For the Pleasure of My Lord, The Prisons come Perfumed

For the Pleasure of My Lord, The Prisons come Perfumed

(Arabic text is below)

Dear Brother, who dwells in these prisons To you I write with distresses,

If to Allah you hold fast Then what harm will a misfortune of time do to you?

Beware dear Brother, of making your corrupting your thoughts Regarding the Promise of the Deity, Mighty and Strong,

Verily, He has promised the Believers with Salvation As He saved Yunus from the dark depths of the belly of the Fish,

Dear Brother, before you, passed the ancient ones These prisons are but like those prisons,

Did not Yusuf dwelled in them for a phase And Musa, the tyrants threatened him with it,

And such was the Messenger of the Generous Deity To imprison him, the pagans plotted,

So my Lord saved him through his Hijrah In the company of that trustworthy friend,

And in their footsteps, the Believers traversed Like Ahmad, that firm Imam,
And likewise Ibn Taymiyyah was blessed with it In the fortress of Sham, as a prisoner he dwelled,

Hundreds of thousands of the True Faithful Dwelled for a time in these prisons,

Be not weak, dear Brother, nor lose hope When your time comes, nor submit,

Strengthen yourself by remembering the Deity, Most Supreme And hasten in memorizing the Manifest Book,

That is for your heart a secure stronghold And this is for your spirit an assisting provision,

These are hardships, soon they will all cease And remaining from it will be various fruits and benefits,

So if they intimidate you, and they threaten you Never weaken, or soften to them,

And even if they insult you, and they torture you And if they beat you, submit not,

You are not the first to be tortured For a Mighty Religion and a Manifest Legislation,

Nor are you alone on this Path For there are countless caravans throughout the years,

And if an ‘Eid passes by, and a son is born And months rotate, while you are imprisoned,

Do not grieve O Brother of the Righteous Ones Of departing from family and losing children,

And if they forbid you from their visits And likewise their letters never appear,
So if this is for a Lord and Religion Then where is the patience, where is the certainty!?

And where are your past speeches Regarding the (weight of the) Millah of that Trustworthy Messenger?!

That Intimate Friend went willingly To slaughter his son, a clear trial,
On a magnificent, noble day like today Without any anxiety, he put him down upon his forehead,
So my Lord saved him through His Good Will And ransomed him with a fat sheep,

But you, your sons are in a carefree life And diversion and amusement, and a secured home,
Yet you have not been asked to slaughter them Rather, merely for patience of a temporary separation,

For verily, they are in the care of a Merciful Lord And you are in solitude with Him and Faith,

For the Pleasure of a Lord and assisting a Religion Life and all children become insignificant,

For the Pleasure of a Lord, Mighty and Generous The prisons come perfumed, and the bitter come sweet…

Written by Shaykh Abū Muhammad Al-Maqdisī
General Intelligence Prison Facility, Jordan – Cell No. 63
‘Eid Al-Adh’hā 1414 H
(May Allāh hasten his release)

