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Grounded is a practical Islamic framework for living with clarity, resilience, and purpose in an age of distraction. Drawing on traditional Islamic scholarship, adapted for modern life, it offers a steady way of living faith — not by escaping the modern world, but by standing firmly within it. www.grounded.day
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Last week we sealed the heart of the kāfir and stood at the mouth of the third category. This week we step into it. Of the three types of people in Part One — the muttaqīn (Ayāt 2–5), the kāfir (Ayāt 6–7), and the munāfiq (Ayāt 8–20) — the hypocrite is given the longest passage by far. Thirteen ayāt against four and two. It is worth asking why before we read a single word of them. 1. Why the Hypocrite Takes the Longest Passage Two reasons. First, there are different types and levels of hypocrite. Second, and more telling, the munāfiq is simply hard to define . The person of taqwā is clear — good within, good without. The kāfir is clear — bad within, bad without. But the hypocrite is neither here nor there : good on the surface, corrupt underneath, and forever shifting between the two. Ambiguity needs more words to pin down than clarity does. 2. The Word Munāfiq : The Tunnel of the Dabb The word comes from nafaq — a tunnel. But the image turns on the difference between a burrow and a tunnel. A rabbit’s burrow has one opening: one way in, one way out, a door the animal must stand and defend because it has no other. The dabb , the desert lizard, digs a tunnel with two openings . When danger comes from one end, it bolts out the other. It never has to commit to a position; it always keeps an escape route. That is the hypocrite exactly. When the Muslims are winning, he says, “We are with you — one of you.” When the tide turns toward the Quraysh, he slips out the far exit: “We are your friends; we’ve been helping you all along.” A bestie to both — though the word best can only ever have one. There is a fitting detail in how the Arabs still hunt the dabb. Because the tunnel has many mouths, it is never a one-man job. A group drives into the desert, finds the holes, and floods them with water from a hose. Not knowing which exit the animal will take, they watch every opening at once — and take it the moment it surfaces. The very feature meant to keep it safe is what exposes it. (A note in passing: the dabb is ḥalāl, though the Prophet ﷺ did not eat it himself, as it was unfamiliar to his people.) 3. How the Hypocrites Came to Be When the Muslims made the Hijrah, they were not yet strong. In that first year Madīnah held three groups: the Muslims — some 300-plus men, perhaps close to a thousand souls with their families, in a city of six or seven thousand, a ruling minority; the Jews , in three tribes (the Qaynuqāʿ, the Naḍīr, and the Qurayẓah); and the pagans , still free to worship their idols. There were no Christians in Madīnah. Here a point of definition matters. When the moment of decision came, the pagans faced a choice the Jews did not — because being a Jew is a matter of ethnicity as well as religion . You can change your religion; you cannot change your lineage, any more than a Malay can decide to be Chinese. So the religious conversions that followed came from the pagans , whose religion put no such barrier in the way. The decisive moment was the Battle of Badr , in the second year of Hijrah. 313 Muslims , badly equipped — not all of them even had swords, and those they had were feeble, because they had never set out expecting war — faced roughly a thousand Quraysh , armed to the hilt, one of the largest armies Arabia had yet seen. And the Muslims won decisively; the leading men of Quraysh were killed. The politics of the peninsula turned in a day. Islam was here to stay. Badr is also a lesson in how planning and reliance on Allah fit together. The Muslims were aided by angels — but you do not put angels in your plan . You make du’ā for help and Allah sends it however He wills, but you prepare with the means actually in front of you. You cannot study three chapters of ten and expect an angel to whisper the rest in your ear during the exam. Do your utmost; then trust Him for what lies beyond your reach. After Badr, the pagans understood there was no future on the losing side, and no ethnic wall to shelter behind as the Jews had. Their only way to keep standing and influence was to profess Islam outwardly . For many, the profession was hollow — and this is the origin of the hypocrites . There were none in the first year of Hijrah; they appeared only in the second, once outward Islam became the price of relevance. 4. The Leader of the Hypocrites: ʿAbdullāh ibn Ubayy The munāfiqūn had a head: ʿAbdullāh ibn Ubayy ibn Salūl . To understand him, return to pre-Islamic Madīnah, then called Yathrib — home to Arabs and Jews. The Arabs were two main tribes, the Aws and the Khazraj , locked in a feud that had run for decades and killed off the senior leaders on both sides. It was exhaustion with that un-winnable war that finally led them to invite the Prophet ﷺ from Makkah to lead them. Ibn Ubayy was the most senior figure left standing, and he had expected the leadership of Madīnah to fall to him by default. But the rival tribe would never accept a ruler drawn from the enemy they had fought for a generation — so the people reached past their own factions for a neutral leader, and invited the Prophet ﷺ. Ibn Ubayy was left jealous and bitter: the leadership was supposed to be mine. He and his followers stayed pagan at first, betting the Muslims would soon be gone. When Badr proved otherwise, he “accepted” Islam with his tongue while nursing the grievance in his heart — and so led the hypocrites, later feeding the weak points of Madīnah to the Quraysh, telling each side what it wanted to hear. 5. Ayah 8 — “We believe” (but they do not) وَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ ءَامَنَّا بِٱللَّهِ وَبِٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ وَمَا هُم بِمُؤْمِنِينَ Wa mina al-nāsi man yaqūlu āmannā billāhi wa bil-yawmi al-ākhiri wa mā hum bi-mu’minīn. “And among the people are those who say, ‘We believe in Allah and in the Last Day,’ but they are not believers.” Walking the words: wa — and; min al-nās — among the people; man yaqūlu — those who say; āmannā billāhi wa bil-yawmi al-ākhir — we believe in Allah and the Last Day; wa mā hum bi-mu’minīn — but they are not believers. They claim faith in Allah and the Hereafter, and Allah Himself overturns the claim: they never had īmān at all. The mouth says one thing; the heart holds another. From this comes a principle worth carrying. The Prophet ﷺ and many companions knew the hypocrites — Jibrīl named them through revelation — yet Ibn Ubayy was never punished for his hypocrisy. Because we judge people by their outward actions , not their intentions . Intention is known to Allah alone; it is a matter between a person and their Lord. The Prophet ﷺ had revelation; we do not. So the lesson is a careful balance: take people at face value — do not accuse, do not presume to read hearts — but stay discerning . Where the signs of untrustworthiness are clear, you guard yourself accordingly, without ever making an accusation about what lies inside another person. 6. Ayah 9 — The Deception That Rebounds يُخَـٰدِعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَمَا يَخْدَعُونَ إِلَّآ أَنفُسَهُمْ وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ Yukhādiʿūna Allāha wa alladhīna āmanū, wa mā yakhdaʿūna illā anfusahum wa mā yashʿurūn. “They think to deceive Allah and those who believe, but they deceive none but themselves — and they perceive it not.” They imagine they can slip their disbelief past Allah — that He does not see the pretence — and past the believers with Him. But the deception lands on no one but themselves ; they are the ones who end at the losing end. And the closing phrase, wa mā yashʿurūn — “they do not even perceive it” — is the sharpest edge of the ayah: the trap has closed on them, and they cannot even feel it. 7. Ayah 10 — The Disease of the Heart فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ فَزَادَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مَرَضًا وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌۢ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَكْذِبُونَ Fī qulūbihim maraḍun fa-zādahumu Allāhu maraḍā, wa lahum ʿadhābun alīmun bimā kānū yakdhibūn. “In their hearts is a disease, so Allah has increased their disease; and for them is a painful punishment for the lies they used to tell.” Allah names hypocrisy a disease ( maraḍ ) of the heart — and rather than cure it, He increases it. A quick distinction of terms: nifāq is the hypocrisy; munāfiq is the hypocrite himself. For them is ʿadhāb alīm , a painful punishment, earned by their persistent lying. The word alīm carries more than the translation shows, and it turns on pronunciation. ʿAlīm , opened with an ʿayn , means “most knowledgeable.” Alīm , opened with a hamzah , means “painful.” The whole meaning rides on that first letter — which is why precise recitation ( makhraj ) is a necessity, not a