The Auction

The Auction

 Dr. Mouhamed N. Tarazi

Forty eight I shouted when the clerk at the Sheriff office opened the bid on this condo. Forty eight is short for forty eight thousand dollars.

Friday I went to the Sheriff real estate auction to try to help my nephew buy this condo. It was appraised at $72,000 and the opening minimum bid was $48,000. My nephew and I decided early on not to go over $55,000.

Without seeing the inside of the property and just relying on peeking through the widows (if you can), you have to be careful and cover your bases when you buy a property at a Sheriff auction. You need to factor in unexpected problems (like a damaged air conditioning unit or dysfunctional water heater. Some owners, when they lose their property, they leave and take with them anything they can; refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave, light fixtures; etc. Sometimes they will take even the copper pipes.

“Forty eight one ($48,100),” a man in the back of the packed room shouted.

“Forty eight one, do I have a higher bid” the clerk repeated.

“Forty eight two” I announced.

Every time a bid is made the clerk repeated it and asked for a higher bid.

“Forty eight three,” a man in the back barked. I couldn’t tell if it was the same man.

“Forty eight four,” I cried.

“Forty eight five,” a voice from the back.

“Forty eight six,” I insisted.

“Forty eight nine,” a man in the back shouted.

“Forty nine thousand,” I announced

The clerk got fed up with us going by one hundred increase every time we bid and sternly she directed us to go by $1,000 increase.

“Fifty (meaning fifty thousand),” he said.

“Fifty one (This was not $50,100 as it was understood in the first round, it was $51,000),” I decided.

“Fifty two,” was announced in the back.

I went up to fifty three thousand.

“Fifty four thousands,” the same voice announced.

I announced our upper limit: “Fifty five thousands.”

The man in the back went up to fifty six thousands. The clerk said, after asking for a higher bid: “Fifty six thousands going once, fifty six thousand going twice,” pause.

In a real estate auction or in any auction for that matter, your adrenaline goes high up and can prevent you from stopping at the right time and you will end up getting a bad deal.  Let me just add one more thousand. Thankfully my nephew was not with me and I controlled my desire to just go up a thousand dollars one more time.

“Sold, Fifty six thousands, please come forward,” the clerk nodded to the buyer in the back. A man, the buyer, and a representative of the bank, hurried at the same time to the clerks’ table to do the necessary paperwork.

I folded my papers and stood up to leave when I heard the clerk announcing the rebidding of the same condo. Did I really hear that? This does not happen that often. Apparently that buyer thought all along that he was bidding on a different property.

“Do I have an opening bid of forty eight thousand?” the clerk announced.

“Forty eight thousands.” I gladly said.

“I have an opening bid of forty eight thousand, do I have a higher bid?

Silence. I started to get excited.

“I have an opening bid of forty eight thousand, do I have a higher bid?

Silence. I was excited now.

“Forty eight thousand going once.”

Silence. More excited.

“Forty eight thousand going twice.”

Silence. Extremely excited. My heart beats went up to 120.

“Sold. Forty eight thousand. Please come forward.”

Had this confused buyer stopped at $54,000, we would’ve paid for this condo $55,000.  But we only paid $48,000. Clearly in those few minutes my nephew saved $7,000.  

Be mindful of almighty God and He will show you a way out of distress and He will provide for you in a manner beyond all expectation.

The Birth of Prophet Muhammad (SAAW)

Celebrating the Birth of Prophet Muhammad ^(SAAW)

Dr. Mouhamed N. Tarazi

S

ara and Abdullah have been married for a little more than four years. They have a son, Khaled, who turned two years old last week and they are expecting a girl any day now.

 Abdullah,  an engineer and Sara, a science teacher, moved from Syria to America several years ago. After the death of his father, he brought his mother to live with them.

Yesterday, Sara, with the help of grandma, (called TaiTai in Syria), prepared a nice dinner for the family; kubbeh, mutabal, humus, tabuleh, chicken and rice. Of course Sara did not forget the lentil soup. Abdullah used to say, “Kubbeh without lentil soup is like Rome without the Pope!”

Abdullah came home from work; they all sat around the dining table. Khaled sat in his high chair with a bib, embroidered with the phrase, “I love Taitai,”­­ fastened under his chin. Abdullah reached out and took a round kubbeh,  tasted it, and exclaimed, “Mom, Sara, Jazakumullahu khayran, this is a great kubbeh!”

 “Abdullah! I heard on the news this morning that today is the birthday of Prophet Muhammad. Could we spend some time talking about him?” Sara asked.

 Abdullah was very happy to celebrate this occasion by remembering this wonderful man Muhammad, the like of whom never walked on this earth.

“Oh yeah Sara! I did forget. Today is the 12^th of Rabi al Awal (The third month of the Islamic calendar), the birthday of Prophet Muhammad. Let’s start by talking about some of his special attributes mentioned in the Holy Quran.”

“Almighty Allah called him a ‘Light’ and ‘Lamp Spreading Light,’ to guide people out of darkness:

‘There has come to you from Allah a New Light’  

‘Oh Prophet! Truly We have sent you as a witness, as a bearer of glad news, as a warner, as one who invites to Allah’s grace, by His leave, and as a lamp spreading

light.’ ”

Sara looked at Abdullah and said, “I remember a verse, where Allah asks his Messenger, ‘Have We not raised high your fame?’ Every time we say ‘La Ilaha Illallah’, we also say ‘Muhammadun Rasulullah.’” 

“Exactly! You see how Muhammad’s name is part of the shahada,” Abdullah said.

Taitai joined in, “I love what Allah said, addressing his Prophet,

‘Indeed you have the highest morals.’”

