Live while we're young!

So it's 31st Ramadan of my life. I'm not sure how many more I will be able to live up to. Time passes so fast. It feels just yesterday I was 25 and now I'm 31. I'm already half senior citizen!

I was looking at a colored watch on online store and then thought I'm too old to wear these now. Over the past 5 years I have owned t shirts of almost all the colors and all the brands and sneakers and jeans and everything a young man wants.

I'm grateful to Allah that I could fulfill all my fantasies of food, clothes and shoes so that now at 31, I do not regret that I couldn't wear that branded T shirt or that sneaker.

I also don't really regret that I didn't save much from my salary during my mid 20's but spent them on shopping.  Now I have memories to cherish for my life rather than missing all the fun.

Live while we're young!

How to study fiqh (or other) books?

One of the very common question asked by students of knowledge is that "How do I study and by-heart all the masails of Bahar e Shariat or any other book of fiqh masails like Fataawa Ridawiyyah etc? Well the fact is these books are not meant to be memorized. 

These books serve as reference guide or encyclopedia which should be referred when needed.
In Islamic scholarship, the books can be divided into 3 categories:

1) Mutoon
2) Shuruhaat (including hashiya)
3) Fataawa

1) Mutoon are the core text of a subject which covers the most important parts of the subject along with most correct ruling (mostly) on issues. For example, you may consider them as a fruit concentrate bottle, which can be easily packed & transported and when needed, can be made into 100 glasses of juices.   

Mutoon texts are usually of a small booklet, size of, around 50 to 150 pages. These are meant to be memorized. Though its not prevalent in South Asian countries but most of the Arab countries Islamic universities required their students to memorize the mutoon in various subjects.

Since these are small booklets and can be memorized easily, they serve as the main way to spreading a school of thought i.e mazhab. 

In Fiqh Hanafi major mutoon in Fiqh are : Bidaya tul-mubtadi, Mukhtasarul Quduri, al-Mukhtar, an-Niqaya, al-Wiqaya, Kanz ul-Daqaiq. 

If you are really serious about scholarship, try memorizing the matan. 

You may think that when I can memorize a book of 50 to 150 pages, why shouldn't I memories the Quran instead? That's a good thought, but remember every subject has its own importance, we can not ask students studying and memorizing texts in Arabic grammar like Hidaya tun-Nahw or Kaafia to give it up and instead memorize Quran, as Arabic grammar is one of the most important tool to understand the Quran.

2) Shuruhaat : These are explanations or marginalia on the mutoon texts. As you have read that mutoon are the core texts and concentrates to spread the teaching of a school of thought (mazhab), these are normally hard to understand and hence require a guide. For example: Sharah Wiqaya is sharah of al-Wiqaya, Durre-Mukhtar is sharah of al-Mukhtar, Hidaya is sharah of Mukhtasarul Quduri etc. 

These shuruhaat serve as aid to understand the core texts and hence doesn't have to be memorized.

3) Fataawa : These are rulings on the various issues derived from the Mutoon & Shuruhaat etc. These books are meant to be a reference book for scholars. Examples are like Fataawa Hindiyah, Fataawa Shaami etc.

Bahar-e-Shariat and most the other rulings books fall under the Fataawa category, hence not meant for memorizing. These books should be read in parallel to mutoon. Example, if you reading Kitab us-Salat, Bab ul-Qirat in a matan, try reading the corresponding chapter in Shuruhaat or Fataawa (or Bahar-e-Shariat).

If you are not a student of Islamic scholarship program but just a reader, then I would suggest you to start studying from small books on a subject, like in fiqh study Anwar-e-Shariat (a small booklet) and then move to Qanoon-e-Shariat (a small book) and then move to Bahar-e-Shariat (multi volume book). This way you will be able to understand the rulings more clearly and also able to memorize.

Have a habit of reading the book everyday for 15-30 mins, in these 15-30 mins try to understand the rulings and NOT to memorize them. Most of the students either never start or stop in middle while studying multi volume books because they try to memorize it, when the fact is that these books are not at all meant to be memorized. Try to go through the books whenever you have free time.

My way of study is to read the books as and when required. Before the start of Ramadan I try to read the rulings on Fasting, Taraveeh & Zakaat. Similar when its Zil Hajj, I refer to the parts of Hajj & Sacrifice. 

Hope this post will help the students of sacred knowledge. If it did then, kindly pray for me.

Wassalam

Muhammed Kashif al-Ansari

Private Job Life.

It's been more than 9 years that I'm working in corporate world. Though we are paid good but we don't have the luxury of government job.
Over the last 9 years I have seen everything from being ill treated to not being appreciated. I have worked long hours and have bore the wrath of my supervisors. People have been biased to me. Though these things were heart breaking and caused emotional breakdown, my Allah was watching all these and hence all this made me a better person and a better professional.

Every time I reached the threshold of bearing these shit, I tried to work hard and get out of the situation. I was able to change 3 companies and get 100% hike in a single year just because I couldn't hold back and made extra effort to get out. As per me, if you are not being recognized and appreciated its the time to leave the company.

