Guy Next Door's Thoughts

Life of this world

2010-07-17T16:29:00.006+01:00

It's been a while since my last post. Maybe it'll be even more of 'a while' until my next post. Of course, the reason is obvious. Life of this world is taking its toll.

This made me remember this story I heard some time back. A young man was lazing in the beach. An elderly fellow came by, saw him just lazing around, and so approached the man. He asked the man, rather surprisingly, "Why are you wasting your time here doing nothing?" So the young man replied, "What am I to do then?"

The elderly person replied, "Do some work. Get a job. Get married. Make money."

So the man asked again, "And what do I do when I have done all that?"

The elderly person, somewhat surprised and irritated at the young man's foolish attitude, said, "Then you can get yourself a vacation. Go see places. Relax in the beach!"

The young man snapped, "Why do I have to go down that long route and then do something that I am doing already?!"

End of story. Try to think about the morale of the story yourself.

Life is stressful. Unless you're one of those few people who gets almost everything they want. Even then life is stressful for them. If only money could buy happiness, the celebrities would be the happiest people in the world. Yet they are the ones commiting or trying to commit suicides over depression and getting in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

Let's quote the Terminator man. Yes you all know him. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Maybe you can't pronounce his last name right, but you'd be one hell of a person if you're reading this blog post yet don't know him.

Arnold says, "Money doesn't make you happy. I now have $50 million, but I was just as happy when I had $48 million."

Well said there.

Let's quote a better person than him. Let's quote an Imaam of the Muslims. Let's quote Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah rahimahullaah.

Ibnul Qayyim said: "This world is like a shadow. If you try to catch it, you will never be able to do so. If you turn your back towards it, it has no choice but to follow you."

There are many amazing life quotes. From people greater in status than Ibnul Qayyim and from people lower in status than Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Well I can't be that young man and go relax in the beach right now. I can't be Arnold and say I have $40 million and I wouldn't mind whether it goes up or down by $5 million. Perhaps my solace can only be found in the most truthful of the sayings:

يا أيها الذين آمنوا استعينوا بالصبر والصلاة ... إن الله مع الصابرين

At least the Hispanics haven't betrayed their own kind

2010-06-09T19:50:00.011+01:00

Yes, hats off to the Mexican-Americans, the Hispanics who immigrated to United States, for speaking against the belittlement of Hispanics by the 'native Americans' (although the only native Americans are the Indians, so it's more correct to say white, racist and nationalist Americans), for not making a mockery of their own kind, for appreciating the contribution that immigrants have brought in the economy of United States. From the words of the Mexican-American Christina:

Arizona reminds me of 1930′s Germany
It’s been a few days since the SB1070 Immigration bill was signed into law by the governor of Arizona, Jan Brewer (La Brew-Ha como le dicen en facebook.) Y aunque este no es un blog político, si es un blog de la vida en spanglish, so it’s about time I voice my opinion.

Before the hate comments come in (how interesting that when I post something that is immigration related I get a few hate emails which are never published) let me start off by saying there is no easy way out of this immigration mess, no easy single solution that will make everyone happy when it comes to undocumented workers in the US. There are too many obstacles (money, power, race, pride) and too many people (12 million and counting) to solve this in one step.

The debate heats up every year, around the month of May curiously enough, and everybody gets all worked up and passionate abut the subject. But nothing has changed in years and meanwhile people are divided into camps: Pro-Immigration Reform and the “Send them All Back ” groups como los MinuteMen.

But we’ve never seen anything like this. Not even back in the days of 187 in California were people so split on this issue.

The extremist and racist profiling tactics and measures that will now take place legally in Arizona are shocking. I don’t exaggerate when I say it reminds me of Germany, Pre World War II., circa 1930. Back then Jews were blamed for everything from diseases to unemployment to taking away from “rightful” citizens to being a threat to the community. Sound familiar?

It seems the people of Arizona took a note out of history and came up with a law that basically would give a law enforcement official, cualquier policía de la calle, the right to ask anybody that doesn’t look “gringo” enough for proof of residencyor legal status and put you in jail or deport you if you don’t have it with you. I suppose they wouldn’t be looking for Chinese, or European, or Canadians, or African Americans, right? This is a law that is aimed at Hispanics and anyone who “looks” Hispanic. What that means is left up entirely to the law officers judgement.

Everyday I come across different opinions on the subject of immigration. Yes there are way too many people who are here without “legal staus”. Yes the system is broken, yes there are crimes and misdemeanors. However, we are not all criminals, nor thugs, nor abusive “disease ridden illegal aliens who bring lice and diseases across the border” as someone on CNN said recently, imagine that.

What about the millions of hardworking, decent, HUMAN BEINGS that come to work here and grow this country’s economy? What about the people that cook for you in restaurants, wait at your table, clean your office building, park your car, help you out when your car is stranded on the road (it happened to me!), clean your hotel room? What about the construction worker, the janitor, the cook, the nurse, the student with good grades, the nanny, the gardener, the person who helps you carry your groceries, the dishwasher? Don’t they deserve a chance to work/live here legally? Everyday they prove they are worthy of the American Dream. They work hard and provide for their families. I have met people and know stories that inspire, esta gente lo ha sufrido y lo ha vivido. Salen con miedo todos los dias de ser deportados, y aun así se arriesgan. Merecen tener el derecho a trabajar y quedarse aqui. He dicho.

Jan Brew-ha can say this won’t affect Arizona’s economy. Allá ella. We’ll see. For the moment, I won’t so much as spend a cent in AZ, nor drive through there. “I won’t even drink Arizona Tea,” says my friend Mickey Vega. Lo siento por los residentes de su estado, but that’s the way it is.

So that’s my humilde opinión. I have a feeling this time things will be a little different. People are more informed. More vocal.And we now have the power of Facebook! Social Media is a great tool for defending your point of view (either for or against Immigration Reform) and it’s not going anywhere soon. Here’s a few groups that have formed since last week:

1 Million Strong Against Arizona Immigration Law SB 1070.

Possible Illegal Immigrants

Si un policia me dice papeles y yo digo tijeras gano yo

And other links to Presente.org (a great group credited with bringing down Lou Dobbs)

Shame on Arizona

http://lifeinspanglish.wordpress.com/2010/04/28/arizona-reminds-me-of-1930s-germany/

The same cannot be said for many Desi-Brits who themselves belittle the working class Desis (aka South Asians, comprising Bengalis, Indians, Srilankans and Pakistanis) that come to United Kingdom and pump up the economy and clean up the shit. Yes, many of the Bengalis, the Pakis and the Polish come from their countries to United Kingdom to clean your damn shit coz you can't even clean your own shit. They cook curries and let their hands turn yellowish due to the spices, while you laugh at them as you are enjoying the Chicken Tikka Masala from the Indian restaurant. But hey, you're 'born and bred' like the sheep in the land of the kuffaar, so you must have the right to mock at those who weren't?! I have seen the African-Brit standing up for their people from Africa, the Hispanics and the Oriental standing up for their kind, but many of you Paki-Brits and Bengali-Brits continue to show how much of a twisted childhood you had, what education your parents and the society you were 'bred in' gave you, and what type of mental sickness your children is likely to have in future, may Allah guide you.

Woe to you and your despicable racism and nationalism. If it was done by BNP, it could be argued that such racism and nationalism is befitting for them, yet you, from the Ummah of Muhammad, continue to belittle others based on their ethnicity and nationality and work. You'd probably have belitted the Prophet, sallallahu 'alayhi wasallam, because he wasn't a Brit with a high-profile job. Shame on you: you pompous, obnoxious and arrogant second and third generation immigrants turning your back against your own people.

From the words of a celebrity Chicano, who publicly commented in reference to those who say Hispanics don't speak English, saying:

You don't think we speak English? We speak English. We speak Spanish because we don't wanna talk to you.

Spiritual Guide or Satanic Guide?

2010-06-05T17:54:00.004+01:00

Many groups of Muslims are quite proactive about this 'spiritual' aspect of the deen. Essentially, the intention behind this spiritualness is to purify oneself from lowly desires of this world, to be ascetic. In Arabic, a Zaahid. MashaAllah, which Muslim does not love and desire to be a Zaahid?

What is astonishing is to see the way these groups and individuals try to achieve this spirituality. One adherent to one of these groups comments, "my spiritual guide has found me and has unlocked a door within that has made me close both eyes to finally see with the other..."
So you close your eyes and now you see with the other - and the intent is the inner eye, the spiritual eye. So far so good, eh?

Let me translate a section from the 'wonderful, spiritual' writing of one of their figureheads. It is widely available and distributed in the 'spiritual guides' in South Asia, the likes of India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. (This one taken from p. 113 of a 'spiritual' book, from the words of the 'Peer', in the height of his spirituality.)

O Muslim brothers, what is the way forward for me? I now don't know myself. Who am I? I don't know. Which nation do I belong to? Muslim or Jew or fire-worshipper? I cannot say. ...
Now my place (makaan) has been 'la-makan', i.e. without a place. There is no trace of me. There is no life in me, there is no body in me! Even I have forgotten the 'Ishq' (aka prem in hindi/urdu/bengali or intimate love in English) of my 'Mashuk' (the one with whom one does 'Ishq' with, i.e. wife/husband, in this case, referring to Allah, Glory be to Him!). There is nothing about me anymore...

There's more to it. If you get to read it, think for a moment what has been supposedly said by this 'Peer'. Let me end it here with a du'aa, O Allah, I seek refuge in you from such 'spirituality'.

Alhamdulillah

2010-06-04T16:24:00.007+01:00

Just want to give thanks to Allah, the Lord of the Universe. For everything big and small that He has endowed me with, every moment of breath He continues to give and more. And Allah says in Surah al-Baqarah 2/152:

فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ وَاشْكُرُوا لِي وَلا تَكْفُرُونِ

((Therefore remember Me. I will remember you, and be grateful to Me and never be ungrateful to Me))

I therefore say الحمد لله حمداً كثيراً طيباً مباركاً فيه
Transliteration: Alhamdulillaah, hamdan katheeran tayyiban mubaarakan feeh
Translation: All praise be to Allah, much good and blessed praise.

I know things don't always turn out the way one wants them to turn out. Even then, alhamdulillaah 'alaa kulli haal (Praise be to Allah, in all circumstances)

And as the Prophet of Allah, sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam, said as reported in Musnad Ahmad 2/258,

من لا يشكر الناس لا يشكر الله

((Whoever does not thank the people, does not thank Allah))

I thank my parents, my sister, my aunts, my grandparents, my cousins and uncles, and whoever else I have ties with. It is probably due to your supplications to Allah for me that I am where I am and I stand how I stand. I know I disappoint you lot and cause you to worry countless times ... I probably have not lived up to your expectations. Indeed I cannot live up to the expectations of the One who created me, so I know my worthlessness, despite what you think of me. And I cannot say I am not disappointed at myself, but this is how we learn our lessons, this is why we hope to become better. I'm not the guy to climb Mt Everest and make headlines and I am sorry for giving some of you the impression that I could go even higher. I truly am.

Life is good. It could have been a lot better, just as it could have been a lot worse. So no complaints. Alhamdulillaah wa jazaakumullaahu khair.

And we have lost a mountain of knowledge today

2010-06-01T22:22:00.004+01:00

Narrated 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr ibn al-'As, that the Prophet of our Lord, peace and blessings be on him, said: "Allah does not take away knowledge (of religion) by taking it away from (the hearts of the) slaves, but He takes it (knowledge of deen) through the death of the Scholars ('Ulama) till no Scholar remains; then people will take as their leaders ignorant people who, when consulted, will give verdicts (and opinions) without knowledge. So, they (the ignorant people asked) will go astray and will lead the people (asking) astray." (Saheeh al-Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim)

I have just heard the news of one such death. And I thank my Lord for giving me the opportunity to see this Scholar live, during one of his lectures, and I supplicate to Allah that He is merciful to this Scholar in his grave. Indeed this is a calamity for the Muslims, may Allah replace him with someone who would be better than him.

Verily to Allah belongs what He took and to Him belongs what He gave, and everything with Him has an appointed time.

(Note: What is the ruling regarding announcing the death of the scholars and other than them via the internet and via news media(services); is this (considered) as an-na'yu (making an announcement of someone's death)?

Answer: Making an announcement about the death of a scholar and others from amongst the Muslims; There is no harm in announcing the death of a Muslim in order to supplicate for him and to offer the (funeral) prayer over him. This is not from an-na'yu. The Prophet (sal-Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) informed his Companions about the death of an-Najaashi when he died; So he and his Companions went out (to the masjid) to offer the funeral prayer in absence (of the deceased).)

State Terrorism and the United States: Prelude

2010-06-01T17:03:00.011+01:00

The book at my possession is entitled "State Terrorism and the United States" by Frederick H. Gareau, American author and former Professor of Political Science at Florida State University, USA. The book can be ordered online from sites such as Amazon for less than $15 (£20 from Blackwell in UK), published in 2004 by Clarity Press, and I strongly suggest those who are not aware of the deceptive tactics used by US government for decades, to have a go at this book.

The book can be partially read from Google, following this link: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qjcdFLAd9cwC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Amazon also suggested a book called "How America Gets Away With Murder: Illegal Wars, Collateral Damage and Crimes Against Humanity" by Michael Mandel, a Canadian law Professor specialising in criminal law, with experience of teaching at various Universities in Canada. The books can be bought together for less than $50, but I sincerely hope that this 50 bucks you spending would help you avoid turning into "braindead patriotic Americans/Westerners". And I hate to say this, but there are many ignorant Muslims who have started sympathizing with the oppressive Western political leaders in their oppression, just as a large number of Muslims started supporting al-Qaeda in their oppression.

Some people seem to be just dead silent about the oppression, so I supplicate, may Allah replace people of silence, Muslims and non-Muslims, with people of justness and conscience, even if they are the likes of Tony Benn and Michael Mandel. Because if the religion you follow supports torturing the innocents, then by my Lord, I free myself from your religion. My Lord be praised, the religion I follow offers me salvation and forgiveness for standing against oppression to the best of my ability.

This prelude is just to mention what the book "State Terrorism and the US" is about, what experts have said about it and what the context of the topic is, as inshaAllah, I'd quote sections from the book in future.

Stating what some of the Scholars and Experts said regarding this book:

1. In his State Terrorism and the United States, Frederick Gareau shows that, contrary to the war on terror imagery of a United States hostile to terrorism and dedication to its elimination and to democracy-building, Washington has regularly supported state terrorists (and dictators) who serve US economic and political interests. Using as his evidentiary base the truth commission reports that have followed the ouster of terror regimes in El Salvador, Guatemala, Chile, Argentina and South Africa, along with a varied array of sources for Indonesia, Israel, Iraq (until August 1990), and Nicaragua, he makes his case for vital Washington support for these regimes compellingly and soberly. Gareau stresses throughout how little the US public is permitted to hear about what its government has done, which provides a cover for actions the public might well disapprove, and he ends with an appeal for a much needed truth commission for the United States itself. This book is a valuable addition to the literature on terrorism.
Edward Herman, Professor Emeritus, Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, USA

2. Frederick Gareau's State Terrorism and the United States is an important, courageous analysis of America's long involvement in the training of foreign military and police organizations in techniques of torture, assassination, and ethnic cleansing. The US military itself directly committed these types of war crimes in the Phoenix Program of Vietnam, where we killed a minimum of 20,000 people, and in Central America during the Reagan administration. Gareau's research and documentation is path-breaking. The day has arrived when we in the United States desperately need a "truth commission" to examine our own many secret "dirty wars" and hold our military and political leaders accountable. Gareau's chapter one, "The School of the Americas and Terror in El Salvador," is itself worth the price of admission.
Chalmers A. Johnson, American author and Professor Emeritus, University of California, San Diego, USA

This is NOT an anti-Americanism type of book. The author is American and the experts in the field who praised this book are all Americans. And we are not talking about average Tom here; so many laymen would not even understand or have the ability to understand a lot of what is in the book. This is understandable, and I am not saying we should all turn into politicians or go to Universities to study Political Science. In fact, ask yourself, how dumb does one have to be to not understand that the public is kept in the dark by the governments and get away with committing oppression by feeding false information and by using force? Do you need revelation from up the heavens to appreciate that if your mother is gang raped in the name of fighting terrorism or offering freedom, then that is oppression? Do you need revelation to understand that worshipping trees, statues and humans only makes you worse than the tree and the statue?

While it is not about anti-Americanism, many sections of the book provide insight into what triggers anti-Americanism. God willing, I'd touch on that topic some other time, but go ask that Hindu in Kerala, India about America and George Bush and the response you get would be largely similar to what you would get if you ask a Muslim in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. And when a person criticises by saying something starting with "Americans/British are..." then it is not the public/laymen that they are talking about; rather it is the governments, the political and military leaders that they are criticising. Let me state the opening quote from the Introduction of the book, p. 11 (after the contents):

This entire book is written in blood and with much love for our country.

In the footnote on p.11, Professor Gareau mentions, "These words were first written by Cardinal Arns, Archbishop of Sau Paulo, concerning a Archdiocese report on torture in Brazil and I echo them here in this book on state terrorism, with great love for my own country, the United States."

There you go. The book is the research product of an American patriot, a Professor of Political Science, someone who is not braindead to support anything the US government is doing in the name of curbing terrorism and offering freedom. The Introduction (p. 11-21) alone provides his rationale for the book and his motivations for his research (post 9/11, Iraq war, etc).

Terrorism is called Irhaab in Arabic and terrorists are called Irahabis. We do not defend terrorism and terrorists, be them Muslims or non-Muslims, be them people from our own race and nation or even from our own family. This is what I, Ahmad, had to say for the prelude.

News: Zionists strike again, this time an aid ship!

2010-06-01T16:33:00.005+01:00

At least nine people have been killed after Israeli commandos stormed a convoy of ships carrying aid to the Gaza Strip (BBC News).

What better can you expect from those who killed their own Prophets? I am not even getting into the topic of Jews-Muslims feud as that is not the topic at hand, but seriously, do you people not have the slightest sense and intelligence to appreciate the oppression and state-promoted terrorism that Israelis are committing? And I hate referring that country as "Israel" as it was indeed the name of Prophet Jacob, on whom be the peace from our Lord.

Remember the saying of the Palestinian girl? The video has been removed by the youtube user, and I'd have to dig if there is another copy on the internet, but let's just say, we are humans. We are supposed to have a conscience, a soul. Guess there are exceptions.

Sorry Tony Benn. These scums don't even want to let humanitarian aid reach the people of Gaza.

William Levy: the most beautiful man in the world?

2010-05-29T15:02:00.015+01:00

"te amo te amo te amo te amo eres lindo quisiera compartir contigo unos lindos momentos me encantas tanto tu cuerpo tu sonrisa tus labios………………… y todo lo demas"

Ah is there no limit to a celebrity-crush? How can you girls say that to someone who's got a Catholic-Chicana girlfriend with two extra-marital children? And I thought Catholics are quite stern about pre-marital sex. Obviously, Catholicism is, as can be read here. And I know Catholics who, despite doing what they do, have this taboo thing about fornication. Well, South Asians and most of the world have this taboo about sex, but thanks to Westernisation or modernisation or whatever you want to call it, even early teenagers have started playing real orgies these days instead of err.. playing pokemon.

True story. Or not. This Mexican-American dude was saying that he asked his mother, "Ma, where do babies come from?" So his mama was like freaked out that her son asked such a question, so she snapped some stuff in Spanish which kind of translates to, "Why do you wanna know where babies come from?" and did that Catholic thing you know, in the name of father, son and holy spirit with the right hand? The son replied, "Coz I'm 25?!" Maybe it was made up, but you get the point. Don't talk about sex. Let your kids find out on their own when watching some porno with friends! Hmmm, question of the day, how did YOU know all about it?

So they're happy going second base and maybe a liiiiiiittle bit further, but not all the way down because the Bible would then call them whoremongers ('players' in modern-day usage) and whores (suit your modern day imagination for this one). This just gave me an idea. I gotta ask something to this Colombian Catholic I know. Gotta hay while the sun shines.

Right, so all you Spanish-speaking Catholic fans of William Levy, know that you're saying all that to a whoremonger. And I guess you don't mind being whores either, if the whoremonger is William Levy. Ah, one very crucial reason why a guy wants to be a millionaire, a celebrity.

Add to that, Levy converted to Catholicism in 2009. I wondered why. I believe there can be only two reasons why you want to convert to Catholicism/Hinduism (doesn't include those who are raised Catholics so no pun intended):

You love worshipping idols and statues. It's ingrained in your genes?!
You do it because you want some worldly gain out of it.

I was right. For Levy, it was the second. From his words:

"Lo hice porque si el día de mañana quiero casarme, porque sí quiero hacerlo, necesito de estos sacramentos"

Nice. I know nuns don't get married. But 'religious sisters' do. It probably wouldn't be a disastrous thing to get married to a Catholic 'religious sister'.

Anyway, back to the title of the post. I see he's not ugly by any means, well he's a model, but the most beautiful man on the planet? Can the word 'beautiful' be even used literally for a guy?

Damn I just found out that there's a whole 'beautiful men' contest going in this crazy world. Here's one such beautiful man (it's not my words!):

I hope you girls can sleep tight, now that you've seen him.

For your own sake Argentina, don't win the World Cup!

2010-05-29T14:27:00.004+01:00

Football legend and current Argentine coach Diego Maradona has promised to strip and run naked in the streets of Argentine capital, Buenos Aires (News) if Argentina wins the World Cup Football 2010 in South Africa starting soon.

Out of all ways to express your joy, you had to choose to strip publicly, you 49-year old Diego? Well I guess you still have lousy fans who'd love to see you naked, but please, put up a private web cam show instead.