refinement. The root of pain is alam ; alīm is its intensified form. That extra yā’ — the -īm pattern — is a form of hyperbole: not exaggeration in the sense of something untrue, but intensification to the extreme. It is the same pattern as Ar-Raḥīm , which is not merely “merciful” but extremely merciful. So alīm is not just pain, but pain at its utmost. And the pattern carries a second dimension: it is continuously increasing . A punishment that does not merely hurt but keeps growing worse. The reason Allah frames it this way cuts against something we know from experience — in this world, pain eases as we grow used to it. The first time you stretch into the splits it feels like torture; do it daily and the body adjusts until it is nothing. Walk fifteen kilometres in forty-degree heat with long stretches of no shade, and the five-minute walk to the masjid the next day feels like nothing at all. We adapt. The punishment of Jahannam is built so that no one ever adapts : each time the person thinks “I can bear this now,” it deepens; “I think I’ve adjusted,” and it deepens again — continuous, escalating, with no floor to settle onto. The same -īm pattern, turned toward mercy, gives Ar-Raḥīm — and here the contrast is worth holding. Ar-Raḥmān is the mercy Allah extends to everyone in this world; Ar-Raḥīm is the mercy reserved for the believers in Jannah. And like alīm , it is ever-increasing, but toward the good. In this world even what we love grows stale; we get used to it and it becomes the new normal. In Jannah the delight only ever improves — better, and better, and better, without end. 8. ʿAẓīm vs Alīm: Whose Punishment Is Worse? Set the two endings side by side. Ayah 7, of the kāfir, closes: wa lahum ʿadhābun ʿaẓīm — “a great punishment.” Ayah 10, of the munāfiq, closes: wa lahum ʿadhābun alīm — “a painful punishment.” Note that ʿaẓīm , “great,” is a neutral intensifier: one can be greatly foolish or greatly brilliant. It magnifies without saying good or bad. So whose is worse? On the strength of the language, the munāfiq’s . ʿAẓīm describes a punishment that is great; alīm describes one that is painful and continuously increasing . The hypocrite’s does not merely match the disbeliever’s in scale — it deepens without end. And fittingly so: the hypocrite knew the truth, professed it with his tongue, and betrayed it in his heart. Next week, in shā’ Allāh, we continue into the hypocrites’ passage — and our quiz will cover up to Ayah 10, including the characteristics of the People of Taqwā and the definitions of the kāfir, so keep them memorized. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day Quran at Home. Each week we take some ayat from the Qur’an. On Tuesday we read them and learn their tajweed. On Thursday we look into their meaning and draw out lessons we can live by. Where we are in the story Last week we finished the first story of the surah — the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf, the people of the cave — and drew out its lessons. Through that story Alla…
It’s Tuesday, so it’s Tajweed Tuesday — where we break down the tajweed rules from the ayat our students learn on Saturday at Qaswa Madrasah. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This term and next, we’re working through Surah al-Kahf. This week: ayat 34 - 44. If the ayat feel too long to read in one sitting, break them down. Take one small portion and work it until it’s fluent. Then move to the next. Slow is fine. Stopping isn’t. Consistency beats intensity — every time. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day 1. Where We Are We are in Part One of Surah Al-Baqarah, which deals with the types of people . Recall that the division of the surah into parts is not divine — these are scholarly aids to help us navigate the terrain of the surah. At a glance the Quran can seem to move from theme to theme without order, but beneath the surface lies a coherent, beautiful s…
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day Quran at Home. Each week we take some ayat from the Qur’an. On Tuesday we read them and learn their tajweed. On Thursday we look into their meaning and draw out lessons we can live by. Where we are in the story Last week we finished the story of the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf — the people of the cave. Who were they? A group of young men who fled a comfortable life in the city to save their īmān. There was a king, a tyrant, forcing the people to abandon the worship of Allah. So these youth escaped, and Allah made the cave safe and comfortable for them for 309 years. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. When they woke — three centuries later — the first thing on their minds was hunger. Let us send one of us into town for food. But the man who went was dressed in a fashion three hundred years out of date, so a shopkeeper called the palace guards, who arrested him and brought him before the king. And this was a new king altogether — a pious ruler who worshipped Allah and had heard the story of these courageous young men. Curious, he asked to be taken to them. The man led the king and his entourage to the foot of the hill and went up ahead to reassure his friends. And there the story of the cave closes. The first great lesson of the surah runs through all of it: īmān comes first. That Allah alone is worshipped is our non-negotiable line — a matter of faith we never bargain over. And this is one of the very tests of the Dajjāl, who will come near the end of time claiming to be god, forcing people to worship him. Obey him, and you are promised wealth, comfort, a full stomach. Refuse, and you may have to flee to a cave, away from the luxuries of the world. The Aṣḥāb al-Kahf show us the answer: choose Allah, and Allah will facilitate your affairs. They left the city, and Allah made the cave comfortable — bending the sunlight from their faces, turning them as they slept, placing the dog at the entrance to keep others away. Comfort, safety, and security are with Allah. The surah still holds four more stories, and this was the first lesson: the test of faith towards the end of time. When you sacrifice everything for Allah, Allah takes care of you. Ayah 27 — the Qur’an is our cave وَاتْلُ مَا أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ مِن كِتَابِ رَبِّكَ لَا مُبَدِّلَ لِكَلِمَاتِهِ وَلَن تَجِدَ مِن دُونِهِ مُلْتَحَدًا “And recite what has been revealed to you from the Book of your Lord. There is no changing His words, and you will never find any refuge besides Him.” Why does this āyah — now recite what has been revealed to you — come immediately after the story of the cave? The mufassirīn mention two things. First, it is the answer. Remember why the surah was revealed: to answer a challenge from the Quraysh, who had taken their questions from wise men among the People of the Book. They were told that only a true prophet would know this story, so they came and demanded: tell us about the people of the cave. Allah revealed the surah, and its opening is the answer to that first question. And because the story as transmitted through generations of the People of the Book may differ in places from the truth, Allah now says: stand firm. This is the truth. Allah knows what happened. Tell them, and do not worry whether they accept it. Your duty is only to convey — tablīgh , to recite. There is no changing the words of Allah, because this is the word of God Almighty — not fickle like human speech. This is the truth of what happened. Second — and this is for us. Some of the mufassirīn read it this way: today we do not need to find a cave and hide in it. Our cave is the Qur’an. Now that we know the challenges out there — the trials of faith, the fitnah of the end of time — where do we take refuge? Recite what has been revealed to you. The Qur’an is our cave. It is our protection. And the āyah tells us plainly: you will never find any refuge besides Him — no protection except the protection of Allah, and the best of that protection comes through our attachment to His Book. So the first shelter from every trial — from the Dajjāl himself — is to attach ourselves to the Qur’an. This is crucial: daily recitation, memorisation, understanding, a life guided by the Qur’an. This is number one. Ayah 28 — keep good company وَاصْبِرْ نَفْسَكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ رَبَّهُم بِالْغَدَاةِ وَالْعَشِيِّ يُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَهُ وَلَا تَعْدُ عَيْنَاكَ عَنْهُمْ تُرِيدُ زِينَةَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَلَا تُطِعْ مَنْ أَغْفَلْنَا قَلْبَهُ عَن ذِكْرِنَا وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ وَكَانَ أَمْرُهُ فُرُطًا “And keep yourself patiently with those who call upon their Lord morning and evening, seeking His face. Do not turn your eyes away from them, desiring the adornment of worldly life. And do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance, who follows his desire and whose affair is ever in excess.” Here is the second protection: surround yourself with good people, good company. Be steadfast with those who worship Allah and call upon Him morning and evening, seeking nothing but His pleasure.
