FEBRUARY 2013
TAHIR MAGAZINE THE DYANMIC YOUTH MONTHLY MAGAZINE
WWW.TAHIRMAGAZINE.COM
SA
THE HOLY PROPHET HOLY PLACES IN ISLAM CURRENT AFFAIRS LIFESTYLE ACHIEVEMENTS EVENTS
THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF MAJLIS ATFALUL AHMADIYYA UK
SPRING 2013 ISSUE
Contents 1
From Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih Vaba to you
3
Early Life of Muhammadsa
5
Qualities of the Holy Prophetsa
7
Holy Places in Islam: Mecca
9
Holy Places in Islam: Medina
11
Holy Places in Islam: Qadian
13
Holy Places in Islam: Jerusalem
MOHTAMIM MAA UK Musawir Idrees
15
Your articles
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Zubair Ahmed
17
Animals mentioned in the Holy Qur’an
19
Space: Planets and Solar System
21
Kids Corner
SADR MKA UK Mirza Waqas Ahmad
MANAGERS Anser Ahmedi Muddasser Ahmedi EDITORIAL TEAM Dr. Tayyib Hayat Dr. Mahmood Ahmad Mussaver Ahmedi Danny Lone Tahir Shah Osama Salaam Ghalib Lone Talal Adnan PROOFING Jamal Akbar Qaseem Ahmed Hayat
Salutation Code
For the Holy Prophet ‘sa’ Sallallahu ‘Alaihi Wassallam May peace be upon him For all other Prophets ‘as’ Alaihissalam on whom be peace
For the companions of Prophets ‘ra’ Radi Allahu ‘anhu/‘anha/ ‘anhum May Allah be pleased with him/her/them Khulafa that did not meet the Promised Messiah ‘rh’ Rahimahullahu Ta’ala May Allah’s blessings be on him For the present Khalifa ‘aba’ Ayyaduhullahu Ta’ala bi nasrihil ‘aziz’ May Allah support him with His Mighty help
Tahir Magazine is the official Magazine of Majlis Atfalul Ahmadiyya UK, an auxiliary organisation of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. The views expressed here by contributors may not represent the views held by Majlis Atfalul Ahmadiyya UK, or the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.
EXTRACTS FROM THE HOLY QURAN “The Gracious the Merciful” [1:3]
In this verse of the Holy Qur’an God tells us that He is kind, compassionate and loving towards all things. Therefore, we should understand that God’s attributes of Grace and Mercy are so great that we are always benefitting each day.
SAYINGS OF THE HOLY PROPHETsa
“If someone has good in his mind for his brother, he should mention it to him” [Wisdom of the Holy Prophet] This hadith tells us that as Muslims we should always tell those around us good things and not to be shy to say something good to our family and friends. The Holy Prophetsa says that it is not good enough to just think good things about someone else and not say it to them. You must tell them, as it will develop your morality and virtue.
WRITINGS OF THE PROMISED MESSIAHas
The Promised Messiahas explains how we should pray to Allah. He says that we should concentrate and pay full attention to Allah during our prayers as if he is physically in front of us: “Offer your five daily obligatory prayers with such concentration and awe of mind as thou you were seeing God in front of you, with your physical eyes”. [Our Teaching, by Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, page 7]
FROM HADHRAT KHALIFATUL MASIH Vaba TO YOU
REVIVING THE SPIRIT OF WAQFE NAU
Firstly, every Waqfe Nau child should be mindful that his mother wished to dedicate him or her, before his or her birth, for a very important cause and then also prayed most humbly for acceptance of this. Thus, the Waqfe Nau child should keep this wish of his or her parents, because later the father also joins in, in mind and respecting it should try and be a rightful candidate to be dedicated for God’s cause. This can only be when effort is made to make one’s heart and mind, one’s word and deed according to God’s pleasure. Secondly, it is a huge favour of the parents on Waqe Nau children and as such the children should pray for the parents and should have regard for every step that the parents take. There should be a realisation that they too have to be part of the pledge that their parents are trying to fulfil and should happily accept their Tarbiyyat and never even remotely let down the pledge of their parents. A Waqfe Nau child should be mindful that he or she should be foremost in abiding by giving precedence to faith over worldly matters. Thirdly, promise to show patience and resolve in every sacrifice for the sake of gaining God’s pleasure. No matter how hard the time, he or she has to honour the pledge of Waqf regardless. No worldly greed should ever make them stumble in their pledge.