I like seeing Argentina win, but I hope, at least for the sake of Argentines, they don't win this time around. I mean it's not even Messi who promised to be naked.

Buenos Aires, here comes the naked butt and the rest of the package from that god of yours. At least don't let your kids get on the street that day. You already made 'hand of god' out of Diego, please don't make a 'butt of god' (if not worse) out of him too.

Good News: Another militant-terrorist arrested in Bangladesh

2010-05-25T22:21:00.010+01:00

Police in Bangladesh have arrested JMB (Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh) chief Saidur Rahman al-Irhabee, his wife and three other top leaders of their group (News). Alhamdulillah.

During the police raid, the cops also recovered a huge cache of bomb-making materials, firearms and ammunition and books that incite terrorism in the misnomer of 'Jihaad'. (You can watch the news showing the disgusting Mufsid and his cronies, in the Bengali news from here, news starts from 3:30.)

If you are aware of any terrorist and terrorist-activity in Bangladesh, you can report it to the concerned security, after completing free registration, from here. This includes the foreign links that these terrorists have in UK, USA and elsewhere; hence any information that you can reliably provide about these terrorists, please report them to the authority.
Alternatively, the security can be contacted in person or by telephone, with contact details given: http://www.rab.gov.bd/contact_us.php

Replying to a query, the Police Chief Muhammad said that since militancy is now a global phenomenon, Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) might have connections with militant groups in neighbouring countries. May Allah reward the Police Chief Muhammad Nur and forgive him his shortcomings and guide him to what is good.

Tracking down the terrorists and safeguarding lives of innocents is a great Jihaad, may Allah reward the Mujahideen who are tracking them and risking their lives and the lives of their family.

These JMB frauds have connections with the disgusting frauds in UK called Islam4UK that changes their colours like the British weather, and also with the other internet terrorists who are happily "waging their Jihaad" on the internet while seeking help from the British and American government and paying taxes to them. These JMB hypocritical people (hypocrisy in action) are distributing their falsehood over youtube, whilst living in America and UK - the supposed Daarul Harb!

Yo takfiris and cyber-jihadis, here's a site that sells cheap tickets to and fro Afghanistan: http://www.liligo.co.uk/airline-tickets/cheap-ticket-afghanistan/ (took me about 5 seconds on google)
Get out of your comfort homes, stop complaining that you cannot go and join OBL and his crew (or openly declare yourself a hypocrite), stop making takfeer of your family and friends and the rest of the Ummah, and get your filthy asses to Afghanistan if you are truthful.
(And by the way, could you please ensure you return the Red British Passport or the Blue American Passport to the authority once you're in Afghanistan? Also, a written declaration of how and your mentors, such as Abu Qatadah and Omar Bakri, obtained their red passports in the first place would also be beneficial for the common people.
Also, I know your kinds well enough and the deceptive counter responses you give, but to save your time, here's a list of uninhabited islands, where you can try going and establish 'Khilaafah' and supposedly rule by laws of Allah and His Messenger. Just don't come back to daarul kufr, deal?)

May Allah aid the Muslim security officials in Saudi, in Bangladesh, in Pakistan and elsewhere, those who have the intention of stopping mischief-makers in their lands.

The Lost saga finally comes to an end ...

2010-05-23T15:18:00.013+01:00

This is the TV series Lost, that I'm talking about. It's been over 5 years that this show's been running, and people been saying it's the best TV series ever in terms of thrill and adventure and mysteries (beating X-files?). I started three years up the line, and honestly, I haven't seen any other show that created this much attention and hype. You had Prison Break, Heroes, 24, etc but compared to Lost, they are not in the same league!

So finally we'd have the last episode of the final, sixth season on May 23rd (Sunday) at 9 pm EST and would be shown on May 24th, 5 am (Monday) in UK. I mean people who know about it, would know how big this hype is. Magazines, newspapers, websites, forums, etc are all crazy about what is to happen and what they are to do once it's over. I can't say I'm not excited either, it's the build up of anticipations.

Even my sister got hooked into it only months back. How sad. It's been 5 years, and now as it's about to be over for good, you get hooked into it?! She's got tens of episodes to catch up!

So there's a number of questions that the audience is hoping to get answers for. I've been disappointed with many episodes, especially the recent ones where the whole thing makes little sense. So many characters died and so many things happened, all because you want to protect an island for some source of light that nobody knows what good it does? Even that "bad guy" (aka Man in Black, Smokey) is not all bad. He was good until his fake mother turned him bad and his twin brother Jacob couldn't control his rage to turn him into what he is. Why blame Smokey, when it's Jacob and the fake mother that made him what he is?!

TV series disappoint me most of the time. Heroes took a sharp downturn after Season 1 and Prison Break was like continuing just for the sake of continuing. At least cartoons like Tom and Jerry's are better that they can go on and on, for the sole purpose of entertainment.

I am not going to watch it live. I don't have TV subscription. I steal shows and movies off the net, thanks to zillions of torrent and flash video sites. (You wouldn't steal a car, would you? Heck yeah I would, if I could steal over the internet! Don't tempt me!) Yeah I'm an internet-pirate, and a good one at it! It would have been nicer to be able to watch this final episode live, it's a whacking 2.5 hrs episode, but I guess I have no option other than to wait few hours after it's been aired for the torrent.

(Update: Some helpful internet pirate was kind enough to provide me live streaming links to watch from)

Just some rant on a sunny Sunday. I wish I could go outside and enjoy the sun, as it's depressing having to stay indoors on a day like this, but there's just too much things out there you know

Update: The best and simple explanation of all that happened over the last 6 seasons is posted here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411008/board/thread/163537934?d=163537934&p=1#163537934

For more explanations and theories, check: http://lostpedia.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

Alternate, satirical endings:

http://darkufo.blogspot.com/2010/05/jimmy-kimmel-live-aloha-to-lost-all.html

Ahmad Goes to Catholic Church (P1b)

2010-05-23T14:06:00.007+01:00

Right, this is where I share the experience of communal service in a Catholic Church on a Sunday, following on from Part1a. It's a brilliant, sunny day outside today, but it's too hot for Ahmad to be out and it's better I keep myself enclosed in my room and just type away on my laptop.

The Catholics in the Church
I had the notion that it would be old, white folks coming to the Church for some blessing they think they receive on a Sunday. I'm not saying Christianity is a white man's religion as I know much of South America and Central America, as well as many parts of Far East Asia are Christians, but my city is predominantly white and the ethnic minorities are usually made of students and tourists (and the working class Asians in catering). Hinduism, on the other hand, is originally brown man's religion (India being the birthplace) and I have not heard of non-brown converts to Hinduism.

I was quite right about my notion, but it was intriguing to find people from other cultures and races as well, such as Filipino, black and even one brown dude!

As I entered ...
A lady was handing out leaflets about which hymn they are going to sing that day. A hymn is a song, usually of religious nature, to praise and venerate the deity or a saint. A Christian hymn was defined as "A hymn is the praise of God with song; a song is the exultation of the mind dwelling on eternal things, bursting forth in the voice." The closest match in Islam to a hymn is a Nasheed (نشيد). I collected one leaflet and the particular hymn to be sung that Sunday was called "Hail the day that sees him rise"

The hymn had the first three lines as follows:

Hail the day that sees him rise, alleluia!
To his throne above the skies; alleluia!
Christ, the Lamb for sinners given, alleluia!

The word "alleluia" literally means "Praise God" and this particular hymn is about the Christians praising the Christ Jesus ascending. It should be noted that these hymns were not read or created at the times of Jesus, as this particular hymn is taken from 1742 book "Hymns and Sacred Poems" by Charles Wesley. The earliest song found in Biblical Scripture is the Song of Songs, which is said to be the Song that Solomon (Prophet Sulayman) sang to show love for his woman.

I chose to sit closer to the back of the masses so that I can observe things from a wider angle and not be mistaken for a devout Catholic. They have this type of seating arrangement in the Church, I'm not sure how to explain it, so I'd just show it in picture.

As soon as a Catholic comes in, he/she bends down on their knees on that platform and makes some kind of prayer. It looks like it's a thing to do when you enter the Church, much like you have 2 units of prayer called 'Tahiyyatul Masjid' as you enter a Mosque. Although the Catholics would do this prayer thing on that platform a number of times during the communal service.

I don't feel like continuing with the rest of the experience right now. The communal service was about to start then, and I'd share it some other time ...

Ahmad Goes to Catholic Church (P1a)

2010-05-16T12:12:00.024+01:00

Yes, the title of the post is correct. It's been some time since I thought about it, and I finally turned it into reality.

Now I was not raised a Christian. I've never been to a Church before and I suppose that is the case for the overwhelming majority of Muslims who have been born and raised in a Muslim family. The atheists pick on the theists the easy way: you're a Hindu because you were raised a Hindu; you're a Muslim coz you're raised a Muslim. That is NOT the reality for many of us. Some of us are Hindus not just because we were raised as Hindus - it's because we have realised worshipping statues and animals and trees and accepting dowries is the truth! Likewise, many of us are Muslims because we have realised statues made of mud and clay, living beings that one can kill in a moment, is anything but God! Ah isn't that so utterly obvious?! Our Lord be Praised!
As for me, then I have embarked on a spiritual journey for a long long time. I have questioned myself over and over again, and continue to do so, in order to reach the truth, may God guide me. I ask God to guide me to the Straight Path frequently, so it's not just an expression, it's a fact. I've had "intellectual" discussions with knowledgeable Christians back in the days and I hope to touch on some of what I have experienced. But it's important to know what one is talking about; it's easy saying I'm right and you're wrong when you're too afraid to take even a step beyond your bubble.

So I am going to share my experience of Church and what it endorses, and this is my first week of going to a Church and experience things first-hand. Now I'm not encouraging any Muslim to do what I am doing, but personally speaking, I am who I am because I have asked my Lord over and over again to Guide me, and had Hinduism been the religion that I felt to be true, I would have renounced my faith for the truth. I don't consider my upbringing and the comfortable bubble that I lived in when I question my soul. My Lord be Praised. When I mentioned that I'm going to Church today to a Muslim, I was jokingly asked, Have I left Islam? I smiled to myself. Leave Islam for what? Give me something better and I will show you why it's actually worse.

For any Christian, I just ask you for one thing. Go to a Mosque. See Islam as a whole and what is the fundamental message that it stands for. Here is Ahmad, going to the Church and not just talking based on what I have been fed by others. I have sacrificed my gym session this morning for the Church and that is a big thing in my life currently! So please take that extra step and go to a Mosque nearby on a Friday. Choose different Mosques if you want. I'd try going different Churches every other week. Fair deal?

Arrite so which Church?

St John's Catholic Church

My first week- I've chosen it to be a Catholic Church. Reasons include:

The Church was built in the 19th century and from an architectural point of view, it's one of the things England is known for. I can't say I'm not tempted to see what it's like inside and out.
I chose this particular Church because it so happened that the Church is just opposite to my friend's place and a 2-minutes walk from the Mosque. It's only natural that I went there - it's like putting on an underwear before you put on a trouser!

I chose a Catholic Church not for any particular reason. I wanted to start with an Anglican Church but I guess it doesn't matter much. I'd probably go to an Anglican Church in near future so we're on the same page. If you're a Christian and you want me to go to a particular type of Church, feel free to comment and I'll see if we have that kind of Church in my area. I live in a city full of Churches and pubs so finding your particular denomination won't be hard I suppose.

The Church runs two local schools and is the Catholic authority in my city. It's obviously not just any Church - it's the happening Church!

Which day?

I chose today, Sunday 16th May 2010. Why? Isn't that obvious? Coz it's a SUNDAY. It's the day when many non-practising Christians go as well, thereby being known as Sunday Church goers. In Islam, there is Friday Mosque goers, but let's not go into that now as I myself hardly go to a Mosque except on Fridays! The fact that my city has just one Mosque and tens of Churches doesn't help.

So if I go again, it'd be again on Sundays. The reason is obvious. You have communal worship on Sundays in a Church and that is the best day to see as much as one can see about the Church and the Christians. I say again, I have sacrificed my morning gym session because of this, and that tells you the effort I am putting into this! Damn I probably gained a kilo because of this.

From the outside

It's quite catchy from the outside to be honest. I guess it's one of the things that tourists come and see in this city. Let me put some pics. I've never uploaded pics in blogs before although it's very common to put loads of random pics in personal blogs. So I guess this is the start of uploading pics. Note that the pictures are not to show my skills or lack-of in photography, nor to show how bad or good my camera was. They are the least one should worry about. The pics are to show what it was and what it stands for, to all those who do not know.

Now what does the inside look like? Here's being honest - my only experience of Churches is from the TV shows and movies that showed Churches and does it look the same in reality? Precisely! It's just like what you see in movies.

From the inside
Here's when it gets really confusing. I've been to a Hindu temple before - the big Balaji temple in Birmingham, England. If I didn't know enough, I'd have said this is a Polytheistic Temple. You don't believe me? Go to the Hindu temple and see it for yourself. How much a Hindu Temple and a Catholic Church have in common. Seriously.

Here is the classic idolatry shown opposite. Don't try telling me the background history for this pic. I tell you what it is as it looks like: it is showing two white statues - one a woman and one an almost naked man about to pass away. Probably you'd say it's Jesus and his mother. Shame on you. This is the big statue in your Catholic Church.

Statues such as the one on the right are ALL over the Church, next to the large windows. Catholics, you REALLY need to go to a Hindu temple and question yourself. I am not sure if you follow Hinduism or a monotheistic religion?

The one on the left is the symbolic statue in any Catholic Church. Or maybe any Christian Church (I will check other non-catholic churches later). The crucifying Jesus statue central to the Church in front of the masses, showing what Christianity is about. It's not about Abraham and his fighting against polytheists and idolatry, it's not about Noah and his fighting against his idol worshipping people, it's not about Moses and his fight (read 'Jihaad') against the idol-worshippers (read 'Mushriks'). Christianity is about the god being tortured and dying on a cross!

The one on right is the front section of the Church, where you have the Bishop and other Church authoritative figures doing what they do. I swear by my Lord, I felt like I was in a Hindu temple. It's almost identical to the Balaji temple in Birmingham. Don't take my word for it if you don't want to, O intelligent Christians, visit a large Hindu temple yourself!

And big human statues continue all around. The one on the left is just next to the central section of the Church. I never thought about it before, like why don't Christians make a fuss over statues and idols like Muslims do? Now after today I think about it and it comes like completed legos: it's because statues and idols are central to their faith, to their place of worship. Is this what Abraham preached? Which of you people voted 'Yes' in the poll on my blog?

Ignore the cute kid in the pic. I suck at guessing the gender of babies and kids so I don't want to embarrass myself, but I'm pretty sure the kid's a 'he'. The Catholic Church has this cute area called "St Benedict Pray for Us" and kids and people come in and probably ask "St Benedict" to pray for them. I thought it's the living Pope Benedict they are referring to, but no. it's the dead St Benedict of Nursia.

Here's an important thing to learn for Muslims. Which Muslims do you find praying to the dead hoping the dead pray for them? Yes, you know who. I think they borrowed it from this Catholic tradition. How pitiful of such Muslims to ask the dead to pray for the living, when it is the dead that needs the prayer of the living! Do you not have sense that a dead's a dead?! Why on earth do some of you Muslims ask the dead? Ask your LORD or is your Lord not enough to answer your prayer? It is these Catholics that introduced asking to the dead! Ask the pious amongst the living one to pray for you. Ask your parents, for the sake of your Lord!!! And please pray for the dead; not ask the dead to pray for you!

Okay this is the last pic for this part. It's another section next to the central section. You have many such enclosed sections with idols in a Hindu temple, so I can only guess, it's there for the same reasons. Saw two women lighting a candle and stuff in front of the gate, don't know what that means. Don't really care much. I have had enough.

The reality
So there you go. Idols after idols, statues after statues. St. this and that, lord this and that. Frustrating really to see such things from those who claim to adhere to a monotheistic religion that had Abraham and Moses as the Prophets. I haven't even started talking about what I experienced in the communal service! God willing, I'd do it in a separate post.

Now there are mosques with decorative insides and from an architectural point of view, they are quite fascinating to see. Mosques in South Asia built by the Moghul empire, mosques in Egypt and Syria and other than that have lavish decorations inside. There is no religious justification for such things whatsoever, all I can say is they look nice just a glittering neon light looks nice. But if you study what original Mosque of the Prophet Muhammad looked like, you'd know what constitutes as the Muslim place of worship. Muslims go to Mosques to worship their Lord. Period. Nothing more, nothing less.

Let me end this post with some good old Verses from Old Testament. Think for a moment what was what the Lord commanded to Moses in Bible, and what is it that you Christians do, in the name of following an Abrahamic religion, in the name of being against paganism and idolatry. Such a shame. If what is inside the Catholic Church is not directly idolatry and paganism that violates one of the Ten Commandments, I don't know what does. I don't see any difference between the Balaji Temple and the Catholic Church. Nothing substantial anyway.

Idolatry Forbidden
15 You saw no form of any kind the day the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the fire. Therefore watch yourselves very carefully, 16 so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman, 17 or like any animal on earth or any bird that flies in the air, 18 or like any creature that moves along the ground or any fish in the waters below. 19 And when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon and the stars—all the heavenly array—do not be enticed into bowing down to them and worshiping things the LORD your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven. 20 But as for you, the LORD took you and brought you out of the iron-smelting furnace, out of Egypt, to be the people of his inheritance, as you now are.
21 The LORD was angry with me because of you, and he solemnly swore that I would not cross the Jordan and enter the good land the LORD your God is giving you as your inheritance. 22 I will die in this land; I will not cross the Jordan; but you are about to cross over and take possession of that good land. 23 Be careful not to forget the covenant of the LORD your God that he made with you; do not make for yourselves an idol in the form of anything the LORD your God has forbidden. 24 For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

25 After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time—if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol, doing evil in the eyes of the LORD your God and provoking him to anger, 26 I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live there long but will certainly be destroyed. 27 The LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the LORD will drive you. 28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell. 29 But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
(Deutoronomy, the fifth book of Hebrew Bible, Chapter 4)

The Ten Commandments
6 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

7 "You shall have no other gods before [a] me.

8 "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below."
(Deutoronomy, Chapter 5)

What can I say? There are so many Verses that speak against this abhorrent practice of idolatry, that I truly believe anybody getting rid of preconceived dogma should be able to see and appreciate how despicable Catholic places of worship, its rituals and what it stands for have turned into. Sorry, I couldn't put it any milder. I am not Moses or Jesus, but I can bet that they would have left you and your despicable practices like they left the despicable practices during their times.

What's a blog for?

2010-05-07T21:38:00.004+01:00

Thought of the day. After I came across yet another blogger with the most random post ever.

He says:

Voting in the election
Tonight, I voted in the General Election. My local polling station was at Widcombe Baptist Chapel shown below. I am currently watching results come in. It is now 12.40am and so far there have only been five declarations.

How random! What the hell does that got to do with anything in this world?! Of course he was referring to the British parliamentary election that's gone past yesterday, but seriously, what's his 4 statements post for and what's a blog for? Ah, wikipedia saved the day!

Personal blogs
The personal blog, an ongoing diary or commentary by an individual, is the traditional, most common blog. Personal bloggers usually take pride in their blog posts, even if their blog is never read. Blogs often become more than a way to just communicate; they become a way to reflect on life, or works of art. Blogging can have a sentimental quality.

That clears up. The dude was making an entry in his web diary, and taking pride in it, even if it never gets read. But I read it and my blog is personal too! So here's a better diary entry from your guy next door:

Today I felt like a zombie, only I craved for sleep instead of blood. That's because I have not slept more than 3 hours in the last 30 hours, and my only source of caffeine was two Red Bull drinks. I also went to supermarket and saw some British soldiers, one of them having the tag name 'Butcher'.

What's the fuss about the election anyway?
Without getting into politics, people and the media are really overdoing this election thing. It's getting on my nerves now. I got hold of the news that an Oxford grad Bengali woman has been elected for the first time from an East London centre. I hope she changes things around, because her neighbourhood is one of the dirtiest and stinkiest neighbourhood in Britain and it shows what can happen when South Asian minorities turn into majority over good old whites. I'm so glad I don't live there.

Is this a Chapter from Quran or Hebrew Bible?

2010-04-23T16:28:00.010+01:00

This goes out to all Jews and Christians who are Islamophobes. If you are not an Islamophobe Jew or a Christian, disregard this post and move on ...

Idolaters Killed
1. Then I heard Him call out in a loud voice, "Bring the guards of the city here, each with a weapon in his hand." 2. And I saw six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with a deadly weapon in his hand. With them was a man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. They came in and stood beside the bronze altar.
3. Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the LORD called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side 4. and said to him, "Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it."

5. As I listened, He said to the others, "Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 6. Slaughter old men, young men and maidens, women and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary." So they began with the elders who were in front of the temple.

7. Then He said to them, "Defile the temple and fill the courts with the slain. Go!" So they went out and began killing throughout the city. 8. While they were killing and I was left alone, I fell facedown, crying out, "Ah, Sovereign LORD! Are you going to destroy the entire remnant of Israel in this outpouring of your wrath on Jerusalem?"

9. He answered me, "The sin of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great; the land is full of bloodshed and the city is full of injustice. They say, 'The LORD has forsaken the land; the LORD does not see.' 10. So I will not look on them with pity or spare them, but I will bring down on their own heads what they have done."

11. Then the man in linen with the writing kit at his side brought back word, saying, "I have done as you commanded."
Ezekiel 9 (New International Version)

I have not left any Verse from Chapter 9 of the Book of Ezekiel, so as not to hear I've misquoted or partially quoted. It's from the NIV, the other older versions are even harsher. Next time someone hears those scumbags Nick Griffin (Chairman of BNP in UK), Robert Spencer (author of numerous so-called exposition of Islamic terrorism books) and other scumbags like them talk about taking out the Quraan, while they think they can portray Judaism and Christianity as peace-loving, tolerable religions, tell them to swallow these Verses (and MANY like them) with a gulp first. Heck, these Islamophobes are no better than the disgusting terrorist Osama bin Laden.

