Ramadan Journal for kids

We have been doing Journaling this year here and there. I thought Ramadan would be a good time to dive a little deeper into it InshaAllah. I found this wonderful Journal on aMuslimHomeschool. Its wonderful fun and simple enough for kids to use.

 

Are you prepared for Ramadan???

Assalamu Aalikum Everyone, A special Dua for all Allahuma Balighna Ramadan {O Allah Allow us to Reach Ramadan}

Are You Prepared????

Let's do it together inshaAllah. Alhumdullillah, the blessed month of mercy, Ramadan is approaching us very soon once again this year, inshaAllah. Just like when we have special guest coming over we makes lists of things to make, to clean and to do with them, the same way, we have to prepare ourselves (bodies and souls), our families and our homes for this month of mercy. InshaAllah in the next few posts I'll be sharing some ideas on how to Ramadan ready

Last year I had the opportunity to organize a Ramadan workshop for children 7 and up with a dear friend Aasiya's Homeschool in Toronto, Canada. This year since we have moved to a new place, we are planning things according to where we are inshaAllah.

This was the layout of workshop from last year, for those who may be interested.

• Virtues of the month of Ramadan
• Caring about our food, body and environment
• Mindfulness in Ramadan
• Spirituality and Connecting with the Quran, (since this is the month of The Quran)
• A small take home project, goal sheet, and acts of kindness sheet

This year the group of children I am working with are all under 9, but an extraordinary bunch mashaAllah. We also have a very unique situation, so we are trying to get our minds around how we can make the most out what we have and where we are inshsaAllah. 

So with a peak inside what we did last year (which I wasn't able to blog about) and touch of what we plan to do this year Be'eznillahi Tala... I will end.

Stay tuned...

InshaAllah we want to start again

Assalamu Aalaikum wa rahmatullahe wa barakatuhu

InshaAllah we are planning on being back on blogging, been MIA for a while, Alhumdulilah. We have been doing a lot of "living" learning!  We learned a lot about Allah's amazing plans. His Divine Decree, Love and Mercy that surrounds us all the time. We are indeed blessed, blessed and blessed over billions. 

So stay tuned InshaAllah. Be'iznillahi Ta'ala (with Allah's permission) 

Ramadan Kareem!

Prioritizing & Reconnecting at deeper level with the Quran

Starting  each day with the recitation of the Quran puts ones heart at peace and in a state of calmness. This helps one to take on the challenges of the day and stay focused on the important things. The most beautiful part is every time one opens the Quran there are lessons and reminders for one to hold on to and work on for the day. 

The goal should be quality not quantity. Reading half a page, a page or two, but reading with understanding is important. If one doesn't understand Arabic then reading a translation can be useful. Trying and testing different amounts and seeing what works best can be helpful. 

As Muslims parents everyday we strive to instill in our kids the love of Quran and the Sunnah. What we forget is... If they don't see us loving Quran - by spending "one on one time" with it (I am sure we as parents are very familiar with this phrase) how exactly  do we expect them to love it.  If they don't see us turning to the Quran when we are overcome by negative emotions so we can return to our normal states. How will they learn to channel their emotions in a positive manner, or control them. To function at our optimal level we have to first and foremost connect ourselves with Allah and Quran. Having this spiritual connection can help us see this world and the people around us from a whole new lens.

I just have too much on my plate and that is the case of most moms. So I have set a goal to read one double  sided  page a day no matter where I am and how busy the day ahead might seem. I feel so dependent on it that if I miss it I feel out of place in all my roles as a woman, Or more like everything feels out of place. 

Every time before sitting with the Quran I just remind the kids that it Mama's time for what Allah created us for, if they need something I will listen to them after I am done. Of course, it took them some practice but now Alhumdulillah it so amazing,  while iI recite they quietly listen Mashaa-Allah. Before I use to explain in simple words to them that "Allah SWT created us only to worship Him, pray to Him and to read understand and implement the Quran. There are other important  things that we have to do but before all that comes Allah. And when pleasing Allah is our goal then Allah SWT helps us with everything " 

Here is a glimpse of the reminder I got from my time with Quran today. 

He said, "I only complain of my suffering and my grief to Allah , and I know from Allah that which you do not know. {Yusuf:86}

How is that you spend time with the Quran and make it an important of your day?

Hajj Activties # 7, 8, 9 and 10

And for the last round of activities!

