressed to see that the participants had brought with them printed copies of those chapters, bound in folders. I know that, in the world at large, learners on a course usually ignore any advice relating to preparing for the course!

Apart from this book, I also projected on the large screen a file of the English book Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement by Maulana Muhammad Ali, as it provides a more detailed account of his life. The salient points and events of the life of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad were covered during this course, and towards the end we went through some of the distinctive features of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement as listed by Maulana Muhammad Ali in chapter 4 of Tahrik-i Ahmadiyyat.

Side view of Keizerstraat Mosque, Paramaribo taken from the Mosque car park

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Bro Shahid Aziz dealt with the principles which we must apply to studying the books of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad to understand them correctly. Knowing those principles also helps very greatly in answering the numerous objections raised against his statements by his bigoted critics. Bro Shahid gave some examples of such accusations and showed how to answer them. He also played clips on the screen, directly from the Internet, of furious speeches of certain Muslim religious leaders to show how they incite hatred against Ahmadis in Pakistan with impunity, and call for them to be murdered. He also played clips illustrating that these religious leaders misrepresent Islam as an intolerant faith. Part of a TV interview with Dr Zakir Naik of India was played, in which this preacher of Islam, who propagates Islam in his non-Muslim homeland, argued that in a Muslim country non-Muslims must not be allowed to preach their religions, while they can be allowed to practise them. This would mean that if Dr Zakir Naik should succeed in turning India into a Muslim country through his preach-ing of Islam, then those Christian and Hindu religious scholars whom he now invites to speak at his meetings will no longer be allowed by him to appear in his programmes!

There was plenty of scope for participants in the course to ask questions, which were answered by all three of us. Hazrat Ameer sat with the participants throughout the sessions, making notes himself, and was a great help in answering the questions.

It so happened that our visit coincided with the national commemoration in Suriname of the 140th anniversary of the arrival of the first ship from India, called Laala Rookh, carrying indentured labour-ers. Wednesday 5th June was a national holiday in this connection. Our members too were involved in aspects of this commemoration.

Visit to NickerieOn Thursday at mid-day, we left Paramaribo for a visit to Nickerie, a town which is at a distance of a 3 to 4 hours’ drive. We were driven comfort-ably by Mr Ishaq Roshan (son of the late Roshan Ghani) accompanied by his wife, who served us with a great many refreshments on the long journey. Our Jama’at has three mosques in this town. A meeting was held at one of these mosques after ‘Isha prayers, at which our mem-bers from all over the town gathered. The three of us addressed the gathering in turn. I pointed

out some distinctive interpretations of Islamic teachings stressed in modern times by our Movement, in particular clarification of what is meant by jihad.

Second Friday, 7th JuneEarly on Friday morning we left Nickerie for Paramaribo so as to arrive well before Friday prayer time. Hazrat Ameer gave the khutba, which was recorded on video.

On Friday evening, after the ‘Isha prayers, a large farewell meeting was held in the Jamaat’s Cultural Centre hall, next to the Mosque building. Again, the three of us addressed the gathering in turn. I referred to verse 260 of chapter 2 of the Holy Quran, in which Abraham asks Allah to show him how the dead will be raised to life, and Allah tells him that if he were to take four birds and tame them to incline to him, then even if they were placed on remote mountains and he called out to them they would come flying to him. This also represents our work, which is taming them with gentleness and patience, so that instead of being repelled away from us, as birds are repelled away from people, they are attracted towards us.

Mosque in Nickerie by night in Suriname

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Bro Shahid Aziz and Hazrat Ameer, as in earlier speeches, emphasized the vital need for all of us to accept responsibility for continuing the work started by our elders and devoted members of the Jama’at and to pledge ourselves to it formally, whole-heartedly and without reservation, by taking oath of bai‘at. At the conclusion of Hazrat Ameer’s speech, several persons came forward to take or to renew their bai‘at.

The Jamaat President, Dr Robert Bippat, speaking on behalf of all members of the Suriname Jama’at, thanked us for our efforts and prayed for our welfare and safe return. Each of us was presented with a gift of quite a voluminous, beautiful, and illustrated book about Suriname.

Although Hazrat Ameer and I were due to catch our return flight from Paramaribo on Saturday evening, 8th June, our work continued into Saturday morning when I concluded my course while Hazrat Ameer was taken to a television studio to give a live interview conducted by Faried Pierkhan, son of the late Rashid Pierkhan, former President of our Jama’at ( SIV) , who runs his father’s radio and television company. Bro Shahid Aziz and Sjaikh Kassiem remained in Suriname till the follow-ing Thursday.

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Inside the Mosque: Men’s area and women’s area

Glimpses of the Visit to Suriname

Meeting on the evening of Friday 31st May

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Opening day of the Three-day Educational Course about the Ahmadiyya Movement

Later sessions of the Course

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Taking Baiat

Another view of Farewell Function

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Farewell FunctionOn 7th June, Friday evening, a well-organised and warm Farewell function was held at the “Cultural Centre”. It was held in the “Cultural Centre” of the Jama’at, which is adjacent to the Mosque. One photo shows the outside of the Cultural Centre. Another shows members taking the bai`at of Hazrat Ameer (although he is hidden from view behind them). The remaining four photos are of the audience.

