Every year hundreds of British Muslims get married. During the spring and summer, hardly a weekend goes by without a wedding in the community. The Questions arise:

1. Do we think before we say “I do, I do, I do”?
2. What is the criteria given by Islam for finding a suitable spouse?
3. Is there such thing as the Art of Living Together?
4. Do we consider the challenges that a marriage throws up and how they can be resolved before getting married and during our married life?
5. How did the Prophet (peace be upon him0lived his married life?

 Divorces is on the Rise

In modern times many married couple are unhappy in their relationships and there has been an alarming rise in divorce rates amongst British Muslims.

There are multiple factors that contribute to marriages ending in divorce and each case is different. This situation raises many questions:

1. Is it that we are spending longer preparing for the wedding, as opposed to preparing for the married life ahead of us?
2. Is it because of family and friends’ interference/ lack of interference that relationships breakdown?
3. Does divorce take place because it is pre-destined that the marriage will result in divorce? 
4. Are some marriages failing because of lack of spirituality in the spouses?
5. Is it because couples expect too much from each other, these days?
6. Is it because it is easy and fashionable to get divorced now?

In order to discuss the above and many more questions,  Leeds Makkah Masjid presents a seminar on Sunday 20 May 2012.  

Topic: Introduction to Marriage: Think Before You Say ‘I do’.

Date: Sunday 20 May 2012 at 6pm

Venue: Makkah Masjid 36 Thornville Road Leeds LS6 1JY

The talk will be given by Imam Qari Muhammad Asim.

Brothers & Sisters are welcome.

A Mach Made in Heaven

Does it mean that our spouses are pre-destined?

Does that mean we need not search for a suitable spouse because a Prince or a Princess is out there for each one of us and will eventually come in our lives?

If a marriage has not worked out, does it mean that it was in our destiny /taqdeer/Qismat that there was going to be a breakdown in relationship, perhaps resulting in a divorce?

In order to discuss the above and many more questions,  Leeds Makkah Masjid presents a seminar on Sunday 13 May 2012.  

 Topic: Unhappy Marriage-v- A Mach made in Heaven.

Date: Sunday 13 May 2012 at 6pm

Venue: Makkah Masjid 36 Thornville Road Leeds LS6 1JY

The talk will be given by Imam Qari Muhammad Asim.

Brothers & Sisters are welcome.

Workshops are being held by Leeds Makkah Masjid, conducted by Imam of Makkah Masjid, Imam Qari Muhammad Asim, in West Yorkshire on Friday and Saturday 11-12 May2011 to discuss the way forward.

Imam Asim will also be discussing the matters arising from the Rochdale Grooming trial on BBC Radio on Sunday 13 May at 8am.  

For further details, please e-mail: mail@makkahmasjid.co.uk

• Who is in charge of my actions: Allah or me or both?
• Is it already written that some people will go to Paradise?
• Do we have any free will if our fate/taqdeer is already written?
• Can our du’as (supplications) change destiny and are they of much avail?
• Is it already written, who I am going to marry or whether I am going to be successful in an exam?
• If it is already written that something bad is going to happen, then what is the point in trying to stop it?
• If destiny is already determined, how can good deeds increase in one’s sustenance, and avert calamities?
• If fate is already written, how does Islam view individuals competing with each other for jobs and wealth?

The talk will be given by Imam Qari Muhammad Asim.

Date & Time: Sunday 6 May at 6pm.

Venue: Leeds Makkah Masjid, 36 Thornville Road Leeds LS6 1JY

EVERYONE IS WELCOME.

Venue: Makkah Masjid 36 Thornville Road Leeds LS6 1JY

Leeds Makkah Mosque welcomes all, regardless of gender, faith or cultural background. Makkah Masjid holds various Open Days throughout the year.

The Open Days offer a fantastic opportunity to gain an insight into Islam, Muslim Culture and interact with British Muslims.

In Spring, the Open Days & Islamic Exhibition are held as part of Leeds Treasures Revealed. This is in keeping with the Mosque’s longstanding aim of promoting and encouraging understanding and mutual respect within the wider community. The management of the Mosque, Leeds Muslim Council, has historically been committed to helping achieve harmony within the local community by planning initiatives that actively engage with different community organisations, with the aim of providing opportunities for visitors to explore and share the beauty of Islam.

