Islam

Ramadan is a holy month observed during the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, and the exact dates change from year to year. Basically its a little over 1 month of fasting, prayer, and self-sacrifice. It is a time to focus on your relationship with God. This means that Muslims cannot eat from sunrise to sunset.

When i say we cannot eat, i mean:

1)no food OF ANY KIND can enter your system

2)no drink, including water

3)no sex during fasting hours (of any kind)

Ramadan is the month during which the Quran was revealed, providing guidance for the people, clear teachings, and the statute book. Those of you who witness this month shall fast therein.... (2:185) so we better read the holy book(koran) at least once.

Muslims were ordered to fast compulsory fasting during the day and at the night Sunnah prayers.

It is also a time for focusing on cleaning up your life. You are to Abstain from using or listening to obscene words, having unclean thoughts, and going to sinful places.

You can also check wikipedia for a more detailed look

That's a long answer, that someone else replied with, but the short answer is no. Having a girlfriend or a boyfriend, or any type of relationship before marriage is not allowed.

Praise be to Allah.

Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

"… Wed them with the permission of their own folk and give them their mahr (dowry) according to what is reasonable; they should be chaste, not adulterous, nor taking boyfriends…" [al-Nisaa' 4:25]

In his commentary on this aayah, Ibn Katheer (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

"Muhsanaat [translated as "chaste"] means that they should be pure, not indulging in zinaa (unlawful sexual conduct), hence they are described as not being musaafihaat, which means promiscuous women who do not refuse anyone who wants to commit immoral acts with them. Regarding the phrase WA laa muttakhidhaati akhdaan ('nor taking boyfriends'), Ibn 'Abbaas said: 'al-musaafihaat means those who are known to commit zinaa, meaning those who will not refuse anyone who wants to commit immoral acts with them.' Ibn 'Abbaas also said: 'muttakhidhaati akhdaan means lovers.' A similar interpretation was narrated from Abu Hurayrah, Mujaahid, al-Sha'bi, al-Dahhaak, 'Ataa' al-Khurasaani, Yahyaa ibn Abi Katheer, Muqaatil ibn Hayyaan and al-Saddi. They said: (it means) lovers. Al-Hasan al-Basri said: 'It means a (male) friend.' Al-Dahhaak also said: 'WA laa muttakhidhaati akhdaan also means a woman who has just one boyfriend or lover with whom she is happy. Allaah has also forbidden this, meaning marrying her so long as she is in that situation…'"

Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

"Made lawful to you this day are al-tayyibaat [all kinds of halaal (lawful) foods…]. The food of the People of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) is lawful to you and yours is lawful to them. (Lawful to you in marriage) are chaste women from the believers and chaste women from those who were given the Scripture (Jews and Christians) before your time, when you have given their due mahr (bridal money given by the husband to the wife at the time of marriage), desiring chastity (i.e., taking them in legal wedlock), not committing illegal sexual intercourse, nor taking them as girlfriends. And whosoever disbelieves in the Oneness of Allaah and in all the other Articles of Faith, the fruitless is his work, and in the Hereafter he will be among the losers." [al-Maa'idah 5:5]

Ibn Katheer (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

"Muhsineen ghayr musaafiheen WA laa muttakhidhi akhdaan ('desiring chastity (i.e., taking them in legal wedlock), not committing illegal sexual intercourse, nor taking them as girlfriends'). Just as Allaah imposed the condition of chastity on women, meaning that they refrain from zinaa, so it is also imposed on men. The man must also be pure and chaste. So they should be ghayr musaafiheen, meaning they should not be adulterers who do not refrain from sin and do not refuse any who come to them (for immoral purposes). Nor should they be muttakhidhi akhdaan, meaning those who have girlfriends or female lovers with whom they have an exclusive relationship, as quoted above from Soorat al-Nisaa'. (The one with many lovers or the one with just one lover) are both the same. For this reason Imaam Ahmad ibn Hanbal (may Allaah have mercy on him) said that it is not right to marry a promiscuous woman unless she has repented, or to arrange a marriage of such a woman to a chaste man, so long as she is still conducting herself in this manner. Similarly, he (Ahmad) says that it is not right for a promiscuous man to marry a chaste woman unless he repents and gives up his immoral conduct, because of this aayah… We will discuss this matter in further detail after quoting the aayah (interpretation of the meaning):

"Let no man guilty of fornication or adultery marry any but a woman similarly guilty, or an unbeliever: nor let any but such a man or an unbeliever marry such a woman: to the Believers such a thing is forbidden." [al-Noor 24:3]

