Be Quranic

Tonight is the 23rd night. And because the Islamic calendar begins at Maghrib, tonight is already Friday night. Many of our pious predecessors said that when an odd night of Ramadan falls on a Friday night, the likelihood of it being Laylatul Qadr increases.This is the night we've been hunting for all year. So do extra. Make lots of du'a. Don't waste a minute of it.And as it happens — alhamdulillah — the ayat we reach tonight in Surah Al-A'raf are about du'a itself. About how to make it, what should be in our heart when we make it, and why it is the very heart of all worship. Allah has a way of doing that.A paid subscription includes a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. Now That You Know Who He Is — Call HimWe spent two nights on ayah 54. We talked about the six stages of creation, about Prof. Jenkins' framework, about matter and antimatter, about why physicists keep stopping just short of saying “God” — and why that has everything to do with European trauma and nothing to do with the evidence.The point was this: Allah introduced Himself. He is the one who created the heavens and the earth. The sun, the moon, the stars — all operating under His command. And this matters because now ayah 55 opens with a natural next step.You know who your Lord is. So call Him.Ud'u rabbakum tadarru'an wa khufya.Call your Lord with tadaru' — with humility — and khufya — quietly.The Outer and the InnerTadaru' captures two things at once: humility on the outside and humility on the inside. Both. Together.The external side — your body posture when you make du'a. You don't stand chest out, arms crossed, making demands. You beg. And the way we beg is with our palms open, raised to the sky. The Prophet ﷺ taught us this. And he said that Allah is — and I want you to sit with this — embarrassed when His servant raises his hands to the sky and then puts them back down empty.That's not to say Allah owes us anything. He doesn't. But it tells you something about how much He loves to hear from us. He is waiting for us to call. He wants us to call. So when we raise our hands, He will not let us lower them without answering.The Prophet ﷺ when making du'a would look downward — hands raised, gaze lowered. The qibla of salah is the Ka'bah. The qibla of du'a is the sky. But in moments of great need, moments of complete brokenness, he would raise his hands high and look upward. Not demanding. Just — there is no one else. There is nowhere else to turn. Ya Allah.Then there is khufya — quietly. The companions were once marching and making du'a at the top of their lungs. The Prophet ﷺ told them to bring it down. Your Lord is not deaf. He hears you.So the outer dimension of du'a: humble posture, lowered voice.But there is also the inner dimension — and that comes in the next ayah.What Du'a Feels Like on the InsideAyah 56: Khawfan wa tama'an. Make du'a with fear and longing.We talked about tama' a few nights ago in the context of the people of A'raf. In Malay it means greedy — but in Arabic it means something different. It means a deep, intense desire for something. You want it so much. So tama' in du'a means you are making du'a with a genuine ache for it. Not going through the motions. Actually wanting.And khawf — fear. What are we afraid of? Not that Allah won't answer. But that we are not worthy of the answer. That we might be arrogant enough to think we've earned it. The khawf keeps us humble. It stops du'a from becoming a transaction — Ya Allah, I've been to taraweeh 23 nights straight, so now give me what I want, or I'm not coming tomorrow. That is not du'a. That is negotiation.Khawf and tama'. Fear and hope. These two things together are not just for du'a — they carry us through our entire journey to Allah.Think about what happens when they get out of balance. If a person only has fear — only reads the ayat of punishment, only thinks about Jahannam, only focuses on their sins — they will break. They'll reach a point where they think: everything I do is wrong, Allah is going to throw me into the fire anyway, why bother? So they give up. The fear, without hope, destroys.And if a person only has hope — only focuses on Allah's mercy, only reads about forgiveness — they get lazy. Why worry about halal and haram? Allah is Ghafurul Rahim. He'll forgive me. The hope, without fear, makes you complacent.You need both. Fear reminds you that Allah is Al-Muntaqim — the Avenger, the One who punishes, the One who has full power over Jahannam. Hope reminds you that He is Ghafurul Rahim. And when those two things live in your heart together, you keep moving. You don't collapse, and you don't drift.Du'a Is the Essence of Every IbadahHere's something that might reframe how you see worship.After spending all of ayah 54 introducing who He is — after all of that — the next instruction Allah gives is not pray. Not fast. Not give zakat. It is: make du'a. Why?Because the Prophet ﷺ said: al-du'a mukhkhul ibadah — du'a is the marrow of worship. The core. The essence. Every act of worship, properly understood, contains du'a within it.What is the most important part of salah? The Prophet ﷺ said: there is no salah without Surah Al-Fatiha. So what is Al-Fatiha about? Strip away the opening praises — Alhamdulillahi Rabbil Alameen, Al-Rahman Al-Rahim, Maliki Yawmid-Din — those are the adab. You praise Allah first before you ask. You don't walk up to someone and say I need five hundred dollars before you've even said hello. You warm them up. You acknowledge them. Then you drop the ask. And the ask in Al-Fatiha is one thing: Ihdina As-Sirat Al-Mustaqim. Oh Allah, keep us on the straight path. The entire prayer — seven times in every raka'ah — is that one du'a. Put me back on the path.And fasting? The Prophet ﷺ said: whoever enters Ramadan and leaves it without their sins being forgiven, Allah curses them. That means the entire month of fasting is one extended du'a: Ya Allah, forgive me. Every hunger pang is that du'a. Every moment of thirst. Every night of taraweeh. All of it is saying: Ya Allah, I am broken, I need You, forgive me.Al-du'a mukhkhul ibadah. When you understand that, you understand why du'a comes before everything else in this ayah.Don't Spread Corruption After the Earth Has Been Set RightAllah ends ayah 56 with something that reaches far beyond our personal worship: do not spread corruption on earth after it has been set right.Ba'da islahiha. After its reform. After its repair. The earth has been made good. Don't undo that.This is bigger than just don't harm people. Our responsibility is to all of Allah's creation — human beings, animals, plants, the water, the land. Allah follows this immediately with the image of wind carrying rain clouds across the sky, dead earth suddenly turning green after winter — that is Allah's islah. He repairs the earth constantly. Who are we to corrupt what He keeps restoring?The Prophet ﷺ once saw a companion using excess water while making wudu. He asked him: what is this waste? The companion said: is there waste in wudu? I'm doing ibadah. And the Prophet ﷺ said: yes. Even if you are making wudu in a flowing river.A flowing river. 1,400 years ago, people could not imagine that human beings would ever have the capacity to destroy something as vast and powerful as a river. And yet here we are — post-industrial revolution, with water undrinkable in country after country, because we corrupted it. The Prophet ﷺ saw it coming. The instruction was already there.Even at war, Islamic rules of conduct prohibit cutting down trees and burning crops. If we cannot corrupt the environment in war, what is our excuse in times of peace?Qaribun Min Al-MuhsineenAllah ends with: indeed the mercy of Allah is near to those who are muhsineen — those who are excellent, those who do ihsan.We'll pick this up tomorrow insha'Allah and explore what it means that Allah's mercy is specifically close to the muhsineen — and what that tells us about the standard we should be reaching for.Thanks for reading Grounded! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

The Last Ten Nights Are HereBefore diving into the final ayah of Surah Al-Muzzammil, a timely reminder — tonight is the 23rd night of Ramadan. The last ten nights are upon us, and the Prophet ﷺ told us to hunt for Laylatul Qadr in these nights, especially the odd ones. Tonight is one of them.So what should fill these nights? Extra raka'at. Extra Quran. Extra dhikr. And the best du'a for this occasion comes to us through Sayyidatuna Aisha (رضي الله عنها), who asked the Prophet ﷺ: if I encounter the Night of Al-Qadr, what should I say? He replied: “Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa'fu ‘anni” — “O Allah, You are the Most Pardoning and You love to pardon, so pardon me.”Now, there's an important distinction here between ‘afw and ghafar. When we say astaghfirullah and ask for Allah's forgiveness (ghafar), the record of the sin remains — but the punishment is cancelled. The deed is still in the books on the Day of Mahshar, but Allah will not punish us for it.Al-'Afw is something else entirely. It is when the record is expunged altogether. Wiped clean. As if the sin never happened. This is why the Prophet ﷺ said that whoever fasts sincerely and prays during the nights of Ramadan — and catches Laylatul Qadr — will have all their past sins forgiven. They exit Ramadan like the day they were born. No record of sins whatsoever.It's just a few nights. Sleep a little less. Yes, there will be tiredness — that's okay. This is our training. Don't miss a night that is greater than a thousand months, greater than 83 years of worship.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Where We Left Off — The Arc of Surah Al-MuzzammilThe surah opened with a command: stand up at night, pray, and recite the Quran. Why? Because the day is full of heavy tasks — spreading truth, standing for justice, enduring hardship — and the strength to carry all of that comes from the spiritual work done at night. Reading about Jannah motivates. Reading about Jahannam sobers. The connection to Allah realigns everything.Then came the warning through the story of Fir'aun — richer, stronger, more powerful than the Quraysh, yet destroyed in an instant when he rejected Prophet Musa. Then the terrifying imagery of Yawmul Qiyamah: skies torn apart, children's hair turning white from sheer terror. And finally, the choice: believe and take the prophetic path, or reject and face the consequences. Every choice carries a consequence.Now the surah circles back to where it began — Qiyamul Layl — but this time with something remarkable: mercy.Allah Knows Our WeaknessThe original command was demanding. Stand up most of the night — two-thirds, or at least half, or at the very minimum a third. The Prophet ﷺ did this every single night, without exception, even while travelling, even during battle. But Allah knew that the rest of the ummah would struggle.Allah says: “Indeed, your Lord knows that you stand less than two-thirds of the night, sometimes half, sometimes even less than a third — and so do a group of those with you.”Allah is the One who measured the length of night and day. Some seasons, the nights are long and Qiyamul Layl is easier — in Perth during winter, Maghrib comes in at 5:15 and Fajr isn't until around six. Plenty of time to sleep and still wake up. But in the peak of summer, when Fajr is at 3:30? That's a different story. Allah knows all of this.And so He says: “He has forgiven you.” Qiyamul Layl is fard upon the Prophet ﷺ, but for the rest of us, Allah has already shown mercy and lifted that strict obligation.But Don't Abandon It AltogetherHere's the key — just because the full obligation has been eased doesn't mean doing nothing is an option. Allah says: “So read what is easy for you from the Quran.” Stand up for even two raka'at. Read whatever surahs have been memorised. Carve out even a small portion of the night for spiritual work.This is a fundamental principle in Islam: what cannot be accomplished entirely should not be abandoned in totality. Islam doesn't teach perfectionism — it's not 100% or nothing. It teaches consistent effort. The Prophet ﷺ said that the most beloved deeds to Allah are those that are consistent, even if they are small. Two raka'at every single night outweighs a marathon session once a month.And this, by the way, is one of the great purposes behind memorising the Quran — so that those surahs can be recited in prayer. Al-Kahf, Al-Mulk, Al-Baqarah — they come alive when recited standing before Allah at night.The Three Excuses Allah AcceptsThen Allah provides specific concessions. First: those who are sick. Illness isn't a choice — when rest is needed for recovery, Allah says it's okay.But then come two more categories that are remarkable, because they are things people can choose — and Allah still grants them as valid reasons for doing less Qiyamul Layl.The first: those who travel the earth seeking Allah's bounty — meaning those who are out working, doing business, building economic stability. The second: those who fight in the path of Allah, defending the religion and the community.These two are placed in equal standing. Working hard to earn a living is given the same weight as defending the faith. That is extraordinary. It tells us something profound about how Islam views economic productivity — not as a worldly distraction, but as an act valued by Allah Himself.The Prophet ﷺ said the best rizq is what a person earns from their own effort, and he pointed to Prophet Dawud (عليه السلام) as the example — a prophet, a king, and yet also a blacksmith who worked with iron and ate from the labour of his own hands.Ibn Umar expressed this beautifully. He said the best deaths he could wish for were two: martyrdom in the path of Allah, and dying on a business journey — on his camel, with his trade goods, on his way to earn a living. Because this ayah puts them side by side.Islam Wants Muslims to Be Wealthy — But With PurposeThe encouragement to work hard and build wealth doesn't come without direction. Islam doesn't say: get rich so you can buy the fanciest car, then a fancy island, and once you run out of things to buy on earth, spend a trillion dollars trying to conquer Mars.Islam says: be rich, but that's not the end goal. The ummah becomes strong when Muslims have economic power and an akhirah mindset. With wealth, the community can build schools, support students in critical fields, fund long-term projects. This is Sadaqatul Jariyah — continuously flowing charity that keeps giving long after the initial contribution.There's a telling hadith in Imam Al-Nawawi's Forty Collection that captures this tension perfectly. The poor companions once came to the Prophet ﷺ and complained: “Ya Rasulullah, the rich have taken all the extra reward! They pray like we pray, they fast like we fast — but they can give charity from their surplus wealth, and we can't.” The Prophet ﷺ reassured them that dhikr — saying SubhanAllah, Alhamdulillah, Allahu Akbar — is also charity. The poor companions went away happy. But a few days later? The rich started doing dhikr too. Now they had both. The poor came back and said: what about us now?The point isn't to vilify poverty. The Prophet ﷺ went on to explain that there is charity in every good act — helping someone onto their ride, carrying someone's load. But wealth opens doors that nothing else can. Zakat, the pillar of Islam, is only payable by those who have wealth. And the framing matters: it's not that the wealthy have to pay zakat — they get to pay zakat. Without wealth, that entire pillar of Islam is inaccessible. And hajj is the same.The story of Sayyidina Uthman (رضي الله عنه) at the Battle of Tabuk drives this home. He donated so generously — horses, camels, wealth — that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Nothing Uthman does after this will harm him.” Guaranteed paradise. And Uthman wasn't living in poverty. He had luxuries. But look at the scale of what his wealth allowed him to do for the ummah.At the same time, Islam doesn't expect anyone to give 100% away. The best charity, the Prophet ﷺ said, is what is spent on family — on spouses, on children. The balance is always there: spend on yourself, on your family, and on the ummah for the sake of the akhirah.The Beautiful LoanEven with all these concessions, Allah says: still, read what is easy from the Quran. Establish your salah. Pay your zakat. Don't let the extras overshadow the foundations — a hundred raka'at of Qiyamul Layl mean nothing if Fajr is missed. Generous charity donations mean nothing if zakat is neglected. The obligatory always comes first.Then comes a stunning phrase: “And give Allah a beautiful loan (qard hasan).”A qard hasan is a loan with no deadline for repayment and no interest. Every good deed — every act of worship, every charity, every kindness — is a loan to Allah. And here's the beauty of it: Allah doesn't need our loan. He owns everything in the heavens and the earth and everything in between and beyond. He could simply say: “That's Mine, I gave it to you, give it back.”But in His mercy, Allah understands human nature. He understands that people are wired to think in terms of profit and return on investment. So He frames it as a transaction: give Me a loan, and I will surely repay you — multiplied many times over. In human transactions, demanding extra on a qard is riba. But with Allah, He is the One promising to multiply the return. It's the ultimate ROI.And what can a person invest with? Two things: wealth or skills. Both require Muslims to be hardworking.It's All For UsAllah then makes something clear: whatever is sent forth for the akhirah, it's essentially for our own benefit. Allah doesn't need our investment. Every command He gives is for our sake, not His.And there's a profound observation embedded here. As humanity lives more and more comfortably — materially, physically — mental health continues to decline. The richer the country, the higher the rates of depression and anxiety. Why? Because life without purpose erodes the soul. When everything is easy and comfortable, humans lose their sense of direction.Islam solves this by providing a purpose so enormous that no amount of wealth or comfort can make it irrelevant: getting to Jannah. How do we get there? That question structures every day, every decision, every effort. It keeps life purposeful no matter the circumstances. And when the community works together with that shared purpose, everyone rises.Ending with IstighfarThe surah closes with a command to seek Allah's forgiveness. Wastaghfirullah — make istighfar. There are two dimensions to this.First, the timing. The pre-dawn hours — suhoor time — are the best time for istighfar. Allah praises those who seek forgiveness in the early morning. For those already awake for Qiyamul Layl, this flows naturally.Second, there's a subtler reason. Sometimes, in the middle of worship and good deeds, something dangerous creeps into the heart. A feeling of: “I woke up for Qiyamul Layl. I read Surah Al-Kahf in one raka'ah and Surah Al-Mulk in the next. I'm amazing.” Or after giving a large charity: “I'm so generous. Look at what I gave.”This is kibr — arrogance — and it's one of Shaitan's favourite tricks. When he can't stop someone from doing good deeds, he tries to spoil the deed through the intention. So the surah ends with the antidote: astaghfirullah. Centre yourself. Realign the intention. “Ya Allah, if there was any misalignment in my heart, I seek Your forgiveness.”Indeed, Allah is Most Forgiving and Most Merciful.The Complete Message of Surah Al-MuzzammilAnd with that, Surah Al-Muzzammil comes to a close. Its message is beautifully complete: stay up at night, even a little. Pray. Read Quran. Let that spiritual recharge fuel everything in the day — the work, the earning, the serving of the ummah. Islam is a religion of balance: worship at night, work hard in the day. And in between, give everything its right. The body has a right — rest, nutrition, exercise. Family has a right — time and attention. And Allah has a right — acts of worship.Fulfil all those rights. That's the straight path.Your Action Steps This Week* Make the du'a of Laylatul Qadr every night. Memorise “Allahumma innaka ‘afuwwun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa'fu ‘anni”and repeat it abundantly in the remaining nights of Ramadan. Understand the difference — this isn't just asking for forgiveness, it's asking for a complete clean slate.* Do something every night, even if it's small. If two raka'at is all that's manageable, pray two raka'at. If one page of Quran is what's realistic, read one page. Don't let the inability to do everything become an excuse to do nothing.* Reframe how work fits into worship. This ayah places earning a livelihood alongside fighting in the path of Allah. Approach work this week with the conscious intention that economic productivity is an act Allah values — and use what is earned to benefit family and community.* Audit the foundations before the extras. Before adding more nawafil, make sure the obligatory salah and zakat are fully in order. The extras don't compensate for gaps in the foundations.* End every night with istighfar. After Qiyamul Layl, after du'a, after any act of worship — close with astaghfirullah. Let it be the safeguard against arrogance creeping into the heart through the very deeds meant to bring closeness to Allah.May Allah grant us the strength to apply the lessons from Surah Al-Muzzammil — to pray at night, recite the Quran, and work hard in the day for the benefit of the ummah. May Allah allow us to enter Jannah with the Prophet ﷺ and with the Sahaba.Next week, inshaAllah, we begin Suratul Muddaththir. Don't forget — tonight is the 23rd night. Qiyamul Layl. Stay up extra. Make lots of du'a.Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.Thanks for reading Grounded! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comEight nights left. Make them count.Quick reminder before we get into the tafseer: Zakatul Fitr is wajib on every Muslim — $20 per head this year. It's due before Eid prayer, so don't leave it to the last minute. If you're not sure where to give locally, I'll post the details for MWSC — Muslim Welfare Support Centre — in the Qaswa Community Group. Six Days — Picking Up From Last NightWe were in the middle of something last night and I want to finish it properly.Allah created the heavens and earth in six days — sittati ayyam. We established last night that no classical scholar ever read this as six 24-hour days. The word yawm in Arabic simply means a span of time — an epoch. Allah Himself uses the same word elsewhere in the Quran to mean 1,000 years, and in another place 50,000 years. The six-day literalism came from the Protestant Reformation, not from Islamic tradition, and it quietly seeped into some Muslim circles when logic (mantiq) got stripped out of the curriculum.So what do the six days actually mean?A paid subscription includes a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. One of my teachers — Professor Muhammad Mahdi Jenkins, formerly Gary Jenkins, a nuclear physicist turned psychologist who eventually became Muslim — spent years building a theory that maps the six stages of cosmic creation to the Quranic account. Is this the traditional tafsir? No. But does it violate the Arabic, contradict established tafsir, or conflict with what the Prophet ﷺ or the early generations said? No. So it sits within the acceptable range of new tafsir.Here's what the physics looks like:Stage one: light. The universe began as a singularity — a point of infinite density containing intense concentrated energy. That energy expressed itself across the entire electromagnetic spectrum. When we say light, don't just picture what your eyes can see. Visible light is actually a tiny sliver of the full electromagnetic spectrum. The rest — radio waves, microwaves, X-rays, gamma rays — is all light we cannot see. That was stage one.Stage two: particles. When energy exceeds E=mc² — energy equals mass times the speed of light squared — matter emerges. The first particles came into existence. But here's where it gets interesting. Physics tells us that whenever matter is created, equal amounts of antimatter are also created. And when matter meets antimatter, they annihilate each other. Cancel out completely. Leave nothing but energy. By pure theory, nothing should exist in this universe — because every particle of matter should have been cancelled by its antimatter counterpart.And yet. Here we are.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comNight 21. First of the odd nights.Go all in from here.We've been over this — Laylatul Qadr is greater than a thousand months. Greater than 83 years. Most of us won't even live to see 83. And yet Allah is handing us this, every single year, completely free. One night of worship worth more than a lifetime. Don't let it pass.The Trap of Being Born Into ItWe stopped last night at the people of Jahannam begging for water. Not a glass — just the overflow. The spillover from the cups of the people of Jannah. Just whatever drips from the abundance that Allah has given them.And the people of Jannah are told: it's haram. Nothing from Jannah reaches those who took their religion as entertainment, treated it like a game, and were completely deluded by the life of this dunya.This ayah made me pause. Because if I'm honest, this description can creep up on any of us — especially those of us who were born Muslim.Think about it. Most of us didn't make an active decision to be Muslim. We didn't wake up one day, study the options, and choose Islam. We were born into it. The guidance was handed to us without us having to do anything to earn it. And because it was given for free, we sometimes treat it that way.The attitude becomes: yeah, I'm Muslim, what's the worst that can happen? I'll burn in Jahannam for a few thousand years and eventually get to Jannah anyway.There's a story — I can't verify the chain on this one, so take it as it is — apparently Muhammad Ali would light a match and put his finger through the flame whenever he felt tempted to do something haram. Just to remind himself: if you can't take this heat, what about the fire of the akhirah? He would talk himself out of it right there.Now that might sound dramatic, but the logic is sound. Imam al-Ghazali addressed exactly this problem — that we inherit our religion, we grow up with it, and we stop thinking seriously about it. We don't study our aqidah with the weight it deserves. We don't appreciate who our Lord is. We assume rather than know.Some people say: don't ask too many questions about your religion, it'll make you doubt. Imam al-Ghazali disagreed. He said doubt is actually useful — because when you doubt, you seek answers. And there are always answers in this deen. Our scholars have spent centuries engaging with every objection from every angle. The answers are there. You just have to find them.The problem is not doubt. The problem is sitting in doubt without seeking.Following along? A paid subscription includes a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. A Book With No Room for DoubtAllah says: We have sent down to them a book, explained with knowledge — meaning certainty. No doubt in it.In the study of usul al-fiqh, knowledge (ilm) is defined as that which reaches the level of absolute certainty — 100%. Below it you have zhan (probability, around 75%), then shukk (50-50), then waham (25%), then nothing. Ilm is the highest level — no room for doubt.And this book operates at that level. Allah is saying: We gave them the tools. The argument was complete. There is no excuse.One small thing from this ayah that I want to highlight. Allah says this book is guidance and mercy lil ladhina yu'minun— for those who are in the process of believing. Not lil mu'minin, not for the confirmed believers. The verb form rather than the noun form. Why does that matter?In Arabic, a noun is stronger than a verb. If I say someone is reading, that just describes what they're doing right now. If I say someone is a reader, that tells you who they are. So when Allah uses the verb form here — yu'minun, those who are believing — He is saying: even if you're not there yet, even if you're still on your way, still trying, still working to get to iman — this book will be clear to you. You don't have to have arrived to see it. You just have to be making the journey honestly.This Quran is not a book for passive consumption. It's not like opening a novel at page one and following the story. It jumps. It shifts. Surah al-Fatiha, then straight into Baqarah which changes topic to topic. It demands that you think. Allah literally asks: afala yatadabbarun al-Quran — why don't you do tadabbur of the Quran? It's a book that rewards effort. When you start to dig, you start to see the coherence — and when the coherence becomes apparent to you, SubhanAllah, you realise this could not have come from a human being.

