eid is wednesday, dang it!

Mr. Moo is a genius:

farewell

farewell Ramadan

another year come and gone

another year wasted

goals set, advances anticipated

but for naught

heart aches for lost opportunities

khalas

farewell Ramadan

next year inshaAllah

*disclaimer*  I am not a poet.  I have never claimed to be a poet.  Please excuse this pitiful attempt at poetry as a desperate attempt to get my feelings out.

itikaf!

Alhamdulilah, the husband found a masjid that has women’s itikaf.

‘A’isha reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to do i’tikaf for the last ten days of Ramadan until Allah Almighty caused him to die. Then his wives did i’tikaf after him. [Agreed upon]

Itikaf is a spiritual retreat.  It was traditionally done by the Prophet (saws) in the masjid during the last 10 days of Ramadan.  However, it can be done for a shorter period of time, and women can do it at home.

inshaAllaha ta’la I’ll be making one day of itikaf this year.  I haven’t done anything like it since college, so I’m uber excited.   I’ll be making it for 24-25 hours, from the evening on Friday until after magrhib on Saturday, my b-day, inshaAllah.  I’m going to bring a bunch of stuff to keep me occupied, since I have the attention span of a flee.

•  Quran - Muhammad Asad and Bewley translations
• Keys of the Garden by Habib Ahmad Mashur al-Haddad
• A biography of the Prophet (saws)
• Blissful Marriage: A Practical Islamic Guide
• My ipod containing only Qur’an, nasheed and lectures.  No NPR.
• Pillow and sleeping bag

Here’s the schedule I’ve worked out in my mind:

• Stay up until fajr
• Pray fajr
• Sleep until mid morning
• Stay up until itikaf is done

And here are my goals:

• Read entire Qur’an in english
• Read at least a juz in arabic
• Make up at least one day’s worth of prayers every hour I’m awake, if not more (soo many missed prayers to make up)
• Make 10 minutes of dhikr each hour
• Read through the first half of Muhammad by Yahiya Emerick and come up with discussion questions for my book group
• Fill the rest of the time either listening to Qur’an or listening to lectures

Yaaay, sooo excited!

the power of dua

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said; Three supplications will not be rejected: the supplication of the parent for his child, the supplication of the one who is fasting, and the supplication of the traveler. [al-Bayhaqi, at-Tirmidhi - Sahih]

The prophet (saws) declared, ‘Three men whose dua is never rejected (by Allah) are: when a fasting person breaks fast (in another narration, the fasting person until he breaks his fast), the just ruler and the one who is oppressed.’[Ahmad, at-Tirmidhi - Hasan]

Are you taking advantage of this month in your dua?  Are you supplicating your little hearts out?  Please include these people in your dua:

Cairo Rockslide Deathtoll Climbs

At least 47 people are known to have died in a rockslide at a shanty town in Cairo, the Egyptian capital.

Some reports say hundreds more people may be buried beneath the rubble. Hopes of finding more survivors are fading though rescue efforts continue.

The authorities have been criticised for a delay in sending heavy machinery.

Ramadan Curbs Imposed on Muslims in Western China

The rules include prohibiting women from wearing veils and men from growing beards, as well as barring government officials from observing Ramadan. One town, Yingmaili, requires that local officials check up on mosques at least twice a week during Ramadan.

…

They include barring teachers and students from observing Ramadan, prohibiting retired government officials from entering mosques and requiring men to shave off beards and women to doff veils. Mosques cannot let people from outside of town stay overnight and restaurants must maintain normal hours of business. Many restaurants close in daytime hours during Ramadan because of the sunrise-to-sunset fasting.

ramadan in review, week one

Alhamdulilah, the RNC is done, and the republicans and inshaAllah rioters have gone home.  Thursday was another eventful evening.  The city of Saint Paul made a huge mistake - they granted limited permits to march and gather.  The permit for Thursday’s gathering ended at 5.  The protesters wanted to march after 5, so they marched.  Thus, the streets of downtown Saint Paul were all jammed.

