Beautiful reminders

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The jinn wars.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-m7twsfowzg&feature=youtu.be

Creation of mankind.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bq_VdWnH1NE&feature=youtu.be

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RIGHTS OF CHILDREN


We have mentioned that Parent-child relation is a reciprocal one. The Rights of Parents (discussed above) are the Duties of children. Now let us see what are the Rights of Children (and Duties of Parents) in Islam.

The word “children” stands for sons and daughters, who are entitled to indisputable rights of rearing represented in promoting their religious orientation and ethical approach in order to be armed with both merits. Allah, the Almighty, says:

“O ye who believe! save yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is Men and Stones,…”*(Surah Al Tahrim 66:6)

The Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) said:*“Everyone of you is a protector and guardian and responsible for your wards and things under your care and a man is a guardian of his family members, and is accountable for those placed under his charge.”*(Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim)

Children are a trust put in the hands of parents who will be answerable before Allah on the Day of Judgment about their children as they are enjoined to satisfy their offspring’s spiritual and religious urges in order to produce righteous men and women, to be a consolation for the eyes of their parents in both the present world and Hereafter. Allah, the Almighty says:

“And those who believe and whose families follow them in Faith,- to them shall We join their families: Nor shall We deprive them (of the fruit) of aught of their works: (Yet) is each individual in pledge for his deeds.”*(Surah Al Tur 52:21)

The Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) in this context, said:*“When a believer dies, his work ceases to be except in three areas: a perpetual Sadaqa (charity), some useful knowledge he leaves and a righteous son praying for him.”*(Sahih Muslim)

However, some parents have paid no heed to their children’s rights and shirked away their obligations to them. Consequently the latter have got lost and begun to grope in darkness. Their parents have been too busy in worldly affairs promoting their financial situation and hoarding wealth to enquire about the company in which their children are involved or to guide them to good and make them shun evil, although they are more eligible for parental care, love and attention. Duties of father are not confined to catering for his child’s physical well-being, nutritious needs and clothing only; he is rather demanded to care about the spiritual side of his child’s character, feeding his heart with knowledge and faith and enveloping his soul with a clad of piety and the fear of Allah.

Children have the right to be fed, clothed and protected till they grow up to adulhood. It is, primarily, the duty of the father to do that. Mother can provide help if necessary. Protection means protection against physical as well as moral and intellectual harm. Parents are duty bound to see that the child’s personality develops in all fields. So if the parents have to resort to strictness for the sake of disciplining the children and protecting them from intellectually, morally and religiously undesirable behaviour, children should not resent their strictness. Let them perform their duty as parents. Children’s duty is not to protest or be rude but to listen and obey. “Their’s not to question why; their’s but to do and die”.

Children have the right to education. In Islam education is not limited to bookish knowledge but includes moral and religious training also. It means healthy all-round growth of child’s personality. Parents must not only provide for children’s education in schools and colleges but should also take personal interest in their studies, helping them if they can. Parents should sacrifice their own comfort and social activities and must spare some time to take interest in children’s studies, especially when they are young. And of course, parents should not forget or neglect imparting religious/moral training to children. A little sacrifice on part of parents will save children from moral disasters. Effective moral training comes not from sermons, advice and precepts but from parents’ personal examples of good behaviour. It is a famous Tradition of the Prophet (PBUH) that acquisition of knowledge is a must for every Muslim boy and girl. Another Hadith says,*“The best of you is one who gives a good education (intellectual and moral) to his children”.*Another Hadith lays stress on education of daughters. The Prophet (PBUH) once said,*“He who provides good upbringing to 3 daughters shall go to Paradise”. A man asked, “what if one has only two daughters”. “He also shall go to Paradise”. Another man asked, “and what if one has only one daughter?” “He too”, replied the Prophet (PBUH).

