The Classical persistent western attitude to the natural world
1- The natural world is world as given. This world includes the human being before it is influenced by other human beings. In other words, the natural world includes the human being as an animal, not as an human. 2- This distinction between animal and human echoes...
The Qur’an should not be valued as merely a sacred object
1. The Qur’an as Self-Consistent and Coherent Guidance (1) Allah says in the Qur’an about the Qur’an, that it is a self-consistent, coherent message from the Creator to the most favoured among His creatures. He also says of it that it is the final revelation of His...
Muqaddimah of ibn al-Salah
Kitab Ma’rifat anwa’ Ilm al-Hadith, better known as the Muqaddimah of Ibn al-Salah, is a well-known intermediate level text on the science of Usul al-hadith. For students familiar with the Arabic language and have covered beginners texts in hadith methodology, this...
Shaytan’s Tricks
Most people most of the time do not intend to do bad things (crimes and sins, like lying, stealing, defrauding, raping, killing, backbiting, etc.). Most people most of the time intend to do good things (or ‘neutral’ things, things whose good or bad value is not known). The Shaytan would be wasting much of his energy…
Mixed classes for men and women
Some people from India, where I used to teach, have put to me the following question: Why now do you teach classes in which men and women students share the same space? [By ‘the same space’ is meant a space without any sort of physical partition.] Since the question addresses my own practice, I am obliged to answer for myself.
The Month of Ramadan
Translated by Dr. Abu Zayd They asked: What is the meaning of the month of Ramadan? I replied: It is a month of blessings, abundance, happiness, and beauty. In it, the Qurʾān was revealed as guidance for humanity, guidance that is self-evident and clear....
The Soundest Book
They asked: What is the greatest book? I replied: After the Book of God, the greatest book undoubtedly is the Ṣaḥīḥ of Imām Bukhārī, entitled al-Jāmiʿ al-Musnad al-Ṣaḥīḥ al-Mukhtaṣar min Umūr Rasūlillāh wa Sunanihī wa Ayyāmihī. Nothing like it has ever been authored in Islam or any other tradition.
Contemporary Issues in Congregational Prayer: Live Broadcasting and Women’s Congregation
When forced to pray from home—such as during a pandemic—some question whether they can join a congregation by following a live broadcast of the imam. Under Islamic law, however, a valid congregational prayer demands the imam and worshippers share the same physical space; audio or video streams alone are insufficient.