Salaam

Hadrat Zain ul Abideen (ra) was the grandson of Imam Ali (ra).

During the early part of his life, he witnessed the martyrdom of his father, brothers, friends and family members in Karbala.

Once a guest came and requested shelter in his house….this guest was involved in brutally killing the noble family of Hadrat Zain ul Abideen (ra).

Hadrat Zain ul Abideen (ra) recognised him immediately however, he was extremely hospitable to his guest….he tended to his every need and made him feel comfortable in his home.

Later on the guest was informed by someone that he had taken shelter in the house of the one whose family he had brutally killed in Karbala….the guest asked Hadrat Zain ul Abideen (ra) why he had given him shelter in his home knowing who he was…

Hadrat Zain ul Abideen (ra) simply told him that “those were your deeds and these are my deeds”.

He also used to say “there is hidden sweetness in forgiveness that is not found in revenge”.

In reference to the above Hadrat Ali (ra) has said that ‘you should treat people well especially the ones who be bad to you in return’.

This is because it is easy to be good to people who be good to you. However it is much more difficult to be good to people who are ungrateful and unappreciative.

In another incident while the Imam was about to begin his prayers a man came round and began to use abusive language against him. Imam ignored the man first. But when he repeated the abusive language pointing to him directly,

Imam said to him, “If what you are saying about me, if it is true then I ask God’s forgiveness, but if it is not true, then only God can forgive you.” The man was thoroughly ashamed of his behaviour and apologised. Later on he became a great devotee of the Imam.

Wasalaam

"MuslimSister" wrote:

Hadrat Zain ul Abideen (ra) simply told him that “those were your deeds and these are my deeds”.

WAH WAH!

May I be sacrificed on the nobility of the Ahlul Bayt.
ameen

[color=darkblue]
[size=14]THE EFFECT OF A QUR`AANIC AAYAT o­n A LAD

Once Sheikh Abdul Waahid Bin Zaid (rahmatullahi alayh) made preparations for going o­n Jihaad. He instructed every o­ne of his companions to learn two Qur`aanic verses pertaining to the virtues of Jihaad. o­ne of his companions recited the following Aayat:

"Verily, Allah has purchased from the Mu`mineen their lives and their wealth in lieu of Jannat for them."

A 14 or 15 year old lad stood up. His deceased father had left for him an enormous amount of wealth. He said: "O Abdul Waahid! Has Allah indeed purchased the lives and wealth of the Mu`mineen in lieu of Jannat?"

The Shaikh replied: "Undoubtedly He has!"

The lad said: "You be my witness. I have sold my wealth and life in exchange for Jannat."

Sheikh Abdul Waahid: "Understand well that the blade of the sword is extremely sharp and you are still a kid. I fear that you may not be able to persevere and you may back pedal."

The lad: "O Sheikh! How can I retract after entering in a deal with Allah? What does this mean? I make Allah my witness and say that I have sold all my wealth and my life."

Feeling very ashamed of himself, Sheikh Abdul Waahid said to himself: "Just look at the intelligence of this lad and at my lack of intelligence inspite of my advanced age."

In short, the lad gave in Sadaqah his entire estate except his horse, weapons and a necessary amount for expenses. o­n the day of departure for Jihaad, he came to Sheikh Abdul Waahid and greeted. The Sheikh responded and said: "Be happy! Your trade is extremely profitable."

Along the journey, the lad would fast by day and remain awake at night in ibaadat. He served the others and attended to their animals. Sheikh Abdul Waahid continues the story:

"When we reached near a city of the Christians, the lad was exclaiming: ‘O Ainaa Mardhiyyah! Where are you?’

My companions said that perhaps the lad has become insane. I called him and asked him: ‘Friend, whom are you calling? Who is Ainaa Mardhiyyah?’ He gave the following explanation:

‘While I was in a state between wakefulness and sleep, a man approaching me said: ‘Come to Ainaa Mardhiyyah.’

I accompanied him until we entered a beautiful orchard. A river of crystal clear water was flowing. Along the banks were extremely beautiful girls dressed most resplendently. When they saw me, they exclaimed in delight: ‘This is the husband of Ainaa Mardhiyyah.’ I made Salaam to them and asked who among them was Ainaa Mardhiyyah. They responded that they were Ainaa Mardhiyyah’s slaves. She was further ahead. I walked o­n until I reached an orchard in which flowed a river of delicious milk. Along the bank were girls more beautiful than those I had seen. o­n seeing them I was captivated by their beauty, when they saw me, they delightfully said: ‘This is the husband of Ainaa Mardhiyyah.’ I asked: ‘Where is she?’ They said: ‘We are her servants. She is further ahead. Go to her home.’ I proceeded until I came to a river of pure delicious wine. The beauty of the damsels by this river made me forget all the other beautiful girls I had seen earlier. I greeted them and asked: ‘Is Ainaa Mardhiyyah among you?’ They said: ‘We are all her slaves. She is further o­n.’ I went further o­n until I came to a river of pure honey. The damsels o­n the banks of this river effaced the memory of all the females I had seen earlier. After greeting them, I asked about Ainaa Mardhiyyah. They said: ‘O Friend of Allah! We are her slaves. Walk ahead.’ I proceeded until I came to a beautiful tent-like structure of white pearls. At the entrance stood a girl of such captivating beauty which I had hitherto not seen. When she saw me, she exclaimed: ‘O Ainaa Mardhiyyah! Your husband has come.’

