We spent the day in our old neighbourhood, visiting longtime friends — the last remaining there. Naturally we were left reflecting that it’s not the area we knew. Well, of course not, for we moved away nearly nineteen years ago. At lunchtime, we visited the mosque too and those feelings were the same. No familiar …
For two decades, you vehemently condemned terrorism without pause, mourning the innocents killed and maimed in every attrocity. Then you watched a nation rain destruction down on a civilian population, murdering eight-thousand children, six-thousand women and an unknown number of innocent men. Your response? You shrugged your shoulders. Muttered something about regrets, while nevertheless continuing …
“Are we living in the end times?” asks the internet. Well, clearly the lifespan of every human is finite. Thus, for every generation, these are certainly the end times. Each of us is hurtling towards our end. For some, death comes too soon, while a few may see out a century. In the nineteenth century …
Never does the vanity and conceit of self-praising preachers get any less vulgar. To see sages traipsing the stage praising themselves is quite bizarre. What next? Playing recordings of others praising them? Long ago we learned that the act of praising another is akin to breaking their back. Throw dust in the face of those …
Today’s khutbah was about Abu Bakr, the famous companion of the Prophet, peace be upon him. The imam told the congregation that he was the first Muslim — or rather, the first to believe in the prophethood of Muhammad ibn Abdallah ibn Abdal Muttalib ibn Hashim. On our way out of the mosque after the …
Yes, poverty is a test, but so is great wealth. Do the insanely rich not realise that they too will be asked about how they acquired and spent their wealth? We all will.
If you ever need to set up or support a computer in a language other than your mother-tongue, Google Lens is your friend. It will translate all the menus and dialogue boxes in real time, enabling you to complete the task with barely a worry. Clever stuff. That’s not to say it will be plain …
When I was younger, I idealised and idolised many a soul whose path crossed with mine. In time, of course, I would inevitably discover they were mostly just as flawed as me. Initially that discovery would cause immense disappointment, seeing how far they fell short of perceptions I had projected onto them. But in truth …
You create a monster, then say, “This monster must be destroyed!” How? By destroying everything but the monster. And the monster you created? Yes, of course, that will live on, enabling you to go on destroying everything but the monster. Who dares whisper, “Are you sure you’re not the monster?”
It’s time for another of those conversations with my nafs… Yes, the same one I’ve had a hundred times before… About the latest project… resurrected… likewise dismantled and obliterated a hundred times before… The voice of resolve petitions me once more… delete it… do it now, before you have a change of heart… And perhaps …
Finally fixed the website connectivity issue on my trusty 2009 MacBook Pro. This the benefit of leaving it for a year, then attempting it on a day my head is at its clearest. Otherwise known as Christmas afternoon of the non-celebrant. Inspired by scoping refurbished computers for a niece in Turkey, wondering if I can …
From a little town called Bethlehem
Islam is incompatible with Europe, they say. This despite speaking languages interlaced with hundreds of Arabic loan words and a Common Law derived from Islamic jurisprudence. If only modern Europeans cared for their history.
You can say what you like about Bury Park, but one thing it succeeds in is reversing the “death of the high street” witnessed nationwide. Rarely do you encounter such a bustling street scene as here, even into the evening. Maybe there’s something here other communities could learn from.
The annual gathering. Fraternity and good food. Alhamdulilah.
