Malik bin Anas

Nick named Imam Dar al Hijrah - Imam of the House of Refuge, al-Madinah.
He is also known as the Emperor of the Empire of Hadith. According to Ash-Shafi'i, he is a dazzling star in matters of hadith. Imam Hanbal told his students to memorize only the ahadith of Imam Malik.
Yahya ibn Sa'id al Qatar said Imam Malik was a gift of mercy from Allah to the Ummah of Muhammad (s.a.w). Imam Abu Hanifah said, I have not seen anyone other than Imam Malik who gave quick and accurate answers and was superb in the work of scrutiny. Al Bukhari said the chain Malik has from an-Nafi' from ibn Umar is the most accurate. An Nasa'i said after the atTabi'un, none other than Imam Malik is more wise, venerable and reliable.

• Malik bin Anas was from a Yemeni Arab family. His grandfather, Abu Amir (r.a) was the first from his family to accept Islam at the hands of the Prophet (s.a.w). Thereupon the entire family moved to Madinah, where Abu Amir learned hadith and became a distinguished Taba'i. His narrations are used in the Sihah Sittah. 

---This is an example of therapeutic jurisprudence. A person who becomes Muslims or starts to practice Islam after many years of committing sins, needs a therapeutic approach. They need to move into an environment where they are motivated to comply with the teachings of Islam. This is enlightened self-coercion of sorts. Move close to a Masjid, pray in congregation 5 times a day. Surround yourself with Islamic books and CDs, schedule to reae and hear some bayaan daily. Delete all friends, who are a negative influence from the contact list, replace them with the likes of islamqa websites and Islamic conferences dates.Volunteer your time at Muslim NGOs, blog or make Islamic videos, reach your family and kids in the community with Islam.
---Abu Amir (r.a) didn't just move to Madinah and casually hear some ahadith every now and then, but he made a point to learn it at the level of excellence. Despite having many lofty Islamic goals, living in an Islamic environment and having good Muslim friends, we never get around to achieving our goals. We lack nothing except for commitment. Say we want to memorize the Qur'an or learn the Arabic language as our goal...ask yourself, are my daily activities, whether leisure or work, all geared towards reaching this goal? How will going to a movie or listening to Mishary, affect my opportunity to memorize the Qur'an? What are the costs and/or benefits of buying a dictionary when it comes to learning the Arabic language? Judge for yourself and make the pursuit of your goals, the center of your life. Believe in your potential and capacity. Create your own opportunities and push your limits. It requires extreme discipline so do not think negatively about yourself, it will only bring you down. Just keep at it - even if you do not see any results, keep going. It'll come to you and you won't even know it. Do you know how long it takes to become a professional Ballet dancer or pianist? Nearly 15 years! We read a chapter once from an Islamic book and expect the proficiency of scholars?

• At the time of Imaam Malik, it was from Madinah that ordinances and fatawa decided upon by the Fuqaha' Sab'ah were issued to the entire Islamic world. 

---Not that I mean to make any comparisons but for the sake sake of knowledge, perhaps Muslims would find it interesting to know that the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the US constitution Article IV, Section 1 addresses the states to respect the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. The laws and legislature of all the states are constitutional, all interpretations and ratifications to the constitution are otherwise synchronized among the States. I am not advocating a single Masjid solution but can we have a conference of Masajid in every vicinity that only gives rulings based on the Qur'an and Sunnah? Can all the Imams coordinate before they conduct themselves?
---Every Muslim community must have a center of learning. Why not a Muslim community center or Muslim community complex of sorts? With a library, recreational facility, computer labs, marriage and youth counseling clubs, health care hubs and hospitals, halal and healthy restaurants, employment agencies, travel agents and boutiques, banking and business services etc. All in the heart of a Muslim residential area? Rome was not built in one day, it started as a single institution at first. Muslims should invest on an Islamic foundation in North America. The trusted names in the our community today are not only fraudulent (not providing halal service like many halal meat grocery stores) but also scams (the average tuition fee of a certified Islamic school is anywhere between $500 - $900 a month). Who can afford this much tuition for two kids or more? Same goes for Islamic clothing. $90 for an abaya that will wear off after a one wash? We lack quality, sincerity and unity.

• Imam Malik began his studies at the age of 6 and spent 62 years in the field if Islamic education. When he was a little boy, his mother used to put his turban on before sending him to seek knowledge. In class, he would learn the Qur'an. After completing his hifdh at age 8, he studied fiqh, arabic and hadith. 

---What is the age of learning? Apparently there is none. You can start as early as 6 or as late as 70 (our last breath).
---Are children too young to memorize the Qur'an? Should we learn the meaning of the Qur'an first and then memorize it? Children have extremely sharp memory. According to an article in American Baby Magazine, February 2000, p.36 entitled Total Recall, babies six weeks old can remember things up to 24 hours and remember things up to 4 months when they are 16 weeks old. Setting up routines on a daily basis is good practice for memory development. This establishes predictability, comfort and healthy expectations. Repeating the Qur'an will help children how to recite the verses and remember them. Think of your child's brain as a vacuum. If you do not give him/her the love of Allah and the Qur'an, he/she will suck in some other information.Carolyn Rovee-Collier, PhD, of Rutgers University said a baby can remember anything he/she does for eighteen minutes over three days.
Invest in homeschooling instead of Disneyland vacation. Learn the Montessori way of teaching and apply on your children along with Islamic knowledge. The math and science public schools will teach them in grade 5, teach them in grade 2. Introduce them to learning different languages so they are proficient in Islamic sciences (like read Tafseer Jalalayn by age 12) and in Da'wah (invite your Polish, German and Chinese neighbours to Islam in their colloquial languages). Public school health class may only cover sports like basketball and hockey, you can take them halal swimming, archery and horseback riding.

Adults can also improve their memory. We remember names, numbers, dates and places all the time. Why not memorize some Islamic knowledge? You are only as smart as the things you remember. The information in our laptops and notepads don't really come in handy if we have not internalized them. So nurture your brain with a good diet to strength your memory. Eat wholegrain foods like grains, breads, cereals, barely as they increase blood flow, especially to the brain. Eat walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews and almonds. They clear "brain fog" and enhance positive mood. Eat eggs, black+blue+strawberries, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes and drink green tea. Work out regularly, laugh out loud, be stress free and sleep in moderation. Get rid of the obvious distraction, like cell phone, TV or laptop. Deactivate facebook, block youtube and uninstall MSN if necessary. Answer your internal questions. What are you having for dinner? When is she going to call? Give yourself some answer (make it up if you have to) and move on. Keep a rubber band or ball handy. Stand and bounce the ball against the wall when thinking of an answer. Think out loud. It will help you concentrate. Stretch and snap a rubber band while writing the question. It will make you less jumpy. There are other ways to focus, find one that works for you and study.