Poem: Money Is Either A Test Or A Blessing

💐 In The Name Of Allah The Most Gracious The Most Gracious The Most Merciful 

💌 The wealth that Allah gave you is a test from Allah. 

What you spend on from what you earn can reveal a  lot, 

Your true colors, your goals in life, what you truly love - 

Money: A route to Jannah, or a source of fitna. 

~•~

Some splurge their income on traveling around the world, 

On snacks, on cosmetics, on jewelry made of gold, 

On stacking up their closets with branded shoes and clothes, 

While most purchase essentials which they can just afford. 

~•~

How you use up your wealth can say so much about you - 

Generous - if you mostly buy gifts and feed the poor.

Greedy - if earnings are mainly spent on surplus food. 

Shallow - if richness makes you loathe those with less or few. 

~•~

Smart - if part of your salary grants access to books.

Selfish - if being rich only means improving looks, 

Adorning oneself with greed and pompous attitude.

Lost - if money distracts you from Jannah and the truth. 

~•~

The wise whom Allah guides utilize their wealth for good, 

To run Islamic schools so Islam is understood, 

To share Islam with all, so peace surrounds neighborhoods - 

Islam: Our faith that promotes patience and gratitude.

~•~

As Muslims we must stay patient with Allah's Qadr, 

Patient serving Allah and obeying His Orders, 

Patient during tough times and when things are in order, 

Patiently steadfast when gains increase or get lesser.

~•~

Remember: Dunya is not permanent - Jannah is. 

How wealthy one is doesn't measure actual success.

We're not yet successful until we pass Allah's tests, 

And meet Allah in Jannah where there's eternal bliss. 

~•~

📖 Ibn Abbas RadhiAllahu 'anhuma narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Take advantage of five before five: Your youth before your old age, your health before your illness, your riches before your poverty, your free time before your work, and your life before your death."

Source: Shu’ab Al-Imān 9575

Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Albani

📖 Abdullah ibn Umar RadhiAllahu 'anhuma narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "The upper hand is better than the lower hand. The upper hand is the one that gives and the lower hand is the one that takes."

Source: Sahih Al-Bukhari 1362

Sahih Muslim 1033

Grade: Muttafaqun Alayhi (Authenticity agreed upon) according to Al-Bukhari and Muslim

📖 Abdullah ibn Amr RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Beware of greed, for it was only greed that destroyed those before you. It commanded them to be miserly and they did so. It commanded them to sever their family ties and they did so. It commanded them to behave wickedly and they did so."

Source: Sunan Abī Dāwūd 1698

Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Albani

Poem: Compete For Allah's Love And Join Those Who Pass His Tests

💐 In The Name Of Allah The Most Gracious The Most Gracious The Most Merciful
💌 On earth where most ladies tend to be competitive,
Where they compare themselves to others and get jealous,
Only one kind of contest matters to the righteous -
To win Allah's Love and pass His tests with the pious.
~•~
We're not here to flaunt who is the most educated,
Who got the most awards and the best certificates,
Who's most skillful in art, fabulous at cosmetics,
And who's famous, or whose love life is most romantic.
~•~
If you're in the wrong race, it's no big deal if you've lost,
If you don't measure up to the materialistic,
Or you're not counted as "classy", "hot" or "rich" enough.
Allah, not His slaves, is the Only One to judge us.
~•~
The most noble of souls are those whom Allah guided,
Whom Allah blessed with knowledge, ethics, self-awareness,
Eagerness to improve and from vice they're protected,
Discernment of the truth, applying faith and courage.
~•~
Some lessons to learn from Khadija bint Khuwaylid:
Tough wives care for their men, they can run their own business,
In a decent method, through guardians or assisted,
They can propose or make themselves ready for marriage.
~•~
From caliph Ali's wife, Fatima bint Muhammad (SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam),
We learn to be daughters who are brave and supportive,
Wives who are hardworking and gratefully contented,
Mothers who show wisdom in educating their kids.
~•~
From Maryam bint 'Imran - mother of Prophet Jesus,
We learn "Only Allah is the One to be trusted",
With Tawakkal and firm faith/Imaan we can manage
And survive, even if we earn some people's hatred.
~•~
From Aasiyah bint Muzahim, we are motivated
To patiently persevere and do well in each test,
To keep seeking help from Allah, when hurt or oppressed,
And always aim for Jannah where there's eternal rest.
~•~
That's our mission, sisters, to pass all of Allah's tests,
With Sabr, Shukr, Taqwa, and ongoing progress
Towards Jannah while praying for Allah's Forgiveness,
Grateful we did our best to join those who stayed pious.
~•~
📖 Ibn Abbas RadhiAllahu 'anhuma narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "The best of women among the people of Paradise are Khadija bint Khuwaylid, Fatimah bint Muhammad, Maryam bint ‘Imran, and Aasiyah bint Muzahim, the wife of fir'awn."
Source: Musnad Ahmed 2896
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Albani
📖 Abu Huraira RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: It was said to the Messenger of Allah SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam “Which wives are best?” The Prophet SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, “One who pleases him (her husband) when he looks at her, obeys him when he requests her, and does not dispute him in herself and her wealth in a way he dislikes."
Source: Sunan Al-Nasā’ī 3231
Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to Al-Albani
📖 Abu Udhaynah RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "The best of your women are loving, fertile, suitable, and comforting, if they fear Allah.

