It was narrated that al-Bara’ (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: We went out with the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) for the funeral of a man from among the Ansaar. We came to the grave and when (the deceased) was placed in the lahd, the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) sat down and we sat around him, as if there were birds on our heads (i.e., quiet and still). In his hand he had a stick with which he was scratching the ground. Then he raised his head and said, “Seek refuge with Allaah from the torment of the grave”, two or three times. Then he said, “When the believing slave is about to depart this world and enter the Hereafter, there come down to him from heaven angels with white faces like the sun, and they sit around him as far as the eye can see. They bring with them shrouds from Paradise and perfumes from Paradise. Then the Angel of Death comes and sits by his head, and he says, ‘O good soul, come forth to forgiveness from Allaah and His pleasure.’ Then it comes out easily like a drop of water from the the mouth of a waterskin. When he seizes it, they do not leave it in his hand for an instant before they take it and put it in that shroud with that perfume, and there comes from it a fragrance like the finest musk on the face of the earth. Then they ascend and they do not pass by any group of angels but they say, ‘Who is this good soul?’ and they say, ‘It is So and so the son of So and so, calling him by the best names by which he was known in this world, until they reach the lowest heaven. They ask for it to be opened to them and it is opened, and (the soul) is welcomed and accompanied to the next heaven by those who are closest to Allaah, until they reach the seventh heaven. Then Allaah says: ‘Record the book of My slave in ‘Illiyoon in the seventh heaven, and return him to the earth, for from it I created them, to it I will return them and from it I will bring them forth once again.’ So his soul is returned to his body and there come to him two angels who make him sit up and they say to him, ‘Who is your Lord?’ He says, ‘Allaah.’ They say, ‘What is your religion?’ He says, ‘My religion is Islam.’ They say, ‘Who is this man who was sent among you?’ He says, ‘He is the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).’ They say, ‘What did you do?’ He says, ‘I read the Book of Allaah and I believed in it.’ Then a voice calls out from heaven, ‘My slave has spoken the truth, so prepare for him a bed from Paradise and clothe him from Paradise, and open for him a gate to Paradise.’ Then there comes to him some of its fragrance, and his grave is made wide, as far as he can see. Then there comes to him a man with a handsome face and handsome clothes, and a good fragrance, who says, ‘Receive the glad tidings that will bring you joy this day.’ He says, ‘Who are you? Your face is a face which brings glad tidings.’ He says, ‘I am your righteous deeds.’ He says, ‘O Lord, hasten the Hour so that I may return to my family and my wealth.’
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American History 101: What you didn’t learn in class
And now class, time for our history lesson for today…
Today we find ourselves living under the repressive guise of European cultural dominance. The European’s great discoveries and advancements in science, technology, and exploration built the foundations for the modern world, or so they say. Now, I don’t mean to completely diss the Europeans, who except for completely destroying all that is sacred in this world for the last 400 years, have achieved many great things (like french fries). The attitude of a superior European culture that existed throughout the latter part of the last millennia, are still very much in existence today. History is one of the biggest victims of cultural dominance. When only one group of people’s version of history remains or only one group of people are allowed to interpret history you are not only losing out on valuable irreplaceable discourse of events we are affectively destroying other people and their heritage. When a person’s roots are cut off and destroyed, his stake in this world no longer exists, making him vulnerable for extinction. If a man doesn’t know where he came from, that means he doesn’t know where he is going either.
Many of us know Christopher Columbus as the valiant Italian explorer, who in 1492 discovered the “New Word” by landing on the island of Guanahani (called San Salvador by Colombus). However, historians now hold that the Romans and Carthegenians already knew about South America which is shown in one of Ptolomey’s maps. Also, it is pretty much fact know that Leif Erricson and the Vikings were the first to reach North America, although they didn’t settle. Also, some historians claim that Zheng He, a muslim admiral of China’s huge navy, arrived at the “New World” decades before Colombus or de Gamma with a fleet of over 300 junks (boats up to 400 feet long!). But perhaps what is most interesting about the discovery and the settlement of America, is it’s Muslim roots.
The atrocities of the Spanish Inquisition in the 15th Century led by the infamous King Ferdinand and Isabella, tortured and killed Muslims and Jews, and those who lived escaped to north Africa and Asia. This period ended the Muslim rule of Spain (Al-Andalus) and the Catholic church was reinstated as the official religion of Iberia. Many of the Muslims and Jews of Berber descent went to the Canary Islands, and others were sold into slavery to work in ships that sharked the Mediterranean. Amazingly, any of these Muslims either by way of their own expeditions or by Spanish ships ended up in Ameria.
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