--- KING ---
"What time was it?" I asked as I took another bite of my burger, looking up at Tyler as he explained how cops had busted the party they were at on Saturday.
"It was about 11 which sucked." He muttered with a roll of his eyes as he sipped the coke through the straw and placed it back on the table.
"Yeah, and there were no other parties either so we just took drinks and drank at the park." Peter added with a snicker and I shook my head with a faint, yet still forced smile.
'Did anyone get arrested?" I asked and Jackson looked up to face me with a smirk.
"I was with the group smoking in one of the rooms and they all got arrested. I jumped out the window." He said, making me laugh.
"Off the second floor?" I asked, looking at the scratches on his arms. Clearly there was a tree to break his fall, yet the tree didn't do him much good either.
"He was limping but too high to even realize the pain." Tyler laughed. If this was a month ago, I would have practically been laughing along with them, rolling on the floor and clutching my stomach, but the whole he was high and jumped out of a second floor window to run away from the cops just wasn't humorous to me anymore I suppose.
Slowly but surely, I was starting to accept that. It was no longer 'why am I like this' but it was now 'why are they like this?"
"You guys, done?" I asked as I got out of the seat and looked at their finished trays. They all nodded slightly and stood up also as we left and began walking back to school.
Sometimes we left the school to eat somewhere else, like today, we had come to McDonald's. When we did, we usually didn't make it in time for class but we arrived about halfway through the lesson so it didn't really matter.
Peter and Tyler were talking amongst themselves about something I eventually zoned out on as we walked along the footpath. My eyes narrowed slightly as I saw a guy with a clenched jaw talking to a girl who was wearing a Niqab, which I had learnt were the face veils.
I glanced around at the guys who were speaking amongst themselves, Jackson walking slightly behind me with a cigarette between his lips.
Just ignore it, King. Keep walking.
I felt my breathing get deeper and louder as I lifted my glance and watched the girl look down and try to side step him to leave, but he only stepped in front of her to stop her.
My heart was pounding in my chest as we got closer and I knew at that moment that I couldn't give a crap less about what the guys would say if I stepped in and tried to help the girl. After all the things the guys at the mosque had done for me, the least I could do was stand up for one of their women. For all I knew, this could have been Ahmad's sister or mum or cousin.
Even if she wasn't. She was a human. A woman. And she needed help.
"Can you please leave me alone?" I heard her strained voice as she took a step back, putting distance between herself and the guy.
"Do your people leave our people alone!?" He shouted, his fists clenched at his sides and as soon as I saw her flinch slightly at his voice as he took a step closer to her, I lost it, shoving him into the wall on the side before he could lay a finger on her and hearing him groan.
"Who the hell do you think you are!?" I shouted. "Come on! Speak to me like you did to her." I seethed as I held a hand around his throat, squeezing. His hands quickly came over mine, his eyes wide as he tried paying my hand off but to no avail. He was scrawny and I was livid. My fingers tightened around his throat and he began kicking his feet, his eyes wide as the blood drained from his face, leaving him pale. "What's wrong? Your strengths only enough for a woman?" I spat, narrowing my eyes at him further. If looks could kill, he'd be 6feet under already.
I thought I heard the girl gasp but her soft voice was a mere echo in my mind. I was seeing red.
I don't why I felt so defensive, but I did and I wasn't questioning it. "You're going to kill him, stop it ... please." I heard her voice. It was soft, smooth and shaky. She was scared. Terrified probably.
I loosened my grip as my eyes shut at her voice and he used the opportunity to take in a deep breath. Once I opened my eyes and saw him again I narrowed my eyes. "You're a bloody wimp." I spoke clearly through my teeth, all the calmness her voice had given me a second ago, leaving once I saw his ugly face. "You see a defenseless girl minding her own business and you try to scare her and tell her off for no damn reason as if you're some sort of big guy. What's the matter now? Not so strong, are you?" I said, tilting my head to the side as I let go of him, watching as he took in a deep breath, his body falling to the floor as he tried to suck in as much oxygen as he could.
I kicked his stomach once for good measure and then went for it again before the girl's voice stopped me, once again.
"Stop. Leave him, please." She spoke softly, my shoulders relaxing again at the sound of her voice. I sighed, turning around to look at her, my mouth falling agape and my eyes widening in recognition as I saw her eyes. I knew those eyes. And hell, they were so much more beautiful from up close. Wow.