7. Educating ourselves before we educating our little ones: I listened to a couple of lectures to re-remind myself about the details and and virtues of Hajj and these 10 days. Here's one that I really benefited from when talking to the kids about the rituals of Hajj.

HAJJ WORKSHOP

8. Hajj ritual setup: By using the kids blocks, making a few things and printing Day 1 to 5 cards from Islamic Bulletin Board, we setup our Hajj table. This was by far the best teaching tool we had about Hajj. It was very hands on for them. So many people did Hajj on our table, AR took almost everyone he knows to Hajj. 

Make a Kabbah and learn the hitory though story telling. You can use cardboard box, construction paper. I played safe and painted a wood box black and added some gold to represent the kabah. it. Its very sturdy. Make some hujajj in ihram we added  their wives. 

Using the kids wooden blocks we made Mina and Jamarat. You will be able to find many things to represent these if you look around the house.

We used 2 big rocks from our rock collection to represent Safa and Marwa mountains 

The empty area is where Arafah is, the Hujjaj stand there and make dua. Muzdalifah is where the people are sleeping.

Felt sacrificial animals, the camel is missing.

This project is very easy, frugal and green. We try to keep things around our home as pure and simple as they can be, the goes for play, learning, cooking and cleaning.

9. Hajj Felt story board: Using our felt story board we did some hajj related stories and a life time journey of Hajj in our imagination. Unfortunately I was not able to take pictures and now we are out of town. It was a time consuming project for prepare for me, because I had to cut out each part separately.

10. Memorize and Chant the Talbiyah, Tahleel, Tahmeed and Takbeer : The Prophet SAW said: "There are no days on which righteous deeds are greater in the sight of Allaah and dearer to Him 

than on these ten days. So, intensify Tahleel and Tahmeed."

  

• Tahleel - La IlaahaIllaAllaah "there is no one worthy of being worshiped but Allaah"
• Takbeer -   Allaahu Akbar "Allaah is The Greatest"
• Thameed -  Alhamdu lillaah "praise be to Allaah"

I pray and hope that you all find these activities a good idea and helpful teaching tools for you families inshaAllah

I pray that Allah SWT gives us all to the taweeq (ability) to benefit from these best 10 days. And also accept  all our acts of worship in these day. Ameen 

Hajj Mabroor to ALL the Hujjaj inshaAllah. 

Teaching the Life of the Prophet SAW to children

Recently I started a series on Seerah by Yasir Qadhi 'A Mercy to Mankind' I am really enjoying and benefiting from it. One of the things I love about the seerah is that when we study the life of the Prophet SAWand ALL the hardships and difficulties he SAW went through, our problems and issues become so small and worthless. And if there is a hardship or fitnah we have in our life, studying the seerah give us the power and strength to move on and move away, by seeing his SAW's tests and tribulations. Its a wonderful series! MashaAllah.

When I started listening to it, I felt a strong urge/motivation to really focus on the Seerah with the kids on a regular bases. Make it an important part of our lives.

Here are some things we have been doing as an effort to help our kids develop a strong and unique bond with the Prophet SAW at a small age.

1. Almost everyday, after Asr, I put Yasir Qadhi's seerah lecture on so the kids can listen to it. Sometimes AR comes and sits to watch the video and of course H joins, they actually sit and listen mashaAllah. (I don't mind him watching a sheikh on the screen for a few minutes to gain knowledge).  The benefit out ways the damage in this matter in my eyes.

A Mercy to Mankind - Muhmmad SAW

2. We posted the Learning Roots 'Seerah -  Makkan period' chart up to keep track of how far and how much we have learned and how much more to go

I am not sticking the stickers on though, this way I can use it again too.

3.  Lastly but most importantly we started reading "The Noble Life of the Prophet SAW' with the kids at bedtime. I know some of you might be thinking isn't that too much for the little ones?? No, not at all. They really enjoy it mashaAllah! How can they not, its indeed the life of our Prophet SAW.  It did take some effort from our side, to have them start it.

Since AR was very small we would tell him the stories of the Prophets and Sahabas without books. When we moved here and I made our bedtime ritual, this time I added bedtime story books, which were never there before that. However a few months ago I stopped reading books to the kids at bedtime again and went back to our old storytelling method. It took me a two weeks or so to wine them off books and listen to all the wonderful REAL stories mama has to tell them. To be honest some days I would have to look at a story before I would relate it to them.

