Gaza.

In the memory of all those who died. To all those who suffer from occupation, oppression, injustice, blockade, suffocation...May the Lord be with you.

reblogged from http://farahfilasteen.tumblr.com

Hmm.

I realized that I haven't actually WRITTEN much here in awhile. This is my space and I can use it however I'd like, that's for sure, but what I want right now is some dialogue.

I need to read more.

I need delve deeper into what it means to be "humble"

I need to stop being afraid to try things I really want to do.

I need to reconnect with all my old blog friends.

I need to stop doubting myself.

"How flexible the Qur'an is, at least in minds that are not fundamentally inflexible."

I love her! some gems from this talk:

"Part of the problem I think, is that we imagine the Qur'an can be read as we usually read a book, as though we can curl up w/ it on this rainy afternoon with a bowl of popcorn within reach. As though God -and the Quran is entirely in the voice of God speaking to Muhammad(pbuh)- were just another author on the best-seller list."

on translations of the Qur'an

"the more you add, the more seems to go missing. the arabic has an incantatory, almost hypnotic quality that begs to be heard rather than read. felt more than analyzed. It wants to be chanted out loud, to sound its music on the ear, and on the tongue. So the Quran in english is sort of a shadow of itself." Sometimes I want to just read the translation, but honestly, reading the arabic aloud in addition to the translation has a soothing effect all on it's own. She continues to state that all over the Qur'an Allah (swt) has said that patience is rewarded, and thus, if we are not native arabic speakers, we should still keep at it with our translations.

What sets the Quran apart? It includes women:

"For Muslim men and women, for believing men and women, for devout men and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in charity, for men and women who fast, for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah’s praise, for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward." (33:35)

I especially LOVE the last part about hoors. Hearing the whole swelling bosoms bit always gave me an uneasy feeling, because in a sense it seemed as if there was some sort of preference game going on here, however, we are all Allah (swt)'s creation and as Brother Ali says "these are God's fingerprints!" I like how she explained that we will be a new creation in paradise and recreated in a form uknown to us. and none of this 72 bs.

This motivated me to try harder in understanding the Qur'an, because the more I learn about it, the more subhan'Allah moments I have - and those moments can't be matched by anything else.

Peace.

And as you travel down your personal path...

Baraka Blue from Remarkable Current - I've blogged about Tyson before who is also from that label, but had no idea about BB. This is a great dua and I feel like sharing it with everyone I know - so spread it! I like that he touches upon a variety of subjects. Eloquent & sincere duas are where it's atttt.

"may your day be filled w/ love and light

may your wrongs be right

may your songs be tight

may your words give sight

may your noor shine bright

may you always be on the righteous side of the fight

may your lovers be loyal

may your soil be fertile

may your khakis stay creased

may your locks stay oiled

may your plans never get foiled

may your plot thicken

may your chicken be halal

may your style be sufficient

may your soul be free of this prison

may Allah increase you in your vision

may you find everything you been missin

may you awake for prayer before the sun has risen

when you speak may your audience listen

may you never feel trapped in the system

may you sign(?) many righteous children

who will act on Prophetic tradition

may you always have food on your plate

may you learn from every mistake

may you rise above all the hate

and may Allah increase you in your state

may you never pretend that you are what you aint

may your friends be real and never be fake

may your rent have to be never have to be late

and may your health always be great

may Allah forgive ever sin

now and forever if you falter again

and may you always stay close with your kin

and may He make all your enemies friends

may He make reality of your plans

may your present be pleasant

may you have a good end

may your heart be purified of flaws

and may you act according to the laws

that were revealed in the book of Allah

and may He catch you whenever you fall

may the One guide you to the truth

and when you doubt may He show you the proof

may you be like the ahla suf

with the wisdom of elders and energy of the youth

may He accept your prayers and your fasts

the very first to the very last

and remove obstacles you have

and may you receive everything you ask

may you never have regret for your past

and receive mercy not the wrath

and as you travel down your personal path

may you always have a reason to laugh.