As I entered I saw a golden throne studded with precious stones. o­n it was seated Ainaa Mardhiyyah in all her resplendence. I was enraptured and beyond myself, captivated and madly in love. Seeing me, she said: ‘Welcome. O Friend of Allah! Your time of coming here is now near.’ I ran forward and wanted to embrace her, but she said: ‘Wait! It is not yet the time. There is earthly life in your soul. Insha-Allah, tonight you will have iftaar of your fast here.’ My eyes opened. Now I cannot contain myself.’"

Just as the lad completed his story, a group of the enemy attacked. The lad surged forward among the enemy. After killing nine kuffaar, he was martyred. Sheikh Abdul Waahid said: "When he was martyred I went to him. He was covered with blood and laughing delightfully. Within a few moments his soul departed."[/size][/color]

What does WAH WAH mean? :?:

"Ramz" wrote:

What does WAH WAH mean? :?:

roughly translated it means "WOW"

[b]Dho ‘I-Nan and the pious disciple [/b]

There was a disciple of Dho ‘l-Nun who had forty times observed the forty days’ seclusion, forty times he had stood at Arafat, and for forty years he had kept vigil by night. Forty long years he had sat sentinel over the chamber of his heart. One day he came to Dho ‘l-Nun.

‘`I have done all this,” he said. “For all that I have suffered, the Friend speaks not one word to me nor favours me with a single glance. He takes no account of me, and reveals nothing to me from the unseen world. All this I say not in order to praise myself. I am simply stating the facts. I have performed all that was in the power of me, poor wretch, to do. I make no complaint against God. I simply state the facts, that I devote my whole heart and soul to His service. But I am telling the story of the sadness of my evil luck, the tale of my misfortune. I do not say this because my heart has grown weary of obedience. Only I fear that if further life remains ahead of me, it will be the same. For a whole lifetime I have knocked in hope, but I have heard no response. Now it is grown hard for me to endure this any longer. Since you are the physician of the afflicted and the sovereign prescriber of the sages, minister now to my wretchedness.”

“Go and eat your fill tonight,” advised Dho ‘l-Nun. “Omit the prayer before sleep, and slumber the whole night through. So it may be that if the Friend will not show Himself kindly, He will at least show Himself reproachful; if He will not look on you with compassion, He will look on you with sternness.”

The dervish departed and ate his fill. His heart would not permit him to forgo the prayer before sleep, and so he prayed the prayer and fell asleep. That night he saw the Prophet in a dream.

“Your Friend greets you,” the Prophet said. “He says, ‘An effeminate wretch and no true man is he who comes to My court and is quickly sated. The root of the matter is uprightness of life, and no reproaches. God Almighty declares, I have given your heart its desire of forty years, and I grant you to attain all that you hope for, and fulfill all your desire. But convey My greetings to that bandit and pretender Dho ‘I-Nun. Say then to him, Pretender and liar, if I do not expose your shame before all the city, then I am not your Lord. See that you no more beguile the hapless lovers of My court and scare them not away from My court.’ “

The disciple awoke, and was overcome by weeping. He went and told Dho ‘l-Nun what he had seen and heard. When Dho ‘l-Nun heard the words, “God sends you greeting and declares you a pretender and a liar”, he rolled over and over with joy and wept ecstatically.

Anecdotes of Dho ‘l-Nan

Dho ‘l-Nun relates as follows.

I was wandering in the mountains when I observed a party of afflicted folk gathered together.

“What befell you?” I asked.

“There is a devotee living in a cell here,” they answered. “Once every year he comes out and breathes on these people and they are all healed. Then he returns to his cell, and does not emerge again until the following year.”

I waited patiently until he came out. I beheld a man pale of cheek, wasted and with sunken eyes. The awe of him caused me to tremble. He looked on the multitude with compassion. Then he raised his eyes to heaven, and breathed several times over the afflicted ones. All were healed.

As he was about to retire to his cell, I seized his skirt.

“For the love of God,” I cried. “You have healed the outward sickness; pray heal the inward sickness.”

“Dho ‘l-Nun,” he said, gazing at me, “take your hand from me. The Friend is watching from the zenith of might and majesty. If He sees you clutching at another than He, He will abandon you to that person, and that person to you, and you will perish each at the other’s hand.”

So saying, he withdrew into his cell.

One day Dho ‘l-Nun’s companions came to him and found him weeping.

“Why are you weeping?” they asked.

“Last night when I was prostrating in prayer,” he replied, “my eyes closed in sleep. I saw the Lord, and He said to me, ‘O Abu ‘l-Faiz, I created all creatures and they separated into ten parts. I offered the material world to them; nine of those ten parts turned their faces to the material world. One part remained over. That one part divided also into ten parts. I offered Paradise to them; nine parts turned their faces to Paradise. One part remained over. That one part split likewise into ten parts. I brought Hell before them; all fled and were scattered for fear of Hell. Only one part remained over, those who had not been lured by the material world, nor inclined after Paradise, neither were afraid of Hell. I said to them, “My servants, you looked not upon the material world, you inclined not after Paradise, you were not afraid of Hell. What do you seek?” All raised their heads and cried, “Thou knowest best what we desire.”