إذا كنـت باللـه مسـتعـصما		فـماذا تضـيرك ريـب المنـون[1]
حـذاري أخي أن تسيء الظنون		بـوعـد الإلـه القـوي المتـين
فقـد وعـد الـمؤمنين النجاة		كـما نـجّ يونس من بطن نون[2]
أخـي قـد مضى قبلك الأولون		فـهذي السجون كتلك السجون
فيـوسـف أمـضى بـها مدة		ومـوسـى تـوعـده الظالمون[3]
كـذاك رسـول الإلـه الكريم		ليثـبتـه مَـكَرَ المشـركـون[4]
فنجـــاه ربـي بـهجـرته		بـرفـقة ذاك الصـديق الأمـين
وفـي إثرهم قـد مضى المؤمنون		كـأحـمد ذاك الإمـام المكـين
كـذاك ابـن تيْـمَةَ أنعم بـه		بقـلعة شـامٍ أقـام ســجـين
مئــات ألـوف من الصادقين		أقــاموا زمـاناً بهذي السجون
فـلا تـضعفنْ يا أخي أو تهون		إذا جــاء دورك أو تسـتكين[5]
تـحصّن بـذكر الإلـه العظيم		وبـادر لـحفـظ الكـتاب المبين
فـذاك لقـلبك حـصنٌ حصينْ		وهــذا لروحــك زاد مـعين
فـهذي شــدائد سوف تزول		وتبـقى الفـوائــد منـها فنون
وإن خـوّفـوك وإن هـدّدوك		فـلا تـخـضـعنْ لهمو أو تلين
وإن شـتموك وإن عـذّبـوك		وإن ضـربـوك فـلا تسـتكين
فلسـت بأول مـن يـضـربنْ		لــدين عـظيم وشـرع مبين
ولسـتَ وحـيداً بهذي الطريق		فتـلك القــوافـل عبر السنين
وإن مـرّ عـيـدٌ وجـاءَ وليدْ[6		]و‏دارت شـهـورٌ وأنـت سجينْ
فـلا تبتـئـس يا أخَ الصالحين		لـفـرقـة أهــلٍ وفـقدِ بنينْ
وإن مـنعـوك زيــاراتـهم		كـذاك رسـائــلهم لا تبـين
فــإن كـان هذا لرب ودين		فـأيـن الثـبات وأيــن اليقين
وأيــن كـلامك فيما مضى		بـملة ذاك الرســول الأمين[7]
فــذاك الـخليل مضى طائعاً		لـذبـح ابنـه فـي بـلاء مبين
بيـوم كـهذا عظـيم كـريم		بـلا جـزعٍ تلّــه للجــبين
فنـجـّاه ربـي بإحســانهِ		وأفداه فــوراً بكـبش سمين[8]
وأنت بنـوك بعـيـش رغـيد		ولـهو و لـعب وحــرزٍ أمين
ولم يـُطلـبنْ مـنك ذبحاً لهم		فـقط أن تصـابر فـراقاً لحينْ
فـهم في رعـاية ربٍ رحـيم		وأنـت بخـلوة ذكـر وديـن
فـبادر بـحفظ الكتاب المبين		ودع عـنك وسواس ذاك اللّعين
لـمرضـاة ربٍ ونصرة ِ دين		تـهون الـحيـاة وكـل البنون

أبو محمّد المقدسي
عيد الأضحى 1414 هـ
سجن المخابرات العامة – زنزانة رقم 63

الهوامش

(1) انظر سورة الطور ( 30 )
(2) انظر سورة الأنبياء ( 87-88 )
(3) انظر سورة الشعراء ( 29 )
(4) انظر سورة الأنفال ( 30 )
(5) انظر سورة آل عمران ( 146 )
(6) رزقت بإبراهيم ولم أسمع بذلك إلا بعد مدة ولم أره إلا بعد شهور، فعسى أن يكون هو وإخوانه على ملّة إبراهيم ومن جندها وأنصارها آمين.
(7) الإشارة إلى كتاب ملة إبراهيم
(8) انظر سورة الصافات

Support the Prisoners;
http://forums.islamicawakening.com/f47/

"And I would remember my dear brother Abu Mujahid, and how he was imprisoned…"

“And I would remember my dear brother Abu Mujahid, and how he was imprisoned…”

Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi relates the following about his experience in prison:

“…And when my family came to me with the news of my father’s death (may Allah have Mercy upon him) while I was in my cell after much waiting, promises, and delay in regards to seeing him in the final days of his illness, I told them that had they wanted to, these people could have let me out to see him before his death so that I could stand by him in these moments. If they didn’t do this hoping that I would compromise, break down, or raise the white flag in the face of such pressures, I say to them and you: By Allah, if my entire family were to die one by one – my mother, my children, my wives, my brothers, everyone – do not even dream that I would recant a single letter of what I believe to be the truth from my religion or worship Allah by, even if I were to spend the rest of my life in a cell.

My father, my mother, and my family * Are a shield for the religion of Muhammad…”

“…And I say as I said to some of my interrogators during our constant meetings:

Do you know Kim Sung-Myung, the South Korean? He is not any firmer than I, by Allah’s Will! When they would ask who he was, I would inform them that he was a believer in the empty concept of Communism. Despite this, he is the oldest Communist political prisoner in South Korea, being held for his Communist beliefs in a cell the size of a closet for 44 years! He did not recant his Communist beliefs for a single second during the entire period of his incarceration to his release, remaining firm despite the defeat of Communism and the disintegration of the Soviet Union and millions of Communists abandoning their beliefs. Amnesty International considered him the oldest political prisoner in the world.

