“I have been sent to perfect the nobility of your character”. Prophet Mohammed (saw)

The Holy Prophet (saw) articulated his mission as supporting the perfection of character of his Umma. He himself was a living example of what nobility of character looks like in action. The Quran testifies to this by saying “And most surely you are of a tremendous nature.” (The Holy Quran, 68:4 )

In these series of talks, we will inshallah discuss the essential elements of a noble character as taught to us by the Prophet (saw) and his family. We will discuss various aspects of virtues that make up a Noble Character, such as Courage, Compassion, Patience and Gratitude among others.

We will focus on practical tools to nurture and strengthen these virtues within ourselves so that we can help realize the mission of the Holy Prophet (saw).  At the end of the series, we hope to have a clear picture of what the virtue looks like in action and practical ways to practice the virtue for ourselves in our da...

“I have been sent to perfect the nobility of your character”. Prophet Mohammed (saw)

The Holy Prophet (saw) articulated his mission as supporting the perfection of character of his Umma. He himself was a living example of what nobility of character looks like in action. The Quran testifies to this by saying “And most surely you are of a tremendous nature.” (The Holy Quran, 68:4 )

In these series of talks, we will inshallah discuss the essential elements of a noble character as taught to us by the Prophet (saw) and his family. We will discuss various aspects of virtues that make up a Noble Character, such as Courage, Compassion, Patience and Gratitude among others.

We will focus on practical tools to nurture and strengthen these virtues within ourselves so that we can help realize the mission of the Holy Prophet (saw).  At the end of the series, we hope to have a clear picture of what the virtue looks like in action and practical ways to practice the virtue for ourselves in our da...

 In this lecture we discuss the virtue of Sabr which is usually translated as Patience but it is so much more than that. In this lecture we discuss the three parts of the virtue of Sabr and what modern research says about it

“I have been sent to perfect the nobility of your character”. Prophet Mohammed (saw)

The Holy Prophet (saw) articulated his mission as supporting the perfection of character of his Umma. He himself was a living example of what nobility of character looks like in action. The Quran testifies to this by saying “And most surely you are of a tremendous nature.” (The Holy Quran, 68:4 )

In these series of talks, we will inshallah discuss the essential elements of a noble character as taught to us by the Prophet (saw) and his family. We will discuss various aspects of virtues that make up a Noble Character, such as Courage, Compassion, Patience and Gratitude among others.

We will focus on practical tools to nurture and strengthen these virtues within ourselves so that we can help realize the mission of the Holy Prophet (saw).  At the end of the series, we hope to have a clear picture of what the virtue looks like in action and practical ways to practice the virtue for ourselves in our da...

In this lecture we discuss the virtue of contentment and why it is the foundation of gratitude and compassion. 

This is the first post in the series Essential Virtues for Developing Nobility of Character. The series will share the speaking notes for lectures delivered in Toronto in October 2015. The audio files of the lectures are also available online via itunes or libsyn (Living and Loving the Quran. http://marziahassan.libsyn.com/webpage)

The topic that we will discuss, reflect on and inshallah put into practice in the next few days is called Essential Virtues for Developing Nobility of Character.

We will be discussing in very practical terms various virtues of character and how we can develop and nurture them within ourselves. Before we can do that, however, we need to gain some basic understanding of what is good character and why it is important to develop it. This part is more theoretical and abstract than what is to come but it is usually useful to understand why we need to work at something challenging as it gives us a reason to push through when we face obstacles.

What is akhlaq?

The...

Given how much we hear through sermons and lectures, not many of us lack information about what needs to be done. In months like Muharram and Ramadan, we get really inspired through the mimbar. These months are like a spiritual re-boot for us in that we are invited to pause from our regular lives and reflect on the big picture. We are invited to ponder about the big questions in life and ask ourselves whether the direction we are heading is likely to lead to ultimate success and happiness. We are given the opportunity to change tracks or adjust our direction so that we can follow a path which will result in ultimate success.

(Note: this post consists of the speaking notes for Lecture 1 of the Nobility of Character Series. The audio file is also posted and may be helpful to hear while you go through the notes)

Listening to and getting inspired through lectures and sermons is obviously the first (and important) step to making meaningful changes in our lives because it leads to awaren...

In this episode we talk about the arguments used by the Quraish to disbelive in the message of the Quran

What does it mean to say that Allah swt will bring small acts of goodness to light?
What are the worldly benefits of doing small acts of kindness?
How can we practice doing small acts of kindness every day?

Continuing our study of Chapter 34, Sura Saba. In this episode, we discuss how arrogance, power and materialism caused the Meccans to disbelieve in the message of the Quran.