One day a boy approached Dho ‘l-Nun and said, “I have a hundred thousand dinars. I want to spend them in your service. I wish to use that gold on your dervishes.”

“Are you of age?” Dho ‘l-Nun asked him.

“No,” he replied.

“Then you are not entitled to expend,” Dho ‘l-Nun told him. “Wait with patience until you are of age.”

When the boy came of age he returned to Dho ‘l-Nun and repented at his hands. Then he gave all that gold to the dervishes, until nothing remained of the hundred thousand dinars.

One day an emergency arose, and nothing remained to the dervishes, for they had spent all the money.

“What a pity there is not another hundred thousand, so that I could spend it on these fine men,” said the benefactor.

When Dho ‘l-Nun heard him speak these words, he realized that he had not yet penetrated to the inner truth of the mystic life, for worldly things still seemed important to him. He summoned the young man.

“Go to the shop of such-and-such a druggist,” he instructed him. “Tell him from me to give you three dirhams’ worth of such-and-such a medicine.”

The youth went to the druggist’s, and presently returned.

“Put the stuff in the mortar and pound it up small,” Dho ‘l-Nun ordered him. “Then pour on top of it a little oil, until it becomes a paste. Make three pellets of it, and pierce each with a needle. Then bring them to me.”

The youth carried out these instructions, and brought the pellets. Dho ‘l-Nun rubbed them in his hands and breathed on them, and they turned into three rubies the like of which was never seen.

“Now take these to the market and have them valued,” ordered Dho ‘l-Nun. “But do not sell them.”

The youth took the rubies to the market and displayed them. Each one was priced at a thousand dinars. He returned and told Dho ‘l-Nun.

“Now put them in the mortar and pound them, and throw them into water,” the latter directed.

The youth did as instructed, and threw the powder into water.

“My child,” said Dho ‘l-Nun, “these dervishes are not hungry for lack of bread. This is their free choice.”

The youth repented, and his soul awoke. The world had no longer any worth in his eyes.

Dho ‘l-Nun related as follows.

For thirty years I called men to repent, but only one person came to the court of God in due obedience. The circumstances were these.

One day a prince with his retinue passed by me by the door of the mosque. I spoke these words.

“No one is more foolish than the weakling who tangles with the strong.”

“What words are these?” demanded the prince.

“Man is a weakling, yet he tangles with God who is strong,” I said.

The young prince grew pale. He arose and departed. Next day he returned.

“What is the way to God?” he asked.

“There is a little way, and there is a greater way,” I answered. “Which of the two do you want? If you desire the little way, abandon the world and the lusts of the flesh and give up sinning. If you want the great way, abandon everything but God, and empty your heart of all things.”

“By Allah, I will choose only the greater way,” said the prince.

The next day he put on the woollen robe, and entered the mystic way. In due course he became a saint.

The following story was told by Abu Ja’far the One-eyed.

I was with Dho ‘l-Nun when a group of his followers were present. They were telling stories of inanimate things obeying commands. Now there was a sofa in the room.

“An example,” said Dho ‘l-Nun, “of inanimate things obeying saints’ commands would be if I were to say to that sofa there, ‘Waltz around the house’ and it started to move.”

No sooner had Dho ‘l-Nun spoken these words than the sofa started to circle round the house, then it returned to its place. A youth present burst into tears at the sight, and gave up the ghost. They washed his body on that very sofa, and buried him.

Once a man came up to Dho ‘l-Nun and said, “I have a debt, and I have no means of paying it.”

Dho ‘l-Nun picked up a stone from the ground and gave it to him. The man took the stone to the bazaar. It had turned into an emerald. He sold it for four hundred dirhams and paid his debt.

A certain youth was always speaking against Sufis. One day Dho ‘l-Nun took the ring off his finger and handed it to him.

“Take this to market and pawn it for a dinar,” he said.

The young man took the ring to market, but they would not take it for more than one dirham. The youth returned with the news.

“Now take it to the jewellers, and see what they value it at,” Dho ‘l-Nun told him.

The jewellers priced the ring at a thousand dinars.

“You know as much about Sufis,” Dho ‘l-Nun said to the youth when he returned, “as those stallholders in the market know about this ring.”

The youth repented, and disbelieved in the Sufis no more.

Dho ‘l-Nun had been longing for sekbaj for ten years, but he never gratified that longing. Now it was the eve of festival, and his soul said within him, “How would it be if tomorrow you gave us a mouthful of sekbaj as a festival treat?”

“Soul,” answered Dho ‘l-Nun, “if you want me to do that, then consent with me tonight in chanting the whole Quran in the course of two rak’as.”

His soul consented. The next day Dho ‘l-Nun prepared sekbaj and set it before his soul. He washed his fingers and stood in prayer.

“What happened?” he was asked.

“Just now,” Dho ‘l-Nun replied, “my soul said to me, ‘At last after ten years I have attained my desire.’ ‘By God,’ I answered, ‘you shall not attain that desire.’ “

The relater of this story states that Dho ‘l-Nun had just spoken these words when a man entered and set a bowl of sekbaj before him.