Hazrat Ameer and I were due to take the flight from Paramaribo on the evening of Saturday 8th. After the passengers boarded, we waited two and a half hours on the ground while repairs were attempted to the plane’s air circulation system. Then they announced that the plane needed a spare part, to be flown over from Holland. So the flight was postponed for 24 hours and we all had to disembark, collect our luggage and re-enter like arriving passengers! We were given hotel accommo-dation (an hour’s bus drive away), and returned next day for the flight.

When a Jamaat member heard on the news that the flight was postponed, he alerted the Jamaat and they sent someone to receive us at the hotel at midnight and help us settle in! The next day, the Jamaat President took us to his house and later drove us to the airport. Thanks very much to them!

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Top Islamic diplomats visit the synagogue and the Mosque in Paramaribo, Suriname

Published May 29, 2013

Ray Chickrie

Caribbean News Now Contributor1

PARAMARIBO, Suriname—During his two-day visit to the Dutch-speaking Republic of Suriname, a Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member state on the northern coast of South America, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) secretary general, Dr Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, on Monday toured two iconic landmarks in downtown Paramaribo—a synagogue and a mosque that face each other.

During a tour of the city and to get familiar with the multi-ethnic, multi-lingual and multi-reli-gious make up of Suriname, the OIC secretary general and his wife, Fusun Ihsanoglu, visited the Neve Shalom synagogue and the neigh-bouring Keizerstraat mosque.

1 This news item can be read in ‘Caribbean News Now’ at the link:www.caribbeannewsnow.com/topstory-Top-Islamic-diplomat-visits-synagogue-in-Suriname-16073.html

Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) secretary general, Dr Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu (third right), visiting a synagogue and a neighbouring mosque in Paramaribo, Suriname. Photo: courtesy Henry McDonald

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The synagogue was built in 1719 by Ashkenazim Jews.

Henry MacDonald, Suriname’s ambassador to the UN, accompanied Ihsanoglu and his delegation during the tour of the city.

MacDonald said, “What impressed me most during our visit to the mosque and the synagogue was the statement that the Jews in Suriname consume halal food since, due to the small size of the Jewish community in Suriname, presently, there is no production of kosher food in the country.”

According to an OIC press release, Ihsanoglu met leaders of different faith based communities of Suriname including Muslim leaders and discussed different aspects of peaceful coexistence through practicing tolerance and respect for each other.

“Secretary General Ihsanoglu qualified the multicultural experience of Suriname as an asset for the OIC and humanity,” MacDonald added.

Ihsanoglu is visiting Guyana and Suriname, the two only OIC member states in the Americas. Guyana and Suriname joined the OIC in 1996 and 1998 respectively, and each has considerable Muslim com-munities who arrived from West Africa during the period of slavery, from the Indian sub-continent and from the largest Islamic country, Indonesia.

Ashkenazi Jews began arriving in Suriname in 1652 and later Sephardic Jews also arrived. Historically, Jews in Suriname enjoyed great freedom such as the freedom of religion, permission to build syna-gogues and Jewish schools, the right to have their own court of justice and private civic guard (army). In 1667, the first synagogue was built in Jodensavanne.

The OIC is the second largest multi-lateral organisation of 57 countries from mainly Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The OIC includes many rich states such as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Brunei Darussalam, Gabon, Turkey, Malaysia and Indonesia. The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) is an organ of the OIC of which Suriname is also a member.

The Muslim communities in both Guyana and Suriname have come under Washington’s watchful eyes since 9/11. Local Muslims now face travel delays and profiling, growing suspicion of Muslims and even politicians in the region question why Guyana and Suriname are part of the OIC bloc.

Former home affairs minister of Suriname, Maurits Hassan Khan said, “I do hope that the govern-ment will strengthen ties with the OIC, because I believe Suriname has a lot of opportunities within the OIC. Unfortunately, these opportunities have not been utilized, because of suspicion among many politicians and non-Muslims.”

In response to these suspicions and anti-Muslim sentiment because of his visit to the region, Ihsanoglu assured the public that Guyana and Suriname ties with the OIC fall "within the limits of their national legislatures and with complete respect for the local culture and diversity."

Ihsanoglu said, “We work within the legal framework of the countries concerned.”

”The OIC does not discriminate against women,” he added. “We have many programs to sup-port woman."

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Eid-ul-Fitr and Friday Prayers in BoltonDr. Zahid Aziz

I along with Umair Niazi travelled on 9 August 2013 from Nottingham to Bolton, just north of Manchester, a journey of about 2 hours, to conduct the Eid-ul-Fitr service for some members of our Jama‘at residing in that area.

The Eid prayers started at about 10.50. Before the prayers, I briefly explained how the Eid prayer is conducted and its distinctive features which make its format different from that of the daily congre-gational prayers and even Friday congregational prayers.

As requested by our hosts, I delivered the khutba in both Urdu and English, and expressed each point first in one language and then in the other. After reciting chapter 2, verses 183 and 184, of the Holy Quran, which relate to fasting in Ramadan I made the following points:

1. In Eid-ul-Fitr we celebrate, not an event of the past relating to the life of some famous personal-ity, but the objective in of keeping fast during the whole month of Ramadan.

2. There are so many aspects to fasting that I cannot mention them all during a khutba, so I have selected three of them.

3. Firstly, during fasting when we are refrain from eating and drinking, most of the time there is no one who is watching over us. But we still refrain from it because we made a promise with Allah, and we cannot even think of breaking that promise. This teaches us that even when there is no person who can see us, or can know what we are doing, we still must not do wrong things. Most wrong things are done because people think no one is watching them. Fasting teaches that even when others can’t see us, Allah will still know what we are doing. Also, we ourselves will know what we are doing, and this will reduce our own self-respect.

