Tag: Featured
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Asabiyyah, Social Cohesion, and Moral Renewal: Ibn Khaldūn’s Insights for Contemporary Muslim Societies
The rapid movement to urban centers has disrupted traditional family ties and the sense of community within neighborhoods, while the overwhelming reach of digital connectivity has, paradoxically, diminished the richness of daily interactions that once fostered moral responsibility. Ibn Khaldun (d. 1406) stands out among pre-modern thinkers due to his systematic approach to analyzing the…
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Science Fiction Lessons in Qadr: Ted Chiang’s ‘The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate’
Ted Chiang’s “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate” explores themes of time, free will, and divine decree through the story of a merchant, Fuwaad, who learns about repentance and accountability through time travel. Nested tales illustrate moral lessons, emphasizing that while the past is fixed, knowledge of it shapes present actions.
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Faith at the Frontiers of Cancer Care
Shaykh Amin Kholwadia at Crescent Oncology’s Jumuʿah at ASCO The American Society of Clinical Oncology—better known as ASCO—gathers tens of thousands of members of the oncology community for a conference in Chicago at the end of May and the start of June every year. The meeting has long since outgrown most convention centers, and in…
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Defying Big Brother: The Right to Be Unseen
Just as the new millennium set in, the dot-com bubble imploded. Silicon Valley’s t-shirt-wearing CEOs, high on the bravado of venture backing, fell sharply; the wind knocking the thin membrane of their vehemently advertisement-free companies. As the icy air of the ‘real’ world set in, a state of exception began and never lifted. In their…
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Manqus Mawlid: Tracing Literary Networks in Malabar
“Verily, there is some incantation in eloquence and some wisdom in poetry…”((Sahih al-Bukhari 5767)) Poetry has the ability to manipulate and influence people in the most intangible way, as it speaks directly to the soul. A good poem must consist of wisdom that is created upon a world from the poet’s perspective, lost in beauty…
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What the Haram Could Not Keep Out
The author explores the tension between capitalism and spirituality experienced during Ramadan in Madina.
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Predicament: Iqbal or Iqbal’s?
Muhammad Iqbal is under siege from both sides. Liberal-secular critics dismiss him as a provincial mind intoxicated by the West, whose reconstruction of Islamic thought amounts to European modernity clumsily draped in Qur’anic rhetoric. South Asian hagiographers have made him untouchable. Neither camp serves him well. More recently, a far more serious challenge has emerged…
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Villager or Consumer? The Marketplace of Community
This article explores the disconnect in modern social interactions, highlighting how people’s approach to community has become transactional and commodified. It emphasizes the need for genuine relationships built on love, service, and forgiveness, rather than evaluating connections based on personal benefit. Cultivating meaningful community requires commitment and mutual support.
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Beyond Binaries: Rethinking Religiosity through Tuhfatul Mujahideen
Sheikh Zainuddin Makhdum II’s work, Tuhfatul Mujāhidīn, critiques modern misconceptions of Islam by illustrating its intertwining of spirituality, law, and politics. His advocacy for jihad emphasizes communal responsibilities, thus redefining ‘religion’ as a holistic, socially engaged practice.
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The Bitcoiners Confronting Islam’s Money Problem: Is there an Exit From Riba?
Hudhaifah Zahid, founder of Grynvault and Econommi, discusses Islamic economic ethics and Bitcoin with Hibatuallah Bensaid. He critiques modern fiat systems for embedding riba, arguing that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin offer a path to monetary sovereignty and challenge conventional financial structures. Zahid emphasizes the need for active engagement and community resilience to navigate financial ethics and…