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Showing posts from July, 2025

How a Muslim should deal with his non muslim family

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 ASSALAMU ALAYKUM WARAHMATULLAHI WABARAKATUH  Praise be to ALlāh, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of ALlāh and his family. The one whom ALlāh has guided to Islam must hasten to convey this light to his family and relatives, because they are the first people whom he should call and to whom he should bring the light of Islam. If there are among them people who do not object to Islam, then this is a great blessing which the Muslim should make the most of to present Islam to them in the best manner.  He may use any permissible means to call them to Islam, such as giving them audio and video tapes, books and websites, inviting influential Muslim people, drawing close to them by means of gifts, treating them kindly and good attitudes. He should avoid being harsh in his approach and he should always pray to ALlāh to guide them. As ALlāh has enjoined treating parents with kindness even if they call their child to kufr and strive hard in doing so, then it is more app...

Beyond Adversity

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  Ogédé kidef'omi kiñórakwu olugbé gé? Ichalu kichupké edé deyino! Should a plantain  in a river  complain of thirst? But that is not how it should be!  I didn't come from a poor home, nor was it a rich one. There used to be a social  concept called 'the middle class'. Although we fluctuated between extremes, we were never exactly middle-class.  My father told me that I'm considered an adult at fifteen. And I  started living like an adult from my teenage years. I covered breakfast and lunch, but thankfully had dinners at home. Although I didn't have to pay for rent but I definitely wasn't living rent-free.  How come you think you're a hustler and you can't even support the home? Are you a weakling? Your peers contribute to their families, why can't you? I refuse to be discouraged, I choose to change the narrative. I can't be the weak link. But your family's not doing so bad, how did you become this unfortunate? Fate! Let me shoulder my bu...

The ruling on coming early to Jumu‘ah prayer, then going out for some reason before the prayer

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  ASSALAMU ALAYKUM WARAHMATULLAHI WABARAKATUH  Praise be to ALlāh, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of ALlāh and his family. The virtue of coming early to Jumu‘ah prayer is proven, and it is proven that the worshippers will vary in terms of reward according to how early they come, as is mentioned in the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may ALlāh be pleased with him), who narrated that the Messenger of ALlāh (blessings and peace of ALlāh be upon him) said: Whoever does ghusl from janaabah on Friday, then comes to the mosque early, it is as if he sacrificed a camel. Whoever comes at the second hour, it is as if he sacrificed a cow. Whoever comes at the third hour, it is as if he sacrificed a horned ram. Whoever comes at the fourth hour, it is as if he sacrificed a chicken. Whoever comes at the fifth hour, it is as if he sacrificed an egg. Then when the imam comes out, the angels come in to listen to the reminder (khutbah) Narrated by al-Bukhaari (881) and Muslim (850). What ...

Wealth is not Clannish by Nature.

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Anana nólópu no!  Anana, inólópu n!! Anana, iné, ólópu no!!!.  Wealth is not clannish by nature.  Since we started, we've undertaken many tasks, striven and still struggling for excellence. Naturally, what really matters is not where we come from but where we're headed ultimately. However, I still think some of these backgrounds try to pull our backs to ground. As a pupil, I watched a Hollywood movie about spaceships and I loved it. Not just for the fun of it, but I thought I'd found a purpose. The Warships, the Destroyers, God, I love technology. I told my older sibling, I didn't want to be a soldier, but I wanted be an engineer, one that design good ships, ships to defend our regional territory, ships to defend our own. He told me, then you should study marine engineering. I wanted nothing more than to become an engineer, a marine engineer. This is my 5th year as a secondarian. As I prepare for my Secondary School Leaving Certificate Examination, I am cognizant th...

The Sacred Months in the Islamic Calendar

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  ASSALAMU ALAYKUM WARAHMATULLAHI WABARAKATUH  Understanding the Sacred Months in Islam: Importance and Significance Praise be to ALlāh  What are the names of 12 months in Islam? Muḥarram, Ṣafar, Rabiʿ al-Awwal, Rabīi al-Thani, Jumada al-Awwal, Jumada al-Thani, Rajab, Shaʿbān, Ramaḍan, Shawwāl, Dhu al-Qaʿdah, and Dhu al-Ḥijjah The four sacred months in Islam are Muharram, Rajab, Dhul Q’ada, and Dhul Hijjah. While Ramadan and Dhul Hijjah are popular because one is the month of fasting and the other is the month of Hajj; both are 2 of the five pillars of Islam. However, the four sacred months are mentioned in the Quran as being ordained by ALlāh, and bad deeds committed during these months are considered more severe. The fact that they’re sacred means that no fighting, transgression, or injustice should be done in those sacred months. These months were considered sacred even before the advent of Islam and were respected by the Arabs. Time has completed a cycle and assumed t...