4. Secondly, during fasting we wait patiently till the time when we can eat and drink. This teaches us to show patience when, in our lives, we often have to wait to get what we desire. We have to wait for the results of our efforts to bear fruit, and we have to wait in queues every day. If we become impatient, then we either give up and therefore our efforts are wasted, or we adopt some wrong way or harmful shortcut of achieving our goal.

5. Thirdly, during fasting we realise, to some extent, how those people feel who are deprived of food and drink. We feel great discomfort and a sense of deprivation while knowing that it is only for a few hours, for just thirty days in the year, but others all over the world face that hardship every day, with no end to it. This should spur us on to do what we can to relieve their suffering. This is why Islam emphasises so much the giving in charity during the month of Ramadan. And those who are not capable of fasting have to feed a poor person two meals a day for every fast missed.

After the khutba and the conclusion of the service, we had some general conversation and I an-swered some questions on religious topics. I had also taken with me a selection of our books which I showed and gave to the adults and children.

The OIC will also not interfere with the religious life of Muslims in Suriname, he told Ewout Lame of Dew Ware Tijd News.

Ihsanoglu and his delegation left Suriname on Tuesday headed to Guyana.

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Our hosts had prepared a delicious lunch which we enjoyed. Then we held the Friday prayers.

I gave a brief khutba on the four attributes of Allah mentioned at the beginning of Surah Fatihah, Rabb-ul-‘alamin (Lord of the worlds) means that Allah provides for the development and progress of all nations of the world (leaving aside the fact that ‘worlds’ also includes other worlds such as the animal world and the plant world). We often hear in the media that Allah is “God of the Muslims”, but this is not what Islam teaches. It teaches that Allah is Lord of all. Then He is Ar-Rahman

(The Beneficent) which means His mercy is so general that He provides all His creatures with so many means and resources, even without any effort on their part. Then to those who use those means and resources correctly, He is Ar-Rahim (Merciful) which means that He makes their good actions bear fruit and makes them progress in the world. They do not lose by doing good.

Fourthly, He is Maliki yaumid-Din, the Complete Master of Judgment. He judges whether our use of His bounties is good or bad. If our use of them is wrongful, He places difficulties in our way, so that through them we realise that we have to mend our ways. He is ‘Master’ means that He is not bound like a judge in court to award punishment for wrong-doing. He has absolute power to forgive as well. Sometimes we think that we have piled up so many wrongs on ourselves that we cannot possibly be forgiven. But we must never let go of the hand of God, and keep repenting, keep asking for for-giveness, because He is the Master over granting forgiveness. This also means that God can forgive others whom we regard as deserving of punishment because they have done wrong things which we don’t do. So we must never think of ourselves as above others or look down upon them because of their wrong-doing as perceived by us. It could be that they may repent and Allah will forgive them.

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Dr. Zahid Aziz (centre) with the members of a family

Bro Umair Niazi (right), Dr. Zahid Aziz (centre), with the family members of Bolton

Eid ul-Fitr or Celebration of CharityDr. Jawad Ahmad

(Text of the sermon delivered at the Lahore Ahmadiyya Centre, Wembley, London on 9th August, 2013)

“Have you not seen how your Lord dealt with the possessors of the elephant? Did He not confound their plan, and send against them birds in flocks, casting at them decreed stones, so He rendered them like straw eaten up?” (105:1-5).

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“And when We wish to destroy a town, We send commandments to its people who lead easy lives, but they transgress therein; thus the word proves true against it, so We de-stroy it with utter destruction” (17:16).

I have given my Eid sermon the title “Eid ul-Fitr or Celebration of Charity”. You might be surprised about why I have used fitr as celebration of charity.

At the start of my talk I recited Chapter 105 of the Holy Qur’an, which deals with the Ka‘bah and which has nothing to do with the subject of Eid ul-Fitr. However, I will explain it in the last part of my khutbah.

First, let me tell you that the Arabic word fitr means breakfast. So, when in the evening, at the end of every fast, we break the fast, in Arabic it is called iftaar.

Meaning of FitrIt is the beauty of the Arabic language that one word, when it takes different forms, conveys different meanings. The root word is F T R. When it is fatara, it means to create, and the word faatir means the originator. Both these words have been used in the Qur’an, as follows: “Faa-ti-ris sa-maa-waa-ti wal ard” (“Originator of the heavens and the earth” – 6:14); “Fit-ra-tal laa-hil la-tee fa-ta-ran naa-sa ‘aa-lay-haa” (“The nature made by Allah in which He created men” – 30:30).

May I point out that because of this beauty of the Arabic language Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam, has strongly expounded the theory that Arabic is the “Mother of all Languages”. His book “Mina-nur Rahman” or “Bounties of the Beneficent” is a landmark in this regard. He has not only given arguments and proofs that Arabic is the mother of all languages from which other languages have derived their origin, but he has also given a list of scores of words in Sanskrit, English and other languages which originated from Arabic. Keep in mind that it was not to show the world that he is a research scholar, but it was his passion to establish the truth of the Quranic claim that as Arabic is the mother of all languages and it has a peculiar and unique characteristic, that is why it was fitting that the final Divine revelation was to be revealed in Arabic: “Surely We have revealed it – an Arabic Qur’an – that you may understand” (12:2).

