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Ramadan Reflections: Day 7 Nafs Hack with Khalil Ismail
Nafs Hack: Strategizing Gratefulness Assalamu alaikum, and peace to everyone. This is Khalil Ismail with your Nafs Hack. I wanted to talk about strategizing gratefulness today. I think one of the most important things, maybe the most important thing that we have that we can hold on to, regardless of what happens in this life, is gratefulness. And what strikes me about gratefulness is that in the Qur’an when Allah (SWT) talks about the story of Shaytan wanting to take us off the path of worshipping him, and Shaytan basically says that he is going to get us from the left, from the right, from the back. He basically says…
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Ramadan Reflections: Day 5 Nafs Hack with Isra Chaker
Nafs Hack: Daily Gratitude Journal I’m a civil rights activist, and I’m here today with Islamic Relief to give you your next Nafs Hack. Now, we all live in a life where we are constantly busy and being pulled in many directions and are facing tribulations while also overcoming them. And sometimes we realize that we don’t ever stop and breathe for a second and think about all the things we are actually grateful for and the things that we are blessed with. And so my nafs hack I do on daily basis personally is I wake up every morning and I write down five things that I’m grateful for…
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Ramadan Reflections: Day 4 Nafs Hack with Amani Abdel-Dayem
Nafs Hack: Live with Intention Assalamu alaikum, everyone! My name is Amani Abdel-Dayem, and I’m here for your Nafs Hack. So, my Nafs Hack for you today is for productivity in intention and niyyah. Whenever you have anything to do, from the menial to the major—whether it’s wuduh, salah, cooking dinner, starting a project, or visiting a friend—make sure that you have an intention. Make sure that you’re focused on the outcome that you’re looking for and the why that you’re doing what you’re doing. And, all of a sudden, the quality of your work, your visit, whatever it is that you’re doing, your salah will change dramatically for the…
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RAMADAN REFLECTIONS: DAY 3 NAFS HACK WITH SAID DURRAH
Nafs Hack: Sustainable Fasting Assalamu alaikum. I’m comedian Said Durrah, and this is your Nafs Hack. Today, I want to talk to you about the difference between what I call sustainable fasting and silly fasting. Sustainable fasting, if you’re able to fast, is what you’re supposed to do—you know, no food, no water and so forth—but silly fasting is the people that want to go to extremes. Don’t be that person. That’s the person who tells you, “Oh, I just got an internship at this bakery. It’s going to be great for Ramadan. It’s really going to test me. It’s really going to push me to my extremes.” Why would…
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Ramadan Reflections: Day 1 Nafs Hack with Naeem Muhammad
Nafs Hack: Use Visual Cues Assalamu alaikum, and Ramadan Mubarak! Each year, Islamic Relief sends daily inspirational videos to you during the month of Ramadan. This year’s Ramadan Reflections are focused on Nafs Hacks, or life hacks that will help you with spirituality, productivity, and to make every day in Ramadan productive. My name is Naeem Muhammad, and this is my Nafs Hack. Anytime you’ve started to bring on a new, good habit or want to implement some kind of new behavior, what I like to do is to use visual cues, as well as remove all obstacles out of the way to implement that habit in my life. So,…
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The Ramadan Heart Transplant
{ O you who believe! Answer (the call of) Allah and His Apostle when he calls you to that which gives you life; and know that Allah intervenes between man and his heart, and that to Him you shall be gathered. } (8:24) Symptoms and Causes for Concern Atherosclerosis is the process of plaque build-up on artery walls from fats, cholesterol, and other substances. When the plaque overruns, blood flow gets constricted, which then causes an array of severe health concerns. But, when arteries in the heart are under the pressure of atherosclerosis for too long, heart disease soon follows after. According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS),…
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In Solidarity: A Lesson from IRUSA’s Capitol Hill Iftar
Christy Bectel recently attended the Capitol Hill Iftar and shares her refections. Christy is a Public Affairs Intern at Islamic Relief USA. She is originally from Michigan and is a senior at Grand Valley State University majoring in International Relations and minoring in Middle East Studies and German. The mention of certain cities in the U.S. often evokes images of decline, decay, even pity. Particularly in my home state of Michigan, Flint and Detroit are the cities people name and quickly dismiss in their discussions of poverty in the U.S. Though I’m a resident of neither, I feel an inclination to defend these cities, the stories of which are often framed through…
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Tunisia’s Farmers Are Rebuilding Greenhouses and Building Up Biodiversity with Islamic Relief USA
Laura McAdams is an International Programs Coordinator at Islamic Relief USA. Mohamad was the first person I met with on my recent monitoring and evaluation trip to Tunisia. He is the community leader of a cooperative of small-scale farmers in the southern town of Faouar. Mohamad comes from a long generational line of farmers. I followed him on a dry dirt path to a field where rows of greenhouses stood. Through two consecutive years, southern Tunisia has suffered strong storms that destroyed or severely damaged greenhouse structures in the country. Farmers weren’t able to salvage their crops and resume farming activities because they couldn’t find the money they needed to…
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IRUSA Bus Tour distributes food for Ramadan
Islamic Relief USA has long distributed food for Ramadan around the world. This year, for the first time, the program is bringing food to Americans in need. Volunteers packaged 3,000 boxes full of food in the two weekends before Ramadan, and these packages are now being delivered around the country. The first boxes were handed out on the first day of Ramadan in Virginia. “It felt very good to give the boxes to people, seeing thåe smile on their faces and hearing them say thank you in many languages,” said Naeem Muhammad. “We had people from many backgrounds and faiths.” Nicole was at the first distribution, picking up food to…
