Intentions

Ramadan Mubarak to everyone who reads this and I hope your fasts are going well in sha Allah and may we all attain the maximum benefit and taqwa from this blessed month. I wanted to talk about intentions because it is a term that is widely used in Islam and is stressed in the month of Ramadan. What is an intention? TheFreeDictionary.com defines intention as a course of action that one intends to follow, an aim that guides action, an objective. So, why do we make intentions? As human beings, well certainly for me, we all need that sense of security to know what we're doing and why we are doing it because of course we are inquisitive and are programmed to ask questions. Like the annoying kid that always asks "why?" after everything. Our intention explains why we do certain things but our intention isn't a physical matter, our intention isn't words, our intention is something that your mind and heart feels with ikhlaas, with sincerity. Our true intentions are known by us and God alone and we are reminded of this in 33:5 Call them by (the names of) their fathers: that is juster in the sight of Allah. But if ye know not their father's (names, call them) your Brothers in faith, or your maulas. But there is no blame on you if ye make a mistake therein: (what counts is) the intention of your hearts: and Allah is Oft-Returning, Most Merciful. We know that if we make an intention to please Allah SWT and do things for his sake, then we will gain maximum reward and if we intend to do something for a worldly cause then we shall get the reward for our intention,ie. if your intention is corrupt, you will be rewarded accordingly. Now a lot of the time, we fail to make our intentions and our actions for the sake of God and more for the people around us, the human beings and this is so normal but we need to be able to combat this and make everything we do, every breathe we take for Allah SWT because everything he does is for our benefit. If we keep Him in mind all the time and remember that our purpose is to please Him and that our goal is Jannah then we shouldn't go far wrong. Make good intentions, do good deeds and you will prosper in sha Allah. 
The point is that we shouldn't do things to please people because people, man, woman was created. By who? Allah SWT, therefore we should be trying to please him and his creations. if we try to please people then sure we will get far in this Dunya but how far will it get us in the Aakhirah 

And fear a Day when no soul will suffice for another soul at all, and no compensation will be accepted from it, nor will any intercession benefit it, nor will they be aided. 2:123

Thus is something I personally want to work towards and I hope you will join me in sha Allah 

Hijab

The hijab. What is it? In the West it's perceived as a scarf. A garment of oppression? A veil of evil? Something that a pregnant woman got attacked over in Paris? What is it really? A garment of freedom. A veil of belief. A conduct of order/ The hijab was ordered upon the believing women, to protect her modesty, to guard her haya (shyness), to emphasize the noor (light) within her. Since i'm the only hijabi in my immediate family, I usually get a lot of questions. For example, why do you wear it? Who's making you wear it? What's the point? It's so 200BC.
There are many reasons I wear my scarf. As a sign. To show the world I am a Muslim and that I'm proud to be representing Islam. It makes me aware of how I walk, speak and act in public because I know, when people look at me, I am an ambassador for Islam, I know that if i have poor conduct, people will have a misconception about Islam. It makes me think.
Secondly, it's to guard my modesty, to help brothers lower their gaze, why would you want your brother to fall into sin just because you weren't covered properly. Given, it's not all up to you but you can at least try. Someone asked me why I still wear makeup with it on and it was a good question, I shouldn't but i'm a human being, I'm a teenage girl, I get insecure. God has made me like this.  Islam has nothing against beauty. In fact it encourages beauty, mentally and physically. It ensures people know that I'm not easy and allows me to express my views without the fear of being objectified unlike, like it or not, some of the half naked women now a days. If we think about it, a woman who is fully covered and a woman who is naked, who is really in control? The one who sticks to her values and respects herself, or the one who takes of her clothes for a male dominated society?
Thirdly and most importantly, I do it for Allah SWT. Aisha RA wore the hijab and she is the lady of Islam and a primary example, one we should constantly look to. Allah SWT ordered us to carry out hijab, not just the action of covering up, but the hijab of conduct too, which is ordered on men as well, so who am I to disobey these orders? I was asked once if my hijab was a fashion statement. Fashion? No. Statement? Yes. It's a declaration that I am proud to be a Muslim. I am proud to represent my faith. I hope I am able to show people how much peace and knowledge my religion holds.
The girls who don't wear hijab, don't worry, I was one of you until 10 months ago. I never thought i'd wear it. To those who say it requires too much strength-I'm 15, no one in my family wears it and I can tell you anything is possible by the will of Allah SWT. Sure, it can be hard at times, not being able to show your hair whilst everyone is but don't give up but now I realize, my hijab defines me and I'm so proud of it. Don't wait until you're old to wear hijab. Old age is promised to no one.
(Inspired by Aysha) 

