Hello... confused and need help..

[GodisOne]

Hi, I was wondering if any Muslims on the forum could help me.
I had started going to a mosque, a few months ago which was Shia. I had been studying about Islam before I went to the mosque in my neighbourhood but up into that point was not aware that there were two different "denominations" so to speak, in Islam. I attended the Mosque for about a month but got confused about different things and got different answers from different people at the mosque, which didn't help. For instance, one person would say this is the proper way to perform absolution and another would say something different. Considering that your prayer wouldn't be valid if the absolution was done wrong, I thought this to be a big deal. There were other issues, such as the last one that served to confuse me. This led me astray from my newly found faith, as I haven't been a "practising Muslim", per SE.

My question: since I haven't been following the laws of Islam for a few months... am I now not a Muslim? If so, what do I have to do to get back in Allah's good graces?

Also, should it matter if I go to the Shia mosque or a Sunni one? Does it matter in your opinion?

I would love to hear any fellow Muslims opinion on this matter. I really just want to start practising the faith I had originally come to know and love. At first it was simple and beautiful. I have other questions, if anybody would be kind enough to help... I would very much appreciate it. Thank you for your time.

 

[neves]

If you believe in Allah and that Muhammad is his messenger… then you are a Muslim no matter what else happens in your life… As per getting answers to your questions… whenever someone answers your question inquire about the source of their information… and reflect on it before you follow… if it’s not in the Quran or Hadith then that’s something I would hold reservations about… I know it’s not easy for a new comer to follow Islam in the purest form with the stat of the Muslims today… but remember Allah only cares about what’s in your heart… Ask Allah for guidance about the Mosque you attend; only he can truly guide you… I am sure you will find an answer if you are sincere…

 

[TashaN]

Hi brother, first of all, i would like to welcome you to our forum and i wish that you will enjoy your staying with us. You will notice by now that this is the Islam DIR where all muslims in this forum can meet and discuss many issues. There are muslims from many different countries in this forum and i welcome you as part of our community here as i welcome you as a member of RF.

Regarding your experience with the shi'ia mosque and their various answers to your simple question, i guess it's not fair for me to judge those people because i don't know them but what i can tell you is that if you said the Shahada which is that there is no God but Allah and Mohammed is the prophet of Allah, and you believed so in your heart, so you are a muslim just as me as everyone else who claim to be so. Prophet Mohammed made it so clear that anyone who pronounce the shahada is a muslim and only Allah knows the heart.

Regarding the abolution, there is a general way to do it, but if people performed it slightly different than another then insh'Allah that won't affect the validity of their prayer.

I googled for you a good clip which show how to perform wudu "ablution".

YouTube - A Demonstration of Wudu' { Ablution }

I would like to know first how different was your way from the way presented in this link. If you covered all the parts but your way just differ in the movement, etc, then there is nothing wrong with your way "God willing".

Prophet Mohammed was always instructing his companions to go easy on people because Islam came as a mercy to people, but not to make their life hard.

It's pretty sad that muslims is divided today but i guess one day they will realize that their strenth is only through their unity and comitement to Allah. In general sunnis are the majority and they are like 85% of the muslims today if i'm not mistaken and the rest are shi'ie, and some other groups too. If you didn't feel right about a certain mosque then i advice you to try another famous and big one in your area and everything should be right if you headed to the imam "leader of the prayer" of that mosque and ask him about anything you would like to know in details, and he will be glad to help you.

Just go easy on yourself and don't let people distract you from your path and relationship with Allah whatever happened. Just stick to the belief in your heart and the trust you put on God. Pray to him for guidance, and inshAllah he will guide you.

If there is anything i can do, just don't hesitate to ask here and "Gos willing", me and the other muslims will try to help as much as we can.

Alsalam Alikum.

 

[fullyveiled muslimah]

Hi, I was wondering if any Muslims on the forum could help me.
I had started going to a mosque, a few months ago which was Shia. I had been studying about Islam before I went to the mosque in my neighbourhood but up into that point was not aware that there were two different "denominations" so to speak, in Islam. I attended the Mosque for about a month but got confused about different things and got different answers from different people at the mosque, which didn't help. For instance, one person would say this is the proper way to perform absolution and another would say something different. Considering that your prayer wouldn't be valid if the absolution was done wrong, I thought this to be a big deal. There were other issues, such as the last one that served to confuse me. This led me astray from my newly found faith, as I haven't been a "practising Muslim", per SE.

My question: since I haven't been following the laws of Islam for a few months... am I now not a Muslim? If so, what do I have to do to get back in Allah's good graces?

Also, should it matter if I go to the Shia mosque or a Sunni one? Does it matter in your opinion?

I would love to hear any fellow Muslims opinion on this matter. I really just want to start practising the faith I had originally come to know and love. At first it was simple and beautiful. I have other questions, if anybody would be kind enough to help... I would very much appreciate it. Thank you for your time.

Asalaamu alaikum sweetheart! I hope that you are doing well. You know many people feel that if they are not practicing Islam anymore then they are not muslim. As my brothers said before me, as long as you still believe in Allah and His rasul then you are a muslim. Being a believer is a state of mind and heart first and foremost that precipitates obedience to Allah.