It’s Tuesday, so it’s Tajweed Tuesday — where we break down the tajweed rules from the ayat our students learn on Saturday at Qaswa Madrasah. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This term and next, we’re working through Surah al-Kahf. This week: ayat 32 - 36. If the ayat feel too long to read in one sitting, break them down. Take one small portion and work it until it’s fluent. Then move to the next. Slow is fine. Stopping isn’t. Consistency beats intensity — every time. Thanks for reading Grounded! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
Recap and continuation: the categories of water, skins of dead animals, bones and hair, gold and silver vessels, and the Siwāk. 1. About the Text and Its Author Matn Abī Shujāʿ is a short treatise (not a poem) detailing the rulings of fiqh according to the Shāfiʿī school. The English poem used in class is a translated rendering; the original is prose. * Author: Aḥmad ibn al-Ḥusayn al-Iṣfahānī, known as Qāḍī Abū Shujāʿ. * Origin: Isfahan, in Persia (modern Iran). * Death and burial: He passed away in Madinah and is buried in al-Baqīʿ, the graveyard beside Masjid al-Nabawī. The first book of the treatise is the Book of Purification ( Kitāb al-Ṭahārah ). It opens with the seven waters — waters that are fit to purify. 2. The Four Categories of Water Water is divided into four categories, each with its own ruling. Category 1 — Muṭlaq (Pure and Purifying) Muṭlaq water is both pure and purifying . A useful comparison: soap is clean and cleansing — “clean” means it is not dirty, “cleansing” means it can clean something else. In the same way: * Pure means the water itself is not filth (najis). * Purifying means it can be used to purify something else. Muṭlaq water is naturally occurring — it comes either from the sky or from the ground. From it come the seven waters : * Rain falling from the clouds * Sea water * River water * Well water * Spring water * Snow (from mountain summits) * Hail Note on tap and bottled water: These are not listed by name, but they are still pure and purifying because they originate from these seven sources — rain collected in a dam, sea water processed through desalination, river water, spring water, or a bore drawn from a well. The summary principle: water that comes from the sky above or from the ground below is naturally occurring, pure, and purifying. Category 2 — Mushammas (Sun-Heated Water) Mushammas is water left in a metal container and exposed to intense sun. The metal requirement is essential — water heated in plastic, clay, or other non-metal containers does not become mushammas. It also requires genuine heat: a mild warm day does not qualify, but extreme heat (for example, 40°C+) does. * Ruling: Still pure and still purifying, but its use is makrūh (disliked). * Once the water cools, the dislike (karāhah) ends and it returns to muṭlaq. Category 3 — Mustaʿmal (Used Water) There are two types of mustaʿmal: * Water that has already been used for wuḍūʾ or ghusl — it cannot be reused for purification. * Water mixed with something pure that changes its properties — for example, coffee. It can still be drunk, but it cannot be used for wuḍūʾ. Ruling: Pure, and may be drunk, but no longer purifying . Category 4 — Mutanajjis (Impure Water) Water that has become contaminated — for example, a bird droppings falling into a container of water. * Ruling: No longer pure and no longer purifying. It may not be drunk, cooked with, or used. The exception — Two Qullahs: If the water is a large volume — two qullahs , roughly 200 litres — then a small amount of impurity does not affect it. However, if the water’s colour, smell, or taste changes, it becomes mutanajjis regardless of volume. Illustration: Sea water is far more than two qullahs. But in places where large numbers of animals are killed and the sea water visibly turns red, the change in colour means that water has become mutanajjis — because a defining property has changed. 3. Skins of Dead Animals (Maitah) Maitah is an animal that dies without being properly slaughtered. * Base ruling: Maitah is najis — the entire animal, including the meat and the skin. * The exception (dibāgh / tanning): When the skin is tanned and turned into leather, it becomes pure. This is why leather goods (a belt, a bag, a boot) do not need to be checked for whether the animal was slaughtered — turning skin into leather is itself the tanning that purifies it. How tanning works: The fat and any parts that would decompose are removed using a sharp tool and treated with acid, chemicals, or certain plants. Once tanned, the skin is no longer najis. Exception to the exception: Two animals whose skins remain najis even after tanning — the dog and the pig . Definition of “dog” in fiqh: a canine that barks . This is a precise definition: * Wolves are canines but do not bark — so they are not classed as dogs here. * Foxes are canines but do not bark. * Hyenas do not bark. * Cats are not canines at all (they are feline). 4. Why This Order? Process and System Thinking The sequence of chapters is deliberate. Once you have found water, you need a way to carry and store it — and the most common container historically was the leather pouch . So the chapter on water is followed directly by the ruling on skins. The traditional scholars are training a way of thinking: disciplined, ordered, systematic. We do not think haphazardly; we arrange ideas into a process that is beneficial and useful. This applies well beyond fiqh — it is a life skill. Example — brainstorming. An undisciplined brainstorm drifts from the actual goal into unrelated tangents. Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats method disciplines the process: you deliberately wear one “hat” at a time (for example, a green hat for all possibilities, then a red hat for risks), each for a set time. Structured thinking is more productive. Reading traditional texts ( turāth , meaning “traditional”) trains this same disciplined, step-by-step approach. 5. Bones and Hair Since the discussion is already about dead animals, the text settles their bones and hair as well — because when you come across a dead animal, you find not only skin but bones and hair too. * The bones and hair of a maitah are najis . Tanning (dibāgh) cannot be applied to hair, so they remain impure. * If the animal was properly slaughtered, there is no problem. * Exception: the remains of a human being. Because God has honoured the children of Adam, that honour extends to human bone and skin — they are not najis. 6. Gold and Silver Vessels Continuing the theme of containers: some wealthy people would use vessels of gold and silver. * Ruling: It is not permitted to use vessels made of gold or silver. * Reason: Gold and silver are a medium of exchange — currency that holds value. Using them as everyday vessels is a sheer display of excess, which Islam discourages. * Vessels of any other material are permitted. Bone china: Some of the most expensive plates are made of “bone china” — bone of certain animals crushed and mixed into a fine porcelain. Recall the ruling on bones: if the animal was not slaughtered, it is maitah, and therefore najis. 7. The Siwāk The Siwāk is anything coarse enough to clean the teeth and mouth — it can be a toothbrush, a cloth, or even a finger. The Prophet ﷺ used a stick from the arāk tree. Its importance and reward: * The Prophet ﷺ said that were it not for the fear of making it difficult for his ummah, he would have made the siwāk obligatory — at every wuḍūʾ (in one narration) or at every prayer (in another). * Oral hygiene is emphasised in Islam. Eating foul-smelling food and then going to the masjid is makrūh; one should clean the mouth first. * Praying with a siwāk is reported to carry many times the reward of praying without one. When to use it — general: The siwāk is praiseworthy at every time and everywhere. The Prophet ﷺ would use it before entering his house, so that his family would be comfortable in his company. Exception — the fasting person: For someone fasting, using the siwāk after midday (around Ẓuhr) is no longer sunnah. Three times it is especially recommended: * When the mouth’s odour changes — for example, after being silent for a long time or not having eaten or drunk for a while. * Upon waking from sleep. * When rising to pray. That concludes this lesson. Until next week, in shāʾ Allāh. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
1. Quick Recap: Where We Are We are working through Surah Al-Baqarah, and by now the introduction should be second nature. * Meaning of the surah: The Female Cow * Number of ayat: 286 * Place of revelation: Madinah — this is an early Madani surah , one of the earliest revealed after the Hijrah Surahs are classified by when they were revealed, not simply where: * Makki — revealed before the Hijrah * Madani — revealed after the Hijrah. A surah can even be revealed physically in Makkah, but if it came after the Hijrah, it is still Madani. Virtue of the surah: On the Day of Judgement, Surah Al-Baqarah and its “twin,” Surah Aali ‘Imran , will come like clouds to protect those who used to recite them. 2. The Nine Divisions of the Surah Surah Al-Baqarah can be organised into nine broad sections: * Types of people * First command * First human * First nation * Prophet Ibrahim * New nation (and all its laws — prayer, fasting, hajj, family, and so on) * Politics * Finance * Conclusion 3. Recap of Category One: The People of Taqwā * Taqwā = mindfulness of Allah. This definition comes from the well-known exchange involving Ubayy ibn Ka’b and the imagery of walking carefully along a thorny path. * The traits of the people of taqwā are described in Ayat 2–5 . * The final word of Ayah 5 is al-Muflihūn — “the successful ones.” Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. 4. Understanding “Success”: Fā’iz vs Muflih Arabic has more than one word for success, and the distinction matters. * Fā’iz — the one who wins a competition . There is a single winner; everyone else, however well they did, is not the fā’iz. * Muflih — comes from the root falāḥ , which we hear every day in the adhan and iqamah: “Ḥayya ‘ala al-falāḥ” (”Come to success”). The imagery of falāḥ is agricultural — it is the success of a farmer at the point of harvest . This carries two lessons: * It is not a competition with others. If one farmer harvests 100 kilos and another 200 kilos, both have still had a genuine, good harvest. Everyone can be a muflih by their own effort and criteria. It is a competition with yourself, not with your neighbour. * It requires delayed gratification. You plant today but do not harvest tomorrow. You nurture the plant and wait, putting in the work in the interim. 