RNS: Between Good Friday and Easter: A Muslim Meditation on Christ and Resurrection by Omid Safi is an interesting reflection on the Easter holiday. Safi's take on the subject strikes me as surprisingly "Christian". Over the years I've had my own thoughts on the subject, but have tended to put my energies into trying to make sense of the docetism of "they neither killed him, nor crucified him".
see also:
good friday
the cross and the lynching tree
muslim easter hymn
day after day after day
easter memories
Monday, April 01, 2013
Saturday, February 23, 2013
"con los teroristas"
Given the lyrics it was pretty much ineviteble that the meme would "evolve" in this direction:
Harlem Shake (al qaeda edition) is a collection of clips of "terrorist-looking" people moving and dancing to the Harlem Shake song, but doesn't really follow the "rules" of the meme (unlike the other examples). I doubt that the scenes were originally filmed with the intention of making a 'Harlem shake video'.
Harlem Shake (Terrorist Version) and (Terrorist Version 2) seem to be from a Dominican comedy group and features a number of "terrorists" standing in a basement around a "hostage" tied up to a chair.
Harlem Shake (Al Qaeda) - or not features three "terrorists" out in the woods with three "captives" on their knees and I'd guess that it was put together by frat boys. Both of these last two examples are oddly homoerotic but it doesn't seem uncommon for the meme.
Friday, February 22, 2013
the fader explains the harlem shake
The Fader: Explains the Harlem Shake gives a fairly thorough history of the meme's origins.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
tahajjud to end violence and inequality in chicago
In 2012 there were 506 homicides in Chicago, and there have already been 48 homicides in the city this year.
Many of us are heartbroken by these violent deaths, yet we feel helpless and hopeless when it comes to finding a way to prevent them. But there is something that each and every one of us can do: Pray.
The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) once said "prayer is the weapon of the believer." Taking this power of prayer seriously, we are asking everyone to commit to make the Tahajjud (night vigil) prayer on the early morning of Thursday, February 21st.
In the Qur'an God has said:
"And during a part of the night, pray Tahajjud beyond what is incumbent on you; maybe your Lord will raise you to a position of great glory." Sura Al-'Isra [17:79]
How to pray Tahajjud:
Tahajjud is performed two rakat (cycles) at a time, reciting out loud. This prayer is preferred in the last third of the night (approximately between 2-5am) and can be prayed individually or in a group.
We ask that you petition God to end both violence and inequality. We understand that the violence in Chicago, and in many other cities, does not happen in a vacuum, but that it is fueled by concentrated inequalities from education and policing to healthcare and jobs, problems that especially plague the south and west sides of our city.
What: Tahajjud to End Violence and Inequality in Chicago
When: Thursday, February 21st, 2-5am
Where: Anywhere (including the comfort of your own home)
Who: You!
Many of us are heartbroken by these violent deaths, yet we feel helpless and hopeless when it comes to finding a way to prevent them. But there is something that each and every one of us can do: Pray.
The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) once said "prayer is the weapon of the believer." Taking this power of prayer seriously, we are asking everyone to commit to make the Tahajjud (night vigil) prayer on the early morning of Thursday, February 21st.
In the Qur'an God has said:
"And during a part of the night, pray Tahajjud beyond what is incumbent on you; maybe your Lord will raise you to a position of great glory." Sura Al-'Isra [17:79]
How to pray Tahajjud:
Tahajjud is performed two rakat (cycles) at a time, reciting out loud. This prayer is preferred in the last third of the night (approximately between 2-5am) and can be prayed individually or in a group.
We ask that you petition God to end both violence and inequality. We understand that the violence in Chicago, and in many other cities, does not happen in a vacuum, but that it is fueled by concentrated inequalities from education and policing to healthcare and jobs, problems that especially plague the south and west sides of our city.
What: Tahajjud to End Violence and Inequality in Chicago
When: Thursday, February 21st, 2-5am
Where: Anywhere (including the comfort of your own home)
Who: You!
