The Islamic Awakening (H/B)

Mercy is clemency and forbearance; mercy is the disposition to forgive or show compassion; mercy means a favor or a blessing; mercy further denotes the qualities of kindness, sympathy, generosity, and beneficence. Suffice is to say that all of these qualities were present in abundance in the character of the Prophet Muhammad (May Allah have his peace and blessings on him).

He was a mercy not just to believers, but to disbelievers as well, for he would invite them to come out of darkness and into the light of true guidance. He is a favor and blessing for mankind, not just the Arabs, the people among whom he was sent, but for people of all races and colors. His staunchest enemies became his closest followers when the cloud of blind prejudice was removed from their sight and when they were able, for the very first time, to see with clarity the true nature of the Prophet’s character.

This book deals with many of the qualities that the Prophet possessed that made him the mercy to everyone. It starts with His perfect lineage, His noble upbringing, and his fully dedicated worship. This book then gives many of the qualities of the Prophet including his generosity, humbleness, bravery, patience, and leadership to name a few. Each chapter includes examples from the life of the Prophet on how he was the perfect living example of that quality. The book ends with the perfection of life of the Prophet with his farewell sermon and even his noble death where he demonstrated some of those qualities as well.

This book, authored by Luqman Nagy, is an introduction to the history and legacy of the great translation movement that began at the Bayt al-Hikmah in ninth century Abbasid Baghdad and culminated centuries later in Spain, with teams of Muslim, Christian and Jewish scholars translating works of Greek and Islamic science from Arabic into Latin. These translations became the first scientific textbooks to be used at many European universities. This wealth of knowledge that was made available in Latin helped initiate the Renaissance, or ‘rebirth’ of learning in the West.

The subject of this treatise – the nature, essence and circumstances of the human soul – is fascinating to people of all ages, faiths and walks of life. It covers in particular the issue of death and what happens after it. Due to the nature of this exciting topic, one who researches this subject is faced with an enormous amount of conflicting information. Therefore in order to arrive at sound dependable conclusions regarding the soul, one must carefully read and analyse the available material and evaluate it according to stringent criteria. This is of utmost importance since it bears directly on one’s belief.

According to a well-known hadith, cleanliness and purity are half of the faith. It is obligatory for a Muslim to be clean and in a state of purity in order to offer formal prayer and recite the Quran by way of ablution, a ritual shower, or dry ablution. Purity and cleanliness encompass both physical and spiritual aspects. Physical impurities can be removed by clean, pure water or dry, clean earth or stone, and this is a beginning step for spiritual cleanliness. In the Purity of the Muslim, Saeed al-Qahtani explains in a clear and comprehensive manner the types of various impurities and the ways to attain purity and cleanliness according to the teachings of the Quran and of the final prophet, Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him).

In this book, is an explicit CLARIFICATION of the MAJOR DOUBTS raised by the proponents of Mawlid an-Nabi, including:

• Mawlid an-Nabi is honoring the Prophet.
• Mawlid an-Nabi is celebrated by a large number of the people in many towns and cities.
• Commemorating Mawlid an-Nabi renews the memories of the Prophet.
• Celebration of Mawlid an-Nabi is cut of love for the Prophet and an expression of ones love, which is permissible.
• Mawlid an-Nabi is a Bidah Husna (good innovation) because it is a means of showing gratitude towards Allah for sending the Prophet.
• The sayings of Umar, ‘What a good Bidah is this?’

Additional quotes by Shaikh Muhammad ibn Ibraheem Aal-Shaikh have been added to further clarify these issues. The booklet also as 2 valuable appendixes:

Appendix 1: Explanation of the Hadeeth,”He, who established/initiates a Sunnah Husna in Islam.” in the word o Shaikh Saleh al-Fawzan and Shaikh Muhammad ibn al-Uthaimeen (rahimahullah)

Appendix 2: A Dialogue between Shaikh al-Albani (rahimahullah) and a proponent of Mawlid.