So the bus let us off up north of the capital.  No one knew anything.  No communication.  Were the buses running downtown?  Should I walk the 3/4 of a mile down there only to find out there were no buses, and have to hike out the mile and a half I hiked on Monday?  I decided to just walk straight to that point at University and Lafayette that I did on Monday, in my dress shoes.  Alhamdulilah I don’t wear heels.  Alhamdulilah it wasn’t 90 degrees.  Still, it took me 2 hours to get home, when it normally takes me just one.

I have several regrets about this week:

1.  I didn’t get tickets to the daily show.  Dur.  This is a regret for 2 reasons.  One, I *heart* Jon Stewart, and the shows this week were awesome.  Two, I shouldn’t be so upset about missing this during Ramadan.  I should be spending this time focusing on Allah (swt), but no, my heart is tied to the dunya and to Jon Stewart.
2. I was too attached to the dunya all around.  I fell behind miserably on my ibadah goals.  Usually I don’t lose momentum until midway through the second week.  This time, I had no momentum from the get go.

Ok, I guess it’s just a few regrets, not several, but still.  Some things did go well however:

1. Prayed fajr at the masjid on Saturday.  There were only 2 other people there besides my husband and I, and no kids, so it was very quiet.  This gave me uninterrupted ibadah time.  Unfortunately, this messed up the husband’s sleep pattern, which in turn made him sick, so he’s not too keen to go and spend the dawn hours out again *sigh*
2. Iftar at the masjid.  I’m usually quite shy, and as such, I haven’t interacted too much with people at the masjid iftars.  This year I’m doing it different.  I’m saying salaams to everyone and striking up conversations.  Imagine that, it’s working :D
3. The Egyptian iftar.  I’ve been trying to get in with the women who make the egyptian masjid iftar for years.  This year, I was actually invited to help cook.  Huzzah!  2 saturdays from now, inshaAllah I’ll be elbow deep in egyptian food.   I make a pretty mean grape leaf mahshy (stuffed grape leaves), and inshaAllah I can learn other dishes as well.

Next week, here are the goals inshaAllah:

1.  Read a juz every day
2. Learn one new surah
3. Go to taraweeh prayer at least once

poke poke

Poking myself out of my antipathetic slumber:

Fasting: the Book of Assistance by Imam Haddad

You should work only for the hereafter in this noble month, and embark on something worldly only when absolutely necessary. Arrange your life before Ramadan in a manner which will render you free for worship when it arrives. Be intent on devotions and approach God more surely, especially during the last ten days. If you are able not to leave the mosque, except when strictly necessary, during those last ten days then do so. Be careful to perform the Tarawih prayers during every Ramadan night. In some places it is nowadays the custom to make them so short that sometimes some of the obligatory elements of the prayer are omitted, let alone the sunnas. It is well known that our predecessors read the whole Qur’an during this prayer, reciting a part each night so as to complete it on one of the last nights of the month. If you are able to follow suit then this is a great gain; if you are not, then the least that you can do is to observe the obligatory elements of the prayer and its proprieties.

Muslim devotees offer “Tarawi” prayers on the eve of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan at the Istiqlal mosque in Jakarta on August 31. Families across Indonesia are having to cut back during Ramadan as rising food and fuel prices limit spending power for the nightly festivities. (AFP/File/Jewel Samad)

A Lebanese Muslim man prays during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan at a mosque in Sidon, southern Lebanon September 3, 2008. Muslims around the world abstain from eating, drinking and sexual relations from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar. REUTERS/ Sharif Karim (LEBANON)

An Egyptian boy looks up as his father prays on a street during the first day of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan in Tukh, about 60 km (38 miles) north of Cairo September 1, 2008. Muslims around the world congregate for special evening prayers called “Tarawih” during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, when they abstain from eating, drinking and conducting sexual relations from sunrise to sunset. REUTERS/Amr Dalsh (EGYPT)

Blind Muslim women read the Braille Koran during Ramadan in Jakarta September 3, 2008. Muslims around the world abstain from eating, drinking, and sexual relations from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar. REUTERS/Dadang Tri (INDONESIA)

not my cooking academy!

I think what I’ll miss most when I finally give up television (inshaAllah) is the PBS cooking academy. Saturday morning, I plop down for a good 2 to 3 hours, and watch show after show, attempting to gleen recipes and techniques. Almost every weekend, I come away with something new to cook.