Nowadays, there is much blessings of God on the Jama’at. During the second Khilafat there were times when the financial situation would be so dire in Qadian that the basic allowance could not be paid in full to Jama’at workers for several months. After migration to Rabwah, such situations again came to pass, yet, the life-devotees never complained. Even during 1970s and 1980s the situation in Africa used to be such that the allowance used to be spent in the first two weeks of the month. The local life-devotees maybe could eat just once a day in the allowance that was given to them, yet they always honoured their pledge. Fourthly, to develop and make efforts for the commitment to be counted among those who spread good and who forbid evil. To set good models of this; when this will come to pass and good will be followed and evil will be shunned, people will be drawn to the good models. Fifthly, to attain insight and perception of Holy Qur’an and Ahadith, to recognise/ identify good and evil and to read the books and discourses of the Promised Messiahas and to constantly try to increase religious knowledge. Extract from the Sermon delivered on January 18th 2013, for the full Sermon go to alislam.org
“A Waqfe Nau child should be mindful that he or she should be foremost in abiding by giving precedence to faith over worldly matters.”
Early Life of M
uhammad is not the father of any of your men, but he is the Messenger of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets; and Allah has full knowledge of all things. ( 33:41)
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he Holy Prophet Muhammadsa was born on Monday 12th Rabi-ulawal (570AD) in Mecca. Hazrat Aminara sent word to his grandfather, Hazrat Abdul-Muttalibra of the joyous news. He rushed to see his beloved new grandson and named him Muhammadsa - the praised one. Abdullahra, father of the Prophetsa, died a few month before his birth. When the Holy Prophetsa was only six years old, he lost his mother as well; so, the orphaned child was brought up by his grandfather with the most tender care. Not two years had passed before Hazrat Abdul-Muttalibra also passed away leaving the care and custody of the orphaned Muhammadsa to his uncle, Hazrat Abu Talibra. At the age of 25, Hazrat Muhammadsa married a widow by the name of Khadijahra.
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ll his adult life Hazrat Muhammadsa spent time in a cave on Mount Hira near Mecca isolated in deep meditation. At age 40, he went into the cave and heard the angel Gabriel speak to him. He was then given the mission from God to reform mankind after which he began spreading the beautiful teachings of the Holy Qur’an to all those around him. His life is an excellent example for us all to follow and we should learn about his life then adopt his teachings in our daily lives.
Muhammad
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Name: Muhammadsa Place of birth: Saudi Arabia Year of birth: 570AD Father’s name: Hazrat Abdullahra Mother’s name: Hazrat Aminara Grandfather’s name: Hazrat Abdul Muttalibra Uncle’s name: Hazrat Abu Talibra Name of his first wife: Hazrat Khadijara
PHOTO: MASJID AL NABAWI, MEDINA
QUALITIES OF THE HOLY PROPHETsa: KINDNESS Kindness and compassion is a characteristic that defines and shapes the moral character of a person. A person is identified by the level of kindness that he shows. Kindness and compassion holds a very high position among the teachings of Islam. The Holy Prophet Muhammadsa was a very kind and compassionate person and expected all Muslims to be kind. It has been said by Holy Prophet Muhammadsa that “God is kind and likes kindness in all things” (Bukhari). The Holy Prophetsa showed great kindness to all people regardless of the way they treated him. It has been said in the Holy Qur’an that: “O Messenger of Allah! It is a great Mercy of God that you are gentle and kind towards them; for, had you been harsh and hardhearted, they would all have broken away from you” (Qur’an, 3:159) The kindness and compassion of the Holy Prophetsa was shown to every human being and every living thing he said, “Next to faith in Allah, the best quality is kindness towards people” (Wisdom of the Holy Prophet) The Holy Prophet of Islamsa was especially kind towards the weak
and the poor, he said: “Associate with the poor and show them affection” (Wisdom of the Holy Prophet). The Holy Prophetsa was against treating animals badly and always advised his people to be loving and kind towards them. The Holy Prophetsa said, “Allah has prescribed kindliness towards all creatures” (Wisdom of the Holy Prophet). Therefore, all living things are under the control and protection of Allah so we do not have a right to be cruel to them. We should be showing kindness to everything starting with our families and everyone we come into contact with. Then we will be following the example and teachings of the Holy Prophetsa.