Children have many psychological needs also. Small children need to be loved, caressed, kissed and hugged. The Prophet loved children greatly. He would allow his grandsons Hassan and Hussain (RA) to ride his shoulders even during his prayers. In streets he would offer ‘salaam’ to children, play and cut jokes with them. Sometimes he would even kiss small children in the street.*Once a Bedouin saw the Prophet kissing a small kid. Out of wonder he said, “I have eight children but I never kiss them”. The Prophet remarked, “What can I do if Allah has taken away love and compassion from your heart”.*The Prophet would show special kindness to orphaned children. Some parents believe that being frank with children is not good from discipline point of view. This is wrong. Love and leniency can do much that fear and strictness cannot do. If leniency leads to rudeness on the part of children it should be mixed with strictness. That will tell the children that parents are basically kind but can be tough if children show rudeness and bad manners. Over-protection and over-care are undesirable. Let the child grow up as a responsible person. Only provide them guidance.

Children have the right to be well provided (materially). A Hadith says,*“It is better for parents to leave their children well provided (financially) than to leave them in poverty”.*This means that parents should not spend all that they have on their own comforts and luxuries but must make provisions for children’s welfare after the parents die. They are eligible to be spent on in kindness with neither extravagance nor stint. Spending on one’s children manifests deep gratitude to Allah for the wealth, which the Creator has conferred on to the father.

Another right fully due to children is equality in parental treatment. No one should be given preference over the others in gifts or presents. The canonical law of Islam dictates that no child should enjoy privileges to the prejudice of his brothers or sisters; this is injustice on the face of it. Allah forbids injustice because it leads to aversion on the part of the deprived children, and creation of hostility between the ill-treated and the pampered ones or even between the former and their parents. One child could show more honor to his parents than his other brothers or sisters, the thing that invites his parents to single him out for more privileges to the exclusion of the others. This behavior is unjustifiable because the dutiful son is rewarded by his Lord; moreover, a privilege of this sort could on the one hand lead the child to vain glory and on the other, the less fortunate ones could develop a kind of aversion and then overstep the mark and indulge in further disobedience. Life is rich in vicissitudes; the undutiful son could turn into a respectful one and vice versa; after all, hearts are in the grasp of Allah and they could show different emotions as He desires.

Bukhari and Muslim reported a narration from An-Numan bin Bashir that his father*Bashir bin Sa’d took him to Allah’s Messenger (peace be upon him) and said, “I have given this son of mine a slave.” The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked, ‘Have you given all your sons the like?’ He replied in the negative. The Prophet (peace be upon Him) said, ‘Take back your gift then.'”

In another narration, the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) said:*“Be afraid of Allah, and be just to your children.”

And in another narration, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:*“Make anyone else a witness upon this because I cannot be a witness on a Zulm (wrongdoing).”

In clear words, the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) described preference of one’s child over the others as injustice which is synonymous with Zulm (wrongdoing) and Zulm is Haram (prohibited). However, we must not mix up between preference and making an exception of one child and satisfying his urgent needs; this exception serves special exigencies and runs in the same channel of supporting one’s family.

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kaRLhEnTXf4&feature=youtu.be

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=iTK_yP41PNQ

Hussain ra in his final moments before shahadat.(Note:Wrongly written imam)

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sRJZ5FCanNM

journey of soul by sheikh Anwar al awlaki.

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Abu dhar (R.A.A) said : there are men of prophet’s companions said to the prophet (S.A.W) :" O messenger of Allah! the rich people are better than us in reward , for they perform prayer as we do and they observe fast as we do , but they spend their money in charity that what we can not do ."
Allah’s prophet (S.A.W ) said :" Allah made to you some good deeds if you do it you will be rewarded each one as one charity‘s reward, that will be in each tasbiha (saying subhaan Allah [ i.e glory to Allah] ) , in each tahmidah (saying Al-hamdulillah [ i.e all the praises to Allah) , in each tahlilah ( saying la-illaha-illa-Allah [i.e there is no god who must be worshipped except Allah] ) in enjoining that which is good , in interdiction against the abominable and your meeting with wives (intercourse)."then they said : "O messenger of Allah one of us if he use his sexual desire with his wife he would be rewarded he replied : if he use it illegaly he would get bad deed like so when he use it ligally he would be rewarded ."(Muslim)

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Pcl-pHePCTQ

imagine being tested like them.

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SONaejN-UHk&feature=youtu.be

Nasheed about death.

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The jinn wars.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-m7twsfowzg&feature=youtu.be

Creation of mankind.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bq_VdWn...ature=youtu.be

http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=192cmer-ycg

part 3....

