[SB] Sifat al Sofwah / صفة الصفوة

This book offers the sacred impetus and methods of teaching and learning derived from the statements and model of the Prophet Muhammad, God’s peace be upon him. It behooves Muslim educators and teachers to study these essential principles and explore how they may be translated into methodologies that apply in today’s world.

Collectively, the precepts and recommendations of the gracious Prophet SAW show how vital he viewed learning and teaching.

The aim of this short work, which grew from a series of lectures delivered by Shaykh Yahya Ibrahim is to acquaint the believers with Muhammad ﷺ as the man he was. He ﷺ was not divine, nor immune to the stress and hardships we all face. He was, however, divinely inspired to lead a mandate of reform and righteousness within the self that begins with submission to the Omnipotent, Al-Mighty Allah, and extends outwardly to the betterment of all.

This book discusses the attempts of immoral cartoonists to malign the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) through satirical caricatures having no resemblance to reality. Likewise, it discusses the ideology of the Khārijite terrorists, their remoteness from Islām and the complete innocence of the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) from them and their evil ideology. The issues of jihād and Muslim relations with non-Muslims in their countries are also discussed. This book is for open-minded people who see beyond media propaganda and wish to acquire an accurate understanding of Islām and its position on extremism and terrorism. Speaking in relation to the terrorist attacks which took place in France on 7th January 2015, Shaykh ʿUbayd al-Jābirī said: I advise the [imāms] who give sermons, the teachers, the lecturers and Muslim journalists to unite upon a single word and it is: To openly announce [their] disavowal and innocence from this action and other actions of anarchy… The people of the Sunnah hold it as their religion before Allāh that in the lands of Europe, America and other non-Muslim lands besides them in which they have settled there is a covenant, a contract [binding upon them]. Hence, they must not violate it [through treachery], ever. And speaking in defence of the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) with respect to the slanderous and abusive Danish cartoons, Shaykh Rabīʿ bin Hādī said: Muḥammad (peace be upon him) and his rightly-guided Caliphs and his noble Companions did not erect factories for the manufacture of elementary weapons such as swords and spears, let alone atomic bombs and missiles and other such wholly destructive weapons. Muḥammad (peace be upon him) did not erect a single factory because he was sent as a mercy to the worlds, to guide all of mankind to that which brings them happiness in the world and afterlife.

The Night the Moon Split, by Ivanka Dimitrova, takes young readers on a journey through time, back to the days of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). It describes one of his greatest miracles: the splitting of the moon. This remarkable event is related as a bedtime story told to a young Muslim boy. This story is an excellent choice for both read-aloud and independent readers. Recommended for ages 7-12.