This man in his seventies emerged from his cell in which he spent his youth and most of his life to tell the world that despite his frail body that could not even support itself – such that he needed the support of his friends to simply stand in front of journalists’ cameras – so that he could tell the whole world, especially those who had imprisoned him: Even if you weakened my body and broke my bones and my back, you will never weaken my resolve and break my spirit!

So, I would say to these people and others: Does it make sense that the adherent to such empty beliefs be stronger in his resolve than one who adheres to a divine belief that is stronger and loftier than the towering mountains, connected to his Lord, relying on his Helper? Allah’s refuge is sought…So, what recantation are you waiting for?

Place the handcuffs on my wrists, and burn my ribs with the whip * Place the knife on my throat;

You won’t be able to arrest my mind even for an hour * Or to drag away my faith or certainty;

As the light is in my heart and my heart is in my hand * My Lord, my Lord is my Helper and Aid;

I will live holding firm to the rope of my belief * And will die smiling so that my religion will live…”

“…I would also remember those who were in worse conditions and tests than I, from my imprisoned brothers in all the corners of the globe who are prevented from even the most basic rights. This would increase me in firmness and resolve and strength. It would also help me to belittle whatever hardship I was experiencing. I would remember my brothers in the dark prisons of Bagram, my brothers in Abu Ghurayb, my brothers in Guantanamo, my brothers in the secret prisons where one cannot even see the Sun and in which they can be seen by nobody. I would remember my brothers in the prisons of the Jews, Communists, and apostates, etc.

And I would remember my dear brother Abu Mujahid (may Allah have Mercy upon him and gather us with him in the Firdaws) and how he was imprisoned…in a filthy, dark, solitary cell filled with insects, and he was prevented from a copy of the Qur’an. I remember how he would long for each verse he would hear being recited from the distant mosques and keep repeating them until he had them memorized…

I would remember such things, and this would help me belittle my hardships and would acquaint me with Allah’s blessings upon me in that He made the Qur’an my intimate companion during this trial…”

http://www.kalamullah.com/prisoner-of-conscience.html

Please, support the Muslim Prisoners (this might be the only way Allah protects you from being falling into prison yourself);

http://cageprisoners.com
http://globalvoiceforjustice.org

"Do not cry for me Mother…" [A Poem for Abu Sabaaya]

Asalaam alaikum

By Mahmoud al-Misri (referring to the imprisonment of Abu Sabaaya & false charges against him);

The poem is written by Abu Muhammad Al-Maqdisi, who wrote it to his mother who was saddened and crying for his imprisonment.

I felt it fits the situation of our dear brother, his love for this Deen, and how his family must be affected by this (ofcourse translation of poems ruin their beauty … I had to change words here and there).

لا تـبكني أمـاه وابـك بلوعة ديـناً جـريحاً ما عليه بــواكيا

Do not cry for me, Mother, rather cry heavily [instead] * for a wounded religion no one is crying for

ما كنت يومـا رغم حبسي جاثيا فـلأجل ربـي أسـتطيب عذابيا

Never in spite of my imprisonment did I kneel * and for the sake of my Lord I shall enjoy this punishment

أمـاه إن خـط القـضاء منيتي بـدم تحـرر فـاصبري لمصـابيا

O Mother, if my death has been decreed * then be patient for my tribulation

لله قـد قدمت روحـي راغبـا ثـمنـا ليبقى أصـل ديـني عاليا

I have willfully given my soul to Allah. * A small price to pay for my religion to remain high

وقحـمت أسـباب المنايا حاملا بيـدي لنـصرة دعـوتي أكفـانيا

I crossed the pathway of death, carrying * in my hands my Kaffan hoping to bring victory to my Religion

فالمـوت لا يـريع نفسـاً حرةً قهـرت خطوباً قـد عصفن عواتيا

For Death does not scare a free soul * [A soul] which has overcome trials coming forth as violent winds

والقيد ليس بمـوهن لي هـمتي والسجن ليـس بمحبطٍ آمــاليا [1]

Handcuffs will not lower my determination * Neither will this prison lower my hopes