“Master,” he said, “I did not come on my own. I was sent. Let me explain. I earn my living as a porter, and I have children. For some time now they have been asking for sekbaj, and I have been saving up. Last night I made this sekbaj for the festival. Today I saw in a dream the world-adorning beauty of the Messenger of God. ‘If you would see me on the morrow of uprising,’ said the Prophet, ‘take this to Dho ‘l-Nun and tell him that Muhammad, the son of Abdullah, the son of Abd al-Mottaleb, intercedes with him to make truce with his soul for one moment and swallow a few mouthfuls.’ “

“I obey,” said Dho ‘l-Nun, weeping.

As Dho ‘l-Nun lay on his deathbed his friends asked him, “What do you desire?”

“My desire,” he answered, “is that ere I die, even if it be for only one moment, I may know Him.”

He then spoke the following verses.

Fear wasted me,
Yearning consumed me,
Love beguiled me,
God revived me.

One day later he lost consciousness. On the night of his departure from this world, seventy persons saw the Prophet in a dream. All reported that the Prophet said, “The friend of God is coming. I have come out to welcome him.”

When he died, there was seen written in green on his brow, “This is the friend of God. He died in the love of God. This is the slain of God by the sword of God.”

When they lifted his coffin to carry him to the grave the sun was extremely hot. The birds of the air came and with wings flapping kept his bier shaded from his house to the graveside.

As he was being borne along the road, a muezzin chanted the call to prayer. When he reached the words of attestation, Dho ‘l-Nun lifted a finger out of the shroud.

“He is alive!” the shout went up.

They laid down the bier. His finger was pointing, but he was dead. For all that they tried, they could not straighten his finger. When the people of Egypt beheld this, they were all put to shame and repented of the wrongs they had done him. They did things over his dust that cannot be described in words.

"Ramz" wrote:

What does WAH WAH mean? :?:

Good question

WAH WAH is a noise a baby makes when he doesnt get his own way

or when he wants his bottle

"MuslimSisLilSis" wrote:

"Ramz" wrote:

What does WAH WAH mean? :?:

Good question

WAH WAH is a noise a baby makes when he doesnt get his own way

or when he wants his bottle

I just discovered the COOLEST thing EVER!

If I click the little rolly thing in the middle of my mouse and then simply move my mouse up or down - it will [i]automatically[/i] scroll me in that direction.

And there is like a little anchor thing wherever I clicked.

You can speed it up and slow it down depending on how fast you moved the mouse!!!!

Hey how did your sister's interview go?

"Don Karnage" wrote:

I just discovered the COOLEST thing EVER!

If I click the little rolly thing in the middle of my mouse and then simply move my mouse up or down - it will [i]automatically[/i] scroll me in that direction.

And there is like a little anchor thing wherever I clicked.

You can speed it up and slow it down depending on how fast you moved the mouse!!!!

Hey how did your sister's interview go?

ur losing it Dave :roll:

sis aint home yet-I just txt her asking how it went

her reply was "it went really well. I'm tired and hungry. Make sure u have munch ready when I get home x"

[b]Hasan of Basra and Abu Amr [/b]

It is related that Abu Amr, the leading authority on the reading of the Quran, was teaching the Quran one day when suddenly a handsome boy arrived to join his class. Abu Amr gazed at the child improperly, and immediately he forgot the whole Quran, from the p of “Praise” to the n of “jinn and men”. A fire possessed him, and he lost all self-control. In this state he called on Hasan of Basra and described to him his predicament.

“Master,” he wept bitterly, “such is the situation. I have forgotten the whole Quran.”

Hasan was most distressed to hear of his situation.

“Now is the season of the pilgrimage,” he said. “Go and perform the pilgrimage. When you have done that, repair to the mosque of Khaif. There you will see an old man seated in the prayer-niche. Do not spoil his time, but let him be until he is disengaged. Then ask him to say a prayer for you.”

Abu Amr acted accordingly. Seated in a corner of the mosque, he observed a venerable elder and about him a circle of people seated. Some time passed; then a man entered, clad in spotless white robes. The people made way before him, greeted him, and conversed together. When the hour of prayer arrived, the man departed and the people departed with him, so that the elder remained alone.

Abu Amr then approached and saluted him.

“In Allah’s name, help me,” he cried.

And he described his predicament. The elder, much concerned, raised his eyes to heaven.

“He had not yet lowered his head,” Abu Amr recounted, “when the Quran came back to me. I fell down before him for joy.”

“Who recommended me to you?” the elder asked.

“Hasan of Basra,” Abu Amr replied.

“Anyone who has an imam like Hasan,” the old man commented, “what need has he of another? Well, Hasan has exposed me. Now I will expose him. He rent my veil, and I will rend his as well. That man,” he went on, “in the white robes who entered after the afternoon prayer and left before the rest, and the others did him reverence—that man was Hasan. Every day he prays the afternoon prayer in Basra and then comes here, converses with me, and returns to Basra for the evening prayer. Anyone who has an imam like Hasan, why should he ask me for a prayer?”

subhanallah.

