وَمَا تَوْفِيقِي إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ And my tawfīq is not but through Allah. (Sūrat Hūd, No.11, Āyat 88) The word tawfīq comes from the root ‘wa-fa-qa’ which means to agree or reconcile. In Islamic terminology it refers to a special grace from the Almighty which makes various means and causes come together to allow a person to do … Read more
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ لَا يَرْجُونَ لِقَاءَنَا وَرَضُوا بِالْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَاطْمَأَنُّوا بِهَا وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنْ آيَاتِنَا غَافِلُونَ Indeed, those who do not expect the meeting with Us and are satisfied with the life of this world and feel secure therein and those who are heedless of Our signs. (Surat Yūnus, No.10, Āyat 7) This verse talks about a group … Read more
أَفَلَمْ يَسِيرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ فَتَكُونَ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ يَعْقِلُونَ بِهَا أَوْ آذَانٌ يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا Have they not travelled in the land so that they should have hearts with which to understand, or ears with which to hear? (Surat al-Hajj, No.22, Āyat 46) Verses 42-44 of Surat al-Hajj discuss the people of the past who rejected God and His … Read more
وَسَخَّرْنَا مَعَ دَاوُودَ الْجِبَالَ يُسَبِّحْنَ وَالطَّيْرَ We made the mountains and the birds to glorify with Dāwūd. (Surat al-Anbiyā, No.21, Āyat 79) All creation glorifies Allah ‘azza wajall. Glorification or ‘tasbīh’ is an innate admission of submission and insignificance, of accepting the Lordship and Magnificence of the creator, and acknowledging that He is far above anything the … Read more
وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ Wattuqallāha la‘allakum tuflihūn And have piety of Allah so that you may be victorious. (Sūrat Āl ‘Imrān, No 3, Āyat 200) In various verses of the Noble Quran, the above sentence is repeated (for example, see 2:189 and 3:130 for the exact same wording). In these blessed verses, taqwā (piety) is categorically mentioned as … Read more
يُرِيدُونَ أَن يُطْفِئُوا نُورَ اللَّهِ بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ وَيَأْبَى اللَّهُ إِلَّا أَن يُتِمَّ نُورَهُ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْكَافِرُونَ Yurīdūna an yutfi’ū nūrallahi biafwāhihim waya’ballāhu illā an yutimma nūrahū walaw karihal-kāfirūn. They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah refuses except to perfect His light, although the disbelievers dislike it. (Surat al-Tawbah, No.9, Āyat 32) This … Read more
وَلَا يَخَافُونَ لَوْمَةَ لَائِمٍ Walā yakhāfūna lawmat lā’im And [they] do not fear the blame of a critic. (Surat al-Mā’idah, No.5, Āyat 54) The quality described here is part of five qualities of a community that Allah ‘azza wajall will bring forth which will believe in Him and obey His laws. This special community will have some … Read more
وَسَارِعُوا إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَجَنَّةٍ عَرْضُهَا السَّمَاوَاتُ وَالْأَرْضُ أُعِدَّتْ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ Wa sāri’ū ilā maghfiratin min rabbikum wa jannatin ‘arduhās samāwātu wal ardu u’iddat lil muttaqīn Hasten towards your Lord’s forgiveness and a paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth, prepared for the Godwary. (Surat Āli ‘Imrān, Āyat 133) One of the beautiful points that can be extracted … Read more
Testimonials on Quran Appreciation Bismillāh. In the month of June 2022 for three consecutive Fridays we askedthe subscribers to give their feedback and suggestions on the weekly QuranicReflections which Alhamdu lillāh we have been sending out for over 12 years.Here are some of the responses: Academy for Learning Islam (A.L.I.) 2 Testimonials on Quranic Reflections … Read more
وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ابْنَيْ آدَمَ بِالْحَقِّ إِذْ قَرَّبَا قُرْبَانًا فَتُقُبِّلَ مِنْ أَحَدِهِمَا وَلَمْ يُتَقَبَّلْ مِنَ الْآخَرِ قَالَ لَأَقْتُلَنَّكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنَّمَا يَتَقَبَّلُ اللَّـهُ مِنَ الْمُتَّقِينَ Watlu ‘alayhim naba-bnay ādama bil-haqqi idh qarrabā qurbānan fatuqubbila min ‘ahadi himā walam yutaqabbal minal-ākhari. Qāla la’aqtulannaka. Qāla innamā yataqabbalul-lāhu minal-mutaqqīn. Relate to them truly the account of Adam’s two sons. When … Read more