Opening Reminder: The Last 10 Nights of RamadanTonight marks the 21st night of Ramadan — one of the odd nights in which Laylatul Qadr may fall. The Prophet ﷺ urged us to seek it in the last ten nights. Allah describes it as a single night greater than a thousand months — more than 83 years of worship.The minimum we should commit to: praying Isha and Fajr in congregation every night of these last ten. The Prophet ﷺ said whoever does so receives the reward of praying the entire night. If you can't get to the masjid, pray with a family member.Make extra effort with additional rakaat, Quran, and dua. Sayyidatuna Aisha asked what to say if she encountered Laylatul Qadr, and the Prophet ﷺ taught her: Allahumma innaka 'afuwwun tuhibbul ‘afwa fa'fu 'anni — “Oh Allah, You are the Pardoner and You love to pardon, so pardon me.”The aim: to exit Ramadan free from sins, as though born anew.Tajweed Breakdown: Ayah 20, Surah Al-MuzammilThis is the final ayah of the surah — a lengthy one spanning half a page. Key rules covered include:The letter 'Ain — produced from the middle of the throat with partial constriction. It flows, unlike a full glottal stop.Qalqalah — a bouncing sound applied to the five letters (qaaf, taa, baa, jiim, daal) when they carry sukun. Avoid bouncing non-qalqalah letters.Noon Sakinah and Tanween rules throughout the ayah: ∙ Ikhfa (partial merging) — when noon sakinah meets letters outside the yarmaloon and idhar groups (e.g., noon before thaa, taa, sin, faa). Keep the back of the tongue flat when the following letter is light. ∙ Idgham (full merging) — when noon sakinah meets a yarmaloon letter. Read with gunnah for ya, nun, mim, and waw. No gunnah for laam and raa. ∙ Idhar (clear pronunciation) — when tanween is perfectly aligned, or noon sakinah carries a sukun sign before a throat letter. No gunnah, no merging.Identifying tanween type: A perfectly aligned (stacked) tanween indicates idhar. An unaligned (offset) tanween indicates merging (idgham).Mim sakinah before mim — idgham mutamathilain, read with gunnah.Madd rules: Madd asli (natural prolongation, two harakat) applies throughout. Madd badal appears in several places but operates under madd asli rules in this reading. Madd 'arid lil-sukun (two, four, or six harakat) applies when stopping at the end of a word — keep it consistent throughout.Lafzul Jalalah (the name “Allah”): The laam is read heavy when preceded by fathah or dhammah, and light when preceded by kasrah.Pronunciation reminders: ∙ The letter haa at the end of a word must still be subtly pronounced, not swallowed. ∙ Kaaf carries a slight exhaled breath when stopping on it. ∙ Laam is produced from the sides of the tongue against the upper molars, not the tip.Closing: The full ayah was recited together. This completes the reading of Surah Al-Muzammil, built up week by week across the series. A reminder to make extra dua in these final nights. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comFollowing along? A paid subscription includes the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The last ten have begun.Taharaw laylatal qadr fil ashril awakhir min Ramadan. Hunt for Laylatul Qadr in the last ten nights of Ramadan.Here's why this gift exists. The Prophet ﷺ once told the companions about a man from the Banu Israel who worshipped Allah for 80 years straight. Not 80 years of regular life with some ibadah mixed in. 80 years of dedicated, committed worship. The companions were jealous — and honestly, who wouldn't be? We live 60, maybe 70 years. The Prophet ﷺ himself said the age of his ummah is between 60 and 70, and very few go beyond that. And yes, there are billionaires today spending fortunes trying to extend human life to 120, 130 — but biologists will tell you that quality of life drops significantly past a certain point, no matter how much money you throw at it. That's just how the body is built.So the companions asked: Ya Rasulullah, how do we compete with people who had 80 years to worship Allah when we barely get 60?And then Allah revealed an entire surah — Surah Al-Qadr — answering that question.The night of Al-Qadr is greater than a thousand months.Not equal to. Greater than. 1,000 months is 83 years. And Allah didn't say you get this once. You get it every single year. Think about that. If you start taking your deen seriously at the age of 10 and you live to 70 — that's 60 Ramadans. 60 Laylatul Qadrs. 60 opportunities where one night of ibadah is worth more than 83 years of continuous worship. In terms of quality of ibadah, how old are you really?That is the gift Allah gave the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ.So don't let any of these ten nights pass you without something in it. The absolute minimum — and none of us should drop below this — is to pray Isha in jama'ah and pray Fajr in jama'ah. Just those two. The Prophet ﷺ said whoever does that, Allah writes for them the reward of praying the entire night. Imagine praying the entire night. Now imagine that night is Laylatul Qadr. Do it every night for these ten nights and insha'Allah you will not miss it. Beyond that — pray your sunnah, do taraweeh, read some Quran when you get home, wake up a few minutes before suhur and make dua.For the sisters who can't pray right now — you are not left out. Your dua is the same. Your dhikr is the same. Sayyidah Aisha RA asked the Prophet ﷺ what to say on Laylatul Qadr: Allahumma innaka afuwwun tuhibbul afwa fa'fu anni. O Allah, You are the Most Forgiving, You love to forgive, so forgive me. That's the dua. Fill these nights with it.The People of the Heights — And What Their Story Tells UsWe stopped last night at the Ashab al-A'raf — the people standing on the elevated ground between Jannah and Jahannam, neither here nor there, their good and bad deeds perfectly balanced at 50-50.From their vantage point on the heights, they can see both destinations. And here's a detail I want you to sit with: the ayah says wa idha surifat absaruhum — when their gaze was turned towards the people of fire. They didn't choose to look. Allah turned their eyes. Given the choice, if you're standing on the A'raf and Jannah is right there on one side — you know exactly where you're going to keep your attention. You're not voluntarily turning to look at Jahannam.But Allah turns their gaze. And the moment they see the punishment the people of fire are enduring, they immediately make dua: Rabbana la taj'alna ma'al qawmidh dhalimin — O Allah, do not place us among the wrongdoers.Then they recognise people. They call out to the people of fire and they know them — ya'rifoonahum bisimaahum — by the marks on them. And this makes sense, because the Ashab al-A'raf are the in-between people. In their life on earth, they moved between both worlds. Sometimes in the company of good people, sometimes in the company of bad. So on Yawmul Qiyamah, they look at Jahannam and they see faces they know. And they look at Jannah and they see faces they know too.They point to the people of Jannah — people like Bilal, like Sumayyah, like Khabab ibn al-Aratt — and they say to the people of fire: are these the ones you swore would receive no mercy from Allah? Look where they are now.Why Do They Get to Enter?And then comes the moment. Allah says to the Ashab al-A'raf: udkhulul jannah — enter Jannah.Some of the mufassirun say this is the Ashab al-A'raf congratulating the people of Jannah as they enter. Others say it is the angels — who had been guarding the Ashab al-A'raf at the heights, preventing them from moving — now giving them permission to enter.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comThe Last Ten Begin TomorrowTonight is the 19th night of Ramadan. The last ten start tomorrow.The Prophet ﷺ told us that whoever misses the good of Laylatul Qadr has been denied all good for the entire year — because that person looked at a night worth more than a thousand months and said: I'm fine, I don't need it.One thousand months is 83 years. One night of ibadah — one raka'ah, one dollar given in charity, one dua made sincerely — on that night is worth doing that same act every single day for over 83 years without a break and more.And we're in Australia. Our odd nights might be someone else's even nights. Our even nights might be someone else's odd. So cast the net wide. All ten nights. If you've had an unfinished TV series to get through — tonight is your last chance. From tomorrow, for ten nights, we give everything.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The Wrongdoers IdentifiedWe left off last night with a mu'adzin in Jahannam announcing: the curse of Allah is upon the wrongdoers. Tonight Allah defines who these wrongdoers are.They are those who block people from the path of Allah — who not only refuse to walk it themselves, but actively work to prevent others from finding it. This was the Quraysh in real time. Abu Jahl would hire musicians to play loudly across the street whenever the Prophet ﷺ was reciting Quran or giving da'wah, so that the sound of music would drown out the revelation. Abu Lahab would greet every caravan arriving in Makkah and warn them: don't listen to my nephew — he's mad.The result? Many of the Quraysh never actually heard the Quran. Not because they rejected it, but because their leaders made sure it never reached them. This is why Islam insists we are not sheep. We do not follow our leaders blindly. Every statement, every ruling, every claim — we measure it against the Quran and the Sunnah.The same ayah mentions those who bend the path — those who speak about Allah without knowledge, declaring halal and haram on their own authority. The root of this, Allah tells us, is disbelief in the akhirah: wa hum bil akhirati kafiroon.This is the key insight. The Quraysh had no fundamental problem believing in Allah as the ultimate creator. Their problem was with the akhirah. Because believing in akhirah has consequences — it means you can no longer cheat, oppress, or abuse without accountability. In Makkah, the rich and powerful could do whatever they wanted. Islam came and said: there is a day coming where none of that will protect you.This is why throughout the Quran, iman billah and iman bil akhirah are paired together. You could, technically, believe in Allah without believing in the akhirah — the Quraysh did exactly that. But belief in Allah without belief in akhirah will not reshape who you are. It is the akhirah that governs behaviour. It is accountability that changes people.And this is what keeps the believer sane when they watch the world. Schools bombed. Entire populations under siege. The powerful openly declaring that international law does not apply to them — that might is right again. Where is the justice? The akhirah is where. Every oppressor will stand before Allah. No title, no army, no wealth will help them. This is not a coping mechanism — it is a theological certainty that the Quran repeats again and again.The HeightsBetween Jannah and Jahannam, Allah says, there is a hijab — a barrier. And rising above that barrier, there is the A'raf: a height, an elevated terrain, from which both destinations can be seen.On the A'raf, standing on this high ground, is a group of people. They can look across and see the people of Jannah. They can look the other way and see the people of fire. And they know — from signs visible to them — who belongs to which side.Who are the people of A'raf? They are those whose good and bad deeds are exactly equal. The scales balanced perfectly. They are neither in Jannah nor in Jahannam. They are suspended — waiting.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comAfter BadrThe battle is over. The Muslims are victorious. Fourteen Muslims were martyred. Seventy Quraysh were killed, including Abu Jahl — the man who had led the persecution of the believers for over a decade.And then the Prophet ﷺ did something that tells you everything about his character. He instructed the Muslims to dig graves and bury the Quraysh dead. These were men who had tortured and killed companions. Men who had tried to kill the Prophet ﷺ himself. Men who had driven the Muslims from their homes, confiscated their property, starved them, humiliated them.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Bury them.No mutilation. No revenge. No public display of contempt. The body is the body — even the body of an enemy is to be respected.Only one man was not buried in the conventional way: Umayyah ibn Khalaf — the master who had tortured Bilal RA, dragging him into the desert sun and placing a boulder on his chest. When the companions tried to lift Umayyah's body, his skin disintegrated. They could not move him. Rocks and stones were placed over him where he lay — just as he had placed a rock on the chest of Bilal in the desert. The Arabs say: what you give, you get back.The Prophet ﷺ then walked to the grave of Abu Jahl and asked him a question — the same question the people of Jannah will ask the people of Jahannam, which we reach tonight in the surah. Did you find what Allah promised you to be true?The companions asked: Ya Rasulullah, can the dead hear us? He said: they can hear you as clearly as you hear me — but they cannot respond. When we visit the graves of our loved ones, when we make dua and say our salams, they hear us.Iman and Amal — They Cannot Be SeparatedAllah now turns to the people of Jannah: those who believe and do good deeds.Islam does not offer salvation through faith alone. Iman and amal salih must come together — and they are inseparable by nature. True iman will always manifest as good deeds. And truly sincere good deeds can only come from a heart that has iman. Without iman, the deeds may look the same from the outside — but the intention is elsewhere. You are doing it to be praised, to be seen, to be known. The action and the heart become disconnected.A sincere heart shows. It shows in what a person does when no one is watching. Publicly and privately, the same. That is the mark of iman.And those who say my heart is good while their actions tell a different story — Islam does not accept this. A good heart is not invisible. It is expressed.