Just look at Hazrat Mirza Sahib’s passion and love for the Holy Qur’an in the following Urdu couplet:

Dil mein ya-hee hai her dam, te-raa sa-hee-fah choo-moonQur’-aan ke gird ghoo-moon ka’-bah me-raa ya-hee hai.

(Every moment this is the thought in my heart: that I should kiss Thy ScriptureAnd go round and round the Qur’an because this is my ka‘bah, the pivot of my life.)

It is reported that Hazrat Mirza Sahib used to go through the whole of the Qur’an before writing on any particular topic or delivering an important speech.

Arabic, Mother of All LanguagesThis truth about the Arabic language was further substantiated by Hazrat Khwaja Kamal-ud-Din in his Urdu book “Ummul al-Sinah”, which means “Mother of Languages.” Similarly, Hazrat Maulana Abdul Haq Vidyarthi, while doing research about the existence of the prophecy of the advent of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas) in different revealed scriptures of the world, has discussed various words found in this regard in Hebrew, Sanskrit, Hindi, Pali and other languages having their origin in Arabic. “Minan-ur-Rahman” has been translated into English by Qazi Abdul Hamid. Another notable work

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on this subject is “Arabic – The Sources of all Languages” by Muhammad Mazhar, a senior advocate of the Lahore High Court, and published in 1963.

Coming back to the word fitr, I told you at the start that it means breakfast. Interestingly, if we break the word, it becomes break and fast or the breaking of fast. But in the case of Eid ul-Fitr, it is celebrated at the end of the month of Fasting. On this day, an obligatory charity is to be paid. It is called fitrana. It means an obligatory amount to be paid before the Eid prayer for the welfare of the deprived section of society. It is preferable that this amount is distributed before the Eid service so that the needy people can use it to buy what they need. It is an annual obligatory contribution, like zakah, for the welfare of the less-fortunate. There is, however, one big difference between zakah and fitraana: fitrana has not been attached to a particular volume of wealth or income – all earning members who can pay the amount are obliged to pay the equivalent of the cost of about three kilos of wheat per head for those in their household, including their servants and even for a baby who is yet to be born.

If we study various injunctions regarding fidya, or the amount to be paid as expiation, in the first instance comes the group of people who do not have the strength to fast, or due to illness or for some other reason he is unable to fast on other days in lieu of the ones he missed during Ramadan, he has to pay the fidya. Similarly, if one has intentionally broken the fast or has violated any com-mandment, in all such cases one has to pay fidya; that is, he has to feed a needy person or give an amount equivalent to the average food consumed by a person. In case of intentionally breaking a fast, one has either to feed sixty needy persons or if he is unable to do so, he has to keep fast for two consecutive months.

Difference between Zakat and FitranaPlease note that fitrana has to be paid in addition to other charitable acts done voluntarily during the blessed month of Ramadan. As a whole, during this month more charity is done in various forms, as it has been highly recommended by Allah and practised by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas). It is, therefore, because all these charitable acts are recommended or are actually done during this month that has prompted me to refer to Eid ul-Fitr as a Celebration of Charity.

We must bear in mind that the Qur’an highly recommends kind and charitable acts for greater re-ward and even for lasting rewards. It says: “As for that which does good to men, it tarries in the earth” (13:17).

According to an authentic saying of the Holy Prophet (sas), Islam stands for “glorification of Allah and kindness to His creatures.” The Qur’an sums up the same theme by saying that these and such other moral qualities placed the Holy Prophet (sas) on the highest level of morality: “By the grace of your Lord, you are not mad. Certainly for you is a reward never to be cut off. And surely you have the most sublime morals” (68:2-4).

The Qur’an has given a simple formula for keeping away from evil by doing good acts: “Surely good deeds take away evils deeds. This is a reminder for the mindful” (11:114).

In other words, if one wants to lead a noble life he should practise submission and steadfastness on the path of nobility and righteousness. And this is the very object of keeping fast: to submit to the commandments of Allah, resist evil, observe discipline, and regulate a way of life, which should ensure good and nothing but good.

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Divine warning about limit of worldly lifeI was watching a Hindu television channel on which a Hindu pundit related a story which describes why we should follow the commandments of Allah and save ourselves from going on the wrong path. He said a human being and an angel became friends. One day the human being asked the angel, “Can you do me a favour?” The angel responded: “Why not?” The human then asked: “When you are ordered to take away my life, please give me a warning.” The angel agreed: “No problem.” After some time the human being met his death. When he met the angel in the afterlife, he complained to the angel: “O, my friend! You promised to warn me before taking my life.” The angel said: “But you were getting one warning after another, yet you did not take notice of them.” The human said in surprise: “How was that?” To which the angel replied: “Old age started affecting you strength; your hair became white; you started getting wrinkles on your face and other parts of your body; signs of old age set in and your body’s defensive mechanism became weaker and weaker; and, above all, the time limit of your life drew nearer and nearer and ultimately you died. All these signs were warnings but you did not pay heed to them.” The human had nothing to say in reply.

