Of Civilizations, al-Rahmān, and A Phone Number: The MAS/ICNA Convention 2005

So I attended the Muslim American Society/Islamic Circle of North America National Convention 2005. On the whole, quite good alhamdulillah, but for me there were three highlights; well two highlights and a third... something that happened.

Anyway, first was an insightful lecture by Dr. Tariq al-Suwaidan on the dynamics of civilizations; a condensed version of his research and consequently a book on the same topic. It was one of the lectures that make you regret not being a notebook person -- if indeed you are not one. His findings made me quite happy as they were very much inline with my ideas on the culture of Islam, or rather my ideas were inline with his.

He started his speech by laying out the many laws that govern the rise and fall of civilization in light of his research. Laws that have been witnessed throughout the course of human history to hold true, laws that have been spelled out in the Glorious Qur'ān, and yet some others that he himself deduced from his study.

His main point was this: civilizations are not based on their apparent development and projects, but rather on their underlying principles and intellectual systems. The better the intellectual system, the more chances that civilization has of progressing. Moreover, a civilization is like an organism that can catch diseases and has an immune system to defend against them. The strength of a civilization's immune system is directly linked to the strength of its intellectual system and the civilization's connection with this intellectual system.

This might just pass as fairly obvious, but when one thinks about it, problems that arise from the oversight of this understanding can be seen all around us (as Dr. Tariq rightly pointed out). The Muslim civilization was not based on the Masjid al-Harām, or the Masjid al-Nabawī; it was not attached to the magnificence of Damascus and Baghdad, the minarets of Istanbul, or the beautiful architecture of Tāj Mahal and the Lāl Qil'ah; it was indeed built on the Qur'ān, the Sunnah, and the rightly guided understanding of both. When this connection was broken, the immune system was destroyed; the buildings stood and the cities remained, but the civilization vanished into encyclopedias. Now all we have is a diseased civilization with an amazing intellectual system, but no connection to it.

He also had a lot to say about modern western civilization is following a similar path, but let's not get into that.

My second highlight came in the middle of the entertainment session. Organizers usually try to garnish these sessions with some spiritual talks, which more than often are not really all that entertaining. Not only did they have a really good spiritual talk in the middle of this session, it actually made the whole thing worthwhile. Better still; the very gentle person who delivered this talk connected the whole entertainment business to Jannah and the joy that awaits the righteous therein. But it was a wonderful Hadīth he mentioned that blew me away. I had no idea about this.

The Hadīth goes as such (heavily paraphrased):

After everything and everyone has settled into the wonderful life of Jannah, enjoying it to the fullest, Allāh (SWT) will ask the people of Jannah if they are enjoying themselves. They will reply and say that it is unlike anything they've ever imagined and it is the best that they could have ever wished for.

Allāh will say, "I have something better," and He will order Sayyadnā Dāwūd (AS) to recite from earlier Scriptures, which he will and the people of Jannah will be spellbound. Then Allāh will ask them if they enjoyed it, and they will give a similar response saying that it is the best thing they have ever experienced.

Then Allāh (SWT) will say, "I have something even better," and He will order our Prophet Muhammad (SAW) to recite Sūrat Yāsīn, which he will and the people of Jannah will be yet more affected by it. Allāh will ask them again if they enjoyed it, and they will give a similar response saying that it is better than anything they could have ever imagined or wished for.

Then Allāh (SWT) will say, "I have something much better," and then He will recite Sūrat al-Rahmān HIMSELF and the people of Jannah will just listen to it, mesmerized and captivated and it will be better than anything they could have ever imagined or wished for. Aw kamā qāl.

I don't know about anyone else, but I was completely blown away by this revelation. Seriously, I might want to go to Jannah just because of this (and of course, also because I don't want to go to Jahannam). Before this, my motivation was beholding the Face of Allāh (SWT), but now, it is watching Him recite from the Bride of His Last Revelation. Subhānallāh. In many ways will Allāh bless His righteous servants and bestow them with His Bounties and Mercy.

My third... well, a memorable event of the convention involved a sister that I was recently introduced to (let's call her sister a); another sister (sister x) whose identity was concealed from me by sister a; a brother attending the convention from Chicago (brother y); an attempted hookup between x and y by asking y for his parents' contact information; the person who retrieved this contact information, namely Mus'ab; a lot of embarrassment and awkwardness; and the brother whose information was actually retrieved, namely y-prime (sitting next to y). I don't wish to explain any of this.

Stephen Gaghan's Syriana: A Rarely Seen Mostly-Accurate Depiction of Reality

Spoiler Warning: If you haven't seen this movie, then I suggest that you do so and then read this review if you have to. It might contain details from the story that might annoyingly reveal parts of the story.

I've gotten used to Hollywood movies made from the so-called Western point-of-view.
That was until I watched Syriana; and I have to admit it, I did not expect it to be this honest.

What I liked the most about it was of course the fact that it actually showed the United States of America as having clear interests in installing and supporting corrupt leaders in Middle Eastern and neighboring countries for the purpose of extending its empire.

It also transcended the simplistic people-hate-America-because-it-is-the-standard-bearer-of-freedom explanation and actually cared to investigate the socio-economic struggle that goes on behind the condemnable acts of terrorism, showing how deprived people are the ones that can be easily exploited to carry out these activities.

