Making Sense of the Portents of the Hour (H/B) – IIPH

The influence of Muhammad’s prophet hood is visible in everything that the world now contains: beliefs and patterns of thought, culture and civilization, morals and modes of living, knowledge and learning. In short, all spheres of human endeavor. Strange indeed, therefore, that so many people on the face of the earth today have little or no knowledge of the life and mission of this last great Prophet of God and his historical impact on the world we live in.

The Life of The Last Prophet , is a concise and authentic account of the life of the Prophet Muhammad (S) written by Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens. This book is the printed version of the spoken word album of the same name and also includes a selection of prophetic sayings and detailed references.

These two treatises deal with the issue of trials and tribulation, extremely essential for every Muslim especially in the times that we are living in today. People often see, and hear of, the believers being afflicted with adversity and tribulation, and conversely they often see, and hear of the disbelievers attaining leadership and wealth in this world. This leads them to mistakenly believe that well-being in this world is only reserved for the disbelievers. A believer may face many trials and tribulations that test his faith, patience and endurance. In a world full of conflict and war, with many also suffering from personal and family problems, shaytan causes a person to question many things. If a Muslim is tried with a difficulty, then the reasons for this are many – including one’s own sin, which arise from leaving something obligated in Islam or comitting an act that is prohibited. Trials are also a means of Allaah purifying and aiding His servants, ennobling them and granting well-being through His Wisdom. The most severely of those who were tried were the Prophets and then those closest to them in following their guidance.

Written by Luqman Nagy, My Turkish Travels comprises of the diary entries of a young Hungarian artist named László who traveled to Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1882. The time he spent in Turkey changed his life forever. In this book, the readers can admire László’s wonderful watercolour paintings and read the personal diary entries he writes at the end of each day.