Human ways of warning people of averting dangersLet me give you another example, using traffic lights and road signs, to further explain the purpose of keeping fast. We find at every crossing traffic lights warning us when to stop and when to move on. Then there are road signs and flashlights to warn about the condition of the road and advise us to reduce our speed. Then there are traffic cameras which take images of cars violating the speed limit. We also get a penalty notification for over-speeding or other driving violation. Then, as a deterrent, we get points on our driving licence. All these steps are to warn us to abide by the traffic rules. But if we still continue to be careless or do not bother to adhere to the traffic rules, then the points on our licence increase and if we get sufficient points, our licence is cancelled and we are forbidden to drive. So, all these rules are there to provide awareness and prevent people from crossing the limits and endangering themselves and the safety of others. In other words, it helps the government to provide safety to the public.

In short, fasting and all such modes of worship and commandments are for the benefit of individuals and for the society as a whole. We have the same traffic light system in food labelling: red with high salt and fat and sugar content, etc. There are, then, warnings, and if you pay attention to them, you can live a healthier life and avoid disease and misery.

What we have been talking about, therefore, is not crossing the limits – limits imposed by Allah or by a government or any authority.

Crossing the limits always land in fatal accidentsThe Holy Qur’an has used the word baghi for crossing the limits or violation of rules. The rulers and the elite class of a state are also bound to abide by the rules and regulations of public safety and welfare. At this point, let me take you to the Qur’an Park in Dubai, where the oil-rich Muslim gov-ernment is constructing a huge park depicting all the bounties of Paradise mentioned in the Qur’an, and, to our surprise, a replica of the Holy Ka‘bah, as well.

However, before I explain why I have selected the chapter Fil for an Eid ul-Fitr khutbah, a chapter which is directly linked with the Ka‘bah in Makkah, let me quote extracts from an article written by a Pakistani journalist and co-editor of the quarterly Critical Muslim, Mr Zia-ud-Din Sardar, that was published in The Times, London, dated July 13, 2013 (p. 80):

“Channel 4’s decision to broadcast the Azan, the call to prayer, during the month of Ramadan has caused uproar. Let me assure you: you won’t hear it unless you want to. If you actually wanted to

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hear the Azan, which marks the beginning of the fast, you would have to get up at 4 a.m. Many devoted Muslims [and I would like to add, almost all the Muslims who keep fast] actually do get up at that unearthly hour to eat as much as they can to prepare themselves for the long day ahead without food, drink, smoking, or the other pleasures of life…

Many more pious and better-off friends will head for Mecca to be close to God. They will pray in the Sacred Mosque, and perform the ‘Umrah, or the lesser pilgrimage…

Mecca offers [and I will add, unfortunately] everything a devout Muslim could wish for: from the House of God to a House of Gucci. [I may add that Gucci is an Italian chain well-known worldwide for its ready-to-wear clothes, handbags, shoes, and accessories. It is a favourite store for women de-sign-hunters.] In fact, the whole city is theme park-designed to make religious life highly enjoyable….”

Mr Sardar then switches to Dubai, which, during Ramadan, becomes a popular resort for the elite from Saudi Arabia who spend the month there. He writes: “It is building a Koran Park, to open in September 2014 … the 60-hectare park will contain gardens featuring the plants and trees men-tioned in the Koran [about Paradise]… But the Dubai Municipality is not taking chances… Hence the piece de resistance [or an outstanding showpiece] will be the ‘Umrah Corner, complete with a replica of the Ka‘bah in Mecca, where pious tourists could perform “the lesser pilgrimage”.

Brothers and Sisters, the most striking thing about this article is that Mr Sardar has sarcastically entitled his article “Ramadan offers plenty of pleasures amid all fasting”.

For now, I will confine myself to just quoting the English translation of Chapter 105 and a popular Urdu couplet and its English translation and will make a passing reference to two notorious historic personalities: Hasan bin Sabah, and Lord Kitchener of Britain. Hasan bin Sabah was born in Persia in 1034. He claimed to be an incarnation of God on earth. He was classmate of Nizamul Mulk and a great friend of Umar-i Khayyam, the great mystic poet. He built a huge garden with all the amenities of Paradise. He trained people for assassination by luring them first with hashish and then by letting them enjoy the so-called paradise. The latter was War Minister during World War I. He was planning to occupy Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries and was going to Russia for support. Allah planned otherwise, though, and Lord Kitchener drowned when his ship was sunk off the coast of Scotland while he was on his way to Russia and his body was never found.

Brothers and Sisters, this unnecessary race for gaining material superiority is madness and a dan-gerous effort to cross the limits and will lead to “fatal accidents” as happens by violating the traffic rules. Let me first repeat the English translation of Chapter 105: “Have not seen how your Lord dealt with the possessors of the elephant? Did He not utterly confound their plan and send against them birds in flocks, casting at them decreed stones? So He rendered them like straw eaten up” (vv. 1-5).

And now the Urdu couplet:

Dil ke pha-pho-ley jal uthey see-nay ke daagh seIs ghar ko aag lug ga-ee ghar ke cha-raagh se.

Translation:The blisters of grief inside the heartBurst into flames and rent apartThus the body ignited from withinBecame the cause of its own ruin.

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My Allah grant us wisdom and guidance not to cross the limits which He, the All-Wise, has set for our good, and may He save us from the satanic inclinations and keep us firm on the path of righteousness.

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Eid-ul-Fitr at the Lahore Ahmadiyya Centre, Wembley, UK. Mrs. J. Khan reading out the message of Hazrat Ameer, Dr. Jawad Ahmad delivering the Eid Khutbah

Mrs. Zorida Ali, Mrs. Sumaira Ahmad, Mrs. Bano Anwar and Mrs. Zaman helping

with the distribution of food.