I tell you what: the Islamophobic Jews and Christians are sheer hypocrites. No exaggeration there. You keep defying what 'your Lord' says in the Bible you hold onto, and think you can attack Islam with your petty talks. Your version of god would probably have come and wrestled you on the earth, if that version was true. In fact, look at what "your Lord" says in the Chapter quoted. For all the bloodshed, injustice and idolatry that you hold onto, "your Lord" would probably have asked someone bloodthirsty like Osama bin Laden (OBL) to wipe you out. OBL should hide behind the Hebrew Bible when he kills the innocents, not the Quran or Islam; because it's the Bible that authorizes indiscriminate killing. (For just one refutation out of the tens of refutations of filthy terrorism that the likes of OBL promote, read this.)

The man in linen did as his Lord commanded: which is killing them all, showing no mercy. So you as a God-loving Jew or a Christian, would you not do the same as that man in linen?

Filth and hypocrisy is all these Islamophobes can offer. God willing, just as many others have exposed these hypocrites, I'd produce more detailed posts addressing them and their "proofs" later.

A beneficial blog from one of our brothers should be checked by those who question their souls. The brother is a Chicano who left Christianity for Islam.

Migraine Gives Woman Foreign Accent

2010-04-20T16:34:00.006+01:00

Ever wondered what a white British lady would sound like speaking English with a Chinese accent? No, she is not a comedian or doing it for any show. She had migraine issues and developed what is called a Foreign Accent Syndrome. So all women out there, beware!

Well I guess I developed it too, playing too much GTA 4 over a 6-month period! Or maybe I just like the accent of Eastern Europeans and want to sound like them. I so wish one day I wake up with an Irish accent -- that's the only cool accent I can't do no matter how hard I try.

Strange world!

A woman from Devon has begun speaking with a Chinese accent after suffering severe migraines.

Thirty-five-year-old Sarah Colwill puts the startling change down to an extremely rare medical condition known as Foreign Accent Syndrome (FAS).

"I knew I sounded different but I didn't know how much and people said I sounded a bit Chinese.

"Then I had another attack and when the ambulance crew arrived they said I definitely sounded Chinese."

The rare disorder is thought to be caused by strokes and brain injuries and causes sufferers to lose the ability to talk in their native accent.

There have been an estimated 60 recorded cases of FAS since it was first identified in the 1940s.

I am frustrated to sound like this. I just want my own voice back, but I don't know if I will get it back.

Sarah Colwill

Mrs Colwill, who lives in St Budeaux in Plymouth, Devon, with her husband Patrick said her accent change had been startling.

"I spoke to my stepdaughter on the phone from hospital and she didn't recognise who I was.

"She said I sounded Chinese. Since then I have had my friends hanging up on me because they think I'm a hoax caller."

After researching FAS on the internet Mrs Colwill has been in contact with doctors from Oxford University who are interested in studying her plight.

She is undergoing speech therapy to try to revert to her West Country accent.

"I am frustrated to sound like this. I just want my own voice back, but I don't know if I will get it back."

John Coleman, a professor of phonetics at Oxford University, said: "FAS is extremely diverse, almost certainly not 'one thing', not a well-defined medical phenomenon.

Sarah Colwill -Pics from SWNS agreed by Grippo

Sarah Colwill says her stepdaughter failed to recognise her voice

"It is not the kind of problem that there are any easy generalisations about."

Sufferers can develop an accent without ever having been exposed to it as it is the change in speech patterns from a brain injury which causes the lengthening of syllables, change in pitch or mispronunciation of sounds.

Experts believe FAS is triggered following a stroke or head injury, when tiny areas of the left side of the brain linked with language, pitch and speech patterns are damaged.

The result is often a drawing out or clipping of the vowels that mimic the accent of a particular country, even though the sufferer may have had limited exposure to that accent.

One of the first reported cases was in 1941 when a Norwegian woman developed a German accent after being hit by bomb shrapnel during an air raid.

As a result, she was shunned by her community, who falsely believed she was a German spy.

In 2006 Linda Walker, 60, woke from a stroke to find that her Geordie accent had been transformed into a Jamaican one. (Sky News)

Look at some of the comments. One said it's all fake because she is now using incorrect English grammar like many Chinese people in UK. Haha I'd be rich if you'd give me a pound for every time I hear a British speaking with an incorrect English grammar even with a British accent. Allow. It's normal to say "How's you" and not "How're you"...

It's funny because only few weeks back I watched this episode of TV series Lost, where this South Korean lady forgot how to speak English after she hit her head and became unconscious. Now she could speak and understand English before that happened, but after the accident, she can understand English and write in English but can't speak English. I thought that's only possible in a strange serial such as Lost, but not in the real world. Well, reality is often stranger than fiction!

Retard for American Idol! Yes, we love America

2010-04-17T18:09:00.004+01:00

I don't watch American Idol or Indian Idol or whatever idol you got going. I don't see singers as any kind of idols. Do you all know the Chris Brown story? The 19-year old who whacked his ex-girfriend Rihanna? There's the idol for the singer lovers. Stand-up comedian D L Hughley rightly said about Chris Brown:

"They said Chris Brown was the role model. Let me tell you something: Chris Brown is a 19 year old boy. If you have a 19-year old child as your fuckin' role model, you're a goddamn idiot. That's the fuck you are.
I've got a 19 year old son and I don't even leave him home by himself!"

Yeah the truth hurts. Anyway, this youtube video was sent to me by a friend of mine.

I just got thinking, is this retard for real? But he got some good comments right there.
"As a tax paying American, I wanna see your working visa" to the British Simon Cowell. Yeah that red passport ain't that red on the other side of the Atlantic.

Hoisin Duck: Your ideal saucy Chinese takeaway

2010-04-15T21:49:00.003+01:00

Time for some more ramble. To keep up with the rest of the 'normal' bloggers.

So I had today what is called 'Hoisin Duck'. It's a Chinese main dish that's got sliced duck with green peppers and water chestnuts in a hoisin sauce. Is it me or do all Chinese dishes are just too saucy?

When people say, Indian dish, you'd think yeah it's 'spicy'. And it's true. South Asians have a thing for extreme spice and extreme sweets. And no, that vindaloo dish ain't spicy at all. It's been watered down so that non-Indians can eat that! Similarly, when people say Middle Eastern dish, you'd think some 'meaty kebab' dish. If you're around Bristol in England, I recommend trying the Lebanese restaurant called Sands Restaurant. I went there some years back and my taste buds still haven't forgotten whatever lamb dish I had.

Anyway, back to hoisin duck. I am a meat-eater and I LOVE meat and would victimise the vegetarians. Yeah, that's me. The more meaty it is, the better. So I had good thoughts about hoisin duck but it kinda disappointed me. Maybe because I don't find the idea of cooking anything with a lot of sauce a good thing. And Chinese dishes are full of sauce. It's soya sauce AND that vinegar AND hoisin sauce or this and that sauce.

I had a Chinese housemate few years back and he invited me to this dinner and since then, I realised Chinese dishes are saucy. Maybe if you're up for a saucy meal, this hoisin duck would do just the thing for you.

How come Brits get to eat Oriental meal with chopsticks?

I'm serious. I went to this social dinner with my work colleagues last summer and we went to this Chinese restaurant. Now everybody except me started eating with chopsticks. And I can't even hold them right, let alone eat with them. So I raised this point in the table. And they reminded me the fact that Brits of the old have ruled and exploited much of the world so Brits can do it all. They are more Chinese than the new-age Chinese-Brits. It made sense.

Poem - One Step Nearer

2010-04-15T18:38:00.005+01:00

I am not a poet. I don't do poems. But I would share some poems from this individual called Stanley Smith from England. I think I saw him in a mosque or a community hall once, but I can't be sure. He's a white man past his 50s - a man who embraced Islam, who embraced the truth. The poems are quite good I'd say, for what it's worth.

From his words:

"These poems would never have been written had it not been for the inspiration I received from reading the Koran (it's pronounced Qur'aan, Uncle) and for all the help I have received from my friends, who have helped me to begin to understand and opened my eyes.
I only hope that in some way these verses will touch the hearts of those that read them.

I hope I continue to progress and that I can be worthy."

One Step Nearer

Are you one step nearer
To fulfilling your dream
Or has it become just a might have been
The star you saw within your grasp
Did it slip through your fingers
A thing of the past

Are you footsore and weary
Made many mistakes
But don't give up now
You are reaching the gates
The gates that will open like the sun after rain
Restoring your soul
All has not been in vain

Allah was with you
And when you were weak
Gave you rest for a moment
Put salve on your feet
Kept the light burning
You knew from within
Although the flame flickered
It never went dim

The time will come surely
Before Him we stand
Here I am Allah
Await your command
And hopefully then
You will realize too
The dream that you had
Has become really true

The greatness of Imam ash-Shafi'i and respect for him from his student Imam Ahmad

2010-04-14T01:20:00.003+01:00

I had to share this. I just had to. It is sufficient to say that I love the Salaf (righteous predecessors) that followed the Messenger of Allah and exemplified the way for the believers to be righteous and fearful of the Most Majestic, the Lord of the Universe.

I am talking about the two distinguished Imams (leaders) of the Ummah - Muhammad ibn Idrees ash-Shaafi'ee and Ahmad ibn Hanbal ash-Shaybanee. The latter came after the former and was a student of the former.

Things Are Not Always What They Seem…

Imam Ahmad used to mention the virtues of his Shaykh (teacher), Imam ash-Shafi'ee, to his wife. He would mention to her the extensive and superb knowledge of Imam Ash Shafi'ee as well as his taqwaa (i.e. piety).

Imam Ahmad invited Imam Ash Shafi'ee to come visit him at his home. When the time for dinner arrived, Imam Ash Shafi'ee ate until he was full and went to the guest room for some sleep.

The wife of Imam Ahmad said to him: "O Ahmad! Is this the same Shafi'ee that you used to tell me so much about?"

Imam Ahmad said: "Indeed he is!"

So she said: "I noticed three things about him worthy of criticism! Firstly, when we served him the food, he ate plenty of it! Secondly, when he went into the guest room, he went to sleep without standing up to perform the night prayer (i.e. tahujjud)! Lastly, when he prayed Salat ul Fajr (Fajr prayer) with us, he did not perform ablution (i.e. wudhu)?!"

So Imam Ahmad went to Imam Ash Shafi'ee to ask him about these three matters his wife noticed.

Imam Ash Shafi'ee said to him, (the way a father would explain to his son):

"O Ahmad! I ate plenty because I know for certain that your food is halaal (i.e. permissible islamically) and you are a generous man! And the food that comes from a generous man is a cure, while the food that comes from a stingy man is a disease!

However, I didn’t eat plenty of food in order to achieve my fill; rather I ate plenty of your food in order to derive the cure from it! As for the reason I didn’t stand up at night to perform the night prayer, when I laid my head down to get some sleep, I looked and all I could see was the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet (Sallahu alaihi wa salam) right in front of my face! So I deducted 72 fiqh(jurisprudence) related benefits from them for the Muslims to benefit from.

Thus there was no opportunity for me to stand and perform the night prayer!

As for the reason why I prayed Salat ul Fajr without performing ablution, by Allah! My eyes never tasted the sweetness of sleep in order for me to renew my wudhu (ablution)! I was awake the whole night, so I prayed Salat ul Fajr with the same wudhu I had for Salat ul Isha (Isha prayer)!"

(Collected by Al Hafidh Ibn Hajr in Fath ul Bari concisely and by Abu Nu’aim in Hilya tul Awliyaa’
Translated by Abu Azzubayr Shadeed Muhammad on 3/30/2010 in the City of Riyadh Saudi Arabia)

What can I say? May Allaah have mercy on Imam ash-Shafi'i. There is the example of the Inheritor of the Messenger of Allaah, there is the example of a man worthy of respect and love.

Assalamu Alaikum

2010-04-13T21:56:00.006+01:00

This is a simple but often overlooked and misunderstood matter for many. All people have the custom of greeting one another. The Arabs used to greet one another with the words “An’im sabaahan” or “An’imu sabaahan” [equivalent to “Good morning”], using words derived from “al-ni’mah”, which means good living after the morning. The idea was that because the morning is the first part of the day, if a person encounters something good in the morning, the rest of the day will be good too. Like in English-speaking nations, it is the custom to greet one another using the word 'Hi', 'Hello' or 'Hey' and on a more formal tone, to say 'Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening'.

When Islam came, Allaah prescribed that the manner of greeting among Muslims should be “assalaamu alaykum (السلام عليكم)". This is the general form of greeting used in Muslim lands and nations, even though local influence may have caused it to modify it or even distort it, for instance saying 'slamalaikum' which do not have any useful meaning as far as I know.

Meaning of assalamu alaikum

Salaam (سلام) is literally translated into 'peace'. When the definite article al- is used, as in al-salaam which is pronounced as 'as-Salaam', then that is one of the beautiful names of our Lord, Glorified be He, free from all imperfections and need. This is one of the glorification that Muslims can say verbally after completing the obligatory prayer (Salaah/Namaaz), as reported in Saheeh Muslim (1/414) from the words of the Prophet of Allaah, peace and blessings be on him, "اللهم أنت السلام ، ومنك السلام" meaning "O Allaah, You are the Peace and from You is all peace (meaning, all peace and tranquility only comes through You)".

The usage of the preposition ‘ala in ‘alaykum (upon you) indicates that the greeting is inclusive. The plural pronoun (-kum) implies everyone if it is in a group or family. Hence the phrase assalamu alaykum translates into 'peace be on you all' and it is an invocation to the Lord for safety and harmlessness for the person (to which assalamu alaykum is said).

Importance for saying assalamu alaikum

The companion 'Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar , may Allaah be pleased with both 'Abdullaah and 'Umar, reported that a man asked the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him):

“What is the best thing in Islam?” He said, “Feeding others and giving the greeting of salaam to those whom you know and those whom you do not know.” (Saheehayn and others)

((أن رجلا سأل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : أي الإسلام خير ؟ قال : تطعم الطعام ، وتقرأ السلام على من عرفت ومن لم تعرف))

The great Scholar of the past, al-Qaadee 'Ayaad (القاضي عياض) said in Ikmaal al-Mu’allim (1/276):

"Here the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) was urging the believers to soften their hearts. The best Islamic attitude is to love one another and greet one another, and this is achieved by words and deeds. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) urged the Muslims to foster love between one another by exchanging gifts and food, and by spreading salaam, and he forbade the opposite, namely forsaking one another, turning away from one another, spying on one another, seeking out information about one another, stirring up trouble and being two faced.

Love is one of the duties of Islam and one of the pillars of the Islamic system. One should give salaams to those whom one knows and those whom one does not know, out of sincerity towards Allaah; one should not try to impress other people by giving salaams only to those whom one knows and no-one else. This also entails an attitude of humility and spreading the symbols of this ummah through the word of salaam.”

Thus the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) explained that this salaam spreads love and brotherhood. The companion Aboo Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:

“You will not enter Paradise until you believe, and you will not believe until you love one another. Shall I not tell you about something which, if you do it, you will love one another? Spread salaam amongst yourselves.” (Saheeh Muslim and others)

((لا تدخلون الجنة حتى تؤمنوا ولا تؤمنوا حتى تحابوا أولا أدلكم على شيء إذا فعلتموه تحاببتم أفشو السلام بينكم))

al-Qaadee ‘Ayaad said in Ikmaal al-Mu’allim (1/304):

"This is urging us to spread salaam, as mentioned above, among those whom we know and those whom we do not know. Salaam is the first level of righteousness and the first quality of brotherhood, and it is the key to creating love. By spreading salaam the Muslims’ love for one another grows stronger and they demonstrate their distinctive symbols and spread a feeling of security amongst themselves. This is the meaning of Islam.”

And there are other hadiths that stress the importance of salam in Islam. Such as:

On the authority of al-Bara' bin 'Azib (may Allah be pleased with them) the Messenger of Allaah commanded us to do seven things: to visit the sick, to follow the funeral (of a dead believer), to invoke the Mercy of Allah upon one who sneezes, to support the weak, to help the oppressed, to promote the greeting of 'As-Salamu 'Alaikum', and to help those who swear to do something to keep their oaths. (Saheehayn, as quoted in Riyadus Saliheen of Imam an-Nawawi)

In fact, one can see how the great Scholars of Islam stressed the importance of salaam, due to the fact that the Messenger of Allaah stressed it so much. Imam Yahya an-Nawawi, in his widely known book 'Riyadus Saliheen', has dedicated one whole section on greetings, calling it 'The Book on Greetings'. Within this section, he has 13 chapters conveying A-Z about 'salaam' in Islam! This petty post cannot stress enough the importance and blessings of this simple saying: 'Assalamu Alaikum'.

What to say to spread salam?

One can say either 'Assalamu Alaikum (السلام عليكم)' or 'Salamun Alaikum (سلامٌ عليكم)' and they are both correct and acceptable as reported in the authentic texts. What is even better is to say 'Assalamu alaikum warahmatullah/Salamun alaikum warahmatullah(سلامٌ عليكم ورحمة الله)' and the best thing is to say 'Assalamu alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh/Salamun alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh (سلامٌ عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته)'.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) explained the reward earned by the one who says salaam, as was reported in Saheeh Ibn Hibbaan and others. The companion Aboo Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) said that a man passed by the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) whilst he was sitting with some others, and said “Salaam ‘alaykum (peace be upon you).” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, “[He will have] ten hasanaat (rewards).” Another man passed by and said “Salaam ‘alaykum wa rahmatullaah (peace be upon you and the mercy of Allaah).” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, “[He will have] twenty hasanaat (rewards).” Another man passed by and said “Salaam ‘alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh (peace be upon you and the mercy of Allaah and His blessings).” The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said, “[He will have] thirty hasanaat (rewards).”

Our Lord tells us that the greeting of the angels to the people of Paradise will be “Salaamun ‘alaykum” as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

And angels shall enter unto them from every gate (saying):
‘Salaamun ‘Alaykum (peace be upon you) for you persevered in patience! Excellent indeed is the final home!'
((وَالْمَلائِكَةُ يَدْخُلُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ مِنْ كُلِّ بَابٍ سَلامٌ عَلَيْكُمْ بِمَا صَبَرْتُمْ فَنِعْمَ عُقْبَى الدَّارِ))

[Surah ar-Ra’d 13/23, 24]

Saying 'wassalam' at the end of a letter or post

There is nothing wrong with ending a letter with the phrase “wassalaam (والسلام)” and it is not a condition that the phrase should be used in full, because when a written abbreviation is used, what the writer means is the complete expression. So when a person says “wassalam”, what he or she means is “was salaamu ‘alaykum.” But if the person sending the letter writes “wassalaamu 'alayka” or “wassalaamu ‘alaykum” at the end, this is better. The companion 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab, may Allaah be pleased with him, ended his letter to the Qaadee (Judge) Shurayh with the words “wassalaamu ‘alayka” [Sunan an-Nasa'i].

However, the person sending the letter should greet the addressee with the complete phrase (“Assalaamu 'alaykum”) at the beginning of the letter, as has been the habit of the Muslims from the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) until the present. And Allaah knows best.

Don't be a miser or try to be too correct grammatically!

This is an important reminder. Some Muslims, who are aware that plural pronoun ends with -kum and masculine pronoun ends with -ka and feminine pronoun ends with -ki in Arabic words to refer to a person or people, resort to saying "assalaamu 'alayka or assalamu 'alayki" instead of "assalamu alaykum". While this is not wrong or unacceptable, this is an unnecessary correction that restricts the supplication to only the person that the greeting of salaam is being sent to, and excludes the angels that are present (but invisible) and the person's family.

Yes, you have completed the bare minimum and yes, you have been 'grammatically correct' in your greeting, but please do not exclude my family from your supplication for granting peace and blessings and mercy from the Lord of the Universe! Don't be a miser in your supplication.

Returning the reply to salaam

It is obligatory that you return the greeting of salaam with something equivalent or better. In some cultures, when a lower-class person gives salaam to an upper-class person, the latter do not bother to return the reply. This is contradictory to the teaching of Islaam and we seek refuge in Allaah from such superiority complex.

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) commanded us to return salaams, and made it a right and a duty. It is reported on the authority of the companion Aboo Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The Muslim has five rights over his fellow-Muslim: he should return his salaams, visit him when he is sick, attend his funeral, accept his invitation, and pray for mercy for him [say “Yarhamuk Allaah”] when he sneezes.” (Saheehayn and others)

Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“When you are greeted with a greeting, greet in return with what is better than it, or (at least) return it equally”

[Surah an-Nisa’ 4:86]

Why say Assalamu Alaikum to the Muslim

Would you not agree that you'd rather have someone supplicate to our Lord for you and your family instead of saying 'hello'? I agree it is probably easier saying 'hi' as it's shorter containing just two alphabets, but if you really wish good for a person, then invoke Allaah's safety and security for the person.

This is something that may not be known or understood correctly by non-Muslims and even many laymen Muslims. Yes, assalamu alaikum is a Muslim thing, but ponder for a moment the beauty of the teaching of Islam that asks one another to supplicate for safety and blessings and mercy and thereby increase love and respect between one another, instead of giving a 'hello' or 'good morning' out of courtesy.

May our Lord increase love and respect between one another and guide us all to that which is true and beautiful.

References: 1, 2 and 3.

Summer in the air

2010-04-10T17:10:00.006+01:00

People post all kinds of things in their blogs - random, useless stuff like what they eat, what they wear, which guy she dated and all that. I have kept my blog quite clean so far from such stuff but I guess it's time I ramble about useless stuff too - at least this one time. Allow.

