Three questions related to the on-going pandemic
Being vaccinated while fasting. Women attending funeral prayers. Women visiting graves. The three questions I have just responded to do have something in common. Behind each of them is a worry that, because someone somewhere at some time may abuse a permission…
Al-Muhaddithat has been published!
Breaking News! Shaykh Akram’s magnum opus, Al-Muhaddithat, has been published! Over a decade has passed since the initial publication of Shaykh Akram Nadwi’s ‘Al-Muhaddithat: The Women Scholars in Islam’ (2007). Today, we are honoured and excited to announce that the...
Why are the writings of the scholars unread? Address to the students of Madrasas (Islamic institutions)
Translated by Syed Huzaifah Ali Nadwi, Cambridge There was a long period in human history when the writings of scholars were popular in every class because they were the best examples of knowledge and research and the highest example of eloquence. If we look at these...
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.
The pandemic and Ramadan
Introduction Only a week remains to prepare before we welcome the month of Ramadan. With the COVID-19 pandemic ongoing, so is the lockdown, and it is most likely that the lockdown will continue throughout Ramadan, and perhaps even longer. People are preparing...