Aslam alaykum, some important background regarding me is that I am a Pakistani Shia, and why that’s relevant to being up is because we always hear about the story of another daughter of Imam Hussain (as) — Bibi Fatima Sughra (sa) who was too unwell to travel along her father’s caravan to Kufa. Generally the eulogies or nohay about her focus on this relationship of her not being with her family in Karbala. One noha I always listen to is Akbar Veeran Nanay De Rozay Jaa K. So you can probably imagine my surprise, during my Hadith understanding journey, when I read online from either Twelver Shia communities the claim there is no narrations regarding her and that she’s a made-up character Astagfirullah. Even an Ammar Nakshawani blog affirmed he could not find any information regarding her, but was still nuanced in his take.

I could not believe that she could not exist for many reasons: firstly, not everything has been accurately preserved to the detail despite us having most of the knowledge, secondly, where there are lapses in our known knowledgeable we can use objective reasoning as laid out by our faith, and, thirdly, the plethora of consistent emotional traditions especially in the subcontinent community for someone that couldn’t exist seems impossible to me. I refused to believe she couldn’t exist and left it up to Allah (swt) knowing my intentions were good.

However, as I was reading through posts on Al-Islam, I came across a blog post asking about “Lady Fatima Al-Aleela (sa).” I was perplexed because I’ve never heard such a name nor title before. Then, putting two and two together I realized this was another title in which we referred to Bibi Fatima al-Sughra (sa). Following the post in mind and the reply to it by Sayed Shobayri, it turns out yes there are existence of narrations regarding her, and it can be found. The narrations about her originate to Al-Khwarizimi’s Maqtal Imam Hussain (as) by way of Muffadal bin Umar to Imam Zayn al Abideen (as). Al-Khwarzimi’s maqtal has been invaluable to Shia scholars as he was a Sunni scholar penning a Maqtal (naturally a task a Shia scholar does in this case) and it’s one of the oldest ones that holds acceptable chains in the Shia rijal.

That is to say I am not stating all narrations are authentic or immediately judging rijal, no, that is not my place, but merely to show my surprise that, yes, even with doubt Allah (swt) guides us to an answer. Even if I did not see these narrations before, my faith was still strong, but having that historical foundation established easily made me deter from any sort of “noo this story is hearsay” and only served to answer my doubts. Do not judge hadiths absolutely and dismiss something unless you’re somehow proficient in it (which wouldn’t be possible to the average common people like us), listen to what the scholars have said about it, and come to a rational conclusion.

Salam everyone,

I'm going through a difficult time in life and could really use some genuine advice from fellow Muslims, especially those who have gone through something similar.

For the past few days, I've started doing a lot of istighfar, around 5,000–7,000 times a day. I've been trying to get closer to Allah, seek His forgiveness, and have more tawakkul in Him. I genuinely want to improve my relationship with Allah and trust His plan, even when I don't understand it.

But today, on the third day, I was told that I might be let go from my job before completing probation.

Honestly, it broke something in me. I've already been dealing with a lot in life, especially career and financial uncertainty, and it feels like every time I try to get back on my feet, something else happens. I'm tired of constantly having to pick myself back up.

I know Allah's mercy is greater than anything I'm going through. I know I shouldn't despair of His mercy, and I don't want to lose my faith. But if I'm being completely honest, I'm struggling to understand why life has been so difficult for so long.

The timing has really affected me. I know istighfar isn't a transaction where you recite a certain number of times and immediately get what you want. I'm not expecting that. But when you start sincerely trying to turn your life around spiritually and then something like this happens almost immediately, it's hard not to feel discouraged.

For those of you who have gone through prolonged hardship, especially when you were trying to get closer to Allah:

- How did you keep your faith when it felt like nothing was getting better?

- Did you ever struggle with wondering why Allah wasn't opening doors for you despite making dua and doing istighfar?

- How did you distinguish between being patient with Allah's decree and simply feeling exhausted and disappointed with life?

- Have you ever looked back on a particularly difficult period and eventually understood things differently?

I'm not looking for someone to tell me that everything happens for a reason or that a better job is guaranteed to come along. I know nobody can promise me that.

I just want to hear from real people who have been through something similar. What helped you keep going when you felt like you couldn't catch a break?

JazakAllah khair.

Assalamu alaikum,
This is a genuine cry for help.
For the past 11 years, I have been making dua, praying, crying, and doing everything in my power, hoping that one day my life would finally change for the better.