Tonight is the night of Badr.On this night, 1,443 years ago, 313 Muslim men camped on the plains of Badr — underprepared, outnumbered more than three to one — on the eve of a battle that would determine whether Islam survived or was extinguished.There is no tafseer of Surah Al-A'raf tonight. Tonight belongs to Badr.How They Got ThereThe Muslims left Madinah on the 12th of Ramadan. The mission was straightforward: intercept Abu Sufyan's caravan returning from Syria — the largest trading caravan the Quraysh had ever assembled, loaded with profits from goods financed largely by wealth confiscated from the Muslims at the time of Hijrah. Not a battle. An interception.But Abu Sufyan's scouts were sharp. One of the Bedouin trackers found camel droppings along the route, opened them, and recognised the date pits inside as coming from the farms of Madinah. The Muslims were tracking them. Abu Sufyan immediately rerouted and sent the fastest rider in his group back to Makkah — the rider sliced the nose of his camel and smeared the blood on himself to arrive with maximum drama, ensuring the message landed with urgency.Abu Jahl raised 1,300 men. Not to protect the caravan — the caravan had already escaped. This was about something else now. We are going to crush Islam and the Muslims once and for all.By the time 300 of that army turned back — satisfied that their property was safe — 1,000 Quraysh warriors were marching toward Badr with that single purpose.The Muslims, meanwhile, had 313 men. Two horses. Seventy camels. And eight swords.They had not come prepared for battle. They had expected a small caravan escort — ten, twenty, thirty men at most. They found an army.And they did not turn back.The Leadership of the Prophet ﷺWhen the Prophet ﷺ chose a campsite on the plains of Badr, a companion — al-Hubab ibn al-Mundhir — approached him and asked a remarkable question: Ya Rasulullah, is this position based on revelation from Allah, or is this your personal judgement?The Prophet ﷺ said: personal judgement.Al-Hubab said: in that case, may I suggest we move further forward — to the wells of Badr — so that we control the Quraysh's access to water?The Prophet ﷺ accepted. He moved the entire army.This is a man who could have said: I am the Prophet of Allah, my opinion is final. He said nothing of the sort. He distinguished clearly between what came from Allah and what came from his own thinking. And when a companion had a better idea, he took it.A leader who cannot be corrected is a leader who will eventually fail. The Prophet ﷺ modelled the opposite: you are not any stronger than me, and I am not any less in need of the reward from Allah. When they shared rides on the 160-kilometre journey — three men, including the Prophet ﷺ, rotating on one camel — his companions begged him to ride the whole way. He refused. He walked his share.The Night BeforeThat night, with a thousand armed men across the plain, Allah gave the Muslims a gift: sleep.Anyone who has had a major exam, a difficult interview, a high-stakes day ahead knows what that night feels like. You lie awake. The mind races. The Muslims knew what was coming — and they slept.Allah also sent light rain on the Muslim side. The ground compacted. The march in the morning would be firm underfoot. On the Quraysh side, Allah sent heavy rain. Sleepless. Muddy ground. No access to water. Before a single sword was raised, the advantage had already shifted.The Prophet ﷺ spent much of that night in dua — arms raised so intensely that his shawl fell to the ground. Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, waking before Fajr, wrapped it back around his shoulders and stood listening. Among the duas the Prophet ﷺ made that night: Ya Allah, if You destroy this group, You will never be worshipped on this earth again. These were the best of the Muslim men. Most of them. If they fell here, there would be no rebuilding.The dhikr of Badr — the one the Prophet ﷺ repeated through that night and into the battle — was Ya Hayyu Ya Qayyum. The Ever-Living. The Ever-Sustaining. The One who holds everything in existence. Repeat this in your own difficult nights.Islam Is a Salad BowlWhen the Prophet ﷺ organised his army on the morning of battle, he divided them into three groups: the Muhajirin on the right, led by Sayyidina Ali; the Ansar on the left, led by Sayyidina Sa'd ibn Mu'adh; and a mixed group at the centre, where the Prophet ﷺ stood himself, with the banner held by Mus'ab ibn Umayr — the first companion to migrate to Madinah, the man through whose teaching most of the Ansar had embraced Islam.Why keep them separate? Why not one unified mass?Because Islam does not erase identity. It never has. The Muhajirin were Meccan. The Ansar were Medinan. Different dialects, different traditions, different cultures — and at this point in history, genuinely different peoples. Islam acknowledged that difference and worked with it. Each group fought with the strength that came from who they were.Islam is not a melting pot. It is a salad bowl. A tomato remains a tomato. A cucumber remains a cucumber. Mixed together, each contributing what it is — they serve something greater than any one of them alone.Keep your cultural identity. Be proud of who Allah made you. Learn your mother tongue. And be equally proud to be Muslim — guided by Islamic principles, united by La ilaha illallah Muhammadur Rasulullah, with Arabic as the thread that connects the entire ummah across every language and culture.Help Comes in Ways You Cannot SeeWhen the battle began, most of the Muslims did not know they were being assisted by angels. They raised their weapons and fought with everything they had. Some were injured. Some were martyred. They had to show up. They had to put in the effort. The help came — but it came to those who were already in the field.Jibreel came wearing a yellow turban, marked like Mus'ab ibn Umayr. A thousand angels — one for every Quraysh soldier — came wearing white, on white horses. The Quraysh saw them coming from across the plain. They did not know what they were seeing.And then Iblis — who had marched alongside the Quraysh in the guise of Suraqah ibn Malik, who had promised them safety, who had said I am with you, no one can defeat you today — Iblis was the first to see the angels. He turned and fled.I see what you do not see. I am afraid of Allah.The Quraysh: You were the one who convinced us to come! You were the one who promised us victory!Iblis said nothing more. He left.This is who Iblis is. He is there when things are going well. The moment the cost becomes real, he disappears. The friends you make in sin will not be there when the consequences arrive.Abdullah ibn Mas'ud — a man so small he stood barely above a metre — captured Sayyidina Abbas, the Prophet's uncle, a giant of a man with a voice that could carry across a battlefield. Abbas was humiliated. He told everyone who saw him: it wasn't this small man — there was someone bigger, someone else who took me down. When Abdullah ibn Mas'ud brought Abbas to the Prophet ﷺ, the Prophet ﷺ confirmed: it was not you, Abdullah. You were assisted by an angel.Do not be arrogant with your success. You put in the effort. But the victory was never yours alone to claim.The Secret of Badr — And of RamadanThe Quran tells us the secret of Badr in Surah Ali Imran in two words: sabr and taqwa.Sabr is steadfastness — continuing on the right path regardless of how difficult it becomes. Taqwa is your living connection with Allah.Ramadan trains both. Every day of fasting hones sabr — the steadfastness to stay on the right path regardless of hunger and exhaustion. Every night of prayer and Quran builds taqwa — the connection with Allah that carries you through what the day alone cannot prepare you for.The Prophet ﷺ won his greatest military victory in Ramadan — on the 17th, on the plains of Badr. His greatest political victory, the Conquest of Makkah, was also in Ramadan. Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas defeated the Persian Sassanid Empire at the Battle of Qadisiyyah in Ramadan. Amr ibn al-As conquered Egypt in Ramadan.The pattern is not coincidence. It is a formula.Fast your days. Pray your nights. And trust that when you show up on the field with whatever weapons you have, Allah will send what you cannot seeBadr Wallpaper for smartphonesBadr Wallpaper for tablets.Badr wallpaper for computersAfter Witr tonight insha'Allah — Salawat Badriyya.Following along with the series? Consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

A quick note before we begin: from tonight, we recite Dua Qunut in Witr. The Shafi'i madhab holds that Qunut in Witr is only in the second half of Ramadan — following the practice established by Sayyidina Umar ibn al-Khattab when he unified the companions behind one imam for Taraweeh and instructed Sayyidina Ubay ibn Ka'ab to lead with Qunut in the final nights. May Allah enter us among those who pray with the imam from beginning to end, and receive the reward of a full night's prayer.The Battle of Badr — ApproachingThe Muslims left Madinah on the 12th of Ramadan. Tonight, in the timeline of history, they would have been settling into the plains of Badr — fasting, outnumbered, about to face something no one had fully planned for.The original aim was to intercept Abu Sufyan's caravan returning from Syria — laden with the wealth the Quraysh had confiscated from the Muslims at the time of Hijrah. Abu Sufyan's scouts, however, found camel droppings containing date pits from the farms of Madinah. He understood: the Muslims are tracking us. He rerouted the caravan and sent the fastest rider back to Makkah with a call for reinforcements — the rider even smeared camel blood on himself for dramatic effect, to ensure the message landed with urgency.Abu Jahl raised 1,300 men. By the time they reached the plains of Badr, the caravan had already escaped via a different route. Three hundred of the Quraysh army turned back — the property was safe, their reason for coming was gone. But Abu Jahl pressed forward with a thousand. This was no longer about a caravan. This was about crushing Islam once and for all.When the Prophet ﷺ chose a campsite on the plains of Badr, one of the companions asked: Ya Rasulullah, is this position based on revelation, or is this your personal judgement? The Prophet ﷺ said: personal judgement. The companion said: in that case, may I suggest we move further, to control the Quraysh's access to the wells?The Prophet ﷺ accepted. He moved the entire army.In that moment — a Prophet, the most beloved of creation, moving his troops based on a suggestion from a companion — is a masterclass in leadership. A good leader takes counsel. A good leader distinguishes between revelation and personal opinion. A good leader is not too proud to be corrected.We continue the story of Badr tomorrow insha'Allah.The Blame Game Has No EndReturning to Surah Al-A'raf — yesterday we saw the people of Jahannam blaming each other as they entered. The followers blamed the leaders. The leaders said: you chose to follow us. Taste what you earned.Now Allah introduces a further dimension: the former and the latter — early generations and those who came after.Think about what this means personally. If someone in your family tree was the first to introduce something harmful — idol worship, a corrupt practice, a tradition that led generations away from Allah — and their descendants followed without question, then when all of them meet in Jahannam, the descendants will turn to the ancestor: you started this. This is your fault. You deserve more.It is a sobering thought. The decisions we make do not end with us.The Reverse Is Also TrueBut the reverse is equally real — and this is where the heart lifts.A thousand years ago, the ancestors of many Muslims sitting in our community tonight were not Muslim. The Malays were Hindu and Buddhist. The Turks were sky-worshipping pagans on the steppe. The Indonesians had their own traditions. And then — somewhere up that family tree — one person made a decision. I am going to be a Muslim.Because of that one decision, generations of descendants were born into Islam. Every salah they prayed, every fast they kept, every act of charity they gave — a portion of that reward travels back up the chain to the one who made the original call.That ancestor has been in his grave for perhaps 700, 800 years. And he is still receiving dividends. Still collecting on that one decision. This is the real passive income. Not a pyramid scheme — a multi-level reward that compounds across generations until Yawmul Qiyamah.And in Jannah, insha'Allah, we will find that ancestor. We will say: thank you. Because of you, I did not have to make the hard choice. I was born Muslim. All I had to do was protect what you gave me.For those among us who did make that hard choice — who came to Islam as adults, who chose this path when no one around them did — your reward carries the same weight. Every person in your lineage who comes after you and remains on this deen is a continuation of your decision. Do not underestimate what you started.Do Not Trivialise Small Good DeedsThis is why we must never dismiss small acts of goodness as insignificant.Teach one child Quran. That child teaches his children. His children teach theirs. How many generations between now and Yawmul Qiyamah? Every one of them who recites the Quran — you carry a portion of that reward. A tiny portion, yes. But multiplied across centuries, across an entire family tree — it becomes something beyond calculation.Whatever good deed you start, its consequences ripple outward in ways you will never live to see. A Muslim thinks in generations, not just in lifetimes. The question is not only: what am I doing today? The question is: what am I starting?The Camel and the Eye of the NeedleFor those who reject the ayat of Allah, who are arrogant against His guidance — la tufattahu lahum abwab al-sama'. The gates of heaven will not be opened for them. Their good deeds will not ascend. The angels carry our deeds up twice daily — at Fajr and Maghrib, which is why these are the great times of morning and evening dhikr, when two shifts of angels overlap and the same act is recorded twice. But for the one who rejects Allah, those deeds remain earthbound. He gets what he intended — praise from people, a legacy among men — and nothing more.Hatim al-Ta'i was the most celebrated generous man in Arab history. His name became a byword for generosity — Arabs still use it today, 1,400 years later. His son asked the Prophet ﷺ about his father's fate. The Prophet ﷺ said: he never gave for Allah's sake. He gave to be known as generous. And Allah gave him exactly that. He is still being praised. His intention was fulfilled in full.You get what you intend for. If you intend for Allah, Allah rewards you. If you intend for people, people reward you. But the gates of heaven remain closed.And if a person who rejects the ayat of Allah still imagines they might enter Jannah — Allah gives us the measure of that hope: try fitting a camel through the eye of a needle first. In Arabic this is the expression for the impossible, the never-happening, the stop-dreaming. It will not happen. Not through arrogance. Not through denial. Not through rejecting the messenger.Tomorrow insha'Allah — the people of Jannah. The Quran always balances: after the warning comes the glad tidings.Following along with the series? Consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comA Ramadan Halftime Check-InBefore we dive into today's ayat, I want to take a moment to remind myself and all of you — today marks the 15th of Ramadan. We are at the halfway mark of this blessed month.It's time to pause and reflect on our first half. How has it been? Have we been building momentum? Because here's the thing — it is no longer time to warm up. We should already be warmed up by now. We are gearing up and preparing ourselves to hunt for the greatest night of the year: Laylatul Qadr, the Night of Power, which will fall on one of the odd nights in the last ten nights of Ramadan.So let's make sure our ibadah is increasing every single night — our Quran recitation, our prayers, our charity, our kindness to family, friends, and neighbours. Everything must now be on an upward trajectory so that when the last ten nights arrive, we are ready to go all out. We're hunting for a night that is greater than a thousand months. Let's not miss it.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Where We Left OffLast week, we explored how Allah was preparing Rasulullah ﷺ for the enormous mission ahead. The Prophet was troubled by the verbal abuse and humiliation inflicted on him and his followers by the Quraysh. And what was Allah's prescription? Stand up at night. Pray. Recite the Quran. Make dhikr — mention the name of your Lord.This is how we find the strength to face every challenge in life, especially the challenge of becoming and remaining a good Muslim. The more we connect with the Quran, the more we connect with Allah, and the more everything else becomes easier.Allah then told Rasulullah ﷺ to take Him as a Wakil — the One who looks after all your affairs. When you have Allah as your Wakil, you do a little and things become a lot easier. Then Allah turned directly to the Quraysh and warned them of chains, choking food, and a burning fire.Now we come to a new passage where Allah expands the audience. He is still addressing the Quraysh, but He is also speaking to every single one of us.A Messenger as Witness — For Us or Against UsAllah says: “Indeed, We have sent to you a messenger as a witness over you.”Think about that for a moment. Rasulullah ﷺ is going to stand on the Day of Judgement as a witness. The question is — will he be a witness for us, or against us?If he testifies for us, that means shafa'ah — intercession. He will stand before Allah and say: “Ya Allah, this person is from my ummah. They followed my teaching, they followed my sunnah, they tried their very best.” He will intercede on our behalf, asking Allah to forgive our sins and tip the scales in our favour.But he could also testify against us. And Allah has already recorded in the Quran what that looks like. On the Day of Judgement, Rasulullah ﷺ will say: “O my Lord, my people — they received this Quran and just put it aside.” They chose to ignore it. Chose not to put it into practice. Chose not to be guided by it.That is a terrifying thought. If the Prophet ﷺ — Habibullah, the beloved of Allah — testifies against us, who is going to stand up to defend us? Who would dare?

