Bomb near Shi'ite shrine in Damascus kills at least six

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 13:13 GMT

Source: Reuters // Reuters

AMMAN, Oct 31 (Reuters) - A bomb killed at least six people on Wednesday near a Shi'ite shrine in a suburb of the Syrian capital Damascus, state media and opposition activists said.

State media said 13 people were also wounded in the explosion in the Sayeda Zainab district. The semi-official Addounia television said the bomb was placed in a garbage bag. Another bomb in the area was defused, the station said.

"The explosion occurred just east of the shrine. Lots of people are also wounded," said one of the activists in the area, who declined to be named.

"Security personnel have swarmed the area. It is not clear whether the target was the shrine or a security compounding adjacent to it," he added. Groups opposed to President Bashar al-Assad say seven people died in the blast.

The poor neighbourhood, inhabited by a mix of Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims, is marked by the coloured tile and mirror shrine, located near several security compounds, as well as an office for Shi'ite Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

Concern among Shi'ites and moderate Sunnis have been rising that Sunni zealots could target the shrine for Zainab, the Prophets' granddaughter and wife of the Caliph Ali, who is highly revered by Shi'ites.

As the 19-month revolt against Assad turns bloodier, sectarian tension has increased between members of the country's Sunni Majority and Assad's Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam that has dominated power in the country since the 1960s.

Tags: general topic

HELPING THE NEEDY

The Holy Prophet [s] said: "Ask (questions from) the learned, speak with the wise, and associate with the poor." Tuhaf-ul-'Uqul, p. 34 Imam Amir-ul-Mu'mineen Ali [a] said: "The cause of the cessation of (one's) wealth is leaving the needy heedless." Ghurar-ul-Hikam, vol. 4, p. 190 Imam Amir-ul-Mu'mineen Ali [a] said: "The Holy Prophet [s] narrated from Allah, the Exalted, on the night of ascent, Who said: 'O' Ahmad, My love is the loving of the poor. Bring the poor nearer to yourself and situate them close to yourself in order that I approach you..." Al-Hayat, vol. 2, p. 51 Imam Sadiq [a] said: "Whoever satiates a hungry believer so that the one is satisfied fully, neither a human being among people nor a near-stationed angel nor a divine Messenger knows how great his reward is in the Hereafter except Allah, the Lord of the Worlds." Then, he added: "Feeding a hungry Muslim is from among the means of forgiveness." After that he recited the word of Allah, Almighty and Glorious: "Or the feeding on a day of hunger, of an orphan near of kin, or to the indigent (down) in the dust." (Sura Balad, No. 90, verses 14 to 16). Al-Kafi, vol. 2, p. 201

Imam Al-Naqi, Al-Hadi (a.s.) his view on death

In fact a believer always remembers death, since his or her main goal is to reach the Almighty God. Hazrat Qasim (pbuh), the son of Imam Hasan Al-Mujtaba a.s.), when asked concerning death at Karbala, answered: "death to me is sweeter than honey." Therefore true believers, those who are sincerely devoted to the Almighty God, anticipate death since to them it signifies the long-awaited meeting with their creator.
During imprisonment,  Imam Ali An-Naqi. Al -Hadi (a.s.)had a grave dug up ready by the side of his prayer mat. Some visitors expressed concern or surprise. The Imam explained, "In order to remember my end I keep the grave before my eyes."
Before a believer approaches the final moment of his/her life and death overtakes him, it is necessary that he wakes up from the state of negligence and prepares for the final everlasting place. This way he will be able to avoid bewilderment and the fear of the so-called untimely death.
At the time of leaving this world, as attested to by the Holy Qur'an, a person will be in one of two states - either he will be of the Companions of the Right, or the Companions of the Left (Refer Holy Qur'an 56:7-56). If he is counted amongst the Companions of the Right, he will be in a good, final state, but if he is one of the Companions of the Left, he will be of those who have suffered a great loss.

Sayings of Imam Naqi (A.S.)

1. The one who spends his life in refuge of God, world's discomforts will become easy for him.

2. The one who carelessly commits sin and throws away the curtain of modesty, God will make him ignanimous, desperate and wretched.