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Rights of parents:




It is clear that after Allah ...parents are the persons who give us innumerable favors. They provide protection, food and clothing to the newly born. The mother sacrifices her comforts and sleep to provide comfort to her children. The father works hard to provide for their physical, educational and psychological (and spiritual) needs. It is a matter of common courtesy that if a person does you some favor you feel obliged to him. Verbally you say ‘thank you’ to him. You try to repay and compensate him for his gifts and favors. You feel a sense of gratitude towards him. So it is with Allah and with parents. Allah’s favors cannot be counted or repaid except by thanking Him and obeying His orders. After Allah our parents deserve our thanks and obedience for the favors they had done us. That’s why Quran lays stress on feeling grateful to parents, and doing good to them.

“And your Lord has ordained that you shall worship none save Him and shall do your parents a good turn.”*(Surah Al Isra’ 17:24)

What does a ‘good turn’ mean? It includes obeying and respecting them, speaking softly and kindly, avoiding harsh words or harsh tone, giving them company when they are lonely, caring for their physical and psychological needs (especially in their old age), and praying to Allah that He may bless them and have mercy on them.

The only thing above respect to Mother, is the worship of Allah (SWT) – It is mentioned in Ch.17, Verse No.28-29, it says that:

“Allah has ordained for you, that you worship none but Him, and to be kind to our parents And if any one or both of them reach old age do not say a word of contempt or repel them but address them with honour, and speak to them with kindness, and lower your wing of humility and pray to Allah (SWT) -‘My Lord, bless them as they have cherished me in childhood.”*(Surah Isra 17:28-29)

Surah Nisa, Ch. No. 4, Verse No.1 says:*“Respect the womb that bore you.”*(Surah Nisa 4:1)

Surah A’nam, Ch.6, Verse No.151, says:*“You have to be kind to your parents.”*(Surah A’nam 6:151)

Again in Surah Luqman Ch.31, Verse No.14; it again says the same thing that."We have enjoined on the human beings to be kind to his parents. In travail upon travail, did their mother bore them and in years twain was their weaning.”*(Surah Luqman 31:14)

A similar thing is repeated again in Surah Ahqaf, Ch.46, Verse No.15:*“We have enjoined on the human beings to be kind to his parents. In pain did their mother bore them and in pain did she give them birth.”*(Surah Ahqaf 46:15)

According to a Hadith related in ‘Ahmed’, as well as in ‘Ibn-e-Majah’ – It says*‘Paradise lies at the feet of the mother’.

That* does not mean that if my mother is walking on the road and if she steps on muck and filth – that thing becomes Paradise. It means that after you fulfill your basic duties, if you respect your mother, if you are kind to your mother, If you are honorable to your mother, you will Inshaallah enter Paradise.

Another Hadith related in Sahih Bukhari in Volume 8, Ch. No. 2 Hadith No. 2, as well as in Sahih-Muslim ,
'It says that a man asked the Prophet saww: ‘Who requires the maximum love and respect and my companionship in this world? The Prophet saww replied – ‘your mother’. ‘Who is next’? – ‘your mother’. ‘Who is next?’ – ‘your mother’. The man asked for the fourth time, – ‘Who is next’. The Prophet saww replied ‘your father’.”*75% of the love and respect goes to the mother and 25% of the love and respect goes to the father. Three fourth of the better part of the love and respect goes to the mother – One fourth of the remaining part of the love and respect goes to the father.

As to the reward for doing good to our parents a Hadith mentions the following story:*

“Three persons of ancient days were once travelling in a mountaneous region. The rain, thunder and lightning made them take refuge in a cave. Mudslide made a stone block the opening to the cave. The persons were entrapped inside. When the storm stopped they tried to push back the heavy stone to get out of the cave but they could not. They wondered ‘what to do now’. At last seeing that their joint efforts also cannot move the stone they decided to pray to Allah sincerely. One of them suggested, ‘each one of us should relate one good thing he has done in his life and beg Allah to move the stone.

One said, “One night my old mother asked me to bring a cup of milk for her. During the time I milked the goat and brought it to her she had gone to sleep. I did not think it proper to disturb her. So I stood by her bedside for the whole night till she got up in the morning and then I offered her the cup of milk. O God, if this act of mine was approved by You please shift this stone.”
The stone slipped a little but not enough to let them get out. Similarly, the second and the third man mentioned an act of goodness and prayed to God to shift the stone. The stone slipped down and the entry to the cave opened up. So the men got out.”*This story shows how service to one’s parents leads to blessings from God and rescue from troubles.

