Posted on May 28, 2007 10:15 PM under:
Islam
In 628 C.E the Prophet (pbuh) sent a letter to the monks of St. Catherine Monastery in Mt.Sinai. This is what he wrote: “This is a message from Muhammad ibn Abdullah, as a covenant to those who adopt Christianity, near and far, we are with them. Verily I, the servants, the helpers, and my followers defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by Allah! I hold out against anything that displeases them. No compulsion is to be on them. Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries. No one is to...
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Posted on May 7, 2006 09:17 PM under:
Islam
"All mankind is from Adam and Eve, No Arab has any superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have any superiority over an Arab. Nor does a white man have any superiority over a black man, or a black man any superiority over a white man except by piety and good action." -- Prophet Muhammad, in his Farewell Sermon....
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Posted on January 31, 2006 11:23 AM under:
Islam
I would like to wish everyone a Happy New Hijri Year 1427. May it be a blessed, happy and joyful new year for you all bringing you prosperity, success and great health. Most households in Tunisia cook Mloukhia on this day, because Mloukhia is green, as a way of hoping there'll be a green and fruitful new year ahead. We'll be going over to my parent's place for lunch, then enjoying the rest of the day off relaxing at home....
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Eid El Adha, or the big Eid, as we Tunisians call it, is tomorrow. The big Eid comes with the end of the Hajj, and is the day in which muslims worldwide sacrifice sheep in commemoration of the prophet Abraham's story with his son. It's also a day of sharing, as people are supposed to give away some of the sheep meat to the poor. Prices for sheep have sky-rocketed this year, even more than previous years, it's as if they run on oil or something. Yet that hasn't stood in the way of Tunisians obsessively competing to buy their...
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Posted on November 7, 2005 03:37 PM under:
Islam,
Music
Today while flipping through Arab satellite music channels I came across Sami Yusuf's video for his new song "Hasbi Rabbi". The song is so beautiful, the music, the lyrics, Sami's voice, the video, all of it... The lyrics are in 4 languages: English, Turkish, Hindi and Arabic; The melody is from the Afghani folklore; and the video is shot in England, Turkey, India and Egypt. Hindi lyrics are by Ustadh Mehboob, Turkish lyrics by Ustadh Firooz, and Arabic & English lyrics by Bara Kherigi. It's one of Sami's best songs, and I can't wait to hear it again and to...
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So it's confirmed that Eid El Fitr, the Islamic holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, will be tomorrow in Tunisia. Happy and blessed Eid to everyone. This Eid is also called the small Eid in Tunisia, the big one being Eid El Adha. Many traditions and practices are associated with this Eid in Tunisia, which I think is one of the most beautiful days of the year. In the days before the Eid, all the fuss is about getting different varieties of traditional sweets, that will be served to the guests, and buying new clothes...
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Posted on January 13, 2005 09:42 AM under:
Islam
Tariq Ramadan has written a great new article on the role of Muslims in the west in the evolution of Islam worldwide and in the new reform movement that is being born. "The reform movement that is in the process of being born has as its first requirement knowledge of the comprehensive message of Islam, its universal principles, and the tools available to help human beings to adapt themselves to their society as well as to change the world." [...] "Western Muslims will play a decisive role in the evolution of Islam worldwide because of the nature and complexity of...
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Posted on December 16, 2004 11:42 AM under:
Islam
While surfing around the web, I came across the site Visual Dhikr, which is for an art project launched by two UK Muslim artists Ruh Al-'Alam and Abu Taha. As muslims we are always looking back at our history and praising the achievments of our forbearers. Their amazing artistic and architetcural achievments that are a source of pride, as well as a valuable contributor to our unique cultural heritage, are becoming a thing of the past. Visual Dhikr aims to help nurture the revival of Islamic Art in a contemporary fashion that compliments our lives, in our home, in...
