Audio: Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad - Prison & Justice - BBC Thought For The Day
“…. Faith urges us to oppose cruelty, but it also has a voice, a poetic, more difficult, more troubling voice, which insists that we find ways in which justice can coexist with forgiveness.”
Righting Copyright - Fair Use and “Digital Environmentalism” - BOOKFORUM | feb/mar 2005
Copyright law is… [read the article]
A Nation of Faith and Religious Illiterates
“….. Although Americans are far more religious than Europeans, they know far less about religion. …. “
The New Republic Online: Nothing Like the Present
“Four-hundred years ago this month, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, a failed writer and mediocre tax collector, published in Spain the first of two halves of Don Quixote of La Mancha. The second half appeared a decade later, in 1615. After the Bible, this is the most popular book in the world. But were the novel written today, would it pass the test and be published in New York? Herein an imaginary editor’s letter….”
Making Men Out Of Boys - Sidi Nazim Baksh - Ihya Foundation ::
“The choice of Zayd, son to Harithah of the northern Arabian tribe of Kalb and a mother from the great tribe of Tayy, is legendary in Islamic history….
“Being a father today is an uphill battle but being a father to boys in particular is a live minefield….
“….I teach my sons, like my father had thought me, not to barter their independence to anyone, either man or woman. I do this because I believe it is the best way to ensure, like Zayd, that in life’s many unexpected twists and turns, they will endeavor to make the right choices.”
Tafsir of Surat al-Ma’un, taken from a number of traditional sources - Ustadha Ayesha Bewley
Shows something of the depth of the Qur’an.
Shaykh Ali Hani’s course on the Explanation of the Fatiha & the Short Suras, offered through SunniPath Academy, is very beneficial, insha’ Allah. I used to translate for him, and would do frequent “Subhan Allah” at the gems he’d gather and polish from the over twenty commentaries he consulted…
Shaykh Ali Hani himself is a remarkable scholar. He completes the entire Qur’an each night in the second half of Ramadan. (I only found out because he asked me whether it was better in the Hanafi school to do khatm of the Qur’an each night or lead people in night vigil prayers. The answer was simple–it is improper to perform voluntary prayers in group in the Hanafi school–but it left me feeling like a real loser.) These are the inheritors of the Beloved Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)–people who live their love of Allah.
Mere Islam: Mark Twain on Patriotism
Twain quipped that “Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.”
Thursday 27 January 2005
Web Design by Muslims
Sinan Design | Web Design by Muslims
Run by two dear friends and neighbors.
[Well, they live in the same neighborhood, and would thus be considered neighbors by the standards of the Shariah and traditional social values. We owe rights to those who live in our neighborhood, and shouldn’t let the concrete jungles we live in harden our hearts to the light of the sunna of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)]
Village on Road, in Shandur 2004, 4×4 Offroaders Club Karachi
Ah, but your land is beautiful.
From the 4×4 Offroaders Club Karachi, which includes uncles and cousins.
“These are the journeys of the 4×4 Offroaders Club Karachi, venturing forth where few have gone before. Our members are a bit shy of the keyboard, being more used to Jeeps than computers, so you will see this website evolving in front of your eyes as we keep adding more content and pictures.”
SunniPath Academy - Marriage: Law and Spirit
Audio Description of the Course
People are either married or seeking to get married. Both need to know the commands of Allah related to marriage, and the spirit of true Islamic marriage, as established through the sunna of the Beloved of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).
This course covers: how to choose a spouse; the process of getting married, and how do deal with parents when trying to get married; the engagement process; the marriage contract; the rights and responsibilities of husband and wife; how to have a successful marriage, in light of the guidance of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace); dealing with problems and conflict during marriage.
Meditations: The Survival of Religion
If religion is to survive and endure and to flourish, it’s no good imposing it on people. It’s no good trying to persuade people with abstract, doctrinal, theological or philosophical arguments. What they need is to love it.
They need to have that huge human capacity for a rich spectrum of emotions satisfied by the religion that seeks to sit at the core of their identity. And no amount of religion is going to succeed ultimately as a transformative, popular, vibrant force in society’s life, if it’s just about ideas, or if it’s just about obedience.
