Resources on Islam

True, the internet is a great resource for all kinds of information including information about Islam. However, you must also have a real live teacher to learn from. Whatever you learn from the internet, you must refer to this teacher for his input. Better still have more than one teacher because every teacher has a different viewpoint and the more viewpoints you refer to, the better the chances of getting a balanced view.

brother,

It certainly is difficult to trust material on the internet with so many websites and different groups propagating their material. The goal is to follow the Qur'an and Sunnah and following the footsteps of the early Muslims, including the noble Companions of the Prophet (i.e. the way of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama'ah).

One way to find out about a website is going to their 'about' or 'intoduction' section. If they belong to a sect or particular group, it might be mentioned there. Sometimes you can get an idea by what sort of topics they have, for example if they have an article about not being in need of hadeeth, you know the site is probably run by hadeeth-rejectors. Sometimes the scholars or videos they have may give an idea. And other times you may find strange things that you can tell are simply not right, due to their exaggeration and forwarding of personal opinions that are not supported by the Qur'an or Sunnah.

Sufism, in its original form, revolves around detachment from this world and its temptations, purification of the heart etc. But nowadays it has come to be associated with much deviation and innovation in the religion. So there are different kinds of Sufis and whatever is in accordance with the Qur'an and Sunnah, that is good, and whatever goes against it is to be rejected.

On the issue of videos for learning how to pray, you will find differences between different videos or booklets. Often the differences are minor because they are regarding the Sunnah actions of prayer (i.e. actions that do not affect the validity of the prayer). Scholars have differing views over these actions and that is why people follow different opinions depending on what they believe to be the most correct. Focus on getting the basics right - all the various postures and what to recite in each position. You can research the details later . Even with some of the du'as to be recited - you will find some videos mentioning the key ones only, and others which mention additional du'as from the Sunnah which perfect the prayer, as explained in your other thread: http://www.islamicboard.com/prayer/1...fferences.html

I hope this has helped . The brother above is right: it can be confusing on the internet with so many opinions and differing advice. It would be good to get in touch with a qualified teacher/Imam/scholar and learn with them step by step.

And Allaah knows best.