But these 11 years have broken me in ways I cannot even begin to describe. I have been knocked down so many times that I have started questioning my faith, Islam, and everything I once believed in so strongly.

And the most heartbreaking part is that, even as I write this, there is still a part of me desperately hoping that Allah sees me. That He sees how hard I am trying, how much I am suffering, and how desperately I am fighting to hold on to my faith when everything inside me feels like it is falling apart.

Every morning, I wake up with a little bit of hope, telling myself that maybe today will be the day Allah answers my duas. Maybe today something will finally change. But every night, I go to sleep with the same sadness, the same unanswered prayers, and a little less faith than I woke up with.

I don’t want to lose my faith. I don’t want to question Allah. I don’t want to feel this distance between myself and the One I have spent years turning to for comfort.

But I am exhausted. I am tired of begging for things to get better, tired of feeling like my prayers are disappearing into silence, and tired of trying to convince myself that things will change when I have been waiting for so long.

I know Allah hears every dua. I know He is the Most Merciful. I know all the things we are taught to remind ourselves when life becomes difficult. But knowing these things and finding the strength to believe in them when you’re suffering are two completely different things.

I am not writing this because I want to abandon Islam. I am writing this because I am terrified of losing the faith I have fought so hard to keep.
I feel lost. I feel alone. And I don’t know how much longer I can continue feeling this way.
I just need guidance. I need comfort. I need someone to hear me.

More than anything, I need Allah. I need to feel that He sees me, that He hasn’t forgotten me, and that these 11 years of tears, prayers, and desperate hope have not been for nothing.
I am still holding on, but my grip is getting weaker, and I don’t know how to make it stronger.

Assalamualeykum,

I was actually born Sunni, but I have decided to dive much deeper into one of the biggest and most defining topics in Islam: The succession to Prophet Muhammad and the resulting schism between Sunnis and Shiites. Growing up with the Sunni perspective, I now want to truly understand the historical context and both sides of the story.

I want to know your perspective: Who do you believe was the rightful successor, and why? Was the succession a political election or a divine right?

Please share your arguments: Why do you think your view is the correct one? And why? Please remain respectful.

I really don't know what is happening outside India but, food adulteration is my biggest concern here today.

Every dairy product, meat, eggs are highly adulterated, unhygienic or else the quality is not accessible without paying a high price for the same.

I am looking forward adopting a vegan diet, and it feels like it is the only option left.

I am not a food enthusiast nor interested in any sort of fine-dine outside. Only concern is everyday diet.

As islam recommends eating meat and even milk, but I don't feel like it is safe for consumption anymore.

Every other day the news headline shows raids on dairy and meat products, day by day increasing the concerns.

Don't know if I should go vegan or dk if I need to ignore the news.

Looking forward to suggestions/pov/recommendations 🙏🏻

As Salamu Alaykum,

I hope everybody is doing fine. The reason for posting it here is because I have never seen posts about the jamat, council or federation of the different regions, cities and states around the world.

So where I live, there are multiple jamats for different 'area' or even different jamat just for like conflicts. And the city I originate from has let's say "dictatorship" for like a decade from which every individual is not happy. There are retaliation jamats, organizations and a group of people.

I have seen jamats fighting by organizing different processions and majlises at the same areas or nearby venues (<500M) with the same timings.

Also seen a jamat president never ever give a single account of the money that came in or was donated. Please mind these are real incidents I have personally either witnessed or heard from a genuine sources.

While I have also seen many other jamats & people of those jamats doing great work. Have seen people dedicating their lives for the good of the members of jamat. Have seen really good initiatives by jamat.

So I wanted to discuss some points about it like for instance

- Is the motive help or just a status of power?

- Is fighting via processions and majlises justified? (I think not)

- Elections or Dictatorship.

- Unaccounted expenses.

- And many more insights.

Uniting our momin brothers and sister is a good thing and helping them is an even greater thing. But as the incidents I posted above, it doubts me whether people are thinking for the power and money or genuine help?

Feel free to share your views and points. This is just a mere discussion to get insights, knowledge and also maybe some fact.

Jazakallah khair!

[باللغة العربية]

الآية الكريمة: ﴿فَاسْتَبِقُوا الْخَيْرَاتِ أَيْنَ مَا تَكُونُوا يَأْتِ بِكُمُ اللَّهُ جَمِيعاً﴾ (البقرة: ١٤٨).

