Laylatul Qadr

	Sayyidina Abu Hurairah Radhiyallahu anhu reports that Rasoolullah Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: "Whoever stands in prayer and worship on this night of Power, with complete faith and sincere hope of gaining reward, all his previous sins are forgiven." (Targhib, Bukhari, Muslim)
	Sayyidina Anas Radhiyallahu anhu reports, "Once when Ramadhân commenced the Messenger of Allâh (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said, "A month has verily dawned over you wherein lies a night better than a thousand months. Whoever misses such a night has indeed been deprived of all that is good and none is deprived of it, except he who is really unfortunate". (Targhib, Mishkât, Ibn Majah)
	The Qurân-e-Karîm refers to this night in Surah Qadr, in which the rewards of this auspicious night is mentioned. Allah Ta’ala says this night is better than a thousand months of ibâdat.
	This night falls in the month of Ramadhân. Laylatul Qadr should be searched for on the odd nights during the last ten days of Ramadân, i.e. 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th and 29th.

Adoption?
The singer Madonna’s ‘adoption’ of a child from Malawi raises many questions. Her act follows in the example of other movie 'stars' and personalities involved in ‘high-profile adoptions’ of children from 'disadvantaged' backgrounds.

Sure, Madonna has contributed much towards orphans in general and also towards an orphanage in Malawi. So have many of the other stars who have taken up the cudgels of striving to serve humanity and serving in different modes as ambassadors for the procurement of the humanitarian rights of the less-fortunate.

No-one can, or even should, judge whether the actions of these celebrities are genuine acts of supporting humanitarian causes. However, certain questions must be posed.

Can one consider their actions to be equivalent to that of purchasing the
child with their charities? If they consider themselves to be giving the child a better prospect in life, would they be correct in their assumptions? Does a
life of better financial means necessarily mean a better life; does a life of a filled stomach mean a life filled with moral values and does entrance and access to prestigious institutions constitute providing the child with an education? Would it be fair to expose the child to practicing a way of life other than that which his parents and family are? Is the child being ‘liberated from something and is there something for the child to be liberated from?
Or… does this whole situation smell of a condition of pre-judgment and expose a trend to consider oneself, one’s background and way of life to be superior – a trend seeped in racism or other bias, prejudice and bigotry?

In Madonna’s case, the fact that the government had to ‘bend the rules’ to allow her ‘adoption’, and the fact that she allowed the government to do so, guides one to re-examine her purpose, aim and intent, and morality? And, are not the values of a person most important when considering a home for a
child – for the child to be brought up in and with?

Online Casinos
There is a continuous debate on the moral condition and status of our South African society. There is also constant deliberations and contemplation on
how fast we are moving towards becoming more and more morally corrupt
and what the causes of this sate of moral emptiness and hollowness is.

Among the many evils – prostitution, abortion, drug-abuse, alcoholism, etc–
that have contributed to the downward trend of a value-empty, morally bankrupt society in our beloved country, one is that of gambling. Gambling is present in many forms. Among them are betting on horses, casinos and the various lotteries.

Online gambling, which until recently, was illegal in South Africa, is now on
the cards. A draft amendment bill will be presented to the Cabinet for approval. This bill will be available for public viewing by the ned of October, and should be passed by April 2007. It is based on a report the National Gambling Board which stated there was a need to license and regulate online gambling in South Africa. It is interesting to note that even the United States has criminalized online gambling whereas, the South African government is legalising the industry in an attempt to regulate and control it.

The dangers of Online Gambling are extreme and intense because of the anonymity provided by the concept. In addition online gambling is conducted using the credit card allowing the gambler to gamble using money he doesn’t have.

If approved, it would indeed be sad, since this would only contribute towards increasing the many problems that have become so common today.

Crime
The crime situation is already unbearable. Cash in transit heists have created war-like scenarios in the street. Innocent people are killed in the cross-fire. House break-ins result in deaths everyday. Rapes are committed at will and murder has become the order of the day.

Last week a twenty-four year old woman and her two year old baby were attacked, raped and shot by a group of five men. After appearing in court, they were released on R5000.00 bail. Is it fair? Do we, as South Africans (especially South African Muslims) have a responsibility to stand up and do something?
<Go to Top>