Yesterday, I found it on Sara’s Weeknight Meals - Quick Asparagus Lasagna. As always, I futzed with the recipe. I made the dish twice as big as called for - 12 square wantons rather than 6 per layer, doubled the veggies, but didn’t double the cheese. This was mainly a result of the fact that the only pan I had available would fit 12, and that I had frozen broccoli in the freezer to add for the unplanned expansion. The first layer I laid down the broccoli, and the second was the asparagus and the onions. Tasty tasty tasty. Definitely in the “will make again” pile. Next time, I think I may add a light tomato sauce to give it a little more flavor.

If anyone is looking for a quick and easy iftar recipe, this is definitely one for the books.

On a related note, went to the Saint Paul Farmer’s market on Saturday to get veggies for the iftars I’ll be making this week.

You really can’t get a good sense of size from this picture. Everything but the tomatoes and eggplants are massive. The cauliflower is seriously bigger than my head. The tomatoes, peppers and green peppers are for the Huevos Rancheros (another cooking academy find) I’m going to make for the first suhoor Monday inshaAllah, if Ramadan really is Monday that is. If it’s Tuesday, I doubt we really want a bunch of beans before we go to work.

Finally, my dear beloved dates. I went to Holy Land last weekend to stock up on grape leaves and other ME cooking essentials. The date section was well stocked, but what was this?? No majdool dates???? Oh, I nearly had a heart attack. It just isn’t ramadan without these dates. Nothing else tastes good to me. Luckily, I tracked down an employee and pleaded with her, where are the majdool dates? Apparently, they weren’t done boxing them up yet, but she went in the back and got me some. Alhamdulilah, now ramadan can start!

iftar week 1

Ooo, it’s almost here!  Ramadan will start either the 1st or the 2nd, inshaAllah.  For working women, Ramadan can be a nightmare.  You work hard all day long, and then come home and try to whip up something for the family to enjoy.  Even if they’re not expecting anything fancy (alhamdulilah the husband isn’t one who demands a 5 course meal, which is good, cuz he’d never get one), it can still drain away the little energy and time you have, and there’s not much left to dedicate to ibadah.

This year, it’s going to be different.  inshaAllah I’m going to do the bulk of the cooking/baking on the weekends. Then, during the week the husband and I can take a walk after work, spend some time with the Qur’an and just heat up the iftar. 

So now I’m planning what I’ll be making this weekend.  It’s Farmer’s Market day here in downtown Minneapolis, so I’m hoping do a lot of with fresh veggies.

Cauliflower with Tomato (Arnabet Ba AL-Tamatem)

There should be some cauliflower at the FM.  I always make this with much less butter than is actually called for , 1 or 2 tablespoons as opposed to half a freakin stick.

Mulukhiya

I’m so not a fan, but the husband is, so he can “enjoy” all of this green, snot-like dish.  bleck.  I use a variation first recipe with frozen mulukhiya.  I don’t actually use a chicken.  Instead, I use chicken stock.

Huevos Rancheros and Refried Beans

This is actually what I’m planning to make for suhoor of the first day.  I saw this episode of America’s Test Kitchen last weekend and have been dying to try it.  You have to register to see the recipe, but it’s well worth it.  It’s done with homemade salsa and refried beans.  It calls for pork fat, but I’ll just substitute butter. 

The husband loves foul (mashed fava beans), so I thought he would love refried beans.  I was shocked to find out that he didn’t.  Then I saw this episode last week, and they tasted premade canned beans and hate them all.  Ah, perhaps it is the fact that I’ve only served premade beans, and he’s used to homemade foul.  So, perhaps he’ll like the refried beans that I’ll be making from scratch, inshaAllah.

Chicken

No recipe here, just the same ol same ol.  I have to prep it the *egyptian* way, otherwise it apparently smells too much like chicken.  Um yeah, too much like chicken.  So, I rub it down with flour, let it sit awhile, rinse it off, and then rub it with grated onions, pepper and lemon juice.    Then I’ll pick a spice from my collection (oh, it’s lovely, I’ll be blogging about that eventually), rub it in, and bake in the oven until it’s done, at 350. 