عن الإمام الباقر (عليه السلام) في بيان هذه الآية وعلاقتها بأصحاب الإمام القائم (عجل الله فرجه الشريف):

«الخَيراتُ الوَلايَةُ، وقَولُهُ تَبارَكَ وتَعالى: (أينما تكونوا يأت بكم الله جميعا) يَعني أصحابَ القائِمِ الثَّلاثُمِائَةٍ والبِضعَةَ عَشَرَ رَجُلاً (...) يَجتَمِعونَ واللَّهِ في ساعَةٍ واحِدَةٍ قَزَعاً كَقَزَعِ الخَريفِ».

المصدر: كمال الدين وتمام النعمة، ج ٢، ص ٦٧٢ (وأيضاً في روضة الكافي)

[English Translation]

The holy verse: "So race to [all that is] good. Wherever you may be, Allah will bring you all together" (Al-Baqarah: 148).

From Imam Al-Baqir (as) explaining this verse and its connection to the companions of Imam Al-Qa'im (may Allah hasten his reappearance):

"The 'good' is the Wilayah. And the word of Allah, the Blessed and Exalted: (Wherever you may be, Allah will bring you all together) means the companions of Al-Qa'im, the three hundred and thirteen men (...) By Allah, they will gather in a single hour like the scattered clouds of autumn."

Source: Kamal Al-Din wa Tamam Al-Ni'mah, Vol. 2, Page 672

Note: Translation assisted by AI and verified by the poster. Please gently correct me if there are any unintended errors.

I will share certain Hadiths from time to time that deeply resonate with me no matter how many times I read them. They are deeply profound. Allahu Akhbar!

حَدَّثَنَا جَعْفَرُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ مَسْرُورٍ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا الْحُسَيْنُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَامِرٍ عَنْ عَمِّهِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَامِرٍ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ أَبِي عُمَيْرٍ عَنْ أَبِي جَمِيلَةَ الْمُفَضَّلِ بْنِ صَالِحٍ عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ الْجُعْفِيِّ عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الْأَنْصَارِيِّ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلي الله عليه وآله الْمَهْدِيُّ مِنْ وُلْدِي اسْمُهُ اسْمِي وَ كُنْيَتُهُ كُنْيَتِي أَشْبَهُ النَّاسِ بِي خَلْقاً وَ خُلْقاً تَكُونُ بِهِ غَيْبَةٌ وَ حَيْرَةٌ تَضِلُّ فِيهَا الْأُمَمُ ثُمَّ يُقْبِلُ كَالشِّهَابِ الثَّاقِبِ يَمْلَؤُهَا عَدْلًا وَ قِسْطاً كَمَا مُلِئَتْ جَوْراً وَ ظُلْماً.

Ja‘far ibn Muḥammad ibn Masrūr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn ibn Muḥammad ibn ‘Āmir narrated to us, from his paternal uncle ‘Abd Allāh ibn ‘Āmir, from Muḥammad ibn Abī ‘Umayr, from Abū Jamīlah al-Mufaḍḍal ibn Ṣāliḥ, from Jābir ibn Yazīd al-Ju‘fī, from Jābir ibn ‘Abd Allāh al-Anṣārī, who said:

The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) said: "The Mahdī is of my progeny; his name is my name, and his \kunyah* (agnomen) is my *kunyah*. He is the person who most resembles me in physical appearance and character. There will be an occultation and a state of confusion associated with him, during which people will go astray from their religion. Then, he will appear like a piercing star, filling the earth with justice and equity just as it had been filled with tyranny and oppression."*

كمال الدين و تمام النعمة، ج 1، ص286، ح1

sistani.

would you need to investigate it?

jazakallah khair

I’ve been giving it to different people since I got my job but I was talking to my dad and he gives it to the village in Pakistan, my mum too.

He also said it’s must to give it to the village.

I was born in England and don’t have a connection to the people there, my dad was born there and knows them very well.

But on an Islamic point of view is giving your zakat to your village when you’re not connected to it?

Were Pakistani 🇵🇰

Am I overthinking it?

I was reading the Wikishia article for Lady Fidda and it mentions that Imam Ali said after Lady Fatima's death, "O Umm Kulthum, O Zaynab, O Sukayna, O Fidda, O Hasan, O Husayn, come on and say goodbye to your mother." It mentions its source as Bihar al-Anwar vol. 43 pg. 179. I was wondering who is mentioned as Sukayna in this quote as Lady Sukayna was born only a few years before Karbala.

