Poem: Nothing Compares

by Farheen Naaz

This is dedicated to all the fathers out there who adore their daughters to an extent which makes the daughter say -- Oh God! And also for all the daughters who feel maybe he's being too overprotective.

Nothing compares to the comfort of walking sleepy-eyed into the living room every morning and seeing him reading the newspaper . . .

Nothing compares to the sense of security that you feel when despite your loud protests, he insists on dropping you somewhere just so he is assured that you have reached safely . . .

Nothing compares to the feeling of individuality that only he could give by asking for your opinion on significant family decisions, even when you were just 12 . . .

Nothing compares to the delight you feel when he expresses amazement that your birthday is not important enough to be a national holiday . . .

Nothing compares to the sense of camaraderie you feel when it's you and your father versus mom and your brother . . .

Nothing compares to the spark in your mother's eyes when she gets a pair of earrings from him on their anniversary . . .

Nothing compares to the feeling of exceptionality he insists in you when he genuinely thinks that any guy isn't good enough for someone as unique as you . . .

Nothing compares with the knowledge that no matter what life throws at you, dad will always help you fix it . . .

And finally, absolutely nothing compares to the taken-for-granted feeling that no matter where you are, he is just a phone call away . . .

Thank you for being there always!

Read More

Poem: I Miss You Mom

I Miss You Mom

by Suha Cassim

I should have spent the last 5 years

suing medi-calls

instead I dived

into the great barrier reef and

rode a cable car

over the mountain tops;

I locked my heart

and

shut my mind

and glided

thru

the ice bergs of Alaska..

took a chopper to the Glaciers

and my heart

froze in time...

I escaped

to Big Ben

to stare

into the laughing eyes

of beautiful

Salaam...

a crack appeared..

wide eyed

I ran

to the mine fields

called Guinea

when I heard

Him.

Gently inviting

me

to his House.

In wonder

I followed..

the Black Stone

blew the ice,

to smithereens,

the tears

at arafa

washed me

clean.

My head

on the white carpet -

I was healed..

and

I,

allowed myself

a little peek

through the veil

and saw a brand new world...

May Allah swt grant you Mummy, Jannthul Firdouse, Ameen

Read More

Poem: One Word...Cancer

One Word
Amal Milaa Filza

For hours I was staring at my notebook.. Wanting to write
something however my fingers didn't move an inch.. I was searching for the right words, the perfect line but still my mind stayed blank. Every time I started to write something I would press the backspace button immediately. My inspiration was gone. One word however stayed on my mind 24/7. It came so unexpected.  I was unprepared for the lightning that struck our home. The news that spread like a gossip. I still remember my sister walking towards me with her eyes filled with tears. The words she said are frozen in my head. 'She has cancer' After that everything turned black.. It felt like my world was tumbling down.

Darkened day,
don’t know what to say

Fallen world
Buried in pain

Teary eyes
Restrained hurt

Floating thoughts
Endless rain.

My guardian angel
Can't stand to see her hurt

Day and night
Not an easy fight

Hold on to Hope
Khair Insha'Allah

Please make Dua
Give her strength

Trust remains
Allahu Akbar

Read More

Poem: Ramadan - A New Start ??

Ramadan - A New Start??

By Umm Sulaym

Today my pen truthfully writes,

And my heart through it speaks,

The gift of Rafeeqal ‘Ala,

In this blessed Ramadan it seeks.

The lips and throat may be parched,

The tongue’s dry yet under control,

O Allah! I need this Ramadan,

To ransom back my lost caged soul.

It trailed off knocking door to door,

Into the Ghostly Town of Desires,

Seeking happiness with security,

And a safe place to retire.

O Allah! My soul became Shaytan’s Puppet,

Jumping to whatever ‘advice’ he gave,

Dear Allah! Let me reach Laylatul Qadr,

To show you that I’m a worthy slave.

Mountains of sins stand threateningly united,

Blocking my view of Your Paradise,

O Allah! Your slave’s trapped in a Well of Darkness,

Pull her out before her spirit dies!

Tarawih’s heavy on the body,

Yet so light and refreshing for the burning soul,

O Allah! Help me cash out all my nights,

So that I can redeem all the nights my sleep stole.