I'm going through the same phase again. The firm I have joined six months back doesn't has anything good other than salary. There is huge work load and even after being a  Lead, I'm expected to sit and code. And then there are useless escalations. I can't handle all these anymore. May my load help me again like every time he helped me.

Sometimes I wish, I should start own business but I have seen family business getting collapsed. Business is luck and then you need to have so much of funds that even if your business doesn't work out you have money to continue living with your standard life style.

In a salaried profession, you have the assurance that you will get the pay check at the end of the month.

May Allah reward me with a good life and professional success. Aameen.

Wedding bells.

Alhumdulillah, I got married early this month and now back to Bangalore. I'm not very comfortable with people so getting into a new family and dealing with them was really difficult.

Since I took a virtual death in 2013 deleting all my social network accounts, I was left with only one friend who joined me with his wife at Kanpur.

Weddings are always fun and more than that its a time when you meet relatives after ages and even the ones whom you never saw or met. Though I reached just a day before my baraat but still had good time with family. The 4 hour baraat journey was a fun ride.

Next day was my younger brother's wedding with my cousin, so it was all home affairs and hence more fun. Bride as well as Groom sides where our own relatives.

3rd day was our Walimah, which went as perfect as previous two days weddings. More than elders its children who enjoy the functions and that's what happened here. Cousins were so elated and happy.

Finally after two weeks at Kanpur, we flew back to Bangalore.

I have a hectic work schedule in this new company and hence unable to give much time to family. But since I stay with my parents I don't have to worry much about it. I hope I find a better job very soon, in sha Allah.

So this is what is happening in my life right now. Kindly pray for my married life and better job.

Stay blessed <3

May be I should be a Dayii

From the time I was driven into religious dogma, I had special attraction towards Fiqh, the jurisprudence. I still have this extreme love for it. I have more than 1800 audio answers recorded and uploaded, and there are thousands others which are unrecorded. I have more Fiqh & Fataawa books than any other book in my library and on my laptop.

However offlate I'm thinking about moving into another area, the area of tabligh or preaching. There are already many Mufti's with us, yes, by the grace of Allah, may be I was the first indian in Ahlus Sunnah to write fatawas and books in English. I would continue to do this, but I want to do something more.

I have read about Allamah Abdul Aleem Merathi, Ahmad Deedat, Habib Ahmad Mashur and other great preachers who spent their life in spreading the true teachings of Islam.

Presently the people whom we see on pulpit, YouTube, Facebook are mainly Wahabis and Deobandis. Muslim youths get attracted to them because of their nice dresses and good english speaking skills, but these wahabi speakers and preachers pose great risk. They interpret the Quran and traditions of Prophet in hardline and radical way cause them to leave the tradition sunni Islamic way.

Ahlus Sunnah is correct interpretation of Quran and traditions. All the Saints and Soofiyas who gave the message of humanity, love and compassion and propagated true teachings of Islam belong to Ahlus Sunnah.

In preaching there are different types 1) Preaching muslims so that they correct their beliefs and deeds. 2) preaching to non-Muslims.

While preaching to muslims is easy as compared to other one but both require high level of maturity and commitment. You need to well versed about the common questions and there answers which should satisfy the listener. You should be very well read and an ama zing speaker to conquer your audience.

I have worked with an organization which worked in the area of preaching to Muslims but not the other one.

I want to be a daayi, in sha Allah.   

Ramdan 2015

Its 30th Ramadan of my life and Alhumdulillah its going perfect. Last year it was quite tense due to family issues, but this year all is good.

I have shifted to a new workplace in March. This is quite far from my home and doesn't have any work from home option, instead they have mandatory yearly average of 9+ hours which every employee much conform to. I start early by 7.30am and hence get back by 6.30pm.

In my previous organizations the timings were really flexible along with no restriction on timings. I used to reach office by 11-12noon and get back by 6-7pm with almost no work.

Here I have to observed 9 hours along with that I have work too which keeps me occupied. I remember last time I was in a project and it had work was Nov 2011. After that to whichever Project and company I shifted I didn't had any work other than to reach office, spend some time and come back home.

 Now, 12 hours of my 24 hours day is at work hence leaving me with almost no time to work on my commitments. However I still find the time to go to Gym and Study.

There used to be a time when our whole family used to be present in Ramadan. Though the resources were limited but still my parents made sure that we have best of food and savories. Alhumdulillah now, Allah has blessed us with everything.

My younger brother who works with an automobile giant is in different city and youngest brother has completed his engineering this year and will be moving to another city in some months. So its gonna be only parents and two brothers now.

Allah is the best of planners.

  And Allah is the best of planners. (Quran 8:30)

This is indeed true. It takes for a while for us to understand but when we get the hikmah behind that we are just purely amazed.

After +2 I wanted to be a doctor but landed in an engineering college and before completing engineering I was selected for a firm.I was upset when I couldn't become a doctor but it was all in my favor.