يا أمّ لا تبـكي لحبسي دمعـةً وابكي لـدينٍ ما علـيه بواكيـا

[So], Mother, do not shed tears for my captivity * And weep instead for this Religion which no one is weeping for

فالسجن خير من حيـاة مذلـةٍ وأنا لـربي قـد نذرت حياتيـا

For Prison is better than a life of disgrace. * And for my Lord, I vowed my life

أنا لست أركعُ رغبةً في لقمـةٍ أو أشتكي سـوطاً يُعربد عاتيـا

I am not one to bow down for a loaf [of bread] * or one to complain of the whip tearing my shoulders

فالسجن ليس بضائري إن ضمّني والقيد ليـس معجـلاً أكفانيـا

For Prison is not going to harm me when it embraces me * And these chains will not bring my death any sooner

والسجن ليس بحابسٍ لي دعـوتي والقيد ليـس بمطفـئ أنواريـا

This prison is not going to hold back my Message * and these shackles are not going to dim my Lights

أنا هـاهنا حر برغم سلاسـلي ورنينها يشـجي ربوع فؤاديـا

I am here free, in spite of my chains * and its sounds bring life to my heart

أنا هـاهنـا عزّي هنا حريـتي فالعز قيدي والشموخ جراحيـا

Over here I find my dignity, over here I find my freedom * Dignity [can be seen] in my shackles, and determination [can be seen] in my wounds

[سأقول للسجن الذي قد ضمني ] اشدد قيودك لا تفـك وثاقيـا

I will tell this prison which has embraced me * Tighten your bonds, and do not let untie my chains

أنا هـاهنا حـر ودون قيودنـا شـعبٌ يُطأطئ للخيانة جاثيـا

I am here free, and away from these chains * is a nation which has lowered its head kneeling for Treachery

يا سجن إنّي قد عشقتُ سلاسلي هذي السلاسل والقيود سلاحيا

O Prison, I have fallen in love with these chains * these chains and bonds are my weapons [and source of strength]

يا سـجن إنـّي قد ألفتُ زنازني هـذي الزنازن والظلامُ ردائيـا

O Prison, I have gotten used to this jail cell. * This cell and its darkness are my cover and clothing

أنا في قيودك شامـخٌ في عـزتي والحرُ يخنع خلف سورك راضيـا

I am in your chains steadfast with my dignity * and those “free” outside your walls are happy in their disgrace

قد حددوا عيشي على قضبانـهم وبظـلِ قيدك مولدي ووفاتيـا

They restricted my life between these bars * and within the shadows of these chains is by birth and death

وعلى جدارك قد خططت ملاحمي حفراً بظفري والـمداد دمائيـا

On your walls I have recorded my struggles * with my nails I have carved it, and my blood I used as ink

بدمي خططت براءتي من كفرهم ولأجل ذا ضـاقت عليّ بلاديـا

With my blood I have written my dissociation from their Kufr * And for that reason my own country have narrowed and closed in on me

يا أمّ مـالك تذرفـين الدمع لا لا تفعلي أفديـك أمـاً حانيـة

O Mother, do not shed these tears over me, don’t * May I be scarified for you, what a kind loving mother you are

يا أمّ لا تبكـي لقيدي واصبري فالفجـر يشرق عن قريبٍ آتيـا

O Mother do not cry because of my shackles and be patient * Since Dawn will soon come bringing forth its light

والكفر مندحـرٌ بإثْر جيوشهم والنور من ديني يُشـعشع زاهيـا

Disbelief will soon disintegrate with its armies * And the light from my Religion [will remain] brightly shining

والحـقّ منتصرٌ برغم سجونـهم والقيد منكسـرٌ وديـني عاليـا

And the Truth will prevail, in spite of their jails * And the cuffs would soon break, and my Religion will remain high

أبو محمدالمقدسي – رمضان 1417- سجن سواقة في الاردن

In any case, I ask Allah to grant our respected brother Tariq patience and steadfastness.

I ask Allah, Subhanhu wa Ta’ala, to grant him and his family patience and steadfastness, as well as our imprisioned sisters and brothers everywhere in the world along with their families.

I ask Allah not to make this tribulation as a Fitna for them, and ask Him to make it a reason for the elevation of their ranks in the hereafter.

http://ahlalhdeeth.com/vbe/showpost.php?p=41903&postcount=8