She had long, naturally curly thick eyelashes, her eyes a beautiful golden hazel color with light specks of green in them. Gorgeous.
From the way her eyes widened, she clearly recognized me too. It didn't take her long to look down, breaking eye contact. I realized around her eyes turned pink slightly as she looked away and my heartbeat reached its peak.
I felt even more angry now, my breaths deepening as I looked at her. "Did he ... did he touch you?" I asked her, knowing that I would probably kill the guy if she said yes.
I cared for her. Whoever she was. I didn't even know her name. She shook her head slightly. "No." Her voice was soft.
"Are you okay?" I asked her and I heard the voice of the guys behind me, yet their voices muffled in my mind and my focus was solely on her.
"I'm fine." She said, "May Allah reward you." She whispered before she quickly stepped beside me and walked away in a hurry before I could say another word even though I wanted to, leaving me staring at the swaying thick black material of her niqab, and just like that, my heart relaxed as I watched her leave.
I turned around and saw the guy on the floor. "You better pray I never see you again." I spoke, pronouncing every word clearly, kicking him once more in the stomach for good measure before shoving my hands in my pockets and storming off towards the school.
"What the hell was that?" Peter asked, looking at me with wide eyes.
"Do you realize what you just did!?" Tyler asked loudly as he caught up to my long and speedy strides. Jackson was still loitering behind, a new cigarette in his hands. He probably didn't even realize what happened.
"Stick up for a woman?" I said simply with a shrug. The only thing that was in my mind was her eyes and her voice. I never thought I'd see her again, yet just after she had escaped my mind for sometime, she came across me again.
"A Muslim." Tyler muttered. I knew they didn't have anything against Muslims, but we never stood up for anyone who was having a fight. We would always stand around, watch and probably record to have a laugh later so no surprise that they were so shocked.
"So what? She needed help." I said simply with yet another shrug of my shoulders as we turned into the school courtyard.
"Did you know each other? Why were you staring at her like that?" Peter asked with a scoff. I couldn't answer that. What was I supposed to say?
I've never spoken to her but for some reason just by looking at her eyes, she's drawn me in and I haven't been able to sleep with other women since I first saw her because for some damn reason I feel like I'm betraying her?
Yeah, no.
"I don't know her." I settled in as I turned towards my own class in the school and left them to go to their own classes.
I blew out a deep breath as I joined my hands behind my head and lied on my bed, facing the ceiling. I had just finished the 8th volume of Ibn Kathir's tafsir. I only had two more to go, but towards the end, I wasn't focusing properly and so I left reading.
She was on my mind the whole day.
Maybe it was wrong of me to be thinking of her so much, but I couldn't control it. No matter how much I tried to take her out of my mind, she entered it again.
'May Allah reward you.'
That's what she had told me. When so many people around me were hating on me and couldn't give a crap less about me, she, despite not knowing me, prayed for her Lord to reward me.
Maybe it was because she had thought I was a Muslim, but nonetheless, she wanted good for me. And that was enough.
I realized a small smile was taking over my face and I sighed.
"Fix up, mate." I muttered to myself, rubbing my face with my hands.
How was I so intrigued and infatuated by a girl whose face I had never seen? Who's name I did not know? Whom I haven't spent more than thirty seconds with?
She had said to leave the guy. I didn't know why. She was clearly distressed and terrified because of him, yet she made me stop.
I should have kept beating him once she left. He deserved so much more than a couple of kicks to the stomach. My jaw clenched as her flinching as he shouted came to my mind.
"King, dinner is ready."
"Thanks, Linda, I'll be down in a minute." I spoke quickly to the maid as I sighed before sitting up in bed just as my phone rang.
"Hey, bro." I answered, taking the phone to my ear as I saw Walter's name on the screen.
"Hey, mate. Are you coming today?" He asked. "I wasn't gonna go, but I will if you will." He said and I looked at my watch. How was I always forgetting about the youth classes?
"Yeah, I'll be there." I answered him.
"Alright, cool. I can pick you up if you want." He said and after I told him not to bother, he said it was fine and so I told him my address before getting changed and going down the stairs.
"I'm going out." I spoke up as soon as I saw my dad's mouth open with narrowed eyes.
"Like the weekends we ... "
"Leave him." Nadia spoke from the table, giving him a stern look. I took the opportunity to leave through the front door and shut it behind me, walking down the driveway.
"Sir, do you need to be driven somewhere?" One of the drivers asked as he saw me approaching the gate, joining his hands behind his back and nodding at me firmly.
