When I was 17 years old, I started my university adventures overseas at the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM). For the first time I was left completely on my own in a foreign country to make my own decisions about how I want to live my life without the supervision of my parents or anyone else. If I wanted to pray, I could pray and if I didn’t, no one would force me to. If I wanted to have a relationship with the opposite gender that crossed the Islamic boundaries, I could, and no one would tell me off for it. Many new students over the years fall into the same position as me, and some lose their Muslim identity along their way. When I arrived at IIUM, I was a little scared and very lost, but mostly, I was excited. This was an opportunity for me to meet new people, build new skills and make memories. This was an opportunity to find myself.
At the beginning of my first semester I became close friends with a girl called Asmaa. Before the semester began, Asmaa and I had a lot of free time on our hands. We decided to meet up every day after Fajr. I would grab two apples from my room and my Quran and we’d read Quran to each other and walk around the university. Often referred to as ‘The Garden of Knowledge and Virtue’, IIUM is a city on its own, surrounded by flowers and trees. As we walked around we found what seemed to be the perfect spot for a picnic. I turned to my companion as an idea came to my mind: “Asmaa! We can have a picnic here with all the girls.” I started to think about the food we could bring for this picnic.
Before the upcoming Friday, I made a WhatsApp message inviting girls in the university for a breakfast picnic. “Bring your mugs and any healthy food you have,” the message read. My friend Mariama shared the message in other Whatsapp groups. Around seven girls pitched up after Fajr for our picnic. We had lots of fun together as we ate fruits and eggs and whatever everyone brought. Soon this picnic became our weekly Friday routine. My friend Fedwa would knock on my door after Fajr, we’d chop the fruits, toast the bread and boil the eggs. Then we’d gather in the remembrance of Allah and discuss the different things we learnt during our week.
I decided to call our gathering The Fajr Sisters and a Facebook page and WhatsApp group was soon made. No matter how late she had slept the night before, Mariama was always ready to wakeup for our Fajr Sisters breakfast. Over the semesters more girls continued to join us. My friend Fida brought a new Fajr Sister almost every week to our gathering. Seven girls became seventeen and seventeen girls became seventy. We started a ‘Fajr Train’ where whoever wakes up for Fajr first calls the second girl on the list who then calls the third and so on.
The Fajr Sisters became our training ground. It would bring Muslim sisters from different faculties and different corners of the globe together to remember Allah at the most blessed time of our day and discover more about ourselves, our purpose and our mission in life. Many of us who were never in the habit of reciting the morning remembrance started to do so regularly. Many of us who would go to sleep after Fajr, or who struggled waking up for Fajr in the first place, began to embrace the early hours. Many of us who were not surrounded by righteous company, now found comfort in sisters who loved one another for the sake of Allah.
Whenever a new sister would join us , I would read out The Productive Muslim ‘21 Sources of Barakah’ infographic that I had saved as my phone wall paper and remind them that The Fajr Sisters encompassed at least twenty of these twenty one sources.
One – Good Intentions:
Our intention is to please Allah and to help each other to be the best versions of ourselves.
Two, Three, Four and Five- Waking up Early, Blessed Times, Piety and Belief and Trust in Allah:
We wake up early in the blessed hours, striving to strengthen our piety, belief and trust in Allah and His power and mercy.
Six, Seven, Eight- Quran, Remembrance of Allah and Blessed Places:
Through our gatherings, we try to live the Quran and Sunnah in our daily lives. We build the habit of remembering Allah for indeed a gathering in the remembrance of Allah is a blessed place.
Nine, Ten, Eleven and Twelve- Eating with People, Making Duaa, Plants/Trees and Earning Halal:
We eat together and we eat halal, healthy food grown from the soils Allah has blessed us with. We sit outside while we eat, surrounded by the trees and the birds praising Allah and make duaa to Him at the beginning and end of our sittings. We stick to our student budgets to buy the food for the gathering, and always ensure not to steal or cheat.
Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen and Sixteen- Charity, Helping People, Avoiding Sins and Ties of Kinship:
We do little acts of charity throughout our gathering, smiling at one another, pouring water into the cups of our sisters, or teaching one another what is beneficial and advising one another to stay away from sins. We also discuss practical ways on how to contribute to humanity while balancing our lives and being the best daughters, sisters, mothers, friends and servants of Allah.
Seventeen, Eighteen and Nineteen- Seeking Knowledge, Salah, and Marriage:
In our Fajr Sisters self-development workshops, we seek knowledge about ourselves, our Creator and how to submit and worship Him. We discuss topics like the importance of Khushu’ in salah how to gain it, how to follow the sunnah and what it really means to be a young Muslim in the twenty first century. Several of our sisters are both students and wives and sometimes bring their children with them to our gatherings. They provide useful insight to the rest of us who are striving to prepare ourselves for marriage and desiring to find the right balance between our relationship with Allah, our ambitions and our responsibilities as women.
Twenty- Gratitude to Allah:
If there is one message that every Fajr Sister carries with them throughout the day after our gatherings, it is gratitude to Allah our Sustainer for making us Muslims and uniting us as sisters in humanity and faith. We are grateful for the gift of The Fajr Sisters that He has blessed us with, the energy it gives us to go on through all the ups and downs in life, and the barakah our gatherings provide in our lives.
The Fajr Sisters has been there to rejuvenate ourselves. To remind us of who we are, why we’re here and where we’re heading in life. It has been a family away from home.
From Malaysia to Malawi, America to Australia, China to Comoros, Germany to Ghana, Bosnia to Bangladesh, Kashmir to Kuwait, Singapore to South Africa- there are Fajr Sisters all around the world who wake up in the early hours with the mission to lead a meaningful life. From a seventeen year old girl and her friend wanting to discover their places in the world to a global community united in helping one another to be the best versions of themselves, by the will of Allah, The Fajr Sisters continues to grow and impact lives. And if that’s not the power of barakah, then I don’t know what is.
The Fajr Sisters is a great gift from Allah. A gift we want to share with the world. So wherever in the world you might be right now, we hope we inspire you to wake up, pray Fajr and be the best version of yourself. Today and every day until we meet Allah.
The Fajr Sisters 