[b]Note: it is not permitted for men to gaze at women and young beardless youths.[/b]

Infact Imam Abu Haneefah's student, the famous Imam Muhammad started attending the majlis of Imam Abu Haneefah before his beard had appeared. Because of this Imam Muhammad was sat behind the Great Imam so the gaze of Imam Abu Haneefah would not fall on the beardless student. It is only when Imam Abu Haneefah perceived the growth of Imam Muhammad's beard in the shadow cast by Imam Muhammad that he was allowed to sit infront of Hadrat Imam.

May ALLAH honour and ennoble and increase the rank of the ulama e haq. ameen

way i didnt know that !!

[b]The conversion of Abdullah-e Mobarak [/b]

The circumstances of Abdullah-e Mobarak’s conversion were as follows. He became infatuated with a girl, so much so that he could not rest. One night during the winter he stood beneath

the wall of his beloved’s apartment until morning, waiting to catch a glimpse of her. All night it snowed. When the call to prayer sounded, he supposed that it was for the prayer before sleeping. Seeing the daybreak, he realized that he had been absorbed all night in his longing for his beloved.

“Shame on you, son of Mobarak!” he cried. “On such a blessed night you stood on your feet till morning because of your private passion, yet if the imam is over long in reciting a Sura during prayer you are quite frantic.”

Anguish gripped his heart forthwith, and he repented and devoted himself busily to worship. So complete was his devotion, that one day his mother, entering the garden, saw him sleeping under a rosebush whilst a snake with a narcissus in its mouth was driving flies away from him.

After that he set forth from Merv and stayed for a time in Baghdad, associating with the Sufi masters there. Then he proceeded to Makkah where he resided for a space, after which he returned to Merv. The people of Merv welcomed him back warmly, and set up classes and study-groups. At that time half of the people were followers of Traditions and half devoted themselves to jurisprudence. So today Abdullah is known as “the Approved of the Two Sects” because he was in accord with each, and both claimed him as their own. Abdullah founded two colleges in Merv, one for traditionists and the other for jurisprudents. He then left for Hejaz, and took up residence in Makkah again.

In alternate years he would perform the pilgrimage, and go out to the wars, and a third year he would engage in commerce. The profits of his trading he divided among his followers. He used to give dates to the poor, and count the date-stones; whoever ate more dates, he would offer a dirham for every stone.

So scrupulous was he in his piety, that on one occasion he had alighted at an inn. Now he had a valuable horse; he proceeded to prayer. Meanwhile his horse wandered into a field of wheat. He abandoned his horse there and proceeded on foot, saying, “He has devoured the crop of the authorities.” On another occasion he made the journey all the way from Merv to

Damascus to return a pen which he had borrowed and forgotten to give back.

One day as he was passing through a certain place they informed a blind man living there that Abdullah was coming. “Ask of him all that you require.”

“Stop, Abdullah,” the blind man called. Abdullah halted.

“Pray to God to restore my sight,” the man begged.

Abdullah lowered his head and prayed. At once the man saw again.

Abdullah-e Mobarak and Ali ibn al-Mowaffaq

Abdullah was living at Makkah. One year, having completed the rites of the pilgrimage, he fell asleep. In a dream he saw two angels descend from heaven.

“How many have come this year?” one asked the other.

“Six hundred thousand,” the other replied.

“How many have had their pilgrimage accepted?”

“Not one.”

“When I heard this,” Abdullah reports, “I was filled with trembling. ‘What?’ I cried. ‘All these people have come from afar out of the distant ends of the earth and with great pain and weariness from every deep ravine, traversing wide deserts, and all their labour is in vain?’ ‘There is a cobbler in Damascus called Ali ibn Mowaffaq,’ said the angel. ‘He has not come on the pilgrimage , but his pilgrimage is accepted and all his sins have been forgiven.’

“When I heard this,” Abdullah continued, “I awoke saying, ‘I must go to Damascus and visit that person.’ So I went to Damascus and looked for where he lived. I shouted, and someone came out. ‘What is your name?’ I asked. ‘Ali ibn Mowaffaq,’ he replied. ‘I wish to speak with you,’ I said. ‘Say on,’ he replied. ‘What work do you do?’ ‘I cobble.’ I then told him of my dream. ‘What is your name?’ he enquired when I had done. ‘Abdullah-e Mobarak,’ I replied. He uttered a cry and fell in a faint. When he recovered I said to him, ‘Tell me your story.’

“The man told me, ‘For thirty years now I have longed to make the pilgrimage. I had saved up three hundred and fifty dirhams from my cobbling. This year I had resolved to go to Makkah. One day the good lady within becoming pregnant, she smelt the smell of food coming from next door. “Go and fetch me a bit of that food,” she begged me. I went and knocked on the neighbour’s door and explained the situation. My neighbour burst into tears. “My children have eaten nothing for three days together,” she said. “Today I saw a donkey lying dead, so I hacked off a piece and cooked it. It would not be lawful food for you.” My heart burned within me when I heard her tale. I took out the three hundred and fifty dirhams and gave them to her. “Spend these on the children,” I said. “This is my pilgrimage.” ‘

“The angel spoke truly in my dream,” Abdullah declared, “and the Heavenly King was true in His judgment.”

