Khushoo means devotion. Khushoo is when one's complete attention during Salah is to Allah (swt). Yes, that is more than normal. Only thing is that the devil does not want you to do that. That pesky little bugger would rather that you concentrate on other important things. Like what you will have for lunch or thinking about the last EastEnders episode or you might be re-playing the last United game in your head.... Goal!!!! Oops, what was I doing? Anyway, time for the third Sajdah...

Anyway, you're probably wondering what the big deal is. Some of the sahaba asked "What is Ihsan (perfection)?" Allah's Apostle replied, "To worship Allah (swt) as if you see Him, and if you cannot achieve this state of devotion then you must consider that He is looking at you." (Bukhari 2:47)

Test Your Knowledge - Islamic Quiz 2008

1. In which city was Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) born?

* Mecca
* Riyadh
* Madina
* Jeddah

2. Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) father, Abdullah, died before he was born, but how old was Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) when his mother Aminah died?

* 2
* 6
* 8
* 9

3. How old was Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) when Angel Jibra’il (as) appeared to him, in a cave at Mount Hira in Mecca, with the first revelation of the Holy Quran?

* 11
* 21
* 23
* 40

4. The Islamic year is based on the 12 months of the lunar calendar, not the solar calendar. What is the name of the last month in the Islamic calendar?

* Rabi Al-awwal
* Ramadan
* Dhul Hijjah

By Yaqub Bell & Alveena Salim

The Revival team had exclusive backstage passes at the swanky Excel Centre in London at the Global Peace and Unity Event in November 2007. We met up, collected our passes, went backstage and decided against sampling the tasty strawberry’s dipped in the chocolate fountain in case we smeared chocolate all over our tops and looked like fools when interviewing the performers.

After the short but sweet press conference the organisers arranged some interviews for The Revival. We interviewed a number of performers including the US based Nasheed group Seven8Six. The talented singing group consists of Shahaab Quraishi, Omar Razzacki, Zafar Razzacki, Muhammad Saadullah (Saad), and Muhammad Saeedullah (Saeed).

Q. Are Muslim students allowed to sit in Sex Education lessons? What does Islam say about Sex Education in general?

Answer by Shaykh Salim Ghiza

In the Name of Allah, The Most Beneficent and Merciful.

Sex education is a very important part of life and all Muslims who are of marriageable age must learn what is permissible with their partners and what isn’t. However, the purpose of sex education in schools in the UK is not about teaching children how to refrain from sex until they are married but they teach them how to practice safe sex. As sex before marriage is not permissible in Islam this sort of education to the children is also not permissible and therefore Haram.

There are many words we read and hear but aren’t too sure what they mean. So The Revival attempts to define some Islamic terms used in this issue:

al-Kawthar – a river in paradise. On the Day of Judgment the faithful believers will be led to al-Kawthar where they will drink only once and will never thirst again.

Anbiya – are the chosen Prophets of Allah (swt). There have been over 124,000 Prophets sent to mankind. In the Qur’an Allah (swt) mentions the names of 25 Prophets. The 5 most well known Prophets of Islam are Nuh (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses) Isa (Jesus) and Muhammad (May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon them all).

Selected messages received by the Editor

Salaam
The website is great and I think The Revival is doing a great job because it has certainly changed me. I started to pay more attention to Islam after I read my first revival magazine. So carry on with the great work, you are doing a great job in making today's generation realise what Islam really is.
Ayesha
Birmingham

Salam
Hi, I recently got hold of "The Revival" in Birmingham. I live in Sheffield and really would like this magazine to be available down here. It has absolutely opened my eyes and I'm sure many other young people would appreciate it as well.
Thanks
Muna Omar
Sheffield

Assallamu Allaikum

Q. I have recently read that Walkers use a small amount of alcohol in some flavours of their crisps (Sensations Thai Sweet Chilli, Doritos Chilli Heat Wave and Quavers Cheese), to enhance the flavour. Does that make them Haram?

A. It has become evident that some flavourings in some crisps consist of Haram ingredients. Therefore, as per the rule of the Shariah, once something permissible has something Haram added to it and cannot be separated, then the whole item becomes Haram. In which case, those crisps with Haram ingredients are Haram and therefore not permissible to eat.

Q. Can a Muslim give Haram food to a non-Muslim?

The belief in the Day of Judgement is a fundamental of Islam. This is when Allah (swt) will be the only Judge and no-one will be able to help us - not even our own parents! On the Day of Judgement, the hair of a child will turn grey. [Bukhari]. This shows the severity of that Day where even children will be stricken with fear, although they are innocent and going to Heaven (Jannah). The only thing which will benefit us will be our good deeds. We will either be told that we have been successful thus will go into Heaven, or have failed so will end up in Hell.

Heaven

What does Heaven look like?

The Qur’an and Hadith reveal many detailed descriptions of Heaven:

The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) successfully united the warring tribes of Arabia and built a new social system that would go on to form the basis of an Empire, the like of which had never been seen before. This was only within the 23 years since he received his first revelation from Allah (swt), and ten years after he had emigrated from Mecca to Medina with the rest of his followers. Allah (swt) judged that his work had now been done, and so the Prophet (pbuh) began to near his death.

Sa'id ibn 'Abd Allah related from his father that as the Prophet (pbuh) became more ill, the people of Medina gathered around the Mosque. Al-Abbas (ra), al-Fadl (ra) and Ali (ra) entered to tell him that they were outside. He stretched out his hand and said

"Here,"

Before you start getting all worked up and start sending death threats to the Editor, just relax. And breathe. Muslims seem to be uncomfortable discussing issues which ‘make Muslims look bad’ – others may even go as far as to deny that they actually happen. However, Allah (swt) has commanded Muslims to stand up for justice. It makes no difference if it affects one individual or thousands. We need to have the confidence and courage to admit our shortcomings and stand up for the oppressed. Even if the oppressors are Muslims.