Please see the links below for more information about previous years exhibitions:

http://www.leedsliveitloveit.com/visitors/places-to-go~page/leeds-makkah-mosque
http://www.leedsliveitloveit.com/visitors/whats-on~page/islamic-exhibition2010

http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/leeds/hi/people_and_places/religion and_ethics/newsid_8651000/8651409.stm

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7388868.stm

EVERYONE IS WELCOME

It has been 7 years since Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad Sahib departed from this world on the evening of Tuesday 26 April 2005 (17th Rabi ul-Awwal 1426).

All those who had the honour to meet him will testify that Hafiz Sahib’s whole life revolved around learning, reciting, teaching and reflecting on the Holy Qur’an. His long and fruitful association with the Glorious Qur’an is not hidden to anyone. He dedicated his life to the Qur’an and Sunnah, living while immersed in the love of the beloved of Allah, Muhammad Rasulullah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Imam Hafiz Sahib was indeed one of the very few distinguished scholars of Islam who excelled in both worldly and religious knowledge and understanding.

A Jalsa and annual gathering in memory of Shaykh Hafiz Fateh Muhammad Sahib

Date: Sunday 29 April at 2:30pm after the ZUHR PRAYER.
Venue: Leeds Makkah Masjid, 36 Thornville Road Leeds LS6 1JY

Keynote Speakers
Imam Muhammad Asim Hussain (London)
Allamah Shahid Raza Nai’mi OBE (Leicester)

Maulana Muhammad Umar (Rochdale)

In the gathering, Professor Sahib’s students, colleagues and contemporaries will talk about the life and works of Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad (May Allah shower mercy on his soul) in English and Urdu.

Brothers and sisters are welcome.

To read further about the life of Shaykh Hafiz Fateh Muhammad, please click on the following links:

http://www.makkahmasjid.co.uk/wp/index.php/category/professor-hafiz-fateh-muhammad-sahib/

http://www.makkahmasjid.co.uk/wp/index.php/category/professor-hafiz-fateh-muhammad-sahib/life-of-professor-hafiz-fateh-muhammad/

In this week’s seminar, we will analyse some of the common misconceptions about Islam and Muslims. The following are some of the common misconceptions.

• Muslims worship a new God called Allah
• Muslims are violent and extremists.
• Islam promotes clash of civilization
• Islam does not grant human rights
• In Islam Women are inferior to Men
• Islam oppresses women
• All Muslim men marry four wives
• Jihad means killing non-Muslims
• Islam was spread by the sword
• Muslims worship Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
• Islam allows domestic violence & forced marriages
• Islam is an obstacle to integration

The talk will be given by Imam Qari Muhammad Asim.
Date & Time: Sunday 22 April at 7pm, after Asr prayer
Venue: Leeds Makkah Masjid, 36 Thornville Road Leeds LS6 1JY

EVERYONE IS WELCOME.

Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad Sahib was one of very few distinguished scholars who excelled in both secular and religious knowledge and understanding. In 1984, he undertook a Masters degree in English Language, Teaching and Linguistics at the University of York. He had previously held the esteemed post of head of the English Department at the International Islamic University at Islamabad, Pakistan. After settling in the UK, he taught the Holy Qur’an in mosques, colleges and universities, to the young and old alike. He gave lectures and translated and interpreted many surahs of the Holy Qur’an in English.

Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad Sahib was a professor of English, yet he was also a master of the Arabic language, Islamic history and contemporary affairs. He memorised the Holy Qur’an at a very young age and then spent the remainder of his life instilling the love of the Divine message and love for education (religious as well as secular) in the hearts of the people.

With his deep insight into the Quran and his understanding of the personality of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), he propounded the peaceful message of Islam his entire life. He believed that people could only come to obey their Lord and respect each other if they were knowledgeable about the rights of their Lord and rights of other human beings. He believed that it was due to lack of education that people were facing financial, social, economical, political and cultural difficulties.

The success of human beings is linked with learning and knowledge. The first message of the Qur’an encouraged human beings to learn. It was due to Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad’s passion to spread education that he sponsored many students in various parts of the world throughout his life to gain education. His students currently hold positions such as lecturers, doctors, lawyers, politicians, engineers and ‘Ulema’ in different parts of the world.

Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad was a God fearing person. He was a noble, compassionate, generous and honourable person, and like all truly great men, extremely humble and modest. He always strived to assist poor families to fulfil their obligations to arrange the marriages of their children, and provided financial assistance to those who struggled to meet the costs of medical treatment and other living expenses. Hence, these principles are amongst the main objectives of Deen Foundation.

Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad suddenly passed away while studying the biography of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) on 26th April 2005 (17th Rabi-al-Awwal 1426), at the age of 63. At the time of his passing away, he was the imam of Leeds Makkah Masjid (UK).