[b]EDIT: PLEASE PROVIDE THE LINK TO LONG STORIES IN FUTURE[/b]

Saying of Salaf - Sufyan ibn 'Uyaynah
[size=13][color=darkblue]
Sufyân ibn ‘Uyaynah (rahimahullâh) said, "The most nimble of creatures still have need of a voice. The cleverest women still need to have a husband, and the cleverest man still needs to consult wise men."[/color][/size]

[b]Hasan of Basra and the fire-worshipper [/b]

Hasan had a neighbour named Simeon who was a fire-worshipper. Simeon fell ill and was at death’s door. Friends begged Hasan to visit him; he called, to find him in bed, blackened with fire and smoke.

“Fear God,” Hasan counselled him. “You have passed all your life amid fire and smoke. Accept Islam, that God may have mercy on you.”

“Three things hold me back from becoming a Muslim,” the fire-worshipper replied. “The first is, that you speak ill of the world, yet night and day you pursue worldly things. Secondly, you say that death is a fact to be faced, yet you make no preparation for death. In the third place, you say that God’s face shall be seen, yet today you do everything contrary to His good pleasure.”

“This is the token of those who know truly,” Hasan commented. “Now if believers act as you describe, what have you to say? They acknowledge the unity of God; whereas you have spent your life in the worship of fire. You who have worshipped fire for seventy years, and I who have never worshipped fire—we are both carried off to Hell. Hell will consume you and me. God will pay no regard to you; but if God so wills, the fire will not dare so much as to burn one hair of my body. For fire is a thing created by God; and the creature is subject to the Creator’s command. Come now, you who have worshipped fire for seventy years; let us both put our hands into the fire, then you will see with your own eyes the impotence of fire and the omnipotence of God.”

So saying, Hasan thrust his hand into the fire and held it there. Not a particle of his body was affected or burnt. When Simeon saw this he was amazed. The dawn of true knowledge began to break.

“For seventy years I have worshipped fire,” he groaned. “Now only a breath or two remains to me. What am I to do?”

“Become a Muslim,” was Hasan’s reply.

“If you give it me in writing that God will not punish me,” said Simeon, “then I will believe. But until I have it in writing, I will not believe.”

Hasan wrote it down.

“Now order just witnesses of Basra to append their testimony.”

The witnesses endorsed the document. Then Simeon wept many tears and proclaimed the faith. He spoke his last testament to Hasan.

“When I die, bid them wash me, then commit me to the earth with your own hands, and place this document in my hand. This document will be my proof.”

Having charged Hasan thus, he spoke the attestation of faith and died. They washed his body, said the prayer over him, and buried him with the document in his hand. That night Hasan went to sleep pondering what he had done.

“How could I help a drowning man, seeing that I am drowning myself? Since I have no control over my own fate, why did I venture to prescribe how God should act?”

With this thought he fell asleep. He saw Simeon in a dream glowing like a candle; on his head a crown, robed in fine raiment, he was walking with a smile in the garden of Paradise.

“How are you, Simeon?” Hasan enquired.

“Why do you ask? You can see for yourself,” Simeon answered. “God Almighty of His bounty brought me nigh His presence and graciously showed me His face. The favours He showered upon me surpass all description. You have honoured your guarantee; so take your document. I have no further need of it.”

When Hasan awoke, he saw that parchment in his hand.“Lord God,” he cried, “I know well that what Thou doest is without cause, save of Thy bounty. Who shall suffer loss at Thy door? Thou grantest a Guebre of seventy years to come into Thy near presence because of a single utterance. How then wilt Thou exclude a believer of seventy years?”

Quote:

[size=18] SALMAN AL-FARSI (The Persian) Radhia Allahu Anaha[/size]

This is a story of a seeker of Truth, the story of Salman the Persian, gleaned, to begin with, from his own words:

I grew up in the town of Isfahan in Persia in the village of Jayyan. My father was the Dihqan or chief of the village. He was the richest person there and had the biggest house.

Since I was a child my father loved me, more than he loved any other. As time went by his love for me became so strong and overpowering that he feared to lose me or have anything happen to me. So he kept me at home, a veritable prisoner, in the same way that young girls were kept.

I became devoted to the Magian religion so much so that I attained the position of custodian of the fire which we worshipped. My duty was to see that the flames of the fire remained burning and that it did not go out for a single hour, day or night.

My father had a vast estate which yielded an abundant supply of crops. He himself looked after the estate and the harvest. One day he was very busy with his duties as dihqan in the village and he said to me:

"My son, as you see, I am too busy to go out to the estate now. Go and look after matters there for me today."

On my way to the estate, I passed a Christian church and the voices at prayer attracted my attention. I did not know anything about Christianity or about the followers of any other religion throughout the time my father kept me in the house away from people. When I heard the voices of the Christians I entered the church to see what they were doing.

I was impressed by their manner of praying and felt drawn to their religion. "By God," I said, "this is better than ours. I shall not leave them until the sun sets."

I asked and was told that the Christian religion originated in AshSham (Greater Syria). I did not go to my father's estate that day and at night, I returned home. My father met me and asked what I had done. I told him about my meeting with the Christians and how I was impressed by their religion. He was dismayed and said:

"My son, there is nothing good in that religion. Your religion and the religion of your forefathers is better."

