1. Is it wrong for a Muslim to make “friendship” with the opposite sex (boyfriend and girlfriend)?

2. Islam on general relations between men & women:
Muslims should have good relations with all people, males as well as females, at school, at work, in your neighborhood etc. You should be kind and courteous to everyone. Allah says in Surah Tawbah: Verse 71
The believing men and believing women are allies of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and establish prayer and give zakah and obey Allah and His Messenger. Those - Allah will have mercy upon them. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.

3. From Verse 71 of Surah Tawbah we understand that there should be a general attitude of goodness and respect when dealing with the opposite gender, but it should not go beyond that to friendship as one has with ones same gender as we will see from the verses of the Quran and hadeeth of the Prophet given ahead:

4. However, it is not allowed in Islam to take a non-mahram person or persons of the opposite gender as a close friend. Such friendship often leads to haram:
Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Made lawful to you this day are al-tayyibaat [all kinds of halaal (lawful) foods…]. The food of the People of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) is lawful to you and yours is lawful to them. (Lawful to you in marriage) are chaste women from the believers and chaste women from those who were given the Scripture (Jews and Christians) before your time, when you have given their due mahr (bridal money given by the husband to the wife at the time of marriage), desiring chastity (i.e., taking them in legal wedlock), not committing illegal sexual intercourse, nor taking them as girlfriends. And whosoever disbelieves in the Oneness of Allaah and in all the other Articles of Faith, the fruitless is his work, and in the Hereafter he will be among the losers.” [al-Maa’idah 5:5]

5. In the Qur’an, Allah mentioned that good men and women are those who marry, do not have fornicating relationships and do not have "darlings" or “sweethearts” (meaning boyfriends or girlfriends (Akhdan see Quran, Surah An-Nisaa’: 25, and Surah Al-Ma'idah: 5).
Akhdan are "sweethearts" or for a man a "girlfriend" and for a woman a "boyfriend".
The Prophet, peace and blessings be upom him, is reported to have stated that “whenever two strangers of the opposite gender are alone with each other, Satan becomes the third one between them.” (At-Tirmidhi)”

6. Can guys and girls just be friends
Can guys and girls just be friends? The answer to this question can be found in the Quran subhanAllah. People can argue back and forth about the matter of relations between boys and girls, but the truth is that during our relations with the opposite gender, at some point someone begins to develop feelings.       Relations between guys and girls are permitted in Islam, but only to a certain extent of course. An example of that is found in Sura Al-Qasas through the story of Prophet Musa (peace be upon him) and how he dealt with the two women he came across in Midian. The lesson behind this story is that relations between non-mahram men and women is permissible and not completely forbidden as some people believe. Prophet Musa lowered his gaze and helped the two daughters of Shu'ayb purely out of kindness, as Allah commands that we show compassion and mercy towards one another. Prophet Musa, interacted with them in a manner that showed hayaa and self respect.

7. Although the Quran states that contact with the opposite sex is permissible, that does not mean that it is okay to step outside the bounds Allah has set for us. What are the restrictions placed upon us? 
Lower your gaze (Surah Nur: Verses 30-31)
Avoid speaking in ways that could be taken as flirting. It has been said that laughter and joking should be avoided between non-mahram couples. (Surah Ahzab: Verse 32)
Avoid being alone with the opposite sex, as shayan is the third. Meet in groups and within those groups, distance should be kept between the brothers and sisters. (From Hadeeth)
Follow the dress code Allah prescribed to you and dress modestly.  (Surah Nur: 31, Surah Ahzab: 59)

8. Girl friend, boyfriend – nouman ali khan
Girl/boy relationship Baba Ali

9. Is social media good for Muslim youth?

10. Before we discuss the topic of Social Media being good or bad for Muslims, let’s see what Islam says about the importance of time and the situation of those who waste time:

11. And follow not (O man i. e. , say not, or do not or witness not, etc
And follow not (O man i.e., say not, or do not or witness not, etc.) that of which you have no knowledge. Verily! The hearing, and the sight, and the heart, for all of those you will be questioned (by Allah). (Surah Israa: verse 36)

12. The Prophet, peace be upon him, warned us, "Man shall not be let go or discharged on the Day of Judgement until he has been questioned about FOUR things:
1- with regard to his Life: how did he spend it? 2- with regard to his Youth: in what ways did he expend it? 3- with regard to his Wealth: where did he earn it from and what did he spend it on? 4- with regard to his Knowledge: what use did he put it to?“
(Al-Bazzar and At-Tabarani)

13. Imam Ash-Shafiee would say, "Time is like a Sword
Imam Ash-Shafiee would say, "Time is like a Sword. Cut it (wisely), before it cuts you!" Therefore, kill your time productively, before it kills you!