My summer outfit

I had to go to this appointment today for some 'healthcare'. I put on a three-quarter pant, a T-shirt, a sunglass and sandals. Now that's what I call summer time! It's the only time when I can wear sandals outdoors without someone saying I wear it because I'm ethnically Asian. But I love wearing sandals. I don't have to put on socks, I don't have to wash the socks and deal with the ewww smell of it and all that thing. Nobody seems to appreciate the simple and easy comfort that sandals provide, unless it's summer or they're strolling down a beach. I mean, of course you'd have to be dumb to wear sandals outdoors during winter time, but why do you always wear socks indoors? Your feet SMELLS.

I could also put on the three-quarter pant (or shant!) and it felt good. Guess why? Because last summer, I was so fat that I couldn't fit myself in it! And now, only a summer down the line, this shant was falling off and I struggled the whole way to maintain it. So if someone says, why don't you buy a new pair that IS YOUR size? Well, there is no such thing as MY size. What can I do? I change weight like the British weather. One season I'm fat like a pig and the next season people want to be like me!

On my way to business ...

Right, you could sense summer is in the air, just by looking at your surroundings. Forget the sun; people would remind you it's summer. As I walked past the park, I could see tens of groups of people enjoying the sun as they say. Almost every other person has put on the shades just like me and almost every other guy is wearing shorts. Not to mention the girls, I guess you all know how they enjoy the sun. It's like they've been waiting for this moment their entire lives. Although I always wondered how do they not tremble and shiver on the evenings (even in winter) as they're about to hit a club wearing next to nothing? I couldn't do it! Those girls must have some balls.

It's worse in England because you don't have proper sun in here most of the year. I like saying, "Even the sun is cold in this country!". So when you have that slightest feeling of summer in the air, you get all summer crazy. It's only April, so I gotta get used to what's coming in July.

I saw a group of ladies, over 10 of them sitting in a circle on the soft grass. See, with shades on, you have the advantage of looking at people and things without them knowing anything and it's perfect for pervs (hey, I'm NOT a perv!). I mean such a huge group of ladies and not a single man amongst them - I couldn't help but wonder is that a feminist picnic on a Saturday afternoon?

The roads and streets are busy too. You have roofless, two-door cars popping up from everywhere in summer. It's good if you're a sports car fan - you'd see people banging their heads with loud music and chicks giggling inside the car. That's 'fun'. It was nice to see a South Asian couple in the city centre (extreme South). Finally some ethnically similar people! Saw a grandma and her 14ish grandson carrying grocery bags and that was the only thing that is not exclusive during summer time. Right, I'm there for the appointment.

My appointment

So I was there for some facial treatment as it's called. The receptionist told me to sit and wait so I was glancing through some of the magazines in the salon. It's been some time since I touched a fashion magazine and I tell you what, they say it's the newest trend and collections but it's all the same. It's like old wine in new bottle. You have thin-as-hell models wearing or putting on those collections and when people say is it the flesh you want me to look at or the cloth, I can't disagree. Where's all the feminists?

Now I'm not a fashion person; I never was. Meaning I don't usually buy cologne and suits from Hugo Boss or something. If I see something flashy or catchy, I'd buy it. It doesn't matter which brand it is or if this trend was so yesterday. And I'm cheap. I mean it's a sensitive word to say, but I don't like spending uncontrollably. I'd go for the £1 body spray to keep my odour away. But then a comment in the magazine caught my eyes. It's an article by one of the stylist-turned-fashion designer in England and she is probably famous to those who keep up with this kind of stuff. I forgot her name even. So she comments:

"Style is about how you wear something. It is about attitude. It is about knowing who you are"

Cool. She, an expert in whatever she does, didn't mention about 'brand' even once. Style is NOT about which brand you choose. This is soothing to read coz I can now say I've got style!

So the beauty therapist goes through this facial thing. Now last time I did it, it was back in 2009 and the therapist was quite surprised knowing it, saying I should be doing it once every 4-6 weeks. Give me a break! It costs £47 for 45 min and I wasn't quite satisfied with all that was put in my face! I've done it for something like £15 for 45 min in South Asia, and they had put more stuff and all that steam and mumbo jumbo creams. I'm not going back there next time. The only soothing thing was to hear the therapist say I've got a pretty good skin for a man. Well I try! But my forehead is a bit 'dehydrated', so I should drink more water. They also gave me a small serum sample to apply on my forehead. How nice.

The therapist ended the session by applying this moisturizing skin toner I guess and told me to leave it as it is until tomorrow morning. Good thing I cooked all that Desi dishes involving oil, turmeric and chill powder yesterday! I'm not quite sure if it made the difference I wanted to have, especially with summer in the air! Sure my skin feels more glossy, but I need to check it with my mother and aunt to see if it was worth it.

(You might have to take your top off during the session so it's best to ask for a male/female therapist of your preference and that is usually available.)

Coming back to my flat ...

It's pretty much the same. Only this time I got past this cricket field and saw there was a cricket match going on. Now I'm not the usual South Asian who loves Cricket. I find Cricket a boring sport except maybe the new 20-20 format. Oh as I am typing this, my family's come online. I gotta check my face with them!

So, summer is almost here. And people would do what they do. Just please don't put retarded comments on the internet or rape some woman or murder some man you got beef with. I've got loads of work in the coming weeks so I might not be around. And with summer in the air, I guess people are busy enjoying the sun rather than reading blog posts.

"Take out the Quran!"

2010-04-08T19:26:00.005+01:00

Well I was supposed to continue with my family values and wisdom posts, but this particular message caught me suddenly and I couldn't help myself but address it.

So this internet person called Angus McFarlane made a comment in response to a news that reported President Obama's administration gave a "Wanted: Dead or Alive" pass to one of the radical Muslim terrorists. McFarlane writes:

"Targeting the messenger is confusing the messenger with the message. It's the message that needs to be taken out. That is, Al Qur'an."

Another internet person, called 'Sole Man' replied wittily:

"I hope you realize that there are 1.57 billion Muslims, making up 23% of the world population ... You are not suggesting to target them .. are you?"

Thank you Sole Man for raising this point. Let me put this simply: Angus McFarlane is just another Islamophobic idiot. I searched him on google and I found one guy on facebook with his name, but maybe he's not the same person. Anyway, let me try put some sense into that thick head of yours McFarlane ...

The messenger you're referring to McFarlane, called Anwar Awlaki, has been refuted by the Inheritors of the Messenger of Allah and the students of the Inheritors of the Messenger of Allah over and over again. If you had spent more time researching the truth and less time posting bullshit comments on the Internet, it would probably have created less Muslims who hate you with everything they got. I really wish to know if you have a religion McFarlane, coz don't let me pull the Bible or the Torah to show you how many 'messages' are there in them that should be taken out according to your rationale. Well I'd do it anyway, in future, God willing.

And if you're the usual atheist, 'worshipping' Richard Dawkins, then I think you should have made it clear that the message that needs to be taken out is not just the Quran, but the Bible and the Torah included. And I think, with that line of attitude, Obama would give you the "Wanted: Dead or Alive" pass in no time.

Denouncing the messenger Anwar Awlaki

Well McFarlane, since idiots like you don't have a soul to question, let me put a comprehensive refutation of the dangerous views of Anwar Awlaki here for anyone else reading it, showing what he's calling for is not what the Messenger of Allah and the Inheritors of the Messenger of Allah call for. But idiots like McFarlane exist, just as terrorists like Awlaki do.

Know your family and know their language! (Part 1)

2010-04-08T17:57:00.004+01:00

This post is for everyone who has been afflicted with the calamity of not even knowing who is in the family, let alone speak to them or visit them or aid them to the best of ability. No, one does not have to have a major in Sociology to understand and appreciate this post. You only need to question your soul to appreciate it!

What is family?

Well I have to touch a bit on sociology here to sound academic. In the West, the word family usually refers to what is known as a nuclear family, consisting either of a married couple (or a divorced or widowed parent) with unmarried children or of a married couple without children. So this nuclear family contains the parents and their non-adult, unmarried children or only the husband and the wife, with no children.

This is not the usual case elsewhere. Well it was not the case back in the days. In Asia (including Far East, Middle East, North, South), Latin America, Africa and many parts of Europe, family usually referred to what is known as an extended or joint family, and would include parents, children, spouse, grandparents, uncles and aunts, siblings and cousins. All do not necessarily have to live under one roof or even in one town, but when you mean family, your cousin from your second paternal uncle is also included in this structure.
Obviously, just as with many other things in the society, Westernisation and 'modernisation' and 'industrialisation' and what-not have had a drastic effect on today's family structure. Just look at the many immigrant 'families' residing in the West; the son does not recognise anyone except his siblings and parents to be his family, yet has 500 facebook friends whom he keeps in touch with every day! This is the reality now.

The negative perception towards extended family

I am not sure if I'm generalising too much on this, but from what I have experienced, the new generations (say post 1980s) consider extended family to be an unnecessary burden, an unnecessary load on their shoulders. Why have your 80-year old grandpa in your house when there's an old care centre only 100 miles down the road? Why visit your maternal aunt in Ethiopia when you can have a summer trip to Barcelona? Why send a £100 gift to your cousin in Argentina, when you can spend it in the club this coming Friday? Why, why?

Some of the negative perceptions are not without proofs. For instance, many newly wed couples do not want to stay in the same house with their parents or in-laws because of the friction, jealousy and power control inside the house. Many put this as a marriage condition: "I'm not staying with your parents if we get married." Or later in the marriage, when they have kids, "I'm not gonna let my kids hang out with your cousins/mother/siblings/etc." Sometimes it makes sense, because your cousin might be a porn-addict or your dad might be a chain-smoker or your mother might enjoy gossiping about others and while you do not backbite about them, you may not want your children to take on those habits. So not all negative perceptions are necessarily unreasonable.

Why bother about your parents, siblings and relatives?

If you are a Muslim, then because it is the Commandment of Allaah and His Messenger. Even Hindus and Buddhists keep ties with their relatives, well at least, that was the traditional way.

The importance of upholding and maintaining ties of kinship in Islam is highlighted in Part 2.

Make things easy, Muslims! (Part 1c)

2010-04-08T16:43:00.005+01:00

Following on from Part 1b, it is a good time to expound on the other Verses of our Lord cited for aid in understanding and following.

The Prophet of Allaah, sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam, said:

1. "Whoever says anything about the Quran without knowledge, then he should take his abode (home) in hell" (Sunan Abu Dawud)

2. "Whoever talks about the Quran on the basis of his opinion, and even if he says something true in it, he has made a mistake" (Sunan Abu Dawud, Sunan an-Nasa'i)

Translated Verse from Quran

2. "And follow not ( i.e., say not or do not or witness not) what you have no knowledge of. Indeed the hearing, sight and the heart, one will be questioned of all of those" [Surah al Israa 17:36]

Do not speak without Knowledge

'Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Abdullah ibn 'Abbas (Companion of Prophet) said: "This means do not say (anything of which you have no knowledge).''
Al-'Awfi said: "Do not accuse anyone of that of which you have no knowledge.'' Muhammad bin Al-Hanafiyyah said: "It means bearing false witness.''
Qatadah said: "Do not say: 'I have seen', when you did not see anything, or: 'I have heard', when you did not hear anything, or: 'I know', when you do not know; for Allah will ask you about all of that.''

In conclusion, what they said means that Allah forbids speaking without knowledge and only on the basis of suspicion, which is mere imagination and illusions. As Allah says (as translated):
(Avoid much suspicion; indeed some suspicions are sins.) [49:12]

According to a Hadith, the Prophet said:

«إِيَّاكُمْ وَالظَّنَّنَفَإِنَّ الظَّنَّ أَكْذَبُ الْحَدِيث»
(Beware of suspicion, for suspicion is the falsest of speech.)

And the Prophet said, as found in Sunan Abu Dawud:

«بِئْسَ مَطِيَّةُ الرَّجُلِ: زَعَمُوا»
(What an evil habit it is for a man to say: 'They claimed...')

According to another Hadith, the Prophet said:

«إِنَّ أَفْرَى الْفِرَى أَنْ يُرِيَ الرَّجُلُ عَيْنَيْهِ مَا لَمْ تَرَيَا»
(The worst of lies is for a man to claim to have seen something that he has not seen.)

The Prophet says as reported in Saheeh:

«مَنْ تَحَلَّمَ حُلْمًا كُلِّفَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ أَنْ يَعْقِدَ بَيْنَ شَعِيرَتَيْنِ وَلَيْسَ بِفَاعِل»
(Whoever claims to have seen a dream (when he has not seen) will be told on the Day of Resurrection to make a knot between two barley grains, and he will not be able to do it.)

Each of hearing, sight and the heart will be questioned, meaning, the person will be asked about them on the Day of Resurrection, and they will be asked about him and what he did with them.
[Tafseer Ibn Katheer]

To be continued ...

Make things easy, Muslims! (Part 1b)

2010-04-08T15:11:00.006+01:00

Following on from Part 1a, it is a good time to expound on the Verses of our Lord for aid in understanding and following.

The Prophet of Allaah, sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam, said:

1. "Whoever says anything about the Quran without knowledge, then he should take his abode (home) in hell" (Sunan Abu Dawud)

2. "Whoever talks about the Quran on the basis of his opinion, and even if he says something true in it, he has made a mistake" (Sunan Abu Dawud, Sunan an-Nasa'i)

Translated Verse from Quran

1. "Say: this is my way, I call to Allaah upon sure knowledge (Baseerah); I and whosoever follows me ..." [Surah Yusuf 12:108]

The Messenger's Way

Allah orders His Messenger to say to mankind and the spirits (Jinns) that this is his way, meaning, his method, path and Sunnah, concentrating on calling to the testimony that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah alone without partners. The Messenger calls to this testimonial with sure knowledge, certainty and firm evidence. He calls to this way, and those who followed him call to what Allah's Messenger called to with sure knowledge, certainty and evidence, whether logical or religious evidence. [Tafseer Ibn Katheer]

Baseerah here means that the da'wah of the noble Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be on him, is not based on some summary view of things; rather, it is the outcome of insight, reason and wisdom. In this act of 'full cognition', the Prophet has included his followers as well.

According to Abdullah ibn Abbas, the companion of the Prophet, it refers to the noble Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all. They are the soldiers of Allah, Glorified be He. Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, another companion of the Prophet said, "The Companions of the Prophet are the best people of this whole Ummah. Their hearts are pure and their knowledge is deep. They are far removed from formality. Allah has chosen them to accompany and serve their Messenger. You should learn their morals, habits and ways because they are the ones who are on the Straight Path (i.e. the Path to Success)."

It is also possible to take the expression "and whomsoever follows me" in the general sense whereby it would mean every person who is doing the duty of conveying the da'wah of the Messenger of Allah to his Ummah right through the last day before end of the world.

To be continued ...

Update: Part 1c (April 2010)

A Reminder from Ahlul Bayt (Laysal Ghareeb)

2010-04-05T19:17:00.008+01:00

Background
This is a beautiful reminder from the great great grandson of Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be on him. The poem (Arabic: Qaseedah قصيدة) is called 'Laysal Ghareeb' (ليس الغريب) which literally translates into 'The Stranger is Not'. It is a self-provoking, soul-searching poem reflecting on life, death and beyond.

It's a very popular poem in Yemen and elsewhere. Ponder upon the words of the poem for a moment ...

Listen to the poem

Listen with subtitles in French, in Dutch.
Listen to other Recitors of the same poem here and here.
Download audio version of the recitation from here.

Arabic Poem with Translation

لزين العابدين علي بن الحسين ين علي بن أبي طالب
Written by Zain al-'Aabideen ‘Alee bin al-Hussayn bin ‘Alee bin Abee Taalib [The Great great grandson of the Prophet]

لَيْسَ الغَريبُ غَريبَ الشَّأمِ واليَمَنِ
إِنَّ الغَريبَ غَريبُ اللَّحدِ والكَفَنِ
The stranger is not the stranger to Yemen or Shaam (Syria)
But the stranger is the stranger to the grave and the coffin

إِنَّ الغَريِبَ لَهُ حَقٌّ لِغُرْبَتـِهِ
على الْمُقيمينَ في الأَوطــانِ والسَّكَنِ
Verily the stranger has rights for his absence
Over the residents of the dwellings & homelands

لاتنهـــرن غريب حال غربته
الدهـــر ينهــــره بالـــــذل والمحــن
Don’t chase away the outlander in his state of unfamiliarity
For time is also chasing him with hardship & distress

سَفَري بَعيدٌ وَزادي لَنْ يُبَلِّغَنـي
وَقُوَّتي ضَعُفَتْ والمـوتُ يَطلُبُنـي
My travels are far and my provisions will not suffice me
My strength has weakened and death is calling unto me

وَلي بَقايــا ذُنوبٍ لَسْتُ أَعْلَمُها
الله يَعْلَمُهــا في السِّرِ والعَلَنِ
I still have sins which I know not of
Allah knows of them; those made in secret & in manifest

مـَا أَحْلَمَ اللهَ عَني حَيْثُ أَمْهَلَني
وقَدْ تَمـادَيْتُ في ذَنْبي ويَسْتُرُنِي
How merciful has Allah been to me by giving me respite
And I have increased in sins but Allah has always shielded me

تَمُرُّ سـاعـاتُ أَيّـَامي بِلا نَدَمٍ
ولا بُكاءٍ وَلاخَـوْفٍ ولا حـَزَنِ
The hours of my days pass by without regret
No crying, no fear, no sadness

أَنَـا الَّذِي أُغْلِقُ الأَبْوابَ مُجْتَهِداً
عَلى المعاصِي وَعَيْنُ اللهِ تَنْظُرُنـي
I am the one who closes the doors with fatigue
On disobedience, And the Eye of Allah watches over me..

يَـا زَلَّةً كُتِبَتْ في غَفْلَةٍ ذَهَبَتْ
يَـا حَسْرَةً بَقِيَتْ في القَلبِ تُحْرِقُني
O’ that which was written in a moment of heedlessness
O’ the sorrow which remains in my heart is burning me

دَعْني أَنُوحُ عَلى نَفْسي وَأَنْدِبُـهـا
وَأَقْطَعُ الدَّهْرَ بِالتَّذْكِيـرِ وَالحَزَنِ
Leave me to bewail myself and weep
and pass the time in sadness and remembrance

دَعْ عَنْكَ عَذْلي يَا مَنْ كان يَعْذِلُني
لَوْ كُنْتَ تَعْلَمُ مَا بي كُنْت تَعْذُرُني
Leave off your blaming of me O’ you who do so
If you were but to know my situation you would have excused me..

دَعْني أَسِحُّ دُمُوعاً لا انْقِطَاعَ لَهَا
فَهَلْ عَسَى عَبْرَةٌ مِنْهَا تُخَلِّصُني
Let me cry out tears that have no ending to them
for there will be no lesson that will set me free

كَأَنَّني بَينَ تلك الأَهلِ مُنطَرِحــَاً
عَلى الفِراشِ وَأَيْديهِمْ تُقَلِّبُنــي
It is as though I am with that family, laying..
Upon the mattress with their hands turning me over

وَقد أَتَوْا بِطَبيبٍ كَـيْ يُعالِجَنـي
وَلَمْ أَرَ الطِّبَّ هـذا اليـومَ يَنْفَعُني
And they came to me with a doctor that he may cure me..
But of today, I think not that medicine will benefit me..

واشَتد نَزْعِي وَصَار المَوتُ يَجْذِبُـها
مِن كُلِّ عِرْقٍ بِلا رِفقٍ ولا هَوَنِ
My sufferings increased and death began to pull at me..
From every vein, without ease or comfort..

واستَخْرَجَ الرُّوحَ مِني في تَغَرْغُرِها
وصـَارَ رِيقي مَريراً حِينَ غَرْغَرَني
My soul was then removed from me with a gurgle..
And my saliva became bitter at that point..

وَغَمَّضُوني وَراحَ الكُلُّ وانْصَرَفوا
بَعْدَ الإِياسِ وَجَدُّوا في شِرَا الكَفَنِ
They then shut my eyes and left me…
after a long moment of despair ... they hurried to the purchase of the shroud

وَقـامَ مَنْ كانَ حِبَّ النّاسِ في عَجَلٍ
نَحْوَ المُغَسِّلِ يَأْتينـي يُغَسِّلُنــي
And he who was dearest to me got up in a hurry..
To summon the person who was to wash me..

وَقــالَ يـا قَوْمِ نَبْغِي غاسِلاً حَذِقاً
حُراً أَرِيباً لَبِيبـاً عَارِفـاً فَطِنِ
He said: O’ my people we have attained a Washer who is skillful, clever, bright & intelligent..

فَجــاءَني رَجُلٌ مِنْهُمْ فَجَرَّدَني
مِنَ الثِّيــابِ وَأَعْرَاني وأَفْرَدَني
So then one of the men came and removed my clothing..
He undressed me and denuded me…

وَأَوْدَعوني عَلى الأَلْواحِ مُنْطَرِحـاً
وَصـَارَ فَوْقي خَرِيرُ الماءِ يَنْظِفُني
They then placed me on top of a board
And the sound of water above me began to clean me

وَأَسْكَبَ الماءَ مِنْ فَوقي وَغَسَّلَني
غُسْلاً ثَلاثاً وَنَادَى القَوْمَ بِالكَفَنِ
He poured the water on top of me and washed me..
Three times, before calling out to the people for the shroud..