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comHalfway. Fifteen nights in, fifteen nights to go.The warm-up is over. From here, we accelerate. The last third — the ten nights of salvation — is coming. But before we get there, the middle ten: the days of forgiveness. Use them.A brief note before tonight's tafseer: on the 17th of Ramadan, we commemorate Yawm al-Furqan — the Day of Criterion, the Battle of Badr. The Muslims left Madinah on the 12th of Ramadan, fasting, unprepared for full battle, setting out on the instruction of the Prophet ﷺ immediately after prayer. 313 men. In a few days, they would meet an army of a thousand. What happened at Badr is the most important battle in human history — the moment truth and falsehood were separated with finality. We will cover it over the coming nights insha'Allah.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The Worst Wrongdoer“Who does more wrong than one who invents a lie against Allah?”This phrase — faman azlamu mimman iftara ala Allahi kadhiban — appears in multiple places in the Quran. It is one of the gravest charges the Quran levels. And it falls into two categories.The first is inventing objects or forms of worship and attributing them to Allah. The Quraysh who worshipped idols and claimed these were the daughters of Allah, that Allah commanded their worship — this is the obvious example. Creating your own god and calling it Allah's command.The second is subtler and closer to home: declaring halal and haram without knowledge. Pronouncing that something is forbidden or obligatory without proper grounding in revelation — and then attributing this ruling to the Sharia of Allah. This too is lying against Allah. This too is a grave sin.The early imams understood this acutely. They rarely used the word haram unless something was explicitly stated in the Quran or Sunnah. If their ijtihad pointed toward avoidance, they would say: stay away from it. They would not say haram. Because to declare something haram without certainty is to speak about Allah without knowledge — and that is the very sin this ayah is addressing.Over time, something interesting happened. When the imam said “stay away from it,” later generations heard: it's not haram yet — we can still do it. So the scholars had to escalate to “haram.” And then people started asking: is it a major sin or a minor sin? If minor, Allah is most forgiving — carry on. The language had to become stronger because the taqwa had become weaker. The early generation did not need to be told something was haram. The imam's caution was enough.Be very careful about declaring things halal or haram. That is the domain of Allah alone.

al-Muzzammil 15 - 19This week we read and dissect the tajweed rules in ayat 15 - 19 of Surah al-Muzzammil. When it comes to learning a new skill, like Quran reading, remember that consistency beats intensity. It is very important that we practice daily even if it is just for 10 - 15 minutes. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comAllah does not leave us alone on this earth.After Adam's descent, after the warnings about Shaitan's tactics, after the long passage of advice to the children of Adam — Allah makes a promise. Ya Bani Adam, imma ya'tiyannakum rusulum minkum. O children of Adam, surely a messenger from amongst you will come to you.That word surely is embedded in the Arabic itself. The verb does not simply say ya'tikum — he will come. It says ya'tiyannakum — with a heavy nun at the end, what grammarians call nun thaqilah. In Arabic, sound carries meaning. That heaviness is emphasis. That emphasis is a promise. Allah will not send you into this world and abandon you without guidance.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.A Prophet From Among YouThe first audience of this ayat was the Quraysh. And the message to them was pointed: this messenger is from amongst you. He is Arab. He is Qurayshi. If he succeeds, it is your success. If his message spreads, it is the Arabs who are elevated.Consider their situation. The Arabian Peninsula sat sandwiched between two of the greatest empires in human history — the Sassanid Persian Empire to the east and the Roman Empire to the west. Alexander the Great had swept across the known world but did not even bother to venture south into Arabia. Rocks and camels, they said. The Arabs had no comparable civilisation, no unified identity, no place in the story of the great powers.And here was a prophet — from among them — carrying a message that would unite them, give them identity, and ultimately make them the inheritors of both those empires within a generation.Even some of the Quraysh leaders who resisted Islam quietly acknowledged this. Why should we fight him, they reasoned. If he wins, the victory belongs to us. If he loses, the Romans or the Persians will deal with him. Why are Arabs fighting Arabs?Allah was asking the same question. Why are you against this?

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comA poor non-Muslim once approached a wealthy tabi'een and said: your Prophet lied. He said this world is a prison for the believers — yet you are living like a king and I have nothing. How is this your prison?The tabi'een replied: because you have not seen what Allah has prepared for me in the akhirah. If you could see it, you would understand that this life — however comfortable — is nothing by comparison. And you think you are suffering now? You have not seen what Allah has prepared for those who go against Him in the next life either.This is the correct proportion. The best of this world is still a prison compared to Jannah. But whatever Allah has created in this world — the beauty, the good provisions, the adornment — He created it for us to enjoy. Responsibly. Without excess. And with our eyes on something greater.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Innama — These Are the ThingsAllah now lists what He has actually made haram. And He opens with a single, precise word: innama.In Arabic, innama is a word of restriction. It limits what follows to a specific, bounded list. Nothing more. When the Prophet ﷺ said innama bu'ithtu li utammima makarimal akhlaq — I have been sent only to perfect noble character — that innama tells us everything. The entire prophetic mission, all of the Sharia, all of the ibadah, all of the fasting and prayer and dhikr — it all points toward one destination: makarimul akhlaq, noble character.This is a mirror we should hold up regularly. If our engagement with the religion is making us more arrogant, ruder in how we speak, more dismissive of others — something has gone wrong. The religion of the Prophet ﷺ does not produce that. It produces humility, gentleness, and excellence in character. If we are getting closer to the rituals but further from good akhlaq, we are missing the point of the rituals entirely.So when Allah uses innama to introduce what He has made haram, He is doing the same thing — drawing a clean, limited boundary. Not an overwhelming list. Not everything that makes life enjoyable. These specific things. That is all.

Note: The first half of tonight's session wasn't recorded — it was a revision of Night 10's discussion on tabdhir and israf. We pick up from where the new material begins.The Balance Islam StrikesSome spiritual traditions teach that poverty is the path to God. Monks take oaths of poverty. Monasteries require their residents to own nothing, eat simply, wear rags. Buddhism requires its monks to beg. On the other end of the spectrum, certain strands of modern Christianity preach the opposite — that wealth is a sign of divine favour, that God rewards the faithful with material success.Islam is neither. It is ummatan wasata — a middle community, a middle path.Allah commands us to adorn ourselves, dress well, eat from the good things of the earth. But don't go into excess. Don't waste. Don't make wealth the final destination. The balance is precise: enjoy what Allah has provided, be grateful for it, and let it serve something greater than itself.And critically — Islam does not promote mediocrity. The instruction not to be excessive is not permission to be comfortable doing nothing. Islam actively encourages wealth-building, economic development, and productivity. The criticism is not of wealth. It is of wealth as the be-all and end-all — the pursuit of accumulation for its own sake, while people go hungry and problems go unsolved.We Are Not Prisoners HereThis ayah carries a profound theological point — one that directly contradicts the biblical narrative.In Christian theology, humanity is on earth as a consequence of the Fall. Adam and Hawwa sinned, and we are here serving time, suffering the punishment of their disobedience.The Quran tells a different story entirely.Before the story of Adam even begins in this surah, Allah says: “We have settled you on earth and made for you in it a good living.” Earth was always the plan. Jannah was an orientation — a glimpse of the destination, so we know what we are working toward and what we are trying to build here.And this ayah confirms it: “Say — who has declared haram the beauty that Allah has brought forth for His servants, and the good provisions?” Allah created this beautiful world for the believers to enjoy. If we were prisoners here, why would our Warden furnish the cell with gardens, oceans, mountains, good food, and beauty in every direction?“All of this is for the believers in this life — and exclusively theirs on the Day of Judgement.”Enjoying the good things of this world does not diminish your akhirah. Wealth is not a sign that Allah is displeased with you, withholding your reward for later. Hardship is not a sign that Allah loves you more. Both are tests. Wealth tests your gratitude and generosity. Hardship tests your patience and trust. Both paths lead to Jannah — if you respond rightly.And in one sense, wealth carries an extra advantage. The poor Sahabah once came to the Prophet ﷺ and complained: “The wealthy have taken all the reward. They pray like us, they fast like us — but they can give charity and we cannot.”The Prophet ﷺ gave them dhikr as an equivalent. A few days later they returned: “Now the rich are doing the dhikr too. What do we have left?”The lesson is not that poverty is better. It is that the wealthy have an additional avenue for good deeds that others do not. Sayyidatuna Khadijah funded the early da'wah. Sayyidina Uthman donated so generously to the Battle of Tabuk that the Prophet ﷺ said nothing could harm him after that. And what did the Sahabah do when guaranteed Jannah? They did not relax. They increased. They understood that 80 or 100 years of wealth in this world is a brief window to invest in an eternity in the akhirah.Halal and Haram — Tread CarefullyFrom this ayah we also learn something often overlooked: declaring something halal as haram is just as serious a sin as declaring something haram as halal.Halal and haram are the domain of Allah alone. The Prophet ﷺ told us: the clearly halal is clear, the clearly haram is clear, and between them are grey areas that most people do not fully understand. Scholars who specialise in these areas navigate the grey carefully, and legitimate differences of opinion exist within the framework of the Sharia.The rule for us: stay away from what is clearly haram. In areas of genuine scholarly difference, choose a position you are comfortable with and respect that others may hold a different but equally valid opinion. And do not rush to declare things haram simply because they are unfamiliar or uncomfortable to you.To speak about Allah without knowledge — to declare His deen more restrictive or more permissive than He made it — is itself one of the things Allah has made haram, as the next passage makes clear.What Allah Has Actually Made HaramSo if Allah has not made beauty haram, not made good provisions haram, not made adornment haram — what has He made haram?Fawahish — shamelessness. Both the external and the internal.The external is visible: the stripping away of clothing and modesty, the open broadcasting of indecency, the collapse of haya in public life. We have discussed this at length over the past several nights.The internal is the sin of the heart — and the surah has already named it: arrogance. Kibir. You cannot see arrogance directly. You see its symptoms — the dismissiveness, the contempt, the refusal to accept truth. But the root sits quietly in the heart, growing. A thought that someone is lesser than you. An assumption that your obedience has earned you superiority. Left unchecked, it becomes exactly what Iblis demonstrated: denial of truth and contempt for others.Both fawahish — the external and the internal — are declared haram. Both unravel the human being from the outside in and the inside out.And alongside these: shirk, and speaking about Allah without knowledge.We will continue with this ayah tomorrow insha'Allah.Following along with the series? Consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comOne third of Ramadan is behind us.There is a narration — its grading is discussed among scholars, but widely used as a reminder — that the first ten nights carry the overwhelming mercy of Allah, the second ten His forgiveness, and the final ten His guarantee of salvation from the fire. Though in reality, every single night holds all three. Ramadan does not divide itself neatly into chapters. But the framing is useful: if the first ten was a warm-up, the second ten is time to accelerate.Do a honest pit stop. How have the first ten days been? Whatever the answer, Ramadan is a marathon, not a sprint. The goal is not to peak on night one. The goal is to be better in the second third than the first, and better in the final third than both.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The People Who Think They Are GuidedAllah divides humanity into two groups in this passage: those who follow guidance, and those for whom misguidance has become their reality.Why does misguidance become their reality? Because they have taken Shaitan as their wali — their loyal, protective ally. And Shaitan, as we discussed, is a wali who flatters in good times and abandons at the worst possible moment.But here is the sobering part: they think they are guided.This is not about people who know they are doing wrong and do it anyway. This is about people who have followed Shaitan's logic so completely that it feels like wisdom. The Quraysh doing tawaf naked genuinely believed they were being more pure, more sincere before Allah. The logic made sense to them.This is the danger of reason untethered from revelation. On an individual level, so many harmful things can seem reasonable. Take riba — interest. Two people agree, both are happy, both see benefit. What is the harm? But apply that same logic across an entire economy and you get 2008. Families losing homes. Businesses collapsing. Lives broken. The short-term individual logic disintegrates when it scales.Our intellect is a gift. But it needs guidance. The Quran is that guidance. Without it, we are capable of convincing ourselves that almost anything is fine — and feeling guided the entire time.Dress Nicely for Prayer

Nine nights in. If you've been reading one juz a night, you've just passed Surah Al-A'raf in your recitation — the very surah we're studying together. A good reminder of how the Quran works on multiple levels simultaneously.The Naked Tawaf — ContinuedLast night we left off with the Quraysh practice of doing tawaf naked around the Kaaba. Tonight, a detail worth noting: the Quraysh themselves were exempt from this practice. They claimed to be the pure people of Makkah, above sin — so they could do tawaf in clothing. It was only the outsiders, the pilgrims who travelled from afar, who had to choose: strip down, or buy fresh garments from the Quraysh merchants.A shameless practice, with a profitable business model built into it.And when challenged, their answer was simple: our ancestors did this, and Allah commanded it.Allah's response was immediate: “Allah does not command shameless things. Are you saying about Allah what you do not know?”This is the danger of reason untethered from revelation. The argument the Quraysh made — that you were born naked and sinless, so the purest worship is naked worship — has an internal logic to it. You can follow it step by step and almost be convinced. But it leads somewhere Allah never intended. Modesty is not a burden placed on human nature. It is human nature. The nafs, the animal side of us, knows no shame. Haya is what lifts us above it. When we strip away modesty, we strip away something uniquely human.What Allah Actually Commands: Qist“Say: My Lord commands justice — qist.”Two Arabic words are both translated as justice in English: adala and qist. But they are not the same.Adala is doing what is right at a given moment — even if one party walks away unhappy. A judge delivers adala. The winning side praises him. The losing side calls him the worst judge they've ever seen. That is the nature of adala — it is correct, but not always mutually satisfying.Qist is higher. It is the middle path that brings both parties to a place of genuine acceptance. Not just legally correct, but humanly resolved. Adala is passing. Qist is excellent.Allah commands us toward qist — in our worship, in our dealings, in how we carry ourselves in this world.The Cure for ShamelessnessHere is what is striking. Allah has just spoken about shamelessness — the Quraysh doing tawaf naked, Shaitan's mission to strip humanity of modesty. And what is the cure Allah prescribes?Not a dress code. Not isolation. Not a list of prohibitions.Prayer.“Establish your faces at every masjid.”The word masjid here goes back to its root — sajada, to prostrate. This surah is Makki; the only masjid at the time was Masjid Al-Haram, surrounded by 365 idols. So Allah is not speaking about a building. He is speaking about the act itself. Every time and place of sujud — turn yourself fully toward Allah.And why wajh, face? Because the face is the most honourable part of a person. In Arabic, the most honourable portion can denote the whole. When you bring your face to the ground in sujud — the most honourable part of you touching the lowest point — that is the full surrender of the entire self.This is how prayer protects us from shamelessness. Allah says elsewhere in the Quran that prayer prohibits a person from fahsha — from indecency and evil. But how? We all know people who pray and still fall into wrong.The answer is in the word aqimu — establish. Not just perform. Not just go through the motions. To establish prayer is to be present in it. To actually stand before Allah, to speak to the Lord of the universe, to feel that you are seen.Think about it this way: if you were called to the principal's office this morning and firmly reminded of your responsibilities, how would you behave for the rest of the day? Even a difficult student behaves for at least a few hours after that meeting.Now imagine the meeting is with the Lord of the universe. Every morning before sunrise. Fajr carries you through the morning. Then Dhuhr arrives before you can wander too far. Then Asr. Then Maghrib. Then Isha. If you are truly present in each one — truly establishing, not just performing — there is barely a gap for shaitan to work in.The prayer, established with presence, is the antidote.We Began Without Clothes — We Return Without ClothesAllah closes this passage with a reminder: just as we entered this world, we will return to Allah. Naked. On the plains of Yawmul Qiyamah, everyone resurrected the same way.Sayyidatuna Aisha asked: won't we be ashamed — with everyone around us?The Prophet ﷺ said: the day will be too great. No one will have the capacity to think about anyone else. Even the greatest prophets — Adam, Nuh, Ibrahim, Musa, Isa — when people come to them seeking intercession, they will say: nafsi, nafsi. Myself, myself. I have my own account to answer for.Only the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ will say: this is what I was created for. And he will intercede.On that day, the sun will feel as though it is a hand span above our heads. People will be drowning in their own sweat. But some will be shaded — elevated on hills, wearing shining crowns, alongside their spouses. People will look up and wonder who they are, what they did to deserve this.They will be told: your children memorised the Quran.If the parents of Quran memorisers are raised to such a station — what of the memorisers themselves?It Is Never Too LateThe Prophet ﷺ received his first revelation at 40. Abu Bakr accepted Islam at 38. Neither said: I am too old for this.If memorising the entire Quran feels out of reach, change the target. One ayah a day, understood deeply, revised slowly, carried with you. One juz a year. In thirty years, you have the whole Quran — memorised with comprehension, not just repetition.And if life takes you before you finish? The Prophet ﷺ said that whoever makes a consistent effort toward something and is prevented from completing it, Allah will complete the reward for them.Start. Stay consistent. Do not give up.Anything attached to the Quran becomes elevated in the eyes of Allah.We stopped here tonight. Tomorrow insha'Allah, we continue.Following along with the series? Consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comHere's the expanded version:Tafsir Thursday — Surah Al-Muzammil: Stand Up, Pray, and Let Allah Handle the Rest8th of Ramadan ReflectionsWe're one week into Ramadan. If you started slow — that's okay. Ramadan is a marathon. You start steady and sprint towards the end. What we don't want is the opposite: starting strong and slowly fading — attending Taraweeh in the first few nights then drifting away, stopping the extra prayers, and then preparing more for Eid than seeking out the blessings of the last ten nights. The goal is for the last night of Ramadan to be the best night of our Ramadan.The Prophet ﷺ said that whoever stands up and prays at night in the nights of Ramadan, expecting reward only from Allah — with sincerity, purely for His sake — Allah will forgive all their past sins. So no matter how tired we are, no matter how early Suhoor is or how hot the day gets at 38 or 39 degrees, we should make sure we stand some extra rakat after Isha. Even just two, four, or six — whatever we can manage. Don't make Ramadan nights just like the nights of other months. This is our worship festival. Make it special.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The Command to Stand at NightSurah Al-Muzammil opens with Allah commanding the Prophet ﷺ to stand and pray through most of the night — except for a little. And what was he doing in those long hours of prayer? Reading Quran.This is the best thing we can do at night: read Quran in our prayers. If we've memorised, this is where we test and revise our memorisation. If we haven't memorised much but can read fluently, it is permitted to read from a mushaf — Sayyidatuna Aisha had one of her servants lead prayer while reading from one. The key is to have everything ready and in place, and to be careful with excessive movement.But why this command? Because Allah says: We are going to send down upon you heavy ayat. A serious, challenging mission. The Prophet ﷺ was being prepared to change the world. And the preparation wasn't political strategy — it was night prayer, Quran, and dhikr.This is the prophetic formula: to face a difficult day, strengthen the ruh the night before.Dhikr: The Only Command Allah Tells Us to Do AbundantlyAllah then says: Wadhkur isma Rabbik — and make mention of the name of your Lord. SubhanAllah, walhamdulillah, wa la ilaha illAllah, wallahu Akbar.Dhikr holds a unique place among all the acts of worship in the Quran. Allah commands prayer, and prayer is essential — Aqimi as-salata li dhikri, establish the prayer to remember Me. But when it comes to dhikr, Allah says to remember Him katheeran — abundantly. It is the only act of worship in the Quran that Allah commands us to do in abundance.And then: Wa tabattal ilayhi tabteela — devote yourself solely for Him. Who is He? Rabbul mashriqi wal maghrib — the Lord of the East and the West.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comOne week of Ramadan. Already.Before we move into tonight's ayat, a reflection from Part 2 that deserves its own moment — because it will run as the undercurrent through everything that follows in this surah.

