Keep The Memories of Ramdhan Alive
The blessed month of Ramadan with its beautiful days and fragrant nights have past. It was indeed the month that was adorned with the Qur'an, taqwa, patience, jihad, mercy, forgiveness and freedom from hellfire…
After experiencing this great bounty of Allah, there are many questions and numerous thoughts that ought to come to 
the heart of a sincere believer.
Kindling the Love of Masjidul Aqsa in our Hearts
Most of us have grown up with the love of Makkah and Medina deeply entrenched in our hearts. This is perhaps as a result of our parents talking about Makkah and Medina and showing us frames from a very small age.
Read more: Kindling the Love of Masjidul Aqsa in our Hearts
A Visit to the Holy Lands
We finally crossed the border at 4:30 am in the morning and entered in to the occupied lands.I was totally exhausted and fell asleep while driving from the boarder post. We were brought to a certain point when we were told to exit the bus. With our bags in our hands we enter the old city from the Damascas Gate.
Healthy Eating Tips For Ramadhan
Come Ramadhan, our diet is radically altered. Our meals get condensed in mornings and evenings, with no intake in-between for an extended period of time. For some of us, the intake of oily foods skyrockets. These changes in diet aren't well received by everyone.
Dr. Farouk Haffejee of the Islamic Medical Association of South Africa(Durban) has created a list of recommendations for dealing with
Ramadhan in a healthy fashion. They deal with common problems encountered in Ramadhan.
Moulana Rumi Rahimullah's shrine
On Friday morning early we left Pumakkale for a seven hour journey to Konya to visit the Qabr and Khanqah of Moulana Rumi Rahimullah This was to be one of the most important days of our journey and a highlight of a life time
We arrived in Konya later than expected and just managed to performed the Juma'ah Salaah in the Masjid. After which we had some refreshment and then proceeded to the Qabr mubarak.
Moulana Rumi Rahimullah is buried in what was formerly his khanqah and now is a museum. In the main room, covered with a large velvet cloth embroidered with gold is Moulana's qabr. The graves of Moulana's father, son and other mashaikh are clustered around his grave. These graves are capped with huge green turbans to mark their elevated status.
When we entered the khanqa of Moulana Rumi Rahimullah their were huge crowds of tourist. One is really sadden by the thought that here is such a great man lying and there women half naked walking around as tourist. I drew myself to the side and found a slightly less crowed area where I spent a few minutes reciting Surah Fatiha, making Dhikar and Dua.
The Loss of World War One
The greatest misfortune of World War One fell on to the Muslims. After it, the Ottomon Chaliphate was dismantled. The Ottomons had fought along side with the German. The Germans were defeated and that spelt the end of the Ottomons.
On Monday we left Istanbul towards the south. We enjoyed the beautiful landscape until we reached a one of the most significant battlefields of the First World War Gallipoli. The Gallipoli Campaign, took place at the peninsula of Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire between 25 April 1915 and 9 January 1916. A joint British and French operation was mounted to capture the Ottoman capital of Istanbul and secure a sea route to Russia. The attempt failed, with heavy casualties on both sides. The campaign was considered one of the greatest victories of the Turks and was reflected on as a major failure by the Allies. We saw the area where the Allied forces had docked their ships.
The land of the Conquers and The Conquered
This evening I will Insha Allah be leaving with my family for Turkey. A land steeped in the history of the Sahab Radiyallahu Anhu.
Our first stop will be in Istanbul, an absolutely amazing city and the largest city in Turkey. The only city of the world that is transcontinental .i.e. a portion of the city is part of Europe and the other portion is part of Asia. From the very first time I learnt about the history of this city, its unique land scape and the important position it had in the propagation of Deen, I always had the desire to visit it. Al hamdulillah, Almighty Allah has made it possible.
We will Insha Allah be in Turkey from the 7th to the 14th July. For the duration of the trip I hope to from time to time write about the places we visit.
Yusuf Moosagie
Friday 6th July 2012
Istanbul: An Amazing City
Sailing down the Bosphorus on Sunday afternoon,it was a cruise in to the annals of history. I tried to bring to life before me the amazing conquest of Constantinople. Subhanallah! What it must have been like to witness it all ?
Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam had a long time ago said :" Truly you shall conquer Constantinople and surely what a wonderful leader will its leader be and surely what a wonderful army will that army be!( Musnad Ahmed)
The burning desire to be from this 'wonderful arm' motivated many Muslims, right from the time of the Sahaba Ridiyallahu Anhum to attempt to conquer Constantinople.
However, a number of a factors made it extremely difficult
The city was built on a more or less triangular peninsula, bounded on the south by the sea of Marmara and on its north by the Golden Horn. The landward direction was protected by mighty defence walls originally built in 447 AD. Added to this, the cold weather in the region was intolerable for the Muslims who were accustomed to much warmer climate.
For eight centuries, the conquest of this city was a dream for Muslim commanders. However, this honour was destined for the 8th Ottoman Sultan, a young man named Muhammad. He captured the city and brought to an end the Byzantine Empire at the young age of 21.
This was an amazing feat indeed. But what does it really mean? Other than all the minarets and domes, today if you look at the people of Istanbul there is only but a slight semblance of Islam. A tour guide shared a fact with us saying that 99 percent of Turkey is Muslim. To this a member of our group privately said : "Up until now I haven't even met one percent 'Muslim'." This is because of the manner of dressing and the general indifference towards religion. This is something that has disturbed me a great deal.
Anyway, so far we visited the Ayasofya, which was the church of the Patriarch of Constantinople. It was converted to a Masjid by a Sultan Muhammed when he conquered Constantinople. Unfortunately, now it stands as a museum. An amazing structure that was copied by many afterwards.
We then moved on to Topkapi Palace Museum where i had a desire of a lifetime fulfilled. We saw the relics of Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi wasallam and the Sahaba Radiyallahu Anhu. The simplicity of the cloak of Fatima Radiyallahu Anha was really an eye opener. Looking at the various swords I marvelled at the strength that Allah had grant Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam and the Sahaba Radiyallahu Anhu.
Our next stop was the Sultan Ahmed Masjid, one of the most beautiful Masaajid in the world. It is popularly known as the the Blue Mosque because of the blue tiles adorning its interior. This Masjid overlooks the Ayasofuya and the Bosphorus Straits. From there we made our way down to the Bosphorus for a boat ride.
Yusuf Moosagie 9th July 2012
Thought provoking!
Many messages are being sent prior to the auspicious night of Shaabe Bara'ah where people are asking each other for maaf(forgiveness). It is sad that we have trivialised the aspect of asking a fellow Muslim for maaf(forgiveness) to such an extent that it has almost become a mere social game! If one is truly sincere, then one would pick up a telephone or go personally to the person who one has wronged and by doing this, one is portraying utmost sincerity in ones action! By merely forwarding a message or sending out a copied message by the click of a button, is EMPTY and DEVOID of sincerity!
Thus in the absence of sincerity the action becomes futile! This is why we find that it is so common that we ask for maaf so that we can spend the auspicious nights in Ibaadah with a clear conscience and without the element of guilt hanging over us, but as soon as the auspicious night is over, we return to the same old habit of hurting the same people from whom we just asked for maaf!
The advent of advanced technology has robbed us of that sincerity and that personal touch! This trend of sending messages to ask for maaf(forgiveness) has become almost fashionable! We have lost the true value of asking for maaf (forgiveness)! Let us not fool ourselves in this regard! Instead let's bring that personal touch back into our lives!
We make dua that Allah help and guide this Ummah to the TRUE understanding of the Deen!
And Allah knows BEST!( Sent to me by a listener)