This morning, I woke up feeling overwhelmingly grateful for the blessing of the Qur’an!.. a divine book that contains everything both humans and jinn need for physical and spiritual growth.

As I reflected, I asked myself: Do people truly appreciate and contemplate this immense blessing? Allah says in Qur'an (54:17),
'And We have certainly made the Qur’an easy to remember. So is there anyone who will be mindful?' The Qur’an is easy and full of admonition. But there’s a condition; one must sincerely make up their mind to seek it.

Can you honestly prove to yourself how deeply you desire to taste the sweetness of divine guidance and intimate conversation with Allah?

Recall the determination of Prophet Musa (peace be upon him), who said in Qur’an(18:60):
'I will never give up until I reach the junction of the two seas, even if I travel for ages.'

This verse reflects his unwavering resolve in seeking divine guidance. If we truly desire this treasure, the Qur’an! we must embody the same hunger, intention, and perseverance.

Qur’an is even more encompassing than the teacher Prophet Musa set out to find. It is the living guidance from the Lord of the worlds. All it requires is that we decide 

WHOLEHEARTEDLY!!! to connect with it..

Even when you make duʿa to enjoy the sweetness of intimacy with Allah through His Divine Book, if you haven’t encountered those who have truly tasted it, you won’t realize how desperately you need to beg for it! as if your life depends on it. To awaken that thirst, stay in the company of those whose hearts have been lit by the Qur’an. Thankfully QuranReflect has that potential

Jazakallahu khairan for uplifting the qualities of the Holy Quran.!

Knowledge is an act of worship that requires: 

1) Intention

2) Determination 

3) Steadfastness

4) Humility 

5) and more. 

We found amazing life lessons for seekers of sacred knowledge in the beautiful statement of Prophet Musa (as): 

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِفَتَىٰهُ لَآ أَبْرَحُ حَتَّىٰٓ أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ ٱلْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِىَ حُقُبًا

And [mention] when Moses said to his boy [i.e., servant], 'I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period.'

In my quest for knowledge, I found that 


a) Knowledge will not give you even a portion of itself until you give yourself to it completely 

b) Success is achieved through extraordinary determination and Allah's Mercy. 

I think this is a good formula for whatever you wish to achieve: 

Affirm it: 'I will not give up' 

Set your goals.... 'Until what?...'

Prioritise.... 'Even if,…… '

&gt;
&gt;
&gt;
#quranandme

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِفَتَىٰهُ لَآ أَبْرَحُ حَتَّىٰٓ أَبْلُغَ مَجْمَعَ ٱلْبَحْرَيْنِ أَوْ أَمْضِىَ حُقُبًا
فَتٰی (fata) - can be used for a servant , it can be used for a slave or a mentee (someone you are teaching for a long time).  It doesn’t necessarily give you  an idea of their age because when someone is in the service of another person , he can be 80 years old and still be a  فَتٰی (fata).

Here is an amazing teaching moment…

 If you are driving, you are not going to say I am going to keep on driving until I reach home! The act is already speaking for itself. Musa (a.s.) had obviously told his travelling companion, his servant/student, that they are going somewhere (the place where two oceans meet). That is the reason they left in the first place. So the point is why is Musa (a.s.) going out of his way and expressing something that is already taking place. There is no reason to say this if the journey is not becoming tiring and lengthy already. Musa (a.s) knows that the journey is becoming exhausting and he may have sensed this exhaustion in his student. Instead of putting the burden on his student and saying that 
'We are going to keep going until we get there,  no breaks!'; Musa (a.s) makes a remarkable comment saying :

Laaa abrahu not Laa nabrahu
لَآ أَبْرَحُ – I will not leave what I am doing (talking about his own commitment).
As if saying if you want to quit I have no comments for that but I am not going to stop what I am doing & I am going to stay on course. 

Musa a.s did not have to give a sermon about continuing and not losing momentum and  hope. He just inspired him with his own commitment.

If you and I are in a teaching position, if you are a parent teaching a child, if you are an older brother teaching the younger brother or sister, then know that over time the students might lose momentum and motivation. They would want to quit and it would only get worse when more expectations are made from them. But when the teacher himself says that I am exhausted but I have to learn this because I want to do this, then the student would not only feel a bit of ashamed but also inspired thinking that 'my teacher after knowing so much more than me is thirstier than I am for learning.' The brief words in this Aayah are actually profound guidance for how to instill inspiration into those that look up to us by leading by example. 

Musa (a.s.) is on a journey towards the commandment of Allah because Allah has told Musa (a.s.) that he will learn something from someone (that is coming in the Aayahs that follow). . Once we have instilled in ourselves that I am on a journey of learning something that Allah wants me to learn then we are going to value every single step. In other words, whether I reach the destination today or 80 years from now or another 80 years from now or another and another; it doesn’t matter! I’ll keep learning doesn’t matter how many generations it takes for me to reach the destination! 

That is the profound mindset for someone who will achieve impossible things! 
When we have this mindset of 'Laaa abrahu'; things that are ages away become close by the will of Allah! 

And Allah knows best!
Deeper Look – Surah Al-Kahf  - Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan (May Allah protect him).
#Motivation

Beatiful reflection! Jazakullah Khairan Sis for sharing this...Masha Allah..The easiest thing to do is to instruct or command people..Actually doing those actions ourselves are a higher level of leadership.. This is a great lesson.