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The Power of WordsMrs Nazra Ali

(Text of talk delivered at the monthly meeting held on 1 September 2013 at the Lahore Ahmadiyya Centre, Darus Salaam, Wembley, London, UK.)

“You shall serve none but Allah. And do good to your parents and to the near of kin and to orphans and the needy, and speak good words to all men and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate” (2:83).

I have chosen this topic because words used in a proper way can encourage, edify and give confi-dence to the hearer. A right word spoken at the right time can actually be life-changing.

The verse quoted above lists a series of parameters which constitute service to God and service to man which, as mentioned before, are doing good to our parents, near of kin, orphans, and the needy. Service to Allah and humanity is not complete without keeping up prayer and paying the poor-rate. However, in order to complete our service we need to speak good and kind words to all men, as well.

Modes of communication of wordNever in the history of the world have words been so cheap, quick, irrevocable and viral. Through mobile phones and the internet, we now have texting, e-mail, instant messaging, blogs, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. In addition, we have radio, television and print media. Words are flying around in the atmosphere like never before.

We use words every day and at all times to everyone. They impact our lives in ways which we are only just beginning to understand, according to behavioural psychology.

Here is what Dr Shad Helmstetter said about the word “no”:

“During the first 18 years of our lives, if we grew up in a fairly average, reasonably posi-tive home, we were told “No” or what we could not do more than 148,000 times! If you were a little more fortunate, you may have been told “No” only 100,000 times or 50,000 times. However many, it was considerably more negative programming than any of us needs” (What to Say When You Talk to Yourself, p. 20).

Maybe this is why Allah says in the Quran, “And whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger, they are … with the righteous and a goodly company” (4:69).

There is also a well-known proverb, “A man is known by the company he keeps.” Undoubtedly, good company and listening to kind and courteous words do have a positive effect on your behaviour and manners.

Effect of wordsThe words that come out of our mouths go first into our ears, and then they drop down into our soul, where they give us either joy or sadness, peace or distress, depending on the types of words we have spoken. It is only when we understand the power of words and realise that by what we

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think and speak that our lives are most likely to be moulded accordingly. We should be aware that our words are not forced on us; they formulate in our thoughts, and then we speak them. Of course, in many cases people speak before they think!

Working of the sub-conscious mindSince the subconscious mind does not know the difference between victory and defeat, it just acts on the impulses we give it; we might as well become winners in life instead of accepting anything less. Your own individual self-talk should be a reflection of the greatest potential that you already hold within you.

In this connection, these words of the Qur’an may help in understanding the positivity of words: “O man, We have not revealed the Quran so that you may be unsuccessful” (20:1-2). The word “Quran” means a recital or a recitation. By reciting the powerful words of the Revelation of the Holy Quran and implementing them in our lives we will reach our full potential and attain the success that Allah intended us to be!

The question arises as to how good words have such a positive effect on our lives.

The science of wordsIf you were put into an FMRI scanner—a huge donut-shaped magnet that can take a video of the neural changes happening in your brain—and flash the word “no” for less than one second, you would see a sudden release of dozens of stress-producing hormones and neurotransmitters. These chemicals immediately interrupt the normal functioning of your brain, impairing logic, reason, lan-guage processing and communication.

In fact, just seeing a list of negative words for a few seconds will make a highly anxious or depressed person feel worse, and the more you ruminate on them, the more you can actually damage key structures that regulate your memory, feelings, and emotions. You’ll disrupt your sleep, your appe-tite, and your ability to experience long-term happiness and satisfaction.

Negative or positive formationsIf you vocalise your negativity, or even slightly frown when you say “no,” more stress chemicals will be released, not only in your brain, but in the listener’s brain as well. The listener will experi-ence increased anxiety and irritability, thus undermining cooperation and trust. In fact, just hanging around negative people will make you more prejudiced towards others! Any form of negative ru-mination—for example, worrying about your financial future or health—will stimulate the release of destructive neurochemicals. And the same holds true for children: the more negative thoughts they have, the more likely they are to experience emotional turmoil. But if you teach them to think positively, you can turn their lives around. Negative thinking is also self-perpetuating, and the more you engage in negative dialogue—at home or at work—the more difficult it becomes to stop. But negative words, spoken with anger, do even more damage. They send alarm messages through the brain, interfering with the decision-making centres in the frontal lobe, and this increases a person’s propensity to act irrationally.

Fear-provoking words—like poverty, illness, and death—also stimulate the brain in negative ways. And even if these fearful thoughts are not real, other parts of your brain (like the thalamus) react to negative fantasies as though they were actual threats occurring in the outside world. Curiously, we seem to be hardwired to worry—perhaps an artefact of old memories carried over from ancestral times when there were countless threats to our survival.

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After you have identified the negative thought (which often operates just below the level of everyday consciousness), you can reframe it by choosing to focus on positive words and images. The result: anxiety and depression decrease, and the number of unconscious negative thoughts decline.

The power of ‘yes’When doctors and therapists teach patients to turn negative thoughts and worries into positive affir-mations, the communication process improves and the patient regains self-control and confidence. But there’s a problem: the brain barely responds to our positive words and thoughts. They’re not a threat to our survival, so the brain doesn’t need to respond as rapidly as it does to negative thoughts and words.

