Mashallah that was very helpful sister, jazakhalla for the great information.
Inshallah we can all implement this into our lifestyle

Mashallah sis that really was great and helpful.....
Thankz for sharing it with us...
Allah helps all the muslims around the world...
Ameen...

Asslam O Aleakum Sister

Jazakallah for ur nice sharing i will try my best to follow and pray for all muslim Ummah

Salam

JazakAllah for posting that...A good reminder mashAllah



Rabi'ya:rose:

How to lower our gaze
by Sabeel Ahmed

A big curtain is not my intention, but a big iman and befitting Islamic manners is.

"If I were not a Muslim, I would have contracted AIDS" proclaimed my friend. "The ayats in Surah Nur about lowering our gazes doesn't affect me anymore," expressed another youth, talking about the intense temptations felt by today's young. Difficulty in lowering the gaze by both the young and old is readily perceived on the street, weddings, parties and even in the mosques.
What has gone wrong? How can Muslims, called by Allah, our Creator the model community, the custodians of Truth and the upholders of morality behave this way? Why are we adopting the attitudes and routes of the kuffar? How can we rectify ourselves? What follows is a series of practical, though graphic advises which can work for us and set us free from Satan's stronghold, Insha'Allah.

Prophet Muhamad (salAllahu alayhi wasalam), by way of warning and as a reminder said, "There is nothing left after I go more dangerous to men than the temptations of women." Being optimistic, a ray of hope was also wisely provided during the prophet's Last Sermon "If the Ummah holds on to the Qur'an and Sunnah, it will never go astray."

When Allah created humans with all our desires and urges, he also revealed to us sufficient and complete guidance to properly channel these desires, both in the midst of Dar-ul-Kufr or Dar-ul-Islam. All we need to do is seek it, contemplate on it and pursue it. "This day I have perfected your deen for you, completed my favors upon you and chosen Islam as your deen." [Surah Maidah, 4]

We should realize that the fact the great sahabahs were human beings also. Biologically there were no different from us. They had desires and temptations but yet, they controlled themselves in the best of ways. We can do the same, Insha'Allah. To possess sensual passions is human, to control them is Muslim.

When confronted with an alluring situation like passing by a non-mahram on the street, office or school, Satan is constantly tempting us to glare at her/him with evil thoughts. Satan is probably excitingly saying, with a big smile, 'yes, yes, yes,' when we steer into the bait he is setting. During these situations, immediately and consciously realize that when we give a second or following glances, we are obeying Satan. "O you who believe, follow not the footsteps of the devil" [24: 21]. By immediately averting our gazes and disobeying Satan, we are giving him a one-two punch in the face and leaving him frustrated and accursed.

Satan rebelled and was expelled by Allah, so let's all rebel against Satan and expel him from our hearts. Satan intends to fight a war against Muslims, so let's gather our forces behind the Qur`an and the Sunnah and defeat him. Remember that even if no human eye is watching us, the Ever-Watchful Allah is constantly monitoring the innermost regions of our hearts. Our eyes, limbs, tongue and private parts will be witnesses on the Judgment Day and not an atom's worth of deed will remain unexamined.

Our minds are conditioned to associate thoughts of stealing clothes from a store to being in handcuffs and hauled into a police van. Likewise we should condition our minds to bring the verses of Surah Nur in front of our eyes during any tempting situations and imagine that Allah is speaking to us directly "Say to the believing, men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty .O you believers! Turn you all together towards Allah that you may attain success" [24: 30-31] If the Qur`an contained only these two ayats, it would be enough to convince me that it is the book of Allah.

With practice, these associations and the remembrance of Allah during tempting situations will prevent us from getting stuck by devilish arrows. Successfully controlling our gazes also deadens our avoidance of sinful situations. An Islamic idiom says, "Anything that leads to haram is haram in itself." To do a pious deed is a reward; to avoid a sin is a reward too.