It has to be about emotion and the core of religious emotion always has to be love.
Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad, Introducing the Burda of Al-Busiri. Documentary produced by Sandala, made available online by The Zaytuna Institute.
“A talk by Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad on where we are as an Ummah, and how we got here.”
May Allah grant Shaykh Abdal Hakim all good in this life and the next. La fadda fooh
Islamic Books: Etiquette with the Quran by Imam al-Nawawi 
: Astrolabe Islamic Bookstore
Translated by a dear friend, Shaykh Musa Furber, a capable American Muslim scholar based in Damascus, Syria, since mid-90s.
Imam Nawawi’s work is widely considered to be the best text on the proper manners of reciting the Qur’an. Shaykh Nuh Keller wrote in the book’s foreword:
“The present work was designed and written to explain to men and women how best to benefit from the Book of Allah. The blessing of the Quran is that whoever recites it as it should be recited is changed by it, and brought by imperceptible degrees to see why everything is the way it is…. It is well known to everyone conversant with the Islamic disciplines that the learning of many things does not teach wisdom, and that traditional books do not reveal their secrets or bestow their benefits to those without the key to them. This key is adab, the “right way of doing things,” rendered in the title as “etiquette.”… Books, especially sacred ones, give their knowledge to those of adab, and Westerners who know something about the sciences of Islam have been waiting for a book like this in English for a long time.”
Times Online - Don Quixote - More Important Than Einstein’s Theories?
“It is the 400th anniversary of Don Quixote, a more important work than all of Einstein’s theories….” Shoo?
“…. if Einstein had not existed, physics would sooner or later have invented him….”
“….Not so Miguel de Cervantes….”
Living Tradition: Community Progress I: Food and Clothing Drives
Allah Most High says, “And do good, for Allah loves those who do good.”
Digital in Detroit: new cars make us forget PCs - CNET.com
Moving with outward grace.
God tells us, “The servants of the All-Merciful are those who tread lightly on earth.”
Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad’s BBC Thought of the Day on Congestion and Community (Audio). [Text]
My dear friend, Sidi Omar Tufail, put this song up, and dedicated it to my grandmother, Arjumand Rabbani. [Fatiha, please.] Ignore his comments–love blinds.
Imam Busiri is most famous for his Qasida Burda (there are a number of renditions on DeenPort, in the MP3 section), but has many other great poems in praise of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), including the Hamziyya, Muhammadiyya, and the Mudariyya.
Fear of work. Excellent site. Do click around.
David Held talk of globalisation, markets, and social democracy….
Arjumand Rabbani, my dearly beloved grandmother died. 19 January, 2005.
My dearly beloved paternal grandmother, Arjumand Rabbani (Dadda), died of a heart attack last night, well into her 80s. May Allah shower His mercy, gentleness, favor, and love upon her, and give strength to those whom she leaves behind.
Dadda was a strong and resolute lady. She had been suffering a host of illnesses and physical ailments for almost three decades, but was quietly patient, and did not complain to other than her Lord. Of pleasant and cheerful demeanor, she was an example of those whom Allah Most High praises in the Qur’an: “The servants of the All-Merciful are those who treat lightly on earth.”
She lived in our house since my grandfather (Allah have mercy on him) passed away, some thirty years ago. My father, Fareed Rabbani (Baba), loved her dearly and proved a most noble, caring, and loyal son. My mother, Atiya Rabbani (Ammee), cared for her as if she were her own mother. As Ammee put it, “She was a mother to me. I lived with my own mother for twenty years; I lived with her for over thirty years.”
My uncle, Waheed Rabbani (Bhaijan Chacha) and his wife Alexandra Chachi, were very dear to Dadda’s heart, and they gave her much love, care, and affection–Dadda used to love staying with them.
My younger uncle, Junaid Rabbani, and his family were also close to my precious grandmother’s heart, and she missed them all–living as they did in distant Mauritius.
Those who love are loved. When my grandmother fell ill, the whole family would visit her daily, and she passed to the mercy of her Lord as someone loved by everyone who knew her.