"I'm being picked up." I started and he buzzed the gate open. I walked out and looked at my phone to see the time right as Walters' car stopped in front of me, the window on my side rolling down.
"If you'd told me you live in a mansion, I wouldn't have come and embarrassed myself in a 1990 model Nissan." He said with a laugh as I pulled the door open and got in.
"Shut up. It's my dad's house." I said simply. He clearly realized the touchy subject and as we pulled back onto the road, he changed the conversation.
"Aye, if it isn't the two extra's of the masjid." Someone said and I rolled my eyes, looking up and stopping my actions of untying my laces as I looked at Zubayr whose voice I had already recognized.
"Don't make me piff this shoe on your head, akhi." Walter commented as he put his shoes on the shelf. I laughed and shook my head as I put my shoes on an empty space before walking in beside them.
"Welcome back, King." The imam said and I smiled, giving him a nod and saying thanks as I shook hands with a couple of the dudes I had quickly become friends with before sitting down next to Walter.
I realized Ayman, the sports guy, wasn't here even though he was almost always at the mosque every time I came.
"So, shall we begin?" The imam asked as he cleared his throat and sat down, again in that uncomfortable position; his knees bent, calves under his thighs. How on earth was he comfortable sitting like that for an hour?!
"Okay, A'udhu billahi min ash-shaytaan-ir- rajeem. (I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan.)
Bismillahir-Rahman-ir-Rahim. (In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.) We start off the topic with a declaration of faith. We bear witness that there is no god, no deity worthy of worship, except for Allah, and we also bear witness that Muhammad 'alayhi as-salam (peace be upon him), is the servant and messenger of Allah." He licked his lips and opened the book before clearing his throat once again and beginning the topic.
"Bismillah. Was salatu was salamu 'ala Rasoolillah. Amma ba'd. InshaaAllah today we will be covering a topic I cover at least once every month. It is the pillar of our faith. The first question asked on the day of judgment. The thing that differentiates us from the kuffar. Salat. Prayer. We will be going over not only the great importance of prayer, but also the importance of the quality of it." He began, his gaze gliding over everyone in the circle.
"Okay, so what is the greatest Hadith regarding prayer?" He asked no one in particular. The circle was silent for a few seconds. Ahmad looked around the circle and when he noticed no one was going to speak up, he spoke.
"The Prophet (SAW) said, 'Between a man and shirk and kufr, there stands his neglect of the prayer.' It was narrated in Muslim in Kitaab al-Eemaan from Jaabir ibn 'AbdAllaah directly from the Prophet." He spoke clearly and confidently as the imam nodded a slight glint of pride in his eyes.
"BarakAllahu feek. Another Hadith that goes hand in hand with this one is that Buraydah ibn al-Husayb, may Allah be pleased with him, said, 'I heard the Messenger of Allah (Saw) say, The covenant that distinguishes between us and them is the prayer, and whoever neglects it has disbelieved (become a kaafir). And this was narrated in Ahmad, Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi and others too." The imam spoke clearly, raising his finger and looking at all of the guys sternly to make sure they understood the weight of what he was saying.
"Sons, salat is the major form of worship that we, as Muslims, offer. It is an obligation. It is not sunnah. It is fardh, we know this. It is fardh (obligatory) upon a Muslim and a Muslim is to offer no excuse when it comes to offering Salah. So, in turn, what does this mean?" He asked rhetorically before answering his question. "This means, it is not only important to perform the actual prayer, because this is required anyway, anyone can do this. But what does Allah say in the Quran in suratul Mu'minun verse one and two?"
Everyone looked at Bilaal who smiled and with a shake of his head he cleared his throat and recited the two short verses.
"Qad aflahal mu'minoon.
Alladheena hum fee Salaatihim khaashi'oon."
"Na'am. Meaning; Certainly will the believers have succeeded: They who are during their prayer humbly submissive. So note how Allah does not say 'those who pray' in this specific verse, but instead, those who are humbly submissive. Ibn Kathir writes in his tafsir of these ayat;
Successful indeed are the believers means, they have attained victory and are blessed, for they have succeeded. These are the believers who have the following characteristics: Those with their Salah are Khashi'un. 'Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn 'Abbas said:
"Khashi'un means those with fear and with tranquility." It was reported from Ali bin Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, that Khushu' means the 'Khushu' of the heart. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said, "Their Khushu' was in their hearts." So they lowered their gaze and were humble towards others. Khushu' in prayer is only attained by the one who has emptied his heart totally, who does not pay attention to anything else besides it, and who prefers it above all else. At that point it becomes a delight and a joy for the eyes." He read from the book in front of him, before looking up.
