one mic, one stage.

Khalid ibn al Walid (r.a.) narrated the following hadith:

A Bedouin came one day to the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.) and said to him, "O, Messenger of Allah! I've come to ask you a few questions about the affairs of this Life and the Hereafter."
"Ask what you wish" said Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.)
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Q: I'd like to be the most learned of men.
A: Fear Allah, and you will be the most learned of men.
Q: I wish to be the richest man in the world.
A: Be contented, and you will be the richest man in the world.
Q: I'd like to be the most just man.
A: Desire for others what you desire for yourself, and you will be the most just of men.
Q: I want to be the best of men.
A: Do good to others and you will be the best of men.
Q: I wish to be the most favoured by Allah.
A: Engage much in Allah's praise, and you will be most favoured by Him.
Q: I'd like to complete my faith.
A: If you have good manners you will complete your faith.
Q: I wish to be among those who do good.
A: Adore Allah as if you see Him. Even if you don't see Him, He sees you. In this way you will be among those who do good.
Q: I wish to be obedient to Allah.
A: If you observe Allah's commands you will be obedient.
Q: I'd like to be free from all sins.
A: Bathe yourself from impurities and you will be free from all sins.
Q: I'd like to be raised on the Day of Judgment in the light.
A: Don't wrong yourself or any other creature, and you will be raised on the Day of Judgment in the light.
Q: I'd like Allah to bestow His mercy on me.
A: If you have mercy on yourself and others, Allah will grant you mercy on the Day of Judgment.
Q: I'd like my sins to be very few.
A: If you seek the forgiveness Allah as much as you can, your sins will be very few.
Q: I'd like to be the most honorable man.
A: If you do not complain to any fellow creature, you will be the most honorable of men.
Q: I'd like to be the strongest of men.
A: If you put your trust in Allah, you will be the strongest of men.
Q: I'd like to enlarge my provision.
A: If you keep yourself in order (clean), Allah will enlarge your provision.
Q: I'd like to be loved by Allah and His messenger.
A: If you love what Allah and His messenger love, you will be among their beloved ones.
Q: I wish to be safe from Allah's wrath on the Day of Judgment.
A: If you do not loose your temper with any of your fellow creatures, you will be safe from the wrath of Allah on the Day of Judgment.
Q: I'd like my prayers to be responded.
A: If you avoid forbidden actions, your prayers will be responded.
Q: I'd like Allah not to disgrace me on the Day of Judgment.
A: If you guard your chastity, Allah will not disgrace you on the Day of Judgment.
Q: I'd like Allah to provide me with a protective covering on the Day of Judgment.
A: Do not uncover your fellow creatures faults, and Allah will provide you with a covering protection on the Day of Judgment.
Q: What will save me from sins?
A: Tears, humbleness and illness.
Q: What are the best deeds in the eyes of Allah?
A: Gentle manners, modesty and patience.
Q: What are the worst evils in the eyes of Allah?
A: Hot temper and miserliness.
Q: What assuages the wrath of Allah in this life and in the Hereafter?
A: Concealed charity and kindness to relatives.
Q: What extinguishes hell's fires on the Day of Judgment?
A: Patience in adversity and misfortunes.
(Related by Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal)

[source: supermuslims.tumblr.com]

"hijab is a threat to consumerism" *cheers*

This was the most thought-provoking argument for hijab I have heard. love it. Today's (and history's) beauty standards presuppose that we are all sick or broken or in need of fixing. I read one of my favorite chapters in "Full Frontal Feminism" today, here are little excerpts that connect back to the video & to the fact that society keeps women obsessed with their looks for a purely gross, sexist purpose. ew. get familiar:

"Whether we're puking, or not eating, or cutting ourselves (or letting doctors do it), young women are at the center of the beauty cult. We run that shit. But when people talk about young women having eating disorders or getting plastic surgery, they often assume that we don't know the consequences- health or otherwise. The sad truth is, young women do know. We just don't care."

"When you're taught that the majority of your worth is in how aesthetically pleasing you are to boys - and then boys tell you you're ugly - there's something soul crushing about that"

"If you're a younger woman, no matter how much work you do, someone is always going to claim that your success is dues to the way you look...young women are constantly reminded that their only real worth is their ability to be ogled or ridiculed."

"Consumerism is at the heart of beauty standards. After all, who's telling you what's (and who's) hot? Fashion mags, for example, survive by selling ads, ads that tell you your skin will be disgusting if you don't buy the latest microderm scrubbing bubbly foamy face wash. They all depend on your feeling ugly. Because guess what? If you think your looks are just fine and dandy as they are, you're not going to buy face creams and makeup and diet pills. You're just going to hang out, feeling great and doing productive things. But if you feel ugly and fat, you're going to spend as much money as possible to make sure you're doing all you can to be pretty...It's important to remember why some folks need us to feel ugly. It serves a specific purpose: to make us spend, to distract us, and ultimately to make us disappear."