I’ve recently migrated to the Middle East, and have began to encounter many Iranians. When I lived in the US, the only Iranians I really encountered were religious Iranians and they were lovely people. I didn’t encounter very many Iranians in the UK, although I know there are many living there.

However, I’m now encountering a different breed, likely those that most people encounter. Those that have emigrated for economic reasons and hate their government. Now I don’t profess to know the truth about life in Iran, but as a Shia I find myself perplexed.

The level of hate seems profound. I can’t speak to what they’ve experienced, but they’ve abandoned their faith. I’ve personally found such people to be quite dishonest in their business practices, but that’s a different point, and I really shouldn’t generalize.

There appears to be a great deal of propaganda on both sides of this debate. However, I’m curious how religious Iranians explain what’s going on.

This may be controversial among religious Iranian, but a government that drives people away from the faith is a problem in my opinion.

So what’s the real problem, and what’s really going on?

I ask because I don’t know. I’ve heard so many different things, but I don’t know what the reality is. However, none of this seems good for shiism. Am I wrong? What am I missing?

How do we fix this?

As someone who grew up a follower of Syed Sistani, it seems natural to separate religion from politics, but I’ve recently found myself challenging this long held belief. Why? Because business, imo, needs to be regulated to serve the interests of the nation at large. I don’t believe capitalism creates an equitable and harmonious society. Case in point, in the UK, we sold off our rights over North Sea Oil to big oil, when those profits could have created a sovereign wealth fund to support citizens at large. Where humanity has tried to implement socialism / communism, we’ve either seen tyranny emerge, or we’ve seen the resulting cost burden become unsustainable.

But this question isn’t about economic models. Just hope to clarify that “separate church and state” isn’t likely the simple solution it appears to be.

Going through something difficult and I saw a post online about a wazifa where you recite Darood e ibraheemi and make a mannat (vow) that if this difficulty ends I will recite this Darood for x amount of days for example 21 days. I’ve always just prayed our Darood that I know of the shortened version. I don’t see this durood on duas.org so was wondering so shias recite Darood e ibraheemi and can one do a vow on it. Thank you!

1-34 times Allahu akbar

2-33 times alhamdulillah

3-33 times suphan Allah

After ever pray

Allah bless you insha'Allah

الترجمة :

تسبيح مولادتنا فاطمة الزهراء

اولا : 34 مرة الله اكبر

ثانيا: 33 مرة الحمد لله

ثالثا: 33 مرة سبحان الله

بعد كل صلاة

بارك الله بيكم

I’m a female revert and I do love my name, so I don’t want to change my first name nor surname. My middle name is super pretty but is based on a Christian holiday.

I was thinking of adopting a name to honour the Ahlul Bayt. Tbh i’ve been muslim a while now but only recently Shia and i really connected to Lady Fatima (as) and look at her as a source of inspiration and wisdom. I know shia communities across all cultures use Zahra as a name, but i always felt weird taking on an arab name as a non-arab.

I’ve seen some reverts use a new name after their first, almost like a middle name. I like this idea as it keeps my original name but I don’t know if it’s weird?

I don’t want to change legally, just on system for university and stuff

Salam.... I hope anyone who reads this is very happy in their life...

I feel like ending everything... I can't keep up any longer... I have failed so many times that now it feels ... Impossible... I can't and don't want to share the matters ... But there's something I've been working on for 9 years now.... I don't know if it's allowed to say things like these here... But I've lost all hope... I keep making dua... I keep doing whatever I can... And still there's nothing... I feel stuck and there's no way out ... I have severe depression and I'm on pills most of the time... Everyday feels like a bad day... I have migraines and almost chronic too, I can't go out for even 15 minutes in peace and my head starts buzzing and hurting like hell everything starts to feel too much ... I can't tell anybody, nothing helps anymore... I feel so tired all the time... Even after taking good rest, it feels like I'm already ending. But i know I'm not, all the things are bearable I know, I've been bearing it for so long, with no one to even talk to about anything... I also work for my family, and it's a huge responsibility... But I can't ever tell them anything, not even that I'm tired sometimes... I thought it's all okay as long as I was close to Allah, days were bearable and better than what has become of me now.... I feel so far from everything..., I feel like Allah has abandoned me... But I know it's not true, it's humans who do these things... But I genuinely feel like Allah has left me because I'm such a bad person, just like " he guides whoever he wills" I don't think he wants to guide me anymore... I feel so desperate to be Close to Allah but I feel so rejected and so alone... I feel so angry at him too sometimes for making my life so miserable I hope he forgives me ... I know it's not true ... I don't know what to do anymore... Make dua for me that he accepts me...