In crowds of excited Muslims at Iftaar,

In a certain anxiousness I feel alone,

Wondering whether You granted me forgiveness,

For the sins in my Past’s Emotional Cyclone…

I admit! Drenched I am in Your Blessings,

I realize that everyday soon after Suhoor,

For it’s easy to pacify the growls in the stomach with the hope of an upcoming Iftar,

Unlike the many ever-fasting needy and poor.

A genuine smile can glue broken ties,

A hug can extinguish the hate,

The currency of Jannah is Ikhlaq,

Which ensures a clean slate.

But the motivation in me vanishes,

As I flick through the pages of my Past,

Ink of failure blackens them,

And also the blame of being a spiritual outcast.

Out of frustration:

My soul knocks at the door of Ramadan,

Hoping to benefit from its company,

It takes my hand and consoles my restless heart,

With words Promising of His Mercy:

“He directs the Creation in their matters,

He pardons the Seeker in the 3^rd part of the night,

You think He cannot forgive YOU?

Or give you the Ability to fight?

Do not doubt His Promises,

And do not doubt His Might,

Enter the Paradise of Dunia,

By remembering Him in times of plight!

Increase in reciting the Quraan,

Ponder but Increase not in speed,

For the Plant of Taqwa grows slowly,

When you with the Quraan nourish it’s seed.

READ in the Name of Thy Lord,

Who created you and that girl who’s deaf and mute,

She memorized Quraan merely by reading lips,

Why does your Faith in Allah then lack resolute?

Control the Rein of your Nafs with His Words,

Devote a portion of it to memorize,

Do you not want to be clothed with the Heavenly ‘Robe of Honor’,

and majestically crowned In His Beautiful Paradise?”

At this my eyes moistened,

And I knew those forgotten words are true,

Has Allah gifted me with this Ramadan,

to start my journey anew?

As my pen finishes dutifully writing,

The narrations of my strengthened heart,

It suggests that if the browser of your spiritual life seems stuck,

Then it’s only YOU stopping YOU from a ‘restart’!

Read More

Poem: Finally

Finally

By Amal Milaa Filza

On my own, nowhere to go,

Lost in this world,

But I know you are here.

When will I find you, my dear?

Only you can ease my pain.

Make this hurt disappear.

So many sleepless nights,

Imprisoned by Shaytaan, But I wont give up this fight.

It’s you for who I long.

I’m waiting for the strength to carry on.

There is nothing in this Dunya that can replace your love.

It’s been so many months,

But now I can feel it.

The end is near sight.

Behind the blackness I can finally see the light.

Bright up my view.

Make me feel brand new.

Blow away my fears.

Ramadan is finally here.

Read More

Poem: The Blessed Month

The Blessed Month

by Sonika Dhingra

The blessed month is coming up again
Happy times are going to be here again

Shaitaan will be trapped once again
Rewards will be multiplied by 70 again :-)

Yes one year is almost about to pass
So how many good deeds did you amass ?

You did great with all the changes you made
With every prostration you raised in grade

You met new people, learnt new things
Increased love by passing the greetings

And all the hard times you went through
With much patience closer to Allah you grew

But never despair, this cycle will always go on
Even the darkest of night will see a dawn

But if you want the happiness to last forever
Guard your prayers and be among the clever

Let Qur'an be your guide, Allah be your only wali
Love for Allah and hate for Allah, make dhikr daily

So gear up, recharge the batteries of your iman again
Get ready to gain maximum blessings again

A great time to earn endless rewards is coming up again
Ramadan, the blessed month is coming up again :-)

Read More

Ramadan Poem: 8 Days Away

8 Days Away

by Shireen Baig

O my dearly beloved month, you are 8 days away,
I can never depend on myself to make the most of you
The time when every soul rushes to pray..
Without my Creator's help, my wish can never turn true.

When the houses are filled with the recitation of the Quran,
11 months of so-called busy life, comes to peace at Ramadan
When the sunnah's are more beloved than any other time,
After all, we are blessed with the rewards from the Divine

You are the time that we need in our sinful lives,
When every soul competes for good deeds and strives
To seek the pleasure of Him, The Rahman, The Haleem,
Whose mercy encompasses everything that we've ever seen

How sad is it, that you do not receive a proper welcome
At your departure, with the night prayer's we are done
We hardly witness them after the last night,
It rarely gets mentioned till the next ramadan's sight..

