The Limits of Sin in Fantasy: A Book Review of The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
Over the past few years, there has been an increase in published Muslamic fiction: fiction written by Muslims that depicts Muslim characters and culture. But, while realistic Muslamic fiction has taken the lead, fantasy — especially historical fantasy — has fallen behind. So when S.A. Chakraborty, author of the Daevabad Trilogy, published The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi, a fantasy novel set in the twelfth-century Indian Ocean world, Muslim bookstagram was set abuzz with excitement. Continue reading The Limits of Sin in Fantasy: A Book Review of The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
The Insidious Origin and Nature of ‘Barbie’
With the release of the new Barbie movie, toy manufacturer and entertainment company, Mattel, is setting out to bedazzle a fresh generation of girls into jumping on the “Barbie bandwagon.” The hype has been massive, with marketing techniques such as the introduction of a new Barbie filter that makes you pink, poreless and pretty filling social media. Countless of advertisements and promotions such as Celebrating Pride Month “These Barbies and Kens want to wish you all a happy #PrideMonth!” have public spaces. After all, as the slogan goes “Barbie: You Can Be Anything!” Continue reading The Insidious Origin and Nature of ‘Barbie’
Lab-Grown Breast Milk: The Intersection of Science, Ethics, and Islamic Jurisprudence
The great theologian Imam Al-Haramayn Al-Juwayni narrated a story from his father in what is a profound lesson in rizq:
Upon receiving the news that his wife was expecting, Imam Al-Haramayn’s father took great care to ensure the money he provided his wife with was only directly earned from halal means. After Imam Al-Haramayn was born, his father continued his diligence in monitoring what the baby consumed. One day, as was typical at that time, his mother was unable to breastfeed him and engaged the services of a wet nurse. This woman was from a family that was not scrupulous in their earnings. When his father found out, he immediately made Imam Al-Haramayn expel the milk. Continue reading Lab-Grown Breast Milk: The Intersection of Science, Ethics, and Islamic Jurisprudence
Al-Tirmidhī’s Bayān al-Farq
This is a translation of the first chapter of the Persian jurist al-Ḥakīm al-Tirmidhī’s Bayān al-Farq bayna al-Ṣadr wa-l-Qalb wa-l-Fuʾād wa-l-Lubb. I may translate the rest in due time, as some of the contents in my following pieces on Akbarian Metaphysics, in shāʾ Allāh, may be better understood by non-Arabic speakers after reading this chapter, although I will make references to and translate excerpts from the succeeding ones as necessary. Let us now proceed to the translation. Continue reading Al-Tirmidhī’s Bayān al-Farq
Palestinian Activism in the West and LGBTQ Alliance
Like clockwork, this June a slew of “pride” themed ad campaigns and social media posts filled online spaces. While participation in celebrating sodomy and cross-dressing is nothing new to non-Muslims and fringes of self-proclaimed Muslims who ascribe to progressive interpretations of Islam, what has emerged more recently is a celebration and endorsement of LGBTQ+ ideology and lifestyle by some of the most prominent Palestinian activists, advocacy groups and nonprofit organizations. This includes the Palestinian BDS National Committee, IMEU, and USCPR. Continue reading Palestinian Activism in the West and LGBTQ Alliance
Vignettes on Hajj
As the dusty, weary, thirsty pilgrims approach the blessed house they fall into orbit around it, eyes full and hearts yearning, hands outstretched towards the magnetic black cube towards which they prostrate back home. This lonely brick structure in the middle of an uninviting desert, unremarkable save for its symbolism, continues to attract longing souls as readily across space as it does across time: men and women who travel far and wide but to circle it a few times and to gaze upon it for a while before returning to where they came from, touched. What a sight, then, must the Lord of this house be? Continue reading Vignettes on Hajj
7 Modern Deadly Sins and Misunderstandings: Clarity
Understanding and Critiquing Certain Common Sense Moralisms in Modern Society Previously, we discussed the moralism of determining when exclusivity functions and certain misjudgments we make regarding the moral weight of things. The following discussion ties into another issue in conceptualizing popular sentiments in modern ethics – namely, our severe lack of moral clarity, sincerity and concern for our heart. The cost of a lack of … Continue reading 7 Modern Deadly Sins and Misunderstandings: Clarity
Spiker’s Hierarchy & Freedom: A Case For Akbarianism Against the Poverty of Modernity
Hasan Spiker’s most recent work, Hierarchy & Freedom, explores the historical/philosophical relationship between “hierarchy” and “freedom” in Western thought, providing a convincing case for Platonism and its innate hierarchical structures in opposition to the empirical, positivistic philosophical structure forwarded by the West. Continue reading Spiker’s Hierarchy & Freedom: A Case For Akbarianism Against the Poverty of Modernity
Navigating Defilement: Thoughts on the Navigating Differences Statement
On May 23, 2023, a public statement was released titled, “Navigating Differences: Clarifying Sexual and Gender Ethics in Islam.” Traditionally studied scholars, post-Salafi preachers, celebrity imams, small-town masjid imams, Muslim academics, well-known bloggers, and a slew of people from other diverse backgrounds signed onto the statement. The signatories are not names that you would expect to find on one page, as they have their differences, but they all united on this one issue. This is not a common occurrence in our modern context, and it deserves to be acknowledged as a milestone in some ways. Continue reading Navigating Defilement: Thoughts on the Navigating Differences Statement
Lessons on the Pitfalls of Modernity in ‘The Road to Mecca’
Muhammad Asad’s autobiographical account The Road to Mecca (1954) is a fine work that moves between various genres, including historical narration, adventure tale and conversion story, presenting numerous entertaining anecdotes. More intriguing, however, is the unique and fascinatingly nuanced insight that Asad (formerly Leopold Weiss), gives into a soulless and lost Europe of the early twentieth century juxtaposed by his discovery of a strikingly different world. This was a world which had preserved a connection to the Divine throughout spheres in human life, predominantly infused by Islam, i.e. the lands which are now widely known as the MENA region. Continue reading Lessons on the Pitfalls of Modernity in ‘The Road to Mecca’