The du’a of the one who is opressed

The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said to Mua’ad Ibn Jabal (RA),

‘Beware of the supplication of the unjustly treated, because there is no shelter or veil between it (the supplication of the one who is suffering injustice) and Allah (SWT)’  [Sahih Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

The prophet (SAW) said,

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

Would you pray for Palestine?

Everybody must be aware now of the carnage being inflicted on Gaza and there are many bloggers around blogosphere posting on this subject. A very dear sister has posted this idea for staging a peaceful protest through praying for our brothers and sisters in Gaza for 24 hours.

She says:

I am calling you sisters, I am trying to arrange something different, something more Islamic than anger and shouting. I am asking you, would you pray for Palestine? Would you join to the group of praying people in the park, if you would know they were there 24 hours praying for Palestine?

Only thing you would have to take with you, would be your prayers mat and the water bottle to make wudu. Would you do this? And if you are an Imam who reads this, would you lead the prayers 24 hours for Palestine? And if you are not able to pray, would you be able to help those who can by offering them hot drinks if it is cold or offering them warming blankets?

Could we do something like this as a one big Muslim ummah?
I would, so would you come to pray with me?

She has also posted a few facts about the injustices that have been suffered by the Palestinians over the past 6 decades.

Antenatal testing in Saudi Arabia

At the weekend, I went to my local hospital for my first ultrasound scan of this pregnancy. I have never been one to accept screening and diagnostic tests during pregnancy and this pregnancy will be no different. However, I do like to have one early scan (around 14 weeks) just to check on the baby since I won’t feel him/her move until around 18 weeks, and also to check on the placenta. I was glad that I had been pre-warned by a friend that my hospital performs the Nuchal Translucency Scan so when the sonographer asked me to roll over so she could measure the baby’s neck I remembered what my friend had said and quickly asked her not to perform that part of the ultrasound.

I feel quite angry that the hospital performs this screening test without first informing patients and checking they want the test and understand the implications. A screening test is different from a diagnostic test in that it only gives a risk factor for certain conditions and NOT a definitive answer. If you are told that your baby is a high risk of having Down’s Syndrome then you will need further diagnostic tests such as amnioncentesis or CVS if you wish to determine for certain whether or not the baby you are carrying has Down’s Syndrome or some other chromosomal abnormality.

What I don’t understand is why this test is routinely performed in Saudi Arabia – it gives only a risk factor, chromosomal abnormalities cannot be fixed before or after the birth and termination of pregnancy is not available here. From my point of view, I prefer to find out about any problems after the birth rather than having a diagnostic test that carried it’s own risks (1/100 risk of miscarriage after amnioncentesis; 2/100 risk of miscarriage after CVS). I put my trust in Allah that He knows what is best for me, I make du’a to Allah throughout my pregnancy for the best outcome.

I wonder if I am on my own here or if there are others who feel the same way about screening and diagnostic tests in pregnancy.

Tagged: 5 things…

I’ve just discovered I’ve been tagged by American Muslima Writer – another opportunity to take the easy option to get back into blogging!

Sooooooo…….

5  Things I was doing 10 years ago

1. Enjoying being a mum to 2 little girls.
2. Changing nappies, lol, nothing has changed!
3. Living in the UK.
4. Driving myself and my girls wherever we needed to be (unlike here in KSA).
5. Had been married 5 years.

5  Snacks I Like

1. Chocolate
2. Asparagus straight from the jar
3. Cheese on toast (preferably camembert/brie)
4.  Apricots
5. Dark chocolate coated digestives

5  things I would do if I was a (multi-)millionaire

1. Give.
2. Give.
3. Give.
4. Give.
5. Buy a house big enough for me and my growing family.

5  places I have lived ( for various lengths of times)

1. Buckinghamshire, UK
2. Bristol, UK
3. Dyfed, Wales, UK
4. Nevers, France
5. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

5  Jobs I have had

1. Quick Hamburger Restaurant
2. Burger King
3. Tesco supermarket
4. McDonald’s
5. Office junior

5 people I Tag

Erm… not sure how long this tag has been going; probably everyone has been tagged already!

1. Rainbow
2. Seeking Taqwa
3. Itto
4. Um Almujahid
5. ~W~

100 things…

I haven’t blogged for a couple of months as some of you have noticed; haven’t been feeling too good so have been resting up and well… feeling sorry for myself.

I saw this ‘100 things’ thing on Ammena’s blog today and thought it would be just the thing I need to ease me back into blogging gently.   Those things highlighted in red I have done and those left black, I have not.

