d o p a l a n d

The rabbit hole bored me; wonderland wasn’t as wonderful as it had appeared to be.

A Reminder to Myself First

"So make peace with your brethren" - Right, we accomplished that with excellence. It's interesting to know that an animal...

Secularists vs People of God

The secular world prides itself on knowledge and the people of God pride themselves on how little they know in...

Expressions of Divine Love

Expressions of Divine Love through the language of poetry is a familiar concept in the religion of Islam. Stories of...

Silence

Silence. The Orchestration of the universe is heard in your silence: in your contemplation of the meaning of life and...

A Poem

No one gets to choose the way in which the wind blows. We can say our branch is strongest that...

The Culture of Mystical Islam

The culture of mystical Islam flourished in the Persian speaking lands, from Turkey to the northwest Iran, Afghanistan, and Central...

Free-thought and Religion

"You shall not accept information, unless you verify it for yourself. I have given you the hearing, the eyesight, and...

God is Not the Universe. God is Lord of The Worlds.

That felt so good! Saying it, designing it, sharing it. I know the concept of God may be difficult to...

Appearance vs Reality

What we perceive around us in this sensory realm versus all that exists, independently of anyone's perception. Are we in...

On Self-Worth: By Charles Upton

When a given society loses its belief in God, or at least it's concrete sense that God is actually watching,...

Islam and The Media

The media is doing excellent PR work promoting biased stories on radical Islam/ Muslims, Islamophobia and the Muslim community at...

Be Humble

We are part of a historical continuum. Petra (Al-Batra'), a world wonder of human genius was once a wealthy trade...

Divine Attributes in the Manifest

On January 5, 2017December 16, 2017

Divine Attributes in the Manifest

On January 5, 2017December 16, 2017

2 of Allah’s name are ‘Al-Qabid’ (The Constrictor: Contracts) and ‘Al-Basit’ (The Munificent: Expands), and we can witness these 2 attributes in ourselves and in the manifest world. Islamic tradition states that everything is expanding and contracting: the heart, the lungs, the pupils, the universe, the corals, .. Under water, […]

Rituals

On January 4, 2017April 10, 2017

Rituals

On January 4, 2017April 10, 2017

3 of my favourite things: Quran, masbaha (99 beads used to praise, call on Divine names, glorify, thank …. Allah) and yoga mat ? In my experience this is true. Since my path in to Islam a couple of years ago I find myself to be more accepting, less judgmental and […]

Excerpts on Islamic Sciences: By, Sh. Hamza Yusuf

On January 3, 2017April 11, 2017

Excerpts on Islamic Sciences: By, Sh. Hamza Yusuf

On January 3, 2017April 11, 2017

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem. The Arabic term ‘Islam’ means to submit or to surrender and the root meaning, salima is to be whole and it’s a cognate of the Hebrew word shalom, which is related to the same idea. Shalom in Hebrew means wholeness. The idea of peace is a wholeness […]

Beirut

On January 2, 2017April 10, 2017

Beirut

On January 2, 2017April 10, 2017

Kindness – a state of being or a state that inclines to kindness. However, when truth needs to be spoken, it needs to be spoken and that too is my disposition. There is a time to speak and a time to let things go, there is a reaction or there […]

The knowledge of one self will lead to the knowledge of God

On December 29, 2016April 3, 2017

The knowledge of one self will lead to the knowledge of God

On December 29, 2016April 3, 2017

No matter who we are or where we live, deep inside we all feel incomplete. It’s like we have lost something and need to get it back. Just what that something is, most of us never find out. And of those who do, even fewer manage to go out and […]

The streets

On December 28, 2016April 10, 2017

The streets

On December 28, 2016April 10, 2017

Why do we search the streets when it is right within ? Repeat: Happiness is an internal state so my journey is inwards. You will be adequate in your own eyes when you experience deeper and deeper levels of understanding. The only real person inside of you is you. That person is […]

Who is Shams Tabrizi?

On December 25, 2016April 1, 2019

Who is Shams Tabrizi?

On December 25, 2016April 1, 2019

Shams Tabrizi is something else. He is Jalaluddin Rumi’s mentor and companion, he provided Rumi with wisdom and then Rumi provided us with sweet poetry. I came across his story when I read The Forty Rules of Love, a book by Elif Shafak. Centered around a woman going through an […]

Virgin Mary in The Quran

On December 25, 2016December 26, 2017

Virgin Mary in The Quran

On December 25, 2016December 26, 2017

Did you know – there is a chapter in the Quran named Maryam (Mary)? This is not it, also Maryam or Virgin Mary is the only woman in the Quran mentioned by name. * The example we find and learn from Maryam (as) is her devotion, exemplary worship to her Creator and […]

Hidden Blessings

On December 23, 2016April 10, 2017

Hidden Blessings

On December 23, 2016April 10, 2017

We often take our best assets for granted. Our effortless breath, youth, health, curiosity, mental capacity, love, care … We have to be everything for ourselves, continuously. Let us learn to do our best, in everything, while letting God ( life ) handle the rest.

Selfie

On December 22, 2016April 10, 2017

Selfie

On December 22, 2016April 10, 2017

Selfie. What an ugly word. The self is the one thing we need to keep in check. And in 2016 (maybe 2015), the word selfie was added in the latest edition of Oxford Dictionary. Deep. Deep times. The past couple of years, the “love of self appearance” craze welcomed many […]