Here are links to various resources for preparation for Laylatul Qadr

The night of 15th Shabaan holds the promise of clearing our past. It holds the potential for starting afresh and leaving the burdens of the soul behind.
This does take a little bit of effort though!!
Let us start with the easier one first
Seeking forgiveness from God
أَفَلاَ يَتُوبُونَ إِلَى اللّهِ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُونَهُ وَاللّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
[5:74] Will they not then turn to Allah and ask His forgiveness? And Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
Allah is continually inviting us to reconnect with Him when we turn away from Him. Our souls are not in peace until we are reconnected but several things stop us:
Barriers to forgiveness;
- overwhelm – we don’t know where to start
- laziness – it seems too hard
- procrastination – we think we have time!
- Shaitaan tells us to despair (most dangerous psychological state is that of hopelessness) whereas before we sinned it, he encouraged us - understand hope and fear. Shaytaan invites us to hope before we sin and enables us to...

By His Grace and Mercy, one of the most blessed nights of the year is upon us once again.

The Holy Prophet (saw) has said that during the night of 15th Shaba'an the Almighty takes decisions in the matters of sustenance, life and death and welfare of the people. Next to the “Night of Qadr” the night of 15th Sha’baan is the most auspicious night (also known as “night of Baraat”). Allah swt has promised to fulfill every legitimate desire put forward to Him tonight. During this night Allah (swt) bestows on His people from His bounty & forgives them out of His Grace & Generosity. (Narrations from Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) and Imam Sadiq (as))

"Therefore, stay awake this night in prayer and worship and encourage your Ummah to also keep awake this night in order to get closer to Allah through their actions since this is a noble night.
This is a night in which not a single person supplicates to Allah except that his...

The topic for these series of lectures delivered in Toronto was "The Practical Path to a Peaceful Heart"

Lecture 1: Introduction to the spiritual heart
In the first lecture, we discussed the role of Muharram in reviving our hearts and the roles and responsibilities of all of us during this period.
As suggested, it may be a good idea to write out a pledge for yourself of your intention and intended behaviour during this time. This greatly helps in reminding ourselves of the purpose of the month of Muharram and establishing our focus and ensuring that we use the time for what it was intended.
We also introduced the concept of the spiritual heart and shared the outline of the proposed lectures.

¥ What is the importance of the heart in Islam? What does the Quran say about the importance of the heart? What does it mean to have a healthy heart? Why is it important to talk about the heart? We usually focus on knowledge and deeds. Modernity and the challenges of focusing on the heart. The...

Laylatul Qadr is a night wherein Allah swt decides our “qadr” - He makes decisions regarding what to grant us to fulfill our full potential. One way to think about this is to consider that He is asking us to be co-creators in our own destiny by allowing us and inviting us to worship on this Grand Night and ask for what we need in order to live our purpose on this planet. This is a night which is filled with the opportunity to change the story of our lives.

While considering what to ask for (in addition to the health and safety of ourselves, our families and the Ummah) it is worth taking some time to reflect on our purpose in life, how we can fulfill it and what we need to get going. This important reflection will help us in beginning to take responsibility for our lives and become proactive in creating a life that is meaningful and fulfills the purpose for why we are here. It is only once we have a purpose that we can ask for meaning help in fulfilling it.

Here is a...

Truth is the Night of Power,

hidden amid the other nights

so the soul may try each one.

Not all nights are the Night of Power,

yet all nights aren’t empty of it either.

• Rumi, Mathnawi II: 2935-2936

As we approach the blessed nights of vigil, contemplation and worship, let us turn inward to prepare so that we can be ready to soak in the full extent of the Mercy and Blessings of God on the Grand Night.

Here are some resources from the blog and podcast that may be useful as we begin to reflect on the magnitude of Laylatul Qadr.

Please feel free to share them via email or through social media.

Let us remember each other and our brothers in faith and humanity across the globe during these blessed moments.

With duas

Marzia

General introduction to the importance of Laylatul Qadr:

Lecture:

003:Reflections on Sura Qadr and Laylatul Qadr

http://marziahassan.libsyn.com/reflections-on-sura-qadr-and-laylatul-qadr

Preparation for Laylatul Qadr Interview on AhlulBayt TV

Basic...

The Quran asks man to reflect on this question: "O man! What has beguiled you from your Lord, the Gracious One?" (Chapter 82:6)

Inspired by this question, lets reflect on the many things that distract us from the Path to Allah and from our main purpose in life, which is reaching our full potential. In fact, modern life is so full of distractions that it is hard for us to focus on anything at all. We seem to be running in all directions, having lost sight of what our true priorities are.

In this session, we talk about the distraction of MATERIALISM, how it distracts us, and why this is a problem.

We talk about 5 steps to start managing the distraction of materialism and get back on track to what will truly bring us the peace and happiness that we crave.

Here is the link to the slides/handout that accompanies this episode.
Check out this episode!

Suratul Ahzab is a very significant chapter of the Holy Quran and includes discussion on many social, political and domestic issues. It was revealed in fifth year of Hijra which was a critical year in the history of early Islam.

The Sura mentions the Battle of the Ditch (Khandaq) also called Battle of Ahzab, it gives us a clear psychological portrait of the hypocrites and compares that to the psychology of the believers.

In this Sura particularly, the love that Allah (swt) has for the Prophet (saw) is emphasized. We are reminded of his stature with Allah (swt) and with the Believers, how he is a role model for us, how he and his household is purified by Allah (swt) and how Allah (swt) and His angels send salutations on him, just as we are commanded to do. We are also reminded how we must not cause the Holy Prophet (saw) any hurt or even the slightest inconvenience.

Following are the links to the audio recordings of the discussions on this Sura.

Part 1: Verses 1 – 8

The...

In this session, we discuss what is compassion (hilm) and how to develop it

“I have been sent to perfect the nobility of your character”. Prophet Mohammed (saw)

The Holy Prophet (saw) articulated his mission as supporting the perfection of character of his Umma. He himself was a living example of what nobility of character looks like in action. The Quran testifies to this by saying “And most surely you are of a tremendous nature.” (The Holy Quran, 68:4 )

In these series of talks, we will inshallah discuss the essential elements of a noble character as taught to us by the Prophet (saw) and his family. We will discuss various aspects of virtues that make up a Noble Character, such as Courage, Compassion, Patience and Gratitude among others.

We will focus on practical tools to nurture and strengthen these virtues within ourselves so that we can help realize the mission of the Holy Prophet (saw).  At the end of the series, we hope to have a clear...

In this session, we discuss the powerful practice of gratitude which has been called "the secret sauce of happiness"

“I have been sent to perfect the nobility of your character”. Prophet Mohammed (saw)

The Holy Prophet (saw) articulated his mission as supporting the perfection of character of his Umma. He himself was a living example of what nobility of character looks like in action. The Quran testifies to this by saying “And most surely you are of a tremendous nature.” (The Holy Quran, 68:4 )

In these series of talks, we will inshallah discuss the essential elements of a noble character as taught to us by the Prophet (saw) and his family. We will discuss various aspects of virtues that make up a Noble Character, such as Courage, Compassion, Patience and Gratitude among others.

We will focus on practical tools to nurture and strengthen these virtues within ourselves so that we can help realize the mission of the Holy Prophet (saw).  At the end of...