Year: 2016

  • Of Mistakes and Crimes

    A mistake is one that is made by mistake (sic) and a crime is one that is done deliberately. A mistake must obviously be forgiven. A crime is culpable but can also be forgiven. This is the peculiarity of Islamic Law that even a crime as serious as murder can simply be forgiven by the…

  • Respect earns respect

    Respect earns respect

    There are ocean people and others who are mountain people; and yet others who are city people. I, am of the forest people. Wildlife, open spaces, mountains and forests have always been a very significant influence in my life. There is an instant connection that I find with forests. And every once in a while…

  • Is Islam a religion of peace?

    Question:    How can we say that Islam is a religion of peace when it advocates all kinds of violence and its believers engage in violence in many places in the world? Answer:       This type of question is very common in the present day and very easy to answer provided the questioner is willing to do…

  • To beard or not to beard

    It is very interesting to note the judgement regarding the Muslim IAF officer who claimed that keeping a beard is his religious obligation. The Indian Express reported that the ruling given was, “Emphasising the need to “maintain discipline” in the Indian Air Force (IAF), the Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that Muslim personnel cannot keep…

  • Muhammadﷺ, example for all times

    Muhammadﷺ, example for all times

    They say that reading biographies is perhaps the best way to learn real life lessons. That is because a biography is a record of practice. Of what worked and what didn’t. The life of Muhammadﷺ  is perhaps one of the most well documented in human history. Having said that one may ask why his life…

  • Anesthetized anarchy

    We, in India, are living in a state of anesthetized anarchy. We seem to have lost it in more ways than one. In the days of the sabretooth tiger mankind needed to be totally in touch with reality if it wished to avoid being the tiger’s next meal. Since we made the STT extinct we…

  • Never try to change your spouse

    Never try to change your spouse

    Go look in the mirror and tell yourself that the only one in the world who thinks that you are an unqualified blessing is perhaps your mother and that too, perhaps. Tell yourself that you married your spouse because you liked them, not because you found them when they lost their way to their shrink.…

  • Negative or positive, the choice is ours

    Negative or positive, the choice is ours

    Negative people look for things to complain about and find them.  Positive people look for things to be grateful for and find them. Make your choice I’m sure you’ve heard this before that every day we wake up, we have a choice. We can choose to see the day as positive or negative. And guess…

  • Meet real people – not labels

    Meet real people – not labels

    Someone sent me the Amazon Prime Ad about the meeting between the priest and Imam which is here.. https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=1JVf_rO8zRE A dear friend asked me, ‘How did we become like this?’ …meaning, ‘How did we become so mechanical, bigoted, hatred driven?’ I answered, ‘That is because we have given up the world for others to run…

  • Do what you can

    Do what you can

    I will not allow, what is not in my control, to prevent me from doing what is, in my control. This is my motto in life by which I have lived all my life. I always try to focus on what I can do no matter whatever else I can’t do. I do that because…