“No fatigue, nor disease, nor sorrow, nor sadness, nor hurt, nor distress befalls a Muslim, even if it were the prick he receives from a thorn, but that Allah expiates some of his sins for that.”

The commentators and traditionists are unanimous about the occasion of the revelation of this Surah. According to them, once some big chiefs of Makkah were sitting in the Holy Prophet’s assembly and he was earnestly engaged in trying to persuade them to accept Islam. At that very point, a blind man, named Ibn Umm Maktum, approached him to seek explanation of some point concerning Islam. The Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) disliked his interruption and ignored him. Thereupon Allah sent down this Surah. From this historical incident the period of the revelation of this Surah can be precisely determined.

Ingredients

Wheat flour 4 cups
Sugar 1 cup.
Egg 10
Cashew nuts cup
Coconut cut into small pieces ? ? cup
Ghee cup
Water – as required
Elaichi 6
Salt to taste
Cuscus to taste

Method/Recipe of Chatti Pathiri

Knead the dough as for chapatti. Make the chapattis in the size and shape of the pan used for baking. This will be sufficient to make 8 chapattis.

Half cook each of the chapattis. Grind together sugar and the elaichi powder. In this add the eggs and mix well.

Take the mixture and fry in little ghee. Keep stirring the mixture as we pour it into the pan and make it into little pieces and take it out. After this roast the cashew nuts and the coconut till it turns golden brown.

Dip each chapatti one by one in the remaining egg mixture. Apply little ghee in the pan. Put the first chapatti and on top of it sprinkle some cashew nuts, coconut and the egg. Repeat the same for all remaining chapattis. Pour the balance egg mixture on top which fill the gap if any. On top sprinkle some ?cuscus? and cover the top with a lid.

Cook for 1 hour on slow fire. Again after an hour when it has cooled down, remove it and put it into a plate upside down. Cut into small pieces.

Serve

Lines of Sri Narayana Guru, the well-known reformer of Kerala, in praise of Holy Prophet.

Some of the highlights from the show

The definition for knowledge which I have arrived is at ‘developing a coherent body of ideas and creatively reaching out to the unknown’.

‘Many a times I feel knowledge is mistaken for information’.

‘In the journey of discovering Truth there are stations but no destination’.

God and His Prophet also urge humility towards believers, as in this verse of Sura 26 (Al-Shu’ara’: 215): “And lower thy wing to the Believers who follow thee,” meaning: treat them with gentleness and humility. The Prophet was extremely humble towards his companions. His wives and Companions relate many stories supporting this. He also urged Muslims to show humility, saying: “Whoever humbles himself for the sake of God, God would elevate him to a high status.” This means that whoever humbles himself to people and shows love and kindness towards them, will be amply rewarded in the hereafter. Humility towards God and His Prophet means venerating them and following their Shari’a, while humility towards men is of two kinds: a praiseworthy and acceptable form, and a blameworthy and unacceptable one. The acceptable is humility towards parents, relatives and friends, while the unacceptable form is humility towards arrogant and proud people, or towards unjust rulers.

Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) reported it directly from Allah’s Apostle (may peace be upon him) that he said: Do not undertake journey but to three mosques: this mosque of mine, the Mosque of al-Haram and the Mosque of Aqsa (Bait al-Maqdis). (Sahih Muslim)

‘Our brothers will be familiar with the haramin, ie. Masjid-ul-haram and Masjid-un-Nabawi but its not the same with Al-Aqsa mosque, which is associated with numerous historical incidents. If we analyze the biography of our great predecessors’ piligrimage, after performing hajj and visiting Prophet they also visited Masjid-ul-Aqsa before their return. But around 60 years Muslims have problems in visiting this Holy Mosque.’

I was fortunate to visit this Holy Mosque, for the first time in 1989.

‘Graves of many Sahaba and Tabieen are present in Syria. Syria was known as ‘Sham’. Old Sham included present Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel and Palestine. Damascus was of great significance at one point of time in the history of Islam. The mosque, Jami’-ul-Amawi, is located in Damascus.
Many of the Ahl-Bait members have been also buried in Damascus.’

‘If we travel to towards the South, before we reach the border of Jordan, we take right from Izra’ and travel 30km we reach the city of Imam Nawwawi, Nawa.’

Ingredients

Boiled Egg – 6 nos

Big onion – 1

Ginger paste – 1 tsp

Coriander leaves

Curry leaves

Ginger paste – 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Pepper powder- ¾ tsp

Oil for deep frying

Method/Recipe

1. Cut horizontally the boiled eggs and set aside the yolk
2. Prepare medium loose maida batter
3. Cut onions into small pieces
4. Chop curry leaves and coriander leaves
5. Pour 2 tsp of oil into hot pan and add the onion pieces into it
6. Then add pepper powder, cumin seed, ginger paste and curry leaves
7. Add salt to taste
8. Add egg yolk and mix it well and add coriander leaves (now fillet is ready)
9. Fill it in between the cut eggs
10. Dip the egg fillet in the batter and fry as shown

An excellent choice for those who love spicy snacks!

Being thankful to Allah. A man can be thankful to Allah only if he be thankful to his companions.

Food is a great blessing from Allah (swt). We are indebted to Him for all kinds of blessings to express our gratitude through out our life in action and words.