For a more general treatment see:
Saturday, February 09, 2013
Tuesday, February 05, 2013
Thursday, January 24, 2013
happy mawlid!
Hamza Yusuf: If You Don't Like the Mawlid, Watch Out!
Deoband.org: Mawlid, Deoband and Hanafi fiqh
Al-Balagh: Further Question about Milad
Masud: The Mawlid: The Conservative View
Living Islam: Comments on Mufti Taqi Usmani's Fatwa on Mawlid
Friday, January 18, 2013
the grand (hip-hop) chessboard: race, rap and raison d'etat
The Grand (Hip-Hop) Chessboard: Race, Rap and Raison d’État by Hishaam Aidi is a fascinating survey of the ways in which hip-hop (and in another era, jazz) has been a voice of resistance, but has also been used by different governments as a form of "soft power".
the foundations of an american muslim antipoverty movement
This talk was part of an antipoverty conference organized by the Muslim group, United For Change. Clips from other talks are available here.
tons and tons of free left-of-center books
A centralized location for your leftist literature is a huge trove of books from Adorno to Zizek; Dabashi on Islamic Liberation Theology, Said's Orientalism, the new Malcolm X biography by Marable, books on the Panthers, post-modernism and post-pocolonial studies, plenty Fanon, Freire and Foucault, seasoned with heaping doses of Nietzsche and many others. Enjoy.
elevate culture
Elevate Culture is an organization dedicated to supporting the growth of a vibrant and authentic North American Muslim culture. The Cultural Imperative is Islam’s call for Muslims to be culturally relevant while staying true to Islamic values.
Elevate Culture believes that until Islam is made culturally relevant, Muslims cannot reach their full potential. Our belief is that Islamic values do not serve to crush cultural values – they are here to refine them. Muslims are not meant to suppress culture – they are meant to Elevate Culture! EC wants to be with you as you unleash your creative force on the universe, God willing. Wherever you’re going, Elevate Culture is riding shotgun with advice, networking apps, and maybe some extra gas money. Check out their website for funding and networking opportunities!
Tuesday, January 08, 2013
Monday, January 07, 2013
defining legends (again, islam and afrocentricity)
Defining Legends: Analysis of Afrocentric Writings on Islam by Abdul-Haq ibn Kofi ibn Kwesi ibn al-Ashanti is an interesting e-book I've recently "discovered" responding to the basic Afrocentric critique of Islam. (e.g. see islam and afrocentrism, afrocentricity and islam ii) In alot of ways the book covers ground I've seen before (Al-Jahiz, Chancelor Williams, Molefi Asante, Blyden, et. alia) But among the pieces which were new to me was a surprisingly graphic hadith:
The Prophet said on the authority of Ubayy Bin Ka'ab: "If anyone proudly asserts his descent in the manner of the pre-Islamic people, tell him to bite his father's penis, and do not use a euphemism" (from Sharh us-Sunnah of al-Baghawee in Mishkaat ul-Masaabih)
I was initially tempted to summarize the intended meaning here by means of a certain more colloquial English idiom but according to one explanation I was able to find online, the meaning of the hadith is better rendered as "He who is proud of his origins in a manner that is similar to the era of pre-Islam, let him stay next to his father's semen [i.e. let him remember that his actual origin is a flithy semen]."
In any case it should be clear that Islam considers racism or ancestry-based supremacism as a gross offense.