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Honey:



When in distress or difficulty Muslim’s turn to Quran or look to the tradition of their last Prophet, Muhammad saww for assistance and illness is no exception. The Quran and tradition (sunnah) mention various foods in the context of their healing properties. Some of the knowledge has been part of the body of healing knowledge in Muslim communities in different countries for a very long time. It is only more recently that some of this wisdom is being supported by scientific research which proves how much healing power many of these food have.One of these foods is honey.

Both the Quran and Hadith (sayings of the Prophet saww) refer to honey as a healer of disease:

"And thy Lord taught the bee to build its cells in hills, on trees and in (men's) habitations..... there issues from within their bodies a drink of varying colours, wherein is healing for mankind. Verily in this is a Sign for those who give thought." (Quran 16:68-9)

"Honey is a remedy for every illness and the Qur'an is a remedy for all illness of the mind, therefore I recommend to you both remedies, the Qur'an and honey.' (Bukhari)

The Prophet sawwhas also told us of the healing found within honey for a variety of medical problems, including stomach ailments.

It is reported by Al-Bukhaari that a man came to the Prophet saww because his brother had a stomach disorder. The Prophet saww said: "Let him drink honey." The man returned a second time complaining that no improvement happened in his brother’s case, and again the Prophet saww responded: "Let him drink honey." The man returned again, and said: "I have done that but to no avail." Thereupon the Prophet saww responded: "Allah has said the truth, but your brother's stomach has told a lie. Let him drink honey." He drank it and was cured. (Al-Bukhari)

Now we know for fact that honey contains antibacterial and antifungal properties, anti-diarrhoeal, wound-healing and anti-inflammatory properties and anti-tussive and expectorant properties as well as nutritional value. Just one example of the practical value of the sunnah.

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From Prophet Mohammad sallallaho alayhi waalihi wasallam s life:

The Garbage Thrower: (a heart touching story)

*

She thought till late at midnight and finally decided how to take revenge from him. She could not sleep all night, because she was too eager to take revenge for the idols she worshiped. Even before the first ray of sunlight had entered her window, she was busy sweeping her house. She saved all the garbage in a basket, placed it on the roof of her house and proudly looked at it for a while, then with an impatient look on her face, she looked at the street that she lived on, and thought, "No one has ever seen him angry. Everybody will praise me when they will see him shouting at me and getting mad. They will laugh at him and make fun of him." She looked at the basket again and grinned.


Meanwhile, she heard footsteps, announcing the approach of the end of her waiting. "Finally my prey has arrived," she thought, as she saw a man dressed in clean, white clothes coming that way. She picked up the basket in her hands and threw all the garbage on him when he passed by. Much to the woman's disappointment, he did not say anything and continued on his way.


She did the same the following day thinking, "Maybe this time I will be able to annoy him." But he was too gentle to shout at a woman. She misinterpreted his attitude as fear and decided to repeat the same mischief everyday in order to keep him frightened, so that he might stop preaching the Oneness of God.


This gentleman whom the woman hated so much was Muhammad (pbuh), the last prophet of Allah Almighty. He did not want to disappoint the woman and so continued to walk down the street everyday, instead of picking an alternate route, and prayed for the woman to recognize the Truth.


One day, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) did not find the woman to be on the roof of her house with the basket. This worried him, because he thought something must have happened to her for not being over there. So he knocked at the door. "Who is it?" asked a feeble voice. "Muhammad bin Abdullah," was the reply, "can I come in?" The woman feared, "I am sick, and too weak to fight or talk back, therefore Muhammad has come to take revenge for what I have been doing to him." But the permission to enter her house was in such a gentle voice that she allowed him in.