To overcome this neural bias for negativity, we must continuously repeat and consciously generate as many positive thoughts as we can. Barbara Fredrickson, one of the founders of Positive Psychology, discovered that we need to generate at least three positive thoughts and feelings for each expres-sion of negativity. If you express fewer than three, personal and business relationships are likely to fail. This finding correlates with Marcial Losada’s research with corporate teams, and John Gottman’s research with marital couples.

Basically, these two researches came up with a simple equation, and, that is, for each negative that goes into our head we need to erase it with three positives and we have to repeat it continuously for it to stick. They worked with two groups of business people and couples.

Fredrickson, Losada, and Gottman realized that if you want your business and your personal rela-tionships to really flourish, you’ll need to generate at least five positive messages for each negative utterance you make. For example, “I’m disappointed”, or, “That’s not what I had hoped for”, count as expressions of negativity, as does a facial frown or nod of the head.

Positive words and thoughts propel the motivational centres of the brain into action and they help us build resilience when we are faced with life’s problems. According to Sonja Lyubomirsky, one of the world’s leading researchers on happiness, if you want to develop lifelong satisfaction, you should regularly engage in positive thinking about yourself, share your happiest events with others, and savour every positive experience in your life.

Research suggests: choose your words wisely and speak them slowly. This will allow you to interrupt the brain’s propensity to be negative, and as recent research has shown, the mere repetition of positive words like love, peace, and compassion will turn on specific genes that lower your physical and emotional stress. You’ll feel better, you’ll live longer, and you’ll build deeper and more trusting relationships with others—at home and at work.

As Fredrickson and Losada point out, when you generate a minimum of five positive thoughts to each negative one, you’ll experience “an optimal range of human functioning.” That is the power of “yes”.1

In Roget’s Thesaurus, there are more than 3,000 words describing various emotions. Of those, there are 1,051 words for positive emotions and 2,286 for negative emotions; roughly twice as many negative words as positive words!

1 For more information on the effects of positive and negative speech, see Words Can Change Your Brain (Newberg & Waldman, 2012, Hudson Street Press), and for strategies to reduce stress and improve communication, visit: www.MarkRobertWaldman.com.

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We also read in the Old Testament, Proverbs 15:1: “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” It confirms what current research has found! Words have incredible power in our lives, and they provide us with a vehicle for expressing and sharing our experiences with others.

Hadith on the significance of wordsThe things we say and how we say them impact on us and those around us, and potentially what we can become and where we can be in the hereafter, as well, because of what we have said. An inci-dent in the life of the Holy Prophet (sas) runs as follows: One of the Companions of the Holy Prophet (sas) asked him: “O Prophet of Allah, are we held accountable for what we say?” The Holy Prophet (sas) responded by saying [to Mu’az- ibn Jabl]: “Your mother has lost you! What is the reason behind people being thrown into the fire other than what they have earned by their tongue?” In this hadith, the Holy Prophet (sas) is teaching us the consequences of the words we use with our tongues.

The Holy Prophet (sas) also said: “A good, kind and compassionate word is an act of charity. With our tongues we may end up lying, backbiting, telling lies and falsifying. Hold on to your tongues simply because of the power words have over us.”

According to Compton’s Encyclopaedia, the total number of words in the English language is around 750,000. Of that number, guess how many words we habitually use? Five hundred to 2,000 at the most, which represents only one half of one per cent of the language.

One of the things we should pray about each day is asking God to help us speak right things. Our words are very important, and they should be used for God’s purpose. We should desire to be a mouthpiece for God, speaking His Word faithfully. If we are not careful and prayerful, we can unwit-tingly become a voice of Satan, allowing him to speak things through us that bring harm and hurt many people. We may be good people who would never do such a thing on purpose, but it can happen if we don’t understand the impact of words and how much we need God’s help in taming our tongue.

Narrated by Abdullah ibn-i ‘Amr, the Holy Prophet (sas) said: “A Muslim is he from whose tongue and hand Muslims are safe” (Bukhari, 2:3).

In another hadith, the Prophet is reported to have said: “If you have nothing good to say, be silent.”

Some people asked Allah’s Apostle: “Whose Islam is the best?” He replied: “One who avoids harming the Muslims with his tongue and hands” (narrated by Abu Hurairah in Mishkat).

A man said to the Prophet (sas): “O Messenger of Allah, such and such a woman has a reputation for engaging to a great extent in prayer, fasting and almsgiving but she annoys her neighbours with her tongue.” He responded: “She will go to Hell.”

Another person said to the Prophet (sas): “O Messenger of Allah, such and such a woman has a reputation for engaging to a small extent in fasting, almsgiving and prayer, but she gives pieces of curd as sadaqah and does not annoy her neighbours with her tongue.” He responded: “She will go to Paradise.”

In another hadith, the Prophet (sas) is reported to have said: “The faith of a servant is not put right until his heart is put right, and his heart is not put right until his tongue is put right.” This shows that the Prophet (sas) has made the purification of faith conditional on the purification of the heart, and the purification of the heart conditional on the purification of the tongue.

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Tirmidhi records a hadith reported on the authority of Ibn-i ‘Umar: “Do not talk excessively without remembering Allah, because such excessive talk without the mention of Allah causes the heart to harden, and the person furthest from Allah is a person with a hard heart.”

Abu Hurairah narrated a hadith of the Holy Prophet (sas): “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should either speak good or remain silent.”

‘Umar ibn al-Khattab visited Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with them, and found him pulling his tongue with his fingers. ‘Umar said: “Stop! May Allah forgive you!” Abu Bakr replied: “This tongue has landed me into dangerous problems.”

