The believer is harder than a mountain, for the mountain - The World ...

The Realities of Marriage & Family LifeMontreal, CanadaOne must prepare him/herself to the best oftheir abilities for marriage. For in most instancesindividuals are able to specify that which theyseek in a mate, but do not always possess suchqualities or characteristics in themselves.The Path of Light held its seminar on ‘The Realitiesof Marriage and Family Life’ on 14 and 15 June2008. The first conference held in 2007 wasdelivered to provide support to individuals about tobe or already married in a society where marriageis ridiculed and rates of divorce are increasing.Sayed Mustafa al-Qazwini, Sheikh Saleem Bhimji,Sis Arifa Hudda and Sis Latifa Samji were the guestspeakers.The topics were addressed in the form of lectures,workshops, as well as question and answersessions. There was also a kiosk which gave healthtips for nutritious diets, pregnancy, breastfeedingand personal hygiene set up by Sister Ruba Haidar,a dietetics student in her last year.The seminar began with a short introduction andtalk by Sheikh Saleem Bhimji on the “Objectiveof Marriage in Islam and its Role in Society”. Theinstitution of marriage is highly esteemed withinthe fold of Islam, yet its primary objective does notreceive due attention. This lecture focused on theobjectives of marriage in Islam, why it is consideredto be half of our deen and the role that it plays inadvancing and protecting any given society.The eminent scholar, Sayed Mustafa al-Qazwini,from Orange County, California spoke on ‘PreparingOneself for Marriage’. In his words of guidance, henoted that akhlaaq (self-refinement and purificationof the soul) are struggles which endure a lifetime.Some specific tips for improving one’s akhlaaq tolay the foundation to be a suitable spouse werealso given to the audience. There were workshopswhich were inter-twined with the lectures. Thefirst such session consisted of three concurrentdiscussions carried out by the invited scholars.In addition, the 3-day programme saw over 25other topics for discussion in the form of lecturesand workshops, which included:1. Different sex drives – how to cope2. Post-Marital Counselling: Overcomingroadblocks and avoiding divorce3. Dealing with extended families and in-laws4. Financial responsibilitiesAll of the attendees were eager to learn about thetopics presented ranging from role of marriage insociety, spouse selection, avoiding excesses inengagements and weddings, keeping the balancein the home, avoiding monotony in marriage,relations with in-laws, domestic violence, maritalcounselling and so on. Their eagerness wasespecially clear when the audience found it difficultto choose between two to three topics that wereavailable simultaneously in the form of workshops.In such cases, husbands and wives split up to gainmaximum benefit from the scholars present.In order to boost those who were single andin search of a suitable spouse, the MarriageApplication Form Project was launched, allowingthose who are single to confidentially provide theirinformation to the Path Of Light group which has asmall committee dedicated to looking through theapplications and helping to find matches based onthe information provided on the forms.16Insight Jamaadi al Ula 1431 / May 2010