1001 Inventions Exhibition: Preview

      

            What is this you say? Muslim Inventions?


           Yes indeed. This is something we don't hear much about in our schools or textbooks. The only thing relating to Muslims and history (any history) I can recall from my early days in grade school in the United States is a brief reference that Arabs invented algebra. This of course, was just in the introductory chapter and maybe just one line and as you can assume, none of the homework assignments we had included any questions concerning this information. Also, in our history classes, we heard about the Enlightenment, the age of reason with all the great European philosophers, etc etc. There was also a period called the Dark Ages - that - a dark period in European history when the civilization was not achieving and discovering things in the various fields that human have been concerned with throughout history. I won't go into the details, as I am not a historian - you'll have to go elsewhere if you are looking for such information. As a student not just of medicine, sceince and learning I was happy to learn of this exhibition. Yet, first and foremost, especially in today's climate, I was proud as a Muslim that not only the great public was gong to see this, but that I, too, wanted to be among those fortunate enough to be there as well.
        Thankfully, I will have finished my duties for the semester in the next two days; therefore I will be going to London for a break before my new semester starts and barring any unforseen obstacles, I will be going to see the exhibitino for myself. There is also a great book that has been produced to go along with the exhibition that I plan to purchase as well, both to further educate myself well after the exhibition is over and insha'allah, to inform even my own classmates, as many of the contributions featured in the exhibition and book concern the medical field.
        So, I just wanted to give this little preview of the event, as I hope to provide you with a review of sorts upon my return from London.
        Ma'salaam / Peace be with you.
       

Ayah of the Month - Allah, Forgiveness & His Knowledge

Know, therefore, that there is no god but Allah, and ask forgiveness for thy fault, and for the men and women who believe: for Allah knows how ye move about and how ye dwell in your homes. 

  (Surah Muhammad, Ayah 19)

Hadith of the Month - Hardship

"When a believer is stricken with any hardship, or pain, or anxiety, or sorrow or harm, or distress - even if it be a thorn that has hurt him - Allah redeems thereby some of his failings (sins)."

 - Hadith of Al-Bukhari and Muslim

Gift!

          Just a brief post - I met my friend and Sister in Islam earlier today, who is also studying medicine here in Prague and she had told me earlier, about a store that was selling some hats that had the Shahadah written on them and in some cases, displaying them in the window of the stores inappropriately. So, she asked the owner if they had anymore and the person brought out more from storage.  purchased them all, about 5000 Kc (Czech crowns) worth ($268 or 168 GBP) and she told the lady not to order anymore if they were going to display them in such a way that was offensive; though perhaps they had no idea what the Arabic script was. Anyways, she gifted me one of these and ma'sha'allah, she chose the color combination (background and text) that suited me, so here it is! Ma'salaam / Peace be with you.

Moments of Brotherhood: Jumu'ah Salah

I'll be honest, until today, I hadn't been to Jumu'ah Salah (prayer) in quite some time, mostly due to school-related issues (Astaghfirullah, May Allah forgive me). I know it's no excuse; also, what makes it the more worse, I actually love Jumu'ah very much, especially when I'm here in Prague (for photos of the makeshift mosque I attend, click here.) as it provides a safe haven of sorts, where I can feel at home (aside from my apartment) and now that I am in a place that functions as a house of Allah for all intents and purposes. I was very much looking forward to Jumu'ah today; to get that refreshing, jolting weekly obligatory spiritual wake-up call that we all need. Now the interesting thing is, the khutbah (sermon) is only in Arabic, so one disadvantage for me there, as I don't understand Arabic fluently, but I can manage to at least figure out what topic the imam is talking about by catching key words and phrases, but I really do miss the English khutbahs I get to listen to back home. As the adhan was being called, we of course recited the appropriate words after each part; as this occurred, I was actually just taking a look around at all the brothers there with me. Ma'sha'allah, its beautiful - white, black, brown and other skin colors. That's where I think one of the real beauties of Islam lies - we are so diverse, yet we share one core and most important belief:

أشهد أن لا إله إلاَّ الله و أشهد أن محمدا رسول الله

ašhadu ʾan laa ilāha illa (A)llāh, wa ʾašhadu ʾanna Muḥammada(n) rasūlo (A)llāh

I testify that There is no god but Allah, and I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah

       Not only were there so many skin colors, but also, so many different ethnic backgrounds, Arabs, Indians, Pakistanis, Uzbeks, Malaysians, Africans and others. Furthermore, I get to see parts of families, including the younger ones, one of which initially sat by me today as I read an English Qur'an. I offered my hand for salam to the boy and he looked at me with a sweet grin on his face, but a bit shy to extend his hand; but he did so after some prodding by his father. After the khutbah and salah ended (as you may imagine from the pictures, it gets very tight and today, I almost had no where to go, but a brother let me squeeze myself in. Until recently, it was frequently head-to-bum when we went down for sajdah, though now there is a second salah for late-comers) I made why to grab my coat and shoes and head down the spiral stairs to the hall of the small shopping area where the rooms we use are located on the second floor. There, I met my Malaysian counterparts and we gave each other an update on how are exams were coming along, as these few weeks, we are all trying to finish up various exams for our medical studies.

       This place of worship for me is special despite its modest appearance. When the month of fasting was during the school year just a few years ago, this is where I would come Friday-Sunday to break my fast with my fellow brothers (and where I met these Malaysians) and then back when I first arrived, whree I found comfort as I settled into my new flat and new city, as I faced the initial challenges of medical school, not to mention in a foreghn country. Now, its almost bitter sweet, as I approach the final one and half years of my studies and that soon, I wll have to bid farewell to these small rooms that provided such a large amount of comfort and many many fond memories of joining together with my Brothers in Islam each Friday for worship, an initmate meal with 60 of them during the Holy Month and where I would come to refresh and recharge my Faith in the One who has seen me through all those moments between each of those Friday visits over the last four and half years. 

Ma'salaam / Peace be with you.

 

The 'War on Terror' from Muslim Eyes - [discussion]

          I just came across a very interesting discussion on the Al-Jazeera program, Empire and I immediately wanted to share it with all of you and then, after watching it in it's entirety, I REALLY wanted to share it and hope that if any of my fellow Americans come upon the blog, that they will take the time to watch this video or at least run into ti on YouTube itself. I know its long, but just as the Muslim Students talk in my earlier post, this, too, is well worth the 45 minutes of your time from which ever point of view you may have. This is discussion was very eye-opening, informative and stimulating, but also I was glad to hear some of the statements expressed by the two main guests, Dr. Hassan Nafaa and Soumaya Ghannoushi, that I agreed with and those that I think are not elucidated enough in the media, at least not back in America. Also, I have to admit, it was awesome to see an educated, well-spoken Muslim woman contributing to such an important topic in today's world and one that very much concerns Muslims worldwide. The discussion covers topics from the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan to the new conflict in Yemen and how America has dealt with the former two and how it should or rather, should not deal with the latter. Enjoy. Ma'salaam / Peace be with you.

What our Prophet (SAW) wanted from Us

           This post is inspired by my online Sister Zaufishan's excellent, recent post entitled Dealing with Muslim Men (I), where the central theme or issue was how Muslim men in the UK interact with or respond to women which reflected her experiences, which unfortunately, have been negative. The issue she closes with is the concept of brotherhood, supporting it with a clip of the Farewell Khutbah (sermon) of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسل) shortly before his death, as shown in the film, The Message (side note: never get sick of watching this film). While revisiting this clip, I came across a short presentation put together by a sister on You Tube that was done beautifully, that appears below, concerning the Prophet's final moments - during which he was concerned for our well-being as an Ummah. Also, I thought this would be a good post because I think I've gotten away a little bit from my original intention of the blog - the theme or concept of brotherhood, so insha'Allah, this will refocus things a bit towards that core message. This should be reflected in our actions with each other as believers, men and women alike; that we treat each other with respect and dignity, which will itself bring us closer together, united, just as the Prophet wanted. Ma'salaam / Peace be with you.

UPDATE: You can now read Dealing with Muslim Men (II).