Religio-Cultural Influences on healthcare

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  Community Health Practitioners must navigate cultural and religious influences that shape healthcare access, beliefs, and practices. We must adopt culturally sensitive approaches through our understanding of these influences to ensure effective healthcare delivery, and ultimately addressing health disparities in various communities. ®Ahmed Salim Jn ✍️ RCHP  #Uloko

The Elder is not to blame

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When we were growing up, our elders would send us on errands and spit on the floor, saying, 'Be back before this spit dries up'. I can vividly recall those days, when the elder would say, don't step out of the compound, we'd dare not defy this instruction, even in his absence. When an instructor instructs, the instructee listens with keen attention, never to miss a word of what is said. I was prepared to go to my farm, we've been favored with abundant downpour, while it was a weather for two for some, it was a weather for farm for us. It was a tragedy when my phone rang and I heard my brother sobbing, struggling to find words to express the misfortune that befell us. However, he had no other option but to spill the beans. He said; 'Uloko, Opaluwa is transcended to the land of the silent ones'. I felt a cold shiver run down my spine, yet sweating profusely. I abandoned my plans and said to my son, 'my brother, your uncle, just gave up the ghost' we ha...

Is punishment from ALlāh one of the consequences of sin?

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  ASSALAMU ALAYKUM WARAHMATULLAHI WABARAKATUH  Praise be to ALlāh. Undoubtedly committing sin is one of the causes of ALlāh’s wrath and of loss of blessing and withholding of rain and being overtaken by the enemy. ALlāh says (interpretation of the meanings): “And indeed We punished the people of Fir‘awn (Pharaoh) with years of drought and shortness of fruits (crops), that they might remember (take heed)” [Al-A’raaf 7:130] “So We punished each (of them) for his sins, of them were some on whom We sent Haasib (a violent wind with shower of stones) [as on the people of Loot (Lot)], and of them were some who were overtaken by As-Sayhah [torment — awful cry, (as Thamood or Shu‘ayb’s people)], and of them were some whom We caused the earth to swallow [as Qaaroon (Korah)], and of them were some whom We drowned [as the people of Nooh (Noah), or Fir‘awn (Pharaoh) and his people]. It was not ALlāh Who wronged them, but they wronged themselves” [Al-‘Ankaboot 29:40] There are many similar ...

Uloko: The Plight of a Lad

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  The time is past 5 am, my azaan (alarm)  rings, no chance to go back to bed. Uloko wants to sleep but, I've got to wake brush my teeth, and make ablution, to face my creator in total submission (salat). Now I'm done asking for my daily bread, but deep down, I hope to own the bakery so I won't have to bother. I take a shower, prepare for the day ahead. For I am ignorant of  what today has instore for me. Like the bird, I have no barn nor silo to store for tomorrow. What I see (of food), I survive with. I get wages for my labor, sometimes I am uncertain, do I possess the right to complain? cause this is too meager for an adult. Keke (bucket tricycle) boy in the day, vulcanizer at night. I am a just boy (none of these belong to me). After I eat and buy body pain medications, nothing will be left for me to save. So, tomorrow I have to go again. Yet the society thinks I am lazy. I used to dream big, but the older I get, the smaller my dreams turned. Should I blame the societ...

Holding the vessel in the left hand and supporting it with the right hand when drinking

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  ASSALAMU ALAYKUM WARAHMATULLAHI WABARAKATUH  Praise be to ALlāh. It is proven in the Sunnah that we are instructed to eat and drink with the right hand, and we are forbidden to do that with the left hand. It was narrated from Ibn ‘Umar (may ALlāh be pleased with him) that the Messenger of ALlāh (blessings and peace of ALlāh be upon him) said: “When one of you eats, let him eat with his right hand, and when he drinks, let him drink with his right hand, for the shaytaan eats with his left hand and drinks with his left hand.” Narrated by Muslim, 2020 It was narrated from Jaabir ibn ‘Abdullah (may ALlāh be pleased with him) that the Messenger of ALlāh (blessings and peace of ALlāh be upon him) said: “Do not eat with the left hand, for the Shaytaan eats with the left hand.” Narrated by Muslim, 2019. If a person needs to use both hands, there is nothing wrong with that because of the report which says that the Prophet (blessings and peace of ALlāh be upon him) drank from a watersk...

Primary Healthcare: A Key to Accessible and Affordable Health Services.

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  Primary Healthcare is an essential health care based on practicals, scientifically sound, and socially acceptable methods and technologies made universally accessible to individuals and families in a community through their full participation and at a cost that the family and country can afford to maintain at every stage of their development, in the spirit of self reliance and self determination. In an ideal situation, PHC services ought to be essentially relevant to meet the health and health related needs of the people. It should be sound scientifically, so you don't add to the woes of the people. The methods should be acceptable to the people, enlighten don't bark at their refusal, understand their cultural/social life, don't look down on them.  Use local technologies that meet up with the universal standards, teach them to better their health. Thank God for the sachet ORS/Nutri C. Then Oral Rehydration Therapy was a local technologies. Respective appropriate proportio...

Promoting Health and Wellbeing: The Impact of Community Health Practitioners

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  Community Health Practitioners are essential in public health promotion. They health educate, advocate, mobilize communities and offer preventive healthcare services. Through collaboration with stakeholders, they promote positive health behaviors, prevent diseases, and improve overall wellbeing. ®Ahmed Salim Jn  ✍️ RCHP  #Uloko