Iqra

SISTERHOOD Wednesdays. 5:30pm. Ohio Firsts Room. BROTHERHOOD Thursdays. 6:30. Hale Hall Room 120.

The

Issue 1: Homecoming
Assalamu Alaikum my beautiful brothers and sisters, Welcome back to another school year. InshAllah, your summer vacation was one of learning, relaxation, family, spirituality and summer fun. In the words of the MSA President, The MSA, similar to the Ummah as a whole, is only as strong and effective as the sum of its parts, and thats why we want YOU to be a part of our family! Getting involved is easy because we have five weekly events Friday prayer, weekly halaqas (religious study) for brothers and sisters, Friday General Body Meetings, and Project Downtown each Sunday, which is a philanthropic function where members of the MSA make lunches for the homeless and deliver the food to those in need. Our generation has been given the responsibility to demystify Islam, extinguish stereotypes, combat misinformation and slander, as well as to educate our peers on the true Islam; in other words, we have the unenviable duty to ameliorate the image and social standing of Islam and Muslims in this country and across the world. The only question is, how will you contribute? So come to MSA with ideas, excitement and preparedness. From our collaborative RUN FAST Mali awareness campaign, the Winter Conference to our End of the Year Banquet. This year will be one of service, involvement in our community and giving back. Be prepared. Mushtaq Dualeh Secretary

Volume IV

N ew sletter

Dates to Remember

PROJECT DOWNTOWN Sundays. 12pm. Aviation Room. WEEKLY GBMS Fridays. 6:00pm Davis Interfaith Room. JUMMAH Fridays. 2:30pm Davis Interfaith Room

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IQRA Newsletter

Issue 1: Homecoming

Alhamdulilah I can honestly Ahmed Daboul say that for the first time in Public Health 16 my life I've had one of those Ramadans where you really feel like your life has changed for the better because you've been able to overcome a certain element of yourself. Up until this year I always felt that Ramadan was sensationalized-made into some ideal month where suddenly people become angels. What I hadn't realized was that this sensationalization was a direct result of the experiences people have had that mirror the one I had this year. I think the reason why this Ramadan went so well for me is because I truly stuck to my goals. What happened to me this Ramadan was very simple: I worked on the basics. I read the surahs every Muslim supposedly knowns, recited the duas every Muslim supposedly knows, and even reread some of the prophetic stories of Islam that supposedly every Muslim has a firm grasp upon. What this did was reestablish the core of my faith. By focusing on the fundamentals I rebuilt my foundation in faith. I wasn't ashamed to face the reality that my understanding of some of the most basics tenants of this faith are eerie, and subhanallah by relearning the "easy" stuff I really gained something that is "hard" to achieve: stronger faith. I think that we as Muslims really should embrace the simpler parts of our faith and not be afraid to admit that we might not necessarily understand them. If we can do that, we can begin to more strongly establish the essence of iman. Inshallah my experience was insightful for you, and I would like to ask you to please pray for our Muslim brothers and sisters across the world, especially in Syria and Egypt. To me, Ramadan means coming together and striving for better. In my family, most of the time everyone is at work or school so we never have time to sit down for a family meal. We eat whenever it fits into our schedules. During Ramadan, we gather around the table every night and get a chance to hear about each others days. I never realized how important this was until Ramadan. Also, this holy month is a time where the shaytaan is locked up so it allows us to recognize our own faults as opposed to the faults that are a result of the shaytaans whispers. The absence is shaytaan makes bettering ourselves a lot easier and is something that we, as Muslims, should all take advantage of. Ilham Abdi Microbio 16

My Ramadan goal is the same every year: to strive for better than Ive done during the year. Not only spiritually but in all aspects of my life. I definitely think Ive accomplished my goal this year, alhamdulilah. In the past years, Ive never struggled with the spiritual aspect but I would basically just sit around my house all month, not being very productive. This year I managed to work, go to school, and just get out of the house more than I have in past years. This not only made the time go by faster, but it made me feel a lot better about my day when it came time to break my fast. I was saddened to see such a beautiful month come to an end but Im grateful for the opportunity to better myself and know the good Im capable of. Talha Saif Biomedical Engineering 16 My Ramadan did not exactly go the way that I wanted. This is due to the fact that I took summer classes, and completely underestimated the amount of stress that I would be under during Ramadan. It seemed manageable prior to Ramadan, but after it began, things got bad really fast. I found myself staying up until suhoor studying, and going to sleep afterwards only to wake up a couple hours later to go to class. I would go through the whole day tired and unable to concentrate. I was miserable. In addition, I was not able to go to taraweeh for days at a time. Typically I would go and pray all the rakahs in the previous Ramadans, so this, among other things, made me feel as if I was not doing my part. After exams were over, I went full force in doing my part of Ramadan. Since there were less than 10 days left, this experience was short lived. I felt regret on the last day Ramadan, because I had voluntarily chosen to take classes which hindered my ability to properly worship during the holy month. It was an honest mistake on my part, and inshallah I will be more careful to make sure that I have sufficient amount of time for next Ramadan.