The worst of your women unveil their beauty, take pride in their appearance, and they are hypocrites. None of them will enter Paradise except as rarely as you see a red-beaked crow."
Source: Al-Sunan Al-Kubrá 12480
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Albani
https://mjustsharingislam.blogspot.com/2020/04/poem-among-women-whom-i-admire.html

Note: Some Signs Of Hypocrites Which We Should Avoid

💐 In The Name Of Allah The Most Gracious The Most Merciful
💌 11 Signs of hypocrites - people who aren't really Muslims but pretend to be so, concealing disbelief in their hearts while appearing to be outwardly religious, with an agenda to cause problems among Muslim communities or they aim to give Islam a negative image:
1] Their good deeds, like praying or acting as though they're performing Salah, are usually done to gain people's praise, or to portray that they're Muslims when in reality they don't even accept the Shahaada.
2] Because they don't actually believe in Allah the Almighty, they seldom remember Him. The only times they mention Allah's Names, such as saying "MashaAllah" and "Alhamdulillah", is when some Muslims are nearby listening.
3] They don't bother praying on time and doing wudhu/ablution correctly. If they're the only ones in a public bathroom, they do ablution deliberately in a wrong manner (quick splashes of water here and there without proper niyyah/intention). They refuse to carry out their duties and responsibilities to Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala, so long as they're not being observed by others. For instance, they may claim they're "fasting", but they eat and drink in their homes when Muslims aren't observing.
4] They are known for being deceitful, dishonest and untrustworthy. Keeping promises or at least trying to be trustworthy is something they don't take seriously.
5] As chronic liars or betrayers, they are very careless with their words. Gossip, fallacious rumors, untruthful jokes, false accusations and unreliable ideas are examples of verbal nonsense that they're into.
6] Since they don't fear Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala, their lack of Taqwa leads them to feeling comfortable with telling lies on purpose, stealing, and deceiving others.
7] The only thing that makes them appear to be "Muslim" is wearing an Islamic clothing when outdoors (especially thobe for males and jilbaab or niqab for females). Or they insincerely declare that they support Islam when they've been plotting against Muslims since day one of interacting with them.
8] In order to conceal their reality, they quickly accuse others of disbelief, deviance, misguidance, hypocrisy and unreliability before someone can reveal their true colors.
9] Seeing how they aren't genuine Muslims, at least not yet, they do not value saying Dhikr and Du'a at all. Until they've embraced Islam truthfully from their hearts, saying Du'a and Adhkaar, as well as reading from the Noble Qur'an, are deeds they don't regard as important... unless a number of Muslims are surveying them. They're more likely to use a copy of the Noble Qur'an as mere decoration somewhere in their house rather than reading the Qur'an regularly for Allah's sake.
10] With causing fitna or inviting disruption to peaceful Muslim communities as one of their goals, they enjoy getting into arguments, encouraging Muslims to debate, and doing whatever they can to divide the Muslims. They'd rather be up all night debating vehemently with online users than praying Tahajjud / Qiyaam Al-Layl.
11] The eloquent "Islamic lectures", Islamic posts they occasionally share online, and what they sometimes call to contradict with their actual beliefs and actions done away from spectators. They don't make effort to practice what they preach, and even if they do some religious tasks visibly at times, they are not consistent or an ounce bit sincere.
📖 Jundub RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Whoever acts to be heard, Allah will make him heard. Whoever acts to show off, Allah will show him off."
Source: Sahih Al-Bukhari 6134, Sahih Muslim 2987
Grade: Muttafaqun Alayhi (Authenticity agreed upon) according to Al-Bukhari and Muslim
Al-Nawawi said, “The scholars said it means whoever is ostentatious in his deeds and he publicizes it to people so that they honor him, aggrandize him, and believe he is righteous, Allah will publicize it to the people on the Day of Resurrection and disgrace him.”
Source: Sharh Al-Nawawī ‘alá Sahih Muslim 2986
📖 Anas ibn Malik RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Whoever has three traits is a hypocrite, even if he fasts, prays, goes to Hajj and Umrah, and claims to be a Muslim. When he speaks, he lies. When he promises, he breaks it. When he is trusted, he betrays it."
Source: Musnad Abī Ya’lá 4039
Grade: Hasan li ghayrihi according to Al-Albani
📖 ‘Ammar RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Whoever carries two faces in the world, he will have two tongues of fire on the Day of Resurrection."
Source: Sunan Abī Dāwūd 4873
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Albani
📖 Umar ibn Al-Khattab RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Verily, among what I fear most for my nation is every hypocrite with a knowledgeable tongue."
In another narration, Umar RadhiAllahu 'anhu said, “His tongue is knowledgeable, but his heart and deeds are ignorant.”
Source: Musnad Ahmed 140
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Ahmed Shakir
📖 ‘Imran ibn Husayn RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Among what I fear most for you are the debates of hypocrites with a knowledgeable tongue."
Source: Sahih Ibn Hibbān 80
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Arna’ut