"Raise your hand if salah is a joy for eyes to you. Go on." He said, looking around at everyone. "This isn't riya' by the way, we are striving to reach a greater good. So raising your hands in salat is a joy for you as opposed to a burden or just something you have to do and get over and done with."
I looked around the circle and not one hand was raised. The guys all looked around the circle at each other before a lot of them bowed their heads in shame.
"See? This is our problem, myself included. We are so far from Allah, so distant. How can we expect to be admitted to his Paradise when we see our only daily obligation to Him as a burden? Should we not be rushing to salah everyday? Should we not be waiting impatiently to speak to our Lord? He calls us five times a day at least and we don't rush to Him with happiness and eagerness? Rather, what happens is, He calls us and we say hold on, give me half an hour. I'm doing something more important than you. Let me finish and when I can be bothered I will come to you. Astaghfirullah adheem." He said, his eyes glossing over. "Astaghfirullah adheem."
The boys all whispered the same words to themselves while looking down.
"All of you boys, alhamdulillah, I know are very righteous. You're always at the masjid barakAllahu feekum, but it is not about quantity. It isn't how much you pray, but it is the state of your prayer. Quality over quantity. We all know this. A Surah that every one of us recites in our prayers. Sometimes you know, we're rushing, we want to get it over and done with and get back on Instagram and all these things and what do we do? We recite the 'short ones,' yeah?" He said between quotation marks with his fingers. "You know your suratul Nas to suratul Fil?" The guys all nodded.
All traces of humor were gone from their faces and they looked upset and ashamed. I was sort of lost from the foreign words but I did have a general idea of what was going on.
"One of the ones we speedily recite when we want to finish quickly is, of course, Ma'un. Are we even aware of the words of Allah that we are reciting in this hasty salah?" The imam cleared his throat before reciting verses in Arabic
"Fa wailul lil musalleen.
So woe to those who pray
Alladheena hum an salatihim sahoon
[But] who are heedless of their prayer."
Mutters of SubhanAllah were heard around the small group of boys in the masjid.
"Ibn Kathir writes in his tafsir," He began before clearing his throat and reading from the book in front of him. "Those who with their Salah are Sahun. and He did not say, 'those who are absent minded in their prayer'. It could also mean the first time of the prayer, which means they always delay it until the end of its time, or they usually do so. It may also refer to not fulfilling its pillars and conditions, and in the required manner. It could also mean performing it with humility and contemplation of its meanings. The wording of the Ayah comprises all of these meanings.
However, whoever has any characteristic of this that we have mentioned then a portion of this Ayah applies to him. And whoever has all of these characteristics, then he has completed his share of this Ayah, and the hypocrisy of actions is fulfilled in him. This is just as is confirmed in the Two Sahihs that the Messenger of Allah said; 'This is the prayer of the hypocrite, this is the prayer of the hypocrite, this is the prayer of the hypocrite. He sits watching the sun until it is between the two horns of Shaytan. Then he stands and pecks four (Rak'ahs) and he does not remember Allah (in them) except very little.' This Hadith is describing the end of the time for the 'Asr prayer, which is the middle prayer as is confirmed by a text (Hadith).
This is the time in which it is disliked to pray (meaning he is busy with other duties at this time of day). Then this person stands to pray it, pecking in it like the pecking of a crow (meaning very fast/to get it over with). He does not have tranquility or humility in it at all.
Thus, the Prophet said; 'He does not remember Allah (in them) except very little.' He probably only stands to pray it so that the people will see him praying, and not seeking the Face of Allah. This is just as if he did not pray at all. Allah says, 'Verily, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but it is He Who deceives them. And when they stand up with laziness and to be seen by men, they do not remember Allah but little.' (4:142) [end of tafsir]"
He shut the book in front of him and sighed, looking around at the circle and the solemn and saddened expressions on all the guys faces.
"Who are our role models, boys?" The imam asked after exhaling.
"Muhammad " and the prophets before him." One answered quietly in a mumble.
"After them?" He then asked.
