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Newsletter
Monday, 28 Thul Hijjah 1428 H/07 January 2008
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PERSONALITY

SHAYKH MUSLIHUDIN SA'DI
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Those who rest not their hopes on their meeting with Us and are pleased and satisfied with the life of this world are those who heed not Our Signs. (Qur'an 10:7).

Once in a flower garden in Iran, a thoughtful poet perceived that a friend of his was exceedingly preoccupied with a bunch of flowers and had no time to look at anything else. The poet asked him what it was that captivated him so much in these flowers which were sure to fade before sunset. His friend replied by asking him what could possibly replace the beauty of flowers. The poet said,? For people like you who are attracted to the beauty of flowers whose life-span is at most five or six days, I will write a book called the Gulistan (garden of flowers) which will last indefinitely.

The name of the poet was Shaykh Muslihuddin Sa'di and he was born in Persia in the year of 1184 AD. His father Abdullah was a descendent of Sayyadina Ali RA and was nobleman in the service of the court of ?Ata Beg Tughal. Sa'di lost his parents early in his life and so he fell into poverty. His elder brother somehow managed to keep the family by owning a fruit shop.

Sa'di's life consisted of three periods. Until 1226 he was busy with his studies. From 1226 to 1256, he spent his life as a traveller in different countries of the world. And the last part from 1256 ?1291 he spent in Shiraz writing, contemplating and admonishing people as a Sufi. In those days, Shiraz was a great centre of learning and Sa'di was admitted into a big madrasa there where he received his primary education. Then he left for higher education in the famous Nizamiyya Madrasa of Baghdad . He studied philosophy and science under the able guidance of Farah Ibn al-Jawahir. Then he studied logic, history, geography, philosophy, tafsir, hadith, fiqh, etc. He was very religious from his boyhood and he was a strict follower of the Shari'a. While in Bahdad he received extensive instruction in tasawwuf (sufism) from several Sufis that he came in contact with and became a follower of the famous Sufi Shaykh Shihabu'd-din as-Suhrawardi (died 1234) whose influence and association had a great impact oh him. Sa'di was a master of several languages but he wrote only in his mother tongue, Persian, and occasionally in Arabic.

After the end of his studies in Baghdad he came back to Shiraz , but found that his chief patron Sultan Ata Beg had been killed by the Khwarizmi Sultan, Ghiyathu'd-din Isfahani. Following this political upset the general people were subjected to looting and exploitation by the Mongols and Turks, and their miseries knew no bounds. Seeing their misery, he found the situation unbearable and he left the country and decided to go on travelling from country to country.

From 1226 - 1256, for a period of thirty years, he travelled from Shiraz to Khurasan, to Tatar, to Balkh, to Kashghar, Ghazna, Punjab, Somnath, Gujarat, Yemen, Hijaz, Abyssinia, Palestine, Syria, Damascus, Ba'albek, North Africa, Asia Minor, etc. In each of these places he stayed for months or years, studied the people and gained many and varied experiences. From Somnath he went to Gujarat, and then to Punjab and then to Delhi. From Delhi he went to the Yemen where he lost his son by his first wife. He was very upset at this loss. From the Yemen he went to Abyssinia where he took part in a jihad. Then he went to Makkah and performed the Hajj. In all, he performed Hajj fourteen times on foot. From Makkah to went to Damascus and then Ba'albek. In Damascus and Ba'albek he started giving sermons on religion and people gave him the title of Shaykh. His lectures and sermons were received with great appreciation.

Then he left for Jerusalem and for some time he hid himself in a lonely place far from other people. At this time, he fell into the hands of Frankish soldiers who arrested him and sent him to Tripoli to work as an ordinary prisoner digging ditches. He experienced how painful the life of a prisoner was and was forced to spend some time in this inhuman life in captivity. At last a friend of his from Aleppo got him released on payment of a large ransom and also gave him his daughter in marriage. However this wife was very hot-tempered and ill-spoken. He could not bear her and had to leave Aleppo and Asia Minor and finally ending his journeying in his birthplace, Shiraz , in the year 1256.
In Shiraz his old patron, Sultan Ata Beg, had been succeeded by his son Sultan Abu Bakr and his other friends he decided to stay on permanently in Shiraz and to devote his time to the meditation on Allah and to his writings. He was by then an old man but very rich and mature with a wealth of experience gained by thirty years of travel over a great part of the world. The books he now produced were so rich a fountain that people have been drinking ever since from them with no sign of satiety. The Bustan and the Gulistan have maintained their popularity right up until the present day. At the time he was engaged in writing his Bustan and Gulistan , he was already past eighty and his mind was at its purest. He was above any small things or demands of this world. He was completely devoted to his Lord portraying Him as Jamil un Karim un Rahman ur Rahim and His Prophet as his shafi un, qasim un Jasmin un Nasim un.

The great contribution that Shaykh Sa'di made to the Islamic world lies in his two great couplets, famous equally in the Arab and non-Arab world, on the person of the Prophet, and which are read with equal zeal and fervour by both Arabs and non-Arabs. They are:
Balaghul ula bi-kamalihi
Kashafad-duja bi-jamalihi
Hasanath jami'u khisalihi
Sallu alayhi wa alihi
These two couplets are in the mouth of every Muslim, boy or girl, man or woman, young or old. They are the best epithet, the best eulogy, and the best offering that a human being can offer to the Prophet who does not need any praises from any of us because his Lord has promised him complete satisfaction and has conferred on him the title of Rahmat al-alamin.