As all of the Eid meals and celebrations come to an end, I cannot help but think how fast Ramadan passed me by. But then again, I think that every year. I always tend to overshoot my goals in the beginning of the Holy month, which often results in my falling short with my overall achievements. However, setting the bar high has its advantages; so that even if I fall short, I at least achieved as much as I could. Every year I make the intention to finish a full recitation of the full Holy Quran in Arabic. This year I also made it a goal to pray more nawafil (recommended prayers), make more duaa (supplication), and pray every night of taraweeh (Recommended Continued on page 3

Eyad Hamza Economics 15

IQRA Newsletter
Continued from page 2 Ramadan night prayers). Alhamdulilah, Praise be to Him, I was able to fulfill most of my goals; however, I was not able to finish a full Quran recitation. I could make the excuse that I had summer courses going on as well as volunteering and a bunch of other things to do, but in reality, these things do not prevent one from making time for the Quran. I know this because I was able to make time for so much more unimportant things. For example, I probably ate at Ihop for suhoor (Pre-dusk meal) more times this Ramadan than I did in my entire life. Ramadan is the best time of the year and is definitely one of the best experiences one can go through in ones life. The amount of reward granted to us by His mercy for doing that which we should already be doing is unimaginable. So lets make sure we take advantage of it when it comes and pray to meet it again, as much as we can because nobody is guaranteed to see it next year.

Issue 7: Homecoming

Superhanallah

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Issue 1: Homecoming

IQRA Newsletter

Issue 7: Homecoming

Free Syria
The soft voice of the adhan starts seeping through the slightly open window above my mattress. I hear my father wheeze a few feet from me. My vision clears as I sit up and see the innocent faces of my two little sisters sleeping peacefully, snuggled together. The dust is still present around our apartment from the rubble that lay where once our kitchen and living room was. Bashars planes had given us an early Eid present this year by bombing our building. Next to my fathers mattress, was a cracked frame with a black and white picture of my beautiful mother from when she was in college right here in Damascus. My father talks to it every day after my mother was killed in a school attack carried by Bashars men. I lost a mother that day; over two hundred mothers lost a son or a daughter. Nothing has been the same since that day. I get up and kiss my fathers forehead lightly and then lightly walk over to my sisters and kiss them on the forehead as well and place a candy at the side of their pillow each. I got paid yesterday, so it was a good night yesterday. I bought my sisters candy, my father a fake pair of Ray Bans, and for all of us, some fresh meat and rice. I walk to the restroom and turn on the faucet for the hundredth time with hope that we might have water today. But the faucet too coughs dust. I walk down the broken steps and use the water from the pump outside. I start my long walk to my local masjid. Every day, less and less men make the ranks of Salah at the Masjid. I turn the corner two blocks from my building and suddenly a whizzing sound overhead. It is so loud, that it deafens me for a good two minutes; One of Bashars planes doing a fly over. I continue my walk. Suddenly the ground shakes and shrieks in the distance go off. It wasnt a fly over, it was a pre dawn bombing. I run towards the noise, a fire blazes on in the distance. Suddenly, an eerie silence, then a loud noise as something pierces the ground in front of me. The ground from underneath leaves my feet; I am airborne, part of the debris, dust, and human body parts. Suddenly a loud thud, the pain is so much for the first second or so, then nothing. I see the Angel of Death coming for my soul, and I become frightened and saddened. My father, my little sisters, I cant leave now. Then I calm down, I smile, I am going to be seeing my mother again. I start reading the Shadah. I land with a thud. I see the bucket from which I had made Wudhu just moments ago. I was home, Allhamdulillah.

And with that, I breathe my last breath as a s on of Mother Syria.

Mas hhood Salahuddin His tory 14 5

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Issue 1: Homecoming

Words of Wisdom
If you sleep before midnight (meaning halfway between Maghrib and Fajr), after Isha, then that sleep is worth up to twice as much as the sleep that occurs after midnight. The Sunnah of the Prophet is to go to bed right after Isha, and sleeping after Fajr, before sunrise (shuruq), is considered negative sleep. So, if you slept for two hours it is as if you were deprived of two hours of sleep. It is negative sleep. If you sleep before Zuhr or before Asr, then that is positive sleep and it is worth twice in terms of the rejuvenation of the body. According to Imam As-Suyuti in Tibb An-Nabawi, Whoever sleeps after Asr and wakes up mad let him blame only himself. The Prophet (peace be upon him) used to sleep after Zuhr and he said: Take an afternoon sleep (qaylula) because Shaitan does not take one. This practice helps you get up at night for the night prayer (tahajjud). When you take the afternoon rest it literally brings you back to the freshness of the morning. It is like starting the day all over again. -Sheikh Hamza Yusuf

If Allah has put you in a difficult situation in this world, its a chance to earn ease in the hereafter through patience. If falsehood and corruption are on the rise, its a chance to do more Daawah and spread the truth. If youre being ridiculed for your faith by the creation, its a chance to earn the praise of the Creator. Everything from Allah is good because even the bad in this world is in essence just a means of attaining good in the hereafter for the believer. The sunnah is to be optimistic and opportunistic!
Omar Suleiman

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Issue 1: Homecoming

Ingredients 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened 3/4 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup packed brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 large eggs 1 bag of chocolate chips 1 cup chopped nuts Prep:15 mins Cooking: 9 mins Level: Easy Cooling:15 mins Yields: 60

Directions PREHEAT oven to 375 F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. PAN COOKIE VARIATION: Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan. Prepare dough as above. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack. Makes 4 dozen bars. SLICE AND BAKE COOKIE VARIATION: PREPARE dough as above. Divide in half; wrap in waxed paper. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm. Shape each half into 15-inch log; wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.* Preheat oven to 375 F. Cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices; place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

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Issue 1: Homecoming

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Iqra Newsletter 2013 8