"The sahaba and sahabiyat." Another answered, making the imam nod his head. "That's right. The believing men and the women who were alive during the prophets " times. Ibn Rajab Ibn Hanbali writes in his book Al-Khushoo' Fis-Salah; When one of them (sahaba) stood in prayer, he would be too fearful of his Lord to allow his eyes to be drawn to anything, or to turn aside or to fidget by playing with pebbles or anything else or to think of any worldly matter. unless he forgot during prayer. Is that our role model, boys? Are we truly trying to be that fearful and submissive in our salah? No. We aren't. We aren't even striving for that.
Imagine this, when 'Abdullah Ibn Zubayr-Allah be pleased with him- stood up to pray, he would be like a stick (i.e immobile) with Khushoo'. Once he was prostrating and a missile from a catapult was launched at him when Makkah was being besieged, and part of his garment was torn away whilst he was praying, but he did not even raise his head.
SubhanAllah.
SubhanAllah."
He muttered with a shake of his head. "Yet what do we do? A notification from our phone and we're already speeding up to see what's going on. We're thinking about finishing so I can go out. Getting it over and done with so I can get back on Snapchat. Finish my salah quickly and watch the next episode of some series. Or if you're not even rushing. Masha Allah you're taking your time, but where is your mind?
Is it pondering over the verses you are reciting?
Are you standing with humility because of fear of your Lord?
No. By Allah we are so far. We are so distant. Am I saying it's easy to give Allah His due?
No. By Allah, it is not easy. Allah Himself tells us in the Qur'an; 'Indeed, we offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, and they declined to bear it and feared it; but man [undertook to] bear it .. 'It is said that when the time for prayer came, 'Ali Ibn Abi Talib- Allah be pleased with him- would be visibly shaken, and the color of his face would change. It was said to him by the sahaba, '
What is the matter with you?' He replied, ``By Allah, there has come the time of the Trust."
"What's the Trust amo? Is it salah?" Bilaal asked softly with raised eyebrows and a questioning gaze.
"Ibn Kathir writes that 'Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn 'Abbas said, AlAmanah (The Trust) means Al-Fara'id (the obligatory duties). Allah offered them to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, (on the grounds that) if they fulfilled them, He would reward them; and if they failed, He would punish them.
But they did not want to do that, and they were afraid of it, not because their intention was sinful, but because of their respect for the religion of Allah, in case they could not fulfill the obligations involved. Then Allah offered it to Adam, and he accepted it with all that it entailed. This is what is referred to in the Ayah; Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant meaning, he underestimated the command of Allah. [End Of tafsir]
So this, ikhwaan and akhawaat means that we are responsible for duties the heavens and the earth and the mountains were afraid of. Do you realize the weight of this?
No, it is not an easy task to carry. Better yet, it is not an easy obligation to fulfill by any means. But the important thing is your determination. How much you want it and how much you're working on it. That is what's important. Now we need to be careful not to fool ourselves and continue as we are and say I am striving so I am good, no.
You know what you're doing and better than yourself, Allah is aware. Hateem may Allah be pleased with him said; 'I carry out what I am commanded; I walk with the fear of Allah in my heart; I start with the (correct) intention; I magnify and glorify Allah; I recite at a slow and measured pace, thinking about the meaning; I bow with Khushoo'; I prostrate with humility; I sit and recite the complete tashahhud; I say Salam with the (correct) intention; I finish with sincerity towards Allah; and I come back fearing that (my prayer) has not been accepted from me, so I continue to strive until I die.
' So only once we do all those things mentioned every single time can we truly say we are trying, because if you don't feel like you're giving it your all to gain that connection with Allah, then you probably aren't. And I can tell you now, 90% Of us aren't. We should all make it a habit to repent to Allah multiple times every single day for our sins and shortcomings and we should strive to be of those servants who are the best in deed." He moved the table in front of him away and looked around the circle once again.
"May Allah make us of those who are humbled and submissive in our prayers, may He guide us all until our last breath and may He allow us all to take that last breath of air once He is completely pleased with us and once we are worthy of firdaws al a'la. Ameen." He spoke.
The guys in the circle all said Ameen and I felt my heart pace quicken once I realized that I had subconsciously whispered it under my breath also. I widened my eyes slightly and looked beside me to see Ahmad in his own world focusing on the imam and so a quick breath of air released my lips. He hadn't heard it.