14. MAKING FRIENDS ON SOCIAL MEDIA

15. The lines below discuss the importance of friends in the light of Islam and what different criterions should a Muslim follow pertaining to the matter of making friends.
In Quran, Allah Almighty says: “And (remember) the day when the unjust one shall bite his hands saying: O! Would that I had taken a way with the Messenger! O woe is me! Would that I had not taken such a one for a friend! Certainly he led me astray from the reminder after it had come to me. Ah! The Evil One is but a traitor to man!.” (25:27-29)
Pertaining to the righteous friends, Allah Almighty says in Quran:
“Friends on the Day will be enemies one to another, except al-Muttaqun (i.e. those who have piety).” (43:67)
From this ayah it is clear that on the Day of Judgment there won’t be any friends, rather it would be such a situation that friends would turn into enemies. At such an instance, only those who are pious would remain friends of each other. Therefore, if one is to make friends, then he or she should make friends who are pious, because such friends don’t just remain friends in this world only, rather they remain friends in the world hereafter as well and help each other out.
The Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said:
“A good friend and a bad friend are like a perfume-seller and a blacksmith: The perfume-seller might give you some perfume as a gift, or you might buy some from him, or at least you might smell its fragrance. As for the blacksmith, he might burn your clothes, and at the very least you will breathe in the fumes of the furnace.”(Sahih Al-Bukhari)

16. General discussion of the usage and effects of Social Media on a person

17. Today we find ourselves with technology advancing in leaps and bounds and if we do not use that technology positively then it will be used in a destructive manner in order to promote that which is incorrect.  That which is invalid and that which will earn the wrath of Allah and perhaps snatch away the peace from our lives.
The scholars have come to the agreement that it is permissible and in fact it is necessary for us to make use of whatever the latest technology is, in order to beam the message of peace across the globe.
Islam governs how to use it. It’s like a knife. You can use the knife to chop up your meat so that you can cook it properly or you can actually use it in a wrong way. A knife can be used as a weapon. It depends how the person uses it. Islam says, use it in the correct way. Make sure that you use it in the proper way so that the day I meet with my Maker who is the source of all peace I will be from amongst those who has not left a single stone unturned in trying to reach out to the people in a beautiful way. So how did I make use of the social networks that were at my disposal?
If you take a careful look at technology, on many different forms you have the social media. For example, there are magazines, the internet forums, the web blogs, the social blogs, microblogging, the wikis, the social networks, podcasts, photos, videos, the ratings, social books and so many other things that we actually have not only the ability to source but even to be a part of its making or creation. So make sure that you have used it in the correct way, and this is how Allah will bless us in this world and the next.

18. If you take a look at the word ‘social’, Islam has indeed given a very great importance to social interaction but within limits and for the right reasons. If you look at the salah we read, the congregational prayer, the hadith says that Salah in congregation is better than Salah read individually 27 times. The reason is – interaction. The physical meeting is far more important than anything else.
Allah has made it so easy for us to earn a huge reward just by the touch of a button. Let’s ask ourselves, “Are we doing that? Or are we earning the wrath of the Almighty by the touch of the same button?” Because in the same way that I can press just some knob on my phone and I can reach out to hundreds or millions of people with the correct message, I can do the same with the bad message.  So ask yourself how you are using it. Allah has made it easy for you to earn reward as much as possible before you meet with Allah.
It’s extremely important to know that this social interaction in Islam is definitely an act of worship if it is done correctly, and this is when it comes to the physical relation, you know, to spend time with your parents, children, grandparents and relatives, it’s extremely important. But we are quick to use all of these methods of interaction when it comes to wrong because the devil makes the wrong look good.

19. Remember, pornography, and interaction in the wrong way with the opposite gender is something that would destroy your peace. It is something that might soothe your lusts that is inside but as a result the cactus that grows around your heart is so huge because it snatches away peace. So therefore, stay away from it. And worse than actually engaging in looking at something derogatory is to forward it to others just as a joke. And this is where Islam comes in.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) says, whoever sets a bad example, whoever has started a bad trend, they will bear the burden of it and the burden of everyone else as a result who has been affected by it, or who drops into it up to the Last Day. And that would not decrease the burden from anyone of them who followed the bad. And whoever sets a good example, whoever has started a good trend, they will get the reward of it and the reward of everyone else as a result who has been affected by it, or who drops into it up to the Last Day. And that would not decrease the reward from anyone of them who followed the good.
This is something very dangerous. So remember, do not look at and/or forward something that is pornographic, bad, racist, something of the nature where we are earning the anger of Allah or it is something sinful because the click of the button could mean great destruction to us. We ask Allah to save us. It is something extremely important. Also what Islam has done is it has given us rules and regulations regarding so many things.

20. People are on social networks for different reasons
People are on social networks for different reasons. Some are there to spread goodness. Others are there to just have fun. And some are there to con you and to dupe you and others are there just to abuse you. So be careful.
Allah says, When you call towards the path of the Almighty, choose the most wise of all methods. Surat Nahl, Qu’ran 16:125
And when you engage people in discussion, make sure it is the most powerful or the best of ways. So this would apply even when we are interacting with one another when it comes to social networking and so on. The difficulty we have after we’ve created a profile, we have friends. So we choose friends, we follow friends and people befriend us. The type of friends you choose is extremely important. It will shape your peace or it will break it. This is why those who have chosen bad friends, then we need to get ourselves out of that as soon as possible because Allah speaks about it in the Quran in Surah Furqan where Allah speaks of the one who will regret because of his bad company and he will say, Oh! I hope I had taken the path that the Messenger had taught and I hope I did not have so and so as a friend of mine because he has led me astray after the goodness was made manifest to me. Surat Al-Furqan 25:27-29
So make sure your online friends are those who are people reminding you of goodness and turning you away from that which is bad for you. If they encourage you to do something bad, you need to take a step back. And you need to ask yourself where this friendship is leading you to – Hell or Heaven. May Allah help us to make the best use of Social Media for ourselves and for others.

21. Social Media good or Bad (pictures):
Social Media, good or bad for Muslim youth (lecture):
Social media & Relationships:
Social media & the Evil Eye:
Nouman Ali Khan:
Yusuf Estes:
Muslims on Snapchat (funny):