Muhammad (pbuh) entered the house and told the woman that not finding her on the roof had worried him and he thus wanted to inquire about her health. On finding out how ill she was, he gently asked if she needed any help. Hypnotized by the affectionate tone in the Holy Prophet's (pbuh) blessed voice, she forgot all fear and asked for some water. He kindly gave her some in a utensil and prayed for her health, while she quenched her thirst. This made her feel very guilty for being so cruel to him in the past and she apologized for her mean behavior. He forgave her and came to her house everyday to clean it, to feed her and to pray for her, till she was on her feet again. The kind attitude of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) inspired her into the recognition of the Truth, and his prayers were answered in the form of yet another addition into the growing number of Muslims.

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2. THE HOLY PROPHET (peace be upon Him)* AND THE SOUR GRAPES


One day a poor man brought a bunch of grapes to the holy prophet Muhammad*(peace be upon Him) as a gift.*
The holy prophet (pbuhf) ate one, two, three and then the whole bunch of grapes by himself. He did not offer grapes to anyone present. The poor man who brought those grapes was very pleased and left. One of the companions asked, "O prophet of Allah*(peace be upon Him) ! How come you ate all the grapes by yourself and did not offer to any one of us present?*

The holy Prophet*(peace be upon Him) smiled and said, "I ate all the grapes by myself because the grapes were sour. If I would have offered you, you might have made funny faces and that would have hurt the feelings of that poor man. I thought to myself that it's better that I eat all of them cheerfully and please the poor man. I did not want to hurt the feelings of that poor man."*
Such were the manners of this most noble prophet of Allah.*



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3. SACRIFICE OF THE LAMB

*

Just as the Prophet (S.A.W.), and his companions landed from their rides, and laid the loads down, it was decided that they would sacrifice a lamb for dinner.

One of the companions volunteered: "I will sacrifice the lamb."

Another: "I will skin it."

Third: "I will cook it."

Fourth: " I will...."

The Prophet (S.A.W.): "I will gather the wood from the desert."

The group: "O Messenger of Allah, it is not becoming of you to discomfort yourself as such. You rest. We will be honored to do all this on our own."

The Prophet (S.A.W.), "I know that you are eager to do it all, but Allah isn't pleased with the slave who distinguishes between himself and his companions, and considers himself better than others."

Then he went to the desert, and gathered some wood, and brought it to the group.

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GjK087d...ature=youtu.be

Importance of salah/nimaz...

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RACISM A DISEASE

The Messenger of Allah (saws) delivered the following sermon on the ‘Hajjat-ul-Wida’ occasion. This Sermon was delivered on the Ninth Day of Dhul Hijjah 10 A.H in the Uranah Valley of mount Arafat

"O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I don't know whether, after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.

O People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your Lord, and that He will indeed reckon your deeds. Allah has forbidden you to take usury (Interest), therefore all interest obligation shall henceforth be waived...

Beware of Satan, for your safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.

O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have right over you. If they abide by your right then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and committed helpers. And it is your right that they do not make friends with any one of whom you do not approve, as well as never to commit adultery.

O People, listen to me in earnest, worship Allah, say your five daily prayers (Salah), fast during the month of Ramadan, and give your wealth in Zakat. Perform Hajj if you can afford to.

You know that every Muslim is the brother of another Muslim. You are all the sons of Adam and Adam was created of dust.**Thus you are all equal. Nobody has superiority over other except by piety and good action.*There should be no differentiation between a black person or a white person, an Arab or an Ajmi (non-Arab).***Even if a black person is chosen as a leader amongst you, then it is your duty to follow him.

Remember, one day you will appear before Allah and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not astray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.

O People, no prophet or apostle will come after me and no new faith will be born. Reason well, therefore, O People, and understand my words which I convey to you. I leave behind me two things, the Qur'an and my example, the Sunnah; and if you follow these you will never go astray.

All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly.

Be my witness O Allah, that I have conveyed your message to your people."

In light of the above aayah of the Holy Quran, and the words of the Messenger of Allah (saws); it is evident that there is absolutely no room for any sort of racism in the deen of Islam.

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REPENTENCE:ROAD TO SALVATION:

The road to salvation is through certain belief that there is only One God and that He is Oft Forgiving and Most Merciful.**Islam states unreservedly that there is no such concept as original sin and that God does not require a blood sacrifice in order to forgive humankind for their sins and transgressions.