It also exposed the eccentricty of the rulers of such countries that clearly do not take heed from the situation and while possessing all powers, choose not to correct it. However, it also showed how other powers move to annihilate anyone who might wish to improve the situation for their people against their wishes.

I wish for two things to happen from "Syriana," and I know that two opposite things will happen.

One, I wish Muslim rulers, leaders, and public would watch this movie and derive the right lessons from it; while I know that even if they do watch it, they'll slip back into their luxurious lives, petty problems, and silent slumbers.

Second, I wish the American people would watch this movie and understand the true reality of the horrific situation: that it is not just a simple matter of people hating America, things actually happen that make people hate America, and killing them will only increase the problem, let alone solve it. That they should actually move to persuade their elected officials to consider the human situation in these countries more seriously and act accordingly. That by pursuing military actions, they are only providing fuel to the cause of the people who act against innocent civilians. That by making an argument of patriotism, they're allowing the other side to make a similar argument. And that it is time for a serious discussion and dialogue.

But I am almost certain that this will not happen. The movie will make more impact because of its thrill and action. The missile deployment will gain more attention than the fact that it killed someone to make way for oil corporations. The death of a CIA agent (who incidently killed people too) will pull more tears than the self-destruction of a troubled youth.

But then, it was his own fault: Why was he not born in the USA?

Oh and by the way, the whole thing had nothing to do with Syria. I don't know where the name came from. I guess it just sounds cool.

And did I mention that I believe in political action and condemn terrorism in any shape or form? Because I do.

"An Ungendered State of Being": Part II

...Continued from previous

This might be a bit harsh. I personally might have been in violation of many of these, but this is more to help me than anyone else.

Let us now turn to the more lengthy part of our discussion: the question of hijāb for women themselves. Is hijāb the name given to a piece of clothing? I don't believe so.

Just as salāh is not a mere sequence of movements, hijāb is not a mere piece of clothing. Just as the salāh of a person should transcend the apparent movements and enter a person's heart, in the same way, hijāb should exceed the piece of cloth and enter a person's heart and manifest itself in their actions. It is an attitude that is hijāb, not a mere scarf.

Often times while observing hijāb, many people tend to forget its purpose: which is to bring out their hayā. To the obvious result that their heads are covered by scarves, but their actions are as bare as their hands. They flirt, play, and tease; they attract men and are attracted to them (haphazardly): hijābs remain as fashion statements, in reality they're wearing mini-skirts and worse.

Allāh (SWT) expects certain qualities from each of us. And glory be to Him, not only has He specified which ones, but has also created amazing mechanisms to help us develop them. These mechanisms definitely work, as long as we do not lose sight of the ultimate purpose behind them. Moreover, He has made both the end and the means obligatory on us such that the means is not useful if it does not achieve the end, and the end is not acceptable if it is not achieved through the means specified.

Taking the example of salāh again, it is a means to show His ultimate obedience (among many other things). As much as a person would like to express his obedience to Allāh, it would not be complete without salāh; and as much as a person would observe salāh, it would be a waste if the person is not obedient to Allāh otherwise.

Among these expected qualities is hayā or hijāb; and the mechanism for having us develop it has been placed by Allāh in the severe punishment for fornication, the command to protect one's gaze and body from it, and for women, in addition to that: the covering of body.

Covering of body, thus, is a mere restrain if hayā is not developed through it, and hayā is a mere good quality (that might not necessarily stop other diseased people from being attracted) if bodies are not covered in accordance with the Will of the Almighty. You would have definitely come across women that observe hijāb and yet display the worst characteristics of un-hijābiness (forgive me for making up that word); and many others that are without it and yet display the best manners of hayā. And don't get me wrong, I am neither shunning the first type, nor praising the second; I am merely pointing out the fact that the scarf in itself is not the complete hijāb. Just as a person with good hayā cannot get away without putting on the outwardly hijāb, in a similar manner a person who observes apparent hijāb has no excuse for not developing good hayā to back it up.

Let's see what the Qur'ān has to say about this:

O wives of the Prophet! You are not like any other women. If you keep your duty (to Allāh), then be not soft in speech, lest he in whose heart has a disease should be moved with desire, but speak in an honorable manner. And stay in your houses, and do not display yourselves like that of the times of ignorance, and perform Salāt, and give Zakāt and obey Allāh and His Messenger. Allāh wishes only to remove evil deeds (and sins) from you, O members of the family (of the Prophet), and to purify you with a thorough purification.
[al-Ahzāb - 33: 32-33].

Let not the simplicity of the opening address to the wives of the Prophet (SAW) distract us. It is just like saying, "Ahmad, you're not like any other kid, you should respect your elders." Which of the believing women would not like to take the Ummahāt al-Mu'mininīn (mothers of the believers: wives of the Prophet) as their role-models, especially in commands that Allāh (SWT) has given them with a guarantee for purification? Also, let not the command for staying indoors detract us from our discussion, for provisions have been made in Ahādith and Sunnah of the Prophet (SAW) that we must already be aware of.

The āyah asks women not to talk to men in manners that are enticing and seducing; but in manners that are graceful and dignified. And not to display themselves, when they are outdoors for business, in manners that are enticing and seducing to men around them. And this is so that they be pure through the Divine process of purification. That is the model of hayā that we ought to follow: pure action complementing pure appearance giving rise to pure hayā, and eventually a pure culture.

To be continued insha'Allah...