"No, their religion is better than ours," I insisted.

My father became upset and afraid that I would leave our religion. So he kept me locked up in the house and put a chain on my feet. I managed however to send a message to the Christians asking them to inform me of any caravan going to Syria. Before long they got in touch with me and told me that a caravan was headed for Syria. I managed to unfetter myself and in disguise accompanied the caravan to Syria. There, I asked who was the leading person in the Christian religion and was directed to the bishop of the church. I went up to him and said:

"I want to become a Christian and would like to attach myself to your service, learn from you and pray with you."

The bishop agreed and I entered the church in his service. I soon found out, however, that the man was corrupt. He would order his followers to give money in chanty while holding out the promise of blessings to them. When they gave anything to spend in the way oRGod however, he would hoard it for himself and not give anything to the poor or needy. In this way he amassed a vast quantity of gold. When the bishop died and the Christians gathered to bury him, I told them of his corrupt practices and, at their request, showed them where he kept their donations. When they saw the large jars filled with gold and silver they said.

"By God, we shall not bury him." They nailed him on a cross and threw stones at him.

I continued in the service of the person who replaced him. The new bishop was an ascetic who longed for the Hereafter and engaged in worship day and night. I was greatly devoted to him and spent a long time in his company.

(After his death, Salman attached himself to various Christian religious figures, in Mosul, Nisibis and elsewhere. The last one had told him about the appearance of a Prophet in the land of the Arabs who would have a reputation for strict honesty, one who would accept a gift but would never consume charity (sadaqah) for himself. Salman continues his story.)

A group of Arab leaders from the Kalb tribe passed through Ammuriyah and I asked them to take me with them to the land of the Arabs in return for whatever money I had. They agreed and I paid them. When we reached Wadi al-Qura (a place between Madinah and Syria), they broke their agreement and sold me to a Jew. I worked as a servant for him but eventually he sold me to a nephew of his belonging to the tribe of Banu Qurayzah. This nephew took me with him to Yathrib, the city of palm groves, which is how th e Christian at Ammuriyah had described it.

At that time the Prophet was inviting his people in Makkah to Islam but I did not hear anything about him then because of the harsh duties which slavery imposed upon me.

When the Prophet reached Yathrib after his hijrah from Makkah, I was in fact at the top of a palm tree belonging to my master doing some work. My master was sitting under the tree. A nephew of his came up and said:

"May God declare war on the Aws and the Khazraj (the two main Arab tribes of Yathrib). By God, they are now gathering at Quba to meet a man who has today come from Makkah and who claims he is a Prophet." I felt hot flushes as soon as I heard these words and I began to shiver so violently that I was afraid that I might fall on my master. I quickly got down from the tree and spoke to my master's nephew. "What did you say? Repeat the news for me."

My mastcr was very angry and gave me a terrible blow. "What does this matter to you? Go back to what you were doing," he shouted.

That evening, I took some dates that I had gathered and went to the place where the Prophet had alighted. I went up to him and said:

"I have heard that you are a righteous man and that you have companions with you who are strangers and are in need. Here is something from me as sadaqah. I see that you are more deserving of it than others."

The Prophet ordered his companions to eat but he himself did not eat of it.

I gathered some more dates and when the Prophet left Quba for Madinah I went to him and said: "I noticed that you did not eat of the sadaqah I gave. This however is a gift for you." Of this gift of dates, both he and his companions ate.

The strict honesty of the Prophet was one of the characteristics that led Salman to believe in him and accept Islam.

Salman was released from slavery by the Prophet who paid his Jewish slave-owner a stipulated price and who himself planted an agreed number of date palms to secure his manumission. After accepting Islam, Salman would say when asked whose son he was:

"I am Salman, the son of Islam from the children of Adam."

Salman was to play an important role in the struggles of the growing Muslim state. At the battle of Khandaq, he proved to be an innovator in military strategy. He suggested digging a ditch or khandaq around Madinah to keep the Quraysh army at bay. When Abu Sufyan, the leader of the Makkans, saw the ditch, he said, "This strategem has not been employed by the Arabs before."

Salman became known as "Salman the Good". He was a scholar who lived a rough and ascetic life. He had one cloak which he wore and on which he slept. He would not seek the shelter of a roof but stayed under a tree or against a wall. A man once said to him: "Shall I not build you a house in which to live?" "I have no need of a house," he replied.

The man persisted and said, "I know the type of house that would suit you." "Describe it to me," said Salman.

"I shall build you a house which if you stand up in it, its roof will hurt your head and if you stretch your legs the wall will hurt them."

Later, as a govenor of al-Mada'in (Ctesiphon) near Baghdad, Salman received a stipend of five thousand dirhams. This he would distribute as sadaqah. He lived from the work of his own hands. When some people came to Mada'in and saw him working in the palm groves, they said, "You are the amir here and your sustenance is guaranteed and you do this work!"

"I like to eat from the work of my own hands," he replied. Salman however was not extreme in his asceticism. It is related that he once visited Abu ad-Dardaa with whom the Prophet had joined him in brotherhood. He found Abu adDardaa's wife in a miserable state and he asked, "What is the matter with you."

"Your brother has no need of anything in this world*" she replied.