M E C C A
In it’s long history Mecca has also been known as Becca. It was in Mecca that Allah commanded Prophet Ibrahimas to leave his wife Hajarara and his young son Hazrat Ishmaelas. It was in Mecca that Allah brought forth water from the well of Zamzam, which saved the life of Hazrat Ishmaelas and his mother and then allowed Mecca to develop as a habitable place. It was in Mecca that Allah instructed Prophet Ibrahimas to reconstruct “the House of God” (Holy Ka’aba). Every year over 3 million people perform Hajj, which is one of the five Pillars of Islam. It is part of faith to go to Mecca at least once in your lifetime and perform Hajj, which shows its importance as a holy place in Islam.
DID YOU KNOW? The Ka’aba, in Mecca, is the first house of Allah.
3 n a h re t s visit o y, m uslim ly. a d To on M nual n li Mil ecca a M
Holy Pro phet Mu ha was bor n in Mec mmad sa ca, whic is in Sau h di Arabi a.
A large part of the Holy Qur’an was revealed in Mecca.
Medina T
he second holiest site in Islam is Medina, the “City of the Prophetsa”, which is in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia. It was to the city of Medina that Prophet Muhammadsa migrated to, and the place where he attracted many followers.
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edina is home to three of the oldest mosques in Islam, namely Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (The Prophet’ssa Mosque), Quba Mosque (the first mosque in Islam’s history) and Masjid al-Qiblatain (The Mosque of the Two Qiblahs).
MEDINA CURRENT A POPULATION OF AND IS THE HOME PROPHET’S MOSQ site was originally to Prophet Muham house; he settled ter his Hijra (emigr Medina in 622. He s the heavy work of c tion.
THE FIRST MOSQUE IN ISLAM (QUBA MOSQUE) IS IN MEDINA. Its first stones were positioned by the Prophet Muhammadsa as soon as he arrived on his emigration from the city of Mecca to Medina.
TLY HAS F 600,000 OF “THE QUE”. The adjacent mmad’ssa there afration) to shared in construc-
Facts
‘AL-BAQI’ IS A SIGNIFICANT CEMETARY IN MEDINA WHERE SEVERAL FAMILY MEMBERS OF HAZRAT MUHAMMADsa, CALIPHS AND SCHOLARS ARE BURIED. The mosque is built where the Holy Prophetsa used to live, and is currently buried. The cemetery therefore holds much significance.
Q
Qadian
adian is a town and a municipal council in Gurdaspur District, northeast of Amritsar, in the state of Punjab, India. Qadian is best known as the birthplace of Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas, the Imam Mahdi and Promised Messiah.
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adian emerged as a centre for Islamic learning in 1889, when the Promised Messiahas established the Ahmadiyya Movement within Islam.
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he Minaratul Masih (White Minaret) is situated 3644 km east of Damascus, Syria. The Minaratul Masih is attached to Masjid Mubarak, which was established by the Promised Messiahas in 1882 and is the first mosque of the Ahmadiyya Community. The Promised Messiahas is buried in Qadian in Bahishti Muqbarah.
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he Minaret has three stages, 92 steps, and a total height of about 105 feet. On 28th of May 1900, Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas had received the revelation: “Step forth that your time has arrived and the feet of the people of Muhammadsa have been firmly planted on a high tower.” [Tadhkirah, pg. 444] The Promised Messiahas then solicited donations for the building of the Minaret to commemorate the following hadith by the Islamic prophet Muhammad regarding the second coming of Jesus: “Allah would send Christ, son of Mary, and he will descend with the white minaret, east of Damascus, wearing two garments lightly dyed with saffron and placing his hands on the wings of two Angels.” [Sahih Muslim]
Jerusalem
PHOTO: DOME OF THE ROCK, JERUSALEM
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erusalem is another holy site in Islam and it is strongly associated with the Prophets Davidas, Solomonas and Jesusas. Jerusalem was the first direction of prayer in Islam, before it was changed to the Ka’aba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
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ccording to the Holy Qur’an the Holy Prophet Muhammadsa was taken by the miraculous steed (horse) Buraq to visit the farthest Mosque (which many believe is the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem), where he prayed, and then was taken to heaven in a single night. This event is known as Isra wal Mi’raj in Islamic history.