وَأَلْبَسُوني ثِيابـاً لا كِمامَ لهـا
وَصارَ زَادي حَنُوطِي حيـنَ حَنَّطَني
They shrouded me in a sleeveless garment..
And my provisions became the embalmment in which they embalmed me

وأَخْرَجوني مِنَ الدُّنيـا فَوا أَسَفاً
عَلى رَحِيـلٍ بِلا زادٍ يُبَلِّغُنـي
They bore me towards my journey out of this world, oh how sorrowful!
Will be this journey for which I have no provisions to take along with me

وَحَمَّلوني على الأْكتـافِ أَربَعَةٌ
مِنَ الرِّجـالِ وَخَلْفِي مَنْ يُشَيِّعُني
Upon their shoulders, they carried me, Four….
Men, and behind me are those who come to bid me farewell

وَقَدَّموني إِلى المحرابِ وانصَرَفوا
خَلْفَ الإِمـَامِ فَصَلَّى ثـمّ وَدَّعَني
They set me before the mihraab then turned away from me
Behind the Imam they went and he prayed on me then bade me farewell

صَلَّوْا عَلَيَّ صَلاةً لا رُكوعَ لهـا
ولا سُجـودَ لَعَلَّ اللـهَ يَرْحَمُني
They prayed over me a prayer consisting of neither Rukoo’ (bowing) nor Sujood (prostration)
Asking that Allah may have mercy upon me

وَأَنْزَلوني إلـى قَبري على مَهَلٍ
وَقَدَّمُوا واحِداً مِنهـم يُلَحِّدُنـي
They lowered me into my grave slowly
And one of them came forward to place me in the Lahd

وَكَشَّفَ الثّوْبَ عَن وَجْهي لِيَنْظُرَني
وَأَسْكَبَ الدَّمْعَ مِنْ عَيْنيهِ أَغْرَقَني
He raised the garment from my face to gaze upon me
And the tears spilt from his eyes awashing me

فَقامَ مُحتَرِمــاً بِالعَزمِ مُشْتَمِلاً
وَصَفَّفَ اللَّبِنَ مِنْ فَوْقِي وفـارَقَني
Then he stood, honouring me, firm and resolute
And lined the bricks on my body then left me

وقَالَ هُلُّوا عليه التُّرْبَ واغْتَنِموا
حُسْنَ الثَّوابِ مِنَ الرَّحمنِ ذِي المِنَنِ
Then he stood, honoring me, firm and resolute
And lined the bricks on my body then left me

في ظُلْمَةِ القبرِ لا أُمٌّ هنــاك ولا
أَبٌ شَفـيقٌ ولا أَخٌ يُؤَنِّسُنــي
In the darkness of the grave, no mother is there nor,
Is there an affectionate father, or a brother to comfort me

فَرِيدٌ .. وَحِيدُ القبرِ، يــا أَسَفـاً
عَلى الفِراقِ بِلا عَمَلٍ يُزَوِّدُنـي
Alone….The only inhabitant of the Grave, oh how Sorrowful!
Am I on parting the world bearing no deeds to provision me

وَهالَني صُورَةً في العينِ إِذْ نَظَرَتْ
مِنْ هَوْلِ مَطْلَعِ ما قَدْ كان أَدهَشَني
And a sight which beheld my eye struck terror into me
From a place of terror it came and startled me..

مِنْ مُنكَرٍ ونكيرٍ مـا أَقولُ لهم
قَدْ هــَالَني أَمْرُهُمْ جِداً فَأَفْزَعَني
Munkar and Nakeer (Angels in Grave), what shall I say to them?
The thought of them strikes terror into me, it causes me fear

وَأَقْعَدوني وَجَدُّوا في سُؤالِهـِمُ
مَـالِي سِوَاكَ إِلهـي مَنْ يُخَلِّصُنِي
And they made me to sit and put forth their questions
I have none other than You now, O Lord to deliver me!

فَامْنُنْ عَلَيَّ بِعَفْوٍ مِنك يــا أَمَلي
فَإِنَّني مُوثَقٌ بِالذَّنْبِ مُرْتَهــَنِ
So bestow upon me from your mercy, O Lord; how I hope in You!
For verily I am fettered in my sins, I am confined by them

تَقاسمَ الأهْلُ مالي بعدما انْصَرَفُوا
وَصَارَ وِزْرِي عَلى ظَهْرِي فَأَثْقَلَني
The relatives have divided my wealth amongst them after leaving me
And my sins are now upon my back, burdening me

واستَبْدَلَتْ زَوجَتي بَعْلاً لهـا بَدَلي
وَحَكَّمَتْهُ فِي الأَمْوَالِ والسَّكَـنِ
My wife has taken another husband in my place
And she has appointed him as overseer over my wealth and my home

وَصَيَّرَتْ وَلَدي عَبْداً لِيَخْدُمَهــا
وَصَارَ مَـالي لهم حـِلاً بِلا ثَمَنِ
She has made my children into servants to bid unto her needs
And my wealth has become to them a worthless means of enjoyment

فَلا تَغُرَّنَّكَ الدُّنْيــا وَزِينَتُها
وانْظُرْ إلى فِعْلِهــا في الأَهْلِ والوَطَنِ
So let not this world and its adornments deceive you
And look at its (evil) effects in your family and homeland

وانْظُرْ إِلى مَنْ حَوَى الدُّنْيا بِأَجْمَعِها
هَلْ رَاحَ مِنْها بِغَيْرِ الحَنْطِ والكَفَنِ
And look at the one who collects the wealth of this dunya (life in this world) in abundance
Will he depart from this world bearing other than the death shroud and embalmment?

خُذِ القَنـَاعَةَ مِنْ دُنْيَاك وارْضَ بِها
لَوْ لم يَكُنْ لَكَ إِلا رَاحَةُ البَدَنِ
Take from the dunya (worldly life) that which suffices you and be content with that
Even if you were to have nothing but good health

يَـا زَارِعَ الخَيْرِ تحصُدْ بَعْدَهُ ثَمَراً
يَا زَارِعَ الشَّرِّ مَوْقُوفٌ عَلَى الوَهَنِ
O you who sow good, you will reap the fruit of your efforts
O you who sow evil you will find yourselves overcome with grief

يـَا نَفْسُ كُفِّي عَنِ العِصْيانِ واكْتَسِبِي
فِعْلاً جميلاً لَعَلَّ اللهَ يَرحَمُني
O soul of mine, abstain from sinning and attain instead
Deeds which are beautiful, for which Allah may be merciful towards me

يَا نَفْسُ وَيْحَكِ تُوبي واعمَلِي حَسَناً
عَسى تُجازَيْنَ بَعْدَ الموتِ بِالحَسَنِ
O soul of mine, woe upon you! Turn towards your Lord in repentance, and do that which is good
So that you will be recompensed after your death with that which is delightful

ثمَّ الصلاةُ على الْمُختـارِ سَيِّدِنـا
مَا وَضّـأ البَرْقَ في شَّامٍ وفي يَمَنِ
Lastly sending prayers upon the Chosen One, our Sayyid (leader)
Of that which the light has lit up in Shaam and in Yemen

والحمدُ لله مُمْسِينَـا وَمُصْبِحِنَا
بِالخَيْرِ والعَفْوْ والإِحْســانِ وَالمِنَنِ

All praise is unto Allah, may He fill our days and nights with that which is good, with forgiveness, with excellence (Ihsan) and grace.

Is he fat? No he is "horizontally challenged"

2010-03-29T13:59:00.006+01:00

Are you always Politically Correct in what you say? Meaning do you refer a bum as a 'displaced homeowner' or a blind person as a 'visually challenged' person? Or am I the only one who mostly calls a spade a spade?

"Politically Correct"
According to wiki (well they have referenced it to a book so it's not the work of a 12 year old kid):
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, handicap, and age-related contexts. In current usage, the terms are often used to connote intolerance, while the usage politically incorrect has been used by some as an implicitly positive self-description.

Some examples
Say no to fat, say yes to "horizontally challenged"
Say no to thin, say yes to "horizontally challenged"

Say no to tall, say yes to "vertically challenged"
Say no to short, say yes to "vertically challenged"
Say no to midget, say yes to "vertically challenged"

In the US, say no to black, say yes to "African American"
In the US, say no white, say yes to "Caucasian"
In the US, say no to Indian, say yes to "native American"
In the UK, say no to Paki, say yes to "Pakistani"

I don't know how correct they are but a list of "politically correct" words can be found here. A book that is quite good is The Official Politically Correct Dictionary.

Nobody likes racism
I see the point in many cases. Racism exists and racism is a disease. In the UK, the word 'Paki' has been misused so much so that you can't call a Paki a Paki anymore. This Prince whatever got into quite a mess for using this 'Paki' word. And it makes sense.

The funny thing is when Indians or Bengalis get called 'Pakis' by the Caucasians (trying to be politically correct here!). If one knows it, the Southern part of India (Tamil Nadu, etc) and Srilanka demographically have darker skin colour than the northern part of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, etc. When a Tamil gets called a Paki (and it happened to my Tamil colleague), it gets strangely hilarious. It's like calling Caucasian Brits as Polish!
Imagine a White bloke saying to a South Indian "Go home, Paki" to which the South Indian replies "Get lost, you Polish freak". Nah, my South Indian colleague wasn't like this when he got called a Paki, but I have this phrase in my mind just in case I get called 'Paki' by a Caucasian Brit!

Similarly, everyone knows well the sensitivity regarding the word 'black' and 'nigger'. There's a lot of politically correct words these days to replace such words.

Nobody likes mockery
Racism is the most common issue that initiated so many politically correct words today. However, people can get offended without having to resort to any racial terms.

Take 'fat' for example. A lot of fat kids in school are subject to bullying and harrassment due to the fact that they are overweight or sometimes obese. Now obesity can be a medical condition; it's not always down to eating shit loads of junk food. And grown-up fat people also get victimised by the 'physically fit' people regularly. Hence the politically correct word 'horizontally challenged'.

Similarly, midgets are to be called "vertically challenged", a ghetto area/neighbourhood is to be called "economically disadvantaged area".

Excuse my mind for thinking about this particular conversation -
Person A: You live in a ghetto!
Person B: No you twat, I live in an economically disadvantaged area.

Nobody likes insults
Sister term for mockery really. A bum might feel insulted if you call him a bum, so call him a "homeless person". And don't call a lunatic a lunatic! Before you know it, he might turn you into a "physically challenged" person. Mentally ill is the politically correct word for a crazy person.

And there are many cultural terms as well, that are sometimes grouped into racial insults but they are usually used by people to refer to a person from their own race that they see as not 'culturally fit'. 'Fresh-off-the-boat (or FOB)' is one such word used in America to imply any immigrant and 'Freshie' is the corresponding word in England. The ironic thing is when third-generation immigrants use these words to new immigrants (or first-generation immigrants) that come in the land of opportunity for the same reason as their own forefathers. Try calling your dad a FOB and your mum a freshie next time!

"I'm not racist, I just don't like white people!"
Haha that's a good one. I know some "Desi" people (South Asians) have this mentality and so do some black people. It is okay for an Indian to vote nobody but an Indian, or a black to vote for nobody but Obama, but it ain't okay for a white to vote a white!

You're just as racist as a white person who insults non-whites if you are a non-white person insulting a white.

"Support Our Troops"

2010-03-28T22:19:00.012+01:00

Have you heard this phrase before? If you're a blog reader, then probably yes. But what does it mean literally and in essence?

Our/Their/My/Your Troop
Who is the "our" here and which troop represents "us" here?

Let's start with the obvious one. "Our" is the US-UK population and the troop that represents "us" are the "American-British" troop in foreign lands. But has the other side of the coin ever crossed your mind?

That "our" means the Afghan/Palestine population and the troop that represents "us" are the "Taliban-Hamas" troop.

Or "our" meant the Cuban/Vietnamese population and the troop that represented "us" are the "Cuban-Vietnamese" troop.

Or "our" meant the Indian/Malaysian population and the troop that represented "us" are the "Indian/Malaysian" troop that drove the British out of their lands.

So who is "us" and what is "our troop"?

Still not clear? Maybe these two contrasting pictures would help or make it even more unclear:

Picture 1: Support Our Troops (Our = US army)

Picture 2: Support Our Troops (Our = Talibans in Afghanistan)

The US army/Talibans don't necessarily represent "us"
A lot of stuff have been dedicated for "our" troops, claiming they represent "us". Music bands (like 3 Doors Down) and celebrities in general have gone platinum with their performance showing support for "our" troops. But do they really represent "us"?

Someone said, "Our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan are not serving our country, they are serving Bush's stupid plans."
And another said, "And I say that the Talibans are WITHOUT A DOUBT oppressors."

Don't forget the very truthful phrase: "One man's freedom fighter is another man's terrorist".

And even if they represent "us"
So what if they represent "us"? Do they represent justice and truth? Or do they represent torture, oppression and massacre?

Would the German population be correct if they were saying "Support Our Troops" in WWII? Is your support based on nationalistic and tribal grounds or is it out of justice and truth?

The Indian Rebellion of 1857 in India against the British forces, were known to the British as the "Great Mutiny", but to Indians as the "First War of Independence". Who was "our troop" there to be supported?

"Get out of America"
It's quite sad and hilarious as well when some Americans, while supporting their troops blindly, throw this phrase to anybody who don't support "our (US)" troops. If that is not bigoted racism and nationalism, then what is? Thankfully, we have native Americans who beg to differ and don't support "their" troops if they are committing mass murders and rapes in the name of "war casualties".

Another braindead guy asked anybody not supporting US troops to stop "usual oil digging propaganda theories and killing of innocents" as a shield. This is the internet so I don't know who that braindead guy is; for all I know, he could be Lynndie England's high-school sweetheart.

Tighter Rules Fail to Stem Deaths of Innocent Afghans at Checkpoints

Hitler and supporters of Hitler are in the making, with these foolish people, supporting "their" troops no matter how much oppression and genocide they are causing. We can all sing along "When I'm gone" as long as "I" is one of us.

I enjoy satirical shows where a lot of humour is presented by way of ironical statements. Here's one such script:

"You know, I'm a man who believes in the American dream. I-I really do. And that dream is I'm in charge, and if you don't like what I'm sayin', then I'm gonna make wisecracks a-and drop a bomb on 'ya. That's it! That for me is, the, uh, the American dream, OK? And maybe, our country oughta sing a song about it, and have me walk around in slow motion.
That's the fully realized dream. You know, maybe then you could make a movie about me doin' that and we could do action figurines and then myself makin' a movie about blowin' the shit out of you while I make a wisecrack. That's the beauty of America. I'm allowed to dream! That's the dream!
... We'll be right-we'll be right here in the air conditioning, watching the news, and stewing over people like you who-who are trying to break into our houses, and trust me, you come into my house, buddy, you know there's gonna be, uh, uh, in store for a little double-barrelled surprise, OK? I will take you, and I will shoot a hole in you! And then I will torture you, and your family... for...freedom."

I'd really like to see the day when the oppressed people have the option to say what troop they want the rest of us, not being oppressed, to support. People like, the children of Gaza, as in here.

Dowry Culture to Groom: That's Retardism (Part 4)

2010-03-28T20:18:00.007+01:00

Enough of external news, let me share some insider news now. And let me first tell you that I am ashamed that such incidents happened and continue to happen in my culture, but when you are ingrained to understand something in a certain way, anything contradictory to it sounds odd and unacceptable. Try talking about the ill-effects of fornication and drinking to many Westerners and you would see how their minds are ingrained into thinking how right fornication and drinking is.

My uncles and aunts
When you have the popular Indian culture with regards to dowry as defined here, being the parent of unmarried daughters is seen as a social burden. We have a local word for these parents, they are called "kanyadaygrosto pita" which translates into "father burdened with an unmarried daughter", and the social perception towards such fathers/mothers is not very pleasant.

My grandfather from my mother's side, has 8 daughters and 0 sons, meaning I have 7 maternal aunts and lots of cousins. My grandfather wasn't exactly the 'wealthy' person in society, and marrying off his daughters to good, respectable grooms (i.e. my uncles) seemed a mountainous task. I know many proposals that came to my younger aunts got turned down after the groom's family found out that my aunt's family is not rich enough, that they cannot make them 'happy' with the 'dowry gifts'.

My own mother, may Allah be kind to her always, also had to go through some of the ill-effects of dowry culture. A lot of times, it is the groom's family, who puts a lot of mental pressure to the bride and these things don't always come out because women in my society has the reputation of 'enduring social injustice' without complaining.

The opposite is true for my uncles who got married to outsider women, i.e. my aunts. Less than 10 years back I think, an uncle of mine got married and received plenty of 'gifts' including a car, a TV, new furnitures and stuff. Even then, my uncle's side complained that during the wedding feast (if I remember correctly), the bride family didn't make a good impression, and the car that they gave as a gift, was not the most pretty, newest model in the market.

Subsequent harrassment
This is again untold stories in my culture. It gets leaked or gets out only when the harrassment reaches the extreme condition, like the ones mentioned in Part 2 and 3.

The husband or the family of the husband would remind the wife of her family's shortcomings during the wedding (i.e. the 'gifts') in every opportunity that arises.

Ponder O Muslims and humans!
No wonder many women in my society now see 'Western' culture to be the liberating society for women, because back in her home, she is treated like a trash. No wonder they turn into Socialists, because Socialists and Human Rights organisations are the only heard voices in my society against such inhumane prejudice. No wonder many women in my society then links this behaviour from their husbands to Islam, this humiliation upon them as a product of Muslim culture.

Laa! Do not mix this with Islam. This is Hinduism and paganism. This is oppression.

Our Lord says (as translated):
“…And live with them (the women) in kindness…” [Qur’aan an-Nisaa'4:19]

The Messenger of our Lord, peace and blessings be on him, said, "A believing man should not hate a believing woman. If he dislikes something in her character, he would be pleased with some other trait of hers." (Saheeh Muslim)

And the Messenger said, "The most perfect of believers in faith is the best of them in character. And the best of you are those who are the best to their women." (Sunan at-Tirmidhee)

Dowry Culture to Groom: That's Retardism (Part 3)

2010-03-28T19:57:00.004+01:00

Ponder upon two more stories, and I am mentioning them both in one Part.

Monimala 'set afire for dowry,' fighting for life
A young housewife, set afire allegedly by in-laws, is fighting for her life. The victim, Monimala, 20, got more than 40 percent of her body including face and chest burnt during the incident. Source

Newly married woman killed for dowry

A newly married woman was killed by her husband over dowry. The victim, Rozina Khatun, 18, got married only 20 days ago. But her husband Jahangir Khan tortured her regularly for dowry money after their marriage, the police said.

Failing to realise the dowry money, Jahangir beat up his wife and strangled her at his house at about 10:30pm on Thursday. Jahangir and all his family members went into hiding following the incident. Source

Dowry related deaths is one of the chief concerns in India, and guess who are most vocal against it? The Socialists. (Rising number of dowry deaths in India)

I wish the Muslims were more vocal than them and I wish the Muslims would raise their voice against the 'elderly scums' and Muslim terrorists oppressing my sisters.
I can post news after news such as this and all of this is to illustrate one point and one point only: Dowry culture to groom is retardism and turns humans into animals.

Dowry Culture to Groom: That's Retardism (Part 2)

2010-03-28T19:34:00.002+01:00

Ponder upon this story and see if you are human enough to appreciate the inhumane characteristic of the perpetrators:

Parvin Khatun, 25, had both her hands amputated at wrists and made almost blind by a vicious bomb attack allegedly orchestrated by her husband and in-laws in October 2000, for dowry.

Just three months into Parvin's marriage with Mohammad Alamgir Hossain Tipu in April 2000, in exchange for a dowry of Tk 9,000 (£90), 1.25 bhoris of gold ornaments, and nine bhoris of silver ornaments, she was approached again by her husband and in-laws for more.

Her husband, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law pressed her to return to her parents and bring at least Tk 5,000 more, or nine pieces of corrugated tin, putting Parvin, who was only sixteen back then, in a very difficult situation.

Only three months ago, her father, Mohammad Abdul Alek, a day labourer, had to endure immense hardship to arrange a dowry for his daughter's wedding.

"I didn't know from where my father would get the extra amount. However I went to my parents, but returned empty handed two days later," Parvin said as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I'm the only daughter with three sons in the family, and I could feel the pain of my parents and the brothers, who were feeling totally helpless," she added.

When Parvin tried to explain to her husband and the in-laws that her parents are too poor to meet their demand, her husband's entire family became furious. They started citing, day and night, examples of other families in the village who had received larger amounts of dowries.

One Saturday morning in October 2000, her mother-in-law and sister-in-law asked her to collect hay from the harvest of paddy, and pile them up in front of their house. As she gathered the hay, she found two neatly wrapped packets underneath.

"My mother-in-law and sister-in-law asked me to take the packets to my room and to open those. They ran out of the room, and I don't remember anything after that," Parvin said.

She was admitted to Rajshahi Sadar Hospital with horrendous injuries, where doctors amputated both of her hands from the wrists. She lost one of her eyes, and can hardly see with the other. She said all her body bears marks of injuries.

As usual a case was filed with Paba police station, which kept dragging on. At one point a village shalish (an unofficial court of village elders and influential people) 'settled the matter' by ordering her husband and his family to return the entire amount of dowry that Parvin's family had paid at the time her wedding, and granted her husband's family immunity from any punishment.

"They did return the dowry to my parents, but I got nothing. Now I'm struggling hard to live on as a handicapped person," Parvin sobbed. (Source)

Apart from the dowry related oppression, let me remind you that these 'village elders' are of similar cults as those scumbags that I mentioned here. And you can easily spot the trend with these cults: make an arbitration council, shame the victim, give respite to the criminal, and sometimes torture the victim even further. This is the type of cult that is existent in many parts of the world today, sadly. And when you hear or see a Muslim screaming against the oppressive Zionists and non-Muslim soldiers (as they should), please remind them to scream against these Muslim terrorists as well and not be biased against their Muslim sisters being tortured by animal-like Muslims, sometimes in the name of 'Islam'.