So what now? It's going to take awhile for the beauty standards of society to change, it's all little steps. Get educated about this and start liking yourself the way you are. Honestly, I need this advice more than anybody - so I'm not trying to preach. I don't wear hijab yet, but madprops to all of the Muslimahs out there that do. Accepting yourself the way you are is revolutionary in itself. I'm convinced that hijab is one step closer to that.

It's Not an Identity Crisis

currently reading:

"Religious experience is, by and large, ineffable. This indescribability is, in fact, one of the defining characteristics of mysticism and other forms of spiritual awareness. As listening to a piece of music that moves us to tears may defy our ability to explain those tears, spiritual encounters often resist our desire to describe them." - LA Times

"A gorgeously written memoir about what it means to be a human in a fractured world, told with warmth and wit to spare. It will stay with you for years." - Reza Aslan

Okay, not gonna lie, the reason I picked up this book as I was browsing was because of the praise from Reza Aslan! So I'm only about ten pages in, but so far so good.

LOVE: "To me Muslim and American are inseparable. I am a Muslim and an American. Politically this is incredibly irritating, but it's not an identity crisis." - excerpt from the book

hope.

"When shaytan reminds you of your past, remind him of his future."

"the pure men are for the pure women, and the pure women are for the pure men." [36.24]

A great talk on girlfriend/boyfriend relationships in Islam. seriously these are worth the watch, the speaker provides great info & perspective.







Worrrdd on the shaytaan not being very creative when it comes to this - but it's true...if it aint broke, don't fix it. I really like the escalator metaphor - it's true, once you're on it's way hard (and awkward) to get off. so my loves, save yourself the unnecessary exertion. Another point that he brought up that I've also seen in my own environment is that once you start disobeying Allah swt you aren't really happy...and at one point you'll be committing this sin just to get you back to the "normal" state and then you'll fall into depression and you do it again to get out. These homies aren't jumping up for joy. We have all seen that. Keep yourselves straight. & it's an ongoing struggle so don't get down if you think you're reading/hearing this too late - pray to Allah (swt) for strength and guidance.

Allah swt will never bless you in something that is haraam even if your eventual planned outcome is halal. so don't fool yourself. Starting today, make your actions so that they are worthy of your respective "Muhammad" or "Khadija" iA.

A Humanitarian Gift Guide

Came across this amazing article in the NY Times full of organizations that I have grown to admire deeply. Be sure to check out the full article, I'm listing my favorites here:

Arzu (ArzuStudioHope.org) employs women in Afghanistan to make carpets for export. The women get decent wages, but their families must commit to sending children to school and to allowing women to attend literacy and health classes and receive medical help in childbirth. Rugs start at $250 and bracelets at $10, or a $20 donation pays for a water filter for a worker’s family.

Fonkoze (fonkoze.org) is a terrific poverty-fighting organization if Haiti is on your mind, nearly a year after the earthquake. A $20 gift will send a rural Haitian child to elementary school for a year, while $50 will buy a family a pregnant goat. Or $100 supports a family for 13 weeks while it starts a business.

Panzi Hospital (panzifoundation.org) treats victims of sexual violence in eastern Congo, rape capital of the world. It’s run by Dr. Denis Mukwege, who should be a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize. A $10 donation pays for transport to the hospital for a rape survivor; $100 pays for counseling and literacy and skill training for a survivor for a month.

Camfed (camfed.org), short for the Campaign for Female Education, sends girls to school in Africa and provides a broad support system for them. A $300 donation pays for a girl to attend middle school for a year in rural Zambia, and $25 sends a girl to elementary school.

Edna Hospital (ednahospital.org) is a dazzling maternity hospital in Somaliland, an area with one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. Edna Adan Ismail, a Somali nurse- midwife who rose in the ranks of the World Health Organization and also served as Somaliland’s foreign minister, founded the hospital with her life’s savings and supports it with her United Nations pension. A $50 gift pays for a woman to get four prenatal visits, a hospital delivery, and one postnatal visit. Or $150 pays for a lifesaving C-section for a woman in obstructed labor.

EDUCATE THE WOMEN FOR A BETTER WORLD!

Child Rise

(start at 2:47 for "Child Rise" - this song speaks to me)

introducing my new muse: Naima Shalhoub
Naima's poignant lyrics emerge from a life of straddling cultural and national borders as an Arab-American, born in the US with familial roots in Lebanon and Sierra Leone. She has her master's degree in postcolonial anthropology focusing on gendered violence, effects of occupation in Lebanon and Palestine, and racial justice in the US. She continues to do advocacy work such as her past experiences including volunteering in refugee camps in Lebanon, Bay Area campaigns to end violence against women, and organic forming in Costa Rica. Naima is a current member member of the San Francisco based Arab Resource and Organizing Center, and also works with youth facilitating workshops on music, song-writing, and empowerment.
(taken from NaimaShalhoub.com)

OH and she plays uke, like me! well, baritone uke, so it's like the love-child of a guitar & ukulele.

Basically she does everything that I would like to ideally be doing. I don't know about the degree anymore, because I'm already almost done with undergrad, but iA everything else :)