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Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| just got back from retreat.... |
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| nouha |
| 06/17/02 at 16:47:07 |
| [slm] how is everyone doin? alhumdulilah i hope. well i just got back from the retreat, it was raining the whole weekend and it was cold a bit but thats fine, it was still enjoyable, everyone is fine alhumdulilah, some people are getting sick due to the weather and food but nothign too serious, i had to leave early though becuase i was sent to the hospital, im the one who got REALLY sick, but im now fine alhamdulilah. i got to meet mohja :), what a lovely lady ;D . she thought the people from albany were all intellectual.... hahahha... the surprise on her face ;) arsalam was there too but i didnt meet him. ill post my reflections later inshallah and some notes on the tazkiyah retreat, its good to be back :P wasalam nouha:) |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| Seeker |
| 06/17/02 at 23:55:20 |
| [slm] what happen to my Nouhaaaa! (I heard my mom went up there today). But du'a baby, it's all about du'a. From one of the retreaters I heard that a little before maghrib, Br. Mokhtar holds an Islamic advice halaqah. I wish I could have actually made it this year! I keep telling myself that things happen for a reason. And not only any reason, but for a good reason. Make du'a that I can still go for the last two days! I'll take what I can get. Come on Nouah! give us some refections here! Time is of the essence! I need something to hold me until I (insha'allah) go. ps. I wish I could have met all of the board celebrities that went. [wlm] |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| jannah |
| 06/23/02 at 04:21:22 |
| [slm] May Allah accept from all of us that went even for a short period of time. And May Allah help us to learn from the experience and let it influence our lives in a positive way. Ameen. What an experience eh... It was great to meet you all as well and share a [] iced tea or cranberry juice every now and then :) |
| 06/23/02 at 04:22:08 |
| jannah |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| flyboy_nz |
| 06/24/02 at 06:41:25 |
| [slm], :-[this retreat sounds cool but can someone explain what it is exactly?? Who organises it? are there notes or a plan on how to organise one and what it involves? [wlm], ;-)Ahmed |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| Mohja |
| 06/24/02 at 18:21:16 |
| oh sr nouha, must you expose my umm cleverness to the world :D Subhan'Allah it was so nice to meet all of you, i pray to Allah that as He blessed us to meet in that beautiful setting (physically and spiritually), that He similarly allows us to meet in Jannatul Ferdows bedooni sabiqati adhaab. Ameen! |
| 06/24/02 at 18:22:13 |
| Mohja |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| jannah |
| 06/25/02 at 04:08:25 |
| [i]This is from Betul in what was a secondary running thread. Not sure who posted first but since this one has a bunch of replies i'll put it in here inshaAllah:[/i] Assalamu Alaikum wa RahmatullaHi wa BarakatuHu, InshaAllah everyone is doing good, it's been a while since I've 'really' posted on the board, I've been at the retreat and Alhamdulillah I am back now. Some of the Albanyians wanted me to start the thread about the retreat and the experience I had, so here it goes inshaAllah. This year was my first year to attend the retreat wAlhamdulillah, and those who are thinking about attending next year, take it from me, it is worth it and you will be very grateful to Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala that you are able to go, InshaAllah. The first couple days really helped me focus, because we had 3 hr classes and a strict schedule to follow, so Alhamdulillah not much time to waste. I will try to summarize my notes and inshaAllah post them up, of course other sisters and brothers have much better notes, so I'll ask them to post first, inshaAllah. The classes were further away from the main lodge (where we ate, prayed, etc), down by the lake, and SubhanAllah it is a sight that I will never forget. There are trees and mountains that sorround the entire lake, and at the edge of the lake, there were rocks going all around. One look at the lake and you're breathless, SubhanAllah it is that beautiful. You sit on the rocks and look at nothing but the wonderful creations of Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala, the waves carressing the rocks as they hit up against them, the sun shining with it's full brightness on the lake and reflecting perfectly, the wind blowing through the leaves, and the singing of the birds as they fly above my head, SubhanAllah. I felt as if everything I heard was making dhikr of Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala, and as I sat there listening more, my heart joined them in harmony and our dhikr became one, SubhanAllah. My heart let go of all the worries of dunya and found comfort with Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala, Alhamdulillah. Throughout the day, we had 'free time' for ourselves, to review over the notes, get some rest, or go down by the lake and reflect. After five days came the time for outdoors day. First day, our group went to Fawn Lake (this is a new place from last year), and SubhanAllah the water was sooo serene and calm. It was as if the mountains and trees were protecting it from anything that would disturb it's peace. It looked like the heart that Br. Mokhtar talked about, that when a Muslim gets to a point where their heart is so calm, nothing disturbs it's serenity, and I could see that in the lake, the wind made waves that seemed like it disturbed the lake but the tranquility still remained, SubhanAllah. As we were hiking up to the lake, we noticed so many trees in prostration to Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala. Some of them bent from the middle, and some of the bent from the roots and almost cracked. SubhanAllah they have so much humbleness, and fear of Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala that it made me think. Humans are supposed to be the best of creatures and we were created only to worship Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala. The trees are in dhikr of Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala 24/7/365, yet we, human beings, are in dhikr of Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala only when we remember Him. SubhanAllah, what an irony. On the second day, we went to Jockey Bush Lake. The hike was somewhat more difficult because of the steepness, but Alhamdulillah it was worth it. All the lakes I came across were always peaceful and showing the beauty that Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala has given them. I was able to get in touch with my heart and actually feel it saying "La ilaha illa Allah". Alhamdulillah those feelings I wkn't forget and InshaAllah would like to experience over and over again. Third day, we went canoeing. We paddled for about 2 1/2 hrs and SubhanAllah it was so hard. Many people reflected on canoeing as our life journey in the path to Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala. The water/our life can get hard, the waves/struggles of life can be difficult to handle, but we must never stop paddling/striving because if we do, we'll lose control of the canoe/life, and stray off the course/right path. We paddle/strive as hard as we can, and through all of that, we will reach our final destination, the shore/Jannah. SubhanAllah, it really showed me that even though we are faced with challenges in life, we must never give up and always have reliance on Allahu SubhanaHu Wata'ala with everything in life, and InshaAllah we will reach our final abode, Jannah. The last two days of the retreat were very special but I do not have much time to right them now. InshaAllah I will comment more on the retreat another time. Please forgive me, this post has been long. Jazakum Allahu khayran to everyone. Wassalamu Alaikum, Betul |
| 06/25/02 at 04:09:46 |
| jannah |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| se7en |
| 06/26/02 at 17:08:10 |
| as salaamu alaykum, It was definitely an *amazing* experience.. alhamdulillah, alhamdulillah, alhamdulillah. For those of you who missed the last session you *missed out*.. it was intense beyond words, subhanAllah. It was also very cool to meet up with some Madina peeps 8) Mohja, mashaAllah, you are deep, sweet and.. very southern ;) I loved having you as my roommate :) I love you all for the sake of Allah :) wasalaamu alaykum :-* |
| 06/26/02 at 17:13:00 |
| se7en |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| Mohja |
| 06/29/02 at 16:40:22 |
| so se7en, does it have to be a check or will a money order do ;) i loved having you as my roommate too, you and the 100 hundred other sisters that slept in there :o :D where's sr. soumaya btw? i miss her! |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| mwishka |
| 06/29/02 at 16:47:35 |
| hey sis mohja. are you REALLY "very southern"? or is sis se7en just um "very albanyian"?? :D mwishka (whose west virginia hillbilly/florida cracker accent has disappeared except when very very tired....) |
| 06/29/02 at 16:48:38 |
| mwishka |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| Mohja |
| 07/02/02 at 11:35:47 |
| mwiskha, did i tell you before how perceptive you can be at times? let's just say that the yankee syndrome is in full effect ;) right se7en? :P |
| 07/02/02 at 11:40:20 |
| Mohja |
| Re: just got back from retreat.... |
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| se7en |
| 07/02/02 at 12:00:03 |
| as salaamu alaykum, Mohja has the perfect voice for saying things like, "dear lady, would you care for some mint juleps on the veranda?" (I don't even know what mint juleps are, but it sounds very southern :P) sou sends her salaams :) miss you.. wasalaamu alaykum :-) |
| 07/02/02 at 12:00:47 |
| se7en |
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