Living For Islam

ALLAH ASKS IN Surah At-Tawbah: أَمْ حَسِبْتُمْ أَن تُتْرَكُوا وَلَمَّا يَعْلَمِ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ جَاهَدُوا مِنكُمْ وَلَمْ يَتَّخِذُوا مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَلَا رَسُولِهِ وَلَا الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَلِيجَةً ۚ وَاللَّهُ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ Do you think that you will be left while Allah has not yet made evident those among you who strive and not taken any intimate … Continue reading The Fall of False Shelters: What the Attack on Iran Teaches the Ummah

MUSLIMS IN BRITAIN do not have a political home. No political party truly represents us. Not one. Look at foreign policy. For decades, we have watched war after war unleashed upon the Muslim world, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Gaza, with British governments either leading the charge or providing cover. The parties, be it right-wing … Continue reading Politically Homeless: Muslims in Britain and the Global Moment

A CLAIM CIRCULATES in some Muslim spaces that Allah wants ease for us, so if fasting is too hard, we don’t have to do it. Islam is about the spirit, not the rules. We make it too complicated. There is an element of truth in this. Allah does say He wants ease for us and … Continue reading Who Decides What Ease Means?

The post ‘The Revival is Happening‘ drew a lot of comments. Most were thoughtful. A few were hostile, from people who wanted to mock Islam rather than discuss it. But one theme kept surfacing, in different forms, from people who seemed otherwise engaged and sincere. They said I was being judgemental. It gave me pause, … Continue reading On Being Called Judgemental

THERE ARE MOMENTS, even in Ramadhan, when the heart feels far. You pray, but it feels mechanical. You make du’a, but the words feel thin. You open the Qur’an, but your mind drifts. And a quiet fear creeps in: Have I drifted too far? In the middle of the ayat of fasting in Surah al-Baqarah, … Continue reading The Distance Is Never On His Side

LAST NIGHT AT taraweeh, I found myself standing under the open sky. The masjid was overflowing, and the prayer mats stretched into the car park. The weather had softened. After days of bitter cold, 10 degrees and dry felt almost balmy, carrying that stillness that makes one pause and linger. The imam was reciting from juzʾ 4, … Continue reading Standing Under the Ayat

IT WAS 5°C. Raining. Dark. My son had dental surgery the day before, but he had fasted. He was tired, uncomfortable, and slow to put on his shoes. “Hurry up, we’re getting late,” I called, determined that we wouldn’t miss the reward of Tarawih. We arrived just in time for the first rak’ah of ’Isha. … Continue reading Shaken But Not Broken

ONE OF THE righteous predecessors once said, “How unfortunate are the people of the world who left the world without having experienced its greatest delight.” They asked him, “What is its greatest delight?” He replied: “Knowing Allah, loving Him, finding comfort in His closeness, and longing to meet Him.” We spend our lives searching for … Continue reading The Centre

Ramadan Mubarak, dear brothers and sisters. We are here. We welcome it with hearts full of gratitude and souls hungry for renewal. We fast, we recite, we stand in night prayer, we give, and all of this is beautiful. All of this is sacred. But this Ramadan, I want to invite you to go deeper. … Continue reading Ramadhan Mubarak 1447AH

A HEADLINE CAUGHT my eye this week. A record number of under-30s in the UK are earning more than a million a year. It got me thinking. Twenty-five years old. Millionaire. Not from building something tangible. Mostly from screens. Influence. Attention. Branding. This seems to be what “doing well” looks like these days. It’s subtle. … Continue reading Beneficial, Not Famous