Our nation — like most nations — was built on migration. But many descendants of migrants forget that fact after a few generations, especially if they share the basic characteristics of the native population. Were her skin a different hue, my mother would be classed as a second-generation immigrant, through her own mother, who emigrated …
The House of Commons reminds me of school. Members of Parliament, even at the most senior rank, behave no better than teenagers. Some of them are far worse, in fact, acting like entitled brats bullying the misfits. The latter, in this chamber, being those who advocate on behalf of the poor and disenfranchised. Egged on …
Hard to believe that this was two years ago this month. Hard to believe that by the grace of God, we built a house in just over a year, in the midst of a global pandemic. Foundations for the future, if the Most Merciful wills. A youthful dream brought to life. More tales of the …
I gain the impression that many of us refuse to seriously engage with the actual teachings of our faith because they stand against us, and would require us to change. Maybe we don’t want to hear that even in the case of divorce, our Book tells us to be gracious and kind to one another. …
What would be useful in our community is a khutbah about how our prophet, peace be upon him, lived his life and treated others. Today our sermon ended with the story of a shirt, which companions of the prophet apparently fought over, indicative of their esteemed affection for him. Lovely. But in all these weeks, …
We plan, but there’s always a better plan for us. I remember that conversation with a friend in Southall in the early months of 2001, when he was asking me what kind of woman I one day hoped to marry. I told him I thought it best she be a convert like me. By that …
For obvious reasons — an apparent shortage of supply and spiralling prices — we’ve not yet been putting the heating on. Instead, my wife has bought all of us big, fleecey dressing gowns, so that we wander around the house looking like Henry VIII. If it gets really, really cold, there’s always that supply of …
It is a core belief of the Muslims that messengers and guides were sent to every people throughout history. So I don’t have a problem seeing traces of the truth in every tradition, wherever it emerges. Nor do I have a problem recognising the untruths which have crept into our own. The Quran calls us …
It’s hard to convey the weight of despair I felt in those days, simmering away for a decade from the age of fourteen, but at its peak between eighteen and twenty. I think that first year at university was amongst the worst of it, because it simply reaffirmed that there was something seriously wrong with …
The world (dunya) is a testing realm. In some traditions this is known as maya. Religion (deen) is the transport that helps us navigate the dunya. It’s a path that helps you maintain a safe and healthy existence. Residue of this duality can be found in many traditions. Some of them, of course, lean heavily …
All must embark on that spiritual migration. To become spiritual refugees. We’re all migrants on the road back to the One. You just have to decide when you’ll depart.
I can try to put a positive spin on it, but actually I’m not okay. I’m not happy that this is how I was made: I just accept it. I see some goodness in it. Some positive traits. But no, it’s not a condition I would seek. I haven’t come to terms with it; I …
If I could go back… knowing what I now know… making sense of it all… I think I would go back to those days when friends did so much for me, to explain to them why I was the way I was. I had some real gems of friends in those early days along the …
I am an economic migrant. I migrated from the north of England for work. I first came down south for study.
In the research into emotional regulation associated with this condition — extremely limited though it is — studies identify an increased tendency for passive coping amongst men with that extra chromosome. By passive coping, they mean behaviour such as isolating oneself from others, worrying about the past, taking refuge in fantasies, avoiding social interactions and …