Among the stories that show that it is forbidden to have girlfriends or to marry them is the story of Marthad ibn Abi Marthad, who used to smuggle Muslim prisoners-of-war from Makkah to Madeenah. There was a prostitute in Makkah, called 'Anaaq, who had been a friend of Marthad's. Marthad had promised to take one of the prisoners from Makkah to Madeenah. He said: "I came to the shade of one of the gardens of Makkah on a moonlit night, then 'Anaaq came and saw my shadow by the garden. When she reached me, she recognized me and said: 'Marthad?' I said, 'Marthad.' She said: 'Welcome! Stay with us tonight.' I said, 'O 'Anaaq, Allaah has forbidden zinaa (unlawful sexual relations)' … I came to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and asked him, 'O Messenger of Allaah, should I marry 'Anaaq?' The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) remained silent and did not answer me at all, until the aayah 'Let no man guilty of adultery or fornication marry any but a woman similarly guilty, or an Unbeliever; nor let any but such a man or an Unbeliever marry such a woman; to the Believers such a thing is forbidden' [al-Noor 24:3 - Yusuf 'Ali's translation]was revealed. Then the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: 'O Marthad, Let no man guilty of adultery or fornication marry any but a woman similarly guilty, or an Unbeliever; nor let any but such a man or an Unbeliever marry such a woman, so do not marry her.'"

(Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 3101; he said: it is a hasan ghareeb hadeeth).

'Abd-Allaah ibn Maghfal reported that there was a woman who had been a prostitute during the days of ignorance (before Islam). A man passed by her, or she passed by him, and he touched her. She said: "Stop it! (Mah! A word connoting a rebuke or denunciation). Allaah has done away with shirk and had brought Islam." So he left her alone and went away, still looking at her, until he walked into a wall, hitting his face. He came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and told him what had happened. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "You are a man for whom Allaah wishes good. When Allaah, may He be blessed and exalted, wishes good for His slave, He hastens the punishment for his sin, so that it is dealt with before the Day of Resurrection." (Reported by al-Haakim, 1/349, who said this hadeeth is saheeh according to the conditions of Muslim, and al-Dhahabi agreed with him. See Saheeh al-Jaami', 308).

These aayaat and ahaadeeth clearly indicate that it is haraam (forbidden) for men to have any kind of friendship or relationship with non-mahram women (women to whom they are not closely-related and to whom they could get married). The evil consequences and misery caused by such relationships are obvious to anyone who observes real life. We ask Allaah to keep us far away from that which is forbidden, to protect us from all that may earn His wrath and to keep us safe from a painful punishment. May Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad.

Islam Q&A

Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

The Qur'an is the recitation of god's revelation to Muhammad.

God revelation of first verse of Quran to prophet Mohamed, through the Angel Gabriel (Jibril), was in year 610 AD (when prophet Mohamed was 40 years old)

The Quran revelations continued until year 632 (when Prophet Mohamed died).

Praise be to Allaah.

There are two ways to do wudoo' :

1 - Obligatory parts of wudoo', which are as follows:

(i) Washing the face completely once, which includes rinsing the mouth and nose.

(ii) Washing the arms up to the elbows, once.

(iii) Wiping the entire head, including the ears.

(iv) Washing the feet up to ankles, once.

What is meant by once in all the above is that the entire part of the body mentioned must be washed thoroughly.

(v) This must be done in order, so one washes the face first, then the arms, then wipes the head, then washes the feet, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did wudoo' in this order.

(vi) This must be done continuously, i.e., the parts of the body must be washed one after the other with no lengthy interruption between washing one part and the next.

These are the obligatory parts of wudoo' which must be done in order for wudoo' to be sound.

The evidence for these obligatory parts of wudoo' is the aayah in which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

"O you who believe! When you intend to offer As-Salaah(the prayer), wash your faces and your hands (forearms) up to the elbows, rub (by passing wet hands over) your heads, and (wash) your feet up to the ankles. If you are in a state of Janaaba(i.e. after a sexual discharge), purify yourselves (bathe your whole body). But if you are ill or on a journey, or any of you comes after answering the call of nature, or you have been in contact with women (i.e. sexual intercourse), and you find no water, then perform Tayammum with clean earth and rub therewith your faces and hands. Allaah does not want to place you in difficulty, but He wants to purify you, and to complete His Favour to you that you may be thankful" [al-Maa'idah 5:6]

2 - Mustahabb parts of wudoo'. These were narrated in the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), the details of which are as follows:

(i) You must have the intention of purifying yourself and removing impurity. The intention should not be spoken out loud for its place is in the heart. This applies to all acts of worship.

(ii) You should say Bismillaah.