Vegetable Lasagna

Haven’t tried this one yet, but I can get zucchini, eggplan, squash and possibly mushrooms at the FM.

Quick Moussaka

My great aunt gave me some old Everyday Food magazines, and this is one of my favorite recipes.

Curried Shrimp

I don’t leave the tails on.  bleck!

Yup, I think that looks good.  More than enough food for a week.  Add to that a bag of salad and a bowl of watermelon, and we’ll be good to go inshaAllah.

ramadan linkage

I’m an online kinda muslim.  I learned about Islam online.  I nearly converted online.  I met my husband online.  And for the most part, my interactions with the ummah are on the interwebz.  I’m quite shy in the real world, but when I log on and start typing, all that shyness evaporates.  

It’s not that I don’t enjoy the real world masjid scene.  Ok, no wait, I don’t really enjoy the real world masjid scene.  I could go on and on about the issues I have, but inshaAllah I’m going to focus on the positive.   I enjoy the wonderful food the aunties cook for iftar.  My first fond memories of the masjid were the weekly iftars during college, where the community cooked copious amounts of delicious backhomelandia food for the hungry students.  And jummah prayer during Ramadan is awesome.   The hall is usually stuffed, and the energy is at its peak. 

However, when it comes to pumping myself up for Ramadan, I turn to Sheikh Google to see what the online ummah has to offer.   A few years back, I started a thread on one of the message boards I frequented to share the treasures I stumbled upon in my online wanderings.  I would post these so prolifically that other posters called me the Queen of the Links.  Gradually, that thread morphed into this blog.

With Ramadan fast approaching, the urge to muck around in online material is increasing.  And in honor of my humble beginnings as that crazy poster who could find a link for every occasion, I give you the best of the best (or at least what I could find in the past week from my old ramblings and new searching), my favorite Ramadan related interwebz content that I will be reading and listening to as the blessed month approaches and arrives.

~*~ rahma’s Ramadan register ~*~

Soundvision’s Ramadan Page - everything here is worth reading, although these are my favorites:

• 10 Great Goals to Set for Ramadan

• Inner Dimensions of Fasting - comes Imam Al Ghazali’s Inner Dimensions of Islamic Worship, which is a great book all round.

Zaytuna- a veritable treasure trove of iman boosting mp3s and articles

• Ramadan Reflections One One, Two Two and Three Three, Ramadan Preparations, Ramadan Mubarak!,  Approaching Ramadan, Towards Resolving the Recurring Moon-sighting Controversy, Farewell to a Blessed Ramadan and Ramadan Farewell Ramadan Farewell by Imam Zaid 

• Moon Sighting Moon Sighting, Ramadan Khutbah, Cesarean Moon Births and Ramadan Advice Ramadan Adviceby Sheikh Hamza

• Maliki Ramadan Fiqh One One, Two Two and Three Threeby Muhammad Rami Nsour 

• Hanafi Ramadan Fiqh One One and Two Twoby Imam Tahir Anwar

• Virtues of Ramadan One One and Two Twoby Shaykh Salek bin Siddina 

• Holy Verses of Ramadan Holy Verses of Ramadanby Qari Amar 

• Statement Concerning the Beginning of Ramadan, Zaytuna’s Policy Prescription For Determining the Start of Islamic Months

• The Night of the Fifteenth of Sha’baan (Nisf Sha’baan)by Mona Elzankaly

Sunnipath - search Ramadan and Fasting for more

• Ramadan and You - although it’s too late to sign up for this year, put it on your to do list for next Ramadan.  Awesome class.

• An Excellent Article on Ramadan

• Fasting in Ramadan - a Muslim Pharmacist’s Perspective

• Chapter on Fasting from the Book of Assistance

• The Book of Fasting, Its Secrets, Its Tasks and What’s Associated with It

• Prophetic Guidance on Fasting from Riyad al Saliheen

• The Basics of Fasting according to the Shafi’i School

TJ Ramadan Resources - oodles of Ramadan activities for the youngins and not so youngins.  I’m plumbing this resource for the post iftar activities that our masjid will (inshaAllah inshaAllah inshaAllah) be having this year.

In the Shade of Ramadan- a series of videos that went up last year.  There’s one for each day, and make an excellent little listen after iftar.