My mother

I'm so sorry I've been blogging so much recently. It's just, I'm new to all of this and  I have so many ideas that I need to write about and so now I'm going to write about the most important human being in my life. My mother. I'm sure this s a topic we can all relate to but I think at times we forget the importance of our mothers. Pause for a second. Picture your life. Now, take your mother out of it. How does it feel? Empty? I thought so.
Now, think back to yesterday, last week, or whenever when you  spoke to her in a harsh tone or a loud voice. Why did you do it? Is it because she doesn't "get you."? Is it because she just doesn't understand? It it because you don't think you need to answer to her? Let me tell you, your mother, the one who carried you in her stomach for 9 whole months, she is the woman that prayed to have you. She is the woman who stayed up with you all night because you had a fever. She is the only reason, along with the grace of Allah SWT that you are here. Se is the reason your're here, reading this , But you think you can speak to her in a disrespectful way. She understands you ore than you understand yourself and just think about how much pain she must go through every time you raise your voice at her. She gave you everything and this is what happens.
Your mother, like you, was once young. She was beautiful, she is still beautiful and you should remind her of that every day. She knows exactly what you went through because she went through the same and she wants nothing but the absolute best for you. I know that my mother is the most beautiful woman on earth to me and she has managed to balance work and having a home so well and I can only applaud her on this. She's my best friend, the one I tell everything to and without her I don't know where I'd be. Islam teaches that Jannah is beneath The feet of a mother and I cannot begin to explain the gravity that this concept holds. Love your parents for the sake of Allah and may He grant all our parents the highest rank in Jannah as they have done so well in raising us and taking care of us.
Ameen.
Now go to your mother, make her smile, give her a hug and know that she loves you more than life itself and keep in mind all the sacrifices she has made next time you think about raising your voice at her. 

Quietness

So recently, someone said to me that "I had no personality." Ok, maybe it wasn't that recently but it's a "criticism" that made me step out of my usual frame of mind for a second and reflect and re-evaluate myself as a person. At first, admittedly, I was slightly shocked and upset at the remark, which, as it quite often does, led to self pity. I understood why they had made this remark, it's because, in their presence, I was quite, slightly bashful and just, over all, a little bit shy. Obviously, this is a trait I can't exactly control and I didn't choose to be this way but I am so what can I do? For a moment, I wanted to be able to change myself and "have a personality" but then I realized, it's not exactly that I don't have a personality, it's that they never bothered to get to know me. If you know me, you'll know that at first, sure, I'm quiet but once you really get to know me, I do laugh loudly, I do talk, I make jokes. I am a real person. I thought that I should probably try to be more outspoken and I tried it, it just wasn't how I was, it made me feel uncomfortable and just not myself. I tried to change to fit in with what other people expected of me when really I shouldn't because if we look at the qualities a Muslim woman should possess, one of those is her shyness- her haya. Shyness, nowadays is considered a "social phobia" by the Royal College of Psychiatrists but in Islam it is so important for both men and women. Along with having "haya" a Muslim should be honest, they should love endlessly, forgive endlessly and trust in God endlessly. The only reason I should try and change is so that I can fit more of the Islamic morals and values inside of my heart, not because someone doesn't like me or doesn't think I am  good enough to fit into society. Muslims will always be outcasts of this modern society and every society, our Prophet was as well, so it's nothing to be ashamed of. We will stand for what we believe and we will not change for anyone except Him.
So the point to that was, society and people will try to make you conform to their standards, their values and what they think is correct, what I'm trying to say to you is don't. Don't conform. Don't feel the pressure to conform. You are what you are for a reason. Be proud of what you believe in and be proud of what you have but this, however gives you no right to be disrespectful towards others who are doing the same thing as you. Being themselves. Just because they don't agree with you or they don't match with your values and morals, does not give you the right to think you are above them.
Rant over. 

Media

Hi, well, this is my first blog post after quite a while and I was quite inspired by someone on my twitter who posted one of her blogs and it just reminded me of how I loved to get my point across about things I really do care about but I've never really published my views as such due to, I guess, the fear of being judged but I figured, not everyone has to comply with what I'm saying and that's the absolute beauty of it.
One thing that has really been bugging me recently is media. The idea, the concept of media is one of which is central to our everyday lives, we are influenced, brainwashed if you will, by it no matter where, who and what we're doing. Now, media can be used in a positive and a negative way, depending on who it's coming from but I think majority if the time, it's not used to its full potential. Think about it, the media has so much power and is so strong in influencing people, don't you think that if used correctly, we could use it for good? Sadly, it's not the case. When I typed in "media" into Wikipedia, I was amused to find a list, amongst which was a title "news media (united states)". This, to me, was not surprising as we're all aware the majority of media is owned by the US but after looking into it further I saw that the Persians and places that are now Iran and Iraq played a prevalent role in introducing media. Well, isn't that interesting. The people who were most likely of Islamic descent brought about the media, they brought about algebra  and other groundbreaking discoveries such as Dr. Fatima Al-Thallab from Kuwait: she invented a nursing device for feeding infants with a cleft lip and/or cleft pallet. Nobody remembers these advanced discoveries from MUSLIM people? Why? As they're too busy focusing on the negative part of Islam. 
The same media that the Persians helped to create, is now being used to alienate and destroy them. Media obviously doesn't like religion too much right? In particular media doesn't like Islam. 
Whenever a Muslim man or woman does something unacceptable in society, their religion is always brought up but if we look at someone like Jimmy Savile, I have never to this day heard this crime regarded as an 'act of terrorism' and I have never heard anything about his race or religion, because evidently it's not important. At the end of the day, we're all human beings, we're made of the same matter, the same atoms, everything. Maybe our languages are different, maybe the amounts of melanin in our skin is different but we are all the same, therefore we should be equal. We're not, but we should be.
To draw a conclusion to this whirlwind of thoughts;
1) We should use the resources around us to spread as much good and as much love as we can, at the end of the day, what is producing hate going to get you? Happiness? No.
2) Never just focus on the negative parts of something, there is ALWAYS a counter-argument and a bright side. Of course, things may appear to be negative, us as humans do like to highlight negativity but it's your job to find the underlying good.
3) The media is stupid.