(iii) Then you should wash your hands three times

(iv) Then you should rinse your mouth three times, swirling the water around inside your mouth, and rinse your nose three times, blowing the water out and using the left hand to remove the water from your nose.

(v) You should wash you face three times, from the hairline to the jawbone and chin, and from ear to ear. A man should wash the hair of his beard because it is part of the face. If his beard is thin he has to wash it inside and out, and if it is thick and covers the skin, he should wash the surface of it only and run his wet fingers through it.

(vi) Then he should wash his arms up to the elbows three times. The arm extends from the fingertips, including the nails, to the lower part of the upper arm. It is essential to remove anything stuck to the hands before washing them, such as dough, mud, paint, etc, that could prevent the water from reaching the skin.

(vii) Then after that he should wipe his head and ears once with fresh water, not the water left over from washing his arms. The way in which the head is to be wiped is that you put your wet hands at the front of your head and bring them to the back of your head, then bring them back to the place where you started. Then put your index fingers in your ears and wipe the back of the ears with your thumbs. With regard to a woman's hair, she should wipe it whether it is loose or braided from the front of her head to the roots of the hair at the nape of her neck, but she does not have to wipe the entire length of her hair.

(viii) Then you should wash your feet three times up to the ankles, namely the bones at the bottom of the leg.

The evidence for that is the hadeeth narrated by Humraan the freed slave of 'Uthmaan, who said that 'Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan (may Allaah be pleased with him) called for water to do wudoo'. He washed his hands three times, then he rinsed his mouth and nose, then he washed his face three times, then he washed his right arm up to the elbow three times, then he washed his left arm likewise. Then he wiped his head, then he washed his right foot up to the ankle three times, then he washed his left foot likewise. Then he said, "I saw the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) doing wudoo' as I have done it, then the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, 'Whoever does wudoo' as I have done it, then prays two rak'ahs in which he focuses completely on his prayer, his previous sins will be forgiven.'" (Narrated by Muslim, al-Tahaarah, 331)

The conditions of wudoo are: being Muslim, being of sound mind, having reached the age of discernment and having the intention of doing wudoo'. Wudoo' is not valid on the part of a kaafir, an insane person, a small child who has not yet reached the age of discernment or one who does not have the intention of doing wudoo' because his intention is to cool himself down, for example. The water must also be pure (taahir), for impure (naajis) water cannot be used for wudoo'. One must also remove anything that could prevent water from reaching the skin and nails, such as nail polish.

It is prescribed to say Bismillaah according to the majority of scholars, but they differ as to whether it is obligatory or Sunnah. If one remembers to say it, it may be said either at the beginning of wudoo' or during it.

There is no difference between men and women in the way wudoo' should be done.

It is mustahabb to say, when one has completed wudoo': "Ashhadu an laa ilaaha ill-Allaah wahdahu laa shareeka lah, WA ashhadu Anna Muhammadan 'abduhu WA rasooluhu (I bear witness that there is no god except Allaah alone with no partner or associate, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allaah)," because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "There is no one among you who does wudoo' and does it properly and does it well, then he says, 'Ashhadu an laa ilaaha ill-Allaahwahdahu laa shareeka lah, WA ashhadu Anna Muhammadan 'abduhu WA rasooluhu,' but the gates of Paradise will be opened to him and he may enter through whichever of them he wishes." (Narrated by Muslim, al-Tahaarah, 345). A report narrated by al-Tirmidhi adds: "Allaahumma ij'alni min al-tawwaabeena WA'j'alni min al-mutatahhireen (O Allaah, make me one of those who repent and make me one of those who purify themselves)." (al-Tahaarah, 50; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Sunan Abi Dawood, no. 48)

See al-Mulakhkhas al-Fiqhi by al-Fawzaan, 1/36)

And Allaah knows best.

Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

Source: Islam Q & A (http://www.Islam-qa.com/en/ref/11497/wudu)

Islam never allowed slavery. It is the opposite. In the era of Quran revelation, slavery was a worldwide spread and Islam; per Quran and prophet Muhammad (PBUH) teachings; set the rules and motivations to limit slavery and to terminate slavery peacefully and by avoiding strong shock to the society..

To limit slavery and to take steps to terminate it, it was stated in Quran, the holy book of Islam religion, that one should release (liberate) a slave as a way to be rewarded by God and gain His mercy or as a penalty to be forgiven from the sins of breaking Oath, mistaken killing of someone, or some other sins.

Not only that but allowed a free one (not slave) to formally marry a slave woman with approval of her parents and with allowing her all marriage rights and obligations including getting her and her children, upon marriage and giving birth, freed from slavery and getting all the wife rights including inheritance.