"Amo, I feel terrible after this dars." Zubayr spoke. "I know I shouldn't and don't need to expose my sins to anyone besides Allah and I only need to confide in Him, but for the sake of greater good, I need to say this. I think I need help. I'm being completely serious for once in my life." He spoke and it was actually really weird to see him being solemn for once as opposed to his bubbly nature. "For so long I've been trying to get that khushoo in my salat, but I can't find it. I don't know why. I don't struggle with praying on time but I just constantly have other thoughts running through my mind. How do I get back on track? I only ever find khushoo' in salah in Ramadan, astaghfirullah." A lone tear escaped his eyes and the guy beside him tapped and squeezed his shoulder.
If I cried in front of the guys they'd mock me for days. Well, I suppose it depends on what it was. If my mum died then they'd probably cry with me, but anything else and they'd tell me man up. "Don't feel terrible, habibi. Trust me when I say we are all the same. I am an imam and I don't even find khushoo' in all my salat. Once a day if I'm lucky and that is usually at fajr. Allah says in the Quran in Surah Maryam, verse 59 to 60; Then, there has succeeded them a posterity who have given up As-Salaat (the prayers)[i.e. made their Salaat (prayers) to be lost, either by not offering them or by not offering them perfectly or by not offering them in their proper fixed times] and have followed lusts.
So they will be thrown into Hell. Except those who repent and believe (in the Oneness of Allaah and His Messenger Muhammad), and work righteousness. Such will enter Paradise and they will not be wronged in aught.' So that's what we do. We repent. And we strive to be better and closer to Allah."
"How? What do I do to gain that khushoo'?" Zubayr asked, looking at his joined hands and fiddling with his fingers.
"I want to give you all a task today. Insha Allah it will help you increase your khushoo' in your salat, okay?"
They all nodded eagerly waiting for him to continue.
"Take these points down on your phone and starting from the next prayer, do them. I want you all to put reminders on your phone for five minutes before every salah even if you're coming to the masjid.
As soon as that alarm goes off, I want you to stop whatever it is you're doing, put all your devices on silent and go have wudhu. Have it slowly and perfectly. Don't rush it. Once you're done, I want you to sit down in the place you're having salah and have a few moments to yourself.
Say SubhanAllah wa bihamdihi 10 times and send 20 salawat upon the prophet , so by saying 'Allahumma salli wa sallim 'ala nabiyyina Muhammad' which is the simplest form and there are more Durwood types online that you can memorize also. Remember, do this before every salah. By then the prayer time will have occurred. I want you to stand up and close your eyes for a few seconds. Imagine you are standing in front of Allah. Remember your sins. Then remember the greatness of Allah and say Allahu Akbar. Start your salah and recite slowly. Every time you read a verse, translate it in your head to the English version and focus on the words you are saying. Once you're in sujood, take your time. Make du'a in sujood. Ask him for ikhlas.
Sincerity. Sincerity and humbleness in your worship. In every sujood make du'a for something. Then give your salaams finish your prayer and sit in the same spot and say La ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lahu lahul mulku wa lahul hamdu wa huwa 'ala kulli shay in qadeer 20 times and day Astaghfirullah wa 'atoobu ilayh 20 times. Then say subhanAllah 33 times, alhamdulillah 33 times, Allahu Akbar 34 times. But don't just do lip service dhikr. Don't go fast and just say the words. Ponder.
Take your time. Then read ayatul kursi, ponder on the meaning and read a single page of the Quran. Then go back to doing what you were doing until the next salah. Deal?Did everyone take that down?"
The imam asked and everyone nodded, putting their phones back in their pockets.
"How many of you set a reminder for five minutes before the next salah? " He asked with a soft grin. No one raised their hands and he released a soft chuckle. "See, you're failing already. Come on, take out your phones again. Go. Right now.
Set the alarm."
Everyone took their phones out and tapped for thirty or so seconds before everyone was finished once again.
"I want one more thing from you all, boys." The imam spoke, a smile on his face. "You're all brothers. The bond of Islam is stronger than the bond of blood. As brothers, I want you all to help each other. Push each other and be there for one another to help improve your khushoo'. Be brothers as the Quran tells us. Be united. It's us against the shaytaan. Save your brothers from the Hellfire just as you are trying to save yourself. Okay?"
The guys in the circle all looked around, gazing at one another with small smiles and grins on their faces as they nodded. "Always." They all chorused as if they had practiced it. The imam chuckled and everyone grinned at each other.
I felt longing. It was weird. Odd and unexpected. But I felt it.
I wanted to be a part of it.
Their brotherhood. I craved it.
At that moment I felt it. I would become part of their brotherhood soon. Very soon.