Character

A student at Al Kawthar Academy shares some of his key takeaways from Shaykh Riyadh ul Haq’s talk last Friday night: ❝Allāh ﷻ says, ‘Whoever finds guidance he finds guidance for the good of his own soul, and whoever is …

We are very unguarded when it comes to speech. Bodily actions require a lot of motivation and energy. Speaking, in contrast, requires little effort. We have a habit of always speaking, making a comment or offering an opinion on matters …

“Much of our inner turmoil is self inflicted as we, being dissatisfied with ourselves, are always trying to be someone else somewhere else.” – Shaykh Riyadh ul Haq

“We may have reason to disagree but disagreement itself is no reason to hate. Our resentment is more a reflection of ourselves than others.” – Shaykh Riyadh ul Haq

“Ramaḍān is the last of times to argue or raise our voices.” – Shaykh Riyadh ul Haq

We as human beings have mastered so much. We have dived to the depths of the ocean and landed on the moon. We have sent probes to Mars and are planning manned missions to Mars. We scan the heavens. We …

Rasūl Allāh ﷺ warned us against envy and encouraged us to be true believers. True īmān cannot reside in the same heart as hasad (envy).  When we are envious of a person, we object to Allāh’s choice in bestowing his favour on …

In a hadith narrated from ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr bin ‘As the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ said: “When the treasures of Persia and Rome are conquered, what kind of people will you be?” ‘Abdur-Rahman bin ‘Awf رضي الله عنه‎ said: “We will …

Imam al-Bukhārī’s  رحمه الله memory was amazing and he was renowned for it. Someone once asked him if there was any medicine available to obtain the kind of memory that he had for memorisation. People thought that perhaps Imam al-Bukhārī …

Often when someone tells us that we are in the wrong, we react in anger and reject the advice and insist that we are right. We offer contorted arguments and reasons to prove ourselves to be true and innocent. For …

When we reflect on our character, conduct and behaviour we should realise that we may not be angels, but we are not absolutely worthless either. We are somewhere in-between. That gives us hope and scope for improvement and betterment. It …

Arguments and disputes over wealth are common. Siblings who grew up with each other argue over inches of land and fight over their dead parent’s inheritance. All love goes out of the window. That is how it can be even …

In a hadīth, the Prophet ﷺ has described the munāfiq and the muʾmin with examples of trees. The muʾmin is similar to a tree with deep roots. It is tall-standing and firm. Even when it is buffeted by the strong winds of a hurricane, the most …

One of the traits of hypocrisy is that a person tries to please the whole of creation but not Allāh. It is impossible to please everybody and tell everybody what they want to hear. This is because to do so …

Deception is a trait of hypocrisy.  For every single trait of hypocrisy, you will note that the opposite will be true for īmān and the believers. What is the opposite of deception? Innocence. A believer is innocent and trusting.  Rasūl Allāh ﷺ was innocent, believing …

Reconciliation does not happen if you keep on digging up old dirt. If you wish to resolve a dispute, you should not repeatedly go over what has happened before. You have to bury the past. In order to reconcile, forgive …

If, even in the blessed and sanitised atmosphere of Ramadan, we do not reform our character and conduct then we must ask ourselves: ‘When?’

The Prophet ﷺ said, ‘A pleasant disposition is one of the blessings (of Allah)’ (Ibn Majah)

Disagreements are a fact of life. Disagreements can arise between siblings, close family members and friends. It is human nature to disagree. But, Allāh and His Rasul ﷺ in the Qur’an and hadīth do not teach us to remove all …

We all want to learn about our religion. But, ilm cannot be gained without ādāb; without respect and without good, beautiful manners. Ibn Wahab, a famous scholar who was one of the students of Imam Malik says that we learnt, …