I don't believe in making up stories too much, there's nothing wrong with it, but why fantasies when we can tell true stories. Like, for example if you were to relate the story of Salam Al Farisi (R.A) to a child, how can it be possible that a child will not listen to his story?? Theres no way a made up tale can be as beautiful and as meaning full as the story of Salman Al Farisi or the story of Prophet Sulaiman (A.S). AR still get lost at the thought of flying in the air. In order for us to tell the stories from our Islamic history we need to learn them ourselves and learn them from the right sources and learn them over and over again. So we don't have to relay on non-muslim folk stories and fairy tales, which to be honest in my eyes are all imitations of stories from Islam, some what.

When we share a story of the past we shouldn't hesitate to tell our kids about good and bad, death, murder and physical abuse the muslims went through. I have seen many parents who feel like they are scaring the child or the child will be traumatized. I feel this is a wrong way of thinking, because if this was the case then why would Allah SWT mention death, Jannah and Jahnam to us over and over again?? And the consequence of our bad and good actions?? Its important that we teach children to be detached from this duniya and have a desire to die and go to Jannah, not be scared to death!

Its not easy! The worldly life gives children (and ourselves) an immediate gratification. And Aakhirah is something that we have to remind them about about. Why remind and not tell?? Because its our fitra (nature)! and that is what Allah swt dose again and again in the Quran. And for children, to develop a love and longing for the Aakhirah we need to give them a mental image, and image that is fixed in there minds of Aakhriah(Hereafter) is, Jannah(Paradise) and Jahnam(Hell fire) are. Its not easy, we have to constantly remind them and ourselves and most importantly fight the devil's whispers.

This storytelling phase really helped them move to the book. Since there are no pictures in the book they have to make an image in there minds just by listening which is a great way to promote imaginative thinking. 

When we read it we have simplify here and there a bit to make it comprehend-able to them. We skip some parts here and their that will be beyond there ability to understand. We don't want to make it a philosophical discussion. We still read books and we read lots, but just not at bedtime. 

The last thing I want the kids to sleep with is a story or image that will actually benefit him in this duniya and Aakhira, and that is definitely not in 'Curious George' or Dr. Seuss'  etc. I am not at all saying that these books are bad or shouldn't be read or somthing! I just don't want my child to fall asleep thing about 'Cat in the Hat' or 'how George is a goood little monkey'!

Since MashaAllah Baba is a better story teller then Mama, Baba reads the book to them most of the time. Its a great Baba and kiddios time, Alhumdulillah.

Allah knows best!

Raising Children with Deen and Dunya

GREAT READ!

Its an amazing article with some great points, its long but really worth the time. Some things will just be a reminder for some of us but sometimes reminders are what we need! Wisdom is in benefiting from others experience and knowledge. So, NEVER feel shy or hesitate to learn from someone, regardless of their age, believes religous or non, relation to you, or gender, this is indeed the teaching of our Deen.

Click here and read Raising Children with Deen and Dunya 

The levels of Jannah

Today morning the kids and I were playing with their blocks while talk about Jannah and fantasizing about ALL the things we can have in Jannah. We also talked about how to get to Jannah and the different levels of Jannah. We never mentioned the different levels of Jannah before, so when I started talking about the levels and how if a family member will be in the higher level of Jannah, the lower level family will be raised to the higher level to be joined with them. AR was listening to me very careful and he was so amazed. We talked in great detail about it for about 20 to 30 minutes and then I went to do some work.

5 minutes later AR called me to show me this and he said

AR: Mama look what I made.
Me: mashaAllah really nice, what is it?
AR: These are the levels of Jannah Mama. The mother was on the lower level (the blue tower) and the little girl was on the higher level and Allah raised the mother to the girls level. They were both sad a bit before and now they got soooo happy to be together mashaAllah.  

I was speechless. My eyes filled with tears at the way he explained the process to me, lifting the mother with joy and raising her at the girl's level. MashaAllah TabarakaAllahu, he not just understood the concept but he gave it such and amazing visual from his imagination. I didn't do anything like this with him, it was all verbal with hand movements. It an amazing feeling to see your child grow in understanding step by step.

This really made me think something at very deeper level, by fitarah (nature) children want to learn about Allah and the Messenger (saw), Aakhirah, Jannah and Jahanm, good and evil, and they find a satisfaction in learning these concepts, a contentment, just as we do.

