The African Kingdom of Futa Jallon (Africa's Past)

Modern Stress And Its Cure From Qur'an

Modern Stress And Its Cure From Qur'an



Stress is the most common aliment of modern age. It has been implicated in the causation of peptic ulcer disease, coronary heart disease, depression, auto immune disease, hypertension, diabetes and even cancer. In milder form it manifests in form of unrest, violence, at work, school and home. Common medical problems like tension headache, insomnia, and obesity are also attributed to unusual stress. None of us are free from stress but some deal with it better than others.

Stress results from the following factors:

a. Fear of the unknown and trying to see through and control the destiny.
b. Losses in our life of people and things dear to us and our inability to recover those losses.
c. Inner conflict between our heart and mind between what is known to be the truth and our failure to accept it as truth. Acceptance of truth may require changing our habits and way of life which we may adhere to for some reason like pleasure, joys, taste, pride in race or heritage etc.
Let us examine how Quran deals with such situations.

Our losses are a trial for us:
"Be sure we will test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives, but give glad tidings to those who are steadfast, who say when afflicted with calamity: To God we belong and to him is our return. They are those on who (DESCEND) blessings from God and mercy and they are the once that receive guidance. 2:155

Thus in Islam, we do not have concept of the ownership of goods and life. Everything belongs to God and returns to him. So if we don't own that thing why mourn our loss? 

a. Our destiny is predetermined. We do not have control on that part. What we have control over is a limited free will, that is our actions, our choice to do good or bad, to believe in God or not to believe in Him, but we have no control over tomorrow's event not related to our actions i.e. whether my wife will have a son or daughter, whether his/her eyes will be brown or black, or whether I will have an accident or not tomorrow. WorTying over such things is of no use.

b. Rejection of faith in Quran is called a disease. This denial of truth is due to arrogance.

"In their heart there is a disease and God has increased their disease and grievous is their penalty because they lie to themselves." 2:10

Therefore after lying to ourselves, we set up an inner conflict - between heart and mind. In order to contain that conflict the mind sends signals to glands for secretion of harmones like adrenaline which leads to rapid heart rate, perspiration, tremor, the basis of lie detector test.

This lying conflict could be due to "SMALL" crimes like theft or adultery, or big crimes like rejection of God.

3 stages of spiritual development of soul age

a. Nafsul Ammara: -The Passionate soul "I do not absolve myself Lo the (human) soul is prone to evil, save that whenever my Lord has mercy. Lo, Lord is forgiving; merciful." 12:53 (Surah Yusuf)

This soul inclines toward sensual Pleasure, passion and self gratification , anger, envy, greed, and conceit. Its concerns are pleasure of body, gratification of physical appetite, and ego.

Hadith "your most-ardent-enemy is your evil self which resides within your body" (Bukhaii).

Hijama

hijama

Hijama

Hijama – Prophetic Cure

Hijamapracticepgh.com

Hijama, also commonly known as ‘Cupping’ is a prophetic method of curing and preventing disease and illnesses. Hijama is a method of relieving local congestion by applying a partial vacuum that is created in a cup(s) mechanical suction. The process includes applying cups to various points on the body by removing the air inside the cups to form a vacuum.

Benefits of Hijama

Hijama therapy offers many therapeutic benefits. It has been used for thousands of years to treat painful symptoms e.g. sciatica, back pain, and clearing congestion in the chest which can occur with colds and flu, but cupping has recently gain popularity for its ability to help tissues to release toxins, de-acidifies tissue directly, enhance blood circulation to stimulate the immune system, and reduce stress as it releases chemicals in the brain that reduce stress and depression.

The remedies mentioned in the Sunnah have a very real effect. Patients experience real results that are measurable.

Does it Hurt?

No. The most you will feel is a tight grip of the suction cup and small scratches. This is from the suction of the cup on the surface of your skin and the light scratches that follow shortly after. If the therapist performing Hijama is proficient then the discomfort level gets minimized.

Disclaimer:

The procedures administered by Pittsburgh’s Hijama Center are non-medical procedures. They are not intended to be a treatment, prescription or therapeutic or corrective measure for human ailments, symptoms or conditions of any kind. Only your licensed physician can provide medical treatments. Pittsburgh Hijama does not engage in diagnosis, prescription or treatment of physical or mental human ailments or conditions of any kind. Any medical complaints or requests for diagnosis, prescription or treatment of human ailments should be referred to your licensed physician. This is strictly religious and spiritual based, per guidelines of the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammed (pbuh).