We start the preparations for weddings much before the actual day,
But with your preparation, we take it all easy-breezy, like its okay.
Iftar parties, heavy food and shopping for the eid,
Last days, there's a decline in every good deed.

May We be blessed from our Creator, to realize your value,
May there be barakah in the way that we spend you..
May we not be of those who sleep throughout your days,
Who spend your nights in many different non-religious ways.

May we take the effort to understand the word of God,
May we not be of those who during prayer begin to yawn
May we read, recite, try to understand Quran a Lot
May we sincerely remember our Lord during dusk and dawn..

Read More

Poem: Excerpts Of An Oppressed Heart

Excerpts Of An Oppressed Heart

By Sumaiyya Inayat

How soon was I plunged

From the grandeur of victory

Into the dungeons of defeat.

The trail of Ayubis and Qasims

Have long been swept away

By an impervious ummah.

The glorious regime of the desert

Faded like a dream.

And now the savage hounds

Lurk in dark shadows,

Their glaring eyes fixed upon my tribe,

Their jagged teeth await the flesh of my sons;

They sate their immortal hate

Drinking upon my blood

Drop by drop.

The sanctity of my harem lost,

The innocence of my children forever gone.

My screams still do not flutter hearts

My words do not move souls

My beseeching pleas always unheard,

The voices of my clan suppressed

And yet I endure it all

With a deep dauntless faith

For faith is all that I have left.

With stains of unwiped tears,

Admits the souvenirs of

Bullets, shrapnels and uzis,

Admits the wailing of my babies,

I turn towards the sky

And with raised hands

I pray the tables would one day turn,

And my revenge be sought.

I pray for the dawn

Whose rising sun would restore

My lands, my glory, my pride.

Read More

Poem: Thank you my Angel

Angel

By Amal Milaa Filza

Where do I start when writing a poem for an angel?

An angel so special, so sweet..

I have to tell you, I’m thankful to have a hero by my side, my halo, my light.

Always living in the dark but with you, all of a sudden there is more than just night.

Allah has sent you to me,

Blind at first, but now I see..

Together forever we will be.

I’m proud to have you in my life,

You inspire me to hope and dream.

Angel with a broken wing, I would be lost without you, a throne without a king..

Hamdoulillah there are still friends like you,

There isn’t a thing I wouldn’t do.

You are beautiful in every single way,

Doesn’t go a day by, without mentioning you in my pray.

You are sweet, honest & sincere,

An angel living on planet earth,

Someone I wish I was worth.

You always know what to say, one call could make my day.

You’re the only one, who can cheer me up when I cry,

Without you, I wouldn’t know how to survive.

I know I can be stubborn and a little bit naïve,

But it’s you, on who I can lean.

Together we will hang on,

From sunrise until dawn.

Months, years no matter how long.

A soul mate is what I have found,

and I love you for the sake of Allah without a doubt.

Read More

Poem: If One Day...

If One Day...

“If one day, you are to walk out of my life...
I promise I will never whine and never ask ' why?'
But in return, promise me that you shall
give me back a few things that I ask for.


Promise me that you will give me back
the endless sleepless nights I spent talking with you.
Promise me that you will give me back
the millions of tears I cried begging God to give me you.
Promise me that you will give me back
the hours I spent dreaming of a life with you.
Promise me that you will give me back
all the hopes and faith I had in my heart.


All those nights, I could have slept well
and woke up early to help my folks.
All those tears I could have cried for something
genuine and in asking forgiveness to God.
All those hours I could have been realistic
and thought of life and the hereafter.
All the hopes I had in our love and
the faith I had in you could have been directed to God.


And finally sweetheart, Promise me…
That in the Hereafter you will be there
to stand for me, to fight for me and tell God,
“I used all tactics to make her fall for me
And I led her astray…away from her family..away from prayers..
Away from herself and now away from God…”


So, like you always say “Together in life and together in death”
But, let me add to it now that this one sin will make us
together in hell burning ourselves time and again to death…


- (Shaharban)

Read More