As parents when we are passionate about something, unknowingly we transfer it our children and they absorb our passion in themselves. So if we choose this duniya (life of this world) to be the most important thing to us, they will too and if we choose the Aakhirah (the hereafter), they will too. This absolutely doesn't mean we should become monks and go live in the forest! And have nothing to do with this duniya and the things in it! No, this is not what it means. We need to find a balance. We need this duniya to attain the Aakhirah and Allah swt's pleasure, but we should find a moderate path between the two and our inclination should be towards the Aakhirah more than the duniya.

O Allah fill our heart and minds with Your love and the love of the Prophet saw. And increase us in the desire to meet You. Teach us those ways by which we can instill this in our hearts and the hearts of our children and our spouses. O Allah protect us from the blazing fire and unit us in Jannah and raise our ranks in Jannah so we can unity in with our families and friends. Ameen Ya Rabb!

Climbing to Cave of Hira

One of the other things we did this break was, we visited the Cave of Hira. We had been talking about it with AR since before the break, so it was one thing he was really looking forward.

There were 4 main reasons for his excitement, the first being climbing the mountain itself, I just can't find words for his excitement for his first mountain climb. He couldn't stop talking about it, before AND after (MashaAllah TabarakaAllah). The second reason I believe was the name, "Cave of Hira", his one and only aunt/phupoo's name is Hira, so to his little mind this was so fascinating that he was going to a cave which has the same name as his aunt. He even said "did you know phupoo's name is the same as the name of the cave we went too". Third reason was that it was an only boys event, he was excited to go with his Baba, and Uncle/Mamoo. Lastly, but most importantly he was very interested to see where our beloved Prophet SAW used to go and where the Quran was revealed. Although its a deep concept for a 4 year old to understand but he had this excitement to go and see the cave he has heard stories of for so long. 

Here's a small video AR's uncle had made at the top of the mountain and you can also see a special appearance of AR in the video for a second. Hope we all can benefit inshaAllah.

May Allah swt grant you all a chance to visit inshaAllah. 

"Baba, Salem went to Paradise with Allah"

I want to share with you this amazing story that melted my heart. As I watched I cried and made so much dua to Allah, sought His refuge from the trails of this duniya.  A story full of lessons.

The blind son and his father...

I ask Allah SWT to make us of those who can protect and guard our tongues as we guard our chastity, or children! I ask Allah SWT to protect us from being victims of those with sharp tongues. I ask Allah SWT to grant us all righteous, humble, mukhlis (sincere), trustworthy company (friends and family). I ask Allah SWT to protect us from shaiytan and his whispers. I ask Him to make our children's hearts full of Eman.

The little boys Emaan and tears for not being able to get to Jummah in time, his recited Surah Al-Kahf even though he was blind, brought his father to Islam. Most of us procrastinate reciting/reading Surah Al-Kahf until its close to Maghrib and then we blame it on time.

The man says 'people started avoiding me just to be saved from my tongue'.

The Prophet saw said: "When the son of Adam wakes up n the morning, all of his body parts humble     themselves in front of the tongue and says, 'Fear Allah with with regards to our rights! Our well-being depends on you. If you remain upright, so shall we. If you become crooked so shall we.' " {Ahmad & at Tirmidhi, Hasan}

Animals have long tongues, yet they cannot speak.
Man has a relatively short tongue yet he cannot keep silent.
- Shaykh Muhammad Al Aarifi

                                                          **********************

Good friends/people are a blessing in disguise.

Allah SWT says "And the Day the wrongdoer will bite on his hand [in regret] he will say, "Oh, I wish I had taken with the Messenger a way. Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken that one as a friend. He led me away from the remembrance after it had come to me. And ever is Satan, to man, a deserter."And the Messenger has said, "O my Lord, indeed my people have taken this Quran as [a thing] abandoned" {Al Furqan - 27-30}

Ya Rabb... Ya Rabb... don't make us of those who will regret on that Day, and neither of those who have abandoned The Quran. Ya Allah make the Quran delight of our hearts and the remover of our pain, sorrow and discomfort. Ameen.

