The Muslim Youth League UK held its first 3-day Spiritual Retreat on the weekend of 16-18 November 2012. The Retreat was held at Minhaj-ul-Quran International Centre in Bradford. The retreat started with intentions of voluntary i’tikaf (spiritual seclusion) and included various activities to make it multidimensional. The participants were fortunate to have Shaykh Rehan Raza who delivered talks and took questions in the Q&A session.

Shaykh Rehan has studied for a period of 10 years in Syria, Egypt and Pakistan under the most globally recognized scholastic authorities. He has taken Ijaza from the likes of the Grand Shaykh al-Azhar himself. The participants were also fortunate to have a class on the Fiqh of Purification delivered by Ustadh Waqas Amin, a student of Shaykh Atabek Shukurov. For the spiritual gatherings, MYL invited renowned nasheed artist Brother Milad Raza Qadri who participated in the whole retreat. Milad Raza Qadri recited nasheeds on various occasions throughoutand especially on the Saturday Nasheed Night which was open to the public. During this time Milad Raza Qadri recited nasheeds on requests and also regarding Karbala as it was the month of Muharram. The MYL brothers led the dhikr towards the end. It was an amazing sight to see many youth repent and cry out of love of Allah Almighty.

The retreat also consisted of group discussions and exercises, collectively watching Shaykh-ul-Islam’s talk and reflecting upon it, and having private time for individual worship. At the end, a football match was arranged at the nearby sports centre. The retreat served as a ‘dunya detox’ by providing a break to people in their busy lives. It permitted people reconnect and strengthen their relationship with Allah & His Messenger (Peace be upon Him).

Reported By: Moazzam Raza