I had been walking down many dark hallways prior to the Deen Intensive Program.  I was neglecting my daily awrad and indulging my nafs.  My ruh was crying for positive suhba.  My heart was getting harder by the minute as I fell into more ghafla.  I was counting the minutes for December 31, the day the DIP began--it finally came.

The first day my ruh was bubbling with joy.  The hammer had struck the hard shell around my heart, the cracks spreading through, leaving the positive path of destruction.  My nafs was struggling to stay afloat, gasping for air.  By the second day, my nafs was immobilized, shackled down.

The shuyookh opened my heart and eyes as they poured ilm into the students' minds and ears.  The companionship of my beautiful sisters warmed my heart beyond its limits.  The narration of the Shamael of the Prophet (alayhi asalat wasalam) made me yearn to meet him (alayhi asalam) more than I have wanted anything in the world.  May Allah grant us all the honor of being in his blessed presence (alayhi salam).  The eagerness and yearning I saw shining in my sisters' eyes pushed me further to reshape my daily routine. 

The week went by as if a couple of hours had passed.  May Allah make the time in our graves pass just as easily (amin).  The sorrow in my heart is indescribable even now--the idea of parting from that wonderful environment still tugs at my heart strings.

May Allah bless everyone that organized the DIP, the shuyookh who taught us, and all the blessed people I met.  May Allah bless us all with the opportunity to gain such ilm and barakah (amin).

Iffat Moinuddin

Living in this society today, we tend to get caught up in the physical aspects of this world, and forget about the well being of our spirits. The Florida DIP made me realize how neglectful I had been to my soul. The DIP was held in a beautiful oasis in the middle of Ft. Lauderdale, yet it was still completely cut off from the modern world. While I was there, I felt so alive and incredibly happy. Spending a week with just my sisters and brothers, learning with extremely knowledgeable and beautiful Shayukh was a tremendously fulfilling and rejuvenating experience which is difficult to even begin to describe. Returning to my life and leaving that wonderful atmosphere was very difficult because I did not want it to end. But it has, and I now know that I have so much more to learn and so much to do in order to even begin to fulfill my obligations to Allah (). I cannot wait until next year, InshaAllah, so that I can attend the program again. This is something everyone must experience.

 Pictures

The Shayukh light up the room.	Shaykh Abdullah gives a darse.	Sidi Jihad, one of the teachers at the camp.
The sisters diligently studying.	Saimah tries to talk to raccoons.	The Shayukh light up the room with their beautiful singing.
Sidi Abul Hakim Murad captivates the sisters.	Hey, I thought you had to be at least 16 to go to a deen intensive.	If you have more pictures please feel free to send them in.  Contact me via email at imranqurai@aol.com.

Rafia Moinuddin

Driving down to Florida gave us plenty of time to think and reflect on the spiritual and physical journey we were about to embark upon. I, with probably the least background in Islamic education among the sisters who went from here, was extremely nervous about what to expect, and also that I may very well be completely out of my league. The first two days were the most mentally challenging for me, as I was totally unprepared to be bombarded with so much at one time. And physically, I never realized that sitting on the ground for hours could be so stressful on one’s back and legs. It was during the third day that I actually began to comprehend what I was being taught rather than just copying everything down. With this comprehension came a thirst to learn more and an enthusiasm that I had before been lacking. I found myself actually enjoying the experience of learning, and that I did not want the week to ever end. Where in secular learning I would have felt completely burned out by trying to absorb everything, in this case I found that I felt rejuvenated and eager to continue.

The most meaningful class for me were those of the Shamaa’il – the character of the Prophet (Sallallahu alahi wasallam). This is not to say that the other classes were not as good or as wonderful, but there is just something about discussing the Prophet (Sallallahu alayhi wasallam) that brings peace to one’s heart. I could sit and listen all day to stories about him, and how he dressed, looked, acted, and everything and anything he did. In fact I felt envious of the Companions (Radhiallahanhum) and the other people of that time for being able to be with him, and interact with him.

Being secluded for a week, and having virtually no face-to-face contact with nonmuslims, was a feeling that I got used to fairly quickly. It was such a change to be surrounded only by other Muslims, that I wished never to leave such an environment. In fact, the first day that we actually stepped outside the gates of the park, after almost a week of seclusion, I found that all my senses were bombarded by everything around me – all the cars, the noise, and the nonmuslims. My first instinct was to turn right around, run back into the camp, and never come out again - which would of course negate the whole reason for learning.

The return journey, though fast, Alhamdulillah, was somewhat of a difficult one for me. I was extremely saddened about leaving the program, and three of the five of us had fallen ill. I missed all of the sisters that I had come to know, and also the Shayukh who had taken time out of their lives to share with us some of their knowledge. For most of the twelve hours that the trip took (that we were actually awake), we all reminisced of our time spent at the program. Someone would bring something up that had happened or that we had learned, then there would be a short silence as we all thought about it.

What can I say, it was an incredible and worthwhile experience. I am extremely grateful to the organizers of this program, especially to Ayesha Naqui, Aisha Subhani, andFiza Naqvi. I know that they all worked hard, and that without them the program would not have been as wonderful as it turned out to be. I am also indebted to our teachers, Sidi Jihad, Sidi Murad, Sheikh Abdullah, and Sheikh Yaqoobi for they imparted upon us not only knowledge but also an enthusiasm to keep learning for which I will be eternally grateful.

Read about the experiences from the Hanafi Fiqh Intensive

MORE TO COME FROM SAIMAH H. AND SHAFIA MOINUDDIN.

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