One of the biggest culprits in this class is movies. In the name of entertainment, to please our peers and children and an excuse to do something together as a family, we astonishingly allow un-Islamic pictures and dialogues in front of our eyes and ears. Can we ever imagine (a'udhubillah) any sahaba renting the latest hit from Blockbuster Videos, or listening to music with alluring lyrics at high volume?

Likewise we watch news on TV and stare at the anchor women, adorned in heavy make-up, scanty clothing and seductive smile. Prophet Muhammad (salAllahu alayhi wasalam), was once approached by a woman with a proposal for marriage. He took a single glance at her face and turned his face away. Jabir bin Abdullah reported: "I asked Allah's messenger about the sudden glance on the face of a non-mahram. He commanded me that I should turn away my eyes." [Muslim].
Thus, we are not supposed to stare at faces of non-mahrams, be they our fellow students, our elders, saleswomen or someone on TV.

Pious ladies of the prophet's household were ordered to observe purdah (separation) in front of a blind sahabah. Asking the curious questions as to why cover/separate when the blind sahabah could not see them, the prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) wisely answered, "But you could see him."

In our wedding ceremonies and parties and even in many Islamic fundraising dinners, there is heavy free-mixing between brothers and sisters. Often the chairs of males and females are arranged facing each other, knowing that about 90 percent of our sisters do no wear hijab. It is often noticeable to see males and females peeking glances at each other from the opposite ends of the hall. A big curtain is not my intention, but a big iman and befitting Islamic manners is.

"A woman who applies perfumes and goes to a gathering is like an adulteress" the prophet (salAllahu alayhi wasalam) said. Compare this with our sisters who clad themselves with expensive perfume, one kilogram of makeup, and then come to mixed gatherings. Will this not attract the attention of males? Let's be real. We have lowered our moral guards so low that a humble word of truth often seems so awfully strange.

Let us contemplate the above humble advices and constantly make the supplication,
O Allah help us control our sensual desires until we get married, and even after we marry, let our desires be only towards our spouses.
Ameen.

Salaam,

Jazek'Allah for that post...

Sabeel Ahmed

"If I were not a Muslim, I would have contacted AIDS!" proclaimed my friend. "The ayahs in Sura Nur about lowering our gazes doesn't affect me anymore", expressed another youth, talking about the intense temptations felt by today's youth. Difficulty in lowering the gaze by both the young and old is readily perceived on the street, weddings, parties and even in the Masjids.

What has gone wrong with our Ummah? Us Muslims, called by Allah, our Creator, as the best Ummah, Model Community, custodians of Truth and the Upholders of Morality behaving in this way? Why are we adopting the attitudes and routes of the Kuffar? How can we rectify ourselves?

What follows are a series of practical, though graphic advice which can work for us and set us free from Satan's stronghold, insha Allah.

Prophet Muhammad, Sallallhu alayhi wa sallam, by way of warning and as a reminder said: "I have not left a fitnah (trial, calamity or cause for calamity) after me more than (the fitnah) with women for men" (Bukhari and Muslim). Also was related by our Prophet : "The world is sweet and verdant, and Allah having put you in it in your turn watches how you act; so fear the world and fear women, for the first trial of the Bani israel had to do with women" (Muslim)

Being optimistic, a ray of hope was also wisely provided during Prophet's Last Sermon on way to avoid the above pitfall: "If the Ummah hold on to the Quran and the Sunnah, it will not go astray".

When Allah created us humans will all the desires and urges, He also revealed to us sufficient and complete guidance to contain them through proper channels. All we need to do is seek this guidance, contemplate on it and implement it. "This day I have perfected you deen for you, completed my favors upon you and chosen Islam as your deen" (5:3)

Realize the fact that the great Sahabas were humans beings too. Biologically they were no different from us, they too had desires and temptations of the human species, and yet they controlled them in the best of ways. We can too, insha Allah. To posses sensual passions is Human, to control them is Muslim.

