Journalling, gratitude, mindfulness, planning & productivity — all these terms may mean different things to different people. Over the past few years my journalling practice, unknowingly to me at the time, has skimmed the surface on each of these topics. This nightly exercise works as my daily download to decompress and reflect on what has…

“There are no days on which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allah than these ten days.” [Sahih] These first ten blessed days of Dhul-Hijjah are coming to a close, with Eid al-Adha fast approaching! Over the last few days many of us will have tried to fast and hopefully increase our worship in some…

Ramadan is celebrated world-wide, people all around the world know it as the month of fasting and taqwa (mindfulness) for Muslims. Dhul-Hijjah on the other hand, another month in the Islamic calendar, is less renowned. But what should we know about the month? What does it hold, and how can we benefit from it? In…

Some thoughts and photos on water. “Indeed, the righteous will be among gardens and rivers” 54:54 There is something about water, the sound, the visuals, the refreshing taste, a warm shower on a cold day, the coolness of a refreshing soak in summer. It stirs the soul. The Qur’an contains an abundance of verses talking…

The Qur’an and Sunnah In last week’s continuation of “ten tips for taqwa” series we looked at practical actions we can do throughout our day to help us be mindful of Allah. “And Allah is the Guarding Friend of the mindful.” —Qur’an 45:19 We aim for taqwa and mindfullness of Allah as something that we…

In part-1 of this series we looked at how a positive mindset can affect our well-being and spiritual condition for the better. We looked at 5 tips for cultivating this mindset: Gratitude – in everything Islamic classes & regular reminders Good company – and the importance of our friends & environment Positive thoughts — examining…

Long Summer Days – Investing – Writing & Eman Long days As we come to the end of Shawwal a friend reminded me that it would have been better to finish the 6 additional fasts of Shawwal earlier as iftar time is getting later and later. With June 21st, the summer solstice, marking the longest…

Top tips for using an iPad for Studying Modern studies – classical texts The modern student might find they have access to a myriad of textbooks, an entire library at their fingertips in the form of PDFs; but how best to actually utilise all of these resources? The simple solution (as you may have guessed…

Too much money, burning a hole in your current account? Not necessarily a common problem, but if you haven’t already invested it somewhere, how do you make your money work for you? You don’t want it just sitting in a current account or savings account losing value to inflation. An obvious first port of call…

Photo by Jordan Madrid on Unsplash What is Taqwa? Taqwa is our ultimate goal and the path to peace in this life and the next. “For those who were aware of God there is supreme fulfilment” —Qur’an 78:31“And Allah is the Guarding Friend of the mindful.” — Qur’an 45:19 Taqwa encompasses being, mindful, conscious and…

Today I am writing about writing. David Perell’s “The Ultimate Guide to Writing Online” is a great piece, and I really recommend you read it in full; but it’s also very wordy. I’ve taken the bits that stood out to me and aimed to capture all the salient points here. Hopefully providing a quick version…

“Whoever fasts Ramadan then follows it with six days of Shawwal, it is as if he fasted for a lifetime.” — Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏”‏ مَنْ صَامَ رَمَضَانَ ثُمَّ أَتْبَعَهُ سِتًّا مِنْ شَوَّالٍ كَانَ كَصِيَامِ الدَّهْرِ ‏”‏ ‏ As the sun has set on Ramadan we’ve moved…

In the UK lockdown guidance has changed constantly over time including moving to a system with different tiers throughout the country. This makes sense in a large country, rural areas would have a much different social and economic landscape to large cities. However many people were happy to move between the different tiers moving from…

Post-Ramadan Blues and fighting negative self-talk. As Ramadan comes to a close it’s a bittersweet feeling as always. On the one hand life returns to normal, we can eat during the day and with lockdown restrictions easing we can start seeing our friends and family more regularly too. On the flip side, things are returning…

Ramadan 2021/1442AH – Juz 30 – Rizq “For those who were aware of God there is supreme fulfilment” —78:31 Some theologians posited that in addition to being physical places, heaven and hell are also metaphors for spiritual and emotional states of wellbeing that we attain in this life. By chasing lower desires we drag ourselves…

Ramadan 2021/1442AH – Juz 29 – Rizq “We have tried them as We tried the owners of a certain garden, who swore that they would harvest its fruits in the morning and made no allowance [for the Will of God]: a disaster from your Lord struck the garden as they slept and by morning it…

Ramadan 2021 / 1442 AH – Juz 28 – Beautiful names “He is God: there is no god other than Him, the Controller, the Holy One, Source of Peace, Granter of Security, Guardian over all, the Almighty, the Compeller, the Truly Great; God is far above anything they consider to be His partner. He is…

Ramadan 2021 / 1442 – Juz 27 – The Qur’an “We have made it easy to learn lessons from the Qur’an will anyone take heed?”—54:32 It’s easy to open up the Qur’an and page through to find something that resonates with us. Some advice when we’re stuck, some reassurance when we’re feeling down, some words…

Ramadan 2021/1442AH — Juz 26 — Parents “We have commanded man to be good to his parents—his mother struggled to carry him and struggled to give birth to him; his bearing and weaning took a full thirty months—and when he has grown to manhood and reached the age of forty to say, “Lord, help me…

Ramadan 2021 / 1442AH – Juz 25 – Celebration “Whenever We are gracious to man, he goes away haughtily, but, as soon as harm touches him, he turns to prolonged prayer.” 41:51 Ramadan has been a month of fasting, abstinence from food, drink and bad deeds throughout the day. Breaking our fast with dates, water…