Jamatkhana and Institutional Updates

Eid ul-Fitr is a day of celebration, in which all the supplications and the blessings of the month of Ramadan reach a spiritual peak. In the 10th century CE, the Fatimid Imam-Caliphs used to give a formal khutba address on the day of Eid ul-Fitr. Mawlana al-Qaim in his Eid ul-Fitr khutba refers to the assembly of believers gathered before him as ‘servants of God.’ He tells them that this day of Eid is one that Allah honours and exalts. Mawlana al-Qaim counsels Muslims on this day to “be faithful in your intentions and submit your requests to God. Seek forgiveness of your sins.”
This Eid is a festival to rejoice in the spiritual barakat and blessings gathered during Ramadan. As we celebrate Eid ul-Fitr, we also express our gratitude to Allah for the Divine Grace and Mercy apparent in our lives. Mawlana al-Mansur, succeeding his father Mawlana al-Qaim as Imam-Caliph, also chose the Eid ul-Fitr Khutba as an occasion to declare himself Allah’s servant. He expresses his overwhelming gratitude to Allah: “Praise! Praise! And thanks to You! Thanks! Over and over again. There is no equivalent for Your favours; no repayment for Your kindnesses, confessing thus to the inability to express thanks even though it were attempted in every language throughout the whole of time.”
In keeping with our tradition, let us come together virtually as One Jamat this weekend to celebrate the blessings of Eid ul-Fitr and to express our Shukrana. You can find this weekend’s programme below.

Reflections Phone Line
Members of the Jamat without Internet access or who are unable to participate in the institutional evening programmes are encouraged to call our weekly Reflections Phone Line. This week's will be available from 2pm BST on Sunday 24th May and will include Reflections from Naushad Jivraj, National Council President and an ITREB talk, in Gujarati, on the significance of Eid. The number to dial is: 0333 015 1133. The 30 minute program will be available to listen to from Sunday to Saturday each week and can be accessed 24 hours a day.
Calls to 0333 numbers cost no more than national rates to local 01 or 02 numbers. Mobile phone tariffs allow the calling of 0333 numbers in their monthly quota of telephone minutes and providing you have not used your quota of minutes for the month you will not be charged any extra for calling an 0333 number.
Members of the Jamat are asked to share this information with other members of their family who do not have internet access.

Eid ul-Fitr Golden Club
ITREB and AKSWB are pleased to inform the Jamat that the next session of Golden Club will take place on Sunday 24th May at 12.30pm. Nysa Pradhan will be discussing the significance of Eid ul-Fitr. To celebrate the day, if you would like to dress up in Eid attire, please feel free to do so. We look forward to seeing you. Click here to join us.

Developing Leadership and Management Skills
Are you interested in developing your leadership and management skills? Are you in middle management or would you like to move into management? The Headstart Alison online learning platform has courses covering a range of leadership and management skills. Whether you work in the private or the public sector, there is a course for everyone. Here is an opportunity to get a head start and start training for your dream job from the comfort of your home. You may be eligible for a free certificate or a diploma (conditions apply). Visit us here to enrol for a course today.

Singalong Saturday
This week we present a piece called ‘Yaqeen’ meaning belief. This composition by the Ismaili Community Ensemble celebrates the legacy of our beloved Imam. The music fuses classical Western styles with Jazz, Arabic and Indian influences and is played by 20 musicians all of whom contributed to the music making process. This piece celebrates the diversity of our Jamat and the beliefs and values that bind us. Listen to this piece here or the entire Singalong Saturday playlist.
If you would like to be featured on singalong Saturday please email ice@iiuk.org.

Youth Flash
Lockdown can sometimes make our moods fluctuate so it is extremely important to try to have a positive state of mind with our mental health. Meditation is a really useful skill and a helpful technique especially during these challenging times. If you are feeling slightly overwhelmed, then you might want to watch “Yoga With Adriene” on YouTube. She has some exceptional yoga and breathing technique videos. These videos can bring plenty of benefits, including relieving any anxiety and giving you peace of mind from the uncertainty you may be experiencing. So take some time to unwind, find a quiet space and take some time to focus on you whilst also getting your daily dose of exercise. To see this and previous youth flashes you can click here!

The WFH Series: #3. Ergonomics
Are you looking after your posture while working from home? The current climate has forced many of us to turn our homes into workspaces. Many are substituting office desks and chairs with sofas, beds or kitchen tables. This can have a devastating impact on our bodies. To help you take better care of yourself, AKEPB has prepared a series of WFH guides. Part #3 is on Ergonomics and covers how to arrange your working area and stay healthy with some simple stretches and exercises. Use this best practice guide to help you adjust to WFH.

Payment Freeze Extended for Mortgages
The FCA has announced that individuals who are struggling financially due to coronavirus will be able to extend their mortgage payment holiday for a further 3 months, or make arrangements to reduce how much they pay. For customers who have not requested a payment holiday, the deadline to apply for one would be extended until 31 October 2020, meaning that the payment holiday would take them through to January. To apply for a payment holiday you need to contact your lender directly. Please note: taking a payment holiday does not stop interest accumulating and can lead to higher monthly payments after the payment holiday is over. Therefore it is advisable to continue meeting your payments as normal if you are able to do so. Read FCA announcement here.

Weekly WAP recommends
Looking for some inspiration, entertainment or insight? Try ‘I am Malala’ by Malala Yousafzai Recommended by Neleen Esmail, Vice President-Banu. “Malala fought for the power of education, gave importance to family ties, strength of religion and faith and used compassion and emotion to express her belief. Malala’s greatest role models are women – her mother who wore a purdah, Benazir Bhutto, the first female head of state and her name sake Malalai of Maiwand, famous for using her courage to inspire people. Women who go through even the hardest adversity can still achieve if they hold onto their identity, remember their values, principles and goals.” Buy a copy here.

ITREB Thought of the Day
In Islam piety is twofold. It consists of prayer and acts of spiritual devotion on the one hand, and social responsibility and acts of generosity on the other. These two things are not separate; rather, they are two facets of the same belief, so that the practice of faith encompasses both aspects, like two sides of a coin. As the month of Ramadan — during which Muslims turn inwards through fasting and spiritual devotion and outwards through acts of generosity, kindness and compassion — comes to a close, let us retain our pledge to remember Allah and to care for His Creation.

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