Ramadan 15th and some thoughts

  

Ramadan is known to soften the hearts of the believers.
And yes, it is true, if you are fasting the whole day only for the sake of Allah (not to please someone else, not to be seen as pious in the eyes of the others, not just to do what the whole community does), if you fast with the pure intention only to please Allah and to fulfil His obligations, then your heart will slowly begin to open itself towards the blessings within.
Half the month already is over and I feel how my body begins to get used to the new rhythm of the day, how I enjoy the free mind during the mornings, fresh and relaxed and not disturbed by thoughts about what to cook for lunch etc. There is so much more time left for the real important things.
Everyday I feel more and more sensitive and prone to see the beauty and meaning within everything. My eyes, my skin, my nose… all my senses are opened and highly tuned to receive the blessings of this world. Subhan’allah.
And I see more and more how perfect this religion is. I believe that there are blessings and deep meanings in every obligation given from God.
I strongly believe that Islam prevents health and guarantees the best way of life, universal and wise. There is wisdom behind everything obligatory and Allah knows best why He commands us to wake up before the sun, why He lets us doing all the up-and-down-movements during prayer five times a day, why He wants us to restrain from food and drink during the day a whole month long, why He made some things obligatory, some permissible and others forbidden…

Subhan’allah, I can see the meaning in all of this and even if there are few things I do not really understand yet, I try my hardest to accept and to fulfil Allah’s will and I strongly believe that they are good for something, even if I am not getting it now.
Subhan’allah I am grateful for this religion, for having been guided to His path and for all the blessings within!

I am grateful for all the gifts in my life, I am grateful for so many things and this gratefulness fills my eyes with tears and overflows my heart with love…

Masha’allah, how peaceful this world could be….

The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) said:
“Ramadan has come to you. (It is) a month of blessing, in which Allah covers you with blessing, for He sends down Mercy, decreases sins and answers prayers. In it, Allah looks at your competition (in good deeds), and boasts about you to His angels. So show Allah goodness from yourselves, for the unfortunate one is he who is deprived in (this month) of the mercy of Allah, the Mighty, the Exalted.”
Narrated by Tabarani
  
work in progress for a school to be

…a never ending rope…

  

Have you ever thought about the different deeper meanings of the obligatory daily prayers?
Have you ever thought about the reason why the Muslim’s prayer times follow the light? 

We pray five times a day, always according to the sun: in the morning when it’s still dark but a first light can been seen on the horizon (it’s the time when the fasting day begins); at noon when the sun quits the zenith; in the afternoon when shadows are as long as the object itself; in the evening right after sundown (it’s the time when we break our fast) and at night when no more light can be seen at the western horizon.

And do you know what that means? It means that since the coming of Islam, prayer is an ongoing never ending rope; it means that all the time there are Muslims praying around the globe! Subhanallah! It is a constant glorification of God, an eternal submission and thankfulness to Allah the Almighty. Mashaallah, God ordered us to remember Him at exactly these times and so He made sure that there is no moment without at least some believers worshipping Him because the earth is round and turns around and this means that the sunlight and also the prayer times turn westwards around the globe in a never ending circle.
So when I listen to the call to prayer in our village, I first hear the call in the village before ours; and when the Muezzin calls in our village I hear a few seconds later the one of the next village, and then the next, and the next… it is a breathtaking and beautiful canon of praise… and that goes on westwards over the mountains to Marrakech and then to the Moroccan west coast and then to America’s east coast and then to the west coast and so on… and when we pray Asr’ here, they soon pray Maghrib in Makkah; and when we pray Maghrib, in Germany they nearly pray Isha’…

Subhanallah, there is always somewhere on this globe a call to prayer, there are always somewhere on this beautiful earth Muslims worshipping their creator!

Alhamdulillah, that makes me crying, that makes me feel very thankful, it touches me deeply and it gives me hope and a feeling of grateful pride to be part of that never ending rope of submission.
May we pray for peace, may we ask for His mercy and may He accept our prayers, Allahu akbar, Praise to God!

{this moment}

  

3.45 am: waking time; ablution/ washing for the prayer (Wudu)
3.50 am: taking a last meal (Suhoor) before sunrise and the beginning of a new fasting day without food and drink;
4.20 am: listening to the call for the morning prayer; praying Fajr;
4.30 am: reading Qur’an;
5.00 am: back to bed, taking some more sleep;
7.00 am: waking up from new, enjoying a new day busy working for the school project and being with the kids;
13.00 pm: praying Duhr’ and making a quick lunch for the kids; in the afternoon relaxing and more spiritual reading;
16.30 pm: praying Asr’ and slowly beginning to prepare the meal for breaking the fast;
18.00 pm: going out, enjoying nature and the fresh air;
18.45 pm: coming in, showering the kids and preparing the Iftar table, looking out the window and waiting for the call for prayer (Adhan);
19.25 pm: call for the sunset prayer Maghrib; “Allahu akbar, Allhumma taquabal minni siami” (God is the greatest, Oh Allah please accept my fasting); taking three dates and a glass of water – subhanallah, heavenly after 15 hours of restraining from food and drink; enjoying now all the good on our table and the kid’s calendar gifts…
20.00 pm: praying Maghrib; cleaning the kitchen and bringing the kids to bed;
21.00 pm: praying ‘Isha and some more reading;
22.00 pm: bedtime.
 

back here

  
  

Salam alaikoum friends!

I am slowly back after a very busy blog-break. Our summer-school-free-time-offer ended last week with the beginning of Ramadan and I enjoy now some days of spirituality, of summer-joy, of quiet and slow.

The last weeks were very lively and full of change and activity. We had nearly every day more than 20 kids around here, subhanallah – there was a real need for our workshops, crafting and playing programmes.

We also had time to further plan the school that opens mid September, inchaallah, and to get many kids enrolled.

Alhamdulillah things go on well, the government gave its official permission for the school and we use the opportunity of this blessed month now to work on the last important preparations for the start, to arrange the rooms, to do some last building work and to sort out the materials – and we pray for financial support and a smooth start, inchaallah – and I ask you to keep us in your prayers as well.

I am glad to be back here from time to time with some news, thoughts and inspiration.
And I wish you a very blessed sacred month!  

 

Ramadan moubarak!

 
we’re still on summer break for some more days… wishing you a blessed sacred time!