5. Delayed Gratification in This World and the Next Success in the akhirah comes much later — you plant now and harvest then. But the same discipline that earns success in the akhirah also brings success in this world. * The marshmallow test: children who could wait for a larger reward tended to be more successful later in life; many who could not delay gratification struggled. * Delayed gratification is what lets a student study now and play later, or read Qur’an now and read for leisure afterwards. Sometimes you have to grind and do the less-fun things in order to succeed. Taqwā trains this exact characteristic in us. 6. Category Two: Al-Kāfirūn (Ayat 6–7) Having covered the people of taqwā, we now turn to the second category of people: the kuffār (disbelievers) , described in Ayat 6 and 7 . Two Layers of Meaning Words carry at least two kinds of meaning: a literal meaning and a technical meaning. Literal meaning: The root kafara means to cover, to bury. Literally, a kāfir can describe a farmer — the one who takes a seed, digs a hole, places it in, and covers it over with soil. * When the farmer is planting (covering the seed), the action relates to kufr (covering). * When the farmer is harvesting , that is falāḥ . This gives us the picture behind the word: a kāfir is someone who receives something good (a seed) and chooses to bury it, cover it, and ignore it — “if I don’t see it, it’s not there.” Technical Meaning The technical meaning splits into two: * Qur’anic meaning — someone who receives something good (guidance, Islam) and deliberately buries and rejects it. * Fiqhī (legal) meaning — simply a non-Muslim. 7. The Qur’anic Kāfir: Al-Ghazālī’s Conditions When the Qur’an describes the kāfir being punished in the Fire eternally ( khālidīna fīhā ), it is not speaking about every single non-Muslim. It refers to a very specific person: one who was properly shown Islam and knowingly rejected it. Imam al-Ghazālī, in Al-Iqtiṣād fī al-I’tiqād , outlines the conditions for someone to be a kāfir in this Qur’anic, punishment sense: * He receives the da’wah in a reasonable manner — presented properly and appropriately, not through yelling, insults, or a careless “become Muslim or burn” thrown at someone. * His doubts and questions are answered. * He is given time to think and consider. * After all of this, he still rejects it. A key point on condition one: in a world where the media so often portrays Islam in a bad light, many people have never genuinely encountered it in a reasonable manner. Simply living near a masjid does not count. This is why our conduct matters so much as a minority. We are ambassadors of Islam. When a person behaves badly — parking carelessly at the masjid and blocking a neighbour, for example — people don’t blame the individual; they blame “the Muslims” and assume it reflects Islam itself. 8. Fiqhī Definition vs Qur’anic Definition These two definitions do different jobs: * The fiqhī definition is black and white. You are either a Muslim or a non-Muslim. A Muslim is someone who affirms the shahādah — belief in Allah and in the finality of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. It determines legal rights and responsibilities in this world. * The Qur’anic definition concerns the akhirah and rests on reasonableness — which is subjective and known only to Allah. A note on the sinful Muslim: a Muslim who does not pray is still a Muslim — a sinful, bad Muslim, but a Muslim — so long as he does not deny that prayer is wājib. Denial of what is clearly obligatory is a different matter from laziness or weakness. Why the distinction matters in practice Because reasonableness is subjective, we deal with people according to the fiqhī definition, and we leave the akhirah to Allah according to the Qur’anic definition. * When a Muslim dies, there are four obligations upon the community: wash, shroud, pray over, and bury. * For a non-Muslim , this checklist does not apply. 9. What We Cannot Say We cannot point to any specific individual and declare he is going to the Fire — because we do not know whether al-Ghazālī’s conditions were met, whether his doubts were answered, or whether he accepted Islam at the very end. These are matters of the unseen, left to Allah. * We may speak in general terms : as a group, those who do not believe in Allah and His Messenger ﷺ will not enter Jannah. * We may not specify a named individual, because that person may not have met the conditions. On making du’ā: we may make du’ā for a non-Muslim while they are alive , but once they have passed away as a non-Muslim, we draw the line and do not make du’ā for them. This does not mean we insult or condemn — we remain neutral and respectful. Two real examples make the point. Telling a grieving friend that his deceased father is “going to Jahannam” is wrong both in manners and in belief. Likewise, when a convert grieving his non-Muslim mother was told at the masjid that “she died a kāfir, she is in the Fire,” that statement was wrong on both counts: disrespectful, and theologically presumptuous, because no one knows her final state. 10. The Only Exceptions We only declare a specific person to be in the Fire when the Qur’an itself tells us so. The clearest example is Abu Lahab , named in a whole surah as bound for the Fire. Others, such as Fir’aun , are also identified in the Qur’an. The reverse holds too: we do not guarantee Jannah for any specific person unless the Qur’an states it. In both directions, the final judgement belongs to Allah. Our real concern should be our own standing before Allah — not passing verdicts on where others will end up. In shā’ Allah, we continue with Ayat 6–7 next week. Thanks for reading Grounded! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
It’s Tuesday, so it’s Tajweed Tuesday — where we break down the tajweed rules from the ayat our students learn on Saturday at Qaswa Madrasah. This term and next, we’re working through Surah al-Kahf. This week: ayat 27 - 31. If the ayat feel too long to read in one sitting, break them down. Take one small portion and work it until it’s fluent. Then move to the next. Slow is fine. Stopping isn’t. Consistency beats intensity — every time. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
Quick Recap * Meaning of the surah: “The Female Cow.” * Number of ayat: 286. * Nickname: The peak (summit) of the Quran. * Virtue: On the Day of Judgement, Al-Baqarah and Ali Imran will come and shade their companions. On dividing the surah: We are studying Al-Baqarah in nine parts . This division is a teaching aid created by scholars to help us navigate the surah — it is not divine . The order of the surahs themselves (Al-Baqarah, then Ali Imran) comes from Allah, but splitting a single surah into portions is a human tool. Others divide it into five, twenty, or a different number; none of them are “wrong.” Part 1 covers the groups of people . We are almost finished with the first group: the people of taqwa. Ayah 1 — Alif Lam Mim Three lessons drawn from the opening letters: * 1. To attract attention. * 2. A challenge to the Arabs. If you don’t believe the Quran is from Allah, here are the very letters it is built from — produce something like it. After 1400 years the challenge stands unmet. This is not accepted on faith alone; it is historically established, because the height of Arabic eloquence was during the Prophet’s ﷺ time, and no one then could match it. * 3. A lesson in humility. Humans do not know everything; our intellect has a limit. Ayah 2 — Guidance for the People of Taqwa The Quran is guidance for the people of taqwa . This links back to our central dua in Al-Fatihah — Ihdina as-sirat al-mustaqim (”Guide us to the straight path”). Working definition of taqwa: mindfulness of Allah Where this definition comes from: the well-known image of walking a path lined with thorns and lifting your garment to avoid being caught. That image was given by the companion Ubay ibn Ka’b , in answer to Umar ibn al-Khattab . Taqwa is internal — you cannot see it directly — but it shows through certain characteristics, listed in the ayat that follow. Ayah 3 — Three Characteristics of the People of Taqwa * 3.1 — Belief in the unseen ( al-ghayb ). * 3.2 — Establishing prayer ( yuqimuna as-salah ). * 3.3 — Charity: “and from what We have given them, they spend.” Why “from what We have given them” matters: everything we own comes from Allah. Allah is Al-Ghani , the Most Rich, who owns everything. If you spend the way He asks, He can give you more — His wealth is unlimited and does not run out. The Prophet ﷺ said the one who gives charity will never become poor. ⚠ Arabic to verify before publishing: the Arabic for ayah 3 (belief in the unseen, establishing prayer, and spending) arrived with encoding errors in the transcript and has been rendered in English only. Paste in clean Arabic if you want it displayed. Ayah 4 — Belief in Revelation Two further characteristics: * Belief in what was sent down to you — the Quran. * Belief in what was sent down before you — the previous scriptures. The previous scriptures Four scriptures total, including the Quran — so three before the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, in order: * Tawrah — revealed to Prophet Musa. * Zabur — revealed to Prophet Dawud. * Injil — revealed to Prophet Isa. Understanding the Bible Living in a globalised world, it helps to understand the landscape of the largest religion, Christianity — close to Islam in numbers. So: which of the three scriptures is the Bible? None of them, exactly. The Bible is not a single book — it is a collection of books. (The word itself relates to biblio , “book,” as in bibliophile and bibliography.) It contains a changed and combined version of these earlier revelations. The Bible has two major parts: * The Old Testament — also known as the Jewish Bible. A Jewish person referring to “the Bible” means only this. Its three major sections are abbreviated Tanakh : * T — Torah (believed to be what was revealed to Musa). * N — Nevi’im (the Prophets). * K — Ketuvim (the Writings). Zabur = Psalms sits here, as a book within this section. * The New Testament — mainly the Gospels plus letters . * Four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These are gospels according to each name. * Letters: written by Paul to the early Christian communities (e.g. the Corinthians) — his written guidance in reply to their questions. Injil = “good news.” “Gospel” also means good news. The Injil we believe in is the Gospel of Isa — which we do not have today. What exists are gospels according to Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John. The first three are called the Synoptic Gospels and broadly agree; John often tells a different story. Historically these were written well after the named figures, in Greek , while Prophet Isa spoke Aramaic — and several authors never met him. Contrast: the preservation of the Quran The Quran reaches us in two independent ways that reinforce each other: * Unbroken chain of transmission. We recite exactly as the Prophet ﷺ recited — including points of articulation and the length of each sound (e.g. reading a madd at two, four, or six harakat). A reciter’s certificate can be traced back through an unbroken chain to the Prophet ﷺ. * Archaeological evidence. The oldest known Quran manuscript, the Birmingham Quran , held at the University of Birmingham, was carbon-dated (announced 2015) to around the time of the Prophet ﷺ. It reached Birmingham via Iraq during the British occupation and sat unidentified in the archives until a PhD student recognised it. Side note — early Arabic script. In the Prophet’s ﷺ time Arabic was written without dots or harakat, so words were distinguished by context. A famous (unverifiable) story tells of the governor Hajjaj ibn Yusuf receiving an undotted letter that could read either uqtul (”kill”) or aqbil (”receive”) — prompting the later introduction of dots. Even today dotting isn’t fully standardised: in the Moroccan script, for example, qaf takes a single dot and final noon is written without one. How we relate to the Bible We believe in the original Tawrah, Zabur, and Injil as revelation. Regarding the Bible in its modern form, we hold that it contains both truth and questionable material. The Prophet ﷺ guided us: you may narrate from the Israelite sources without sin — neither believing 100% nor rejecting 100%. Where it contradicts the Quran, the Quran is Muhaiminun alaih — it stands over and supersedes the rest, because its authenticity is guaranteed. This does not mean we disrespect the Bible; it still contains revelation from Allah. Ayah 5 — Certainty in the Akhirah & True Success The final characteristic: the people of taqwa are certain about the akhirah. Certainty is the operative word — not vague hope, but conviction. This certainty changes behaviour. If you are sure Allah sees you and that there are real consequences in the akhirah, you act well in public and private alike, whether or not anyone notices — because Allah knows and will compensate. The akhirah mindset = delayed gratification We already accept short-term discomfort for long-term reward: you study now (even though games are more fun) to earn good grades, a good job, and a good life later. That is a long-term view. Now scale it up — life on earth is roughly 80–100 years; the akhirah is forever. A smart person accepts a little discomfort now to secure eternal good. Just as someone serious about becoming a doctor takes biology and prepares deliberately, someone serious about Jannah does the actions that lead there. Saying you want Jannah while doing none of the work is only dreaming. The Marshmallow Test. In a well-known study, young children were left alone with one marshmallow and told that if they waited about 15 minutes without eating it, they’d get a second. Some ate immediately; some resisted and doubled their reward. Tracked into adulthood, many who couldn’t wait struggled in life, while many who waited did well. The lesson: delayed gratification is a strong predictor of success. A Muslim, trained through prayer and charity to work now for reward later, should find this second nature. The king in the masjid (an illustrative story, chain unverified). A hooded king prayed Fajr with only a handful of people, then rewarded every person present with a free Hajj. The next morning the masjid overflowed — but the king wasn’t there. The point: people chase instant reward. Prayer trains us for the opposite — to put in the work now and collect later. The word for “successful”: muflihun Allah calls these people al-muflihun , the successful — from the root falah . There are other words for success ( fawz , fa’izin ), but the same root also gives fallah , “farmer.” A farmer is the very picture of delayed gratification: plant, water, and protect the crop now; harvest much later. Placed right after prayer, charity, and belief in the akhirah, the choice of muflihun reminds us again: put in the work now, harvest it in the akhirah. Summary — Characteristics of the People of Taqwa * Belief in the unseen. * Establishing prayer. * Spending in charity from what Allah has given. * Belief in the Quran and in the previous scriptures. * Certainty in the akhirah. These are the people of guidance, and these are al-muflihun — the truly successful. Next week: a short continuation, then the second category of people. Come prepared to list the characteristics of the people of taqwa from memory. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day Quran at Home. Each week we take some ayat from the Qur’an. On Tuesday we read them and learn their tajweed. On Thursday we look into their meaning and draw out lessons we can live by. Why Surah al-Kahf Rasūlullāh ﷺ encouraged us to recite Surah al-Kahf at least once a week. It protects us from the Dajjāl and from the fitnah — the trials and systems — of the Dajjāl. The Dajjāl may not be here yet, but read the surah closely and you will see the signs of what he represents already around us. If you cannot read the whole surah, read the first ten ayat and the last ten. If you cannot manage that, read the first ten. Better still, memorise the first ten — it is not long, barely a minute or a minute and a half to recite, yet it carries barakah, protection, and a meaning that is profound when you reflect on it. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Where we are in the story Last week we stopped at ayah 15, with the young men of the cave — the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf. Allah tells us plainly that they were youth: a group of young men who, when the whole village gave up and submitted to the tyrant of the day and worshipped idols, refused. They would not obey the creation in disobedience to the Creator. They held their faith with Allah, and as they were about to flee, they made their duʿāʾ: رَبَّنَا آتِنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً وَهَيِّئْ لَنَا مِنْ أَمْرِنَا رَشَدًا “Our Lord, grant us mercy from Yourself, and prepare for us right guidance in our affair.” They asked for two things: raḥmah — mercy, care, protection — directly from Allah; and that Allah would straighten and manage their affairs as they left the city. Ayah 16 — Allah answers the duʿāʾ وَإِذِ اعْتَزَلْتُمُوهُمْ وَمَا يَعْبُدُونَ إِلَّا اللَّهَ فَأْوُوا إِلَى الْكَهْفِ يَنشُرْ لَكُمْ رَبُّكُم مِّن رَّحْمَتِهِ وَيُهَيِّئْ لَكُم مِّنْ أَمْرِكُم مِّرْفَقًا “And when you have withdrawn from them and from what they worship except Allah, retreat to the cave. Your Lord will spread out for you His mercy and make your affair easy for you.” A few ayat earlier they were speaking to Allah. Now Allah speaks directly to them. Notice the word iʿtazaltumūhum — from ʿuzlah , which is to withdraw, to go on a spiritual retreat. People go on ʿuzlah to focus on reciting or memorising Qur’an, or on their adhkār. Allah is telling them: you have withdrawn from these people and from everything they worship besides Me — now take shelter in the cave. When you imagine a cave, you imagine a tight, claustrophobic space — a group of young men crammed in with nowhere to go. But Allah says yanshur lakum — He will spread it out, make it wide and comfortable for you. The world sees a crowded, closed space. Allah makes it vast. And He says this comes min raḥmatih , from His mercy — the very thing they had just asked for. Then yuhayyiʾ lakum min amrikum mirfaqā — and He will make your affair easy for you. They had asked Allah to manage their affairs; Allah answers with mirfaqā . From the same root comes rafīq — a close friend whose company you truly enjoy. It is one of the last words the Prophet ﷺ spoke as he was passing: ilā r-rafīqi l-aʿlā — to the highest companion. Mirfaqā means Allah will make their affairs not merely bearable but comfortable, something they would come to love, so that they would not feel the discomfort of their situation at all. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. The pattern: plan, act, then trust Look closely at how the duʿāʾ was answered. They made duʿāʾ — and then they moved. They got up and left. Only once they were moving did Allah manage their affairs. This is the pattern for us. You plan. You take action. You make duʿāʾ and place your trust in Allah. Then you watch how things change. The duʿāʾ is not a substitute for effort, and effort is not a substitute for tawakkul. They come together. Ayah 17 — the detail of the cave وَتَرَى الشَّمْسَ إِذَا طَلَعَت تَّزَاوَرُ عَن كَهْفِهِمْ ذَاتَ الْيَمِينِ وَإِذَا غَرَبَت تَّقْرِضُهُمْ ذَاتَ الشِّمَالِ وَهُمْ فِي فَجْوَةٍ مِّنْهُ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ آيَاتِ اللَّهِ “You would see the sun, when it rose, inclining away from their cave on the right, and when it set, passing them by on the left, while they were in an open space within it. That is from the signs of Allah.” This is striking, because in the Qur’an many historical stories are left without detail. Who exactly were the Aṣḥāb al-Kahf? Which city? How old? What were their names? We are not told. All we know is that they were young men. The point is not their biography — the point is: protect your īmān at all costs. But where a detail serves our guidance, Allah spells it out. And here the detail of the cave is spelled out beautifully.