Abdullah ibn Mas’ud said: “By Allah, besides Whom no God exists, nothing deserves a long prison sentence more than my tongue.” He also used to say: “O tongue, say good and you will profit; desist from saying evil things and you will be safe; otherwise you will find only regret.”

The Bible on the effects of wordsInterestingly, the Bible also agrees on the effect of words on our faith: “If any man among you seem to be religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this person’s religion is vain” (James 1:26).

ConclusionIt is part of a Muslim’s faith to speak the truth and to say things that bring about benefit to others.

Allah says:

“O you who believe! Fear Allah and speak a word that is right. He will set right for you your deeds and forgive you your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly attained a great achievement” (33:70, 71).

“And the slaves of the Most Beneficent are those who walk on the earth in humility and when the ignorant address them (with bad words) they reply with mild words of gentle-ness” (25:63).

Sometimes the power of “no words” or forbearance is the greatest power of all. Sir Winston Churchill said, “By swallowing evil words unsaid, no one has ever harmed his stomach.”

Having a positive outlook on life and speaking positive words are two of the most wholesome things we can do. And this, in a nutshell, is the message of Islam – Peace!

* * *

The Holy Prophet (sas) also said: “A good, kind and compassionate word is an act of charity. With our tongues we may end up lying, backbiting, telling lies and falsifying. Hold on to your tongues simply because of the power words have over us.”

““

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Report from the Berlin Mosque

Physical and Spiritual Benefits of RamadanAhmed Saadat B.Com

(Brief summary of Eid al-Fitr Khutbah by Mr. Ahmed Saadat, acting Imam of the Berlin Mosque. – Ed)

Once again we have witnessed and gone through the spiritual and blessed month of Ramadan. The object, as the Qur’an says, is to purify our inner selves in order to be a better person in obeying the commands of Allah and being kind and charitable to our fellow beings.

After celebrating the end of the blessed month of Fasting , we have two options to channel our course of action in life:

1. To forget the purpose of observing a whole month of abstaining and doing charitable acts and to revert to normal craze for eating, money making and wallowing in worldly comforts without caring for others who are in need; indulging in pursuit of selfish gains by using unfair means and depriving others of their rights and dues. I am sure you will agree with me that this will not be a good choice.

Second option can be, which is positive and beneficial: Make a good resolution and try to adopt at least one of the many good habits which we practised during the month of Ramadan. A beneficial and charitable act will not only improve your quality of life but will also increase your spirituality, humanity and nearness to Allah. This second choice will earn for you ten-fold blessings of Allah as mentioned in the Qur’an: “Whoever brings a good deed will have ten fold like it” (6:161) And in this way your next year will be far better and beneficial than the previous year and so on.

But I will not say to anyone to do this or that because before telling or giving such an advice I should not forget my own self as Allah says in the Qur’an: “ O you believe, why say you that which you do not? It is most hateful in the sight of Allah that you say that which you do not.” (61:2,3).

First, I need to remind myself and then to you to at least adopt one or 2 good habits from the many good habits done during the month of Ramadan and try to do it constantly.

One question is generally asked by people: How come a human being can starve for 18 -19 hours a day and that too for a whole month from sunrise to sunset without food and drink.

The answer is very simple: when we are doing something for the pleasure of Allah without any ulterior motive then Allah, through His special grace, strengthens our will power and resolution to cope with difficulties in life such as hardship during fasting time etc. This also strengthens our determination to work with faith and constancy to achieve our targets in life.

If we look at it from medical point of view, fasting is not just refraining from food, drinks and other evil or forbidden acts but it is a process of cleansing of the whole human body which helps us to regulate our eating times and revitalise our digestive system. The Qur’an rightly points out: That after hardship comes ease:”Surely with difficulty is ease, with difficulty is surely ease” (94:5,6). In other words it means that unless we bear hardship we cannot achieve higher objectives in life. And

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this is a very important exercise through which we undergo during the month of Ramadan. So Long hours or odd timings are nothing as compared to the benefits we derive from it.

I hope and pray that this blessed month of Ramadan may enable us to derive the benefits of the dietary exercise, training, controlling and remembering divine commandments and to continue it even after the Ramadan & jubilations of Eid-ul-Fitr.

So Eid Mubarak to you all and enjoy the celebrations with family members and friends. But at the same time do not forget our near and dear ones who need our support and care.

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blessings of Allah be on him). LOVE also generates peace and happiness in the society. Follow the commandments of ALLAH and His Messenger, the Holy Prophet MUHAMMAD and earn an ever-lasting life here in this world and in the Hereafter. May Allah bless you all.

Ahmad Nawaz, Hayward, California I have just finished reading the February 2013 issue of the HOPE Bulletin dedicated to the memory of the late Br. Akbar Abdullah. I must say that your team has worked very hard to collect facts about the life and contributions made by our late Br. Akbar. The formatting of the Bulletin and photographs have made it very impressive and visual. Br. Akbar deserved such a beautiful dedication. I wish to congratulate you for making the Bulletin more than just a news bulletin. The brief life history of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (sas) by our new sister in the fold of Islam, Christiane Backer, is very impressive and shows how his Perfect Example has inspired her thoughts and behaviour. I am sure her book “From MTV to Mecca” must be worth reading. Thanks for introducing the autobiography of a highly popular figure in the Western media, who, by her own study, has adopted Islam, and is facing challenges with firm faith and conviction.

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