The second piece I found really interesting was a reference to a book by Abu'l-Faraj Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Hasan Ibn ul-Jawzee, a late 12th century Hanbali scholar of Baghdad called Tanweer al-Ghabash fee Fadl is-Sudan wa'l Habash (The Illumination of the Darkness on the Merits of the Black People and the Ethiopians). Before now I was only aware of Al-Jahiz's "Book of the Glory of the Black Race" but apparently there have been several other medeival Muslim works on the virtues of Black folks (also mentioned in Defining Legends). I was not able to find any excerpts from Ibn ul-Jawzee's work itself but the chapter headings are:
The second piece I found really interesting was a reference to a book by Abu'l-Faraj Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Hasan Ibn ul-Jawzee, a late 12th century Hanbali scholar of Baghdad called Tanweer al-Ghabash fee Fadl is-Sudan wa'l Habash (The Illumination of the Darkness on the Merits of the Black People and the Ethiopians). Before now I was only aware of Al-Jahiz's "Book of the Glory of the Black Race" but apparently there have been several other medeival Muslim works on the virtues of Black folks (also mentioned in Defining Legends). I was not able to find any excerpts from Ibn ul-Jawzee's work itself but the chapter headings are:
a) Those who belong to the Sudan
b) The Cause of their dark-skin
c) The enlivening of Shem, the son of Noah, by Jesus the son of Mary
d) The Kingdoms of the Black People and their extent
e) The collective moral excellence of the character of the black people
f) Things distinguished by darkness from amongst animals, trees and plants
g) The obviousness that there is no preference for light-skinned peoples over dark-skinned people based upon colour; indeed preference is based upon piety
h) The companions who migrated to Ethiopia
i) The deputation of Quraysh to the Negus (Najaashi) to retrieve the companions of the messenger of Allaah
j) The correspondence of the prophet with the negus (najaashi)
k) The arrival of the Ethiopians to the Messenger of Allaah... And their play with hiraab (lances) in the mosque during his presence
l) Qur'aanic words of Ethiopian origin
m) What the messenger heard of the Ethiopian language that pleased him
n) The assignment of the call to the Ethiopians
o) The prophets who were black
p) The eminent king of Ethiopia
q) The distinguished black males amongst the companions of the prophet Muhammad
r) The distinguished black females amongst the companions of the prophet Muhammad
s) Prominent Black learned people
t) Poets and those who composed poetry amongst the black people
u) Groups of clever, intelligent and generous black males and females
v) The pious and ascetic of the black people
w) The famous black females
x) Those who preferred black concubines to light-skinned ones and who loved and died from their love of them
y) Qurayshees who were sons of Ethiopian women
z) Some exhortations and injunctions
aa) Some invocations and glorifications of Allaah, mighty and majestic
bb) Some transmitted supplications
b) The Cause of their dark-skin
c) The enlivening of Shem, the son of Noah, by Jesus the son of Mary
d) The Kingdoms of the Black People and their extent
e) The collective moral excellence of the character of the black people
f) Things distinguished by darkness from amongst animals, trees and plants
g) The obviousness that there is no preference for light-skinned peoples over dark-skinned people based upon colour; indeed preference is based upon piety
h) The companions who migrated to Ethiopia
i) The deputation of Quraysh to the Negus (Najaashi) to retrieve the companions of the messenger of Allaah
j) The correspondence of the prophet with the negus (najaashi)
k) The arrival of the Ethiopians to the Messenger of Allaah... And their play with hiraab (lances) in the mosque during his presence
l) Qur'aanic words of Ethiopian origin
m) What the messenger heard of the Ethiopian language that pleased him
n) The assignment of the call to the Ethiopians
o) The prophets who were black
p) The eminent king of Ethiopia
q) The distinguished black males amongst the companions of the prophet Muhammad
r) The distinguished black females amongst the companions of the prophet Muhammad
s) Prominent Black learned people
t) Poets and those who composed poetry amongst the black people
u) Groups of clever, intelligent and generous black males and females
v) The pious and ascetic of the black people
w) The famous black females
x) Those who preferred black concubines to light-skinned ones and who loved and died from their love of them
y) Qurayshees who were sons of Ethiopian women
z) Some exhortations and injunctions
aa) Some invocations and glorifications of Allaah, mighty and majestic
bb) Some transmitted supplications
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)