As for her grandchildren, we are but a trace of the good my grandmother did in life. She taught me how to read the Qur’an, with my mother, and insisted (despite my reluctance) on teaching me how to read Urdu. Her calm and dignified presence will remain an inspiration for us. May Allah make us worthy offspring.
May Allah accept her good deeds, multiply them, and overlook any shortcomings she may possibly have had. May Allah make us of those whom He grants the highest of Paradise, of those granted the intercession of His Beloved Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), and unite her with her family and loved ones in peace and eternal joy. Ya Rabb.
Dadda, we accept the destiny of our Lord, and have conviction that your next life shall be an increase in all good for you. Dadda, our supplications and prayers are and shall remain with you–not because you need them, but because we seek all good for you. Dadda, may Allah keep us united in spirit in this life, and eternally in the highest of Paradise. Ya Rabb.
SunniPath Q&A - Dealing With Death & How To Benefit The Dead
Surat Ya Sin - Stunningly beautiful recitation by Shaykh Manshawi
Surat Ya Sin - recited by Shaykh Hussary
The Messenger of Allah (Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him) said,
“Ya Sin is the heart of the Qur’an. No one reads it intending thereby Allah and the Next Abode except that Allah forgives them. Recite it for your deceased ones.” [Related by Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Nasa’i (this wording is his), and Hakim, who deemed it rigorously authenticated (sahih)]
SunniPath Q&A - The Fiqh of Eid al-Adha
The guidance of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding Eid al-Adha.
Eid Mubarak.
Democracy Now! | Rice Refuses to Describe Detainee Abuse at Abu Ghraib As Torture
“Condoleezza Rice refused to describe what occurred at the Abu Ghraib prison as torture at her confirmation hearing for Secretary of State….”
Google releases Picasa 2 - The Office Weblog - office.weblogsinc.com
“Google has just released Picasa 2, a new and improved version of their free photo manager. In addition to the basic functionality offered by the first version Google released after acquiring Picasa last year, this new version offers a number of new features and better integration with Google’s other software offerings including Hello (photo sharing), blogger.com, and Gmail.”
DeenPort: Qasida: Ya Imam al-Rusli - Ustadh Mahmoud Faris
A lively rendition, hosted by www.DeenPort.com
The same song, with Shaykh Diya’: DeenPort MP3: Ya Imam al-Rusli - Shaykh Diya’
“You disobey God while you make apparent that you love Him,
This, by my life, in analogy is a marvel….”
SunniPath Q&A - University Islam & The Destruction of Islamic Learning
I wrote this, some time in 2003, in a fit of passion. The passionate pen is given to overstatement, but I stand by the main points.
Of interest:
SunniPath Audio: Which scholars should one follow? - Shaykh Amjad Rasheed with Faraz Rabbani
SunniPath Audio: What is the knowledge obligatory upon those morally responsible
SunniPath Q&A - The words of Sayyiduna Mu`adh on Acquiring Knowledge
SunniPath Q&A - Is knowledge better or action?
Life in the Balance: Achieving Equilibrium in Professional and Personal Life - PDF
Allah Most High says, “Verily, it is by the remembrance of Allah that hearts find rest.” The sunna of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is a living embodiment of the remembrance of Allah, and by bringing the inward and outward sunnas of the Beloved of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) we can find rest, contentment, serenity, joy, and true success.
Allah Most High says, “If you follow him, you shall be guided.”
Born in the Fist of the Revolution: A Cuban Professor’s Journey to Allah - Islam Online
“Are there many Muslims in Cuba? Why would a Cuban want to become a Muslim? These are the two questions I am most frequently asked when introducing myself, or in the case of old friends, re-introduce myself by my Muslim name, Assad Jibril Pino….”
MeccaOne Audio - Shaykh Suhaib Webb - Dhu’l Hijja & Eid Message
An excellent lesson, with Shaykh Suhaib Webb, reminding us of the virtues of Dhu’l Hijja, and how to make the most of these days.
Hablar mal de los Sabios y Estudiosos del Islam
Umm Zaid gets translated into Spanish.
So does Ustadha Zaynab Ansari:¿Se encuentra permitido que las mujeres tengan amistades de sexo masculino?