Yahoo News Photos- I can almost hear the puzzlement at this one.  Ah, but get this - if you search “ramadan,” Ramadan related photos pop up.  There are usually a goodly amount of new ones each day.  When I was an internet only muslim, this was my only link to the ummah.  I lived vivaciously through the joyous celebrations of others that I saw in the pictures.

I Profess - goodies for newbies including Getting Ready for Ramadan.

Ramadan FAQs - Health and Safety of Islamic Fasting

Crescent Life Ramadan Section - in particular Diet During Ramadan

Saudi Aramco World- check the archives under Ramadan for past articles.  Don’t forget to subscribe (for free!) while you’re there.  My favorite article isn’t in the archives, but there is a pdf scan of it (lots of patience required, it’s huge and takes awhile to download) - Ramadan USA.

Path to Peace Ramadan Section

Mutmainaa Ramadan Section

Sunnah Online - in particular Ramadan: Have you got what it takes?

Deviantart- search “ramadan” and “eid” for spiffy art

Islam Online’s Ramadan Section- it’s from last year, but inshaAllah the new one will be up soon.

Ramadan: It’s not just a food fast

Lord of Ramadan Music Video

Teen Imams- PBS piece on teens leading taraweeh

Amr Khaled’s In Thy Name we Live series- done a few Ramadans ago.   Discusses a different name of Allah (swt) every night.  Great to watch before/after iftar.  Viewable with english subtitles at google video.

Ramadan Commercial - good for an LOL.

Ramadan/Eid Cards:

• Your True Greetings

• Sakkal Greetings

• Silver Envelope

dhikr while you work

to the tune of whiste while you work from Snow White:

Just dhikr while you work (la il-la-ha il Al-Lah*)
Put on that grin and start right in
to dhikr loud and long
Just move your tongue and lips (la il-la-ha il Al-Lah)
Just do your best and take a rest
and praise Allah right now.

*the whistle that went here in the original has 7 consonants.  La ilaha il Allah has 7 consonants.  Kapeesh?

Ah yes, corny, corny, I hear the groans.  But here me out.  My La TV campaign has lost it’s umph.  I try to focus on doing something else, but I get bored easily, and inevitably end up plopped on the couch in front of the tube.

So I need new things to occupy myself with:

1. Taking courses at Sunnipath.  Just got off the phone with the husband, and he’s actually encouraging me to take Ramadan and You course that starts this weekend.  Alhamdulilah.  Usually, I’ll mention I want to take a course, he looks at it and says it costs too much.  Alhamdulilah, this time he actually realizes how good it will be for me and that it’s worth the $$.  inshaAllah I’ll sign up when I get home tonight

2. Ok, this actually explains the post title and corny song, dhikr while you work.  The goal is constant dhikr in all (ok most) actions. 

Salman Farsee (ra) said, “If a person remembers Allah in times of peace, pleasure and prosperity, then whenever he is in trouble and difficulty, the angels, being familiar with his voice, recognize him in his helplessness and intercede before Almighty Allah (for his forgiveness); but, if one who does not remember Allah in his time of pleasure and happens to pray for help at the time of difficulty, the angels find his voice to be quite unfamiliar and therefore do not intercede for him.” (source)

To further that goal, I’ve taken up cross stitching.  Um, yeah, and that relates to dhikr how?  See, when one is stitching, each stitch is the perfect opportunity for a praise of Allah (swt).  If you’re doing a project that uses 2000 stitches, there are 2000 opportunities to praise Allah (swt).  Instead of counting your dhikr on beads, you’re counting them in your stitches.  And, when you’re done with the project, it will be full of barakah. 

Since I haven’t stitched since I was a child, I’m currently working on an uber easy Allah pattern in kufic.  I’m about a third of the way done, and when I finish, I’ll post a picture inshaAllah.

I figure that during Ramadan, I can lay out a schedule.  Come home, read Qur’an for x minutes, listen to a lecture for x minutes, then stitch and make dhikr until iftar.  After dinner, read an islamic book with the husband, then force him to read to me to practice his english.  Chock full of time for Allah (swt).  No time for tv.   inshaAllah.