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"Let there be no compulsion in religion. Truth has been made clear from error. Whoever rejects false worship and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that never breaks. And Allah hears and knows all things." [The Koran: Sûrah al-Baqarah: 256] "The Messenger’s duty is but to proclaim the Message." [The Koran: Sûrah al-Mâ’idah: 99] These verses from the Holy Koran clearly state that no one can be compelled to accept Islam. It is the duty of Muslims to establish the proof of Islam to the people so that truth can be made clear from falsehood. After...
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Posted on November 5, 2004 11:01 AM under:
Islam
A new nasheed artist by the name of Mesut Kurtis has launched his debut album called "Salawat". This album was produced by Sami Yusuf and a special track also features him. This amazing album also contains the famous Burda by Imam Al-Busari. The songs on this album beautifully and seamlessly blend lyrics in Arabic, Turkish and English. Mesut Kurtis was born in 1981 in Macedonia to parents of Turkish origins. He comes from a very religious and scholarly family. His great grandfather was a well known scholar at the time of the Ottoman Empire. He is fluent in 5...
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... Unfortunately, the West does not know what every Muslim scholar knows; that the worst enemies of Islam are from within. The worst of these are the khawaarij who delude others by the deeply dyed religious exterior that they project. [...] Our Prophet said, peace be upon him, “Beware of extremism in your religion.” Islam is the middle way between excess and neglect. Zealots are a plague upon religion. These extremists come in two types. The first is a reactionary extremist who falls far right of a center-point. Reactionary extremists do not want any pluralism; they view the world in...
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Posted on October 22, 2004 01:20 PM under:
Islam
"O my Lord, if I worship You from fear of Hell, burn me in Hell, and if I worship You in hope of Paradise, exclude me thence, but if I worship You for Your own sake, then withhold not from me Your Eternal Beauty..." -- Rabi'ah al'Adawiya, Muslim & Sufi mystic poet born in Basra, Iraq (717 - 801 CE) This is just so beautiful... [Via: Macvaysia, Je Blog]...
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Posted on October 14, 2004 12:13 PM under:
Islam,
Music
Yesterday, while at our friends' place, we were introduced to Sami Yusuf, a British Muslim singer whose song "Al Mu'allem" (The Teacher) has been playing on the arabic Melody music channel. It's really a great song in both English and Arabic in which he sings about the Prophet Muhammad PBUH and Islam. The music and lyrics are so beautiful and his voice is so soothing. Sami Yusuf was born on July 1980. He was born into a musical family of Azeri origin and thus music played an integral part in his life. Sami is also a devout practicing British...
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Posted on September 29, 2004 04:04 PM under:
Islam
"Do not say, that if the people do good to us, we will do good to them; and if the people oppress us, we will oppress them; but determine that if people do you good, you will do good to them; and if they oppress you, you will not oppress them" -- Prophet Muhammad PBUH...
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"There is no greater wealth than wisdom, no greater poverty than ignorance; no greater heritage than culture and no greater support than consultation." Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib Fourth Caliph of Islam...
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Posted on August 10, 2004 01:01 PM under:
Islam
"The ink of the scholar is more sacred than the blood of the martyr." Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)...
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"Religion is very easy and whoever overburdens himself in his religion will not be able to continue in that way. So you should not be extremists, but try to be near to perfection and receive the good tidings that you will be rewarded." Prophet Mohamed (PBUH) Sahih Bukhari, Volume 1, Book 2, Number 38...
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I've heard a lot about the Islamic preacher Amr Khaled over the past couple of years. And I've known or seen a lot of people who were really touched by him. From women who have started praying and wearing the Hijab (Muslim Head Scarf) to men who have started praying and stopped their bad habits. Even though I heard a lot of talk about him and about what he has to say and how he says it, I never really got to catch him on TV and see the show he hosts on the Iqraa channel. Not until this past...
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There's a big misconception when it comes to the position of women in Islam, and how this religion portrays women and their role in society. Foreign media is full of wrong information suggesting that the woman has no rights or dignity in Islam, and I just wanted to post something about it to try and set the record straight. I'm a muslim by inheritance actually, no sheikh or anything, and I don't even practice my religion fully, like most people in this money-crazed world, but I’ve read the Quran and I have studied the religion, and I know what the...
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