I'm afraid of blood and flesh and moreover most of the doctors in India are able to do only graduation in medicine. PG in medicine can be done only if you are super intelligent or super rich. I fall short in both. So even if I would have got into UG it wouldn't be possible to do a PG. People try for years together to get a PG seat.

An MBBS doctor earns around 40-50K which is easily earned by an engineer in initial days of career. I'm not negating the value of being a doctor but its just that it was really not suited for me and hence my lord chose the best path for me.

There were around 46 students from my engineering institute who were selected for a technology firm at Bangalore. Almost all of them joined on 9 June at Bangalore, but I was asked to join on 26th at Chennai, alone, even though I'm from Bangalore. Yes I was sad and worried about moving to a completely new city which is infamous for its hot-hotter-hottest weather and hell for north Indians.

I reached Chennai and joined the firm. My supervisor was a very rude lady she literally made me cry in project. Everyday with her was a torture for me. I hated her, hated my job and hated myself. But this was the time when I understood the technology in-depth and it was the knowledge which I gained during this period which made me so competent in technology that till date, i.e. after 9 years, it acts as a strong foundation as I never worked so much in my career at later firms.

While in college I found a homeopathic doctor at Chennai for one of my medical issue, but at that moment of time I never imagined that I would go to Chennai. But see how perfectly my Almighty Allah planned for me. I was in Chennai now, met the doctor and started my treatment. The treatment required me to meet the doctor after every 15 days and then take the medicine for next 15 days. I stayed in Chennai for 13 months and was able to complete the treatment successfully.

I moved to Bangalore after 13 months in the same firm. Work was fine unless I was put under a useless and biased supervisor. No matter how good my work is, his work was to find fault in that. he started making personal comments too. He was so much behind me that he asked me to change a software code in my name and later when it was installed in production it failed causing the issues at client place. This software failure was reported to higher managers and I was in a fix. It was year 2009-2010 when entire US was under financial breakdown which caused havoc on Indian IT firms. Almost all the firms where firing the employees, my firm fired around 13000 employees in which I lost one of my best friend from college.

To make it worst Appraisal cycle also arrived. I was sure that I'm going to be kicked out of the company just like other lady in my project. I had recently purchased my bike and had a loan to repay, I was so much worried and anxious.

But destiny behaves in amazing ways and hope comes when you have lost all of it. I got a new job at an International IT firm with kind-of better pay. This is how my Almighty Allah saved me.

Okay, so I spent around 4 years in second firm. The first 3 years were in software development where I absolutely had no major work. The only work I had to do was to reach office and come back home. At the end of second project I was in free pool i.e. without any project for around 2 months, so my resource manager asked to me join the HR department of the firm.

I was the contractor hiring manager here. It was here that I understood the band and salary structure of the company. I understood at what level of experience which band should be given and how much salary should be expected.  When I looked at my band and salary was so ashamed.

Like my first firm, my new manager at HR department was also very biased. The appreciation mails of other team mates were forwarded to whole team but in my case it absent. One Stakeholder personally went to my manager and told him how I had closed a requirement which was pending from a long time and which lead to project being awarded to our firm. But my manager was quiet, no appreciation either by mail or oral.

In appraisal he ruined my rating. I was furious and gave the resignation without any job in hand. The sickness of the Manager can be imagined by the fact that usual notice period is 3 months but he reduced it to 2 months knowing the fact that I do not have any job in hand. This time also I had a loan to repay.

And here came the help from my Lord! on the last day at job I got the job offer from 3rd firm with correct designation and around 50% hike in pay (which I was able to negotiate due to my stint at HR).

Now at 3rd firm, everything was fine. The project, the people, the manager everyone was fine and work was very smooth. But I didn't had the profile for which I was hired. I waited for few months and proved my capabilities, even though I didn't had to do this because I was already at high band, and had a talk with Manager for  my correct work profile. The reply was not very convincing and hence I decide to move on. Just after 9 months at this firm, I gave interview for 4th firm, got selected as Lead and put down my resignation. Along with correct role they gave me 50% hike in pay.

So within one year, I shifted 2 jobs, got promoted to Lead  and got pay hike of more than 100%, Alhumdulillah.

One thing I forgot to mention. During my tenure at 2nd firm my marriage was fixed but just one month before wedding it was called of due to religious incompatibility. If I would have had got married I wouldn't have got the guts to resign without any job in hand and I would have continued at same designation and same pathetic pay. But Allah is the best planner, he had a perfect plan for me. He helped me get rid of religiously incompatible lady and rewarded me with better position and pay.

Allah azzawajal has rewarded me immensly in every walk of life. He has rewarded me with dunyawi as well as ukhrawi things.

So if you are having any trouble in life; pray to Almighty Allah and be assured that there is a better plan for you by the best of planner.

May Allah azzawajal accept me and keep rewarding this very sinful servant of his majesty self: Aameen,