Few Thoughts on Surah al-‘Ankabut
The surah begins with the question: {a hasiba n-nasu an…} It is not right to translate hasiba as ‘think’/‘imagine’ or ‘suppose’/‘conjecture’. The meaning here is ‘reckon’, ‘calculate’, to use reason to weigh up options in order to come to a judgment about…
Desire and Love in Marriage
I want to begin by trying to explain to you the difference between desire (hawa) and love (mahabba). Desire is something that happens to you; you are passive before it; it arises; it gets you; it seems strong and you seem weak. It is aroused by…
Reflections on Education
The importance of religion to Muslims means, an emphasis on Arabic and Qur’anic studies; and the importance of earning their livelihood, means they have instead, to learn English, which is the only medium Western learning could be studied.
The Prophet as a Teacher
The manners and personal preferences, and also the public judgements and policies, of the Prophet, (s),, have been studied and preserved by devout Muslims throughout the millennium and half since the coming of Islam.
The Sunnah Explains the Qurʾān
They asked: Do you agree with those who say that the entirety of the Sunnah explains the Qurʾān? I replied: Who am I to agree or disagree with the Imāms of the ummah? I am merely a student who stole a seat at their table, who seeks to learn something from them…
Sunnah and Ḥadīth
They asked: What is the meaning of sunnah? The technical meaning of the term is a way or practice that was established and pursued by the Prophet, peace be upon him, and then by the Rightly Guided Caliphs, the rest of the Companions…
Stress and Anger
Stress is often, not always, the result of overburdening a system so that it cannot function normally. In extreme cases a person under stress is unable to rest or sleep, even when they know that rest and sleep are what they urgently need.
Departure of Scholars from the Way of the Ḥadīth Imāms
They asked: We attend your lectures and you point out all sorts of scholarly mistakes in the treatment of the Prophetic sunnah and the failure to fully grasp the approach of the Imāms of ḥadīth. So please inform us of the roots and origins of this fault and error.