The Story of the Royal Falcon

Once a king's falcon flew away from his palace and
landed in the house of an old woman of the
neighborhood. The old woman saw the falcon's long
nails and its big wings and cut them short, saying, "With which
unworthy person have you lived all this time who kept you like
an orphan.” Maulana Rumi (Rahmatullah Alaihe) says, "So is
the love of an ignorant person. For a falcon, long nails and huge
wings are its virtues and required in its hunting pursuits. These
signs of perfection in the falcon were looked upon as faults by
the old woman, due to her ignorance of what constitutes
perfection for a falcon. By cutting the nails and wings, she made
the falcon useless.
The king, in the meantime, searched for the falcon. One
day while searching, he came to the house of the old woman.
Seeing the falcon in this state, he began weeping. The falcon
saw him and said, "O king, I am very much ashamed of myself.
I repent and now make a new promise and commitment to
you".
Maulana Rumi (Rahmatullah Alaihe) now says:
"The world is like that old woman
That whoever inclines to it is just as disgraced and foolish.
He who befriends an ignorant one, will meet the same fate
As the falcon met at the hands of the ignorant old woman".
Hazrat Hakeem Ul Ummat Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanwi
(Rahmatullah Alaihe) said, "Similarly, some ignorant ones
become claimants to being servants of Islam. Then in their
ignorance, make Islam subject to their absurd opinions and
thereby distort the true teachings of Islam. This is generally true
of those people who through their own study later become
authors of books and articles on Islam, without having studied
Deen at the hands of a scholarly teacher. When looking at the
writings of these authors, great precaution is required. There is
a Hadith in Tirmidhi that Rasulullah (Sallellaho Alaihe
Wasallam) said:
"See from whom you take your Deen and the correct
transmission chain is part of the Deen".
In other words, before acquiring Deen from anyone, first
enquire from a well-known scholar about his credibility. The
jug from which you drink water should first be inspected to see
that the water inside is clean and not contaminated.
(Extract from Ma'arif e Mathnavi)

Eighteen Wise Advices from the Lips of Hadhrat Umar Radiyallahu Anhu

Hadhrat Sa'eed bin Musayyib reports that there were eighteen guidelines that
Hadhrat Umar ra. formulated for the people, every one of which is replete
with wisdom. He said,
"(1) When someone disobeys Allaah in matter that impacts on you, you can give
him no punishment worse than obeying Allaah in matters that impact on him.
(2)Always assume the best about your brother unless you learn something about
him that you absolutely cannot reconcile.
(3) Never assume the worst about any statement that a Muslim makes as long as
you are able to make a favourable interpretation.
(4) The person who exposes himself to slander must never rebuke anyone who
holds a bad opinion of him.
(5) Whoever guards his secrets will retain the choice in his hands.
(6) Ensure that you keep true friends to stay under their wings because they are a
source of beauty during times of prosperity and a means of protection during
times of hardship.
(7)Always speak the truth even though it leads to your death.
(8) Never delve into matters that do not concern you.
(9) Do not ask about matters that have not occurred because that which has
already taken place is enough to preoccupy you from that which has not.
(1 0) Never seek your needs from one who does not want to see your success.
(1 1) Never treat false oaths lightly because Allaah will then destroy you.
(12) Never keep the company of the sinners to learn from their sinful ways.
( 13) Keep away from your enemy.
(14) Beware even of your friends, except for the trustworthy one and none can be
trustworthy unless he fears Allaah.
(1 5) Be humble when in the graveyard,
(1 6) submit to Allaah's obedience and
( 1 7) seek Allaah's protection at the time of disobeying H i s commands. (18)
Consult with those who fear Allaah because Allaah says:
From Allaah's bondsmen, it is only those with knowledge (those who
recognise Him) who fear Him. {Surah Faatir, verse 28)
(Ibnu Asakir)

Attaching More Importance to Practise than to Theory

The Statements of Hadhrat Ali ra. in this regard
Hadhrat Ali ra. said, "Study and you will be known for it. Practise on your
knowledge and you will be amongst its worthy bearers because soon a time will
come when nine-tenths of the truth will be rejected and the only person who will
be saved will be one who remains anonymous and aloof from people. Such
people are the beacons of guidance and the lanterns of knowledge. They are not
hasty, do not promote immoral behaviour or immoral speech." (Ahmad)
Hadhrat Ali ra. once said, " 0 men of knowledge! Practise on your knowledge
because only that person is an Aalim whose knowledge is followed by practise
and whose practise conforms with his knowledge. There shall soon come people
whose knowtedge will not even transcend their collar-bones. Their private lives
will contradict their public lives just a s their actions will contradict their
knowledge. They will sit in groups, boasting to each other and will get angry if
anyone sitting in their group had to leave to sit with another group. The actions
of such people will not even transcend their gatherings on its way to reach
Allaah." (Ibnu Abdul Barr)

INSPIRATION

Reciting the word "ALLAH" has a very good mental effects on all humans
This is not a fictitious story...it is real and verifiable...
Vander Hoven, a psychologist from Netherlands, announced his new discovery about the effect of reading the Quraan and repeating the word ALLAH both on patients and on normal persons. The Dutch professor confirms his discovery with studies and research applied on many patients over a period of three years.
Some patients were non-Muslims, others do not speak Arabic and were trained to pronounce the word "ALLAH" clearly; the results was great, particularly on those who suffer from dejection and tension. Al Witan, a Saudi daily reported that the psychologist was quoted to say that Muslims who can read Arabic and who read Quraan regularly could protect themselves from psycological diseases.
The psychologist explained how each letter in the word "ALLAH" affects healing of psychological diseases. He pionted out in his research that pronouncing the first letter in the word "ALLAH" which is the letter (A),pronouncing the velar consonant(L) in the Arabic way, with the tongue touching slightly the upper part of the jaw producing a short pause and repeating the same pause constantly, relaxes the aspiration.
Also,pronouncing the last letter which is the letter (H) makes a contact between the lungs and the heart and in turn this contact controls the heartbeat. What is exciting in the study is that this phsycologist is a non-Muslim, but interested in Islamic science and searching for the secrets of the Holy Quraan.
Allah The Great and Glorious, says, we will show them our signs in the universe and in their own selves, until it becomes manifest.
ALLAHU AKBAR Allah is great. Allah keeps me going day and night. Without Allah, I am no one. But with Allah, I can do everything . ALLAH IS MY STRENGTH