He would mock/backbit, and his own mockery came in-front of him in the form of his son. Allah SWT says "...these are days which we make to alternate amongst mankind..." When someone dose something like backbiting, mocking, slandering, namima, hurting others or disrespecting others, one conveniently forgets that it will come infront of them on day. A lot of times people backbit others on how the others have wronged them and they are so nice with them...what I don't understand is that if we backbit someone than HOW do we expect to have a good relationship with them, its not an honest relationship. Its namima. Allah will never put love for them in their hearts. Its a disease of the heart. May Allah SWT protect us from it and cleanse our hearts from the ailments of the heart.

Allah SWT gives every person a chance(s) to turn around from their wrong-doings, its on the person to see/recognize that chance/opportunity to devote oneself to Allah SWT. To live in this duniya with aim to attain Jannah. For this man it was the day of Jummah when he took his son to the masjid, the son he had neglected for 10 years! For some its a trail/test (a fitnah), a sickness, a broken heart or a loss of a loved one.

I ask Allah SWT to grant us gentleness when dealing with our families, friends, children, and acquaintances. Ameen. The Prophet saw said: "Gentleness beautifies everything, harshness disfigures." {Muslim}

This story was a great reminder for me in many ways, and hope you all benefit from it as well inshaAllah.

  Please share how/what you felt/thought after hearing this amazing story. Looking forward to hearing from you.

7 acts of Virtue in the 10 days of Dhul Hajj

BY THE DAWN

AND BY THE TEN NIGHTS

According to many scholars of Tafseer (Quran exegesis) these are the first 10 days of Dhul Hajj. 

The Prophet SAW gave a testimony that these ten days are the greatest days of this world. He SAW said: "There are no days on which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allah than on these ten days." The companions may Allah be pleased with them said: "O Messenger of Allah, even (better than observing) Jihaad for the sake of Allah?" He said: "Even  (better than observing) Jihaad for the sake of Allah, except for one who went out (for Jihaad) with himself and his wealth and returned with nothing of this."

7 acts of Virtue in the first 10 days of Dhul-Hajj for those who are not performing Hajj

1. Siyaam (fasting) of the first nine days of Dhul Hajj.
• Abu Qataadah (radiallahu anhu) narrated that the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) said: "Observing fast on the Day of Arafat; I expect Allah to expiate the sins that were committed during the preceding year, and the sins that will be committed in the year after." (Imam Muslim)
• On the authority of Hafsah r.a, she said: " Fasting the day of 'Aashoora' (the 10th of Muharram), the first 9 days of Dhul Hajj, three days of each month, and performing two Rakkah before noon."
2. Recting the Tahleel, Takbeer, Thameed out loud in the markets, homes, mosques, and roads. 
1. The Prophet SAW said: "There are no days on which righteous deeds are greater in the sight of Allaah and dearer to Him than onthese ten days. So, intensify Tahleeland Tahmeed."
• Tahleel - La IlaahaIllaAllaah "there is no one worthy of being worshiped but Allaah"
• Takbeer -   Allaahu Akbar "Allaah is The Greatest"
• Thameed -  Alhamdu lillaah "praise be to Allaah"
• Ibn Umar and Abu Hurairah (radiallaahu anhum) used to go out to the marketplaces during the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah and recite out loud the takbeer and people would repeat it after them.
3. Repentance - Repenting and avoiding sin to acquire the forgiveness and Mercy of Allah SWT
• Try to read the Sayidul istaghfar as many times as possible 