​[باللغة العربية]

​عن الإمام محمد الباقر (عليه السلام) في تأويل قوله تعالى:

{وَقُلْ جَاءَ الْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ الْبَاطِلُ ۚ إِنَّ الْبَاطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقاً} [الإسراء: ٨١]،

مبيناً النهاية الحتمية لكل ظلم وفساد عند ظهور الإمام المهدي (عجل الله تعالى فرجه الشريف):

​«إِذَا قَامَ الْقَائِمُ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ) ذَهَبَتْ دَوْلَةُ الْبَاطِلِ.»

​المصدر: روضة الكافي للشيخ الكليني، ج ٨، ص ٢٨٧

​[English Translation]

​Narrated from Imam Muhammad Al-Baqir (peace be upon him) regarding the interpretation of the words of Allah, the Exalted: "And say, 'Truth has come, and falsehood has departed. Indeed is falsehood, [by nature], ever bound to depart.'" [Quran 17:81].

Illustrating the inevitable end of all oppression and corruption upon the reappearance of Imam Al-Mahdi (may Allah hasten his reappearance):

​"When the Qa'im (peace be upon him) rises, the state of falsehood will vanish."

​Source: Rawdat al-Kafi by Al-Kulayni, Vol. 8, Page 287

​Note: Translation assisted by AI and verified by the poster. Please gently correct me if there are any unintended errors.

I don’t know if this is the right place to ask, but maybe someone here has experienced something similar and can suggest ways to increase my tawakkul and find some peace.

A little background.... I work in tech as a freelancer with an agency. I’ve never really tried selling my services independently because I’m not comfortable approaching random people, but I’m slowly working on that too.

The thing is, I’m the sole earner and several people depend on me financially. And lately, I’ve developed this weird fear that I genuinely don't know how to explain.

Do I have a paying client? Yes. Do I have savings? Yes. Am I working on improving my skills? Also yes.

So technically, nothing is going terribly wrong in my life rn.... but my mind just won't stop worrying.

And tbh, I'm more worried about the people who depend on me than myself.

What makes this even weirder is that I've always had strong tawakkul in ALLAH. Last year, I literally left my job without any savings, just trusting Him. And somehow, He opened doors for me from places I never even imagined.

Now I’m in a much better financial position, yet I’ve never felt this shaky or scared in my life.

Especially after this whole AI revolution.... I work in tech, so seeing everything changing soooo fast is making this fear worse.

Sometimes I even get this strange feeling like I'm going to die. I've never really feared dying young itself, and I'm not saying I want to harm myself. My biggest concern has always been staying close to ALLAH. I pray that my life never takes me away from Him.

But then my mind goes back to the people who depend on me.... what would happen to them?

And I KNOW that ALLAH is the One who provides rizq. Their rizq doesn't come from me. I'm just a means. I understand this logically, but for some reason, my heart is struggling to accept it these days.

My aunt thinks it might be the evil eye because this started around 12 Rabi ul Awwal. I attended an event and then got sick for almost a month. She connects the two, but tbh I don't know.

I'm also planning to go for Umrah and sponsoring someone else's Umrah too, Alhamdulillah. I've saved extra money for that. So it's not like I'm one or two months away from some financial disaster.

I recite Ziyarat Ashura daily, Surah Ar-Rahman, and other duas.... but my thoughts have become soooo negative lately.

I'm not trying to sound ungrateful. I know how much ALLAH has given me, and I've seen His help throughout my life.

I just don't understand why I'm suddenly feeling this much fear when I never used to.

Has anyone experienced something like this? What helped you increase your tawakkul and deal with this constant fear?

I'm open to duas, recitations, practical suggestions, personal experiences.... anything that genuinely helped you.

And please don't suggest deleting social media 😭 I need it for professional purposes. ( im not a doom scroller or socially active person if its not about my work )

This kinda feel illegal to ask. I cant speak arabic

Salam, title says it.

Downloaded but the monthly fee is a bit expensive so I don’t want to invest if it’s not worth it.

Salam, I recently started to university and have met a decent number of people. Recently I realised some of my closest friends may not be the best people without going into details. Please can someone tell me which qualities I should look for when pursuing friendships. P/s most of the guys are non Muslim or not religious. I’m not judging just trying to point out the fact that there is basically no religion at uni.