When Abu ad-Dardaa came, he welcomed Salman and gave him food. Salman told him to eat but Abu adDardaa said, "I am fasting."

"I swear to you that I shall not eat until you eat also."

Salman spent the night there as well. During the night, Abu ad-Dardaa got up but Salman got hold of him and said:

"O Abu ad-Dardaa, your Lord has a right over you. Your family have a right over you and your body has a right over you. Give to each its due."

In the morning, they prayed together and then went out to meet the Prophet, peace be upon him. The Prophet supported Salman in what he had said.

As a scholar, Salman was noted for his vast knowledge and wisdom. Ali said of him that he was like Luqman the Wise. And Ka'b al-Ahbar said: "Salman is stuffed with knowledge and wisdomÑan ocean that does not dry up." Salman had a knowledge of both the Christian scriptures and the Qur'an in addition to his earlier knowledge of the Zoroastrian religion. Salman in fact translated parts of the Qur'an into Persian during the life-time of the Prophet. He was thus the first person to translate the Qur'an into a foreign language.

Salman, because of the influential household in which he grew up, might easily have been a major figure in the sprawling Persian Empire of his time. His search for truth however led him, even before the Prophet had appeared, to renounce a comfortable and affluent life and even to suffer the indignities of slavery. According to the most reliable account, he died in the year thirty five after the hijrah, during the caliphate of Uthman, at Ctesiphon.

[url=http://anwary-islam.com/companion/s_salman-al-farsi.htm]source[/url]

Salaam

A righteous man was once thrown into a lion’s cage, and Allah (swt) saved him from its claws. He was later asked “What were you thinking about at the time?” He said “I was thinking about the Saliva of the lion-whether it is considered by scholars to be pure or impure”.

Classic example of one who has his priorities sorted out.

Imam Ahmad Bin Hanbal, during the pangs of death, was pointing to his beard, reminding his followers not to miss a spot whilst doing his ablution.

Qays Ibn Aasim al-Manqari, famous among the Arabs for his patience, was once narrating a story to some of his companions. A man came up to him and informed him that his son has just been murdered and the son of so and so was the murderer.

Qays did not cut his story short, but instead continued narrating it, in his usual calm demeanour and when he finished he said “Wash my son and shroud him”

Such was the high Sabr of our pious predecessors.

Wasalaam

[b]Shaqiq-e Balkhi before Harun al-Rashid [/b]

When Shaqiq set out on the Makkah pilgrimage and reached Baghdad, Harun al-Rashid summoned him.

“Are you Shaqiq the Ascetic?” Harun demanded when he came into his presence.

“I am Shaqiq,” he replied, “but not the Ascetic.”

“Counsel me,” Harun commanded.

“Then attend,” Shaqiq proceeded. “Almighty God has set you in the place of Abu Bakr the Trusty, and requires trustiness from you as from him. He has set you in the place of Umar the Discriminator, and requires from you as from him discrimination between truth and falsehood. He has set you in the place of Uthman of the Two Lights, and requires from you as from him modesty and nobility. He has set you in the place of Ali the Well-approved, and requires from you as from him knowledge and justice.”

“Say more,” Harun cried.

“God has a lodging-place called Hell,” Shaqiq said. “He has appointed you its doorkeeper, and has equipped you with three things—wealth, sword and whip. ‘With these three things,’ He commands, ‘keep the people away from Hell. If any man comes to you in need, do not grudge him money. If any man opposes God’s commandment, school him with this whip. If any man slays another, lawfully exact retaliation on him with this sword.’ If you do not these things, you will be the leader of those that enter Hell.”

“Say more,” Harun repeated.

“You are the fountain, and your agents are the rivulets,” said Shaqiq. “If the fountain is bright, it is not impaired by the darkness of the rivulets. But if the fountain is dark, what hope is there that the rivulets will be bright?”

“Say more,” Harun said again.

“Suppose you are thirsting in the desert, so that you are about to perish,” Shaqiq went on. “If in that moment you come upon a draught of water, how much will you be willing to give for it?”

“As much as the man demands,” said Harun. “And if he will not sell save for half your kingdom?”

“I would give that,” Harun replied.

“And suppose you drink the water and then it will not come out of you, so that you are in danger of perishing,” Shaqiq pursued. “Then someone tells you, ‘I will cure you, but I demand half your kingdom.’ What would you do?”

“I would give it,” answered Harun.

“Then why do you vaunt yourself of a kingdom,” said Shaqiq, “the value of which is one draught of water which you drink, and then it comes out of you?”

Harun wept, and sent Shaqiq away with all honour.

[b]Ahmad-e Harb and his son [/b]

Ahmad-e Harb had a little son whom he was training to trust in God.

“Whenever you want food or anything,” he told him, “go to this window and say, ‘Lord God, I need bread.’ “

Each time the child went to that place, the parents had so arranged to place in the window what the child desired.

One day they were out of the house when the child was overcome by the pangs of hunger. As usual he came under the window and prayed.

“Lord God, I need bread.”

Immediately food was sent down to him by the window. The household returned to find him sitting down and eating.

“Where did you get this from?” they asked. “From the one who gives me every day,” he replied. So they realized that he was well established in this way.