Note: Eleven Things To Do To Avoid Nifaaq/Hypocrisy

💐 In The Name Of Allah The Most Gracious The Most Merciful
💌 11 Things to do to avoid nifaaq/hypocrisy:
1] Make sure that your good deeds are done sincerely to please Only Allah the Almighty, not for His servants' acclamation.
2] Strive to remember Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala and say Dhikr whenever possible, not solely when an audience or onlooker is watching. So if you sneeze and there's no other person nearby, for example, still say "Alhamdulillah" in an audible voice as you normally do.
3] Try your best to properly perform all of the duties we're obligated to do, particularly praying the obligatory prayers at their right timings and performing wudhu/ablution correctly.
4] When you've promised somebody to do something, try your utmost to fulfill your promise. In case you're unable to carry it out, at least apologize and explain your side, or do what you can to compensate for that shortcoming.
5] Ensure that whatever you say and declare online and offline are truthful, factual or confirmed. If you're not certain of a fact, at least add "I guess", "I think", "From what I understand", "As far as I've seen" or "In my opinion" to your statement.
6] Remain honest and trustworthy for Allah's sake, even if you've previously encountered individuals who proved they were unreliable. Stay away from deceit, purposely lying (particularly in business transactions), fraud, forgery, stealing, plagiarism, and being deliberately two-faced.
7] Have sincere determination to do more good deeds for Allah's sake offline than appearing to be pious online. The more you serve Allah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala in private away from the presence of people, the more you enhance your sincerity/Ikhlaas, while the urge to receive compliments from others is lessened.
Good deeds you can secretly do to earn Allah's Love include: Praying Tahajjud / Qiyaam Al-Layl habitually, fasting Sunnah fasts regularly without notifying people you're fasting, doing charity and giving tips to others without announcing your charitable works.
8] As much as possible avoid accusing anybody directly of kufr/disbelief or nifaaq/hypocrisy, specially if you lack sufficient proofs to support your accusations. Oftentimes critics who unfairly accuse others with certain terms and labels are the ones in reality guilty of their own accusatory remarks. For instance, someone who judges you to be a "homosexual" because of your overall behavior could themselves be covertly attracted to the same gender, just as a complete stranger who doesn't really know you yet claims you "speak too much to impress" may be the culprit whose insults directed at you describe them more suitably.
Think well of other Muslims, just as you wouldn't want them to constantly mistrust you, believing that Allah the All-Knowing is rightfully the Only Judge in both worlds.
9] Supplicate wholeheartedly and keep praying to Allah the Most Forgiving that He protects you from shirk/polytheism, bid'ah/innovation, misguidance, riyaa/showing off to the people, insincerity, apostasy, and nifaaq/hypocrisy.
10] Refrain from being too keen on debating with others. As long as you've tried to share some authentic knowledge for Allah's sake with clear evidence from the Noble Qur'an and Sunnah of the beloved Prophet Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam, you don't need to force your beliefs unto those who are too stubborn or close-minded. Excessive arguments and unnecessary drama can cause one's faith/Imaan level to decrease. The weaker their faith is, the more prone they are to disobeying Allah's Laws until they expose themselves to acts that are typical of those accountable for hypocrisy.