Dowry Culture to Groom: That's Retardism (Part 1)

2010-03-28T15:26:00.004+01:00

This has been in my mind for a long time. I grew up in a culture that is heavily influenced by the Indian culture and traditions, and from one of the despicable practices that Muslims in Bengali/Indian culture have acquired is the practice of dowry to the groom, i.e. the husband, as a condition for marriage to take place.

What is Dowry?
This needs to be defined first. Dowry is payment, in the form of cash, cheque or other goods, to the groom, before marriage between them can take place. Any money paid to the bride (or the bride's family) before marriage is technically dowry but that is not of concern here, as that is not the subject of oppression in society, nor is it the generally accepted usage of the term dowry (feminists should definitely agree with me on this!). Henceforth, whenever dowry is mentioned, it is with regards to dowry to the groom, not the bride.

Gift: We don't call a spade a spade
The word 'dowry' has caused a lot of social tension and is now linked to the groom (and his family) being shallow and oppressive. Hence people don't like calling a spade a spade.

Dowry is now referred to as a 'Gift' or an 'Honour'. Cool. I want gifts too! I want a Porsche 911 and a mansion in Beverly Hills, California as 'gifts'!

Origin of Dowry (aka 'Honorary Gift')
I think most Westerners and 'educated, civil' society in the non-Western world, who are accustomed to this word dowry, know that it has something to do with Indian culture or Hinduism. Therefore many Hindus have tried to explain and defend this origin, to appear this as civilised and acceptable, but make no mistake, the concept of 'dowry' is from Hinduism, just as accepting a man to be the literal 'Son of God' is also from Hinduism (no, I will bet, it is not an Abrahamic tradition!)

At this point, let me mention that dowry was very much practised in Europe as well, in ancient Greece and elsewhere, dating back to the ancient Babylonian 'Code of Hammurabi' (read).

I will not beat around the bush here. I will take in from the horse's mouth (Hindu literature and rituals) to remove any doubt you may have, that dowry ('gift') is not from Hinduism.

"The ritual of worship while crossing the border (Simantapujan):

1. Definition: The practice of honouring the groom at the border after he leaves his village (or if the proposal is from the same village, when he leaves his house) and enters the bride’s village by the bride’s relatives offering him clothes, etc. is known as the ritual of worship while crossing the border (Simantapujan).

2. Welcoming the groom and honouring the elder son-in-law: ‘In this ritual of worship (puja) the bride’s father washes the feet of the groom and offers him clothes and ornaments. At the same time he also offers betelnuts and betel leaves to all other members of the groom’s side. Before the ban on the dowry system by the law, the bride’s father would give the dowry to the groom’s father. The groom’s father would receive the dowry fearing that it may not be given after the marriage. According to the scriptures the offering to the groom (Varadakshina) is given after the giving away of the bride (Kanyadan)." Source

So within this Hindu source (that wishes to unite Hindus all over the world), one can see that not only is dowry a part of Hindu ritual, the father of the bride also has to wash the feet of the groom to honour him! So if any man out there wants to be honoured by having your feet washed by the father of the bride, marry a Hindu girl!

One may also notice that the dowry ban is talked about, which is the ban in India (read) after Hindus misused this ritual by finding loopholes into it. And then came the politically correct word 'gift' with no pre-conditions attached to it. Obviously, India's laws are defined as per the notion of the country being a 'socialist, secular, democratic, republic' and consideration to Hindu laws and rituals do not officially come under the country's laws if they contradict the Constitutional values of India.

The Indian legal advice website, mentions some interesting things about dowry (bearing in mind, they are not representing Hinduism but rather Indian supreme laws):

"The ancient marriage rites in the Vedic period are associated with Kanyadan. It is laid down in Dharamshastara that the meritorious act of Kanyadan is not complete till the bridegroom was given a dakshina. So when a bride is given over to the bridegroom, he has to be given something in cash or kind which constitute varadakshina. Thus Kanyadan became associated with varadakshina i.e. the cash or gifts in kind by the parents or guardian of the bride to the bridegroom. The varadakshina was offered out of affection and did not constitute any kind of compulsion or consideration for the marriage. It was a voluntary practice without any coercive overtones. In the course of time, the voluntary element in dowry has disappeared and the coercive element has crept in. it has taken deep roots not only in the marriage ceremony but also post-marital relationship. What was originally intended to be a taken dakshina for the bridegroom has now gone out of proportions and has assumed the nomenclature 'dowry'." Source

And I would be fair here. It was not meant as a coercive persuasion, with the groom's family demanding "I want this, this and this"; rather it was a ritual that the bride's family gave as gifts to honour the groom. However, without this ritual, the marriage is not complete and Hindus exploited it, with their caste system (read), whereby it was expected that the bride's family must make the groom and his family 'happy' with the 'gifts'; otherwise that would mean the bride would later be harrassed and tortured with even the possibility of cancellation of marriage.

So the popular 'Indian culture' as related to dowry was set out as follows:

"One of the evils of Hindu marriages is the ubiquitous dowry system. The amount of dowry can be a very substantial amount, even in dollar terms, depending upon the financial status of the parties involved. Sometimes greedy mother-in-laws and husbands subject the poor brides to innumerable hardships for not meeting their expectations in respect of the dowry. Cases of bride burning are not unknown. Indian penal code prescribes severe punishment for such acts. But the cases take years and decades before the courts deliver justice.
Hindu marriages are also very expensive because of the status, dowry, expensive gifts, family prestige and other issues involved. The bride's parents have to bear the brunt of most of the expenses and in many cases it leads to their financial indebtedness." http://www.hinduwebsite.com/hinduism/h_marriage.asp

It is this dowry culture that has led to unthinkable degrees and numbers of oppression and violence towards women. Sadly, many Muslims who should have nothing whatsoever to do with this 'caste system' and 'dowry', are more eager than the modern Hindus in this respect to exploit women and humiliate them. That is what I am going to highlight in subsequent parts, God willing.

Make things easy, Muslims! (Part 1a)

2010-03-27T23:30:00.019Z

Another long series, inshaAllah, addressing the hastiness and improper, incorrect means of conveying information and calling to the Lord. This is quite religious in nature, therefore I think it is best to dedicate whole of Part 1 of the series with proofs from Quran and Sunnah and what the Scholars mentioned as appropriate, about patience, wisdom, kindness and associated characteristics.

I'd then focus on various practical examples that I have personally known or heard of and perhaps put forward few very plausible, hypothetical situations to pin-point the characteristics that go directly against Quran and Hadeeth.

What is established from the Speech of our Lord is that one must have correct knowledge about what they are talking about, be patient and kind, and exert wisdom in conveying the information to those who do not know.

Quranic Verses

The following translated Verses are appropriate (and commentaries to follow later):

1. "Say: this is my way, I call to Allaah upon sure knowledge (Baseerah); I and whosoever follows me ..." [Surah Yusuf 12:108]

2. "And follow not ( i.e., say not or do not or witness not) what you have no knowledge of. Indeed the hearing, sight and the heart, one will be questioned of all of those" [Surah al Israa 17:36]

3. "The believers (Mu'minoon) are nothing but brothers to one another. So make reconciliation between your brothers, and fear Allah, that you may receive Mercy" [Surah al Hujuraat 49:10]

4. "O you who believe! Let not a group amongst you mock another group; it may be that the latter is better than the former! Nor let (some) women ridicule other women; it may be that the latter are better than the former! Nor defame one another, nor insult one another by nicknames. How evil is it to insult one's brother after having Faith (Imaan)! And whosoever does not repent, then such are the Oppressors (Zalimoon)" [Surah al Hujuraat 49:11]

5. "O you who believe! Avoid much suspicion; indeed some suspicions are sins. And spy not, nor backbite one another. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? And fear Allah..." [Surah al Hujuraat 49:12]

6. "Invite (mankind, O Muhammad) to the Way of your Lord with wisdom and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better" [Surah an Nahl 16:125]

7. "And by the Mercy of Allaah, you dealt with them gently. And had you been severe and harsh hearted, they would have broken away from around you; so pardon (their faults), and ask (Allaah's) Forgiveness for them" [Surah Al ‘Imraan 3:159]

8. "And speak to him mildly, perhaps he may accept admonition or fear Allaah" [Surah Taha 20:44] (Referring to Prophet Moses in his admonition to one of the worst people in the history of mankind, Pharaoh!)

9. "...Only those who are patient shall receive their reward in full, without reckoning (i.e. limit)" [Surah az-Zumar 39:10]

10. "And do not insult the false gods that they worship besides Allaah, lest they insult Allaah wrongfully without knowledge..." [Surah al Anaam 6:108]

Prophetic Hadeeth

1. The Prophet, peace and blessings be on him, said, "Make things easy and do not make things difficult, give glad tidings and do not repel the people [from you]." (Saheehayn)

2. The Prophet said, "O Aaishah (wife of the Prophet), Allah loves kindness in everything." (Saheehayn, in which Aaishah went overboard in her speech to the Jews!)

3. The Prophet said, "Proceed with calmness and tranquility up until you enter their (disbelieving) land, then invite them to Islaam and inform them of what Allaah the Most High has made obligatory upon them (as it relates to the religion). For by Allaah, if Allaah was to guide a single person through you, then it would be better for you than red camels.” (Saheehayn)

4. The Prophet said, "It is enough lying for a man to speak of everything that he hears." (Saheeh Muslim)

5. The Prophet said, "It is enough sin for a man to speak of everything that he hears." (Saheeh Muslim)

6. The Prophet said, "And Allah dislikes gossip (قيل وقال) for you, asking too many questions." (Saheeh al-Bukhari)

7. The Prophet said, "Allah has sent this command to me through revelation: Take to humility. Let no man pride on another man, nor adopt superiority complex and let no one be unjust to anyone." (Saheeh Muslim)

8. The Prophet said, "Truly the religion is easy. And no one contends with the Deen except that it will overwhelm him. So seek out a balanced correctness, do as much as you can, and rejoice (at your reward). And seek assistance (from Allah) in the early morning, the afternoon, and some part of the late night." (Saheehayn)

9. The Prophet said, "What an evil habit it is for a man to say: 'They claimed...'" (Sunan Abu Dawud)

10. The Prophet said, "O you who have spoken the words of faith but faith has not entered your hearts! Do not backbite about the Muslims or seek our their faults, for whoever seeks out their faults, Allah will seek out his faults even if he is in his house." (Sunan Abu Dawud)

11. The Prophet said, "Indeed you (Muslims) were only sent to make things easy, and you were not sent to make things difficult."

Relevant narrations from the Commander of the Believers

1. 'Alee, the son of Aboo Taalib, said:

"Narrate to people what they can understand; do you want Allah and His Messenger to be disbelieved?"

(Saheeh al-Bukhari, Chapter about a person preferring some people with certain knowledge to the exclusion of others.)

2. 'Umar, the son of al-Khattab, said:

"Beware of fitnah (trials and afflictions), for a word at the time of fitnah could be as devastating as the sword"

To be continued...

Now this Part 1 needs a bit of research and I need to be careful about what I say, since speaking about Verses of the Quran and Hadeeth is not for every Ahmad. The Prophet of Allaah said:

1. "Whoever says anything about the Quran without knowledge, then he should take his abode (home) in hell" (Sunan Abu Dawud)

2. "Whoever talks about the Quran on the basis of his opinion, and even if he says something true in it, he has made a mistake" (Sunan Abu Dawud, Sunan an-Nasa'i)

Please bear with me as I would update you, God willing, with the commentaries of these Verses and Scholarly clarifications.

Edit:

Part 1b (April 2010)

Part 1c (April 2010)

Facebook mania (Part 2)

2010-03-27T22:22:00.006Z

A lot of matured people would agree with me on this as they are not uncommon.

Wasting time and being addicted
Look at that teen kid who failed his school test. From the most normal reasons is that he was playing games for too long or he was into 'social' stuffs instead of studying. From checking facebook status and notifications to the newly developed 'chat' mode, many people spend more time on facebook than with their family. And that is perceived to be the cool thing to do!

I have seen guys chatting with over 10 people simultaneously on facebook. It's not unique to facebook, as MSN and Yahoo would do this as well, but time wasted on talking about what that girl was wearing the other night and what that guy was talking the other day takes up more than time spent on life outside of facebook. It's very common to see in buses and trains, people checking on facebook and updating their 'status'. 'Twitter' is also another similar stuff, while that is more mobile-based.

No wonder companies and schools monitor how much time their employees and students spend on social sites and make redundancy decisions based on such information. Many companies and schools have blocked it as well. I am myself guilty of checking facebook and updating stuff during work, but I got away with it!

Some interesting and somewhat obvious quotes from an interview done by Associate Professor (Reader in UK) of Psychology in Carleton University, Canada can be read here. Various surveys and statistics are also available (use 'google'!) to see the time spent on facebook. We had drug addicts, sex addicts, games addicts, etc and now we have 'facebook addicts'!

Who's your friend?
The privacy concern is always there. Let's be honest, how many of your contacts do you know well enough? How many have you met or talked to over the phone?
I can pull out pictures, notes, private information about many people who are not even in my friends' list just by going from one page to another page. Security settings are not as secure as you think they are. And maybe your security settings are strong, but that photo album from your friend's friend contains photos of you and your lover smooching in that club which you probably don't want everyone to see!

And what happens when that picture is not only seen, but also shared to the whole world? How would you feel to see an almost naked picture of your sister in a 'drunkteens.com' type of website?

You might think, well I'm a guy, what can happen to me! Well, think again dude. A newspaper reported in Bangladesh that various groups of frauds are active, whereby they posed as 'hot chicks', befriended the guy, set up an appointment, took a hooker with them, let the hooker have five minutes of pleasure with the guy while the group secretly films it and takes photos, and then before you know it, they blackmail you. And you may happen to be this honest, decent guy everyone knows or a respected person in your family and stuff, and all that is about to die away.

All this might sound all about gloom and doom, but really, who's your friend and who's your friend's friend?

Poking other people's business
Now this is somewhat natural I guess and therefore people might just say it ain't poking, it's getting to know what your friends are up to. Well whatever you call it, your friend probably doesn't want you to see what type of conversations she is having with her future husband or her mother, and you may not want others to see that particular wall-to-wall conversation with one of your contacts.
Obviously, you should have used private messaging but other business, like what groups you join, what applications you use, it's all open to the world. And many people might have nothing better to do other than to catch up with what you're up to! And you may not even know that 'friend' of yours!

Blackmailing and misusing
I already mentioned about it above. But I emphasize again, I know of facebook accounts that have been hacked or maybe somehow the person got control of it, and then misused it fully. From using your private pictures to using your friends and family's private pictures and sharing them and putting them up in websites is not unheard of.

So what then?
Well people would use facebook, regardless of these adverse effects. I use facebook and would continue to use it. But it's important not to let this usage turn into an addiction or to put something in it that can be misused.

I know people use facebook for genuine, perfectly valid reasons, like being in touch with your brother who happens to live in Congo. Someone once commented, how would life be without facebook? I say, just go back about 4 years and you'd see how life was without facebook. People survived well without it, and will survive even if it stops tomorrow.

Facebook mania (Part 1)

2010-03-27T19:18:00.007Z

Reading my earlier posts, one might assume I am always a very serious person with some sort of agenda or propaganda or something. Other than what I have stated about my blog, I'm sorry to disappoint anyone who's thinking otherwise. I think it's good time to talk a bit about less-serious stuffs like facebook instead of rape and murders and genocides. Although, honestly speaking, expect a lot more serious stuff like that, in future, God willing.

"I'm into facebook"
I first came to know about facebook in the autumn of 2006, in an internet forum for students, and when this member started posting her profile link and all, I really thought it's just like any other site and a total waste of time. (Well it is a waste of time in many cases though!)

I have used other social networking sites prior to that, like hi5 and zorpia, but they all failed the test of time and popularity compared to facebook. An entrepreneur was talking the other month about how genuine the ideas of sites like facebook and google were, but come to think about it, social networking sites and search engines were already existent before facebook and google. But yes, the creators had talent and insight into the business as they knew exactly what the users wanted and needed (being users themselves) and provided a very simple, safe and free solution to the user needs (that other social networking sites and search engines could not give).

It's very normal to see school, college and university students (teens and youths) to be on facebook, and that was the case initially, but in recent years, even the middle-aged and elderly (not to be confused with the village elderly scums I mentioned here) people are on facebook. Of course while the 20-year old daughter happens to have just over 500 friends, the 50-year old momma happens to have just under 50 friends, but almost everyone (using the internet) is there.

I know my cousins and friends are there and almost every single person I met at uni is there, and I am there too!

Here's a real-life facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=423147527852&ref=mf

"I've been fraped"
With any new craze, expect new urban words and phrases popping all over the place. 'Frape' is a good example. It's when you leave your facebook account signed on and someone else (your roommate or friend) comes and 'rapes' your account, i.e. makes you look like a freak.

Finally guys can claim to be raped too, or fraped. Though you can probably understand easily that the person has been fraped, if you know him/her well to know that he won't say "I like sausages, hot and big" for a facebook status.

The entertainment industry is also capitalising on such things. You now have stand-up comedians making people laugh over something that happened in facebook (try Aziz Ansari) or TV shows and movies making references to it (Gossip Girl, etc). It's expected though; coz facebook is the happening thing these days (along with al-Qaeda and terrorism).

"Add me up on facebook"
Please don't disagree with me on this coz it's so damn true. Facebook has replaced the traditional way of communication, just as emails replaced letters.

You like someone, find the person on facebook.
You looking for someone, type his name or email address.
You want people to come to this happening event (birthdays, parties, conferences, etc), put up an event invitation to your 500 friends and you can save money trying to text them or call them or do it the traditional 'card invitation' way.
You want to preach your ideas to your contacts and unknowns, set up facebook groups, notes, links, etc. (Blogs, forums and websites also fall under this purpose but they are not as happening as 'facebook'!)
You have this arranged marriage thing going, get to know your bride/groom on facebook.
And the list goes on and on...

It's even opened doors to the shy ones, the geeky and nerdy ones, the "social outcasts". Never mind not being able to say a single line when you're with the person, open up your mind on facebook! It's like the MSN and Paltalk chatters, the virtually 'social' people.

People also tend to do whatever they like, knowing fully well that contacts would see them or comment on them. From crazy photos from nights out to the coolest gadget you got, you'll get noticed! Certainly, this facebook mania is here to stay until something else takes its place. If you're not in it, that's probably because you got bored, so step back and watch the 10-12 year old kids take your place and get this mania going!

I'll mention few things about the ill-effects this mania has caused in Part 2.

Double Homicides & Gang Rape by Terrorists

2010-03-27T17:44:00.009Z

These are two very recent stories that came out. The first one is about two terrorists, one a Muslim by name and the other a Hindu by name, uniting for one purpose: to turn a girl into an orphan by killing both her parents. The second one is about a poor girl who was gang raped, while the neighbours were all aware of her screams during the incident.
I will let you decide which is a greater act of terrorism.

First incident
One of the terrorists proposed marriage to the victim's parents for their daughter, but due to the criminal reputation of the terrorist, the parents duly refused his proposal. It happened in the capital city of Bangladesh, and the parents had even made arrangements for their daughter to flee off to Malaysia in an effort to save her from the terrorist. Read here in Bengali.

Murderers are sadistic in general, but what is even more horrific is the way they commit such murders and the mentality they have. These terrorists, while killing both the mother and the father, told the elder daughter (the elder sister of the family, who was present during the act of murder) as a solemn mode of confirmation, "We have left your mother and father dead, now stay alone."

I personally don't think even an ounce of humanity is left in these terrorists. I would leave the Words of our Lord for such terrorists when He said (as translated), "“And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell to abide therein; and the Wrath and the Curse of Allaah are upon him, and a great punishment is prepared for him”
[Quran, Chapter 4: al-Nisaa, Verse 93]

Maybe it's of no use preaching to braindeads, which is why I'll expound on what is the prescribed punishment for these terrorists later, God willing.

Second incident
The story is as follows: the poor girl lives with another girl in a slum and the local drug addicts have been bothering her for some time and on the day of incident, they made an attempt to rape her but the girl strongly defended herself with a dagger-like knife (locally called 'boti') which prompted the addicted youths to threaten her and leave.
Following that, she and the other girl she lived with felt very insecure and went to the neighbour's house for shelter. (In case you're wondering, in places like that and situations like these, the victim does not have access to security forces and the local police are sometimes corrupt enough to rape an orphan-girl themselves.)

What happened after that is tragic. During dinner time, the neighbour liaised with the youths to bring them over and this time, betrayed by the neighbouring family, she could not defend herself. The scums dragged her in another room, gang raped her and left. The number of rapists probably were more than 10 (yes, ten!) and there were loud screams initially that the entire neighbourhood could listen, but nobody did anything to save her, until the screams disappeared to silence.

I don't really have much to say on this incident. One of the readers of the news commented that he cried just reading the news and another commented the entire neighbourhood are to blame and should be hanged for failing to provide security to the girl.

I'd again leave off with the Verse of our Lord for such people:
"The recompense of those who wage war against Allaah and His Messenger and do mischief in the land is only that they shall be killed or crucified or their hands and their feet be cut off from opposite sides, or be exiled from the land. That is their disgrace in this world, and a great torment is theirs in the Hereafter"
[Quran, Chapter 5: al-Maaidah, Verse 33]

What some Muslims do (Part 1b)

2010-03-27T16:48:00.004Z

Following on from Part 1a here, I have had some time to digest the story and comment on it.