al-Muzzammil 10 -14This week we read and dissect the tajweed rules in ayat 10 - 14 of Surah al-Muzzammil. When it comes to learning a new skill, like Quran reading, remember that consistency beats intensity. It is very important that we practice daily even if it is just for 10 - 15 minutes. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

The Prophet ﷺ said: every child of Adam is a sinner, and the best of sinners are those who make tawbah. We will slip. The question is never whether we fall — it's which path we take when we do.Last night we saw those two paths clearly: the path of Iblis, who blamed Allah and recruited others into his rebellion; and the prophetic path, demonstrated by Adam — take ownership, turn back, ask forgiveness.The Prophet ﷺ at Ta'ifNo one embodied the prophetic path more completely than the Prophet ﷺ himself. After his wife Khadijah and his uncle Abu Talib both died, he travelled to Ta'if seeking support for his mission. The people there not only rejected him — they paid children and slaves to throw rocks at him, chasing him out of the city. He fled until he found refuge in a garden, bleeding, exhausted.The angels of Ta'if came to him with an offer: say the word, and we will bring the surrounding mountains down upon them.He said no. Perhaps from their descendants, someone will accept Islam.And then he made dua — one of the most moving supplications in the seerah. O Allah, I submit to You my weakness, my lack of planning, my low standing among the people. Not a single word blaming the people of Ta'if. He turned the lens entirely on himself. He asked: perhaps it was my weakness. Perhaps my planning was insufficient.This from the man who could not have done it better. Yet he took responsibility — because blame leads nowhere. The only path forward is to work on what is within our control.This is the lesson from Adam's dua and the Prophet's dua after Ta'if: focus on your circle of control. Protect yourself and your family. Spend your Ramadan nights on what you can actually change. The tariff rate is not within your control. How you spend this blessed month is.One Tree Among MillionsBefore we move forward in the surah, there is a gem worth sitting with from the story of Adam in Jannah.Jannah — by definition a lush garden of millions of trees — had exactly one prohibition. One tree. Everything else was open.This is a mirror of how Allah has designed this world. The halal is vast. The haram is specific and limited. When Allah speaks about what is halal in the Quran, He speaks in sweeping terms: “O mankind, eat from what is halal and good on earth.” No list — because the list would be endless. When He speaks about what is haram, He lists it out, one by one, because it is few enough to enumerate.There is a principle in Islamic jurisprudence: al-aslu fil ashya' al-ibaha — the original ruling on all things is that they are permissible. You need evidence to declare something haram, not the other way around. We sometimes become more restrictive than the Quran itself, treating everything as forbidden until proven otherwise. That is not Islam. Allah is merciful, and everything He has made haram is genuinely harmful to us — and there is not much of it.Shaitan's trick is to make us fixate on the haram, to make us feel hemmed in, to make the life of a Muslim feel like a series of closed doors. But the reality is the opposite. The doors are almost all open. He just wants us staring at the one that isn't.Animosity — and the Iblis AgendaAllah commanded Adam, Hawa, and Iblis to descend from Jannah, and said there would be animosity between them. This animosity runs in multiple directions — not just between humans and Shaitan, but between humans themselves. Between races. Between classes. Between genders.When we look at gender wars today, Islam has no difficulty affirming the rights and dignity of women. In fact, much of what has historically restricted women came through culture, not religion. The Prophet's masjid had no barrier between men and women. The Prophet ﷺ gave lessons to mixed gatherings. Women asked questions — including sensitive ones — directly. The Ansar women were specifically praised for their courage in seeking knowledge. When a separate door was created for women in the Prophet's time, it was at the suggestion of Sayyidina Umar, so that women wouldn't be pushed and jostled as the community grew — it was for their comfort, not their exclusion. Sayyidina Umar, despite being famously protective of his own wife, allowed her to attend the masjid because the Prophet ﷺ had explicitly said: do not stop the believing women from coming to the masjid.The problem with certain strands of modern feminism is not the defence of women's rights — it's the framing of everything as a gender war. Men and women, from an Islamic perspective, are equal in spiritual standing and in the eyes of Allah, but created with different natures, different inclinations, different responsibilities. Not one above the other. Different — the way a table and a chair are different. Both necessary. Together, complete. If every chair insists on being a table, everyone ends up sitting on the floor.The same principle applies to class. Islam does not vilify wealth — it channels it. Zakat. Waqf. The oldest universities in the world — Qarawiyyin, Zaytuna, Al-Azhar — were sustained for centuries through endowments from wealthy Muslims who had the akhirah in mind. Al-Azhar offered free education, boarding, and meals for over a thousand years, funded entirely by waqf. Harvard today operates on $53 billion in endowments — the same principle, different name. The Islamic economic vision is not to make everyone equal — it is to ensure that the rich carry the poor, and that no one goes without. When zakat is properly collected and distributed, the mathematics work out. The system is not a class war. It is a covenant of care.All of this division — gender wars, class wars, race wars — is part of the Iblis agenda. He said there would be animosity. He is working to deepen it. Our job is to see through it.Tomorrow insha'Allah — Part 3 of Surah Al-A'raf begins. Allah speaks directly to the children of Adam. Ya Bani Adam.Tonight's video is recorded by Perth Islamic Channel.Following along with the series? Consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comFive nights in. Ramadan has a way of feeling slow at the start and then suddenly you're in the last ten nights wondering where the month went. Make full use of every day.The Prophet ﷺ once climbed his mimbar and said “Ameen” three times — once on each step. When the companions asked what the dua was, he told them Jibreel had made three supplications and…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comLast night we established the first sin in history: Iblis refusing to bow before Adam out of arrogance. Tonight we go deeper — into what happened next, and what it means for us.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comWe move into Part 2 of our journey through Surah Al-A'raf: the creation of human beings. And Allah begins not with Adam, but with something we rarely stop to appreciate.We Were Made for Good Living“We have settled you on earth and made for you therein ma'ayish.”Ma'ayish doesn't just mean livelihood. It means good living. Allah didn't have to create us this way. He could have made us like the dung beetle — one food source, no variation, no pleasure. Instead He gave us the ability to mix, to cook, to combine flavours that taste terrible alone but become extraordinary together. The star anise in your soup. The spices in your curry.This is a gift that we almost never acknowledge. And Allah notes it: “Very little of you are grateful.”The Gratitude LoopGratitude, according to both Islamic tradition and modern psychology, requires three elements: the benefit, the beneficiary, and the benefactor. The first two are easy to identify — good food, and me enjoying it. But the loop only closes when you know who to thank.Researchers at UC Davis and UC Berkeley have found that people who cannot complete this loop — who have no one ultimate to direct their gratitude toward — experience limited happiness from gratitude practice. Without God, who do you thank for good health? For a good family? For being alive?When we say Alhamdulillah, we close the loop. And then we find ourselves grateful for the ability to be grateful — which calls for another Alhamdulillah — and so it continues, deeper and deeper. That is the loop Allah built into the fitrah.Allah Takes Ownership of How He Made You“We have created you and then fashioned you.”Allah doesn't just create — He takes personal ownership of how each of us was shaped. Tall or short, dark or light, slim or otherwise. This is His doing.Which makes it worth asking: when we mock someone's appearance, who are we really criticising? If you insult a painting, the painter is the one offended. Allah shaped us. He takes ownership of that. So the next time someone comments on how you look, you are well within your rights to say — I didn't have much say in this. Take it up with my Creator.The Story of Adam — Told in AnglesThe story of Adam appears in the Quran roughly every seven juz. If we complete a khatam every month, we encounter it at the start of every week. It is our origin story, and Allah wants it close to us.But each surah tells it differently — Al-Baqarah focuses on the purpose of our creation and the dialogue with the angels. Al-A'raf zooms in on two things: the sin of Iblis, and the slip of Adam and how he returned. Different angles on the same story, the way a good film cuts between perspectives to hold your attention and reveal something new each time.The First Sin: ArroganceAllah commanded all the angels to bow before Adam. Everyone did — except Iblis.When Allah asked why, Iblis said: “I am better than him. You created me from fire and him from clay.”This is the first act of disobedience in creation. And look at what drove it — not doubt, not confusion, but kibir. Arrogance.The Prophet ﷺ defined arrogance as two things: looking down upon others, and rejecting the truth. Iblis did both in a single sentence. He rejected Allah's command. And he declared himself superior to Adam.Here is the profound irony: Iblis had no hand in his own creation. Did he choose to be made from fire? Did Adam choose clay? This was all Allah's doing. Yet Iblis took credit for what Allah created and used it to look down on what Allah created. That is kibir in its purest form.And Allah's response? “Exit. You are from among the small ones.”Kibir shares its root with kabir — greatness, bigness. Iblis wanted to be seen as great. And because of that, Allah made him small. This is the divine law that the Prophet ﷺ articulated: whoever humbles himself, Allah raises. Whoever seeks greatness through arrogance, Allah diminishes.We stopped here tonight. Tomorrow insha'Allah — why kibir happens, how Shaitan uses it, and how we defend ourselves against his tricks.Following along with the series? Consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook — your companion through this Ramadan journey.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comAlhamdulillah — we made it through the first day. Thirty-eight degrees, and we're still here.A reminder before we begin: Ramadan is a marathon, not a sprint. The temptation on night one is to go all out — packed masjid, high energy, maximum worship. But the goal is to still be standing strong in the last ten nights. Start with intention, build with cons…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comWhere do you find strength when you're overwhelmed?In this week's Tafseer Thursday, we dive into Surah Al-Muzammil — and the answer Allah gave the Prophet ﷺ when he was facing the hardest task of his life.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The mission was heav…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comRamadan Mubarak.Every Ramadan, our community at Qaswa gathers to study one surah in depth — weaving tafseer into our nightly prayers. We've journeyed through Al-Baqarah, Ali Imran, An-Nisa, Al-Ma'idah, and Al-An'am. This year, we enter Surah Al-A'raf: 206 ayat, one of the longer Makki surahs, and a surah that carries a message every generation needs to hear.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.If you're following along, the Surah Al-A'raf Study Guide and Workbook is your companion through this series — structured notes, key points, and reflection questions for each thematic section, designed to help you move from listening to living the lessons. Physical copies are available at the tarawih hall and Qaswa House. And if you're reading this on Substack, consider a paid subscription to receive a free digital copy of the workbook — your support also helps keep this tafseer series going.The Surahs Come in PairsOne of the beautiful structural features of the Quran is that the early surahs mirror and complement each other.Al-Baqarah purifies the heart — iman and taqwa. Ali Imran extends that inward transformation outward — Islam and submission. An-Nisa moves from the individual to the community, beginning with the most vulnerable: orphans and women. Al-Ma'idah scales further outward still — to national and international relations.Then Al-An'am, a Makki surah, brings us back to basics. Back to aqidah. It makes the case for Islam through reason — the logical argument of Prophet Ibrahim, who observed that a god who appears and disappears cannot be God.Surah Al-A'raf continues that argument — but shifts the angle. Where Al-An'am appealed to logic, Al-A'raf appeals to history. What happened to the nations before us? What became of the peoples who refused to listen?Makki vs Madani: What We've Been Getting WrongHere is something worth sitting with: roughly 70% of the Quran is Makki. Only 30% is Madani.The Madani surahs contain our laws — fasting, zakat, hajj, rulings on marriage and wealth and dress. Important, yes. But the bulk of Allah's revelation is Makki, and the Makki surahs are concerned above all with akhlaq — character, ethics, the way we treat one another.The Prophet ﷺ was asked repeatedly: who is the best person? His answers: the one with the most beautiful character. The one who is most useful to others.Yet over 1400 years, we have narrowed our definition of a good Muslim to ritual: how many rakaat, how many khatms, how long the fast, how correct the recitation. We've let the 30% overshadow the 70%. We've mistaken the branches for the roots.Surah Al-A'raf will have something to say about this — particularly in the story of Prophet Adam and his expulsion from Jannah, where we will see what Allah identifies as the most important quality of a believer.

al-Muzzammil 5 - 9Assalamualaikum,It is Tuesday, that means it is time for Tajweed Tuesday. Last week we embarked our journey into Surah al-Muzzammil and read ayat 1 - 4.This week, insha Allah, we will read ayat 5 - 9. If you are listening to this episode as a podcast, I highly recommend that you watch the video as there are some concepts that are easier to understand by seeing.All right, without further ado, let's get started. Remember, we are aiming for smoothness. Start slow as slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.I'd like to also take this opportunity to wish all subscribers of Grounded, Ramadan Mubarak. It is really apt that we are studying this powerful surah as we enter the month of the Quran. The month where we spend our nights praying extra and reading more Quran — just like the surah suggests.May Allah allow us to reach Ramadan and bless us with a fruitful Ramadan where we fast in a way that develops taqwa and spend our nights with the Quran. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comWhy Belief Must Come Before Practice: Introduction to Imam Al-Ghazali's 40 PrinciplesUnderstanding the foundations of Islamic knowledge requires more than memorizing rulings or performing rituals. It demands a systematic approach to learning that begins with certainty in belief before moving to practice. This article explores the framework laid out in Imam Al-Ghazali's The 40 Principles of Our Religion, examining why aqidah (creed) forms the essential foundation upon which all other religious knowledge is built.The Three Dimensions of Islamic PracticeThe Islamic tradition recognises three fundamental dimensions of religious life: Islam, Iman, and Ihsan. This framework, derived from Hadith Jibreel (known as Umm al-Sunnah), provides the organisational structure for understanding our religion.Islam: The Science of PracticeIslam encompasses the ritualistic and practical aspects of religion, which later developed into the science of fiqh (jurisprudence). While four major schools of Islamic law are widely recognised today, the historical reality reveals far greater diversity. Scholars document more than 80 madhabs during the early period of Islamic intellectual development.The survival of a legal school depends not on the Imam's knowledge alone, but on the continuity of transmission. Consider the madhab of Imam Al-Layth ibn Sa'd: despite Imam Al-Shafi'i's assertion that he was “afqahu min Malik” (more knowledgeable in fiqh than Imam Malik), his school did not survive because his students failed to continue the work.The Importance of Unbroken TransmissionContemporary practitioners receive their understanding of Islamic law through an unbroken chain of transmission (isnad) extending back to the founding Imams. For Shafi'i scholars, this means a documented chain of teachers and students from the present day all the way to Imam Al-Shafi'i himself.This chain preserves not just the rulings, but the contextual understanding and technical terminology. Without this living transmission, legal texts become increasingly difficult to interpret accurately. Imam Al-Shafi'i's magnum opus, Al-Umm, illustrates this challenge. Despite its importance, this foundational text is rarely taught in traditional Islamic circles today because the specific terminological framework has not been preserved in the same way as later works.Legal terminology evolves across generations. Early scholars often used cautious language when discussing prohibitions, preferring phrases like “I dislike this” rather than definitively declaring something haram. This reflected both their taqwa (God-consciousness) and their reluctance to claim authority over matters of divine law. In communities with high levels of religious commitment, such subtle expressions were sufficient to guide behavior.As communities changed, scholars adapted their pedagogical approach. The terminology became more explicit and categorical, even as the underlying rulings often became more accommodating. Imam Al-Nawawi's strict position on Fatiha recitation—invalidating prayer for mispronouncing even a single letter—was later moderated by scholars like Imam Al-Haythami, who recognised that people from certain linguistic backgrounds might be physically unable to produce specific Arabic phonemes.This adaptation reflects not inconsistency, but the dynamic nature of fiqh as a living discipline that must address the reality of Muslim communities. A contemporary example: visiting a remote fishing village in Malaysia, one encounters Imams who are part-time dive masters or boat captains, leading congregations where the recitation quality varies significantly. The fiqh tradition accommodates this reality while maintaining standards appropriate to each context.Iman: The Science of BeliefIman addresses matters of belief, formalized into the science of Aqidah. Within this domain, several schools of thought emerged:Athari (textual): This approach relies primarily on scriptural authority. The Quran commands belief, therefore one believes. This circular reasoning functions effectively in majority-Muslim contexts where baseline assumptions about God's existence and the Quran's authority are shared cultural knowledge.Ash'ari and Maturidi: These schools, founded by Imam Abu Hassan Al-Ash'ari and Imam Mansur Al-Maturidi respectively, integrate revelation with rational argumentation. This synthesis became necessary as Muslims encountered diverse philosophical traditions and needed to defend their beliefs through reasoned discourse.Ihsan: The Science of Spiritual ExcellenceIhsan developed into the science of tasawuf (Islamic spirituality), which also encompasses multiple approaches:The Salaf approach emphasizes wara' (scrupulousness) and zuhud (asceticism). Note that “Salaf” refers to a historical period—the first three centuries of Islamic history—rather than the modern movement called “Salafism,” which emerged several centuries later.Imam Al-Ghazali championed tazkiyah (purification of the soul), focusing on removing spiritual diseases from the heart and cultivating praiseworthy character traits.The Falsafah (philosophical) school, represented most prominently by Ibn Arabi, engaged with metaphysical questions and influenced Islamic mystical thought, particularly in Ottoman territories.This study focuses primarily on the tazkiyah tradition, as it addresses the practical work of spiritual development most directly applicable to contemporary Muslims.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit groundeddaily.substack.comAssalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.Welcome back to Tafsir Thursday. We're in a new year, a new term, and that means new surahs to explore together.But this term is different. Instead of diving into one surah, we'll be studying two: Surah Al-Muzzammil and Surah Al-Muddathir. Why two? Three reasons: first, they're both relatively short. Second, their meanings are closely linked together. And third, in terms of chronology, these surahs were revealed back-to-back. They were among the earliest revelations to the Prophet ﷺ.Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The Context: Before we dive into Surah Al-Muzzammil, we need to understand when and why it was revealed.From a very young age, the Prophet ﷺ hated the evil practices in his community. He saw people worshipping idols, the rich abusing the poor, the powerful oppressing the weak. Women had no rights—treated as property, sold and traded. Children had no rights whatsoever. Daughters were buried alive.He didn't like it. But he couldn't find a solution.From age 35 onwards, he started doing spiritual seclusion. He would leave Mecca for days at a time, walk five or six kilometers outside the city, climb up a mountain, and settle in Cave Hira. There, he would worship Allah, make dua, and contemplate in the tradition of Prophet Ibrahim .Until one night when he was 40 years old, during the month of Ramadan, he was visited by a creature he didn't recognize. It wasn't a human being. The Prophet later described this creature as huge—so massive that wherever he looked (up, down, left, right), he could only see this being. It had wings that engulfed the entire horizon.The Prophet ﷺ was terrified.This creature—the angel Jibreel—told him: ‘Read.' The Prophet said, ‘I don't read.' The angel then hugged him so tightly he almost couldn't breathe, then released him. Again: ‘Read.' This happened three times. Then the angel recited the first five verses of Surah Al-Alaq, marking the beginning of revelation.The Prophet didn't know what had just happened. Had he gone crazy? Was he hallucinating? Was he possessed by jinn?He rushed home trembling, shivering, terrified, and met his wife Khadija. He said to her: ‘Zammiluni'—cover me with a blanket, cloak me. And she did.As the Prophet calmed down, Khadija asked what happened. He told her about the encounter in the cave. And she reassured him: ‘Allah will never abandon you, for you have the most beautiful akhlaq, the noblest of character.'They went to meet Khadija's uncle, Waraqah ibn Nawfal, a very learned man. Waraqah said: ‘You were visited by the very angels that came to Prophet Musa, Dawud, Isa, and all the previous prophets and messengers. That means you are a prophet, a messenger.'Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