When confronted with a luring situation, like passing by a non-mahram on the street, office, or a school, Satan is constantly tempting us to glare at her with evil thoughts. Satan is probably excitingly saying with a big smile `Yes', `Yes', `Yes', when we steer into the bait he is setting. During these situations immediately and consciously realize that when we give a second or following glances, we are obeying Satan. "O you who believe, follow not the footsteps of the devil..."(24:21). By immediately averting our gazes and disobeying Satan, we are giving him a one two punch in the face which leaves him frustrated, accursed and defeated.

Satan rebelled and was expelled by Allah, so lets all rebel against Satan and expel him from our hearts. Satan intents to fight a war against the believers, so lets gather our forces behind Quran and Sunnah and defeat him.

Remember that even if no human eye is watching us, the ever watchful Allah is constantly monitoring the innermost regions of our heart. Our eyes, limbs, tongue and private parts will all be witnesses for or against us on the Day of Judgement and not an atoms worth of our deeds will remain unexamined.

Psychologically our minds are conditioned to associate our thoughts of stealing clothes from a store to being in handcuffs and hauled into a police van. Likewise, we should condition our minds to bring the verses of Surah Nur in front of our eyes during any tempting situation and imagine that during that particular instance Allah (SWT) is speaking to us directly: "Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty, that will make for greater purity for them...Say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty...O you believers! Turn you all together towards Allah that you may attain success"(24:30,31). What a beautiful guidance and what a sublime reward for implementing it.

With practice, the above associations and the remembrance of Allah during tempting situations will prevent us from getting stuck by devilish arrows. Successful controlling our gazed also depends upon our avoidance of sinful situations. Al Islamic idiom (Usul Al-Fiqh) says: "Anything that leads to haram is haram in itself". Therefore cutting any unlawful situation in their bud is what we should strive for. Performance of a pious deed is rewarded and avoidance of a sinful deed is also rewarded, Al-Hamdulillah.

One of the biggest culprits which encourage us to disobey the ayahs in Surah Nur, are the movies. In the name of entertainment, to please our peers and children and as an excuse to do something together as a family, we astonishingly allow the development of un-Islamic scenes and dialogues in front of our eyes. Can we ever imagine (Na'udubillah) any Sahaba renting the latest hit from Blockbuster videos, or listening to music with luring lyrics at high volume?

Likewise, we watch news on TV and stare at the anchorwomen, female gymnasts, and female swimmers who are scantly dressed. Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, was once approached by a women with a proposal for marriage. He took a single glance at her and turned his face way. Jabir bin Abdullah reported: "I asked Allah's messenger about the sudden glance on the face of a non-Mahram. He commanded me that I should turn away my eyes" (Muslim). Thus we are not suppose to stare at the faces of non-Mahrams of opposite gender, be they our fellow students, elders, saleswomen or the one of TV.

Pious ladies of the Prophet's household were even ordered to do purdah in front of a Blind Sahaba. Upon the curious question as to why purdah when the blind Sahaba can't see them, Prophet wisely replies: "But you could see him" (Ahmed, Trimidhi, Abu Dawood)

Each one of us may have become culprit of not obey the ayahs in Surah Nur. It is not too late to realize these short comings and work at rectifying ourselves. Above all, we should always ask forgiveness of Allah (SWT). Indeed blessed are those Muslims who are able to check their gazes, thus conserving their precious time and energy, and working in the cause of Allah to reclaim our positions as the superpowers of the world.

Let's contemplate on the above humble advises and constantly make the following supplication: "O Allah help us in controlling our sensual desires until we get married, and after our marriage, let our desires be only towards our spouses...aameen"
5/28/97

how to lower our gaze - lol put your head down and look at the floor !

jk, alhamdullilah nice post

The same Hadith has been taken by the Shiite with 'my posterity' in place of "sunnah': "If the Ummah hold on to the Quran and the my posterity it will not go astray".

