Pakistan sees less number of Hajj applicants amid coronavirus fears; Less number of people apply for Hajj over virus fears. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE ISLAMABAD:  The religious affairs ministry on Thursday announced the names of successful intending pilgrims who will travel to the holy land later this year to perform the sacred religious obligation under the Government Hajj Scheme 2020. The Hajj balloting this year saw lesser number applications than the year before apparently because of the fears over coronavirus. However, the Religious Affairs Min ..read more

Eid ul-Fitr in 2020 The festival of Eid ul-Fitr, the Festival of Fast breaking, marks the end of Ramadan When is Eid ul-Fitr? Year Dates 2022 May 3, May 4, May 5 2021 May 13, May 14, May 15 2020 May 25, May 26, May 27 When is Eid al-Fitr? The festival of Eid al-Fitr, the Festival of Fast-breaking, is an important religious holiday celebrated by Muslims worldwide that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.  The holiday celebrates the conclusion of the 29 or 30 days of dawn-to-sunset fasting during the entire month of Ramadan. Traditions of Eid al-Fitr 'Sa ..read more

The Protector of ISLAM The glorious legacy of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is etched in the greatest achievement of his followers — from the halls of Al-Hamra to the Taj Mahal, from Alif Leila to Firdausi’s Shahnama, to the theory of optics by Ibn-al-Haytham — in architecture, literature, sciences, and politics great men and women inspired with his message have helped make a better world. To that legacy, and my fingers shiver as I try to write this, can we add Tehreek-e-Labaiq Pakistan (TLP)? Would we have to live with the image of devotees of TLP stealing bananas from a child vendor in Sheikhup ..read more

DR. AAFIA SIDDIQUE Dr. Aafia has become the hot topic everywhere. People who support the extremist elements such as Al-Qaeda and Taliban mentality are calling her Daughter of the Nation" or the "Lady of Islam" etc. but very few people know the true facts about her. For anyone to see the truth in this story, he or she has to throw away the goggles of Islamist extremism and look at the facts to decide. I bet, once the facts are put forth, you will see another face of this lady who is as dangerous as many Al-Qaeda leaders who have damage the image of a moderate Muslim living anywhere in the worl ..read more

LAL MASJID “Respected Elders and dear brothers, I know that you are eager to know what happened at Lal Masjid and that you are sad and frustrated at this bloody game. Whole of Pakistan is frustrated.​ The details are more or less in front of you; via newspapers, radio and televisions. But we have one complaint with the media that they did not elaborate on the Truth (of what happened) in the manner that Truth should be elaborated. They are not clarifying what is obvious. They are leaving doubts, and the media has adopted a hostile attitude. Hostile attitude towards ulema and religious circles ..read more

Masjid-e-Nabwi is the masjid (mosque) established by the Prophet (ﷺ) upon his migration to Madinah. It is the second most revered masjid in Islam and the second largest in the world, after Masjid al-Haram in Makkah. When the Prophet (ﷺ) migrated to Madinah (then called Yathrib), the chiefs of the city and his immediate followers rode around his camel in their best clothes and in glittering armour. Everyone was hoping he would stop by their house. The Prophet (ﷺ) would answer everyone politely and kindly, “[This camel] is commanded by Allah; wherever it stops, that will be my home ..read more

The beauty of prayer in Islam GOING deeper into our spiritual state during prayers (salah) requires that we have a presence of heart and are mindful of the words being said during the prayers. Our prayer will feel shorter, yet when we look at how much time we actually spent, we will think, “Did I just spend 10 minutes?” or even 15 and 20 minutes. A person who began applying this said he wished the prayer would never end. A feeling that Ibn Al-Qayyim describes as “what the competitors compete for… it is nourishment for the soul and the delight of the eyes,” and he also said, “If this feelin ..read more

 Imam Malik- A Great Scholar of Hadiths Imam Malik was one of the most respected scholars of Fiqh also known as Imam Darul Hijrah. His great grandfather Abi Aamer, who was from Yemen, embraced Islam in 2 AH and migrated to Madinah. He participated in all the battles alongside the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) except the Battle of Badr. Malik was born near Madinah in 93 AH. He received his education in Madinah and contacted about 900 scholars for collecting Hadiths. He acquired a great amount of knowledge from the disciples of the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him). He mas ..read more

AS we enter the month of Ramadan you may be hearing "Ramadan Kareem" and "Ramadan Mubarak" a lot. The phrases have different meanings and are used at different times. 2 Ramadan preparations in GazaCredit: EPA What are the greetings in Arabic and English? "Happy Ramadan" can be translated to Ramadan Mubarak, which also means "blessed Ramadan". Ramadan Kareem means "may Ramadan be generous to you" but there is some debate as to if it should be used during Ramadan. The greetings are different as Ramadan Mubarak offers a blessed or happy Ramadan to the person it is exchanged with. Whereas Ram ..read more

Life Under Siege in Kashmir Kashmir remains an open air prison, leaving people with no control over their lives. This is one of the darkest times to be a Kashmiri. We are being reminded of this fact every minute since the August 5 abrogation of Article 370 of India’s Constitution, which had granted Jammu and Kashmir partial autonomy as an Indian state. We encounter it in our minds, in the anxious look on the faces of fellow Kashmiris, in the listless markets that have only recently reopened after three and a half months of shutdown, and in the street-side huddles that invariably veer into di ..read more