As for the shia's in your area, I would try to find another masjid. Without commenting on any specific person, I am obligated to tell you that the greater percentage of them are not practicing Islam correctly. It would be my strongest advice to try and seek out another masjid if you can.

If there is an Islamic bookstore in your area I would advise you to purchase a book called Kitabul-Imaan. I forget the publishing company but there is only one that I know of anyway. It is a very basic book outlining what iman is in simple terms. Of allthe books to be reading, I'd get my head in the Qur'an too. That is the book to read. Hope that helped.

 

[GodisOne]

If you believe in Allah and that Muhammad is his messenger… then you are a Muslim no matter what else happens in your life… As per getting answers to your questions… whenever someone answers your question inquire about the source of their information… and reflect on it before you follow

Thank you Neves for the sound advice... I shall head it.

Al salaam Alaikum

If there is anything i can do, just don't hesitate to ask here and "Gos willing", me and the other muslims will try to help as much as we can.

Al salaam Alaikum.

Al salaam Alaikum Truth and thank you as well for your advice, as well as the link. The absolution that is demonstrated on the video is definitely a lot different then the one I had originally learned. I looked over the other videos as well and the prayers are different then the ones I had learned too. Armed with this information I believe I will take fullyveiled muslimah's advice and attend a different Mosque. There are other reasons for this choice as well but I dont wish to offend any Shia Muslims that may be on the forum. The major differences in absolution and prayer are too much. Thank you again brother.

If there is an Islamic bookstore in your area I would advise you to purchase a book called Kitabul-Imaan. I forget the publishing company but there is only one that I know of anyway. It is a very basic book outlining what iman is in simple terms. Of allthe books to be reading, I'd get my head in the Qur'an too. That is the book to read. Hope that helped.

Al salaam Alaikum sister!

Thank you for your advice as well. I appreciate it and will definitely follow it. I was talking with a friend from work this morning and he suggested a couple of Mosques in the area that I could attend. I'm not sure if there is an Islamic bookstore in my city but there are a few other ones, so I will check and see if they have the book that you recommend. I do have a Quran but have not read it through all the way, as I was told that it was no good. In light of what I have learned so far, I'm guessing that the one I have is fine... so I will dive on in and continue reading it. Again, I very much appreciate your help, as well as everyone else's. I am so relieved that I am still a Muslim and am very excited. It's a big weight taken off my shoulders. Thanks again, so much.

 

[fullyveiled muslimah]

I do have a Quran but have not read it through all the way, as I was told that it was no good. In light of what I have learned so far, I'm guessing that the one I have is fine... so I will dive on in and continue reading it.

In my opinion, the best english translation is the Noble Quran, that contains both arabic and english text. If you cannot find that particular translation this link will provide a free download of that version. Also on that site, you can find a teacher for Qur'an in order to learn some Quran in arabic by heart. The link I gave you breaks the Quran down verse by verse, per page so a little clicking will be invloved but I think it's worth it.

May Allah make this deen easy for you and continue to give you guidance, ameen.

 

[Peace]

I am so relieved that I am still a Muslim and am very excited. It's a big weight taken off my shoulders.

Alhamdulillah (thanks be to Allah)! May Allah strenghten your faith and guide your way to His right path, ameen!!
Welcome to RF! If you have any question, don't ever hisitate to ask your brothers and sisters in here

Salam,
Peace

 

[Shia Islam]

I read read the answers which say that shia is 15% or less of the Muslims…
And you better fina another mosque than the Shia one..
My reply is this…
If there is God then he would sure make his path apparent …So what I say is this…
Read a sunni Aqaed (beliefs book) written by a sunni cleric.
And read a Shia Aqaed (beliefs book) written by a Shia cleric and make your choice…
As for the percentage of shia…first of All the number is they gave is wrong…
Second quran said “If thou obeyedst most of those on earth they would mislead thee far from Allah's way. They follow naught but an opinion, and they do but guess.” 6-116

 

[TashaN]

As for the percentage of shia…first of All the number is they gave is wrong…
Second quran said “If thou obeyedst most of those on earth they would mislead thee far from Allah's way. They follow naught but an opinion, and they do but guess.” 6-116

I hope you are not implying that the sunnis are the majority, and thus, they are the one mentioned in the verse!!!!

The verse was clearly talking about the non-Muslims. May Allah forgive you.

 

[Shia Islam]

I hope you are not implying that the sunnis are the majority, and thus, they are the one mentioned in the verse!!!!

The verse was clearly talking about the non-Muslims. May Allah forgive you.

I did not say that the verse is about Sunnis.
I am referring to the Idea in the verse that tells ...it not about number.

 

[blm2007]

First thing is that if you believe in Allah and Holy Prophet Muhammad is the messenger of Allah then there is no doubt about it that you are still a Muslim. Now the issue is that you want to know in which masjid (mosque) you must offer your prayers. So in my opinion it doesn’t matter whether you pray in sunni mosque or shia mosque. Because these thing belong to sectarianism and Islam is strongly against the sectarianism. Just follow Holy Quran and Hadith and you will get all the answers you want.
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Hadith Collection
Islam