al-Muzzammil 1 - 4Welcome back to Tajweed Tuesday. As we begin a new term and a new year, we're moving on to study fresh surahs. This term, we'll explore two powerful chapters: al-Muzzammil and al-Muddaththir. Though relatively short, both contain profound meaning and hold special significance—they were revealed very early in Islamic history, sent down back to back.Each Tuesday, we'll follow our usual approach: reading the ayat of the week and exploring its tajweed rules. Remember to practice consistently and aim for fluency. As always, slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

Beginning a New Text with Imam al-GhazaliAlhamdulillah, this session marks the beginning of a new text in our weekly Ratib & Reminders gathering. For those based in Perth, you're warmly invited to join us live at Qaswa House every Thursday from 7:00–9:00 p.m. The gathering is open to everyone — men and women, young and old.After returning to Perth, it was a joy to be back at Ratib and to see the continuity of the program while I was away. We recently completed Arba‘ina Shamil fi Insanil Kamil, the 40 hadith on the perfection of Rasulullah ﷺ, and many were able to join the khatam we did live from Madinah. With that chapter completed, we now move into a new phase of study.The most common request I receive is to study the works of Imam al-Ghazali. While his magnum opus Ihya' ‘Ulum al-Din is one of the greatest works in Islamic scholarship, it is also vast — effectively forty books in one. For this reason, rather than beginning something we may struggle to complete, we've chosen a shorter, more focused text that reflects Ghazali's core project.Over the next two sessions we'll introduce this new book and begin exploring its themes. After that, we'll pause for Ramadan, as Ratib will be replaced by nightly taraweeh at Moresby Street Hall, Kensington, where we'll be reading and briefly reflecting on Surah al-A‘raf. After Ramadan, inshaAllah, we'll return to the text and continue the journey.Imam al-Ghazali had a unique way of teaching. He often wrote large, comprehensive works, then summarised them into medium-length texts, and finally into concise versions meant to be memorised. His belief was that knowledge only truly becomes yours when it is internalised — when you live with it, not merely read it. This approach shapes the book we'll be studying together.The text we've chosen is Al-Arba‘in fi Usul al-Din (The 40 Principles of the Religion). Interestingly, it did not begin as a standalone book. It was originally written as an appendix to Jawahir al-Qur'an (The Jewels of the Qur'an). After guiding readers on how to approach and understand the Qur'an, Imam al-Ghazali addressed the next essential question: How do we live the Qur'an? These forty principles were his answer. Recognising their importance, he permitted the work to be published independently.For many, especially those who went through traditional Islamic schooling in places like Malaysia, the content of this book will feel familiar. Much of classical Islamic education has been shaped, directly or indirectly, by Imam al-Ghazali's framework.To understand his project, we stepped back and looked at the foundation of Islamic scholarship itself — Hadith Jibril, often called Umm al-Sunnah. This hadith presents the religion through three inseparable dimensions: Islam, Iman, and Ihsan.Islam refers to the outward actions of the religion — prayer, fasting, zakat, and hajj — which later became formalised as the science of fiqh. Iman addresses belief, engaging the intellect before settling in the heart, and developed into the science of ‘aqidah. Ihsan focuses on spiritual refinement: worshipping Allah as though you see Him, and knowing that He sees you even when you do not.Over time, each of these dimensions developed its own sciences and terminology. These terms did not exist in the Prophet's time, but they were created to preserve clarity and make learning accessible. Tasawwuf, when understood correctly, belongs firmly within this tradition — addressing the heart and soul, not as a replacement for fiqh or ‘aqidah, but as their completion.Imam al-Ghazali lived during a period of deep fragmentation in the Muslim world — politically, intellectually, and spiritually. His life's work was to bring these dimensions back together, showing that a sound religious life cannot survive on law alone, belief alone, or spirituality alone. Each needs the others.It was during a profound personal crisis, after reaching the peak of his academic career, that Ghazali withdrew from public life for years of spiritual seclusion. From this period emerged Ihya' ‘Ulum al-Din, the first work to systematically unite belief, practice, and spiritual purification into a single guide for living Islam.Al-Arba‘in fi Usul al-Din is the distilled essence of that project. It is organised into forty principles: foundations of belief, guidance on practice, dangers on the path, and the means of salvation. This is the text we'll be walking through together, slowly and practically, inshaAllah.This session served as an introduction to both Imam al-Ghazali and the book we'll be studying. We'll continue next week, before pausing for Ramadan, and then resume the journey together. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit groundeddaily.substack.com/subscribe

Alhamdulillah, my heart is full.I recently had the honour of serving once again as translator for Habib Kadhim as-Saqqaf — a blessing I never take for granted.In 2022, Allah granted me the opportunity to welcome him to Perth for the very first time, and to serve as his translator during that visit. It remains a very precious moment in my life and one I am always grateful for.And now, on his third visit, I was able to receive him at Qaswa House in full action — with over 200 members of our Qommunity present: students, parents, and families all gathered to benefit from his wisdom, character, and prophetic gentleness.I am deeply thankful to Habib Kadhim for honouring us with his presence, and grateful to the team who made this trip possible — especially those who worked quietly and unseen in the background to make everything run smoothly.To be able to serve a scholar of his stature is a gift I cannot repay.To share that blessing with our Qaswa family makes it even more meaningful.May Allah accept from all, keep us close to the people of knowledge, and allow us to honour them always. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

We've entered a new term, and that means a new Surah! This term, we begin our journey with Surah al-Fath, a powerful chapter that opens with Divine reassurance and promise.In this episode, we recite and break down the first three āyāt, focusing on key Tajwīd principles such as:* Nun Mushaddadah: Learn how inna is read with two harakāt of nasalisation (ghunnah) – not rushed, but softly and smoothly from the nasal passage.* Makharij (Points of Articulation): Understand the correct way to pronounce letters like ḥā (from the middle throat) in fataḥnā and the ghayn in li-yaghfira (from the upper throat).* Idghām and Iẓhār rules: Identify when merging is complete (like min dhambika into mim dhambika) and when letters are clearly separated.* Mad Aṣlī (natural elongation): Spot the small alif or wāw that indicates a simple two-beat stretch.Practical Tip:

Alhamdulillah, I was given the honour of delivering the Friday Khutbah at the Australia Open Pencak Silat International Championship 2024. It was the first time for Australia to host an international silat tournament.When the organiser approached me asking if I can deliver the khutbah at the tournament, my heart skipped a beat. For those of you who know me, will know my love for martial arts.Here's some snippets from the khutbah. May Allah reward the organisers for their hard work. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

Dear Qommunity,In the 7th year of Prophethood, the Muslim community was pushed to the brink of starvation. The Quraysh had imposed a ruthless boycott—no trade, no marriages, no contact. The Muslims were isolated in a valley outside Makkah, slowly starving.At night, the cries of hungry children pierced the desert silence. These cries broke through the pride of some Quraysh leaders. One of them, Zuhair ibn Abi Umayyah, though not a Muslim, stood before the Quraysh and asked:“Are we going to eat while Banu Hashim is starving?”That plea cracked the boycott. It saved lives.And today, we ask ourselves the same question:“Are we going to comfortably eat in our homes and cafés while our brothers and sisters in Gaza are starving?”Over 500 tonnes of food have been left to expire—deliberately blocked by a cruel regime that fears bread more than bombs.So what can we do?Australia has been one of the strongest backers of this genocide. But after the massive march in Sydney—where hundreds of thousands of ordinary people took to the streets—we saw a shift in our government's stance. Pressure works. Your voice matters.So let's show up.Let's be the voice that breaks the boycott. Let's be the people who, like Zuhair, refuse to stay silent in the face of starvation and oppression.Join us tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. in Forrest Place, Perth.Bring your family. Bring your friends. Bring your voice.Rain or shine, we march.Because they are still starving. And we are still human. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

Lessons from the SeerahWhen we look at the sīrah, in the seventh year of Prophethood, the challenges facing the Muslims were unbearable.At first, the Quraysh mocked and insulted. But when insults failed, by the fifth year they turned to violence—abusing, torturing, even killing some of the early Muslims. When that too didn't stop the daʿwah, they escalated further: a total boycott against the Muslims and Banū Hāshim, the Prophet's own tribe.No one was allowed to buy from them, sell to them, marry them, or even speak to them. Forced into the valley of Abū Ṭālib, the Muslims suffered starvation. At night, the Quraysh could hear the cries of hungry children echoing from the valley. It became so unbearable that some of the Quraysh nobles themselves—polytheists, not Muslims—like Muṭʿim ibn ʿAdī and Zuhayr ibn Abī Umayyah, stood up and said: This is not right. These are our people, even if we differ in religion.One day Zuhayr stood with his back to the Kaʿbah, facing the leaders of Quraysh. He declared: Our brothers and sisters are starving in the valley because of us. I will not sit down until this boycott is broken. And not long after, the boycott was lifted.A Parallel to TodayBrothers and sisters—this was 1,400 years ago. Today, history repeats itself. Our brothers and sisters in Gaza are starving—not because of food shortage, but because food is blocked, burned, or left to rot. Just last month, 500 tonnes of food were discarded because of the blockade.If Quraysh—who did not believe in lā ilāha illā Allāh—could act out of nothing more than blood ties, then what excuse do we have, we who claim faith? We say faith is thicker than blood—so why aren't we doing more?Acting Within Our MeansYes, our anger is real. But we are Muslims—we act with discipline, bound by the Sharīʿah. That means we work within the legal framework of the country we live in. We don't take matters into our own hands violently. Instead, we use the means available to us—and al-ḥamdu lillāh, here in Australia, there are means.And we've seen this before in our history. When Jerusalem fell to the Crusaders in 1099, the Khalīfah in Baghdad was doing nothing. It was a single qāḍī, Abū Saʿd al-Ḥarawī, who mobilised the people. After Jumuʿah prayer, he gave speeches, organised protests, and led the masses to demand action from the Khalīfah. Week after week, protest after protest, until the Khalīfah was forced to act.Power of ProtestThat's how politics works. Leaders move when people move.We saw this not long ago in Sydney—hundreds of thousands marched across the Harbour Bridge. And within a week, the Australian government shifted its diplomatic stance. Suddenly, they were talking about recognising Palestine. Suddenly, they were criticising Israel—something unimaginable just months before. Why? Not because the Prime Minister had a dream, but because the people marched.Call to Action – Perth RallySo brothers and sisters, this Sunday, we have the chance to stand up and be counted. Yes, the weather forecast says it will rain. But what is rain? Just water. Al-ḥamdu lillāh, Allah created our skin waterproof.Our brothers and sisters are rained upon with bombs and bullets. We will only be rained upon with water. So bring an umbrella, bring a jacket—and bring your friends. Convince those who've never attended a rally before. Come shoulder to shoulder with your fellow Australians, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, demanding justice for Palestine.On SalahuddīnEvery time a calamity strikes Palestine, people ask: Where is our Ṣalāḥuddīn?But Ṣalāḥuddīn did not appear in a vacuum. He didn't descend from the sky with angels. He was the product of decades of groundwork. It started with people like Abū Saʿd al-Ḥarawī, who mobilised the grassroots. Then came Imām al-Ghazālī, who strengthened the ummah spiritually. Then Nūruddīn Zengī, who prepared the armies. All three passed away before Palestine was liberated. Ṣalāḥuddīn simply completed the work.So the real question is not Where is Ṣalāḥuddīn? but What are we doing to build a Ṣalāḥuddīn for our time?AccountabilityOn Yawm al-Qiyāmah, Allah will not ask us whether we liberated Palestine—that's beyond our means. But He will ask: What did you do with what you could?And even before the Day of Judgment, our children and grandchildren will ask us: You were alive during the genocide. What did you do? Will we say, I was busy on social media?The Quraysh only heard the cries of hungry children. We see those cries broadcast live to our phones. If that doesn't move us, what will?Hope, Not DespairYes, the ummah is weak. Yes, we feel surrounded. But Allah reminds us: Do you think you will enter Jannah without being tested like those before you, until even the Messenger and those with him cried out: When will the help of Allah come? Verily, the help of Allah is near.We are a people of hope, not despair. Even today we see results: countries shifting, governments changing tone, and even the most Islamophobic nations being forced to recognise Palestine.ClosingSo I end with the same question that Zuhayr once asked the Quraysh: Are we eating our food while our brothers and sisters are starving?May Allah allow us to attend the rally in huge numbers this Sunday. May it be peaceful, impactful, and successful. May Allah open the hearts of our fellow Australians, and may He grant victory and liberation to our brothers and sisters in Palestine. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

Assalamu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuh.Welcome back to BeQuranic. In this session, we're looking at our ayat of the week — verses 9 and 10 of Surah al-Ḥujurāt. Today's focus is Tajweed: we'll read the verses together, highlight key rules, and talk about how to practise them for fluency.The Ayat of the WeekThese are slightly longer verses, especially ayah 9, so it's helpful to break them down in sections. We'll read them slowly, paying attention to the points of stop and continuation.﴿وَإِن طَآئِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا فَإِن بَغَتْ إِحْدَاهُمَا عَلَى الْأُخْرَىٰ فَقَاتِلُوا الَّتِي تَبْغِي حَتَّىٰ تَفِيءَ إِلَىٰ أَمْرِ اللَّهِ ۚ فَإِن فَاءَتْ فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا بِالْعَدْلِ وَأَقْسِطُوا ۖ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُقْسِطِينَ (٩) إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَ أَخَوَيْكُمْ ۚ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ (١٠)﴾Tajweed BreakdownLet's go through the main rules you'll encounter:* Ikhfā': in وَإِن طَآئِفَةً, notice the nūn sākinah before ṭā. That requires ikhfā', a nasal sound.* Madd wājib muttaṣil: in طَآئِفَةً and تَفِيءَ. The alif followed by a hamzah in the same word requires elongation of 4–5 counts.* Madd jā'iz munfaṣil: in إِلَىٰ أَمْرِ اللَّهِ. The madd occurs at the end of one word, and the hamzah starts the next word.* Qalqalah: in تَقْتَتِلُوا . Qalqalah produces a bouncing echo sound.* Ikhfā' of tanwīn: in إِخْوَةٌ فَأَصْلِحُوا, the tanwīn meets fā, so apply nasalisation.* Lafẓ al-Jalālah: in وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ, the lām of Allāh is pronounced heavy (tafkhīm) after a fatḥah or ḍammah.* Madd ‘āriḍ li-sukūn: in تُرْحَمُونَ, if you stop there, you can elongate 2, 4, or 6 counts.Practice Tips* Don't force yourself to read the whole ayah at once. Break it into smaller phrases.* Smooth out stumbles by repeating short sections until they flow naturally. For example:* Start with wa-in → then wa-in ṭā'ifa → then wa-in ṭā'ifatāni.* Once each piece is smooth, join them together.* The aim is fluency with clarity. Tajweed is not about speed; it's about balance, precision, and beauty.Closing ReminderThese two ayat emphasise unity and reconciliation among believers. Practising them with Tajweed adds not just technical accuracy but also depth in reflecting on their meaning.Take your time this week to master them. May Allah grant us fluency in His words and hearts that live by them.We'll continue on Tafseer Thursday, where we dive into the practical lessons from these verses. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

