“O you who believe! Fear God and be with those who are true in word and deed.” (Surah At Taubah 9:119)

This ayat much sums up how to survive medical school, dear Muslimah. It’s a challenge, keeping company with upright Muslims when your course doesn’t have any! I would have loved to have you as my classmate as well.

An alternative to hanging out with like-minded Muslim students would be to stick to the ‘conservative’ bunch, for lack of a better word. Not the crazy party-animals, but the harmless, modest, conscientious lot whose idea of a Friday night is much more in line with yours! e.g. staying home with family vs getting intoxicated. I kid you not. They’re all great colleagues and hard-working, but live for the dunya, so they’re oriented towards different things. Having good character with your non-Muslim friends is also a form of dawah…Allah guides whom He wills, and perhaps through your good behaviour, Allah may guide a few to His Deen.

That being said, always remember that no matter how strong your faith is, the company you keep WILL affect you, for better or for worse.

On the authority of Abu Musa al-Ash’ari (رضي الله عنه ), the Prophet (صلي الله عليه و سلم ) said:

A good friend and a bad friend are like a perfume-seller and a blacksmith: The perfume-seller might give you some perfume as a gift, or you might buy some from him, or at least you might smell its fragrance. As for the blacksmith, he might singe your clothes, and at the very least you will breathe in the fumes of the furnace.

[sahih al-Bukhari, vol 3, #314 and Muslim]

Shaytan does not raid an empty bank, figuratively speaking, and all it takes is a small degree of deviation before a pious Muslimah/Muslim can fall from grace. Always be aware of that. Hanging out with non-Muslims may make you question your limited ‘freedoms’, in comparison to your colleagues who delight in the dunya.

Iblis said: “O my Lord! Because You have put me in the wrong, I will make wrong fair-seeming to them on the earth, and I will put them all in the wrong.” [Chapter 15, verse 39]

Bearing that in mind, always make sure you touch base with your Muslim family members, your Muslim friends….attend weekly halaqas if at all possible. Sign up to Sunnipath course so you can attend live sessions/recorded ones from the convenience of your own home. Read the Quran daily to keep you connected to Allah. Stick to praying on time, as much as possible, and inshallah Allah will put barakah in your time. Being in medical school is a blessing, and a privilege….so purify your intentions.

Inshallah you’re training to become a doctor for the sake of Allah and Allah alone, because He is the one who will reward you. Keep humble, and know that Allah was the one who created the circumstances allowing you to get in, and be His grateful servant by obeying His commands. Use medical school as a form of worship, inshallah you’ll be rewarded for every single moment of study which you do.

Hope that helps!

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I’ve been tagged by Snowdrops a while back…10 simple pleasures hey? When I figure out how to put up images, I will, and once I know 3 bloggers to tag, I will inshallah lol.

Here’s a brief list:

1: Chilling out with family.
2: Playing with my cats.
3: Having a warm mug of hot chocolate.
4: Coming home to Mum’s delicious food after a long day at uni.
5: Basking in the sun in my backyard. My hijab stays on don’t worry lol.
6: Browsing through www.masud.co.uk
7: Listening to Imam Anwar’s lectures.
8: Listening to Shaykh Nuh.
9: Reading Islamica magazine.
10: Being grateful to Allah for guiding me to Islam.

About the name-change – It’s Saliha now, because c’mon….all Muslimahs are inherently ubercool

Back to study!