Alhamdullilah nice post

ye, A LOTTA people sadly addicted to "EHHEM" get aids these days...

hahahahahaha!

found this article by dr Hesham Hassaballa hope you find it interesting.....

As temperatures soar and sweat pours down our faces this summer, it
is essential to remember this: protect your eyes, and I am not
talking about wearing sunglasses.

I'm talking about lowering our gazes.

In our culture today, as the temperature increases, so does the
amount of exposed skin on people's bodies. Although this is very
distressing and disturbing, it has become a fact of life.

In fact, those of us, especially our sisters wearing Hijab, who
cover to guard our modesty are seen as strange!

Yet, covering, not exposing the skin, is an advice currently being
given by the United States Department of Health And Human Services
(HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

They have sponsored a campaign called "Choose Your Cover",
encouraging people to protect themselves from skin cancer.

One of the recommended methods is wearing clothing that covers skin
and protects against the sun's UV rays.

The campaign's section on clothing notes that "a long-sleeved shirt
and long pants with a thick weave provide the best protection."

And lest we forget, before global warming and skin cancer warnings
were ever issued, most of the Muslim and non-Muslim men and women
living in the scorching deserts or cities and villages of Africa and
Asia, which experience tremendous heat in the summers
[if not most of the year] did NOT emerge from their homes virtually naked.

In fact, they covered themselves more to protect themselves from the
sun.


SOME ADVICE FROM THE QURAN AND SUNNAH

It is in this instance, surrounded by half-naked people, that we
must have the courage to follow the command of Allah and His Prophet
Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and lower our gazes.
Allah says:

"Do not go near fornication and adultery, it is an abomination
and an evil way." (Quran 17:32).

This sin is so hateful in the sight of Our Lord, that He commanded
us to not even go near it.

Despite what anyone may say, looking upon that which one is not
supposed to is going near adultery. For an illicit affair begins
with a lustful glance.

Allah wishes for us not to commit this ugly sin, and thus He
commands us to lower our gazes:

"Tell the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; And Allah is well acquainted with all that they do.

And tell the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modestyÅ " (Quran 24:30-31).


Lowering the gaze does not mean keeping our eyes constantly on the
ground and not looking up at all.
It is turning our faces away when we see a less-than-decently-
dressed woman or man walking on the street in the middle of July.


THE ADULTERY OF THE EYES

The Prophet (saw) further explained to us Allah's command. Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet (saw) said, "the adultery of the eyes is looking (at [that] which is not allowed)" (Bukhari, Muslim).

Also, on the authority of Jurayr who said,
"I asked the Messenger (saw) of Allah about accidentally looking at something that is not allowed and he (saw) said,
'Turn your eyes away." (Muslim).

In another Hadith on the authority of Abu Sa¹eed, the Prophet
(saw) said, "A man should not look at the Awrah of another man, and the woman should not look at the Awrah of another woman" (Muslim).


Thus, our Prophet even instructed us to lower our gaze when looking
at members of the same gender in some cases.


LOWERING FOR THE "OTHER" NAKEDNESS

One common mistake is to think that lowering your gaze is only
required upon encountering nakedness and indecency "in the flesh" or
in person.

Lowering our gaze must also be practiced when watching a film or
television program replete with nakedness and intimate scenes of
couples (actually, we should try to avoid watching such types of
programs, period).

Lowering our gaze includes changing the channel when "Baywatch"
comes on.

It also means changing the channel when watching the news if we feel
attracted to the anchorperson or reporter reading or presenting the
news.

And anyway, television isn't that great of a way to spend time.
[See why in Sound Vision's unTV guide.(www.soundvision.com)]


DON'T GO TO THE BEACH

Or anywhere else you'll find a plethora of bikini- and swimming-
trunk clad men and women.

Lowering your gaze there is virtually impossible. You may turn in
one direction, thinking you're home-free, but soon enough you
can't even look there.