On the importance of knowledge, being a student and teacher. 
'And [mention] when Musa said to his young boy, 'I will not cease [traveling] until I reach the junction of the two seas or continue for a long period.' Surah Kahf ayah 60.
Something to note from this ayah is that personal mentoring of young people especially, is a prophetic legacy. Musa AS went on a quest for knowledge, and he took a youth with him along, so that he too could learn from his experience. 
We are accustomed to a different kind of education nowadays, where you attend a classroom in person or virtual, to gain knowledge as a consumer. But a much more effective kind of education is when you follow around someone who is the right mentor, and learn first hand from his experiences. 
'You cannot be a teacher without being a student, and you cannot be a REAL student without being a teacher. A container pours out what it contains. The best students are those that are able to teach what they learnt. And the best teachers are those that never stop learning. The cycle is endless.'
- Nouman Ali Khan

JUZ 15
THE LIGHT THAT REJUVENATES YOU IN MID RAMADHAN 

In any endeavour, the middle point is usually when you start to lose your zeal.
You start to lose focus and and get distracted. 

Just like how Allah SWT  Gifted The Night Journey and Ascension in the middle of Rasulullah's SAW 23-year long mission. At a time when he SAW felt the debilitating experience in Taif; at a time when the burden felt heaviest; at a time when he felt so alone,  Allah SWT Gifted him with Isra' wal Mi'raj. That single powerful event gave him comfort; lifted and ignited his spirit and energised his purpose. That experience was the Light that shone for the rest of his divine mission.

Similarly, halfway through the Quran in the middle JUZ, we are given the story of Musa AS and Khidr AS. In Musa's AS  quest for knowledge, he encountered events that challenged his comfort zone. Later,  he realised that these seemingly separate and disconnected actions of Khidr AS was meant to give him wisdom. 

As tiredness and stupor sets in mid Ramadhan, we take this lesson from  JUZ 15 to review our worship. 
Pause for a moment to regain your momentum. 
Redirect your focus and prioritise worship in the days gearing up to the end of Ramadhan.

Just as Rasulullah SAW was brought closer to Allah SWT in Isra' wal Mi'raj , bring yourself closer to Allah SWT.

#juz15 #Ramadhan

In the Name of Allah the Most Gracious, the Most Kind,

During my children’s summer holidays (vacation) we have been studying the tafsir of Surah Al Kahf. We have passed through the stories of the people of the cave and the man with the two gardens. We have then reached the story of Prophet Musa AS and Khidr.

The children like to get creative with their pens and pencils with journaling and understanding the Qur’an. One of my children seemed to be listening what seemed to me less attentively, but we took things slow and steady. 

We learnt the following:

Narrated Ubayy Ibn Ka’b: The Prophet (pbuh) said ‘once the Prophet Musa AS stood up and addressed bani Isra’il. He was asked 'Who is the most learned man amongst the people?' He said, 'I am the most learned.' Allah admonished Musa AS as he did not attribute absolute knowledge to Him (Allah).' - Sahih Al Bukhari 122.

Allah SWT sent Jibril AS (from the book Lessons from Surah Al Kahf by Shaykh and Dr Yasir Qadhi pages 129-130). Jibril AS reprimanded him and Musa AS asked him: 'Who has more knowledge than me?' Allah SWT told Jibril AS to tell him 'one of Our servants upon whom We had bestowed Our mercy, and to whom We had imparted a special knowledge from Ourselves.' - Surah Al Kahf 65.

Musa AS did not show any arrogance but deep humility. He not only accepted that he was not the most knowledgeable but he was eager to learn and meet (Khidr) who was ‘imparted with special knowledge.' 

This was one of the lessons we were able to learn thanks to first and foremost Allah who  allowed me to learn this through Shaykh and Dr Yasir Qadhi’s book (May Allah reward him and bless his family immensely ameen). Knowledge should penetrate our hearts and not make us arrogant. Knowledge should make us want to draw closer to Allah SWT. 

It was two weeks since studying the tafsir of the story of Musa AS and Khidr, my 9 year old son Eesa whom I thought was not paying as much attention. Whilst cooking he reminded me of this lesson that learning should not make us arrogant but rather it should make us even more humble. I was a little shocked (as I thought he was paying less attention) but delighted that I received this reminder from Allah at the right time, through a person much younger than me. I smiled, hugged him tight and prayed for both our true knowledge and humility. So I thanked first Allah SWT and then Eesa for reminding me to stay humble.

May Allah bless our teachers and those who remind us about Allah Allahumma ameen.

#surahalkahf
#knowledge
#humility

Some lessons from the story to bear in mind .
 
1.  Our limited knowledge of past, present, and future   Means that we are unqualified to pass judgment on  What we deem to be evil decrees (qadr) that seem to bring about no good. This is why the so called 'problem of evil' is in fact really only a problem for our limited intellect.
 2. Moses had limited knowledge of the present so wrongfully assessed AlKhidr drilling the hole in the boat as being bad because he was unaware of the tyrannical king behind them.
 3. Moses had no knowledge of the future so assessed the killing of the boy as evil because he didnt know the horrendous long term consequences that would arise as a result childs continued existence.
 4. Moses had limited knowledge of the past and thus wrongfully assessed AlKhidr fixing the wall of the townsfolk because he didnt know about the righteous man in the past who had a buried treasure under the wall nor about his orphan children who will benefit from it.
 Also, the story teaches us to not to hasten to judge if it appears bad things happen to good people or good things happen to  bad people. in the story it appeared that a bad thing happened to the good parents and ship crew and that a good thing was done for the greedy townspeople but the situations reality proved otherwise when we realized the wisdom behind it. 
 
We will not see the wisdom in all of Gods decrees in this world , but always remember that the one who created your mind and intellect did not give you more knowledge then He himself has for you to make any judgement calls on what he decides to decree.