Muhammad Irfan Chaudhary

I was fortunate enough to have known Hafiz Sahib (as he was fondly known by his students and congregation) practically my whole life. I was even more fortunate to have been taught to read and memorise surahs from the Holy Qur’an by him. Seldom did I enter Madina Masjid, where he was based before the construction of Makkah Masjid, to find him doing anything other than seeking knowledge – either reading a book on Islam or reading the book he loved above all other books – the Holy Qur’an.

When Hafiz Sahib read from the Holy Qur’an his love for the book that is the fountain of all wisdom and knowledge was apparent to all fortunate enough to witness him. The love emanated from his face, which glowed when he recited the words of God. The love resonated in his voice, which frequently trembled with emotion as he was reciting. It poured out of him and into the hearts of the listeners. Who could fail to be moved by the sight of this great man reciting Surah Ar’Rahman with tears streaming down his face as he read the verse: “Then which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny”? Because you knew that Hafiz Sahib thanked his Lord for all the blessings he had been bestowed with every second of every day, and you knew that he himself was a blessing sent by Allah Almighty for the benefit and betterment of the community of Leeds.

Hafiz Sahib held education and knowledge in the highest esteem. Not only his own education and knowledge but also that of the community he served. That is why he held daily tafseer classes after prayers. Most importantly, Hafiz Sahib understood the importance of educating the Muslim youth long before his contemporaries had grasped the idea. As far back as the mid-eighties, when many of the first generation of Muslims who had migrated to this country from Pakistan, Bangladesh and India were still dreaming about returning to their home lands with their families after a few years of working in England, Hafiz Sahib was delivering his Friday sermons in a combination of his native language Urdu and the native language of the youngsters in his congregation, English. He understood that unless Islam was accessible to the youth in their mother tongue, it would become an alien concept to them that would ultimately get lost in translation.

Hafiz Sahib was acutely aware that in order to counterbalance the attractions and distractions modern day Britain posed for Muslim youngsters growing up in the country, the Muslim youth needed to be spoken to in their own language and at a level that was accessible to them. His door was always open to youngsters, and one of his most memorable characteristics was that youngsters flocked to him for advice and solace. He was a sympathetic ear and a source of practical guidance – he was a mix between a loving parent, a concerned uncle, an understanding teacher and inspiration to everyone. He was seen as so much more than simply the Imam.

Hafiz Sahib used every opportunity to stress to the youth that it was incumbent upon them to make the most of the advantages of the British education system so that they could grow up to be professionals and Muslims could be represented in all walks and at all levels of British life. Unlike his contemporaries who did little other than stress the importance of seeking Islamic knowledge, he placed almost as much importance on secular knowledge as knowledge of the Sharia. He was himself a unique blend of a Professor of English and a Qur’an Hafiz. He saw no reason why the two cold not go hand in hand, and he was keen to stress this to the youngsters in his congregation. His message was simple; lslam does not preclude its followers from seeking success in this life as well as in the life after death. While we must not ever take our eyes off the ultimate goal – seeking Allah’s pleasure and attaining paradise – it is perfectly permissible to seek the fine things in this life also. And in order to attain these fine things, education is the key.

Hafiz Sahib was truly a man who led by example. He led a simple life that seamlessly blended excellence in the religious and secular fields. He demonstrated to the youth that it was possible to strive for success in worldly affairs, and he was therefore seen as an accessible figurehead who many leaned on for support. His presence is to this day sincerely missed in the community of Leeds.

Reflections of a female Student

It has been 7 years since the founder of Leeds Makkah Masjid, Professor Qari Fateh Muhammad Sahib suddenly passed away on the evening of Tuesday 26 April 2005 (17th Rabi ul-Awwal 1426).

As Leeds Makkah Masjid was built on the vision of Shaykh Qari Fateh Muhammad, it is only appropriate that the following video on ‘My Yorkshire’ is shared with everyone.

My Yorkshire is a collection of digital stories created with communities by museum, library and archive collections in Yorkshire. My Yorkshire website states:

“The Makkah Masjid Mosque in Leeds 6, which was built in 2003, has a forward thinking progressive mission to encourage visitors to learn about the Islamic faith, to marvel at the unique and fascinating interior, especially the beautiful hand painted dome and to come to the programmed exhibitions, displays and lectures held there every year.

The Imam has already been a TV star appearing on Look North and works for a Leeds legal firm. In this short film he describes the stunning decorations inside this unique and inspirational Mosque, and a second clip shows the service at the end of Eid (see links below).”

http://www.myyorkshire.org/playback-video.asp?resourceid=265&journeyid=141