The type of story mentioned is not uncommon, I'm afraid. They occur frequently in various lands but what is so ironic about such stories is that sometimes the culprits try to put forward or hide behind something that is inncoent of such crimes, for instance 'Islam'! Here are few issues that I've been thinking:

1. From where did these idiots get the notion of having an arbitration council that would not include anyone outside of their locality? In other words, according to their rationale, you can now go to their village, kill these idiots, and get away with it, because you are not from that village!

2. When you have security forces, local governments and other means of legal procedures, who gave those "elderly" fools the permission and validity of having a council of their own that would judge capital crimes?

3. The council found the girl guilty of "illicit sex". Of course, if a woman is pregnant, and the baby is not from her husband, that is technically speaking, due to "extra-marital sex".
Technicalities aside, these so-called village elders judged by something that is from the act of ignorance, or maybe from a cult they practise in their village, but it's certainly not Islam.

In case of a woman who is raped, if it is during her early days of pregancy she has the right to abort the baby, and if it is during the later days, she is prescribed to keep the baby as the baby has already been given life. Moreover, in Islam, every child that is born, regardless of who their parents are, is innocent and pure, and this is from the novelty of Islam.
For more on abortion out of rape in Islam, read this.

One does not need to belong to any religion to appreciate that women that are raped and subsequently getting pregnant are not guilty of "illicit sex". I wonder what religion or cult those idiots ("village elders") truly belong to. Could be something like the medieval Christian cults led by Pope John XXII and others that engaged in what is known as "witch hunting".

4. The council gave the 'guilty' 101 lashes. I have never heard of any 101 lashes being the prescribed punishment of a girl being raped and subsequently pregnant. What about the rapist Enamul Mia? Oh I forgot, he ain't from the same village.
It would be sadistic for me to say this, but I would say it anyway, how about an outsider psycho cuts off the genitals of these elderly idiots and then have an arbitration council where these idiots are given 101 lashes each, for being transsexual?

5. Why the hastiness in executing the 101 lashes punishment? Why not bring Enamul Mia, do some DNA tests, get some witnesses, etc.? My bad, that's not the ritual of their cult!

I will stop here. It's getting too long and I hope everybody got the point already. What these idiots have done is from injustice, oppression and creating loopholes for future rapists.

What some Muslims do (Part 1a)

2010-03-21T15:51:00.005Z

Right, this is going to be a long series highlighting events and incidents showing the ugliness of some Muslims while they hide under the banner of Islam. Part 1 highlights the plight of a 16-year old girl who was raped. If that was not enough, she was whipped 101 times by the "elderly, influential" scumbags of a village in Brahmanbaria, Bangladesh. One wonders, is this 2010 or pre-Islamic ignorance where honour killings of women and daughters used to be practised regularly (oops, honour killings still exist today!!)?

So here's the story (read):

A 16-year old school girl was on her way to High School when she was raped by 20-year old Enamul Mia.

The girl was too ashamed and too afraid to lodge a police report against the rapist. By the time the family discovered the rape, she was already pregnant. In a desperate bid at damage control, the family managed to marry her off to a man in the neighboring village. But a month after the marriage, the husband became suspicious at her rapidly ballooning belly. A medical examination quickly established the fact that she was 7 months pregnant!

So the outraged husband promptly divorced her. With no place to go, she returned to her father’s place. She then underwent an abortion. But now the whole saga had become public knowledge.

On January 17 this year, about 8 months after the rape, an influencial group of matabars (village elders) led by Manik Mia decided to form a so-called arbitration meeting at the father’s place. The arbitration council included 2 Imams from neighboring mosques.

The press report stated that at one stage of the inhuman torture, the girl collapsed and fainted. She regained her sense after two hours.

In any event, the village arbitration council found the girl guilty of illicit sex resulting in pregnancy (ignoring that it is from a rape) and issued a fatwa (religious edict) for her to be given 101 lashes of the cane. Village leader Delwar Hossain alias Ullashi executed the durra (lashes) on the same day, January 17.

Furthermore, the arbitration council also fined the victim’s father Tk 1,000 (£10) and issued another fatwa that her family would be forced into isolation and branded an outcast if he failed to pay up. The father said that the family is being watched to prevent them from seeking legal advice.

The rapist Enamul Mia is left untouched and unharmed.

I think I lost the will to comment further at this point. To be continued, God willing.

Said like a true Imam

2010-03-21T15:13:00.006Z

This was originally brought to my attention by one of the brothers in his blog. This Muslim preacher called Yahya Ibrahim (to know more about him and listen to his talks, visit here) met the Imam (one who leads the congregational prayer in the Mosque) of the Prophet Muhammad's Mosque in Madeenah, KSA, called Shaykh Salaah al-Budair (صلاح البدير) in 2009 in a conference held in Mumbai, India.

Shaykh Salaah is one of the permanent Imams of Masjid an-Nabawi (Prophet's Mosque) and is also a Judge (Qadhi) in high court in Madeenah. His recitation of the Quran can be listened from here. Yahya Ibrahim relates a beautiful experience with him, which is what I am going to share here for the readers.

The Question
Yahya could not initially gather up the courage to ask Shaykh Salaah this question as it is a bit sensitive and can be misconstrued. But once he did, he asked:

"O Shaykh (addressing him with respect), Allah has honoured you and has bestowed an enormous Grace upon you by granting you the duty and privilege of standing on the very Pulpit of the Prophet Muhammad (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam), in his Masjid, within sight of his home and burial site, sala Allahu alayhi wa salaam. You lead the prayers and advise others on his (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) behalf. O Shaykh, how do you prepare yourself for this? How do you prepare your sincerity (ikhlaas) to find the courage to stand where you stand and lead where you lead?"

The Reply & Following Incident

Shaykh Salaah smiled. He bowed his head down and politely said:

"Every level has its Divine assistance. To abstain from that would be Riyaa (showing off)."

It was not over then and there. The Shaykh gave an instant reply with intelligence.
Later in the day, Shaykh Salaah pulled Yahya to the side and said privately:

"Every day I pray that Allah take my life rather than allow me to stand in the place of the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) with an overwhelming hypocrisy in my heart. I pray every night that I not wake if I do not discharge the trust placed upon me."

Both of them wept.

And so...
If you are a Muslim, you would appreciate the sensitivity of the question. But even as a non-Muslim, you can appreciate the sincerity and humbleness of Shaykh Salaah in what he said and does. That is the saying of an Imam (leader). That is the saying of the follower of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be on him.

What they don't want you to know (Part 2)

2010-03-21T14:23:00.006Z

I provided a snippet to the plight of children in Gaza and how it breeds terrorism and terrorists earlier here. Let me start off with another clip, this time a BBC on-air conversation featuring Tony Benn (President of 'Stop the War Coalition' read), wherein he talks about providing donations to war-torn Gaza:

If you listen carefully, Tony Benn, a veteran of Royal Air Force (RAF) in UK, mentions few times about us being humans. One could say he was being emotional and not rational because as BBC presenter mentioned, "aid can go to Hamas". Very good concern there by the presenter!

So, when aids are being provided in Africa, in developing nations in Asia, in South America and elsewhere, do you think all the aid goes to "poor and needy people"? Seriously, how preposterous is the point raised by the presenter?

As Tony Benn rightly mentioned, Hamas is the controlling Palestinian authority in Gaza, and many relief camps, hospitals, schools, etc, would naturally have something to do with the authority. Does your logic tells you that we should now stop donating because Hamas is the democratic authority in Gaza? Sorry I am a human and I am a Muslim. I don't buy conspiracy theories and closed-door talks.

I thank the Saudi government and others who were humane enough to raise donations for the people in Gaza. And I mention to any Muslim reading this post, the hadeeth of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be on him, in which he cautioned one of his noble companions, to fear the cry of the one who is oppressed, for there is no barrier between Allah and the supplication of the oppressed.
واتق دعوة المظلوم فإنه ليس بينها وبين الله حجاب

Beginner's Guide to Arabic Proper Names (Part 2)

2010-03-21T13:57:00.003Z

Continuing from Part 1, let me illustrate what I mentioned with some examples. Please feel free to comment if you have confusion or want to add a point.

Some examples of Arabic names and their explanations:

One can easily notice that names do not necessarily contain all five components as discussed. The omission of any one component from the name does not necessarily imply that the person lacks it; more often the names are presented in different ways in different places to different people. Such as Aboo Bakr as-Siddique (the first Caliph of the Ummah) is known by his kunyah ("Aboo Bakr") and laqab ("as-Siddique") only, but his full name containing ism and nasab and nisbah are generally unknown to common people, except those who know him well!

Sometimes it is practically impossible to know whether the middle (or the end) part of a person's name is the secondary ism (in case of people having double isms) or the nasab or the laqab just by reading the name of the person, because of people not fully complying with the traditional Arabic conventions. Such examples have also been given and discussed below.

1. Aboo 'Abdillaah Aal Ahmad al-Bengaalee
This means and translates into: Father of 'Abdullaah (son), of the family of Ahmad, from the land or tribe of al-Bengaal (Bangladesh and the part of India known as West Bengal)

Aboo 'Abdillaah = Kunyah, where name of son is an ism
Aal Ahmad = Nasab, tracing the family name which is an ism
al-Bengaalee = Nisbah, tracing the land or tribe of the ancestors or the usual location of the person
Hence the structure is: Kunyah + Nasab + Nisbah

Note that the kunyah does not necessarily mean the person already has a son called 'Abdullaah. Also the nisbah does not necessarily mean the person normally lives (or ever lived) in al-Bengaal, but it can show his geographical origin or tribal connection, which helps in identifying the person by foreign people and also helps the person to maintain kinship.

Also note that son is called 'Abdullaah but to place this in the father's kunyah, it becomes 'Abdillaah, as in Aboo 'Abdillaah. This is essentially to do with Arabic grammar.

2. Muhammad ibn Yoosuf ibn Yoonus Aal 'Uthaymeen al-Jaamaykee al-Amreekee
This means and translates into: Muhammad, son of Yoosuf (father), son of Yoonus (grandfather), of the family of 'Uthaymeen, from the land or tribe of al-Jaamaykaa (Jamaica), from the land of al-Amreekiyyah (America)

Muhammad = Ism
Ibn Yoosuf ibn Yoonus = Nasab, going back to two generations
Aal 'Uthaymeen = Nasab, tracing the family name which is an ism
al-Jaamaykee = Primary Nisbah, tracing the land or tribe of the ancestors
al-Amreekee = Secondary Nisbah, tracing the land of the ancestors or the usual location of the person
Hence the structure is: Ism + Nasabs + Nisbahs

Note that the two generation nasab relates to the isms of the father (Yoosuf) and the grandfather (Yoonus). Also the nasab is fully complete; it includes past two generations as well as the family name of the person. The nisbahs are also adequate to identify the tribe and location of the person.

3. Umm Ahmad Maryam bint Ahmad al-Jaamaykiyyah
This means and translates into: Mother of Ahmad (son), Maryam, daughter of Ahmad (father), from the land or tribe of al-Jaamaykaa (Jamaica)

Umm Ahmad = Kunyah, where name of son is an ism
Maryam = Ism
Bint Ahmad = Nasab, going back to one generation
al-Jaamaykiyyah = Nisbah, tracing the land or tribe of the ancestors or the usual location of the person
Hence the structure is: Kunyah + Ism + Nasab + Nisbah

Note that the name of the person's father occurring as an ism (Ahmad) has been preserved or carried forward by giving it to the son. This is common in many families and tribes.

4. Faatimah Ahmad
This means and translates into: Faatimah, of the family of Ahmad or daughter of Ahmad

Faatimah = Ism
Ahmad = Nasab, tracing the family name or may go back to one generation
Hence the structure is: Ism + Nasab

Note that the ism of the person is clear since Faatimah is feminine and Ahmad is masculine. However, Ahmad written or read after Faatimah may mean the family name of the person or the name of the person's father, both of which is considered as nasab. It appears that the name has been written this way for convenience or out of ignorance. The name should have been correctly written (or read) as Faatimah Aal Ahmad (Faatimah, of the family of Ahmad) or Faatimah bint Ahmad (Faatimah, daughter of Ahmad).

5. Aboo Hakeem Bilaal Davies al-Jaamaykee
This means and translates into: Father of Hakeem (son), Bilaal, of the family of Davies or son of Davies, from the land or tribe of al-Jaamaykaa (Jamaica)

Aboo Hakeem = Kunyah, where name of son is an ism
Bilaal = Ism
Davies = Nasab, tracing the family name or may go back to one generation
al-Jaamaykee = Nisbah, tracing the land or tribe of the ancestors or the usual location of the person
Hence the structure is: Kunyah + Ism + Nasab + Nisbah

Note that the detail for the nasab is ambiguous as explained in the previous example. However, Davies is a common non-Muslim family name, implying that the person is a revert to Islaam. The surname of a non-Muslim commonly refers to the family name of the person; hence it is most likely that Davies is the family name of the person. In such case, the name should be correctly written as Aboo Hakeem Bilaal Aal Davies al-Jaamaykee, though dropping 'Aal' before family name is becoming increasingly common for convenience or due to ignorance.

6. Aboo 'Abdir Rahmaan Muhammad Naasiruddeen al-Albaanee
This means and translates into: Father of 'Abdur Rahmaan, Muhammad, supporter of the religion, from the land or tribe of al-Albaaniyaa (Albania)

Aboo 'Abdir Rahmaan = Kunyah, where name of son is an ism or a laqab
Muhammad = Ism
Naasiruddeen = Laqab, meaning supporter of the religion
al-Albaanee = Nisbah, tracing the land or tribe of the ancestors or the usual location of the person
Hence the structure is: Kunyah + Ism + Laqab + Nisbah

Note that the laqab of the person comes immediately after the ism in this example, but it could precede the ism in some cases. The person is likely to be known primarily by his laqab, when both ism and laqab are available. The name of the person's son occurs as an ism, though it can be regarded as a laqab since the name ('Abdur Rahmaan) occurs in a compound form.

7. al-Hasan al-Basree
This means and translates into: al-Hasan (the good, the handsome), from the land or tribe of al-Basrah

al-Hasan = Ism or Laqab, meaning the handsome
al-Basree = Nisbah, tracing the land or tribe of the ancestors or the usual location of the person
Hence the structure is: Ism or Laqab + Nisbah

Note that the name of the person can be either an ism or a laqab or both ism and laqab, as it is preceded by the definite article. As per the general rule of thumb, it is the ism of the person. The nisbah does not necessarily mean the person's ancestors are from the tribe of al-Basrah, it may well be that the person lives (or lived) primarily in al-Basrah. (And the historical person al-Hasan al-Basree primarily lived in al-Basrah even though he was born in al-Madeenah.)

8. Muhammad Moosaa Aal Nasr
This means and translates into: Muhammad Moosaa, of the family of Nasr

Muhammad = Ism
Moosaa = Secondary Ism or Nasab, going back to one generation
Aal Nasr = Nasab, tracing the family name
Hence the structure is: Ism(s) + Nasab(s)

Note that the second part of this particular name, Moosaa, is ambiguous. It can be the second ism of the person (if the person has double forenmes) or the nasab going back to the person's father or the nasab tracing the family name of the predecessors or starting the family name for the successors. Since the part 'Aal Nasr' follows the part 'Moosaa', it cannot be the nasab that traces the family name of the predecessors, but whether Moosaa is the second ism or the nasab going back to the person's father cannot be verified from the information given. Also, the word 'Moosaa' cannot be considered as a laqab since it is not preceded by the definite article.

If the word 'Moosaa' is actually the ism of the person's father, then it should have been preceded by the particle 'ibn'. And if the word 'Moosaa' is actually the secondary ism of the person, then it should be kept as it is, but such secondary isms are not common in Arab cultures and it is not advised to have double isms which cause confusions.

This is a classic example of how it can be sometimes impossible to know, just by the information given, the exact description of some parts of a person's name. The problem rises when the middle part (or the end part) of the name is not preceded by a prefix such as ibn, bint or Aal or when the name does not occur as a laqab.

In some cultures, the part of the name after ism al-'aalam almost always denote the nasab tracing the family name, whereas in some other cultures, it usually denotes the secondary ism, and in other cases, it usually denotes the nasab going back to the person's father. In the first instance, Aal should be added as a prefix; in the second instance, the name is fine as it is though such practice is not common or encouraged; and in the final instance, ibn or bint should be added as a prefix. In case of a laqab, the format of the name helps identify it, such as Naasir ad-Deen automatically implies laqab.

References and suggested further reading:

1. Islam: The Religion and the People, by Bernard Lewis and Buntzie Ellis Churchill, Chapter – Some Practical Matters, page 171 onwards. Sections of the passages can be read online from: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=IVyMAvW9slYC (please go onto page 171)
Note that the book is not an authentic representation of Islaam and I do not endorse this book as a reliable source of beneficial knowledge about Islaam.

2. Islamic Names, by Annemarie Schimmel. Sections of the book (1989 CE edition) can be read online from: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qThvezos8LgC&dq
Note that the book may not be fully accurate or reliable from cover to cover, but it is a very good read for non-Arabs to learn about Islaamic names.

3. A Dictionary of Muslim Names, by Salahuddin Ahmed. An excellent dictionary listing Muslim names for males and females, together with their original Arabic words and corresponding English meanings. Sections of the book can be read online from: http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=g72WpOWFMj8C&dq
The book can be purchased online from many websites for less than £10, such as from here: http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/id/A_Dictionary_of_Muslim_Names/9781850653578

4. The Typology of Arabic Proper Nouns, Department of the Arabic Resources, The CJK Dictionary Institute, Inc. The original 50 page treatise can be purchased for a fee by e-mailing jack@cjki.org and the first three pages of the treatise can be read online from: http://www.kanji.org/cjk/arabic/Typology_of_Arabic_Names.doc

5. Alfiyyah Ibn Maalik fee an-Nahw was-Sarf (ألفية ابن مالك في النحو والصرف)
This is a magnificent piece of Arabic literature, authored by Aboo 'Abdillaah Muhammad ibn Maalik, may Allaah have mercy on him. He was an Arab grammarian, who lived and died in the seventh century AH (thirteenth century CE). Ibn Maalik was born in al-Andalus (الأندلس), commonly known as Spain today. He mastered the Arabic grammar and the Shaafi'ee fiqh after migrating to Damascus (Dimashq) in Syria (Sooriyyah), where he lived and died.

6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic_name

7. http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/islamic.shtml

8. http://heraldry.sca.org/laurel/names/arabic-naming2.htm

9. http://www.openlingua.de/ol/dictionary/english-arabic/

N.B. If someone finds any error or mistake in spelling, transliteration, translation, explanation or otherwise, please make a constructive comment for the error to be corrected. If someone feels something should be added, deleted or modified for whatever reason, please comment as appropriate. Thanks.

Beginner's Guide to Arabic Proper Names (Part 1)

2010-03-21T13:38:00.003Z

Since many of my posts would contain names of people who have Arabic names or Arabic structure, I think it is best to mention few basic things about Arabic proper names in general to avoid confusion. For instance, if I mention Abuz Zubair Shadeed Muhammad, a person might think I am talking about three different people here: 1. Abuz Zubair 2. Shadeed 3. Muhammad. In reality, it is one person and each of the elements in the name is from the full structure of Arabic names. So let's get started ...

Arabic and Islaamic proper names are ordinarily composed of five parts. A person may be mentioned by one or more of them, or by all of them. Sometimes, a person will be mentioned by one component in one place and by others in another place; this is especially common in historical works.

The parts are:

1. The ism (الاسم) or 'aalam (العالم): Ism (Plural: Asmaa أسْمَاء) means noun and اسم العالم (ism al-'aalam) is the definite proper noun in the grammatical sense. The personal name of a specific person is referred as ism al-'aalam in the strictest sense, or just ism or 'aalam in the short, informal sense. This is the first name or forename given to the person by his parents after birth. (Ism can also refer to names of things and be used in the general sense.) It can be –

(a) an Arabic name (occasionally even a pre-Islaamic one), including adjectives and nouns with specific meanings, such as Muhammad (praised), Ahmad (more praiseworthy), 'Alee (exalted), etc. Sometimes, the name is formed with the definite article (al-), as in al-Hasan (the good, the beautiful), al-Husayn (the diminutive form of al-Hasan), az-Zubayr (the noble Companion), ash-Shifaa (the curing, the healing), etc although most of these names can occur both with and without the article. When isms are preceded by the definite article, they are normally considered as laqabs (descriptive titles or nicknames);

(b) a biblical name in its Quraanic form, such as Haaroon (Aaron), Ibraaheem (Abraham), Sulaymaan (Solomon), Yoosuf (Joseph), Moosaa (Moses), Ayyoob (Job), etc;

(c) a compound name, usually a combination of 'Abd (slave) with one of the ninety-nine names of God, as in 'Abd al-'Azeez (slave of the Mighty), 'Abd al-Kareem (slave of the Generous), 'Abd ar-Rahmaan (slave of the Compassionate), or simply 'Abd Allaah (slave of God). The feminine equivalent would be a combination of Amat (أمة) with one of the names of God, e.g. Amatullaah (female slave of God), Amat al-'Aleem (female slave of the All Knowing), etc. Christian Arab names may also take this form, e.g. 'Abd al-Maseeh (slave of the Messiah) but it is not appropriate for a Muslim to call anyone by such names. All compound isms can be considered as laqabs and there is a benefit to it, as will be explained later;

(d) a Persian (e.g. Jamsheed, Rustam) or Turkish (e.g. Teemoor) name.

In some Muslim cultures or traditions, a person is given double (or even triple) forenames, usually the first being Muhammad, as in Muhammad Hasan, Muhammad Dhafar, etc. Such a person is usually called by the second of his given names, for example Muhammad Hasan is called Hasan by the people. This phenomenon of having or giving double (or multiple) forenames is not common in Arab cultures.