Regarding the Journey to Jerusalem in the night the Holy Prophetsa stated: “When the people of Quraish did not believe me (i.e. the story of my night journey), I stood up in Al-Hijr and Allah displayed Jerusalem in front of me, and I began describing it to them while I was looking at it”. [Sahih Bukhari] Holy Prophet Muhammad’ssa journey to the Farthest Moque in Jerusalem (experienced in a vision) is mentioned in the Holy Qu’ran, it states: “Glory be to Him Who carried His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Distant Mosque”. [Qur’an; 17:2]
My Ummrah For the Ummrah we went around the In April 2011 during the Easter holidays, I got an opportunity to perform an Ummrah Ka’aba seven times anti clockwise. It’s called Tawaaf. with my family. First of all, we got the visa for Ummrah and booked our flight to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. From Jeddah airport, we took a taxi to Mecca and went to a hotel where we left our luggage then went to the Ka’aba. I was very excited to see the Ka’aba in real life. I was also happy that Allah gave me the opportunity of perfom the Ummrah. When I entered the Mosque, in front of me I saw a gigantic, beautiful cube covered with black cloth, which was embroidered with Gold Quranic verses, which was the Holy Ka’aba.
During each Tawaaf, all the people performing Ummrah recite prayers. On the edge of the Ka’aba there is a stone called Hajar-e-Aswad. Everybody wished to touch that stone, but it was too difficult to attempt, due to the amount of people that were there. After that, I went to the top of two mountains called Safa and Marwa to do the Saeei (a seven times walk between Safa and Marwa). Then somebody cut my hair and my Ummrah was completed! By Talal Adnan Age: 9 Region: South
Elephant Elephants have been walking the Earth for many years. One of it’s relatives, the Woolly Mammoth, even lived during the pre-historic age with dinosaurs. Elephants have been mentioned in the Holy Qur’an in the following verse. “Hast thou not seen how thy Lord dealt with the people of the Elephant?” (105:2) This verse relates to Abraha of Yemen, who marched to Mecca to destroy the Ka’aba with a large army in 570 A.D. He had a number of Elephants with him, which is why the term “People of the Elephant” is used.
ANIMALS MENTIONED IN THE HOLY QUR’AN
There are three types of elephant species living in the world today: The African Bush Elephant & African forest Elephant which can be found in sub-Sahara Africa and the Asian Elephant found in India & South-East Asia. All Elephants are herbivores (they do not eat other animals) and prefer staying near water. Predators like lions and tigers tend to avoid them because of their size and power.
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e have nine planets in our Solar System. These planets circle around the sun, which are called orbits. A lot of astronomy people like to think of the Solar System been made up in two parts.
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e have the Inner Solar System, which has Mercury, Venus, Earth and not forgetting Mars. These are closest to the sun and are called the terrestrial planets simply because the have very solid rocky surfaces.
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he Outer Solar System has Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune these are sometimes called the gas giants. Out past Neptune you’ll find the small planet of Pluto which has a solid but icier surface. Many don’t class this as a planet anymore because it is so small. These two systems are separated by the asteroid belt. Our Solar System also contains comets, moons, dust, gas and some minor planets.
SPACE • If you weigh 100 pounds on Earth you would weigh 37 pounds on Mercury. • Mercury is 36 million miles or 58 million kilometres away from the Sun! • Mercury is the planet closest to the Sun. • Mercury is one of five planets that can be seen without using a telescope. • Because of the lack of atmosphere Mercury’s sky is black. • The surface of Mercury is heavily cratered looking much like our moon. • Mercury orbits round the Sun but its orbit lasts for only 88 days.
S D K Icor ner Riddles What five-letter word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it? Short What word begins and ends with an ‘e’ but only has one letter? Envelope What has a neck but no head? A bottle What type of cheese is made backwards? Edam What starts with a ‘P’, ends with an ‘E’ and has thousands of letters? The Post Office!
Jokes Q. How do you make seven an even number? A. Take the “s” out! Q. What dog can jump higher than a building? A. Any dog, because buildings can’t jump! Q. What has four legs but can’t walk? A. a chair!!!!!!!!!!! Q. What did the math book say to the other book? A. I have a lot of problems!
Word Scramble There are many animals mentioned in the Holy Quran. Rearrange the letters below to reveal 6 animals. SEHOR _ _ _ _ _ ROWC _ _ _ _ SDERIP _ _ _ _ _ _ RMWO _ _ _ _
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