I Find Myself In The State Of Constant Sadness And Hopelessness. There's When I Feel The Most Lonely.

I find myself in the state of constant sadness and hopelessness. There's when I feel the most lonely. The unsettling thoughts keep running in mind. I try to fade those voices in my head who repeatedly nag me about my unworthiness. No I don't deserve these but the voices say otherwise. They never leave my side.Deep down I believe in the beauty of existence of each and every individual, I just know it but why don't I apply it to myself? Does this make me a two-faced person, a hypocrite? Because I know for a fact that I'm slowly killing myself with these lethal thoughts.

-Roodeh Yasir

ramadan series: how to prepare for ramadan

reflect on your last ramadan and purify your intentions reflect on the good deeds you did last year. what did you keep as a habit? did you maintain these habits or did you stop after ramadan ended? use this to try again or create new goals for what you want to do this ramadan Insha’Allah.

set your goals what do you want to achieve this ramadan? what positive life changes do you want to have? my goals are to finish the Qur'an, wake up for tahajjud every day, pray salah on time and read a specific amount of Qur'an chapters from the english translation. be intentional.

be organised / create a schedule though ramadan is a blessed month, we still have things in life such as school or work and a good balance is key. write down your priorities (spiritual & worldly) and create a schedule around your islamic obligations. your life should revolve around islam, not the other way around. do you want to sleep after fajr and then wake up to study? do you want to sleep early then stay up after fajr to work? or do you have an early start to each day? create a routine that you can follow during ramadan that works for you to ensure you are getting your blessings and balance around your fasting and worship.

clean your house / space make your home clean and refreshing for the remembrance of Allah سُبْحَٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَٰلَىٰ . a clean environment helps you feel more relaxed. remove distractions, make your house smell nice, de-clutter and cultivate your home into a beautiful place for worship. 'cleanliness is half of faith' (Sahih Muslim 223).

meal plan this saves time, makes sure you are still staying healthy during ramadan and can help manage your finances. here is a good place for recipes/ideas.

fix your sleeping habits ramadan means waking up early for suhoor. this means it's important to create a healthy sleep routine that works for you and get into the habit already of waking up early. this may mean that you begin to sleep early and wake up for tahajjud in the days leading up to ramadan so you are already prepared for those early starts.

eat healthily healthy eating means you are helping your body fast. avoid eating food that can make you sick before ramadan and unable to fast in the first few days. have a balanced diet to give your body the energy and nourishment it needs to maintain fasting and keep hydrated.

read religious books / articles this will help you get into the mindset and be more educated before ramadan. learn about what can break your fast so that you refrain from doing so, learn about the importance of ramadan, why we fast, the blessings ramadan has and share this information to get more blessings.

may Allah make it easy for us to prepare, Ameen.

"I know it's too much to ask for but when I think of Heaven, I picture a small room, With a lone window and old patchy walls. The cracks in the glass of our window lead the paths of shooting stars that we seldom catch and gaze at in silent nights.

The breeze that escapes the window and infiltrates our four-cornered world engulfs our warm existence and seeps in deeper to find our cold hearts.

Next to one wall, there are books stacked up on the floor, bestowing their grace. The other one has an uneven texture but a portrait of us, happy; just like the stars we seldom see.

We have our backs turned from one another, but I don't need to look back in order to see the concentration in your ocean eyes, the charcoal in your hand and the way it glides on the paper. The way you use your finger to spread the miraculous greys and blacks, the way your eyes eagerly watch it all come to life.

I know that you know, how I hold my brush when I paint my feelings away. The way my brows furrow and the way I look at my hands afterwards. You know more than I do, I learn myself from you and you see a mirror in me.

As it gets tiring, we take turns and rest our heads against each other. Our ceiling is old and tacky but aren't we the happiest?

and when it gets dark, we don't have to worry because we don't need eyes to see. And when it gets lonely, we don't have to worry because you don't need to be with me but rather you are me.

But maybe, just maybe, its all too much to ask for."

-LuHa.

“For some of you, this Ramadan isn’t going to be about reading the Qur'an or making taraweeh prayers. It’s going to be about fighting to complete an entire day of fasting, one day at a time. For some of you struggling with depression or deep emotional states, fasting can sometimes make your struggle even more vulnerable. For some of you, your physical realities or your circumstances make fasting in and of itself one of the hardest acts of worship you struggle to complete.

Don’t compare yourself to people who are praying all night. Don’t compare yourself to people who are making khatm of Qur'an throughout the day. That is their form of worship as they are able to in this time.

Your greatest act of worship this Ramadan is simply to give it your all however that is for you- in spite- not despite- your circumstances. Recognize that whatever you are putting forth for God’s sake, even if it’s ‘nothing’ in comparison to what others seem to be racing to do, is huge in the sight of God. It may be even bigger than what others are doing, even if in quantity it seems smaller.

”…My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him/her, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him/her..“ (Hadith Qudsi)

How can you feel like your best isn’t good enough? How can you feel like doing “just” the obligation isn’t enough? That is exactly what brings you closer to Him.

Know that even while you feel deflated and defeated, He is Al-Shakoor, The Appreciative. He appreciates your striving for His sake despite your difficulties and your pain. He loves your sincere efforts for Him.

Now, instead of hating yourself for not being good enough, know that He knows your life situation and understands your reality better than you ever could yourself. So turn to Him, give your burdens to Him, and feel lighter while seeking His light.“

لو رأيت بك عيناً سأقول العيب فی عيوني

"If I ever see a flaw of yours, i'd say my eyes are the flawed ones."

-Mahmoud Darwish

بِسْــــــــــــــــمِ اﷲِالرَّحْمَنِ اارَّحِيم

Surah Fatiha possesses a number of merits peculiar to it. It was the first surah to be revealed as a whole. It is the opening chapter of the Holy Quran. This Surah is the quintessence of the Holy Quran while the rest of the Quran is its elaboration and explanation. This Surah is also proved to cure people and their hearts. (Also known as Shifaa)

One of the virtues includes:

Abu As-Sa'ib- the freed slave of Hisham bin Zuhrah-said:

I heard Abu Hurairah say: 'The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Whoever offers a prayer in which he does not recite Umm Al-Quran (Al Fatihah), it is deficient, it is deficient, it is deficient, incomplete. I (Abu As-Sa'ib) said: 'O Abu Hurairah, sometimes I am behind the Imam.' He poked me in the arm and said: 'Recite it to yourself, O Persian! For I heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: Allah says: I have divided prayer between Myself and My slave into two halves, and My slave shall have what he has asked for.' The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Recite, for when the slave says: All the praises and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of all that exists, Allah says: 'My slave has praised Me.' And when he says: The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, Allah says: 'My slave has extolled Me.' And when he says: The Only Owner (and the Only Ruling Judge) of the Day of Recompense (i.e. the Day of Resurrection), Allah says: 'My slave has glorified Me' . And when he says: You (alone) we worship, and You (alone) we ask for help (for each and everything), He says: 'This is between Me and My slave, and My slave shall have what he has asked for.' And when he says: 'Guide us to the straight way, the way of those on whom You have bestowed Your grace, not (the way) of those who earned Your anger, nor of those who went astray, He says: 'This is for My slave, and My slave shall have what he asked for.'

(Sunan An-Nasai: 910)