I Am Enjoying Being A Muslim

@XenonRush Please, feel free to ask questions and I will do my best to answer you.

Thanks! ☺️ Number one: I have a decent grasp on what Islam teaches and believes. I was originally raised Christian but became an atheist for many years. I do know that Jesus (Isa) is a beloved prophet of God in Islam and all the others from the Old Testament (Moses, Abraham etc) and the last prophet was Muhammad. I do know that Muslims believe in all of the Old Testament stories. Such as The Red Sea parting, Joespeh, and all of those. My first question is, except for the Quran, do Muslims read any other holy books? @Madeleine

@XenonRush Good question. The Quran is the main source for Muslims. It's purely a revelation from God. Beside that, we find teachings in Hadith books, which are the sayings and actions of the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) recorded and narrated by his companions.

Hadiths explain a lot of what we learn from the Quran. For instance, in the Quran we find that God commands us to pray. But you will not find how to actually pray. Where do you find that? In hadith. The prophet (peace be upon him) explained to us exactly how to pray.

The most accurate hadith books are:
Sahih Bukhari.
Sahih Muslim.
Sunan al-Nasa'i.
Sunan Abu Dawud.
Sunan al-Tirmidhi.
Sunan Ibn Majah.

In order for us to understand Quran and Hadith, we must seek explanations from scholars and people who have deep knowledge in Islam. This doesn't mean that you cannot study and think for yourself. No, but whenever you find yourself confused or have unanswered questions, you can always refer to those scholars and people of knowledge.

If you have more questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I never get tired of speaking about Islam.

Very detailed, I thank you! Do Muslims read the Torah, or the Old Testament? My next question, In order to convert to Islam fully, you say the shahada right? Do you need to do it in a mosque or in front of an imam? @Madeleine

@XenonRush We believe in the Torah that was sent to prophet Moses (Musa) peace be upon him, but we also believe that the original Torah has been lost due to fabrication. So the Old Testament contains revelation, but not fully.

You don't have to say the shahadah in front of anyone. It is an experience between yourself and God (Allah), but it is preferably to say it in front of other Muslims so they would help you to say correctly and would acknowledge you as Muslim and a brother in Islam. Some might also help you to learn all the practices you will need.

May Allah bless your heart with His light.

If you have more questions let me know please.

Is it haram to read the Torah? A few questions about eating halal. 1. Do you just have to avoid pork and alcohol? What other things are haram?@Madeleine

@XenonRush It is not [i]haram[/i] to read the Torah [i]in-shaa-Allah[/i], but it's not recommended to read it when you don't have solid knowledge of Islam first. The Quran is also called [i]al-forqan[/i] which means the book that distinguishes truth from falsehood. We believe that the Torah of today is not the same revelation that was sent to prophet Moses (Musa) peace be upon him. Therefore, we might learn false teachings due to fabrication. I'd advice you to study the Quran before reading the Torah.

When it comes to food, the answer is in [Quran 5:3]
[quote]You are forbidden to eat carrion; blood; pig’s meat; any animal over which any name other than God’s has been invoked; any animal strangled, or victim of a violent blow or a fall, or gored or savaged by a beast of prey, unless you still slaughter it [in the correct manner]; or anything sacrificed on idolatrous altars. You are also forbidden to allot shares [of meat] by drawing marked arrows ––a heinous practice– today the disbelievers have lost all hope that you will give up your religion. Do not fear them: fear Me. Today I have perfected your religion for you, completed My blessing upon you, and chosen as your religion islam: [total devotion to God]; but if any of you is forced by hunger to eat forbidden food, with no intention of doing wrong, then God is most forgiving and merciful.[/quote]

On a side note, I'd like to recommend you to follow this Twitter account:
[b]@Sweetness_Faith[/b] They tweet a lot of beneficial Islamic knowledge on daily basis. They also have a Facebook page, if you are interested:
https://www.facebook.com/SweetnessOfFaith101/?ref=your_pages

Let me know if you have more questions.

