LOVE makes the World go round

We LOVE everything to do with LOVE.

And why not?

Love is a beautiful &

pure emotion

Fresh and Crisp like Daisies in Sunshine Deep and powerful like the Ocean

Love is definitely “good”

It is mentioned in the Qur’an in several places and in different

contexts

The Glorious Qur'an says:

"The believers are stauncher in (their) love for Allah."

(Surah Al Baqarah, 2: Verse,165)

And among His signs is this, that He created for you mates from among yourselves, that you may dwell in peace and tranquility with them, and He has put love and mercy between your (hearts): Verily in that are signs for those who reflect"

(Surah Ar-Rum,30: Verse, 21)

Alas! Come 14th February and some people hijack love

…

… and sell it like cheap candy that leaves a bad taste in the mouth – But it is wrapped in a very fancy paper!

And they call it

Valentine’s Day

And they sell cards, balloons …

…chocolates, flowers …

They start early…

Should this come under cruelty to animals?

Is all this shabang to spread love?

EXCUSE ME!

The Cost of Showing You Care

$17 billion

Sweets For Your Sweetieconfectioners churned out between 8 billion and 9 billion conversation hearts (enough to stretch from coast to coast and back again), as well as 36 million heart-shaped boxes

of chocolate, according to the National Confectioners Association of USA - 2009

Putting It On PaperWhile electronic cards have

elbowed in a bit, paper Valentine's cards are still

huge business, with approximately 190 million

cards sold each year, according to Hallmark.

Cupid must be a CAPITALIST!

How it Began

Valentine's Day began as a pagan ritual started by Romans in the 4th century BC to honor their god Lupercus.

The main attraction of this ritual was a lottery held to distribute young women to young men for "entertainment and

pleasure"--until the next year's lottery.

One practice associated with this day was the lashing of young women by two young men, clad only in a bit of goatskin and wielding goatskin thongs, who had been smeared with blood of sacrificial goats and dogs. A lash of the "sacred" thongs by these "holy men" was believed to make them better able to bear children.

Christianity tried, without success, to stop the celebration of Lupercalia.It replaced the lottery of the names of women with a lottery of the names of saints. The idea was that during the following year the young men would copy the life of the saint whose name they had drawn.

They did change the name of the festival from Lupercalia to

St. Valentine's Day

It was done in CE 496 by Pope Gelasius, in honor of some Saint Valentine.

There are as many as 50 different Valentines in Christian legends.

Two are more famous, although their lives and characters are also shrouded in mystery.

According to one legend, and the one more in line with the true nature of this celebration, St. Valentine was a "lovers'" saint, who had himself fallen in love with his jailer's daughter.

Christianity ended up doing in Rome, and elsewhere,

as the Romans did!

1840sFrom Europe, this festival reached the New World, where

enterprising Yankees spotted a good means of making money.

Esther A. Howland

Produced the first commercial “Valentines” in 1840

Why do we get taken in by this?

Because of the “virtual” way we have started to look at love

He loves me . . .

He loves me Not . . .

He loves me . . .

She loves me not . . .

He Loves me …

All these “love” stories in the media have made our heads spin round.

We don’t know real love from “virtual love.”

Love in La La LandBoy meets girl.

Boy is tall, dark and handsome.Girl is “Fair & Lovely.”

Boy says “I’ll take you out, but don’t tell your parents.”Girl says “I’ll skip college and we’ll meet secretly.”Boy says “Dad, can I borrow your car? I have to go study.”Girl says “Mom, can you pick me late? Extra classes today.”

And they all live happily ever after???

Just "I Do" It ?2.3 million marriages take place in the U.S. each year--more than 6,000 "You-may-kiss-the-brides" per day—

though just 9% of propositions are lobbed

in February. According to Conde Nast Bridal's 2006

American Wedding Survey

WHY is that?Think about it

What “brand” of love does Valentine’s Day promote?

Virtual LoveIs:

• Dishonest

• Deceitful

• Dramatic

• Destructive

• DUMB ……..

Causes:

• Pain

• Heartache

• Anxiety

• Tension

• Failure

• Islam is realistic and constructive

• It shakes us awake and brings us into the REAL WORLD

There is plenty of room in Islam for Real love And

Romance and

Flirting

YES – FLIRTING …

With your husband/wife

Islam gives us Nikah

Interpretation of Hadith

The Prophet (PBUH) said:

Nikah is my Sunnah. He who turns away from my Sunnah is not of me.

When asked, 20 years after her death, who was the dearest person to his heart, the Prophet (PBUH) said without hesitation that it was his first wife Khadija (RA)," "When asked, 'And who is the second most beloved person to your heart,' he said that it was his present wife Aisha (RA)."

The Prophet (PBUH) had no problem declaring in public that the women he selected as wives were the dearest and fondest beings to him.

But he never even touched a non-mehram woman.

Without respect, love gets lost.

Without caring, love gets boring.

Without honesty, love gets unhappy,

and without trust, love gets unstable

There is no room in Islam for “affairs” or “boyfriends” and “girlfriends”

There is no respect, caring, honesty or trust in such relationships.

The Prophet (PBUH) said,

"Whenever a man is alone with a woman, Satan (Shaytan) is the third among them" {Tirmidhi}

Romance and love – Islam style - builds families with strong pillars & structures surviving challenges & obstacles of real life