11] Don't be among those who never practice what they preach. Whenever you remind other Muslims to do a particular good deed, be sure that you similarly do that action. When warning or advising others against actions which are haraam/forbidden, ensure that you also abstain from those wrongdoings.
📖 Jundub RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Whoever acts to be heard, Allah will make him heard. Whoever acts to show off, Allah will show him off."
Source: Sahih Al-Bukhari 6134, Sahih Muslim 2987
Grade: Muttafaqun Alayhi (Authenticity agreed upon) according to Al-Bukhari and Muslim
Al-Nawawi said, “The scholars said it means whoever is ostentatious in his deeds and he publicizes it to people so that they honor him, aggrandize him, and believe he is righteous, Allah will publicize it to the people on the Day of Resurrection and disgrace him.”
Source: Sharh Al-Nawawī ‘alá Sahih Muslim 2986
📖 Anas ibn Malik RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Whoever has three traits is a hypocrite, even if he fasts, prays, goes to Hajj and Umrah, and claims to be a Muslim. When he speaks, he lies. When he promises, he breaks it. When he is trusted, he betrays it."
Source: Musnad Abī Ya’lá 4039
Grade: Hasan li ghayrihi according to Al-Albani
📖 ‘Ammar RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Whoever carries two faces in the world, he will have two tongues of fire on the Day of Resurrection."
Source: Sunan Abī Dāwūd 4873
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Albani
📖 Umar ibn Al-Khattab RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Verily, among what I fear most for my nation is every hypocrite with a knowledgeable tongue."
In another narration, Umar RadhiAllahu 'anhu said, “His tongue is knowledgeable, but his heart and deeds are ignorant.”
Source: Musnad Ahmed 140
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Ahmed Shakir
📖 ‘Imran ibn Husayn RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "Among what I fear most for you are the debates of hypocrites with a knowledgeable tongue."
Source: Sahih Ibn Hibbān 80
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Arna’ut

Hadith: Warning Against Accusing A Muslim Without Proofs

📖 Abu Dharr RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "A man does not accuse another man of wickedness or disbelief except that it will be turned against him, if his companion is innocent."
Source: Sahih Al-Bukhari 5698
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Bukhari
📖 Abu Huraira RadhiAllahu 'anhu narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said, "When a man accuses his brother of being an unbeliever, then it will be turned against at least one of them."
Source: Sahih Al-Bukhari 5752
Grade: Sahih (Authentic) according to Al-Bukhari
📖 Ibn Umar RadhiAllahu 'anhuma narrated: Allah's noble Messenger Muhammad SallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam said: "When a man calls his brother an unbeliever, it turns against at least to one of them. Either the accused is as he claimed, or else the charge will turn against him."
Source: Sahih Al-Bukhari 5753
Sahih Muslim 60
Grade: Muttafaqun Alayhi (Authenticity agreed upon) according to Al-Bukhari and Muslim