How easily we are coopted by the symbols of religion, lending support to aims diametrically opposed to all it stands for. Though the religion itself stands against such symbols, seeking to promote a state of safety and healthy living instead, the pious can be easily derailed by apparitions of religiosity. So it is that a …
Nations really should limit the number of years and terms an individual stands as leader. Why? Because once they see their survival and longevity as their ultimate objective, they will do anything to remain in power. If they came to office promising change and reform — aims they may well have delivered on — eventually …
Here the story of one good man. The story of the mayor of a town that reportedly did not suffer any damage during the earthquake. A town, that despite being located in the midst of a region flattened — resulting in massive loss of life — appears to stand unscathed. This the story of a …
Have they not pondered upon themselves? God did not create the heavens and earth and everything between them without a serious purpose and an appointed time, yet many people deny that they will meet their Lord. Quran 30:8
Kudos to those who work with their hands, making a living from manual labour. I spent my weekend just repairing old furniture, and my body has crashed. Suddenly such intense lethargy. I had plans this week to repair these fences. I was sure I could install new posts myself and make a decent job of …
If I think to myself “career” I will get very despondent, realising that I’ve been left behind. At this point, it seems impossible to catch up with my peers, many of whom who have raced ahead into senior leadership. However, if I recenter and think to myself “life” it will calm my nerves. That is …
Is it broken? The system, I mean. We all have anecdotes. Here is mine. I’m due an injection once a quarter. I won’t die without it. My bones may get weak (and I’m feeling that), I may get a bit lethargic and, if I neglect it too long, I tend to get a heavy bout …
When the organisation changes around you — all the old faces supplanted by new — your task is to remain relevant. You have to make yourself felt, and really the only way to achieve that is by being kind. So you’re as proactive today as you would’ve been on your first day a decade ago. …
Uncle Mohammed should be happy: I finally fixed his armchair. It only took a decade. At last a comfortable seat while enjoying a cuppa. We inherited this pair of chairs from my grandmother after she passed away. For as long as I remember — even when were kids — these chairs had broken springs. Too …
These are tests for us and them, just as we are promised. And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient, who, when disaster strikes them, say, “Indeed we belong to God, and indeed to Him …
When we were thinking about building a house in Turkey, I was the one insistent on doing everything by the book. I demanded a geological survey at the outset before we took it any further. My wife had been keen on building further up the hill for better, unobstructed views across the Black Sea. She …
There are Muslims in every nation and of every culture. We’re not asked to become what we’re not. We’re asked to be what we’re destined to become. O mankind! Lo! We have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that you may know one another. Lo! the noblest of you, …
I managed to upset our daughter the other evening. That was moments after she excitedly told me that she had got top marks in the class in her French test. My response began okay. “Mashallah, well done!” Yep, but then I followed on with the kind of question my parents would have asked. “Now what …