The same holds true for parks. While this doesn't mean never taking
the kids out to enjoy the slides and see-saws or having barbecues
there, it does mean perhaps having activities on days that are
cooler, or at times when the sun is not as hot and intense (i.e.
some time in the earlier morning or before Maghrib).

This way, the prime time for sunbathing has passed, and most people
either leave or feel cool enough to put some more clothes on.


MAKE DUA

"Never underestimate the power of Dua," Imam Siraj Wahhaj of
Brooklyn, New York once said. This holds true in all trying
situations.

Sometimes, despite avoiding certain places where you are more likely
to encounter an improperly dressed person, you may find someone
walking on the street going to the beach or the park who decided to
get ready for suntanning or swimming beforehand.

In these cases, lowering the gaze may be even harder. You weren't epecting it, so you didn't mentally prepare yourself.

If you feel overwhelmed, one suggested Dua to read is: "Aoutho
billahi Sami¹ il Aleem minash Shaytan ir Rajeem"
(see Quran 41:36 for more information). A translation of this is
"I seek the refuge of Allah who is the Hearer and Who is the Knower from the Shaytan the accursed."

In general, seek refuge in Allah. It has also been suggested to
say "La hawla wa la Quwwata illa billah" (there is no power except
with Allah). If we sincerely make Dua, Insha Allah, we can succeed
in turning our eyes away.


LOWERING THE GAZE DOESN'T MEAN BEING ANTI-SOCIAL

But lowering our gaze does not mean being rude or anti-social.
Summer is definitely a time to go out, have fun, and even make Dawa
(inviting others to Islam).

You can, for example, hand out brochures at public places and parks.

The Prophet (saw) used to present the message of Islam to people that had come for the yearly "Ukaz" festival, which did include unIslamic activities like drinking and gambling.

However, this requires faith, self-control and discipline. This must
never be used as an opportunity to indulge in these sins.


THE GAZE IS A PART OF A MUSLIM¹S CHARACTER

A Muslim is decent and pure. This means all of his or her body must
be decent and pure. A natural consequence of this is lowering the
gaze.

Allah tells us:

"O you who believe! Do not follow Satan's footsteps: if any will
follow the footsteps of Satan, he will command what is shameful and wrong..." (Quran 24:21).


Looking at another man or woman in an indecent manner is following
in Satan¹s footsteps.

It all begins with a lustful glance. Such a glance leads to lustful
talk and flirting, then meetingÅ and we are all aware of what comes
next.

Let us stop Satan in his tracks and lower our gaze.

Let us start today, during these hot summer months. Yes, it is very
difficult and it takes discipline and faith.

Yet, whenever we struggle to please Allah, He will reward us several
times over in this life and the next.

It is truly a Jihad. But, it is a Jihad worth undertaking, and we
will be all the better for it.

any views inshalah....

Mashallah good article. I hope we all adhere to it.

Twenty Tips for Lowering the Gaze

1 – Bearing in mind the fact that Allah is watching you, that He sees you and is with you (by His knowledge) wherever you go. It may be a secretive glance of which your closest neighbor is unaware, but Allah knows of it: “Allah knows the fraud of the eyes, and all that the hearts conceal.” (Ghafir:19)


2 – Seeking the help of Allah, beseeching Him and calling upon Him. Almighty Allah says: “And your Lord said: Invoke Me [i.e. believe in My Oneness (Islamic Monotheism) and ask Me for anything] I will respond to your (invocation).” (Ghafir: 60)


3 – You should know that every blessing you enjoy comes from Allah, and requires that you should give thanks for it. Part of being grateful for the blessing of sight means that you should protect it from looking at that which Allah has forbidden. Is there any reward for a good deed, other than good? “And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allah.” (An-Nahl: 53)


4 – Striving with your self and training yourself to lower your gaze and be patient in doing so, and never giving up. Allah says: “As for those who strive hard in Us (Our Cause), We will surely guide them to Our path