Full transcript (AI generated)Alhamdulillah, we praise Allah for allowing us to gather on this beautiful—if a little chilly—morning. Alhamdulillah for this amazing weather.It was lovely to see the president of the Islamic society in red and white today. To our Indonesian brothers and sisters: Selamat Hari Kemerdekaan—Happy Independence Day. Eighty years since independence—may Allah keep your nation in peace and strength.If anyone needs proof that Islam was not spread by the sword, just look at our region. You don't find armies forcing Islam upon the people there. Rather, traders—many from Hadramawt in Yemen—came to the Indonesian archipelago. The Indonesians were impressed by their honesty and akhlaq. The sultans and rulers accepted Islam, and as was common then, when a king accepted a faith, much of his people followed.Some argue, “But what about the Indian subcontinent—Pakistan and India—didn't Islam spread there by northern armies?” Even there, the heart of Islam's spread was da‘wah and reason, not compulsion.Look at Syria and Egypt. Egypt was opened by ‘Amr ibn al-‘Ās in the time of ‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb. Syria and Damascus were opened by Khālid ibn al-Walīd. Muslims ruled those lands, yet it took 500 years before Syria became majority Muslim, and around 300 years for Egypt. If Islam were spread by force, everyone would have “converted” within decades. History shows otherwise.Consider also the monastery of St Catherine in Sinai. It predates Islam, and they proudly claim to hold a letter from the Prophet ﷺ guaranteeing the safety of Christians in Egypt. Whether or not you accept the document, the point stands: Islam lived alongside other faiths. In greater Bilād al-Shām—what we call the Levant—multiple religions have long flourished.A stable nation is a great blessing from Allah. One of the early scholars said: I make du‘ā' for our rulers, that Allah rectifies their affairs. When asked, “Why not just make du‘ā' for yourself?” he replied, “If I pray for myself, only I benefit. If I pray for the ruler, everyone benefits.” Even if a ruler is flawed, there is no harm in asking Allah to guide them and make them just—because a just leader benefits all.When we talk about nation-states, let's be honest: many borders are colonial lines. What separates Malaysia and Indonesia? We are one people in so many ways. We speak closely related languages. Historically, the region has been called by many names: the Malay world, the archipelago, even Jāwī—so scholars from our lands were known in the Arab world as “al-Jāwī,” whether they were Javanese, Malay, Bugis, Makassarese, or others. The difference between Malaysia and Indonesia today largely traces to the Dutch and the British.So how do we relate to nation-states? Two extremes exist. One says, “There is no nation—only the Ummah—restore the Khilāfah now.” The other says, “I will die for this colonial line.” The truth, as our scholars remind us, is the balanced middle path. We are one Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ, and we also live in nation-states. Attempts to tear down states overnight have, in recent history, brought much harm. We live within reality while never forgetting the greater reality: every Muslim we meet is our brother or sister in faith, and that bond is sacred.The Prophet ﷺ himself showed us how to balance love of homeland. He loved Makkah—his birthplace, the land of his ancestors, home of the Ka‘bah built by Ibrāhīm and Ismā‘īl. He left only because it became unsafe—he was forced out. On his way out he turned back and said, “O Makkah, had my people not expelled me, I would never have left you.” But when he migrated to Madīnah, he loved it too, and made du‘ā': “O Allah, make us love Madīnah as we love Makkah, or even more,” and, “O Allah, bless Madīnah twice what You blessed Makkah.”He became part of Madīnah's community—integrating Muhājirīn and Anṣār, building a strong society—while his heart still loved Makkah. That's balance.Many of us here were born elsewhere—Malaysia, Indonesia, Lebanon, and beyond—and migrated to Australia. Love your country of origin; that's natural and from the sunnah of fitrah. But also accept the reality: we live here now by choice. So contribute here. Build here. Strengthen community here. Loving Australia doesn't mean hating your country of origin, and loving your homeland doesn't mean ignoring the reality and responsibilities of this country that has given us so much. Ask: How can I make this country, this society, this community better?I often say: loving the country you live in—serving it—is following the sunnah, because that's what the Prophet ﷺ did in Madīnah. Wherever a Muslim goes, they make the place better. In Malay we say: a good seed grows wherever it lands—even on a mountain. That's the believer: wherever we go, we leave goodness.Today I want to focus on Sūrat al-Ḥujurāt—a chapter I call the community's Standard Operating Procedure. It was revealed in late Madīnan years—around year 9 AH—barely over a year before the Prophet's passing. Year 9 is known as ‘Ām al-Wufūd—the Year of Delegations—with tribes pouring into Madīnah to pledge allegiance: sometimes politically, sometimes religiously.Look at the numbers to feel the context. In Makkah, after 13 years of da‘wah, roughly 80-plus men migrated with the Prophet ﷺ. Within two years in Madīnah, that number grew to around 300. At Uḥud, around 700 fought; by al-Khandaq, 3,000. At the Fath (Conquest) of Makkah in year 8, 10,000. By the Prophet's Ḥajj in year 10, more than 120,000. Exponential growth. What fueled it? One key event was the Treaty of al-Ḥudaybiyyah in year 6: a period of peace. In times of war, growth was modest; in times of peace, da‘wah flourished. Islam spreads best with safety, honesty, and service—not with the sword.Now to al-Ḥujurāt itself—“the Chambers”—named after the simple living quarters of the Prophet ﷺ. Despite becoming the most influential man in Arabia, his home was about 5m x 5m. Think of an IKEA showcase room—that's roughly the size. Before Khaybar, the Sahābah often tied stones to their stomachs from hunger. After Khaybar, prosperity came to the community, but the Prophet's personal lifestyle didn't change. When his household's income increased, he didn't buy a bigger house or a fancier camel. He increased in infaq—in giving. Some of his wives understandably asked for more comfort. Allah revealed that the Prophet's family are held to a higher standard, choosing Allah and the Ākhirah over worldly luxury. (Brothers, don't take this as ammunition against your wives—we are not prophets, and our families are not the Mothers of the Believers. Balance is key. The Prophet also taught that the best charity is what you spend on your family.)The sūrah begins: “O you who believe, do not put yourselves before Allah and His Messenger.” Our feelings and preferences take a back seat when the command of Allah and His Messenger is clear. But clarity matters—this is why the Ummah has tafāsīr and scholarship. In the time of ‘Alī and Mu‘āwiyah, the Khawārij claimed, “Back to Qur'ān and Sunnah!” ‘Alī brought the muṣḥaf and said, “Let the Qur'ān speak.” They said, “It can't.” Exactly—we need scholars; the Qur'ān is interpreted and applied through qualified understanding.Next, adab with the Prophet ﷺ: “Do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet…” The context: in the Year of Delegations, Abū Bakr and ‘Umar were assigning officials to receive tribes. Their discussion became loud—near the Prophet ﷺ. Allah revealed the warning that raising voices in his presence could nullify deeds. From then, they barely spoke above a whisper before him. One Companion with a naturally loud voice stopped attending the masjid out of fear. The Prophet ﷺ noticed his absence (as was his habit after ṣalāh) and reassured him.How is this relevant now? When you visit al-Rawḍah in Madīnah, remember your adab—don't push, don't argue. And more broadly: respect the Sunnah and ḥadīth. Don't weaponise ḥadīth to defeat one another. Imām Mālik would bathe, dress well, and apply perfume before narrating ḥadīth—because these are the words of the Prophet ﷺ. His mother told him when he was a child: “Learn your teacher's manners before his knowledge.” Many giants of our tradition were raised by remarkable mothers—may Allah increase the piety of our families.Now, the central ayah for our time—49:6:If a fāsiq brings you news, verify (fatabayyanū), lest you harm people out of ignorance and become regretful.Another qirā'ah reads fatathabbātū—establish the truth carefully. Both meanings are needed: verify the facts(tathabbūt) and clarify the context (tabayyun). Something can be factually true but contextually misunderstood. This ayah was revealed when a zakat-collector panicked at the stern-looking welcome of a Bedouin tribe, returned to Madīnah, and reported refusal to pay. War was nearly launched—until the matter was checked and clarified. It was simply a misreading of their manner.Brothers and sisters, we live in an age of instant forwarding. “Shared as received” does not absolve us. Better not to share than to spread harm. The Prophet ﷺ said it's enough falsehood for a person to relay everything they hear. We will be accountable for what we circulate.Next, Allah addresses conflict: “If two groups of believers fight, make peace between them.” Note: believers—disagreement and even fights can sadly occur in this world. Our job is to be peacemakers—afshū al-salām—not arsonists who inflame tensions.Then Allah forbids mockery, belittling nicknames, and demeaning jokes. A one-off joke may pass; repeated “teasing” cuts the heart. Joke with people, not at them. Give good nicknames—like the Prophet ﷺ did with Abū Hurayrah, “father of kittens,” because he loved cats.Finally, the universal ayah—49:13:“O mankind, We created you from male and female, and made you into peoples and tribes so that you may know one another…”Islam doesn't merely tolerate difference—it celebrates it. Li-ta‘ārafū—so you can truly know one another. Our diversity is a strength, not a weakness.A small story from campus days: we used to hold ifṭār at the Hacker Café. When policy changes demanded payment for bookings, the Malays among us—known for adab and non-confrontation—were ready to accept and move on. Our Arab brothers said, “No, this is our right; let's advocate.” Alhamdulillah, by different strengths working together, we kept the space. Sometimes a firm voice is needed; sometimes a calming voice. We need each other.Even our food is multicultural. Malaysians and Indonesians love sambal, but chilli isn't native to us—it came via Iberian traders after their colonisation of the Americas. They found it too spicy and passed it along; we said, “Bismillah—this is amazing!” Now, a meal without sambal hardly feels complete. That's multiculturalism on a plate.The Anṣār and Muhājirīn had different temperaments. The Prophet ﷺ praised the Anṣārī women for their confidence in asking questions—something Makkan women initially found difficult. Different strengths, one Ummah. Be like the beethat seeks flowers, not the fly that looks for wounds.Even our differences in madhāhib and approaches are strengths. Teaching ‘aqīdah to children benefits from the clarity and simplicity associated with “Salafī” pedagogy; engaging philosophers and other faiths may require the tools preserved in Ash‘arī and Māturīdī kalām. In fiqh, our differences are a mercy. I came from a Shāfi‘ī background where Jumu‘ah requires forty settled men. Early on here, I looked out and counted twenty-eight—then remembered I hadn't checked visa statuses! Alhamdulillah for Ḥanafī fiqh, where a much smaller number suffices. Our differences, handled with adab, make life easier, not harder. The line is only crossed when difference turns to violence or takfīr over minor issues.Thank you for spending your precious, cold winter morning with me. We ask Allah to accept this from us.We make du‘ā' that Allah blesses Indonesia with peace, prosperity, and barakah for her people; that He blesses the entire Ummah; that He blesses Australia and guides its leaders to make wise decisions for the public good—not just for narrow economic interests of some quarter.We ask Allah to protect our brothers and sisters in Palestine, especially Gaza. O Allah, they are hungry—feed them. They are surrounded from every direction—but all directions belong to You. Protect them. Grant the martyrs the highest Jannah. Reunite parents and children separated by rubble, and reunite us with them in Jannah. Do not let our hearts turn away from them when the world turns its back. Use us as means for their aid and liberation. Guide us, employ us in Your service, and accept from us, O Most Merciful.Āmīn. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit bequranic.substack.comAssalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh, and welcome back to BeQuranic.It's Thursday, and that means it's Tafseer Thursday—where we go beyond recitation and Tajweed, and dive into the practical reflections that help us live the Qur'an every day.This week, we're looking at Ayat 6 to 8 of Surah al-Ḥujurāt. But before we jump into them, let's do a quick…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit bequranic.substack.comWe're going to dive into the meanings of the ayat we've been reciting this week, and explore the practical lessons we can take home and apply in our daily lives—so we can be more Qur'anic in how we live.Today, insha'Allah, we'll be looking at Ayat 3 to 5 from Surah al-Hujurat.Surah al-Hujurat is a Madani surah—revealed in Madinah, and in fact, revealed …

Tajweed Tuesday — Surah al-Hujurat, Ayat 3–5Assalamu ʿalaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,Welcome back to BeQuranic. Apologies for the delayed post. I know today is Wednesday, but here you go, Tajweed Tuesday.This week, we're continuing our journey through Surah al-Hujurat, looking at Ayat 3 to 5. Let's begin with the recitation of these verses, followed by a breakdown of the key Tajweed rules.1. Ayah 3 – Pronunciation & Tajweed Focusإِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَغُضُّونَ أَصْوَاتَهُمْ عِندَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ أُولَٰئِكَ الَّذِينَ امْتَحَنَ اللَّهُ قُلُوبَهُمْ لِلتَّقْوَىٰ ۚ لَهُم مَّغْفِرَةٌ وَأَجْرٌ عَظِيمٌ* إِنَّ – Wajib al-Ghunnah (with shaddah on the noon, held for 2 counts).* الَّذِينَ – Madd asli on “الَّذِي” (basic elongation).* يَغُضُّونَ – Note the ضاد, a thick letter produced by pressing the side of the tongue to the upper molars. Be careful not to turn it into a heavy د or make it a tip-of-the-tongue sound.* أَصْوَاتَهُمْ – Ṣād is a heavy letter (tafkhīm). Remember, heaviness comes from the back of the tongue lifting, not from the lips. Don't incorrectly say Aw-swaatah; say it clearly: Aswāta.* رَسُولِ اللَّهِ – Here, the Lafdh al-Jalālah (the word “Allah”) is read lightly because it is preceded by a kasrah.* أُولَٰئِكَ – This is madd wajib muttasil — when a hamzah follows a madd letter in the same word. Stretch it for fourcounts.* قُلُوبَهُمْ – Madd asli on “قُلُو”.* مَّغْفِرَةٌ – Idgham mithlayn sagheer (two meem coming together).* وَأَجْرٌ – Qalqalah on the ج and Idgham bighunnah for the Tanween + و.* عَظِيمٌ – Madd ‘āriḍ lis-sukūn at the end of the ayah if you stop.2. Ayah 4 – Clarity in Recitationإِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُنَادُونَكَ مِن وَرَاءِ الْحُجُرَاتِ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْقِلُونَ* مِن وَرَاءِ – Idgham bighunnah because min + wāw.* وَرَاءِ – Madd wajib muttasil – again, 4 counts due to the wave sign.* أَكْثَرُهُمْ – Watch your ك here – don't make it too heavy.* يَعْقِلُونَ – Qaaf is a heavy letter. Lift the back of your tongue slightly to maintain correct tafkhīm.3. Ayah 5 – Clear Articulation & Disciplineوَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ صَبَرُوا حَتَّىٰ تَخْرُجَ إِلَيْهِمْ لَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَّهُمْ ۚ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ* أَنَّهُمْ – Wajib al-ghunnah on the shaddah.* صَبَرُوا – Be sure the ṣād is heavy — lift the back of your tongue.* تَخْرُجَ – Also has a خ, which is a heavy letter. Emphasise that thickness.* إِلَيْهِمْ – Clear idh-har (no merging here).* لَكَانَ – Madd asli* خَيْرًا لَّهُمْ – Idgham bila ghunnah on tanween + lām. No ghunnah, just merger of sounds of ر and ل.* وَاللَّهُ – Here the Lafdh al-Jalālah is heavy because it's preceded by a fatḥah.* غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ – No ghunnah idgham on the shaddah in r-rahīm.

