Islam and Enduring Hardship

(In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, all praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger)

A-uthu billahi minash shaytanir rajeem. Bisillahir rahmanir raheem. Al hamdu lillahi rabbil 'alameen. Was salaatu was salaamu 'alaa ashrafil mursaleen. Sayidinaa wa nabi'na wamoulanaa Muhammadin wa'ala aalihee wa sahbihee wasallim.

We as Muslims have great source of information and knowledge for which we can adhere to it as a divine source of satisfaction if we understand and explore the right sources to experience the appropriate path of forgiveness and this is where you are to understand and practice the ultimate path of success and glory.

To help you understand the practical and social aspects of enduring hardship in the context of Islam it is that experience that each of us face at a point in our lives with grief, tremendous loss, materially and emotionally and tragedy which may be result of a accident, loss of a loved one, failing an examination, failure of a business or career venture which was built by your own hands or serious illness.

This is where one from another the experience and the hardship is difficult to share and this is precisely where the sense of emptiness, numbing of sense and utter despair becomes so intense that one starts to question things such as the entire purpose of existence or life. And this is where such a person is often seen as taking over stressed and fall a victim of depression for which the religion and other things become less important as the senses go numb.

For this reason Holy Quran tells us in Sura Al-Baqara, verses 155-157, Allah subhanallahu ta'ala reminds us: Be sure We shall test you with something of fear and hunger; some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil) but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere. Who say when afflicted with calamity: "Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhir raji-oon"

Halal and Haram in Quran

“O ye who believe! Eat of the good things wherewith We have provided you, and render thanks to Allah if it is (indeed) He whom ye worship” (Qur’an 2:172)

Halal is an Arabic word used many times in Quran, which means Permitted or Acceptable according to an Islamic law. It’s the opposite of Haram which means Prohibited or Unacceptable according to an Islamic law. In Quran Allah commands us not to eat any Haram foods and only to eat Halal foods; it’s mandatory.

“They ask thee (O Muhammad) what is made lawful for them. Say: (all) good things are made lawful for you. And those beasts and birds of prey which ye have trained as hounds are trained, ye teach them that which Allah taught you; so eat of that which they catch for you and mention Allah's name upon it, and observe your duty to Allah. Lo! Allah is swift to take account” (Qur’an 5:4)

Even though cows, sheep’s, goats etc are Halal but in Quran Allah tells us that these animals should be slaughtered in the name of Allah before eating them.

“And eat not of that whereon Allah's name hath not been mentioned, for lo! it is abomination. Lo! The devils do inspire their minions to dispute with you. But if ye obey them, ye will be in truth idolaters” (Qur’an 6:121)

The following is a list of some of the Halal products according to the teachings of miraculous Quran:

• Milk (from cows, sheep, camels, and goats)
• Honey
• Fish
• Plants which are not toxic
• Vegetables and fruits
• Dry fruits and nuts like peanuts, cashew nuts, hazel nuts, walnuts etc.
• Grains like wheat, rice, rye, barley, oat, etc.

Some of the Haram products:

• Meat from pig - pork, ham, bacon, etc
• Pork-based products - sausages etc.
• Animals improperly slaughtered or already dead before slaughtering
• Animals slaughtered someone else other than Allah
• Birds of prey and animals without external ears (i.e., snakes, reptiles, worms, insects etc.)
• Blood, foods made with the help of any of the above products.