58 Degrees: A Durbah Production

58 Degrees from HilalSpark on Vimeo.

Not Just a Seminar, but an EXPERIENCE!

My experience of Fiqh of Salah in New Jersey will never be forgotten. The memories, knowledge, gain, and of course, Shaykh Yaser Birjas will always be close to my heart.

When I walked in Friday, I expected another simple seminar which would increase my knowledge...but little did I know that my standard was about be shattered. The rest of the first weekend was knowledge packed and uplifting, but it was the second weekend where eEveryone's hearts softened and eyes shed tears.



And so it begins...

Memories upon memories can be recollected from the class, but there are two which stand out which I'll mention:

1. Time Spent with Sh. Yaser Birjas Outside of class
The amount of time I was blessed with Sh. Yaser outside the class was when I benefited most. I had him to myself (well, sort of..along with 20 other people) for a short time in which we discussed dozens of juicy and relevant topics which we could derive benefit from.

Sh. Yaser Birjas has favored Muhammad Ayyub over AlAfasy...sorry kids :)

By the way, even though it looks like I'm really focused on the lassi, I'm actually more focused on Sh. Yaser!


2. 58 Degrees
This was the best part of the class. Period.

The Durbah Volunteers (I call them the Durbah Dream Team) put together a video which showed the importance of salah in our lives. It was well-filmed, edited, and rehearsed.

The video"ended" when a guy walking with a briefcase towards a door....when suddenly, the back door of our room opens! People got scared, excited, and happy (all at once). In the briefcase, there was a small travel prayer mat which was distributed to all the Fiqh of Salah attendees...as if that wasn't awesome enough...

In the middle of the class, the lights suddenly go out, the "music" starts playing, and one of the characters from the movie walks into the room, towards the stage, and tells Sh. Yaser, "The mission objective has changed, Shaykh." Salman (the character in the video) opens his breifcase, hands Sh. Yaser a CD which says "Classified" and tells him to play it...at this point, people are dazed, but wait till you hear what happens next..

On the DVD, there were a bunch of testimonials from various Durbah brothers thanking Sh. Yaser for opening our hearts, minds, and intellects when it came to Salah. The video ended by telling Sh. Yaser to look under his table for a surprise. When knees down, he tells everyone, "First of all, my shoes are under here" and everyone bursts out in the audience laughing. But then he pulls out a bag and places it on his desk. He starts opening it and takes out a rectangular box with some gift wrap on it. He opens it and finds to his surprise a MacBook Pro! And it didn't end there; the Durbah Dream Team went ahead and gave him an iPod Touch as well. He didn't know how to respond at that point and was speechless.

This was the major event which led to Sh. Yaser saying on Sunday,

"Durbah should not only get the Liwaa', but also a crown!"

A Small Gift I Made for Sh. Yaser



Conclusion

There were many memories which I want to share in this post, but if I do that, I'll end up spending a whole day writing them! So to sum it up, I made a poem (well, it's simply my thoughts thrown together..so you can call it what you want):

A weekend filled with good and benefit for everyone,
Has simply faded into the depths of our memories.

A time we spent with our teachers,
A time we spent learning our deen.

What's left now is simply the knowledge we've been given,
And the tears which have dried on our faces.

But we must move on convey the message,
For verily we have an obligation.

To apply and teach the trust we have,
And not to leave it in a binder to acquire dust.

It doesn't matter how much we've memorized or written,
All that matters is how many have we benefitted.

Let us ask, did we only feel emotion after this weekend?
Or we able establish our Divine Link.

May Allah (SWT) increase Sh. Yaser Birjas in good. May He (SWT) grant him and his family long lives to teach us and work for the deen. Ameen.

More Pictures:


First night




Sh. Yaser's desk at the end of the day


The Official AlMaghrib Durbah Boy :P


The Other Durbah Boy trying to swipe a new iTouch :D



Durbah's gift to Tayybah


It doesn't get anymore intimate than this


Question/Answer Sessions w/ YB


IlmFest and Durbah Water and Coffee Mugs


The last night to eat with the Shaykh


Sunset from the top of the parking garage


What not to do at an AlMaghrib Class

A lost soul


Tayybah Sabotage


AlMaghrib-NJ's next class:

A Heart♥Serene
S T U D I E S.. I N...T A Z K I Y Y A H



T A U G H T , B Y
R I A D..O U A R Z A Z I


October 9-11
&
October 16-18

D U R B A H
"Durbah should not only get the liwaa,
but also a crown."
-Sh. Yaser Birjas

Register now at www.almaghrib.org

Leave Your Mark

I looked up at the sky one night,
And saw all the shining stars up high.

Gazing a bit farther, the moon was standing out.
Contemplation ran through my mind on what similitude it taught.

It was brighter, larger, and made its mark from the rest of the stars,
And made me realize; stop being a star and start being a moon.

-Nihal Khan

You Won't Understand

I've walked in the desert's hot sand long before we met,
You warned me of a thorn in the sand when I battled snakes and scorpions,

It was a hard path which left a painful stamp in my memories,
So don't tell me about something I've experienced and that which you've only seen.

You can say all you want that you know how the experience feels,
But you didn't go through what I did; so you won't understand.

-Nihal Khan

Want to build your Halaqa?

Over the weekend I took a seminar called the "National Neigbornet Coordinators Conference" which was organized by Young Muslims.

The seminar taught how to properly run a halaqa in your local community and key techniques in establishing leaders and mentors in that halaqa. I think this was one of the most useful seminars I've ever taken. Check out my notes. (The notes can be used for brothers and sisters, but they will have to be tweeked in some places if sisters are using them).

Acceptance - Dedicated to Sr. Noor Bhuyian

Mixed feelings are all I sense when I heard of your departing,
While the remnants of your deeds have left judgment clear.

Neither did we meet, speak, or interact in any way,
Yet your passing has effected Muslims from NJ to California.

It's hard to accept that you have left us so suddenly,
For once we were in a room studying our deen together.

It feels awkward knowing your e-mail will never be opened,
Or my facebook request will never be answered.

But Allah's will has been decreed,
And nothing I do or say will change that.

As for me, my deeds just keep coming and going without direction,
But you, your last moments were with Allah's book with an intention to memorize it fully.

I shed tears when I heard of your departure,
Now it's my turn to follow in your footsteps.



May Allah (SWT) raise Sr. Noor with those who have memorized the Qur'aan.
May He (SWT) forgive her for her sins and admit her to gardens under which rivers flow. Ameen