Don't Give Up: Hope in Bleak TimesBismillah.The past few weeks have been incredibly difficult for the Ummah — especially for our brothers and sisters in Gaza.And it's not just these few weeks. It's been 23 months. Almost two years of relentless destruction. Every time we think we've seen the worst, we're proven wrong. Every time we think we've hit rock bottom, Israel and the powers that support her prove that evil has no limit.We are now witnessing full-blown famine. Starvation. Infants with nothing between their skin and bones. And on top of that — we hear of America burning 500 tonnes of food rather than allowing it to reach Palestine.At times like this, it's tempting to throw in the towel. To say:“We've done everything we can.”“We've shouted, we've protested, we've boycotted, we've flooded social media.”And yet, the powers that be… remain.But when that sense of despair starts creeping in, we must pause. We must take a step back and remember:We are looking through the lens of our short lives.We live 60, 70 years — maybe 50 as adults — and from that narrow perspective, it feels like there's no hope. But history tells a different story. When we zoom out, we see a sunnah of Allah unfold:Evil never wins in the end.No matter how powerful. Fir'aun claimed he was God Most High — Allah destroyed him. Yet many lived and died under his tyranny and may have thought:“Where is Allah's help?”“Where is our du‘a?”Allah addresses this feeling directly in the Qur'an — in the verse I opened with. He speaks of previous nations, believers who were so shaken by hardship that even their Prophets asked, “When will the help of Allah come?”And Allah replies:“Indeed, the help of Allah is near.”But near from whose perspective? Not always ours.That's why in Surah Ibrahim, Allah reminds us:“Do not think that Allah is unaware of the actions of the oppressors. He is merely delaying them for a Day when eyes will stare in horror.”We are people of hope. We do not despair when times get tough. And in this brief khutbah, I want to share three points in history to remind us: we carry the torch of hope.1. The Trench in the Cold of MedinaYear 5 after Hijrah.The Battle of the Trench.After the losses at Uhud, Quraysh saw an opportunity to wipe out Islam. They gathered the largest army Arabia had ever seen: 10,000 strong. They were backed by Banu Ghatafan from the north, and allied with Jews from Khaybar, including Banu Qurayzah from within Medina.Rasulullah ﷺ had only 3,000 companions to defend the city. It was winter. The Sahaba were hungry, cold, and exhausted. Salman al-Farisi suggested digging a trench — a Persian military tactic. And they did. Day and night. Starving, shivering, digging non-stop.Then they hit a boulder they couldn't break. They called the Prophet ﷺ. He struck it once — a spark flew.“Allahu Akbar!” he cried.A second strike — another spark.“Allahu Akbar!”Third strike — the boulder shattered.“Allahu Akbar!”The companions asked: What was the takbir about?Rasulullah ﷺ said:* With the first spark, I saw Persia falling to the Muslims.* With the second, Rome.* With the third, Yemen.In the darkest moment, he gave them light. He gave them vision.He didn't just say “Have hope.”He gave them reasons to hope.And history proved him right. Islam triumphed. Not through numbers, but through divine help — a storm that forced the enemy to retreat. A month-long siege broken without a single full-scale battle.2. The Fall of Baghdad (1258 CE)Hulagu Khan — grandson of Genghis Khan — invaded Baghdad.Within days, 800,000 were slaughtered.Libraries burned. Books tossed into the Tigris until the river ran black with ink.Muslim writers thought it was the end of time.Non-Muslim historians wrote:“This is the day Islam died.”But Islam didn't die.Baghdad fell, but Cairo rose. So did Damascus. The Delhi Sultanate grew. And from these ashes, the Ottomans would eventually rise.Even Hulagu's cousin, Berke Khan, accepted Islam.Within a generation, the very dynasty that destroyed Baghdad became a Muslim dynasty.And amidst all of this — scholars kept working.* Imam al-Nawawi, who focused on preserving and teaching knowledge.* Ibn Taymiyyah, the scholar-warrior.* Ibn Ata'illah, who focused on tazkiyah and purifying hearts.* Al-‘Izz ibn ‘Abd al-Salam, who spoke truth to power and engaged with the rulers .Despite the devastation, they didn't stop. They carried on.3. The Fall of Apartheid (1994)From 1948 — the same year Israel was created — South Africa began enforcing apartheid. For decades, the people resisted: boycotts, protests, global pressure.In 1994, apartheid fell.The same Nelson Mandela who was once branded a terrorist by the West was now hailed as a hero — by the very same powers that had supported the apartheid regime.Let that sink in.The same powers that supported apartheid in South Africa are the ones supporting apartheid in Palestine today.And just like before — they can be defeated.Social Media: Double-Edged SwordToday, we have a powerful tool: social media. It's helped shift global opinion. It's brought awareness.But it's also draining us.We doomscroll.We see starvation, death, suffering — again and again.Two things happen:* We either fall into despair…* Or we become numb.We start thinking this is normal.So yes — use social media, but set a limit. 15 minutes. Half an hour. Post, share, amplify — and then get back to work. Real work.Know Your Role, Play Your PartNot all resistance looks the same.Imam al-Nawawi didn't fight with swords. He wrote books that still strengthen the Ummah today.Ibn Taymiyyah led at the frontlines.Ibn Ata'illah focused on hearts.Al-‘Izz ibn ‘Abd al-Salam engaged with the rulers.Some of us are better behind the scenes. Some are activists, some are scholars, some are thinkers, some are organisers. Some are better on the mic, others behind a pen.Don't judge someone's contribution just because it's not the same as yours. We need all hands on deck.“Allah will not ask you about what you couldn't do — but He will ask what you did with what you could.”May Allah give victory to the oppressed.May He feed the hungry, clothe the exposed, and strengthen the weak.May He unite our ranks and guide our efforts.May He grant us clarity, discipline, and sincere hearts in service of this Ummah. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit bequranic.substack.comWelcome back to BeQuranic. This term, we're diving into Surah al-Hujurat, a short but powerful surah that speaks directly to the heart of what it means to live as a Muslim — not just with belief, but with adab (proper conduct).Last term we explored Surah al-Waqi‘ah, where we reflected on the categories of people in the Hereafter. Now, we're bringing the…

Surah al-Ḥujurāt Begins!السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُWe've kicked off Term 3 of the BeQuranic journey, and this term we'll be diving into Surah al-Ḥujurāt — a short but deeply powerful surah, full of lessons on adab, respect, and community.This week, we're beginning slowly and deliberately with just the first two ayāt. Why? Because each line is loaded with both tajwīd gems and practical life reminders — so we want to sit with them, reflect, and read with clarity.Tajwīd Highlights This WeekWe started by revising two key etiquette phrases that open every recitation:* Al-Isti‘ādhah: أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ* Basmalah: بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِFrom there, we explored several tajwīd rules in-depth:* Madd Jā'iz Munfaṣil: Appears in phrases like “يَا أَيُّهَا”, requiring a 4-beat stretch.* Lafdh al-Jalālah (اللَّه): Read heavy if preceded by a fatḥah or ḍammah, light if preceded by a kasrah.* Ghunna with Shaddah: Don't cut the ghunna short in phrases like “إِنَّ اللَّهَ” — stretch it with intent.* Idh-hār with ḥalqī letters: Recognising throat letters (ع، ح، غ، خ، ه، ء) helps avoid nasalisation where it doesn't belong.* Rules of Rā': When to read it heavy vs. light depending on the vowel before it.We also worked through tricky sections like:يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تُقَدِّمُوا بَيْنَ يَدَيِ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِوَلَا تَجْهَرُوا لَهُ بِالْقَوْلِ كَجَهْرِ بَعْضِكُمْ لِبَعْضٍYour Assignment This WeekWith only two ayāt, the focus is on smoothness and mastery.Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast.Break the verses down into parts, repeat them until you hit fluency, and pay attention to where you stumble. Work on those sections. Aim to iron out the kinks.Even if you stutter — don't be discouraged. The Prophet ﷺ said the one who struggles with Qur'an gets double the reward. But don't settle. Keep refining.See You ThursdayOn Tafsīr Thursday, we'll explore the meanings of these two opening ayāt: how they set the tone for respectful interaction with Allah and His Messenger ﷺ — and with one another.Until then — rehearse, reflect, and get ready.وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

Assalamualaikum,We've reached the final portion of Surah al-Wāqiʿah, and it's been a beautiful journey. Each week, we recited, studied Tajwīd, and reflected practically on what these ayāt mean for our lives.Tajwīd Highlights* Madd Munfasil vs Muttasil:If the wave sign (madd) is in two words, it's munfasil → read 4 harakat.If it's in one word, it's muttasil → read 4 harakat.I keep it simple: when you see the wave, go 4 — unless there's a shaddah or sukun, then it's 6.* Heavy Letters like ص (Ṣād):You lift the back of your tongue, not your lips.Don't shape it like “soo” — it's not lip work, it's tongue elevation.* Light Letter vs. Heavy:Try saying س (Seen) and ص (Ṣād) back-to-back.The makhraj is similar, but ṣād is heavier because of that tongue lift.* Letter ض (Ḍād) – tricky but unique.It's not made with the tip — it's the sides of the tongue touching the molars.Push right or left, or both sides if you can.There's also a bit of stretch — not like dhal, not a heavy “d”, but truly ḍād.* Idghām Without Ghunnah:Example: Fasalāmun laka — tanwīn meets lām → merge it without nasal sound.No humming here.Tafsīr: Ayah 88 to 96Previously, we looked at how Allah divided humanity into three groups on the Day of Judgement:* As-Sābiqūn al-Muqarrabūn – the foremost in goodness, those drawn near to Allah.* Ashābul-Yamīn – the people of the right, honoured and saved.* Ashābush-Shimāl – the people of the left, those who face punishment.We saw the signs in nature: fire, water, creation. The Qur'an kept asking us to reflect. These were not abstract reminders — they were close and real. The question remains: where do we stand?The Qur'an and the StarsEarlier in this passage, Allah took a unique oath:فَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِمَوَاقِعِ النُّجُومِThen I swear by the positions of the stars –وَإِنَّهُ لَقَسَمٌ لَّوْ تَعْلَمُونَ عَظِيمٌAnd indeed, it is a great oath, if you only knew.Allah is linking the stars to the Qur'an. Why?Like the stars, the Qur'an from afar can look like a beautiful mess — dazzling, but hard to make sense of.But if you study the stars, you find direction. They guide travellers at sea and in the desert. Likewise, if you study the Qur'an, it becomes your compass. You begin to see the inner structure, the ring composition, the coherence.We need to dig deeper. The Qur'an is not for the lazy. It calls us to think, reflect, and remember.What Are You Waiting For?Allah ends the Surah by asking us:أَفَبِهَـٰذَا ٱلْحَدِيثِ أَنتُم مُّدْهِنُونَIs it this statement (Qur'an) that you take lightly?And then reminds us of the moment of death:فَلَوْلَا إِن كُنتُمْ غَيْرَ مَدِينِينَ . تَرْجِعُونَهَا إِن كُنتُمْ صَـٰدِقِينَThen why, if you are not to be recompensed, do you not return the soul – if you are truthful?This is the challenge. If we truly had power, we could stop death. But we can't.We now reach the final ayat of Surah al-Wāqiʿah, and once again, Allah brings our attention to the three categories of people.1. The MuqarrabūnFor the ones nearest to Allah, they receive:فَرَوْحٌ وَرَيْحَانٌ وَجَنَّةُ نَعِيمٍThen [for him is] rest and bounty and a garden of pleasure.These are people who go above the bare minimum. They chase virtue — extra prayers, fasting, charity — and draw close to Allah through constant remembrance and Qur'an.2. Ashābul-Yamīnفَسَلَامٌ لَّكَ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ الْيَمِينِ“Peace for you” — from the people of the right.They fulfilled their obligations. They weren't perfect, but they remained faithful and upright.3. The Deniers and the Misguidedوَأَمَّا إِن كَانَ مِنَ الْمُكَذِّبِينَ الضَّالِّينَBut if he is from those who denied and were astray…They receive the opposite: punishment with scalding water and burning fire.Note how both traits are mentioned: denial and misguidance. It's not just about not knowing — it's rejecting after knowing.According to Imām al-Ghazālī, before a person is truly culpable for disbelief, five conditions must be met:* The message reaches them.* It is explained reasonably.* Doubts are clarified.* Time is given.* They still choose to reject.Yaqīn — The Stages of CertaintyAllah ends the Surah by declaring:إِنَّهُۥ لَحَقُّ ٱلْيَقِينِThis is the certainty of truth — ḥaqq al-yaqīn.The Qur'an speaks of three levels of yaqīn (certainty):* ʿIlm al-yaqīn — certainty through knowledge (e.g. seeing smoke and knowing there's fire)* ʿAyn al-yaqīn — certainty through seeing (you see the fire itself)* Ḥaqq al-yaqīn — certainty through experience (you touch the fire — and you're burned)We're meant to reach yaqīn through study and reflection, not wait for divine intervention or signs in the sky. That's why Allah constantly invites us to think.Dhikr ChallengeTry to say “ِسُبْحَانَ اللهِ وَبِحَمْدِهِ سُبْحَانَ اللهِ الْعَظِيْم (SubḥānAllāh wa bihamdihi SubḥānAllāhi L-Azim)” 100 times in the morning.Make it a daily habit.فَسَبِّحْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الْعَظِيمِSo glorify the name of your Lord, the Most GreaA Final Du‘āاللَّهُمَّ ٱجْعَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلْمُقَرَّبِينَ، وَمِنْ أَصْحَابِ ٱلْيَمِينِ، وَنَجِّنَا مِنَ ٱلضَّالِّينَO Allah, make us from those drawn near, from the people of the right, and protect us from being among the misguided.Next Week: Surah al-ḤujurātNext week, we begin a new series — Surah al-Ḥujurāt. It's a short surah, but packed with guidance on adab, community ethics, and dealing with others.See you then, in shā' Allāh. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit bequranic.substack.comReflections beneath the stars.I'm writing this fresh after recording beneath a night sky filled with stars, away from the city lights, where the beauty of Allah's creation overwhelms the heart and opens the soul.In this week's Tafsir Thursday, we explore one of the most awe-inspiring passages in Surah al-Wāqi‘ah: Allah swearing by the constellations of …

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh!We're almost at the end of Surah al-Wāqiʿah and Term 2 of 2025. Apologies for missing last week's episode—I got caught up with work. But alhamdulillah, we're back to wrap up the surah over the next two weeks, inshaAllah.

Assalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.Rasulullah ﷺ began looking for a new base for Islam because of the intense persecution Muslims faced in Makkah. In the 10th year of prophethood, his uncle Abu Talib — the leader of Banu Hashim, the Prophet's tribe — passed away. At that time, Makkah had no judicial system: your safety depended entirely on your tribal protection. As long as your tribe protected you, no one would harm you because your tribe could avenge any harm done.When Abu Talib passed away, leadership of Banu Hashim went to Abu Lahab, who refused to protect the Prophet ﷺ. With no protection, the Prophet's life was in danger. He went to Ta'if, hoping for refuge, but the people of Ta'if rejected him. He returned to Makkah with nowhere to turn, rejected by the people on earth.So, in the 11th year of prophethood, he adopted a new strategy: during Hajj, he would go to Mina, where tribes from all over Arabia camped in tents for three or four nights. He approached them one by one, seeking a tribe that would accept Islam and provide protection.First, he approached Banu Kindah — a once-powerful tribe that had lost its influence. The Prophet saw an opportunity for Kindah to regain prominence through Islam. Kindah, however, saw it only as a political opportunity: they told the Prophet they'd support him if leadership would pass to them after his death. The Prophet ﷺ refused, saying power belongs to Allah, who grants it to whomever He wills.He then approached Banu Shaiban ibn Tha'labah. Sayyidina Abu Bakr described them as the most virtuous and intelligent tribe in Arabia. The Prophet invited them to Islam and to become a new base for Muslims. But Banu Shaiban were bound by treaties with Rome and Persia, which they feared breaking if they supported the Prophet. They asked him to give them more time. The Prophet left, having been rejected again.On his way out, he met six men — not from a large or powerful tribe, but from the Khazraj. When the Prophet asked, “Who are you?” they replied, “We are Khazraj.” The Prophet ﷺ confirmed, “Khazraj living among the Jews?” They answered yes. Unlike the powerful tribes, these six men listened attentively to the Prophet's message. They didn't accept Islam immediately but were intrigued, promising to meet him the following year.They returned to Yathrib (Medina's old name) and shared the Prophet's message with their families. The next year, 12 people from Yathrib came to pledge allegiance to the Prophet ﷺ and accepted Islam. They asked the Prophet to send a teacher, and he sent Sayyidina Mus'ab ibn Umair, who led the first da'wah mission in Yathrib.The following year, in the 13th year of prophethood, 75 people from Yathrib came to pledge allegiance to the Prophet ﷺ — most from Khazraj, some from Aus. During the pledge, someone among them said: “How can we live safely in Medina while our Prophet remains oppressed in Makkah?” They invited the Prophet ﷺ to migrate. And the rest, as we say, is history: the Prophet ﷺ began encouraging companions to migrate, and eventually, Allah granted him permission to migrate himself.My dear brothers, this story teaches us powerful lessons:First, never underestimate small numbers. When building community strength, it's logical to seek powerful allies — and we should. But never forget the power of quality over quantity. The Prophet approached the mighty Kindah and wise Shaiban but didn't dismiss the small group of six sincere Khazraj. As we build our community, don't neglect people who may not seem influential today but are sincere seekers of truth.Second, community building requires cohesive teamwork across all segments of society. During the hijrah, the Prophet ﷺ worked with:* Sayyidina Abu Bakr, representing the elders.* Youth like Abdullah ibn Abu Bakr, who delivered food.* Sayyidatuna Asma bint Abu Bakr, a young woman who gathered intelligence.* Sayyidina Ali, a young man who risked his life sleeping in the Prophet's bed.* Abdullah ibn Urayqid, a skilled non-Muslim guide who honored his trust with the Prophet.The hijrah shows that everyone — elders, youth, men, women, Muslims, and even trustworthy non-Muslims — can contribute meaningfully to a cause. We cannot afford divisions: elders must not hoard power, and youth should not sit on the sidelines criticising. Both must collaborate.Third, when the Prophet ﷺ reached Medina, the first thing he built wasn't his own house — it was a masjid. After the masjid, he demarcated an area for a market. These two pillars — spiritual strength and economic strength — must go hand in hand.Our masajid should be open, welcoming, and function as community hubs. They should host worship, education, and community activities. But we must also build our economic strength: as a minority community, politicians won't listen to us because of our numbers, so we need economic power. This requires pooling our diverse talents — from money to skills — to establish projects that empower our community.In summary, here are the three key lessons from the hijrah:* Never underestimate the potential of small, sincere groups — success doesn't rely solely on numbers.* Build cohesive communities by involving people of all backgrounds, ages, genders, and talents.* Prioritise both spiritual and economic strength; they are inseparable for a thriving community.أقول قولي هذا وأستغفر الله لي ولكم. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit bequranic.substack.com/subscribe