Aqaaid

Q: What eradicates good actions?

Q: My question is about the validity of usage of stories or parables of great saints or people to explain the concepts of Deen to common people. I forwarded the below story to my friends and colleagues: 

A king wanted to build a great palace for which he spared no expense and so made available all his treasures. Anything that did not suit his fancy in the slightest he had torn down and built again. Finally he was convinced the palace had no shortcoming and was the greatest palace ever built.
Overflowing with pride at his beautiful palace the king announced throughout his kingdom that he would reward anyone who could point out a flaw in his new abode. All who would visit could not see any shortcoming in the beautiful building, not that anyone would even dare to point it out to their king.
People kept coming and going for the next few days until a venerable sage close to Allah happened to be passing by and stopped by when he heard the king's decree. After surveying the palace he came before the king and said, "Your Majesty, I have found two flaws in your palace." The king was taken aback because an old man apparently found what all his subjects could not, and so he asked what these flaws were. The wise man said, "Your Majesty, one flaw is that this palace will not stand forever, and will end like all things will end one day. The second is that you cannot live in this palace forever for all must die one day."

The World is a Temporary Home
No matter what high hopes a person has in this world, no matter how many beautiful houses and cars he has he will have to leave everything behind one day. The Messenger of Allah said: Be in the world as if you are a stranger
Excerpted from The Sermons by Shaykh Zulfiqar Ahmad Naqshbandi(db)

One person from the Wahabbi sect replied back asking me the following:

1. Quran and hadith is sufficient for us we do not need such stories to understand deen.
2. What if these stories are not authentic or are just imagination of some scholars, will we then not be sinners for propagating such false.
3. Prophet [Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam] in his last sermon advised us to firmly hold on to Quran and Sunnah, then why do we have to propagate such stories.

My Questions:

1. Do we need to verify the authenticity of such stories even if the message is as per the shariah?
2. Please explain in great details for me to explain to the others.

Q: During my last Jumaah at Baltimore, MD (www.isb.org) we had a brother talk during the Jumaah bayan about the difference of Sunnah and tradition and what needs to be followed etc. This has caused some confusion in my mind. I would appreciate some clarity on the issue in specific mentioned below or just in common to make me better understand what is the correct position on this.

A few things mentioned by the brother was:

1. The Topi, Turban, Thoppe is all not Sunnah but more of custom and hence no extra reward for following the custom. For women covering their bodies is order from Allah and has to be done but for men pant/shirt is just as fine as anything else as long as it covers the aura.
2. There are some things that the Prophet(pbuh) did that are not sunnah, for example he slept after the Tahajjud/Sunnah of Fajr and we do not need to do this as he did not ask us to do it. One more example given was that the Prophet(pbuh) would face the person in his entirety while talking to a person and this is again not something that needs to be emulated.
3. There were a couple more examples given to clarify Sunnah vs tradition and what was exclusive to the prophet like marrying more than 4.

My understanding has always been that every act no matter how simple is an act that needs to be emulated in our daily lives including his dress, mannerisms etc. I would appreciate some clarity on the issue.

Q:

1. What is the difference between Ilm-e-Takwini & Ilm-e-Shari?
2. How are both reconciled jointly in Islam?
3. Are they people still carrying out Takwini  works?
4. Is takwini works only carried out by Belivers? or Disbelivers also?

Q: The following info has been taken from AL-GHUNYA LI TALIBEEN by Abdul Kadir Jeelani(r.a). There is a special salaat to be performed in the month of rajab, this salaat can be performed after maghrib or ishaa, this salatul haajat makes up a total of 30 rakaats, it is read in 3 stages: first 10 rakats are read between the 1st and 10th of rajab. The second 10 between 11th and 20th of rajab, and the last 10 between 21st and 30th of rajab. The niyyah is am reading 2 rakaat salatul haajah O Allah for the sake our master Mohammed Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam with the birth of whom you have illuminated the entire world and the for the sake of your auspicious month rajab grant me relieve from the troubles of this world and the hereafter. Its read in 2 rakaats each in both rakaat you should read allhamdu, 3x suratul kaafirun and 3x suratul ikhlaas, its better if its read on a friday or monday night. So i have read 20 rakaats in the first 20 days but now I have gotten my periods and by the time I'll be paak it will be Shaaban so is it ok if I read the remaining 10 rakaats in the month of Shaaban although in the niyyah it says shaaban?...Because I don't feel like leaving it incomplete.

Q:

1. I read that no one will enter jannah unless they have perfect imaan. So if a person has Imaan but it is not perfect will he attain jannah? Quote hadith or quraan ayaats if possible.
2. What is perfect imaan? If I commit a sin does it mean I do not have perfect imaan ?
3. Can you send me the hadith which says how one can attain perfect imaan through salaam?

Q: In my childhood, I promised to my teacher that I will not watch television (T.V). When I started trying to bring Islam in my practical life I realized the importance of promise in Islam. Alhamdulillah I tried to abstain from watching T.V and every kind of videos on internet. Sometimes I want to listen the lectures of religious scholars, learn tajweed/ Aabic or other languages. Being a female I can't go outside easily. Can I convert the video lectures into audio mp3 and then only listen them?  

س: ما معنى اسمه تعالى المهيمن؟

Q: 

1. Could the respected Scholar please explain how following the verdicts of various Scholars constitutes following ones desires when the verdict is from the Sharia'ah and not ones desires?

2. What is meant by Nabi sallahu alaihi wasalam chose, encouraged and advocated the easiest way, manner path etc. if there were options?

3. Does the quoted Ayah and Hadith refer to following the verdicts of Scholars? or following one’s own analogy and outcome?

Q: Kindly provide a response on the following: In today's times, with more and more people watching hindi movies, their ways are being practiced by Muslims. What are the consequences of a person bowing down to another person, like how the hindus do it - going down on their knees, with head bowed over (almost touching the ground) and touching the feet of the person? Does the Muslim person become a Mushrik? If yes, then does the nikah of that person break? How should such a person make towbah?