Assalamu Alaikum,
i have heard Yemen is a better place to study the ISlamic teaching in a pure way.

^^^ it is... in ramadan someone got arrested for breaking fast before the time during the entire ramadan by smoking, drinking and chewing... gosh its sick... but thats why there are lots of muslims there... lovely

plus there are quraan schools in the mosques for free and anyone is allowed there...boys..any boys are allowed there... girls...even better a lady teacher comes to your house and teaches u quraan, i learned all i kno from her...plus tajweed

Jazakallah khayr to the sisters for being very patient and helpful in this thread. I'd really appreciate it if you could answer some more below:

1. Someone asked what time of year one should go to Yemen, but are there any official term dates or anything? Is it a matter of going whenever you want and just jumping into something? What about taking holidays - are there any fixed times/allowances... will you miss out on studies if you visit home?

2. I'm a bit worried about the freelance style of the studying... does it allow you to understand properly and take sufficient notes? Especially with so many students, it may be difficult to get much attention from teachers. You did say that things get repeated, but how often would that be?

3. This is more of a general question - I assume a lot of memorising of texts in involved, so how does one retain all that knowledge after leaving Yemen? In your experience, have you had much difficulty or anything... have you been teaching etc.

4. About making arrangements to go, if I've got this right, I should do the following (correct if wrong):
- Contact Shaykh Yahya and send him any information as required
- Go about the normal stuff as if going to Yemen for a holiday
- Go to the Masjid in San'a and get a ride to Dammaj.

5. I'm still a bit unsure about the fine upon leaving... will somebody take your passport until you decide to leave the place? Will it be a bigger fine if you stay for longer? Is this what causes people to go back quicker?

6. Lastly, I read there aren't many jobs available there. Does that include teaching English there - is there any opportunity for it, or any other way to earn something to keep going?

May Allah reward you for your help, ameen.

erm i am yemeni and i lived in yemen for 8 years and now i just go there for holidays and i am sure that there will jobs their especially if u are an english teacher because some primary schools dont have an english lesson until they go to secondry school and thats because there isnt enough english teachers to go to every schools.. but u could take privet lessons that will mean the teacher to go to the student house....

i hope i have gave u a good answer to ur question but that is all i know even though i lived 8 years in yemen and still go there for holidays.

OH YEAH DEFIDENTALY ^^^ in this one school, its all english but every one has a really bad accent in english so if you go the kids would learn MUCH better... its private... "mohammed ali othman" is its name...

Wa alaykum ussalaam wa rahmatullaah,

1. There isn't a specific time one should go, I guess that is upto the individual inshaa'Allaah but most lessons start in the summer, so it might be good to go at this time...

2. Alhamdulillaah with the freelance style teaching there are various ways you could study...If you feel that perhaps you will not benefit in a big group as much as you would on your own, then it's up to you to find a teacher who is willing to teach you privately but alhamdulillaah this is not uncommon...Also you can record lessons. People also revise in pairs, I mean that you and someone else in your class can revise all your notes together Inshaa'Allaah, many students if not all do this...
In popular lessons were many students attend they print out malzamahs (the teacher's notes, or a student's notes) and you can buy it for a very cheap price...

3. Yes, every lesson you learn you're expected to memorise the matan (handbooks of original texts) plus your quraan on top of that...We're told that our studies are half understanding and half memory. I find this the most challenging here...You have to try your best to maintain everything you memorised and studied. We do teach so alhamdulillaah some lessons may stick more than others now...

4. That's right, or you could contact sheikh Yahya hafidhahullaah upon arrival...

5. If you don't pay the fine and you attempt to leave they could take your passport until the fine is payed. In some circumstances people request a no return stamp so leave without paying anything but if you want to come back...this wouldn't be a good option. In extreme circumstances people may be imrisoned...I think it's best to get a years visa so that If you did need to return or go on a holiday etc you could leave hassle free and come back the same way inshaa'Allaah

6. If you mean in Damaaj, then yeah you'd be right, there aren't really jobs there unless you intend to open your own business or use a certain skill you have like carpentry, plumming, sewing, electrician and book binding (these are some jobs there) But in San'aa etc we're told that teachers are demanded especially English teachers. In Dammaaj what some students do is buy another house and rent it out and live off that throughout their stay...

Hope you find this useful Inshaa'Allaah

Wassalaamu alaykum

That's really clever! Could you live like that forever...or... is it too risky?

wa alaykum ussalam wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh

I reckon you could you know, maasha'Allaah because new people are always coming, Allaahu a3lam though...

i heard dammaj is the best place to study islam... many islamic scholars were from there...

it's going to be a great opportunity for u to go there...i hope i can go there in the future , insya Allah...

May Allah make it easy for u to study there...

On the topic of comparing Dammaaj to Madeenah, I have heard that Madeenah would be better as a starting place, because there are many scholars there who are easy to access as they are in one place, and the style of teaching is more structured. And in terms of lifestyle, it would be easier to live in Madeenah compared to the simplicity of life found in Yemen.

At the end of the day, someone who really wants to study and benefit can do so in either place, and anyone who isn't so serious won't benefit anywhere or maybe very little only.

This is what I have heard, and Allaah (swt) knows best.

Wow, subhanAllaah. How much would a house for an average-sized family cost, roughly? And are a lot of the landowners trustworthy?

An average sized house would cost about $6-9,000 . It depends on where it's situated, how many bedrooms, whether it's furnished or not..etc

Some of the landowners are trustworthy and some aren't. The trustworthy one's are usually the native tullaab (students of knowledge) and the not-so trustworthy one's are the 'awwaam (non-practicing natives), but that's not always the case.

JazakAllaah khayr!

I was advised that if you are intending on studying arabic language, its better to study somewhere like Egypt, because the simple living conditions in Dammaaj may be very difficult for us foreigners to get accustomed to.

Assalaamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatulaah,

Poem about Dammaj with pictures.

http://musamills.wordpress.com/2007/...with-pictures/