1. Started your own blog (obviously)
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumping
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables (grew some lettuces when I was kid!)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa (North Africa… Algeria)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkelling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia (Visited Moscow and other places when Russia was still a Soviet Republic – also visited Kazakstan and Uzbekstan)
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (*Gulp* Nope… I am even putting off having a blood test I need because I am so scared of needles!)
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favourite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar (*Yuck* by the way)
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (My big toe!)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle (Brilliant… exhilerating!)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem (Too many years ago to mention and it was the best trip of my life)
84. Had your picture in the newspaper (local!)
85. Read the entire Qur’an
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby (several)
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

And I think there are only 3 things on the list that I have not done that I would like to. Either I am unadventurous or I have done a lot of stuff! They are: 4, 56, 68.

Photos of Northern India, 1914

I have this wonderful little notebook, on the front page of which is written ‘Photos of the War taken in India and Mespot, 1914 to 1918′ . The book belonged to one of my father’s uncles and the photographs were taken by him also when he was in India and Iraq during that time period. From the photographs it would appear that he was stationed for at least some of his time in India, in the northern part of the country in a mountain village called Chakrata.

There are 53 photographs in all and they provide a fascinating insight into the India and ‘Mespot’ of the period.

Below is just a small selection of the photographs which I have scanned. I’ll also be scanning a few from the Mespot section of the notebook but for now enjoy these from India section.

The photograph below is a favourite just because of the comment accompanying it that even the ‘Late Lord Roberts had to take his boots off to go inside’!

So what if Obama is Muslim?!

Quite a powerful statement from the former US Secretary of State, Colin Powell today in a interview in which he endorsed Barrack Obama:

Powell also said he was “troubled” by suggestions that “you know, Mr. Obama is a Muslim. Well, he’s not,” Powell said. “But what if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim? The answer is no. Is there something wrong with a seven-year-old Muslim kid dreaming he could be president of the United States? (source)

A very interesting interview that can be read at the Washington Post, see link above.

Buying lingerie in Saudi Arabia

The Arabnews has run an article today* about a petition targetting lingerie store owners in Saudi Arabia with a boycott being the second step of the campaign.

Currently the vast majority of salespeople in lingerie shops and departments of larger stores are men. Many of the shops sell items that leave very little to the imagination so buying these items from a man, even going into a shop to look at lingerie can be the height of embarrassment, particularly when the salesmen are always so eager to help.

There has been talk for a good couple of years of more about lingerie shops bringing women in as salespeople but there has thus far been no progress made.

RIYADH: Who should sell women’s lingerie in the Kingdom? The question resurfaced after a Saudi woman initiated a boycott campaign against lingerie stores aiming to put pressure on shop owners to replace salesmen with women.

[...]

“It’s really strange that Saudi Arabia is the only country where you see men selling women’s lingerie,” she said. “Women walk around covered from head to toe, and yet they have to discuss the size and material of their undergarments with strange men. Isn’t this odd?”

Unless it’s a women-only place, Saudi women, who are required to cover up in public, can only buy their most intimate clothing items and cosmetics from men.

Read the full article here.

* Technically the article was actually run yesterday (Oct 15th) since I am writing this post after midnight!

Publish, Donate, Promote

 

• PUBLISH – publish a post or posts highlighting some aspect of poverty
• DONATE – Go to one of the websites in the previous post and DONATE any amount of money you can afford, however small
• PROMOTE – Promote this event all over the web: on your blog, facebook, twitter, forums, Myspace or wherever you happen to hang out in order to raise awareness.

I have fulfilled each of the above today (I chose Islamic Relief UK); what are YOU going to do?

Islamic Charitable websites

Some Islamic Charity work websites where you will find projects ranging from disaster relief to more ongoing projects (sadaqa jariya) such as sponsoring orphans, helping to fund the building of orpanges, wells and other projects. Whichever country you reside in, you should be able to find a website below where you can go to find out how you can help.

Islamic Relief USA

Islamic Relief UK

There are also Islamic Relief partners in the following countries: Germany, Beligium, Netherlands, France, Italy, Switzerland, Turkey, Sweden, Malaysia, South Africa, Canada

Just go to the Islamic Relief UK website and click on the appropriate flag for your country.

Muslim Hands - Various projects including orphan sponsorship

Alyateem.com - Orphan welfare

ICNA Relief – Canada

Sister Farhana’s blog, Sketched Soul  where she has several charitable projects going on and updates regularly.

Girls Orpanage in Africa