On 16th of February 2014, Muslim Youth League Sisters (MYL-S) held a Mawlid event at a community centre based in Walthamstow, East London. The event was organised under the leadership of the newly appointed youth coordinator, Zainab Sheikh, to commemorate and celebrate the birth of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

It commenced with the beautiful recitation of the Glorious Quran by Hafiza Maimuna Haider. Thereafter, the renowned Arabic nasheed, Qasida Burda, was sung very nicely by a group of young girl; this famous Qasida was written by the great Imam Busiri (RA). The sisters performed with a duff in imitation of how the children of Madinah welcomed the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) when he migrated to their city; this group performance was prepared and led by sister Madiha Zeeshan. In between each performance, the host, sister Anbreen Hussain, enlightened the gathering with some quotes from a recently published book, Mawlid-un-Nabi, by Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri. The points mentioned from the book provided sound evidence on the permissibility of celebrating the birth of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

Maryam Noor Hussain recited an English nasheed in praise of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). The famous Qasida Burda was sung again by sister Aysha and sister Rabia in a different tune. This was followed by a short talk by Bismah Ali in which she explained the background of Qasida Burda and Imam Busiri's (RA) dream.Sister Humaira Ali made a presentation which included the aims and objectives of the Muslim Youth League Sisters as well as information regarding the various activities and educational opportunities that are provided by Minhaj-ul-Quran London. The presentation briefed the youth on how they could get involved with MYLUK-S and it also provided information on the latest books and DVDs of Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri.

An interactive session, conducted by Sister Tanzila, was included in the programme to get the youth and children involved. This consisted of different activities, such as guessing a particular word related to Mawlid with clues from the audience. It was heart warming to see young children eagerly taking part and answering questions about our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). Members of the audience that took part in the activities were given prizes – most of which were children. The interactive session was a new initiative by MYL-S in London and it was a huge success.

The main guest of the programme was sister Khadija Atkinson. She delivered an eye-opening talk regarding the youth in this generation. She spoke regarding the dress code of a Muslim and how we should live our lives as per Islamic way of life as young Muslim in Britain. The speech was very relevant and motivational, which everyone benefitted from immensely. The event concluded with a collective recitation of salat and salam upon the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and du'a by sister Nusrat. Stalls were set up at the venue with which included the latest book by Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri, Muhammad: The Merciful (peace and blessings be upon him). There were also stalls with sweets which were the centre of attention for many young children. Food and cake was also served at the end.

Reported By: Moazzam Raza