What is this Sufism thing, anyways?
Someone asked. This is from something forwarded to me a while back:
Tasawwuf is not wearing the patched wool,
Weeping when singers sing,
Shouting, dancing, or enjoying (these things),
Or behaving like a madman;
Rather, tasawwuf is being pure without turbidity
And following the Haqq, the Qur’an, the din
And humbling the self to Allah, feeling unworthy
Sad, for having committed sins throughout life.
Please use the search engine at www.SunniPath.com for sufism for related answers.
Sunday 16 January 2005
Abu Madyan’s Poem on the Propriety of the Spiritual Path
Abu Madyan’s Poem on the Propriety of the Spiritual Path
With the takhmis (poetic expansion) by Shaykh Muhiy al-Din Ibn Arabi, and with Sidi Ibn Ata’illah’s commentary on al-Ghawth Abu Madyan’s text, in English translation.
For the Arabic: Adab al-Tariq ma`a Takhmisihi wa Sharhih
Ustadh Amin Tirmidhi, referred to by many as the “Shaykh of Munshids,” in the closing songs of a beautiful mawlid at Shaykh Diya’s mosque (Jami` al-Fayha’).
Shaykh Hamza Yusuf - Signs From Allah: The Tsunami of Southeast Asia - Zaytuna Institute & Academy
Wisdom from the wise. The direct link is: Shaykh Hamza Yusuf’s Reflections on the Tsunami.
Knowledge is Light
Imam Malik (Allah be pleased with him) said,
Knowledge is not through much transmission. Rather, knowledge is a light that Allah places in the heart.
[Tafsir ibn Abi Hatim, 10.3180; Khatib, Jami` li Akhlaq al-Rawi, 2.174]
“The SunniPath Academy is pleased to announce the opening of registration for the new Winter 2005 session. Classes will begin Monday January 23, 2005 insha Allah. Our currently offered online courses cover essential Islamic knowledge in an accessible, relevant, and reliable way.”
A good style must, first of all, be clear. It must not be mean or above the dignity of the subject. It must be appropriate.
—Aristotle
I see but one rule: to be clear.
— Stendhal
Clutter is the disease of American writing. We are a society strangling in unnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous frills, and meaningless jargon.
— William Zinsser
Dissent Magazine - How Sweden Tweaked the Washington Consensus - Fall 2004
“Living last fall in Sweden, I often felt as if I were in the richest country in the world. In my two months there, I never saw a boarded-up window or dilapidated house. Cell phones were ubiquitous, carried by everyone from children to seniors…. And yet, Sweden is not the richest country in the world. It is not even close…. So why does Sweden, although poorer in per capita GDP than Alabama, top the United States in virtually every social indicator and hold its own in economic competitiveness as well? ….”
SunniPath Q&A - Theological lessons from the Sumatra earthquake - Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad
“The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has recently said that it is appropriate that one’s faith in God should be shaken by the natural disaster which engulfed thousands of people on December 26. And historically, one of the chief causes of atheism in the Christian world has been the sense that the Bible’s God is unbelievable in a world filled with apparently arbitrary suffering. Should such a tension endanger Muslim faith as well?….”
SunniPath Q&A - Why Does Allah Test Us? - Sidi Hamza Karamali
[”There is nothing like unto Him”
A fundamental tenet of our belief is that Allah is completely dissimilar to everything besides Him. He tells us in the Qur’an, “There is nothing whatsoever like unto Him.” (42:11) A consequence of this belief is that unlike human actions, divine actions are not driven by motives, because motives only make sense in the context of someone who is weak and needy….]
SunniPath Q&A - Is contraception permissible? Is it disliked? What is the better way?
People often wonder.
Islam Online - 300 Muslim Tsunami Orphans to be Christianized: Report
And miles to go before we sleep.
Excellent Sufi Books in Arabic- Shadhilis from Shaykh Abd al-Qadir Isa’s branch
Including Shaykh Abd al-Qadir Isa’s Haqa’iq `an al-Tasawwuf, and Imam Sawi’s Sharh al-Salat al-Mashishiyya.