3. The one who does not counsel with others in his matters will be harmed.

4. World is a bazaar in which one group makes benefit and the other faces loss.

5. Cutting jokes and mockery is the activity and enjoyment and amusement of foolish ones.

Tags: hadees

CAN ONE LIVE WITHOUT PRAYERS?

Du’a is not just a request directed to Allah by a person, but rather more it is a fundamental pillar of a person’s life. It feeds the human spirit hope and encourages patience and endurance, establishes good behavior and morals and leads to perfection, while also saving from the perils and horrors in this life, leading to happiness in the hereafter. It is a balsam for the wounded, provides security from all fears, offers relief from distress, enriches the poor person, and assists the needy. Du’a is a fundamental pillar of human life, and one of the natural needs in human life. It is known that those who devoted themselves to prayer are more emotionally stable than others, even if the catastrophe strikes. Even with all this material progress in the western world, which allows the individual to live in finest luxury compared to the other peoples of the world, one still suffers from a deep crisis and suffers from serious problems, mostly those linked to the soul, spirit and morals. Statistics indicate that the West has the highest suicide rates per year and if one searches for the reason one finds only trivial ones or no compelling reason at all! Citizens in the West enjoy security, freedom, equality, welfare, social security and the rule of law and everything that provides stability, so how is it conceivable that in light of all this bliss, such a huge number of people consider suicide every year?! Questionnaires show that the majority of citizens in Western nations suffer from nervous tension and psychological discomfort. The fault lies in making the material values more important than the moral and spiritual values to the extent that they become almost absent from the awareness of Western man, due to the loss of an essential pillar of stability on which psychological, moral and spiritual values is founded on: Supplication. It is obvious that the major social problems faced by the West are due to the absence of moral and spiritual values, since there is little to prevent a person turning into a criminal, such as scruples? As the person is able to escape accountability and legal punishment, and does not believe in punishment from God, there is little to stop him turning into a criminal. Religion, spiritual values and morals preserve society and prevent social ills, as prayers are the spiritual link that connects a person to his Creator. Supplication is protection from the evil of Satan, and encourages the condemnation of sins. Supplication is the protector of the community from delinquency, crime, corruption and different kinds of degradation. No community has the same amount and kinds of supplication as the Shia community, with its tremendous heritage which is missing in the rest of the religions and denominations and other sects. Many of these have not been formulated by normal human beings, but by the Prophet and the Imams (Peace be upon them all). Various rivers originated from the fountain of Ahl ul-Bayt (Peace be upon them), such as that of science, religion, civilization, ethics, management, education, economics, etc.; Prayer was an essential feature of their teachings to educate their followers, providing the blessings of belief and knowledge about the unseen and the afterlife. Indeed, we are still failing to realize the great heritage of prayers of the household of infallibility and purity (Peace be upon them all), which could benefit hundreds of thousands if not millions on the matter of worship and conduct. Ayatollah Mohammed al-Husseini Shirazi, adhering to these supplications, also mentioned their importance in his numerous publications. The Messenger of Allah (Blessings of Allah be upon him and his family) said: "Prayer is the weapon of the believer and the support of the faith." The fact is that prayer is a pillar of religion and a fundamental and indispensable need. As for it being a weapon this refers to it being a personal weapon against those who are against the believers, and is in fact one of the strongest types of weapons and most deadly! How can tyranny confront the power of God and his strength?! Thus, prayer is of the strongest of weapons, and a weapon of faith in the face of false religions and doctrines, making it upon those loyal to the infallible household (Peace be upon them) to invest in such a weapon to prove that Shia-Islam is the true Islam, not others. We challenge those of other sects, proving that Shia-Islam is the true faith with its great prayers and the content they carry, asking people of other sects and denominations: Is there a match?! Many people chant the words: "We pray and pray, but nobody answers us!" They never realize for what reason their prayer was not responded to.  Sometimes one engages in sin which could be a reason for the lack of a response. One’s evil can also delay the fulfillment of a prayer. Allah loves the sound of the believer’s supplication and delays his response as the more the person prays, the higher status he receives in the afterlife. God can also hate the sound of the non-believer and gives him an immediate response of his requests, as he does not want him to enjoy this place in the Hereafter. The person who complains about the lack of response to his prayer does not understand that the response can be delayed for various reasons, some even related to his own personality. The other problem is that many people only pray when calamity and hardship hits them! They do not think of forgiveness or atonement for sins during their daily life, rather more only when caught in a crisis! The usual distance of a person from his lord can be another reason for prayers not being answered. Praying and supplicating only in times of need without considering the imbalance between not praying before the crisis, and abundant prayers during it, may also not lead to the answering of prayers. Then there are also those who say they never have time for supplications and are always busy, as if they are the most important person around, never opening the supplication book even once. Dedicating oneself merely to the prayers on Friday, while neglecting the activities of the remainder of the week, is a further cause of the non-fulfillment of wishes and prayers. A book called "Keys of heaven" is widespread due to it containing a unique selection of prayers and Ziyyarrahs, serving as a daily devotional program of every believer, recommending a scheduled routine of worship in the daily life of every believer in order to stay in constant contact with the Lord Almighty. Can we count on the number of people who benefit from the book "Keys of heaven" and how many times they look at it and read it?! They are in the millions, and if one considers all the ages and time periods, then they are in the hundreds of millions! This book is passed from hand to hand, from generation to generation. How many of these good deeds are credited daily to the account of Sheikh Abbas al-Qomi, the author and compiler of this book?! Supplications are important and essential, with the great importance being attached to the true intentions. They bring us closer to Allah, and should be a regular element of our daily lives.

