Doa to put into practise

I got this list of doa from a dear friend of mine today along with a raya wish and i thought it best to share it with everyone here. Hope it be of benefit to all visitors of this blog. Take care and may we be guided always. -- waterfall

Bismillahirrahmanirrahiim (In the name of Allah the most merciful and the most benevolent)

1. Allah is He, than Whom there is no other god;- the Sovereign, the Holy One, the Source of Peace (and Perfection), the Guardian of Faith, the Preserver of Safety, the Exalted in Might, the Irresistible, the Supreme: Glory to Allah. (High is He) above.

2. Truly, my prayer and my service of sacrifice, my life and my death, are (all) for Allah, the Cherisher of the Worlds:

3. Our Lord! Truly Thou dost know what we conceal and what we reveal: for nothing whatever is hidden from Allah, whether on earth or in heaven.
4. Who created me, and it is He Who guides me;
5. Who gives me food and drink
6. And when I am ill, it is He Who cures me;
7. Who will cause me to die, and then to life (again);
8. And who, I hope, will forgive me my faults on the day of Judgment.

9. Our Lord!" (they say), "Let not our hearts deviate now after Thou hast guided us, but grant us mercy from Thine own Presence; for Thou art the Grantor of bounties without measure.

10. Our Lord! bestow on us Mercy from Thyself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way!"

11. Our Lord! we have indeed believed: forgive us, then, our sins, and save us from the agony of the Fire;

12. Glory to our Lord! Verily we have been doing wrong!

13. My Lord! Grant Thou forgiveness and mercy for Thou art the Best of those who show mercy!

14. My Lord! Advance me in knowledge.

15. My Lord! Bestow wisdom on me, and join me with the righteous;

16. My Lord! Truly am I in (desperate) need of any good that Thou dost send me!
17. Ease my task for me;
18. And remove the impediment from my speech,
19. So they may understand what I say:

20. My Lord! I do seek refuge with Thee, lest I ask Thee for that of which I have no knowledge. And unless thou forgive me and have Mercy on me, I should indeed be lost!

21. My Lord! I seek refuge with Thee from the suggestions of the Evil Ones.
22. And I seek refuge with Thee O my Lord! lest they should come near me.

23. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the heavens and Lord of the earth,- Lord and Cherisher of all the Worlds

24. God bless our Master Muhammad (pbuh) who opened what had been closed, and who is the Seal of what had gone before, he who makes the Truth Victorious by the Truth, the guide to thy straight path, and bless his household as is the due of his immense position and grandeur.

25. Allah, bestow Your Choicest Blessings upon our Master Muhammad Peace be Upon Him and upon his extended family and his progeny according to the number of all things known to You. I seek the forgiveness of the One but for whom there is no God, The Truly and Perfectly Alive and The Self Sustained and I turn to Him with repentance. O The Truly and Perfectly Alive O The Self Sustained

Being blessed - my silver lining

You know you are blessed when family, friends, colleagues and students keep you in their thoughts in your hours of need. Since the news of my miscarriage got out, I have had nothing but encouragement and support, kind and thoughtful words, words of wisdom and most of all gestures of love from so many individuals. A colleague of mine said to me today, she's disappointed on hearing the news because she thought she would soon be an aunt to my baby; I love that a total stranger, who works with me and has only gotten to know me these last few months since working with me on a project, has taken me to her heart enough to think of me in this manner. I also love that students to whom i was a total stranger 10 weeks ago, hold me in their minds and hearts and take the trouble to leave me messages of hope and recovery. I love that a former student who is now a dear friend would take the trouble to get me the right herbs to eat and drink these 30 days in order for my body to recover what it had lost. I love that despite my lost and my sadness, I feel and can see the blessings around me. We should all be so blessed. God is great!

Emotional compass

When i had my miscarriage on Friday the 29th of August 2008 after 9 weeks carrying a fetus in my womb, i tried to be stoic about it and told myself that it's what God had intended for us. But when i saw Hisham break down in front of me i knew things were as bad as i felt. All the same, my sister is right when she said to me that evening - we are measured not by the number of children we have, but by how well we raise those that are in our care. That's the priority. Having said that, i will acknowledge this much; my husband in part is my emotional compass. When things get bad, as its sometimes known to happen in life, and i feel like having one of my blow ups or melt downs, i look to him for a reality check. And this latest episode in our life is bad but we'll get through it and god willing try again, and succeed.

Recognising one's self worth

Watching Carrie Underwood being interviewed by Oprah, I had a light bulb moment.

Carrie Underwood carries herself with that grace and softness that’s endearing. She holds herself in and not let what’s happening around her affect what goes on inside. She’s almost an observer of life, albeit an active member herself.

When Oprah ends the interview with a string of accolade, Carrie merely acknowledges the former with a smile and a thank you. It’s almost as if the praises are already a known fact to her. She does not appear to need others to tell her that she is this or that, because in her mind she already recognises her self worth.

My “aha” moment is this: recognise your self worth – are you a good teacher, are you a good mother, do you strive to do good in life, do you appreciate what God has given you, do you recognise the abundance that is you life? Acknowledge these things to the self and recognise them for what they are – precious gifts. And live in the moment and leave it at that. Waiting for others to recognise and acknowledge the value of me will be akin to wasting the life that is before me.

w.