It’s Tuesday, so it’s Tajweed Tuesday — where we break down the tajweed rules from the ayat our students learn on Saturday at Qaswa Madrasah. This term and next, we’re working through Surah al-Kahf. This week: ayat 21 - 26. If the ayat feel too long to read in one sitting, break them down. Take one small portion and work it until it’s fluent. Then move to the next. Slow is fine. Stopping isn’t. Consistency beats intensity — every time. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Tajweed Tuesday is part of our Quran at Home programme. Every Saturday, our students meet in person with their teachers. But Quran learning shouldn’t be bound by madrasah walls, so during term we release two videos a week to support parents teaching at home: Tajweed Tuesday, and Tafseer Thursday. Thanks for reading Grounded! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day Last week we covered the introduction, ayat 1–8. We saw how Allah opens the surah with Alhamdulillah — a practice of gratitude — and directs that gratitude towards the Qur’an itself. Allah corrects those who claim He has a son. Then He moves to the purpose of creation: this world was made beautiful as a test of who among us has the best deeds. Then it is destroyed. Then comes the resurrection. That last point is where this week begins. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. The problem the Quraysh had The Quraysh did not struggle with the idea of a Creator. Something cannot come from nothing, and everything around us points to an uncreated Creator. When they were asked who created the heavens and the earth, they would say: Allah. Their problem was Yawm al-Qiyamah . Because belief in the Day of Judgement changes how you behave. It changes your priorities. If you believe in God but not in the reckoning, you can do whatever you want — you die, and that is the end of it. The rich and the powerful can steal from the poor, oppress the weak, bomb nations and schools, and walk away from it. If there is no ākhirah, what is there to worry about? Belief in the ākhirah takes that away. It forces a change. Ayah 9 — Do you find this the amazing part? أم حسبت أن أصحاب الكهف والرقيم كانوا من آياتنا عجبا Do you think that the people of the cave and the inscription were, among Our signs, a wonder? Al-raqīm means inscription. The story of these young men was carved into stone — as the ancients would inscribe things — and so it survived. It was known among certain Christian communities, which is exactly why the Quraysh used it to test the Prophet ﷺ. Nobody in Makkah knew this story. They had to travel outside the city to find people of the book who could tell it to them. So Allah puts the question back to them. You accept that a group of young men slept in a cave for centuries and woke up alive — and that you find miraculous. But death and resurrection you cannot accept? This ayah is not saying the story of the people of the cave is no sign. It is a sign, and a great one. But it is not the greatest. Why is this the thing that excites you, while you ignore what actually matters — that you will die, be resurrected, and be held to account? Ayah 10 — The duʿāʾ on the way to the cave إذ أوى الفتية إلى الكهف فقالوا ربنا آتنا من لدنك رحمة وهيئ لنا من أمرنا رشدا When the youths retreated to the cave and said: our Lord, grant us mercy from Yourself, and prepare for us right guidance in our affair. Awā means to seek protection — to move behind something and shelter there. Notice what the Qur’an leaves out. We are not told the city, the town, the house, or the cave. This is how the Qur’an teaches history: it omits what is not relevant to the lesson, because detail distracts . If Allah had named the city, people would argue about the city. What matters is that there was a group of young men. And Allah highlights that word — fityah . Young men. We tend to treat the youth as the weakest link in the chain of the ummah. Children come to the masjid because their parents bring them. The elderly come because perhaps there is nothing else. And the youth are absent. Allah is addressing exactly that. Look at the early followers of the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ was forty; Abu Bakr al-Siddiq رضي الله عنه was around the same age. Those are middle-aged men. But Sayyidina Ali was in his early teens. Zayd ibn Harithah, another young man. Uthman, Zubayr, Talha — teens and early twenties. They were the ones actively carrying the daʿwah.
It’s Tuesday, so it’s Tajweed Tuesday — where we break down the tajweed rules from the ayat our students learn on Saturday at Qaswa Madrasah. This term and next, we’re working through Surah al-Kahf. This week: ayat 17 - 20. If the ayat feel too long to read in one sitting, break them down. Take one small portion and work it until it’s fluent. Then move to the next. Slow is fine. Stopping isn’t. Consistency beats intensity — every time. Tajweed Tuesday is part of our Quran at Home programme. Every Saturday, our students meet in person with their teachers. But Quran learning shouldn’t be bound by madrasah walls, so during term we release two videos a week to support parents teaching at home: Tajweed Tuesday, and Tafseer Thursday. Subscribe to our Substack to follow along. Thanks for reading Grounded! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
Recap: The Text We Are Studying We are studying Al-Ghayah wa’t-Taqrib , a classical short-form manual of fiqh written by Imam Abu Shuja’. Despite its brevity, this small text has been memorised and studied for close to a thousand years — from Cairo to Java, West Africa to Hadramaut. We are now continuing that same chain of transmission here in Western Australia. What Is Fiqh? * Literal meaning: deep understanding * Technical meaning: ma’rifatul ahkam al-shar’iyyah — knowledge of the rulings of the Shari’ah * These rulings apply to the af’al al-mukallafin — the actions of a mukallaf , a person legally responsible before Allah Mukallaf = someone the Shari’ah holds responsible. A child in a car who isn’t wearing a seatbelt isn’t fined — the responsible adult driving is. In the same way, the rulings of fiqh apply to those who are accountable (typically, those who have reached puberty and are of sound mind). The Five Categories of Rulings (Al-Ahkam al-Khamsah) Every human action falls under one of five rulings: 1. Wajib (Compulsory) * Do it → reward. Don’t do it → sin. * Examples: the five daily prayers, Hajj 2. Mandub / Sunnah (Recommended) * Do it → reward. Don’t do it → neutral (no sin). * Examples: washing three times during wudu, the two rak’ahs of sunnah before salah, fasting on Mondays and Thursdays, showering on Fridays * Important: reward for a sunnah requires intention . Showering on Friday only counts as the sunnah if you intend it — and it must be done on Friday itself, not the day before. 3. Mubah (Permissible) * Do it → neutral. Don’t do it → neutral. * Examples: drinking water, eating, reading a book, breathing * This is the default and largest category. The original ruling of anything is Mubah. To move something out of Mubah into wajib or haram, evidence is required. 4. Makruh (Disliked) * Do it → neutral. Don’t do it → reward. * Example: eating with the left hand (for someone able to use their right); eating something smelly like garlic or onions and then going to the masjid 5. Haram (Prohibited) * Do it → sin. Don’t do it → reward. * Examples: drinking wine, eating pork Case Study: Rulings Can Change with New Circumstances Two examples from the class discussion show how a ruling on the same category of item can shift as knowledge or context changes: Smoking Smoking was historically classed as makruh, on the same basis as garlic — an unpleasant smell. Doctors did not originally know with certainty that smoking was harmful to health; some even believed it had a calming effect. It was only in the past century, once it was conclusively established that smoking causes lung cancer, that many scholars reclassified it as haram — because causing harm to oneself is haram, and smoking was now proven to cause serious harm. Coffee Coffee has an interesting history in Islamic scholarship: * Coffee beans were first eaten in Ethiopia before being ground into a drink. * A Yemeni scholar, Sheikh Ali bin Umar al-Shadhili, repeatedly asked Allah for the strength to pray qiyam al-layl (night prayer) like the pious predecessors. He was inspired in a dream to grind and boil the coffee bean. It helped him stay awake for dhikr and night prayer — so coffee became strongly linked with worship. * Imam al-Haddad of Hadramaut said the clinking sound of coffee cups would make shaytan flee — meaning that coffee became associated with gatherings of dhikr. * As coffee spread to Mecca and beyond, some scholars observed young people becoming very animated after drinking it and grew concerned. Coffee’s Arabic name, qahwa , is also an old word for wine — which added to the suspicion. Some scholars declared it haram. * The dispute was settled in a memorable way: scholars who held that coffee was haram were invited to a gathering where coffee was served without them knowing what it was. They enjoyed its effects — clarity of mind and energy — and once told it was the very drink they had prohibited, they retracted their ruling. * Coffee was also banned for a period in parts of the Christian world. Coffee houses later became historically significant as centres of discussion and, in some places, political change — in contrast to pubs, where alcohol limited clear thinking and planning. Lesson: Mubah is the default of all things. Mubah can shift to wajib (e.g. drinking water becomes obligatory if withholding it endangers life) or to haram (e.g. a permissible game becomes haram if it causes someone to neglect their prayers). Revision: The Four Types of Water Before moving on, we revised last week’s material on water, the subject of the first chapter of most fiqh texts — Purification (Tahara). Why does every fiqh text begin with purification? Purification of the body mirrors the deeper objective of all worship: purification of the heart. On the Day of Judgement, neither wealth nor children will benefit a person — only a sound heart returned to Allah, and a soul that has been purified rather than corrupted. The Four Types of Water * Mutlaq — pure and purifying. Naturally occurring water: rain, sea, river, well, spring, snow, hail (the seven natural waters). * Mushammas — pure, but disliked (makruh) to use on the skin in specific conditions: water heated by the sun in a metal container in a hot region. It remains makruh only until it cools; a plastic container causes no such concern. * Musta’mal — previously used water. Still pure and fine to drink, but it has already been used to lift a hadath (in wudu or ghusl) and cannot be used to lift a hadath again. The same applies to water mixed with something pure that changes its taste, smell, or colour (e.g. coffee, soap, lemon) — it stays drinkable, but can no longer be used for wudu or ghusl. * Mutanajjis — impure water, contaminated by najasah (impurity). Cannot be used for wudu, ghusl, drinking, or washing — unless its volume reaches two qullah (roughly 200 litres), in which case a small amount of najasah does not affect it, provided the water’s colour, smell, or taste has not changed. If it has changed, remove the source of contamination and the water may be purified again. This Week’s Practice: Polishing the Heart The Prophet ﷺ said that everything has a polish, and the polish for the heart is dhikr (remembrance of Allah). This week’s homework is to recite the following daily, ideally before sleeping (roughly 10 minutes in total): * Astaghfirullah al-’Azim (”I seek the forgiveness of Allah, the Most Great”) — 100 times * Allahumma salli ‘ala Sayyidina Muhammadin wa alihi wa sahbihi wa sallim (sending blessings on the Prophet ﷺ) — 100 times * La ilaha illallah (”There is no god but Allah”) — 100 times, followed once by Muhammadun Rasulullah (”Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah”) Students should track which days they complete this, ready to discuss next week. Key Terms Glossary * Fiqh — Islamic jurisprudence; knowledge of the rulings of the Shari’ah * Mukallaf — a person legally responsible/accountable under Shari’ah * Wajib — compulsory * Mandub / Sunnah — recommended * Mubah — permissible/neutral (the default ruling) * Makruh — disliked * Haram — prohibited * Tahara — purification * Mutlaq water — pure, naturally occurring water that purifies * Mushammas water — sun-heated water in a metal container (makruh to use on skin while hot) * Musta’mal water — previously used water; pure but cannot remove hadath again * Mutanajjis water — water contaminated by impurity (najasah) * Najasah — ritual impurity * Qullatayn / two qullah — a measure of water volume (approx. 200 litres) above which small impurities don’t contaminate the water * Dhikr — remembrance of Allah Self-Test Questions * What are the five categories that every human action falls under? * Give one example each of a wajib act and a mandub act. * What is the default ruling (the category everything starts in) for any action or object? * Give one example of something that started as makruh and later became haram, and explain why the ruling changed. * List the four types of water and give one distinguishing feature of each. * How much water (in litres) is generally needed for small amounts of najasah not to contaminate it? * What three phrases of dhikr were set as this week’s homework, and how many times should each be recited? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day Last week we set the scene: who the Dajjāl is, and how this Surah protects us from the trials he brings with him. This week we go into the first ten ayat — the portion the Prophet ﷺ told us to hold onto.