Shaykh Sa'di died at the ripe age of 110 in the year 1291 AD in Shiraz and was buried there, where later the poet Hafiz was also buried. His grave bears no extraordinary monument except an epitaph of a few couplets from his Bustan, the first couplets of which are: O traveller! You have stepped on my dust. Beware! You have to remember me for the sake of the Almighty's dust. Sa'di will certainly be buried in dust because he was like dust while he lived. (Bustan)

In the Islamic world, particularly in the East, nobody is considered literate and cultured if he does not quote from Sa'di. The famous Sufi poet, Abdu'r-Rahman Jami' (14114-1492), says, The intellectual world calls Sa'di's ghazals a salt cup, but for centuries, the educated people of the East have been committing to their memory Sa'di's ghazals and have been accepting his morals and ethics as their ideal.

 
HADITH/SAYINGS OF MUHAMMAD (SAW)

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "He who believes in Allah and the Last Day... let him not harm his neighbour; and he who believes in Allah and the Last Day... let him show hospitality to his guest; and he who believes in Allah and the Last Day... let him speak good or remain silent". [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Commentary: This Hadith unfolds the fruits of Faith. One who does not have the qualities mentioned in it, is deprived of the blessings of the Faith. Faith of such a person is like a fruitless tree, or a flower without fragrance, or a body without soul.

 
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NEWS

Apartheid Israel says they will intensify their attacks on Palestine. The extremist government says rockets are being fired from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. The latest comes as at least 4 Palestinians were killed during yet another illegal raid in a refugee camp in Gaza.

Pakistan leader, Pervez Musharraf says Banazir Bhutto is responsible for her own death. Musharraf said in a CBS interview that the assassinated former Prime Minister exposed herself to danger despite warnings.

Electricity users are warned to stock up on candles this week. Eskom says power outages are possible as businesses and factories open for the year.

North West education authorities are confident that normal schooling will take place in Khutsong this year. Pupils from the turbulent township lost more than six months of schooling last year because of protests. The protests were against the incorporation of the Merafong municipality into North West from Gauteng.

An announcement is likely to be made regarding whether or not National police Commissioner Jackie Selebi will be charged.

 
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PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS
05h00: Fajr & Quran Recitation
05h30: Riyaadhuth Thaakereen - Remembering Allah
06h30: Daily Message from Ulama
06h45: Yaseen
08h30: Islamic discussions
09h05: Lifestyle of Nabi SAW & Pious Women
10h30: JUZ/PARA A DAY – DAILY QURAN
11h45: An Nisaa
12h45: Community News
13h05: Ath Thikrul Hakeem (Qiraa’ah)
14h30: Quran Translation
17h05: Interviews – Current Issues
19h25: SANHA
20h05: Esha; Surah Mulk & Sajdah
20h15: Ml E Adam – Spiritual Renewal
20h45: Talk Boetie

22h05: Lecture Series
 
RECIPE

WAFFLES
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Ingredients
2 cups flour - 3 tsps Baking powder - ½ tsps salt - 1 ½ tblsp sugar - 2 eggs separated - 2-2 ¼ cups milk - 4 tblsp ghee - Vanilla essence to taste.

Method 1
Sift together all dry ingredients. Add slightly beaten egg yolks and milk beat thoroughly. Add ghee and enough vanilla essence to taste. Lastly fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Bake on a hot waffle iron until golden brown.

Method 2
1. Mix all ingredients together in an electric mixer for 3 to 4 minutes.
2. Bake on a waffle iron till golden brown.
Serve waffles with whipped cream and fruit of your choice. Sprinkle with ground cinnamon and syrup.

 
MUSLIM NAMES

MALES
Abdul-Haafiz - Servant of the Protector
Burhaan ? Proof
Fadl Ullah - The excellence of Allah

FEMALES
Rana - To gaze; Look
Radhwa - Name of mountain in Medina
Nahla - A drink (of water)

 
WEBLINKS
 
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POEM

The Day of Judgment (Qiyamah)
---------------------------------

When the earth shall suffer a tremouring quake
When men will ask, what has made her shake?
When mountains will fly in the air like flake
The sun will be lowered and the earth shall bake

The day when a loud trumpet be sounded
And all that is standing shall then be grounded
With a bang so loud, the ears will be pounded
With fright and fear, the hearts will be wounded

It is the day of a very loud burst
The day when mountains will scatter like dust
These are the signs of the day of just
And the day of just, its coming is a must

The bones shall be taken out of the clay
And then be assembled back on that day
And then he be asked, on earth did he pray
Khums and Zakah if ever did he pay

There will be faces, glorious and bright
On reclined couches relaxed at a height
And there will be faces filled with fright
Exposed to heat, engulfed in plight

Oh my Lord, forgive me my sins
After all I am, just a human being
For getting your blessings, really I am keen
From this moment onwards, I shall remain clean
And from the bottom of my heart, this is what I mean

'AL-HAMDO LILLAHE RABBIL AALAMEEN

 
THE SMILE
BRAIN TUMOR
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Doctor: I regret to tell you that you have a brain tumor.
Mr. Bean: Yesss!!! (jumps in joy)

Doctor: Did you understand what I just told you?
Mr. Bean: Yes of course, do you think I'm dumb?

Doctor: Then why are you so happy?
Mr. Bean: Because that proves that I have a brain!

 
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