Index

The day of Ashura in Islam

The day of Ashura in Islam

Muharram is the first month of the Islamic lunar calendar. The tenth day of this month has a special name “Ashura”. What does one get for fasting it? The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us, “Fasting the day of Ashura is an expiation for (sins committed in) the past year.” (Narrated by Muslim)

We all know that Muharram is one of the sacred months, which Allah, the Sublime, about which he said His Holy Book, “Indeed, the number of months with Allah is twelve [lunar] months in the register of Allah [from] the day He created the heavens and the earth; of these, four are sacred. That is the correct religion, so do not wrong yourselves during them.” (Sura At Tawbah, ayah 36).

The Arabs used to consider these months sacred during the time of Jahiliyyah, except for a group called AlBasl who held eight months of the year to be sacred as being of extra significance in religion. Muharram is an honourable month of the Islamic year and it is called so (i.e. forbidden) because fighting was then forbidden and Almighty Allah forbade us from committing injustice in them as a kind honour to it, although injustice is extremely forbidden at all times. Therefore, we must adhere to the commandments of Almighty Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and not commit sins in this month because of its sanctity and sacredness.

2026-11-01 (Jumad-ul-awwal 1448) №11.


Encouraging and Supporting Your Husband

Everyone experiences difficult days, problems or setbacks from time to time, and those things can weigh heavily on one’s state of mind. Women, as a rule, find it easier to share their feelings with loved ones or friends; venting or having a good cry during a warm, intimate conversation often...


It is Faith That Transforms Character and One’s Outlook on the World

When a person embraces Islam or begins to practice his faith with depth and conscious intent, something far more profound occurs than a mere external change in lifestyle. He embarks on a path of fundamental transformation of his inner essence: a process known in religious tradition as tazkiyat...


Dirham of Caliph al-Mahdi

In my collection, I have a silver dirham of the Caliph (leader of the Muslims) al-Mahdi, who inherited power from his father, Caliph al-Mansur.     The future Caliph al-Mahdi was born in 126 AH (744 AD) in the village of Humayma, located in present-day Jordan. As Caliph, his father...


Facing Rudeness: How to Survive in a World of Toxic Interaction

In the office, where dozens of people cross paths daily, in queues, on public transport, and especially across the vast expanse of the internet, we encounter them everywhere.     These are the people whose presence turns every interaction into a test of one’s endurance. In...


The Great Scholar Ibn Khaldun

About ten years ago, while in Tunisia, I used the local currency, dinars. My attention was caught by a striking portrait of a man wearing a Muslim turban on a 10-dinar banknote. Who was this man? I became curious. The portrait was labeled in both Arabic and French: “Ibn Khaldun,” along with the...