When there were still slave women, it was completely forbidden to have sex with the slave woman without mutual acceptance and satisfaction. Raping slave women was strictly forbidden.

In addition, Islam declared clearly the rights of slaves/ servants. Islam (Quranic Islam, which is actually what was practiced by Prophet Muhammad and those with him, and not the distorted picture of Islam as promoted among the masses today by the pen of the historians and human conjecture) set in motion a gradual process of improvement in the status of those in bondage and culminating in the abolition of this institution. The process started with Quran sayings (meaning English translation):

"…ye…may wed believing girls from among those whom your right hands posses….wed them with the leave of their owners, and give them their dower…" [Quran chapter 4, verse 25]

This conferred upon the slave girls all the rights and privileges of a wife. In Quran, Verse 36 of chapter 4 brought another big change in the status of slaves by enforcing the obligation to do good to one's parents and in the same breath, also to the slaves:

"…do goodness to parents …and to what your right hands posses (slaves)"

[Quran chapter 4, verse 36]

Quran exhorts Believers to give monetary help to those in bondage in order to alleviate their economic status:

"Alms are for…those in Bondage.."

[Quran, chapter 9, verse 60]

Quran also urged Muslims to free those in the shackles of slavery:

"…But it is righteousness…to spend of your substance out of love for Him…for the ransom of slaves.."

[Quran, chapter 2, verse 177]

"And whoever kills a believer by mistake, it is ordained that he should free a believing slave.."

[Quran, chapter 4, verse 92]

"He will call you to account for your deliberate oaths: for expiation…give a slave his freedom.."

[Quran, chapter 5, verse 89]

According to Quran if a slave asks for his freedom, the Muslim is left for no other choice but to accede to his request and is also required to help him with funds in order to rehabilitate him as a free man:

"And if any of your slaves ask you for a deed in writing (for emancipation) give them such a deed; If ye knew any good in them: yea, give them something yourselves out of the means which Allah has given to you…"

[Quran, chapter 24, verse 33]

The main source of slaves, were prisoners of war. The Quran laid down that they should be set free either for a favor or as ransom for your own prisoners of war:

"So when you meet in battle those who disbelieve, then smite the necks until when you have overcome them, then make (them) prisoners, and then either set them free as a favor or let them ransom (themselves) until the war terminates…"

[Quran, chapter 47,verse 4]

Thus the Quran has restricted the victor with either freeing prisoners for ransom or as a favor. There is no third choice given by the Quran, and thereby it has not only abolished slavery but abolished the very source of this evil, i.e. prisoners of war.

The basic and fundamental teaching of the Quran is that subservience is due to God (Allah) alone and not to any human or group of humans. Obedience and sovereignty is only and only for God (Allah), says the Quran at numerous places.

Qur'anic Islam does not accept Slavery. Unlike the Bible which states:

"ye, shall take them (the slaves) as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them (the slaves) for a possession, they shall be, your BONDMEN (slaves) for ever . . . LEVITICUS 25:46

It is clear that the basic teaching of the Quran is that obedience and subservience is due to God (Allah) alone. From above and many other verses it is very clear that the Quran has abolished slavery, and not upheld it. If their remain certain verses were slaves are mentioned then these are those which were already existing in society from days of ignorance and about whom the Quran enjoined a gradual elevation in status leading to their freedom and abolishing any future enslavement.

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In Islam we have 3 places with religious significance, I will mention them according to importance:

1- Makkah, Saudi Arabia: Makkah is considered the capital of Islam, as it contains the Holy Mosque and inside it there is the "Ka'aba". As Muslims we have 5 prayers a day, and when we pray we have to pray towards Kaaba's direction, so Muslims all around the world all pray into one direction, and that is where the Kaaba is.

2- Al Madinah Al Monawarah, Saudi Arabia: Our Prophet was from Makkah, but he immigrated to Al Madinah later in his life and from there he spread the message of Islam. In Al Madinah, the prophet built his mosque, and it is called the "Prophet's Holy Mosque". That is why this place is important to us.

3- Jerusalem, Palestine: This city has the "Aqsa Mosque", this mosque was considered Holy by Allah since the time of the prophet Mouses and before, and even our prophet Mohammed led all God's prophets in a prayer in this holy mosque.

These three mosques were mentioned by our prophet, as he said: "No journy should be undertaken for the purpose of visiting any mosque, except three: my mosque (Prophet's Holy Mosque), The Holy Mosque (in Makkah) and Al Aqsa Mosque"

Hope this is the answer you are looking for.

May Allah lead us to his right path.

Rabi-al-awwal

its the month when the prophet Muhammad was born so it is sometimes classified as the most significant month.

hope that helped. :)