“Mom, it’s all about morals. The Prophet said it himself. He was sent but to complete the code of morals,” said Abdullah.

Sara admired how the Prophet treated children and mentioned that once he came to the mosque for the night prayer, carrying his grandson on his shoulders. Then he seated him close by and led the prayer. He spent an unusually long time prostrating during the prayer, which worried some of his followers. Others thought he was receiving a revelation. After the prayer, he explained to them that his grandson mounted on his back and he waited for him to get down. Taitai added, “He also used to carry his granddaughter Umaima while praying. When he prostrated he’d put her down and when he stood up he’d carry her.”

Abdullah said, “I find this story fascinating: one time the Prophet was in a big gathering.  To his right was a young boy and to his left were the great Abu Baker and Omar. The Prophet was offered a drink from a pitcher. He drank a little bit and asked the boy ‘Do you permit me to pass the drink to Abu Baker and Omar?’ The boy said ‘No way!’” (Muslims usually pass things to the right. That is why the Prophet wanted the permission of the boy to pass it to the left. The boy refused, he wanted the blessing of drinking right after the Prophet. Maybe he thought, by the time it comes around nothing would be left for him or maybe he wanted to receive a drink directly from the Prophet.)

Taitai reminded them of the story of the woman who used to clean the Prophet’s mosque. She was from people who were not considered important in Medina’s traditional clan society. One time he noticed she was not at the mosque. When he inquired about her, he was told that she had passed away. He asked where she was buried and gathered his companions and offered a funeral prayer for her. This shows how well he respected people, no matter their social status in the general community.

Sara added teasingly, “He was so nice to his wives. He never laid his hand on anyone of them (meaning, he never hit any of them).”

“Abdullah! Did you hear that?” Taitai asked.

“Mom! I would never ever hit Sara!” replied Abdullah.

Taitai and Sara laughed. They remembered how Abdullah had stood up to his best friend and scolded him when he shoved his wife in front of them.

Taitai then said, “I remember a hadith, I’d like to share with you. When Rasulullah recited what Abraham supplicated, ‘He who follows me is one of me and he who disobeys me (is going astray) - But You are indeed oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’ And what Jesus prayed, ‘If you punish them, they are your servants, and if you forgive them, verily You, only You, are the All-Mighty, the All-wise.’

He, Muhammad, understood that the two great messengers, Abraham and Jesus, were asking forgiveness even for those who chose not to follow them. He then raised his hands, cried and pleaded, “My nation, My nation.” Then Allah sent Angel Gabriel to comfort him and assure him that Allah would be pleased with him and with his nation.”

Abdullah said “Mom! That shows how much he loved us, how much he loved his ummah.” Then he added “Don’t forget that every prophet was given a special wish and every prophet used up his wish except Muhammad. He saved his wish as a shafa’a for his ummah on the Day of Judgment. It will be honored for everyone who dies without associating anything with Allah.”

 “Abdullah! Remind us of shafa’a,” Sara demanded.

Abdullah explained, “On the Day of Resurrection, all mankind will be gathered in one gigantic plain. The sun will get very close to them. They will be sweating, scared, and waiting for the grand trial. They will wish to know their fate and get it done with it quickly. We don’t know how long they will stay like that in a state of uncertainty. They will form a delegation to search for intercession. This delegation first goes to Adam, then Noah, then Abraham, then Moses, then Jesus. The delegation will plead for their intercession. Each one of the prophets, fearing to face Allah for his own reasons, will say, ‘Myself, myself, I’m worried about myself’, and will refer them to the others. Then finally they will go to see Muhammad. He will respond ‘I’m for it, I’m for it.’

Muhammad goes under the throne, prostrates, praises Allah and waits. Then he will be ordered, ‘Oh Muhammad!  Raise up your head. Ask! You will be given. And intercede! Your intercession will be accepted.’   

His intercession will help those, from his ummah, whose good deeds are equal to their bad deeds to enter Paradise. People ordered to go to Hell will be pardoned, by his intercession, before even entering Hell. Those who end up in Hell will be released to go to Paradise, as a result of his continued intercession.”

Sara then asked, “With all of what the Prophet did for us, and is willing to do for us in the Day of Judgment, how can we thank him?”

Abdullah thought about it for a few seconds and before he answered, Taitai started, “In fact he asked us to do only one thing for him; he said, when you hear the athan for prayer repeat after the caller, then at the end of the athan, he told us to pray for him. For every blessing we send upon the Prophet, we get in return ten blessings from Allah. What a bargain! Then he asked us to ask Allah to grant him ‘Al-Waseela’, a place in Paradise reserved for one person and he wishes it to be for him. He promised that he who asks for ‘Al-Waseela’ for him will earn his intercession.”

As they were finishing dinner the call for maghrib prayer came from the home computer and all in unison repeated after the caller. After it, they invoked blessings upon Muhammad. Then supplicated,

"Allahumma Rabba hathihid-Daawatit taammah, wassalatil Qa imah ati Muhammadan al waseelata wal fadeelah, wa ib'ath-hu maqaman mahmoodan allathee wa'ad-tah, innaka laa tukhliful-me'aad."

 (This translates to"Oh Allah, Owner of this perfect call and Owner of this prayer to be performed, grant Muhammad al waseelah (a place in Paradise) and al fadeelah (a rank above the rest of creation) and send him upon a raised platform which You have promised him. Verily, You never fail in Your promise.")
Taitai, Sara and Abdullah agreed that there was so much more to say about the Prophet. This was a wonderful way to celebrate the birth of Prophet Muhammad.

[Peace and Blessing of Allah upon Prophets Muhammad, Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus and all other prophets.]