4. Doing extra voluntary (Nafil) good deeds while avoiding sin and disobedience to Allah SWT.
• Allah SWT says in a Hadeeth Qudsi "I will declare war against a person who shows hostility to one of My Allies (devout slaves). The most beloved thing with which My slave comes nearer to Me is what I have made obligatory on him; and My slave keeps drawing closer to Me through performing voluntary acts of worship until I love him. When I love him I will be his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, andhisleg with which he walks; and if he asks (something) from Me, I will give him, and if he asks My Refuge), I will protect him"
• Dhikr (remembrance) of Allah 
• Sadaqah (charity)
• Praying all Sunnahs for each Salah (prayer)
• Praying more Nafil prayers
• SMILE more! :D
• Enjoing the good and forbidding the evil
• Recite! Recite! Recite! The Quran 
• Be Extra helpful to your parents - If you have them rejoice! If they are far, call them say some kind loving words (and get their duas), send them extra money if they're dependent (and see who your life will flourish wiht Barakah). If they're close... then make it a point to do something extra for them (and I don't mean make them a cup of tea!) 
• Allah SWT says: "We have instructed man to honour his parents." (29:8)
• Be the Best spouse! and ask Allah SWT to make you the best one. Go OUT of your way to do things for your spouse.
• Parent-hood. You are the best Parent (inshaAllah) so be it!
• DUAS... don't miss out the day of Arafah (9th of Dhul Hajj) in preparing your next day Eid Party!
• Think of others Ihsans you can do in you Ebadah and Ikhlaaq 
5. Udhiya - Sacrificing of an animal on the 10 of Dhul Hajj (Yawm-un Nahr). 
• It's a sunnah of our prophet Ibrahim a.s (Abraham) who was commanded to sacrifice Ismaeel a.s, but Allah SWT at the very moment of sacrifice ransomed him with a ram. Prophet Muhammad (saw) followed ibrahim a.s's sunnah and so do we till this day. 
• It is important to remember that sacrificing of the animal dose not benefit us or washes our sins, as Allah SWT says "It is not their meat nor their blood that reaches Allah. it is you peity that reaches Him." {Quran 22:37}
• Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah SAW said: "He who has the capacity, and does not sacrifice, may not approach our Musalla (place of prayer - on the ‘Eid)."(Ibn Majah #2533, Ahmad) 
6. Things to refrain from for the NON- Pilgims who intend to do a sacrifice.
• Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her, said: "When you see the new moon of Dhul Hijjah, and one of you wants to sacrifice an animal let him refrain from cutting or shaving his hair or clipping his finger nails, or toenails."
• Allah SWT says: "And do not shave off your heads until lthe sacrificial animal is slaughtered."
7. Eid Prayer and the Khutbah.
• Prophet Muhammad SAW said: "The day of al-Fitr, and the day of an-Nahr, and the days of at-Tashreeq (the three days after an-Nahr) are our days of Eid (festivity); and they are days of eating and drinking.” (Saheeh) Musnad Ahmad:1945)
• Some scholars are of the opinion that it's obligatory to pray the prayer. Regardless of if one holds this opinion or not, one should make it a point to get up and get the whole family ready for Eid prayer and let the kids know from the very start that these are the days Eid WE as Muslims celebrate. It's important to make Islamic celebrations SPECIAL for our little ones so they don't find the urge to celebrate non-Islamic events. On contrary they eagerly wait to get their special Eidi or Eid gift, special Home decor, and family get-togethers.

My personal advice is to make a checklist or a schedule for all the things you want to achieve in these days. It will keep you motivated and help you  make the most out of these days. May Allah SWT grant us the Tawfeeq (ability) to keep the changes we (Pilgirms and non-pilgrms) make in these days a part of our lives. May He the Exalt accept our Ebdaat and accept the Hajj of the Hujjaj. Ameen!

Hajj Holistic checklist

Kaba in Ihram for the Hajj! 2010 

Here we come Allah, here we come....

"In the blistering bright rays of the sun, amongst the arid grimy sand dunes of a faraway place, no traces of life could be seen. There was only a barren land filled with emptiness. The blurry horizon spread from east to west. Apart from the dry whistle of the bristly wind, a cry could be heard echoing in the distance. What could it be…?

A closer look reveals a beautiful baby boy left lying on the scorching sand under the heat of the sun, lips shrivelled, tears pouring profusely down his swollen eyes. His cry is pleading for help, but where is his mother…?

Not too far away, amongst the rocky hills, another isolated sound can be heard - the voice of a woman gasping for breath as she runs from one mountain to another searching for any signs of life. Alone, bare footed and wounded her tired feet drag her back and forth a distance of more than 450 metres each way in the hope that she can find water or someone who can come to her child’s desperate aid.…" 

These beautifully put words are of Shurma Chowdhury a writer from saudilife. They are so clear in explaining the story behind Hajj. 

The month of Zul-Hajj is almost here. Millions of people around the world are preparing  to leave for this beautiful and the most memorable journey of their lives. Some have already reached Masjid al-Haram or Masid Nabawi. People will be coming from different circumstances, some have saved up all their lives and NOW they get to do Hajj when they are old. All rich and poor, old and young, weak and strong, big and small ALL will unit in one place to perform the Hajj.  "...there is no reward for Hajj mabroor except Paradise" {Al Bukhari}

Hajj preparation for most of people start right when they get the invitation from Allah SWT. If one has the intention one could get rewarded for each of ones steps towards Masjid al-Haram by Allah SWT's Mercy.

