“In this treatise, we wish to present certain concepts, tools and methods that will help the family to establish communication among its members; because next to Allah’s grace, it is communication that a family needs most to have mutual understanding, cohesion and success. And we would be unfair to ourselves if we find our families disintegrating before our very eyes, when there are several books and experiences that should have helped us to protect and make them choice families, happy and strong. I have tried to make this a good addition to what circulates around of literature on child upbringing available to parents. And because this work is addressed to a very wide audience, among whom are the educated and the semi-educated, I have striven to see that my expressions are as simple as possible; even though expressing ideas that have philosophical content in very simple language could do some kind of injustice to their meaning. This is why this attempt of ours is bound to still be imperfect; but sufficient it is that I have tried to aim clearly and closely as best I can.”

anxiety, and loneliness are common problems today. Envy, greed, and materialism invade our hearts and poison our relationships and lives. Racism, warfare, and economic deprivation—the symptoms of a greater spiritual weakness—are destroying our world. What is the solution to all of these problems? We need a spiritual awakening, a healing of the hearts that can heal the world. We need to rediscover our iman.

This book attempts to revive authentic Islamic spirituality—based on the Quran and Sunnah—by collecting and explaining forty hadiths on the diseases of the heart and the purification of the soul. It is a book of tazkiyah, a self-help book, and a project for changing your life and increasing your iman. In it, you’ll find practical advice on how to cleanse your heart and bring change into your life. If we fix our hearts, we can fix the rest of our lives.

Read this book with the goal of changing your life and the world around you. If you are going to counselling, are struggling with issues that no one knows about, or simply long for a more spiritual life, this book may help you. Believe that Allah will aid you, ask Him for help, and He surely will.

The present volume of our series deals with adolescence and adolescents. It is true that much of what applies to a five-year-old applies to a fifteen-year-old, but it is equally true that adolescence does involve some real difficulties that are unique to this stage. It is as if an adolescent is passing through a violent storm that needs special training and skill on the part of the adults around him/her.

An adolescent is a child that is approximating or has gone beyond puberty. More specifically, adolescence covers three sub-stages: early-, middle-, and late-adolescence. Early adolescence starts at twelve or thirteen; middle adolescence starts at fifteen or sixteen; and late adolescence lasts until twenty one or twenty two. After this, an individual is a young adult. You can say that adolescence parallels three educational stages: middle school, secondary school, and college.