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.grounded.day We are beginning Surah al-Mulk. Thirty ayat, two and a half pages. If we have memorised it, we can recite the whole surah in under three minutes. What al-Mulk means Al-Mulk carries two meanings, and both are correct: kingdom, and dominion. We met the root already in al-Fatihah, at maliki yawmid-din — also recited maaliki yawmid-din . Malik is the king; mulk is the kingdom. So this is the surah of the kingdom. Makki and Madani Surahs divide into Makki and Madani — revealed before the Hijrah, or after it. This is not a division of geography. A Makki surah need not have been revealed in Mecca, and a Madani surah need not have been revealed in Medina. Surah an-Nasr is the clearest case: idha jaa’a nasrullahi wal-fath , revealed in Mecca, about the conquest of Mecca — and counted as Madani, because it came after the Hijrah. The two categories carry different characters, and we can tell them apart without knowing a word of Arabic. A Makki surah rhymes. It is poetic in sound before it is anything else. Listen to Juz 30, which is almost entirely Makki — ‘Amma yatasa’alun. ‘Ani-n-naba’i-l-‘azim. Alladhi hum fihi mukhtalifun — there is a metre to it. Easy to recite, beautiful to recite, and harder to understand, because Makki vocabulary is higher-grade and does not recur much elsewhere in the Quran. These are words Arabs today do not use daily. Madani surahs run to longer ayat, and the meaning is more accessible. Al-Mulk is Makki. Beyond that we cannot be precise — we rarely know the exact year a surah came down. But the content leans heavily towards warning rather than description of Jannah, and many of the mufassirin read that as late Meccan, when the persecution of the Quraysh had turned violent and stubborn. Early Mecca encourages. When years of encouragement have not moved people, the warning comes. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. What the Makki surahs are for Two things, mostly. Aqidah , which covers three areas. Ilahiyat — Allah and His attributes, and the ayat against shirk. Nubuwwat — establishing the truthfulness of the Prophet ﷺ, including the stories of the prophets before him, which follow an almost identical template: a man respected before prophethood receives revelation, begins to preach, and is opposed by the rich and the powerful. And sam‘iyat — what we can hear of but cannot see. Why do our scholars separate that third category from the first, when we cannot see Allah either? Because the existence of the Creator and the truth of prophethood are established by rational necessity as well as by revelation. There is no equivalent argument establishing that Jannah must exist. What we have is this: reason and revelation together establish that He is our Creator and that He sent revelation to Muhammad ﷺ. So when the Prophet ﷺ tells us there is an Akhirah, we believe him. Everything of the hereafter sits in this category. Akhlaq is the second, and the kind of conduct the Makki surahs address is the kind we recognise innately, through fitrah. Some good is known only through revelation — we know salah is good because Allah revealed it. Fasting, the same. But charity needs no revelation to be recognised: receive someone’s charity and we feel it. The same in reverse. Nobody needs to be told stealing is wrong, because even a thief does not like being stolen from. Nobody needs to be told murder is wrong — a murderer will fight for his own life. The Makki surahs strengthen that innate sense. They return again and again to feeding the poor, honouring the orphan, protecting the weak. Which leads somewhere worth sitting with. More than sixty percent of the Quran is Makki — and the bulk of the Quran does not legislate. It does not discuss hijab, or Hajj, or the rulings we tend to treat as the measure of religiosity. The bulk of the Quran is about character. This is why the Prophet ﷺ said: I was sent only to perfect noble character. The Sharia revealed later in Medina strengthens those characters — but the characters themselves were built in Mecca. So a religious person is not measured by how many raka‘at he prays, though prayer is obligatory. Not by the length of his beard, though the beard is Sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ said the best of us is the one best to his family, and that the best of people are those most beneficial to people. That is akhlaq.
It’s Tuesday, so it’s Tajweed Tuesday — where we break down the tajweed rules from the ayat our students learn on Saturday at Qaswa Madrasah. This term and next, we’re working through Surah al-Kahf. This week: ayat 11–16. If the ayat feel too long to read in one sitting, break them down. Take one small portion and work it until it’s fluent. Then move to the next. Slow is fine. Stopping isn’t. Consistency beats intensity — every time. Tajweed Tuesday is part of our Quran at Home programme. Every Saturday, our students meet in person with their teachers. But Quran learning shouldn’t be bound by madrasah walls, so during term we release two videos a week to support parents teaching at home: Tajweed Tuesday, and Tafseer Thursday. Subscribe to our Substack to follow along. Grounded is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
Revision The surah * Al-Baqarah means the cow . * 286 ayat — the longest surah in the Quran. * Nicknamed the peak of the Quran ( Sanam al-Quran ). * Surah Al-Baqarah and Surah Ali Imran are twin surahs. If you read them, study them, memorise them and act on their lessons, they will come on the Day of Judgement as clouds — shade on a day when there is no shade except the shade of Allah. * The surah has nine parts . We are in Part 1: Types of People . Ayah 1 — Alif Lam Mim What does it mean? There is a meaning, but we do not know it. Our answer is: Wallahu a’lam — Allah knows best . We may not know the meaning, but we can learn the wisdom behind it. 1. It is a surprise call. The Prophet ﷺ was unlettered — he did not read or write. A person who does not read or write does not recite alphabets. So the fact that he recited letters was a surprise in itself. There is a second surprise. Listen to Arabs speaking their own language — they do not speak in tajweed . But the Prophet ﷺ recited Alif Lam Mim with full tajweed rules. A strange combination of letters, recited in a way no one spoke. It caught the audience’s attention immediately. 2. It is a challenge. Poetry was the highest art form of the Arabs at that time. When the Quran came, they refused to accept it was from God — they said Muhammad ﷺ made it up, or learned it from somewhere. So Allah opens with letters: Alif Lam Mim. Alif Lam Ra. Qaf. Ha Mim. Ya Sin. The same alphabet you have. Go and produce something like it. 3. It is a gate of humility. There are things our minds can fully understand, and there are things beyond our minds. Before we can receive guidance, we have to accept that limit. Example: Why is Fajr two rak’ah, but Dhuhr and Asr are four? Fajr is at a quiet time when you have space; Dhuhr falls in a rushed 20-minute lunch break at school. Why not make them equal? Wallahu a’lam. We obey. Does “wallahu a’lam” mean we obey blindly? No. We arrive at obedience through reason: * The universe cannot exist without a creator. * That creator cannot himself be created — there must be an uncreated Creator . * A Creator who made a universe this complex and this beautiful must be wise . * When someone infinitely wiser than you tells you to do something — you do it. We accept Allah through revelation and through reason. Once that foundation is in place, obedience follows. That is the gate of humility. And we are still allowed to look for the wisdom. Two rak’ah at Fajr — you are fresh, you do not need much. Four at Dhuhr — you are hungry, tired, and about to become “hangry,” so you stop and reset. Four at Asr — before you carry your work stress home to your family, you offload it onto Allah first. Iyyaka na’budu wa iyyaka nasta’in — You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help. Who are we asking? The Creator of everything. Next to Allah, how big is our problem? This is why a person of prayer can walk back to their problem and face it — you are not facing it alone. Ayah 2 ذَٰلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لَا رَيْبَ ۛ فِيهِ ۛ هُدًى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ “That is the Book, no doubt in it, guidance for the people of taqwa.” * Dhalika — that * al-Kitab — the Book * la rayba fihi — no doubt in it * hudan lil-muttaqin — guidance for the people of taqwa The link to Al-Fatihah. In Al-Fatihah we made the du’a: Ihdinas-siratal mustaqim — guide us to the straight path . We asked for guidance. Allah answers immediately: the guidance is in this Book . Guidance for everyone, or only for some? In ayah 185 of this same surah, Allah says the Quran was sent down as guidance for all mankind . Here in ayah 2, it says guidance for the people of taqwa . The offer is open to everyone. The people of taqwa are the ones who take the offer up. New Material: What Is Taqwa? The literal meaning Taqwa comes from the root waw – qaf – ya , which carries the meaning of protection . Because taqwa also contains an element of fear, the literal meaning is: protective fear. Protective fear vs paralysing fear * Fire in the building. Protective fear: you get out. Paralysing fear: you freeze — or you film it for TikTok. * Exam next week. Protective fear: you start studying. Paralysing fear: “que sera sera” — you give up. * The difference. Protective fear moves you to act. Paralysing fear stops you from acting. Note on the snake example from class: standing still is the correct response to an Australian snake, because they are not hunting us — they bite out of fear when they feel threatened. That is a considered decision, not a freeze. Fear on its own is not enough. If you find out at 9pm that there is a test tomorrow morning and you decide there is no point trying, you are still afraid — but the fear has paralysed you. This is why taqwa needs the two wings we studied earlier: fear and love/hope. Without hope you will not move. Taqwa is not just fear — it is fear balanced by love. What are we protecting ourselves from? When Allah uses the word taqwa in the Quran, it means: protect yourself from Allah’s anger and His punishment, and move towards His mercy and forgiveness. In practice: what Allah told you not to do — don’t do it. What Allah told you to do — do it. Story time: Umar and Ubayy ibn Ka’b Who is Ubayy ibn Ka’b? One of the Companions the Prophet ﷺ named as the best reciters of the Quran — if you want to hear the Quran as Jibril brought it, listen to these people. When Umar ibn al-Khattab established Taraweeh in congregation, he appointed Ubayy as the first Taraweeh imam. Ubayy recited so long that the Companions would lean on the walls and pillars of the masjid, and the prayer would end just in time for a small meal before Fajr. The conversation: Umar ibn al-Khattab asked him, “What is taqwa?” Ubayy answered with a question: “Have you ever walked through a path full of thorns?” Umar said, “Yes.” “How did you do it?” Umar said, “I would lift my garment and walk carefully.” Ubayy said: “That is taqwa.” Arab dress is long and flowing. On a thorny path you gather it in, and you watch every step — so your clothes are not snagged and your feet are not cut. That is life. Every step, you are aware: Is this bringing me closer to Allah, or further away? Would Allah be pleased with this, or angry? The technical meaning Literal meaning = the dictionary meaning. Technical meaning = the meaning in context. Example: the word site . Literally, a place. Say it to a builder and he means a construction site . Say it to a web developer and she means a website . Same word, different technical meaning depending on context. So for taqwa: * Literal: protective fear * Technical: mindfulness of Allah Being constantly aware of whether something is beloved to Allah or disliked by Him, and whether a decision takes you towards Him or away from Him. A person of taqwa will be guided by the Quran, because that is where you find what Allah loves, what He dislikes, what He made obligatory and what He made forbidden. Ayah 3 — The Signs of Taqwa Taqwa is in the heart. The Prophet ﷺ said, “At-taqwa ha huna” — taqwa is here — pointing to the chest. You cannot display it. But it produces signs , and the signs can be seen. الَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ الصَّلَاةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَاهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ “Those who believe in the unseen, establish the prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them.” 1. They believe in the unseen ( yu’minuna bil-ghayb ) Every pillar of iman involves something unseen: * Allah — we cannot see Him. * Angels — we cannot see them. * Books — we can hold a mushaf , but we did not see Jibril bring it down. That process is what makes it different from every other book. * Prophets — the Companions could see Muhammad ﷺ the man. What they could not see was him receiving revelation, and that is what made him a prophet. * Day of Judgement — not yet seen. * Divine decree (qadar) — never seen. Remember the three dimensions of the religion — the what , the why , and the how . Iman is the why : the root system. You do what you do because you believe Allah commanded it. 2. They establish the prayer ( yuqimunas-salah ) Belief is invisible. Prayer is what that invisible belief looks like when it comes out. 3. They spend from what Allah has given them ( wa mimma razaqnahum yunfiqun ) Not “what they earned” — what We have provided them. The wealth was never theirs to begin with. Next Week We continue with the details of ayah 3, and aim to reach ayah 5 — unless our guest speaker joins us, in which case Islamic Studies runs instead. Key Terms * Wallahu a’lam — Allah knows best * Taqwa — literally: protective fear. Technically: mindfulness of Allah * Muttaqin — the people of taqwa * Ghayb — the unseen * Sanam al-Quran — the peak of the Quran Questions to Test Yourself * What does Al-Baqarah mean, and how many ayat does it have? * Give the three wisdoms behind Alif Lam Mim. * Translate ayah 2 into English. * What is the difference between protective fear and paralysing fear? Give one example of each. * What did Ubayy ibn Ka’b compare taqwa to? * What is the difference between a literal meaning and a technical meaning? * Name the three traits of the people of taqwa mentioned in ayah 3. * Why is belief in the Quran still “belief in the unseen” when you can hold a copy in your hands? This is a public episode. 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New term, new surah. This term and next, we’re studying one of the most important surahs in the Qur’an — the one Rasul ﷺ told us to read every Friday: Surah al-Kahf . This note is a companion to the video. Watch for the full explanation; use this to hold the structure in your mind. Why this surah matters Rasulullah ﷺ taught that Surah al-Kahf is our protection from the Dajjāl — the great deceiver who comes as the greatest trial to humanity near the end of time. Every prophet from Nūḥ عليه السلام onward warned their people about him. But because Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ is the last messenger, with no prophet to come after him, he was given something extra: not only the warning and description, but the protection . And that protection is in this surah. The Dajjāl will be given powers that appear divine — controlling the weather, appearing to raise the dead — until he claims godhood and commands people to worship him: worship me and receive the world’s wealth; refuse and go hungry. Against this, we recite Surah al-Kahf every Friday. Reciting in Arabic earns the reward (ten ḥasanāt per letter) and the barakah. But the Qur’an was sent as guidance — so understanding the surah adds a further layer of protection. That’s what we’re doing this term. The reason for revelation (Asbāb al-Nuzūl) The Quraysh, doubting the Prophet ﷺ, went to the learned People of the Book in Yathrib for questions only a true prophet could answer. They were given three: * Tell us about the sleepers of the cave * Tell us about a ruler who reigned from east to west * Tell us about the soul (the rūḥ) The Prophet ﷺ said, “Come tomorrow and I’ll answer” — but Jibrīl did not come. Days passed; in some narrations, close to two weeks. The first two answers came in Surah al-Kahf; the third, about the rūḥ, in Surah al-Isrāʾ. The lesson in the delay: Allah revealed “And never say of anything, ‘I will do that tomorrow,’ except [when adding], ‘if Allah wills.’” The future belongs to Allah — so when we speak of it, we say In shā’ Allāh . And note: In shā’ Allāh has become a polite “no” in much of the Muslim world. That’s a misuse. If you intend to do something, say it and mean it. If you don’t, learn to say no plainly. The structure: four stories, four tests The surah’s four main narratives map onto the four tests the Dajjāl will bring — each story teaching us how to survive its test. 1. The Sleepers of the Cave (Aṣḥāb al-Kahf) — the test of FAITH Young men, some said to be sons of ministers with comfortable lives, commanded to worship idols. The scholars gave up, the leaders gave up — but they chose to flee the city to protect their īmān. Allah preserved them in sleep for 309 years. The lesson: protecting our īmān comes before everything in this world. 2. The Owner of Two Gardens (Ṣāḥib al-Jannatayn) — the test of WEALTH A rich man who assumed there was no ākhirah — this world is all there is. Two reminders: rizq comes from Allah, ar-Razzāq, not from any system or deceiver in this world — so never disobey Allah for worldly gain. And wealth is not a sign of Allah’s love or of success in the ākhirah. 3. Mūsā and al-Khiḍr — the test of KNOWLEDGE Mūsā عليه السلام — the greatest prophet to that point, leading the largest ummah, first to receive a scripture — was asked who was most knowledgeable and answered that it was himself. Allah said: no. However knowledgeable you are, there is always someone who knows more — and ultimately, Allah is the Most Knowing. Fitting for our own age, drowning in information. 4. Dhul-Qarnayn — the test of POWER Not his name, but a title. A ruler over a vast empire, east to west, who remained a humble servant of Allah and never turned tyrant. The test: what will you do when Allah gives you power? A pressing question when humanity has never been more powerful. This week’s practice Recite Surah al-Kahf this Friday. If you can’t manage the whole surah, recite the first ten and the last ten ayat. If not that, at least the first ten — the ones we’ve been practising since Tajweed Tuesday, so they should be flowing beautifully by now. See you next Thursday, in shā’ Allāh. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.grounded.day/subscribe
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