Thank you! I very much appreciate these detailed answers? How long have you been a Muslim? My next question would be, when doing my 5 daily salary, if I do not know Arabic yet (I am American) would it be okay to pray the prayers in English? I have a small learning disability and it makes language learning very hard for me. Also, is it okay to download an app called MuslimPro on the App Store which has the Qu’ran, has a qibla compass and has all types is nice wallpapers with pictures of different mosques and has study tips on Islam? @Madeleine

@XenonRush I should be the one who's thanking you for giving me the opportunity to help you to understand Islam. I'm learning too. We say [i]alhamdoliallah[/i].

I understand that learning a new language can be a challenge, but I believe in you and I think you should take the idea that it's difficult to learn Arabic out of your head. Even if you feel that it's difficult for you because of some learning disability, I believe with your sincerity God will make it easy for you. Just believe and trust in God and do your best.

[sep]

What I learned is that making [i]du'a[/i] (supplications) can be done in any language. It doesn't have to be in Arabic. But making [i]salah[/i] (our 5 daily prayers) have to be done in Arabic. Why?

1. We recite Quran in [i]salah[/i], and any translations of the Quran are not considered Quran, they are merely translations. So, when you do your [i]salah[/i] in English, you are not reciting the Quran.

2. Muslims do [i]salah[/i] in congregations, so they need a common language for them to pray together. Now, if we go to any country around the world, and we want to do [i]salah[/i] in the [i]masjid[/i], we can do that without concerning about the language of that country.

Now, I understand that you find it hard, but once you try it will become easy. My humble advice to you is that .. try to do [i]salah[/i] in the [i]masjid[/i], in this case you won't have to recite, and this also will help you memorize some [i]ayat[/i] of the Quran and the steps of [i]salah[/i] as well.

Also, all you have to do now is to memorize [i]surah Al-Fatihah[/i] (the first [i]surah[/i] of the Quran), because we recite it in every [i]salah[/i]. Beside that, try to memorize one short [i]surah[/i] to recite it after [i]Al-Fatihah[/i]. You can find those [i]surahs[/i] at the end of the Quran, their length is 1 or 2 lines. Do that and with time you will find it as easy as you drink water.

Don't delay doing [i]salah[/i] until you memorize those [i]surahs[/i] though. If you had to read from a page or your phone while you are doing [i]salah[/i], then do that. Just don't delay it.

I will make du'a for you and [i]in-shaa-Allah[/i] you will enjoy your [i]salah[/i] in Arabic in no time!

[sep]

I have never used MuslimPro, but if it's providing good teachings of Islam, then it's okay to download it and use it [i]in-shaa-Allah[/i].

Since you're living in the United States, I'd suggest that you sign up for [b]Bayyinah.tv[/b] It's an Islamic institution that helps English speakers to learn Arabic, and study Quran. They are based in the United States, you can find them online.

May Allah make it easy for both of us.. let me know if you have further questions.

Thanks! I just feel like God is calling me. I have yet another questions here.

Can Muslims pray silently to themselves at any time of the day? Or do they have to only pray doing salah and doing a cycle of prayer (rakat)? Basically can a Muslim in the middle of the day pray for someone or just say a quick prayer silently in their head to themselves?


@Madeleine

@XenonRush Yes, of course. It's actually encouraged to do that. To pray at any moment of the day and just to talk to Allah about whatever in your heart. This will revive your heart and will strengthen your relationship with Allah. You can even pray/supplicate/make [i]du'a[/i] in any language.

Thanks! Sorry for the late response, another question, is it okay for a Muslim to always travel the world and visit all of the unique masjids of the world? Which ones have you seen? @Madeleine

@XenonRush We are encouraged to travel the world. It's in the Quran. For me though,, I didn't have a chance to travel much. But I have visited Mecca several times alhamdolillah.

How is Mecca? Outside of the religious sites, is it a nice city? What’s it like outside of the religious hajj sites? What country do you come from originally? Also, is it okay for a Muslim to have winchimes and a garden? One of my co-workers (non-Muslim) said Muslims cannot own wind chimes? @Madeleine

@XenonRush What is wind chimes?

They are metal bars that you put in a garden and they ring when the wind hits them.



@Madeleine

@XenonRush I can't give you an answer for this. I'm not that qualified.