“Say: "O My slaves who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of God, verily, God forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Quran 39:53)

Making mistakes, falling short in our obedience to God, forgetting, and committing sins are all part of the imperfect nature of humankind.No human being is free from sin, no matter how good we appear to be and every human being is in need of God’s forgiveness.Prophet Muhammad saww, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him, was keenly aware of this when he spoke to his companions.

“By the One in Whose hand is my soul, if you did not commit sin God would do away with you and bring people who would commit sin then pray for forgiveness.”

“Every son of Adam sins and the best of those who sin are those who repent.”

We are all vulnerable, we all commit sins, and we all need to be forgiven.* We have an innate need to feel close to God and God in His infinite wisdom has made the path to forgiveness easy.* Prophet Muhammad himself experienced the sublime joy that came from feeling “right” with his Lord. He said,*“By God, I seek the forgiveness of God and I turn to Him in repentance more than seventy times each day.”

God, the Creator knows humankind perfectly, He knows our imperfections and our shortcomings, and thus He has prescribed repentance for us and left the door to repentance open until the sun rises from the west (near Judgement Day).

“And turn in repentance and in obedience with true Faith to your Lord and submit to Him, before the torment comes upon you, then you will not be helped.” (Quran 39:54)

“O you who believe! Turn to God with sincere repentance! It may be that your Lord will expiate from you your sins, and admit you into Gardens under which rivers flow (Paradise)…”(Quran 66:8)

“And all of you beg God to forgive you all, O believers, that you may be successful.” (Quran 24:31)

Repentance is as easy as turning to God and seeking His mercy and forgiveness. *In the darkest hour or longest night, God is waiting for all to ask of Him, and to repent to Him. *

“God spreads out His hand at night to accept the repentance of the one who sinned during the day, and He spreads out His hand by day to accept the repentance of the one who sinned during the night, (and that will continue) until the sun rises from the west. ”

There are no transgressions too small or sins to big that God will not be merciful to the one who calls on Him. *Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him, told the story of a man whose sins seemed to be too big for him to ever have hope of mercy, but God is most wise and oft forgiving. *Even those whose lives seem shattered beyond compare and blackened by sin, find comfort.



STORY OF A KILLER:

“There was among the people who came before you a man who killed ninety-nine people.* Then he asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth, and was directed to a hermit, so he went to him, told him that he had killed ninety-nine people, and asked if he could be forgiven.* The hermit said, ‘No,’ so he killed him, thus completing one hundred. *Then he asked about the most knowledgeable person on earth and was directed to a scholar. *He told him that he had killed one hundred people, and asked whether he could be forgiven. *The scholar said, ‘Yes, what could possibly come between you and repentance? Go to such-and-such a town, for in it there are people who worship God. *Go and worship with them, and do not go back to your own town, for it is a bad place.” So the man set off, but when he was halfway there, the angel of death came to him, and the angels of mercy and the angels of wrath began to argue over him. *The angels of mercy said: ‘He had repented and was seeking God.’ The angels of wrath said: ‘He never did any good thing.’ An angel in human form came to them, and they asked him to decide the matter. *He said, ‘Measure the distance between the two lands (his hometown and the town he was headed for), and whichever of the two he is closest to is the one to which he belongs.’ So they measured the distance, and found that he was closer to the town for which he had been headed, so the angels of mercy took him.”

In another version from the traditions of Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him,*it says, the man was closer to the righteous town by a hand span, so he was counted among its people.

Repentance is essential for a person to lead a peaceful life. The reward of repentance is a good life close to God and covered with contentment and peace of mind.* However, there are three conditions to repentance.* They are, giving up the sin, feeling regret forever having committed the sin and resolving never to go back to the sin. *If these three conditions are fulfilled with sincerity then God will forgive. *If the sin was to do with the rights of another person then there is a fourth condition. *That is to restore, if humanly possible, the rights taken away.

God’s mercy and forgiveness are so all encompassing that He will go on forgiving. If a person is sincere, God will forgive him until the moment that the death rattle reaches the throat.*

The noted Islamic scholar Ibn Kathir said, “Surely, when hope in continued living diminishes, the Angel of Death comes forth to collect the soul. When the soul reaches the throat, and is gradually pulled out, at that point there is no accepted repentance.”.

Genuine repentance marks the road to salvation.* Salvation is attained through sincere worship of God.* There is no God but He, the most powerful, the most merciful, the most forgiving.