2. The kunyah (الكنية): a name or a title, composed of Aboo (father of) or Umm (mother of) plus a proper or a common noun, such as Aboo Bakr (the first Caliph). The kunyah always precedes the ism, as in Aboo Moosaa 'Alee ('Alee, father of Moosaa) or Abul Qaasim Muhammad (the kunyah and ism of the Prophet Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). In principle, Aboo or Umm is followed by the eldest son's forename (e.g. Umm Ahmad, "Mother of Ahmad"), although this is not always observed.

If the ism is preceded by the definite article (al-) such as al-Hasan, the parent's kunyah becomes Aboo al-Hasan, which is shortened as Abul Hasan. As will be discussed below, some consider isms preceded by the definite article or isms that are compound in nature (such as 'Abd al-'Azeez) to be laqabs (descriptive titles or nicknames), hence it follows that the kunyah may be attributed to the ism or the laqab.

Kunyahs do not always represent actual parental relationships. Several kunyahs became associated with certain personal names (isms), either by custom or out of respect for the precedent. For example, a man named Ibraaheem is often called Aboo Ishaaq (Father of Isaac) or Aboo Ya'qoob (Father of Jacob) because of the biblical/Quraanic precedent, regardless of whether or not the man actually had a son named Isaac or Jacob. The kunyah may express the hope for a son or an offspring with the intention of giving him a certain name.

It was traditional to avoid using certain kunyahs, also out of respect. During the Prophet's lifetime, people were prohibited from taking his kunyah (but not his ism); after his death, it was permissible to take either his kunyah or his ism, but not to couple them as Abul Qaasim Muhammad.

A person may have more than one kunyah. 'Uthmaan ibn 'Affaan (the third Caliph) had three kunyahs: Aboo 'Amr, Aboo 'Abd Allaah and Aboo Laylah. Sometimes, warriors would use one kunyah in peacetime and another during war. In written or spoken form, only one kunyah can be used at a time, even though the person may have multiple kunyahs. For example, a person with two kunyahs: Aboo 'Abdillaah and Abul Hasan can be called either Aboo 'Abdillaah or Abul Hasan, but not "Aboo 'Abdillaah Abul Hasan" together.

Kunyahs are commonly metaphorical, alluding to a desired quality or some characteristic (either positive or negative) or distinguishing mark that the person possesses, as in Abul Fadl (Father of Merit), Abul Khayr (Father of Goodness), Abul Dawaniq (Father of Pennies, the kunyah of the 'Abbaasid Caliph 'Abd Allaah al-Mansoor, alluding to his stinginess), Abul Dhubaab (Father of Flies, referring to a man's bad breath), Aboo Shaamah (Father of Birthmark, referring to his birthmark), etc.

If a person's son or daughter is given double forenames as done in some Muslim families and tribes, the person is usually given the kunyah using the name that the son or daughter is known by amongst the people. For example, the father of Muhammad Hasan, where Muhammad and Hasan are both isms, is given the kunyah Abul Hasan. Sometimes the father himself may have double forenames such as Muhammad Kareem; hence his kunyah becomes Abul Hasan in this case to avoid successive usage of the name Muhammad. This problem is not encountered by Arabs who do not normally give or have double isms.

In some non-Arab cultures, males are given just kunyahs such as Abul Qaasim, without any isms. This prompts many people calling the person by his (future) son's name, for example Abul Qaasim is called Qaasim by the local people out of ignorance of the Arabic structure and meaning of names.

3. The nasab (النسب): the lineage, a list of ancestors beginning with the father, each introduced with the particles ibn (son of) or bint (daughter of). This is, properly speaking, a patronymic. It can be loosely referred to as the surname or family name. Often, two generations are given with or without the common family name, but in biographical dictionaries, for persons of great importance, the lineage is traced back as far as possible. The lineage comes right after kunyah and ism in usage, such as Aboo 'Abdillaah Muhammad ibn Yoosuf, Abul Hasan ibn Rabee', 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab, Maryam bint Ahmad, etc.

The lineage do not normally contain metronymics, meaning the name of one's mother or maternal ancestors. The chief exception to that is 'Eesaa ibn Maryam (Jesus, son of Maryam) due to the miraculous nature of 'Eesaa's birth. Nasabs (Plural: Ansaab أنساب) do not necessarily have to contain the ism al-'aalam of one's ancestor; it can be traced to the kunyah of the ancestor such as Ibn Abee Taalib (note that 'Aboo' changes to 'Abee' when placed in nasab), or traced to the laqab such as Ibn al-Qayyim, meaning son of the attendant, as the father of the person was given the laqab "al-Qayyim" since he was an attendant at a local school.

The nasab can also include the common family name or ancestry of the person, meaning the paternal family one belongs to. This is the name that is common to predecessors and/or will be common to successors of a family, not just the father or first-born child. It is common to replace ibn (ابن) or bint (بنت) with Aal (آل) to denote family names, such as Aal Sa'ood (the family of Sa'ood), Aal Salmaan (the family of Salmaan), Aal 'Imraan (the family of 'Imraan), etc.

In spoken form, both ibn (or bint for females) and Aal can be used to refer to a person, such as Aal Sa'ood can be called Ibn Sa'ood for the male or Bint Sa'ood for the female, especially when the nasab is used in isolation without the other parts of the full name. The person who initiated the family name must not have the particle 'Ibn' before the family name (which is to be carried forward to the future generations), since Ibn can only be used as a prefix before the nasab for the successors of the original initiator. The initiator is to be called by the family name itself with or without 'Aal'.

In Persian, ibn is expressed by –i (e.g. Hasan-i Sabbah) or by zade (son), as in Qadizade/ Kadızade (Son of a Judge).

In Turkish, ibn is expressed by oğlu (son), as in Mihaloğlu (Son of Michael).

In modern times, especially in the West, ibn or bint before ancestor's name is ommitted intentionally for convenience, such as Faisal ibn Yoosuf is known as Faisal Yoosuf. This results in people calling the person by what is perceived to be his/her surname, where in reality it is the name of his or her father (or even grandfather). Hence particles (ibn or bint) before patronymics should not be dropped.

4. The laqab (اللقب): an honorific or descriptive epithet, originally a nickname. In later times, these were adopted as titles and conferred with great ceremony. A laqab normally comes immediately after the ism and before the nasab, though it may precede the ism at times, and occasionally the laqab comes to replace the ism.

Many people are known principally by their laqabs such as Salaahuddeen. It is detested in Islaam to give an insulting or aggressive laqab to a person, based on the person's race, culture, appearance, etc. A number of Quraanic Verses and Prophetic Ahaadeeth highlight this issue, such as the hadeeth in the Saheehayn, where the Messenger of Allaah said to his companions during his last Hajj, "Verily your blood and your wealth and your honour is sacred (to one another) as the sacredness of this day, as the sacredness of this month, as the sacredness of this land".

The laqab (Plural: Alqaab ألقاب) can be –

(a) a physical quality, such as at-Taweel (the tall one), al-A'war (the one-eyed), al-Jameel (the beautiful), etc. The isms that are preceded by the definite article (al-) are generally considered to be laqabs, especially if the meanings imply a certain quality or characteristic of the person that the person possesses or would like to possess, such as al-Hasan (the handsome), etc;

(b) a person's profession, such as al-Khayyaat (the taylor), al-Haddaad (the blacksmith), al-Jarraah (the surgeon), etc. It should not be understood that they all indicate an individual's present profession; the professional laqab of an ancestor is often used for generations and simply becomes a family name (nasab);

(c) a person's characteristic (positive or negative) or special quality or merit that the person is known by (or would like to have), such as al-'Abbaad (the worshipper), Roohullaah (spirit of Allaah), ar-Rasheed (the rightly guided), etc. They can be turned into a family name (nasab) or an ascription (nisbah) for generations;

(d) of a theocratic nature, expressing dependence or reliance on God, e.g. al-Mansoor Billaah (the one made victorious by God), al-Mahdee Billaah (the divinely guided one), etc;

(e) a compound with the word deen (religion) or dawlah (state), such as Jalaal ad-Deen (majesty of the religion), Sayf ad-Deen (sword of the religion), Ghiyaath ad-Deen (helper of the religion), Ameen ad-Deen (trustworthy in religion), Aftaab ad-Deen (sun of the religion), Taaj ad-Deen (crown of the religion), 'Ameed ad-Dawlah (support of the state), 'Imaad ad-Dawlah (pillar of the state), Rukn ad-Dawlah (cornerstone of the state), etc.
Sometimes deen (دين) and dawlah (دولة) are coupled in titles such as Ghiyaath ad-Deen wad-Dawlah (helper of the religion and the state);

(f) a compound with a word such as Islaam or Mulk (kingdom), such as Nidhaam al-Mulk (administrator of the kingdom), Sayf al-Islaam (sword of Islaam), etc.

All compound isms (such as 'Abd al-'Azeez) and isms preceded by the definite article (such as al-Hasan) are normally considered to be laqabs. Using this reasoning, a person such as Muhammad al-Hasan is not considered to have double forenames (isms); Muhammad is his ism and al-Hasan is his laqab. Similarly, one with the name Muhammad 'Abd al-'Azeez is considered having Muhammad as the ism and 'Abd al-'Azeez as the laqab. This reasoning is valid and very useful when a person has a forename (primary ism) followed by another given name which is compound in nature or is preceded by the definite article (laqab or secondary ism). In such cases, the person is known primarily by either the laqab or the ism, depending on the culture and tradition.

When a person is given just one forename which is compound in nature (e.g. Amat Allaah) or starts with the definite article (e.g. az-Zubayr), it can be regarded as either ism or laqab or both ism and laqab. There are no strict rules defining such situations, but as a general rule of thumb:
if the person has just one forename, it is considered as ism;
if the person has double forenames, the forename that is compound in nature or starts with the definite article is considered as laqab and the other forename is considered as ism;
if the person has double forenames, none of which is compound in nature or starts with the definite article, then both forenames are regarded as isms, with one set as primary and the other as secondary.

5. The nisbah (النسبة): an adjective derived from the place of birth, ethnic origin, childhood or usual residence, or sometimes from a sect, tribe or family. It is an ascription that flows through generation after generation to uniquely identify the clan or identity of the person and his family. The nisbah comes at the end of all the other components of a name, such as Aboo Moosaa Muhammad ibn 'Abdillaah al-Jaabiree.

A person may have several nisbahs. The primary nisbah always refers to the land or tribe of the ancestors, whereas any other subsequent nisbah refers to the land of the ancestors or the normal geographical location of the person himself. The person's father or grandfather (or great-grandfathers) may have migrated to a new land or the person may have been born or raised (or the person normally lives) in the new location, but none of these facts change the primary nisbah of the person. If the person is commonly known by just one nisbah, it may be attributed to the land or tribe of the ancestors, or it may be attributed to the usual residence of the person. The relation that one ascribes to depends largely on time, place and people.

Each nisbah is preceded by the definite article (al-), as in Ahmad al-Madanee (Ahmad from Madeenah), Maryam al-Amreekiyyah (Maryam from America), etc. The masculine nisbah ends with 'ee' and the feminine nisbah ends with 'iyyah' after the name of the place or tribe or sect. Sometimes the name of the place or tribe is slightly modified when used in nisbah, such as al-Madeenah becomes Madan(-ee or -iyyah) to accommodate the nisbah.

Unlike multiple kunyahs, multiple nisbahs can be used together in both written and spoken form, although it is normal to use just one nisbah in spoken form for convenience. For example, a person having two nisbahs: al-Jaabiree and al-Amreekee can be called "al-Jaabiree al-Amreekee" in both written and spoken form, but the person is likely to be called just "al-Jaabiree" or "al-Amreekee" in spoken form for convenience.

If there are many different tribes or places in one geographical location, a person may have an appropriate nisbah in addition to the usual nisbah, to correctly identify the person's particular location or tribe. For example, an Arab Muslim belonging to al-Jaabir tribe within the Arab lands, may have two nisbahs: al-Jaabiree and al-'Arabee. The nisbah "al-Jaabiree" is the only nisbah likely to be used as long as the person is in the land of the Arabs, whereas "al-'Arabee" or "al-Jaabiree al-'Arabee" combined may be used when the person is in foreign lands such as Amreekiyyah (America).

What they don't want you to know (Part 1)

2010-03-21T12:52:00.005Z

Let me start off with a youtube clip to create the base of this post:

Now there is a lot of talk, on and off air, about terrorism, suicide bombing and related stuff. Does anybody remember the infamous phrase "axis of evil" initiated by ex-President of USA, George Bush, in 2002 where the countries Iraq, Iran and North Korea were referred the three evils of this world. I would let you guess what the "axis of evil" is to these children in Gaza.

Development of terrorists
I find it highly hilarious how many governments, with the US and British governments as the heads, think they can defeat terrorism by eliminating few terrorists or terrorist groups in certain parts of the world. It requires an ounce or less of common sense to know that these children, who saw their family being slaughtered in front of them, would live and grow for one reason and one reason only: to avenge the murder of their family. So take note, the intelligent one, that terrorists in 10-20 years' time are already under construction.

And it is said that the Afghans in general are very rough and they do not forget nor forgive wrongdoings. Many of them are known for taking revenges 2-3 generations down the line, meaning if your father is out there who happened to be responsible for the death of a civilian Afghan ("war casualty!"), it is likely your son or daughter would face the consequence, in what would be desribed as "terrorism".

"We would teach these barbarians a lesson for messing with us"
Now this is the mentality of many Westerners. Trust me you do not wish to teach anyone a lesson that backfires. Hitler wanted to teach a lesson to the world and we all know the lesson he taught and the consequence he and his allies faced.

Back to children in Gaza
Here is the reality check, as mentioned by an Englishman, studying at Hertfordshire University in England: "Children of Gaza: we ain't got no problems; life is easy".

If you still happen to have humane mentality, you'd appreciate, even within the comfort of your homes, the plight that children of Gaza are facing every single day of their lives. They are the potential terrorists and suicide bombers of tomorrow, so either campaign for terminating them totally or campaign against the oppresive Israeli forces.

Don't stop the Muslims if you can't convince the Christians!

2010-03-20T22:17:00.003Z

An old Church in Lincoln, UK was meant to be converted into a Mosque. Basically, the St. Matthew's Church in Lincoln was sold in 2006 to the Lincoln Islamic Association. The Muslims really hoped to find a place for a bigger mosque as the current mosque cannot accommodate the large number of Muslims in the area, especially during Friday prayers and the blessed month of Ramadan (Hijri Calendar month).

Surprisingly, in 2008, a fire destroyed much of the already sold-Church building on the same day that the approval for turning it into a Mosque was collected: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lincolnshire/7589455.stm
This led to a halt to the proposed Mosque conversion.

More surprisingly, in October 2009, after a long discussion by the City Council, it was decided not to approve a Mosque in the place: http://tmf.lincoln.gov.uk/Agendaitems.asp?sec_id=3681&type=Minutes
Co-incidence? Accident? Feel free to come up with any conspiracy theory!

The reasons for denial that were cited, in their own words:
•There was public concern regarding unacceptable harm due to traffic/parking problems.
•Concerns regarding noise and dust pollution.
•The impact of the building on the character and residential amenity of the area.

Nice. Let us look at the reply of the applicant called Dr T Ahmed:
•Approval had been given by the Council the previous year for the same build and use as a purpose built mosque.
•The day he picked up the approval for the mosque the former St Matthew's Church building was destroyed by fire.
•This was the second time a mosque had been destroyed in the City by fire.
•The City did not have a purpose built mosque.
•Muslims had worked in the City for half a Century they had a right to worship.
•The Orchard Street mosque had been in operation for 28 years and had no dedicated parking facilities; 60-80 people worshiped on a Friday and there was no evidence of harm to local residents.
•The Islamic Association would work with local residents to manage the parking situation.

And yes, the application was refused. I have few layman's questions:

Why was approval given in the first place without assessing the impact of the Mosque to the local community?
Does the committee or those who were against the proposal realise the lengthy, exhaustive process one has to go through to buy a property, especially when it is being bought by an Association that has no state funding available?
The building got destroyed by fire on the same day as approval was finalised. What is the inside story?
If parking problem in current Mosque can be got around, why can't adequate steps be not implemented in the new location? In fact, no parking sign and use of towing and tickets are very easy to deter any responsible person from abusing parking place.
How many Churches do Lincoln have and how many of these Churches are actually used adequately by the locals? (This is the case with most places in UK where large Churches lay bare and almost empty while small Mosques are overwhelmed by practising Muslims.)
How does the impact of the Mosque affect the character of the area?

Enough questions asked. One does not have to be a Muslim to see the obvious bias against the Muslims in the area.

I beg to put this point forward. It is not the Muslims' fault that Christianity cannot attract enough 'disciples' in Churches, when many atheists and agnostics and even 'non-practising Christians' who were born into Christian families mock Jesus and Christianity almost like out of habit. And when you have the belief that you are 'saved' already and love of Jesus is in your heart, then why bother going to Churches instead of enjoying a pint with friends?

Muslims are passionate about their religion. Many Muslims go overboard, and they should be punished. In fact, their prescribed punishment is severe enough to deter other Muslims not to go overboard.

But please do not stop the Muslims to be good disciples of Muhammad if you cannot convince Christians to be good disciples of Jesus.

Mother's Day in UK gone by...

2010-03-20T18:54:00.002Z

Ok I will keep my first post simple. UK celebrated it's 'Mother's Day' on 14th March 2010 (Sunday) and it got me thinking few things ...

I knew the Mother's Day was coming beforehand, but I did not take any preparation or make any special arrangement for it. You know the fancy cards and gifts, calling your mother in the morning and wishing her, or saying you love her, or spending the day with her, that kind of stuff. In fact the 'importance' of this day really struck me when I messaged one of my friends to come to this social gathering we had and she replied back saying it's Mothers Day and she's having lunch with her mother. How sweet.

I didn't know if I was supposed to feel ashamed of myself that I was not having lunch with my mother on Mother's Day or that I did not wish her at 12 am or early in the morning. Many of you might think I should be. Hmmm...

Origin of the Day
So here is a bit of digging up of Mothers Day origin and dates (courtesy: Wikipedia). Some say it came around as a follow up tradition of what used to be the honouring of the 'mother of the gods' in ancient Greece, then there is the Christian origin of honouring Virgin Mary (and the 'mother' church), and there is also the political feminist belief in USA attached to it.

Now with the origin identified, I am hard pressed to see how the very first Mother's Day had anything to do with the child's expression of love to his/her mother and honouring her out of love and respect. Bluntly speaking, that is not the reason why 'Mother's Day' came into existence.

Also, Mother's Day is celebrated on several different days, depending on the country/region. There is no universal day attached for this occasion.

So why the fuss?
I therefore ask, is there a reason for me to be ashamed of not following this pagan origin, that had nothing to do, whatsoever, with loving your mother as a child?

One might say, what's the big deal about the origin? It's what you do that matters.

I say, 'what' is normally done this day once a year, I do it as part of my habitual action throughout the year and I still do not feel I have done it enough number of times. To fix it as a one-day event in the year is simply cheap and superficial to me.

I further say, if you must know, I have "celebrated Mother's Day" throughout the year, without having to resort to a specific UK day or a USA day.

Some narrations, stories and incidents to reflect on:
I hope to write various entries on my mother and mothers in general in future, God willing. As for now, I just wish to put few narrations/incidents that the righteous people have done, prescribed others to do, and set examples that no son or daughter can emulate in the so-called Mother's Day:

1. Allah commanded in the Quran:

And your Lord decreed that you should worship none but Him and that you be dutiful to your Parents. If one of them or both attain old age in your life, then do not say to them uff (a word of disrespect), nor shout at them, rather address them in terms of honour / And lower for them the wing of submission and humility through mercy. And say, “My Lord! Grant them Your Mercy as they brought me up when I was small.” [Qur'an - Al-Israa' 17:23-24]

2. Mu’aawiyah ibn Jaahimah as-Sulamee narrates:

My father, Jaahimah, went to the Prophet Muhammad - Sal Allahu alayhi wa Sallam - and asked, "O Messenger of Allah, I would like to go out and fight for the sake of Allah, and I have come to you for advice."
The Prophet Muhammad asked him, "Is your Mother alive?" He (Jaahimah) said, "Yes."

“Then stay near her,” advised the Prophet - Sal Allahu alayhi wa Sallam, “For at her feet is Paradise!”

[Compare this with staying near your mother just for a day in a year]

3. Dhibyaan ibn Ali ath-Thowree used to travel with his mother to Makkah. There - in the scorching heat - he would dig a little pool and fill it with cool water. Then he would turn to his mother and say, "My mother, sit in this water to cool yourself."

4. A Yemeni man was making tawaaf (circumambulating around that black box) in Mecca, carrying his mother on his back saying, "I am her humble camel ..."

Then he said to the man called Ibn 'Umar, who was a companion of Prophet Muhammad, "Do you think that I have repaid her (rights)?"
Ibn Umar said, "No, not even a for a single moan that escaped her during child birth."

And finally...
I do not say that for you guys in UK who are accustomed to this type of thing, it is 'wrong' to honour and spend time with your mother on 14th March. But seriously, why 14th March 2010? Why take a pagan origin that worshipped the mother of gods and say this is your expression of love and honour for your mother? What happened on 13th March 2010? Was that day not meant to be loving and honouring and celebrating with your mother?

I am not saying people 'celebrating Mother's Day' love their mothers any less than those who do not celebrate it. In fact, love is something that can never be measured, especially with regards to one's family. I am questioning the rationale and superficial nature of this day.

For me, every single day is Mother's Day. And I regret every single day not being able to spend with my mother, every single meal not being able to join with my mother. I know my mother knows I love her, but I don't think she knows enough. Nobody but my Lord does.

For an Islamic perspective towards Mother's Day and mothers (or parents) in general, refer to: http://www.islamqa.com/en/ref/books/93