 Jazakallah Khair

hijama

Belief in the Unseen

... it is a guidance for the righteous,

Who believe in the unseen...1

O BELIEVE IN THE 'UNSEEN' is a fundamental constituent of the Muslim faith as mentioned in the verse quoted above. But as has been well demonstrated in the previous chapter, the Quran is a book of reason and rationality which roundly condemns coercion or threat in any form to change human ideas. Thus to interpret this verse to indicate that it promotes blind faith by requiring man to believe in the 'unseen' would stand counter to this Quranic emphasis. Quite to the contrary, to believe in the spurious without evidence and solid justification is what the Quran attributes to the non-believers. It further condemns them for attempting to change the views of the believers by sheer brutality. What then, does the phrase 'Belief in the Unseen' mean? This is the important question which needs to be fully addressed.

One must make an in-depth study of this phrase as a specific term coined by the Quran. The failure to grasp its true meaning may result in serious consequences as happened in the medieval ages during the scholastic debates between different Muslim schools of thought. Some rigid and uncompromising Muslim scholars disallow the use of rationality altogether in matters of faith. They state that the revealed truth by itself is all-sufficient and as such it should be accepted without any rational investigation. Others who oppose this view quote many Quranic verses requiring everyone to abide invariably by the dictates of reason at every stage of decision making and give priority to rationality over blind faith.

But what is faith? How can one have faith without satisfying one's sense of inquiry? Is it not a reality that the majority of common people belonging to all religions believe without actually comprehending the meaning of their belief? They just happen to believe and that is all there is to it.

This is the dilemma which necessarily requires one to address the issue of faith versus reason, and the need to determine the nature of their interrelationship becomes all the more important. As this question is sufficiently covered in the chapter entitled European Philosophy, we shall endeavour not to unnecessarily repeat what has already been covered therein. What is left therefore is to acquire a more elaborate understanding of the term 'unseen'.

To begin with, let us point out that the lack of knowledge about things does not necessarily mean that they do not exist. They may exist, but lie hidden behind the veil of the unknown. Later, either through the course of human investigation or through the agency of Divine revelation, they emerge from the realm of the unseen to that of the seen.

The term 'unseen' in its wider application is employed to cover everything which is not directly visible or audible. Likewise it also covers all that is not directly accessible through other human sensory faculties. In this respect we may also define the unseen as a domain which covers all forms of existence which lie beyond the direct access of the five senses. The things which belong to this category do not remain permanently inaccessible. They are inaccessible only with reference to a given period in time.

All hidden knowledge of perceivable things, whether it pertains to the past, the present or the future, lies within the scope of this category. In other words, we are required to believe in the existence of things which are not known at a given point in time, but do exist and may become known at another point in time. This belief cannot be dubbed as blind faith. The Quran does not require the believers to have faith in anything which is not supported by irrefutable arguments. Hence the unseen covers only such things as may become accessible through the instruments of reason, rationality and deductive logic. The point to be noted here is that the unseen as defined, though not directly perceivable by the senses, is yet verifiable. The rationale of this Quranic injunction is fully supported by human experience.

http://www.alislam.org/library/books/revelation/part_4_section_3.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9ETfdgFhL8#t=512

Hookah the Horrible: the Haram?

Smoking Hookah (aka nargileh, argeelah, narjile, goza, water pipe, sheesha) has become fashionable among educated professionals and college kids in the United States. Smoking has always been a disease of the poor and uneducated, however, Hookah seems to be transcending these bounds. For some reason, hookah smoking has been able to make it out of the ghettos of uneducated Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt and make it to America's university campii. Why are educated, intelligent young people taking up this habit? Is it peer pressure, mental illness, or just a fad?

It's been estimated that 43% of cigarettes in the US are consumed by people with mental illness. Experts feel that smoking leads to depression, and depression leads to smoking. So are these kids using Hookah to help their mental illness?

A study on young people in the United Arab Emirates found that 69% of hookah smokers had a college education, while 23% had a high school education. Are they just ignoring the facts? Or do they not care? Do they have mental health disease?

Further, the myth about smokers losing weight  has been demystified. A recent study has shown that teenagers that smoke are more likely to be obese adults. Probably because if they are making bad choices as teens, they will likely make bad choices as adults. Further, they have an oral addiction. They constantly need to be putting things in their mouth.

Hookah the Horrible: the Haram?