Tags: islamic talks

ON MAKING PEACE

The Holy Prophet [s] said: "To make peace between two individuals (in comparison) is worthier than one's entire prayers and fastings." Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol. 76, p. 43 Imam Amir ul Mu'mineen [a] said: "If a person thinks well of you, make his idea hold true." Nahjul-Balaghah, p. 511, saying No. 248 The Holy Prophet [s] said: "He who leads (others) to piety (will be rewarded) the same as the doer of that good action." Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol. 96, p. 119 Imam Sadiq [a] said: "There are six things that a Muslim believer can be profited by after his death: A righteous child who seeks forgiveness for him. The Holy scripture which will be recited from. A well which he had dug (for the benefit of people). The tree which he had planted. The charity of water that he had caused to flow. A good tradition which will be followed (by people) after him." Khisal by Saduq, p.323 The Holy Prophet [s] said: "If it were not hard upon my Ummah, I would enjoin them to brush (their teeth) with every prayer." Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol. 76, p. 126

THE FIRST AND THE LAST

1 - Muhammad b. Musa b. al-Mutawakkil -Allah be pleased with him - narrated to us, he said: `Ali b. Ibrahim b. Hashim narrated to us, from his father, from ibn Abi `Umayr, from ibn Udhaynah, from Muhammad b. Hakim, from Maymoon al-Baan who said:

I heard Aba `Abdillah (al-Sadiq) [a] when he was asked regarding the saying of the Mighty and Exalted "He is the First and the Last" say: (He is) the First such that there was no first before Him, and nothing began before Him. And He is the Last but without an end (to Him) as is understood of the attributes of creation. Rather He has ever been First and Last, who has not passed away nor will pass away, without a beginning nor an end. Incidents don't occur to Him, nor does he change from state to state, (He is the) creator of all things.

Tags: hadees

ALLAH THE LIGHT OF HEAVEN AND THE EARTH

My father - Allah be pleased with him - narrated to us, he said: Sa`d b. `Abdullah narrated to us, from Ya'qoub b. Yazeed, from `Abbas b. Hilal who said:
I asked (Imam) al-Ridha [a] about the saying of Allah, Mighty and Exalted, "Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth" [24:35]

He replied: (He is the) Guide for the people of the heaven, and (He is the) guide for the people of earth.

And in the narration of al-Barqiy: "(He has) Guided those in the heavens, and (He has) guided those on earth."