"If you educate a woman, you have educated a population." - Kiganda proverb

Educational and economic empowerment of women could change conditions in the developing world. word.

snippets:

The central moral challenge of this century: gender inequity - the oppression of women and girls throughout the world.

How many of you think there are more males or females in the world?

Demographers have shown that there are more than 60 million and 100 million missing females in the current population.

Some reasons for this:

• in the last half century more girls were discriminated to death than all of the people killed in all of the battlefields in the 20th century
• sometimes because of the sonogram : girls are aborted before they are born

one of the best ways to fight poverty & terrorism is to educate girls and to bring women into the formal labor force.

Causes of Poverty:

1. overpopulation is one of the persistent causes of poverty

when you educate a girl she tends to have significantly fewer kids

2. spending (aka the dirty little secret of poverty)

not only do poor people take in very little income but they also dont spend the income they take in very wisely; most of it is spent by men. Research has shown if you look at people who live $2-a-day: 2% goes to education, 20% goes to tobacco, alchohol, sugary drinks, prosititution, & festibles. If you take 4% from this basket and put it into education there would be a huge change.

3. women are part of the solution not the problem

specific challenges:

• sex trafficking - 80,000 slaves were transported from Africa to the New World. In modern day slavery about 800,000 are traficked across international borders (not including within country borders). A slave back then was worth $40,000 - today a girl traficked can be bought for a few hundred dollars - does this make her more disposable?
• maternal mortality - in Niger 1 in 7 women can expect to die during child birth. Around the world one woman dies every 1.5 minutes. For every women that does die there are 20 that survive but left with an injury.

SOME SOLUTIONS

give girls and women education & economic opportunity!

An educated girl will get married later, will have fewer kids, and will educate in more enlightened fashion.

"the highest return on investement in the developing world is in girls' education"

there are very few things that can elevate your happiness in life research has proven that one of them is contributing to a cause larger than yourself.

We've all won the lottery of life, how do we discharge that responsibility?

5 reasons why Allah SWT tests us

The problems you face will either defeat you or develop you - depending on how you respond to them. Unfortunately, most people fail to see how God wants to use problems for good in their lives. They react foolishly and resent their problems rather than pausing to consider what benefit they might bring.

Here are five ways God wants to use the problems in your life:

1. God uses problems to DIRECT you.
Sometimes God must light a fire under you to get you moving. Problems often point us in a new direction and motivate us to change. Is God trying to get your attention? "Sometimes it takes a painful situation to make us change our ways."

2. God uses problems to INSPECT you.
People are like tea bags...if you want to know what's inside them, just drop them into hot ever water! Has God tested your faith with a problem What do problems reveal about
you? "When you have many kinds of troubles, you should be full of joy, because you know that these troubles test your faith, and this will give you patience."

3. God uses problems to CORRECT you.
Some lessons we learn only through pain and failure. It's likely that as a child your parents told you not to touch a hot stove.... But you probably learned by being burned. Sometimes we only learn the value of something... health, money, a relationship. .. by losing it. "It was the best thing that could have happened to me, for it taught me to pay attention to your laws."

4. God uses problems to PROTECT you.
A problem can be a blessing in disguise if it prevents you from being harmed by something more serious. Last year a friend was fired for refusing to do something unethical that his boss had asked him to do. His unemployment was a problem - but it saved him from being convicted and sent to prison a year later when management's actions were eventually discovered. "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good...

5. God uses problems to PERFECT you.
Problems, when responded to correctly, are character builders. God is far more interested in your character than your comfort. Your relationship to God and your character are the only two things you're going to take with you into eternity. "We can rejoice when we run into problems...they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of characer in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our hope and faith are strong and steady."


Here's the point:

God is at work in your life - even when you do not recognize it or understand it.

But it's much easier and profitable when you cooperate with Him.

"Success can be measured not only in achievements, but in lessons learned, lives touched and moments shared along the way"

-reblogged from http://www.lessonsoftheday.com/