InshaAllah in this post and the next I will be sharing with you a few things. Such as, a Hajj holistic checklist some Hajj resources and some Ahadeeth {Prophetic sayings} and Aayat {Quranic verses}. Things to do for those not performing Hajj.

1.  Magic Soap - Its a pure castile soap by Dr.Bronner. The one you have to purchase is the Unscented Baby Mild one. Since being a Muhrim {pilgram} it is not permissible to use anything scented. The good thing about this soap is that it can be used for ALL purposes. For example, washing hand, face, body, hair, brushing your teeth, laundry, cleaning you house or in the case of Hajj your surroundings. We use it when we are in ihram for the whole family. This will also decrease you luggage load, you will put 10 things in one bottle!

2. Fragrance free hand and body lotion by Desert essence. 

3. Crystal body deodorant stone - Its safe and fragrance free, click here to read more. This can be found in different brands like pure & natural crystal and also in travel sizes as well.

4.  Essential oils - These would be  a good chose to protect yourself from getting sick or catching a flu, since you will be exposed to people from all around the world. These will inshaAllah help stimulate your immune system and help fight any bacteria entering you with the permission of Allah SWT! 

• Lavender oil - relaxing (works great for jet lag), protects from flu and cold, antiseptic, even by smelling the oil.
• Tea tree oil - powerful antiseptic and immune stimulator. Its known to be great for cough, cold sores, infected wounds, cuts, and insect bits.
• Lemon grass oil - air refresher and purifier, great for headaches.
• Eucalyptus oil - Useful for muscular pains, insect bites and insect repellent.
• Sandalwood oil - for sore throats, earaches and cough with mucus.
• Peppermint oil - for fatigue, headaches, digestive system, and muscular pains

Each of these have many other therapeutic uses but these are just to name some that are more relevant. Even if you're not able to get all try to at least get lavender, tea tree, peppermint and eucalyptus oils. 

Note: DO NOT use essential oils straight, they are very concentrated and potent,  so they should be diluted at the ratio of 2 to 3 drops essential oil to every 10ml of 100% pure carrier oils such as almond, avocado, calendula, rosehip, grape-seed  aloe vera and jojoba oils. ALSO, keep in mind that these are scents and fragrance is NOT permissible in the state of ihram, so you should use them in a diffuser (buy a cheap one you can dispose there) and a couple of candles. Using them in the diffuser will give you its benfits as well, use it at night when you are sleeping until you are no longer in ihram. Ones out of the state of ihram then you can add them to your creams or oils at the same ratio. REMEMBER to dilute that are high concentrate. 

5.  Homeopathy first-aid kit -  Pack your remedies in small zip-locks with labels of each remedy. Zip-locks are light weight and don't take much space. 

    Essential Remedies

1. Aconite 30
2. Chamomile 30
3. Ferrrum Phosphorus 6x
4. Gelsimium 30
5. Nux Vomica 30
6. Carbo Vegetabilis 30
7. Arnica Montana 30
8. Kali Mur 6x
9. Aloe 30
10. Rhus Tox 30
11. Lycopodium 30

6.  Accupressure - It's a great pain reliever and has some other benefits as well, such as natural labor induction (I was using acupressure points to induce natural labor for H's pregnancy after the 39th week and during labor as a pain reliever). You can look up on Google or ask a professional about pain different pain relief points.

These are somethings that will inshaAllah help Pilgrims to take the most out of there Hajj experience and Ebadaat (worships). This will with the permission of Allah SWT help us all stay in good health instead of being drowsy and droopy. It's important to remember that NOTHING can benefit you or harm you with out the permission of Allah All Mighty, and these are just means, really protection and relief is ONLY in His Power. So take the means and put your trust in Him.


Some of you asked where you can find this stuff. 

North America 

• Whole foods
• Other health food stores
• Nature's Source
• Olive Tree Organics
• Green Health Foods (these are just to name some there are 100s more!)
• Organic planet
• Target
• Loblaws

Europe

• Health Food store
• Organic stores
• Holland and Barrett
• Evergreen health foods

Gulf Region

• Order from online from anywhere in the world...you will need an address
• You can also find them at uae.souq.com/home.php 
• Check for foreign natural product stores

Hajj Mabroor wa Saee Mashkoor!

“...And proclaim unto mankind the Pilgrimage. They will come unto thee on foot and on every lean camel; they will come from every deep ravine....” (Surah Al-Hajj, 22: 27)