“Don’t be the Fifth”

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Adh-Dhahabî stated in his Al-Kabâ’ir (The Major Sins) that Abû Ad-Dardâ’ said:

كن عالما، أو متعلما، أو مستمعا، أو محبا، ولا تكن الخامس فتهلك

“Be a scholar, a student, a listener, or a lover of knowledge, but don’t be the fifth (i.e. an ignorant) or you’ll be destroyed.”

This narration has many wordings, many of them weak.  Another similar narration reported by Abû Khaythamah An-Nasâ’î in Kitâb Al-`Ilm (The Book of Knowledge) on the authority of `Abd Allâh bin Mas`ûd is:

اغد عالما، أو متعلما، ولا تغد بين ذلك

“Aspire to be a scholar, or a student of knowledge, and do not aspire to be other than that.”

Similarly, Abû Khaythamah narrated that `Umar bin `Abd Al-`Azîz said:

إن استطعت أن تكون عالما، فكن عالما، فإن لم تستطع فكن متعلما، فإن لم تكن متعلما فأحبهم، فإن لم تحبهم، فلا تبغضهم

“If you are able to become a scholar, then become a scholar.  If you are unable to, then be a student (of knowledge).  If you are unable to be a student, then love them.  And if you do not love them, then do not hate them.”

Arabic second-most common Australian tongue

AFP/File – Arabic is the most commonly spoken language after English by young people in Australia, a study has revealed, …

– Fri Apr 15, 12:09 pm ET

SYDNEY (AFP) – Arabic is the most commonly spoken language after English by young people in Australia, a study has revealed, with about one in eight multilingual children using it in the home.

The Australia Early Development Index, a government-backed study of more than 260,000 children in their first year of school, found that 18 percent spoke a language other than English.

Despite no Arabic nation making the top 15 countries of birth for Australia’s children, some 5,565 spoke the language at home, 11.8 percent of all multilingual children.

Vietnamese was the second-most prevalent, at 8.4 percent, followed by Greek, Chinese dialects and Hindi, each spoken by less than 5.0 percent

England, New Zealand, India and the United States were the top countries of birth after Australia, followed by the Philippines, China, South Africa, South Korea and Sri Lanka.

“The Australian population is one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse in the world and this is represented in the children surveyed for the AEDI,” the study said.

Aboriginal children made up 4.8 percent of the student population and one-fifth of them speak a native language in the home — most commonly a creole mixing an indigenous dialect with English.

Fewer than 100 children spoke any single local tongue, the study found.

‘Arabizi is destroying the Arabic language’

By RENAD GHANEM | ARAB NEWS

Published: Apr 19, 2011 22:25 Updated: Apr 19, 2011 22:25

JEDDAH: Arabizi, a term that describes a system of writing Arabic in English, is now more popular than ever, especially online.

Parents and teachers are becoming more concerned over the popularity of this new trend. Some see it as a threat to the Arabic language.

A non-English speaker does not need to speak the language to communicate with others in Arabizi. Numbers are also mixed in Arabizi to represent some letters in Arabic, such as 2, 5, 6, 7 and 9.

Most Arab Internet users find this way easier than typing in Arabic. Teachers fear that this will weaken their Arabic language ability or even replace the language in the future. Arabic professional professors from the Arab world consider it a war against the Arabic language to make it disappear in the long run.

What is Meant by ‘The Prophet’s Family’

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

We often hear or say the du`â or prayer for the Prophet, “sall Allâhu `alayhi wa`alâ Âlihi wa’ashâbihi wasallama” (May the peace and blessings of Allâh be upon him, his family and his companions) and at times we may omit ‘wa’ashâbihi’ (and his companions) from this.  In his Manhaj As-Sâlikîn, Shaykh As-Sa`dî does just this as have many scholars before and after him.  Of course this is not done out of malice towards the sahâbah or even forgetfulness, but rather because the word âl (آل) or family is not confined to mean the kinsmen of the Prophet (sall Allâh `alayhi wasallam).  Ibn Jibrîn recalls some lines of poetry in his Ibhâj Al-Mu’minîn (an explanation of Manhaj As-Sâlikîn), which defines the meaning of âl,

آل الـنبـي هـم أتـبـاع مـلـتـه   *   مـن كـان من عجم منهـم ومـن عرب

لـو لـم يـكـن آلـه إلا قـرابـتــه   *   صلى المصلي على الطاغي أبي لهب

The family of the Prophet are those followers of his religion

Be he a foreigner from amongst them or an Arab,

If his family were not but his kinsmen

Then the supplicant has prayed for the tyrant Abu Lahab.

So the companions are from the Prophet’s (sall Allâhu `alayhi wasallam) family, as are his followers and ummah.  The usage of the word âl to carry this meaning has precedence in the Qur’ân,

“Make the people (âl) of Pharaoh enter the severest punishment.”

[Sûrah Al-Ghâfir 40:46]

Studying Nahw: Shaykh ibn Uthaymeen

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Taken from www.tayyibaat.com, translated by sister Amatullah may Allâh reward her with good.

Studying Nahw: Shaykh ibn Uthaymeen.

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Bismillah

Shaykh ibn Uthaymeen rahimahullah says:

The science of nahw (grammar) is a noble science tha is a means to two important things:

1. Having an understanding of the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam). Comprehension of these two will give one understanding and knowledge of grammar.
2. Establishing the tongue upon the Arabic language that the words of Allah were revealed in; this is why having an understanding of nahw is a very important matter. Although, nahw in the beginning stages is difficult to comprehend, it becomes easier in the end. The similitude is given: a house of straw, but a door of iron, meaning it is difficult to get inside, but once you are in, everything is easy for you. This is why it is necessary for the people to have a strong desire and motivation during the beginning stages of learning until it becomes easier upon them in the end.

Download `Arabiyyah Bayna Yadayk Books

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

All three `Arabîyyah Bayna Yadayk books are now available for download and can be accessed in The Library or Course Material page.  Click here for a direct link.

The Importance of Nahw and Sarf

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

An excellent set of notes highlighting the importance of nahw and sarf and how changes of a harakah in the Qur’an can be very serious.  May Allaah reward the brother and sister who put these together for their efforts and granting me permission to share this.

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NAHW: focuses on words and the harakah on the last letter of each word in a sentence

SARF: focuses on how different words are conjugated from one source and defines the harakah of every letter in a word except the last letter

How did the science of nahw come about? During the caliphate of ‘Ali ibn Abee Taalib, radhiyallaahu ‘anhu, a Bedouin man came from the desert to the town and was praying behind one of the Imaams and the Imaam was reciting soorah at-Tawbah and when he recited the following aayah: